Honest/unfiltered reviews and recommendations

I'm currently 17 years old and I study English Literature, Sociology and Health and Social care at A-level. I'm from England if you couldn't already tell. Anywho, I've been reading for a huge chunk of my childhood and it's my favourite passtime to do. My mental health is awful (whose isn't) and reading gives me an escape. Here are my honest and completely unfiltered reviews of the books I read. CONTENT WARNING FOR MOST POSTS.

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My current read is: You’ll be the death of me, Karen McManus

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Nothing more to tell, Karen McManus

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED!!

BLURB:

Be sure to keep your friends close .. and your secrets closer.

Four years ago, Brynn left Saint Ambrose School following the shocking murder of her favorite teacher-a story that made headlines after the teacher's body was found by three Saint Ambrose students in the woods behind their school. The case was never solved. Now that Brynn is moving home and starting her dream internship at a true-crime show, she's determined to find out what really happened.

The kids who found Mr. Larkin are her way in, and her ex-best friend, Tripp Talbot, was one of them. Without his account of events, the other two kids might have gone down for Mr. Larkin's murder. They've never forgotten what Tripp did for them that day. Just like he hasn't forgotten that everything he told the police was a lie.

Digging into the past is bound to shake up the present, and as Brynn begins to investigate what happened in the woods that day, she begins to uncover secrets that might change everything -about Saint Ambrose, about Mr. Larkin, and about her ex-best friend, Tripp Talbot.

Four years ago someone got away with murder. The most terrifying part is that they never left.

Recommended for:

•True crime fans

•Murder Mystery fans

•Young adults 13+

Personal Opinion:

I finished this book in 3 days. I have never done that before. I stayed up till 3am most days because I couldn’t put the book down.

Karen McManus will forever be one of my absolute favourite authors. One of us is lying remains my favourite book series to this day. I preordered this book months ago and started to read it the day it came, and I don’t regret a thing.

I recommend this book so so much. McManus writes in a way that words can’t explain and you’re hooked from the first chapter - sentence even.

The storyline is absolutely perfect and the characters even better. The plot twists just keep you guessing the entire time.

Words literally cant describe how perfect this book is.

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Darkness on the edge of town, Adam Christopher

All rights reserved to Adam Christopher.

BLURB:

Chief Jim Hopper reveals long-awaited secrets to Eleven about his old life as a police detective in New York City, confronting his past before the events of the hit show Stranger Things.

Christmas, Hawkins, 1984. All Chief Jim Hopper wants is to enjoy a quiet first Christmas with Eleven, but his adopted daughter has other plans. Over Hopper's protests, she pulls a cardboard box marked "New York" out of the basement- and the tough questions begin. Why did Hopper leave Hawkins all those years ago?What does "Vietnam" mean? And why has he never talked about New York? Although he'd rather face a horde of demogorgons than talk about his own past, Hopper knows that he can't deny the truth any longer. And so begins the story of the incident in New York -the last big case before everything changed.

Summer, New York City, 1977. Hopper is starting over after returning home from Vietnam. A young daughter, a caring wife, and a new beat as an NYPD detective make it easy to slip back into life as a civilian. But after shadowy federal agents suddenly show up and seize the files about a series of brutal, unsolved murders, Hopper takes matters into his own hands, risking everything to discover the truth.

Soon Hopper is undercover among New York's notorious street gangs. But just as he's about to crack the case, a blackout rolls across the boroughs, plunging Hopper into a darkness deeper than any he's faced before.

Recommended for:

•Stranger things fans

•15+ (age rating of stranger things)

Personal Opinions:

I personally didn’t enjoy this book after about halfway through. It started off really really good. It hooks you in straight away but once you hit the middle it teeters off and drags on. I did not finish this book despite loving stranger things and wanting to know more.

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The Girls I’ve Been, Tess Sharpe

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO TESS SHARPE!

Blurb:

A slick, twisty YA page-turner about the daughter of a con artist who is taken hostage in a bank heist.

Nora O’Malley’s been a lot of girls. As the daughter of a con-artist who targets criminal men, she grew up as her mother’s protégé. But when mom fell for the mark instead of conning him, Nora pulled the ultimate con: escape.

For five years Nora’s been playing at normal. But she needs to dust off the skills she ditched because she has three problems:

#1: Her ex walked in on her with her girlfriend. Even though they’re all friends, Wes didn’t know about her and Iris.

#2: The morning after Wes finds them kissing, they all have to meet to deposit the fundraiser money they raised at the bank. It’s a nightmare that goes from awkward to deadly, because:

#3: Right after they enter bank, two guys start robbing it.

The bank robbers may be trouble, but Nora’s something else entirely. They have no idea who they’re really holding hostage…

RECOMMENDED FOR:

•13+ (slight mentions of sexual assault and a lot of violence)

•Fans of crime

PERSONAL OPINION:

This book blew me away. It’s written absolutely perfectly. At the end of every chapter Sharpe leaves you on a cliffhanger which just makes it impossible for the book to be put down.

The plot line makes absolute sense and all questions are answered at the end. All except one: does this leave room for a sequel? I would be so happy with a sequel either way.

It’s being adapted into a netflix film with Millie Bobby Brown which i’m really excited for!

I really recommend this novel to everyone!!

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How to Kill your family, Bella Mackie

(I finished this a while ago so bare with me!)

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO BELLA MACKIE!

BLURB

This is the story of Grace Bernard, a twentysomething woman living in London who finds out that her birth father's family treated her mother terribly, refused to recognise her, and are what she basically considers to be a drain on society - so she sets out to murder them all, one by one.

RECOMMENDED FOR…

•Anyone aged 14+ (brief mention of k*nk and s*x clubs)

PERSONAL OPINION:

Wow. This book absolutely blew me away. I’d never even heard of Mackie before and this was just a book I decided looked good when I was shopping at the works.

The novel is written in so much description it leaves nothing to the imagination. Every question possible is answered before you have time to think and personally this is one of my favourites i’ve read.

My only ‘negative’ opinion would be: at some points it can prove to be a little slow and Mackie likes to add cliffhangers to the end of chapters. Overall, this book was so good. I cannot recommend it more and i’m so excited to see what else Mackie has in store!

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The Catcher In The Rye, J.D. Salinger

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO J.D. SALINGER.

BLURB:

The novel details two days in the life of 16-year-old Holden Caulfield after he has been expelled from prep school. Confused and disillusioned, Holden searches for truth and rails against the "phoniness" of the adult world.

I recommend to...:

-Anyone aged 13+ (as there is mention of prostitution in a few places)

Personal opinion:

In all honesty, I read this book in a week and I had absolutely no idea what the plot was actually about until I wrote the blurb for this post. It is a good book. It is humorous in places and mature in the right places.

However, the novel can be a bit boring in some places and becomes quite repetitive the further into it you get.

I did thoroughly enjoy this book but it isn't a book I'd be itching to write about or read again.

The novel portrays the difficulties of growing up very well but becomes a little ill-informed towards the end. Towards the end, Holden is written to suddenly become dizzy and sick but that isn't further explored and no explanation is given to why he is suddenly feeling this way- I would've loved to hear more about this illness and where it suddenly came from...

Overall, The Catcher In The Rye is a good and funny novel that I think everybody should have the chance to read at least once in their teenage years/young adulthood.

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“this was proof she was just a fish

and anyway an egg is not a child,

but refused when some was offered to him.

Then they put her head and her hands

in a box for burial

and someone tried to take her wedding ring,

but others stopped him,

and the ring stayed put.”

Giuseppe, Roderick Ford.

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“In a sack that grew lighter at every step

And dropped him from a bridge. There was no

Splash. Now my herd’s elf-shot. I don’t dream

But spend my nights casting ball from half-crowns

And my days here. Bless me, Father, I have sinned.

It has been an hour since my last confession.”

The Lammas Hireling, Ian Duhig.

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The Scarlett Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne.

I’ll start by saying… I usually don’t like 19th century literature but this novel completely sucked me in and made me completely unable to put it down…

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE.

BLURB:

The Scarlet Letter: A Romance is a work of historical fiction by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne, published in 1850. Set in Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony during the years 1642 to 1649, the novel tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an affair and then struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity.

I recommend to…:

•English literature students

•Anyone aged 15+ as the language may be difficult to understand.

•Anyone interested in classic novels

Personal opinion:

Like I started with, I’m usually not a fan of the ‘classics’ (the only one that I truly enjoyed was To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee) however The Scarlett Letter was everything I could ever wish it to be. My English Literature teacher always spoke highly about the novel so I decided to give it a try and it lived up to expectations!

The Scarlett Letter portrays themes of forbidden romance and unpopular religious ideology (EG the theme of ‘witchcraft’ and ‘spiritualist’ is brought up quite a lot). The storyline perfectly explains how adultery would have been viewed within Nathaniel Hawthorne’s lifetime.

Reading this novel made me realise how much society has progressed since 1850 and how accepting (I use that term loosely) higher figures in society have grown to be. The ‘Forbidden romance’ aspect was the first thing that really sucked me in and made me love the novel. The portrayal of the forbidden romance between two characters and the hidden shame within that was absolutely fantastic. During the novel, my brain was on override and theories were forever forming inside my head. All I wanted to do for the longest time was read this novel and experience the storyline further.

I honestly believe that this novel is worth a read.

[wordsofwisdomandsoul]

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“Such is frequently the fate… of the feminine character and person, when the women has encountered and lived through an experience of particular severity. If she be all tenderness, she will die. If she survive, the tenderness will either be crushed out of her, or - and the outward semblance is the same - crushed so deeply into her heart that it can never show itself more.”

The Scarlett Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorn.

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Just ordered a signed copy of Karen McManus’ new book ‘Nothing More to tell’ coming out on September 1st!! beyond excited, she’s definitely my favourite author right now ♡

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“I have spoiled this body we once shared. Look at the scars, watch the way I move…”

To my nine year old self, Helen Dunmore

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"But on one side of the portal, and rooted almost at the threshold, was a wild rose bush, covered, in this month of June, with it's delicate gems, which might be imagined to offer their fragrance and fragile beauty to the prisoner as he went in, and to condemned criminal as he came forth to his doom..."

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One of us is lying/One of us is next, Karen McManus

*CW: Murder/Suicide speculation + drug abuse*

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO KAREN MCMANUS

Blurb: (OOUIL) 'Five students go to detention. Only four leave alive.

Yale hopeful Bronwyn has never publicly broken a rule. Sports star Cooper only knows what he's doing in the baseball diamond. Bad boy Nate is one misstep away from a life of crime. Prom queen Addy is holding together the cracks in her perfect life. And outsider Simon, creator of the notorious gossip app at Bayview High, won't ever talk about any of them again.

He dies 24 hours before he could post their deepest secrets online. Investigators conclude it's no accident. All of them are suspects.

Everyone has secrets, right? What really matters is how far you'll go to protect them.'

I recommend this book to:

*Murder mystery lovers.

*Young adults aged 13+.

Personal opinion:

I found this novel hard to put down. I didn't buy it when the novel was trending on tik tok, I bought it after I watched the Netflix series and immediately wanted to know more.

One Of Us Is Lying is my favourite book that I have read in a long time and McManus builds up the tension and suspense in a successful way. The twists involved in the novel (no spoilers) play with your mind and make you question everything you previously thought you already knew. The characters are described in an accurate way which leaves you feeling attached/ with an emotional connection to them.

ONE OF US IS NEXT

Blurb: 'It is a year after the action of One of Us is Lying, and someone has started playing a game of Truth or Dare.

But this is no ordinary Truth or Dare. This game is lethal. Choosing the truth may reveal your darkest secrets, accepting the dare could be dangerous, even deadly.

The teenagers of Bayview must work together once again to find the culprit, before it's too late...'

Personal opinion:

Personally I found this book to be a little slow. At first, I found it a little difficult since the focus was surrounded around slightly different characters to the first novel. However, once the action started it was once again hard to put down.

I've struggled with reading full novels recently but the 'One of Us Is Lying' series has reignited a fire within me and reinforced my love for the literature world. This novel is laid out in a slightly different way but overall I recommend as it will keep your mind open and the twists will allow you to second guess yourself. Whenever your mind is set in one opinion, it will inevitably change within the few chapters after that.

The novel is relatively fast paced and the ending is the best ending I have read in years.

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The places I've cried in public, Holly Bourne.

*TW: Deals with issues such as emotional abuse + rape*

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO HOLLY BOURNE.

Blurb: 'Amelie fell hard for Reese. And she thought he loved her too. But she's starting to realize that real love  isn't supposed to hurt like this.

So now she's retracing their story, revisiting all the places he made her cry. Because if she works out what went wrong, perhaps she can finally learn how to get over him.'

I recommend for:

*People recovering from relationship-based trauma.

*People who aim to help those recovering from abusive relationship.

*People who wish to educate themselves on these issues in more depth.

*Young adults (15+) as certain scenes are quite mature/overwhelming.

Personal opinions: 

In my opinion, this novel is very hard hitting and extremely powerful. The themes are very hard to address for many but the way that Bourne approaches it makes it helpful to understand where things may have gone wrong in the past/current  abusive relationships. It is extremely relevant to modern day society and I believe that it will help people recover from those brutal moments in life where they feel they cannot carry on.

Bourne writes the novel in the perspective of the girl who has received the abuse; this makes it all the more powerful as it makes the emotions she is experiencing relatable to many in the same situations as the character of Amelie. Towards the end of the novel, the advice given to Amelie may become helpful in itself to others and how they should approach overcoming their trauma or end their challenging relationship/broken mindset effectively. 

My last relationship was difficult and I didn't realise until the relationship ended that what I was experiencing was in many ways emotional abuse. My partner would act very similarly to the character of 'Reese' in the novel, making this book all the more compelling to me. This novel helped me realise that what I experienced/the way I was treated was wrong and I deserve better. Reading this novel helped me accept this relationship and started my healing process.

I truly recommend this novel.