The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón is part coming-of-age and part gothic mystery. This atmospheric novel is set in post Spanish Civil War Barcelona and starts off when ten-year-old Daniel is taken to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books by his bookshop owner father. A book that will change his life For his […]
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A Little Bird Told Me by Rachael Gray is a cosy crime mystery where Laurel Nightingale moves to a pretty Yorkshire village and on her first day discovers a body. What is A Little Bird Told Me about? Criminal psychologist Dr Nightingale has moved ‘Up North’ to start again. But things don’t start out too
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Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico (translated by Sophie Hughes) follows the story of millennial expat couple Tom and Anna’s pursuit of the perfectly styled Berlin life. What is Perfection about? Let me first say that Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico isn’t my usual read. Fairly or unfairly, the phrase ‘shortlisted for the International Booker Prize’ takes me
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The New Neighbours by Claire Douglas is the most recent psychological thriller by this best-selling author and is the latest Crawcrook Book Club read. What’s the story about? In this novel we find ourselves in Bristol with forty-something Lena who is struggling with big changes. Her marriage has floundered. Her teenage son will soon fly
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Fall Down Dead by Stephen Booth is part of the successful Cooper & Fry crime thriller series. And in this instalment Kinder Scout mountain is the scene of a tragedy. A Peak District walking party led by the enigmatic Darius Roth sets out on a dreary day to commemorate The Mass Trespass. However, when thick
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Murder at the Seaview Hotel by Glenda Young follows recently widowed Helen Dexter as she comes to terms with the death of her husband, Tom. Returning to the Seaview Hotel in Scarborough, Helen is struggling with grief. Without her Elvis obsessed husband she’s lost. Can she face running it on her own, especially with an
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The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan is an other-worldly, evocative and wonderfully atmospheric story. It follows the arrival of Sana Malik and her father as new tenants in the once grand Akbar Manzil. At its height the mansion was the grandest house in South Africa and home to Akbar Ali Khan and
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In The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon we are introduced to Aidan Thomas. He’s a widower, a father, and a well-respected member of the community in small town America. But there’s something nobody knows. He’s holding a woman, known as Rachel, captive in his shed and he’s a serial killer. What is the story about?
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The fantastic Cleveland Way passes through pretty Sandsend village and marching northwards it clings close to the coast as it follows a disused railway line. You pass by a moon-like landscape of alum deposits and then up an almost vertical flight of stairs. While catching your breath enjoy sweeping views across the North Sea. I’ve walked
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The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner is a young adult (Y.A.) coming-of-age novel set in small town Forrestville, Tennessee. The story centres on the secrets, hopes and fears of three high school misfits. What is The Serpent King about? The main protagonist is Dillard Early Junior, or Dill to his only two loyal friends, Lydia
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