Tag: book preview

Book previews

Out Today: Julie Chan is Dead

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Welcome to May everyone and I’m starting the new month by mentioning a really buzzy book that came out today, but one which may be too far down the thriller and of things for me!

Julie Chan’s identical twin sister is an influencer. Julie is not. But when Julie finds Chloe’s body and unlocks her twin’s phone to call the emergency services, she sees the reality of her sister’s life: the sponsorship deals, her money, her followers. And Julie wants some of that for her. So she decides to take over Chloe’s life. All she’s got to do is try and blend in with the gang of influencers that Chloe was a part of. Except someone seems to know that something is up…

One of the blurbs describes this as edgy and vicious – hence my doubts about whether it is a Verity Book, but it sounds totally intriguing so I look forward to seeing if it turns up around the swimming pools and on the airplanes this summer!

Book previews

Out this week: New Simon Brett series

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Given that I’ve already written series posts for most of Simon Brett’s other series – namely Fetherings, Charles Paris, Mrs Pargeter – it would be remiss of me not to mention that he has a new book out this week and it’s the first in a new series. It’s called Major Bricket and the Circus Corpse and there is already a second book in the series listed on Amazon for this time next year. Our new amateur sleuth has just retired to the village in Suffolk where he’s owned a home for years, although he hasn’t really lived there because his work has taken him abroad a lot. The village has speculated about his occupation, but when he discovers a body on his lawn, he uses his professional skills to try and figure out what happened. I’ve actually read this already (thank you NetGalley) so this could actually count as a bonus review so your luck is in!

Now I’ll admit that I haven’t read Brett’s Blotto and Twinks series, so i can’t include them in this but if there is a scale of realism in his books where Jude and Carol in Fetherings live in the most realistic world and Mrs P is the least – then Major Bricket is the new measure of the far end out beyond Mrs P. Brett is doing his thing on your spy-thriller-secret identity type novel with more than a dash of the OTT about it. I’ve been trying to figure out what it reminded me of, and I can’t quite work it out – but it’s definitely closer to the M C Beaton Hamish MacBeth-everything-falls-into-place end of the cozy scale than it Brett usually is. Overall, I’m glad I read it, but I would rather have had another Charles Paris I think!

Book previews

Out This Week: New Vinyl Detective

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Happy new Vinyl Detective week. Underscore, which is the eight in the series came out on Tuesday and I have my pre-order in my grubby little hand! This time we’re in the world of Italian Movie Soundtracks, which is a great excuse for me to drop a video of one of an ice dance routines into this, because there have been some really good programmes to Italian film music. Anyway, I continue to be impressed with Cartmel’s ability to find new genres to use for this series, although I didn’t love last year’s instalment Noise Floor as much as I have liked previous books in the series. Fingers crossed this is a return to full form… If you want to dip back into my archive, check out my Series I Love post from 2022 here.

Series I love post was 2022, last year got a out today.

Book previews

Out Today: New Magpie Murders

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Honestly. I’m so excited about this. I’ve been saying in my reviews of Anthony Horowitz’s Hawthorn and Horowitz books that I hoped that there would be another Magpie Murders book and today is the day: the third Susan Ryeland mystery book is out. This has a continuation to the Atticus Pund series being written by the grandson of a beloved children’s author who, coincidentally thinks his grandmother was murdered. The reason why I wasn’t sure if there would be another in this series is because how many murders could be tied into the Atticus Pund series. So I’m incredibly excited to see what Horowitz has come up with – and it’s already been bought up for a third series of the TV adaptation. I can’t wait!

Book previews

Out This Week: New Rosie Danan

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Happy New Book post Thursday. This week it’s a new book from Rosie Danan – who wrote The Roommate and Intimacy Experiment which were the subject of a double BotW post back in 2021. Her new book is called Fan Service and is a second paranormal romcom – following last year’s Do Your Worst. Now I have a mixed history with romances with supernatural or fantasy elements but I enjoyed the Jen DeLuca that had ghosts, so I’m prepared to give this a go. In Fan Service the star of a werewolf detective show finds himself in need of help from the woman who runs a fan forum for the show after he has an… unusual experience one full moon. I’ll be watching out for this, but also sort of hoping that the release coincides with a price drop for Do Your Worst – or in fact either of them appearing in a bookstore on a Buy One Get One Half Price table…

Book previews

Out This Week: New Julie Tieu

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Cover of The Girl Most Likely To

I read Julie Tieu’s Fancy Meeting You Here back in the autumn of 2023, which was an opposites attract romance with an overstretched florist and a caterer who happens to be the brother of one of her friends. I have the follow up – with a fake relationship between colleagues on work trip – on the Kindle waiting to be read. But I’m now two behind because Tieu has a new book out this week. The Girl Most Likely too is set at a twentieth High School reunion, with the heroine attending with her former frenemy and discovering that their roles are now reversed – she’s the one without direction, he’s the one who is thriving. We all know that enemies to lovers can be a bit hit or miss for me, but I am optimistic about this one, although I really should wait until I’ve got the backlog down a bit before I buy it…

Book previews

Out this Week: New B K Borison

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This week I wanted to mention that we have a new book from B K Borison this month – and it’s got Sleepless in Seattle vibes. Borison is the author of the very popular Lovelight Farms books, which I’ve read one of, but have been all over all the bookshops in the last year. First Time Caller is the first in a new series called Heartstrings. That name seems to come from the Baltimore radio show hosted by the hero of the book, Aiden who despite the fact that it’s a romance hotline is over love. Our heroine is Lucie, whose daughter calls in to Aidens show for some dating advice for her mum. I am a big Nora Ephron fan and really like Sleepless in Seattle, for all that it has some slightly stalkery vibes at times, so I’m looking forward to seeing how Borison has taken inspiration from the movie and updated it for the 2020s

Book previews

Out This Week: New Tourist Trap Mystery

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January was quite a quiet month on the book release front as usual but the start of February is somewhat busier. This wee there are a few new cozy crime books out, but the one I want to mention is the latest in Lynn Cahoon’s Tourist Trap series. Vows of Murder is the seventeenth in the series about Jill Gardner, a bookstore owner in California. I’ve read five of the series – but one of the reasons that I wanted to mention the latest one today is because the other sixteen are all in Kindle Unlimited at the moment. So if you want to take a dip into the work of South Cove now might be the ideal time.