chroniclesofabookmum's reviews
680 reviews

"The last words I said to my wife: Please don't leave. I said to my wife please don't leave, while we were arguing and she said she was going to be late and so she had to leave, and she did and on her journey she was killed by an explosion on the Underground"

Michael lost his wife in a terrorist attack on a London train. Since the event Michael has been seeing a therapist in order to control the emotions that he is experiencing through the loss of his wife. Written in the form of a diary, this book follows Michael's journey through realisation, regret, revenge, blame, love and hate. Michael believes the theory "an eye for an eye", however will he turn his belief into action?

TRIGGER WARNING: If you have lost somebody close to you recently, or books surround deaths trigger you .. do not pick up this book. It can be very raw at times and I feel like I would have liked that warning before going into it.

Firstly, I want to say that I was very lucky to receive this book to review through Readers First. Thank you for the opportunity Atlantic Books. This book is very unusual in relation to the writing style and the general plot. I can't say that I have ever read a book like it which works in favour for me. Whilst the writing style did take a bit of getting used to, in the most I did like it albeit at some points it could be confusing and I did lose interest in parts.

The issue I had with this book was that I feel like it was far too long for what it actually was. I found that after the first couple of hundred pages I was bored and I just did not want to carry on. I have to confess that I did read this in one sitting, so I've kind of contradicted myself but I feel like if I had put it down I may not have picked it up again. This is a shame because the general premise of the book had me interested I just feel like it was dragged out for too long which inevitably led me to lose interest. I am ashamed to say that a fair amount of it I did skim read, as whilst I wanted to know how it ended I didn't feel like I wanted to know most of the bits in-between.

As I have already stated, this book is raw and there are a lot of emotions flying about. I felt that I had a real emotional connection with the plot however I could not connect to any of the person. I felt like all of them irritated me in some way and there wasn't a person in the book that I could connect with.

The author did well with portraying the different emotions people experience with grief allowing the reader to understand that people experience life situations differently and that there is no correct way to grieve. Our characters took different stances throughout the book whether that be sadness, anger, happiness or confusion. This would change very quickly which I believe is a true depiction of how individuals deal with this life changing emotion.

Overall, parts of this book I enjoyed and parts I did not. However I would recommend this to people who feel like they can handle a book with raw emotions of grief within, as the depiction of this is fantastic. It is definitely worth your while reading it.

"Magic was a living thing - that, everyone knew but to Kell it felt like more, like a friend, like family. It was, after all, a part of him (much more than it was a part of most) and he couldn't help feeling like it knew what he was saying, what he was feeling, not only when he summoned, but always, in every heartbeat and every breath"

Welcome to London, or London's. Four London's in fact. Red, Grey, White and previously Black. Kell is one of the only surviving Antari giving him the advantage of complex magic whilst also being able to travel into whichever London he desires. In essence Kell fills his days as a smuggler, moving through the different London's sneaking objects that belong to the other. That soon backfires and Kell finds himself in possession of an artefact that appears to be more trouble than its worth. Meet Lila, a wanted thief from Grey London, an unexpected encounter leads her to join Kell on its adventure. Can they return the troublesome artefact before it destroys all that they know.

THIS BOOK GUYS. This book was truly fantastic. I absolutely loved the world building in this, the magic system is brilliant and I absolutely love the character building. My experience reading this book was phenomenal. I am really struggling to put my thoughts into this review because I just loved it so much.

My thoughts on the characters are as follows: Kell is a babe. Lila is a queen. Astrid and Athos make me angry and are practically Cersei and Jaime Lannister. And Holland .. Oh Holland .. WTF Holland.
Honestly, I don't think I've felt such raw emotion for characters since I read Harry Potter for the first time many years ago. I love the contrasting personalities between Kell and Lila, the banter and the relationship was just perfect. My opinion of Holland literally changed so quickly, Schwab snuck that one upon me and I did not expect it at all.

I have said it before and I will say it again, I absolutely love Schwab's writing style. I am yet to find a book of hers that does not immediately draw me in and leave me wanting more. Again, I finished this book in less that 24 hours as I did not want to put it down and when I did put it down I could not wait to pick it back up again. This book was so fast paced and it had so many twists and turns I just constantly had the need to know what happened next. This continued throughout, and even at the end I needed more and I cannot wait to pick up the second book in the series.

I really liked the time and effort that was put into the world building for this book. I find that a lot of fantasy authors throw as much information at you as possible in the first few chapters and I really struggle to get to grips with the world and magic system until the middle. However Schwab spoon fed all the different key elements of world building and the magic system so that by the middle of the book I had a strong understanding that I could carry through with me for the rest.

Honestly, I could go on about this book forever but I'm going to leave it here mainly because its eating into my time to read the next book. Pick this book up, every single one of you reading this. I am sure you will not regret it.

As Travars

"Chaos needs order. Magic needs moderation. It's like a fire. It doesn't have self-control. It feeds off whatever you give it, and if you give it too much, it burns and burns until there's nothing left"

A Gathering of Shadows is the second book in the Shades of Magic series and is set 4 months after A Darker Shade of Magic ends. I like to keep my reviews spoiler free and therefore I will not be compiling a synopsis for this book as it is the second in the series.

I DEVOURED THIS BOOK IN ONE SITTING.

OMG. This book was absolutely fantastic. I loved it so much and could not put it down. I absolutely loved A Darker Shade of Magic and I didn't think it could get better until I read this one. V.E. Schwab definitely has a skill in drawing in the reader and holding on to them throughout the entirety of the book. It was slow paced, however I think this is Schwab's style, she feeds you information up to the very last page of the book which engages the reader and keeps them wanting more and more. I found myself hanging off her every word. I did not want this book to end and I just cannot believe I have only just discovered this series.

In this book we are introduced to Alucard (which I recently discovered was Dracula spelt backwards) and he may be a new favourite character of mine. I mean in this series I have around 17237281 favourite characters, so Alucard now joins the list. I absolutely loved his relationship with Lila, another character that has a special place in my heart. I really enjoyed watching both of their characters grow, both together and individually, their subplot was one which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Another relationship that I really enjoyed watching develop was that of Rhy and Kell. The relationship between them in A Darker Shade of Magic was wonderful however in A Gathering of Shadows it just seemed to develop even more and it was so nice to see. These pair really have my heart, at times they warm me and other times they break me. I just love them so much.

I feel that V.E Schwab is truly fantastic in every single way, in particular she is fantastic at her character building. Her books are very character centred which is something that I really enjoy in a book and I find myself so attached to her characters.

As I read this series more and more I find the small similarities of Harry Potter secretly spread within which I absolutely love. This was particularly apparent within this book with the Element Games, reminding me slightly of the Triwizard Tournament. I really loved this subplot in the book and it had me engaged and excited throughout. I felt like as a reader I was really involved within the games and was routing for my favourite contestant. Honestly I found that this part was a particular favourite and something I really enjoyed reading.

The ending of this book broke me. In true V.E Schwab style she introduced a plot twist towards the end which left me wanting more. I was so glad to be able to move straight onto A Conjuring of Light so I could dive in and find out what happened next. Albeit, I really do not want this series to end.

This book gets all the stars from me. I loved it so much. Have I mentioned how much I loved it yet? Sorry everyone! I definitely recommend this series to each and everyone of you because it is fast becoming one of my favourite EVER series.

"The more we love, the more we have to lose. But the only way to avoid loss is to avoid love. And what a sad world that would be"

A Conjuring of Light is the third book in the Shades of Magic series. It follows immediately after the events of A Gathering of Shadows. I tend to write spoiler free reviews and therefore as this is the third book in the series I will not attempt to write a synopsis, just know that this is good.

I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH, I FEEL SO BROKEN. It took me just under a week to read this book, not because I did not enjoy it but because I just did not want it to end. I feel that with this series it just gets better and better with each book, just when I thought I couldn't love a book anymore the next one comes along and hits me like a bus, a bus full of love. I'm really struggling to put into words how much of an impact this series has had on me, it is definitely one of my favourite series I have ever read. It is right up there with Harry Potter, THATS HOW MUCH I LOVE IT. Right, calm down. **breathes**

This book was so full of action, with every turn of a page something happened, most of the time that something I did not expect. I found myself wanting to close my eyes at each chapter because I just did not feel like my heart could take anymore of this book. I honestly have not had this feeling since reading The Deathly Hallows many years ago. What I also enjoyed is all the flashbacks within this book which helped me to understand the characters more and build a further relationship with them. Throughout the series I really feel like I have related to each and every one of the characters in different ways, I truly could not pick my favourite character. They are all my favourite for many different reasons.

My opinion of Holland massively changed, I was not a fan of him in the first two books and now all of a sudden he is in my top five favourite characters. I love how Schwab can do this, I have said it in my reviews of her books before, but I am going to say it again, she is one of the best authors I have ever read in relation to character building and helping the read connect to the characters. Lila is my spirit animal, I am going to marry Kell and Rhy is my best friend .. just saying!

Disclaimer: This book will break your heart, whoever is your favourite character, your heart will break. Schwab is a brutal author, she is not afraid to harm/kill her characters. And, boy, does it hurt! I'm still breaking and I finished this book 12 hours ago. I'm still not sure when I am going to be able to recover from this!

I am confident to say that this book is one of the best ending to a series that I have ever read. I did not feel let down in anyway, whilst it broke my heart, it was such a satisfying conclusion to such a wonderful trilogy. It left me wanting more from this world, and I can't wait until I finally get it.

A Conjuring of Light is full of so much love/hate/violence/blood/death AND I BLOODY LOVED IT. Be warned, this book is not for the faint hearted. Make sure you are ready and you have a hug on standby for when you finished. I mean this book didn't make me cry but it might well make you cry. Did that sound believable? No, I didn't think so. PLOT TWIST: IM STILL CRYING. I recommend this book to every single one of you, this whole series is amazing and you need to stop what you're doing and read it right now. V.E. Schwab you have my heart.

It wasn't a goodbye, not really. What was the word for parting? Anoshe. That was it. Until another day.

Oh, here come the tears again!

“Arthur was the one true king who saved his people from the Dark Ages. He gave a voice to all, righted the wrongs … made a round table.”

I’ve been chased my whole life. As a fugitive refugee in the territory controlled by the tyrannical Mercer corporation, I’ve always had to hide who I am. Until I found Excalibur.

Now I’m done hiding.

My name is Ari Helix. I have a magic sword, a cranky wizard, and a revolution to start.

Firstly I wanted to say that I received an early copy of this book from Rock the Boat. Thank you so much, I am so grateful to have been given this book for free.

I’m not really sure where to start with my review to this, I don’t really have much to say. I had so much hope going into this book, but I just couldn’t help but feel let down.

Once & Future is a gender bent retelling of the King Arthur story, but set in space. The book takes on a different view of this story which displays different sexual orientations. Our King Arthur protagonist, Ari, is a pansexual female. The legend that is Merlin is gay. If this is not the making of a quality plot then I don’t know what is. This part of the book I really enjoyed, it was refreshing to see such a modern take on such a popular myth.

I found that I really struggled with the writing style of this book, it just didn’t seem to draw me in. I feel like it was fast pace, but not fast paced that was a positive experience for me, I felt like too much was crammed in and I couldn’t enjoy the main plot as much as I would have liked. Whilst I liked what I was reading I did not feel the urge to pick the book up and found myself being able to leave the story where it was at the point that I left it. The last 100 pages were a skim read for me, I needed to know how the book ended but I did want to finish it as soon as I could. I definitely think this is just a personal thing for me and I have heard that so many other people thoroughly enjoyed this book.

The ending of this book did satisfy me and it made me want to read the next book so I am definitely looking forward to that. This retelling is so different to any other retelling that I have ever read. I recommend that you go and preorder this book which is out a week tomorrow! It is definitely a must read for 2019.

“We may be small, and we may be young, but we will shake the world for our beliefs.”

"When you hold a weapon you become a faceless ghost. You give nothing away"

A world divided.
A queendom without an heir.
An ancient enemy awakens.

The House of Berethnet has ruled Inys for a thousand years. Still unwed, Queen Sabran the Ninth must conceive a daughter to protect her realm from destruction—but assassins are getting closer to her door.

Ead Duryan is an outsider at court. Though she has risen to the position of lady-in-waiting, she is loyal to a hidden society of mages. Ead keeps a watchful eye on Sabran, secretly protecting her with forbidden magic.

Across the dark sea, Tané has trained all her life to be a dragonrider, but is forced to make a choice that could see her life unravel.

Meanwhile, the divided East and West refuse to parley, and forces of chaos are rising from their sleep

Anybody know a dragon that is looking for a best friend?

THIS BOOK WAS EVERYTHING I HOPED FOR. I dedicated a whole week of my life to this book, and it was worth every single second of it. I don't tend to fat shame my books however this book is HUGE, it is intimidating but as soon as you begin to read you will realise that this book is worth every single page it is written on. I admit I was worried about reading 800 pages worth of book in one go, but I quickly began to realise that I would read another 800 pages of these characters in this world in a heartbeat.

Firstly, this book is about dragons. DRAGONS. Lots of dragons. They talk. TALKING DRAGONS. What is there not to love about this? I managed to get to page 10 before I met my first talking dragon and from that moment I fell in love with the book. The description that Samantha Shannon puts into this book really makes the dragon experience phenomenal, you can picture each dragon, good and bad, it is just perfect.

I absolutely fell in love with some of the characters from this book and Shannon really does take her time to build the characters in a way that the reader can feel a connection to them. The LGBTQ+ element within this book is so vivid and raw, it just adds to the brilliance of this book. I am fully on board with the ship in this book also, I MEAN YES YES YES. I would love to read more of that it was just magical. Shannon writes about so many strong and independent women and I love that. I find in fantasy novels its really easy to write about the hero male character who saves the female but not this time. The feminist representation in this book is amazing, WE HAVE A QUEENDOM, not a Kingdom a QUEENDOM and I am down for that!

The world-building element of this book was also fantastic. It is literally never-ending throughout the book, Shannon's descriptive language kept me immersed into the world throughout and literally had my attention through the whole 800 pages. There is a glossary and character list at the back which I think is priceless with this book. With such a long and complex book it is impossible to remember who everybody is and what certain words mean, with the glossary and character list you are able to look back and refresh your memory throughout the book. This was such a brilliant tool that I used constantly throughout the book, I feel like it gave me a better experience and a better overall understanding of the plot, world and characters.

I am the first to admit that I am not strong on politics, in fact I'm not afraid to admit that it bores me to tears. There is politics in this book but it literally sucked me right in. The court drama in this was fantastic and I loved reading every single second of it. It was not too complex in this sense so it made it really easy for the reader to follow.

This story is told in different views or different characters. When I read books with that format I always find that I dislike certain POVs and tend to switch off when it comes to them. However, I did not experience this with The Priory of the Orange Tree. I was hooked on each and every one of the POVs and I was just left wanting more and more.

No book is perfect and the only criticism I have is the climax that lead to deaths of certain characters (not a spoiler, of course people are going to die, what is the fun if they all live happily ever after?) and the ending felt a little bit rushed and it did leave me wanting more. Not necessarily sure that this is even a criticism but that is the best you are getting out of me because if you haven't guessed already I BLOODY LOVE THIS BOOK.

Honestly, I reiterate the point I made at the start of this review, if anyone knows a dragon that is looking for a best friend, ya girl is right here ... waiting. I have two cats I'm willing to trade, and a fiancé?

Bravo Samantha Shannon! Bravo.

"Forget about the past. Forget about the future. Focus on the moment. Focus on the pleasure."

DR Jar Silver, skier, scientist, international jet-setter, explosives expert.

Working on an avalanche control in Slovenia, Jaq stumbles across a problem with a consignment of explosives. After raising a complaint with the supplier, a multinational chemical company, her evidence disappears. Jaq is warned, threatened, accused of professional incompetence and suspended. Taking her complaint further, she narrowly escapes death only to be framed for murder. Escaping from police custody, she sets out to find the key to the mystery.

Racing between the snowy slopes of Slovenia and the ghostly ruins of Chernobyl, can she uncover the truth before her time runs out?

I was kindly sent an ARC of this book by Point Blank at One World Publications and asked to be part of their blog tour on Wednesday 3rd April 2019. Firstly I want to say thank you to Point Blank and the wonderful author Fiona Erskine for giving me an early opportunity to read this book.

From the moment I was sent the synopsis of this book I knew it was something that I had to read. It sounded as if it would be full of mystery and definitely a book that was going to pull me in from start to finish. This book did exactly that and did not disappoint.

The Chemical Detective is very slow burning in relation to the plot and its general development, but for me that is not a criticism. Instead of giving me everything that I wanted straight away, Fiona constantly left me wanting more and more which made me struggle to put the book down. It is worth noting that I devoured this book in one sitting, not because I wanted to get it over and done with but because I just could not put it down. At the end of each chapter I found myself wanting to continue. Not many books can do that to me, so bravo Fiona! The slow burn in particular really sets you up for an explosive plot twist that you do not see coming. Fiona's writing style can really lead you up one path, expecting to know what is coming next and then BAM theres a completely different path in a completely different direction ... didn't see that coming did you?

The novel itself is so beautifully written, I found it so easy to imagine what Fiona was describing, whether that be a situation, character or particular location .. even the food that a character was eating.

"He served the scrambled eggs on toasted crumpets, a thin sliver of pink salmon sandwiched above the little craters of butter, turning opaque where it touched the hot egg piled in a pyramid and topped with a  sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper and sprig of parsley"

I dare you to tell me that the wonderful descriptive writing above has not made you think about salmon and eggs on crumpets and made you particularly hungry. You would be lying if you said it didn't. I digress .. I know what the protagonist had for breakfast is not what you look for in a review but I just couldn't help myself, it is such a beautiful writing style.  You can expect that kind of visually descriptive writing throughout the book which I feel like really adds to the experience of the reader.

The book is described as a high-octane feminist thriller and that could not be more accurate. Our main protagonist is a sassy female, a strong, intelligent and independent character who is like a breath of fresh air to read about. I really liked her character she grew on me as the plot thickened and even more likeable traits came to light throughout. Honestly, she might be one of my favourite characters in a thriller that I have read. I find that characters in thrillers tend to be arrogant and unlikeable however Jaq was the complete opposite and I really enjoyed reading about her.

I was kindly sent a press release with this book which told me a little bit about the author. Fiona is a profession chemical engineer and that really is apparent in her writing. She is clearly a very intelligent female, one of which I admire. Some part of this book can be very science heavy and I found myself having to concentrate more than I would have liked in order to understand it in parts. Please don't let this put you off, I am not very knowledgeable when it comes to the subject of science so it seemed to go over my head but this does not have a negative impact on the story. It certainly didn't put me off finishing and enjoying the book.

The Chemical Detective is Fiona's debut novel and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I definitely believe that someone with a scientific background would enjoy this book even more. Thank you Fiona for bringing this book into the world, I cannot wait to read the next instalment.

Again, thank you to One World Publications for giving me this fantastic opportunity.

“Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour”

"FOR SALE: A lovely family home with good-sized garden and tree house occupying a plot close to woodland. Quiet, leafy road, good schools, close to the sea and commutable to London. Perfect for kids, fitness enthusiasts, dog walkers …

And, it seems, the perfect hunting ground for a serial killer.

When Garrick and Olivia Lockwood move into the idyllic 25 The Avenue with their two children, they are excited for a fresh start in the suburbs. But with a spate of local murders in the press, and suspiciously friendly neighbours, is there more to perfect suburbia that meets the eye?"

I was kindly sent this book from Pan Macmillan in exchange for an honest review. Firstly I want to say thank you to Pan Macmillan and the wonderful author Fiona Cummins for giving me an early opportunity to read this book.

In the past I was an avid reader of Crime Thrillers so The Neighbour would have been my go to book. However recently I have moved away from this genre and towards Fantasy. When I was given the opportunity to read and review this book I decided it would be nice to have a change. I am so glad that I took this opportunity as I absolutely loved it. I actually read this book in 24 hours because I really struggled to put it down.

I love how this is a slow-burn thriller, I feel they are the best kind of thrillers. Fiona will give you certain pieces to the puzzle, but whilst doing that she also builds the atmosphere and the characters so that you are fully submerged into the book. The tension is slowly built upon throughout which just makes you want to continue reading.

Fiona is fantastic at making you doubt your own theories, which I think is the final ingredient in making a successful crime thriller author. At some point in the book I was convinced a different character was guilty, I think through the duration each character was guilty in my mind at least once. This book really left me guessing and just when I thought one person had done it Fiona threw a curve ball and my theory that I was certain of was shattered into a thousand pieces.

The book is told in different perspectives, those perspectives being from different neighbours. You get to explore their thoughts and feelings which leads you to not only get to know the character and household itself but also helps you to understand what they think thus helping you to create theories that you hadn’t even thought of.

The twist at the end was fantastic, this book really keeps you on your toes until the final chapter. Whilst at some point in the book I did guess what might happen, I was pushed away from the idea with Fiona’s writing style which meant that when the guilty party was revealed I still felt shocked. This was definitely an ending that satisfied me. I find with many thrillers that I am always disappointed with the ending as they feel farfetched and rushed which is why I feel like I have actively chosen not to pick up this genre of book. This book however was like a breath of fresh air and has definitely got me back into wanting to read this genre. I shall be picking up each and every one of Fiona Cummins back list and future releases.

This book had such an impact on me. I finished this book last night and I went to bed and dreamt that our house got broken into and a doll was left behind. I never really dream about books so this is a first. I’ll be honest, I thought I lived in a nice neighbourhood with decent neighbours but I will definitely be keeping an eye on them from now on. The curtains will be permanently shut in my house. You never know what goes on behind closed doors. I’ll leave that thought with you.

I 100% recommend this book to each and everyone of you. It is a quick and fantastic read and it really will leave you thinking “whodunnit” until the very end.

Again, thank you to Pan Macmillan for giving me this fantastic opportunity.