‘I took the job in a panic as my life hit the buffers and the money ran out.’ This might not sound like an auspicious beginning, but as ‘The Volunteers’ beautifully records, Carol’s decision to take on a new role within wildlife conservation, and specifically the group of volunteers she learns to manage as a […]
I was intrigued to read about the work of a forensic anthropologist. I’ve not read any earlier books in the series, so I’m not sure how typical this is, but can confirm that ‘Fire and Bones’ works well as a standalone. What I do know is that when Detective Deery asks Brennan why she is […]
All jobs come with hazards. For mortuary technician Cassie Raven, there’s the disturbing possibility that a corpse on her table may turn out to belong to someone she knew, added to the even more disturbing possibility that the dead body might still have something to say… What’s it about? This is a mystery with four […]
‘Not coming home.’ After thirty two years together, Bea thinks her marriage is rock solid. She believes that as their love was born from the darkest days of her life, they’ve already survived the worst life can throw at them, but when Niklas disappears after a minor argument, she’s stunned to learn that he believes […]
A locked room. A brutal murder. And a killer who can unwind time… Ooh, what a fabulous premise. I was sure I would love this before I even read the blurb, and I was right. Part myth, part mystery and completely compelling, ‘Black Lake Manor’ is a cleverly crafted tale with a satisfying ending. What’s […]
My daughter once asked me if I wished her brother wasn’t autistic. My instinctive response was no, because his autism is inextricable from him and it is impossible to imagine who he would be without his neurological differences. I’m fairly sure that this was not the answer my daughter expected to hear, as she views […]
‘You may not be aware of this…but you do not control what you eat.’ We don’t tend to think of ourselves as being part of systems, but in this fascinating book, Dimbleby explains how the global and, specifically, UK food system is simultaneously supporting us, manipulating us and even killing us. What’s it about? In […]
‘Whoever did it must have read it.’ When local author and recently retired teacher Liam Allerton is found drowned in Barnes Pond, just like the retired teacher in his debut novel, it’s a curious case of life imitating art – or rather, his death imitating his art – but when DI Garibaldi reads Allerton’s novel, […]
Our families are often the people who hurt us the most. This is certainly true for Nell Churcher, who, despite being attacked by an obsessive ‘Golden Bones’ fan when she was was in her early teens – a fan who believed they needed to carve out Nell’s pelvic bone to resurrect a fictional character called […]
I love books that are completely real whilst also being darkly comic. Welcome back to the North Edinburgh Health Enforcement Team, now on their fifth outing in a fictionalised, mid-Virus-epidemic-Edinburgh. Bernard is still surprised daily by the demands of his job, (which is supposed to be about healthcare but is really a sort of police […]