I Read, Therefore I Blog

The Blurb On The Back:

It’s always just been Bonnie and Granda, living off the land, keeping to themselves and out of trouble. Until one day, Bonnie goes scavenging on the beach and finds a battered rowing boat, and a bare-footed boy. He’s cold, hungry and in need of shelter. Bonnie knows it’s a crime to help this stranger boy, but she can’t leave him for the border guards to find.

The longer she cares for this boy, who has travelled across oceans for a new beginning, the more Bonnie longs for her own freedom. Perhaps it’s time to escape the life she’s always known, to move out of the darkness and set sail for the house of light ...

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Julia Green’s literary dystopian novel for children aged 9+ is a delicately written, lyrical and thoughtful affair about the desperation, fear and hope that drives you to leave everything you’ve known. The world building is subtle and clever, the relationship between Bonnie and Granda heartbreaking and Bonnie is a protagonist who it’s easy to empathise with although I thought the ending was a little too pat.

THE HOUSE OF LIGHT was released in the United Kingdom on 6th June 2019. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

When Korede’s dinner is interrupted one night by a distress call from her sister, Ayoola, she knows what’s expected of her: bleach, rubber gloves, nerves of steel and a strong stomach. This’ll be the third boyfriend Ayoola’s dispatched in ‘self-defence’ and the third mess that her lethal little sibling has left Korede to clear away. She should probably go to the police for the good of the menfolk of Nigeria, but she loves her sister and, as they say, family always comes first. Until, that is, Ayoola starts dating the doctor where Korede works as a nurse. Korede’s long been in love with him, and isn’t prepared to see him wind up with a knife in his back: but to save one would mean sacrificing the other ...

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Oyinkan Braithwaite’s debut literary thriller (long listed for the 2019 Booker Prize and shortlisted for the 2019 Women’s Prize for Fiction) is a tightly written, fast paced and enjoyable account of family ties, secret crushes and casual murder although the story itself is very thin and I was left unconvinced by Korede’s protective attitude towards the selfish, sociopathic Ayoola, Tade is underdeveloped and the ending was, for me, quite weak.

The Blurb On The Back:

We are different ages, genders and traditions ... but tonight we all SLAY

By day, seventeen-year-old Kiera Johnson is a college student, and one of the only black kids at Jefferson Academy. By night, she joins hundreds of thousands of black gamers who duel worldwide in the secret online VR game, SLAY.

No one knows Kiera is the game developer - not even her boyfriend, Malcolm. But when a teenager is murdered of a dispute in the SLAY world, the media labels it an exclusion isn’t, racist hub for thugs.

With threats coming from both inside and outside the game, Kiera must fight to save the safe space she’s created. But can she protect SLAY without losing herself?

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Brittney Morris’s debut YA polemic is a mixed bag that’s strong on racial politics, micro aggressions and political pressures within the African American community and it’s great to read a celebration of black American culture. However, the plot is filled with improbabilities and inconsistencies and the focus on the Black American experience comes at the expense of global black experience while toxic masculinity gets a disturbing pass.

SLAY was released in the United Kingdom on 3rd October 2019. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

The case is closed.

Five years ago, schoolgirl Andie Bell was murdered by Sal Singh. The police know he did it. Everyone in town knows he did it.

But having grown up in the same small town that was consumed by the murder, Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn’t so sure. When she chooses the case as the topic for her final-year project, she starts to uncover secrets that someone in town desperately wants to stay hidden. And if the real killer is still out there, how far will they go to keep Pip from the truth?

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Holly Jackson’s debut YA thriller is a page turner that’s perfect for SERIAL obsessed readers that cleverly mixes third person narration with extracts from Pip’s report notes to provide background, advance the plot and allow readers to take stock. However, there’s perhaps too much plot for this novel and some strands don’t get developed as much as they should, while the revelation at the end didn’t quite convince in terms of motivation.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

You’re driving home from work to your husband and children.

Suddenly a woman is in front of your car. She’s being attacked.

You call the police and they tell you to stay in your car.

But what if you got out to help? What might the consequences be?

You save the woman, but the attacker takes your handbag. And your car.

And then, the next day, when you think it’s all over, your husband disappears.

He’s gone without a trace.

And then he texts you. I’m sorry.

But is it really him?

Nothing could prepare you for what happens next ...

Driving home one rainy night, Cassie Larkin sees a man attacking a woman on the side of the road and makes a split-second decision that will throw her sedate suburban life into chaos. Against all reason and advice, she gets out of her car to help.

She saves the woman, but while she helps the victim, the attacker steals her car. Now he has her name. Her address. And he knows about her children.

The next day - Halloween - her husband disappears while trick-or-treating with their six-year-old daughter. Are these disturbing events a coincidence or the beginning of a horrifying nightmare?

As she desperately searches for answers, Cassie discovers that nothing is as random as it seems, and that she is more than willing to fight - to go to the most terrifying extremes - to save her family and her marriage.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Heather Chavez’s debut thriller heavily relies on the reader suspending their disbelief and I found it too difficult to overlook the coincidences and contrivances that build the plot to enjoy it - especially as the antagonist proves to be from the stereotypical “bad and mad” stable that made me roll my eyes - such that although it is a pacy read, I can’t say I’ll rush to read her next novel.

NO BAD DEED will be released in the United Kingdom on 20th February 2020. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the ARC of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Siglufjörour: an idyllically quiet fishing village in Northern Iceland, where no one locks their doors - accessible only via a small mountain tunnel.

Ari Thór Arason: a rookie policeman on his first posting, far from his girlfriend in Reykjavik - with a past that he’s unable to leave behind.

When a young woman is found lying half-naked in the snow, bleeding and unconscious, and a highly esteemed, elderly writer falls to his death in the local theatre, Ari is dragged straight into the heart of a community where he can trust no one and secrets and lies are a way of life.

An avalanche and unremitting snowstorms close the mountain pass, and the 24-hour darkness threatens to push Ari over the edge, as curtains begin to twitch, and his investigation becomes increasingly complex, chilling and personal. Past plays tag with the present and the claustrophobic tension mounts, while Ari is thrust even deeper into his own darkness - blinded by snow, and with a killer on the loose.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Ragnar Jónasson‘s debut Nordic Noir crime thriller (translated into English by Quentin Bates and the first in a series) makes full use of its atmospheric location to create a sense of choking claustrophobia but the plot meanders and I found myself bored by the emotionally immature Ari Thór and his girlfriend woes, especially as Ari Thór‘s investigation is driven more by happenstance by evidence, such that I am unlikely to check out the sequel.

The Blurb On The Back:

When toy robot, Boot, wakes up at a scrapyard it has no idea how it got there and why it isn’t with its owner, Beth. It only has two and a half glitchy memories but it knows it was loved, which seems important.

Boot is scared but tries to be brave, which is hard when your screen keeps showing a wobbly, worried face. Luckily Boot meets Noke and Red who have learned to survive in secret.

With its new friends by its side, Boot and the gang set off on a dangerous adventure to find their way home.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Shane Hegarty’s science fiction novel for children aged 7+ (the first in a series and illustrated by Ben Mantle) mashes up TOY STORY with WALL-E in a cute but slight tale of identity, loss and belonging. However while Boot is an intrepid robot battling against adversity, his story didn’t really spark for me, mainly because it hits so many familiar beats and the supporting cast feel by-the-numbers.

BOOT was released in the United Kingdom on 16th May 2019. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

What do we want from economic growth? What sort of a society are we aiming for? In everyday economics, there is no such thing as enough, or too much, growth. Yet in the world’s most developed countries, growth has already brought unrivalled prosperity: we have ‘Arrived’.

More than that, through debt, inequality, climate change and fractured politics, the fruits of growth may rot before everyone has a chance to enjoy them. It’s high time to ask where progress is taking us, and are we nearly there yet?

In fact, Trebeck and Williams claim in this ground-breaking book, the challenge is now to make ourselves at home with this wealth, and to ensure, in the interests of equality, that everyone is included. They explore the possibility of ‘Arrival’, urging us to move from enlarging the economy to improving it, and the benefits this would bring for all.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Katherine Trebeck is a senior researcher for Oxfam and Jeremy Williams a writer specialising in environmental and social issues. In this thought-provoking but in places flawed book, packed with figures and research, they use the notion of ever-rising GDP being a damaging fallacy as a starting point to consider what an ‘Arrived’ economy would look like and how it can be transformed to focus more on environmental and equality.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Become an amazing conversationalist.

Are your conversations so controlled they lack the ability to connect with other people? Do you find yourself holding back for fear of revealing too much or saying the wrong thing? What can you do to make your conversations more real?

Tap into your intuition and speak from the heart.

Drawing on the expertise of bestselling author and communication expert, Judy Apps, The Art of Communication shows how to develop the ability to become a nuanced conversationalist - one who connects with others and is more fearless, more genuine, more engaging and more creative. The author reveals how to communication in a meaningful way and:

- Build closer relationships and create intimacy
- Overcome the artificiality and awkwardness of your interactions
- Converse successfully with people of different backgrounds
- Get more rewarding results from your conversations
- Operate from your intuition rather than with self-consciousness and control

The Art of Communication builds your confidence so you can converse from a place where being counts more than conventional skills, and an open heart brings connection and rewards you could only dream of before.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Judy Apps is a communications expert and personal coach. In this book she sets out techniques and suggestions for improving your communications skills to form genuine connections with people by encouraging you to move away from controlled conversational norms and rely on your intuition. The spiritual and new age techniques won’t be for everyone (and some weren’t for me) but I did get some good ideas, which I’ve put into practice.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

We have the chance to live better than ever. But, as humans become ever more powerful, can we avoid blundering into disaster?

Feeding the world, climate change, biodiversity, antibiotics, plastics - the list of concerns seems endless. But what I most pressing, what are the knock-on effects of our actions, and what should we do first? Do we all need to become vegetarian? How can we fly in a low carbon world? Should we frack? How can we take control of technology? Does it all come down to population? And, given the global nature of the challenges we now face, what on Earth can any of us do?

Fortunately, Mike Berners-Lee has crunched the numbers and plotted a course of action that is practical and even enjoyable.

There Is No Planet B maps it out in an accessible and entertaining way, filled with astonishing facts and analysis. For the first time you’ll find big-picture perspective on the environmental and economic challenges of the day laid out in one place, and traced through to the underlying roots - questions of how we live and think. This book will shock you, surprise you - and then make you laugh.

And you’ll find practical and even inspiring ideas for what you can actually do to help humanity thrive on this - our only - planet.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Mike Berners-Lee is Professor at Lancaster University’s Institute for Social Futures and in this informative, thought-provoking but depressing book (that at times gets too caught up in the numbers and analogies), he sets out some of the facts and figures relating to climate change (which he expands to look at food supply, biodiversity and plastic use) to give the reader ideas for how to reduce the damage they do to the planet.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.