Review: The Break-Up Pact

The Break-Up Pact by Emma Lord
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Three and a half stars.

June left her home town to travel the world with her boyfriend Griffin, but when her older sister Anna died she returned home (with some relief) to run the tea and scone shop they had dreamed of together. Unable to stand being dispensable, Griffin dumps June live on his reality TV show by introducing her to 'the love of his life'. Bad enough to be publicly humiliated, but June also becomes a social media meme titled 'the crying girl'.

June, Anna, and their brother Dylan were all friends with Levi at high school, June even had a major crush on him, but he moved to New York to become (gasp) a hedge fund manager and he and June haven't spoken for years. When Levi's artist girlfriend publicly cheats on him with probably the world's sexiest actor (I'm thinking George Clooney - basically someone on everyone's pass card), Levi returns home to finish writing his novel.

As soon as June and Levi run into each other their old camaraderie flourishes, and their mutual fried suggests the two of them change the narrative by posing as a rebound couple - something that takes the internet by storm. But with unresolved issues from their past, scheming exes, a voracious internet, and a failing tea shop to deal with, the course of true love never did run smooth.

I liked the premise of this, the fake dating didn't last more than about 30 seconds and that was okay. However, what dragged this down for me was just how much verbiage there was about everything, honestly I was ready for the book to be over a long time before it was finished. Maybe there were too many side plots (eg dead sister, planning brother's wedding, fake dating, failing business, Levi's writing, etc). I would compare this to Jamie Beck with a little les angst (rereading some of my reviews they were quite vitriolic) but there does appear to be quite a bit of navel-gazing, angsty introspection that I don't enjoy - if you enjoy that then I think you'll love this. SO I'm basically saying I'm shallow and I like my romances light on the angsty introspection LOL.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

View all my reviews

Review: The Case of the Lonely Accountant (The Finder Mysteries)

The Case of the Lonely Accountant (The Finder Mysteries) by Simon Mason
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Three and a half stars.

One day, at the height of the financial crisis in 2008, Don Bayliss walked out of a meeting in the office and was never seen again, a pile of his clothes and possessions was found near Poole Harbour and the assumption was that he had committed suicide. Eight years later his widow, a local councillor and wealthy in her own right, finds Dwight Fricker's business card amongst her husband's things. Mr Fricker is a well-known local businessman with several illegal activities who is currently in solitary confinement in prison after attacking two guards - he is known to be psychotically violent. The local police re-open the missing persons file and call in 'the Finder'.

The Finder discovers Don to be a man of contradictions, a typical boring accountant who also lied to a neighbour unnecessarily. A kind and caring boss who opened doors for women and was generally respectful, but who sexually harassed a young woman in the office. A scrupulously honest employee who embezzled money from the company. Someone who presented as content with his life who was found weeping in quiet desperation by a colleague.

I enjoyed this, but reading it immediately after the first book in the series I felt it was too similar in the premise (not wanting to spoil the ending). Also, as I feared, the Finder's quirk is that he just happens to be reading a novel which sheds some light/has some bearing on the case he is working on.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

View all my reviews

Review: Missing Person: Alice (The Finder Mysteries)

Missing Person: Alice (The Finder Mysteries) by Simon Mason
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I only requested this book because I wanted to read the next book in the series, then I saw that it was based around Sevenoaks in Kent, which is very close to where I live, so I thought I would request this too.

Our narrator, 'the Finder' of the series, is an Iraqi-born former police detective who assists police forces in finding missing people.

When a young girl's body is found in a lake near Sevenoaks there is evidence linking her to a local man, Vince Burns. Mr Burns is relishing the notoriety and seems keen to imply that there may be other victims, he seems to want to be a famous serial killer. Nine years ago a twelve year old girl called Alice Johnson went missing while on her paper-round and her body was never found. The local police call on the Finder to find Alice('s body) and hopefully pin her murder on Vince Burns.

As the Finder retraces Alice's steps and reinterviews anyone who knew her then, he finds a child of great contradictions. Where des the truth lie?

This is a difficult book to categorise. Its a quiet, thoughtful, measured detective story, with the Finder trying to get inside Alice's head just as much as following clues and re-interviewing people. He also analyses the people he interviews to assess their credibility. We often say people piece together the evidence and that is a very good way of describing this detective process. Nothing felt like a leap of imagination or something obscure mentioned in passing, everything followed logically, including a few blind alleys.

Overall, I really enjoyed this. My only gripe was the references to the book the Finder was reading - I do hope his reading matter won't be some kind of allegory/commentary on each missing person in the series. On to book 2.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

View all my reviews

Review: Liv Is Not A Loser

Liv Is Not A Loser by Lauren Ford
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Three and a half stars.

Olivia 'Liv' Granger has trouble committing, to a career, to a hot drink, to an apartment, to a boyfriend, to a new phone, to her degree. When her brother Joe gets engaged to his boyfriend she realises that everyone else seems to have their lives together whereas she is still acting like a teenager. Together with her brother, his boyfriend, and her brother's best friend Henry, Liv creates a ten point list to stop her being such a loser (I can only remember seven):

1. Finish her degree
2. Get an internship in her chosen field
3. Sign a lease
4. Get a new phone
5. Commit to one hot drink (I feel in this I need to explain that she routinely buys three drinks at a time)
6. Have at least three dates with a guy before rejecting him
7. Keep a pet alive

Liv starts to make headway with her list, despite being dragged into wedding planning by her obsessive mother, and forced to meet yet another of her father's new girlfriends (each of whom believes she is far more special to him than she really is), but her dating life is terrible - it is only the calm acceptance and commiserations from Henry that keeps her going. But when Liv overhears a conversation between her niece and Henry she realises Henry may have feelings for her and when she looks at him in the light of this new knowledge she realises she might have feelings for him too.

Whilst I get that Liv was stuck in a bit of a rut, I also felt that her family/friends were pushing her into a pigeonhole (maybe because she was the youngest they felt she still needed to be babied and/or told what to do?), really is it too much for someone to want three drinks? Really is your reality so rigid?

I've read a couple of similar books recently and this one didn't really stand out from the rest. There was a bit too much therapy-style chat and things just quickly fell into place when Liv started her list. How many times have I said this? I liked it but I didn't love it.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

View all my reviews

Review: A Proper Façade

A Proper Façade by Esther Hatch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Three and a half stars.

Nicholas Kendrick, Duke of Harrington, had an affair with an engaged woman when he was seventeen, they were not discreet and only his late father's actions in enlisting him in the army prevented it from becoming a scandal. Nicholas' father had single-handedly rescued the family's reputation after a series of philanderers and dissolute gamblers had made them notorious. Now, with his reckless pursuit of his own desires, Nicholas came close to ruining the family's reputation again.

Once he came to see the error of his ways, particularly after his father's untimely death, Nicholas has become a model of propriety, terrified of allowing his emotions to rule his head. He has parliamentary ambitions to relieve the suffering of the Irish people and needs his fellow peers to take him seriously and award him the same respect as his father. He decides he needs a wife, preferably someone who can help him with his ambitions. Lady Mercy Rothschild fits the bill, her father holds similar political views, she is of the right sort of family, and she is a beauty to boot so Nicholas proceeds most properly with a sedate courtship, desperate to legitimise his passions within the bounds of holy matrimony.

Mercy's parents have always been kind and loving, allowing her considerably more freedoms than other girls of her age. She has strong political views and is determined to marry for love, just like her older sister and her best friend, just indeed as her parents did. Until recently, Mercy's parents supported her wishes and were content for her to find love in her own time. However, Mercy's parents have suddenly started pressurising her to consider the Duke of Harrington's suit, he might be handsome but his stilted address and serious mien are totally at odds with the passion she seeks. So, to avoid disappointing her parents Mercy looks for other suitable young ladies that he might court instead.

This was pleasantly enjoyable. However, there was a little too much of Mercy discounting the obvious about Nicholas' passions (and indeed Nicholas assuming that when Mercy pulled away from a kiss it was with revulsion) and neither of the young women Mercy tried to set up with Nicholas would have furthered his political career so from that standpoint (given that was why Mercy was against the proposal in the first place) the set-ups seemed ill thought through.

Loved the cover, very Mr Darcy views Pemberley.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

View all my reviews

Review: The Lonely Hearts' Quiz League

The Lonely Hearts' Quiz League by Lauren Farnsworth
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

DNF at 47%.

I really tried with this, but after seven months and at nearly halfway through I've got to say I just don't feel any sympathy for any of the characters. They are all deluded or just plain stupid and I can't bear to read them making bad decisions or setting themselves up for failure, I can see where it is all going and it doesn't end well.

Not for me.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

View all my reviews

Review: Spook Street

Spook Street by Mick Herron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

One of London's shopping centres is rocked by a suicide bomber who appears to have orchestrated a flash mob dance routine just so that he could cause maximum carnage.

Over at Regents Park Dame Ingrid is out (as indeed is Bojo lookilikey Peter Judd) and there's a new First Desk. Lady Di is still there trying to manipulate the new First Desk who has come from outside MI5. In addition there's a new head of the Dogs, a woman. No sooner has the Frist Desk advised the PM of their provisional findings about the bombing when Lady Di drops the news that the bomber's ID is one that had been carefully curated by MI5 during the Cold War - they key being that it wasn't a fake ID, it was a genuine ID just not assigned to a warm body. Somehow, someone in MI5 has stolen a number of these 'Products' and it has only just been discovered.

Meanwhile, at Slough House Catherine Standish has been replaced by a woman nominated by the First Chair, everyone else is much the same, except Rive Cartwright is worried that the O.B. (his grandfather) appears to be becoming increasingly forgetful and paranoid. Given the O.B. was once the power behind the First Chair throne River is worried that Regents Park may decide the only way to ensure the O.B. doesn't start spilling state secrets is to silence him permanently.

Another great instalment in this series, the Slough House body count continues to rise (in more ways than one), I guessed some parts of the plot but others eluded me.

View all my reviews

Review: Just for Me

Just for Me by Rosalind James
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I first read this as part of an anthology, but felt in need of a pick-me-up so read it again. We have seen some of this story in previous books, notably Just Say (Hell) No which was Marko and Nyree's book and Just Come Over which was Rhys and Zora's book.

So Luke is Nyree's half-brother. He's a professional rugby player, as is his younger brother Kane, which is unsurprising since his father Grant was the All Blacks coach for many years. Luke left NZ for Europe and now plays for a Paris rugby team, with a British mother he has also captained England. What no-one knows because he has kept it a closely guarded secret, even from his family, is that Luke is gay. But after his latest romance goes South because of the secrecy, Luke worries that he is suppressing too much. The one thing he can do is go back to NZ for his sister's wedding and take some of the heat of their father's displeasure off her shoulders.

Hayden is Zora's openly gay brother, a New Zealand contract lawyer, he's just found out that his boyfriend has got back together with his ex, without bothering to tell Hayden. Definitely a case of having his cake and wanting it too. Not only that, but he makes it very clear that Hayden was only temporary, a fling, before the two of them got back together, because Hayden is too boring, too pedestrian, too middle-class to be a long-term thing.

Hayden and Luke meet at Zora's where Nyree is painting a beautiful mural on Rhys' daughter Casey's bedroom, having previously painted Zora's son Isaiah's ceiling, as the wedding is rapidly approaching she has enlisted everyone to help. Both instantly smitten, Luke can't imagine what a sophisticated, cultured man like Hayden could see in a hairy, taciturn, scarred bear of a man like him, whereas Hayden can't imagine what appeal a boring talkative lawyer could have for a strong, internationally famous athlete.

But is Luke willing to be out-out with his team as well as his friends and family, and how can a relationship work when one of you lives in Paris and the other lives in New Zealand?

This was just delicious from start to finish. Luke and Hayden were such a lovely couple and I'm glad we got to see more of them.

Loved it just as much second read.

Read on my Kindle Unlimited subscription.

View all my reviews

Review: Real Tigers

Real Tigers by Mick Herron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The third outing for the Slow Horses of Slough House. London is in the grip of a long hot summer. Catherine Standish leaves Slough House at the end of the day, only to be approached by a ghost from her drinking past, a disgraced former high-ranking soldier who has recently been released from prison. She evades him but shortly afterwards is kidnapped and taken to an unknown location in the country.

All our favourite characters make an appearance, Dame Ingrid plays more of a role than previously as she and Lady Di jostle for power in Regents Park. Meanwhile, the brilliantly sketched psychopath Peter Judd continues his bid for power. But as Aretha Franklin said, who's zoomin' who? Inevitably Slough House are dragged into this by all the other players, desperate to have plausible deniability.

After a slight disappointment with the second book, I felt this was right back up there. Loved it.

View all my reviews

Review: The Ballad of Smallhope and Pennyroyal

The Ballad of Smallhope and Pennyroyal by Jodi Taylor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Three and a half stars.

At last the origin story of bounty hunters extraordinaire: Lady Amelia Smallhope and Pennyroyal, well Smallhope at least, I don't think I know much more about Pennyroyal's background.

Lady Amelia Smallhope meets Pennyroyal for the first time when he steals the diamonds she inherited from her mother from her rapacious sister-in-law's safe. Soon the two of them have fled the scene (avec les diamonds naturellement) and Pennyroyal has transported Amelia to London in the blink of an eye.

With a sick friend to assist and grasping moneylenders, Smallhope and Pennyroyal decide to become bounty hunters - and so the legend was born.

It seems odd to gripe when I loved this book so much but I still don't know much about Pennyroyal's origins (ooo hope there's another book), also I wanted to see all those missions involving St Mary's and/or the Time Police from Smallhope and Pennyroyal's POV but instead they were just mentioned in passing, I would have been happy for the passages to be copied verbatim from the relevant other books if necessary and I think that this might be a hard read for a newcomer to the series (what is the plural of series?).

Anyway, gripes aside, loved it, loved it, loved it.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

View all my reviews

Review: Daydreamer

Daydreamer by Susie Tate
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Lucy Mayweather has a tendency to daydream, in fact her daydreaming has made her a very successful fantasy author under the name LP Mayweather, but she can live in her own little world too much which is why she took a job as Executive Assistant in her brother's best friend Felix's London office. Unfortunately, the kind boy Lucy remembers is now a hard-nosed businessman whose office runs on fear and pressure.

Since he left their small village all those years ago Felix hasn't really thought about Lucy much, he certainly doesn't know that her knack for storytelling has brought her fame and fortune. He thinks Lucy needs the job and that otherwise her mother (his former nanny) would have to support her, so he does everything he can to get Lucy to toughen up, fit in, and generally become a corporate drone.

Despite his misgivings, and breaking the bro code, Felix and Lucy come together and things are good, but Lucy still hasn't come clean about her writing and Felix has deep-seated trust issues after a previous girlfriend betrayed him. Unfortunately, those two things come together in a flashpoint that could tear them apart.

I read this twice. The first time I didn't love it, felt there was something missing, maybe I was looking for the humour or the badassery of some of the previous books/series. However, I reread it (mainly because I didn't write a review at the time and didn't have enough recall to write one afterwards) and really loved it. Felix is just such a steamroller when he wants to get things done he gets blinkered and he genuinely couldn't see any other way of doing things, or any other conclusion to draw. Despite Lucy having been in love with Felix since she was a child (and basing every single hero in her books on him), she does stand up for herself and call out Felix for never having showed any curiosity about her.

Overall, loved this and can't wait for Gold Digger, the next book in the series.

I received an ARC from the author.

Available on Kindle Unimited.

Sadly, this was the last book I read on my Kindle which I accidentally left on the platform of East Dulwich train station on Sunday afternoon - when I got back it had gone - farewell my lovely.

View all my reviews