***I received a free physical copy of this book from www.LoveReading.co.uk in exchange for an honest review** “Blood Ties” by Julie Shaw This is Julie Shaw’s fourth book detailing the lives of her family in Bradford. I thoroughly enjoyed the very first one, “Our Vinnie”, when I reviewed it back in November 2014 and I had high…
Category: LoveReading
LR#35: “Exposure” by Helen Dunmore
“Exposure” by Helen Dunmore ***I received a free physical copy of this book from www.LoveReading.co.uk and a digital copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review** London, 1960. The Cold War escalates and Simon Callington, a mid level government official, is falsely accused of spying for the Russians. As powerful men plot against Simon, his wife,…
LR#34: “Missing Presumed” by Susie Steiner
***I received a free copy of this book from http://www.LoveReading.co.uk in exchange for an honest review** “Missing Presumed” by Susie Steiner Student Edith Hind has vanished, signs of a violent struggle left behind, and DS Manon Bradshaw is thrust into a high profile case. Media interest rapidly builds and Sir Ian Hind uses his political…
LR#32: “The Good Liar” by Nicholas Searle
***I received a free copy of this book from www.LoveReading.co.uk in exchange for an honest review** “The Good Liar” by Nicholas Searle ***SPOILER*** I hate to ruin your enjoyment and anticipation of this novel but, in the interests of honesty and fairness, I must tell you something; this book is fabulous. Roy is an aged con man about to…
Day 144 – 365
Day 144 – 365 / May 24th 2015 This is the pile of TBR’s that I have beside my bed. It’s rather a lot, isn’t it? And in danger of toppling over at some point. I must do something about it. TBR’s? To Be Read….
LR#30: “Freedom’s Child” by Jax Miller
“Freedom’s Child” by Jax Miller What a pulsating, driving rush this book is. It is a superbly crafted novel and thoroughly mesmerizing. If I understand the word correctly, then I’d term this as “visceral”. Originally jailed for the killing of her cop husband, Freedom Oliver has spent the past 18 years under witness protection after…
LR#29: “Fishbowl” by Bradley Somer
This book exudes joy, life, resilience and hope Everything, from the gorgeous cover, bright orange and with terrific typography and evocative artwork, to the wonderful fish cartoon that tumbles down the pages as they are flicked, is beautifully presented. And the important thing, the story on the pages contained within, is just as wonderfully fabulous….
LR#26: “A Line Of Blood” by Ben McPherson
An intense, psychological thriller; a gripping and absorbing debut from an exciting new British author. Alex and his son, eleven year old Max, find their next-door neighbour dead in his bathtub. The suspected suicide soon turns into a murder investigation as the police turn their interest towards Millicent, Alex’s wife. How well did Millicent really…
LR#25: “When We Were Friends” by Tina Seskis
Anyone seen Spinal Tap? Yes? Then you’ll be familiar with the “Put it up to eleven” quote. This book, for me, is in that vein. Don’t bother looking at the bottom of my review to see how many moustaches I give it…I’ll tell you now, it gets six out of five. The story is of…
LR#24: “The Silence of the Sea” by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
A fab read, intelligently written and well paced. A cracker. A luxury yacht sets sail from Lisbon with three crew members and a family of four on board. It is not seen or heard from again until it crashes into Reykjavik harbour; its crew and passengers are not on board. Thóra Gudmundsdóttir, a lawyer, is…
LR#20: “The Life I Left Behind” by Colette McBeth
A cleverly constructed novel told from two interesting viewpoints with a pulsating ending. Melody, attacked and left for dead, is struggling to rebuild her life in the years following the assault. Then, soon after her attacker is released from prison another young woman, Eve, is discovered dead. Both attacks bear the same hallmarks and Melody…
LR#19: “Our Vinnie” by Julie Shaw
As a fan of the city’s football team and living just outside the area, I had high hopes for this Bradford based book. After this brilliant debut from Julie Shaw, my expectations for the second and third in the series are higher than the town hall clock in Bradford’s Centenary Square. This was an exhilarating…
LR#18: “No Safe House” by Linwood Barclay
You may recall my earlier review of “No Time For Goodbye” in which I said I was looking forward to the follow up book, well, here it is. And what a cracking read this one is; a fantastic tale which I devoured within a few days spent on sun kissed beaches. This book picks up…
LR#17: “The Crimson Ribbon” by Katherine Clements
This is the tale of a young servant girl in the household of Oliver Cromwell. Ruth Flowers, after seeing her mother hanged as a witch by a hysterical mob of her townsfolk, is sent, for hers and the Cromwell’s safety, to live with the Poole family in London. There she meets Lizzie Poole and, enraptured…
Gavin Dimmock. Writer. 