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I post book reviews as often as possible but at least once a week every Wednesday! I hope they help you to find some new books that you'll love as much as I did!
 Today The Feather Thief comes out in paperback! To celebrate the paperback release, I’m sharing a mini review of this fascinating true crime book! The Synopsis A true crime story like no other you’ve read before One summer evening in 2009, twenty-year-old musical prodigy Edwin Rist broke into the British Museum of Natural History. Hours later, he slipped away with a suitcase full of rare bird specimens collected over the centuries from across the world, all featuring a dazzling array of priceless feathers. A page-turning story of a bizarre and shocking crime, The Feather Thief shines a light on our fraught relationship with the natural world’s most beautiful and valuable wonders, and one man’s relentless quest for justice. My Mini Review (Proof Cover) While I have no background in the subject matter of the book, I still found it to be a truly fascinating read and I was really impressed by the sheer amount of research that had obviously gone into writing it. It was so well written and very insightful and eye opening on the topic of fly tying and illegally obtaining bird feathers to do this. It really left me in shock at the lengths people will go to and the damage they will do along the way. The pace is fast and enjoyable and I absolutely flew through the book. Overall I’m giving The Feather Thief 4 out of 5. It’s detailed, fascinating and brilliantly written. A real must-read. This book was provided free in exchange for an honest review The above is an affiliate link About the AuthorKirk Wallace Johnson served in Iraq with the US Agency for International Development in Baghdad and Fallujah as the Agency’s first co-ordinator for reconstruction in the war-torn city. He went on to found The List Project to Resettle Iraqi Allies. His work on behalf of Iraqi refugees was profiled by This American Life, 60 Minutes, the Today Show, the subject of a feature-length documentary, The List, and a memoir, To Be a Friend is Fatal.
A Senior Fellow at the USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy, and the recipient of fellowships from the American Academy in Berlin, Yaddo, the MacDowell Colony, and the Wurlitzer Foundation, his writing has appeared in The New Yorker, the New York Times and the Washington Post. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, son and daughter.
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 Today is my stop on the blog tour for 55 by James Delargy! Thanks so much to Anne for organising the tour. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the stops. The Synopsis Two suspects. Two identical stories. Which one is the truth? Wilbrook in Western Australia is a sleepy, remote town that sits on the edge of miles and miles of unexplored wilderness. It is home to Police Sergeant Chandler Jenkins, who is proud to run the town’s small police station, a place used to dealing with domestic disputes and noise complaints. All that changes on a scorching day when an injured man stumbles into Chandler’s station. He’s covered in dried blood. His name is Gabriel. He tells Chandler what he remembers - he was drugged and driven to a cabin in the mountains and tied up in iron chains. The man who took him was called Heath. Heath told Gabriel he was going to be number 55. His 55th victim. Heath is a serial killer. As a manhunt is launched, a man who says he is Heath walks into the same station. He tells Chandler he was taken by a man named Gabriel. Gabriel told Heath he was going to be victim 55. Gabriel is the serial killer. Police Sergant Chandler Jenkins needs to find out who is telling the truth – and quick. is He is forced to call in Mitch, his former partner and now insufferable superior, a partnership which dissolved in acrimony years earlier. Can Mitch and Chandler uncover the truth, before the 55th victim is taken? My Review Before I say anything else, I just want to let you know that this book is one of the best books I’ve read so far this year. I read 55 everywhere I possibly could and I struggled to even think about stopping reading. It really kept my attention, leaving me riveted and totally engrossed so that time completely ran away from me (at one point 2 hours passed without me even noticing). I really liked the unique and cleverly written plot and how the storyline feels original the whole way through the book. You never know which of the two suspects to trust, and with the additional layer to the story regarding Chandler and Mitch’s past friendship which is seamlessly weaved in, it’s not just the two suspects you find yourself questioning. I was constantly trying to come up with theories and ideas and had thoughts and guesses flying around in my mind at all times. All this was only enhanced by the action and tension which kept me on the edge of my seat and didn’t let me rest for a minute. I felt that all of the characters were really well written but I particularly liked Chandler and found that I warmed to him and almost felt his emotions for him during some parts of the book. Overall, I’m giving 55 4.5 out of 5. It’s thrilling, perfectly paced and an absolutely addictive read. I thoroughly enjoyed every single moment. This book was provided free in exchange for an honest review The above is an affiliate link About the AuthorJames Delargy was born and raised in Ireland and lived in South Africa, Australia and Scotland, before ending up in semi-rural England where he now lives. He incorporates his diverse knowledge of towns, cities, landscape and culture picked up on his travels into his writing. 55 is his first novel, which has been sold in 19 countries so far and optioned for film by Zucker Productions in partnership with Prodigy Pictures.
 The Synopsis BEFORE YOU READ THIS BOOK I WANT YOU TO KNOW THREE THINGS: 1. The police are looking to charge me with murder. 2. No one knows who I am. Or how I did it. 3. If you think you've found me. I'm coming for you next. After you've read this book, you'll know: the truth is far more twisted... My Review My word, ‘Twisted’ is certainly a very apt title for this book! It’s absolutely jam packed with twists and there were loads and loads of times where I was left with my mouth just hanging open. There are so many twists in fact, that it’s really difficult to write a review without giving any of them away!! (Apologies if my review is shorter than normal for that reason!) The opening felt really unique and I was hooked and intrigued by the very first sentence. Not only are there twists upon twists, this book is full of action too and I felt that I never knew who I could trust or what to make of each person, with the different narratives working perfectly to create this feeling. The ending really packed a punch and it’s stuck in my head even now. I think that the best way to sum up my thoughts though, is to share a photo of one of the notes I made while I was reading! (There were more, but this was the only one that didn’t contain a spoiler!)  The amount of ‘??!!’ I used really says it all I think! Overall, I’m giving Twisted 4 out of 5. It’s clever, intriguing and endlessly twisty. This e-book was provided free in exchange for an honest review. The above is an affiliate link. About the AuthorSteve Cavanagh was born and raised in Belfast before leaving for Dublin at the age of eighteen to study Law. He currently practices civil rights law and has been involved in several high profile cases; in 2010 he represented a factory worker who suffered racial abuse in the workplace and won the largest award of damages for race discrimination in Northern Ireland legal history. He holds a certificate in Advanced Advocacy and lectures on various legal subjects (but really he just likes to tell jokes). He is married with two young children.
Follow Steve on Facebook at facebook.com/SSCav1 and Twitter @SSCav |
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