Review: Confessions of a Gentleman Arachnid, Michael Coolwood.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review.

There seems to be no other way to start this review: What a spiffing yarn Coolwood has spun.

Milligan Clodthorpe, an aristocratic gentleman of the arachnid variety, takes up an invitation from his relatives to spend some time in the country at his familial seat, Newbury Towers. Yet it is far from the relaxing holiday he anticipates.

Bainbridge, an associate of the family, swaps his newly acquired human body with Clodthorpe's. Clodthorpe, utterly outraged, does his utmost to persuade Bainbridge to swap back. But Bainbridge is a wily one, and leads Clodthorpe on a merry dance across space to do so. From quaint, human village fetes (a species which Clodthorpe often villifies) to battleships and asteroids, Bainbridge makes it as hard (but entertaining for the reader) as possible for Clodthorpe to regain his body. Aided by his trusty man, Forsythe, and encouraged by his cousin Gertrude and and former comrade Pigstick, Clodthorpe's adventures are set out in a most witty manner.

It's certainly one of the most original stories I've read, not least from the characters. Clodthorpe is a character who finds himself utterly out of his depth, which renders the action that much more entertaining and the supporting characters more valuable.

The novel also tackles themes of loneliness and the need to feel at home with one's body. Pigstick's arc is a good example of the latter, while Clodthorpe's adventures show how his loneliness can be tackled by the deceptively simple solution of worthwhile company. Instead of hastening back to his own dwelling when his body is recovered, he ponders on the virtues of staying with his relatives. "Being alone with my thoughts in Eggart was not entirely healthy was it, Forsythe?"

A cross between sci-fi and a healthy dose of the self-deprecating and humorous British nature, Confessions of a Gentleman Arachnid is a thoroughly enjoyable story.

Review: The Painting and the Piano, John Lipscomb and Adrianne Lugo

Note: I received a free copy of this memoir in exchange for a review.

The Painting and the Piano tells the story of John "Johnny" Lipscomb and Adrianne "Ady" Lugo. The memoir, divided into scenes, shows how the tragedies that we encounter as children can linger on into adult lives - no matter how we try to escape from them, they can come back to haunt us unless we have the tools to deal with them. However, at the risk of telling a story of heartbreak, let me reassure you that there is always hope.

Adrianne lives in foster care, a very happy life until the agency from which she was fostered comes along with news; the biological parents want to visit Adrianne. Reluctantly, the foster parents agree. Sadly, it does not stop there. It's a long, slippery slide until a court grants Herb and Elaine, Adrianne's biological parents, the right to take their daughter back. Adrianne can never admit to Herb and Elaine being her parents, however. Despite Herb's genuine efforts, Adrianne keeps asking when she can go home. Elaine presents as a monster - abusive, cruel, and almost tyrannical, Adrianne finds as many things as she can do to escape the disgusting flat she's been forced into. It isn't until a teacher at her school notices her bruises that her story begins to turn around.

Johnny was caught up in a similarly horrible custody battle, forced to lived with his alcoholic mother and step-father. What starts as a few drinks as a teenager turns into a years-long battle with alcoholism.

We meet Adrianne and Johnny again as adults, both battling addiction, both finding solace in each other from unhappy marriages.

If not for the ending of this book I would still be in turmoil now. Both Johnny and Adrianne have such a way with words that you are there, in their homes, watching the scenes unfold, and you are in their heads, willing things to be okay but heartbroken and frustrated that they cannot be, due to the unfair laws of the land. I found Adrianne's story most particularly affecting, not least in Elaine's cruel choices and determination to keep her from the people whom she really loves and whom really love her.

Though heart-wrenching throughout, there are great messages of hope in this memoir. Addiction can be overcome. There are always people who want to help and who want to love. Finding friends and family, whether blood or no, who can support you, is more valuable than any amount of wealth or supposed financial security. It's definitely something that, at the risk of sounding cheesy, will make you reach out to your nearest and dearest.

Review: The Invasion of the Tearling, Erika Johansen.

The Invasion of the Tearling is the second installment in this thrilling trilogy by Erika Johansen. It is unusual in that it is the second part of a trilogy that actually gets better, which I do not often find. Perhaps this is because the worldview expands to beyond Kelsea and characters in her world.

Having stopped the human shipment to Mortmesne, the victor in the invasion of the Tearling during the reign of Kelsea's mother, she now has to decide what she can do to stop the Mort Army. Her commanders know they can only delay, but they do so as much as possible in order to buy Kelsea more time. 

Kelsea, meanwhile, though her heart and soul are wrecked with how she can protect her people, her mind is elsewhere. She starts falling into fugue states, which takes her back to the pre-Crossing, to a woman called Lily. Her own identity and emotions becomes wrapped up in Lily and what happens to her. 

Meanwhile, there is another mystery to solve: the identity of the Red Queen of Mortmesne. One of the overriding messages of this book (and the last) is the power of names, seen in how Kelsea changed hers to pay tribute to her foster parents, and how the Red Queen is fiercely protective of hers. 

There is the issue of identity, too. Kelsea is changing, not only in herself as the ruler of the Tearling, but also in appearance. This causes not little crisis for herself and those around her. Being plagued by her fugue states and the dark thing, who pops up in Kelsea's fireplace from time to time to bargain with her, and her obsession with finding out who her father was, gives her only so much that she can bear. 

The dual narrative of Kelsea and Lily gives more life to an already thrilling story, and ensures that the reader has plenty to explore. Sometimes, it can result in a little bit of a book hangover switching from one side to the other, but that just shows how absorbing each narrative is. 

Definitely another story to keep the reader up into the small hours. 

Review: I AM, Michael Drakich

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review.


Blurb from Author: "Genius, wealthy and life regenerated, Adam Spenceworth is living the dream aboard his custom spaceship run by Mum, his first designed AI, protected by Gort, his first robot, and occupied by Eve, his sexbot. With each regeneration he returns to start over as a twenty-five year old man ready to enjoy the pleasures of his success. What could go wrong? Except, maybe, planetary wars, territorial space battles, alien invasions, and the disturbing fact that each regeneration is taking exponentially longer than the one before bringing him into one galactic crisis after another."


This book certainly does what it says on the tin - space battles and galactic politics galore - with a hefty dose of physics and engineering thrown in, kept just realistic enough to make the reader think that this technology could be mere decades rather than centuries away.


Due to the protagonist's regeneration, the novel itself almost reads like a series of short stories,. Adam Spenceworth wakes up after each regeneration further and further into the future and has to deal with the latest problem that seems standalone, but by the end of the book, strands that were introduced early on are woven back altogether. 


As time passes, Earth itself becomes virtually unrecognisable as humans have gradually left and AI has taken over dominion of the planet. The religion that has been introduced to the Robots - the followers are called 'Adamites', after the protagonist, is kind of comical at first but it later seems deliberate. Adam has to face enemies he once called friends, and his character - in my opinion, pretty unlikeable for most of the book due to his too-often touted 'genius' and ego - is more rounded as he actually starts to care about what happens rather than exploiting the situation.


A pretty enjoyable science fiction on the whole. The depth in Adam's character lacking in the beginning is made up somewhat by the end, and the host of supporting characters - Mum and Gort are my particular favourites - balance the story out nicely.

Review: Crossed Stars, Christy Blow

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for review. 

From the Amazon page: "Aurelia Winters, nearly drowns one cold October night. She awakens and suddenly finds herself in a strange new fantasy world called Purgatory. In this middle world lurks angels, holy and fallen, that are in a constant battle as to how they will control the fate of humans on Earth."

My first thought upon completing this book was that it was almost like Twilight with angels instead of vampires, and how much teens would swoon over Cassiel, one of the story's central characters. 

The first couple of chapters read like a picture-perfect existence for Aurelia (the main character), her mother, Clem and Clem's mother. Just when one is thinking that things are too good to be true, things start creeping out of the woodwork and Aurelia's existence isn't quite what it seems. 

The strongest part of the novel lies in the descriptions. Blow has a strong sense of space and place, and its easy to get drawn into Aurelia's world. Some of the characters are more convincing than others, the most interesting development in the character of Belial. There were also some discrepancies at the start of the novel in Cora's name, but this is ironed out as the novel progresses,

Overall, a nice, easy read, and definitely ones for fans of Twilight and its ilk.

Review: Room, Emma Donoghue

Jack, a five year old boy, lives in a single room with Ma. We meet Jack and Ma on the morning of his fifth birthday. Slowly we learn about the extent of their tiny world and how they came to be there. The answers are heartbreaking and leaves the reader with an utter sense of helplessness.

But there is hope. Ma and Jack come up with a plan for their escape, which mercifully works, and the remainder of the novel focuses on Ma's return to, and Jack's introduction to, the real world.

It's hard to imagine how a huge part of a novel that takes part in one room can be so absorbing, but that's down to how brilliantly Jack's character is constructed and how good a mother Ma is. Since they're just in this Room, she's going to make it as exciting as she can. Their games are endlessly imaginative, Jack is learning a lot despite limited resources, and she keeps him out of sight from Old Nick, their captor.

With Jack's introduction into the outside world, one of the most interesting things is his longing to go back to Room. It was a prison but it was the only world he knew, and his identity bound up with it. Adjusting to the outside world, even for Ma, is not easy.

What's also interesting is that after the escape the focus remains entirely on Jack and Ma and not on the details of Old Nick's conviction and ongoing case. Jack does surprisingly well with meeting new people and engaging in new experiences, while it's Ma who seems to regress. Eventually, they come back together and start to try and rebuild their lives.

Intensely moving, heartbreaking and told so innocently, this is a powerful tale that leaves you with a profound longing for justice, complete admiration for Ma and a mourning for lost childhood.

Review: Before I Go To Sleep, S. J. Watson

Christine Lucas wakes up in a state of utter confusion. She has no idea where she is, how she got there, or what to do next. In fact, it's a while before she realises that she is not who she thinks she is - in terms of age, anyway. She is greeted by her husband, Ben, who explains to her what has happened - she was in a terrible accident which left her without any memories after her 29th year.

When Ben goes to work she receives a call from an unknown person, Dr. Nash, whom claims to have been working with her on her memory. She agrees to meet with him, and he gives her a journal, which he says is hers. When she reads it, the first words that she is greeted with are "Don't trust Ben."

This book is a slow burner of a suspenseful thriller. The tension throughout builds so much so that the reader is constantly left with doubt of who exactly to trust. The only thing the reader can supposedly trust is Christine and the fact that she will lose her memory each night when she sleeps. Yet occasionally she has vivid flashes of memories, which both spur her on and leave her feeling frustrated, especially when she uses them to test whether or not Ben is lying to her. Though necessarily repetitive in some parts, Watson throws in just enough curveballs to keep the reader hooked while not straying from the central fact that Christine loses her memory every night, and so every morning has many of the same things to learn. Some of these curveballs are particularly heart wrenching (but I won't mention them here to keep spoiler free) and are such that they throw the reader into the arms and trust of Ben and Dr. Nash at different points.

The finale of this book contain some of the most nail-biting passages I've ever read (again, not described because spoilers). It is one of those that has you rushing ahead to find out whether or not everything will be okay, and then going back to reread while your heart slows down a bit.

I loved one of the themes of this book in particular, which was memory and how vital it is to our sense of identity. It's easy to think that our sense of identity is almost always intact, but would we think the same if we had no memory of things that had happened in our lives, things that have shaped us and made us who we are now?

Before I Go To Sleep is a powerful, moving, suspenseful story that leaves the reader thinking about so much more about Christine and her experience, and how grateful we are to have our memories secure.