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BookReviews, Plymouth (2026)

01/02/2026

Body Language written by A.K Turner.

“𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙩, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙫𝙤𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙈𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙩𝙚𝙘𝙝𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙣 𝘾𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙚 𝙍𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙨 𝙖 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙗𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙤𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙗𝙤𝙙𝙮 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙨 𝙪𝙥 𝙤𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙤𝙥𝙨𝙮 𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚, 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙟𝙤𝙗 𝙨𝙪𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡. 𝘾𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙚'𝙨 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙡 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙮, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙮 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙘𝙘𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩 - 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙙𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙋𝙝𝙮𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙙𝙖 𝙁𝙡𝙮𝙩𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙣𝙤 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙪𝙚 𝙜𝙞𝙧𝙡 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙚. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝘾𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙡𝙮𝙩𝙚 𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠 𝙩𝙤𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙢𝙪𝙧𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙧 - 𝙗𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝘾𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙪𝙥 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙡𝙖𝙗 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛.”

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was one of those where, from the moment I read the blurb I just knew I needed to read it. The plot had me gripped, I had no idea who the villain was going to be, it felt like it could've been anyone. The dynamic between Cassie and Phyllida was interesting to read, from the cold hostile atmosphere between them, which unraveled into a trusting and complex friendship. I can't wait to read the next in the series, to see how the characters develop more.

Star rating: ★★★★★

21/01/2026

You Killed Me First written John Marrs.

“𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣. 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚 𝙨𝙢𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙨. 𝙒𝙝𝙤 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚? 𝙄𝙩’𝙨 5 𝙉𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙢𝙗𝙚𝙧, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙖 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙚. 𝘽𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙜𝙖𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙙, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙖 𝙩𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙗𝙤𝙣𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚. 𝘼𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙢𝙤𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙣𝙨, 𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙘 𝙨𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙞𝙣 – 𝙨𝙝𝙚’𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙪𝙡𝙛𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨. 𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙙𝙞𝙙 𝙞𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨? 𝙍𝙚𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙨: 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙜𝙤𝙩, 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙏𝙑 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜-𝙨𝙪𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝘼𝙣𝙣𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝙖𝙨 𝙜𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙇𝙞𝙫 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙡𝙖𝙬𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙛𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙮 𝙢𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙩. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣 𝙨𝙤𝙤𝙣 𝙛𝙖𝙗𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙡𝙮 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙩 – 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙣𝙚𝙬𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙧 𝙇𝙞𝙫 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙮 𝙬𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙗𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙚𝙭𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙧𝙨. 𝘼𝙨 𝙘𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙫𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙚𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙡, 𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙨. 𝘽𝙤𝙣𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙉𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣…𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙩 𝙗𝙚?”

“𝙀𝙡𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙛𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙖𝙜𝙚-𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙅𝙤𝙝𝙣 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙙.”― #1 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝙔𝙤𝙧𝙠 𝙏𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙧 𝙁𝙧𝙚𝙞𝙙𝙖 𝙈𝙘𝙁𝙖𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣

Honestly I really enjoyed this read. At first I was confused by all the POVs, but soon enough, they all started to make sense. 3 people capable of deep rooted manipulation, hiding secrets from one another, living on one street as “friends”, it was very entertaining to watch their stories unravel into one another, chaos but the best kind. I’m not going to lie though, I kept reading Margot’s name as mar-got, emphasis on the t at the end, until the halfway mark when my partner told me how the name was actually pronounced. Mar-go.

Star rating: ★★★★☆

21/01/2026

Dead Med, originally Su***de Med, written by Freida McFadden.

“𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙞𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙢𝙮 𝙡𝙖𝙗. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙗𝙤𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙨." 𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙈𝙘𝙆𝙞𝙣𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙙𝙤𝙘𝙩𝙤𝙧, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙞𝙘𝙠 𝙠𝙞𝙙𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨. 𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙡𝙚𝙚𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨, 𝙜𝙧𝙪𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙚𝙭𝙖𝙢𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙡𝙖𝙗𝙨. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙚𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙨𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙡 𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝘿𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙈𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙘 𝙝𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙨𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙙𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙜𝙖𝙡 𝙙𝙧𝙪𝙜𝙨. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩. 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨, 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙗𝙤𝙮𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙪𝙢𝙥𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙧, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙢𝙮, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙧𝙪𝙢𝙗𝙡𝙚. 𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙩. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙣, 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙚𝙭𝙖𝙢 𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙢𝙮, 𝙖 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙩 𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝘿𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙈𝙚𝙙. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙡 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙙 𝙮𝙚𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙨𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙮. 𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧'𝙨 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙙𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙚 911 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙨, 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙣 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜.”

Honestly, it was good enough to want to read it, but not good enough that I’ll consider reading it again. It’s written in many POVs of the characters, and there’s evident overlapping of the storylines, so it makes sense, but it’s also a whole lot of nothing? There’s no shock factor, there’s no insane plot twist, and the epilogue at the end? Not so interesting. Considering DeWitt is notorious for having a drug problem, there didn’t seem to be MUCH in the way of drug use throughout. I’m glad I read this on a £4 for 2 month kindle plan rather than paying full price for the book.

Star rating: ★★☆☆☆

21/01/2026

Life Inside written by Linda Calvey.

“𝘼 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙧𝙪𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙖𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙'𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙙𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙨. 𝙒𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 '𝘽𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙒𝙞𝙙𝙤𝙬', 𝙇𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙖 𝘾𝙖𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙮 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙛 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙧𝙪𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙐𝙆'𝙨 𝙩𝙤𝙥 𝙜𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨, 𝙧𝙤𝙗𝙗𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙗𝙖𝙣𝙠𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙧𝙪𝙗𝙗𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙆𝙧𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙨. 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨, 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡, 𝙞𝙣 1990, 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙍𝙤𝙗𝙗𝙞𝙚 𝘾𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙢𝙪𝙧𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙩 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙩-𝙗𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙠, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙. 𝙇𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙙𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙜𝙤 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣'𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙨𝙩-𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙧. 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙮𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙖𝙧𝙨. 𝘿𝙚𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙢𝙨, 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙧𝙪𝙡𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚, 𝙖𝙨 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙚𝙨 𝘽𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙤𝙣, 𝙍𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙒𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙈𝙮𝙧𝙖 𝙃𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙡𝙚𝙮, 𝙇𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙖 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙖 𝙛𝙪𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙘𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙪𝙥. 𝙁𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙛𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨, 𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙩𝙨, 𝙙𝙤𝙙𝙜𝙮 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙖 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙚𝙧 𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙣 𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙜𝙚, 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙜𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙮𝙚-𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙖𝙩 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙖 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙞𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙡.”

I finished this book within 2 days and was extremely gripped. I’m someone who watches a lot of prison shows, so I figured I’d enjoy reading about someone’s actual experience, and I really did. It differed greatly from what I expected, but still gave me enough insight into the reality of prison in the U.K., I felt like I was able to put myself in Linda’s shoes. It was heartbreaking to read about the almost 20 years of incarceration for a crime she didn’t commit, but to know she kept hope and became a free woman in the end was refreshing.

Star rating: ★★★★★

21/01/2026

The Bunker Diary written by Kevin Brooks.

“𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣'𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙄 𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙞𝙩. 𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄 𝙬𝙤𝙠𝙚 𝙪𝙥 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝘼𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙤𝙣 𝙖𝙨 𝙢𝙮 𝙚𝙮𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨. 𝘼 𝙡𝙤𝙬-𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙪𝙡𝙖𝙧 𝙗𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙬𝙖𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙚. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙞𝙭 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙢𝙨 𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙙𝙤𝙧. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙣𝙤 𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙨. 𝙉𝙤 𝙙𝙤𝙤𝙧𝙨. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙞𝙣 𝙤𝙧 𝙤𝙪𝙩. 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩'𝙨 𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙤 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚? 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙢 𝙄 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙤? 𝙄𝙛 𝙄'𝙢 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙪𝙩𝙚𝙨. 𝙄𝙩 𝙙𝙞𝙙. 𝙊𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨𝙣'𝙩 𝙚𝙢𝙥𝙩𝙮 . . .”

This book was absolutely amazing, written so well I almost felt like I was living Linus’ nightmare. But then the way it was written I was continuously reminded I was supposed to be reading as the enemy. It’s a very mind twisting book, and it keeps you hooked right till the end. The ending left me with so many questions, but that’s exactly what the writer wanted the readers to be left with, and he created the perfect cliffhanger for us to wonder from. This book is an emotional rollercoaster, so be prepared to feel everything possible in a short amount of time.

Star rating: ★★★★☆

05/11/2024

Title: The Locked Door
Author: Freida McFadden

Description:
Some doors are locked for a reason... While eleven-year-old Nora Davis was up in her bedroom doing homework, she had no idea her father was killing women in the basement. Until the day the police arrived at their front door. Decades later, Nora's father is spending his life behind bars, and Nora is a successful surgeon with a quiet, solitary existence. Nobody knows her father was a notorious serial killer. And she intends to keep it that way. Then Nora discovers one of her young female patients has been murdered. In the same unique and horrific manner that her father used to kill his victims.
Somebody knows who Nora is. Somebody wants her to take the fall for this unthinkable crime. But she's not a killer like her father. The police can't pin anything on her. As long as they don't look in her basement.

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My verdict:
This book was a good read although it definitely didn’t fill me with much suspense until the later chapters. It felt a little dragged out at first, we got painted this image of a young woman trying to hide her perfect identity as to not be associated with her serial killer father, but how much of a perfect identity is enough? Eventually the book picks up and brings in some suspense, and there are many moments where I was thinking “wow, this character will be menacing” yet the twist near the end gripped me, it was unexpected. Pages 293-294 give another insight into this perfect identity of Nora.

I rate this book a 7/10. It would be higher if it wasn’t for the fact it initially felt too dragged out. However, I still recommend this read.

30/08/2024

Title: The Inmate
Author: Freida McFadden

Description:
The guiltiest people aren't always the ones behind bars… As a new nurse practitioner at a maximum-security prison, Brooke Sullivan is taught three crucial rules:
Treat all prisoners with respect. Never reveal any personal information. Never EVER become too friendly with the inmates. But nobody knows that Brooke has already broken the rules. Nobody knows about her intimate connection to Shane Nelson, one of the penitentiary's most notorious and dangerous inmates.
They certainly don't know that Shane was Brooke's high school sweetheart―the star quarterback, the golden boy who's serving a life sentence for a series of grisly murders. Or that Brooke's testimony was what put him there.
But Shane knows. He knows more than anyone. And he will never forget.

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My Verdict:
This book definitely lives up to its “mind bending thriller” title. I was hooked from the very first chapter. The constant ‘omg what happens next’ thought. It’s very intense, in the sense you never know which way it’s going to turn. Everytime you think it’s reached the plot twist, another happens. The Epilogue at the end was incredible! I did not expect the son’s point of view. All in all this book is incredible, it’s gripping, and has you in a chokehold the whole time. It’s also a great representation of how trauma can impact your memory, and thought process.

I rate this book 10/10. I think Freida McFadden is a fantastic author and I cannot wait to purchase more of her books.

‼️The Inmate is a propulsive, mind-bending thriller about how we define guilt―and who has to pay for it, from bestselling author Freida McFadden‼️

15/04/2024

Title: Lily’s Promise
Author: Lily Ebert

Description:
When Holocaust survivor Lily Ebert was liberated in 1945, a Jewish-American soldier gave her a banknote on which he’d written ‘Good luck and happiness’. And when her great-grandson, Dov, decided to use social media to track down the family of the GI, 96-year-old Lily found herself making headlines round the world. Lily had promised herself that if she survived Auschwitz she would tell everyone the truth about the camp. Now was her chance.

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My verdict:
Honestly this book was so moving. It captured just how inhumane and traumatising the concentration camps were, and drew me in so I felt the emotions as if I were there. It delves into her determination to survive and how tough the situation was daily. From happy life to terror, to surviving the torment. I won’t spoil it too much because I’d love for you to read it for yourself! Just know I couldn’t put this book down.

I rate this book 10/10, it’s so well written, and the fact it’s based of a true survivors story just captures many more emotional feelings than any other book I’ve read yet.

Lilys quote: Never ever give up hope – as long as you have hope, you will have life.

24/07/2023

Book:
The Love and Lies of Rakhsana Ali

Author:
Sabina Khan

Description:
Seventeen-year-old Rukhsana Ali tries her hardest to live up to her conservative Muslim parents' expectations, but lately she's finding that impossible to do. She rolls her eyes when they blatantly favour her brother and saves her crop tops and makeup for parties her parents don't know about. If she can just hold out another few months, Rukhsana will be out of her familial home and away from her parents' ever-watchful eyes at Caltech, a place where she thinks she can finally be herself. But when she is caught kissing her girlfriend Ariana, her devastated parents take Rukhsana to Bangladesh, where everything she had been planning is out of reach. There, immersed in a world of tradition and arranged marriages, Rukhsana finds the perspective she's been looking for in her grandmother's old diary. The only question left for her to answer is: Can she fight for the life she wants without losing her family in the process?

➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖

My verdict:
I thoroughly enjoyed this read, it’s given me an insight into other cultures and how challenging it can be for both closeted and open gay people in a country like Bengali. This book shows the pain and mental torture Rakhsana had to endure to please her parents, even though it meant acting untrue to herself around them, and breaking some hearts in the process, but when they entrapped her she allowed a fight like no other, no matter the emotional effects it had on her, which to me is admirable, considering people quite literally have to deal with things that she goes through in their own day to day lives. With her secret supporters she managed to escape an arranged marriage, but at a high cost. Although, this cost was just the reality check her parents needed. Her parents growth on returning to the states was something I can only imagine feels absolutely incredible to someone in the situation Rakhsana was in, especially when they took it upon themselves to arrange a surprise which meant inviting someone dear to Rakhsana over for some food, and a public apology.

I would 10/10 read this again, and recommend it for someone looking for an emotional journey with a happy ending.

BookReviews

01/02/2026

21/01/2026

21/01/2026

21/01/2026

21/01/2026

05/11/2024

30/08/2024

15/04/2024

24/07/2023

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