stitchesandpages811's reviews
657 reviews

A solid second book in this series, and one I enjoyed more than the first. While it was pretty spicy, I appreciated that there was a plot and the fact that Ivy and Wade communicated with each other. Overall, a really fun read and I look forward to seeing what comes next. 

What a hopeful and heartwarming story to listen to – admittedly one that nearly had me crying at 11pm on a Monday night with 30 minutes of audiobook left. 

I got this book years ago after reading and enjoying A Man Called Ove and Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. And yet, since then, it’s sat on my shelf unread but I picked it up again when a bookshelf reorganisation told me I wasn’t quite ready to let go of it yet. And I’m so glad I did. I really wasn’t sure to begin with. I found it quite hard to get behind Missy’s prickliness. But then Angela, her son Otis, and Sylvie start to crack Missy’s façade and squeeze their way in. And at the same time, Missy found her way into my heart too. 

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I’ll be thinking about it for a while to come yet. 

Firstly, thank you to Becky for gifting me this as a Christmas present. I am so pleased I managed to get to it quickly (for reference I still have gifts from the late 2010s sitting on my shelves so reading this as book 3 of the year is incredibly impressive). 

It’s taken me a few days to write this review as I’ve been struggling a bit with what I want to say. 

I was a real fan of the concept of this book. I admittedly haven’t read a lot of fae fantasy romance but this felt quite fresh to me in comparison to other books I’ve read, and I was really intrigued by the world’s history and Saeris’ part in what was going on. I do feel like the worldbuilding could have been slightly more fleshed out at the start. We are learning alongside Saeris so it’s great that there’s no big info dump but it did feel like she was kept in the dark about some things, which meant we as the reader were also in the dark. While I really appreciated us being thrown straight into the action (generally, I am much more plot-driven than character-driven as a reader), I did feel that the first 40% or so of the book was quite complex because I didn’t have the full picture. Despite being action-filled, that first 40% also felt quite slow pacing-wise for this reason as it didn’t really feel like things were progressing at the speed I’d have liked. 

I really liked Saeris as a character. I think we get a real sense of her doing what she can to survive but I also felt that throughout we got her softer side, particularly in relation to her brother, Hayden, and mentor, Elroy. In contrast, I didn’t really feel the love for Fisher straight away. He definitely had dark and broody down, but he was also quite brash at times I felt. I softened towards him much more as the story progressed – we learn why he is the way he is and I think as the relationship between Saeris and Fisher developed, I gained a deeper appreciation for him as a character. I enjoyed the relationship between the two – I liked the banter and the fact that Saeris didn’t just defer to Fisher, she challenged him and I think he needed that. 

Generally, the relationships were a highlight of the book for me. Not just between Saeris and Fisher, but also the other relationships we are witness to: the impression we get of Saeris’ relationship with Hayden and Elroy from the way she speaks about them, the development of her relationship with Carrion, the brotherhood between Fisher, Ren and Lorreth. I think the found family element of this was done really well and I’m looking forward to seeing how this plays out in the next book. 

This has firmly established it as a solid 4-star for me and I am very intrigued to see where it goes next, particularly as I could see this having worked as a standalone with a few tweaks. The pacing at the start did make it feel like quite long for a first book in a series so it will be interesting to see how things play out in book two now I’m more firmly entrenched in the world. 

What a fun first listen of the year! I just had the best time with this. It was fast-paced, engaging and action-packed. While the story was a bit ridiculous at times, this really didn’t bother me. I was laughing out loud and hooked by the different directions it was going in. 

I also liked the development of the relationship between our two main characters. I really felt the chemistry between them and loved the mix of banter and seriousness. Another 5-star Ally Carter book for me and I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next. 

This is a funny and fun-filled romance disguised as a spy novel and I would 100% recommend it if you’re looking for an entertaining read. 

I’ve been meaning to read a Christie novel for a while so thanks to my book club for choosing this as our first read of 2025. 

I had a really good time with this. It featured a lot of the things I’ve found I enjoy in a mystery: ‘locked-room’ setting, an interesting cast of characters (especially the ‘detective’), a pacy writing style and a fair few red herrings or mis-directions. I have to say that I did not see that ending coming at all but I appreciated that as I found myself trying to work out who the killer could be and why. 

I will agree that the style was slightly difficult to get into and I definitely found it easier the more I read, but overall a great start to my reading year, and I definitely don’t think this will be my last Christie read. 

Format: Print 

What a fun read to end the year on. 

Ok, yes it was pretty ridiculous and unrealistic (or at least I hope it is given how the police acted!) but it was a perfect way to wind down from the year – with an engaging, fast-paced and funny Christmas read. Particular highlights were the relationships Anna had with her husband, best friend Jennie, and kids – which all felt very realistic – and the way the group tried to solve the murder using their experience of crime shows and podcasts (in exactly the same way I try to use my experience of reading mystery books when reading the next one). Maybe a bit predictable in places but with a few red herrings thrown in as well. Overall a really fun and cosy read – I will definitely be looking out for the next one! 

Format: Audio 

Having read several Laura Purell adult novels, I was intrigued to give her YA debut a try, and it was certainly chilling and atmospheric. 

For me, I think the highlights of this story were the combination of regency setting with the paranormal storyline – as a lover of this period, I’m always interested to see how writers use it and adapt it in their work – and the side characters whose stories I’d have been keen to get more of. 

Unfortunately, it also fell down for me in a few places: 

The pacing – the start of the story felt quite slow which was a marked contrast to the ending which was very rushed. We have this really long build up to a final couple of events that then passed so quickly. 

Our main character – I just couldn’t get on with Camille, so being in her head made this quite a difficult story for me to get into. I do think a lot of this was the fact that so much was hidden from her – which admittedly we wouldn’t have a story without, but it just made it incredibly frustrating as the reader having worked out the things she didn’t know and then watching her fumble around because of that lack of knowledge. She was also quite self-centred – probably a commentary on her age and class – which also made it quite hard to root for her. 

Nonetheless, this was an enjoyable listen and another success for Laura Purcell, although it’s one that now I’ve read it, I am unlikely to pick up again. 

Format: Ebook 

Bookish ‘cosy’ mystery set at Christmas is a definite yes from me! 

I loved this. I absolutely devoured it over a couple of days, constantly putting it down and then picking it back up to read ‘just one more chapter’ before being pulled away for other things. The book brought together so many things I’ve found I enjoy in a book: 

I’m already wondering if I can re-read it – a definite for next Christmas I think – and haven’t stopped thinking about it since I turned the last page (well swiped my Kindle). A must-read for anyone looking for a fun, fast-paced and action-filled mystery/romance. 

Format: Print 

Like other readers, I do feel slightly cheated by the fact I assumed this was a festive/Christmas murder mystery based on the cover, which it is not. While set around Christmas and heavily featuring snow, the Christmassy elements feel like more of a coincidence in the context of the story. 

I really like the way the story is told. We start with an unknown narrator telling us they’ve found the journals of a relative – Frank Grasby – which they are now sharing, so we largely hear the story through Frank’s words with the odd commentary from this unknown narrator. I am a big fan of ‘cosy crime’ being told in different ways and it was interesting being in Frank’s head (even if I didn’t love his thoughts or actions a decent proportion of the time). 

It did quite a while to get into this. I wasn’t a massive fan of our main character and it obviously wasn’t what I was expecting. I also felt like the plot relied quite heavily on political events happening at this time in a sometimes quite unbelievable way. Nonetheless, I am really glad I persevered as overall I did have a fun time with this one and I am intrigued enough to try book 2 (although I do have questions over if that is any more festive than this one). 

Format: Ebook 

Another fun and creative story in the Lamplight Murder Mysteries series. I really do enjoy these stories which are an innovative blend of mystery, fantasy and horror – one of the only times I will go out of my way to read a book with horror elements! The author does a fantastic job of building tension and I really did not see the twists coming. 

This instalment is a bit different to the previous two, and I must admit that I didn’t love it quite as much. The author acknowledges that the setting for this book is quite different – we are in the wider Lamplight world rather than the self-contained spaces of the previous two books (Spindle Manor and a train). While I appreciate the world building this provides, personally I am more of a fan of these smaller settings. 

Evie also takes a more prominent role in this book – with the reasoning for this becoming clear as the storyline develops. It was really nice to see this and to get more of her character, and I’ll be interested to see how future books deal with the fact we now very clearly have two main characters rather than main character and side kick, and it’s felt in the first two. 

Overall, another great book in the series even if not my favourite.