Local Gone Missing by Fiona Barton

 Barton gives us an interesting story about your typical, British small seaside town, you know the small town mentality, where everyone knows everyones business...

What Barton does so well is give us multiple narratives, which really allows us, her readers, to gain a deeper insight into what this story is all about.

Her delightful and fascinating characters, with their unique and amusing stories, really allows this police procedural to shine and I for one, hope that this is not the last we see of DI Elsie King!

The Library Enthusiast on Superpowers...

See You In September by Charity Norman

 Norman has once again managed to write a tale that somehow resonates with the reader, she allows us (the reader) to step inside her writing and reassess our thoughts and feelings about a subject, in this case the 'idea' of what is a cult...

I particularly liked how she chose to tease us with the prologue, to offer us a glimpse of the unimaginable, this really sets the theme for how this tale will evolve...

The Library Enthusiast on sharing Book Love...

Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors

 This is one of those books that you consume in days, if not hours, it has everything a good yarn should have...

it's funny

it's fresh

it's extremely insightful 

With characters you want so badly to 'win' even if you dislike them!

Mellors pulls off a thoughtful exploration into the ways we attempt to love one another, whilst perhaps not truly understanding them or ourselves.

The Library Enthusiast on Tsundoku...

The Way It Is Now by Garry Disher

 This stand alone tale has all the ingredients that we have come to appreciate from crime novelist Disher. It has a slow elegance which invites you in, you are entertained by his characters, you feel their conflicts, you celebrate their moments of peace...no pretensions, just honest folk trying to cope with bad s*&t. Although it may not be a full on action crime thriller, The Way It Is Now is a mystery that you want to solve...

The Library Enthusiast on Book Sharing...

The Murder Book by Mark Billingham

 Thorne is most definitely back, and Billingham provides us with a satisfyingly shocking and very readable 18th tale in the Thorne series...

...Blillingham's writing allows us to continue to connect with the flawed characters that we have come to know so well, whilst offering us twisty as f*&k plots!

The Library Enthusiast and Weekend Reading...

Girl, Forgotten by Karin Slaughter

There are several threads to this story, but the main focus is really about Andrea and her first assignment as a US Marshall...the plot is intertwined with  the novel Pieces of Her so probably best you read that one first.

I did enjoy reading this one, 'Catfish' Bible is a very likeable character and an excellent side kick as Andrea's first Marshall partner. However, I did feel some of the revelations were obvious and so at times they fell little flat.

The Library Enthusiast on the Book of Life...

Imperfect Women by Araminta Hall

 Imperfect Women is so much more than your regular murder mystery..this is a deep dive into the choices women make or are expected to make. It's about female friendships, about connections and perceptions, about what we think we see in each other but also what we hide from each other. Hall manages to ask the complex questions...

Who decides what women should do? 

Why as women do we often allow ourselves to be defined by other peoples expectations, needs or desires? 

And why do we still often lack the confidence to put our own demands first?

Remember...

You are Loved!

The Library Enthusiast on Diving into a Good Book...

Those Who Perish by Emma Viskic

So this is our final check in with Caleb Zelic, deaf security consultant extraordinaire...am I disappointed? Probably not if I'm honest, for me the sharpness of Viskic's previous Zelic novels does not shine in this one, it felt a little too smooth and the so called 'complex plot' felt very one dimensional...it was missing the intensity of her previous novels in this series, and I got a sense that maybe Viskic is 'over' Caleb Zelic.

The Library Enthusiast on Reading...

The Dangerous Kind by Deborah O'Connor

A tough and thought provoking thriller with a main character you can't help but warm too..hot flushes can do that! It has the two time lines vibe which O'Connor does extremely well, especially as she is digging deep into some very uncomfortable topics...

The Library Enthusiast on Smells...

Finders Keepers by Sabine Durrant

So many different things to like about this one, it gives us a variety of personalities to get to know and go to bat for...or not! Ok you may like me, guess a good deal of the missing pieces way before Durrant actually writes them, however this does not take away from the books ability to keep you engaged. 

The Library Enthusiast on Distractions...

 

The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley

Really enjoyed the style of writing, Foley gives us a variety of intense characters, allowing us to connect with them via her decision to write each chapter from their perspective. The atmosphere surrounding the apartment in question is moody, dark and so very French...its a whodunit with oodles of délicatesse and charm!

The Library Enthusiast on Bestsellers...

The Flower Girls by Alice Clark-Plants

The flower girls aren't quite what they seem and the one you should be wary of isn't the one in jail...its a story of parenting and sisterhood, of wanting to do the right thing for those you care the most about...but its also a twisty tale of messed up emotional baggage and lets just say the ending isn't what the doctor ordered...

The Library Enthusiast and Rainy Days...

The Murder Rule by Dervla McTiernan

Clever clever clever...McTiernan you manage to bring us something we may not quite be ready to accept, you show us that the law is fluid and that everyone is guilty of something, innocence is not always black and white...

The Library Enthusiast agrees with Tyrion Lannister...

Young Mungo by Douglas Stuart

 

Stuarts writing is raw and often difficult to absorb, it takes time to process, perhaps because the style of writing dialect is unfamiliar... however it is this very style of writing that brings to life the boy that is Mungo, it paints us a detailed canvas of the life he lives, the family he adores and the sense of self he is discovering. I felt immersed in all his emotions, I travelled his road alongside him, I felt his grief, pain and joy...and for me that makes a damn good book.

The Library Enthusiast on Wants, Needs & Likes...

Rabbit Hole by Mark Billingham

 

Totally different from what you may expect, this is Billingham at his best, he offers us a witty, charismatic main character with plenty of issues!

A murder mystery has never been so much fun, with thrills and and genuine laugh out loud moments...take a trip down the Rabbit Hole, trust me its just what the doctor ordered!

The Library Enthusiast and Life...