Review: The Friend by Dorothy Koomson

I owe someone out there a lot of chocolate. It’s the person who told me to read Dorothy Koomson’s work.

The Friend is the first book I’ve tried by this author and I’m already hooked. I’ve started making plans to binge-read her back-list.

Review: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

I don’t like this book. I love it. The main character is brave, brilliant and ruthless.

Evelyn Hugo has more pizzazz that most real people (me included). How can a life this vibrant be fictional?

As an actress in Hollywood’s ‘Golden Age’, she was world-famous. Now in her late seventies, Evelyn’s retired from the big screen. 

Still a household name, she’s known for her movie career and her many husbands. The press is desperate for interviews with this elusive former-leading-lady.

Review: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Some readers are pioneers. There’s nothing more boring for them than going back to stories they know. They delve into libraries and hunt through recent releases to find exciting new bookish experiences.  

Sadly, this isn’t me. Just as I have a favourite cup (seriously, it makes all hot drinks taste better) there are a few much-loved plots I wrap around myself like a warm quilt. The characters are old friends and turning the pages feels like coming home.

So, when wondering what to read this week, I opened Aristotle and Dante Discover The Secrets Of The Universe for the second time. OK, it’s not on my multiple rereads list yet but it’s a strong contender.

Review: The Long Way To A Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

Have you heard of Marmite? This salty, yeasty sandwich spread is famous in the UK. It’s a source of national division, nearly on a par with Brexit: People either love it or hate it.

The Long Way To A Small Angry Planet is a Marmite book. Some readers say it’s the best thing ever, others want to spit it out.

I found this story, like Marmite, to be flavoursome and delicious. I’d be happy to spend the day reading it while eating spoonfuls of my favourite, sticky condiment straight from the jar.

Review: A House of Ghosts by W.C. Ryan

This book makes me want to spontaneously applaud. W.C. Ryan has managed to squeeze at least four genres into a single story. Somehow, he’s combined a spine-tingling supernatural tale with war-time espionage and romance, then plopped the entire plot into a country house murder mystery.

Review: The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

One of the best books I’ve read this year. Colson Whitehead takes readers through some of terrible injustices heaped upon slaves in America.

The Underground Railroad is a well-written mixture of history and magical realism. The violence, racism and murder mean it isn’t light reading but I’m glad I picked up this story.

Review: Little by Edward Carey

This gorgeously grotesque book features body parts of all shapes and sizes. Go out and pick up a copy today. Just don’t read it while you’re eating.

Little fictionalises the life of Madam Tussaud. Born in the eighteenth century, this famous woman narrowly escaped the guillotine in France before touring Britain with a macabre set of death masks taken from the Revolution’s victims.

Review: The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin

There’s something unsettling about books that make you stare mortality in the face. After I finished The Immortalists I sat down and – for the first time ever – made a bucket list. Even if I never learn to create a soufflé or walk the Pennine Way, it gave me back the sense of control that this story rips away.

Review: All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Ever since The Book Thief made me sob on the bus, I’ve avoided reading novels about World War Two on public transport. So, when I decided to take All the Light We Cannot See on a train, I knew there was a high chance I’d need tissues.

In the end, I stayed dry-eyed but it was a close run thing. Anthony Doerr’s beautifully written story focuses on two teenagers in occupied Europe; a French girl who supports the resistance and a young Nazi radio operator. In their own ways, they’re both victims of the war.

Review: Milkman by Anna Burns

I’m much too weedy to climb an actual mountain, so Milkman became my Everest. Sometimes it was slow going and exhausting, occasionally I needed a restorative cup of tea, but every second was an amazing experience.

It starts with one of the most attention-grabbing sentences I’ve ever read: “The day Somebody McSomebody put a gun to my breast and called me a cat and threatened to shoot me was the same day the milkman died.”

From that point, I was gripped.