My Everything by Katie Marsh

             My Everything by Katie Marsh 

On the day Hannah is finally going to tell her husband Tom that she's leaving him he has a stroke... and life changes in an instant.

This is one of those 'what if' books that makes you think. What would YOU do in this situation?

Whether you agree with the decisions Hannah and Tom make or not, this is a wonderful, heartwarming book that will make you both laugh and cry. Hard to read in parts as you feel their pain, their regrets, their insecurities and indecision, but definitely worth it.

Monsters by Emerald Fennell

              Monsters by Emerald Fennell 

A twisted tale of two friends with an unsavoury interest in murder. 

This book is incredibly creepy and grisly! So very, very dark! 

We never find out the main characters name, but this didn't stop me from becoming morbidly intrigued with her every thought and action. And as her friendship with Miles deepens, so does her fascination with all things macabre. 

 All the characters in this book are either broken or ghastly! When children with a dark side are neglected or abused, the fallout is inevitable; when they're surrounded by evil... well, it's explosive!  'Monsters' had me guessing all along and the twist at the end was brilliant!! 

Tony Tripoli

Poems inspired by the Arts by Tony Tripoli 

I didn't really enjoy this book very much. That might say more about me than the poetry but I prefer longer poems with more descriptive language. I like poems that make me think, make me feel, poetry that is a spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings.

Saying that, the one poem that did grab me was Fantasy of a Walking Man based on Alberto Giacometti's L'Homme Qui Marche.

 It evoked feelings of anguish, heartache and despair. That is the one poem that I will be going back to, that over time I will read again.

H.M.C

               White Walls by H.M.C

White Walls is a psychological thriller that had me biting my nails, as my heart raced and my mind tried to foresee the next twist. It's a whirlwind of a story that burst off the page and engulfed me it as it surged, twisted and turned.

Jade Thatcher is a psychiatrist who after a failed marriage returns to her hometown and gets a job at the Rowan's Home Psychiatric Institution. But all is not as it seems and as Jade gets to know her patients, more and more questions arise and she soon discovers a secret that threatens to destroy both her and everyone around her.

The descriptive writing is beautiful. The characters are incredibly complex and also very authentic, very real.

Once I'd started reading, I just couldn't put it down!

ian laing

this is what you're doing wrong by ian laing

Hilarious in parts, uncomfortable in others, this book reads like stand up comedy. There were pages that made me think of a group of blokes getting drunk in the pub, and trying to put the world to rights... ignoring the fact that they were offending pretty much EVERYONE with their views. As politically incorrect as a book could possibly be, but if not taken seriously, at times very funny.

Sarita Mandana

        Good Hope Road by Sarita Mandana

Good Hope Road transported me to the front during the First World War. The cold and despair in the trenches, the futility of lives lost in order to advance but a few feet, the hunger, the pain of missing loved ones was all tangible and yet the hope, the camaraderie, the bravery and determination was so prevalent it brought tears to my eyes. 

The story is in parts narrated by Obadaiah Nelson, an American volunteer fighting with the French Foreign Legion in The Great War in 1914, but then jumps forward almost two decades and is Major James Stonebridge's story and the fallout of him returning from the Front a damaged, haunted man.

This book is a must read, a glimpse into the heartbreak and devastation of war, but also the damage both physical and emotional to the young men fighting and the lack of assistance and understanding when they return home. 

Elizabeth Fremantle

Watch The Lady by Elizabeth Fremantle 

              Stella star of heavenly fire,
              Stella lodestar of desire.

                                    Sir Philip Sidney, Astrophil and Stella




Penelope Devereux is a beauty that inspires exquisite poetry. But that is not all she is; fascinating, intelligent, prudent, unafraid of flirting with danger... had she been a man, she would have surely been a renowned figure in English history. Goddaughter of Queen Elizabeth I, sister of the Earl of Essex, she loves Philip Sidney but her heart is to be broken when she is forced to marry another.

This book is like a doorway to the past. On opening it to the first page you found yourself transported to Elizabethan England. You don't just follow Penelope in her life in the English Court but you feel her happiness, heartache and fears.

When Sidney looks at her, you feel your heart skip a beat and your breath catch in your throat. When in the Queen's presence your hands tremble slightly and every word is measured carefully before being spoken. Fear of unintentionally saying the wrong thing or displeasing the Queen in any way is palpable.

Beautifully written, enchantingly told, this story brings to life a most alluring character whose story deserves to be told.