bookswithlydscl's Reviews (639)

Finally finished. I persevered as it was a gift and middlesex is my favourite book and I also love virgin suicides.

There are merits to the book - it's got beautiful prose in places and is highly literature focused. The problem is it felt dry, snobby and I didn't care about the characters.

My first Percival Everett and won't be my last. Beautifully and heartbreakingly written and a story told with humour, grace whilst not shying away from the horrors of slavery and life in the South in the build-up to the Civil War.

I hate Mark Twain's writing and have picked up put down both Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn so I'm pleased now to have this story - a retelling essentially of Huck Finn from Jim's perspective. This gave me everything I need - a historical narrative with modern perspective, holding up a mirror to current attitudes and actions. 

"When does the war end?" I asked.
"Does it end? That's the question. Who gets to say it's over. A war continues until the victor says it's over."

Took a while to get into this one. Not the most memorable but the incident with Rita is well handled.

Didn't enjoy as much as the island and found the characters much more annoying. Still glamorous and an easy reading vacation thriller with an intriguing past POV/timeline but not quite as much fun to read.

A solid fluffy vacation thriller - glamorous, jet set characters and location, dual timeline with long held secrets coming out in the modern day.
A fun and satisfying read

A slow paced, ominous, and dark small town suspense/thriller.
There's no real action in this. It’s instead a story of secrets and lies, family and small town community.
Told from a dual perspective - Fran - a caravan park owner whose life is unravelling but who remains obsessed with her bird watching, and Tad - an older Romany man whose family settles for a time in the field opposite the caravan park.
What follows is a story of suspicion, lies, secrets, and guilt as two people disappear with one body being found. It unfolds slowly and deliberately as our small cast of characters each feel the impact of the disappearances and discovery that builds to a satisfying conclusion.

Wasn't quite a 4.5* for me purely as i think if I hadn't listened to the audiobook I think the slow pace might have bothered me more and Fran's self-absorbtion did bother me in places as it made her obviously an unreliable narrator in contrast to the more subtle and unsettling nature of Tad's narration.

Overall though I'm so glad I picked this up as it's different to what I've been reading recently and I enjoyed how everything unfolded - brought to life by two fantastic narrators.

Dystopian Science-Fiction is one of my favourite sub-genres of SF and I will always take a chance on an intriguing premise which Titan's Tear really has!

In this novel we follow Belle, Sophia and Seth all connected by Eccleston Evolution, and their mysterious campus. Belle is seeking a better life and is offered the opportunity to be a nanny for Juno, Sophia's daughter. The catch, she must live under strict and bizarre security protocols on an isolated island. Sophia, as head of Eccleston Evolution is facing a hostile takeover and she will do anything to avert it and Seth is declared obsolete, replaced by machines, at the slaughterhouse and becomes a bearded recluse but also received an unusual invitation to the island where either his salvation or damnation awaits.

What follows is an initially slow paced and disjointed tale but with some great world building that bring a real sense of place to the story.  Despite the pace and a little bit of confusion it kept me intrigued as to what would come next and at about the 50% mark it really took off and the build up paid off.

The various strands all came together with a mix of AI and androids involved. The whole book had a sense of foreboding to it and several ominous aspects including how much potential there is for some of the story elements to become real world reality. I wanted to keep reading to see what twists would unravel and secrets revealed.

Overall an enjoyable read and readers of technological thrillers/science-fiction will likely enjoy this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Chad Lester for a digital review copy of "Titan's Tears" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

This was a 'judge a book by its cover' pick as it immediately jumped out at me and I'm glad I picked it up. 

In this book we follow Mitch 'the Cameraman' who has thrown himself into solo superhero work after experiencing a personal tragedy and who finds himself in the middle of a conspiracy that could completely upend his world after Brighteyes, a member of The Affiliates, starts murdering supervillains.

What we have here is essentially a narrative superhero memoir that could be a graphic novel which is filled with action, adventure and a personal touch that came as a surprise to me.

I found touches of Marvel, DC, Watchmen and The Boys scattered throughout this book and I think superhero fans will enjoy this refreshing take on this genre. It was a fun and engrossing tale that read quickly with bright and vivid world building and characters that were more fully fleshed out than you normally find in superhero stories (and for the female characters didn't fall on lazy and tired stereotypes).

If you want a superhero tale that feels modern and fresh then I think you won't go far wrong with this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for a digital review copy of "Brighteyes" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review. 

Basically a gothic domestic thriller which is not a thriller sub genre I generally enjoy.
I know it's well loved and considered a classic, and I can absolutely see it, hence the rating, but I didn't like it and whilst I'm glad to have finally read it, I don't feel the need to ever read it again.
Reminds me of Jane Eyre especially the domineering, brooding older husband and naive younger narrator - another classic I dislike massively.
Maybe if I'd read it when I was younger I'd feel differently but alas I didn't and for me it just didn't work.

The 18th book in the Lady Eleanor Swift series and a really fun instalment. I love this series and really enjoy when we have books set closer to home with strong showings from the whole familiar gang.

This time the story is set in and around the British Empire Exhibition and we have not one case but two - a potential murder and an intriguing burglary and it's up to Ellie to try and figure out the secrets of all our potential suspects and see how the two cases may be interlinked.

I loved how we had Hugh back in action and a central part of the investigation team (along with the ever stoic Clifford). His sentimentality and love for Eleanor is really coming through in the stories and I'm looking forward to them finally walking down the aisle! We also got some more insight into Clifford's backstory in this one which brought about a really touching ending with a new arrival to the gang and as always our supporting core cast including the ladies of Henley Hall and the animals make memorable appearances which just make me hope we get a return to home for Eleanor soon.

The necklace burglary case from Lady Chadwick felt a little messy at times and I didn't really enjoy the characterisations of the staff but I think that just highlighted how balanced and idyllic the Henley Hall team are (which is what I want from a cosy mystery). I only wished we got a little more of the Chadwick children as I think the interactions with Eleanor were my favourite parts of the story (and I highly recommend Book 7 - A Lesson in Murder for similar).

The story ultimately all fell into place - a little convoluted and with a few two many characters involved yes but still satisfying, fun and heart-warming overall. As always, I enjoy this visit in the world of the Henley Hall crew and I look forward to book 19!

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