This is so good that when I picked it up to check if I read it last year, I ended up reading it again. ‘This’ is ‘The Unremarkable Heart’, a short story by well-established crime writer Karin Slaughter, and, yes, that is her birth name. (She has said previously that it’s a good thing she […]
Forgetting what you did on a drunken night out is bad enough. Forgetting what you’ve done for the last ten years must be terrifying. This is the problem facing Alice Love in Liane Moriarty’s intriguing novel, ‘What Alice Forgot’. What’s it about? Alice bumps her head at the gym and is utterly astonished to find […]
Ever wondered why your one year old loves knocking down sandcastles? This is your chance to find out. What’s it about? That incredible year between turning one and two, during which Little People make huge strides in controlling their adults (Smooths and Hairies) using a range of strategies including tactical manoeuvres, such as the fail-safe […]
No one could have killed Polly Carter…but someone did. This is a locked room mystery that takes place in a garden with a cliff top and some extremely convenient shrubbery. Oh, and it takes place in the Carribean. And Polly’s a celebrity (of course: who else would have a cliff top with beach access conveniently […]
I’m aware that much of what I read is, let’s say, comfortable. In particular, I read a lot of crime fiction, especially psychological crime, frequently featuring middle class women doing rather middle class things. (I’m even sure ‘rather’ is quite a middle class word, now I come to think about it.) Even when they’re transplanted […]
Just look at that cover. Isn’t it pretty? I defy you to not judge this book by its gorgeous cover. It certainly seduced me into wanting to read the story, despite my mild aversion to historical fiction. What’s it about? Where to begin? Three time periods feature in this story of mystery and magic, romance […]
It’s difficult to be original. Still, when a quick search throws up a minimum of three books sharing the same title as this one, I feel a more original option must have been available. Unfortunately, my initial and final response to this book can be summed up with one word: meh. What’s it about? Kelly’s […]
Humpy Dumpty’s dead. Whodunit? If you’re thinking, “erm…he fell?” then you need to read this book. Although he was basically a good guy, businessman Humpty Stuyvesant Van Dumpty III had made a few enemies and was last seen, horribly drunk, boasting about his ability to summon up rather a large sum of money… What’s it […]
Secrets. All families have them. If you could choose, would you want to know your family secrets? Or would you rather seal any hints in a box you never open? This is Ellen’s dilemma. What’s it about? Mother of two, recently divorced Ellen Sutherland is stunned when she’s left a valuable Cotswold cottage in a […]
East Berlin, 1975, a murdered child, a staged crime scene. You know how sometimes you’re not completely sure about something, but you take a punt and you LOVE IT? That’s my relationship with this book. What’s it about? When Oberleutnant Karin Muller is summoned to investigate a young girl’s body, found at the foot of […]