ARC REVIEW: I BET YOU'D LOOK GOOD IN A COFFIN | KATY BRENT

I Bet You’d Look Good in a Coffin by Katy Brent
My rating: ✨✨✨✨✨

Kitty Collins is back! What better way to celebrate spooky season than with a bad bitch who completely justifiably murders awful men? This highly anticipated sequel sees the return of my favourite antiheroine, and this time she's gone international.

I accidentally stumbled upon Kitty's first outing in How to Kill Men and Get Away With It last spring and have been wanting more from her ever since. Katy Brent's second novel - The Murder After the Night Before - was my first review of this year, and she's quickly become an author that I will jump at when news comes of further releases. If there was a Guinness Record for fastest NetGalley request I would be the holder purely for the speed with which I submitted my request for this one.

ARC REVIEW: THE SUSPECT | ROB RINDER

The Suspect by Rob Rinder
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The Suspect is the second novel from Rob Rinder - yes, Judge Rinder - and seeing as I love that man I was thrilled when I was approved to read ahead of publication.

Last year’s The Trial introduced us to junior barrister Adam Green, and The Suspect follows him as he realises the case before him is not as straightforward as it seems; the nation’s sweetheart morning TV presenter dies live on screen, a celebrity chef is the prime suspect for her murder, and a web of deceit and lies is uncovered in the quest for the truth.

ARC REVIEW: ONLY HERE, ONLY NOW | TOM NEWLANDS

Only Here, Only Now by Tom Newlands
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Cora Mowat is a 14-year-old girl growing up in Fife, dreaming of making something of her life in the hustle and bustle of Glasgow. Living with her disabled mum, navigating her way with boys, and battling with undiagnosed ADHD, Cora is the epicentre of a novel that I dare say has all the makings of becoming a modern classic.

BOOK CLUB 4: WEYWARD | EMILIA HART 🎧

This month I decided to try something new for the book club book; listening to the monthly pick. Spotify have recently started to include 15 free audiobook hours per month for subscribers, so I thought why not? Weyward was the pick of the month for April, and I think I'm onto something...

ARC REVIEW: FRUIT OF THE DEAD | RACHEL LYON

You had me at Persephone and Demeter! Ancient mythology is my jam, so Fruit of the Dead sparked my interest immediately and I requested the ARC to see a new spin on the classic tale.

BOOK CLUB 2: PRELOVED | LAUREN BRAVO

February's book club pick was one I'd not heard of, but it won the vote so it's what we went with! I guess the fun of a book club is getting to read books you wouldn't choose usually, and for me Preloved fit that criteria. Following my New Year's resolution of not buying books new in 2024, I once more headed to eBay, and ordered my copy of Preloved.

BOOK REVIEW: GIRL IN PIECES | KATHLEEN GLASGOW

Prior to reading Girl in Pieces I did question whether I’d be left a little unfulfilled due to it being classed as a young adult novel, but it resonated with me in ways that I wasn’t expecting. I actually finished this book a few weeks ago, and it’s taken a lot of to-ing and fro-ing over what to include in this write up. I’ve eventually decided to be honest about why it affected me so much…

ARC REVIEW: I SEE BUILDINGS FALL LIKE LIGHTNING | KEIRAN GODDARD

I've read a lot of good reviews for I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning from the book-based accounts I follow and I felt like it'd be a book I'd enjoy as well. I requested the ARC for this one quite close to publication, and after a couple of days I figured it was too close to the book's release to get the chance to read. That is not how it went; on Wednesday evening I got the approval notification...the day before publication!

ARC REVIEW: THE MURDER AFTER THE NIGHT BEFORE | KATY BRENT

“Something bad happened last night, but I can’t remember a thing…”

What an unexpectedly fantastic surprise - my first ARC of the year! I never thought my new little NetGalley account would be chosen to read this in advance, so imagine my delight when I got the email saying I’d been selected! Last summer I read Katy’s first novel How to Kill Men and Get Away With It and immediately fell in love with her writing style; witty and humorous, twisted and emotional, and clever enough to have you rooting for the morally dark main character, despite her murderous tendencies. Suffice it to say, I had high hopes for The Murder After the Night Before from the day it was announced. 

BOOK REVIEW: THE VIRGIN SUICIDES | JEFFREY EUGENIDES - BOOK CLUB 1

The Virgin Suicides is the year’s first pick for the online book club I’m part of, and is a book I’ve read a few times before. I really like the film adaptation as well, so starting the book club year with something familiar felt like a nice way to ease into things.

BOOK REVIEW: MEXICAN GOTHIC | SILVIA MORENO-GARCIA

Here we are with book one of 2024 finally completed. Mexican Gothic was recommended to me by a few people, and I also saw it talked about in a number of places as being an excellent read. I ordered my copy from World of Books on eBay and ended up receiving a beautiful hardback first edition copy - not bad for £3.45!