The Magnificent Mrs Mayhew by Milly Johnson

The Magnificent Mrs Mayhew by Milly Johnson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 2 days

Pages - 400

Publisher - Simon & Schuster UK

Source - Amazon

Blurb from Goodreads

Behind every successful man is a woman.
Behind the fall of a successful man is usually another woman.

Sophie Mayhew looks like she has the perfect life. Wife of rising political star John F Mayhew, a man who is one step away from the top job in the government, her glamour matches his looks, power, breeding and money. But John has made some stupid mistakes along the way, some of which are threatening to emerge. Still, all this can still be swept under the carpet as long as Sophie 'the trophy' plays her part in front of the cameras.

But the words that come out of Sophie’s mouth one morning on the doorstep of their country house are not the words the spin doctors put in there. Bursting out of the restrictive mould she has been in since birth, Sophie flees to a place that was special to her as a child, a small village on the coast where she intends to be alone.

But once there, she finds she becomes part of a community that warms her soul and makes her feel as if she is breathing properly for the first time. Sophie knows she won't be left in peace for long. Now she must decide: where does her real future lie?




My Review

Sophie Mayhew is the wife of up anfd coming politician, golden boy and earmarked to be the biggest thing in politics. Sophie is pretty much a trophy wife, smile on command, look perfect and keeps John up to date with what he needs to know, she is the good woman behind the "powerful" man. When scandal breaks and John pushes Sophie one step too far she needs time away, from the limelight, public scrutiny and above all, her husband. Sophie runs off and takes time in a quiet wee village to put herself together and discover what matters to Sophie and where is she going to go from here!

Oh we all know how dodgy folk in politics can be, scandals and speculation from the public, John is everything we suspect and hate. Self obsessed, he will stop at nothing to stay in the top, exploitation, he is always above everyone and everything. God I haven't disliked a character more in so long, the guy is scum.

Sophie is pretty naive and I felt so sorry for her, Pom on the other hand, LOVED Pom and almost all the folk we meet in the village. It is a story that looks at the corruption of humanity, the bad sides and the good.

I do love sinking into a Johnson book, whether you love or hate the characters (and you usually get a mix of both) you can't help but be drawn in, root for those you like and wish the plague on those you hate. 4.5/5 for me this time, I have read most of her books and need to check the ones I haven't yet.

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Stop At Nothing by Tammy Cohen

Stop at Nothing by Tammy Cohen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1 day

Pages - 384

Publisher - Transworld

Source - Netgalley

Blurb from Goodreads

A mother's job is to keep her children safe.

Tess has always tried to be a good mother. Of course, there are things she wishes she'd done differently, but doesn't everyone feel that way?

Then Emma, her youngest, is attacked on her way home from a party, plunging them into a living nightmare which only gets worse when the man responsible is set free

But what if she fails?

So when Tess sees the attacker in the street near their home, she is forced to take matters into her own hands. But blinded by her need to protect her daughter at any cost, might she end up putting her family in even greater danger?

There's nothing she wouldn't do to make it right . . .



My Review

As a parent you are always worried about your children, when your daughter is attacked you see danger on every corner. But what is the attacker is nearby, you are already a "failure" as a mother, have a divorce, your own problems, you cannot let anything happen to her again. And when your new friend agrees well sometimes you need to take matters into your own hands!

Oooh this book grips you pretty quickly because the attack happens pretty much at the beginning and everything that happens thereafter is because of it. Tess is struggling with her failed marriage, her other daughter isn't speaking to her and Tess just wants her family safe.

What follows is some really questionable behaviour, when you are scared for your kid, rational thinking goes out the window. One event kicks off so much you are reading parts of this with baited breath. Stalking, family, relationships, friendship are just some of the themes covered in this book. If you haven't read Cohen before you really should, this is a great book, standalone, gripping and keeps you going page after page to see where it all ends up. 4.5/5 for me this time, I think I maybe have a few of this author I haven't read yet I need to get them!

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Seal Skin by Su Bristow

Sealskin by Su Bristow
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1.5 days

Pages - 276

Publisher - Orenda Books

Source - Gifted by another reader

Blurb from Goodreads

Donald is a young fisherman, eking out a lonely living on the west coast of Scotland. One night he witnesses something miraculous, and makes a terrible mistake. His action changes lives—not only his own, but those of his family and the entire tightly knit community in which they live. Can he ever atone for the wrong he has done, and can love grow when its foundation is violence? Based on the legend of the selkies—seals who can transform into people—evokes the harsh beauty of the landscape, the resilience of its people, both human and animal, and the triumph of hope over fear and prejudice. With exquisite grace, Su Bristow transports us to a different world, subtly and beautifully exploring what it means to be an outsider, and our innate capacity for forgiveness and acceptance. Rich with myth and magic, Sealskin is, nonetheless, a very human story, as relevant to our world as to the timeless place in which it is set.



My Review

Donald is a bit of a loner, an outcast among his own people, never really fitting in. One night he sees something of legend, something most folk wouldn't believe. There is a horrific encounter that changes everything for Donald. Can good ever come from a horrific event, will Donald ever be accepted? A story that looks at Scottish legends and the age old actions and consequences.

I remember the stories of selkies as a kid and loved them. This is just like those old stories but we have a family aspect, healing, love, secrets, lies and of course the horrific sexual attack, it is brief and not in depth of details but just a headsup.

We see a lot of character development in this story, Donald is such a loner and not very accepted within his community. It is really just him and his mother, his mother is a healer of sorts and trusted within the community. When Mairhi comes along she changes Donald's live in so many ways and has such a huge impact on their small town.

There are so many stories from the legend of selkies and whilst is has been a long long time since I read them this took me back to when I was a kid. I really liked this retelling and it makes me want to go back and read more of the older stories, 4/5 for me.

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C L Taylor and Craig Robertson Book Event

This was our first time going to this Waterstones, Byres road in Glasgow, the West end. Also our first time seeing C L Taylor, I have seen Craig Robertson at Edinburgh book festival or another book event.



Taylor was talking about her new book Sleep but also got into her earlier work, I didn't know she was originally a rom com writer, did you?




Sleep has been optioned so we may well see it on tv someday, fingers crossed, I would love to see quite a few books made into movies or tv.




Robertson talked about his book, he has another coming out next year I think (sorry I did't catch the name) and they both discussed names and how difficult it can be when you are trying to come up with one. He accidentally ended up with a name of a neighbour a few doors down!




Three of Taylor's books have stalkers in them and she talked about her own personal experience of stalking, pretty horrific but also so good she managed to take a negative and use her writing to take a positive from it. Her story of taking a photo of her wee one on a train and not looking at it until later was enough to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up!




The two just flowed and it wasn't until the last few minutes Robertson brought out the list of questions he had prepared earlier to ask, he hadn't needed them. If you get a chance to go to a book event please do, you support your authors, book stores and sometimes you get a few wee insider scoops. Like an author I really like who writes rom com is turning their hand to a crime novel oooooooh, gossip! It was lovely to actually meet Taylor, she is very nice, interesting and if the chance comes up, go and see these guys!




Afterwards both happily signed books, gabbed away and there was some wine provided for attendees (I don't drink wine nor alcohol if working the next day) I was happy to take the piccys and just gab.




A fab night, I seen some of my favs and had my wee Harry Potter shoes out for an outing, please support your book shops and authors guys, it is always a great night out!




SLEEP is only 99p on ebook and £3.99 paperback from Amazon, get your copy now CLICK HERE

Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough

Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1.5 days

Pages - 374

Publisher - Harper Collins

Source - Friend gave to me

Blurb from Goodreads

Why is everyone talking about the ending of Sarah Pinborough's Behind Her Eyes?

Louise is a single mom, a secretary, stuck in a modern-day rut. On a rare night out, she meets a man in a bar and sparks fly. Though he leaves after they kiss, she’s thrilled she finally connected with someone.

When Louise arrives at work on Monday, she meets her new boss, David. The man from the bar. The very married man from the bar…who says the kiss was a terrible mistake but who still can’t keep his eyes off Louise.

And then Louise bumps into Adele, who’s new to town and in need of a friend, but she also just happens to be married to David. David and Adele look like the picture-perfect husband and wife, but then why is David so controlling, and why is Adele so scared of him?

As Louise is drawn into David and Adele’s orbit, she uncovers more puzzling questions than answers. The only thing that is crystal clear is that something in this marriage is very, very wrong, but Louise can’t guess how wrong―and how far a person might go to protect their marriage’s secrets.



My Review

Ok so I am late to the party on this one, we all remember the #wtfthatending (at least I think that was what it was). The book splits between Louise, Adele and goes back to Then. Louise is a single mother, works hard at her part time job and her focus is on her wee boy. She meets a guy at a bar, snogs him and finds he is her new boss, awkward! Up next is Adele, stunning, loves her husband, lonely and he cannot stand being around her, she just wants things back to how they were. When Adele and Louise become friends it appears they may have more in common, each is hiding something from the other and things can get dark reeeeeeeeeal quick!

So it is hard to go into this without giving spoilers and I don't do spoilers but some of the info is in the blurb so I can tell. So Louise's new pal Adele with the husband she loves but he doesn't want to be with her? Yup that's Louise's boss, the guy she kissed at the bar! So quickly we have a really tangled web and each doesn't want the other to know about that one. Oh shocking! We flip back to then, we know Adele has some issues but this goes back to when she met Rob and you areb't too sure what relevance it has to now. Also Louise has problems sleeping but with Adele's history she can help Louise, she wants to help Louise and works on getting her to be happy. It is a very weird friendship but totally compelling because you want to see where it goes.

Now I get why some folk where WTF that ending, I think if you are familiar with a theme in the book, if you have read of it before or seen any movies then you will enjoy it more. Total vaguebooking here but mind no spoilers. I had a feeling about half way through oooh i wonder if so it made sense to me however Pinborough still managed to pull some punches and keep it switched up. Whilst it seems a bit marmite I really liked it, it is one of those things you will think is brilliant and really crafty or be raging as you just don't get it or the why.

I quite like books that are a bit different, shock you, you don't see the path a book is going to take or better you think you know and the author just chuckles as they pull the rug out from your "knowing" ways. 4/5 for me this time, I think this was my first dance with this author, it won't be my last.

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Q&A with author Paul Burston

Q&A with author Paul Burston



Photo by Krystyna FitzGerald-Morris


• The book I hear is based on something you experienced yourself, is that true and if so what happened?

Yes, it’s true. Several years ago, I had a cyberstalker who made my life hell. It started with emails and trolling on Twitter, then spilled over onto various websites where I was employed as a journalist or featured as an author. It was mostly homophobic abuse. At its worst, I was receiving dozens of malicious communications every day. The stalker also contacted people who employed or supported me in some way, trying to persuade them to drop me. Then they started buying tickets for my events, posting the booking info on Twitter and making veiled threats to come and sort me out. Eventually I went to the police, who were very understanding. The scene in the book where Tom reports Evie to the police is pretty much as I remember it. I then helped the detective to build a case by taking screenshots of everything and making numerous police statements. Basically, you have to relive the abuse over and over again. Eventually the woman responsible was arrested and tried, found guilty and given a suspended sentence and a restraining order. I never heard from them again but the after effects of the harassment lasted for months.

• How did you get over something like that?

With time and support - from my partner, my GP, friends and victim support. I had counselling and was also prescribed anti depressants. I wasn’t in a good way! I was very angry, not just with the woman responsible but also with myself for letting it get to me. Of course I realise now that I was wrong to feel that way. Harassment or stalking is seriously disruptive and unsettling. I was diagnosed with PTSD. I wanted to communicate some of that in the book. The impact of what happened to me still lingers, but in a more positive way. I changed my online behaviour. I’m far more discerning about what I share on social media now.

• How did you find writing the book when it is something so close to something you experienced?

It was very therapeutic. I often mine my own life experiences for my fiction, so I knew I’d write about it at some point. The idea for the book really seeded itself when I moved into crime fiction a few years ago. I knew it would make a good story. It was a story I had a specific insight into.

• The characters, well the main male and female, are not the nicest by any means how did you come up with them?

They’re partly based on various people or character types I’ve encountered over the years. I also put a bit of myself into each character I write - in this case, my less admirable qualities! I’m not really interested in nice characters. They’re not as much fun to write. I’m far more interested in characters who are compelling or damaged in some way. They’re more of a challenge.

• The female character, her voice was so authentic was that hard to create?

I found writing her the most enjoyable. I wanted the story to be more ambiguous than it was in real life, and for her character to be more sympathetic than the person who inspired her. Once I had her voice, writing her came quite easily. I’d hear her whispering in my head, sit down and write.

• Who was more fun, Evie or Tom?

Evie, for lots of reasons. She’s clearly damaged, obsessive and relentless but also very witty and well read. Her pop cultural references were great fun to write, too - Morrissey, obviously, but also Blondie, Bowie and Madonna. I’ve interviewed Debbie Harry and I met David Bowie. I’ve gone off Morrissey but I’m still a big Madonna fan. She’s a great pop star. So Evie and I have a few things in common.

• What is next for Paul Burston?

I’m working on my next book. It’s another psychological thriller, also set in Hastings, and revolves around a man seeking revenge for things that happened to him in the past. It’s more of a family drama than the current book. I’m also touring with my literary salon Polari and preparing for our Polari Book Prize event with Tracey Thorn in October and our twelfth birthday event with Russell T Davies in November, both at the Southbank Centre.

• Where can fans find you? (dare I ask that after reading “The Closer I Get”

My website has information about upcoming author events and Polari events. www.paulburston.com

I’m also on Twitter @PaulBurston, Insta @paulburston1 and Facebook @paulburstonauthor

• Anything else you would like to add/answer that I haven’t asked?

I’d like to encourage your readers to please support local bookshops and libraries! They do so much for authors.

About the book, My Review, Blurb from Goodreads




Tom is a successful author, but he’s struggling to finish his novel. His main distraction is an online admirer, Evie, who simply won’t leave him alone. Evie is smart, well read and unstable; she lives with her father and her social-media friendships are not only her escape, but everything she has. When she’s hit with a restraining order, her world is turned upside down, and Tom is free to live his life again, to concentrate on writing. But things aren’t really adding up. For Tom is distracted but also addicted to his online relationships, and when they take a darker, more menacing turn, he feels powerless to change things. Because maybe he needs Evie more than he’s letting on. A compulsive, disturbingly relevant, twisty and powerful psychological thriller, The Closer I Get is also a searing commentary on the fragility and insincerity of online relationships, and the danger that can lurk just one ‘like’ away…


And if I haven't spoiled you enough with the interview I have a wee giveaway of the book. x1 ebook, UK ONLY, sorry guys but Amazon doesn't allow me to gift outside my own country. To be in with a chance just fill in the Rafflecopter below, good luck.

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The Anatomy of Ghosts by Andrew Taylor

The Anatomy of Ghosts by Andrew Taylor
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - in and out over 5 days

Pages - 469

Publisher - Michael Joseph

Source - Waterstones buy

Blurb from Goodreads

1786, Jerusalem College, Cambridge. The ghost of murdered Sylvia Whichcote has been sighted prowling the grounds by Frank Oldershaw, a disturbed fellow commoner. When his anxious mother employs John Holdsworth, author of The Anatomy of Ghosts- a stinging account of why ghosts are mere delusion - to investigate the sighting, the uneasy status quo at Jerusalem is rapidly torn apart. Holdsworth grows to realise that the sinister Holy Ghost Club governs the privileged life at Jerusalem with a rigour far more effective than anything the Master, Dr. Carbury, could muster. And when Holdsworth finds himself haunted - not only by the ghost of his dead wife, Maria, but also Elinor, the very-much-alive Master's wife - his fate is sealed. He must unravel the circumstances surrounding Sylvia's death ... or the hauntings will continue.



My Review

The opening chapter is a bit weird, it is Jesus, his apostles and an offering of a pure young lady awaiting a chosen apostle. The time in the 1786s so I had no idea what was going on, however as the book goes on you start to understand what the chat is.

John Holdsworth is hired by a very wealthy woman to investigate what is happening to her son. He is as college and has become unhinged after seeing a ghost. John is hired after he wrote a book "The Anatomy of Ghosts" penned after he lost his son and his wife spent their money on a medium desperate to connect with her lost child. John doesn't believe in ghosts and that is what the good lady needs, John is in financial straits and over a barrel so reluctantly he goes.

What follows is a view into some very entitled folk, secrets within the college and a young man whose mental health is suffering and is volatile. I took a bit to settle into the book it goes at a sedate pace, the writing isn't the issue but I took a while to get what was happening and why it was relevant. A lot of the characters are pretty pompous and I felt for John who has already lost so much and now has to go ghost chasing. I think he was the only character I had any kind of feeling toward and mostly that was sympathy for what he had endured. 3/5 for me this time, this was my first time reading this author, if I came across his works I would give me another go.

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