Tag Archives: Book review

Review: ‘Comfort Food’, by Julia Bettelheim

Published By: Clink Street Publishing

Publication Date: 13th February 2018

I.S.B.N.:  9781912262632

Format: E-book/Paperback

I’m reviewing this book as part of a Clink Street Publishing blog tour and received an e-book copy of the book in return for an honest review.

 

 

 

Blurb

here’s nothing quite like Comfort Food to put a smile on your face and a feeling of contentment in your stomach.

Chef Julia Bettelheim is passionate about feeding people; from the students in her university kitchen to guests and family at home.

From recipes that are as simple as a sandwich to as technical as a fruit cake, she knows the importance of creating delicious meals that are full of flavour and which always have budget in mind.

Her recipes include easy to make classics and mouth-watering family favourites, using easy to find products that are fresh and economical.

Fun, fast, indulgent and nurturing, there’s a time and a place for Comfort Food in every kitchen.

Continue reading “Review: ‘Comfort Food’, by Julia Bettelheim”

Review: ‘The Mother’s Secret’, by Clare Swatman

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Published By: Macmillan

Publication Date: 22nd February 2018

Format: Paperback

I.S.B.N.: 97815098248

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Price: £7.99

 

 

 

 

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Bonus Review #3: ‘The Pug Who Bit Napoleon’, by Mimi Matthews

 

The Pug Who Bit Napoleon

Published By: Pen & Sword History

Publication Date: 11th December 2017

Format: Paperback

I.S.B.N.: 9781526705006

Price: £14.99

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blurb

From elaborate Victorian cat funerals to a Regency era pony who took a ride in a hot air balloon, Mimi Matthews shares some of the quirkiest—and most poignant—animal tales of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Meet Fortune, the Pug who bit Napoleon on his wedding night, and Looty, the Pekingese sleeve dog who was presented to Queen Victoria after the 1860 sacking of the Summer Palace in Peking. The four-legged friends of Lord Byron, Emily Brontë, and Prince Albert also make an appearance, as do the treasured pets of Alexander Pope, Samuel Johnson, and Charles Dickens.

Less famous, but no less fascinating, are the animals that were the subject of historical lawsuits, scandals, and public curiosity. There’s Tuppy, the purloined pet donkey; Biddy, the regimental chicken; and Barnaby and Burgho, the bloodhounds hired to hunt Jack the Ripper. Wild animals also get a mention in tales that encompass everything from field mice and foxes to alligators and sharks lurking in the Thames.

Using research from eighteenth and nineteenth century books, letters, and newspapers, Mimi Matthews brings each animal’s unique history to vivid life. The details are sometimes humorous, sometimes heartbreaking, but the stories are never anything less than fascinating reading for animal lovers of all ages.

Continue reading “Bonus Review #3: ‘The Pug Who Bit Napoleon’, by Mimi Matthews”

Bonus Review number two: ‘The Nature Fix’, by Florence Williams

Published by: W.W. Norton and Company

Publication Date: 7th February 2017

Format: Hardcover

I.S.B.N.: 9780393242713

Price: $26.95

 

 

 

Blurb

For centuries, poets and philosophers extolled the benefits of a walk in the woods: Beethoven drew inspiration from rocks and trees; Wordsworth composed while tromping over the heath; Nikola Tesla conceived the electric motor while visiting a park. Intrigued by our storied renewal in the natural world, Florence Williams sets out to uncover the science behind nature’s positive effects on the brain. From forest trails in Korea, to islands in Finland, to groves of eucalyptus in California, Williams investigates the science at the confluence of environment, mood, health, and creativity. Delving into completely new research, she uncovers the powers of the natural world to improve health, promote reflection and innovation, and ultimately strengthen our relationships. As our modern lives shift dramatically indoors, these ideas—and the answers they yield—are more urgent than ever.

Continue reading “Bonus Review number two: ‘The Nature Fix’, by Florence Williams”

Bonus Review #5: ‘Victorian Policing’, by Gaynor Haliday

Victorian PolicingPublished By: Pen & Sword History

Publication Date: 15th November 2017

I.S.B.N.: 9781526706126

Format: Paperback

Price: £10.50

 

 

Alex at Pen and Sword emailed me last November to see if I wanted to review this book. I had a long list of books to review so I’ve finally got round to it.

 

 

Blurb

What was life like for the Victorian bobby? Gaynor Haliday became fascinated with the history of the early police forces when researching the life of her great, great grandfather; a well-regarded, long-suffering Victorian police constable in Bradford. Although a citation claimed his style of policing was merely to cuff the offender round the ear and send him home, press reports of the time painted a much grimmer picture of life on the beat in the Victorian streets.

Handwritten Watch Committee minutes, historical newspapers and police records combine to reveal an account of how and why the various police forces were set up; the recruitment, training and expectations of the men, the issues and crimes they had to deal with, and the hostility they encountered from the people whose peace they were trying to keep.

Continue reading “Bonus Review #5: ‘Victorian Policing’, by Gaynor Haliday”

Review: ‘Veronica’s Bird’, by Veronica Bird & Richard Newman

Veronicas Bird Cover

Published By: Clink Street publishing

Publication Date: 23rd January 2018

I.S.B.N.:  9781912262618

Format: Paperback

Price: £8.99

Blurb

Veronica’s Bird: Thirty-five years inside as a female prison officer 

Veronica Bird was one of nine children living in a tiny house in Barnsley with a brutal coal miner for a father. Life was a despairing time in the 1950s, as Veronica sought desperately to keep away from his cruelty. Astonishingly, to her and her mother, she won a scholarship to Ackworth Boarding School where she began to shine above her class-mates. A champion in all sports, Veronica at last found some happiness until her brother-in-law came into her life. It was as if she had stepped from the frying pan into the re: he took over control of her life removing her from the school she adored, two terms before she was due to take her GCEs, so he could put her to work as a cheap option on his market stall. Abused for many years by these two men, Veronica eventually ran away and applied to the Prison Service, knowing it was the only safe place she could trust. This is the astonishing, and true story of Veronica Bird who rose to become a Governor of Armley prison. Given a ‘basket case’ in another prison, contrary to all expectations, she turned it around within a year, to become an example for others to match. During her life inside, her ‘bird’, she met many Home Secretaries, was honoured by the Queen and was asked to help improve conditions in Russian Prisons. A deeply poignant story of eventual triumph against a staggeringly high series of setbacks, her story is lled with humour and compassion for those inside.

 

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Veronicas-Bird-Thirty-five-inside-officer-ebook/dp/B077NXT42X

About the authors: After thirty-five years working for the Prison Service, Veronica Bird is now retired and living in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. She is still an active proponent of the justice system and continues to lecture across the country and is a supporter of Butler Trust, which acknowledges excellence within the prison system.

A qualified architect and Swiss-trained hotelier, Richard Newman enjoyed a forty-year career designing and managing hotels worldwide before retiring in 2001. Since then he has gone on to publish a number of novels: The Crown of Martyrdom, The Horse that Screamed, The Potato Eaters, The Green Hill, Brief Encounters and most recently The Sunday Times bestseller, A Nun’s Story. He is currently working on a new novel about retirement and an autobiography of his time in the Middle East. He lives happily with his wife in Wetherby, West Yorkshire where he enjoys being close to his family.

Continue reading “Review: ‘Veronica’s Bird’, by Veronica Bird & Richard Newman”

Bonus Review #4: ‘Primal Awareness’, by Rob Wildwood

Primal AwarenessPublished By: Moon Books

Publication Date: 26th January 2018

Format: Paperback

I.S.B.N.: 9781785356568

Price: £9.99

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blurb

Focusing on the origins of Western culture and belief systems, from ancient agriculture to modern industry, from primitive religion to monotheism, Primal Awareness explains how we became separated from nature and how, throughout history, these belief systems and social models have imposed a life of servitude and hardship upon millions of people. It also illustrates how modern technology and the modern scientific world view are currently causing the destruction of our natural environment. How can we overcome this separation, and reconnect with nature and spirit once again?

Continue reading “Bonus Review #4: ‘Primal Awareness’, by Rob Wildwood”

Bonus Review #3: ‘The Darkness’, by Ragnar Jonasson

Published by: Penguin UK

Publication Date: 15th March 2018

I.S.B.N.: 9780718187248

Price: £12.99

 

 

 

 

 

Blurb

Before Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir of the Reykjavik Police is forced into early retirement she is told to investigate a cold case of her choice, and she knows just the one. A young woman found dead on remote seaweed-covered rocks. A woman who was looking for asylum and found only a watery grave. Her death is ruled a suicide after a cursory investigation. But Hulda soon realizes that there was something far darker to this case.

This was not the only young woman to disappear around that time. And no one is telling the whole story. When her own force tries to put the brakes on the investigation Hulda has just days to discover the truth. Even if it means risking her own life . . . Spanning the icy streets of Reykjavik, the Icelandic highlands and cold, isolated fjords, The Darkness is an atmospheric thriller from one of the most exciting names in Nordic Noir.

Continue reading “Bonus Review #3: ‘The Darkness’, by Ragnar Jonasson”

Review: ‘The Wolves Of Winter’, by Tyrell Johnson

wow cover

Forget the old days. Forget summer. Forget warmth. Forget anything that doesn’t help you survive.

Lynn McBride has learned much since society collapsed in the face of nuclear war and the relentless spread of disease. As memories of her old life haunt her, she has been forced to forge ahead in the snow-covered Canadian Yukon, learning how to hunt and trap to survive.

But her fragile existence is about to be shattered. Shadows of the world before have found her tiny community—most prominently in the enigmatic figure of Jax, who sets in motion a chain of events that will force Lynn to fulfil a destiny she never imagined.

 

Continue reading “Review: ‘The Wolves Of Winter’, by Tyrell Johnson”

Review: ‘Misfortunes of Vision’, by Christy Nicholas

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Misfortune of Vision by Christy Nicholas,

Book #4 in The Druid’s Brooch Series

Historical fantasy set in 12th century Ireland

~ Prophecy can be dangerous ~

In 12th century Ireland, Orlagh has been Seer to her king for forty years. He doesn’t want to hear her prophecies of war and destruction, and dismisses her efforts to warn him. Therefore, she is determined to fulfill her own quest: to find a worthy heir for her magical brooch.

In the course of events, she must pass judgment on a thief, escape a Norman war camp, and battle wits with a Fae lord. She receives some prophecy of her own and enlists the help of a grizzled old warrior, who happens to be a long–time friend.

Links:

Publisher link: http://www.tirgearrpublishing.com/authors/Nicholas_Christy/index.htm

Website: http://www.greendragonartist.com

Blog:  http://www.greendragonartist.net

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/greendragonauthor

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/greendragon9

Author Bio:

Celtic Fairies, Fables, and Folklore! Bestselling author (top #100 Amazon Canada, #1 in Paranormal Fantasy, Amazon Canada)

Christy Nicholas, also known as Green Dragon, is an author, artist and accountant. After she failed to become an airline pilot, she quit her ceaseless pursuit of careers that begin with ‘A’, and decided to concentrate on her writing. Since she has Project Completion Disorder, she is one of the few authors with NO unfinished novels.

Christy has her hands in many crafts, including digital art, beaded jewelry, writing, and photography. In real life, she’s a CPA, but having grown up with art all around her (her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother are/were all artists), it sort of infected her, as it were.

She wants to expose the incredible beauty in this world, hidden beneath the everyday grime of familiarity and habit, and share it with others. She uses characters out of time and places infused with magic and myth.

Continue reading “Review: ‘Misfortunes of Vision’, by Christy Nicholas”