Welcome to Lu’s Reviews

Welcome to Lu’s Reviews. This blog is an extension of my other blog
http://www.readingbeyondobsession.co.uk/ my other blog is doing so well I have decided to expand onto WordPress. So to get us started I shall post the last four reviews I posted on my other blog and we shall go from there.

As I always say, If anyone has any book recommendations for me, or any books they would like me to read and review for them, this includes Authors too then please do not hesitate to get in touch.

I will be adding a Get in touch page, with all the information you will need very soon along with a page telling you where about’s you can find me across social media.

Book Covers #1

Book Covers #1 – Winter

I thought I’d start a series of blog posts dedicated to book covers, with each post covering a different theme. The weather here is terrible at the moment so I thought to kick start my series of book cover posts off I thought I would choose books with covers that have a winter theme. 

They say don’t judge a book by its cover but let’s face it, we all do. Whether we pick a book up to look at it further largely comes down to whether the cover appeals to us or not. 

So here are 10 books that have a winter theme on there covers that appealed to me and made me add them to my to-read list based on there covers alone. 

Amid The Winter Snow by Grace Draven, Thea Harrison, Elizabeth Hunter and Jeffe Kennedy.

 Blue by Danielle Steel 

 Deep Winter by Samuel W. Gailey

 In Bitter Chill by Sarah Ward

 Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch

 Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner 

 The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson

 What Are We Doing Here by Marilynne Robinson

 Winter Sisters by Robin Oliveria 

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson 

So these are 10 books whose covers fit into a winter theme and appealed to me based on there covers alone made me want to add them to my to-read list. 

Have you read any of these? Do you have any winter themed books whose covers you find really appealing? Lemme know in the comments section. 

Half The World Away by Cath Staincliffe

Half The World Away by Cath Staincliffe

Title – Half The World Away 

Author – Cath Staincliffe 

Published – July ’16

Publisher – Constable 

Genre – #Mystery #Suspense 

Pages – 336

Price on Amazon – Paperback – £7.99 Kindle – £0.99

ISBN – 1472117980

After graduating, photography enthusiast Lori Maddox sets off to do some travelling, she ends up in China where she decides to become a private English teacher. Her parents Tom and Jo follow her adventures through a blog Lori is keeping online. When a few days go by and Lori doesn’t update her blog or reply to any e-mails or phone calls from her parents Jo and Tom decide to report her missing to the Manchester police, who involve the Chinese police. After a week of not hearing anything, Jo and Tom decide its time to fly to China to join the search for their daughter. Can they find her in time? 

This is the second book I have read by Cath Staincliffe now and I must say I am now hooked on her books, I have become one of her biggest fans. This story really tugs at your heartstrings. You really feel for Tom and Jo and you find yourself getting really frustrated with the Chinese police for not doing a very good job and then even more so when Jo and Tom are arrested. 

I found I didn’t like Nick as a character and would have prefered to see Jo and Tom reconcile. I felt Nick was a rather selfish man, only thinking of himself when Jo’s daughter is missing in a foreign country. I didn’t think he was very supportive at all. Although I did feel sorry for him when Jo and Tom slept together behind his back. 

I thought Lori was a wonderful character, strong and quirky and in many ways, she reminded me of myself, I found I could relate to her a lot which made for a good read. 

I really did enjoy this book. I listened to the audiobook and found I was taking every opportunity to listen to it, at bedtime, while doing the housework, in the shower. Whenever I could listen I would.  

Praise yet again for Cath Staincliffe. 

Rating –  5 *

Would I Read Again? – Yes

Would I Recommend? – Yes

Would I read other books by the same author? – Definitely 

Reviews for this book can be found on:

Amazon (UK) under Lu’s Reviews

Goodreads,

Net Galley (If a NetGalley Book)

My Blogs at http://www.readingbeyondobsession.co.uk/

http://www.lusreviewsblog.wordpress.com

Links to this review can be found at:

Twitter: @lusreviews

Facebook: @lusreviews 

Instagram: lusreviews

Don’t Ever Look Behind Door 32 By BCR Fegan

Don’t Ever Look Behind Door 32

Title – Don’t Ever Look Behind Door 32

Author – B C R Fegan

Published – March ’18

Publisher – TaleBlade 

Genre – #Childrens #PictureBook

Pages – 36

Price – Paperback – £6.99 Kindle – £3.99

ISBN – 0648101916

Don’t ever look behind door 32 is a children’s book about a magical hotel with 32 room. Behind each door are some weird and wonderful things and creatures but whatever you do, don’t ever look behind door 32. What is behind door 32? Can you resist?

This is a lovely little children’s story. It has a really easy flow to it, really nice rhymes which help with the flow of the story. I really enjoyed this book. My only criticism is that the pictures didn’t fit very well in my ARC, they were all split up and jumbled, so I wasn’t able to enjoy the pictures along with the story. 

But all in all a lovely little book, I can’t wait to read it to my little nephew and my new baby niece. 

Thank You to the author for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating – Four out of Five stars

Would I Read Again? – Yes

Would I Recommend? – Yes

Would I read other books by the same author? – Yes

Reviews for this book can be found on:

Amazon under Lu’s Reviews

Goodreads,

Net Galley (If a NetGalley Book)

My Blogs at http://www.readingbeyondobsession.co.uk/

http://www.lusreviewsblog.wordpress.com

SmashWords (LusReviews)

Barns & Noble (Lus-Reviews)

Links to this review can be found at:

Twitter: @lusreviews

Facebook: @lusreviews 

Instagram: lusreviews

More Books by BCR Fegan.(below) The man himself (above)

Ebba The First Easter Hare by Leen Lefebre

Ebba The First Easter Hare by Leen Lefebre

Title – Ebba The First Easter Hare
Author – Leen Lefebre
Published – April ’17
Publisher – Independently Published
Genre – #Seasonal #Easter #ModernFairyTale
Pages – 79
Price on Amazon – Paperback – £5.59 Kindle – £0.99
ISBN – 152131339

King Stern rules over the empire of all the hares, his brother Atta is unhappy with the way Stern rules and decides to leave to find his own place to live for him and his mate and their child once born. After Atta leaves his mate Hulde goes into labour and gives birth to their first child a baby girl. Princess Ebba.

Princess Ebba is born and very quickly grows into a very smart young hare who turns out to the image of her father, which in a land ruled by Kind Stern is not a good thing. Ebba has decided she too wants to take an adventure like her father but is she brave enough?

I wonder if this book was originally written in another language and translated into English as it has a feel to it like parts of it have been lost in translation. I couldn’t get on with this book. It didn’t grab my attention and keep me hooked like I like a good book too. Unfortunately, this book was not for me.

Thank You to the author for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating – One out of five Stars
Would I Read Again? – No
Would I Recommend? – No
Would I read other books by the same author? – Yes

Reviews for this book can be found on:
Amazon under Lu’s Reviews
Goodreads,
Net Galley (If a NetGalley Book)
My Blogs at http://www.readingbeyondobsession.co.uk/
http://www.lusreviewsblog.wordpress.com
SmashWords (LusReviews)
Barns & Noble (Lus-Reviews)

Links to this review can be found at:
Twitter: @lusreviews
Facebook: @lusreviews
Instagram: lusreviews

 

 

 

 

Sex Happens by Carol Soloway

Sex Happens by Carol Soloway

Title – Sex Happens

Author – Carol Soloway 

Published – Nov ’16

Publisher – Bayliss Enterprise 

Genre – #ChickFlick #Romance

Pages – 380

Price on Amazon – Paperback – £13.18 Kindle – £2.14

ISBN – 069248540X

Dr Alex Rose is a wife, mother and a very successful chiropractor. Its Alex and her husband’s twentieth wedding anniversary and Alex is shocked when her husband tells her he’s been having an affair and that he is leaving her for this other women. In one second Alex’s whole world explodes. She is thrown into a nasty divorce and a poisonous custody battle. 

This book is not usually my type of book, I would class it as a chick flick and that is not a genre I usually read. However, I did enjoy this book. although it did bring back some bad memories from my own parent’s divorce which was very nasty for us kids. 

This book was okay, I wouldn’t read it again, but I would recommend it to anyone who is a fan of the genre. 

Thank You to the author for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating – Two out of Five Stars

Would I Read Again? – No

Would I Recommend? – Yes

Would I read other books by the same author? – Yes

Reviews for this book can be found on:

Amazon under Lu’s Reviews
Goodreads,
Net Galley (If a NetGalley Book)
My Blogs at http://www.readingbeyondobsession.co.uk/
http://www.lusreviewsblog.wordpress.com
SmashWords (LusReviews)
Barns & Noble (Lus-Reviews)

Links to this review can be found at:

Twitter: @lusreviews

Facebook: @lusreviews 

Instagram: lusreviews

LOTR – The Fellowship of the Rings

LOTR – The Fellowship of the Rings

Title – LOTR – The Fellowship of the Rings

Author – J R R Tolkien

Published – Oct ’11

Publisher – Harper Collins 

Genre – #Fantasy #ScienceFiction #Adventure 

Pages – 448

Price on Amazon – Paperback – £6.47 Kindle – £4.99

ISBN – 0261103571

This book is a follow-on from The Hobbit. After Bilbo leaves Frodo the ring, Frodo is tasked with the job of travelling across middle earth to destroy the ring. When Frodo’s friends realise what Frodo is up to, they are not about to let him go about his task alone, so four hobbits set out on their adventure across middle earth to destroy the ring before it can fall into the wrong hands. 

I love these films, they are in fact some of my favourite films, the books, however, I found to be very long-winded and rather boring at times. I found myself not wanting to read on as I was losing interest in it. I must admit I didn’t finish this book as I just lost interest in it. 

Rating – Two out of Five Stars

Would I Read Again? –  No

Would I Recommend? – No

Would I read other books by the same author? – No

Reviews for this book can be found on:

SmashWords (LusReviews)

Barns & Noble (Lus-Reviews)

Links to this review can be found at:

Twitter: @lusreviews

Facebook: @lusreviews 

Instagram: lusreviews

The Girl in the Green Dress by Cath Staincliff

The Girl in the Green Dress by Cath Staincliffe

Title – The Girl in the Green Dress

Author – Cath Staincliffe

Published – April ’18

Publisher – Constable 

Genre – #MurderMystery #LGBT 

Pages – 336

Price on Amazon – Paperback – £7.43 Kindle – £4.99

ISBN – 147215398

A young girl is murdered in Manchester town centre one evening. Police arrive at the scene and soon realise all is not what it seems. Alley, the murder victim is a transgender woman. Could this be a hate crime? The officer in charge of the case a detective named Donna has to put all her training into action to solve this crime in a sensitive manner and ensure all her fellow officers do the same. 

Being part of the LGBT community myself, this book is close to home for me. I have to praise Cath Staincliffe for how well she has written this book and how well she has highlighted the issue of hate crimes within the LGBT community. 

The story is wonderfully written, extremely interesting and keeps you hooked from the very beginning. I found I didn’t like the character of Jade and I found myself questioning how she ever made it into the police force with an attitude like she has but at the same time I also found myself impressed with the way she was determined to find the truth and solve Alley’s murder. 

Without giving away any spoilers I thought the plot twist towards the end of the book was a very good one and one I did not see coming. All in all a fantastic read. 

Rating – Five out of Five Stars

Would I Read Again? –  Yes

Would I Recommend? – Yes

Would I read other books by the same author? – Yes I already am

Reviews for this book can be found on:

SmashWords (LusReviews)

Barns & Noble (Lus-Reviews)

Links to this review can be found at:

Twitter: @lusreviews

Facebook: @lusreviews 

Instagram: lusreviews

The Caller by Chris Carter

The Caller by Chris Carter

Title – The Caller 

Author – Chris Carter 

Published – July ’17

Publisher – Simon and Schuster 

Genre – #Crime #MurderMystery

Pages – 296

Price on Amazon – Paperback – £4.00 Kindle – £4.99

ISBN – 147115632X

Tanya is looking forward to a relaxed evening. After getting out the shower she hears her phone ring, It’s a video call from her best friend. This is no ordinary video call though. Her best friend is not alone and is tied to a chair. A man in a terrifying mask tells her she has to answer two question correctly or her friend dies. This can’t be real can it?

My wife bought this book for me as a treat, and well what a treat it was. It kept me hooked from the very first chapter, with a fantastic plot, wonderfully written and brilliant characters. The plot was easy to follow with no too much going on but just enough to make the story really interesting and to keep you wanting to read on. 

When I got into this book I didn’t realise it was a series, this didn’t matter though, I was still able to enjoy it and it has made me order the rest in the series and I cannot wait to read them. 

Yet another author and series that have found their way into my favourites category for 2018. 

Rating –  Five out of Five Stars

Would I Read Again? –  Yes 

Would I Recommend? – Yes

Would I read other books by the same author? – Yes

Reviews for this book can be found on:

SmashWords (LusReviews)

Barns & Noble (Lus-Reviews)

Links to this review can be found at:

Twitter: @lusreviews

Facebook: @lusreviews 

Instagram: lusreviews

Meeting Cath Staincliffe

Meeting Cath Staincliffe

On March 13th, 2018 I attended an event at Mansfield Central Library where Cath Staincliffe was giving a talk about her move from writing novels to writing the scripts for the Blue Murder TV show and also about her experience in writing for the radio. 

Staincliffe’s first novel was the first in the Sal Kilkenny series. This series is about a female private investigator, with a family and lots of personal baggage. This series shows how a working mother makes things work and all the troubles that go alongside the two worlds. 

After this Staincliffe wrote a police procedural novel about a female police detective inspector. After working with smaller publishers, she decided to send this book off to some bigger publishers. Unfortunately, she was rejected. This was an issue she was not alone in. In 2000 Staincliffe and a group of other crime writers set up a group called Murder Squad. http://murdersquad.co.uk/

They use this site to advertise their work, put on events and they also wrote an anthology together of short stories. 

It was due to another member of Murder Squad, Anne Cleaves that Staincliffe got into TV.

Cleaves suggested to Staincliffe that she should take her Blue Murder books to Granada Studios in Manchester as they were looking for a series based on a female detective. It is was from here that the TV series Blue Murder was born. Staincliffe also wrote the scripts for the show. 

With the success of Blue Murder came an invitation to take the TV series Scott and Bailey from the TV into novels. The books are about what happens before each season of the TV show, so they act as a filler while the show is off the air. This also means the books are completely new content and not just writing what has already happened. 

Staincliffe was given five months to write the first book. She did this alongside writing another book she had already started. The first book was such a success they commissioned her for two more. 

Staincliffe also does Radio series on radio four along with some other crime writers. At the moment she has a radio drama running on radio four called Stone. 

Cath Staincliffe has agreed to do an interview with Lu’s Reviews, so keep your eyes out for that coming soon. 

Shift by Heather MacKinnon

Shift by Heather MacKinnon

Title – Shift (Southern Werewolves #1)

Author – Heather MacKinnon 

Published – Jan ’18

Publisher – Independently Published 

Genre – #SPN #Werewolves #Romance

Pages – 287

Price on Amazon – Paperback – £9.46 Kindle – £2.21

ISBN – 1976896479

Elizabeth Montgomery is a criminal lawyer and she has worked hard to get where she is today, after all her hard work she has finally decided to take a vacation, a hiking trip in the mountains in North Carolina. Things do not go to plan though and she doesn’t even get to spend one night in the beautiful secluded cabin she has booked. 

After taking an evening hike in the woods, Elizabeth is the victim of a vicious animal attack, or so she thought. When Elizabeth is rescued by a handsome stranger name Abraham her whole life is turned upside down forever. 

Its been awhile since I’ve read a werewolf book as I started to find them a bit all the same. This book, however, had me totally hooked from the very beginning. I couldn’t put it down, fantastically written with wonderful characters and overall brilliantly written. 

Be prepared to be up all night when reading this book, because I know I was. It kept me on the edge of my seat desperate to know what was going to happen next. I was also desperate to know if Elizabeth and Abraham were going to end up together and if Elizabeth could survive the change. 

I cannot wait to read the rest of the series, I will most definitely be reading the next book and anything else Heather MacKinnon brings out. Another author and series that have found their way into my favourites category for 2018. 

Thank You to the author for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating – Five out of Five Stars

Would I Read Again? – Yes

Would I Recommend? – Yes

Would I read other books by the same author? – Yes

Reviews for this book can be found on:

Amazon under Lu’s Reviews

Goodreads,

Net Galley (If a NetGalley Book)

My Blogs at http://www.readingbeyondobsession.co.uk/

http://www.lusreviewsblog.wordpress.com

SmashWords (LusReviews)

Barns & Noble (Lus-Reviews)

Links to this review can be found at:

Twitter: @lusreviews

Facebook: @lusreviews 

Instagram: lusreviews