The Last by Hanna Jameson

The Last
by Hanna Jameson
Published by Penguin Viking (31 January 2019)
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher

Publisher's description

BREAKING: Nuclear weapon detonates over Washington
BREAKING: London hit, thousands feared dead
BREAKING: Munich and Scotland hit. World leaders call for calm

Historian Jon Keller is on a trip to Switzerland when the world ends. As the lights go out on civilisation, he wishes he had a way of knowing whether his wife, Nadia, and their two daughters are still alive. More than anything, Jon wishes he hadn't ignored Nadia's last message. 

Twenty people remain in Jon's hotel. Far from the nearest city and walled in by towering trees, they wait, they survive.

Then one day, the body of a young girl is found. It's clear she has been murdered. Which means that someone in the hotel is a killer.

As paranoia descends, Jon decides to investigate. But how far is he willing to go in pursuit of justice? And what kind of justice can he hope for, when society as he knows it no longer exists?

My verdict
The Last is post-apocalyptic fiction, yet it's really a novel of the modern age - dystopian fiction that no longer seems so unbelievable.

Twenty people appear to be the last survivors of a global nuclear attack, holed up in a remote Swiss hotel after a work conference with no way of communicating with the outside world. Historian Jon is determined to log their last days and weeks, hoping that one day someone will find his notebooks. When he finds the body of a young girl, he suspects murder. But who is killer?

The Last is a dark, disturbing and thought-provoking read. Think The Walking Dead without zombies, with characters having to work together (or not!) to survive and unsure what lies outside their newly created comfort zone. The plot is fast-paced and tense, with a perfect mixture of action, mystery, survival and sense of bewilderment and paranoia, all in a claustrophobic setting.

The book is beautifully written, highly graphic and would translate well to the big (or little) screen. It prompted so many questions of 'what if?' and 'what would I do?' as I read, and the ending was chilling.  Highly recommended!

A Legacy of Spies by John Le Carré

I am delighted to be today's stop on the blog tour for A Legacy of Spies by John Le Carré. A Legacy of Spies was published by Viking on 7 September 2017. Read my review...

A Legacy of Spies
By John Le Carré
Published by Viking (7 September 2017)

Publisher's description

Peter Guillam, staunch colleague and disciple of George Smiley of the British Secret Service, otherwise known as the Circus, has retired to his family farmstead on the south coast of Brittany when a letter from his old Service summons him to London. The reason? His Cold War past has come back to claim him. Intelligence operations that were once the toast of secret London are to be scrutinised by a generation with no memory of the Cold War. Somebody must be made to pay for innocent blood once spilt in the name of the greater good.

Interweaving past with present so that each may tell its own story, John le Carré has given us a novel of superb and enduring quality.

My verdict
There's no doubt that John Le Carré is the master of spy thrillers. Like many people, I grew up reading his books, loving the tension and intrigue of his multi-layered plots and his ability to tell an intelligent spellbinding story.

In A Legacy of Spies, I loved the mix of 'old and new' and 'past and present' and changing values and attitudes (politically and socially) over the years. It was entertaining reading how the younger characters viewed the older ones, and vice versa. The book definitely felt 'old school', with an air of nostalgia. It's as if John Le Carré was pitting his old characters against these new ones to see how they all get on - and who would have the upper hand.

The dialogue is brilliantly written, with sharp observations and descriptions of characters that made me smile. I couldn't help but admire the author's writing, plotting and characterisation. This is a 'must read' for John Le Carré fans.

I have to admit that it's been years since I read one of his books, so I 'almost' read A Legacy of Spies as a standalone. It would probably have made sense if I had recapped on The Spy Who Came in from the Cold first, as there are many references to this and previous major characters. I did struggle in a few places to understand what was going on. But some memories of past books did come flooding back, and this has now prompted me to pull the older books off the shelf.


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Do Not Become Alarmed by Maile Meloy - Blog Tour Review

I am delighted to be today's stop on the blog tour for Do Not Become Alarmed by Maile Meloy. Do Not Become Alarmed was published by Viking (Penguin) on 6 July 2017. 

Do Not Become Alarmed
By Maile Meloy
Published by Viking (6 July 2017)

Publisher's description

When Liv and Nora decide to take their husbands and children on a holiday cruise, everyone is thrilled. The ship's comforts and possibilities seem infinite. But when they all go ashore in beautiful Central America, a series of minor mishaps lead the families further from the ship's safety. 

One minute the children are there, and the next they're gone.

What follows is a heart-racing story told from the perspectives of the adults and the children, as the distraught parents - now turning on one another and blaming themselves - try to recover their children and their shattered lives. 

My verdict
Do Not Become Alarmed is well written literary fiction, focusing on parents' reactions to the disappearance of their children on an excursion trip during a two week cruise. The book highlights corruption, drugs and murder within Central America, so has some dark underlying themes.

The events are told from the perspectives of the parents and the children. I enjoyed the children's version of the events far more than the parents', finding it difficult to sympathise with, and warm to, the adults. I didn't find the book particularly emotional. However, I was intrigued enough to keep reading to find out what happened to the children and families by the end.

The families involved are all wealthy and successful. One key message from the plot seemed to be that wealth can't buy you commonsense, happiness or breeding, judging from the parents' behaviour. I wasn't totally sure why one particular thread was there, other than to show the rich-poor divide.

This book is marketed as a 'heart-racing' story, but I didn't find this to be the case. Instead, I found it to be a slow burner, focusing on family dynamics and changing friendships when dealing with every parent's worst nightmare. It took me a few chapters to get into the story, possibly because I was expecting something else - but once I realised this wasn't going to be a fast-paced read with lots of twists and turns, I focused on the vivid descriptions and atmospheric setting.

I suspect that readers who love fast-paced thrillers may be disappointed. And I also suspect that this could be a marmite book for the summer season - people may either love it or hate it, depending on their expectations.

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The Witchfinder's Sister by Beth Underdown - Blog Tour

I am delighted to be today's stop on the Blog Tour for The Witchfinder's Sister by Beth Underdown. The Witchfinder's Sister is being published by Viking on 2 March 2017. Read on for my review.


The Witchfinder's Sister

By Beth Underdown

Published by Viking (2 March 2017)

ISBN: 978-0241978030

Publisher's description

'The number of women my brother Matthew killed, so far as I can reckon it, is one hundred and six...'

1645. When Alice Hopkins' husband dies in a tragic accident, she returns to the small Essex town of Manningtree, where her brother Matthew still lives.

But home is no longer a place of safety. Matthew has changed, and there are rumours spreading through the town: whispers of witchcraft, and of a great book, in which he is gathering women's names.

To what lengths will Matthew's obsession drive him?

And what choice will Alice make, when she finds herself at the very heart of his plan?

My verdict
I really enjoyed The Witchfinder's Sister. I found the book to be highly atmospheric with very realistic narrative and dialogue in keeping with the time period in which it's set. It starts off slowly, building up the suspense until it becomes a twisty page turner that's difficult to put down.

The story centres around Alice Hopkins, recently widowed sister of Matthew, who was an English witch hunter, mainly in East Anglia. Due her own circumstances, Alice becomes trapped in her brother's home and is reliant on him for food and lodging. Soon she discovers that her brother is a monster with no heart - and that he expects her to join his quest to find witches. Does Alice have a choice?

It's not an easy read, in terms of content, and is certainly not uplifting. But it's not meant to be. Instead, it's a fascinating and gripping tale of a time when women could be arrested for witchcraft, incarcerated and hanged, just because a man viewed them with irrational suspicion. The plot is claustrophobic, vivid and oozes tension and unease.

The Witchfinder's Sister is perfect for historical fiction fans who like well-researched books with a gruesome, and slightly supernatural, theme. Highly recommended.


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My writing and editing process by Dinah Jefferies - Before the Rains Blog Tour

I am delighted to welcome Dinah Jefferies to my blog today to talk about her writing and editing process for her Blog Tour. Before the Rains is being published by Viking on 23 February 2017.

My writing and editing process

By Dinah Jefferies

I’m going to tell you about my own process of writing and editing, but please remember that everybody has their own way. The main thing we all have in common, is that any published novel will be the result of a group of people working on it as a team.

I’ve found that as I write more books the process changes, so really nothing is constant. For me the most difficult and sometimes painful part is getting the first draft down. During this period, I feel very much on my own. I may or may not have a contract to write a particular book, but it makes no difference, I am still faced with the task of writing approximately 100,000 words and, if I have a deadline, I often write even when I don’t feel like. It can be tough. I write new chapters in the mornings and catch up with research, emails, Q&As, and write blogs like this, in the afternoons. I can’t work at night as I run out of energy and, by then, my eyes and brain have had enough screen time.

I try to write the first draft quickly, because once the basis of the story is down I can then begin to dig deeper. I often don’t even know what I’ve got until somebody else sees it, and that first person is usually my agent, Caroline Hardman. She’s a terrific agent who’ll come back with essential feedback and it’s often only then that I begin to see the wider themes of the novel. The feedback can be quite surprising but this is when the first real editing begins. This is where the glaring issues are dealt with. For The Silk Merchant’s Daughter, I agreed with my agent that I would cut two point of view characters, and that meant cutting 49,000 words. Not a happy experience. For Before The Rains, I just had to add three chapters, so it’s different every time. I do enjoy the editing, because I feel I can really get to grips with the novel once I have a better idea of where I am.

Once this stage is complete, the manuscript goes to my editor, Venetia Butterfield, publishing director of Viking/Penguin. She will want to put her own stamp on the book and will usually come back to me within three or four weeks. She’s very experienced and I completely trust her judgement but, if I don’t agree with something, we’ll talk it over and reach a compromise. For Before The Rains, she suggested a final chapter I hadn’t previously considered. Her editorial suggestions are usually focused on characterisation, plot weakness, or maybe certain aspects of the story that need drawing out more fully.

Once these edits are finished, the copyeditor gets her hands on the script. This is when the nitty gritty of punctuation, any inconsistences, or timeline issues are dealt with, and I have to agree or disagree with all her proposed changes. Finally the page proofs arrive. They come to me and two other proof readers, and it’s amazing what tiny things you still find. 

So that’s my process of writing and editing. I love the pulling and shaping of a story to try to get the very best out of it. That’s what we all try to do and we couldn’t do it without a team behind us.

About Dinah Jefferies

Dinah Jefferies was born in Malaysia but moved to England at the age of nine, travelling widely throughout her life and always maintaining a love of Southeast Asia. She spent time living in a musicians' commune, and has had work publicly exhibited as an artist. Dinah’s first novel The Separation was published by Penguin in 2014. The Tea Planter’s Wife is her second novel. 

The Silk Merchant’s Daughter, was published in February 2016 and also entered Sunday Times Bestselling list. After living in Andalusia for five years, she now lives in Gloucestershire with her husband.

Find Dinah Jefferies on her official Facebook page and follow Dinah on Twitter - @DinahJefferies

About Before the Rains

Before the Rains

By Dinah Jefferies

Published by Viking (23 February 2017)

ISBN: 978-0241287088

Publisher's description

1930, Rajputana, India. Since her husband's death, 28-year-old photojournalist Eliza's only companion has been her camera. When the British Government send her to an Indian princely state to photograph the royal family, she's determined to make a name for herself.

But when Eliza arrives at the palace she meets Jay, the Prince's handsome, brooding brother. While Eliza awakens Jay to the poverty of his people, he awakens her to the injustices of British rule. Soon Jay and Eliza find they have more in common than they think. But their families - and society - think otherwise. Eventually they will have to make a choice between doing what's expected, or following their hearts. . .

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The Silk Merchant's Daughter by Dinah Jefferies

The Silk Merchant's Daughter
By Dinah Jefferies
Published by Viking/Penguin (E-book and Hardback out now; Paperback - 14 July 2016)
ISBN: 978-0241248621

Publisher's description

1952, French Indochina. Since her mother's death, eighteen-year-old half-French, half-Vietnamese Nicole has been living in the shadow of her beautiful older sister, Sylvie. When Sylvie is handed control of the family silk business, Nicole is given an abandoned silk shop in the Vietnamese quarter of Hanoi. But the area is teeming with militant rebels who want to end French rule, by any means possible. For the first time, Nicole is awakened to the corruption of colonial rule - and her own family's involvement shocks her to the core...

Tran, a notorious Vietnamese insurgent, seems to offer the perfect escape from her troubles, while Mark, a charming American trader, is the man she's always dreamed of. But who can she trust in this world where no one is what they seem?

The Silk Merchant's Daughter is a captivating tale of dark secrets, sisterly rivalry and love against the odds, enchantingly set in colonial era Vietnam.

My verdict
The Silk Merchant's Daughter is a fascinating tale of a young woman torn between two cultures, thanks to her mixed parentage. Nicole's father is a wealthy French silk merchant while her mother (who died in childbirth) was Vietnamese. The book is set at a time of turmoil in Vietnam, as militant rebels want to end French rule.

The book is beautifully descriptive, bringing 1950s Vietnam to life. I was engrossed in the culture references and political background, as the author transported me to Hanoi - with its sights, sounds and aromas. Initially Nicole knows little about her Vietnamese background. But when her father gives her an abandoned silk shop in the Vietnamese quarter, she gradually learns more about her mother's heritage and about where she herself belongs. In gaining her independence, she becomes involved in a world of corruption and espionage.

The Silk Merchant's Daughter was partly a coming of age novel, as Nicole grows from a naive teenager to a more level-headed young woman. The book is also a tale of sibling rivalry, between Nicole and her older sister Sylvie, a love story and a family saga. There were plenty of surprises throughout and it was very difficult to know which characters Nicole should trust.

I really enjoyed The Silk Merchant's Daughter and thought that the book packed a lot into its pages. I remained intrigued by the family secrets until the final page.

I received an Advance Reader Copy direct from the publisher and through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.