April 28, 2022 Mischief Acts by Zoe Gilbert Review by Annabel At this early stage of the year, it may be a bit forward of me to suggest that I may have…
April 28, 2022 In the Margins by Elena Ferrante Translated by Ann Goldstein Review by Anna Hollingsworth There’s something fascinating about writers writing about, well, writing and reading. I care more about writers’…
April 26, 2022 Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Review by Annabel Sometimes the hype is true, and a publisher’s lead-title for the season really is worth the advance praise heaped on it….
April 26, 2022 Strange Journey by Maud Cairnes Reviewed by Harriet This is a body-swap novel – one of the first ever to be published. It’s very entertaining but also quite thought…
April 21, 2022 This Woman’s Work: Essays on Music, edited by Sinéad Gleeson and Kim Gordon Review by Liz Dexter This is a collection of writing by women about music, mainly about women in music, put together by visual artist,…
April 21, 2022 Queen of Our Times: The Life of Elizabeth II, by Robert Hardman Review by Elaine Simpson-Long There have been so many books written about ‘Her Maj’ and, I daresay, there will be more in the future,…
April 19, 2022 The Poisonous Solicitor, by Stephen Bates Review by Basil Ransome-Davies Back when I aspired to write crime fiction but realised I was a lousy plotter, I used to buy used…
April 19, 2022 The Rabbit Factor by Antti Tuomainen Translated from the Finnish by David Hackston Review by Annabel I’m always interested in adding new Nordic authors to my reading list, which is…
April 14, 2022 The Lives of the Saints by Sebastian Barry Reviewed by Harriet Anyone who knows me or reads my reviews will know that I’m a great admirer of Sebastian Barry. I’ve reviewed three…
April 14, 2022 The Gift of a Radio by Justin Webb Review by Annabel The TV news came on and a lugubrious looking chap in a light-coloured suit with a deep, plummy voice said something…
April 12, 2022 Brainspotting: Adventures in Neurology by A. J. Lees Reviewed by Annabel Dr Andrew Lees is a neurology professor at the National Hospital in London the first English hospital dedicated exclusively to treating…
April 12, 2022 Henry ‘Chips’ Channon: The Diaries 1938-1943 – Volume 2, edited by Simon Heffer Review by Elaine Simpson-Long The second volume of these diaries was delivered by my postman, who was visibly having difficulty handing it over as…
April 7, 2022 The Trouble with Happiness and Other Stories by Tove Ditlevsen Translated by Michael Favala Goldman Review by Karen Langley The last few years have seen Danish author Tove Ditlevsen’s star in the ascendant following…
April 5, 2022 Truly Madly by Stephen Galloway Reviewed by Harriet ‘Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and the Romance of the Century’ is the subtitle of this joint biography by Stephen Galloway. The…