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<metadesc>Book review siteExpert, with books full book reviews from most walks of literary life; fiction, biographynon-fiction, crime, cookery and children's books & self-published books plus author interviews and & top tens.</metadesc><h1 id="mf-title">The Bookbag</h1>Hello from The Bookbag, a site featuring books from all the many walks of literary life - [[:Category:Fiction|fiction]], [[:Category:Biography|biography]], [[:Category:Crime|crime]], [[:Category:Cookery|cookery]] and anything else that takes our fancy. At Bookbag Towers the bookbag sits at the side of the desk. It's the bag we take to the library and the bookshop. Sometimes it holds the latest releases, but at other times there'll be old favourites, books for the children, books for the home. They're sometimes our own books or books from the local library. They're often books sent to us by publishers and we promise to tell you exactly what we think about them. You might not want to read through a full review, so we'll give you a quick review which summarises what we felt about the book and tells you whether or not we think you should buy or borrow it. There are also lots of [[:Category:Interviews|author interviews]], and all sorts of [[:Category:Lists|top tens]] - all of which you can find on our [[features]] page. If you're stuck for something to read, check out the [[Book Recommendations|recommendations]] page.

Reviews by readers from all the many walks of literary life. With author interviews, features and top tens. You'll be sure to find something you'll want to read here. Dig in! Find us on [[File:facebook.gif|link=https://www.facebook.com/TheBookbagCoUk|alt=Facebook]] [https://www.facebook.com/TheBookbagCoUk '''Facebook'''], [[File:twitter.gif|link=http://twitter.com/TheBookbag|alt=Follow us on Twitter]] [http://twitter.com/TheBookbag '''Twitter'''], [[File:instagram_classic_logo.png|link=https://www.instagram.com/thebookbag.co.uk/|alt=Follow us on Instagram]] [https://www.instagram.com/thebookbag.co.uk/ '''Instagram'''] and [[File:LinkedIn.png|link=https://www.linkedin.com/in/the-bookbag-1b12a264/|alt=LinkedIn]] There are currently '''{{PAGESINCATEGORY:Reviews}}''' [[:Category:Reviews|reviews ]] at TheBookbag.

==Reviews of the The Best New Books==

{'''Read [[Forthcoming Publications|class-"wikitable" cellpadding="15" <!-- INSERT NEW REVIEWS BELOW HERE-->reviews of books about to be published]].<!-- Adeyemi -->{{Frontpage|-author=Sylvie Cathrall| styletitle="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|A Letter to the Luminous Deep[[image:1509871357.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1509871357/ref=nosim?tagrating=thebookbag-21]] 5| stylegenre="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"Science Fiction|summary===[[Children There are few greater joys than a book which lives up to a compelling premise. And this is one of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi]]them.|isbn=0356522776}}{{Frontpage|isbn=0008517061|title=Death in a Lonely Place|author=Stig Abell[[image:|rating=4.5star.jpg|linkgenre=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Teens|Teens]] ''They killed my motherCrime|summary= Former Metropolitan Police detective, Jake Johnson, has settled into his rustic life at Little Sky. They took our magic. They tried to bury us. Now we rise.'' These impassioned words belong to Zelie, There’s perhaps a little uncertainty about the firecracker heroine future of Tomi Adeyemi's stunning debut YA fantasy novelhis life with his vet girlfriend, ''Children of Blood Livia and Bone''. Already optioned for her daughter Diana, as moving in together would mean a movie it tells the story lot of compromise: does Jake give up his off-grid and relaxing life to move in with Livia or does Livia move to Little Sky despite her reservations about whether or not this is the beleaguered Maji people persecuted future she wants for their supernatural powers. Once extolled as Diviners, imbued with godlike gifts herself and marked by their distinctive white hair and dark skin, her daughter? For the Maji have been moment they’re enjoying life in the victims of genocide which has ripped away present and putting the magic of future on the survivors and cast them into the depths of despairback burner. Considered a threat by the paler skinned ruling class, who fear the unknown, they have been labelled as 'maggots', oppressed, subjugated and classified as second class citizens }}{{Frontpage|isbn=1786482126|title=The Janus Stone (a universal theme which invites a comparison with the atrocities of today and the holocausts of the past)Dr Ruth Galloway)|author=Elly Griffiths|rating=4. As Adeyemi explains, ''We live 5|genre=Crime|summary=Builders were demolishing an old house in a time where men, women, and children of colour are being dehumanized and oppressed and unjustly murdered. Though my book is an epic fantasy, it's directly tied Norwich - the site was going to all of that pain.hold seventy-five 'luxury' Indeed Adeyemi includes scenes reminiscent of apartments - when they discovered the worst ravages bones of slavery to illustrate that horror and elicit empathy from the readera child beneath a doorway. There was no skull. [[Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi|Full Review]] <!-- Killeen -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:1474942385 Was this a ritual killing or murder? Inevitably, Dr Ruth Galloway finds herself working with DCI Harry Nelson.jpg|link=http://www It's difficult as Ruth knows, but Nelson doesn't, that she is pregnant with his child as a result of the one night they spent together some three months ago. Her condition will be obvious before long, not least because Ruth is prone to sudden bouts of sickness.amazon.co.uk/dp/1474942385/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]}}{{Frontpage| styleisbn="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"0008551324|=title=The Devil You Know (D S Max Craigie)|author=[[Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen]]Neil Lancaster|rating=4.5|genre==Crime[[image:4.5star.jpg|linksummary=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Teens|Teens]] Sarah, a Jewish girl in Nazi Germany as WWII is about It's unusual for anyone from the Hardie family to break out, finds herself alone after her mother approach the police. Neither side likes or has any respect for the other. But Davie Hardie is shot as they try struggling in prison and he's prepared to escape tell the police where the country. She meets body of a mysterious man missing person is buried and, in a fit of dangerous altruism, saves him from arrest by the soldierswho was responsible for her death. This reckless act changes everything for Sarahperson, he promises, who finds herself recruited as a spy is someone big and sent to infiltrate a girl's school full of it will be worth the daughters of the great and good of the Reichpolice doing what he wants. Her mission? To befriend And what he wants is to be transferred to an open prison to serve the daughter remainder of a nuclear scientist his sentence and to get access to his researchan early parole date. Sarah might be Jewish but she Not much to ask, is also blonde-haired it? The new Deputy Police Constable doesn't think so and blue-eyed. But will this be enough she's even prepared to maintain her cover? The tiniest slip could be fatal..do the other thing that Hardie demanded - make certain that DS Max Craigie and anyone who works with him is kept well away from what's happening. [[Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen|Full Review]]}}<!-- Kristjansson -->{{Frontpage|-isbn=0008405026|title=A Stranger in the Family (Maeve Kerrigan 11)| styleauthor="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"Jane Casey|rating=5[[image:Kristjansson_Kin.jpg|linkgenre=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1786489937/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]  Crime| stylesummary="verticalIt's sixteen years since nine-align: top; textyear-align: left;"|===[[Kin by Snorri Kristjansson]]=== [[image:5starold Rosalie Marshall disappeared from her bed one summer night. She was never found and the investigation ground to a halt.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Crime (Historical)|Crime (Historical)]] Unnthor Reginsson is the uncrowned king of the valley; retired Viking farmer Now, her mother, Helena, and rumoured owner of a large hoard of goldher father are dead in their bed. He is gathering his clanInitially, it looks like a grand reunion after ten years straightforward murder/suicide but there's something about the positioning of absence. It is time for strengthening family bonds, feasting, telling tall tales the bodies that makes DS Maeve Kerrigan and remembering shared historyher boss DI Josh Derwent suspicious. [[Kin by Snorri Kristjansson|Full Review]] <! What looked as though it was going to be an open-and- McCaughrain -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-alignshut case is now a complex double murder. Kerrigan is convinced that the explanation lies in Rosalie's disappearance: top; text-align: center;"others (such as Derwent's boss, Una Burt) are less convinced.}}{{Frontpage|isbn=0571379877[[image:1406375659.jpg|linktitle=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1406375659/refThe Kellerby Code|author=nosim?tagJonny Sweet|rating=thebookbag-21]]3.5|genre=Crime| stylesummary="verticalEdward Jevons is a working-align: top; textclass young man, obsessed with his upper-align: left;"|===[[Flying Tips for Flightless Birds by Kelly McCaughrain]]=== [[image:5starclass friends, Robert and Stanza.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Teens|Teens]] Flying tips for flightless birds is Robert's a quirky theatre director. He's also self-obsessed, demanding, handsome and complex story, told with an elegant simplicity that hooks you from the first few pagesentitled and uses Edward to run errands for him. A gentle but gripping exploration of the highs Edward has been in love with Stanza since their university days - and lows of being a young person, of love, friends and the relationship we have with ourselves and othershe's drunkenly confided how he feels to Robert. [[Flying Tips for Flightless Birds by Kelly McCaughrain|Full Review]] Most men in Robert's position would stay away from Stanza or tell Edward that a relationship had begun between them but he's not like most men: Edward is left to stumble upon the two of them kissing in a dark passageway.}}{{Frontpage<!-- Faulks 7/3 -->|author=Jo Callaghan|-title=Leave No Trace| stylerating="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"4|genre=Crime[[image:B079RJFN42.jpg|linksummary=http://www.amazonWhen a man is found crucified on the top of a hill in Nuneaton, DCS Kat Frank finds herself assigned to the case alongside her sidekick, the AI detective Lock.co It's their first live case together, having previously been very successful with several cold cases.uk/dp/B079RJFN42/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]  | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[The Seer's Curse by J J Faulks]]== But when there is a second body found crucified a few days later, Kat is suddenly struggling with a potential serial killer and a very high profile case that draws a lot of unwanted attention to their AI Future Policing project. Will they be able to solve the case in time, or will Kat find herself taken off the case and, potentially, out of a career?|isbn=139851120X}}{{Frontpage[[image:4star.jpg|linkisbn=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Confident Readers1399613073|Confident Readers]]title=Moral Injuries|author=Christie WatsonAlthough ''The Seer's Curse'' is billed as a pre-teen novel|rating=4.5|genre=Thrillers|summary=Olivia, I would say that it would appeal to a wide audience interested in fantasy Laura and mythology, as well as just Anjali met on the first day of medical school and their friendship would keep them inseparable for a quarter of a good talecentury. [[The Seer's Curse by J J Faulks|Full Review]] <!-- Marilyn Bennett -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:B079LS2VKW Olivia is ruthlessly ambitious, which is a bonus when you aim to be a cardiothoracic surgeon. Laura is a perfectionist and a trauma doctor.jpg|left|link=http://www Anjali is the free spirit of the group and she becomes a GP.amazon.co When we first meet them they're at a drug and alcohol-fuelled party and it's going to end in tragedy.uk/dp/B079LS2VKW/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag We don't know who suffered the tragedy or the consequences. Twenty-21]]  | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"five years later there will be an eerily similar event that will impact the three friends. This time, it's their teenage children who are involved.}}{{Frontpage|isbn=0241636604|title=The Trading Game: A Confession|author=Gary Stevenson|rating=[[Twinkle Twinkle Little Star by Marilyn Bennett]]=4.5|genre==Autobiography[[image:4star.jpg|linksummary=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Women's Fiction|Women's Fiction]] Lorraine has one If you were to bring up an image of those voices which makes you stop whatever a city banker in your mind, you're doing so that you can listen ''properly''unlikely to think of someone like Gary Stevenson. She has some disadvantages though. She's a checkout operator for Fresh A hoodie and Co jeans replaces the pin-stripe suit and frankly it's not his background is the best place to be if you're hoping East End, where he was familiar with violence, poverty and injustice. There was no posh public school on his CV - but he had been to be the next big superstarLondon School of Economics. Her manager Stevenson is her mother, but bright - extremely bright - and he has a facility with numbers which most of us can only envy. He also realised that's not ''quite'' as much of a disadvantage as you might think as Natalie definitely has Lorraine's best interests most rich people expect poor people to be stupid. It was his ability at heart and she's street smartwhat was, essentially, a card game which got him an internship with Citibank. But Lorraine (actuallyEventually, itthis turned into permanent employment as a trader.}}{{Frontpage|isbn=1035021803|title=The Antique Hunter's Lolly Guide to her Mum) has one really big advantage too: she sounds just like the superstar she idolises and that lady has been indulging in some illegal substances and needs a body/voice double at pretty short noticeMurder|author=C L Miller|rating=3. 5|genre=Crime|summary=It's twenty years since Freya Lockwood has been back to the perfect opportunity for LorraineEnglish country village where she grew up. She's back now because of a request for help from her beloved aunt, Carole. [[Twinkle Twinkle Little Star by Marilyn Bennett|Full Review]]<!-- Montgomery -->|-| style="width Freya's former mentor and Carole's close friend, Arthur Crockleford, is dead and the circumstances seem suspicious, to say the least. Arthur was the reason why Freya had not been back to the village: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:0571333486Arthur, she feels, let her down badly.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0571333486/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]  | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Max and Even though they were in business together as antique hunters, she has not felt able to be near the Millions by Ross Montgomery]]=== [[image:4man or pursue the profession she loved.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating} After the split, she worked in a cafe, met and married James (on the rebound from the love of her life, who was murdered) and Freya and James have now divorced.}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Confident Readers|Confident Readers]]{{Frontpage|isbn=AllTomorrowsFutureCoverTen year old Max likes being alone – it|title=All Tomorrow's easier than trying to cope with the feedback from his hearing aid when he's surrounded by loud noise or attempting to swivel his head fast enough to lip read when several people are speaking at once. However, when he discovers a civilisation Futures: Fictions that Disrupt|author=Benjamin Greenaway and Stephen Oram (Editors)|rating=5|genre=Science Fiction|summary=''Opening up new ways of millions behind thinking about the door shape of the school janitor's room, Max has to learn to lead a team. Max finds a way to communicate with Luke, the tiny boy whothings to come.'s Prince (and almost King) of one of the three tribes now living on the floor of the caretaker's room. Supported by his roommate, Sasha, Max has to find a way to bring the three feuding tribes together and find a safe place for them to live before the school's Headteacher disposes of the little people for good. [[Max and the Millions by Ross Montgomery|Full Review]] <!-- Miles -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:0553447580.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0553447580/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]  | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Anatomy of a Miracle by Jonathan Miles]]=== [[image:3.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Literary Fiction|Literary Fiction]] Look closely at the cover of Jonathan Miles's third novel and you'll see the central drama depicted: white wheelchair tracks snake up from the bottom and stop three-quarters of the way from the top, where they are replaced by footprints. On 23 August 2014, wheelchair-bound veteran Cameron Harris stands up and walks outside the Biz-E-Bee convenience store in Biloxi, Mississippi. In the rest of the novel we find out how he got to this point and what others – ranging from his doctor to representatives of the Roman Catholic Church – will make of his recovery. Was it a miracle, or an explainable medical phenomenon? [[Anatomy of a Miracle by Jonathan Miles|Full Review]] <!-- Chadwick -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:0751564974.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0751564974/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]  | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Templar Silks by Elizabeth Chadwick]]=== [[image:5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Historical Fiction|Historical Fiction]] ''Templar Silks'' is a great example of historical fiction done well. It's a fictitious account of William Marshal's time in Jerusalem during the late 1100s during a brief spell of calm before the death of King Baldwin to leprosy in 1185. Elizabeth Chadwick has written a previous book about William Marshal but glossed over this period in his life for lack of research. In this book she goes back to fill in the gaps having spent time studying this particular period of his life. Her main problem, as she acknowledges at the end of the book, is that virtually nothing is known of Marshal's time in Jerusalem. We know when and why he went, we know who the major power players were, we know when he came back and that is about it. So understandably, this book is probably more fiction than history but it is brilliantly written none the less. [[Templar Silks by Elizabeth Chadwick|Full Review]] <!-- Schaffhausen -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:Schaffhausen_Vanishing.jpg|left|link=https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1785657135?ie=UTF8&tag=thebookbag-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=1785657135]] | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[The Vanishing Season by Johanna Schaffhausen]]=== [[image:5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Crime|Crime]] Schaffhausen has been garnering a lot of attention for her first crime novel having already been crowned a ''First Crime Novel Award Winner'' by the Mystery Writers of America. My interest therefore was definitely piqued and I was excited to read this book. So, does it live up to all the hype? In a word: yes. I was gripped from the outset (forgive the terrible pun, we are after all dealing with a serial killer who chops off the hands of his victims to keep as trophies!) [[The Vanishing Season by Johanna Schaffhausen|Full Review]] <!-- Parsons -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:178089595X.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/178089595X/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]  | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Girl on Fire by Tony Parsons]]=== [[image:5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Crime|Crime]], [[:Category:Thrillers|Thrillers]] A drone collides with an air ambulance, the mess falls on a busy shopping centre and we are barely out of the first chapter. DC Max Wolfe's latest adventure looks at religion, radicalisation, hate and paranoia. Without drawing breath we immediately jump to catching those responsible. The rest of the book gradually builds a web of intrigue and a virtual soap opera of family issues. [[Girl on Fire by Tony Parsons|Full Review]] <!-- Davidson -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:150690551X.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/150690551X/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]  | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Roses in December by Matthew de Lacey Davidson]]=== [[image:4star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Short Stories|Short Stories]] ''Roses in December'' is a collection of twenty-two short stories. And when I say short, I mean ''short'', with each just a few pages long and some brushing the flash fiction genre, such is the brevity. I think the shorter the story, the harder it is to write and the more difficult the task of engaging, then satisfying, the reader. So it is to the immense credit of Matthew de Lacey Davidson that I sighed in appreciation many times while reading. He has a good sense of which moments of the human experience to capture in order to make the point he wants to make. Some highlights: [[Roses in December by Matthew de Lacey Davidson|Full Review]] |-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|<!-- Langford -->[[image:Langford_Emily.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1999947509/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]  | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Emily's Numbers by Joss Langford]]=== [[image:4star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Children's Non-Fiction|Children's Non-Fiction]], [[:Category:Popular Science|Popular Science]] Emily found words ''useful'', but counting was what she loved best.  Obviously you can count anything and there's no limit to how far you can go, but then Emily moved a step further and began counting in twos.  She knew all about odd and even numbers.  Then she began counting in threes: half of the list were even numbers, but the other half were odd and it was this list of odd numbers which occured when you counted in threes which she called ''threeven''.  (Actually, this confused me a little bit at first as they're a subset of the odd numbers but sound as though they ought to be a subset of the even numbers, but it all worked out well when I really thought about it.) [[Emily's Numbers by Joss Langford|Full Review]] |-|style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|<!--Buckingham -->[[image:Buckingham_Dawn.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1908489332/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]| style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[The Little Book of the Dawn Chorus by Caz Buckingham and Andrea Pinnington]]=== [[image:5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Animals and Wildlife|Animals and Wildlife]] What a treat! I really did mean to just ''glance'' at ''The Little Book of the Dawn Chorus'' but the pull of the sounds of a dozen different birds singing their hearts out was far too much to resist on a cold and rather wet February morning. I spent an indulgent hour or so reading all about the birds and listening to their song. Then - just because I could - I went back and did it all again and it was just as good the second time around. So, what do you get? [[The Little Book of the Dawn Chorus by Caz Buckingham and Andrea Pinnington|Full Review]] |-|style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|<!-- Watscon -->[[image:Watson_Piecing.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1408897342/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]| style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson]]=== [[image:5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Teens|Teens]] Jade lives in a rough area of Portland, Oregon. But she goes to a very posh school on scholarship.And, as a scholarship girl, Jade knows she must grab every opportunity the school offers. Her mother, a care worker, won't be paying for college after all - there is rarely enough money at home for ice cream, let alone college. But why do all the opportunities the school offers Jade seem so, well, ''patronising''? Jade doesn't feel like a charity case. She doesn't feel broken. Her mum is a good mum. It's infuriating. But, when the school offers Jade a mentoring programme that will ensure a college scholarship, how can she say no? [[Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson|Full Review]] |-|style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|<!-- Mcneil -->[[image:Mcneil Fire.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1785078992/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]| style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Fire on the Mountain by Jean McNeil]]=== [[image:4star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Literary Fiction|Literary Fiction]] This is an unusual book, in style it feels like a novel by E M Forster; with a deep study at the minutiae of life and thought, yet the plot and content is thoroughly modern. The bulk of the story is told through the perspective of Nick, and we see his point of view on life around him. The main characters of the book, however, are Pieter and Riaan, as it is these characters who fascinate Nick and are the focus of his contemplation and crisis. [[Fire on the Mountain by Jean McNeil|Full Review]]|-|style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|<!-- Walton -->[[image:Walton_Ask.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1788038053/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]| style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Ask For Blues by Malcolm Walton]]=== [[image:3.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Autobiography|Autobiography]], [[:Category:Entertainment|Entertainment]], [[:Category:General Fiction|General Fiction]] Malcolm Walton's book is clearly a memoir about his introduction to the Trad Jazz scene of the late 1950's and early 1960's, but he has chosen to write it in the form of a novel, claiming in his prologue that this would give the book a different approach to the music memoir. His protagonist 'Martin' takes on Malcolm's mantle, and begins with his first discovery of the Salvation Army band with his grandfather. This catapults him into a love of music, initially taking piano lessons, and later delving into his true love – the trumpet. [[Ask For Blues by Malcolm Walton|Full Review]]|-|style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"| <!-- Reynolds -->[[image:Reynolds_Fire.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0575090588/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]| style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Elysium Fire by Alastair Reynolds]]=== [[image:5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Science Fiction|Science Fiction]], [[:Category:Crime|Crime]] What happens when Utopia is achieved? When everyone is linked neurologically to everyone else and people vote on each minor decision so every aspect of life is truly democratic? Everyone knows everything and everyone decides everything so what can possibly go wrong? Except people are dying, melting to be precise, and no one knows how, or why, or who could be next. In such a circumstance who can be trusted to solve this crime and do so without spreading panic? What if the only people who can be trusted have already let you down once before? [[Elysium Fire by Alastair Reynolds|Full Review]]|-|style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|

<!I've heard it said that 'technology' is what happens after you're eighteen. Well, I must confess that there have been more than a few decades of technology in my lifetime. I've kept up reasonably well with what's advantageous to me but I'm left with the feeling that it's all getting away from me. Some of it is -frankly - Mitchell -->quite frightening. Of course, I could research the possibilities and the probabilities and end up down rabbit holes without really understanding whether I'm reading someone who knows what they're talking about or the latest conspiracy theorist. I needed people I knew I could trust and who could deliver information in a way I could understand.}}{{Frontpage|author=Sunny Singh|title=Hotel Arcadia[[image:MandM_Revenge|rating=3.jpg5|genre=Thrillers |linksummary=http://wwwThe Hotel Arcadia is a luxury hotel in an unnamed city that has suddenly been violently taken over by a terrorist group.amazon Hiding from the terrorists who are rampaging through, killing everyone on site, there is Sam, a wartime photographer and Abhi, the hotel manager.co As Abhi continues to try to care remotely for the residents who are still alive in the hotel, he forms a bond with Sam who refuses to be cowed by events, and keeps on venturing out of her room to try to capture what's happened through her photography.uk/dp/1520973179/ref Although they only ever talk over the phone, their friendship grows as Abhi tries to help her keep safe and they both wait to see if they will be rescued before they are discovered by the terrorists.|isbn=nosim086154742X}}{{Frontpage|isbn=1529153298|title=The List of Suspicious Things|author=Jennie Godfrey|rating=5|genre=General Fiction|summary=It's 1979 and Margaret Thatcher is Prime Minister. (A woman?tag I mean, honestly...) She's not what's worrying Miv's family, though. Women have been disappearing. Well, they've been murdered, but to have 'disappeared' doesn't sound quite so frightening. Miv's upset because she's overheard that her father wants to move the family 'Down South'. When you're from Yorkshire, Down South is a frightening, foreign place, best avoided. For Miv, the move would mean leaving her best friend, Sharon, and she'll do anything to prevent that. She's not worried about the dangers or that her Mum's stopped talking - to anyone.}}{{Frontpage|isbn=1398524085|title=Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter?|author=Nicci French|rating=5|genre=Crime|summary=thebookbagCharlotte Salter was expected at her husband's fiftieth birthday party but never turned up. Her children, sons Niall, Paul and Ollie and her daughter, Etty. are all worried but -21]]strangely - her husband, Alec, is not. Shortly afterwards, Etty and Greg, find the body of Greg's father, Duncan Ackerley, in the river. It was an easy assumption for the police to make that Duncan had murdered Charlie and then committed suicide when he couldn't stand the guilt. The Salter children are not convinced but there's little else they can do but get on with their lives and wonder about what really happened.}}{{Frontpage|isbn=1035906708|title=Diva|author=Daisy Goodwin| stylerating="vertical4.5|genre=General Fiction|summary=We tend to think of Maria Callas as Greek, but she was born to Greek parents in Manhattan, New York, in December 1923 and only moved to Athens when she was thirteen. Her original surname was Kalogeropoulos but her father changed it to 'Callas' to make it more manageable in the States. When she was back in Athens -align: top; textsupposedly so that she could get appropriate training for her voice -align: left;"she was raised under the Nazi occupation by a mother who mercilessly exploited her and made no secret of her preference for her elder sister, Jackie.}}{{Frontpage|author=Christopher Edge|title=Black Hole Cinema Club|rating=4|genre=[[Revenge by Mitchell & Mitchell]]Confident Readers|summary=Lucas and his friends are all booked in for a movie marathon at their local cinema, a place that has the nickname of 'The Black Hole'. All big movie fans, they're looking forward to lots of exciting films, and many, many snacks! However, as the movie starts, they very quickly realise that something about this new film format is very different, and they are swept up into an adventure they couldn't even imagine. But as they lurch from one film genre to the next, can they figure out what on earth is going on? Will they ever get back to the cinema, and to their real lives?|isbn=1839942738}}{{Frontpage|author=Rachel Greenlaw|title=Compass and Blade|rating=3.5|genre=Teens|summary=''I can hear the song of the sea. The call of the deep, the answering beat in my heart.''

[[image:4starRosevear, a remote and partially forgotten island, survives on luring ships into the rocks and plundering the wrecks.jpgMira, like her mother before her, is one of the seven who swim out to survey the ruins – rescuing any survivors and any treasure that lies within. But when the Council Watch lays a trap to end the wrecking, they capture the island's leader and Mira's father. Desperate to save him from death, Mira makes a bargain with a wreck survivor who is as charming as he is secretive and with only coordinates to guide her, she sets off in search of a family secret that lies buried deep in the sea. With only nine days to unearth what might save her father, as her journey takes her from the watched streets of foreign islands to the heart of the smuggler's territory, Mira must be determined to stop at nothing to save the future of her home and the ones she holds most dear.|linkisbn=Category:0008664730}}{{Frontpage|author=James Sherwood Metts|title=Planet Storyland|rating=4.5|genre=Confident Readers|summary= Things have been a bit sticky for the Earthlings. AI and automation have been proceeding apace, often replacing jobs they're paid to do and other tasks that took time to accomplish. Just as they were beginning to get used to all this technological change and starting to think of other, new ways to spend time, along came an awful pandemic. Life was pretty much shut down and, along with it, all the many daily social interactions on which they depend so heavily.|isbn=1736128426}}{{Frontpage|author=Matthew Tree|title=We'll Never Know|rating=4.5|genre=Literary Fiction|summary= Timothy Wyndham wants nothing more than to be different from his father, a drunk and chronic underachiever whose dreams of being exceptional at any of his artistic passions all failed miserably and who had endless crises of self confidence. So Tim applied himself to his studies, cultivated his abilities rather than his daydreams and set himself high but achievable ambitions.|isbn= B0CVFXPGP8}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Historical Fiction{{Frontpage|author=A G Slatter|title=The Briar Book of the Dead|rating=5|genre=Fantasy|Historical Fiction]]summary='' There's a part of me that wants to keep this just to myself for however long I can. This secret magic of my own, all mine, at last. I just want to enjoy it for a while.''

Within a remote mountain pass, far away from the world, lies Silverton; a town under the protection of the Briar's, a family of witches who protect the town and the wider world from the Darklands. Though she has always wished for magic, Ellie Briar is the first non-witch to be born into her family for generations and as such since she was young, her training as a steward revolved around letters and administration rather than spells and potions. When her grandmother suddenly dies, Ellie's cousin Audra becomes the Briar Witch, the town's leader, and Ellie takes her place beside her. As challenges come her way left, right and centre, Ellie uncovers the rare ability to communicate with the dead, putting her at the heart of a maelstrom of chaos. Reeling from one family secret to another, Ellie must decide who to trust and determine what to do as the Briar witches'legacy, everything they have sacrificed to survive, is under threat.|isbn=1803364548}}{{Frontpage|isbn=1529900360|title=The Ghost Orchid|author=Jonathan Kellerman|rating=4|genre=Crime|summary=It hadn'Revenget been Lt Milo Sturgis's fault that Alex Delaware had been badly injured but he felt responsible and even after Alex recovered, Sturgis was reluctant to ask for his help on difficult cases. His assertions that there were only open-and-shut cases which didn't need the help of a psychologist only worked for a while. Finally, it was Robin, Delaware' opens with s partner, who nudged Milo into asking for help again. She knew that the news involvement was something that Charles Stuart the man she loved needed. The next case did look simple, though. Two lovers were murdered in the swimming pool of a remote property in Bel Air. He was the heir to an Italian shoe empire and she is married to return an extremely rich man and it's not the Italian. But which of them was the primary target?}}{{Frontpage|isbn=1529395224|title=Letting the Cat Out of the Bag: The Secret Life of a Vet|author=Sion Rowlands|rating=3.5|genre=Animals and Wildlife|summary=Siôn Rowlands fell into veterinary science accidentally. His father was a GP and Rowlands didn't want to follow in his footsteps, particularly when he considered the strain that being on-call put on his father's life. When he was seventeen he took the opportunity of doing work experience with a family friend who was a vet and was convinced this was the throne job for him. Before long, he was at Liverpool University. It hadn't - as Charles II of Englandwith so many students - been his dream since he was a child. If anything, he'd wanted to be a professional footballer.}}{{Frontpage|isbn=0861541774|title=A young womanNye of Pheasants|author=Steve Burrows|rating=4|genre=Crime|summary=DCI Domenic Jejeune's close friend and former colleague, Danny Maik, Ruth Courtneyhas taken a short holiday in Singapore to meet up with an old ally, Guy Trueman. Maik was involved in a street brawl - he would later maintain that he was facing a man armed with a knife - and he killed a Ghurka. Initially, he faced a charge of manslaughter but evidence came to light that suggested that he might have planned to murder the man. Now he could be facing the death penalty. Domenic Jejeune can do nothing to help as any interference from another police force could provoke a diplomatic incident and wouldn't help Danny at all.}}{{Frontpage|author=Alexander McCall Smith|title=The Perfect Passion Company|rating=4.5|genre=General Fiction|summary=The Perfect Passion Company is returning a dating agency in Edinburgh, run by Ness and operating as an alternative to all the online apps in providing a more personal, tailored service. Ness has asked her younger cousin Katie if she could come and look after the business, as Ness is planning to take a trip to Canada to get away for a while. Katie is coming out of a break up with a bad boyfriend, and so jumps at the chance to come home to Edinburgh. And so begins this new story from Alexander McCall Smith, bringing us to an Edinburgh we already love, thanks to 44 Scotland Street and the Isabel Dalhousie novels, but with some new characters who quickly begin to charm. Katie has no experience in running a business, or in match-making, but Ness has full confidence in her familyabilities, and there's farmhousealways her very helpful (and rather handsome) neighbour, William, excited at to lend a hand…|isbn=1846976596}}{{Frontpage|isbn=0811771741|title=InstaKnits for Baby|author=Melissa Leapman|rating=4|genre=Crafts|summary=Melissa Leapman's ''InstaKnits for Baby'' gives us a collection of knits from toys to blankets. Some will be quick knits - others are of the prospect 'long, cosy afternoons in front of the fire' variety. The projects are divided by the time they'll take to complete - less than five hours, five to ten hours, ten to twenty hours and more than twenty hours. All the projects are attractive, modern and useable. I perhaps show my age when I wonder about 'social-media-worthy projects' but that's me being picky.}}{{Frontpage|author=Dean Koontz|title=The Bad Weather Friend|rating=4.5|genre=Paranormal|summary=Benny is having a new Kingterrifically bad day. She arrives homeHe loses his job, he loses his fiancee, howeverand his house gets trashed. Oh, and someone has delivered a really weird, disturbing coffin-sized object to find her his home ablaze , and surrounded by renegade soldiersit's possible that whoever or whatever was inside is the thing that has trashed his house! The thing is, Benny is the very last person to deserve all this bad luck. He is a nice person. A really nice person. So fortunately for Benny it turns out that the delivery to his house is a new friend, a bad weather friend called Spike, who has been sent to help him since Benny is clearly under attack from nefarious forces for being a good person. Spike is going to take care of Benny, supporters and will certainly take care of CromwellBenny's enemies, if he, Benny, her family nowhere and Harper (a waitress slash Private Investigator who finds herself roped into Benny's wild adventure) can figure out who exactly they are.|isbn=1662500491}}{{Frontpage|author=Adam Stower|title=Murray and Bun|rating=4.5|genre=Confident Readers |summary=Murray is supposed to be founda humble, tidy and friendly cat, one who is able to sleep and eat and eat and sleep and, well, whatever takes his fancy next of the two. [[Revenge by Mitchell & Mitchell But he's a bad magician's cat, so his favourite bun has been turned into a hyperactive sticky rabbit called Bun, and the catflap they both use can chuck them out, not into the regular back garden, but into a world of frightening adventure and whiffs. This time round it drops them into a Viking land, where a troll hunter is expected – well, one much bigger than Murray was, to be honest, but he's turned up and he'll have to do…|isbn=0008561249}}{{Frontpage|isbn=B0C47LV1PC|title=Fragility|author=Mosby Woods|rating=4|genre=Literary Fiction|Full Review]]summary= Can you make a ''Yo birthing person'' joke? And if you could, is the question should you make it? Or is the question if you did, would it land? The catch is that the answer for both could well be.... no.

<!''Fragility'' is set as the city of Portland, Oregon, cautiously begins to emerge from the restrictions imposed during the covid pandemic}}{{Frontpage|isbn=1529431735|title=The Winter Visitor|author=James Henry|rating=4|genre=Crime|summary=It's February 1991 and Essex is bitingly cold, which made Bruce Hopkins' return all the more surprising. He'd been exiled on the Costa del Sol as a wanted drug smuggler for a decade. The return has come about because he's had a letter from his ex-wife, saying that she's ill and hasn't long to live. It's hard to feel any sympathy when Hopkins is abducted, stripped to his underwear and sent to a watery grave in the boot of a stolen Ford Sierra. Is it a warning from a Spanish gang or a problem closer to home?}}{{Frontpage|author=Alex Bell and Tim McDonagh|title=The Glorious Race of Magical Beasts|rating=4|genre=Confident Readers|summary=Eli is a busy lad – by day an apprentice in the wondrous library we start by visiting with him, and in the evening a helper at the dessert cafe his gran owns and runs. Eli lives with his lovely gran, too – for there is a generation missing in the family. A few short years ago, Eli's parents were both lost to the titular race, a globe- DO NOT REMOVE ANYTHING BELOW THIS LINE -->trotting adventure where all entrants have to navigate the world in the company of a magical beast. This has made the race anathema to the pair – but when a bad incident at the eatery leads to a confession from gran, Eli knows his only hope is to dare to enter what he most hates, with the sole aim the prize of magic at the end – the only thing to possibly save his gran.|isbn=0571382231}}