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Sunday 28 February 2021

Reading Round-Up: January/February 2021

Books

We're now two months into the New Year and 2021 has certainly made a big impression already. Despite everything that has been going on in the world recently, I've managed to continue reading and reviewing, making a big dent in my tbr for the year.

Keep on reading to see all the latest bookish happenings from my world during the last two months.

Monday 22 February 2021

Book Review: A Caller's Game by J.D. Barker

A Caller's Game by J.D. Barker book cover

AD* | “I’m going to offer you a choice.”

Controversial satellite radio talk show host, Jordan Briggs, has clawed her way to the top of the broadcast world. She doesn’t hold back, doesn’t spare feelings, and has no trouble sharing what’s on her mind. Her rigorous pursuit of success has come at a price, though. Her marriage is in ruins, she hasn’t spoken to her mother in years, and she’s distanced herself from all those close to her. If not for her young daughter, Charlotte, her personal life would be in complete shambles.

When a subdued man calls into the show and asks to play a game, she sees it as nothing more than a way to kick-start the morning, breathe life into the beginnings of drive-time for her listeners. Against her producer’s advice, she agrees, and unwittingly opens a door to the past.

Live on the air with an audience of millions, what starts out as a game quickly turns deadly - events long thought buried resurface and Jordan Briggs is forced to reconcile with one simple fact - all decisions have consequences.


Thursday 18 February 2021

Book Review: Who Took Eden Mulligan? by Sharon Dempsey

Who Took Eden Mulligan? by Sharon Dempsey book cover

AD* | "They’re dead. They’re all dead. It’s my fault. I killed them."

Those are the words of Iona Gardener, who stands bloodied and staring as she confesses to the murder of four people in a run-down cottage outside of Belfast.

Outside the cottage, five old dolls are hanging from a tree. Inside the cottage, the words “WHO TOOK EDEN MULLIGAN?” are graffitied on the wall, connecting the murder scene with the famous cold case of Eden Mulligan, a mother-of-five who went missing during The Troubles.

But this case is different. Right from the start.

Because no one in the community is willing to tell the truth, and the only thing DI Danny Stowe and forensic psychologist Rose Lainey can be certain of is that Iona Gardener’s confession is false...


Friday 12 February 2021

Book Review: The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles

The Paris Library Blog Tour Graphic

AD* | Based on the true World War II story of the heroic librarians at the American Library in Paris, this is an unforgettable story of romance, friendship, family, and the power of literature to bring us together.

Paris, 1939: Young and ambitious Odile Souchet has it all: her handsome police officer beau and a dream job at the American Library in Paris. When the Nazis march into Paris, Odile stands to lose everything she holds dear, including her beloved library. Together with her fellow librarians, Odile joins the Resistance with the best weapons she has: books. But when the war finally ends, instead of freedom, Odile tastes the bitter sting of unspeakable betrayal.

Montana, 1983: Lily is a lonely teenager looking for adventure in small-town Montana. Her interest is piqued by her solitary, elderly neighbour. As Lily uncovers more about her neighbour’s mysterious past, she finds that they share a love of language, the same longings, and the same intense jealousy, never suspecting that a dark secret from the past connects them.

A powerful novel that explores the consequences of our choices and the relationships that make us who we are - family, friends, and favourite authors - The Paris Library shows that extraordinary heroism can sometimes be found in the quietest of places. 


Thursday 11 February 2021

Book Review: Game Changer by Neal Shusterman

Game Changer by Neal Shusterman book cover

AD* | All it takes is one hit on the football field, and suddenly Ash’s life doesn’t look quite the way he remembers it.

Impossible though it seems, he’s been hit into another dimension - and keeps on falling into universes that are almost-but-not-really his own, each one stranger than the last.

And if he isn’t careful, the world he’s learning to see more clearly could blink out of existence...


Friday 5 February 2021

Book Review: The Shadow Man by Helen Fields

The Shadow Man by Helen Fields book cover

AD* | He collects his victims. But he doesn’t keep them safe.

Elspeth, Meggy and Xavier are locked in a flat. They don’t know where they are, and they don’t know why they’re there. They only know that the shadow man has taken them, and he won’t let them go.

Desperate to escape, the three of them must find a way out of their living hell, even if it means uncovering a very dark truth.

Because the shadow man isn’t a nightmare. He’s all too real.

And he’s watching.


Thursday 4 February 2021

Book Review: All Our Hidden Gifts by Caroline O'Donoghue

All Our Hidden Gifts by Caroline O'Donoghue book cover

AD* | Maeve’s strangely astute tarot readings make her the talk of the school, until a classmate draws a chilling and unfamiliar card - and then disappears.

After Maeve finds a pack of tarot cards while cleaning out a closet during her in-school suspension, she quickly becomes the most sought-after diviner at St. Bernadette’s Catholic school. But when Maeve’s ex-best friend, Lily, draws an unsettling card called The Housekeeper that Maeve has never seen before, the session devolves into a heated argument that ends with Maeve wishing aloud that Lily would disappear. When Lily isn’t at school the next Monday, Maeve learns her ex-friend has vanished without a trace.

Shunned by her classmates and struggling to preserve a fledgling romance with Lily’s gender-fluid sibling, Roe, Maeve must dig deep into her connection with the cards to search for clues the police cannot find - even if they lead to the terrifying Housekeeper herself. Set in an Irish town where the church’s tight hold has loosened and new freedoms are trying to take root, this sharply contemporary story is witty, gripping, and tinged with mysticism.


Monday 1 February 2021

5 Ways to Stay Entertained in Lockdown

5 great ways to stay entertained in lockdown graphic

It's almost been a year since the UK first went into lockdown in March 2020. However, despite the good news about vaccines, it seems as though little has really changed. Without the lovely summer weather to keep us feeling positive and enjoying the outdoors, it definitely feels as though lockdown has hit much harder this time around. 

If you're fed up of the latest lockdown fads or need a break from endless doomscrolling, I'm sharing some top tips to keep you busy - and entertained - during the lockdown.