Category: Uncategorised

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

Kate Atkinson is an author that I have always meant to read, but I think she is also an author that I have been a little intimidated by. I can not give you any reason for that, other than that she seems to have a huge and dedicated fan base, and I think I was probably a little worried that I may not be able to appreciate these books as much as so many people seem to.

However, these are the sort of thoughts that us readers need to stop having about books, as books are for everyone. A friend kindly lent me ‘Life After Life’ by Kate Atkinson and this finally gave me the prompt I needed to read a book by this author.

I am ever so grateful that I was encouraged to read this book, because it has become one that I wish I had read sooner. Now, interestingly, another reason I had put off reading this book is: I had started the TV drama series of it and I had not particularly enjoyed it – so this is definitely a case of: the book is better.

This story is a brilliant concept – what if we could live a life after our life, and we could changed the path of our future because we know what is coming, or at least have a sense of something that needs changing in the future? That is the experience of our main character, Ursula: she can live lives after lives and, although she does not entirely understand why, she knows that she has chances to make a difference to the future. After all, practice makes perfect.

I could not put this book down, as I was so fascinated by the lives that Ursula led and the moments that she may have made a decision to change. You may think that this idea for a book would make reading it repetitive, but it isn’t, as Kate Atkinson is a very skilled storyteller who makes each of Ursula’s lives a unique experience for the reader, even if some of it may have happened before. And Ursula is a fascinating character, as you see the moments that she makes choices to improve her future and that of others that she loves. It is quite a study of human nature and what makes us make the choices that we do – and how age and experience can really have an impact on us, even if we do not realise it at the time.

Ursula lives during the early to mid-twentieth century, dealing with two World Wars and the Cold War – these might be seen as some of the greatest moments of change in world and social history, and the way that she responds to these in her lives after lives is truly fascinating.

It is also a wonderful book about family – Ursula and the rest of the Todd family are fantastic characters who really come to life on the page. You are reading a family drama as you read this, as well as everything else it contains amongst its pages. There are some members of the Todd family who you learn to love and some that you understand may not be quite as loveable, but they are always united by family.

This is a book that I am going to be recommending to everyone, just as it was recommended to me. This is not a book to be seen as a threat, but a book that should be loved and treasured by readers, as I have not read anything quite like it before. So, if you are reading this and have not read ‘Life After Life’, please do and maybe even let me know what you think.

Bad Tourists by Caro Carver

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

This is definitely the summer of destination thrillers; I do not know if that is a real subgenre, but it certainly should be if it is not. ‘Bad Tourists’ is a book that I had seen getting a lot of love on Instagram, so I was definitely influenced to read it as soon as I could.

I am really going to struggle to talk about this book as I refuse to put spoilers in my reviews but this is an impressive thriller. Darcy, Camilla and Kate are on a luxury holiday together, celebrating a new chapter in their lives and trying to forget the past. However, once they have arrived, things are a little unsettling: a newly wed couple who are not all that they seem – and do the three best friends really know each other as well as they think they do?

I did not see the twist coming in this book; although it is cleverly hinted at throughout, you can never quite believe that this is what is going to be – so, you gloss over it as you read it, as I am not sure you really want to believe it. And, to me, that is a sign of an excellent story, as the author can take you down so many different paths, and you never know what you can or can not believe.

Caro Carver also does that brilliant thing of making an absolute paradise (in this case the Maldives) seem like such a small and enclosed place. When you are not in your own space, it is amazing how trapped you can feel, despite all the beauty and opportunities that surround you. A paradise island can so easily become a prison when you are uncertain about what is going on around you.

This may have to be a short review, other than to tell you to read this book, because it is a fantastic, slightly claustraphobic thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat.

I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

What. A. Thriller! I already knew that there was a chance that I was going to be a fan of this book as I have read other books by Clare Mackintosh. I knew I was going to get a well constructed thriller, with characters that you love, and that you love to hate – and a great twist or two. And I was not wrong with any of these predictions when I read ‘I Let You Go’.

Now, as this book has all the ingredients that you would expect from a good thriller, it does make it incredibly difficult to write a blog post about it, as I refuse to put spoilers in my posts. So, this may be a very short post that simply tells you that you should read this book.

Told as ‘Part One’ and ‘Part Two’, you know that a young boy called Jacob has been killed in a hit and run accident one rainy evening. And then you follow the police as they attempt to solve the case that seems to be impossible to solve and you follow some of those who have been impacted by this accident. Yet, you are not actually sure who you are reading about, which of course adds to all of the mystery of the story. There was one twist which I did not see coming and caused me to read past my bedtime. The other ‘big twist’ I think I had worked out as the story progressed, but I am not sure it was an intentionally hidden. Apologies for being mysterious, but that is the ongoing issue with the thriller genre: writing about it can be as difficult as trying to solve the mystery of the story.

This was very cleverly written and I especially enjoyed the importance of the characters in this book. This was as much a thriller as a study of people and relationships. And how shared experiences can impact the bonds and relationships you form with people – at home and at work – including how sometimes it is easy to be blind to the things that are right in front of you and sometimes you lose your way, but you can always find a way back.

I think this was also a successful book because this is a thriller you could believe in. Something that is not so far fetched that it is a simple work of fiction but something that was definitely rooted in the realms of possibility which probably made it even more addictive reading.

This book does need to come with some trigger warnings about relationships, so please do check that out before you read if it is something that you may find difficult to read. But, as a whole, if you like a well-constructed crime thriller then this is a book that you will enjoy (and I always like that an author has a backlist I can catch up on, so I do not have to wait for new publications).

You Are Here by David Nicholls

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

Like so much of the book world, I was over the moon when I knew we were getting a new book from the pen of David Nicholls. I am an original fan of ‘One Day’, ‘Starter for Ten’ and ‘Us’ (‘Sweet Sorrow’ is on my shelf waiting to be read, and ‘The Understudy’ is on the wishlist) and, like so many, had my heart broken all over again by the recent Netflix adaptation of ‘One Day’. I was confident that ‘You Are Here’ would not disappoint, especially after hearing David Nicholls speak at the recent Stratford Literary Festival.

So, I was even more over the moon when ‘The Book Taster’ announced that this would be our June book pick, because that meant I had a whole host of lovely book buddies to read this book with and the chance to meet, discuss it and hear David Nicholls speak again.

‘You Are Here’ is just brilliant. I could end my review there, as this book is going to be up there as one of my top reads of the year (I never manage to have just one). This is a story that contains everything that you expect from the books of David Nicholls. Marnie and Michael are two beautiful characters who are incredibly easy to relate to (as my day job is a leading a humanities department, I can confirm that Michael is very much a geography teacher, with a geography teacher’s sense of humour). I would love to bump into these two and have a drink and a catch-up with them, especially as Marnie is a fan of ‘Wuthering Heights’. The plot is delightful, with humour and romance to satisfy us all; it is definitely a cosy read – none of that is a spoiler because, if you are a fan of David Nicholls, these things will not be a surprise.

But the thing I loved the most about this book was the beautiful, descriptive writing. I shared a wonderful paragraph about Euston Station with other readers because it was just so brilliantly written, and I think may well be one of my favourite pieces of writing in a book (and I never thought anything involving Euston Station would be my favourite…).

You feel you are there with Michael and Marnie at every moment throughout this book. There is a humour in the writing that is a joy to read; you smile as you read this book, and you feel like you are an old friend – and I may even have shed a little tear at one moment, too, which is also probably no surprise.

In a world that is far from ideal at the moment, where we all need a little escapism, this is a book that can give you exactly what you need – a hug in book form, and a pure moment of joy.

West by Carys Davies

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I have recently discovered BBC Radio 4’s ‘A Good Read’, in fact I am not sure how I have not listened to it before as I am a big fan of radio and books, so this show is ideal. However, it is dangerous for my tbr pile. And the first book I have picked up since listening to the programme is ‘West’ by Carys Davies – which has also been recommended by the author Bobby Palmer.

This book is brilliant, a short but beautifully crafted novel, that I have recently discovered was Carys Davies’ debut novel, where not a moment on the page is wasted for the reader. A story of a desire for adventure, but at the cost of a father-daughter relationship. Cy Bellman heads off on an adventure, very possibly to avoid the grief of having lost his wife, but leaves his daughter at home, despite the fact that she asks him not to leave. And this is not the only odd decision made by Cy; there is also the purchase of a certain hat.

However, Cy Bellman is not the only person journeying to and through the West. He meets different characters along the way, including a Mountain Man and Native Americans – their lives, of course, impacted by the arrival of the Europeans as they continue to spread their influence from the East Coast of America to the West. However, some very important relationships are made along the way, and one which will save Cy’s daughter, Bess, when she least expects it.

There is warmth and humour in this book, which sits side-by-side with some of the more difficut topics that Carys tackles on the pages. For me, I was questioning the ease with which Cy walked away from his daughter and left her to the mercy of the men of the town – although he provides the saviour she needs without even knowing it.

I can see exactly why this is a book that is recommended by so many. And it is one that I will be recommending too. This is a lesson in writing a small but perfectly formed novel. It is a book that I will read again, as this is a part of America’s history that I find both fascinating and incredibly sad as Europeans made their way across the country. This is a story that can start discussions, and hopefully encourage people to learn a little bit more about American history.

As this is a Carys Davies’ debut novel, from 2018, that means that I have some more books to catch up on to bring me up to date to her latest release, ‘Clear’.