February Book Round-Up

Books marked with * I've been kindly gifted by the Publisher via Netgalley or directly from the Publisher. Here's what I've been reading in February -

The Binding by Bridget Collins* - Emmett Farmer is working at the family farm where they are struggling to make ends meet when a letter arrives asking him to become an apprentice Bookbinder. He's always found himself drawn to books even though they have been forbidden at home. Seredith believes he's a binder born and he learns how to handcraft the leather bound books. Inside is a memory somebody wants to forget. The books are created, bound and then locked away. When he discovers a book with his name on it, it both excites and terrifies him. He also finds out that some bookbinders sell books on to the highest bidder..

Privileged and snobbish, Lucian Darnay comes into their lives and his sister Alta falls head over heels in love. Emmett suffers him for his sisters sake but later in the book Darnay will mean so much more to him..It's a stunning novel which I still think about now. Would recommend.

The Taking of Annie Thorne by C J Tudor* - Joe Thorne returns to Arnhill, a place he'd rather have consigned to the history books. His old gang wish he'd never come back as he's stirring up long forgotten memories, betrayals, suicide and the murder. Joe personally is in a lot of trouble as he's a gambler and owes a lot of money to get him out of the mess he's in.

He was sent a message by text urging him to come back as there's unfinished business and he'd also like to know what happened to his sister, Annie all these years ago.

He's renting the house where Julia Morton lived with her son Ben where a murder/suicide was committed. The house creaks and groans and brings his childhood fears back to him in glorious technicolor. He takes on Julia's job at the High School which some find strange.

The story goes back to the past and the abandoned mine and then jumps to the present day. It's an atmospheric read which is really creepy. I found the ending stayed with me long after I finished the book. Would recommend.

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Louis & Louise by Julie Cohen* - I found myself totally absorbed in the story. It's absolutely brilliant. We see the male and female sides of Lou. If she had been born a girl or a boy - Louis or Louise to parents Peggy and Irving. It's a really enthralling story which makes you think. Was life easier for Louis than Louise?

The story is told with chapters from both Louise and Louis and Lou (both of them). They share the same friends, go to the same school, share the dream of being a published author and leaving their dead end hometown of Casablanca for good.  

We follow them through their childhood and into adulthood. Something profoundly disturbing happened to them both on graduation night which changes the course of their lives forever....

I loved Allie, twin of Benny who is best friends to them both and Dana, Louise's headstrong daughter. Lou heads back home when Peggy takes ill, going back home was something they didn't expect to do and they also find they are able to get closure from that night. I absolutely loved it.

The Migraine Relief Plan by Stephanie Weaver* - I took part in the Book Birthday Blitz for this book. See my review HERE.

Cross Purpose by Claire MacLeary - Maggie Laird's ex-cop husband dies suddenly and her life changes forever. With bills to pay as well as the mortgage she decides to take over George's Private Detective Agency with the help of her neighbour, Big Wilma.

Maggie is determined to clear George's name is it's the last thing she does. They encounter a few stumbling blocks and learn a lot along the way. They get on so well and the story is peppered with laugh out loud moments. Maggie has led a sheltered life and it's a learning curve for her being confronted with drug dealing, sink estates and an unexplained death. 

They also cross paths with Brian, George's copper pal and the new DI Chisholm (more about them in book 2). I loved the characters of Maggie and Big Wilma who are like chalk and cheese but are the best of friends (most of the time).  I also found the setting of Aberdeen to be refreshing as most crime novels seem to be set in Glasgow or Edinburgh. Would highly recommend.

The Puppet Show by M W Craven - OMG this is one of my favourite books this year. It's truly un-put-downable and brilliant. A serial killer is burning people alive in the Lake District's stone circles. There are no clues and seemingly no connections..

When disgraced detective, Washington Poe's name is found carved into the chest of the third victim he's brought back from suspension and into an investigation he wants no part of. 

He's partnered with the brilliant but socially awkward civilian analyst, Tilly Bradshaw and the pair uncover a trail only he is meant to see. Tilly while excellent at her job is an innocent having been sheltered from life. I loved her and Poe's interaction and friendship which brought so much joy to the bleak storylines.

A copper friend is seconded to their investigation and Acting DI Stephanie Flynn is not best pleased when Poe and Tilly go off and do their own thing. However, the race is on to find out who the Immolation Man is and why he's killing people in this way. It's a fast paced and twisty read with characters I adored. Roll on book #2.

Blood Orange by Harriet Tyce* - Alison, is the breadwinner who works long hours as a successful barrister in the courts of London. Her husband, Carl is their daughter's main carer and he seems to relish in it along with his part time Counsellor job.

She's having a steamy affair with her colleague, Patrick and believes she's covered her tracks. She works and parties hard, sometimes too hard and you'd think she was single rather than married with a loving partner and tiny daughter. She knows she needs to stop seeing Patrick but she can't give him up.

Things at home are not good. Carl faults her at every turn, demeaning her ability as a mother and a wife. A weekend away turns into a total disaster and it seems their marriage is really falling apart.

The story is full of twists and turns, tension, sneakiness, sadness, devastation and gasp out loud moments. Some of the twists I just didn't see coming especially a couple nearer to the end of the story. 

I loved Alison despite everything and I was really on her side throughout. A stunning novel which I'm still thinking about now (and of course it makes my books of '19 for sure).

Burnout by Claire MacLeary - it was SO nice to meet up with Maggie and Big Wilma again. Maggie is drawn to help Sheena Struthers, a woman who believes her husband is trying to kill her. Big Wilma thinks she's "at it" and tells Maggie to leave it be. Her colleague at the school is going through marital difficulties and Maggie is lending her ear. Ian, Big Wilma's husband takes a hissy fit at the amount of time she's spending with Maggie and issues an ultimatum - me or the job..

Of course, like last time their investigation overlaps with Police Scotland's and Brian and DI Chisholm aren't pleased. Both of them seem to want more from Maggie Laird than she's prepared to give... Another brilliant story with lots of humour and great storylines. I'm taking part in the blog tour for book 3 - The Runaway next month and I'm excited to read it.

Nobody's Wife by Laura Pearson* - again, I couldn't put this book down and am still thinking about now. It's not published until March so I'll share my review in my March Book Round-Up. Brilliant. Highly recommend.

From last month (was awaiting publication) -

When I had a Little Sister by Catherine Simpson* - this is a moving memoir about the life and death of Catherine's younger sister, Tricia. We hear about life on the farm, stories from her childhood (some of which are similar to mine), the family and life on the farm. The story is peppered with humor as well as complete and utter sadness and heartache.

After Tricia's death Catherine finds her diaries and delves back into her thoughts, dreams, fears, sadness and suicidal thoughts. She was able to piece together things that happened to Tricia that she wasn't aware of and giving her an insight into the months before.

She agonises over how she could have supported her sister more. The family never really spoke about feelings or things which mattered. Could she have got through to Tricia and prevented her taking her own life? Catherine paints a very real picture of mental health and how it's not easy to deal with, her deep sadness and loss of a much loved sister who had everything to live for. Although the book isn't easy reading at times I do recommend it.

The Familiars by Stacey Halls* - We meet young Fleetwood Shuttleworth who is married to Richard and is the mistress of Gawthorpe Hall. She's suffered several miscarriages and all her husband wants is a son and heir. She's flighty and wild and is always going off on her horse for adventures with her faithful dog, Puck.

On one such trip she meets a local girl, Alice with whom she is fascinated. She finds out she's a midwife and immediately hires her to ensure the safe arrival of her baby. Alice, whose life is hard befriends her and helps her all she can. She brings herbs which will guide her through a smoother pregnancy. Alice is secretive and we don't know much about her. The tale is told around the time of the real Pendle witchcraft trials and these weave around the story. I enjoyed the book a lot and found it richly descriptive.

Call me Star Girl by Louise Beech* - A pregnant girl is found murdered in an alley and her killer hasn't been found... It's Stella McKeever's last radio show and the theme is secrets. If her listeners share theirs she might share some of hers..

She's got a few of her own including her mum leaving her when she was a young girl and the star shaped perfume bottle, the essence of her mother and all that she holds dear. Her mother's back on the scene and she's not sure she likes it. She's always worried that her boyfriend Tom will leave her.

She's hoping the anonymous man will ring in tonight who seems to know who killed pregnant Victoria. She's worried about her even though she doesn't know her.  What's the connection with the man who rings the station..

The story is creepy, twisty and edged with sadness and love. It's compelling with great storylines and characters. Highly recommend.

The Hidden by Mary Chamberlain* - this book is simply incredible and one of my favourite reads so far this year. Dora, Geoffrey and Joe are quietly living their lives in retirement when a young German woman called Barbara Hummel comes along. She's asking searching questions and won't go away until she gets the answers she searches. They don't want to delve back into the past and relive the horrors of living in Jersey during the Second World War when the Germans occupied the Island.  Barbara will not let it rest, she must know who the woman is in the photo her late mother had in her possession.

Dora is not whom she seems and must be careful around the Germans. She's working as a midwife and starts a love affair with Geoffrey, the farmer who she's told to stay away from. Joe is the parish's Catholic Priest who has secrets from his past and in the current day. They are caught up in the atrocities of war which made for disturbing reading (the story is based on things which happened during WWII) but they manage to come out the other side a little bit broken but still alive.

The story jumps between the past and the present. I was desperate to find out how Barbara was connected to their stories which are interwoven together. An absolutely stunning must-read. I loved it.

Bitter Edge - DI Kelly Porter #4 by Rachel Lynch* - A teenage girl commits suicide while seemingly high on drugs. The verdict is suicide but something niggles and keeps niggling DI Kelly Porter regarding this verdict. It just doesn't feel right.

She's very happy in her relationship with Johnny even though his daughter, Josie can be a pain and she's making tentative first steps in her relationship with Ted. She's also getting on much better with her dying mum since finding out the truth but of course things are still the same with her argumentative sister.

There seems to be a lot of drug taking along with bullying at the local school. A teacher has been accused of sexual assault and when a teenage girl goes missing at the fair, Kelly and the Team need to find her before it's too late.. There is also a missing child, his father being an old enemy of Kelly's and this storyline is cleverly woven together with the other cases.

A brilliant 4th book. I just love this series and Kelly Porter. Fast, twisty and brilliant with love and some sadness too in the mix.

Dead Memories - DI Kim Stone #10 by Angela Marsons* - this series just keeps getting better and better and this is a roller-coaster of a read which I devoured. Detective Kim Stone is about to be thrown into her worst nightmare of a case - someone is recreating every traumatic thing that's happened to her.

The case kicks off with two teenagers chained to a radiator. The boy is dead but the girl is alive. This gruesome case mirrors what happened to Kim and her brother and as if that's not all, a middle aged couple are found in a burnt out car which is similar to what happened to her much loved foster parents.

Kim is wracking her brains trying to think who would hate her so much and it takes her to the local prison, to those she locked away and knows bear grudges against her. The boss calls in profiler, Alison to work the case. Kim's worked with her before and they don't see eye to eye so the road is rocky. The Team are hard at work trying to discover who is behind these senseless murders and why and the race is on to stop them before it's too late..

A fast paced and exciting read which had me on the edge of my seat throughout. I didn't for one minute guess who was behind the murders. Absolutely brilliant.

What have you been reading this month?