The Bone Code (Temperance Brennan Book 20) by Kathy Reichs

 

The Bone Code (Temperance Brennan Book 20) by Kathy Reichs.

Published 29th April 2021 by Simon and Schuster.

From the cover of the book:

A  storm has hit South Carolina, dredging up crimes of the past. 

En route to Isle of Palms, a barrier island off the South Carolina coast, forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan receives a call from the Charleston coroner. 

During the storm, a medical waste container has washed up on the beach. Inside are two decomposed bodies wrapped in plastic sheeting and bound with electrical wire. Chillingly, Tempe recognises many details as identical to those of an unsolved case she handled in Quebec fifteen years earlier. 

With a growing sense of foreboding, she flies to Montreal to gather evidence and convince her boss Pierre LaManch to reopen the cold case. She also seeks the advice—and comfort—of her longtime beau Andrew Ryan. 

Meanwhile, a storm of a different type gathers force in South Carolina. The citizens of Charleston are struck by capnocytophaga, a bacterium that, at its worst, can eat human flesh. Thousands panic and test themselves for a rare genetic mutation that may have rendered them vulnerable.

Shockingly, Tempe eventually deduces not only that the victims in both grisly murder cases are related, but that the murders and the disease outbreak also have a common cause . . .

**************************************

You always know you're in for an enjoyable time when you dig into one of Kathy Reichs' Temperance Brennan novels, and this latest one, The Bone Code, delivers on every front.

This time around, our story begins with Tempe on the verge of battening down the hatches as a storm approaches the Carolina coast, when she receives a visit from an old woman asking for help with a curious historical case of a missing twin.

However, it is not until after the storm that the action really gets going. Just as Tempe is assessing the damage in the aftermath of the wild weather, she receives a call asking her to consult on a case of two bodies found within a medical waste container that has been washed up on the shore - bodies that have been wrapped in plastic and tied with electrical flex. It's a call that makes Tempe very uneasy, but it is not until she gets to work on the badly decomposed bodies that her worst fears are confirmed - this case bears a striking resemblance to a cold case she and her partner Andrew Ryan worked on fifteen years ago... in Montreal.

And then we're off, in true Reichs' style, with a new investigation on US soil and a re-opened cold case in Canada, as Tempe finds herself flying back and forth between countries, tracking down the clues that link these murders. Add in, Tempe's hectic workload of intriguing cases; romantic interludes with Ryan; a sideline investigation taken on by her best friend to find out what happened to the missing twin;  and a dangerous flesh-eating bacterial breakout in Charleston that bears the marks of foul-play; and there is a lot to keep you glued to the page.

This is a wonderful ensemble piece with Tempe at the hub of the action, and lots of great characters, some old and some new (including the adorable Birdie), making a contribution in solving the mysterious goings on. As all the painstakingly gathered pieces of the puzzle fall into place, including the scientific clues that mark this series of books out as being so fascinating, you arrive at some terrifying conclusions, and a heart in the mouth climax that has you teetering on the edge of your seat.

And it's interesting to note that the events in this book take place in a post Covid-19 landscape, which adds a real chill to the proceedings once you understand where Reichs has been leading you all along. It's brilliant... terrifying, but brilliant.

The Bone Code is available to buy now in hardcover, e-book and audio formats from your favourite book retailer.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for sending me a hardback copy of this book in return for an honest review, and to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

About the author:

Kathy Reichs’s first novel Déjà Dead was a number one bestseller and won the 1997 Ellis Award for Best First Novel. The Bone Code is Kathy’s twentieth entry in her series featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. Kathy was also a producer of the hit Fox TV series, Bones, which is based on her work and her novels.

Dr. Reichs is one of very few forensic anthropologists certified by the American Board of Forensic Anthropology. She served on the Board of Directors and as Vice President of both the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and the American Board of Forensic Anthropology, and as a member of the National Police Services Advisory Council in Canada.

The Wolves Of Leninsky Prospekt (Moscow Wolves Book One) by Sarah Armstrong

 

The Wolves Of Leninsky Prospekt (Moscow Wolves Book One) by Sarah Armstrong.

Published 7th February 2019 by Sandstone Press.

From the cover of the book:

You'd know if you were a spy... Wouldn't you?

Escaping failure as an undergraduate and a daughter, not to mention bleak 1970s England, Martha marries Kit - who is gay. Having a wife could keep him safe in Moscow in his diplomatic post. As Martha tries to understand her new life and makes the wrong friends, she walks straight into an underground world of counter-espionage.

Out of her depth, Martha no longer knows who can be trusted.

Shortlisted for the Bookmark Book Festival's Book of the Year Award 2020.

****************************

1972: Martha is in trouble... again. At least in the eyes of the Cambridge University dons and her staid upper middle class parents. Sent down from Cambridge for daring to protest about women's rights, she finds herself back in the strangling atmosphere of her parental home, destined to never escape the dutiful life they have planned out for her.

But Martha has a plan. Her brother's friend Kit is off to Moscow to perform dodgy deeds under the guise of a respectable diplomat, and Martha is very keen to escape her current predicament and go along for the ride. Fortunately, Kit sees the advantages in having a wife at his side, especially since it will distract from the fact that he is gay, so a hastily arranged marriage ensues.

Martha cannot wait to experience the romantic Moscow she has read about, but things are not quite as she expected when she eventually finds herself living in a tiny apartment on Leninsky Prospekt, having replaced the disapproving eye of her parents for the strictures placed on Embassy wives and the constant surveillance of the security services. Despite having no idea how to behave in this strange world of subterfuge and endless mind-games, or who it is safe to become friends with, Martha finds herself falling in love with Moscow's secret, wild places, and inspired by a book of short stories that fate has brought into her possession, she maps them out during her lonely days in the city. She is desperate to make this enigmatic city her home, but how much of herself is she willing to sacrifice in the process?

The Wolves of Leninsky Prospekt is an incredible combination of coming of age story and espionage thriller, with a deep vein of allegorical folklore. This makes it something of a cut above the when it comes to the wonderful way Sarah Armstrong creates the immersive Cold War atmosphere that envelopes you throughout this book. 

Martha's independent nature proves her to be completely unsuited to the life of a diplomat's wife. Not for her the life of the dutiful little woman, living only to protect the reputation of her family, and support the career of her husband - especially when she discovers the reality of the closed off existence the Moscow wives are expected to lead. She wants so much more. I really admired this about her, but is seems obvious from the start that this is going to lead her into dangerous waters. It is this side of her character that makes her the perfect target to be tempted by those on the other side - and they know exactly how to strike at the heart of her disaffection.

Armstrong plays with some really interesting themes in the telling of this tale. We are in the heart of well-trodden Cold War country, with watchful eyes everywhere, where it is impossible to know who to trust, and yet she comes at this from an entirely new perspective - that of the women who have found themselves living in this world. I thoroughly enjoyed the exploration of class, sex, women's rights, and entitlement through the eyes of Martha, and the way folklore, heavy with hidden symbolism, is used to drive the story to its inevitable conclusion. The way Armstrong spins the notion of the 'wolf' throughout the threads of the tale is simply beautiful. Who is the wolf? Good question, to which there are no easy answers, and so many shades of meaning. 

This is, on first sight, a simple tale of a woman who falls in love with a city, and through this developing relationship discovers the truth about herself, but there is so much more to take from this story, and its layers are like the secret meanings within the lines of the folktales that are sprinkled throughout the text - gradually becoming darker and more twisted as events play out. I adored it and urge you to discover for yourself what lies at the frozen heart of the wolves of Leninsky Prospekt - I guarantee you will enjoy finding out their secrets for yourself.

The Wolves of Leninsky Prospekt is available to buy now from your favourite book retailer. Book two in the Moscow Wolves series, The Starlings of Bucharest is also now available, and is every bit as good as this one. See my review of Book Two HERE.

About the author:

Sarah Armstrong is the author of three novels, most recently The Wolves of Leninsky Prospekt. She is also the author of A Summer of Spying, a short non fiction work about her experience of jury service during the Covid-19 pandemic, authority, truth, and the surveillance we are all exposed to.


She teaches undergraduate and postgraduate creative writing with the Open University.

Sarah lives in Colchester with her husband and four children.

The Starlings Of Bucharest (Moscow Wolves Book Two) by Sarah Armstrong

 

The Starlings Of Bucharest (Moscow Wolves Book Two) by Sarah Armstrong.

Published 22nd April 2021 by Sandstone.

From the cover of the book:

The threats people hold over us are most often imagined. We even create them for ourselves.

Ted moves to London to get away from the working-class community he was born into.

Hoping to train as a journalist, he moves to London and slides into debt. Things look up when he is given the opportunity to go to Romania to interview an art film director and then attend a Moscow film festival. 

But others are watching him. And listening.

'A thrilling read, brilliantly evocative of the insidiousness, paranoia and mistrust of the Soviet period. [...] a page-turner packed with excellently drawn characters and backdrops that leap off the page.' --Charlotte Philby

'The prose is beguiling - deceptively clean and simple - Alice Munro meets John le Carre [...] one of the finest books I have read this year. Haunting and resonant, I can't wait for the next book in the Moscow Wolves series.' --Fiona Erskine

'An enviable talent for location and detail.' --John Lawton

**************************

1975: Ted is desperate to escape his working class roots, and the expectation that he will follow his father into the fishing industry in Harwich. Encouraged by praise for his writing skills, from one of his teachers during his formative years, Ted decides to have a stab at the life of a London journalist. London life is not quite what Ted had in mind though, and despite only rising to the dizzy heights of a seedy bedsit, he has got himself into debt, and has been driven to borrow money from his mother's holiday fund which he feels terrible about.

However, things are looking up, because Ted has managed to miraculously grab himself a job as a film reviewer for a small magazine, and has every intention of making a success of the role, despite his lack of experience. When he is offered the chance to head to Bucharest to interview a famous Romanian film director, Ted grabs the opportunity with both hands, but he soon discovers that things are far from easy for a Western journalist in an Eastern Bloc country at the height of the Cold War. Everyone is watched closely behind the Iron Curtain and treated with suspicion, but somehow Ted's naivety and the fact that he hails from the decadent West gets him noticed by the security services, which makes his first big break something of a disaster.

Although Ted's boss is not particularly happy with him when he returns to England, Ted is soon off again to report on a film festival even further into the lion's (or is it wolves?) den in the heart of Moscow. Since he has already become a person of interest in the eyes of the security sentinels, his movements are watched very closely by both sides as soon as he lands in the USSR. Ted is now, quite literally, in Cold War spy country and his life is about to get very complicated indeed...

The Starlings of Bucharest is the second novel in the Moscow Wolves series, and although different in feel to the first book, The Wolves of Leninsky Prospekt, it is every bit as wonderfully immersive. There is a lot more dark humour this time around (the security reports are a delight!) and we have a complex set up influenced by the goings on in both Romania and Russia to spice things up. 

Sarah Armstrong has as wonderful way of dropping you right into the tense Cold War atmosphere of the 1970s, but she comes at her subject in a way I have not experienced before, and I like it! Her protagonists are not the usual characters you expect to see in an espionage yarn. In this case, Ted is completely unprepared for the reality of Moscow life with its threats, be they real or imagined, and he makes terrible blunders while trying to negotiate these strange surroundings, but he is also struck by the opportunities that exist for people with a working class background who want to prove themselves in the Communist world. This makes him ideal prey for those with an ideological agenda, especially the KGB - and it helps that he has a few money problems at the same time. Ted is heading for danger... but no spoilers from me!

I love the way Armstrong explores the side of Cold War politics that we seldom see in spy thrillers: the exploration of class and sex in the world of political change is particularly intriguing. But more than anything it is the way she approaches her subject as a whole. Yes, we have the violence associated with any story that focuses on a political system that is based on fear and oppression, but this happens in the wings in her books. Instead she chooses to show us the more insidious, velvet glove side of the business, rather than the blunt instrument to the head - the subtle manipulation of the vulnerable and disaffected, the gentle persuasion, the way temptation can be used to direct someone and sway them to your cause. This is glorious, intelligent writing about games within games, that keeps you interested in a way that pure violence never can.

There is so much to admire in this book, just as in the first Moscow Wolves novel. Much of this can be read as a standalone story, with characters cropping up from the first book, but you do really need to have read book one to understand quite what is playing out on the Moscow stage, and where the ending takes you. Everything is beautifully set up for the next novel, and I cannot wait to read it.

The Starlings of Bucharest is available to buy now from your favourite book retailer. You can also find my review of book one, The Wolves of Leninsky Prospekt HERE.

Thank you to Sandstone for sending me a paperback copy of this book in return for an honest review and for inviting e to be part of this blog tour.

About the author:

Sarah Armstrong is the author of three novels, most recently The Wolves of Leninsky Prospekt. She is also the author of A Summer of Spying, a short non fiction work about her experience of jury service during the Covid-19 pandemic, authority, truth, and the surveillance we are all exposed to.

She teaches undergraduate and postgraduate creative writing with the Open University.

Sarah lives in Colchester with her husband and four children.

Whatever You Are Is Beautiful by Richard Blandford

 

Whatever You Are Is Beautiful by Richard Blandford.

Published 24th April 2021 by Lightning Books.

From the cover of the book:

A mysterious illness, called HEROS, is sweeping America. It changes those afflicted, stage by stage, into super-powered costumed crimefighters. 

Charlie was once one of Britain’s favourite TV personalities, known for sneering at the weirder members of society in his cutting-edge documentaries. But now, after a battle with cocaine addiction, he wants to go straight and show his caring side. A programme about this bizarre new disease may be a chance to get his career back on track.

As he films and interviews a number of people with HEROS, or Rosies, as they call themselves, Charlie gets close to many of them, perhaps too close, and starts to question his role as a neutral observer. This may well be a career-changing experience, but not in the way he imagined.

Whatever You Are is Beautiful is a dark comedy, which celebrates difference and explores the immense human capacity for intolerance. It is both cautionary and joyful in equal measure.

***********************

Whatever You Are Is Beautiful imagines a world in which a mysterious illness called HEROS (Heterogenous Enhanced Replacement Organ Syndrome) is sweeping America, turning sufferers into an odd assortment of costumed would-be crime fighters - among other things.

Charlie, a former TV personality who indulged his sneering side with documentaries that took advantage of and laughed at the subjects of the programmes, is looking for a way to get back to the big time after his spectacular fall from grace into cocaine addiction. His idea is to show a more caring side by investigating the lives of those who are suffering from HEROS, and their families, in one of the small town hotspots of this strange disease.

HEROS has four distinct stages, and the symptoms associated with it get increasingly bizarre as the condition progresses. Initially, sufferers find that they wake up one morning with an organ or limb having been replaced with one which has weird new properties - the old human one having been discarded in a pool of blood in the process. There are stories of new larynxes that make unusual sounds, spines replaced with wings, hands that pass through objects, novel dental arrangements, and even sexual organs that do things they were never intended to - if you can imagine it, there is a story about it. The stages then sometimes progress to a point where the sufferer becomes convinced they are some kind of caped crusader, operating on a different plain of existence to those around them - often with tragic consequences.

As Charlie begins interviewing the Rosies, as they call themselves, he starts to understand many things about the disease, the wider world, and even himself, and undergoes an interesting transformation of his own, into the caring person he was intending to simply emulate on screen.

This is a quirky book, full of intriguing characters, lots of dark humour and more than a few poignant moments. The story may seem comically absurd, but through it Richard Blandford examines some very interesting themes - prejudice, discrimination and intolerance to people who are viewed as different are obvious ones, and at times, I was horrified at the scenes playing out, but there are also some lovely moments of joy, kindness, camaraderie and self-discovery. Much of this book reminded me of the TV series Misfits, in the way it combines humour with a close look at the people who find themselves with these new abilities, the way they come to terms with them, and the expectations placed upon them- and also those that take advantage of them. I guarantee this one will make you chuckle and give you lots to think about.

Whatever You Are is Beautiful is available to buy now from your favourite book retailer or via the links below:

Kobo     Amazon UK     Amazon US     Google Books

Thank you to Lightning Books for provoding me with an e-copy of this book in return for an honest review, and to Emma Welton of Damp Pebbles Tours for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

About the author:

Richard Blandford is the author of the novels Hound Dog and Flying Saucer Rock and Roll, and the short story collections The Shuffle and Erotic Nightmares.

He has also studied and taught art history. He has written for the art journals Frieze and Elephant and is the author of the visual history London in the Company of Painters.

He lives in Worthing.

April 2021 Reading Round-Up

Eighteen books down this month, and there were some absolute corkers among them!

Please click the links below the photos to take you to the reviews.

The Deception of Harriet Fleet by Helen Scarlett

 

The Girls From Alexandria by Carol Cooper

Drowned City by K.J. Maitland

The Lost Hours by Susan Lewis

Vera Kelly Is Not A Mystery by Rosalie Knecht

Lairies by Steve Hollyman

Backstories by Simon Van Der Velde

The Dig Street Festival by Chris Walsh

Don't Turn Around by Jessica Barry

The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent

On Hampstead Heath by Marika Cobbold

Lean Fall Stand by Jon McGregor

Cunning Women by Elizabeth Lee

Lionheart by Ben Kane

Cuban Heel by Leopold Borstinski

The Inimitable Jeeves and Carry On Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse - no reviews for these as they are part of an audio collection, but it is enough to say that these first two books are simply wonderful!

More great books next month!

If you have enjoyed my photographic efforts, please head to my Instagram page

@brownflopsy for more!

Geiger by Gustaf Skördeman

 

Geiger by Gustaf Skördeman.

Published 29th April 2021 by Bonnier Books.

From the cover of the book:

The landline rings as Agneta is waving off her grandchildren. Just one word comes out of the receiver: 'Geiger'. For decades, Agneta has always known that this moment would come, but she is shaken. She knows what it means.

Retrieving her weapon from its hiding place, she attaches the silencer and creeps up behind her husband before pressing the barrel to his temple.

Then she squeezes the trigger and disappears - leaving behind her wallet and keys.

The extraordinary murder is not Sara Nowak's case. But she was once close to those affected and, defying regulations, she joins the investigation. 

What Sara doesn't know is that the mysterious codeword is just the first piece in the puzzle of an intricate and devastating plot fifty years in the making..

***********************************

Our story begins with grandmother Agneta Broman waving off her daughters and grandchildren after a seemingly ordinary family get-together, but what happens next is very unexpected - for no sooner are the family out the door, than Agneta receives an enigmatic telephone call that provokes her to shoot her husband Stellan in the head and head off into the unknown. How could the single word "Geiger" cause an old woman to murder her husband of many years and leaver her life behind?

Sara Nowak is a cop that spends her time busting the men who try to buy sex, while attempting to do what she can to help the girls and women forced into prostitution, but she is not sure she that the little she can do is enough to make any real impact on the problem. Her life takes a surprising turn when she receives a call from one of her colleagues telling her about the murder of Stellan Broman and the disappearance of his wife. Sara was close childhood friends with the Broman's daughters Lotta and Malin, and she cannot understand why anyone would want to kill Stellan, a former television celebrity beloved by all, or abduct Agneta.

Although this case is not Sara's to investigate, she cannot help looking into the murder, feeling a compulsion to do what she can for the family that showed her and her mother so much kindness when she was a child, but what she discovers makes her reassess everything she thought she knew about the past. She begins to realise that the rosy picture of childhood summers that she has carried around with her all her life does not reflect the truth and that sinister things were going on in the Broman household - things that impacted upon her own childhood, and things that may have terrible consequences for millions of people in the present unless she can do something to stop the sequence of events now playing out. 

Geiger is an entertaining mix of contemporary Scandi crime thriller and Cold War espionage yarn, parts of which are really rather clever, and I liked the way the story cuts backwards and forwards between Sara and Agneta, bringing in elements of the past, present and a horrifying future.

Sara is a tricky character to warm to, but her sheer determination to get to the truth, whatever the toll on her personal and professional lives, drives the story along at a good pace and builds suspense nicely along the way. However, there are times when Skördeman tries to cover too much in Sara's part of the story, with some scenes which are a bit unnecessary in the overall scheme of things - and even, sometimes, a bit gratuitous in terms of the sexual violence portrayed. A bit less would have been more here. Agneta was the most interesting character from me, as she had so much unexpected depth to her story, and conversely, I wanted to read more about her, as the mystery surrounding her real intentions was intriguing. 

The way Skördeman spins Sara's investigation, cutting back and forth between the clues she uncovers, and Agneta's mission, works beautifully, and I particularly enjoyed the way Sara's relationship with her mother develops as a result of what she finds. The truth is uncovered gradually, with some pretty hefty, gut-wrenching revelations in connection with political conspiracy, coercion and sexual abuse, and the whole lot is polished off with a couple of little gems of twists that I did not see coming at all. I think it's fair to say that you do need to be up on a fair bit of Cold War politics to fully appreciate how canny this novel is, but if you are a fan of books which delve into the dark days of murky machinations of the Eastern Bloc security services then you are in for a treat.

There are some threads left hanging at the end of this novel, and a bit of a strange twist, that imply Geiger may be the first in a series of books, and I really want to know what happens next. There are certainly plenty of promising elements in this debut that make me want to read more from this author, so I have my fingers crossed that this will happen - time will tell!

Geiger is available to buy now from your favourite book retailer in hardcover, e-book and audio formats.

Thank you to Bonnier Books for sending me an Netgalley copy of this book in return for an honest review, and to Tracy Fenton of Compulsive Readers for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

About the author:

Gustaf Skördeman was born in 1965 in Sweden and is a screenwriter, director and producer. Geiger, his thriller debut, is published in 24 countries, and film rights have been optioned by Monumental Pictures.

Cuban Heel (Alex Cohen Book 5) by Leopold Borstinski

Cuban Heel (Alex Cohen Book 5) by Leopold Borstinski.

Published 3rd April by Sobriety Press.

From the cover of the book:

Would you work with the devil to build a paradise on Earth?

Jewish gangster, Alex Cohen joins long-time friend and business partner, Meyer Lansky to recreate Las Vegas in 1950s Havana. When dictator President Batista gives them the opportunity to build their dream casino complexes, Alex must choose between dancing with this devil or being in debt to the Italian mob.

If he takes the mafia money then he will be tied to the men who planned his earlier downfall and removed his mentor, Lucky Luciano from the syndicate. If he refuses their investment then he will be beholden to the tin-pot generalissimo and his bloated ego. But Alex knows that there is more at stake than mere gelt - now he has his family surrounding him and they will suffer the ultimate price if he makes a bad decision.

The fifth book in the Alex Cohen series is an historical thriller novel, which tears at the heart of the Jewish mob's role in pre-revolution Cuba. Leopold Borstinski's piercing crime fiction gives each reader the shocking skinny into the building of modern America.

*************************

Welcome to the fifth book in the Alex Cohen series, which finds Alex fresh from the Las Vegas scene and trying to establish his own gambling empire in Cuba, in partnership with old friend Meyer Lansky.

There is a lot of money to be made in a country that is little more than a banana republic under the control of a dictator president, but to do so Alex must make some difficult choices - President Batista wants part of the action, and some pretty hefty bribes too, but it boils down to either keeping him sweet or relying on money from the Syndicate back home - the very people who were plotting Alex's downfall not so long ago.

Despite the tricky situation, Alex knows if he can make enough money in Cuba he will be set for life, and he is rather enjoying being away from the beady eye of the FBI for once, but things are about to get complicated - there are quite a few old Syndicate buddies who want in on the deal, Meyer is demanding more and more commitment, and a revolution that threatens all their schemes is on the horizon...

It was great to meet up with Alex again in his fifth adventure Cuban Heel, and this time we see him wheeling and dealing in Cuba. There are opportunities aplenty on this little tropical island off the coast of Florida, and lots of money to be made if Alex can learn the rules of the game quickly enough. As usual money talks, and President Batista is a man who is partial to lining his own pockets at the expense of his people, which gives Alex and Meyer some promising avenues to exploit, but do they really know what they are getting themselves involved in?

 I did not know a lot about the mobster operations in Cuba that intended to make it into a playground for American tourists, but it is hard to ignore that there is a pretty fixed window of opportunity in a country headed for a very well known revolution and change of leadership at the beginning of 1959. This brings a really interesting air of suspense to the tale while you are waiting for the inevitable takeover by the Castro brothers that must bring an end to the fun, and Borstinski nicely works into the story some of the events heading up the to eventual downfall of Batista. Tension builds slowly, as the story goes back and forth between Cuba and some action packed visits by Alex to the US, until everything comes crashing down in a way that makes you wonder how he is going to get out of this one without losing everything. 

The entertaining way Borstinski keeps you on the edge of your seat makes this my favourite Alex Cohen story so far, but it is not the only thing: Cuban Heel also sees Alex shaping his own dynasty for the first time, as he begins to build bridges with his sons, and establish a family affair with him and Sarah at the top. Although both Sarah and Alex want to keep their children on the legitimate side of operations, we know that they are are all more than aware of the more shady dealings beneath the surface of everything Alex does, which offers some interesting possibilities for the future - and of course, it's great to finally see Sarah getting some recognition.

Talking of shady dealings, Alex is called upon to make use of his special skills more than once in this book, especially to settle some old scores and keep his reputation fresh in certain circles back home, even if the Italian mobs are distancing themselves from the Jewish gangs - it seems he is still a good friend to have around in a tight spot!

Of course, the party does come to an end, as we know it will, and Alex now needs to move onto pastures new, but this time he will be beginning with his family around him and some intriguing cards up his sleeve, which I have no doubt he will play to his advantage. I have enjoyed each and every one of the books in this series, and Alex has become like an old friend to me now - albeit one with a particular set of less than legal skills. His experiences have shaped him into the very resourceful and crafty character he has become, and it has been a pleasure being along for the ride. I cannot wait to see what comes next in book six, Hollywood Bilker, which will take us into the 1960s!

Cuban Heel is available to buy now in e-book and paperback formats from your favourite book retailer, or via the links below:

Amazon UK     Amazon US

Thank you to Leopold Borstinski for providing me with an e-copy of this book in return for an honest review and to Emma Welton of Damp Pebbles Tours for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

About the author:

Leopold Borstinski is an independent author whose past careers have included financial journalism, business management of financial software companies, consulting and product sales and marketing, as well as teaching.

There is nothing he likes better so he does as much nothing as he possibly can. He has travelled extensively in Europe and the US and has visited Asia on several occasions. Leopold holds a Philosophy degree and tries not to drop it too often.

He lives near London and is married with one wife, one child and no pets.

Lionheart by Ben Kane

 

Lionheart by Ben Kane.

Published in hardcover 28th May 2020 by Orion.

From the cover of the book:

1179. Henry II is King of England, Wales, Ireland, Normandy, Brittany and Aquitaine. The House of Plantagenet reigns supreme.

But there is unrest in Henry's house. Not for the first time, his family talks of rebellion.

Ferdia - an Irish nobleman taken captive during the conquest of his homeland - saves the life of Richard, the king's son. In reward for his bravery, he is made squire to Richard, who is already a renowned warrior.

Crossing the English Channel, the two are plunged into a campaign to crush rebels in Aquitaine. The bloody battles and gruelling sieges which followed would earn Richard the legendary name of Lionheart.

But Richard's older brother, Henry, is infuriated by his sibling's newfound fame. Soon it becomes clear that the biggest threat to Richard's life may not be rebel or French armies, but his own family...

*********************

Lionheart is Ben Kane's first novel that tackles a subject that is not related to the Roman empire, and he has made a great job of it. He tips us right into the middle of a family at war, as the four sons of Plantagenet King Henry II battle it out for power, and in his inimitable style there is plenty to get your teeth into, with well-researched historical facts spun throughout a gripping fictional story.

Told through the eyes of Ferdia, who becomes known as Rufus, an Irish nobleman taken hostage in order to keep his rebellious family in line, we get an intriguing glimpse of the politics and social structure of this period of history. Although Rufus is noble-born, his change of circumstances has him taking on the role of a squire without a master, and one with pretty strict boundaries at that. His journey to the castle in Wales that becomes his home is a rough one, and he makes a dangerous enemy on the way, but he soon finds friends among his new found 'family' - although a compulsion to return to the land of his birth and fight for the freedom of his homeland feeds a rebellious streak within him.

However, a meeting with the young Duke Richard, the King's second eldest son, changes the course of his life in ways he never expected. Drawn to the charismatic Richard, a man that should be his enemy, he follows a path that takes him to France as a squire in the Lionheart's service, and many thrilling adventures follow...

Kane's writing is extremely engaging and you soon find yourself caught up in a sweeping story that encompasses rich period detail and a wealth of great characters. The love-hate relationships, jealousy and bitter rivalry between the sons of Henry II is all too apparent and we are along for lots of beautifully written uncomfortable scenes as the bitterness between them overflows into treachery and violence. 

The moments of battle, political posturing and powerplays behind the scenes are particularly enjoyable, and even though I knew a fair bit about this period of history, there was lots to discover from Kane's depiction of the fierce conflict between Henry's sons that I was not aware of. Interestingly, for a man known for his political and military prowess, King Henry comes across as blind and foolish in the partiality shown to the less worth of his off-spring at this stage of his reign, with disastrous consequences for the empire he built. There's nothing like a bit of glorious family backstabbing to keep you glued to the page!

But it is not just the wider historical drama of the ruling family that makes this such a good yarn. Rufus' story itself has plenty of moments of drama, love, laughter and loss to keep you busy, along with some fierce rivalries of his own that get your blood boiling. Cracking stuff!

The story leaves off just as Richard takes the throne at his coronation, with a nice hook to take you into book two, Crusader. I cannot wait to find out what adventures await Rufus in the service of the new King Richard, as they 'take the cross' and head to the Holy Land!

Lionheart is available to buy now in e-book, hardcover, paperback and audio formats from your favourite book retailer. Book two, Crusader, is also available to pre-order and will be released in hardcover and e-book formats on 29th April 2021.

Thank you to Virginia Woolstencroft from Orion books for sending me a paperback copy of this book in return for an honest review. I have purchased a hardcover copy to add to my collection.

About the author:

Kenya born, Irish by blood and UK resident, Ben Kane's passion for history has seen him change his career from veterinary medicine to writing, and taken him to more than 60 countries, and all seven continents. During his travels and subsequent research, including walking hundreds of miles in complete Roman military gear, he has learned much about the Romans and the way they lived.

Ten of his thirteen novels have been Sunday Times top ten bestsellers, and his books are published in twelve languages; a million copies have sold worldwide. In 2016, his research was recognised by Bristol University with an honorary Doctor of Letters degree and he is regular speaker at schools and history festivals around the country, as well as being an official guide for Andante Travels. 

Kane lives in Somerset with his wife and children, where he writes full time.

Cunning Women by Elizabeth Lee

 

Cunning Women by Elizabeth Lee.

Published 22nd April 2021 by Windmill.

From the cover of the book:

When it is no longer safe to be a witch, they call themselves cunning.

1620s Lancashire. Away from the village lies a small hamlet, abandoned since the Plague, where only one family dwells amongst its ruins. Young Sarah Haworth, her mother, brother and little sister Annie are a family of outcasts by day and the recipients of visitors by night. They are cunning folk: the villagers will always need them, quick with a healing balm or more, should the need arise. They can keep secrets too, because no one would believe them anyway.

When Sarah spies a young man taming a wild horse, she risks being caught to watch him calm the animal. And when Daniel sees Sarah he does not just see a strange, dirty thing, he sees her for who she really is: a strong creature about to come into her own. But can something as fragile as love blossom between these two in such a place as this?

When a new magistrate arrives to investigate the strange ends that keep befalling the villagers, he has his eye on one family alone. And a torch in his hand.

Cunning Women is the powerful reckoning of a young woman with her wildness, a heartbreaking tale of young love and a shattering story of the intolerance that reigned during the long shadow of the Pendle Witch Trials, when those who did not conform found persecution at every door.

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Cunning Women is the story of star-crossed lovers Sarah Haworth and Daniel Taylor who fall in love after finding an unexpected connection with each other, despite the obstacles that divide them. One is the son of the only farmer in the village, expected to take on his father's mantle as what passes for local gentry, and the other a girl living on the fringes of the community with her mother and younger siblings, oppressed by poverty and her heritage as the child of a cunning woman. In the age of James I's obsession with eradicating witchcraft and religious dissenters from his realm, and especially in the aftermath of the Pendle Witch Trials, this is a dangerous time to not only be suspected of being a witch, but also to be associated with anyone accused of practicing the dark arts - even if the villagers are happy to secretly consult a cunning woman in times of need. Sarah and James are walking a dangerous path in trying to be together, and it is hard to see how the course of true love can ever run smooth.

When a scandal precipitates the arrival of a new magistrate in the village, it is not long before he has his beady eye on the Haworth family as the root of all evil hereabouts, and his zealous bigotry encourages the kind of self-serving talk and finger pointing that bodes ill for the family. 

I do not think I have ever read anything inspired by the Pendle Witch Trials quite like this book. While passion and witchcraft lie at the heart of the tale, essentially this is a book about hard choices limited by expectation and circumstance, and it brings in all kinds of rich themes around love, loss, yearning, intolerance, power, betrayal, revenge, cruelty and kindness in unexpected places, set against the backdrop of suspicion and fear that characterised this period of history.

Elizabeth Lee plays with the threads of the story in a way that is completely unexpected, and although we have cunning women here they are not the ones we normally read about in a witchy yarn. So much of their life is dictated by the crushing poverty the hand of fate has dealt them, but you are never quite sure where the line between cunning and witchcraft lies, and at times, they seem to be perpetuating the myth that witches are marked and chosen to follow a dark path against their own wishes.

There is a lot in this book that is difficult to read, with plenty of violent scenes that pack a powerful punch, and at all times you are waiting for the inevitable hammer to fall. The characters are beautifully drawn, and so well filled out that you understand what drives them to think and act as they do, even if you desperately want to stop them from behaving in ways you know will break your heart. Sarah is my pick of the bunch for her sheer courage, torn as she is between what she desires and the weight of what appears to be her incontrovertible destiny, but the most tragic character here is Sarah's brother John, I think, who is forever in some kind of wretched limbo. 

This is an impressive book and I could not tear my eyes from the page, even at the most distressing moments, as Lee carried me along with her bittersweet, sweeping tale. This is historical fiction at it's all encompassing best, working in themes that have intriguing parallels today in terms of prejudice and human frailty. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Cunning Women is available to buy now from your favourite book retailer in hardcover, e-book and audio formats.

Thank you to Isabelle Ralphs of Penguin Random House for sending me a proof of this book in return for an honest review.

About the author:

Elizabeth Lee won the Curtis Brown Creative Marian Keyes Scholarship, and her work has been selected for the Womentoring Project and Penguin’s WriteNow Live. She lives in Warwickshire.

Lean Fall Stand by Jon McGregor

 

Lean Fall Stand by Jon McGregor.

Published 29th April 2021 by 4th Estate.

From the cover of the book:

When an Antarctic research expedition goes wrong, the consequences are far-reaching – for the men involved and for their families back home.

Robert "Doc" Wright, a veteran of Antarctic field work, holds the clues to what happened, but he is no longer able to communicate them. While Anna, his wife, navigates the sharp contours of her new life as a carer, Robert is forced to learn a whole new way to be in the world.

Award-winning novelist Jon McGregor returns with a stunning novel that mesmerizingly and tenderly unpicks the notion of heroism and explores the indomitable human impulse to tell our stories – even when words fail us. A meditation on the line between sacrifice and selfishness this is a story of the undervalued, unrecognised courage it can take just to get through the day.

The highly anticipated new novel from the Costa-award winning, three-times Booker-longlisted author of Reservoir 13.

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Robert 'Doc' Wright is a man at home among the frozen wastes of Antarctica, and the years he has spent involved in research projects here have formed a deep love in his heart for this remote landscape that does not bear close comparison with the feelings he holds for his wife and family back home in Britain.

This year, Doc is on the ice with two young Antarctic virgins who very keen to get everything right, something which often puts them at odds with Doc's more relaxed attitude to some of the procedures instilled in them as vital during their training. Doc seems to know his stuff though, and he is the veteran here after all, so they soon fall into his way of doing things. But when a sudden storm hits while they are out on the ice, events take a very dangerous turn for the three men, and the consequences are deadly. Doc holds the key for what went wrong, but what happened that day means that he is unable to tell anyone his side of the story. 

Lean Fall Stand is the kind of novel that takes you in a very surprising direction - and an emotionally charged one at that. What begins as a tale about an Antarctic expedition that goes wrong, entitled Lean, changes abruptly, with the second part of the book Fall, into a story of one man's fight to learn how to deal with the huge changes that have been forced upon him and his family by events that took place out on the ice - events that he is not able to communicate the truth about.

Fall is told entirely from the perspective of Doc's wife Anna, a respected academic in her own right, from the point she receives a phone call telling her he has been injured and she needs to get to Chile as soon as possible. This is where the novel really hits hard, as we follow Anna as she is expected to play the part of devoted wife at Doc's side on his road to recovery, even though there has been a distance between them for many years that is not just geographical, and McGregor holds nothing back about the toll this takes on the couple, and their children.

The final part of the novel Stand, brings us to the point where Doc finds a way to recover something of the man he used to be... leading intriguingly into some clarity about the events of the fateful day in Antarctica.

The abrupt change of pace and context between parts one and two of the novel certainly hit me for six, and I found it rather disorienting in much the same way that life changes for Doc and his family which, if intentional, is genius. Suddenly you find yourself in a very different sort of story exposing the real nitty gritty of what it is like to not only find yourself incapacitated, but also how this impacts on the friends and family around you. In keeping with Doc's inability to communicate, this part of the tale is told cleverly through the eyes of Anna, allowing us to understand exactly how the change in the course of their, normally quite separate, lives is not something she felt she signed up for.

There are parts of this novel where I felt a bit like I was lost on the ice as McGregor plays up the mystery side of the story, with the truth about what happened that fateful day always out of focus in the whiteout - for me the pieces did not completely fall into place, even with the insight of Doc's recall of events at the conclusion. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the way he explores the concept of isolation throughout the novel so well - the isolation of a remote landscape; the emotional isolation of a couple unable to connect with each other; and the isolation of someone unable to communicate with the people around them - and his use of language to convey aphasic speech is brilliant.

In addition, there is no doubt that this is a masterful depiction of the reality of someone struggling to cope with the recovery from profound injuries, and the repercussions that it has on the people around them. McGregor paints an authentic picture of the obvious frustration Doc feels at the changes in his circumstances, but for me, it is the way he shows Anna's true feelings of desperation, guilt, anger and the realisation that she has also lost the life she once enjoyed in becoming his carer that is where the power of this story lies. It was refreshing and moving to read a novel that really addresses the darker feelings of the family, which are normally unacknowledged.

I must admit that I am still not quite sure what to make of this novel, despite the beautifully written insight into the lives of Doc, Anna, their children and the people they meet along the way, but it has given me a lot to reflect upon, which I think makes it rather interesting. I would perhaps, advise some caution if you are currently bearing up under similar circumstances, but there is a lot to take from this novel that is helpful, reassuring and even uplifting - and that can only be a good thing in my view.

Lean Fall Stand is available to pre-order from your favourite book retailer and will be released in e-book and hardcover formats.

Thank you to Matt Clacher of 4th Estate for sending me a proof of this book in return for an honest review.

About the author:

Jon McGregor is the author of four novels and a story collection. He is the winner of the IMPAC Dublin Literature Prize, Betty Trask Prize, and Somerset Maugham Award, and has twice been longlisted for the Man Booker Prize. He is Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Nottingham, where he edits The Letters Page, a literary journal in letters. He was born in Bermuda in 1976, grew up in Norfolk, and now lives in Nottingham.