Way Back by Sara Cox

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I have had ‘Way Back’ by Sara Cox for a little while, and as I know Sara enjoys reading I thought I would give her novel a go. I mean ‘Between the Covers’ is one of my favourite shows, and the ‘BBC Radio 2 Book Club’ is one of my go to podcasts.

I have to admit that despite the fact I probably am a little cautious when it comes to celebrity authors (rightly or wrongly), I did rather enjoy it. This storytelling definitely has the voice of Sara Cox running through it, which I think was actually what made it enjoyable for me. There was warmth and humour throughout the story, and the characters were rather good fun. And, it has been a while since I have read a book that had me laughing out loud and crying with moments of each other.

Josie is at a crossroads in her life: her marriage has come to an end and she is OK with that but as her daughter has also left home she is not really sure what to do next. When her childhood home comes up for sale she makes a shift in her life, to having a go at being a farmer, just like her beloved Dad. Along the way it leads her to reflect on her past, and create a future, both of which may not be quite what she expects.

This was an enjoyable read, and would make a great holiday read for those of us who may be considering what to pop on our summer reading lists. Although, I can’t promise you won’t potentially shed a tear or two – as Josie explores her past. But there is so much fun in this book too, who knew a cattle auction could sound like so much fun. Or that you would become so invested in the pig who also joins the farm life with Josie.

‘Thrown’ is also on my shelf, so I think it may get bumped up the tbr pile as I plan my summer reads, as I hope it will bring the same level of joy when I read it.

Moon Road by Sarah Leipciger

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

This month’s pick for ‘The Book Taster’ was ‘Moon Road’ by Sarah Leipciger. This is a book which I would not have picked up without book club, I suspect, simply because there are so many books and yet so little time. However, this is a book that deserves to be on more tbr piles and wishlists, because it really is a good read.

This is a slow burn of a road trip novel, and yet it is also a mystery and a very compelling story. We journey ‘Moon Road’, which has multiple meanings as you read this book, with Yannick and Kathleen as they are on a journey to find their daughter, Una. As they take this journey together, after nineteen years since their relationship ended, their past is slowly revealed to us, one memory and conversation at a time.

We are let into their relationship, in a way they have not even been let in for quite some time. They are complex characters and, maybe, not always likeable characters, but you feel you are on the journey with them and you are really drawn into their story and build a bond with them as they follow Moon Road. I think you take on all their emotions and find yourself needing to pick up the book to find out what is going to happen next, and make sure they are okay on their adventure or journey (depending on how you look at it).

I can’t say much more about the story other than that, as it may lead to spoilers, but I can say it is a beautifully constructed story, which has one of the most haunting endings I have ever read in a novel. In fact, that ending is with me still now as I write this post, and I think it will be with me for a long time to come. And you are just going to have to read it to understand why that is.

What also made this book beautiful for me, is that it is set in Canada. I have been lucky enough to be to some of the places mentioned in the book, and this allowed me to visualise, maybe not perfectly, the surroundings they may have been travelling through, and how, with all that time isolated together, the level of reflection, and sharing of thoughts and experiences between Yannick and Kathleen would come about.

The Women by Kristin Hannah

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

My IRL Book Club this month was ‘The Women’ by Kristin Hannah, a book (as you will no doubt have guessed) that has been languishing on the TBR pile for a little while now. I think the size put me off a little – but when you have to read it for Book Club, you have to see past the size (and remind yourself that long books in hardback always look worse – haha).

‘The Women’ tells the story of Frankie, a young woman who makes the decision that she is going to go to ‘Nam as a nurse. Something that she hopes might get her on the hero wall her father adores in his study, but that will also bring her acceptance of the death of her brother in the same conflict. We follow her time there, and the consequences it has on her future and that of her family.

As I have come to expect with Kristin Hannah novels, we have strong female characters placed into extreme circumstances. Women who have had to learn to become survivors, but also women who learn to fight for what they believe in. And this is exactly what happens here.

The first half of the book in Vietnam is rather intense. As you are thrown into the conflict with Frankie, experiencing with her the violence, tragedy and emotional rollercoaster of war, you are with her as she forms friendships and is entangled in the trials and tribulations of love in the time of war. And you really feel all her heartbreak along the way – her heartbreak for the victims of war (on both sides) and the heartbreak she suffers as she believes she is in love.

The second half of the book, we are with Frankie as she attempts to adjust to life as a civilian back in America. This really considers the impact of war on an individual and on those that they love. Frankie is returning to a nation that has not just had many of its young men ravaged by their experiences at war, but one that is facing its own internal struggle over civil rights. The second half of the book is where you really realise why Hannah settled on the title of the book, ‘The Women’, because they really were forgotten for their time in the Vietnam War, and the support was even less for them than it was for the men who returned.

I am certain that this book is going to spark a lot of discussion at Book Club, because there is just so much amongst its pages to digest.

I have to admit that, despite the fascinating idea behind this book, it was not my favourite. It does everything I love in a Kristin Hannah book. But the ‘twist’ was no surprise and it was slightly lengthy, which made some of it a bit of a struggle to read. Please do not get me wrong: I would still suggest that fans of Kristin Hannah should pick this book up, and I am still glad that I read it, especially as it is going to encourage me to not just learn more about the events of Vietnam, but also pick up more of Kristin Hannah’s books soon, as that is all of them on my TBR pile completed (and I can’t say that very often).

It Should Have Been You by Andrea Mara

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

Wow – the opening to this book is intense, and if it does not drag you into this story, then nothing will drag you into any story.

There is, of course, the issue that I cannot tell you what that opening is, but you can take my word for it that it is impressive. And it makes the book very readable. The skill that Andrea Mara really has, is she takes our ordinary, everyday fears and really plays on them. In fact, she makes them rather chilling and terrifying. The fear she takes here is sending the wrong text message to the wrong person; this is something that (let’s be honest) most of us have done, and it may have left us a little red-faced – but when Susan sends the wrong message to the wrong group, little does she know quite how much it will turn her world upside down.

This is a book full of secrets, lies and deception – everything that you would expect from an excellent thriller story – and it is genuinely impossible to put this book down. There is something about the slightly slow-paced start (which, I guess, is how time feels when you have sent a message to the wrong people) and the rather fast-paced conclusion that makes it a book that you just want to read, and may put all other books aside for.

The story is well constructed, with chapters told from different viewpoints, that draws you even more into the intrigue. As you move from chapter to chapter, and leave one character for another, you are left wanting to finding out more – it is like almost everything is a cliffhanger, or an unanswered question.

So, it is safe to say that if you like a good thriller, then you will like this book. And, if you have liked other titles by Andrea Mara, then you will absolutely enjoy this read.

Three Days in June by Anne Tyler

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

‘Three Days in June’ had been selected as a little informal buddy read with wonderful ‘The Book Taster‘ members and I am so glad it was as I am not sure I would have read it otherwise. This is a wonderful little book, just under 200 pages, but it packs a punch in that time. And I managed to read it in less than 24 hours – in fact, it was a perfect lazy Sunday morning read, which I could not put down.

This book does exactly what it says on the cover; it takes us through three days in June as we join Max, Gail and Debbie for the day before, of and after Debbie’s wedding. Max and Gail are divorced but are thrown back together as they unite for their daughter’s wedding, and Max comes to stay with Gail. As we experience these three days in June with these characters, mainly from the viewpoint of Gail (a slightly socially awkward character) we reflect on life, past, present and future, and why exactly Max and Gail ended up divorced in the first place, as they seem to rub along quite comfortably.

I just found this book charming and rather hard to put down, hence the speedy read. I loved the characters, and I was invested in finding out what would happen in these three days in June. Max was just a charming man, who may not be perfect, but was a kind soul, and I think his story was the one I was most invested in. However, I loved that there was an older female lead in the book, and her feelings and experiences were so well-written.

This is a book about relationships, especially marriage and love. It is a book that will make you reflect on your experiences and is possibly a reminder that somebody does not have to be perfect to be exactly what you need – even if sometimes we need a little reminder of that. But, also, we need to consider that everybody’s experiences are different and sometimes judgement is not the way forward, but, instead, the opportunity for love and support should be always present.

It has been quite some time since I have read an Anne Tyler novel, but it has reminded me that you should return to authors, and not always be swayed by what everyone else is reading because you might miss something that you would really rather enjoy!

There are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

A little informal buddy read this month was of the latest from the pen of Elif Shafak. I had seen it on Between the Covers on BBC Two and thought it sounded like a fascinating read. I hoped that it would be as wonderful as ‘The Island of Missing Trees’, as that was the book that brought me to Elif Shafak (and it appears I never reviewed for my blog, so I may have to correct that at some point soon).

‘There are Rivers in the Sky’ is a beautifully constructed, sweeping story, that brings together historical and contemporary fiction, all connected by a raindrop. It is almost like a love letter to the River Tigris and the River Thames. As both of these rivers bring us our characters and their stories, their history and their geography, each of our three main characters are passionate about the waterways, and their history and how they have brought them to where they are.

I am not sure I can do this book justice (and maybe that is why I have missed reviewing ‘The Island of Missing Trees’, as I was not sure that I could really write about and convey how beautiful it is as a book). There is so much amongst these pages that can be talked about shared but I do not want to spoil any of the story for anyone who is hoping to read it. However, I will say that the character of Arthur absolutely stole my heart, and I think his chapters were my favourite – he is our character from the furthest past and he is just a fabulous man. Arthur really connected both the River Thames and the River Tigris in our story. He was born on the River Thames, so water was part of his life from the moment he entered the world. And his love of learning eventually drew him to the River Tigris (with some other adventures in-between).

I read this book in a matter of days, as I just needed to find out what was going to happen to Arthur, Narin and Zaleekah, and how their stories would potentially be drawn together. And I can’t share how or why they are drawn together, or even what happens to each of them as that would be a spoiler, and there is only one way anyone should discover this story. They should pick it up and read it – and do not be worried about the number of pages; not one page or word is wasted, and it is worth every minute of reading time.

Something that makes me especially happy about this book is that Elif Shafak has a whole backlist of titles that I need to pick up, and that means there are so many more wonderful stories out there for me to discover – and that can only be a good thing.

Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

This book (no surprise) has been on the tbr pile for some time. And, as a mood reader, I just fancied picking it up this month – so I did. I am not sure how it joined the tbr pile, but I am pretty sure that I was influenced by someone somewhere, or I simply judged it by its cover and sprayed edges.

‘Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books’, is an absolutely fascinating read. It is quite a comment on the current world we are living in. Especially some of the news we hear coming out of the United States of America at the current time. Although, it is also very much like the world we read about in history books about the times of the right-wing powers in Europe.

Lula Dean wants to rid her town of all those books that are ‘evil’ and influencing people to the ‘evil’ ways. She creates, or so she thinks, her own little library of acceptable texts – but all is not as it seems, as some of the young people of the town rebel against her ideas. Alongside this, some of the members of the town want change and for the community to stand up to its past, and challenge the history that has become ingrained. Mainly, this change is led by some of the younger members of the town, who understand their heritage and the truth of the past, but they soon gain the support of some of the older members of the community – and it really shows the power that community can have when people are open to dialogue and discussion. Although, it also highlights the dangers of those who are lonely or struggling to fit in, and how easily they can end up down the wrong path, in the hope that they have found a community to belong to – even if it is a dangerous one.

This book has such a brilliant twist right before end, that I did have a little laugh to myself as you realise how ridiculous and sad some of the views are that some people hold in a world that should have moved on from old-fashioned viewpoints.

This book would make an excellent read for a book club, because there is so much to unpick amongst its pages, and I am trying very hard not to give away spoilers, because I believe that people need to read this book and form their own view of the story. The characters are great, they may not all be likeable and I may fundamentally have disagreed with some of them, but they are so well-formed that, good or bad, they are great characters and add to the story. I will be sharing this book with anyone who enjoys a thought-provoking read, because I think it has a lot to share.

Probably Nothing by Lauren Bravo

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

For May’s The Book Taster Book Club pick we read ‘Probably Nothing’ by Lauren Bravo. I have seen Lauren Bravo’s books around but I had not picked one up, until now.

I am not sure what I expected, as we all know I do not read blurbs, so I always go blind into books and start a journey of discovery. (It will be no surprise that I loved the cover, however.) And this book was a joy to read. Although it covers some difficult issues, it does it with wit and charm, that creates a great story with some wonderful characters that you can imagine sitting down with and having a chat.

Bryony does not mind being single; she is fairly satisfied with how she is living her life. Until, one day, she gets a call telling her that her boyfriend has died and his family wanted her to know – the thing is, Bryony does not have a steady boyfriend, just a man she has been having fun with: Ed. From that moment, her life follows a bizarre path as she becomes swept up into Ed’s family, and she does not quite know how to break it to them that she is not quite who they think she is. Alongside this, Ed’s sister-in-law turns out to be her doctor’s receptionist, who probably knows more about Bryony that she would care to admit. And, as they are thrown together, they realise that they may be the support that each other needs against Ed’s slightly ethusiastic and intense family.

As the story unfolds, Lauren touches on issues such as grief, mental health issues, family relationships (some healthy and some not-so-healthy) and friendship, but this is also done with such wit and sensitivity that its adds to the depth of the story and creates quite a thought-provoking read. In fact, it will be a fantastic read for book club, and I can not wait to hear what other readers think, because I think this book could also mean different things to different readers.

This novel does another of my favourite things: it has the sort of title that can have so many different meanings depending on where you are in the story – now, I obviously can not share too much about them, because that could lead to potential spoilers. But, as you read it – because I would really suggest that you do – keep that title in mind, and see what it means to you.

Unravelling Oliver by Liz Nugent

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

When a colleague lends you a book because they have seen you have read ‘Strange Sally Diamond‘ on your bookstagram, you know it is probably worth a go.

‘Unravelling Oliver’ was an absolutely addictive read; I could not put it down from the moment I started reading and completed it in one weekend. This is a pacy read which leaves you needing to find out more at the end of every chapter. Oliver Ryan has beaten his wife (not a spoiler, as that is in the first chapter), but the question is why. He seems to have everything: a loving wife, Alice, and a nice life as a very successful children’s author – so, what caused the events of that fateful night? From that moment, we are, as the title would suggest, unraveling Oliver.

Each chapter is told by a different perspective of someone who has played a part in Oliver’s story up until this point. They share their views of him as a man and what may have led to the moment of tragedy. We find out his childhood, his family life and his younger years. Clues and twists galore that lead the reader on a journey of discovery about this man – he is unraveled page by page.

The end of this story is one that is definitely worth some discussion with fellow readers, I can’t share it, but if you have read it, I would love to know what you think of the end of the story.

This is a gripping read and has cemented Liz Nugent as an author that I would return to; there is quite a backlist to catch-up on, as I (like others) did not realise what a writing career she had before ‘Strange Sally Diamond’, which seemed to bring her to so many readers’ attention. She has a talent for writing complex characters, especially those with a dark side or a challenging history – which is a skill across so many books – as well as weaving so much mystery into the story. There was a very clever twist in the pages of this book, which I do not think anyone would see coming, although you realise that the clues may have been there all along.

I will certainly be recommending this book to some of my fellow readers, as I know they will enjoy it, and I am adding her backlist straight onto my wishlist, because I would love to see what other complex characters she will introduce us to.

What If I Never Get Over You by Paige Toon

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I was totally influenced by all the shares of the beautiful copy of ‘What If I Never Get Over You’ by Paige Toon over on Bookstagram, so when I had my little bookish holiday to Bath, I thought I had to pick up a copy. I was totally and utterly influenced by the cover, because this is my first Paige Toon. And, of course, it became a lovely book to buddy read with my lovely book club buddy.

Romantic fiction is not my usual go-to choice, other than Cecelia Ahern and Marian Keyes (I seem to have a thing for Irish authors – who sort of write some romantic fiction) but sometimes you need just that sort of book, especially when the sun starts to shine, as it has finally decided to do.

This book was a joy to read; it reminded me of one of my favourite ever TV shows, ‘Monarch of the Glen’ (although it has nothing to do with Scotland), because it was that tale as old as time: falling in love across the social divide. A reluctant to-be Lord of the Manor meets a young lady, who turns out to be one of the staff at his family home – even if this was not her starting point. None of this is a spoiler, as it is fairly clear that this is where the plot is going, but it is just a lovely story. Ellie is a fantastic leading lady in her own story, and you can imagine becoming her friend and having a good old natter with her. And there is quite a charm to Ash, who I think all the readers will spot and rather grow to love.

I have to say that Paige Toon has managed to create a story that I could not put down, because I just had to know how this story would finally play out. And I have to admit I did spend a lot of the time rooting for this pair to have their happy ending.

Although, I think it was great that Paige tackled so many important issues in this book. Such as handling grief and the all the different ways that people may do this – or some of the things that stir this emotion in people. How Ellie has many of the insecurities that many women have, and how she deals with those, but also how she finds the courage to do some of the things that she does in the story. I really admired some of her actions, and I think she can be a bit of an inspiration.

I do not think this will be my last Paige Toon; she has hit my list of authors to look out for, and I am a little bit disappointed that I had not discovered her books before a recent book tour she did that visited a local bookshop. So, I will be keeping my eye out for any recommendations of books by Paige Toon, because I think her books could be the little pick-me-up I need every now and again to escape from some of the doom and gloom of the modern world.