Wednesday 3 October 2018

Six recent reads | oct18

I’m an avid reader, and sometimes I fly through books – sometimes I read less, but over the past month or so I’ve managed to read quite a fair bit. I saw somebody do a ‘five recent reads’ blog post and if I can figure out who it was, I’ll update this post with a link but for now, here’s something similar: six books I’ve read recently and what I thought of them…



These two are part of a trilogy, so I’ve lumped them in together but not in a dismissive way: The Sleeping Price and The Scarecrow Queen by Melinda Salisbury are the last two books in The Sin Eater’s Daughter series, the first of which I reviewed ages ago. I said in that review that fantasy isn’t really my jam when it comes to books but I have to say, this series has really made me think that I should give it another chance. The storyline is amazing, and throughout the three books I didn’t spot any plot holes which is no mean feat. I love the way the books are written, and I found myself really connecting to the characters even though I don’t come from their world, where they have moons instead of months and fairy tales come to life. They’re definitely YA fiction, so they’re easy enough to read but without being boring or childish – I would highly recommend!

These Things Hidden by Heather Gudenkauf is a book my mum recommended, and we have quite similar taste in books so I was fairly confident I’d like it – and I did. It’s quite a shocking storyline but really well written and one of those books you don’t want to put down. It mainly follows the story of Allison, who has just come out of prison – but it also follows the stories of her sister Brynn, another girl called Charm, and a woman named Claire. Each chapter is narrated by or on behalf of one of these characters and as the story develops, it becomes more obvious how intertwined these women’s lives are. On the front it says that fans of Jodi Picoult will love this book and honestly, I couldn’t agree more. If you like her stuff then this will be right up your street!

Linwood Barclay has been a favourite of mine since I was pretty young, and I recently read Far From True which starts with the screen at a local drive-in cinema falling down, and turns into so much more than that. I love the twists and turns of Barclay’s writing, the interesting character developments and the little subplots that make his books so interesting without ever being too confusing. It’s not one of those books that will stick with you forever, but it’s definitely worth a read.

Hold Back The Stars* by Katie Khan is a book I was sent a while back to review and I just never reached for it, until one day I was in a rush to leave for work and realised I needed a book for my hideous commute – I pretty much picked at random off my to-read pile and this is what I ended up with. It’s an absolutely fascinating book about love and utopia and bending the rules; set in the future (I think, or at least in an alternate reality) after a world-war has pushed Europe into becoming Europia, where people live ‘on rotation’, moving every three years, not allowed to start a family until the age of 35. They are completely tech-driven and tech-focused, and it’s such an interesting concept. And while life on rotation is supposed to be simple and pretty much perfect, Carys and Max’s love story ends up being anything but. It’s really well written and I’m so glad I finally got around to reading it! I know I’ve not explained it well at all but I’d really recommend it.

My mum and her friend both read Camilla Way’s The Lies We Told on holiday and I ended up with it on their return – I started it one Monday morning on my commute to work, and had finished it by 8pm that night. It’s an absolutely gripping story about a man who disappears, alongside a story set 30 years prior about a sociopathic child. Of course the two stories end up being deeply intertwined, and it’s scary/confusing/weird in just the right amounts, with a bit of a twist thrown in too. It’s an easy read but one that will have you holding your breath ‘til the very end.

So there’s six books I’ve read recently – I’m already onto my next book, The Passenger by Lisa Lutz, so expect a review of that (or another one of these posts) some time soon. If you’ve read anything good lately that you think I’ll like, please let me know because I’m always looking for good books to get stuck into.


1 comment:

  1. Awesome! Some great ideas for my next kindle purchase and some definitely deserve to have paper space on my shelf.

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