October 31, 2015 The Oxford Companion to Fairy Tales, second edition, edited by Jack Zipes Reviewed by Helen Parry I’ve always loved the Oxford Companions, ever since I first encountered the Companion to English Literature about twenty-five years ago. They’re very…
October 30, 2015 Us by David Nicholls Paperback review by Laura Marriott Us is David Nicholls’ fourth novel and the follow up to 2009’s surprise hit One Day. Nicholls is an award winning…
October 30, 2015 The Crossing by Andrew Miller Reviewed by Judith Wilson I’d been introduced to Andrew Miller’s writing via his richly evocative Costa Award-winning novel, Pure (2011), set in and around a cemetery…
October 29, 2015 Mythology – An illustrated journey into our imagined worlds by Christopher Dell Reviewed by Annabel. As picture books for grown ups go, Mythology is the business. Now available in soft covers, this nine inches square book yields glorious pictorial…
October 29, 2015 The Dark Inside by Rod Reynolds Reviewed by Gill Davies This is the first novel by Rod Reynolds, a British author who is working comfortably within the conventions and settings…
October 29, 2015 The Oxford Companion to Wine 4th Edition by Jancis Robinson and Julia Harding Reviewed by Hayley Anderton It was reading Jancis Robinson’s Confessions of a Wine Lover which initially pushed me to learn more about wine, and the second…
October 28, 2015 My Katherine Mansfield Project by Kirsty Gunn Reviewed by Simon The premise for My Katherine Mansfield Project is admittedly rather niche. If one is not already a fan of Kirsty Gunn, then one…
October 28, 2015 The Girl in the Spider’s Web by David Lagerkrantz Reviewed by Harriet Reading continuations of series by celebrated dead authors is always going to be a bit of a gamble. I’ve had some…
October 27, 2015 Bloody Scotland Crime-writing Festival, Stirling, 11-13 September 2015 Report by Linda Boa After arriving somewhat later than planned in Stirling, all I wanted to do was find the lovely guesthouse I was…
October 27, 2015 Latest Readings by Clive James Reviewed by Simon I have to confess that when I picked up Latest Readings, I knew very little about Clive James’ life and work. And,…
October 27, 2015 Rembrandt’s Mirror by Kim Devereux Reviewed by Victoria The first thing – inescapable – that you notice about this book is what a beautiful object it is. With gilt-tipped…
October 26, 2015 Friendship by Emily Gould Reviewed by Victoria This book broke a late-summer reading slump I was wallowing in, and I am as grateful to it as a reader…
October 23, 2015 Q&A with Laila Lalami Questions by Helen Skinner 1. The Moor’s Account is narrated by the Moroccan slave, Mustafa al-Zamori, also known as Estebanico. What made you decide to write…
October 23, 2015 Shiny Book Club – Lila by Marilynne Robinson Introduced by Harriet It’s time for the third round of The Shiny Book Club – we’re posting the questions now, and the discussion will…
October 23, 2015 Five Fascinating Facts about… Richmal Crompton Written by Simon The author of the much loved William books, about a well-meaning but disastrous young boy, also wrote over thirty books for…
October 22, 2015 The Jump by Doug Johnstone Reviewed by Harriet Doug Johnstone is an amazing writer. This is the third of his novels I’ve read, each of which is brilliant and…
October 22, 2015 Reading Israel Written by Danielle Simpson When was the last time you read a book by an Israeli author? Yes, I thought so. If you had…
October 22, 2015 Fighters in the Shadows: A New History of the French Resistance by Robert Gildea Reviewed by Falaise Back in the ancient mists of time – or, at least, 1986 – a youthful version of me (think a bad…
October 22, 2015 The Prank: The Best of Young Chekhov, by Anton Chekhov Translated by Maria Bloshteyn Reviewed by Karen Langley The art of the short story is a difficult one, and many authors never attain the…
October 22, 2015 Five Fascinating Facts about … Margaret Atwood By Shoshi Ish-Horowicz 1. She had an unconventional childhood with her family, spending every spring and summer in the northern Canadian wilderness; Atwood didn’t…
October 22, 2015 Witches of Lychford by Paul Cornell Reviewed by David Harris I’d been eagerly waiting for this book. Cornell has recently published two volumes in an urban fantasy series, The Shadow Police,…
October 22, 2015 The Heart Goes Last by Margaret Atwood Reviewed by Shoshi Ish-Horowicz To put this review into context, I’m a huge Margaret Atwood fan. I haven’t read everything she’s written (fifteen novels,…
October 21, 2015 The House of Shattered Wings by Aliette de Bodard Reviewed by Annabel Gaskell This may have been the first novel I’ve read by Franco-Vietnamese SF&F author Aliette de Bodard, but it certainly won’t…
October 21, 2015 The Killing Kind by Chris Holm Reviewed by David Harris At first sight, this book was surprisingly different from the previous books of Holm’s that I had read: his Collector series was a…
October 21, 2015 Reading Liverpool Compiled by Beth Townsend Novels set in places I recognise are a special kind of thing. There is nothing I enjoy more than reading…
