The One Plus One - Jojo Moyes

Jess Thomas is a single mum, working hard both as a cleaner and barmaid to make ends meet, caring for her young daughter Tanzie, a prodigious maths talent, and for shy bullied teenager Nicky, her absent husband’s son from a previous relationship, to whom Jess is the nearest thing to a stable parent. Affluent Ed Nicholls has a high flying career running a very successful software company with University friend Ronan, but an unfortunate encounter with a woman from his past is about to bring Ed’s world crashing down around him. Jess and Ed’s paths are destined to collide; what is surprising, funny, poignant and uplifting is how wonderfully this plays out.

I devoured this new tale from Jojo Moyes, it was a real delight to read. By turns a funny, sweet, honest and tender portrait of modern life in Britain; concerned with families, work, money and the lack of it, insider trading, and ultimately, heartfelt romantic love. It feels that this author lives and breathes her characters; the result is they feel so vivid, rounded and real to the reader; a sense greatened by including some chapters from each of four different perspectives. All five of the main protagonists are beautifully drawn, youngsters Tanzie and Nicky in particular. And Norman the dog is adorable! Aspects of the scenario reminded me a little of the lovely film Little Miss Sunshine.

Jojo Moyes has written another absolute winner here – marvellous, eloquent modern fiction.

Source - Lovereading Review Panel
Published by Penguin - 27th February 2014
View other reviews on Lovereading 
Visit the author's website here and find her on twitter here

Bellman and Black - Diane Setterfield

William Bellman is just past his tenth birthday when he takes aims at a rook with his catapult; despite the seemingly impossible distance, the target is indeed met and the bird struck dead. Though he doesn’t dwell on it, this unsettling moment is set to ultimately shape and overshadow William’s whole future existence. 

He works hard and becomes a successful mill owner and happy family man with a lovely wife and children, seemingly very fortunate, but then his world is hit by terrible tragedy and loss. He notices a curious, inscrutable figure appearing in the graveyard, dressed all in black, and interprets that they have made an incredible agreement that will help him retain what still matters to him. As a result, William becomes creator of a shop devoted to everything relating to mourning on a grand scale. William pours himself utterly into his work, suppressing feelings and memories of what has gone before. But he is somehow haunted and can never be rid of his past.

The rook is a portent, a symbol throughout the story, always hovering, lurking, lingering, seemingly influencing Bellman’s path, and redressing the balance. More about the nature of the rook and its character is revealed in short asides interspersed throughout the novel.

I found this a dark, atmospheric and unusual Victorian tale depicting a man’s glorious rise and tragic fall; cleverly written and structured, it made me think about the joy and sadness of life. William is hardworking, caring and likeable, yet he is transformed into a shadow of his former self. The gradual unfolding of events, the shadowy, ghostlike figure of Black and the discovery of Bellman’s destiny all rendered this an intriguing, mysterious and compulsive read. 

Published by Orion

Originally reviewed for lovereading.co.uk, thanks to them and the publisher for an advance proof copy of this book to read and give an honest review. 

See the thoughts of other lovereading reviewers here. 

The Things We Never Said - Susan Elliot Wright

Debut novelist Susan Elliot Wright has crafted a moving, compelling tale with the narrative divided between two characters. In the present day, Jonathan is a teacher, and soon to be a father, his wife Fiona at last expecting their first child. He is both happy and anxious about the arrival of the baby, not helped by a difficult relationship with his own father who seemed unfeeling and distant towards his son; then his father passes away, destroying any hopes of reconciliation.

In the other strand to the tale, in the 1960s, Maggie wakes up bewildered, not knowing who she is or where she is; slowly she realises she is in a psychiatric hospital. She experiences a gradual coming to terms with her situation and a slow recollection of her past, which is then unveiled to us. The book alternates between the two strands telling the story of Jonathan and Maggie in short but satisfying chapters, building the intrigue for the reader as to how their lives might intersect.

This is a story that felt both compassionate and very real to me as I read; I soon became absorbed in the lives of these two people. The characterisation is strong and convincing and the plot is intriguing and well developed. It is a very enjoyable and moving read about families, relationships, secrets and truth, and the title is very apt. 

Published by Simon and Schuster

Originally reviewed for lovereading.co.uk

See more reviews for this title on the lovereading site here

You can follow the author on twitter @sewelliot

Elijah's Mermaid - Essie Fox

Pearl, with her unusual webbed toes, was found as a baby in the river Thames, and taken to live at the brothel known as the House of the Mermaids under the watch of Mrs Hibbert who looks after her until her fourteenth birthday when Pearl realises things are going to change for her.

Twins Lily and Elijah are rescued via the intervention a kind family friend and grow up in comfort with their Grandfather in the countryside, listening to the tales he writes and dreaming of mermaids. When they visit London one day for the first time, and meet Pearl whilst there, so begins a connection that shapes their futures. 

Essie Fox has used her knowledge and research combined with imagination and an evident keen passion for this period to vividly depict varied aspects of Victorian life from the beautiful to the sordid and unusual, leading the reader on an intriguing journey involving love, betrayal, art and literature. I enjoyed this book very much; I thought the different narrative voices were compelling and the story gradually drew me in; I felt transported away to a strange, secretive place, a place full of love, betrayal and illusions, a world away. 

Published by Orion

I originally reviewed this novel for lovereading.co.uk - see my review and others here.

Thanks to lovereading and to the publisher for sending a review copy of this novel.

You can follow the author on twitter @essiefox and visit her fascinating blog The Virtual Victorian. 

The Beauty of Murder - A. K. Benedict

‘He is the most dangerous man I have ever met. He can turn his hand to any skill and charm the pages from a book, the fur from a cat, the life from a man without once feeling remorse.’

Stephen Killigan is a newly arrived lecturer at Sepulchre College, Cambridge. One evening he finds the body of a young woman who has been missing, and informs the police, but when they go and look for the body it has vanished. This is the start of Stephen’s life-changing involvement with a most unusual serial killer, Jackamore Grass, which will see him time travelling between the present day and the seventeenth century in pursuit of the truth. 

The narrative moves between distinctive voices; first person accounts from Stephen and from the enigmatic Jackamore, and the investigation into the murders by the hassled police Inspector Jane Horne. This helps keep a good pace and maintains the reader’s interest in all aspects of the events and the seemingly inexplicable crimes. The investigation is made particularly intriguing as the usual methods of detection are not always helpful in this case, when dealing with a criminal who can slip away through time.

I was struck by the author’s wonderful use of figurative language in this novel; phrases such as ‘the wind has a knife to my throat and is pick-pocketing my bones’, ‘close up, his teeth are yellow and lean against each other like drunks’.

The setting of Cambridge and the surrounding Fens landscape provides much history and atmosphere, and many secrets, all of which the author draws on and incorporates to good effect in her tale.

There is much to admire and intrigue in this debut novel. It crosses over several genres to offer us a speculative thriller, complete with murder-mystery, police investigation, philosophy, the aesthetics of murder, time-travel and magic. It’s inventive, haunting and compelling. 

Published by Orion on 14th February 2013

I originally reviewed this book for lovereading.co.uk. Thanks to them and to the publisher for sending a review copy of this novel.

Defending Jacob - William Landay

‘In the end, every child leads his own life, largely out of his parents’ sight.’

This is a stunning, well-written and compelling read. Andrew Barber is the assistant district attorney investigating the murder of fourteen-year-old Ben Rifkin in Newton, a relatively nice community with low crime. When his own son Jacob becomes the prime suspect, Andy is taken off the case, and experiences the legal system from the other side with his son as the defendant; he is torn between wanting to know the truth and needing to protect his son.

‘Suspicion, once it started to corkscrew itself into my thoughts, made me experience everything twice: as questing prosecutor and as anxious father, one after the truth, the other terrified of it.’

Recounted by Andy in the first person throughout, and including excerpts from Grand Jury testimony, it’s a cleverly structured narrative in four parts, incorporating modern day social media by including facebook conversations. Threaded throughout the story there is also an intriguing ongoing encounter between Andy and his former colleague at the DA’s office, Neal Logiudice, who takes over the role of prosecutor.

It is Andy’s perspective we see throughout. His thoughts and opinions colour the view of events that we are reading. The story is both a tense thriller and also a family drama, bringing into play the murky past of Andy’s father and the two generations of males before him, leading to the discussion of a potential ‘murder gene’ being present.

I really enjoyed this cracking thriller; it kept me guessing, it has an excellent pace to the story all the way through, and a surprising and unexpected ending. It makes you think about how much any parent can really know their child, and about the limitations of the legal system. Recommended.

5/5

Originally reviewed for lovereading.co.uk - thanks to them and to the publisher for a copy of this novel to read and review.

Published by Orion

Tell the Wolves I'm Home - Carol Rifka Brunt

This is a wonderful story about the close bond between a young girl, fourteen-year-old June Elbus, and her inspirational uncle, the noted artist Finn Weiss. He’s the only person that June feels she can share her secrets with, and reveal her true self to. When Finn passes away, June finds herself adrift, wondering how her life can possibly go on without Finn being a part of it. Then June meets Finn’s partner Toby, who has never been mentioned to June before, and a new friendship is slowly formed which will alter the way she views herself and her late uncle. They are both lonely, struggling to cope with life without Finn, united in the immense loss and grief they share.

It is also about siblings, and the changing relationship between June and Greta as they grow up, having lost the closeness they once shared, both wanting it back but seemingly unable to rediscover it from under all the layers of jealousy and misunderstanding.

This is a lovely, sincere, warm-hearted book, with a story rooted in the early days of AIDS awareness, when misconceptions abounded and most people didn’t openly discuss the illness. It is about our perceptions of people, the judgements we make, and how we can discover so much about ourselves and those close to us through the most unlikely friendships and in the most unexpected places.

I found this a profoundly moving novel, and a highly accomplished and heartfelt debut. 

Published by Macmillan on 7th June 2012.

Reviewed for lovereading.com - Thank you very much to them and the publisher for a proof copy of this novel.


5/5