bookswithlydscl's Reviews (639)

Hackneyed similes. No. Just no.

Reading other reviews I think it wise to leave alone.

Dnf at 44%
Not for me, I was out off by the unnecessary use of a racial slur for a black cat, characters are stereotypes and it's just inane.

It's glitz and glamour in this instalment of the Miss Underhay series as Kitty and Matt have been called to New York at the behest of Nora Dangerfield, upstairs neighbour and friend of Kitty's father Edgar.

Fearing the worst and arriving to find Edgar in the rudest of health the Bryant's aim to enjoy a Christmas in New York and celebrate their wedding anniversary. As always though murder has other plans as Nora is found dead following a charity ball in her penthouse apartment. With so many suspects, motives and secrets and an uncooperative detective on the case it's up to our intrepid duo to piece together the clues and try and solve the case before Christmas Day.

This story came along just at the right time for me. I needed a new cosy mystery fix of one of my favourite series and I felt that this location worked well for Kitty and Matt. The case is intriguing and the supporting cast of characters are small enough and well rounded enough to ensure my interest in them as any number of them could have done it.

I had my suspicions of the murderer but enough red herrings were thrown my way to never make me sure which is something I feel Helena Dixon does well in these books. It ensures it's an overall satisfying read and you don't come away from it feeling it was too obvious or conversely too overly plotted.

A great addition to the series and one that ended on a cliff hanger that already has me ready and waiting for book 19 in the series!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for a digital review copy of "Murder in New York" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

I love this series - adventure, Catholic and world history, corruption and thrills all wrapped up with the Vatican Secret Archives as the kicking off point for each adventure. There are running threads throughout (the dastardly Dante for example) but each one can be read as a standalone, though it's richness comes from the core group of characters who I've come to feel real affection for over the course of what is now 5 books spent with them (an initial trilogy and this follow on series).

My second Rachel Harrison and I think her writing style works for me. This is a fun and relatively cosy take on witches that I overall enjoyed. The MCs flaws grated at points but all built up to a satisfying final third. And who would have thought a spider woukd make for a really cute pet character!

a little dated in several ways but I can see now why it's considered a murder mystery classic.

a dark, disturbing hit and run read. Gets in, tells the story and leaves whilst leaving you feel unsettled and uncomfortable.

Apologies but I'm not able to provide a full review as I got to about 20% in but this wasn't clicking for me. Maddie seems like a great character and I love the idea of a cosy, festive mystery but the Golden Age style I need to accept isn't really for me and I found that the pacing and narrative voice wasn't working for me either.

Contemporary cosy mysteries are hit and miss for my reading tastes and unfortunately this one didn't work but if you love a locked room case, if you love a cosy read in a festive setting and you like your murder mysteries unfolding at a more gentle pace then I'm sure this will work for you.

Thank you to NetGalley and Quercus Books for a digital review copy of "The Christmas Eve Murders" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

4.5*

A welcome return for our intrepid Swedish journalist, Tuva Moodyson. This time Tuva's been called far away from home to investigate the disappearance of a deaf teenager in the isolated northern town of Esseberg, known as Ice Town.

For a series that got strong and stronger with each release this is another fantastic instalment. This book can be easily read as a standalone but a lot of the richness comes from the development of Tuva’s character and all the trials and tribulations that we’ve gone through with her in previous books. This book, like the rest of the series, is an intriguing mystery accompanied  by a rich and evocative setting with a sinister and unsettling undercurrent running throughout. The supporting cast of characters are well realised with quirks and foibles that add to the story and setting and the entire reading experience is immersive, and tense with a surprising reveal (for me) for the who and they why.

I hope we’ll get to see more of Tuva in the future, especially as I've devoured this entire series over the course of 5 months and whilst I read this edition in ebook form (and it read so quickly I was so absorbed) I also highly recommend listening to the audiobooks for this series as Maya Lindh's voice is Tuva's in my head now!

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this digital review copy of "Ice Town" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

I will caveat right from the start that I don't think I'm in the right headspace or mindset right now to fully appreciate this novel so keep that in mind with my review and rating.

Two factors drew me to this book, its beautiful cover and the first two lines from its description:

"A quiet, haunting post-apocalyptic novel for fans of The Last of Us and Station Eleven from British Fantasy Award-winning author Lorraine Wilson.

The internet is dead, and its ghosts haunt us all."

Amazing sounding concept, I love dystopian novels and I love TLOU and Station Eleven. This should have been a slam dunk win for me unfortunately, potentially due to current personal circumstances and my reading mood right now it just didn't click for me.

This is a slow, character driven novel, and normally that is something I love to delve into and savour but the narrative voice on this occasion didn't capture my attention and I found it difficult to get into. 

There is fantastic messaging around the nature of prejudice and acceptance through this book and the notion of a dystopian digital apocalypse is an intriguing and unique plotline. There is some beautiful and descriptive writing and well realised characters and so, whilst I couldn't engage with it and appreciate it fully now, it is one that I will pick up again in future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Solaris for a digital review copy of "We Are All Ghosts in the Forest" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.