The Plea by Steve Cavanagh

The Plea by Steve Cavanagh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - as able 3 days

Pages - 400

Publisher - Orion publishing

Source - bought

Blurb from Goodreads

When David Child, a major client of a corrupt New York law firm, is arrested for murder, the FBI ask con-artist-turned-lawyer Eddie Flynn to secure Child as his client and force him to testify against the firm.

Eddie's not a man to be coerced into representing a guilty client, but the FBI have incriminating files on Eddie's wife, and if Eddie won't play ball, she'll pay the price.

When Eddie meets Child he's convinced the man is innocent, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. With the FBI putting pressure on him to secure the plea, Eddie must find a way to prove Child's innocence while keeping his wife out of danger - not just from the FBI, but from the firm itself.


My review

It is no surprise to anyone I love Eddie Flynn, since I first came across him in one of the later books, I think I started mid series. Now I am working my way through the first three I missed originally. Eddie is getting pressure from all areas in this one, to secure and defend a murderer, a rising star/celebrity accused of killing his girlfriend. The FBI are leaning on Eddie to get him and make him agree to XYZ, why would Eddie do this? Well the FBI are threatening his family with leverage/evidence on someone he loves. Eddie has no choice but to try and secure the defendant but he is already represented and Eddie has no idea just how bad things could go! With Eddie's moral compass and his most treasured being threatened what will oor Eddie do?

Eddie is such a likeable guy, he comes from a dodgy criminal background, he was a conman now lawyer but even then had his own moral compass and we learn a bit more about his past in these earlier books. He still has contacts from his past and we see them pop up time to time and they themselves are colourful, dodgy and not quite as clear cut as our boy Eddie but brings their own personality/levels of skulduggery in different variations.

I like the way Cavanagh brings the chaos and havoc, the levels some dodgy *professionals* will act and behave, the good and bad sides of humanity. We get crime, shade, trial/court case, drama, relationships, strength, courage and some absolute blinders in the courtroom (and out) from Eddie.

I recommend these books all the time, I love Eddie, I love the series, I still have book three to read then I am all caught up and patiently waiting for the next. Recently we started to watch movies based on John G books and I said The Devils Advocate had echoes of A Time To Kill & I would LOVE to see Eddie on the big screen. If you haven't read these books I absolutely recommend 5/5 from me.

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The Shining by Stephen King

The Shining by Stephen King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - in and out over a few months

Pages - 659

Publisher - Hodder & Stoughton

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

Jack Torrance's new job at the Overlook Hotel is the perfect chance for a fresh start. As the off-season caretaker at the atmospheric old hotel, he'll have plenty of time to spend reconnecting with his family and working on his writing. But as the harsh winter weather sets in, the idyllic location feels ever more remote...and more sinister. And the only one to notice the strange and terrible forces gathering around the Overlook is Danny Torrance, a uniquely gifted five-year-old.



My Review

This is a re read, I haven't read it since I was a kid. I love the movie (Kubrick version only recently seen the other one) and as I was back home I wanted to read it again. There is so much I forgot about the book like actually don't even remember reading but it has been a long time.

You get a bit of history on the Overlook, I really wish we would get a more indepth backstory though as the darkness is so fascinating especially the hold it can have over people. So for anyone not familiar with it Jack Torrance, his wife Wendy and little boy head to the Overlook hotel for Jack's new job, caretaker over the winter, isolated just the three of them. Jack is a recovering alcoholic, when in the grip of booze he lost a lot and has been making it up to Wendy and Danny since. The Overlook is more than just a hotel it is home to a darkness that can influence the people who spend time there and when the people are special, like little Danny the hotel and its spirits want him.

The book features dark themes, King's books always do, not just the supernatural but the evil and darkness within humans. We also have the good too, lengths some people will go to to protect others. We learn about the Shining and how extraordinary little Danny is and the more time he and his family are in the hotel the more creepy things happen.

The thing with King is he creates creepy, atmospheric books that creeps you out, baddies that are terrifying because they aren't always of our world but some are and equally as scary. The Shining is a classic, I loved it when I was younger and I think it still holds up all these years later, 5/5 for me. If you really want to creep yourself out, read it when staying in a hotel, every time I visit one, the corridors, no matter how it is decorated I always envision The Overlook.

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Women Like Us by Amanda Prowse Blog Tour

Today is my stop on the blog tour for Women Like Us, A Memoir, by Amanda Prowse, this is a LOVEBOOKSTOUR blog tour, you can find Kelly on Twitter.

I even took the book to the ice hockey with me to read inbetween intervals.

The book is available to buy from Amazon, click HERE.


You can find Amanda on Twitter and Instagram.

Women Like Us: A Memoir by Amanda Prowse
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - in and out over 10 days

Pages - 396

Publisher - Little A

Source - Review copy

Blurb from Goodreads

I guess the first question to ask is, what kind of woman am I? Well, you know those women who saunter into a room, immaculately coiffed and primped from head to toe?

If you look behind her, you’ll see me.

From her childhood, where there was no blueprint for success, to building a career as a bestselling novelist against all odds, Amanda Prowse explores what it means to be a woman in a world where popularity, slimness, beauty and youth are currency—and how she overcame all of that to forge her own path to happiness.

Sometimes heartbreaking, often hilarious and always entirely relatable, Prowse details her early struggles with self-esteem and how she coped with the frustrating expectations others had of how she should live. Most poignantly, she delves into her toxic relationship with food, the hardest addiction she has ever known, and how she journeyed out the other side.

One of the most candid memoirs you’re ever likely to read, Women Like Us provides welcome insight into how it is possible—against the odds—to overcome insecurity, body consciousness and the ubiquitous imposter syndrome to find happiness and success, from a woman who’s done it all, and then some


My Review

I have heard/read and even used warts and all used many times and I absolutely am using it for this book however it is probably the first time I am using it with actual pure felt meaning! So if you don't know who Amanda Prowse is she is an author who has written A LOT of books, I have read 3 with a few more on my tbrm and many more to buy! So about the book, Prowse takes us through her life, from a wee barra, teen, adult and authorhood.

This book took me through Amanda's life and back to quite a few stages of my own. Some of the things/experiences were so relatable I could have written them myself. Then there was some shockaroonies like the sanitary belt, I absolutely had to go and look that up. I can't imagine how you get into it let alone wear it!

The book is very open and honest and whilst I feel like you get that reading a lot of autobiographies Amanda Prowse felt it went deeper. If you have never had a battle with addiction, your weight or both then you may not appreciate just how much I imagine it cost to not only deal with that but to then commit it to paper and share it with the world. I wanted to reach out and hug her because it is a battle like no other and despite some addictions being treated more with compassion and understanding food/weight gain is still very judged/stigmatized.

The book is really interesting, emotive and takes us on many roads of the authors life and experiences, I have been struggling to read like I used to but for snippets of time I managed to loose myself. I cannot wait to read her other books and will absolutely be buying up others as I go along. If you only read one memoir this year make it this one, 5/5 for me.

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Every note Played by Lisa Genova

Every Note Played by Lisa Genova
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - < 1 day

Pages - 316

Publisher - Allen & Unwin

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

An accomplished concert pianist, Richard received standing ovations from audiences all over the world in awe of his rare combination of emotional resonance and flawless technique. Every finger of his hands was a finely calibrated instrument, dancing across the keys and striking each note with exacting precision. That was eight months ago.

Richard now has ALS, and his entire right arm is paralyzed. His fingers are impotent, still, devoid of possibility. The loss of his hand feels like a death, a loss of true love, a divorce—his divorce.

He knows his left arm will go next.

Three years ago, Karina removed their framed wedding picture from the living room wall and hung a mirror there instead. But she still hasn’t moved on. Karina is paralyzed by excuses and fear, stuck in an unfulfilling life as a piano teacher, afraid to pursue the path she abandoned as a young woman, blaming Richard and their failed marriage for all of it.

When Richard becomes increasingly paralyzed and is no longer able to live on his own, Karina becomes his reluctant caretaker. As Richard’s muscles, voice, and breath fade, both he and Karina try to reconcile their past before it’s too late.


My Review

Richard is a gifted piano player, travelling and playing worldwide. He left his wife and daughter three years ago, lives in a beautiful apartment & eats and drinks the best of foods. Karina his ex wife gave up her own musical career so he could flourish and she would raise their kid. Grace is now in college - loves mum, hates dad, Karina (wife/mum) is a bit lost and Richard is intolerable with his self absorbed attitude. Everyone knows their place in the world and everything is fine until Richard starts to experience some issues with his fingers/hand. Richard is diagnosed with ALS, he remains stubborn and refuses to accept the inevitable, regardless of his acceptance or telling anyone ALS is here and life as they know it is about to change.

Oh you guys, I love Genova's books (not always how they end) but she brings these horrific diagnosis's to life, gives them faces, names and the reader experiences and lives it with the characters. The one with the condition, the families and loved ones viewing it, processing it, enduring it, the person trying to come to terms and a very real picture of how it tears their lives apart.

I had a hard time relating to Richard, he is not a likable character but you soon feel for him as everything he knows is stripped away. I had a lump in my throat a few times because it is just such a horrific condition that strips the person of everything, literally everything they have. By using an unlikeable character I think it punches in a bigger impact because you can't help but be pulled through it, from all their experiences. The wronged ex wife, the neglected child (playing second best to his precious career) and him, the person as he is and his battle as he is stripped, bit by bit, of the very things we all take for granted every day.

Hard hitting, graphic descriptions and scenes of exactly what this condition steals from you and in such a short period of time. Character development, sadness, grief, relationships, family, love, loss, health and at the end of the book a website you can read more on this and donate. 5/5 for me, I think I went through a whole host of emotions and I have never known anyone personally who has had this, I can only imagine the impact of someone who has reading it. Grab the tissues and comfort food, you will need it. I love these kinds of books because despite it being fiction, because of her career she pulls from actual experience and creates characters to give it heart, a face, ooft it is brutal and lets you learn as you go, absolutely recommend!

I read this last year, no idea why I forgot to post it here, this book has stayed with me!

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I Wish It Could be Christmas Every Day by Milly Johnson

I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day by Milly Johnson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1.5 days

Pages - 416

Publisher - Simon & Schuster UK

Source - Bought ( FYI £7 on sale Asda for Hardback yesterday)

Blurb from Goodreads


It’s nearly Christmas and it’s snowing, hard.
Six people have an unexpected stay in the tiny hamlet of Figgy Hollow.
Stuck inside a beautiful old Inn, how long will it take before the joy of Christmas seeps into their souls and offers them all a new beginning?



My Review


Six people all heading to different locations end up stranded together in a wee locked up inn, in the town of "Figgy Hollow". Three duos, Bridge and Luke - meeting up to finalise their divorce, Robin & Charlie married and very much in love despite many years passing and Jack and Mary, Mary has been in love with her boss forever whilst he sees her as a very accomplished employee.

The inn is a special wee place and in it we meet and learn more about the six, their personalities, their pasts and being locked away from the world their ability to appreciate things they may well have taken for granted.

I love Johnson stories, you end up feeling for the characters and getting drawn in, rooting for X, struggling to put the book down because you HAVE to know where it is going and what is coming next. Lovely festive read with some emotional pulls & can I just forewarn you, if you like scones make sure you have some at the ready, you WILL want to eat some :D 5/5 for me this time, I have read most of Johnson's books and I will of course be buying the rest and waiting eagerly for the next.

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Backstabber by Kimberley Chambers - Blog Tour

Today is my turn on the blog tour for the new novel Backstabber by Kimberley Chambers. Firstly, apologies my post has gone up so very late in the day, I had tried the schedule post option for the first time ever and it hadn't loaded. Scheduled as I had a busy day and have just got home so quite annoyed but just one of those things so apologies again.



You can read my review for this book HERE. If you haven't read the Butler/Mitchell books you NEED to before you buy this one, you will have missed so much back story and they are fabulous so buy and read them first. Backstabber is out to buy now, print and ebooks from all good retailers, from Amazon click here.





Please note Always Reading is my spot, my url is always reading the actual blog name is So Many Books, So Little Time lol this happens a lot! Make sure you check out the other blog stops for this tour & be sure to leave a review on all the usual places when you finish it, authors love that.