UPCOMING RELEASES: SEPTEMBER

This month is a very exciting month for book releases and here are five of them that I'm the most excited about!

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

10th

This is the highly anticipated sequel to The Handmaid's Tale and Atwood has revealed on her Twitter that it's set 15 years after Offred's final scene, this is narrated by three female characters. This is probably my most anticipated release of the whole of 2019, I'm so excited!!!

The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates

24th

I've previously read a nonfiction book by this author and loved it, so I'm excited to see him come out with his first novel. This is historical fiction with a bit of magical realism and it's about a young boy born into bondage who when his mother is sold away, he is given a mysterious power. 

After the Flood by Kassandra Montag

3rd

First of all, I love the colors of this cover! This is a dystopian, post-apocalyptic set in a world where the oceans have risen so much that there is no land left except the very tops of our mountains and it follows a woman and her daughter who are grieving their oldest daughter and sister and when they get word that she might be alive near the Artic circle, they set off to try and find her.

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

24th

Another beautiful cover! This is literary historical fiction beginning at the end of the Second World War and it's about a man who starts building a huge real estate empire and it's basically the story of his family. It's set over five decades as well, which sounds interesting!

Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson

17th

Yet another historical fiction novel, this is the story of two families from different social classes who are brought together by an unexpected pregnancy. I've heard great things about this author's writing but I've never read anything by her yet so I really must!

#FRIDAYREADS

BOOK HAUL: AUGUST

I N C L U D E S  A F F I L I A T E  L I N K S

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Summer is over and I am super excited for the new season! As I'm sure you're aware, I love autumn; it's the time for layering up, drinking hot chocolate and going for brisk walks in the fresh air. And, of course, reading!

August has been a great month though; I had half of it off work and went on loads of little trips: one to Gothenburg, one to the west coast of Norway and one to London. The latter is where I picked up most of the new books I got this month, because who can resist five floors of both Foyles and Waterstones?

( a f f i l i a t e  l i n k s )

The Little Snake by A. L. Kennedy

Age of Iron by J. M. Coetzee

Votes for Women by Jenni Murray

The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri

The Toymakers by Robert Dinsdale

Washington Black by Esi Edugyan

The Prime of Ms Dolly Greene by E. V. Harte

Everything Under by Daisy Johnson

XX by Angela Chadwick

The Mitford Murders by Jessica Fellowes

Salt Slow by Julia Armfield

Breaking and Entering by Jeremy N. Smith

I hope you've all had a lovely month!

BOOK REVIEW: CHASING THE SCREAM BY JOHANN HARI

I N C L U D E S  A F F I L I A T E  L I N K S

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Title: Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs
Author: Johann Hari
Published: 2015
Language: English
Pages: 432
Rating: 4/5

Summary:
This book explores addiction, the war on drugs and how we may be able to solve the problem altogether.

Review:
This book spans several years and continents and takes a look at the history of the war on drugs, which is still ongoing. We get to know loads of different people in this book, some of which are historical figures but mostly people he met during his travels, and I think hearing the stories of the people he met were my favorite part. It adds humanity to the issue and makes it easier to connect to. I also really liked learning more about the beginning stages of the war on drugs and how that spread across the globe.

I think this topic is incredibly fascinating and important to talk about, but before I started this I'd read a lot of reviews saying this was a game changer which made me think it was going to offer up some revolutionary ideas and for me and although there were some parts I felt like I learned a lot from, a lot of main ideas were not new to me at all. Maybe I've just been aware of these things for a long time and I've looked into these things when they've come up for discussion in Norway, but I sometimes kept reading this and thinking: do people really not know this?

I do think this book sometimes feels a bit dense and one slight snag I have with this (and this is a thing that often annoys me in nonfiction books) is parts where the author writes about a historical figure and writes as if we can know what they were thinking and feeling, without stating a source of what information you based that on. I know it's to make it easier to understand that person and what may have been going on in their head, but we don't actually know.

I think this book is fantastic in the way it gathers up so much information about what's really going on with addiction, the use of drugs and the consequences of the war against it. It's definitely worth the read and I think for people who perhaps do not have a lot of experience or knowledge about the topic, this is a great educational book. I think it gives addiction a human face and for that, this is amazing.

You can get this book at The Book Depository (affiliate link)
You can read more about it on Goodreads

PENGUIN ENGLISH LIBRARY: THE SIGN OF FOUR

I N C L U D E S  A F F I L I A T E  L I N K S
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Who doesn't love a good Sherlock Holmes mystery, especially when it looks like this edition of The Sign of Four? I love it!

BOOK REVIEW: THE BURNING BY LAURA BATES

I N C L U D E S  A F F I L I A T E  L I N K S

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Title: The Burning
Author:Laura Bates
Published: 2019
Language: English
Pages: 352
Rating: 3/5

Summary:
A young teenage girl and her mother has just arrived in Scotland, trying to start fresh and getting away from their old life, but it doesn't take long before whispers start again in the school halls and the "incident" they were running away from follows them to their new home.

Review:
Although I am perhaps not the target audience for this book, I still thought it was really good and it brings up so many different issues that I really appreciate.

The importance of social media in young lives these days cannot be overstated and I love that this book takes a closer look at the possible dangers of it. It also deals with slut-shaming, double standards and bullying, but in includes these new forms of communication. It's set itself firmly in the present day with all its current issues and I think that's incredibly important. I also really liked the historical aspects of this and how the story ties back to witch burning in Scotland.

I do think the story is a little messy sometimes and there are things that are brought up that aren't really explores in any great depth and maybe some of those things could've been taken out. Some of the dialogue felt a bit unnatural and there were times when I thought to myself that no teen would talk like this. I also felt like the ending was a bit much and slightly melodramatic, but there were also parts of it I really liked.

I do think the issues I have with this book is just things I notice because I'm a bit older and don't necessarily feel that connected to the characters. I think this can be a fantastic and vital book for young adult readers though, as the topics brought up in this are so important to be aware of and talk about.

You can get this book at The Book Depository (affiliate link)
You can read more about it on Goodreads

SCANDINAVIAN FICTION RECOMMENDATIONS

BOOK REVIEW: THE JOY LUCK CLUB BY AMY TAN

I N C L U D E S  A F F I L I A T E  L I N K S

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Title: The Joy Luck Club
Author: Amy Tan
Published: 1989
Language: English
Pages: 352
Rating: 3/5

Summary:
Set in both China and America, traveling from the 1920's to the 80's, we explore the history, culture and story of four Chinese mothers and their four daughters.

Review:
This was a really interesting book and I'm so glad I finally got around to reading it.

There are some things I absolutely loved about this book and some I didn't. My favorite parts where the ones where the mothers are looking back at their time growing up in China and telling their stories; I felt like we were truly transported back in time and got a really good look at place, characters and culture. I also love how this book explores the relationship between mothers and daughters and the cultural differences between them.

I think the writing is really good as well and there are some phrases that I read over and over because they felt really powerful. My biggest complaint though, is that I had a hard time differentiating some of the characters. We read from seven different viewpoints and some of them are really difficult to tell apart, perhaps especially the daughters, and that kept pulling me out of the book because I spent a lot of time trying to figure out who this person was again.

Despite its faults, I do think this is a book that will stay with me and that I'll keep thinking about, and I think it's definitely worth the read.

You can get this book at The Book Depository (affiliate link)
You can read more about it on Goodreads

#FRIDAYREADS

2 DAYS IN LONDON: BOOKSTORES & MUSEUMS

BOOK REVIEW: THE LOST MAN BY JANE HARPER

I N C L U D E S  A F F I L I A T E  L I N K S

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Title: The Lost Man
Author: Jane Harper
Published: 2018
Language: English
Pages: 362
Rating: 5/5

Summary:
Set in the Australian outback, one of three brothers has died under the unrelenting sun out on their vast property and the family left behind try to figure out if the man has committed suicide or if there's something more sinister afoot.

Review:
I've read several other books by Harper before and she never disappoints. This was a fantastic read.

The story starts off right away with a dead body, a fantastic setting and really interesting characters. The mystery is clever and the writing is great, and I loved trying to figure out who had done it, if anyone. We also sort of get to know the characters slowly and it's so fascinating to see them reveal themselves at the end.

My favorite part of about all of Harper's books though is the atmosphere. There's just something in the way she captures the outback in this that adds a creepy element to the book that I love.

Definitely one of my favorite books I've read this year and a must read for all mystery lovers!

You can get this book at The Book Depository (affiliate link)
You can read more about it on Goodreads

NEW ON MY TBR

BOOK REVIEW: THE SOUND OF THINGS FALLING BY JUAN GABRIEL VÁSQUEZ

I N C L U D E S  A F F I L I A T E  L I N K S

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Title: The Sound of Things Falling
Author: Juan Gabriel Vásquez, Anne McLean (translator)
Published: 2011
Language: English (translated from Spanish)
Pages: 320
Rating: 3/5

Summary:
Set in Bogota, a man reads an article in a newspaper and recalls his friendship to a mysterious man who was killed years before at the height of Colombia's drug trade.

Review:
I quite liked this book and there are some amazing things about it, and some not so much.

My favorite thing about this is the writing; it's poetic, beautiful and conjures up places and people in just a few sentences. This is a book filled with emotion and it's captured incredibly well. It's a profound and important story in and of itself, but the writing makes it more so. I especially enjoyed the setting of this book and how we get to see this country through this very tumultuous time, and how the book shows us how that affected the people who are stuck in the middle of all of it.

When I started reading this, I was initially very intrigued by the characters, but I sadly found my interest waning the further into the book I got, so I found that about halfway through the book, I was getting a little bored. It's a quiet book in a lot of ways and kind of melancholy and I usually don't mind that, but I felt towards the end that it was just too much.

I think this is worth the read though, and I'm glad I read it. I would love to read more of this authors work because the writing really is fantastic.

You can get this book at The Book Depository (affiliate link)
You can read more about it on Goodreads

SUMMER COSY READING NIGHT VLOG

BOOK REVIEW: THE KILLING OF POLLY CARTER BY ROBERT THOROGOOD

I N C L U D E S  A F F I L I A T E  L I N K S

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Title: The Killing of Polly Carter
Author: Robert Thorogood
Published: 2015
Language: English
Pages: 335
Rating: 4/5

This is the second book in the Death in Paradise series.

Summary:
A world famous supermodel is found dead, apparently having thrown herself off a cliff, but when DI Richard Poole and his team start investigating, it becomes clear it's murder.

Review:
This was just great fun to read and I enjoyed it so much!

I love these types of cozy mysteries and this has everything in it to do the genre proud. We've got a great team of detectives, the setting is absolutely fantastic and the mystery was so intriguing, even if it isn't the most original story. It's also funny without being to funny and dark when it needs to be.

One of my complaints about the first book was that some of the characters didn't feel that well developed, but I found that it didn't really bother me in this book; I felt like I already knew them and I got to revisit this great host of characters. I feel like they came into their own through their actions and I didn't feel like there was a lot lacking in that department.

I'm more and more charmed by Detective Poole and I just can't wait to see his hot and bothered ass get himself into more detecting.

You can get this book at The Book Depository (affiliate link)
You can read more about it on Goodreads