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where our team of writers love to talk all things books, sharing reviews, features, lists, interviews and more.

Getting lost in a book is escapism at it's finest and it's what everyone who contributes here thrives on.

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Tuesday, 30 April 2019

Book Club | April 2019 Roundup

Our book club theme for April was 'non-fiction' and once again we saw a huge variety of selections from the BB community.

Thank you to everyone who shared photos and mini reviews over on social media throughout the month. We loved seeing your selections and finding new titles for our TBRs. Below are a selection of our favourite images and mini reviews shared over on Instagram.





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Girl Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis


"I have to be honest and tell you guys I didn't finish this book. Not because I wasn't enjoying, but just because I started it too late in the month. But the parts that I have read so far have been really great. Hollis breaks up the book in three sections: Part One - Excuses to Let Go Of; Part Two - Behaviours to Adopt; and Part Three - Skills to Acquire. In short, the book is full of stories from Hollis' life, and how she (and in turn, we) can better take hold of our lives and embrace the dreams and goals we have, no matter how big they are." -@anjalikay



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We’ve been reading non-fiction for this month’s @bloggersbookshelf Book Club and I’ve been reading about Gerald Durrell’s childhood adventures with the wildlife of Corfu. Gerald Durrell’s easy, humorous writing style makes even the story about his accidentally causing the kitchen to be covered in baby scorpions fun to read, although I have to admit, I found the gecko fighting a little more difficult. I can’t wait to get my hands on the next two books in Durrell’s Corfu series. - Next month we’re choosing from the Penguin Modern series for our book club choices and I already have Daphne Du Maurier’s The Breakthrough ready to go! - #bloggersbookshelf #bookshelfbookclub #bookstagram #bookbloggers #currentlyreading #instabooks #reading #books #bookworm #booklove #bookcovers #prettybooks #beautifulbooks #instabooks #bibliophile #vsco #vscocam #vscobooks #igreads #booklover #myfamilyandotheranimals #geralddurrell
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The People V. O. J. Simpson by Jeffrey Toobin

"It's been a pretty busy month so unfortunately I haven't quite found time to read all of my April book club pick (or do a huge amount of reading at all!). So far I've found the book to be an interesting read and am hoping to finish it soon." - Erin








Has anyone else got the Monday feels today although it's Tuesday? If so, you're not alone, I'm right there with you! - I finished Unnatural causes today and my gosh did it hit me in all the feels! Such a human journey through the life of a forensic pathologist and the stories of the dead he's been able to tell. Can't wait to type up my review! - I'm attempting to read only non-fiction this month, which is April's prompt from @bloggersbookshelf. Next on my pile is War Doctor by David Nott. I was gifted this read from @picadorbooks via the Swansea Bloggers Collective. It tells the true story of a front-line trauma surgeon. I have been hugely looking forward to reading this one and can't wait to share my thoughts with you all! - . . . . . #davidnotts #wardoctor #sbcollective #swanseawaterstones #gifted #nonfictionapril #bloggersbookshelf #proof #picadorbooks #picador #bookstagrammer #bookstagram #booksandcoffee #coffeestop #caffieneaddict #amreading #currentlyreading #currentread #tbr #costabreaks #reading #paperback #aprilreads #februaryrelease
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We'll be introducing May's book club tomorrow so don't forget to check back!
Use the hashtag #bookshelfbookclub and tag @bloggersbookshelf to share your photos and mini reviews with us throughout the month.
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Friday, 26 April 2019

Romanov | Nadine Brandes | Review


The history books say I died. They don't know the half of it.

Following the revolution that forced her father's abdication, Anastasia 'Nastya' Romanov and her family, under the watchful eye of Bolshevik soldiers, are exiled to Siberia to await their fate, but Nastya has a secret that just might save them all. With the spell master, Rasputin dead and all other spell masters either working for the Bolsheviks or hiding from them, Nastya is the only one able to use the spells Rasputin taught her to ease her brother's pain, which is why Nastya's father trusts her with their family's final hope - a matryoshka doll given to them by the greatest spell master in Russia. When she needs it most, the doll will reveal a spell to Nastya, but until then she must keep it hidden from the Bolshevik guards.

Nastya knows she can't trust any of the soldiers, even the ones who seem to be kind. She especially can't risk any of them finding out about the matryoshka doll or the spells she uses to help her brother, but there is one guard who does not always act like the others, who sometimes seems as though he might not be the loyal Bolshevik soldier he acts like. Zash has secrets of his own, including a hidden bottle of spell ink and the way he sometimes looks at Nastya. Nastya harbours hope that Zash will prove to be a friend, or perhaps even something more, despite his Bolshevik uniform, but when the firing squad come for Nastya and her family, Nastya is crushed to see Zash holding one of the guns.

The exile and execution of the Romanov family, and the persisting rumours of Anastasia's survival, have been the subject of many stories over the years since the real life event. What Brandes's interpretation brings to this well trodden story is the addition of magic and romance in the young Anastasia's life. Anastasia, or Nastya, as she is known throughout the novel, is, in Brandes's hands, a feisty and stubborn young woman, who cares for her family above everything else. The entire Romanov family are presented in this story as a close-knit and loving family, one who any reader would sympathise with, which makes it all the more upsetting when the inevitable happens, and Nastya and her family must face their execution.

Romanov is a fantastical mix of history and magic, combining a realistic interpretation of the Romanov family's exile with a wild story of spells and spell masters. It feels, upon reading, as though Brandes has done a lot of research into the Romanov family's final weeks, which is perhaps why the first half of this story, which is more heavily based on real events, feels like a slightly different novel than the second half, which definitely takes a turn away from the realistic. This is not a bad thing, it is simply one way in which the two sides of this story play together to present a story for Anastasia Romanov that feels as though it could be true, provided, of course, one accepts that Rasputin really was a spell master and that he taught the young Anastasia a few tricks of his trade before his own execution. 

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
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Friday, 19 April 2019

Features | An Evening with Sarah J Maas


Sarah J Maas ended her Kingdom of Ash tour here in Auckland, New Zealand.

I headed along to the one-hour event (way to short a time, I have to say!), and gathered together with about 200 others. This was definitely the biggest author event I've ever been to (hearing Justin Cronin a few years back happened in a library and there were about 50 people, and going to Oxford and hearing R.J. Anderson was about 50 as well), but it was such a fun feeling being surrounded by so many who loved the worlds that Maas has created.

She chatted most about her Throne of Glass series, as the tour was for the final book in this series, Kingdom of Ash, but did also throw in some bits and pieces about her other series, A Court of Thorns and Roses.

One of the most amusing and interesting things she talked about right at the beginning was the drama that happened just two days before the book went to the printers last year: there were too many pages (coming in at over 1000!) and the glue they were going to be using to bind it all up wasn't strong enough! All the editing had already been long finished, and there was nothing that could really be easily cut out to lower the page numbers. Instead, they had to figure out ways to lose about 10 pages by making the font smaller, and narrowing the margins. It now comes in at just under 1000 pages, but it had never occurred to me that gluing a book would have any issues!


Sarah also talked about the importance of strong, kick-ass female characters, something her books are full of. As a child she would love watching movies like Indiana Jones and Star Wars, and always pretend she was Indiana or Luke running around doing cool things. When she got older and discovered things like Buffy and Sailor Moon she learnt the importance of strong female characters leading the way, and now writes some of the strongest female characters in YA.

As well as some questions from Kiran Dass, who was chairing the event, there was time at the end for just a few questions from the audience. One of them was 'If all your characters were in the Hunger Games, who would win?' Sarah thought about it for a minute or so and then grouped some of her characters together from each series, and then made super groups of characters crossing over into each series (some from one joining forces with some from the other), and some characters she said wouldn't even make it through and would be the first to die. Ha!

In January 2020 Maas is releasing her first 'adult' genre book, called House of Earth and Blood, the first in a new series called Crescent City. While it's labelled 'adult', it's on a similar maturity level as ACOTAR, so, she explained, didn't really feel like she was branching out into another age group. But adult or young adult, I'm looking forward to seeing what that book will bring.

Now just to actually finish both the Throne of Glass and ACOTAR series... eek!
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The Hobbit | J.R.R. Tolkien | BBC Radio 4 | Dramatised Audiobook | Review

Listening to dramatised audiobooks seems to be becoming a habit.

This is the third BBC Radio 4 dramatised production* of an audiobook I've 'read' now, and, much like the others, it didn't cease to entertain.

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien is one of my favourite books; I remember being read it as a child of probably 8 or 9, going on to re-read it for myself, then having it as an English book one year in high school (I got all high marks for my assignments because I both loved the book and knew it so well already). Since the high school reading, I've probably read it once more, but have been meaning to re-read it for the past few years. When I spotted this BBC Radio 4 dramatised version of the audiobook at the library, I thought it would be a fun way of 'reading' it once more.

This audiobook was a joy to listen to; while there aren't as many voices as there are characters (there are 13 dwarves for goodness sake! That would be a huge cast!), it's done in such a way that you don't really notice it at all. There's a narrator, of sorts, and Bilbo does all his thinking out loud for the benefit for the listeners. Dramatised versions, if you're not familiar, also include things like sound effects and music to fill in some of the scenes when written descriptions or visual aid would normally be used. This means it's basically like watching a movie version, just without the visual aspects.

There were some parts which were a bit odd to me - like some of the pronunciation of names - and some voices which didn't seem quite right, however, on the whole it was a very enjoyable production, once again, from the BBC Radio 4 team.

The dramatised version is abridged, so it's shorter than the 'normal' audiobook, coming in at just 3hours 42minutes, so you can easily get through it in a day.

You can actually listen to the full production for free online, or check out your local library to see if they have a copy on CD or Overdrive.

Have you listened to The Hobbit? 

*Check out Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, and also Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman. 
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Wednesday, 17 April 2019

The Seven Husbands Of Evelyn Hugo | Taylor Jenkins Reid | Review

the seven husbands of evelyn hugo taylor jenkins reid

The internet was right, The Seven Husbands Of Evelyn Hugo is a great read.

After opening with a New York Tribune clipping announcing that famous Hollywood star Evelyn Hugo will be auctioning off some of her most famous gowns to raise money for breast cancer research, we are introduced to magazine reporter Monique who, much to the surprise of both herself and her boss, is personally asked for by Evelyn to cover the event. As it turns out Evelyn has an ulterior motive; she wants Monique to write her life story and share it with the world.

The book spans several decades of Evelyn’s life, following her rise to fame and all of the heartbreak along the way, with each section relating to one of her seven famous marriages which were the subject of many newspaper headlines. By the end of the novel we also find out why Evelyn was so set on Monique being the one to tell her mysterious life story; an extra little twist that provides added intrigue throughout.

My favourite thing about the book would have to be how real the characters felt. This is something I know many people have noted about Evelyn in particular, as well as the characters of the author's latest release Daisy Jones and the Six (which I'm currently twenty-something in the library queue for, but am looking forward to reading!).

Whilst Historical Fiction is not usually a genre I reach for, I found that I really enjoyed the old Hollywood setting. The book tackles a range of important topics in an interesting way and is an immersive and addictive read. With complex and intriguing characters, the journey through Evelyn's life really makes this novel special.
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Monday, 15 April 2019

Features | A Storytelling Podcast


 "Sit back, let go and imagine your life."


Today I wanted to talk about something a little different but hopefully still relevant to our readers who of course, love a good story!

Not too long ago I stumbled upon an immersive storytelling podcast called Imagined Life which launched in late 2018. Each episode tells a unique tale of the pre-fame days of someone who has gone on to become a household name, addressing the listener as if it is your life story that is being told. At the beginning of each episode you are not told who 'you' are but as you progress through the episode there are clues along the way to help you try and figure out your identity.

The stories generally share the lives of these people before they became famous, and often beyond, ranging from heartbreaking to inspiring and everything in between. Each person featured is a recognisable name and every one of them has a unique tale of how they became to be so well-known. I won't give any specific examples here, as that would definitely take away the enjoyment of guessing if you're planning to listen to the podcast, but it's safe to say they will all (or, almost all) be names you're familiar with.

Whilst I generally tend to enjoy chatty podcasts or those telling stories through interviews, I've become a little obsessed with the storytelling style of Imagined Life and have loved the guessing game element... although there have been a few that have had me stumped until the last 5 minutes or so! Of course, the episodes are scripted dramatisations and can't be 100% accurate to the real events but each episode is clearly well-researched. Each of the stories would be an interesting tale if simply told in a more traditional way however they are all the more enjoyable thanks to the immersive storytelling style.

I've definitely learnt a lot of interesting facts through listening to this podcast, particularly about people who I would recognise but have never researched further. Not only have I enjoyed listening to the episodes, but it has also inspired me to go on to read more about some of the people featured after becoming aware of their fascinating backgrounds and unique roads to fame.

You can find out more about the podcast and listen to episodes over on the Wondery website.
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