savage_book_review's Reviews (328)

I first head about Violet Jessop when her words featured in a BBC documentary in 2016 about the sinking of the Britannic. That documentary is now available on History Hit, and shortly after I watched it again I found this book at the local market. Almost unbelievably, Violet served on all three of the sister ships; Olympic, Britannic and the most famous of all, Titanic. This book serves as  a memoir of her time serving as a stewardess, not just for White Star Line, but throughout her career, telling stories of her experiences at sea and recounting those fateful voyages in 1912 and 1916.

The editor of this book makes a very astute observation during his introduction; Violet's writing is quite disjointed and there is a lot of detail missing from her narrative. For example, she was serving on the Olympic when it had a run in with a Navy vessel and had a huge hole torn in her side, which required that she was returned to Belfast for repair... which in turn delayed the launch of her infamous sister ship. However, this incident isn't mentioned at all. Overall, I would liken this to more of a first draft of her planned autobiography; a good outline of the stories she wants to tell and the rough timeline, but something that could have been expanded upon given the chance. It should be noted that the manuscript was completed in the 1930s, but remained unpublished until after her death, meaning there was no chance of first hand revision, and so it must be taken at face value for what it is. It's certainly not the most detailed description of the Titanic disaster by a long way - in fact, I'd say there's more detail about Britannic - but nevertheless it offers a perspective you don't get to see very often; that of a 'normal' crew member who survived.

I can't say I was overly impressed with the editor's input. To me, it felt like there was a lot of 'mansplaining' - he is a marine historian and, while I can recognise that he has obviously studied the Titanic tragedy in detail and did have a little knowledge of Violet personally, more often than not his asides are just condensed overviews of Violet's own words (often quoting passages you've just read), or feel like they're lauding his 'superior knowledge' over her first person account. I'd say about 90% of his annotations are redundant. There's not even much consistency in his editing - early on, we are told that Violet employed pseudonyms for family members, passengers and crew. And yet he amends the manuscript to provide the real names of family members, but retains the pseudonyms for others that can be identified... it just seems an odd choice. There's also a comment that he cut out a lot of her writing about her childhood in Argentina for economy. My argument is that he could have left her story in if he'd laid off the interludes! 

As for Violet herself, she seems like an incredibly put together woman who could roll.with the punches and just got on with what was expected of her. She comes across as humble, downplaying a lot of her positive influences and her bravery in the face of multiple disasters. I feel like I could learn a thing or two from her - it's her complete calmness in the face of demanding passengers and ridiculous suitors that gets me! Stewardess was not her first choice of career, but she knew what was required of her to take care of her family, and she took to it with gusto. My only wish is that there was more of her story in her own words; this feels like just a glimpse, ans I'd love to have had the opportunity to get to know her in more depth. 

I'd say this is more of a book to read if you're interested in early 20th century steamship travel generally, as it does give a very good insight into the workings of a passenger liner from the crew perspective, and the expectations and treatment of female crew. It's definitely an important read for Titanic enthusiasts, but there isn't much in here you won't already know (except for Violet's own story, of course). I'm unsure if there have been more recent versions published with further updates, but my copy is also quite out of date when it comes to a lot of Titanic myth-busting - this version still includes details of the debate surrounding the Californian and why it didn't come steaming to the rescue, which has now been explained using scientific evidence. So if you are looking to read it, definitely pick up the latest version you can. 

If you can watch the Britannic documentary, do. It brings some extracts of her memoirs to life very well in dramatised monologues. This meant I could hear the actress as I was reading, which really lifted the story off the page for me.

This book has lived on my Kindle for years without me ever having read it, and I had thought it was a book showcasing the making of the ITV drama 'Victoria' starring Jenna Coleman. I clearly wasn't paying that much attention when I bought it, as in fact it is a novel telling the story of Victoria's life from shortly before the death of her Uncle King William IV, up to her engagement to Prince Albert. 

I was surprised at the lack of depth here. Although the author is the same person who wrote the TV series, I can't say that this is a novelisation as basically all of the subplots have been excised, leaving only the main narrative of Victoria growing into her role as Queen behind. While that's not a bad thing in and of itself, there is very little new material here. In fact, it felt more like I was reading an expanded novelisation of the film 'The Young Victoria' starring Emily Blunt. It hits all of the main plot points contained in that film and it was that cast I was imagining throughout - particularly Paul Bettany as Lord M. Ultimately, it came across to me as someone telling a story using the information learned in a school history lesson and via a summary of the Queen's early life rather than a well thought-out, well researched novel.

I was very sympathetic to Victoria's desire to stretch her wings and take charge of her own life after the restrictions of The Kensington System were lifted, and liked the motif of Victoria taking strength and inspiration from her forebear, Queen Elizabeth I, particularly when faced with people who treated her like they knew better. The author has done a good job at encouraging the audience to root for Victoria in understanding just who is trying to manipulate her (everyone) and for her to have the option of making her own choices.

I know it won't be to everyone's taste, but I did like the balancing of the 'romance' element between Victoria and Lord M. Is it likely that it's historically accurate? Probably not. But it is clear that she really did rely upon him heavily in her early years on the throne and probably did see him as something of a father figure. This is what I like about historical fiction - the fact that the author has taken a little gap in the collective knowledge and filled it with her own ideas. And yet she's kept it believable; I didn't question for a moment that it wasn't a possibility that their relationship had the potential to develop into something deeper, yet he would choose the integrity of Crown and Country over his feelings. The continuation of the Elizabeth I imagery by painting Lord M as Victoria's 'Earl of Leicester' was particularly appreciated by this reader - I found it a brilliant way of him expressing himself without compromising his (or her) position any further.

I'm less convinced by the development of Albert's character and relationship with Victoria. There was nothing that convinced me of their growing feelings for one another, or that he was even that likeable (although I admit to totally understanding his character! Seeing a lot of myself in there!) It felt like Victoria had been backed into a corner about her proposal, when in fact as far as I've always understood it she was more than willing to become Albert's wife after she'd had the opportunity to get to know him a little and that it was almost 'love at second sight'. Genuinely, I was preparing myself for one or other to say 'to hell with this' in the climactic scene! I mean, it would have been one mega plot twist, but still, that's how little I bought into it. 

As a 'point and click' pick from my Kindle,  it did the job, but I wasn't drawn into the writing and didn't have that urge to just keep going. It's by no means anywhere near bad enough to countenance a DNF, but I doubt I'll pick it up again in future.

Year three on Diddly Squat and Clarkson is finally getting into the swing of this whole farming thing. Except for the fact that if he wants something to happen, it doesn't. Taken from his Sunday Times newspaper column, this book brings together his anecdotes about life in the English countryside and his efforts to go from petrol head to pig farmer.

I admit it. I am a sucker. Every year, I go out and buy Clarkson's latest publication because a) I don't read the Sunday Times, b) I own pretty much all of them and want to keep the set 'complete' and c) because generally I find him a funny, uncouth and enjoyable read - I don't necessarily agree with everything he says, but either way it's the way he expresses himself that makes him entertaining. 

But, since he's switched from publishing his motoring/general life columns to his farming exploits, I've been finding myself more and more disappointed. And this one feels like we might have hit bottom. A significant chunk of the book is blank pages, chapter breaks and or illustrations (which I do concede are very good). With only 20 articles at 5-6 pages apiece, you wouldn't have paid that much more for the relevant editions of the newspaper, and you'd have got far more for your money! I'm definitely glad I waited until I saw it on sale. 

The substantive content also left me wanting when compared to the comedy of the TV series. Looking at it from a sympathetic point of view, I suspect it's because he's fallen a little bit in love with being a farmer, and so he's actually trying now, rather than playing up to his character if the orangutan who hits stuff with a hammer and shouts a lot. As a result, the humour feels almost completely absent from this book; it's not like his writing style has undergone a dramatic transformation, but his 'voice' felt like it was missing for me. I can certainly get behind him taking his role as an unofficial ambassador for farming seriously, but it doesn't stop me missing the big idiot a bit.

I think I said this in my reviews for his previous two books, but another big issue I have is that his older books flowed, with weekly columns following on from one another, referencing in-jokes that might go on for years and personal moments that would come up time and time again. However, while the columns for Diddly Squat are sequential, there are clearly gaps between each one (I assume where he is writing about going backwards around a corner at 100mph with his hair on fire while shouting). As a result, the familiarity and flow is lost; each article has to stand alone, which doesn't do it or the overall narrative justice. In this book it's particularly noticeable; it's structured in the same way as before so you do have an indicator of the season, but apart from a mention of Christmas in one, the articles themselves don't really offer any sense of time.

Something else that struck me was the lack of 'struggle' in this year's instalment. There is an abstract reference to the NIMBYs that don't want his farm shop and a couple of mentions of the potential monetary losses, but again what makes the TV series so effective - watching a novice try to get to grips with all the rules, regulations, red tape and red-trouser brigade that come with being who he is and doing what he is - has been almost entirely omitted. I will be interested to see how much there is included in the next series. Of course I hope that life is made easier for him and all farmers, but this doesn't feel quite true to life.

I guarantee you I'll be here this time next year, but I will be keeping my fingers crossed for an overdue return to form.

A simple choice faces Hannah; go home with a friend, or stay out and party with an ex-boyfriend. But what consequences await her? Does she make the 'right' decision? Watch her life unfold in both scenarios in a 'Sliding Doors'esque tale and consider the concepts of fate, soul mates and whether everything happens for a reason. 

I've never really been drawn to this author's works as they're just not my usual genre, but she was the latest pick for my work's book club. When I looked at the blurb for this book, it seemed like the most logical choice for me; the 'what if' scenario is one I do tend to enjoy and so I hoped that would make it a bit easier for me to get through. 

Generally speaking, this is a perfectly good book. Despite jumping between two alternative realities, the narrative is easy to follow, engaging and a little thought provoking. There are certainly darker moments within it, but overall it's also quite a light read. I did enjoy the examination and comparison of the two timelines and how the smallest decision can lead to far reaching consequences, while also being able to see the threads of life weaving their way through both realities. 

That being said, the pairing of certain moments in both realities meant that the story was ultimately very predictable. When taking the genre of the story into consideration, it became even more so - it feels like there should have been more surprises after the major difference at the outset, but there just aren't any. It therefore very quickly became a game of trying to work out where in the other narrative particular events would happen.

I loved the soulmate element, particularly the premise that your soulmate depends on what universe you're in (yay for the multi-verse theory!). It actually fits very well with my own outlook on life - I absolutely believe there is one perfect person out there for everyone. But the choices you make might just change who that person is. I thought this was a very clever spin on the subject and I have to applaud the writer for her beautiful explanation and illustration of the theory.

But, overall there is something missing from this book for me. For a story that does deal with some quite deep ideas and themes, it feels incredibly shallow - I can't say that I engaged with the characters or felt the world coming to life around me as I read. The introduction felt like a last minute addition to serve purely as an info-dump and was pretty much entirely unnecessary, and even those moments where you should have been deeply feeling the characters' feelings were tempered by a lack of anything below the surface.

It's not that there's anything inherently wrong or bad about the book... it just didn't speak to me in the way I hoped it would.

This book has been stalking me for a little while; every bookshop I go into, it's there, front and centre, begging for my attention. And then it came up as an Kindle 99p deal. Trying to be good and not buy books unless I know I like them, so my lovely assistant let me borrow her copy. 50 pages in, and I knew enough. I swear Amazon are trying to bankrupt me 99p at a time!

Generally speaking, chick-lit isn't really my genre. I'm apparently drawn to writing it, but it's got to have something different about it for me to enjoy reading it. Whether it's the fantasy twist in it or not, this book has that something. It's got a little bit of everything; comedy, romance, tension... it's a modern piece, but the leading man is heavily influenced by Regency fiction... it's a complete mish-mash and should be totally ridiculous, but the premise is simple, the main characters are sickly-sweet yet believable within the context of the story and the narrative is light and easy to follow. No, it's not going to win awards for its literary merit, but as a piece of pure escapism and a tool to switch your brain off for a while, it's brilliant.  

I'm not generally a vampire fan, but if I'm going down that rabbit hole, my go-to guys are Spike from Buffy (was never an Angel fan TBH)and Mick St John from Moonlight. Our leading man in this case, Frederick, follows more of the Mick St John model, trying to go incognito as a human where he can, and refusing to feed from living sources. It was therefore incredibly easy to picture Alex O'Loughlin playing him. And as a result Sophia Myles was immediately cast as Cassie in my mind. In any event, while the fact that he is a vampire is obviously the focal point of the story, somehow it didn't seem overly important? It felt like more of an odd couple pairing, where he just had a really good excuse for his slightly odd behaviour, dress sense and lack of social skills!

While I haven't read it yet (it's on my bookshelf for when I have two minutes), I suspect that the plot has borrowed quite heavily from the book 'The Flatshare' by Beth O'Leary? The descriptions do seem to match up quite well, so I'll be interested to see if I enjoy that one too. Particularly as that one is straight chick-lit... 

The only disappointment for me was the epilogue. I liked the open-ended conclusion to the main narrative; it left room for the reader's imagination to continue the story in any number of ways and again seemed to mirror the ending of Moonlight a bit. However, the epilogue,  while sweet and uplifting, does crush the vibe a bit for me as it seems to try and give a nice clean round off to the story while remaining ambiguous. I'd have preferred the commitment either way.

A couple of other small foibles which my brain noted, but don't really make too much of a difference unless you're a real stickler... 1) the author takes the time to explain that a vampire's heart doesn't beat and so wounds take longer to heal etc... so in that case, how is he able to, ahem, enjoy himself 🍆? And 2) Not a fan of the quick fix Reggie and Cassie come up with; if anyone had thought about it for more than  5 seconds they'd have realised what a terrible idea it was! But a quick reminder of suspension of disbelief and you're fine... 

Very pleasantly surprised by this one!

Despite escaping The Hand's clutches, Robin Icethorn and his mismatched band of allies are determined to return and end his tyranny. But the risk to the Fey courts is even greater than they first realised, and death, destruction and darkness are never too far away...

I had thought this was the last in the series, but with that cliffhanger it hadn't better be! Seriously though, the latest in the 'Realm of Fey' series is full of gut punches; a real emotional rollercoaster! There is very little time for you to rest on your laurels; while the story doesn't progress at breakneck speed, it never leaves you with quite enough space to settle in to one emotion before throwing something else at the characters to take your feelings in a whole new direction. And when you finally get the the last few pages and are just waiting for a nice round off... yeah, I was not expecting that little plot twist! 

The author has managed to keep all of his existing characters meaningful in this one, which is an improvement over last time. But in some respects he's almost gone too far the other way; by introducing more new characters that seem to hold all the answers, he's given himself a good tool for exposition and clarifying the 'rule change' in the world, but hasn't quite succeeded in making them a part of his world. I think I would have preferred seeing the existing characters discover this new lore by themselves, or from the elders of the Courts which have been introduced previously, but not yet played any more than a background role.

There were moments during the climax that I had to read a couple of times over just to make sure I had made sense of things correctly; the pivot points weren't always the easiest to follow, understanding precisely what was going on required that second glance and the consequences of the action was not always immediately clear in any event. I'm not sure if this is somewhat down to me being a little tired when reading, but I'd suggest that perhaps utilising the first person narrative that the author has employed to give a bit of internal monologue to the audience and clue them in on the character's secret plans might have been warranted in this case. 

As there's no update on here as to when the next one will be released, I guess I'll just have to hold my breath until it appears! It's definitely a series I'm looking forward to continuing, and I Will absolutely be adding more of this author's work to my TBR shelf (an MLM Hades/Persephone retelling? I am so there!!!)

We return to the Cedarfall Court shortly after the events that rounded off the first book in the series to find a land in chaos. Robin Icethorn now knows who his enemies are, and events quickly escalate to take things from bad to worse. Turning his back on his newly discovered heritage and yet still unable to slip back to his old life, he finds himself considering the old adage 'my enemy's enemy is my friend' and embarking on a dangerous quest which could have fatal consequences for him and his friends.

There are plenty of moments in this book that I was not expecting! It certainly keeps you on your toes and gives you pause when reading, but everything still fits within the story and flows really well. Almost to the point where it feels like you should have seen it coming! However, once you get into the swing of things there are other elements that are fairly predictable, and while I enjoyed being right or almost right about these things it did feel like a bit of a disappointment that these bits couldn't have been twisted to continue to surprise the reader.

The story itself is not quite as tight or defined as the previous book; it's a little meandering and takes longer to get going. I'm not sure that the book needed to be quite as long to successfully tell the story - perhaps a more ruthless edit might have eliminated a little more exposition and other superfluous material, but it does still read very well. 

While characters from the previous book do carry forward, somehow they don't hold your attention in the same way - they come across as placeholders and scene fillers IMO, with very little character development. New characters are introduced which do get a better work up, but for the most part it's very much Robin's show. 

As with the last book, I did really enjoy the M/M romantic entanglement, but again the development was waaaay too sudden for my taste. However, you very quickly forget that as there does seem to be more depth explored in this scenario - the physical aspect is definitely still there, but it does feel more rounded growth with feelings. And the author is very good at letting us experience Robin's emotions. Connected to this, I was rooting for Erix throughout, which made his storyline even more heartbreaking. 

No, it's not quote as good as the first one, but absolutely worth a read. Looking forward to the next one!

I believe I added these books to my TBR list after seeing a Bookstagram review this time last year, but I'll be honest and say I can't remember. This tells the story of Robin, a half-fey half-human young man who discovers that his life and his world are far larger than he ever knew. Quickly gaining friends, he also learns that there are some people out there that would have preferred he stayed shrouded in obscurity, and will now do anything to make sure he doesn't scupper their well laid plans. 

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this. It ticks all the major boxes of the genre, while also being different enough to stand on its own two feet. The story moves apace without sacrificing character or plot development, and it's really easy to sink into the story. The characters are familiar, relatable and you quickly get drawn into their dynamic, but equally the author has managed to keep from making them cookie-cutter or stereotypical tropes. 

One of the things that makes this book stand out is the fact that it's led by a male main character. But he's not the brooding, sexy, rippling muscled, 20ft wingspan hero you've come to expect. While he can clearly hold his own in a fight, there is a logical explanation built into the story that feels 'real', rather than a contrived plot device. He also lacks that inherent confidence that most FMCs of this genre seem to have in spades from the get go. Indeed, even towards the end of the story his insecurity about his destiny remains.

Same-sex relationships are front and centre in this story, with the main character and the immediate supporting cast all enjoying intimacy with someone of their own gender. I love that it feels genuine and it is clear that the author has envisaged these relationships from conception. Yes, the development of the main relationship feels too quick for me - deep feelings seem to develop over a very short period of time, which always bugs me as that does feel like it's purely for the story. I would also say that I found there to be a disconnect between the feelings portrayed by the lingering glances, internal monologue, gentle touches etc and the spicy scenes, which seemed to put all of that build up to one side and purely focus on the physical. It felt like I should be reading about two different pairings, not one and the same.

The other slight disappointment is the lack of depth of worldbuilding. It is there, but only on a fairly basic level as you quickly get carried away with the story. It works without all the tiny details that a fully developed world has, so it's not a huge issue, but at the same time it would be nice to see a bit more of the author's imagination adding in a new twist, rather than them relying on the reader having an intuitive understanding of the genre based on what has become 'standard' lore.

I was trying to guess the resolutions to some of the plot threads throughout. Some remain unresolved, but although I was heading in the right direction, I didn't quite get the right answer to the big question in this case! 

Have already downloaded books two and three, so I'll see you on the other side!

I love the book greatly; it's just the right mix of Neil Gaiman's acerbic wit and Terry Pratchett's endless imagination, and the story is brilliantly told via the written word. I also love the TV series, which of course shares several members of the cast with this audiobook. So you're expecting me to say that I love this too as it has the best of both worlds.

I don't deny that that is true; having the characters brought to life by familiar voices is amazing at helping you picture the scenes in your head, and the animated and 'active' voice of the narrator, Rebecca Front, makes this a very easy, very enjoyable listen. It makes every aspect of the writing jump out, so you get to enjoy the little comedy asides and the more serious, darker tones in such a vivid way. And I'm never going to turn down anything that lets me enjoy David Tennant's voice...

However, there are a couple of things that don't quite hit the mark with the audio version. Firstly, where there are multiple scenes happening simultaneously, in the book it's quite easy to follow the jumps by way of paragraph and page breaks, but where there are no visual cues in the audiobook it is quite disconcerting jumping between multiple events, particularly as the story progresses and the pace increases within each strand of the story. I initially wondered whether they could have used more musical cues to indicate a change in perspective (rather than just a slightky extended pause), but I'm not sure that would work, again due to the pacing. Even though it's not impossible to follow, I can imagine it'd be very difficult for a person using the audiobook as their first foray into the story.

On a similar note, it struck me when listening that, overall, there's not a huge amount of dialogue throughout the story, so the various actors' roles are quite restricted. And they only voice direct speech - any thoughts or internal monologues are voiced by the narrator, which to me seemed like an odd choice. So while I am incredibly grateful that this audio version exists so I can have more of the DT/MS bromance in my life, it does seem like perhaps a bit of a wasted opportunity? I'm not suggesting that this version should have been more reflective of the TV series rather than the book, but instead that perhaps these amazing actors could have been utilised more thoroughly to both bring the characters to life in a more complete way and to help the audience pin down the narrative a bit more clearly.

Definitely don't regret this purchase, but next time I think I'll use it as an aid to relaxation in tandem with the book so I can be sure where I am.

I was inspired to add this book to my TBR pile pretty much exactly a year ago, after watching the Netflix drama 'Ratched'. I enjoyed the series, but felt like I was missing something as I hadn't read the source material. Unfortunately, I'm still none the wiser.

I don't know what it is with me and books that are labelled 'classics', but I don't think I've found one yet that I've truly enjoyed. This was no exception - I just couldn't immerse myself in the story or even pick out moments of clarity that stuck with me. While I understand that this is written from the point of view of a mentally ill person confined to a hospital ward, and by choosing this narrator the author has allowed the reader to experience the 'fog' of confusion and twisted logic experienced daily by the patients, it's rambling relaying of events left me more lost than confused. I followed the general plot, but had no inclination to take more care with my reading to study the text and events in depth.

From a modern perspective, the methods outlined in the story are clearly not the right way to treat mental illness. But then I queried whether several of the characters illnesses were all that acute anyway. Yes, some people (the narrator included) clearly did have delusions or other issues that may require in-patient care, but there seemed so little character building on much of the supporting cast that it felt like they were there purely to pad out the cast list. 

I guess the author's main aim was to try and make the reader consider whether McMurphy's illness was feigned or genuine. He reminds me a little of Campbell Bain in 'Takin' Over The Asylum' (although I'm sure in reality the latter was in some way influenced by the former); a manic depressive who, after a moment of inspiration, starts to subvert the normal order of things within his environment. But this right here sums up how hard I found the book to relate to; if I'm drawing parallels with the works of David Tennant (rather than just picturing him as my leading man), then you know my mind has wandered to a better place!

I also can't understand where this reputation for Nurse Ratched being one of literature's great villains has come from. To me, she seems like a no-nonsense, firm but fair person who is doing her best to do what must be an incredibly difficult job without letting it affect her, and doing what she thinks is best for her patients based in the knowledge of the time. Yes, it's clear that McMurphy gets under her skin and she does start to become a little vindictive about punishing him for his transgressions, but I just can't equate that with the totally twisted person I had been expecting going into this. I can only suspect that it's because the story is written through the male gaze at a time when women in positions of authority were rare and dangerous creatures...

Not what I was expecting or hoping for, and quite underwhelmed. Never mind. I tried.