Zebinoco Book Reviews.

A place to share reviews for the every day reader, about the books that are hot off the press or aged and comfy and possibly some commentary about the authors I enjoy. If you love the printed word, whether in tree format or on a screen, come take a look,and settle down with tea,lots and lots of tea. There are also hinges of babble where you might just get to have a giggle about my day and see what book signing evening events I have been attending.

Saturday, 12 March 2016

Lieblings by Nadia Espley

Read from September 9th - 12th 2015.

Published April 7th 2015 by CreateSpace

Format Paperback - 1,333 pages

Review	SMASH!!! This book bounced in with a crash, a smash and a boom. I wasn't quite sure what had hit me. Very lively and fast paced from the get go. It made my head spin fast but it was good, all good. At first the style appeared to be written extremely simply and this was added to by it's short obviously separated paragraphs that initially took a few to get comfortable with. I do like the paragraphs, it just took me away from what I was used to in a book but being so fast, I feel it needed them.A good move by the author there. I felt like I was a Big Brother camera, just listening to peoples every day conversations and they were, just like conversations anyone would have with their friends....literally, no holes barred! I had entered what you could call a bitch fest of a book. What a bunch of frightening, narrow minded, bullyish women who have barely any redeeming qualities between them. If you are expecting a murder mystery of a book that we are all familiar with, you will have a bit of a shock as that bit fills up a mere tiddly percentage of the story. The focus is on the relationships between the women and how they all came together and their back stories. Some of the language used maybe a little shocking to some.I'd say mild myself but it is in there on a few occasions. There is a fair amount of name dropping too, well known shops for example, bet they liked that bit of advertising. I think readers will enjoy this as it sparks some familiarity and connects them closer to the book and develops a connection to these ladies lives. Hard to put down and kept me smiling and shocked at the same time. A superb ending which wasn't rushed. This author definitely got better as she progressed with this book, showing more detail, not just in the conversations but the rest of the book using better descriptive words, almost like she had finally found the thesaurus. There is a few grammatical and spelling errors in the book-losing not loosing for example. Unsure if it has been proof read.It really didn't matter as I really enjoyed it, even though it isn't my usual kind of read. 4 out of 5 stars given.

Review

SMASH!!! This book bounced in with a crash, a smash and a boom. I wasn't quite sure what had hit me. Very lively and fast paced from the get go. It made my head spin fast but it was good, all good.

At first the style appeared to be written extremely simply and this was added to by it's short obviously separated paragraphs that initially took a few to get comfortable with. I do like the paragraphs, it just took me away from what I was used to in a book but being so fast, I feel it needed them.A good move by the author there.
I felt like I was a Big Brother camera, just listening to peoples every day conversations and they were, just like conversations anyone would have with their friends....literally, no holes barred!

I had entered what you could call a bitch fest of a book.
What a bunch of frightening, narrow minded, bullyish women who have barely any redeeming qualities between them.
If you are expecting a murder mystery of a book that we are all familiar with, you will have a bit of a shock as that bit fills up a mere tiddly percentage of the story. The focus is on the relationships between the women and how they all came together and their back stories.

Some of the language used maybe a little shocking to some.I'd say mild myself but it is in there on a few occasions. There is a fair amount of name dropping too, well known shops for example, bet they liked that bit of advertising. I think readers will enjoy this as it sparks some familiarity and connects them closer to the book and develops a connection to these ladies lives.

Hard to put down and kept me smiling and shocked at the same time. A superb ending which wasn't rushed.

This author definitely got better as she progressed with this book, showing more detail, not just in the conversations but the rest of the book using better descriptive words, almost like she had finally found the thesaurus. There is a few grammatical and spelling errors in the book-losing not loosing for example. Unsure if it has been proof read.It really didn't matter as I really enjoyed it, even though it isn't my usual kind of read.

4 out of 5 stars given.

The China Bird by Bryony Doran

Read from September 16th - 7th October 2015.

Published November 16th 2010 by Bookline and Thinker

Format Paperback - 284 pages

Review	...'just because someone is not considered normal, should they not be beautiful?' That is definitely a line that certainly stirs the grey matter. This book is about a young art student who whilst quietly contemplating her new art project, she befriends an older man, Edward. Edward leads a rather bland life.Apart from Edwards job at the library, his mother is his only other staple in his life and is rather dictatorial about it too, but this is clearly a protection strategy.Edward's body encases a twisted spine but the much younger Angela only see's this as a beautiful deformity. Angela convinces Edward to sit for her and so becomes her 'project topic'. We, as readers are introduced to the ups and downs between these two over a period of time and although they are the main characters, the story would have soon become pretty tedious if all we read about was Angela painting Edwards picture. The world around Edward and Angela, and how they entwine into their lives are concentrated on, and what stories they tell.Each character has a complex story of their own. Edward may have his own physical deformity but this book shows that each person has some form of deformity of their own they are getting through which makes everyone the same in the end. I didn't particularly like Edward at the beginning.I felt like he had a chip on his shoulder and that poor Angela was walking on egg shells not meaning to put her young foot in her mouth. Do not be fooled, this isn't a love story as such at all, more like one of detail (not just on Angela's canvas), seeking, finding, learning, investigation and realisation. I know others didn't like the ending and I believe some may have been looking for a romantic ending.I wasn't and I loved the ending.I felt you had to immerse yourself right into the book, looking outside the box to fully see and understand the ending to it's fullest.Without giving too much away, the ending was a reflection on what was happening in Edwards life at that moment in time.This is ultimately my interpretation of this fantastic book. This book was very sensitively,beautifully and cleverly written.A book for the adult mind. Not my usual cup of tea, what a surprise.A little uncomplicated gem that is certainly worth a read, and for me - a second read at some point. 4 out of 5 stars given for this one.

Review

...'just because someone is not considered normal, should they not be beautiful?'
That is definitely a line that certainly stirs the grey matter.

This book is about a young art student who whilst quietly contemplating her new art project, she befriends an older man, Edward.

Edward leads a rather bland life.Apart from Edwards job at the library, his mother is his only other staple in his life and is rather dictatorial about it too, but this is clearly a protection strategy.Edward's body encases a twisted spine but the much younger Angela only see's this as a beautiful deformity.
Angela convinces Edward to sit for her and so becomes her 'project topic'.

We, as readers are introduced to the ups and downs between these two over a period of time and although they are the main characters, the story would have soon become pretty tedious if all we read about was Angela painting Edwards picture.
The world around Edward and Angela, and how they entwine into their lives are concentrated on, and what stories they tell.Each character has a complex story of their own.
Edward may have his own physical deformity but this book shows that each person has some form of deformity of their own they are getting through which makes everyone the same in the end.
I didn't particularly like Edward at the beginning.I felt like he had a chip on his shoulder and that poor Angela was walking on egg shells not meaning to put her young foot in her mouth.
Do not be fooled, this isn't a love story as such at all, more like one of detail (not just on Angela's canvas), seeking, finding, learning, investigation and realisation.

I know others didn't like the ending and I believe some may have been looking for a romantic ending.I wasn't and I loved the ending.I felt you had to immerse yourself right into the book, looking outside the box to fully see and understand the ending to it's fullest.Without giving too much away, the ending was a reflection on what was happening in Edwards life at that moment in time.This is ultimately my interpretation of this fantastic book.
This book was very sensitively,beautifully and cleverly written.A book for the adult mind.
Not my usual cup of tea, what a surprise.A little uncomplicated gem that is certainly worth a read, and for me - a second read at some point.

4 out of 5 stars given for this one.

Alchemy: a story of perfect murder by Chris James

Read from October 22nd - November 4th 2015.

Published March 2nd 2015 by Amazon

Format Paperback - 266 pages

Review What the heck have I just read!

Firstly, WOW, Chris James,what have you done to my head.

This book is psychologically scary!!

I'm not going to tell you the story, you can read it in the synopsis and it will only be a repeat of how everyone else has told it.My review of this attention grabbing tale is the bit you really want to read.

I love watching and reading thrillers, mysteries, psychological thrillers and even a good old horror but this was something else and I loved it.

Talk about a roller coaster.It took my reading head on the most amazing twists and turns that I haven't been on in a fair while.Not a predictable read at all and when you think you know, think again, although at some points when I was on the right track, I'd soon be sent in a different direction.An intriguing plot, full of surprises, jam packed with immortality, chemistry, love and of course, alchemy.Set in Victorian England conjured up a dark, scary, unforgiving imagination that set the scene for the story enveloping the so very well developed characters.

Half way through, I said that it was clear the author had done their research on Victorian law,evident in the court room scenes.Upon further investigation it transpires that Chris James is indeed a former murder squad detective.You could see he knew what was 'in' at the time too, mentioning certain big names sporadically throughout.This however, does not detract from the story itself.I found it added to it.

I particularly liked the way Chris James constructed the story with one (the court scenes) running throughout from beginning to end and each chapter that went back to show us what occurred to get to the court action.

This is a powerful book, not for the faint hearted but if this is your genre and you like something evil, meaty, gritty and full on that you can get your teeth into and not want to put down, then this could be your 5 star book as it was mine.

I can't wait to read the sequel.

5 out of 5 stars given.

Black Rabbit Hall by Eve Chase

Read from November 7th - 12th 2015.

Published August 18th 2015 by Michael Joseph

Format Hardcover - 400 pages

Review Ok yes,another 5 stars but it is well deserved.

The blurb advertised - Amber Alton knows that the hours pass differently at Black Rabbit Hall, her London family's country estate where no two clocks read the same. Summers there are perfect, timeless. Not much ever happens. Until, one stormy evening in 1968, it does.
The idyllic world of the four Alton children is shattered. Fiercely bonded by the tragic events, they grow up fast. But when a glamorous stranger arrives, these loyalties are tested. Forbidden passions simmer. And another catastrophe looms...
Decades later, Lorna and her fiancé wind their way through the countryside searching for a wedding venue. Lorna is drawn to a beautiful crumbling old house she hazily remembers from her childhood, feels a bond she does not understand. When she finds a disturbing message carved into an old oak tree by one of the Alton children, she begins to realise that Black Rabbit Hall's secret history is as dark and tangled as its woods, and that, much like her own past, it must be brought into the light.

My thoughts -
Atmospheric, a little dark, charmingly crafted gothic mystery at it's best.
I loved the dual time line of this story.It worked well and flowed beautifully.A lot of thought went into putting this book together.It kept me in suspense all the way, not knowing which outcome would materialise.
The unkempt hall set in Cornwall sets a dark, alluring but peaceful scene that sucks you into a world where nothing is quite as it first appears.
The characters in the story are quite cliche and small segments of the story (where there was a death) felt quite rushed and cut off with no warning that my little brain couldn't quite get round it especially when the majority of the book was so well described and detailed which lends itself to the story nicely.
I think I actually love this book too much.The cover is captivating and captures the eye and wraps up it's jewel inside carefully.I may just have to read this book again and again as I felt sad when it ended.
I would fully recommend to anyone who likes a mysterious gothic almost magical feel family saga that is warm and exciting.The type of read that requires you to curl up in the corner of your sofa in the warm with the lights low, a blanket, a cuppa with the cold left outside.

Crow's Revenge (Keeper of the Realms #1) by Marcus Alexander

Read from October 18th - 25th 2014.

Published February 2nd 2012 by Puffin Books

Format	Paperback - 448 pages

Review	Oh my word, I was on a fantasy and action rollercoaster whilst reading this book. After one chapter,we had already met a big black masked ' monster', who has what he calls Shades working for him (shadows) that do his will, sliding under door frames etc,and a green skinned race called Treman who live in what seems to be a fantasy land that you can access via steps down a cliff called Bellania. Charlie Keeper is a girl who has lost her parents and lives with her grandma in her large family home. Mr Crow who is her lawyer, is a nasty, horrible, selfish man who brutally bullies her into handing over her money/inheritance by convincing her that it is for bills and things that NEED paying.He is a thief and she knows it but no matter who she tells, no one would believe her. Charlie is visited by one of the afore mentioned green skinned Tremans called Jenson who leads her to another world (Bellania), a fantasy, magical world that Jenson guides her to through doors and corridors that she never knew existed in her house. Charlie soon learns that she is a Keeper of the Realms, the realms between Bellania and the human world.She is in charge of the portal. The evil monster Bane, is after Charlie, and her pendant that she keeps around her neck not realising it is full of magic and power.She believes it is a precious gift given to her by her parents. Charlie must learn very fast her new responsibilities and power. Charlie also learns that her parents are still around, kept in a tapestry on the wall in evil Banes castle. She needs to help Bellania and try and free her parents. Marcus Alexander has one heck of an imagination with non stop fast paced action and some well thought out characters.The evil guys in the book feel cold, nasty and just down right bad.Very clever of Marcus to bring these characters jumping right off the page and straight to the reader.You could feel the atmosphere throughout this book. This book kept me on the edge of my seat and I found it very hard to put down. A lot of adult fantasy/fiction books could learn from Marcus's style of writing. Crows Revenge is very well written, with well crafted characters and a climatic finish. I wholly recommend this book to anyone who is thinking of giving it a go.It is aimed at young adults but I very much enjoyed it and couldn't wait to see what was on the other side of the page.It was so very unpredictable,surprising and full of intricate detail. A strong female lead was also a nice surprise which worked very well. A must read. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.