Review: We Three Kings

We Three Kings by Kristen Bailey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



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Review: What a Way to Go

What a Way to Go by Bella Mackie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A great premise, with characters you may love and definitely others you'll love to hate.

The story is told from 3 different perspectives Anthony and Olivia Wistern and the Sleuth.

Anthony Wistern, CEO of Wismere Holdings, an influential financial wizard is celebrating his 60th birthday which his wife Olivia has thrown an amazing party of who's who and the rich. However, things take a turn and Anthony end up dead. Anthony can't move on from limbo until he's remembered his death, so is keeping an eye on his family to try to gather clues.

Then we have Olivia the ice queen scorned wife, who has been left penniless by her careless husband with her ungrateful, greedy children.

And finally the Sleuth, who is a big true crime fan, who thinks Anthony has been murdered and becomes obsessed with trying to unmask his killer.

This is a slow paced, dark humour book, with plenty of intrigue and characters who all seem capable of heinous crimes, with a wonderful bluntness and family dynamic being played out, but are any of them capable of murder?

An enjoyable read, with plenty of wit and sometimes a little charm, great if you like rich, smug and arrogant characters and their downfall.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

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Review: Isolation Island

Isolation Island by Louise Minchin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Release Date: 12th September 2024

Ten celebrities, one desolate island off the coast of Scotland to be the home of a new reality survival TV show, the prize of their dreams, what could possibly go wrong?

It quickly becomes apparent to the celebrities once they're left on the island to survive that the production team are not as health and safety conscious as they would all like, raising concerns for their safety the celebrities become paranoid and when a deadly storm hits the island, they feel far from safe, made even worse when one of them is found dead, unsure what is going on the remaining celebrities find out they really are fighting for survival.

I can not give this debut novel enough praise, from the concept, the setting and the characters, told through the perspective of the journalist celebrity on the island, Lauren and her enquiring mind. This is such a well written book, with believable characters, that I honestly felt like I was watching the show play out for real.

It's one of those books that has you gripped from the start and plenty of intrigue, with a good pace throughout that you can't put down, but also don't want to end.

If you like the idea of reality shows with plenty of jeopardy, then this is definitely the book for you.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

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Review: What a Way to Go

What a Way to Go by Bella Mackie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



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Review: The Night Guest

The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Release Date: 3rd september 2024

This is a fast paced book, about Iðunn an Icelander, who keeps waking up feeling more tired than when she went to bed and in pain, she visits several Dr's and has blood tests, but nothing is showing up as the cause to all this.

Iðunn tries everything she can think of sleeping pills, more exercise, eating well, everything her friends and family suggest, nothing works, so she buys a smart watch (step-counting) which reveals she's walked 40,000 steps while she was sleeping, Iðunn naturally assumes that the watch is faulty, but it keeps happening.

What is she doing in her sleep, from here the story escalates....

I loved this book, it is short at only 208 pages, but brilliantly written, with short snappy chapters that keep the story moving along at a great pace, unfolding the mystery in a wonderfully horrific way.

If you enjoy mysteries and horrors then this is a great combination of the two.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

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Review: The Last Time I Saw Him

The Last Time I Saw Him by Rachel Abbott
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Release Date: 15th August 2024

Trigger Warning: Domestic Abuse, Manipulation, Narcissism

WOULD YOU KEEP A SECRET FOR A STRANGER, IF IT MEANT THE BLOOD WAS ON YOUR HANDS?<./b>

This is the fourth book in the Stephanie King series by Rachel Abbott, which starts with Stephanie King having a weekend away with her mother at a boutique hotel in Cornwall, where she can't help people watching, which leads her to notice some interesting behaviour from some of the guests: Celia; Juliette; Russell; Ellis; and Nadia.

Although Celia, Juliette and Nadia are complete strangers, they have one thing in common they have all been wronged by Ellis Cobain.

Nearly a week later one of the guests, philanthropist Ellis Cobain is found dead, which brings Stephanie King back to the hotel and questioning those she had encountered and noticed the previous weekend.

I do love Rachel Abbott's series as I always feel in safe hands and it's like catching up with old friends, the stories are always gritty, with really well thought out characters, who feel very genuine and real, with the dilemma of what is right and wrong and all those grey areas in-between. I feel torn between rooting for those in the wrong and understanding the need for justice, because sometimes people are pushed to extremes.

This book is no exception, I really felt for the characters in the book and their stories of what they have endured at the hands of Ellis Cobain's manipulation.

With plenty of twists and turns, this fast paced thriller is a rollercoaster of emotions, that made me audibly gasp, cry and root for the characters, even if I didn't particularly like all of them.

Rachel Abbott has this amazing ability to write books on some of the most difficult topics, but does so with care and realism and I think that is why all her books stay with me.

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Review: The Last Time I Saw Him

The Last Time I Saw Him by Rachel Abbott
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



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Review: How to Solve Your Own Murder

How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 stars rounded up to 5 stars

I loved the concept and execution of this story and cannot wait for more in this series.

This was a great read, with some great characters and the plot moved along at a great pace unravelling the story through first person experience and diary entries which was a great way to get clues to solve the mystery, where everyone is a suspect, but also giving good evidence as to why most were not the murderer.

IT was fun to try to guess along as I was reading.

Out 26th March 2024 - Thank you Netgalley for the ARC

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Review: Back to Nature: How to love life - and save it

Back to Nature: How to love life - and save it by Chris Packham
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A brilliant book filled with hope on what we can do to help nature, but also filled with up-to-date science and hard to read, but necessary facts about our world.

I bought this book as I wanted to do my bit in my little area of the world to help nature & this has been so helpful.

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Review: Isolation Island

Isolation Island by Louise Minchin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Release Date: 12th September 2024

Ten celebrities, one desolate island off the coast of Scotland to be the home of a new reality survival TV show, the prize of their dreams, what could possibly go wrong?

It quickly becomes apparent to the celebrities once they're left on the island to survive that the production team are not as health and safety conscious as they would all like, raising concerns for their safety the celebrities become paranoid and when a deadly storm hits the island, they feel far from safe, made even worse when one of them is found dead, unsure what is going on the remaining celebrities find out they really are fighting for survival.

I can not give this debut novel enough praise, from the concept, the setting and the characters, told through the perspective of the journalist celebrity on the island, Lauren and her enquiring mind. This is such a well written book, with believable characters, that I honestly felt like I was watching the show play out for real.

It's one of those books that has you gripped from the start and plenty of intrigue, with a good pace throughout that you can't put down, but also don't want to end.

If you like the idea of reality shows with plenty of jeopardy, then this is definitely the book for you.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

Reviews also published on:
Instagram || Threads || Coffee and Kindle Blog || The StoryGraph || Amazon
Happy to make friends on all socials

View all my reviews

Review: Isolation Island

Isolation Island by Louise Minchin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



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Review: The World's Favorite Ghost Stories: Ghastly Ghosts, Spooky Spirits, and Other Creepy Tales

The World's Favorite Ghost Stories: Ghastly Ghosts, Spooky Spirits, and Other Creepy Tales by Tony Brueski
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Release Date: 20th August 2024
3.5 stars rounded up to 4 as a whole, I would say the stories range from a 3 up to 4.5 for me.

This is a collection of 13 ghost stories from around the world, some are really creepy and unnerving.

These are old tales and some are quite short punchy stories while others are longer and written in old English, so you need to tune yourself into the different types of language of each story.

One wonderful thing about the book, is that there will be a story in here for everyone (maybe even several). A great collection of spooky tales for those who enjoy a good scary story.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

Reviews also published on:
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Review: The World's Favorite Ghost Stories: Ghastly Ghosts, Spooky Spirits, and Other Creepy Tales

The World's Favorite Ghost Stories: Ghastly Ghosts, Spooky Spirits, and Other Creepy Tales by Tony Brueski
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



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