BOOKSTAGRAM TOUR: Smorgasbord - Marc Joan

WHAT DO WE OWE THE STRANGER? WHAT DO WE OWE THE DEAD?

A Japanese man paints a second eye on a doll. A widow holds an injured gull to her chest and cries by the sea. A grieving child climbs a stack of pallets to send a lantern into the sky. A chess player forfeits a game he was winning. A man places three red tulips on a grave.

Marc Joan's critically acclaimed short fiction spans Geneva and San Francisco, Cornwall and Cambridge, Wales and India, the very old and the not-so-old – and the distances between the people who live in them.

Written with delicacy and the occasional dark twist, Smorgasbord is about what we carry across borders – grief, memory, guilt, old age – and what we leave behind.

 

What did I think?

Smorgasbord by Marc Joan is well named as it really is a little bit of everything.  

I don't usually read short stories as I find them a little abrupt and unsatisfying but this is not the case with Marc Joan's collection.  The writing is so poetic and lyrical that there wasn't a story I didn't enjoy.

There are 27 short stories with their length ranging from 1 to 23 pages, so it's a book you can read cover to cover or dip in and out of.  It's like a virtual trip around the world and I enjoyed every second of it.

Smorgasbord is a collection of incredibly varied and surprisingly deep short stories.  I enjoyed it more than I expected and I'm happy to recommend it.

I received a gifted ARC for the Novel Tours blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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BOOKSTAGRAM TOUR: House of Bricks - Marc Scott

Dark clouds roll back over Meadonwood, shrouding the once charming town in a growing sense of dread. The peace its residents cherished is slipping away, replaced by a fear they hoped never to face again. After the brutal killing of a small child, panic spreads and all trust is fractured. And now, the corpses of strangers begin appearing in deserted cars, like grim calling cards.

Only one figure – a former local hero – has the authority and the courage to hunt down the monster responsible and restore sanity to the place she grew up in. But someone else may hold the key to the madness consuming the town – a broken woman hiding from her own reality. A tormented soul sheltered in total obscurity, battling the ghosts of a past she can’t outrun.

Maybe the end isn’t just an escape; maybe it’s the only way to be free.

 

What did I think?

House of Bricks is Marc Scott's third 'House of' novel but I think you can read and enjoy it as a standalone.  I did find it a little difficult to get into at first and I wondered if that was simply because I hadn't read the earlier books.  I will certainly be reading the earlier books to find out!

It shouldn't be a surprise as it says so on the cover but it is a very dark crime novel.  The writing is a bit too vivid as I almost had nightmares about one of the early scenes, but that just goes to show the quality of Marc Scott's writing.

Once I got a handle on who all the characters were, I found it to be a very gripping psychological thriller but I was just missing that connection you get from having read the series in order.  So this is one I plan to re-read when I have read House of Straw and House of Sticks.

I received a gifted paperback for the Love Books Tours bookstagram tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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BOOKSTAGRAM TOUR: The Age of Fury - John Stephens

A fierce seventeen-year-old Irish girl joins forces with a notorious gangster to hunt down her sister's killer.

1907. New York City. A glittering world built on lies - and one murdered girl who could expose them all.

Caitlin Quinn crosses the ocean from Ballykelly with nothing but a desperate letter from her missing twin, Mary. New York is meant to hold answers - but instead it offers danger: a sprawling metropolis with a brutal underbelly of crooked deals, criminal empires and forces who'd kill to keep Mary's truth hidden.

Then there is William Furey - a feared gangster haunted by a rage he can't explain. He has his own orders to find Mary, and when his search collides with Caitlin's, their unlikely alliance sparks something fierce and undeniable.

As the walls close in, Caitlin and William realise the truth will cost them far more than they ever imagined. To uncover what happened to Mary, they must risk everything: their loyalties, their futures, and the fragile trust growing between them. Because love, like justice, exacts a price. And some sacrifices are paid in blood . . .

The producer, director, and writer of shows including Gossip Girl, Gilmore Girls, The O.C., and Gotham turns his attention to the underworld of Gilded Age New York in this riveting suspense novel that blends tension and humanity - and deftly showcases a heart-stirring exploration of truth, identity, and love.

 

What did I think?

FIVE HUGE STARS!  The Age of Fury is one of the best books I've read this year, if not this decade.  Absolutely outstanding!

Billed as 'Peaky Blinders meets Brooklyn', I have never watched Brooklyn but I definitely got Peaky Blinders vibes.  It's published by Hot Key Books, which is a teen and YA imprint of Bonnier, but it is a fantastic historical fiction novel for adult readers too.

The haunting prologue is a letter from Mary to her twin sister Caitlin asking her to leave Ireland and come to New York to help her.  Caitlin doesn't think twice and immediately sets sail for America, writing to Mary about her journey.  Caitlin's unique, funny and strong voice shines through the prose as she is constantly talking to Mary in her head and telling her everything that is happening, making me laugh out loud along the way.  Caitlin is determined to find out what has happened to Mary and so is gangster William Furey.

I absolutely adored the two main characters, Caitlin and William, whose points of view are told via their own chapters.  The chemistry between the two of them doesn't just sizzle on the page, it erupts like fireworks.  As their paths keep crossing and their feelings grow, William has to decide what is most important to him: Caitlin or his very dangerous boss.

I don't think I can really put into words how much I enjoyed this book.  It is action-packed, blisteringly fast-paced and completely binge-worthy.  I want to read it again so I can experience it all over again.  Unforgettable and unmissable, The Age of Fury is definitely going on my favourites shelf.

I received a gifted paperback for the Insta Book Tours bookstagram tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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Ice Flower Herbarium - Dzena Andersone (Author), Žanete Vēvere Pasqualini (Translator)

When he wakes to find a body in a sack on the roadside outside his home, police chief Vincents sets off a chain of events that threaten to overwhelm him and the sleepy, Latvian backwater town he has lived in his whole life.

A reluctant and unlikely hero, Vincents grapples with his failing marriage, a domineering former police partner and an ever-growing number of strange and bewildering cases. As the body count rises and Vincents' precariously constructed world crumbles around him, the focus of his investigations closes in inexorably on a troubled young man, Jens, whose odd behaviour can no longer be contained by his controlling Aunt Erika. 

Ice, Flower, Herbarium is a haunting psychological story of inherited guilt and the consequences of raising a child without love or human touch. Will Vincents uncover the truth and find the strength to stand up to the town, or will his resolve melt away with the snow?

 

What did I think?

If Ice Flower Herbarium was any more atmospheric I would have had to put my woolly hat and gloves on!  Wow!  What a fantastic piece of crime fiction from Dzena Andersone, beautifully translated by Žanete Vēvere Pasqualini.  It is certainly one of the best translated crime fiction novels I have read.

From the very first page I was thrust into the snow and ice of the isolated Latvian location and could easily visualise the scenery through the vivid and evocative writing.  It's plotted quite differently as the reader knows what has happened to the missing woman and how the body ended up outside Vincents' house but it is more about why this happened and it is heartbreaking.  I didn't think I would ever sympathise with a killer!

It speaks volumes that I am still thinking about the book after I finished reading it and I have even been talking about it to family and friends.  I can't really go into what I have been talking about as it would spoil it for other readers but it really did make me grateful for the life that I personally have had.

Ice Flower Herbarium is the first Latvian novel that I have read and what an absolute cracker it is!  It's a book I couldn't put down when I picked it up and couldn't stop thinking about when I put it down.  Very highly recommended.

Many thanks to Fly on the Wall Press for a gifted ARC; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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BOOKSTAGRAM TOUR: What Happened in Beulah - Christy Scott Cashman

A teenage girl uncovers the dark secrets of her Smoky Mountain town while searching for a missing classmate in this gripping coming-of-age mystery perfect for fans of Where the Crawdads Sing.

Nestled in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains, Beulah has always seemed steady—rooted in tradition, shaped by generations, and slow to change. But in 1986, the ground has shifted, and no one feels that more than fifteen-year-old Barrett Childress Owens. Between her parents’ unraveling marriage and a school full of kids she can’t connect with, she feels invisible in her own hometown.

When Lacy Gunderson, the captivating new girl everyone is curious about, suddenly vanishes, the town’s calm surface fractures. Search parties comb the woods. A police investigation begins. Rumors multiply. Families close ranks. And Barrett begins to sense how much the adults around her choose not to say. As Beulah clings to its usual rituals—including the annual Miss Kudzu pageant, which has shaped local girlhood for decades—Barrett is forced to navigate a community where loss lingers in the air and secrets are carefully kept. Her journey through the uncertainty reshapes her understanding of friendships, family, and the complex place she calls home.

A rich coming-of-age story with a pulse of mystery and a budding romance, What Happened in Beulah explores the fault lines of a small town and the courage it takes to face the truths people would rather bury.

 

What did I think?

I got a lovely surprise when I opened the cover of What Happened in Beulah as there's a map!  I love poring over maps in a book and it really helped to visualise the town of Beulah before I had even read a single word.

The main character is a teenager and I loved her unique and evocative voice that seemed to speak to me through Christy Scott Cashman's beautiful prose.  Seeing the world through Barrett's eyes is very refreshing and honest as she navigates friendship, family and her first crush.

It is so much more than a coming-of-age story though as someone in Beulah is hiding a dark secret from the past.  When one of Barrett's classmates goes missing, the community start pointing fingers rather than rallying together.  As awful as it is that a young girl has gone missing, it is perfectly balanced by Barrett being very entertaining and often amusing.

What Happened in Beulah is a haunting, poignant and compelling tale steeped in mystery and atmosphere.  I couldn't put it down once I picked it up and I really couldn't have predicted the ending.  Fantastic!

I received a gifted paperback to read and review for the Novel Tours Instagram tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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INSTAGRAM TOUR: Future Song - Tim Kindberg

Near-future Bristol. When the daughter of Laia, a climate refugee, is kidnapped, who can she trust as she desperately searches for her baby girl? Francis, the mysterious private detective who turns up out of the blue, has his own reasons for helping her scour the city. Then there’s Shalott, the folk figure with flowers in her hair – surely she and her many followers could help? But up close, her motives are sinister.

Above all, is Laia’s stolen daughter, rumoured to be the ‘child of the future’, the key to survival that this climate-ravaged city is so desperate for? Or a sacrifice for the witches in business suits? Laia’s running out of time to find her.

A compelling story of fusing hope, realism and justice as we live through the time of climate change.

 

What did I think?

I have been enjoying speculative fiction so I was immediately drawn to Future Song from the intriguing blurb.  I knew I would enjoy it but I didn't expect to love it as much as I did; it is simply breathtaking.

The story is split into four parts and I couldn't read it fast enough; devouring every word as if I had been starved of reading for weeks.  Much like the Bristol of the future where food is scarce and anyone who is perceived as being different is targeted. 

It is very thought-provoking, not just the climate change effect but also the power of social media and the way that people are manipulated and influenced by what they see and hear online.  I felt my own fury bubbling under the surface on several occasions as Laia's story really got under my skin.

Future Song is very well written and easy to read so it will appeal to readers of all genres.  It's incredibly compelling, difficult to put down and impossible to forget.  Very highly recommended.

I received a gifted paperback for the Love Books Tours bookstagram tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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INSTAGRAM TOUR: What We Leave Behind (Sammy and Facey book 2) - Siôn Scott-Wilson

A gripping tale of redemption and the power of love set against the backdrop of a historical crime-ridden London...

In this highly-anticipated sequel to Some Rise By Sin, Sammy and Facey are pulled back into the gritty world of London's criminal underworld. This time, the stakes are higher than ever as the fate of Sammy's young adopted son hangs in the balance. Coerced into the hunt for a notorious gemstone, Sammy and Facey are torn between their moral code and their desperate desire to save the boy.

As they navigate the dangerous streets of London, they are forced to confront the weight of their actions and the legacies they will leave behind. Will they make the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of the stolen child—and can they rise above the sins of their past?

 

What did I think?

Wow! Siôn Scott-Wilson has really raised the bar with What We Leave Behind, the fantastic sequel to Some Rise By Sin.  I think you could read it as a standalone and still enjoy it though.

I love this little group of characters and it was great to catch up with my favourite resurrection men once again.  Sammy and Facey may have run from their past but they cannot hide and they are forced back into their old ways when John, Sammy and Rosamond's adopted son, is kidnapped; the ransom is a rare gemstone that has been buried with its owner.

As I had read the first book, I was familiar with Siôn Scott-Wilson's amazing ability to write so colloquially.  It really immerses you into the story and brings to life the Regency period of the early 19th century.  I absolutely loved some of the words and phrases used and even though I didn't know what some of the meant, I could guess.

The action is non-stop as the clock is ticking to save John and the tension ramps up until it is as taut as a bow string.  I simply couldn't read fast enough to reach the breathtaking conclusion and although I was sad for the book to finish, I am delighted that there is a third book, What Mortal Flesh has just been published.

Historical fiction fans, do not miss this outstanding book!  What We Leave Behind is incredibly atmospheric, gripping and entertaining.  I can't wait to read more!

I received a gifted paperback for the Novel Tours instagram tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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