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On the shelf: August 2022 reads

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I binge read my way through August with a total of 14 books! I read:

  • The Idea of You by Robinne Lee
  • The Truth about Lisa Jewell by Will Brooker
  • A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins
  • The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey
  • An Unfamiliar Landscape by Amanda Huggins (short story collection – proof)
  • The Drift by C J Tudor (proof)
  • Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maas
  • What I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton
  • The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell
  • Both of You by Adele Parks
  • Magpie by Elizabeth Day
  • The Secrets of the Storm Forest: The Strangeworlds Travel Agency #3 by L D Lapinski
  • Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche
  • The Road Trip by Beth O’Leary

The Idea of You was a Richard and Judy pick and a fun read. It’s a romance between a woman in her late 30s and a member of a boyband with all the trials and tribulations of a relationship under the spotlight.

The Truth about Lisa Jewell is a non-fiction book charting a year in the life of bestselling author, Lisa Jewell. I enjoyed the insight into her writing process and her moments of doubt and triumph. This book would particularly appeal to writers.

The Mermaid of Black Conch was a beautifully written story which stayed with me long after I finished it. I enjoyed the different voices in this book and the way it explores themes of misogyny and colonialism through a traditional mermaid tale.

An Unfamiliar Landscape was a review copy of Amanda Huggins’ latest collection of short stories. Huggins’ atmospheric and evocative prose has the power to transport you to places all over the globe while tunnelling deep into your soul. The tiniest details make the greatest impact as Huggins explores grief, relationships and self-discovery. A masterclass in short form fiction.

C J Tudor is one of my favourite writers so I practically mugged her at Harrogate Crime Writing Festival for a proof of her latest novel, The Drift, which will be out in January 2023. This is quite a departure for C J Tudor in terms of genre but has the same page-turning element of her other books, with a clever twist.

Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maas was recommended to me by author Abby Davies, and I thought it was absolutely brilliant. I have also bought the workbook that goes with it and am making my way through it. Maas dissects every aspect of what makes a novel become a bestseller and encourages you to dedicate yourself to improving your own writing. Following all the advice in this book will be hard work, but I think it will be worth it! Definitely one I will be rereading many times.

Magpie by Elizabeth Day was one of the best books I read this month. It’s very well written and very dark. I loved the twist and the conclusion. It was a very accomplished thriller, and I am looking forward to reading her other books.

I’m really pleased that I have read Half of a Yellow Sun because I didn’t know much about the civil war in Nigeria in the 1960s. It was a very distressing read at times and I struggled with it for that reason, but I was glad I persevered. I loved the characters who will stay with me for a very long time.

After that I needed a lighter read, and I really enjoyed The Road Trip by Beth O’Leary. Imagine spending a long car journey to a wedding with your ex! That’s the situation Addie and Dylan find themselves in this romantic comedy.

An interview with… J A Corrigan

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I am delighted to welcome fellow crime writer, Julie-Ann Corrigan to my blog. Writing as J A Corrigan, Julie-Ann has published three brilliant psychological thrillers: Falling Suns, The Nurse and The Bad Sister as well as historical fiction under her pen name, Jules Hayes.

Please introduce yourself and your published works

Hi Sarah, and thanks so much for hosting me on your blog.

My name is Julie-Ann Corrigan and I write psychological suspense thrillers as JA Corrigan.

My debut thriller, Falling Suns, was published in 2016 by Headline Accent – a disturbing story about a mother dealing with the abduction and subsequent brutal murder of her young son. The story charts ex-detective Rachel Dune’s quest for revenge and retribution.

My second thriller, The Nurse, was published by Canelo in May 2021.

Again, it’s a story with a strong female protagonist (I like to think this is my literary signature!) – Rose Marlowe. The story opens with Rose being sentenced to 20 years in prison for the murder of a patient in her care. Rose pleaded guilty, but when washed-up journalist Theo Hazel begins visiting her in prison hoping for a ‘scoop’ he questions if in fact she is guilty of the crime. As Rose’s story unfolds, Theo’s intuition turns into hard facts, which he can’t ignore. Is Rose innocent, or is she manipulating Theo. Is she a cold-blooded killer, and a psychopath, or is she a victim of circumstance?

The Bad Sister is my third thriller, and my second  novel published with Canelo. The book released in April 2022.

This time I have 3 strong female protagonists – sisters, Natalie, Jessica and Teresa Keane. Narrated in 2 timelines, with 3 viewpoints (each sister), this is very much my Rubik Cube novel, as well as my lockdown book. I wonder sometimes if the two are connected!

The story opens in 1991 when the Keane family are throwing a party at the family home, the luxurious Raven House, for Teresa’s graduation and engagement. But when a young girl’s body is found on neighbouring Raven Island during the celebrations the family, instead of turning to each other, turn against each other. In the coming years the sisters become estranged, only brought back together more than 20 years later by another female family member, Natalie’s daughter. As the 3 sisters’ secrets begin to unravel, at last they confide in each other, with earth shattering consequences – and the reveal of the final Keane family secret.

When did you start writing? Can you tell me about your journey to publication?

I began writing in 2010, starting with short stories. I was lucky and these stories were published. In 2012 I began writing my first novel, a modern historical thriller set during the Spanish Civil War (I’m a history graduate.) This book was finally published under my pen name, Jules Hayes, in March 2021.

Buy Falling Suns from Amazon

I began writing my first psychological thriller in 2013, this became Falling Suns. I went on to write another historical novel (which I self-published), and then I wrote a genre-straddler, set in Poland/Auschwitz in 1943 and present day UK – a dark thriller and with a detective! This book still sits in my drawer. We all have one… one day I hope it finds the light of day!

In 2018 I began writing The Nurse (although during its conception it did have another title!) This is the book that found me my agent, Camilla Shestopal.

In 2020-21 I wrote The Bad Sister.

What were the pivotal moments so far in your writing career and what have you learned from them?

Buy The Nurse from Waterstones

Eliciting a standing ovation at an Open Mike night at the Hay Literary festival, and at the very beginning of my writing journey, and before I had a complete first manuscript. I thought I’d cracked it and I’d be JK Rowling in no time. Wrong! I think it taught me early on to take these things with a pinch of salt. Don’t take yourself too seriously.

My most recent pivotal moment was when Camilla (my agent) signed me with The Nurse. It’s a book I took a chance on writing – several people during its conception told me it would never be published – and so when the Canelo team offered a contract for the manuscript it was a very sweet moment, and also made me realise that a writer really does have to write what they want to write. Passion, enthusiasm and authenticity shine through.

What kind of research did you need to do for your latest novel, The Bad Sister, and how did you go about it?

Buy The Bad Sister from Waterstones

The Bad Sister is set on the River Thames, and I was inspired by the location (near to where I live.) I was also inspired by people and families I’ve come into contact with over the years as my child was growing up – however, the story is utterly fictitious!

I did a fair amount of research into what it entails to be a barrister (Teresa’s character) and also a psychiatrist (Jessica’s character.) The original title for the novel was The Psychiatrist, which I rather like, as the plot pivots on what happens to Jessica, but ultimately, the novel was better served by a title signposting family dynamics within the story.

I also had a lot of research help from a criminal court judge, who read the relevant chapters for veracity. She is an amazing woman, who also encouraged me to be a little more edgy with the plot, explaining that much worse happens in real life!

With all of my books I tend to do a lot of research before and whilst writing them.  

Who are your favourite authors?

I have eclectic reading tastes, so I have many favourite authors!

In the thriller genre, my favourites include Alex Marwood, Barbara Vine, Patricia Highsmith, Erin Kelly, Fiona Cummins, and Minnette Walters.

I love DM Thomas (The White Hotel), Kate Atkinson and Cormac McCarthy. Thomas Harris, early Stephen King. Love John Irving, Murakami and yes, Ishiguru. Madeline Miller, Anne Patchett and Michel Faber.

What advice would you give to other people wanting to write?

Sit down and get the words down. I recently began working with a mentee, who was ‘thinking’ about starting a 1st novel. I told him to just write, that I had no care how bad it might be, because there was no way either of us could make it better until he wrote something.

For what it’s worth, with this particular writer, this advice was extremely effective. A big achievement for me (and him) would be to see him secure an agent, and a publisher. The circle for me would be complete.

Write, read. Write, read, and repeat, and live your best life at the same time (interaction with the world is imperative to authentic writing.) Try to find someone who is able to mentor you in those early stages, giving you the latitude to write a story you want to write, with no self consciousness, no inner critic, no negative vista.

Be authentic, to yourself and to your future readers.

Come off social media!

Finally, what are you working on now?

Currently I’m working on a contemporary thriller, and again one of the lead characters is a strong female protagonist, but there is also a detective (a male second lead), and several gruesome murders!

The novel’s themes encompass a pretty zeitgeist topic, as well as honour, love and loyalty. I plan a series with this book. I’m very excited about it.   

You can find out more about J A Corrigan on her website: jacorrigan.com or follow her on social media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/juliannwriter 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jacorrigan

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/corriganjulieann/

On the Shelf: June 2022 reads

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In June 2022, I read:

  • The Passengers by John Marrs
  • How to Write Like Tolstoy by Richard Cohen
  • The Nurse by J A Corrigan
  • One August Night by Victoria Hislop
  • Not a Happy Family by Shari Lapena
  • The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell
  • The Castaways by Lucy Clarke
  • The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

I was quite looking forward to the advent of driverless cars until I read The Passengers by John Marrs! This is a high-concept thriller about a future world in which driverless cars are the norm. But what happens if they get hacked? This is a fast-paced novel that kept me gripped until the end.

How to Write Like Tolstoy covers all the key aspects of writing a book: plot, structure, character, endings, and polishing prose. It takes examples from classic literature and explains the techniques great authors use to create their works. I enjoyed this book, picked up loads of ideas, and would recommend it to other writers.

I read The Nurse by J A Corrigan because I appeared on a panel with her at Essex Book Festival in June. This is an excellent thriller, told from the point of view of a woman who has confessed to a murder and a journalist who doesn’t believe she’s telling the truth. I loved how the past unravels and the complex relationships between the characters.

One August Night by Victoria Hislop is the long-awaited sequel to The Island. I enjoyed returning to Crete in the late 1950s. The leper colony of Spinalonga has now closed, and the former occupants have returned home, but this brings about major consequences for the people they left behind. I enjoyed this book but would recommend reading The Island first, if you haven’t already.

Shari Lapena never disappoints, and Not a Happy Family is another page-turner. A wealthy couple are found dead in their luxurious home and a number of suspects are set to benefit from their inheritance. But whodunnit? Another great novel from one of my favourite writers, I read this in a couple of days.

The Family Upstairs is the first Lisa Jewell thriller that I’ve read, but it won’t be the last! A great plot with complex characters and evocative settings. I loved all the contrasts in this book, and I particularly liked the character of Henry. The sequel is out now, and I can’t wait to read it.

The Castaways by Lucy Clarke has been on my Kindle for ages, and I can’t believe it took me so long to read it! I absolutely loved this book which has a Lost vibe (but makes more sense) and I am excited to discover a new author. I will definitely be reading her next book, which has just come out, as well as her backlist.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides is one of my favourite psychological thrillers, so I had high expectations of The Maidens. The two books are quite different, and the book I found myself drawing the most parallels to was The Secret History by Donna Tartt. The books share many of the same elements: an elite group of Classics students, an enigmatic tutor and a murdered student. I liked all the references to Greek mythology and the perspective of the investigating group therapist. Although I guessed the killer quite early on, there was plenty of intrigue to keep me turning the pages.

My top picks for National Crime Reading Month 2022

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June is National Crime Reading Month and here are six of the best crime fiction books I’ve read so far this year.

The Dying Day by Vaseem Khan is the second in his Malabar House mysteries set in post-partition India. I loved this books because it reads like a complicated puzzle that you have to solve. I also love the main character, Parsis.

Bullet Train by Kotaro Isaka is a fast paced thriller featuring five assassins. The best way to describe it would be it’s like reading a Quentin Tarantino film. Brilliant characters and a real page turner.

The Man on the Street by Trevor Wood is the first in a series sensitively exploring themes of homelessness and PTSD. Jimmy witnesses a murder, but will anyone believe him? Also features a wonderful dog called Dog.

I have enjoyed all four books by C J Tudor so far but I think The Burning Girls is her best. Expertly weaving horror and crime, this is a masterclass in character and plot.

Shari Lapena never disappoints and Not a Happy Family is another page turner. A rich couple are found dead in their luxury home and several people are set to benefit from an inheritance. But whodunnit?

Slightly cheating because I haven’t finished it yet but The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell is absolutely brilliant! A great plot with complex characters and evocative settings. Loving all the contrasts in this book.

On the Shelf: May 2022 reads

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I read a lot of books in May!

  • Keep Them Close by Sophie Flynn (proof)
  • Letters from a Stoic by Seneca
  • Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport
  • Crossing the Lines by Amanda Huggins (re-read)
  • The Bad Sister by J A Corrigan
  • That Night by Gillian McAllister
  • Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy (re-read)
  • The Burning Girls by C J Tudor

Keep Them Close is Sophie Flynn’s second novel and is due out in July 2022. It’s a gripping and intense psychological thriller, exploring the double-edged sword of anonymous internet forums. Chilling, creepy and frighteningly plausible with a clever twist. Well worth a read!

Considering there are more than 2,000 years between the publication dates of Letters from a Stoic by Seneca and Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport, you might think they wouldn’t have much in common, but you’d be wrong! I was surprised how much I picked up from Seneca’s letters about handling the ups and downs of daily life. I underlined a lot of passages (sorry!) to come back to later.

I also found Digital Minimalism eye-opening in its explanation of how social media platforms and apps are designed to make sure you spend as much time as possible on them. I think we all know this on some level, but it doesn’t stop you getting sucked in. There are some good strategies in this book to tear you away from your devices. I managed to follow some, but not all, of the advice and it is recommended if you are worried about how much time you spend online.

In May, I did an event at Marsden Library with author Amanda Huggins, so I reread her novella, Crossing the Lines. This is a coming-of-age road-trip story set in the American mid-west in the 1970s. Beautifully written with wonderful descriptions of the American landscape and some unforgettable characters.

I am appearing at Essex Book Festival in June in conversation with J A Corrigan, so I took the opportunity to read her latest novel, The Bad Sister. This is a gripping thriller about the relationship between three surviving sisters from a toxic family, and a tragic event that reverberates through their adult lives. It has some parallels with Gillian McAllister’s novel That Night, in which three siblings cover up a murder in Italy. The siblings are very close, but can they really trust each other?

Jude the Obscure is one of my favourite novels of all time, but I hadn’t read it in a while. It’s always a pleasure to return to the classics as an adult because you read them so differently than you did when you first encounter them as a teenager. I remember really identifying with Jude as he struggled to achieve his ambitions of becoming a scholar, but this time I was intrigued by the women in his life and the difficult decisions they had to make. The book has such a tragic ending which still has the capacity to shock even though I knew it was coming.

C J Tudor is one of my favourite writers. I have loved all her books, but I think The Burning Girls might be my favourite so far. The main character is a vicar who moves to a country parish and soon discovers some pretty dark secrets. It has a bit of horror intertwined with a gripping thriller and I absolutely loved it!   

On the Shelf: April 2022 reads

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In April 2022, I read a lot of crime fiction:

  • The Monogram Murders by Sophie Hannah
  • Mother Loves Me by Abby Davies
  • I’ll Never Tell by Casey Kelleher
  • The Man on the Street by Trevor Wood
  • Do No Harm by Jack Jordan (proof).

And one book for research:

  • Clay Models and Stone Carving by Irene Dancyger.

The Monogram Murders is the first in Sophie Hannah’s continuation of Agatha Christie’s Poirot series. True to Agatha Christie’s style, this is a golden-age puzzle mystery involving three apparently identical (but not in Poirot’s eyes!) murders in a London hotel. It will keep you guessing from start to finish and was a lot of fun to read.

I appeared on a Facebook Live panel for the UK Crime Book Group in April with fellow crime writers, Casey Kelleher and Abby Davies. I had already read Abby’s latest book, The Cult, so took the opportunity to read her debut Mother Loves Me. The Cult was one of my favourite books last year and Mother Loves Me is also brilliant. Both books are intense, creepy and claustrophobic. Recommended!

Casey’s latest novel I’ll Never Tell is a departure from her gangland novels and I really enjoyed it. Both writers are really good at capturing a child’s voice and creating gripping and disturbing narratives. There are some great twists in I’ll Never Tell.

I was a little apprehensive about reading The Man on the Street because I work in the homelessness sector, and I was worried about how it might be portrayed. I have to say that Trevor Wood is spot on with his empathetic depiction of life on the streets, the characters, some of the situations they end up in and the challenges they face. This was a great thriller with fantastic characters, and I particularly loved the inclusion of Dog. I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

I picked up Do No Harm by Jack Jordan at Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Festival in Harrogate last summer, but I have only just read it. This is a high-octane thriller from the start which leaves the reader constantly asking the question ‘what would I do in this situation?’. I liked the way all the characters were flawed in some way, but you were still rooting for them.

I borrowed Clay Models and Stone Carving from the library for some research into one of my characters for book four. He is a stone mason, so I needed to understand exactly how you go about sculpting stone. It was completely fascinating and made me really think about the structures I walk past every day without noticing!

On the Shelf: March 2022 reads

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In March 2022, I read:

  • The Dying Day by Vaseem Khan (The Malabar House Mysteries #2)
  • Bullet Train by Kotaro Isaka
  • The House of Killers by Samantha Lee Howe
  • Kill or Die by Samantha Lee Howe
  • Lives of the Stoics by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman

The Dying Day by Vaseem Khan is the second in The Malabar House Mysteries starring Inspector Persis Wadia. Set in post-partition Bombay, this thriller revolves around the disappearance of a precious manuscript. A series of riddles sets our intrepid detective on the trail of a murderer.

I really enjoyed the historical detail in this novel and the way it is weaved around a gripping plot but mostly I just love the character of Persis and her budding relationship with forensic scientist Archie Blackfish. I’m really looking forward to the next one in the series.

Then it was all about the assassins!

I started by reading Bullet Train by Kotaro Isaka. Five assassins are on a bullet train all with different agendas. The experience of reading this book was a lot like watching a Quentin Tarantino film. I loved the characters particularly the sinister teenage killer, The Prince. I read this in one sitting and was completely gripped from start to finish.

I have also been watching Killing Eve, season four on BBC One. If you’re a fan of the series, I would highly recommend The House of Killers trilogy by Samantha Lee Howe.

The first of the series, The House of Killers, was a re-read for me. It’s a twisty read featuring female assassin Neva and MI5 agent Michael who are irresistibly drawn to each other. I am now about two thirds of the way through the second book, Kill or Die and really enjoying it.

On a completely different note, I am also reading Lives of the Stoics by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman. I am finding it fascinating to read about the lives of Ancient Romans and Greeks who practised Stoicism. It’s amazing how many parallels there are between their lives and modern lives. We still seem to be wrestling with the same problems!

On the Shelf: February 2022 reads

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In February 2022, I read an eclectic mix of books: three psychological thrillers, a classic and a couple of non-fiction titles.

I read:

  • Two Wrongs by Mel McGrath
  • The Weekend Escape by Rakie Bennett
  • The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse
  • Dracula by Bram Stoker
  • The Monk who sold his Ferrari by Robin Sharma
  • Lessons in Stoicism by John Sellars

The psychological thrillers all had very different settings – Two Wrongs is set in a fictional university and involves a spate of suicides among female students; The Weekend Escape is set on a stormy island off the coast of North-West England; and The Sanatorium is set in a creepy hotel, a former sanatorium, in snowy Switzerland. I enjoyed them all, but The Weekend Escape was my favourite as it was so fast paced!

I bought Dracula on a recent trip to Whitby. I hadn’t read it before, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I particularly liked the character of Mina and the use of setting and atmosphere to add to the tension. I thought Stoker made effective use of multiple narration and I liked how the story unfolds through different perspectives.

I read The Monk who sold his Ferrari by Robin Sharma after reading The 5AM Club. There is quite a lot of cross-over between the two books, but both are worth reading, particularly if you are looking for some focus in a very distracting world! At the heart of The Monk who sold his Ferrari is a rather odd allegory involving a garden, a lighthouse and a sumo wrestler (!) which is, at the very least, memorable! I have tried to adopt some of the principles Sharma advocates, but I am finding the early starts very challenging to stick to.

Lessons in Stoicism is quite a short book and very much an introduction to Stoicism. It was an enjoyable read but I would have preferred something more in-depth as I was familiar with most of the concepts in it.

I am now turning my attention to The Dying Day by Vaseem Khan, who is rapidly becoming one of my favourite writers. This is the second in the Malabar House mystery series set in post-partition India and it is really good so far! I love the main character, Inspector Persis Wadia, and all the historical details which feel meticulously researched.  

What are you reading this month?

On the Shelf: January 2022 reads

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I started 2022 with some cracking reads!

In January, I read:

  • The Family Tree by Sairish Hussain
  • Call of the Penguins by Hazel Prior
  • The Survivors by Jane Harper
  • A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

The Family Tree is a story of love, loss and family. Amjad is a single dad raising his children with the help (and interference) of their grandmother. The opening chapter is particularly poignant as Amjad cradles his baby daughter, overwhelmed by the sense of responsibility of looking after two young children while struggling with his grief.

The novel then follows the family over the next 20 years as the children grow up and become young adults, navigating the complexities of race, religion and family in a West Yorkshire city. I have worked in Bradford for nearly the entire time covered in this book, so I knew a lot of the locations and events, and I enjoyed reading about them from a different perspective. I loved the way the storylines were weaved together, and I was rooting for all the characters. Recommended.

Call of the Penguins is the sequel to Away with the Penguins which I thoroughly enjoyed last year. Octogenarian Veronica McCreedy is now the star of a TV documentary and travels to the Falklands with her charming co-host, nine-year-old Daisy. There are relationship problems between Terry and Veronica’s grandson Patrick to sort out and a journey into the past as he searches for more information about his father. I can’t get enough of this series. I hope there’s another book on the way!

The Survivors is set in a coastal town in Tasmania and Harper’s descriptions of the windswept coastline are superb. A body is found on the beach and links are soon drawn to a teenaged girl who went missing years ago. Everyone in the town has something to hide, including Keiran who has recently returned to help his parents move house. This is a classic whodunnit, but while I enjoyed the mystery, it was the setting that really made this book for me.

I think I have read A Discovery of Witches at least 10 times now! For me, it’s very much a comfort read, an escape from the real world and into one dominated by witches, vampires and daemons. The first of a trilogy, A Discovery of Witches takes us to Oxford, rural France and the Highlands of Scotland all from the perspective of ‘creatures’ who live in plain sight. I think what I love about this series is that it is unashamedly academic – there are so many details of history, genetics, religion and science that are weaved together in this parallel universe.

Another book I read was The 5AM Club by Robin Sharma but I think I need a separate blog post for that! I will see if I can stick with it for a bit longer first.