Forbidden Fruit – A Nell Forrest Mystery 3By Ilsa EvansSnappy ReviewCracker cosy crime delivered up in a small Australian town with a functioning dysfunctional family element. From swingers in the seventies to a modern twist on potential parenting, a great light read on what is unveiled when the skeleton is in the backyard, not the[Read more]
Author Archives: boxa
MaestraBy L.S. HiltonSnappy ReviewEnthralling, shocking, fascinating…And slightly debaucherous. Unlike any crime novel I’ve ever read.SynopsisSex. Murder. Shoes. A shockingly original and darkly decadent thriller, Maestra is the launch title of Zaffre, the new fiction imprint of Bonnier Publishing Fiction. Judith Rashleigh works as an assistant in a prestigious London auction house, but her dreams of[Read more]
The Secrets of HappinessBy Lucy DiamondSnappy ReviewStep-sisters and a crisis. A quick and easy read about perceptions and how they can cloud our judgements. A slight homage to the bossiness of older sisters which, as a younger sister, I found a little amusing.SynopsisThe best things in life . . . can be just around the[Read more]
EmmaBy Alexander McCall-SmithSnappy ReviewI’m split on the modern retelling of these classics, but at least Alexander McCall-Smith has kept the whimsy and dedication to the small details that mark the original. Emma is not my favourite however much I love the writing. A slow and languorous read.SynopsisBeloved and bestselling author Alexander McCall Smith lends his[Read more]
NestBy Inga SimpsonSnappy ReviewIt’s another beautiful tale. One that will put you right in the story, hearing the birds and smelling the forest. It made me yearn for a simpler life, despite the darkness that hovered at the edges.SynopsisA gripping and thought-provoking novel about finding the lost child in all of us. Once an artist[Read more]
The Blue Blazes – Mookie Pearl 1By Chuck WendigSnappy ReviewAction from start to finish, more ups and downs than a roller-coaster, in an incredible subterranean world that lurks beneath the streets of NYC. So compelling I missed my bus stop….. And had a 30 minute walk home once I realised. SynopsisMeet Mookie Pearl. Criminal underworld?[Read more]
The Bookman’s TaleBy Charlie LovettSnappy ReviewIf you love your Shakespeare, love your books, and adore a little bookish mystery, you will fall in love with this tale as easily as I did.SynopsisA mysterious portrait ignites an antiquarian bookseller’s search—through time and the works of Shakespeare—for his lost love. Guaranteed to capture the hearts of everyone[Read more]
The Mandarin Code – Harry Dunkley 2By Steve Lewis & Chris UhlmannSnappy ReviewGreat read, especially as it’s set in a rather familiar landscape… Although I have to admit I did spend three quarters of the book trying to figure out who was who, and probably didn’t give the story the attention it deserved.SynopsisPolitics just got[Read more]
By Tad WilliamsThe Dirty Streets of Heaven – Hodder & StoughtonSnappy ReviewA change of scene from one of my favourites and I still love it! Urban fantasy. In this case; gritty legal wrangling between Heaven’s advocates and Hell’s, with your soul on the dock. And the big question? I think it’s still out there, happily[Read more]
A Few Right Thinking Men – Rowland Sinclair 1By Sulari GentillSnappy ReviewA new vintage crime writer, this time set in Sydney, tying in events that have become notorious. Less on the fashion of the day and more on the politics, a great weekend read!SynopsisRowland Sinclair is an artist and a gentleman. In Australias 1930s, the[Read more]