February 2025 Round Up

Unfortunately, my covid recovery is taking longer than I would have liked. One visit to the surgery later and I was told it can take up to six months to fully recover. Six months?! Not what I wanted to hear. But the only silver lining is that I seem to read more books while I’m trying to recover my energy.

 

First up this month was Katie Lumsden’s The Secrets of Hartwood Hall. Reviewed on the blog here - https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2025/02/the-secrets-of-hartwood-house-katie.html

 

Closely followed by Bernadine Evaristo’s Girl, Woman, Other. One of those books I’ve been meaning and meaning to read and finally got around to it. I thought it was marvellous. I loved it’s structure and the way each of the women’s stories merged with the others in some way. It's a pertinent book and it stays with you for a long time after you finished it. I’m still thinking about it to be honest, which is probably why I haven’t braved a review as yet because I’m still cementing my thoughts.

 

I received a copy of Nick Stapleton’s How to Beat Scammers from Tandem Collective. I wrote about this book on my blog. https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2025/02/how-to-beat-scammers-nick-stapleton.html

 

Since having Covid and having such poor energy levels, my usual routine of walking to the library and the bookshop have been curtailed significantly. One of my goals, as I try to build up my stamina, is to get to these beloved venues. I’ve managed the library on a couple of occasions now. First of this month’s library books was Lottie Hazell’s Piglet. Quite an unusual book in some ways as there is an onus on the reader to summon their imaginations because we are never told what it is that Kit has done to cause such a sense of betrayal in Piglet just weeks before their wedding. Piglet loves her grub, hence the nickname, but hunger can be interpreted on more than one level. I must confess that I didn’t warm to Piglet as a character, but I did find the book an interesting one. I found there were several issues to consider - the strength of female friendship, considerations of social roots and whether you ever can completely cast them aside. An interesting debut novel for sure.

 

Canongate Books sent me a copy of Doon Mackichan’s memoir, Lady Parts. I blogged about it.

https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2025/02/my-lady-parts-doon-mackichan.html

 

Another Library book. This time it’s the wonderful Chris Whitaker’s All the Colours of the Dark. I’ve read all of his books. I’d read his shopping list if he’d let me.

https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2025/02/all-colours-of-dark-chris-whitaker.html

 

Amy Engel - new writer to me, thank you HQ Stories – with I Did it for You is a deliciously twisty tale of small town America. The paperback published on the 27^th of February, blogged here. 

https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2025/02/i-did-it-for-you-amy-engel.html

 

Another book from HQ Stories Elissa  Soave’s Graffiti Girls doesn’t publish until 13^th March so I’ll hold on to the review until then. Four women, Amy, Carole, Elenore and Susan are friends since schooldays. They have a tight supportive friendship despite their very different characters. United in their despite of misogyny they decide to take action.

 

My final library book of the month was recommended to me by my yoga teacher who has been kind enough to do some online yoga sessions with me, free of charge, until I’ve regained my stamina. It was Jo Browning Roe’s A Terrible Kindness. I loved it. I thought it was very well written, and I liked the structure. I thought the characters were well drawn and the story raised so many issues and points of discussion. I’m old enough to remember the Aberfan disaster. In this story William is one of the four hundred volunteer embalmers. Newly qualified and nineteen years of age the experience affects his whole life and relationships and causes him to appraise his past.  

 

 

 

 

  

I Did It for You – Amy Engel

I must admit that initially this book had me fooled into thinking it was set in the town where my brother lives in Shropshire, Ludlow. And indeed, it IS set in Ludlow but it’s a Ludlow in small town America! My disappointment was short-lived when I started to read this fiendishly, twisty plotted story. It’s a complex story that will have you playing amateur sleuth as you try to figure out exactly what is going on – copycat killer or the same one? 

 

In tandem with the crime aspects of the novel there are some spider web relationships enduring throughout; family, friendships, romance, law enforcement. I think the book also explores the nature of grief and what it can do to an individual. And how hard it is to escape the fetters of the past. 

 

The pace is such that the reader cannot help but read on and on to complete the jigsaw laid out before them. Secrets unfold that throw some suspicions under the bus and give birth to new ones. It is gripping.

 

The characterisations are excellent, the author’s ability to develop characters who are real and flawed and to elicit empathy even for those who have transgressed the law most horribly is admirable.

 

I didn’t see the final denouement, it really took me by surprise. So the ending was quite moving. Altogether a very entertaining read. 

 

My thanks to Rhiannon Morris at HQ Stories for my copy.

 

My Lady Parts – Doon Mackichan

 

When I’m feeling down and in the need of a cheer up, streaming a few episodes of Smack the Pony usually does the trick. So I was really excited when Canongate Books sent me a copy of Doon Mackichan’s memoir.

 

I found it unusual as a memoir because it wasn’t just the re-accounting of somebody’s life with entertaining anecdotes are so many memoirs seem to be. This pulls a punch and has a point to make. I suppose you could call it a feminist memoir but I think it goes beyond that . It examine the place of women and how they are treated, certainly in the entertainment industry but you sense that it is much broader. 

 

Doon is a force to be reckoned with. This is such a bold memoir, full of honesty and insight. The writer is unafraid to expose the misogyny that seems endemic and creates barriers for women in theatre, TV and films. She seems to have made an alternate career of sticking to her principles which I so admire.  

 

But if all that sounds a little heavy, fear not, for this is also the work of a very witty author and there’s a balance between the good times and the bad times and there were plenty of both. I guess the account illustrates the price that can be paid for being bold enough to say no and calling out the bigotry. 

 

However, it’s not all about show business. Doon speaks of her life outside of her thespian pursuits. Her early life and how she came to be involved in the performing arts.  I found the account of her son’s leukaemia very moving indeed. 

 

I also enjoyed the format of the book. Each chapter is prefaced with a casting call that gives you some hint of what’s ahead in that particular section and is a description of Doon Mackichan herself!

 

Thanks to Canongate Books

The Wager and the Bear - John Ironmonger

Q: What's the best way of trying to get a politician to actually listen to you? 

A: Get yourself stranded with one on an iceberg. 

Apologies if that smacks of spoiler. There's a vague allusion to it on the book back blurb so perhaps it's not too much of one. If ever there was a pertinent, relevant and topical book it's this one. And I have often thought that one of the most enduring ways to get ideas across is under the guise of fiction. As I sit here with the wind howling around me, a remnant of Storm Eowyn, and I recall the floods, the fires, the storms, the temperatures I scratch my head at those who think climTe change is all a conspiracy. Regardless of the human insistence on ruining this planet climate change and global warming will occur naturally simply because we are part of a solar system and our star, the sun, will get hotter. We have probably 'just' accelerated it.

The starting point of The Wager and the Bear concerns an exchange between idealistic youth, Tom Horsmith, and mean maturity, Monty Causley (he is a politician and climate change denier) in a Cornish pub that has consequences that follow them both throughout their lives. I'm not prepared to divulge what the wager is nor detail any of the consequences, I'm already worried I've offered one spoiler! Suffice to say it all makes for an enthralling and thought provoking story. 

Although the book does have points to make there's no preaching or dogma. Rather there is a story of humanity with all its ups and downs, heartbreaks and tragedies, the impetuousness of youth and the nefarious machinations of politicians, and there's love and loyalty, friendship and family. 

What really sticks out, though, is what a consummate storyteller John Ironmonger is. The narrative flows seamlessly whether the location is Cornwall or the Arctic, one sequence of events seems to glide effortlessly into the next like some of the glaciers in the tale. The text is expansive without being over elaborate. Whilst an affinity for the pertinent detail in a story can sometimes make or break it - too much and you risk boring your reader, too little and you run the risk of frustrating your reader. Pick up the balance right as Mr. Ironmonger has done and the result is just a beautiful literary experience.

It's a clever story, contemporary yet timeless. Whilst it deals with a subject that might be seen as hopeless, nevertheless, the story leads us to believe that there is hope for the future so ultimately the book is an uplifting one. 

My thanks to Isabelle Kenyon at Fly on the Wall Press for a gifted copy. 

All the Colours of the Dark – Chris Whitaker

 I‘ve read all of Chris Whitaker’s books. And I’ve loved them all. I’ve also enjoyed seeing him develop as a writer. This current work from Whitaker is ambitious in its breadth and concept. Ostensibly a crime novel it elevates itself above the bare bones of that genre by exploring issues of family, friendship, love and trauma. 

If you’ve read Whitaker’s work previously, you’ll recognise settings, style and location. We’re still in small town America, so palpably described you could be forgiven for thinking Chris Whitaker is a native of those places but he isn’t, he’s British. Maybe he was an American in a previous life! 

 

Whitaker’s characterisations are always something to behold and there’s no disappointment here. Patch and Saint leap off the page and into your hearts. Names, again, seem to play a part. Saint is perfect as was Duchess in We Begin at the End. Grace is another name or word that crops up in Whitaker’s work; the town in All the Wicked Girls was called Grace. The police play a prominent role again exerting considerable influence over the main character, here it is Nix, it was Walk in We Begin at the End. 

 

There are some humorous moments, not as dominant as in his first two books, it’s a more serious story, but wit is always appreciated. 

 

The crime story is complex and quite convoluted with twists and smokescreens that have you guessing and suspecting nearly all the way through. There is resolution at the end but most of all you want Saint, Patch and Charlotte to find peace of mind and understanding. 

 

I used to receive proofs of Chris Whitaker’s books when I had some standing in the blogger ranks. Alas that state is no more. I reserved and borrowed this from my local library. I’ve had to wait weeks for it which has disappointed me less than you might think because it means that people are wanting to read Whitaker’s work. And I look forward to his next book - who knows some publisher might think me worthy of an advance copy!

How To Beat Scammers – Nick Stapleton

 

The foreword of this book contains a chilling statement “If you haven’t been caught out yet, it’s not because you’re too clever but simply because you’re lucky. Eventually, the right scam will get you on the wrong day.”

 That is reiterated, again, at the end of book. Mr. Stapleton implies that each and every one of us will at some point, get scammed. It’s a chilling thought.

 

This is an informative and useful guide to scams, past and present, that are violating our world today. So, in that sense it is a very depressing read. It is simply dreadful to contemplate that there are so many millions of people out there making a career out of stealing data and money from decent, honest, hardworking folk. What kind of world have we become? 

 

Something else that I found very interesting in the book is that Nick Stapleton puts the scammers’ point of view forward as well! He managed to secure some testimonies from some scammers who expressed regret at what they were doing but they implied that they had no choice. Some of them were intelligent, educated people who could not secure employment in their own countries and turned to scamming to live. Some of them had the attitude that it was simply payback to white people for what they had done to their country in the past! 

 

There is no doubt in my mind that scamming is big business worldwide. And the Internet is largely to blame together with smart phones etc. and social media. Of course, postal scams, door to door scams, rogue workman are continuing and are probably some of the earliest scams, predating the internet. 

 

This book gives us some background on the scam business worldwide. Then there is a part entitled The Scam Compendium which goes through each type of scam, what happens and how the scammers operate. And there’s a final part that aims to help you help yourself if you’ve been scammed, reporting scams and talking about scams. There's also an acknowledgement that AI could further render a greater degree of sophistication to these scams. Horrific.

 

It's a useful book but it is so sad that there is a need for it.

 

My thanks to Tandem Collective for my copy.

 

 

The Secrets of Hartwood Hall - Katie Lumsden

 

There’s nothing I like better than a ‘Big House’ story. And this is a big house story. But it’s more than that as it’s historical fiction and a gothic mystery too. 

Historical fiction at its best has be authentic and convincing. There are many ways of doing that. Impeccable research that takes in the events of the period, the physical detail of the age, what people wore, how they spoke all contribute to creating a palpable landscape for the reader to navigate and believe in. Katie Lumsden’s book does exactly that. 

Gothic? It’s an oft bandied term sometimes, but sometimes the true Gothic novel is elusive and can cause dissent among those who sometimes dispute whether a story is Gothic or not.

For me, it has to be dark; a big house setting lends itself to the genre. I think there has  to be a hefty helping of the supernatural and haunting. Gloom, mystery and foreboding are all elements that contribute to the overall ‘gothicity’! It’s all here in The Secrets of Hartwood Hall. 

There is an acknowledged debt to the Brontës, in particular Jane Eyre but this is no act of plagiarism. It’s excellent storytelling with some believable characters who all add to richness of the narrative. Plenty of love, plenty of heartbreak and some twists you didn’t see coming, well, I didn’t! I guessed at several possibilities but I didn’t quite hit the mark. 

Reader, I loved it.