The Little Library Project

The Illusions is a brilliant tale set at the turn of the 20th century, when magical illusions were still famed in their novelty and moving pictures were finding their feet. A great magician is retiring and naming his successor, but as the show is threatened by a rival performer, an unlikely troop of magicians and inventors work together to fulfil the legacy. I found this book a challenge - whilst the story was clearly told for each of the characters clearly, the story took a while to develop. I loved Eadie's character, and Cecily was a force to be reckoned with in the end but I felt like more could have been developed in the feminist element of the story. Overall, it was a great premise for a story and it was told well - but it was a little slower paced than I tend to steer towards.

It was so refreshing to read a thriller that didn't follow the standard Whodunnit format! Whilst Black Thorn has the staple elements that every murder mystery needs, the premise of the book - a shiny new housing estate that's evacuated created plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader guessing as to who the true culprit was. It was an easy to read book with a diverse range of characters that allowed the author to touch on a few societal issues and it was all handled extremely tactfully. A brilliant read that I'm sure will be a success.

  Since reading The Night Circus and Caraval books years ago, I'm been on the hunt for another Circus based story to get into and this one absolutely delivered. The First Bright Thing is set in the roaring twenties, when the world is settling back down after the devastating First World War and Rin is travelling America with her troop of performers. But this circus is different; instead of tricks and illusions, each performer has their own special gift - Their Spark.  But Rin is hiding from her past; a rival Ringmaster is desperate to join forces despite having a very different agenda.  This story was definitely darker than other Circus based books that I've read but held something special as the characters dipped in and out of not only social issues, but politics too. I have a feeling this book is going to be very popular and I'll definitely be seeking it out for my collection on publication day!

I think I've found my new favourite Tessa Bailey.  I really enjoyed It Happened One Summer and Hook Like and Sinker so when this one was on offer - I ust had to add it to my basket. But I definitely didn't expect to love it!  Taylor is taking her brother on vacation - they've gone all out on a beach house in Cape Cod but when they turn up, they made a gruesome discovery. A Bounty Hunter-come-Private Detective rocks up on his motorbike and the fun starts.  I won't lie - I think Myles is the reason I enjoyed this one so much. Long hair, tattoos and 2 wheels? Sign me up. Fox and Brendan were hot, but they didn't quite push the right buttons for me. And what I enjoyed most is that the murder mystery element of the story was just as good as the rest of it. I was definitely a little hesitant because, it takes a different type of skill, but Bailey aced it. 

Whilst I admittedly haven't yet read the original Peter Pan story - I love the idea of it so when this new release became available to request on NetGalley, I couldn't help myself.  Lou has a Grown. Her little sister has an invisible friend but with their mother planning Lou's betrothal, the sisters are fighting with the expectations of society whilst navigating their life without their father and what they want from their own lives.  Jay is Number Two. He's been by Peter's side for as long as he can remember but their leader has been captured by Blackbeard and the magic of the island is in trouble.  Faced with a the prospecting of marrying the bland son of a family friend, Lou panics and finds herself in a land of savage children with no idea how to get back.  Combining the dark retelling with the Hook origin story was perfect. I found it slow to get into but once Lou reached the island, it definitely stepped up a notch. And whilst I struggled with this book, the e

Naturally - the minute I saw this available for an ARC, I couldn't push that request button quick enough and I was so excited to have been approved. After falling in love with Viv and her merry band of friends in Legends and Lattes, I think everyone has been eagerly awaiting this next instalment and it definitely lived up to the hype. Bookshops & Bonedust take us twenty years before, Viv is injured and finds herself in recovery from a severe leg injury which has put her out of action in the sleep port of Murk. She finds herself in the company of Fern, the proprietor of a run down bookshop that has a flair for choosing the right books for the right people. Once again, this story is beautifully paced, showcasing fun and unsuspecting friendships whilst the underlying plot is there, providing challenges and suspense. I can't wait to see how this series develops.

I was SO excited to have the opportunity to read Morgan Is My Name. I've long been a fan of all things Arthurian and this first instalment of the trilogy was a brilliant first step back in time and hearing Morgans story.  With so much speculation as to the truth behind the myth of King Arthur, creative license can really be used and what I loved most about Morgan Is My Name is that it wasn't excessive; there are no dragons (yet?) but there is plenty of sorcery, betrayal and feeling to make this an impressive historical fiction.  Plenty of mentions of Tintagel and the surrounding areas of Cornwall add weight to the story, and towards the end we are entering the world of the much-debated Camelot.  Underneath it all - the feminist message is clear (let's face it... I love a feminist message), and I can't wait to see how the story develops, not just for Morgan herself but Alys and Tressa too.  Morgan Is My Name has earned a place of pride on my bookshelf already and the stu

  No one could ever accuse me of playing it safe with books.  Intrigued by the gorgeous cover and the promise of an adventure set amongst the backdrop of the French Revolution - Scarlet was an intense and ambitious crossover of history and fantasy.  When young Eleanor is likened to a member of French aristocracy, she is employed into service as part of a scheme to release an infamous member of the royal family from imprisonment.  This is a heavily plot driven story which very little weight behind the characters BUT as it promises to be the first in a trilogy, this may be something that develops as the saga continues.  Did I enjoy it? I did. at once I had some Les Mis flashbacks as the Parisian sewer system made an appearance but other than that - the story had some really great twists and turns throughout. I could only spot one plot hole but again, I feel this is going to be developed as the series goes on so I'm not too concerned about it.  If you like your historical fiction to d

In the words of one of my favourite book characters... Jesus H Roosevelt Christ. I'd read one of Simone's previous works with A Merry Little Meet Cute but nothing could have prepared me for the level of smut that I found in this book.  I loved it.  And I know this is going to sound like that cliche go to line ("But I watch it for the plot") but I genuinely did enjoy the story in this as well as the extremely graphic scenes. Tyler is a priest, with a vow of celibacy and a promise to his congregation that he's one of the "good" priests, he's lead very literally to temptation, and distraction, by a new parishioner. Unable to deny their mutual attraction to each other, Tyler is forced to confront his feelings and decide who he wants to commit his life to... God, or her? I'm relatively new to the smut genre of books but this ticked a fair few boxes. As always, read the content warnings before you turn a page though.   

  After the masterpiece that was Fairy Tale, I knew The Colorado Kid wasn't going to match up. But it pains me to say that I think I went from one end of the spectrum to the other within days.  I will be clear - I am very aware that the reason I didn't enjoy The Colorado Kid is the exact premise of the book - no one likes an unfinished story. Which is exactly what this is and is intended to me.  Two old-school local reporters are sat discussing unsolved mysteries of their local town with their new colleague and the case of The Colorado Kid is recounted - creating more questions than there are answers.  I've read King's other two Hard Case Crime books (Joyland and Later) and I thoroughly enjoyed them so I was gutted this didn't hit the mark. I'd love to see this developed into a full-length thriller at some point because I think the story would be absolutely crazy but for now, I'll have to sit with this as my lowest rated Stephen King book to date. 

In true Me style, I was in fear after Fairy Tale that I would enter into a reading slump. I mean, what on earth is going to match up to that?! So naturally, I launched straight into a new easy read.  This is a very new addition to my collection as it was purchased as part of my birthday book collection after seeing some really good reviews on Twitter from other bloggers.  A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating A Demon was exactly what you'd expect - fun and cute with plenty of grumpy/sunshine. Mariel is from a powerful and respected family of witches but she isn't quite meeting up to her mother's expectations. Whilst working on her spellcraft, she accidentally summons a demon - and he's a soul-bargainer and can't leave until she's promised him her soul.  This was a sweet read that is perfect for fans of The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling. And it gave me some very cosy Autumn/Halloween vibes. 

  Over the last few years, I've been making an effort to read Stephen King's books as they come out whilst also working through the back catalogue. The Bloke bought Fairy Tale for me for Christmas (I resisted the urge to buy it for myself) and it has sat on my shelf for a few months now. I just knew it was going to be something special so I sat.. staring at it.  I've only read 11 of his books to date but I've noticed that he tends to dabble in varying types of horror/thriller themes and to my (limited) knowledge, this was his first dabble into fantasy.. or at least the kind of fantasy that I'm familiar with. I wanted to make sure I had dedicated time to read this. I wanted to savour it and for once, I was stopping myself from reading too much too quickly.  Fairy Tale fits the patten of fantasy quest. Our unsuspecting Hero is thrown into a world unfamiliar to him, must defeat the evil forces and re-establish the order of civility and good.  Everything about the plot

If someone told me 6 months ago that I'd be using Blue Alien smut as a palette cleanser between my books.. I probably would have laughed at them. But that's apparently the BookTok curse. Once again, I found myself diving into the world of Ruby Dixon's sci-fi romance series and this time we were following Kara's story. Once again, this is a FUN series. The format is similar in all of them, so it's not groundbreaking writing or literary fiction but it's good natured, easy to read and there's plenty of big blue alien d*ck.