#415 ~ Twisted Little Things and Other Stories

Twisted Little Things and Other Stories by Amy Cross

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a total break away choice for me, and actually I found it to be interestingly and thoughtfully written. The author does a really great job of constructing short story narratives - in this collection they sit together in a really nicely curated whole.

I didn't find any of the subject matter truly disturbing, but rather very thought provoking. Amy's work has a very 'Tales of the Unexpected' feel to it, and would probably work well in a TV episode format.

Production values were quite high, with only one thing to mention.  Unfortunately, I had forgotten to make a note on here before I returned the book and have now lost the highlighted note on my Kindle (stupid girl!).  It was only one missing/word order comment so it doesn't really matter.



Read as part of my Kindle Unlimited package. 



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#414 ~ Worst Laid Plans

Worst Laid Plans by Claire Robyns

Not exactly writing to set the world on fire. The characterisation was a bit weak in places, but it did have enough about the plot and timing to keep me turning the pages - and that is quite hard to do.

I was engaged enough in the world built by this author to read more of the series.

From an editorial point of view, the productions values were good with no errors to mention. The only bug bear I had was an ending that felt a bit like an emergency stop on a driving test. The ending could have been handled slightly differently to avoid this.

Other than that a solid three stars (the thick end of 3 nearing 4).

I purchased as part of my Kindle Unlimited package, but anyone not on that scheme can purchase a copy at just £2.99 at the time of writing this post HERE.



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#413 ~ The Ladies' Room

The Ladies' Room by Carolyn Brown

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not outstandingly brilliant prose, but giving it consideration the author created a strong narrative voice that kept me in the moment - I could clearly hear the Southern drawl, even though there was no attempt to amend the writing to achieve this - very successfully done in my opinion.

The plot didn't set the world alight, but then I suppose that was probably the aim. It detailed a journey of self-discovery and awakening of confidence and courage.

Overall a decent job, and I would like to explore this author more.

Production values were high, and there are no bug bears etc. to detail.

Purchase details:

I purchased/borrowed as part of my Kindle Unlimited package, but you can download a copy HERE.  At the time of writing this post it's £3.49 which seems a reasonable price.



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#412 ~ The Bad Mother's Diary

The Bad Mother's Diary by Suzy K. Quinn

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Reading this brightened my day. It's joyfully delightful. After nearly 30 years of motherhood, and no privacy in the bathroom even now ... I am fully on her level.

The boring bits about purchase:

Part of my Kindle Unlimited package, but you can purchase it, you won't e disappointed, HERE.




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#411 ~ The Marriage List

The Marriage List by Dorothy McFalls

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book had been kicking around on my Kindle for some time, I'm not sure if it was one of the free daily book deals, or I paid for it.

On paper, or at least on the Kindle in this case, it was everything that I don't like: full of Americanised English and what passes for grammar, it was also fairly high on the not terribly authentic scale, but some little tiny thing kept me turning the pages.

Taking all of the above into account it scored the thick end of 3 stars.

The good, the bad and the ugly:

As mentioned above it was not high quality writing based on sound historical research and knowledge and so there were very many ugly bits.

One golden moment, for all the wrong reasons was Page 81 'The green-eyed monster, jealousy, stabbed her but good.'  - a sentence such as this should never, ever, ever be seen this genre.





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