TALES OF THE FORTHCOMING by Steven Blows #RBRT

 4 out of 5 stars

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How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie's Book Review Team, of which I am a member.

In a Nutshell: see cover!

At 98 pages, this is a book of 10 well-written short stories that I recommend for a couple of hours of enjoyable reading, if imaginative science fiction mixed with fantasy/supernatural is your thing.  As I went on, I noticed how refined the characterisation is, something I appreciated very much; the ability to create characters that reveal themselves straight away shows talent indeed.

The stand-out story for me was A Time After Time, in which Jorge becomes increasingly sceptical and worried about a world-changing event eagerly anticipated by almost everyone except him.   I was completely immersed in the atmosphere of this one.

Other highlights were the very funny Possibilities, with its excellent final sentence that made me laugh out loud, and Unbeknownst: three ghosts show a troubled young woman that she has so much life yet to live.

I also enjoyed reading Highway 72, in which a young traveller fails to listen to a warning from one who knows better.  Then there's Delayed Departure, about a man in a hurry at a railway station in a 'theme park in space' and the amusing Family Dinner & Troubling Times - a young human male meets his alien girlfriend's family for the first time, though these two could have done with more satisfying conclusions.  On the whole, though, I'd say they're all good.  The author has a habit of writing a clause as a new sentence ('Snow covers the ground in a smooth sheet of white.  Anything underneath it hidden from sight'), but that's something a professional editor could soon nip in the bud - I'd be most happy to read anything else he writes.  

COLD IN THE EARTH by Thorne Moore @ThorneMoore #RBRT

4.5 out of 5 stars

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How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie's Book Review Team, of which I am a member.

In a Nutshell: Cold case crime solving, mostly non-police

I'm not a fan of crime fiction, but I AM a fan of Thorne Moore's writing, so I chose this from the review team list without hesitation.  It's not a police procedural, as the main person doing the detective work is Rosanna Quillan, an ex-DC who is persuaded by a friend to do some digging.

Six young girls went missing in the early - mid 1990s, but the perpetrator was only ever charged with two of the murders; the other cases remained open but went cold.  The grieving families must wait another twenty-five years for truths and physical remains to be revealed.

The most interesting character in this book was, for me, Margaret Gittings, mother of the murderer; I'd have loved to have read her whole story from her own point of view!  Then there is 11-year-old Lolly, with whom the story opens. Clever, clever, Thorne Moore - Lolly's first chapter is brief and without resolution, which meant, of course, that I eagerly read the whole book within two days so I could find out what happened to her!  I also liked Malcolm, the retired officer who dealt with the case initially, after it was bungled by a less than diligent colleague.

The story zips along so convincingly, perfectly paced, and I very much liked that, although a fledgling romantic interest for Rosanna was present, Ms Moore did not feel the need to wrap it all up with hearts and flowers.  It's good.  And there's a lovely little twist at the end, even after the remainder of Lolly's story (which was worth waiting for) is revealed.

THE STRANGER IN MY HOUSE by Judith Barrow

4.5 out of 5 stars

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On Goodreads

 

How I discovered this book: I've read and enjoyed quite a few by this author

In a Nutshell: Complex family drama

The Stranger in my House begins in the 1960s, in what I assume is a fictional village somewhere between Yorkshire and Lancashire.  Eight-year-old twins Charlie and Chloe are still mourning the loss of their mother, three years before, when father Graham brings home his new girlfriend, Lynne, who is soon to become his wife.  Charlie has reason to dislike and distrust Lynne from the start, because of a memory that Chloe doesn't share with him; however, Chloe soon finds her own reasons.

Along with Lynne come her children: the kind and supportive teenage daughter Evie, and Saul, an apprentice thug a few years older than the twins.  The problems begin immediately, and only escalate.

Part Two of the story takes place after a time jump of a few years, showing the effects of the marriage on all of them.  

I found this book hard to put down, reading it in the early hours when I should have been sleeping!  My initial feelings towards the Collins twins and their father were great sympathy and frustration at the lack of communication, at Graham's inability to stand up for what he knew was right, though this is in no way a criticism; rather the opposite.  Graham's lack of assertiveness and desperation to keep the peace was understandable because of all he had been through, and the twins were but children.  Also, this was another world; sixty years ago, values and attitudes were so different from now.  The family's inability to resolve their situation was what made the book so real, and such a 'page turner' - I completely believed in the characters.

The (probably) psychopathic Lynne was so well drawn, and for me the whole story highlighted something that so many of us suffer from: the mistaken belief that others are basically honest and well-intentioned.  Oh, and something else I loved - how Chloe, when a child, used to write letters to Sandie Shaw, her heroine.  She never sent them, but imagined the singer reading them, which helped her pour out her thoughts.  I loved Sandie Shaw when I was a child in the 60s, and can imagine myself doing similar.  Well done, Judith B! 

THIS LINK will take you to the song that Chloe and her family loved so much - Always Something There to Remind Me 😀

BACKYARD HERBAL REMEDIES by Krista Edwards #RBRT

 A Beginner's Guide to Identifying, Foraging and Wildcrafting Herbal Remedies Straight from Nature

4.5 out of 5 stars

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On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie's Book Review Team, of which I am a member.

In a Nutshell: See the subtitle above!

At 141 pages, this is a nicely sized book for the subject, with the information so easy to take in.  I'm always up for reading more about non-Big Pharma remedies for life's minor ills, and this certainly expanded my knowledge.  From one of my go-to online stores for such items, I've already ordered a violet preparation, as there are not many violets growing in winter in NE England (!!) {for skin rash and mucus}, a bag of dried cleavers {arthritis, lymph nodes, phlegm} and mullein {cough, sinuses}.  So thanks, Krista!

Each chapter contains full details of which ailments the herb/plant can treat, along with recipes about how to prepare, the other plants it might be combined with, and any warnings/pitfalls.  I'll definitely be taking this out and about with me in the spring; I may get the paperback, but the small black and white photos on the Kindle version are, whilst not ideal, enough to identify a plant.

I liked how the book was written, too, in a chatty way with a few amusing asides thrown in.  Nice one.  If you're interested in this subject, I recommend!

The Queen's Avenger by Anna Legat @LegatWriter

 5 out of 5 stars

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How I discovered this book: have read several others by this author.

In a Nutshell: the story of a monk who supported Mary, Queen of Scots, through all she suffered.

Anna Legat's books, of which I have read several, tend to be unusual in both theme and execution, and The Queen's Avenger is no exception.

The novel opens with young monk Gunther discovering, in his Bavarian monastery, scrolls written by the late Abbott, Ninian Winzet.  The scrolls take the form of a journal that reveals the precarious life of Winzet as the protector of Mary, Queen of Scots.  The main part of the story is his account of the monstrous treatment of Mary, throughout her life and by almost everyone with whom she was involved, whether a romantic partner, a political/religious opponent or a member of her own family, not least of all the execrable Lord Darnley, her second husband.  

This is a story of greed, lust for power, murder, malevolent conspiracies and fickle loyalties.  There were a few, like Winzet, who remained faithful and honourable, but these were in the minority.  I didn't know much about the late Elizabethan period or the life of Mary before, and this made me marvel that she remained alive and sane, at all.  Brother Gunther's own world was only marginally less dark.

The novel is so well written and I was glued to the pages throughout.  Highly recommended for all addicts of this period in history.

OPERATION TULIP by Deborah Swift @swiftstory

5 out of 5 stars

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On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: one of my 'go-to' authors!

In a Nutshell: Working for the resistance in Nazi occupied Holland, 1944

What a cracking book this is!  I loved it.  It's set mostly in The Hague in the Netherlands, as well as in other parts of the country under occupation, and in England.  Main character Nancy is assigned the most dangerous task of her life in the resistance - she must assume yet another identity, and get close to a high ranking Nazi officer.  Meanwhile, her beloved Tom, a coding expert in England, finds that he can no longer just wait for her, and makes plans that he knows are potentially perilous.

What made this book so compelling for me was the plot - unusual, as I'm usually all about the characters.  But this never lets up from the opening scene; it's perfectly paced, with more introspective passages complimenting the tension and action.  Deborah Swift brings the bleak terror of the occupied territory to life; I didn't know, before reading this, that the Dutch were kept in such appalling conditions.

It's a 'clean read' with no bad language, not even when streams of it would probably have been uttered, but the picture painted is so real, so raw that the characters' reactions all seem completely realistic.  This has been my favourite of this authors' tales of espionage in WWII; it's a real page turner!

LAKE OF WIDOWS by Liza Perrat #RBRT

 4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie's Book Review Team, of which I am a member.

In a Nutshell: Emotional family drama.

Lake of Widows is set in France in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when not all attitudes had caught up with the Swinging Sixties and Women's Lib movement elsewhere in the West.  The main character is Adrienne, a timid woman lacking in confidence, who doesn't realise how much her whole personality has been subtly eroded by her manipulative husband, until an event when out shopping sends her head into rebellious overdrive, and she doesn't go home.

Then there is Blanche, who lives by a lake dear to Adrienne's heart; she is struggling with the reality that her husband is a treacherous conman.  Most of all I was interested in the story of Suzanne, a First World War wife whose life takes a turn for the worst when her husband returns from the Front.  All three women's lives intertwine in this beautiful setting, as they discover their own expectations for themselves, finding courage they did not know they possessed.

I found the part set in an insane asylum most interesting - I've read and watched a few books and documentaries that show how the treatment of the emotionally sick was, even in the 1970s, positively Dickensian.  I also loved Suzanne's story - I would have liked to read more about her and her husband.  As for the writing itself, it will make you want to visit L'Auberge de Léa, and stay there!