Tag: contemporary fiction

Haunted by a sense of inner emptiness, Frank Ward struggles to reconcile with his tormented past. He is aided by a series of intense encounters, as well as by an unexpected plunge into researching the life of so-called “Good Nazi”, Albert Speer.

My thoughts:

Frank returns to the Spanish village he spent a holiday in as a young student; now a published author, he searches for his next subject, a historian, he becomes fascinated by the story of Albert Speer’s driver, who recuperated in the village after being repatriated from Russia.

Frank becomes friends with Bruno, a pianist, and they discuss Speer over and over, much to the boredom of Bruno’s wife, Frank’s landlady and other women. When Paloma, Bruno’s daughter, arrives back in the village, she and Frank begin to fall in love.

The switches back and forth from first to third person narration are interesting, they add to the unsettling subject matter, the life of Albert Speer, Hitler’s architect, and a man who built his own myth, that of being a “good Nazi” while in Spandau prison for twenty years. Frank and Bruno are obsessed by him and the weak link to the village where they are. They endlessly debate whether he was a liar (as shown after his death) or as he wanted to be seen – ignorant of the horrors going on around him.

It’s a rather redundant debate, one quick Google search would have answered their questions, and I think that’s why the other characters get a bit fed up with them. Paloma, who actually knew the recuperating driver, tolerates it slightly better than her mother.

But Frank seems to be one of those people who broods on the past, their own included. He thinks about his previous trip to this village, to stay with his friend Juan, and the girl he met then. His Speer obsession becomes so all consuming it stops his melancholy.

It’s an interesting book, beautifully written, even if I got a bit bored of their fixation on one of the chief Nazis, and the fact that we know there’s so such thing as a “good” one.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

You can find almost anything in a charity shop, but can you find love?

You can certainly find friendship and there is both laughter and tears ahead when 19yr old Zaffron, lonely, anxious and without direction, meets Blaire Daintry, good-looking, charming, and gay.

Both volunteers in the charity shop, he has a hidden agenda, she has secrets, but they are friends from the start, despite Blaire’s constant sparring with Ida, the stern, good-hearted older volunteer who Zaffron admires. And perhaps Ida has secrets too.

Together with other victims of the city’s housing crisis, Blaire and Zaffron set up a safe and happy home. Secure at last, she tells him of the dreadful incident in her childhood that has marred her life, but not even his total acceptance gives her the confidence to start a relationship with an attractive and decent young army sergeant who falls in love with her.

Is it fear of the truth coming out that holds her back? Or is there some other reason, buried too deep in her heart for her to recognise?

Amazon UK Amazon US

I was born and grew up in Lancashire, gained several nursing qualifications and had the privilege of a long and varied nursing career, briefly in the Royal Army Nursing Service abroad, mainly in the NHS in UK.

True love and a happy family came my way and now I have the time to read, write and remember.

Facebook Instagram Website

My thoughts:

Some years ago I used to be a deputy manager in a charity shop – we had some right characters in the volunteers. There was Mrs K, who acted like she was the Queen and a bit of sweeping or actually learning how to use the till was beneath her. Then there were B and L, two lovely ladies who were best pals and came in together and gossiped their way through one morning every week – they were great fun.

When Zaffron volunteers in her local charity shop, she meets some interesting and quite eccentric people, it took me right back. A lot of volunteers are older, more commonly women than men, and shops always want younger people to help with some of the larger jobs – sorting stock, window displays, culling unsold goods. That’s what I started out doing.

Zaffron is a bit adrift in her life but volunteering boosts her confidence, gives her new friends from different backgrounds and helps her work out what she wants to do. She also takes a GCSE English class, getting some qualifications to help her get ahead.

Her friendship with Blaire is a bit uneven but helps her too – having a confidante allows her to work through some of her past. She really grows as a person through the course of the novel.

I enjoyed reading about her growth and hopes for the future, as well as the cast of the shop. It really reminded me of my time at the charity shop and the overall decency of most humans.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

One summer night in Wisconsin, the lives of two ten-year-old boys are changed forever…

Tired of seeing his best friend Dale Breadwin abused by his alcoholic father, Fischer Branson takes action. A gunshot rings out, and Bread and Fish flee into the woods. They build a raft, but the river quickly leads them into even greater danger.

In their wake travel a group of adults – each determined to save the boys from the terrors of Ironsford Gorge.

The further they go, the more the wilderness starts to change them in profound and unexpected ways. And when they reach the edge of the Gorge itself, they begin to understand the true violence and beauty of the natural world, and its ability to heal.

No matter where you run danger will always follow…

My thoughts:

This was a beautifully moving, sad book about love, friendship and the unbreakable bonds between people.

Fish and Bread are each other’s best friend and closer than brothers, when Fish rescues his friend from his abusive father, the boys go on the run, thinking only of the nightmare of punishment, not the fact that they are in fact, loved.

The people who love them follow, Fish’s grandfather Teddy, the sheriff Cal, Fish’s mum and Tiff. These adults fight through rapids and hostile forest to find the two boys and save them from further harm. Along the way the disparate pairings bond and develop deeper understandings of themselves.

I’ll be honest, I was pretty close to tears towards the end, the writing is so moving and fraught with emotion. Fish and Bread are so innocent and brave and deep down kind, gentle boys that the world will try to break. The adults are also decent, loving, good people who want only to protect the boys so much they’re willing to risk everything for them.

Elements of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer, other young boys out in the wilderness, abound. An elegy for the innocence of boyhood. Tender and bittersweet.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

Sometimes it’s the things we don’t say that we need others to hear the loudest . . .

Izzy has always taken everything in her stride but motherhood is proving more difficult than she thought. She keeps telling herself it’s just a phase but the dark clouds are starting to appear.

Neighbour and widower Arthur might be in the winter of his life but he’s not ready to be packed off to a care home. He’s determined to do things his way.

When Izzy hears about Arthur’s big move, she offers to help. But Arthur isn’t telling her the whole story. It takes courage to admit you need a friend and when you feel invisible, all you need is a ray of hope. After all, what if the best is yet to come?

My thoughts:

This was a sweet, moving story about friendship and life. Arthur thinks he’s ready to join his beloved Pearl, but then he meets neighbour Izzy and her newborn daughter Evie, who help him see that life doesn’t have to be over.

Both Izzy and Arthur need help, and their bond provides so much to them both. Their intergenerational friendship is lovely and genuine. It made me think of my grandparents who I miss a lot as I haven’t seen them in such a long time. Older people have so many interesting stories and knowledge to share, a wealth of experience. We all should tap into that if we can.

This was a perfect book to curl up and read, some chocolate and tissues at hand.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.