Tag: Fiction

Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I was gifted this book a little while ago by Tandem Collective UK; it was about the time that ‘Leave the World Behind’ had come to Netflix. However, I had not managed to read it or watch it, so this was a book that I had promised myself I would read this year, so I have.

I have a strange liking for ‘dystopian’ fiction; I am not sure why, as it is not something that I have ever read until recently, and now I am fascinated by it. Especially those novels where we do not know the whole story about why the situation is quite like it is. Although, I am not sure that this book fits into one clear genre – I think it could seem slightly different to every reader.

Two families are forced together over the weekend; one family has rented a house to escape the pressures of the city and have a break. However, a knock on the door brings visitors to disrupt their escape: the owners of the house, who have left the city as there appears to be a blackout. But that is all we really know…

This book is incredibly clever because, from the moment The Scotts appear on the doorstep, you feel the suffocation of these two families being forced together. But, at the same time, you also feel the isolation both families are feeling, despite having people around them. This is an impressive thing for an author to create and shows some talent in Alam’s writing. Alongside this, it is a White American family renting from a successful Black American family – leading to discussions about attitudes towards race and racism, as we see these families interact with each other and the events that unfold.

We never really know what has happened to create the situation, other than that there is a blackout and all the fear that comes with that. We know that nature appears to be behaving in weird and peculiar ways, which causes suspicions in the minds of our characters. Yet we see how different people react in different ways – and we see the impact of whatever is going on to our characters, how some will try to help but others will try to flee.

Overall, this is a fascinating read, one that I should probably have picked up sooner (is that not always the way?,) but it is definitely one that I am glad I have read now, and will encourage others to read, even if this is not their usual genre. After all, we should all read outside our comfort zones.

The Guest by Emma Cline

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I was a big fan of ‘The Girls’ by Emma Cline, so when I saw that ‘The Guest’ was out in paperback, I had to pick up a copy. But, of course, that copy has sat on the tbr for quite some time, and as I am a mood reader and have decided that it is certainly time that I started shifting a lot of these books, this one caught my eye.

Emma Cline, writes excellent atmospheric novels that you quickly realise you are not going to be able to put down. With this book, you are meeting Alex, a 22-year-old, who has a habit of becoming ‘the guest’ in the life of a number of men, often wealthy. Alex is a sex worker, stranded on Long Island as she awaits the day she believes that her older boyfriend will welcome her back. In survival mode, and attempting to escape her past, she meets a number of characters along the way who she uses to help her pass the time until she is certain her life will return to the one that she is hoping for. Yet there is a path of destruction in her wake, as she can never seem to just have a successful and fulfilling interaction with those that she meets.

Alongside all this, there is the ending; an ending which is left completely to the imagination of the reader. I am pretty sure that everyone will read the ending differently – and interpret it in the way that fits the narrative that they have read. At the moment of reading, I was unsure about the ending; I was not sure if I appreciated it for what it was there to do. However, on reflection, I have an idea about this ending. Which, of course, I can not share here, as this is a spoiler-free platform.

I enjoyed this book, I found it compulsive reading and had devoured it within 24 hours. I will be recommending it to those who like an atmospheric piece of contemporary fiction, with the odd hint of mystery. I am intrigued to see what Emma Cline brings us next.

The Household by Stacey Halls

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I have been waiting very patiently for ‘The Household’ by Stacey Halls to come out in paperback – mainly because I was hoping that the paperback cover would be more in keeping with the covers for all her other titles – and I am pleased to report that it is!

I found ‘The Household’ a fascinating read, because it is based on something that I had no knowledge of but now I am really keen to find out more about. We meet the ‘girls’ of Urania Cottage in Shepherd’s Bush, London – they are all women who have fallen on hard times for any number of reasons, but they are all characters that can be ‘redeemed’ and sent to the colonies to start a new life. This was a real place, a real home for fallen women, a project of Charles Dickens and Angela Burdett-Coutts, who saw this as their chance to save the women from the path they have chosen.

Each of these women is a brilliant woman in their own right, and they each have a story which you become easily invested in. They may have fallen on hard times or potentially made some poor choices, but this should not be all they are recognised for, as they each have a story to tell – or someone that they love that they are keen to help ensure that they better themselves for. It draws attention to what someone could do in a time of desperation and how small the ‘underworld’ of Victorian London really was. And, as this side of Victorian society is something that I find absolutely fascinating, this book was a great read, especially as it put women at the centre of the historical narrative, which, as we all know, is where they should be, but many are having to fight to ensure that is where they are. And, it recognises each of them as a real person, and not as an outcast from society.

Mystery also weaves its way through this story as we find out about the mysterious Richard Dunn and his relationship with Angela Burdett-Coutts; why does he stalk her? Alongside the mysterious past of each of the young ladies that we meet and Martha’s efforts to find her sister Emily, this keeps you reading, alongside the love of the characters.

Some may not think this is a pacy read, but I was absolutely hooked as I read it, because I was fascinated by the history and the characters. As well as the writing being beautiful and engaging, which also kept me turning the pages and finding out more about the women of this story.

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I am not sure that Kristin Hannah can write a bad book – or if she has I am yet to find it. I decided that it was time I read another Kristin Hannah earlier this month, so I picked up ‘The Great Alone’ as that was the one that was sitting on my Kindle and being a little neglected.

‘The Great Alone’ is another brilliant study of character with another fantastically strong female lead. This is a story set in Alaska as the Allbright family move there for a new start in the 1970s, after inheriting a homestead. We follow the family as they set up their life in this extreme state of America. We follow Leni as she spends her teenage years establishing her life in this unpredictable landscape and dealing with her tumultuous home life. Her father is dealing with the PTSD of having been a POW in Vietnam and has returned as a different man, and one who is not a role model. Her mother loves him, but at what cost and, for Leni, this is a difficult life, but her friendship with Martin helps her through. Until, one day, their lives change forever…

I do not want to give too much of the story away, because this is a book that I think you have to read to really appreciate. But it does what Kristin Hannah does best and makes you really feel for the characters and their experiences. It brings the landscape and the setting in, making it as much a part of the story as the characters that we meet. Having been lucky enough to visit Alaska, I can really understand how that landscape has such a profound effect on those who choose to make their home there. I also always find that you can’t put these books down, as you need to know how the lives of the characters will play out – and you know you might shed some tears along the way.

Really interestingly, this is also semi-autobiographical, and there are some notes in the back of the book about the inspiration for this novel. Which, I think, also brings more to the book once you have finished it, and gives us all a little more to think about.

So, I think it is fair to say that I will be reading more of Kristin Hannah’s books, which I think I have probably said before, and it is such a delight that I have so many of her backlist to catch up on. I am not sure that this replaces ‘The Four Winds‘ in my affections, as that was the first time I discovered the novels of Kristin Hannah, but it is up there. So, I guess I have to bump ‘The Women’ up the tbr pile, as it has been sitting there for quite some time – so, look out for that blog post, hopefully coming soon.

The Life Impossible by Matt Haig

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I have had the beautiful hardback edition of ‘The Life Impossible’ on my shelf for a little while. I was lucky enough to order a signed copy from an independent bookshop that I would love to visit – Read, Holmfirth.

This book was beautiful, I love how Matt Haig can often weave the fantastical into a contemporary setting and still keep it as a story that you can ground yourself in an element of reality. This is a story about Grace Winters, a former maths teacher, who shares her story with an ex-pupil who contacts her for advice and maybe a little support. However, the story Grace has to share is probably not the story anyone was expecting, but it is a story of hope, joy, grief, love and life. And it is all set in the rather beautiful-sounding setting of Ibiza. (Which is now much nearer the top of my travel wishlist than it was before – but I think probably the old town rather than the party island).

Grace is left a house in Ibiza by a friend that she has not spoken to in years, but it is a moment that changes the whole course of Grace’s life. It allows Grace to find out more about herself than she could ever have imagined, and allows her to see something in her life which she may never have seen before and may even help her create a brighter future.

I could not put this book down, as I needed to find out what was going to happen. What was so special that Grace was sent to Ibiza? What is it that she is going to find out? And, how may it change how Grace sees the world around her?

I really liked the idea that the story Grace shared was a story that supported someone else who needed some help. It really taught the power of being kind and sharing stories; that, at moments, they can be the most important thing that someone needs. And, sometimes, that kindness and support comes from the most unusual places, but it can make all the difference in the world to someone.

Oh, and, of course, there is the fact that age should never stop you from being able to make the most of life, and make a change. At any time ‘The Life Impossible’ could, in fact, be ‘The Life Possible’ – and we all have to do our best not to lose sight of that, and all the wonderful things we could do that could make all the difference, even for the smallest of moments.

Leave No Trace by Jo Callaghan

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I had been waiting quite some time to be able to read ‘Leave No Trace’ by Jo Callaghan, as I was a big fan of ‘In the Blink of an Eye‘, which I read towards the end of last year. I wanted to find out more DCS Kat Franks and her team, and where in Warwickshire the next book would be set.

This was just as engaging as the last book. This time, there is a serial killer who appears to be targeting men in the local area of Nuneaton. DCS Franks and her team are in a race against time to try and bring the killer to justice before they strike again. Working alongside Locke, again, we follow their investigation and we consider the question, who is the better detective – human or AI? And there is quite an interesting moment with DNA, where a machine may not have the reaction that a person would, and does this lead to an important clue being missed? Yet there is another brilliant moment where AI can do something that a human would never be able to do and it does, again, raise questions about the pros and cons of AI.

I did have an idea who did it, but at the same moment as DCS Franks and her team. So, I do not think that is a bad thing as it meant that I had followed the same clues and come to the same conclusions as the experts, so as an armchair detective I will take that. There are, of course, some chilling moments, especially the chapters told from the perspective of the murderer, but this is a police procedural book, so we are following them as they solve the crime. And, fantastically. at the end of the book we are left with a bit of a ‘cliffhanger’ as we see where the next story may take us.

Returning to this book was like rejoining a group of friends and becoming in invested in the next stage of their story. Each one of them has a tale that you are a little invested in and feel you are checking in with them all, making sure that they are all OK, and things are working out with them all. There are also some tense moments that will keep you reading, as you have to know how things are going to turn out.

So, yet again, I am left ready to read the next book, and I can’t wait to see where the next case will take us, and how DCS Franks and her team are doing.

Hold Back the Night by Jessica Moor

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

Wow, this book could be my book of the year. ‘Hold Back the Night’ by Jessica Moor was picked as the March read for The Book Taster Book Club and I was really intrigued by the premise of the book, but I was not expecting how blown away I was by the absolutely stunning story.

‘Hold Back the Night’ is about Annie, a nurse in a psychiatric hospital in the late fifties and sixties, a landlady to those who nobody else wants to help during the AIDS crisis of the 1980s, and an elderly woman during the Covid epidemic, who is forced to reflect on her life and her actions. Particularly those actions of her time in the psychiatric hospital, especially when a ghost of her past reappears in her life in the 1980s. I do not think I can do this story justice, but what I can say is that this book and the characters that you meet will stay with you for a long time after you have finished the final page.

There is a study of isolation, loneliness and freedom throughout the book. The male patients in the psychiatric hospital have been isolated from society for a number of reasons, but one reason is their sexuality and the fear they experience as they are treated for this. The men who come to stay with Annie are all HIV-positive and have been isolated by the rest of the world because of this, and they live in fear of death. And, finally, Covid isolates Annie, and she experiences the isolation and fear that the men she met in the past must have faced every day – this, as well as the loss of her friend Rita, forces Annie into this reflective mood and brings us the story of her past.

But, it also lets us think about love and what that really means. And why have people not been allowed to love in the way that they want to? Who has the right to have an opinion on love in any form? I think Annie was really rather liberal for the times that she lived in, but, at the start, she has a fear hovering over her that prevents her from making as much of a difference as she could, unlike her friend Rita. She takes the 1980s as her chance to seek redemption for her past, but also, we see that she accepts people for who they really are. And, at the end, we see her celebrate love.

‘To all the ghosts we failed to see’ is the dedication at the start of the book and I hope that this book does remind people of those ghosts, brings them back to our living memory and never lets us forget them. I would encourage everybody to read this book, because it is both a wonderful story and an education – and you will finish the book angry with the past and hopeful for the future. Thank you, Jessica Moor, for bringing this book to us all.

Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

The pick for my IRL book club this month is ‘Blue Sisters’ by Coco Mellors. Now, this is a book that has been absolutely everywhere for quite some time, and a book with an absolutely stunning cover, but it was a book that I was not sure about picking up. However, that is what I love about book club, it makes you read books that you may not normally read.

I enjoyed that this book focused on the four Blue sisters, and how the three are dealing with the grief of losing Nicky, a year before. It is definitely a book that focuses on character and it does do this very well. You do feel you really know these sisters by the end of the book, and how they view their relationship with each other, their parents and their sister Nicky. As well as some of their relationships with the careers they have followed and the people that they may have met along the way.

The chapters alternate between the stories of each of the sisters, and I quite enjoyed this, as I did feel that I wanted to know a little more about each sister as we got to know them. What is quite interesting is I am not sure these characters are particularly loveable; Bonnie was the only one of the sisters that I really sympathised with and I know as we see their history we understand why each sister is like they are, but it was hard to really find them each loveable. It does not make them bad characters, I think, maybe, it seemed like a collection of sisters of real extremes – who between them possibly had more experiences that most families could possibly have in a usual lifetime. But, then I guess that is why we read, to meet characters and experiences we may not necessarily encounter in our day-to-day life.

This book is beautifully written and I did want to finish it, but when I put it down for a couple of days, I did not rush to pick it up – but when I did pick it up to read, I always ended up really bingeing it and finding it hard to put down. Although, it may be the timing of me reading it that impacted how I read it. After all, our personal mood can often impact a book and how we read it.

So, I do have mixed emotions about this book; I saw it somewhere described as the modern ‘Little Women’, and although it could be argued there are some similar themes, I am not sure it has the warmth of that classic. Yet, it is readable, and I can totally understand why it is such a popular book. It is has certainly led me to have some interest in the books of Coco Mellors, and I will look out for ‘Cleopatra and Frankenstein’ on my travels, because, of course, a bookworm never has enough books.

Swimming to Lundy by Amanda Prowse

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

Amanda Prowse is an author that I had not come across until ‘The Book Taster’ announced that she would be at the Live Event this year. So, when a beautiful book buddy and I decided that we would read a book by a Live Event author ahead of the big day, we settled on ‘Swimming to Lundy’ by Amanda Prowse.

Now, if I judged a book by its cover, then I would not have picked this book up. However, that would have meant that I would have missed out on a treat.

Amanda Prowse has written a lovely character-focused story about relationships – whether in a family, romantically or a friendship – she has created a story that is beautiful to read and reminds you about what is important in life. And how easy it can be to lose your way because you do not think that you deserve something, or you have forgotten to think about what is important.

Taw is the most wonderful main character for the story, I would happily hang out with her. Taw is a young woman who decides that she is going to try swimming in the sea every day because she believes that it will keep her close to her father, who died when she was younger. However, that decision sparks a change in her life. It allows her to escape her home life and do something for herself, it allows her to make new friends with the other ‘Peacocks’, and it leads her to meet ‘Bear’.

Now, as you can imagine, this does not mean that everything that is ahead of Taw is smooth sailing. But it does mean that Taw starts to learn more about herself and her mother, their relationship – and the misconception that she may have about her past. It is a journey of self-discovery for Taw, but it is one that you are more than happy to join her on – and you will probably wish you could sit down with her for a drink afterwards too.

One key thing I really loved about this book, is there is a dual timeline to begin with, and you are not really sure why, but it has you hooked and definitely gives you a reason to keep reading, as you have to know how these unconnected stories will eventually connect. And, for a buddy read, this is great, as you can pop your ideas in your WhatsApp and see what comes of them.

So, as usual, ‘The Book Taster’ has introduced me to a new author who has a backlist that I need to get on top of. But, also, I absolutely can’t wait to hear Amanda Prowse speak at ‘The Book Taster Live’ this month. I guess the next question is, which Amanda Prowse book do I read next?

The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

This book has been on my shelf since I heard Kaliane talk about her book last year. I realise I start a lot of my blog posts about with how long the book has been on my shelf, but that is one of the many curses of being a bookworm. Although I really wanted to read this book, there was something a little intimidating about it for me. I do not know if it was all the hype it was getting, or the fact that it appeared to be a sci-fi book, which is definitely not my go-to genre. Yet I was still really fascinated by this book, so when it became the pick for a monthly buddy read, it gave me the boost I needed to pick it up.

This is such a unique idea for a book; the idea that time travel could bring characters from the past to the present for us to learn from and for the Ministry to see how well they adapt to life in the modern world – and all the moral conflict that comes with that, as ultimately they are human beings displaced for a social experiment. This does seem to reflect the modern world we are living in and creates quite a thought-provoking read as you consider all the moral questions that it raises as you read.

It is a fascinating concept and you do learn a little about the history of the characters, especially that of Commander Graham Gore, who was the original inspiration for the book. It did pique my interest in those early explorations to new worlds, as they would have been for the Victorians, but it also emphasises all the wrongs of that age of exploration. Something that has really been at the fore of current affairs.

If someone aske me to classify this book, I am not sure what you can fully classify it, as I think it could be found in many sections of a bookshop. It is a contemporary piece of fiction from a new voice, it has a very clear (but light) element of sci-fi to it, but it is also a love story. It may not be your traditional love story, but centrally it looks at love in different forms.

I enjoyed this book, although it did take some concentration, with some rather long chapters at points, which means, to me, it is a book that you have to be able to dedicate some time to, to ensure that you are taking it all in. So, I will certainly be recommending this book to people, especially as something that maybe they traditionally would not pick up to read, because of that fear of it being something very sci-fi – I admit that if I had not heard Kaliane Bradley speak about it, then I may have never picked this book up, so it proves you should never judge a book by its cover – or its genre.