Tag Archive | Harper Collins

The Bird In The Bamboo Cage by Hazel Gaynor

May21

Sunflower Seeds

The Bird In The Bamboo Cage by Hazel Gaynor is an incredibly powerful historical novel that will educate you as you read. It is based on true life events, making the book even more powerful.

Much is known about the war in Europe during World War II but far less is known about the war in the Pacific – this book helps to rectify this.

The story opens in China during 1941 at the Chefoo Missionary School. Many will realise the significance of the year as the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in December 1941, making war in the Far East a certainty. As the Japanese walked into China, they occupied the missionary school. The whole school moved twice to different internment camps, each one worse than the last. The Japanese guards were incredibly cruel but there were those who maintained their humanity, showing little pockets of kindness.

The tale is told through two alternating points of view – a teacher and a pupil. Their experiences are similar but different as the teacher tries to cushion her pupils from the horrors. Even within the camps, school learning and routines continued, in order to help maintain some familiarity.

In the filth and the cruelty bonds were formed, linking survivors together forever. If you weren’t there, you could never understand what happened.

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The Kill List by Nadine Matheson

May9

Well Thought Out & Executed

The Kill List by Nadine Matheson is an absolutely gripping crime suspense and one that I just could not put down. It is part of the Inspector Anjelica Henley series but can be read as a stand-alone. I enjoyed meeting up with familiar faces.

Once more Nadine Matheson has constructed a marvellous plotline. The whole novel is extremely well thought out and executed. The story is complex, and Nadine Matheson has an eye for detail as she draws the reader into a world of crime.

All of the characters were well drawn. The police officers are relentless in their pursuit of justice – whether it’s a bent copper, a serial killer or a miscarriage of justice – no stone is left unturned.

Cold case crimes from 1995 and 1996 are resurrected in present day as a kill list appears. Is it a copycat killer? Or has the killer remained dormant for nearly thirty years? The police and the reader must seek out the truth as the killer walks amongst them.

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The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza

Apr5

Intertwining Lives

The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza is an enthralling dual timeline novel that I just could not put down.

The action is set in present day and from 1908-1925. We begin in America and travel to Sicily in present day and backwards through the years as a character searches for the truth as to what happened to her Great Grandmother. Stories have traveled down the years. But what is the truth? We all need to know where we come from.

This is a book about the roles of women. In both time periods, men like to think they are in charge as they bully those around them… but the women have a tough inner core, and prove to be resourceful.

As we, and a character in present day, uncover the Great Grandmother’s story, we find a woman ahead of her times. She is very intelligent and has been held back by the conventions of the time. Women, with knowledge about medicinal herbs, were often seen as witches and shunned. They were, in fact, healers and often proved to be life-savers to those who came to them for help.

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She’s Not Sorry by Mary Kubica

Apr3

Wow – Gripping

She’s Not Sorry by Mary Kubica is an absolutely gripping contemporary psychological thriller that had my pulse and heartrate pounding throughout. It was suspense out of the top drawer.

There is the question as to how well do we know anyone? There are secrets within that have been well hidden – unburdening oneself will have far reaching consequences.

We see the loneliness of single parenting. Everyone needs a friend with whom they can share experiences. It makes life less lonely.

There is a realistically portrayed mother-daughter bond. Life is not always rosy with a teen but love is strong.

The action is written in the first person enabling the reader to share the highs and lows of life with the lead character. We ‘experience’ what she experiences which gives us a roller coaster ride of emotions.

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