Helen Priest
I feel like this would be a perfect beach read, easy to get through and follow. I enjoyed the concept, very similar to romcoms like What's your Number. Our lead character, Esther, reads an article listing 7 types of boyfriends and then tries to meet with all of her 7 exes to see if any of them were the one. She involves her flatmates Louise and Bibi in her quest and their relationships are explored too. I liked this book, but I didn't love it. I found Esther and some of her actions annoying, and sometimes struggled to believe that she was in her late twenties rather 20 by how she acted in some situations. And felt that she was really full of herself, which made her seem quite unlikable. I really appreciated the LGBTQ+ representations in the book.
I would've loved more time spent on exploring her past relationships, a couple went quite quickly - which although I guess is how we could all look at past relationships some didn't have too much back story.
I must admit, it did take me quite a while to get into this books and I had a few false starts. I found it obvious where it was going to end up, but there was an interesting twist at the end, when she meets a woman at a bar.
Overall I think this would be great for fans of romcoms and modern romance.
I got through this fairly quickly, it was an easy listen with great LGBT+ representation.
It's about four friends, El, Ray, Will and Jamie that decide to buy a house in the country to escape London. The book is told from El's perspective as she tries to do one wild thing a month fora year. All while transitioning from the city to the country, stuck in a job she hates, and having a crush on her best friend Ray.
For me, it was a slow starter but about a third of the way through picked up and I listened to it at every availability to know more.
Something I really enjoyed was the found family theme, and also that the book took place across a year with a time jump epilogue. Although this was available as an ebook, I really enjoyed getting the audiobook and the narrator was great.
I will definitely look out for more from Laura Kay.
I got the audible version and went through it over a couple of days.
Jenny Eclair did the narration and I much preferred the 1975 narration and that part of the story, and that was good because I think that was where most of the story was set, I genuinely got confused at one point thinking I'd imagined the first modern day section.
I was born in the 70s so there were a few things I was aware of and that helped enjoy both time periods I think.
I enjoyed the plot and the time travel element, but I wish that there was more of it and the impact of it and then ending left me wanting more, in a way that it felt like the ending had been quite rushed. I was expecting there to be a meet up in the later timeline, or some impact of what had happened in the past.
I've only read one other Jenny Eclair book and it was it was very emotional, I didn't get that with this but it could be that this was YA, so aimed at a totally different audience. I hadn't realised how much she had written and will definitely look out for more from her as I do enjoy her writing and humour.
I was not aware of the controversy around this book when I requested it - and it wasn't until I was halfway through and I was updating my progress on Goodreads I saw the negative reviews. It's important to note that the blurb I read before requesting is not the same that has been circulating online.
Jess is a liberal black woman and Josh is a republican white man, they both work in the banking - at Goldman Sachs to begin with - and it plays out very much as an enemies to lovers book. To begin with as I was reading it I enjoyed it, it was set in 2016 - it finishes on the night of Donald Trump's inauguration - but had flashbacks to their time at college, where they weren't friends but they knew each other.
The differences between them are, social economic, cultural, political and moral. I think it was as the book went on it became obvious that it wasn't a healthy relationship as much as you may have been rooting for them as a couple to begin with, as it went on you realised that he wasn't an ally for her and it seemed she backed down a lot more than him during their discussions and he was constantly gaslighting her.
Knowing what has happened between then and now totally changes the book, and I think if it had been written and released during the presidential campaign it may have been received differently, a time when no one thought that an extra from Home Alone 2 would win. But knowing what happened over those 4 years there were times I genuinely felt fearful for Jess. There's one particular discovery by Jess that I found hard to believe that she would've backed down from, that almost stopped me reading the book.
There's also a theme running through the book of Jess' relationship with her culture. There's a point where she realises that she only has one black friend and during a discussion with him her about this, he says “it's healthy for a soul to have some relationships where there's no need to explain anything” and I would've loved if this led to more of a journey for Jess, exploring her history and culture. Her relationship with her dad who raised her on his own after the death of her mother when she was a child was also really interesting, it's a very strong relationship but she doesn't tell him about Josh. I do wonder if towards the end of the book and after a particular event in Jess' family life she would've forgiven Josh for the issue I mentioned earlier?
I really enjoyed Cecilia's writing, and her insight into a woman working in a male dominated industry shows that she's drawing on her personal experience. I look forward to reading more from her and would love a book that catches up with a Joshless Jess.
I think this is a book that should be read and discussed in book clubs.
I can't do half stars but this is def 3.5 stars
I'd heard so many good things about this book and I was really looking forward to it and I really did want this to be a 5 star
I loved how it gripped you right from the start, the book felt quite short but covered a few years and sometimes it felt like some bits were really rushed through and suddenly we were several months later. And I had to reread parts a couple of time because I thought I'd missed bits.
Rating this one has been really hard (I started this review with it as a low 3 star but have upped it to 4), I'm not sure if it's the unlikeable characters in it - although that's the point that they're not likeable. It gives a great insight into the publishing world, but will make you scour your books looking for diversity (not tokenism). It's an uncomfortable read as the main character June Hayward adopts the ambiguous moniker Juniper Song after she steals her friend's, Athena Liu, manuscript after her death, literally right after her death. June becomes a bestseller but it all starts to fall apart as people question her ethnicity and relationship with Athena and then she starts seeing Athena or her ghost...
It deals with twitter pile-ons and cancel culture, tokenism, and the attempted rationalisation of what was done and consequential actions throughout.
I think what let it down, for me, was the twist and again how rushed that was, but the last few pages pulled me back into it and June's thoughts after it.
I really do think everyone should read this, it makes you think, it's a great insight into unconscious (and frequently very conscious) bias. It can be an uncomfortable read in parts.
I will be thinking about it for a while and really look forward to reading more reviews when it's released on the 25th May.
I've read a few books by Mhairi but not for a few years, so it was great to come back, new stories and characters but, at the same time, it all felt so familiar.
I really enjoyed this, I read it over the weekend in a couple of sittings. I liked the premise of that long term friendship, so they had a history that was talked about during the book but in a reminiscing way, not pages of flashbacks, so it felt very natural.
It was a nice quick read and the story kept me interested. I like that it even though it was a larger group we didn't get too many story lines and although the larger group of friends were important we stayed focused on the main characters.
There were a few red herrings that I really liked, and made sure it wasn't predictable and I feel that sets it apart from a lot of other similar style books.
Like all of Mhairi's books I'm sure this will be a success and really look forward to reading more - including the couple currently on my TBR list!
Reading this I realised how many female lead and authored books I read. This was a really nice departure from that, although I did have a few reservations because it was a very different style and character that I'm used to.
To begin with I noticed that there was a lack of descriptions of things but it actually helped speed through the book, I read this in one sitting and couldn't stop. I did enjoy that it was almost like watching a movie, really fast paced. I could see this being adapted for the screen.
I think the only downside, for me, was I would've loved to see either a couple more timelines or some more time spent with the timelines.
It's such a cool concept with some amazing twists and turns, the main character Bob/Rob/Robert redeemed himself throughout the book that the final few pages had me on the edge of my seat!
I really can't wait to read more from Steve and although it was a quick read it's a book I'll be thinking about for a long time, and I really hope it gets developed into something else.
I can't do half stars but this is def 4.5 stars
This was such a lovely book, it tells the story of Gwen who, when fired from her job, starts volunteering in a charity shop. It leads to her changing her life, not by huge moves and jaw-dropping romances, but by getting closure and talking things through with people.
There's so many parts in this book that I could relate to - including the part about her boyfriend using her name rather than a pet name, I have the same discussion with my husband and I used this as evidence that I wasn't the only one that thought this!
Although the main book was a joy, I also loved the stories of how the objects ended up in the charity shop, between each chapter there'd be the story of the item from the owner.
It was so well written and I loved that there wasn't a forced romance in the book it was about Gwen being happy with herself.
Genuinely very tempted to volunteer in a charity shop after reading this.
Death of a Bookseller by Alice Slater - who I have followed (in a none Roach way) on Twitter for many years and listened to her podcast (again I'm not like Roach).
This was amazing.
If you're expecting a cosy mystery, this is not it.
The story of two colleagues at a bookshop who, Roach is quiet and dark, in clothing, her thoughts, her drinks and loves True Crime, while Laura is bubbly outgoing, always matches at least two things she's wearing, berets to bags, lipstick to dresses and write poetry from the perspective of victims of serial killers. Roach sees this as a bond between them and desperately tries to befriend Laura, not realising that Laura's poetry is totally the opposite of the macabre fascination that Roach has.
The story is told from their two perspectives taking a chapter each. Laura is a complex character with a backstory that you can see she struggles with and is responsible for excessive drinking. Roach becomes more and more unhinged and there were parts where I was genuinely creeped out by her actions.
They both have some things in common, difficult parental relationships, unhealthy romantic relationships and a love of books.
What I found interesting was, as I've got older, I've shifted from thinking like Roach to thinking like Laura. I used to read books about serial killers and watch movies, but now I think more about the victims and their family and friends and have had to turn a few recent things off as they strayed close to romanticising the perpetrator.
Even though I was creeped out I didn't want this to end, but the ending, oh boy, is very creepy and a perfect twist. I will be thinking about this book for a long time to come.
I can imagine this being adapted for screen, and I can't wait for it to be released on 27th April.
I love Casey, love her shows, her movies and her podcasts. So this book has been on my wish list since it came out.
My audible consumption has slowed as I've moved to WFH and so don't commute. But I listened to this every time I could.
It made me laugh and it made me cry, and having Casey narrate it made it a very memorable book.
I knew some of Casey's back story from her anecdotes on her podcast but to hear more was really interesting and there were several parts that resonated with me.
For some reason it took a couple of days to read the first few pages, and I thought I might struggle to finish it, but then I read the rest in a couple of sittings.
A couple of things I loved about this is there's only six main characters, made up of three couples. The chapters are devoted to the women of the couples, and switches between them. There's a suspicious death at the beginning and then the time frame shifts to the weeks leading up to it. There are enough flashbacks to give more backstory to the characters but not so much that it slows down the story. There's a lot of twists and turns throughout and you really are left waiting until the last few pages to know what happened.
I really enjoyed that social media played a part of it and having known some mummy bloggers quite a few years ago I found some of this to be very accurate, the power dynamics, cliques, bullying, faked images of a perfect life and affairs.
I would 100% recommend this book and I think it's perfect book club material and will get everyone glancing at their friend's over tops of the pages wondering what's going on behind closed doors...
A really sweet story with lots of history facts throughout. I did make a few notes of stories of people from the Tower that were mentioned that I want to look up.
It was a really interesting insight into living in the tower and what goes on that we might not necessarily think about - pizza delivery?! One of my fondest memories is going on a school trip to the Tower, and a Beefeater sang happy birthday to me, and this boo definitely make me want to go back - but to be aware of not to ask stupid questions at the ticket booth...
It was also really interesting to read a book that was very timely in terms of talk of the King rather than a Queen, and that really added to making the book feel very current.
The overarching theme was opposites attract, but the way it's done and the setting are so unique that it sets it apart from a lot of other books.
The writing is very descriptive I could picture every character and setting, as well as Cromwell and the ravens.
The story of how roommates romantic Sally and gruff Harry make a TikTok based on the lift from Dirty Dancing, it proves popular and they continue to make more based on scenes from romcoms.
I really enjoyed this but did get frustrated at times with the characters and wanted to knock their heads together with the internal misunderstandings they created. The characters are really well developed and I'd love to know more about Amy (Sally's sister) and how her development continued after the book (with Jack...) - or even just more about her journey during the book.
I found this book really nostalgic and did happen to find When Harry met Sally on iPlayer to watch because of it. I can see this being really popular on #BookTok when it's released.
I haven't read any of Kathryn's books before but after this will definitely read more, I do hope she does another to this one as.
Merged review:
The story of how roommates romantic Sally and gruff Harry make a TikTok based on the lift from Dirty Dancing, it proves popular and they continue to make more based on scenes from romcoms.
I really enjoyed this but did get frustrated at times with the characters and wanted to knock their heads together with the internal misunderstandings they created. The characters are really well developed and I'd love to know more about Amy (Sally's sister) and how her development continued after the book (with Jack...) - or even just more about her journey during the book.
I found this book really nostalgic and did happen to find When Harry met Sally on iPlayer to watch because of it. I can see this being really popular on #BookTok when it's released.
I haven't read any of Kathryn's books before but after this will definitely read more, I do hope she does another to this one as.
What July Knew Emily Koch
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Wow, just wow, totally blown away by this book. I started it yesterday and was up until 4.30am reading it, woke up at 9 this morning and finished it - the last 4% on my phone as my Kindle rudely ran out of battery!
I can 100% hand on heart say that this is in my top 5 books of all time, I'm so, so glad I came across it and was intrigued by the title and synopsis. I've already pre-ordered a signed physical copy on release, to reread and annotate.
The story is mainly set in the UK in 90s (a few letters peppered throughout from the 2000s) so lots of nostalgia and details that were very familiar.
The story is about a girl called July who has just turned 10, and given a project over the summer holidays to write about a family member she doesn't know well, her first thought is of her mum who died when July was two. But finding out any information about her is tricky as it's a subject that upsets her Dad and Grandmother and others seem reluctant to talk about - or confused by her questions.
Over the summer, July has to find out what she can without upsetting anyone or knowing who to trust.
The writing is exceptional, domestic and child abuse are central themes and they are written in a way that isn't gratuitous, that will make you catch your breath and feel genuine fear of the abuser and nervous about what the other characters say that could send him over the edge. There really is a sense of tension that you can imagine is felt within the house throughout the book.
There is beautiful writing, the times when July lies and her reasons for lying are heartbreaking and beautiful at the same time. The relationships of characters with July throughout the book (grandmother Yaya, stepmother Shell and stepsister Sylvie), and how they change with revelations are one of the reasons I will read it again, and how reading it with that knowledge will change the book.
I worry I have made this book sound bleak, but it really is a beautiful, uplifting story of a girl trying to figure out who she is. I cannot recommend this book enough.
A Million to One by Adiba Jaigirdar
⭐⭐⭐
The writing in this book is great, the characters are really well developed, all have a full backstory and descriptions that bought them to life. The benefit of it being set on the Titanic was that it was something that we know so could be easily pictured and so the setting was great too.
To be honest I struggled with this book, because although the writing was fantastic and the chapters would switch between each character's point of view and actions - which broke it up nicely and gave us that detail (and also included a countdown to the sinking) - it wasn't until at least 80% of the way through that the action really started. Although we all know from the start that our four main characters were in jeopardy and likely wouldn't all survive to the end, it took a while to get to that. Apart from the sinking, it felt almost like a first of a series, really getting to know the characters and the dynamic between them all. Which did help to build those emotional ties to the girls, and so it was sad to leave them at the end of the book.
I can't fault the writing at all, and the story with strong female characters, and themes of classism, racism, sexuality and betrayal it is one that I would recommend to fans of the Titanic and historical stories with those mentioned themes, but for me the pacing was a little off. I will definitely read more from the author
A Million to One is published by @hachettekids on January 5th
I loved this, I've read a bit of a mix recently and this was a really refreshing break from all of the romance and serious thrillers it was a really quick read over two sittings. I genuinely found myself laughing out loud at several points. One of the things I really enjoyed is the pensioner aged main characters and what was really refreshing was that they weren't bumbling old ladies, they knew enough about tech to do what they need to do, rather than the standard over 45 and can't work a laptop trope I've seen often.
I loved that it got straight into the drama and there wasn't really any let up all the way through. I didn't want to play detective too much and so although I had an inkling who it was there were enough red herrings and false starts to keep you guessing.
The charity shop setting will be familiar to everyone that you are easily able to picture our detectives Fiona, Sue and Daisy and their shop as well as their rival boutique style charity shop staffed by Sophie and the put upon Gail.
I'm really looking forward to reading more of the series and can't wait to find out the next case!
#THECHARITYSHOPDETECTIVEAGENCY by #PeterBoland is published by @joffebooks and released on 13th December, I read an #ARC kindly provided by the publishers and #NetGalley.
Merged review:
I loved this, I've read a bit of a mix recently and this was a really refreshing break from all of the romance and serious thrillers it was a really quick read over two sittings. I genuinely found myself laughing out loud at several points. One of the things I really enjoyed is the pensioner aged main characters and what was really refreshing was that they weren't bumbling old ladies, they knew enough about tech to do what they need to do, rather than the standard over 45 and can't work a laptop trope I've seen often.
I loved that it got straight into the drama and there wasn't really any let up all the way through. I didn't want to play detective too much and so although I had an inkling who it was there were enough red herrings and false starts to keep you guessing.
The charity shop setting will be familiar to everyone that you are easily able to picture our detectives Fiona, Sue and Daisy and their shop as well as their rival boutique style charity shop staffed by Sophie and the put upon Gail.
I'm really looking forward to reading more of the series and can't wait to find out the next case!
#THECHARITYSHOPDETECTIVEAGENCY by #PeterBoland is published by @joffebooks and released on 13th December, I read an #ARC kindly provided by the publishers and #NetGalley.
I loved this Gen X romance. Mix tape memories! Come as you are by Jess K Hardy is perfect read for Gen Xers!
I love romance/chicklit/women's fiction books, but for the most part they feature 20-30 year old main characters, which is great - I was that age too once, but I'm not now.
Our two leads, Ashley and Madigan are in their 40s and 50s, they've been through a lot between them and so their hesitation in pursuing a new relationship and the internal monologue that we're privy to is familiar. Overthinking, reading too much into things but also in a very realistic way a misunderstanding about one side of an overheard phone conversation was resolved quickly with a quick chat and clarification, I was so glad it didn't become a plot point that lasted a few chapters!
The description of the characters was great, I could imagine them all and with a lot of the 80s references, Chuck, in my mind, was definitely a jock that I'd seen in many John Hughes and similar movies. And Madigan...super hot I imagine!
The book had a couple of spicy parts that were quite realistic in terms of writing used around them, no random similes that take you out of the moment!
To begin with I did think the time frame of the book happened quite quickly, but then I remembered that I met my husband, he moved in within a week and we were married within a year so it was great to have this when you know you know feeling with Ashley and Madigan.
I also really enjoyed the Spotify link that had some amazing music in it.
Finally I really hope this book is the start of a series, whether about the same characters, some of the side characters, or other couples within the Gen X age group.
I loved this, I read it in two sittings - probably could've done it in one if I'd started earlier!
The story was constant there were no lulls in the story, PJ Ellis' writing meant that every character was fully fleshed out, even a couple of descriptive sentences made me know exactly the type of people the supporting characters were even if there was only one interaction with them in the book.
It was obvious where the story was going, but it still held more than enough intrigue, I'd love to hear more from these characters. It would be great to know what would happen if Cat goes to see Harper in the US, I think that was one of my favourite friendships in the book and Harper was definitely my favourite supporting character.
As mentioned above the author's writing was very descriptive, I could picture every character, scene and location. I really think that helped make it such a good read, I wasn't taken out of the story trying to picture anything.
I also really liked that the romance wasn't the main story line, Cat's character being broke, jobless and nearly homeless leading her to decide to take her petty theft up a few notches was a fab plot and relatable in terms of being in the situation where everything seems to be against you. It was also the second book I've read in a row where the main character's mum had died, having lost my mum 3 years ago it always adds an extra emotional tug to a book that features it.
I cannot wait to see how this book does when it's released, I really think it will be a favourite of book clubs and booktok. I'm really looking for ward to reading more from PJ too.
I really struggled with this one, I didn't like any of the main characters, the only connection I had was the main character Mia's relationship with her cat, Pigeon. It was almost identical to my cat Tatti.
*Spoilers ahead *
The story is of Mia, who on the surface looks like she has it all, good job, a husband and a stepson that she loves. But she joins a support group for people who have had a pet die, despite Pigeon being alive and well, to connect with people and be with people that understand her connection to her pet. She has a very stern and stoic appearance from the outside with any displays of affection saved for putting together her stepson's lunch and time spent with Pigeon. She and her husband have separate rooms so that she can spend the night sleeping next to Pigeon. Her life is slightly complicated by the ex-wife who is in her home too much and detests her cat and her boss, daughter of a very rich man given money to start her own business without any talent or skills.
Mia's life falls apart when her husband butt dials her while having sex with his ex wife on their kitchen counter, and worse pushes Pigeon off the counter. She then gets sacked for trying to save the business and so begins a turn in her character, fleeing the family home with a tote bag and Pigeon she ends up a mess and but starts to open up to people and see that she can be more herself, she goes back to her home and tells her husband, and the newly moved in ex-wife that she's going nowhere. Just as she starts to get a grip Pigeon is killed when the ex-wife leaves the door open and the house cat ends up hit by a car. My cat Tatti dies in May and to read the description of all the emotions, what Mia had lost, how she felt brought it all back and I lay in bed crying as I read it, she then remembers the death of her mum and, with my own mum's death 3 years ago, the tears continued.
The book ends on a happy note and it was one of the few times I didn't want a book to continue, and know what happened to the characters next, it was a perfect book in that way.
Overall I'm glad I stuck it out, but it was hard to do sometimes, it was quite late into the book that got emotional and gripped me, but it would be an easy holiday read in two or three sittings.
I'm giving it 4 stars because of how well written it was around Pigeon's death and dealing with that, and I really enjoyed the bits at the pet bereavement group where the characters were nicer and likeable.
Interesting premise and plot
Camp Phoenix is a unique camp, it allows adults to relive their childhood years, but it's not a camp for adults.
Adults are but into a type of suspended hibernation while their minds are put into the bodies of created children for the summer with no memory of their adult self - after the summer the adults wake up and they have the memories of the summer.
For this summer we follow a few campers, a couple on the brink of divorce who want to see if they connect as their younger selves in a last chance to save their marriage. A famous singer and a famous film producer accused of murder, as well as some of the camp counsellors.
The story alternates chapters between Logan a child, who as an adult is the wife of the couple, and Sam a counsellor who is on her second stint at the camp and is learning more as she's being promoted.
I love this style of book and it works particularly well her as you get the adult and the child version of events.
The titular Danny McGee isn't a character in the book but a character created by Sam to use in stories about the camp, and the other counsellors use it and it develops and grows and the imagination of the children take it even further, which serves as a catalyst for the climax of the summer.
I enjoyed this book a lot and it's very reminiscent of a Black Mirror episode, I read it over two sittings and if I'd started earlier I would've got through it in a day. It was really well written and the switch between the characters and their style made sure that you never lost track of who was telling the chapter. I really wish that it had told us more about what happened to the characters after the summer, there is a brief wrap up in the last couple of chapters but there was a lot more that I would've liked to know.
I will definitely look out for more books from Quinlan Grim.
The Ghost of Danny McGee is released on 15th November 2022 by California Coldblood Books.
I was provided an arc by NetGalley
Such a Good Mother by Helen Monks Takhar is the story of a parent, Rose, who has grown up in a working class area that has become very middle class, and the school that she went to has become an expensive and desirable academy. Rose wants to send her son Charlie there, but a group of mums known as the circle seem to be the gatekeepers to not only the school, but social acceptance and mobility for Rose and her family. How far will Rose go to get Charlie a place at the school and a group of friends, and how far will ‘the circle' go to stop her?
It might be that I'm not a parent that I didn't relate to the characters or find any of them likeable - apart from one side character - and so wasn't rooting for any of them. Some of the decisions made by them were so bizarre and there is a need for suspension of belief for some aspects of the book.
I felt that the ending was quite rushed, there were some good twists but it was all wrapped up in the last few pages and in the end no one came out on top.
This wouldn't put me off reading any of the author's other books, her writing is great and really, that's what kept me going with the book, rather than giving up.
Death on the Pier is Jamie's first book and tells the story of a murder that happens on stage, the opening night of one of Bertie Carroll's lesser known plays. Bertie just happens to be in the audience along with his old school friend, Chief Detective Inspector Hugh Chapman. The two set about investigating the crime and interview every cast member. It was during these interviews that my mind changed several times about who the killer was as secrets and motives came out with every one.
The description of every location and character really brings the book to life and I could picture it all immediately.
At the end of the book there's some great history of The Palace Pier Theatre in Brighton, where the murder takes place, and I loved that. It's very obvious that Jamie has a great love of the theatre and I really enjoyed finding out what goes on behind the scenes of a production and you could tell Jamie has worked in this field and has a great passion for it.
There was also the first chapter of the next Bertie Carroll, and that made me so happy, I can't wait to read more from Jamie and more in the Bertie Carroll series
A heavy subject matter, but a valuable resource. What I really liked about this book is that at the end of each chapter there are questions and scenarios for the reader to think through, so this book can easily be read in sections and activities worked on, which gives you time to digest such a heavy topic.
I'd recommend this book to everyone to have those discussions, to think about how they treat people and reflect on previous actions.
Kirsten's story is one that many people go through - in fact she opens the book by telling us that 81% of women and 43% of men have been sexually harassed in their lifetimes - and she shows how we can all make changes to no matter if we're the ‘targeted' (not victim), the abuser or the bystander.
To say I enjoyed this book seems the wrong wording, I value this book and the messages it gives.
This is the second Jeffrey Archer I've read after Not a Penny More Not a Penny Less after seeing the mini series in the 1990.
I was a bit apprehensive with that one being such a fave and not knowing too much about the rest of his books.
But this was great, total escapism, with implausible plots and lots of twists. It's not my usual style of book and I'm not sure if I would read many more in this series, as it's the same character I can imagine that it will get a bit much.
It has not put me off Jeffrey Archer books though and I will definitely consider other books of his if I'm going away without distraction for a couple of weeks.