
Gone to FantasyCon…
…be back soon.
Seriously, it’s been an adventure getting to my hotel. Got to Heathrow just fine, except for accidentally getting on the wrong train at Paddington station, getting off the train and getting lost finding the Heathrow Express. I did get to help from station staff, who were very kind when I lost speech. That was fun! Going non-speaking in the middle of London is not great but I survived. Had my sunflower 🌻 lanyard on so I could ask for help.
I struggled to find my bus, found a bus, got off the bus at the right stop but thought it was the wrong stop and walked the best part of a mile to the wrong hotel. There are two Radisson Hotel and Conference centres on Bath Road, apparently. I ended up at the blu, when I should have been at the red. It’s very confusing and the staff at the Radisson Hotel Blu had to call me an Uber back to the Radisson Hotel Red, which cost me a tenner. London prices are ridiculous.
Finally got here at 4pm and got checked in. By 5pm I was in the pool, obviously. Spent an hour in the pool and came back to my room for a second shower. The complementary toiletries aren’t very good, my hair felt striped after I showered in the pool changing room. There’s a reason I always bring my own toiletries and I’ve brought my own towels too. Hotel towels are never big enough.
The changing room does have this nifty machine that dries you swimming kit off a bit. I liked that.
Now I’m going down to the restaurant for my tea. I’m so hungry! I haven’t had a proper meal yet today.
Review: The Bleeding, by Johana Gustawsson, translated by David Warriner

HARDBACK ORIGINAL | £16.99 | ORENDA BOOKS
Blurb
1899, Belle Époque Paris. Lucienne’s two daughters are believed dead
when her mansion burns to the ground, but she is certain that her girls
are still alive and embarks on a journey into the depths of the spiritualist
community to find them.
1949, Post-War Québec. Teenager Lina’s father has died in the French
Resistance, and as she struggles to fit in at school, her mother introduces
her to an elderly woman at the asylum where she works, changing Lina’s
life in the darkest way imaginable.
2002, Quebec. A former schoolteacher is accused of brutally stabbing her
husband – a famous university professor – to death. Detective Maxine
Grant, who has recently lost her own husband and is parenting a
teenager and a new baby single-handedly, takes on the investigation.
Under enormous personal pressure, Maxine makes a series of macabre
discoveries that link directly to historical cases involving black magic and
murder, secret societies and spiritism … and women at breaking point,
who will stop at nothing to protect the ones
Review: The Fall of Roman Britain – and why we speak English, by John Lambshead

Imprint:Â Pen & Sword History
Pages: 192
ISBN:Â 9781399075565
Published: 11th May 2022
Blurb
The end of empire in the island of Great Britain was both more abrupt and more complete than in any of the other European Roman provinces. When the fog clears and Britain re-enters the historical record, it is, unlike other former European provinces of the Western Empire, dominated by a new culture that speaks a language that is neither Roman nor indigenous British Brythonic and with a pagan religion that owes nothing to Romanitas or native British practices.
Other ex-Roman provinces of the Western Empire in Europe showed two consistent features conspicuously absent from the lowlands of Britain: the dominant language was derived from the local Vulgar Latin and the dominant religion was a Christianity that looked towards Rome. This leads naturally to the question: ‘what was different about Britannia?’ A further anomaly in our understanding lies in the significant dating mismatch between historical and archaeological data of the Germanic migrations, and the latest genetic evidence. The answer to England’s unique early history may lie in resolving this paradox.
John Lambshead summarizes the latest data gathered by historians, archaeologists, climatologists and biologists and synthesizes it all into a fresh new explanation.
Continue reading “Review: The Fall of Roman Britain – and why we speak English, by John Lambshead”Review: Class – A Graphic Guide, by Laura Harvey, Sarah Leaney and Danny Noble

Publication Date: 4th August 2022 by Icon Books
ISBN:9781785786914 (ISBN10: 1785786911)
Language: English
Blurb
What do we mean by social class in the 21st century?
A new Graphic Guide from Icon Books. Sociologists Laura Harvey and Sarah Leaney and award-winning comics artist Danny Noble present an illustrated journey through the history, sociology and lived experience of class.
What can class tell us about gentrification, precarious work, the role of elites in society, or access to education? How have thinkers explored class in the past, and how does it affect us today? How does class inform activism and change?
Class: A Graphic Guide challenges simplistic and stigmatizing ideas about working-class people, discusses colonialist roots of class systems, and looks at how class intersects with race, sexuality, gender, disability and age. From the publishers of the bestselling Queer: A Graphic History, this is a vibrant, enjoyable introduction for students, community workers, activists and anyone who wants to understand how class functions in their own lives.
Continue reading “Review: Class – A Graphic Guide, by Laura Harvey, Sarah Leaney and Danny Noble”Blog Tour Calendar: The Bleeding, by Johana Gustawsson
Review: Bodies, Brains & Bogies, by Paul Ian Cross, PhD

Bodies, Brains & Bogies
This fantastic title from Paul Ian Cross, the writer of How to Vanquish a Virus, takes the reader on a whirlwind tour of everything that’s disgusting, unusual and amazing about the human body. Find out everything about poo, pus and bogies, while learning a whole lot about how our bodies work hard in hundreds of fascinating ways to keep us alive.
With tons of hilarious and informative illustrations, it includes lashings of Paul Ian Cross’s trademark laugh-out-loud humour, in-depth knowledge and infectious optimism. It’s the perfect funny, accessible way to discover everything you’ve ever wanted to know about the human body, but were too grossed-out to ask!
Purchase Links
UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bodies-Brains-Bogies-Everything-remarkable/dp/1783128720/
US – https://www.amazon.com/Bodies-Brains-Bogies-Everything-remarkable/dp/1783128720/
Continue reading “Review: Bodies, Brains & Bogies, by Paul Ian Cross, PhD”TBR Pile Review: Winter’s Orbit, by Everina Maxwell

Published February 4, 2021 by Orbit
ISBN:9780356515885 (ISBN10: 0356515885)
Language English
Blurb
While the Iskat Empire has long dominated the system through treaties and political alliances, several planets, including Thea, have begun to chafe under Iskat’s rule. When tragedy befalls Imperial Prince Taam, his Thean widower, Jainan, is rushed into an arranged marriage with Taam’s cousin, the disreputable Kiem, in a bid to keep the rising hostilities between the two worlds under control.
But when it comes to light that Prince Taam’s death may not have been an accident, and that Jainan himself may be a suspect, the unlikely pair must overcome their misgivings and learn to trust one another as they navigate the perils of the Iskat court, try to solve a murder, and prevent an interplanetary war… all while dealing with their growing feelings for each other.
Continue reading “TBR Pile Review: Winter’s Orbit, by Everina Maxwell”TBR Pile Review/Audiobook Review: The Oleander Sword, by Tasha Suri

Published August 16th 2022 by Orbit
ISBN:0316538566 (ISBN13: 9780316538565)
Series
The Burning Kingdoms #2
Blurb
“Alluring, action-packed, and gut-wrenching,” (Publishers Weekly, starred review), The Oleander Sword continues Tasha Suri’s acclaimed Burning Kingdoms trilogy, in which a powerful priestess and a vengeful princess will change the fate of an empire.
The prophecy of the nameless god—the words that declared Malini the rightful empress of Parijatdvipa—has proven a blessing and curse. She is determined to claim the throne that fate offered her. But even with rage in her heart and the army of loyal men by her side, deposing her brother is going to be a brutal and bloody fight.
The power of the deathless waters flows through Priya’s blood. Now a thrice born priestess and an Elder of Ahiranya, she dreams of seeing her country rid of the rot that plagues it: both Parijatdvipa’s poisonous rule, and the blooming sickness that is spreading through all living things. But she doesn’t yet understand the truth of the magic she carries.
Their chosen paths once pulled them apart. But Malini and Priya’s souls remain as entwined as their destinies. And saving their kingdom from those who would rather see it burn will come at a terrible price.
Continue reading “TBR Pile Review/Audiobook Review: The Oleander Sword, by Tasha Suri”


