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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 is my stop on the blog tour for Haven’t They Grown by Sophie Hannah! Don’t forget to check out the rest of the stops! The Synopsis All Beth has to do is drive her son to his Under-14s away match, watch him play, and bring him home. Just because she knows that her former best friend lives near the football ground, that doesn't mean she has to drive past her house and try to catch a glimpse of her. Why would Beth do that, and risk dredging up painful memories? She hasn't seen Flora Braid for twelve years. But she can't resist. She parks outside Flora's house and watches from across the road as Flora and her children, Thomas and Emily, step out of the car. Except... There's something terribly wrong. Flora looks the same, only older - just as Beth would have expected. It's the children that are the problem. Twelve years ago, Thomas and Emily Braid were five and three years old. Today, they look precisely as they did then. They are still five and three. They are Thomas and Emily without a doubt - Beth hears Flora call them by their names - but they haven't changed at all. They are no taller, no older. Why haven't they grown? My Review What drew me to Haven’t They Grown was the absolute impossibility of the situation that Beth Leeson finds herself in on that morning dropping her son off to football practice. How on Earth can two children be exactly the same age as they were 12 years ago? Alongside Beth, I puzzled over this for almost the entirety of the book. Each new piece of information had my mind whirring with new theories and possibilities but I still couldn’t manage to explain that vital question. I wondered how Hannah was going to pull it off, but having read and enjoyed previous books of hers, I knew that somehow she would. As Beth came closer to finding the answer to the mysteries of the Braid family, I felt the tension subtly build and eventually realised that I wouldn’t be able to stop reading until all was revealed. While I must say that at times I did find certain scenes a little dragged out for my liking, I later came to realise that this actually contributed to the building of that tension and in a way, the frustration I felt was representative of the way that Beth felt throughout the book, so this was actually something which helped me to connect with her more. I’d say that the ending was definitely worth the wait and the build up. It offered plenty of excitement, tension and satisfaction to say the least. As I’ve always said, humour is something I really love to see, especially in a book of this genre and Haven’t They Grown had plenty of it. This often arose from Beth’s interaction with her family and I must say that I think Beth’s relationship with her family was one of my favourite parts of the book. Overall, I’m giving Haven’t They Grown 4 out of 5. It’s impossible, chilling and cleverly written. If there’s one thing Haven’t They Grown illustrates, it’s that Sophie Hannah is at the top of her game. This book was provided free in exchange for an honest review About the AuthorSophie Hannah is an internationally bestselling crime fiction writer, translated into 49 languages and published in 51 countries. Her psychological thriller The Carrier won the Specsavers National Book Award for Crime Thriller of the Year in 2013. Sophie is the author of the bestselling Poirot continuation mysteries. The Point of Rescue and The Other Half Lives have been adapted for television as Case Sensitive, starring Olivia Williams and Darren Boyd. Sophie is also a bestselling poet who has been shortlisted for the TS Eliot award. Her poetry is studied at GCSE and A-level. Sophie is an Honorary Fellow of Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge. She lives in Cambridge with her family. N.B - apologies for the delay in posting, I had scheduled the review to post on the correct day and not realised that it hadn’t done so.
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 Today is my stop on the blog tour for The Dilemma by B A Paris! Don’t forget to check out the rest of the stops! The Synopsis It’s Livia’s 40th birthday and she’s having the party of a lifetime to make up for the wedding she never had. Everyone she loves will be there except her daughter Marnie, who’s studying abroad. But although Livia loves Marnie, she’s secretly glad she won’t be at the party. She needs to tell Adam something about their daughter but she’s waiting until the party is over so they can have this last happy time together. Adam wants everything to be perfect for Livia so he’s secretly arranged for Marnie to come home and surprise her on her birthday. During the day, he hears some terrible news. He needs to tell Livia, because how can the party go on? But she’s so happy, so excited – and the guests are about to arrive. The Dilemma – how far would you go to give someone you love a last few hours of happiness? My Review Bring Me Back is one of my favourite books and while The Dilemma marks a bit of a new direction for B A Paris, it keeps all of the classic elements which make Paris’ books so addictive to read. Once again I was hooked right from the first page and it’s simply impossible to put down. It’s also extremely difficult to review The Dilemma without giving the plot away, which is something that’s particularly important to avoid when it comes to this book and trust me you’ll understand why when you read it. There’s so much tension and emotion packed into the pages that I felt like I was on a real emotional rollercoaster the entire time and I knew it wouldn’t be a book I’d be forgetting any time soon. I loved the dual narrative style and the way it enabled me to gradually get to know the characters and the back stories whilst keeping the book moving along at a perfect pace and I don’t think I looked up once the entire time I was reading. The ending was the jewel in the crown for me though, it shocked me again and again and was everything I could’ve hoped for and more. Once again, a classic feature of B A Paris’ books. Overall, I’m giving The Dilemma 4.5 out of 5. It’s addictive, emotional and powerful. What a way to start off the year! This book was provided free in exchange for an honest review About the Author B A Paris is the internationally bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors, The Breakdown and Bring Me Back. Now approaching 1.5 million copies sold in the UK alone, she is a New York Times bestseller as well as a number one bestseller on Amazon and iBooks. Her books have sold in 37 territories around the world. Having lived in France for many years, she recently moved back to the UK. She has five daughters.
  Today is my stop on the blog tour for The Ex Girlfriend by Nicola Moritarty! Don’t forget to check out the rest of the stops! The Synopsis Luke is the one. After everything she's been through, Georgia knows she deserves someone like him, to make her feel loved. Safe. The only problem is his ex-girlfriend. Luke says Cadence is having trouble accepting their break-up, but Georgia thinks there's more to the story. She has the feeling someone is watching her. So when everything starts to go wrong at work, at home, in her old friendships and her happy new relationship with Luke, Georgia starts to feel afraid. It's becoming clear Cadence wants what she has. But how far will she go to get it? My Review The name Nicola Moriarty is becoming quite a regular feature on my blog, and for very good reason. I pretty much fell in love with Moriarty’s writing after reading The Fifth Letter back in 2017 and I fell in love with it all over again whilst reading The Ex Girlfriend. There’s something quite spellbinding about the way it reads. While it starts at more of a comfortable pace, as the book progresses the pace gradually picks up and by the end, it really is gripping and edge of your seat level stuff. I did guess quite a key part of the story, but I definitely didn’t guess how all of the pieces of the puzzle would eventually slot together and when they did so, I felt completely satisfied. The way the ending always makes me feel completely content is a real highlight of Moriarty’s books for me and with The Ex Girlfriend I had one of those moments where I closed the book and felt completely fulfilled. Overall, I’m giving The Ex Girlfriend 4.5 out of 5. It’s atmospheric, dramatic and extremely satisfying. I can’t wait for more from Nicola Moriarty! This book was provided free in exchange for an honest review About the AuthorNicola Moriarty is a novelist, copywriter and mum to two small (but remarkably strong-willed) daughters. In between various career changes, becoming a mum and studying at university, she began to write. Now, she can't seem to stop. The Fifth Letter was her UK debut novel, followed by Those Other Women.
 Today is my stop on the blog tour for The Last Hunt by Deon Meyer! Thanks so much to Jenny for organising the tour, don’t forget to check out the rest of the stops! The Synopsis A cold case for Captain Benny Griessel and Vaughn Cupido of the Hawks elite police unit - not what they were looking for. And a difficult case, too. The body of Johnson Johnson, ex-cop, has been found beside a railway line. He appears to have jumped from South Africa's - perhaps the world's - most luxurious train, and two suspicious characters seen with him have disappeared into thin air. The regular police have already failed to make progress and others are intent on muddying the waters. Meanwhile in Bordeaux, Daniel Darret is settled in a new life on a different continent. A quiet life. But his skills as an international hit-man are required one more time, and Daniel is given no choice in the matter. He must hunt again - his prey the corrupt president of his homeland. Three strands of the same story become entwined in a ferocious race against time - for the Hawks to work out what lies behind the death of Johnson, for Daniel to evade the relentless Russian agents tracking him, for Benny Griessel to survive long enough to take another huge step in his efforts to piece together again the life he nearly destroyed - and finally ask Alexa Bernard to marry him. My ReviewThe Last Hunt is the sixth book in the Benny Griessel series, but make sure you don’t let that put you off if you’ve not read the previous books. This was the first Benny Griessel book I had read (in fact it was my first book by Meyer ever) and I absolutely loved every minute of it! I got right into it instantly and the relentless pace kept me hooked for the entirety of the book, so much so that I barely put it down. I loved meeting all of the characters, who were so well drawn that they felt completely real to me. It was the same with the setting, I almost believed I’d been to South Africa and I felt like I’d been on such a journey by the end of the book - both distance wise and emotionally! The plot was excellent, there was so much suspense while the current affairs and political edge kept it right up to date. Overall, I’m giving The Last Hunt 4.5 out of 5. It’s totally gripping, with plenty of twists and plenty of action. I can’t wait to read more of Meyer’s books! This book was provided free in exchange for an honest review. About the AuthorDeon Meyer is the award-winning and bestseller of both series and standalone crime thrillers. He has won the Deutsche Krimi Preis, Le Grand Prix de Littérature Policière and Le Prix Mystère de la Critique for DEAD AT DAYBREAK, which was adapted for an Afrikaans M-Net TV series (SA). He has also received the Barry Award in the Best Thriller and was shortlisted for the Macavity Best Mystery Novel Award. He has been shortlisted for the CWA International Dagger three times. Rights in his titles are sold in 30 territories and 28 languages and many of his books have been optioned for film. DEAD BEFORE DYING was filmed for a 6-part TV series, titled CAPE TOWN. He is much in demand for appearances at festivals and tours around the world. @MeyerDeon
 Today is my stop on the blog tour for The Stone Song by Tom Bale! Don’t forget to check out the rest of the stops! The Synopsis On a sweltering summer’s night, teenage siblings Jack and Lily witness a helicopter crash on the main road between Brighton and London. The next morning they wake to find their village has been sealed off from the entire world. A terrorist cell is holed up in Stenhurst – or at least that’s the official story, put out by sinister government agent Wynter and his vicious sidekick, Major Kellett. But later that day, Lily and Jack stumble on the truth: the authorities are hunting for a mysterious creature, labelled CatX, who escaped during the crash. Together with their friends, Erin and Oliver, Lily and Jack take it upon themselves to defy the lockdown and protect the creature, no matter what the risks. The stakes are raised still further when a team of American agents arrive with their own unique technologies. Nobody who sees the CatX must be allowed to survive, and yet it soon becomes clear that there is a much bigger secret here...one that threatens the entire world. My ReviewI was excited to be invited to this blog tour for so many reasons! I’ve never reviewed an audiobook on my blog before and since The Stone Song is a dystopian sci-fi thriller, it also gave me the chance to read a little outside of my usual genre, an experience which I always enjoy. And I certainly did enjoy every aspect of The Stone Song. All of the characters felt well-developed and real, while the plot kept me fully engaged and completely gripped. I also really enjoyed the narration by Raza Jaffrey. He’s got a beautiful voice which kept me captivated and only heightened the intrigue and tension I felt during the audiobook. (Additionally, I loved the interview with Jaffrey at the end, I thought it was a nice little addition.) Overall, I’m giving The Stone Song 4 out of 5. It’s fast-paced, tense and had a poignant but satisfying ending. I’ll definitely be reading more by Tom Bale. This audiobook was provided free in exchange for an honest review. |
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