Review: Goalie Interference

Goalie Interference by K.C. Carmichael
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Ander Bouchard and Nikolai Ivanov are goalkeepers so rivals. Especially after Ander's team The Buffalo Blizzards beats Nikolai's team the St Louis Mules in the Stanley Cup. These two couldn't e more different, Nikolai is the typical stoic Russian, a man of few words, whereas Ander never seems to stop talking. But when Ander start shaving panic attacks it seems Nikolai is the only person who can calm him down. Soon these two are best friends, texting and talking on almost a daily basis, but while Nikolai has acknowledged (at least to himself) that he is gay, Ander has no idea.

But what future can the two of them have when they can never be on the same team and therefore must always be rivals?

I feel like I have progressively liked these books a little less as the series goes on. For me, personally, the smexy times to plot ratio was a little off, I felt there was a lot of rubbing tab A against tab B repetition at the expense of real relationship development and it didn't feel romantic or erotic. Also, I know that there are a lot of Russians in ice hockey but it felt a bit of a stereotype complete with broken English.

I liked it, but I didn't love it the way I loved The Kennedy Rule.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: The Secret Garden Murders

The Secret Garden Murders by J. R. Ellis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When an old lady is murdered in a walled garden of a stately home DCI Jim Oldroyd is baffled. The only entrance/exit to the garden was through a locked door and the door was locked with the key still in the lock and a bolt drawn on the inside. But as the police investigate they discover Clarissa Morden was not the sweet little old lady she appeared to be, and there were several people in the small village of Bishop Hewick who had reason to want her dead. Maybe too many.

I thoroughly enjoyed this - it kept me guessing right to the end, there is just the right amount of personal detail of the characters to develop alongside the murder.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: Under a Spanish Sky

Under a Spanish Sky by T.A. Williams
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

DNF at 7%.

I have read multiple books by TA Williams and usually enjoy them but for some reason the main character being blind and on a walking tour just didn't sit comfortably for me - not sure why. Anyway after picking it up and putting it down multiple times I have given up.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: A Prince Among Pirates

A Prince Among Pirates by Katie Abdou
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

DNF at 20%.

I liked the premise but this dragged a bit and I never felt the desire to pick it up and start reading again.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: Our Noble Selves

Our Noble Selves by Kate Atkinson
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

DNF at 4%.

I love Kate Atkinson's novels normally but this felt too depressing, the main character wasn't very likeable and other reviews mentioned how much of the book is devoted to describing the Festival of Britain - so I gave up hideously early.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: The Heights

The Heights by Ian Rankin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dwayne Hogarth, a night concierge is found murdered at reception of an expensive high-rise block of 'suites' overlooking Hyde Park in London called 'The Heights' whilst several of the residents are at a party in one of the suites owned by Maeve Gallacher the wife of one of the Metropolitan Police's most wanted gangsters. With other residents including Maita Macheso the exiled daughter of an African preacher who stole millions from his congregation and her bodyguard, a Russian oligarch called Lev Godunov, a famous singer called Zafk and his manager Roddy Collins, an actress called Jessica Forrester, Franklyn Allen the man who built the apartments and Lorn Macneal the architect, Joe Spalding an art dealer, , an entrepreneur called Toby Scully, and many more there are plenty of suspects. But why kill Dwayne the concierge? Was it linked to the fight in which his brother Mark (the DJ) was ejected from the party? Had the Russian oligarch discovered that Dwayne and his girlfriend would occasionally use the back of his Bentley for 'quality time'?

Detective Gillian Gish is motivated and intuitive, but occasionally trusts her gut more than doing things by the book, which is why she has been partnered with veteran detective Jack Milton, who is counting the days to retirement. There's a handsome freelance reporter hanging around outside the Heights, ostensibly looking for gossip, but really more interested in getting a story on one or more of the less salubrious characters and wants Gillian's help.

This reads very much like one in a series, we are jettisoned right into Gillian's home life with a mother suffering from Alzheimer's, Milton has a gay son, Adam, there are relationships and an ongoing attempt to catch Maeve's husband Eddie so I was surprised to see that this is billed as a standalone. I know Ian Rankin by name but I don't believe that I have read one of his novels before so this was a nice intro into his work. He is good at building tension and creating characters - I will definitely look for more books by him (and maybe start Rebus).

An assured murder mystery by one of Britain's foremost writers.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: Out of Office: A BRAND NEW rom-com of unexpected love, secrets and second chances from Phoebe MacLeod for 2026

Out of Office: A BRAND NEW rom-com of unexpected love, secrets and second chances from Phoebe MacLeod for 2026 by Phoebe MacLeod
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Athena is focused on her career as an IT consultant in the food and beverage industry. Her mother keeps nagging her to find a man and settle down like her brother and sister have. But Athena has never felt that draw to be coupled up, get married, and have babies. Her feelings are validated when a nice guy she knew at school turns out to be a douche when she meets him again at a family party.

Sent to Cape Town, South Africa for work to help scope an IT installation for a local supermarket chain, Athena is initially overwhelmed by the differences between the UK and South Africa. In addition, it appears that none of the team she will be working with welcome her arrival. The only bright spot is fellow Brit Nathan who is staying in the same apartment block. They initially meet in the in-house gym but progress to running together outside and spending the weekend sampling local vineyards. Could Nathan be the exception that proves the rule?

This was a fun, fairly predictable romance - although it did make me want to visit Cape Town. However, since i have been in a bit of a book funk for several weeks and this was the first book I didn't feel it was a chore to read it would probably score higher if I was in a better mood.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: The Divines: A Novel

The Divines: A Novel by Rachel Greenlaw
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book takes place immediately after the events in the first book. Having survived the Ordeals, Sophie and her friends are immediately thrust into service defending the realm against the Cold Ones who seems to be specifically targeting groups of magic wielders.

When one of Sophie's friends is attacked they must find a cure before it is too late - the secret may lie with a potion that the Cold Ones take on their home world but can the team replicate it before its too late?

I loved the first book in this series, describing it as The Hunger Games meets Harry Potter meets Fourth Wing. I loved it, devoured it in a day. I wasn't quite so enamoured of the second book - which is often the case. This had more of a vibe of Vampire Academy and (frankly) Sophie got on my nerves because she now appears to be the best at absolutely everything - after just a year of training at Killmarth she is better than everyone else, has new skills, uncovers the truth about how the Cold Ones were created etc etc. Although the ending of the book felt like the completion of an ARC, with maybe a spin-off to come, the book as a whole felt more like the middle of a trilogy (I'm not sure I'm making much sense). Anyway, it was okay. I enjoyed it, but not as much as the first one.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: Snowed in at the Comfort Food Café

Snowed in at the Comfort Food Café by Debbie Johnson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Meredith (never Merry) Bailey is the proprietor of Bailey & Bailey, a Private Equity House in London. Divorced and estranged from her one remaining child Molly, Meredith is totally dedicated to her job. Until as part of her periodic proof of life messages Molly sends Meredith a postcard picturing the Comfort Food Café in Dorset. Intrigued, and desperate to cling onto anything at all concerning Molly, Meredith drives down to Dorset with the express intention of buying the café. Of course anyone who has read any of the previous seven books in this cosy series will know that Cherie Moon would as soon sell the café as cut off a limb, something that Meredith fails to understand at first. However, canny Cherie hints that she might think about a sale ... if Meredith agrees to work in the café for ten days. Meredith is all set to refuse until Cherie drops the bombshell that Molly actually stayed in the small apartment above the café, an apartment that Meredith could also use.

Soon the beguiling inhabitants of the village (including a very handsome vet and a rescue dog) are weaving their charms over Meredith. But there is a lot of pain in her past that she needs to unpick before she can really accept what the café has to offer.

I'll be honest, I've been in a bit of a book funk recently. Nothing is hitting the right note, I've DNF'd several books by authors I usually love and been a bit meh about others - I don't even want to tell you how many ARCs I've got a third of the way through and then just left. So, what I'm saying is its probably not the book its just me being a miserable beyatch. But this just didn't grab me. Maybe because I know P/E Houses and the people that run them, maybe because I cannot fathom why someone from that world would even contemplate buying a small café in Dorset, maybe its just got to that point in the series where every previous couple has a cameo and (frankly) I can't tell one from the other.

Anyhoo, its a cosy romance set in a small Dorset village with quirky inhabitants and a vibrant social life.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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