Da Capo Press
3rd September 2013
Continue reading “ARC Review: ‘Six Women of Salem’ by Marilynne K. Roach”
Category Archives: Reviews
ARC Review: ‘Local Customs’ by Audrey Thomas
22 February 2014
Dundern
In 1838 the writer Letitia Landon married the governor of Cape Coast Castle, Captain George MacLean while the captain was on leave. It was a whirl-wind romance. They sailed for Cape Coast a few days later, arriving safely after five weeks. Eight weeks later Letty was dead. Initially her death was recorded as accidental – an overdose of prussic acid, but events surrounding her death caused a storm in London’s literary crowd, her husband was accused of neglect or cruelty, and there were rumours of suicide. The mystery remains – how did she die? Award winning writer Audrey Thomas first heard Leticia Landon’s story in 1964 while visiting Ghana. She visited Cape Coast Castle during the two years her husband taught at the University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. Their guide told her about the famous English lady who wrote books and who’s death was surrounded by mystery. This is her answer to that mystery.
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Review: ‘Dead Ever After’ by Charlaine Harris
2013
Gollancz
The final adventure of Sookie Stackhouse begins the day after the penultimate novel ended: Sam the Shapeshifter lived and Eric the Vampire is not happy that Sookie used the fairy gift from her great-grandfather to bring Sam back and not to get him out of a sticky political situation. Everyone is upset. And then an old enemy comes back in to Sookie’s life, an instrument of unknown enemies. When she is murdered the police would quite like it if Sookie were the murderer. It all gets very stressful for Sookie as more enemies come out of the woodwork and Eric divorces her. Sam is distant and confusing, Bill a little too friendly.
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Review: ‘My Brief History’ by Stephen Hawking
10th September 2013
Bantam
Stephen Hawking has written several popular science books that have been incredibly well received. And now he has written his own story. I have read an uncorrected e-book and am now able to review it.
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Review: ‘Happy women live better’ by Valorie Burton
2013
Harvest House Publishers
America’s ‘Happiness Queen’ Valorie Burton wants to start a conversation between women about why they aren’t happy and provides thirteen ‘happiness triggers’. Ms Burton is a professional counsellor I understand, from this book, and has made a career of helping others find happiness; so just the person to write this sort of book. I have a review copy, which is incomplete, so I shall confine my comments to structure and available content. I would have liked to have seen the contents of the projected appendices and conclusion; I’m sure they would have been very interesting.
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Review: ‘Did I Say That Out Loud? Conversations About Life’ By Kelly McDermott Harman
Wegost Press
2013
This e-book is 87% true, 13% blarney, according to the author; a collection of humorous personal anecdotes. I couldn’t help but laugh as Kelly described conversations with her family and friends, including the one with her sister about getting concussion from a drunk man three weeks before a further head injury in a car accident, or the time she had to help said sister explain to their parents why she had left her husband, the conversation she had with her family paediatrician about her sons being serial killers in training (creative cricket death was involved), or her mother’s story about quilt shops and concealed weapons permits.
Review:’Spirit’ – the new album from Reckless Love
http://open.spotify.com/track/7vKZIz31BW6IMIDcLjUHUJ
I reviewed this album (badly) last Monday, the UK release day. Now that I’m feeling marginally better (I haven’t died from this cold yet) and have had a chance to listen to the album a few (dozen) times, I feel more capable of reviewing it properly and fairly.
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Avenged Sevenfold ‘Hail to the King’
Last evening my brother-in-law asked whether I’d heard the new Avenged Sevenfold album. When I told him I hadn’t had a chance yet he recommended I listen to it when I had the chance. I had that chance this morning (Spotify/internet connection – same old story). My bro-in-law described some of the songs as being a bit like Metallica, some a bit like Iron Maiden. He also thought the title track ‘Hail to the King’ was the weakest of the lot. I had heard ‘Hail to the King’ on Kerrang! and was quite impressed by it. If it was the weakest, I said, then the rest must be quite something.
Reckless Love’s new album – I finally got to hear it!
On release day (in the UK)!
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Review – ‘The Black Lion: Satan’s Kingdom’ by Anthony Karakai
2013
A modern spy thriller set in Hungary
Jackson is one of an elite covert force, ‘The Black Lions’, recruited from the CIA and ready to deal out violent justice. His team mates are a mixed bag of ex-security services from around the world.
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Everything Is Better With Dragons 