Book Reviews

How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease by Michael Greger

2018-03-03 This is an entertaining and compelling read, as well as being educational – with the caveat that it is clearly written to a personal bias. Gregor thinks nothing of including anecdotes and industry-funded studies that support his bias – while deriding anecdotes and industry-funded assertions that don’t. This is especial apparent when he discusses Mediterranean diets while ignoring the role of oily fish, and... Continue reading

W is for Wasted (Kinsey Millhone, #23) by Sue Grafton

2018-02-11 It isn’t a bad book – but it isn’t concise, either. There’s a scene where the only point that needs to be made is that the main character – Kinsey – isn’t sure whether to attend someone’s funeral or not. It takes *9* pages of chattering with the widow over a cup of tea about their marriage and looking at photos, etc, none of... Continue reading

Mad House: An Altearth Tale (Altearth Tales) by Ellis L. Knox

2018-01-03 This was a fun little fantasy adventure that involves a master lockpicker – Quinn-the-sprite – going to a secluded island, where powerful mages have built a sprawling building over the centuries using all sorts of spells. The problem? Someone has locked the library. Only, it’s a magical lock in a magical house where all rules of reality are constantly shifting – and Quinn might... Continue reading

Night Never Ends: A Lucas Helath Story by Martin M. Clark

2018-01-01 Martin M Clark is a brilliant writer, whose Lucas Helath stories are a tribute to 50’s detective fiction. Night Never Ends is the first in the series, and involves a bizarre murder case that only a hardboiled private eye – and a wise-cracking imp only he can see – will be able to solve. It twists and turns and develops like any pro thriller,... Continue reading

The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer

2017-11-20 An exceptional read. Far more detailed and personal than anything I’ve read so far. The one criticism is that it is clearly a novelization: which on the one hand means it is very well written, with good structure, superb descriptions, and close character engagement – but on the other, never explains how someone who claims to know little German could record so many German... Continue reading

One Man’s War by Joe Nethercott

2017-11-07 An interesting story of an RAF mechanic who spent WWII mainly in the North Africa and Italy – usually uncomfortably close to the front lines. It’s rich with anecdotes and accounts of war, which is what most readers will want – the difference being that there’s more of a working class perspective here, which especially becomes noticeable when faced with pettiness from officers. Rating:... Continue reading

Starship Mine by Peter Cawdron

2017-10-30 The positives: Really nicely written, and great emotional depth. The negatives: Felt more like a long short story than a short novel, which didn’t fully satisfy in terms of story arc. Rating: 4/5 Continue reading