Shiny New Books

What to Read Next and Why

  • About
  • Editorial & Review
  • Privacy
  • Fiction Review Index
  • Non-Fiction Index
    • Architecture, Art & Design, Craft, Home & Garden, Photography
    • Biography, Memoir & Diaries
    • Books about Books, Lit Crit, Publishing, Reading & Writing
    • Ecology & Environment, Natural World
    • Entertainment, Media, Film & Music
    • Mind and Body, Medicine, Psychology
July 28, 2022

Amy & Lan by Sadie Jones

Reviewed by Harriet Set in the early 2000s, this is the story of three middle-class couples who have decided to abandon city life in…

July 26, 2022

Going to Church in Medieval England by Nicholas Orme

Reviewed by Liz Dexter Shortlisted for the 50th anniversary of the Wolfson History Prize, this hugely comprehensive work is by Emeritus Professor of History…

July 19, 2022

Back to the Shops by Rachel Bowlby

Reviewed by Harriet I’m not sure what attracted me to Rachel Bowlby’s book when I spotted it in the OUP catalogue. But I’m very…

July 14, 2022

Nemesis, My Friend: Journeys through turning times by Jay Griffiths

Review by Peter Reason Nemesis is usually seen as the goddess of retribution, even of revenge, of implacable justice with no mercy, the avenger…

July 12, 2022

Horse by Geraldine Brooks

Reviewed by Harriet Geraldine Brooks specialises in historical fiction. I read and hugely enjoyed her first two novels: the international bestseller Year of Wonders…

July 7, 2022

Water Over Stones by Bernardo Atxaga

Translated by Margaret Jull Costa and Thomas Bunstead Reviewed by Gill Davies In his witty alphabetical epilogue to this novel, Bernardo Atxaga states that…

July 5, 2022

The Half Life of Valery K by Natasha Pulley

Review by Annabel It was wonderful to discover that Natasha Pulley had a new novel published last month, I’ve been a fan since the…

June 30, 2022

A Spectre, Haunting: On The Communist Manifesto by China Miéville

 Review by Karen Langley It’s hard to think of a book or political system more reviled nowadays than The Communist Manifesto and the various…

June 28, 2022

The Facemaker: One Surgeon’s Battle to Mend the Disfigured Soldiers of World War I, by Lindsey Fitzharris

Review by Annabel Lindsey Fitzharris is an American with a doctorate from Oxford in the History of Science, Medicine and Technology, and a post-doc…

June 23, 2022

I Used to Live Here Once by Miranda Seymour

Reviewed by Harriet I discovered Jean Rhys in my twenties, and raced through her three great 1930s novels, After Leaving Mr Mackenzie, Voyage in…

June 23, 2022

One Day I Shall Astonish the World by Nina Stibbe

Review by Annabel I’ve been a fan of Nina Stibbe since she first hit the literary scene in 2013 with Love, Nina, an hilarious memoir…

June 21, 2022

Letters to Gwen John by Celia Paul

Reviewed by Karen Langley In recent years, artist Gwen John’s star has risen, with her work nowadays receiving much more acclaim than that of…

June 21, 2022

Cold Heaven by Brian Moore

Reviewed by Harriet This is the first book I’ve read by the multi-award-winning Irish Canadian author, but on the strength of this remarkable novel…

June 16, 2022

Good Pop, Bad Pop: An Inventory by Jarvis Cocker

Review by Annabel Since he first came into the public eye, Jarvis Cocker has always presented a delightful, non-conformist approach to life – droll…

June 16, 2022

Brave Hearted: The Dramatic Story of Women of the American West, by Katie Hickman

Reviewed by Harriet Back in 2020 I reviewed Katie Hickman’s previous book, She-Merchants, Buccaneers and Gentlewomen, a fascinating account of the earliest British women…

June 14, 2022

Time Is a Mother by Ocean Vuong

Review by Anna Hollingsworth War, identity, cultural outsiderness, exploitation, love, family and belonging (or more often not) were at the core of Ocean Vuong’s…

June 14, 2022

100 Voices: 100 Women Share their Stories of Achievement, ed. Miranda Roszkowski

Review by Liz Dexter We need to read about the achievements of women, not least because we are constantly reminded of the achievements of…

June 9, 2022

Three by Valérie Perrin

Translated by Hildegarde Serle Reviewed by Harriet My name is Virginie. I’m the same age as them. Today, out of the three, only Adrian still…

June 9, 2022

Snow Widows: Scott’s Fatal Antarctic Expedition Through the Eyes of the Women They Left Behind by Katherine MacInnes

Review by Liz Dexter “I have chased the Snow Widows through dusty attics and auction rooms, and sifted them from history’s cutting room floors.”…

June 2, 2022

‘Sensational Books’ at the Bodleian

By Annabel On Tuesday I was privileged to be invited to join a press event for the Bodleian Libraries’ new (much-delayed by Covid) exhibition…

June 2, 2022

Exiles: Three Island Journeys by William Atkins

Review by Karen Langley In our turbulent modern world, the concept of exile is never far away from the headlines. Wars and religious conflicts…

June 1, 2022

Guest Post: Sally Emerson on the themes and inspiration for her new book, ‘Perfect, Stories of the Impossible’.

Back in 2017, Shiny editor Harriet reviewed a reprint of one of Sally Emerson’s novels, Separation, first published in 1992 – describing it as…

May 31, 2022

The Life of Crime by Martin Edwards

 Reviewed by Basil Ransome-Davies  Here is a hefty and impressive package, a bumper fun book and prodigious resource guide for all serious crime fiction…

May 31, 2022

The Expectation Effect by David Robson

Review by Terence Jagger We are all aware of placebos and their effects – the idea that a totally inactive substance can have a…

May 26, 2022

The Sound of Being Human: How Music Shapes our Lives by Jude Rogers

Review by Liz Dexter What role does music really, deeply play in our lives, from our first days to our last? Jude Rogers in…

Posts navigation

1 2 … 82 Next

Categories

Subscribe to receive posts via email

Loading

Top Posts & Pages

  • Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
  • Three by Valérie Perrin
  • Cold Heaven by Brian Moore
  • Puzzles, constraints and cryptograms: An Oulipo beginner's primer
  • ‘Passing’ by Nella Larsen, from Novella to Screen
  • The Feast by Margaret Kennedy
  • Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
  • Back to the Shops by Rachel Bowlby
  • The Runaways by Elizabeth Goudge
  • Hand Of God (A Scott Manson Thriller) by Philip Kerr

Our Affiliate LInk to Blackwell’s – When you click through and purchase, it earns us a small commission to help pay for this site’s upkeep. Thank you.

www.blackwells.co.uk
My Tweets

Recent Comments

  • Under the Blue by Oana Aristide #20BooksofSummer – Annabookbel on Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel
  • Six Degrees of Separation: The Book of Form and Emptiness – Annabookbel on The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley
  • State of the TBR – August 2022 | Adventures in reading, running and working from home on Going to Church in Medieval England by Nicholas Orme
  • Summer Kitchens by Olia Hercules – Shiny New Books on Root Stem Leaf Flower by Gill Meller
  • Codename: Madeleine by Barnaby Jameson – Blogtour – Annabookbel on The Facemaker: One Surgeon’s Battle to Mend the Disfigured Soldiers of World War I, by Lindsey Fitzharris

Recent Posts

  • Amy & Lan by Sadie Jones
  • Going to Church in Medieval England by Nicholas Orme
  • Back to the Shops by Rachel Bowlby
  • Nemesis, My Friend: Journeys through turning times by Jay Griffiths
  • Horse by Geraldine Brooks
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

Shiny on Facebook

Shiny on Facebook

Blog Stats

  • 610,426 hits

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

© 2014-2021, Shiny New Books and its Contributors

Archives

  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • October 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • April 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • July 2014
  • April 2014
Copyright Shiny New Books. All rights reserved. | Theme by SuperbThemes