![]() Set in Iraq, this novel focuses upon a group of archaeologists and their spouses and our narrator, a nurse, has been employed to look after the wife of the lead archaeologist, Dr Leidner. I can’t remember any specific moments within the novel to warn about but it has been a while since I read it so this is a general warning. ![]() ![]() ![]() Murder in Mesopotamia was my first Christie read of 2021 and (for once) I actually guessed who the culprit was! Christie made me doubt myself a couple of times, mainly because the theory was so far fetched, but I was right in the end.įirstly, although I feel like I say this in every single Agatha Christie review, please expect some racist language when you’re reading this book. But with Louise suffering from terrifying hallucinations, and tension within the group becoming almost unbearable, Poirot might just be too late… In a few days’ time Hercule Poirot was due to drop in at the excavation site. Summary: An archaeologist’s wife is murdered on the shores of the River Tigris in Iraq… It was clear to Amy Leatheran that something sinister was going on at the Hassanieh dig in Iraq something associated with the presence of ‘Lovely Louise’, wife of celebrated archaeologist Dr Leidner. ![]()
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![]() ![]() ![]() Then it’s time to chill out with a glass off whatever takes your fancy and watch Love Actually – that’s a must. You have enough food and drink to withstand a small siege, an excitingly-wrapped heap of presents (and giving is so much more fun than receiving, isn’t it?), and your loved ones have arrived safely home. ![]() There’s always a magical moment on Christmas Eve when the house is clean, decorated and scented with pine, spices and anticipation. Soon I will be baking and freezing mincepies too and making mincemeat flapjacks (recipe in the back of The Magic of Christmas – dead easy!) I love Christmas! I’ve already made two Christmas cakes and have the dried fruit soaking in dark rum at this very moment for two more. I often seem to be writing Christmas books in summer time, but it doesn’t stop me enjoying the whole run up to the actual event. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Rhiannon Thomas's dazzling debut novel is a spellbinding reimaginin. and Sleeping Beauty as shes never been seen before. Vividly imagined scenes of action, romance, and political intrigue are seamlessly woven together to reveal a richly created world. With her wedding day drawing near, Aurora must make the ultimate decision on how to save her kingdom: marry the prince or run. Read 798 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. WHY NOT BOTH FEMINISM AND ORIGINAL FANTASYWell, A Wicked Thing by Rhiannon Thomas gave me both last year and I loved every page of it. Rhiannon Thomass dazzling debut novel is a spellbinding reimagining of what happens after happily ever after. ![]() And her whole life has been planned out by political foes while she slept.Īs Aurora struggles to make sense of her new world, she begins to fear that the curse has left its mark on her, a fiery and dangerous thing that might be as wicked as the witch who once ensnared her. But as Aurora understands all too well, the truth is nothing like the fairy tale. All the books say that she should be living happily ever after. One hundred years after falling asleep, Princess Aurora wakes up to the kiss of a handsome prince and a broken kingdom that has been dreaming of her return. and Sleeping Beauty as she's never been seen before. Rhiannon Thomas's dazzling debut novel is a spellbinding reimagining of what happens after happily ever after. ![]() ![]() Her writing is effective and accessible, and I just find that it exudes a kind of care and patience. ![]() Why I loved this book: Oluo has such a way of broaching subjects clearly. ![]() ![]() Why you may not like this book: You don't think white supremacy is an issue in this country and confronting the reality of white, male mediocrity will hurt your feelings. In the end, she shows how white men have long maintained a stranglehold on leadership and sorely undermined the pursuit of happiness for all. Through research, interviews, and the powerful, personal writing for which she is celebrated, Oluo investigates the backstory of America's growth, from immigrant migration to our national ethos around ingenuity, from the shaping of economic policy to the protection of sociopolitical movements that fortify male power. In this ambitious survey of the last century of American history, Oluo answers that question by pinpointing white men's deliberate efforts to subvert women, people of color, and the disenfranchised. From the author of the New York Times bestseller So You Want to Talk About Race, a history of white male America and a scathing indictment of what it has cost us socially, economically, and politicallyĪfter the election of Donald Trump, and the escalation of white male rage and increased hostility toward immigrants that came with him, New York Times-bestselling author Ijeoma Oluo found herself in conversation with Americans around the country, pondering one central question: How did we get here? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Soar into space with this glorious love story of alienfolk, from the creators of The Gruffalo and StickMan, now in an early reader format to supportchildren who are gaining confidence in reading.The Smeds (who are red) never mix with the Smoos (who are blue).So when a young Smed and Smoo fall in love, their families stronglydisapprove.But peace is restored and love conquers all in this happiest oflove stories. Home > Children's > The Smeds and Smoos Early Reader The Smeds and Smoos Early Reader By (author) Julia Donaldson Illustrated by Axel Scheffler ![]() ![]() Joined by the talking rat Spike, Lily tries to figure out what is the best plan to retrieve her brother and also to keep the family chocolate from ruining the world. ![]() While attempting to retrieve this from the bottom of the Thames, Oz is kidnapped by Isadore, who is immortal, and held in his home in an abandoned subway. MI6 is greatly interested in this, and arrange for a neighbor boy with some magical powers, Caydon, to help the twins find the third mold. The chocolate in question made people immortal, and it can only be made if the molds that the brothers' mother gave all three are brought together. There was also an argument about whether their magic chocolate should be used for good or evil, and in the end, Isadore killed his brothers in a train wreck. ![]() There were three brothers, but one of the uncle's, Isadore, fell in love with a woman who later married his brother. ![]() With the help of Demerara, an immortal talking cat (who is named after a sort of light brown sugar because her fur is that color), the two realize several horrible family secrets. Oz and Lily are okay with their family moving to a larger home in another part of London, especially when they find out that their family had connections to not only a chocolate shop, but a magical one. ![]() ![]() ![]() Parallels are drawn with the present day via Lachie in particular due to his disrespectful attitude towards Indigenous history and rights. Led by crow to correct a grave injustice from the past, Sadie finds herself slipping back in to history, to the 1920’s, where she finds herself in the life of Sarah Louise caught up in a tragic event. Whilst this relationship simmers in the background the central storyline of Crow Country involves Sadie’s unravelling of the town’s past. Her relationship with her mother is complex and revealing whilst demonstrating the author’s enviable ability to put herself in the shoes of a young girl. ![]() ![]() Crow, the totem of the Dja Dja Wurrung, has other plans for he knows there is a reason for her being here – a story, a riddle, wrongs to be put right – he has work for Sadie to complete.Ĭonstable effortlessly portrays ten year old Sadie with searing honesty. Sadie has just moved to Boort the place of her mother’s childhood. “A Crow’s breath, a story and a girl’s dream”Ĭrow Country opens from the crow’s vision – he spies Sadie “a human girl-child” and notes the girl stalking along a path, eyes down and oblivious to the country around her. Kate Constable’s latest novel, Crow Country, encompasses time-slip adventures and Australian Indigenous history with the over riding theme of doing the right thing, and correcting mistakes. ![]() ![]() Maeve’s opposition to this, which could have proven completely futile, fuels the storyline, causing Maeve to share warnings with Cara as they set out on the journey that will have Cara touring the various provinces of her future kingdom, in an effort to choose her future king out of the twelve men who are serving as her consorts. ![]() As the novel begins, Maeve’s mother Birkita, not only drunk on, but completely enamored with power and nothing else, forces Maeve to befriend her cousin, only so she can deceive Cara and take the throne back when Cara bears an heir. ‘Cara’s Twelve’ revolves around Cara, who is to be crowned queen in place of her cousin, Maeve, since Maeve has been found to be incapable of bearing children. ![]() Chantel Seabrook has written a riveting tale that combines love, lust, contempt, deceit, and pulse-pounding scenes of romance and action-packed encounters. ![]() ![]() ![]() On top of losing her father, Camino must figure out how to keep her dream of going to college in the US and becoming a doctor, which seems impossible now without the financial help and protection her father was providing. Both must deal with the grief of losing a parent as well as the hurt and anger of discovering he had part of a life with another family.Īcevedo reveals the complexity of the situation and the emotions left in its wake. Both girls have the same father they find this out when his plane crashes en route to the Dominican Republic for his annual summer trip and there are no survivors. Her father goes to the Dominican Republic every summer for work. ![]() Yahaira Rios lives in New York with her parents. Her father lives and works in New York the remainder of the year the plan has been to bring Camino to the United States for college after she graduates. Her mother has died and she lives with her maternal aunt. It does not disappoint!Camino Rios lives in the Dominican Republic. I could easily have read it in one sitting, but I pulled it out to a few days so I could really savor it. ![]() ![]() I am such a huge fan of Elizabeth’s Acevedo’s work! I was so excited to get my hands on Clap When You Land when it came out. When you touch down on this soil, you must clap when you land….” The old lady in the seat beside me said in Spanish, & a smattering of passengers erupted into applause. That my heart plummeted in my chest, but when we were slowing & there was a moment when the wheels first touched down ![]() ![]() ![]() Cloth slightly sunned (Swallows & Amazons and Swallowdale), occasional foxing and browning, spine slightly leaning (Swallowdale), minor split to front hinge (Pigeon Post), otherwise very good. Maps drawn by Stephen Spurrier, illustrations to text by Clifford Webb and the author.īookplate to half-title (We Didn't Mean To Go To Sea) and ownership stamp to verso of front free endpaper (Great Northern?) An excellent and attractive set. Original green cloth, lettering to spines in gilt, illustrated endpapers. A musical version of the book was premiered by the National Theatre in 2010. A second adaptation was released in 2016 starring Andrew Scott and Harry Enfield. ![]() The first film adaptation of Swallows and Amazons was released in 1974 including Virginia McKenna in the cast. ![]() Hammond records that "Swallows and Amazons sold slowly at first, taking two years to earns its advance of 100." Nevertheless, in 1948 "the house journal of Jonathan Cape announced that the one millionth copy, of the total copies printed of the twelve books in the 'Swallows and Amazons' series, would soon be on sale". The first book was published in an edition of only 2,000 copies (compared with the last book which of which the first issue probably numbered 11,000 copies). Complete first edition sets of Ransome's Swallows and Amazons sailing adventures novels are rare. ![]() |