Reviews Written in 2020 & Before

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2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020-2019

(This page is a work-in-progress as I have yet to copy all my old reviews here.)

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Death Row - Freida McFadden - ★★★★

AUTHOR: Freida McFadden SERIES: Alibis Collection, #1 GENRE: Psychological thriller, Short story. PUBLICATION DATE: June 1, 2025. RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: A short psychological drama about a woman on death row. Unreliable narrator, but not in the way you would expect. A fast read, but shouldn’t be read too fast lest you miss the clues. A clever story with a slightly confusing ending that makes brilliant sense once you ponder over it. A great start to the Alibis collection. Plot Preview: ( This preview doesn’t do justice to the plot. But I am keeping this vague as this story is best discovered by going in blind. The GR blurb reveals too much as usual .) Talia Kemper is on death row for murdering her husband Noel. Despite proclaiming her innocence vehemently (she has a rock-solid alibi after all!), no one believes her. Her last hope is her final appeal for clemency, because if that is rejected, she has just two weeks for her execution by lethal injection. As she waits for him, s...

AUTHOR: Brooke Harris GENRE: Contemporary Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: February 7, 2025 RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: An emotional contemporary drama tackling an important issue faced by Dublin today. A loveable but overly naïve main character, excellent supporting characters, great themes, beautiful ending. Not a light read. NOT A ROMANCE! Plot Preview: Dublin. Twenty-nine-year-old Beatrice thought that her future was set. But when her partner Declan delivers some unexpected news, Beatrice and their-four-year-old daughter Ellie are left without a home. Ever the optimist, Beatrice believes that she will find a new place soon, as long as she can manage the house hunt in between her hectic work schedule as a cleaner at St. Helen’s hospital. As is evident, Beatrice Alright isn't alright. But when Beatrice bumps into an old man sitting on a park bench outside the hospital, she doesn’t realise that her life is about to change yet again. The story comes to us in Beatrice’s first-person...

AUTHOR: John Steinberg GENRE: Humour RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A novella offering a satirical look at the travails of “publishing’, beginning with the prehistoric age and ending in today’s world of digitised publishing. Quick and entertaining, though suitable only to a niche audience. Story Synopsis: Norman has always been born to write. Unknown to him, he comes from a long line of wordsmiths who, right since 4500 BC, have desired to share the thoughts inside of them with the world at large, regardless of other duties such as being a breadwinner, and of course regardless of whether publishing had been invented yet. However, at every stage, there has been something to create hurdles in every Norman’s dream, whether it was the concept of ghost-writing or the interference of literary agents. Modern day Norman, however, seems to have one thing on his side that the other ancient Normans didn’t. What do you think it is? At 44 pages, this is a very quick novella with a ...

AUTHOR: L. Ryan Storms GENRE: YA Romance/Fantasy. PUBLICATION DATE: April 15, 2025 RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A YA Romance with elements of magical realism. Well-written and loveable characters ( I hope you realise what a miracle this compliment is, coming from me for a YA novel ), fast pace, good plot, sweet romance without getting too mushy or cringey. I took it for the magical realism, but I ended up liking all of it. Much recommended. Plot Preview: Sixteen-year-old Penelope Jane, known to everyone as PJ, hates that she has to relive the most anxiety-inducing parts of her life. This is because she tends to slip nine minutes and fifty-three seconds into her past every time her panic level shoots up. As she suffers from anxiety disorder, she tries to keep a curb on her stress, but sometimes, she still ‘slips’… The only person to know about this strange affliction is PJ’s bestie Mariana, who does all she can to support PJ. But when a new classmate Ethan Morrow enters PJ’s life, ...

AUTHOR: Freya Novak ILLUSTRATOR: Anastasiya Halionka GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: June 12, 2025 RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A cute picture book that delivers on characters and vocabulary. Decent plot, adorable illustrations, great learning opportunities. A lovely option for kids who love animals. Plot Preview: Dallas Dingo is the elevator operator at the Ragtag Hotel. One sweltering afternoon, his elevator is inundated by guests who find the heat unbearable and want to go to the fourteenth floor. Dallas tries to accommodate them all, but will the elevator be able to carry so many animals? And why does everyone want to go to the fourteenth floor? While picture books usually deliver best when they have a great plot + illustrations combo, this book delivers despite having an okayish plot because it shines in everything else. To be clear, the storyline is quite decent for a picture book. But I would have liked some kind of introduction to the Ragtag Hotel...

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