Review: The Happy Family by Jackie Kabler

One reason for signing up to a book subscription box was that I wanted to be sent books that I probably wouldn’t pick for myself, as I wanted to find a few new and exciting discoveries. Despite loving crime and psychological thrillers, I don’t think I would have chosen this book for myself, so it was exactly the kind of thing I was after from my book subscription: an opportunity to try something new.

Beth’s mother left her as a child, and Beth has always felt like she wasn’t quite good enough. Despite this, Beth has built a successful life for herself, as a GP practice manager and bringing up her 2 children. One day, Beth’s mother walks back into her life. Beth is thrilled to see her mum after all these years and enjoys reconnecting with her. But then things start to go wrong in Beth’s life. Her friends become distant; Beth begins loosing items around the house; her life seems out of control. Beth is certain that someone close by is causing all of these issues, but unsure as to who might be treating her this way. Can she work it out before she loses her job and her family?

This was a book that I finished in just a couple of sittings; the story was fast-paced and gripping, and I certainly felt a lot of sympathy for the protagonist. One criticism would be that it became quite obvious to me as the reader who was responsible, and it was a little frustrating that Beth didn’t work it out sooner. There was also a twist at the end, which I managed to predict. However, even knowing this, I still enjoyed the story.

A fast paced psychological thriller, if you enjoy melodramatic domestic stories, then this is one I would recommend.

Review: Celebrations at the Château by Jo Thomas

I saw this book reviewed and recommended on Twitter and felt like it would be a perfect bit of light-hearted escapism as the evenings started to draw in.

Fliss and her sisters are shocked when they discover that they’ve inherited a château from their grandfather. They travel to France to look at it, with plans to sell it and use the money to improve their own lives. However, they discover that not only can they not sell it, but that there is also a live-in tenant who they need to financially support. As the sister with the least commitments, Fliss stays at the château, looking to turn it into a B and B to help the family to make the payments needed. She finds this more of a challenged than expected, with lots of renovation needed at the château and the townspeople being less than welcoming, especially her neighbour Jacques, who she buts heads with on several occasions.

With the help of her live-in-tenant, her nephew and Jacques’ daughter, Fliss begins her work on transforming the château and discovers a new-found love for this beautiful location. Despite all the challenges thrown in her way, she is determined to make it a success. She even forms a friendship with Jacques, which has the potential to turn into something more. A wedding on New Year’s Eve may well be the booking that helps transform the château, but can Fliss pull off such a big event?

I absolutely loved this story; it was easy to read, and a book that you can immerse yourself in. Fliss was a likeable protagonist and the romance plot was enjoyable. I really enjoyed reading about the back-story behind how Fliss’s grandfather came to own the château, and reading about how she brought it back to life.

This is a particularly great book for anyone who has watched and enjoyed the Escape to the Château TV series, and in the acknowledgements at the end the author mentions how much she was inspired by the TV show when writing this book. My one warning is that this book will make you feel very hungry – descriptions of bread, cheese, and various farmhouse dishes will have your mouth watering! A lovely, heartwarming book with just the right balance of friendship and romance.

Review: The Party Crasher by Sophie Kinsella

I love Sophie Kinsella’s novels – they’re always entertaining, funny and easy to read. When I saw she had a new book out this October, I knew I wanted to read it.

When Effie’s parents separate she is shocked; to her they’ve always been the perfect family. She’s even more upset when her dad starts seeing a younger woman, and Effie suspects her of being after only one thing only: his money. When Effie’s dad sells their childhood home, his new girlfriend holds a ‘house-cooling’ and invites all their family and friends. However, Effie only receives an anti-invitation and becomes determined not to go. Until she realises that her precious Russian dolls are still hidden within the house somewhere.

Effie comes up with a plan; whilst the party’s in full swing, she will sneak into the house and steal her Russian dolls back. It’s a simple plan but it quickly becomes complicated as Effie finds herself sneaking around the house, trying to avoid her family and her ex-boyfriend.

This was such a fun story to read! There were lots of laugh-out-loud moments, as well as hidden secrets coming to light. Sophie Kinsella has the perfect style for this kind of story, and you just lose yourself in the plot. I finished the book in a couple of sittings; once I’d picked it up I didn’t want to put it down!

The characters were also interesting to read about. All of them had their own flaws, including the protagonist, and this is what I enjoy about Kinsella’s stories so much. The main characters learn about themselves as the plot progresses. A great read to spend a few hours with; highly recommended.

Review: The Highland Falcon Thief by M.G.Leonard and Sam Sedgman

When I was a child, I loved adventure and mystery stories; I couldn’t get enough of them. As an adult, I still like to read children’s literature, even though I’m not the intended audience. The Adventures on Trains series consists of several books, all set on board different trains, and seemed like an exciting and interesting series to dip into. The Highland Falcon Thief is the first in the series.

Hal has been sent to take part in The Highland Falcon’s last journey along with his Uncle. Hal’s not sure what the fuss is about, but he enjoys learning about the steam train. Initially he’s annoyed that he’s the only child on-board, but then he discovers a stowaway called Lenny. As they make friends, a mystery begins to unfold on the train. Several priceless jewels go missing, and Hal and Lenny take it upon themselves to track down the thief, who they’ve nicknamed The Magpie. As the journey continues, the police become involved and suspicion falls on Lenny – can Hal clear her name?

This children’s adventure story is a really fun book with plenty of action, friendship and a mystery to solve. It’s certainly the kind of story that children age 7-10 might enjoy picking up and getting lost in for a little while. There are some great illustrations to go alongside the descriptions of the train, which will make this story even more interesting for younger readers.

Review: A Kind of Spark by Ellie McNicoll

In an attempt to widen my reading choices, I’ve been looking at some recent award winners. A Kind of Spark won the Waterstones children’s prize for fiction in 2021, and as soon as I read the synopsis, I knew that it was a book I wanted to read.

Addie is eleven years old, and being autistic, she sometimes finds the world around her difficult to interpret. She loves sharks, her thesaurus, and spending time in the quiet school library, away from the overwhelming loudness of the rest of the school. Her older sister Keedie is just like her, and supports Addie as much as she can, although she is facing her own challenges as she begins university.

One day, Addie’s teacher tells the class about the witches that were unfairly tried and killed in her small town, Juniper. Addie automatically empathises with the unfairness of how these women were treated and embarks upon a campaign to get her town to create a memorial to the women who were falsely accused and killed hundreds of years before. As she faces rejection from the town about the memorial, Addie also faces personal challenges as she encounters bullies: both children and adults.

This was an incredible story to read. Primarily aimed at 9-11 year olds, there is so much within it for adults to learn from as well. Addie is an amazing protagonist and the book absolutely encourages the reader to understand the way that she experiences the world differently. There are really heartbreaking moments, especially when Addie faces prejudice from school children and teachers. But there are also lovely moments of friendship and support.

I would highly recommend this book; it is a fantastic story about neurodiversity and the importance of friendship, family and kindness.

Review: Death in the Clouds by Agatha Christie

The October #ReadChristie2021 challenge was a story set on a mode of transport. Whilst there is more than one Poirot story set on a train, I chose to pick up Death in the Clouds, a story that I’ve been meaning to read for a while. The mode of transport, as suggested by the title, is an aeroplane and it leads to an intriguing locked room mystery.

Poirot is flying from France to England on board the Prometheus. There is a range of passengers on board, all from different walks of life: a writer, a Countess, a dentist, a young hairdresser. However, tragedy strikes when one of the passengers is discovered dead, and it soon becomes clear that she was murdered, using a highly unusual technique of a poisoned dart fired from a blowpipe. Poirot naturally becomes involved in the investigation, which takes place on both sides of the English channel. He must work out who had both the opportunity and the motive to kill Madame Giselle.

This was an interesting murder mystery. The unusual murder weapon certainly added an extra layer of drama, and I liked the fact that the crime had been committed on an aeroplane, meaning that there was a very limited number of suspects. As with all Agatha Christie novels, there were plenty of red herrings and unexpected twists and turns, which I definitely didn’t see coming.

However, for me, this story lacked some of the clues and hints that I like to read about in Poirot novels. It was an enjoyable read, but it doesn’t quite match up to my favourite Poirot novels. Of the Poirot novels that I’ve read this year, I preferred both Sad Cypress and Cat Among The Pigeons – although I did like this story better than Three Act Tragedy. Well worth a read for any Poirot fan, this was a good addition to the series.

Review: My Best Friend’s Murder by Polly Phillips

Bec and Izzy have been friends since childhood. Izzy supported Bec through her mother’s death, and Bec has always been there for Izzy. However, their friendship is not an easy one, and Bec is increasingly troubled by Izzy’s need to always be better than her and her constant put-downs. Eventually Bec loses her cool and has a huge row with Izzy. Then, later that evening, Izzy is discovered dead at the bottom of her stairs. The question is: did she fall or was she pushed? And did Bec have anything to do with it?

I did enjoy reading this story, but for me it lacked the ‘wow’ factor. The characters were interesting and there was an intriguing question around Izzy’s death. However, the plot was a little straightforward, and I think it may have benefited from some jumps back and forth in the timeline rather than being told in a very linear way, as this would have built tension. Izzy’s death actually happens quite late on in the story, and I felt that there didn’t need to be quite so much build up to the argument between Bec and Izzy.

There was a plot twist towards the end, which I didn’t see coming. However, I also thought that this could have been more dramatically revealed. Overall, this was a story that was alright to read; I didn’t dislike it. I just felt that with a different structure, it could have had a bigger impact.