Book reviews

The Scapegoat by Daphne du Maurier Review

Janereads13 Comments
The Scapegoat by Daphne du Maurier review
The Scapegoat by Daphne du Maurier, ISBN 9781844080977, 373pp

I’m slowly reading my way through all of Daphne du Maurier’s books. I find that Daphne books all have such intriguing premises. The Scapegoat is about two physically identical strangers who meet by chance. One man is an English academic called John who is touring around France. He’s depressed and dissatisfied with his life. John has little in his life apart from his job as a historian giving lectures about French history. The other stranger is a charming Frenchman named Jean.

John drinks too much with his doppelganger and wakes up to find all his belongings missing – clothes, car, wallet, id. His identity has been stolen and in its place is Jean’s clothes and id. Continue reading →

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens Review

Janereads9 Comments
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens book review
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, ISBN 9781472154651, 368pp

I’m a bit late to the reading party for Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. I’ve been wanting to read it for a while, only I was afraid it wouldn’t live up to all the hype. But as soon as I started this book I knew I was in for a treat. I devoured it over a couple of days and loved every minute of it. The writing was superb, I was 100% invested in the story, and it made me feel so many emotions. All in all it was a 5 star read for me. It’s one of those rare books that reads like a classic and you know it will endure with time. I loved it! Continue reading →

The Au Pair by Emma Rous Review

Janereads4 Comments
The Au Pair by Emma Rous book review
The Au Pair by Emma Rous, ISBN 9780349419091, 406pp

The Au Pair by Emma Rous is a book I borrowed from my mum. Set in England, it’s a mystery with lots of twists and turns. Seraphine Mayes and her twin brother Danny are known as the summer-born Summerbournes: the first set of summer twins to be born at Summerbourne House. But on the day they are born, their mother throws herself to her death, the au pair of the older sibling Edwin flees from the house, and the village is full of whispers of cloaked figures and a stolen baby.

Now twenty-five and mourning the death of her father, Seraphine uncovers a photo from the day of her birth that shows her parents posing with just one baby. Is it Seraphine or Danny? And where is the other twin? Seraphine becomes fixated with the mystery of her birth and can’t shake the thought that something is not quite right. So she sets off to investigate, opening a whole vault of secrets that someone doesn’t want uncovered. Continue reading →

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides Review

Janereads2 Comments
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides Book Review
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides, ISBN 9781409181620, 339pp

I borrowed The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides from my mum after seeing it everywhere and reading that it hit number one on the New York Times bestseller list. It’s a debut thriller set in England.

It’s about — funnily enough — a silent patient named Alicia Berenson and a forensic psychotherapist called Theo Faber who is determined to get her to talk.

Alicia is an artist, happily married, but not without her issues. Until one day she shoots her husband Gabriel five times for no apparent reason. She refuses to say why and doesn’t utter another word. She ends up being put into a mental care facility called The Grove which is where she meets Theo. Continue reading →

A Lifetime of Impossible Days by Tabitha Bird Review

Janereads1 Comment
A Lifetime of Impossible Days Tabitha Bird Book Review
A Lifetime of Impossible Days by Tabitha Bird, ISBN 9780143792260, 395pp

A Lifetime of Impossible Days by Tabitha Bird tells the unforgettable story of Willa Waters aged eight, 33 and 93. In 1965, eight-year-old Willa receives a mysterious box. Inside is a jar of water and the instructions: ‘One ocean: plant in the backyard.’ In doing so, Willa creates a time portal that allows her to visit her future selves.

In 1990, Willa is 33, a wife and the mother of two small boys. She’s dealing with dark memories from her tragic childhood. When she encounters her eight-year-old self in the garden it sends her spiralling out of control.

Continue reading →

Whisper Network by Chandler Baker Review

Janereads4 Comments
Whisper Network by Chandler Baker book review
Whisper Network by Chandler Baker, ISBN 9780733641558, 343pp

Whisper Network by lawyer turned author Chandler Baker has been compared to Big Little Lies and I can see why, but it didn’t quite measure up to my expectations. Set in a Dallas law firm, it follows four female characters through the before, during and aftermath of a life-changing experience. Sloane, Grace and Ardie are all attorneys (and friends) dealing with work and personal issues. Rosalita is a cleaner working at the company who will also be affected by what’s about to happen.

At the heart of their work issues is their boss Ames whose past behaviour has impacted them all. When a new female lawyer joins their team, things are about to go downhill fast. Continue reading →

Beartown by Fredrik Blackman Review

Janereads7 Comments
Beartown by Fredrik Backman book review
Beartown by Fredrik Backman, ISBN 9781501163104, 418pp

Beartown by Fredrik Backman is one of those books I’ve been seeing around everywhere for a long time. When I discovered a copy at a second-hand book sale I went to recently, I finally picked it up.

Beartown is a small, struggling town nestled deep in the forest in Sweden. But this sporting town felt like it could be anywhere – in Canada, America, even Australia if you swapped hockey for rugby league. Beartown doesn’t have much going for it besides its ice hockey team. The townspeople’s lives revolve around the ice rink and the fortunes of their team echoes the fortunes of the town.

This season a win by the junior hockey team in the national championships could change everything for the teenage players, the club management and trainers, their families and the rest of the town.

Continue reading →

Gone by Midnight by Candice Fox Review

Janereads7 Comments
Gone by Midnight by Candice Fox review
Gone by Midnight by Candice Fox, ISBN 9780143789154, 372pp

Gone by Midnight by Candice Fox is the third book in a crime series set in far north Queensland. I read the first book Crimson Lake earlier this year and absolutely love it, so went on to read the second book Redemption Point. I recommend that you start with these two books before reading Gone by Midnight. But it can be read as a stand-alone book if you want to. Just realise that there will be spoilers from book one and two in it.

This crime series is set in the fictional far north Queensland town of Crimson Lake near Cairns. It follows disgraced ex-cop and falsely imprisoned Ted Conkaffey, now turned Private Investigator, and his convicted killer and eccentric partner Amanda Pharrell. Amanda is quirky, heavily tattooed, has no filter and is a brilliant investigator. Ted is a more by-the-book investigator, but his life has been changed forever after being jailed for a heinous crime he didn’t commit which turned him into one of the most hated people in Australia. In Gone by Midnight he is trying to live a normal life, do his job, and look after his small daughter on her first approved visit to stay with him. His ex-wife is visiting a wellness retreat nearby. Continue reading →