The Family by Louise Jensen

 

Paperback read but ebook previously provided by NetGalley. Thank you.

2/5 stars

Laura is in strife. Her husband died in an accident 6 weeks ago and the life insurance is refusing to pay out until the inquest is complete. She's lost her business and her home looks set to follow. Her daughter, Tilly, is barely speaking to her and her brother in law and his wife can't or won't help.

A chance meeting with a woman named Saffron leads Laura and Tilly to move onto the vegetable farm commune where she lives. Alex, the leader is immediately enthralling but is all as it seems?

I feel like this book seriously overcomplicated things and several things could have been removed or streamlined. The ending was also very vague and none of the characters were likable.

Steff Out x

The Best Things by Mel Giedroyc

 

Paperback read but ebook previously provided by NetGalley.

3/5 stars

Sally Parker lives a rich privileged life in a big house. She doesn't need to work thanks to Frank's hedge fund manager job. She has a cook/cleaner and a nanny for her kids who are probably too old to need one (the youngest is 11). But then the market crashes or something and bailiffs end up at the door of the home that apparently they don't even own.

I do want to say I did enjoy Mel's writing style and will definitely read more by her but for me this book wasn't it.

I get that it's a rich folks world but none of the characters are likable. I expected from the blurb to see them losing everything quicker and see more of them rebuilding but we didn't really see any of that.

It also felt like there were too many loosen threads. What was the deal with the Dr? I wanted the full scoop on Mikey and her mate, it also didn't go deep enough on Frank's issues with his parents, in fact we don't know there is an issue until the last few chapters. Characters felt hollow. Cleo is stupid, vapid and only cares about Love Island. Stephen is the greedy gamer who develops an interest in cooking out of nowhere.

CW: fatphobia

Steff Out x

This Ends in Embers by Kamilah Cole

 

Ebook previously provided by NetGalley. Thank you.

3/5 stars

The First Empyrean Iya is now holding Reeve's body hostage and Faron has chosen to go with him to try and save Reeve and find out what his plan is. Elara is trying to come up with ideas to get her sister back.

I'm sorry to say I didn't enjoy one as much as the first. It felt very repetitive in places with the constant training, mind control, pass out/become injured etc. Also Faron's constant "I caused this, I'm a terrible person" monologues got a little wearing.

The last quarter and particularly the ending felt very rushed. The last battle was written in a very manic way and needed a bit of clarity and room to breathe. I did appreciate that it didn't shy away from the realities of war and the fact that even when it's over it might not be over.

Also for a duology I've seen on multiple lists for sapphic books the relationship very much takes a back seat and I did want more. Also some clear asexual/demisexual rep but it would have been nice for there to have been more of a conversation about it.

Steff Out x

So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole

 

Ebook previously provided by NetGalley. Thank you.

4/5 stars

San Irie is currently at peace following war with Langley. Faron is the Childe Empyrean, someone who can channel the powers of the Gods. San Irie's success in the war was down to her. She and her sister Elara were also responsible for finding the rightful Queen.

Now several years later tensions are rising. People don't trust such a young Queen, Faron is fed up with the pressure of being the Childe Empyrean, Elara wants to become a Drake Pilot and their friend Reeve is constantly being judged for being a traitor to his own people - his father is the Langlish ruler - and not fitting in with his white skin.

This was slow starting and I did want more history on the war, the land etc. It could almost have done with being a trilogy with book 1 covering the first war and then a time jump to the events of this book. I was into it by about a quarter of the way through.

I liked how it was dual narration between Faron and Elara, getting their different perspectives on things, especially when they were in different places. I liked that they were a lot different in personality as well.

I was definitely intrigued by the plot and I could feel the impending sense of doom throughout which I appreciated and I look forward to seeing how it all pans out.

Steff Out x

Contracts and Cats by Toni Binns

 

Ebook provided by NetGalley. Thank you.

5/5 stars

Sable is applying for what looks like her dream job. A live-in job at a local bookshop where she must also take care of The Cat. After a successful interview with the current caretaker Sable accepts the job, once she does the reality of the role becomes more obvious... For the next year she cannot leave the premises at all.

It turns out that there is plenty to keep her busy though since this is actually a magical bookshop and it... Travels to best meet it's customers needs. One of these customers leaves something behind, something he shouldn't have had in the first place. A baby dragon!

I love this book! It was long (526 pages according to StoryGraph) but it didn't feel it. I flew through it. I loved the characters and their diversity and the fact that we got passages from the point of view of The Cat. The writing flowed and the plot was engaging and easy to read and everything felt seamless. I even enjoyed the mundane day to day life bits of breakfast and coffee. I'm really looking forward to the next book!

Steff Out x

A Death at the Party by Amy Stuart

 

Ebook previously provided by NetGalley. Thank you.

3/5 stars

Past and present collide as Nadine organises her mother's 60th birthday party. It's also the 30th anniversary of her discovering her 15-year-old aunt Colleen's dead body at a previous birthday party.

Nadine has recently recovered from a broken hip and subsequent infection, she also has to cope with her ex-fling - and her husband's best friend - coming to the party with his new wife who has recently had a baby, her daughter's best friend is in a coma in hospital following an overdose and a journalist keeps sniffing around her famous author mother.

This was an interesting concept, told over the course of one day with a variety of characters although we lacked the time to get to know all of them effectively. Certain plot threads were mentioned and then discarded, there was indication that Nadine's own accident wasn't an accident but then that was abandoned. There wasn't really enough time to cover everything and then the ending was very abrupt with no resolution.

Steff Out x

Thick Witch Travels by Lizzy Ives

 

Ebook with great thanks to Sword and Rose press and the author.

5/5 stars

You may recall last year I read book 1 of this series? Trilogy? I think it's a trilogy... Fat Witch Summer which I loved.

Book 2 picks up a year later, the Gift system has been dismantled thanks to Thrash and her coven but familiars keep approaching Thrash, everyone's unsettled and they just need a break.

Now Thrash, Cresca, Em and Saki are heading out on a gap year to travel Europa finished off with an apprenticeship Thrash arranged at Wainwood Academy under famed architect Fernicus Wainwood. Right from the start the four all seem to have different ideas about the trip and Thrash worried they might be growing apart but then a familiar asks for their help...

I LOVE these books, the characters are so well-written and 3D. They all have distinct voices and personalities. As a fat person I relate to Thrash's struggles to buy off the rack, especially when thrifting or at boutiques (that adjustment wand sounds amazing though!). I loved the ace rep.

The story is complex and layered but still easy to follow and the danger towards the characters feels real. I loved the expansion of the world and the magic system, everything is so well thought out and I'm really looking forward to the future and seeing where these characters end up.

Steff Out x