My Review for No One Saw It Coming by Susan Lewis, read by Helen Stern

"How could he have betrayed his beautiful wife like that?"

This was one of my January listens for another one of @hook.me.a.book challenges. This time it's the #LetsEarItAudiobookChallenge.

I'm pretty sure this is my first Susan Lewis book, and I really enjoyed it. 😊 Of course, I spent most of the story trying to second-guess what was actually happening, but apart from a few inklings, I didn’t see the twist coming at all until it was fully explained. 😲

No One Saw It Coming is told from multiple points of view, but I never felt confused. It was easy to move between perspectives, and I very quickly became invested in each character and desperate to know what would happen next. 📖💭

A great deal of research has clearly gone into the mental health aspects of this novel, and they’re portrayed both sensitively and realistically. It’s quite frightening, really, how sometimes we just can’t understand how someone else’s brain is wired. 🧠

Now that I’ve read one, I’ll definitely be picking up more Susan Lewis novels in the future. 🙌

Thank you to HarperCollins and Libro.fm for the opportunity to listen to and review No One Saw It Coming. 🎧✨

About the Book

Secrets lie at the heart of every family…

When the unthinkable happens…

Hanna’s world is crumbling.

An unimaginable crime has been committed, and everyone’s looking for someone to blame. Her loved ones are under suspicion.

Now Hanna must work out who is threatening her family – before it’s too late.

No one could have seen this coming…

About Susan

Susan Lewis is the bestselling author of over forty books across the genres of family drama, thriller, suspense and crime. She is also the author of Just One More Day and One Day at a Time, the moving memoirs of her childhood in Bristol during the 1960s. Following periods of living in Los Angeles and the South of France, she currently lives in Gloucestershire with her husband James, stepsons Michael and Luke, and mischievous dogs Coco and Lulu.

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My Review for The Matchbox Girl by Alice Jolly

“An autistic psychopath is the human being who is most fundamentally himself. He cannot be anything but original and spontaneous. He is uninhibited by the collective social will.”

The Matchbox Girl is a story based on true events in Austria 🇦🇹 during the Second World War. Our protagonist, Adelheid, has been placed in a specialist paediatric clinic 🏥 for children with a range of mental illnesses.

Adelheid tells her story as she lives it 📝. At times it feels chaotic and random, yet she makes meticulous notes about everything that happens around her—sometimes to the detriment of those sharing her world 😬. She follows the rules carefully and does exactly as she’s instructed, until she begins to realise 🤔 that maybe she needs to follow her own rules instead.

I initially found The Matchbox Girl difficult to read—not because of the subject matter, but because of the haphazard use of capital letters 😕. This felt like a deliberate stylistic choice, intended to reflect Adelheid’s fragmented mind, but it soon became normal and I stopped noticing it altogether 🙂

I particularly enjoyed reading about Dr A (Dr Asperger) 🧠 and the early identification of the disorder. While much of this book makes for unhappy and uncomfortable reading 💔, I think it’s essential that we understand what happened in our past—and why it still matters today.

Thank you to Bloomsbury Publishing for the gifted copy of The Matchbox Girl by Alice Jolly.

About the Book

From the multi-award-winning author - a beautiful, stunningly ambitious novel telling the story of a young girl's battle for survival and search for the truth in occupied Vienna 

Adelheid Brunner does not speak. She writes and draws instead and her ambition is to own one thousand matchboxes. Her grandmother cannot make sense of this, but Adelheid will stop at nothing to achieve her dream. She makes herself invisible, hiding in cupboards with her pet rat, Franz Joseph, listening in on conversations she can't fully comprehend.

Then she meets Dr Asperger, a man who lets children play all day and who recognises the importance of matchboxes. He invites Adelheid to come and live at the Vienna paediatric clinic, where she and other children like herself will live under observation.

But the date is 1938 and the place is Vienna – a city of political instability, a place of increasing fear and violence. When the Nazis march into the city, a new world is created and difficult choices must be made.

Why are the clinic's children disappearing, and where do they go? Adelheid starts to suspect that some of Dr Asperger's games are played for the highest stakes. In order to survive, she must play a game whose rules she cannot yet understand.

Triumphant and tragic, soulful and spirited, The Matchbox Girl is a burningly brilliant book – that brings the stories of a generation of lost children into the light.

About Alice

Alice Jolly is a novelist and playwright. She published a memoir in 2015 called Dead Babies and Seaside Towns, which won the Pen Ackerley Prize, and one of her short stories won the 2014 V. S. Pritchett Memorial Prize, awarded by The Royal Society of Literature. She has also published two novels with Simon and Schuster and four of her plays have been produced by the professional company of the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham. She teaches creative writing on the Mst at Oxford University.

Her novel Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile was published by Unbound in June 2018. It was a Walter Scott Prize recommended novel for 2109, was on the longlist for the Ondaatje Prize awarded by the Royal Society of Literature and was runner up for the £30,000 Rathbones Folio Prize. Her novel Between the Regions of Kindness was published by Unbound in April 2019. In 2021 she was received an O. Henry Award for her short story ‘From Far Around They Saw Us Burn.’ She published a short story collection with Unbound in March 2023 entitled From Far Around They Saw Us Burn.

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My Review for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey, read by Tom Parker

“No, my friend. We are lunatics from the hospital up the highway, psycho-ceramics, the cracked pots of mankind."

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was November’s read for #classiclitbookclub, and I opted for the audiobook. I found a great copy on Libby narrated by Tom Parker, who absolutely nailed it 🎧.

I went in with zero expectations — classic me, never reading the synopsis 😜 — and it’s not a book I ever came across in school. So I was genuinely surprised when the opening chapters gave me The Green Mile vibes (I know it’s a book too, but I’ve only seen the movie!) 🎬.

The story was incredibly eye-opening. From what I understand, treatments like electric shock therapy, lobotomies, and simply locking people away for having mental health issues were all considered normal at the time ⚡🧠. Horrifying, honestly. And the wildest part is that it really wasn’t that long ago. We’ve come such a long way since then.

Nurse Ratched, though… wow. She should’ve been running a prison, not a ward. The level of control and cruelty she wielded was unbelievable 😳🚫.

I really loved Chief as the narrator. The fact that everyone assumed he was deaf and mute — giving him a front-row seat to everything — added such a clever layer to the story 👀.

I’d definitely like to watch an adaptation. One’s already been recommended to me, so I might give it a go soon 🎥.

About the Book

Tyrannical Nurse Ratched rules her ward in an Oregon State mental hospital with a strict and unbending routine, unopposed by her patients, who remain cowed by mind-numbing medication and the threat of electric shock therapy. But her regime is disrupted by the arrival of McMurphy – the swaggering, fun-loving trickster with a devilish grin who resolves to oppose her rules on behalf of his fellow inmates. His struggle is seen through the eyes of Chief Bromden, a seemingly mute half-Indian patient who understands McMurphy's heroic attempt to do battle with the powers that keep them imprisoned. Ken Kesey's extraordinary first novel is an exuberant, ribald and devastatingly honest portrayal of the boundaries between sanity and madness.

About Ken

Ken Kesey (1935–2001) was an American novelist and a defining voice of 1960s counterculture. He rose to prominence with One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, a novel inspired by his time working in a psychiatric hospital and participating in early psychedelic-drug studies. In the mid-’60s, Kesey helped spark the psychedelic movement through his cross-country trip with the Merry Pranksters aboard their wild, painted bus “Furthur,” hosting the legendary “Acid Tests.” Beyond his cultural impact, he wrote several other works — most notably Sometimes a Great Notion — and became known for blending rebellion, imagination, and storytelling into a uniquely American legacy.

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My Review for Pan by Michael W. Clune, read by Michael Crouch

“Panic … isn’t a disease of death. It’s a disease of life.”

I’m not quite sure how I feel about this one. It’s very different to anything I’ve read—or listened to—before.

The fact it’s still on my mind probably means it struck a chord. I keep turning it over, wondering what the author wanted us to take from it. It was definitely unique, throwing us right into Nicholas’s mind and showing us how his panic attacks take hold, and how much they weigh on him.

Nicholas doesn’t have the easiest family life. His mum passes him on to his dad, and when he goes to live with his dad, he’s left alone because work takes priority. That pretty much leaves Nicholas to his own devices. His friends, too, don’t feel like real friends—they seem to use him more than support him.

I’ve noticed that other reviews of Pan highlight the philosophical nature of the story, the beautiful prose, and the intensity of teenage thought. That’s not really my style. If you’ve read my reviews before, you’ll know I focus more on how the story and characters made me feel.

So here’s my take: it was strange, it was different, and it was definitely a little weird—but not in a bad way. Would I recommend it? Yes, I think so. But I also believe that every single reader (or listener) will walk away with something different. For me, it was a story about a teenage boy worried about growing up and finding his place in life. I didn’t pick up on the rhythm of the words, the “beautiful prose,” or the artistic side of it—but that’s okay.

Thank you to Vintage Books for the opportunity to listen to and review Pan by Michael Clune.

About the Book

A strange and brilliant teenager's first panic attacks lead him down the rabbit hole in this wild, highly anticipated debut novel from one of our most distinctive literary minds

“I steal language and ideas from Michael Clune.” ―Ben Lerner, Pulitzer Prize-nominated author of The Topeka School

Nicholas is fifteen when he forgets how to breathe. He had plenty of reason to feel unstable He’s been living with his dad in the bleak Chicago suburbs since his Russian-born mom kicked him out. Then one day in geometry class, Nicholas suddenly realizes that his hands are objects. The doctor says it’s just panic, but Nicholas suspects that his real problem might not be a psychiatric maybe the Greek god Pan is trapped inside his body. As his paradigm for his own consciousness crumbles, Nicholas; his best friend, Ty; and his maybe-girlfriend, Sarah, hunt for answers why—in Oscar Wilde and in Charles Baudelaire, in rock and roll and in Bach, and in the mysterious, drugged-out Barn, where their classmate Tod’s charismatic older brother Ian leads the high schoolers in rituals that might end up breaking more than just the law.

Thrilling, cerebral, and startlingly funny, Pan is a new masterpiece of the coming-of-age genre by Guggenheim fellow and literary scholar Michael Clune, whose memoir of heroin addiction, White Out—named one of The New Yorker’s best books of the year—earned him a cult fan base. Now, in Pan, the great novel of our age of anxiety, Clune drops us inside the human psyche, where we risk discovering that the forces controlling our inner lives could be more alien than we want to let ourselves believe.

About Michael - by Michael 

I write about memory, literature, money, and music. Sometimes I work in creative nonfiction and fiction; some problems require academic methods. I believe that literary style isn’t decoration but a form of knowledge.

My creative books include a novel (Pan, forthcoming from Penguin in Summer 2025), and a work of creative nonfiction, Gamelife (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2015). The tenth anniversary edition of my memoir White Out: The Secret Life of Heroin appeared in 2023 from McNally Editions.

My most recent critical book is A Defense of Judgment (University of Chicago Press, 2021). Other monographs include Writing Against Time (Stanford University Press, 2013) and American Literature and the Free Market (Cambridge University Press, 2010).

My essays have appeared in Harper’s—where I am a contributing editor—Critical Inquiry, Behavioral and Brain Sciences, The Atlantic, Best American Essays, PMLA, and elsewhere. My work has been supported by fellowships from the Guggenheim and Mellon Foundations, and my books have appeared on “best of the year” lists from The New Yorker, NPR, and elsewhere.

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My Review for Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

'I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you, and that's why.'

I first read Of Mice and Men for GCSE English, 36 years ago! I remember the basics of it, but I definitely enjoyed it more this time around, when I read it for #classiclitbookclub last year. It's funny how a book is more fun to read, if you don't have to dissect it to death in order to get a good grade!

The friendship between George and Lenny is second to none. They fell into each other's company by accident, and now, they have each other's back, no matter what. Fight one and you'll fight the other! Their comradeship is unbreakable in a difficult and cruel world. I didn't remember the ending from 36 years ago, and I'm going to try to forget it all over again. 

Reading this, you need to be aware that it was first published in 1937 and so it isn't politically correct by any means, but it's of its time, as are many classics.

About the Book

Drifters in search of work, George and his childlike friend Lennie, have nothing in the world except the clothes on their back - and a dream that one day they will have some land of their own. Eventually they find work on a ranch in California's Salinas Valley, but their hopes are dashed as Lennie - struggling against extreme cruelty, misunderstanding and feelings of jealousy - becomes a victim of his own strength.

About John

John Ernst Steinbeck was an American writer. He won the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social perception". He has been called "a giant of American letters."

During his writing career, he authored 33 books, with one book coauthored alongside Edward F. Ricketts, including 16 novels, six non-fiction books, and two collections of short stories. He is widely known for the comic novels Tortilla Flat (1935) and Cannery Row (1945), the multi-generation epic East of Eden (1952), and the novellas The Red Pony (1933) and Of Mice and Men (1937). The Pulitzer Prize–winning The Grapes of Wrath (1939) is considered Steinbeck's masterpiece and part of the American literary canon. By the 75th anniversary of its publishing date, it had sold 14 million copies.

Most of Steinbeck's work is set in central California, particularly in the Salinas Valley and the California Coast Ranges region. His works frequently explored the themes of fate and injustice, especially as applied to downtrodden or everyman protagonists.

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My Review for Say You'll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez, read by Christina Lakin and Matt Lanter

'Love is the brightest color in a gray world'.

My first Abby Jimenez book was Say You'll Remember Me for June's choice for #thatindiebookclub, and I loved it. I was expecting contemporary romance, but what I actually got was a whole lot more. Yes, there was the love interest, Xavier, the grumpy man and Samantha who was the light within the relationship, but for me, the main story was the devastation that Alzheimer's Disease can bring to a family. 

Abby had obviously researched the incurable disease thoroughly, and she wrote with compassion and empathy. I had nothing but admiration for Samantha, for becoming the primary caregiver for her Mum, as well as juggling, living with so many other people. This book was so much about the tightly-knit family unit, and when needed, they all come together with a common goal. Helping each other. 

Of course long-distance relationships can work, although not for everyone, and Xavier and Samantha proved how strong their love was for each other by making it work for so long. Would I have gone on a date, knowing I was leaving the state in a few hours? Probably not, but what had she got to lose?

Thank you to Hatchette Audio and Libro FM for the opportunity to listen to and review Say You'll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez.

About the Book

There might be no such a thing as a perfect guy, but Xavier Rush comes disastrously close. A gorgeous veterinarian giving Greek god vibes—all while cuddling a tiny kitten? Immediately yes. That is until Xavier opens his mouth and proves that even sculpted gods can say the absolute wrong thing. Like, really wrong. Of course, there’s nothing Samantha loves more than proving an asshole wrong…

. . . unless, of course, he can admit he made a mistake. But after one incredible and seemingly endless date—possibly the best in living history—Samantha is forced to admit the truth, that her family is in crisis and any kind of relationship would be impossible. Samantha begs Xavier to forget her. To remember their night together as a perfect moment, as crushing as that may be.

Only no amount of distance or time is nearly enough to forget that something between them. And the only thing better than one single perfect memory is to make a life—and even a love—worth remembering.

About Abby

Abby Jimenez is a Food Network winner, #1 New York Times best selling author of Just for the Summer, and recipient of the 2022 Minnesota Book Award for her novel Life's Too Short. Her book Yours Truly was the first romance novel in the history of Book of the Month to win the coveted Dolly Award for Book of the Year. Abby founded Nadia Cakes out of her home kitchen back in 2007. The bakery has since gone on to win numerous Food Network competitions and, like her books, has amassed an international following. 

Abby loves a good romance, coffee, doglets, and not leaving the house.

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My Review for The Bell Jar by Sylvia Path, read by Maggie Gyllenhaal

“If you expect nothing from somebody you are never disappointed.”

The Bell Jar was the book we chose to read for #classiclitbookclub in August 2024, and I have finally managed to find the time to write a review. I listened to this one, narrated by Maggie Gyllenhaal and I loved it.

It's semi-autobiographical and so, so sad, as Esther takes the reader (or listener) through her inner turmoil, whilst her friends and family, are seemingly living a happy and perfect life. As it becomes apparent that she suffers severely with mental health issues, I found myself wondering if she had been born into today's society. Would she have perhaps been diagnosed with ADHD and received the help she needed, earlier than she did. 

This is another book that I would be happy to revisit at another time, to see if I take anything more away from it, now I know the story. 

Sadly, Sylvia took her own life, aged just thirty, but her writings live on and have been translated into many languages throughout the world.

About the Book

'I was supposed to be having the time of my life'.

When Esther Greenwood wins an internship on a New York fashion magazine in 1953, she is elated, believing she will finally realise her dream to become a writer.

But in between the cocktail parties and piles of manuscripts, Esther's life begins to slide out of control. She finds herself spiralling into depression and eventually a suicide attempt, as she grapples with difficult relationships and a society which refuses to take women's aspirations seriously.

The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath's only novel, was originally published in 1963 under the pseudonym Victoria Lucas. The novel is partially based on Plath's own life and descent into mental illness, and has become a modern classic. The Bell Jar has been celebrated for its darkly funny and razor sharp portrait of 1950s society and has sold millions of copies worldwide.

About Sylvia

Sylvia Plath was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer, widely regarded as one of the most influential and emotionally powerful authors of the 20th century. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, she demonstrated literary talent from an early age, publishing her first poem at the age of eight. Her early life was shaped by the death of her father, Otto Plath, when she was eight years old, a trauma that would profoundly influence her later work.

Plath attended Smith College, where she excelled academically but also struggled privately with depression. In 1953, she survived a suicide attempt, an experience she later fictionalized in her semi-autobiographical novel The Bell Jar. After recovering, she earned a Fulbright Scholarship to study at Newnham College, Cambridge, in England. While there, she met and married English poet Ted Hughes in 1956. Their relationship was passionate but tumultuous, with tensions exacerbated by personal differences and Hughes's infidelities.

Throughout her life, Plath sought to balance her ambitions as a writer with the demands of marriage and motherhood. She had two children with Hughes, Frieda and Nicholas, and continued to write prolifically. In 1960, her first poetry collection, The Colossus and Other Poems, was published in the United Kingdom. Although it received modest critical attention at the time, it laid the foundation for her distinctive voice—intensely personal, often exploring themes of death, rebirth, and female identity.

Plath's marriage unraveled in 1962, leading to a period of intense emotional turmoil but also extraordinary creative output. Living with her two children in London, she wrote many of the poems that would posthumously form Ariel, the collection that would cement her literary legacy. These works, filled with striking imagery and raw emotional force, displayed her ability to turn personal suffering into powerful art. Poems like "Daddy" and "Lady Lazarus" remain among her most famous, celebrated for their fierce honesty and technical brilliance.

In early 1963, following a deepening depression, Plath died by suicide at the age of 30. Her death shocked the literary world and sparked a lasting fascination with her life and work. The posthumous publication of Ariel in 1965, edited by Hughes, introduced Plath's later poetry to a wide audience and established her as a major figure in modern literature. Her novel The Bell Jar was also published under her own name shortly after her death, having initially appeared under the pseudonym "Victoria Lucas."

Plath’s work is often classified within the genre of confessional poetry, a style that emphasizes personal and psychological experiences. Her fearless exploration of themes like mental illness, female oppression, and death has resonated with generations of readers and scholars. Over time, Plath has become a feminist icon, though her legacy is complex and occasionally controversial, especially in light of debates over Hughes's role in managing her literary estate and personal history.

Today, Sylvia Plath is remembered not only for her tragic personal story but also for her immense contributions to American and English literature. Her work continues to inspire writers, artists, and readers worldwide. Collections such as Ariel, Crossing the Water, and Winter Trees, as well as her journals and letters, offer deep insight into her creative mind. Sylvia Plath’s voice, marked by its intensity and emotional clarity, remains one of the most haunting and enduring in modern literature.

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My Review for The Existence of Amy by Lana Grace Riva

Told through the words of someone with severe OCD, anxiety and depression. This is an eye-opener.

First, my sincere apologies to the author who kindly gifted me a copy of her book back in 2023, and I'm ashamed to say it's taken me two years to read it. Over commitment is my only excuse, but I am trying to do better this year!

A short read, I found The Existence of Amy to be so informative, yet entertaining. None of us are fully aware of how another person is feeling, and if you are good at hiding the real you, quite often, no one will find out. This is how Amy has been living, but at some point, it's all going to get too much, and she won't be able to hide it any longer. 

I think we all have an element of OCD, but thankfully, the majority of us can go about our daily lives without it affecting us too much. I am pretty sure that this is based on the author's own experiences, and I loved how raw and honest this book was. All the way through I was rooting for Amy, her friends are amazing and two in particular really looked out for her and helped her when she needed it. 

If you enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, then I would definitely recommend this one. 

Thank you to Lana Grace Riva for the opportunity to read and review The Existence of Amy. 

About the Book

Amy has a normal life. That is, if you were to go by a definition of 'no obvious indicators of peculiarity', and you didn't know her very well. She has good friends, a good job, a nice enough home. This normality, however, is precariously plastered on top of a different life. A life that is Amy's real life. The only one her brain will let her lead.

What is it really like to live with mental illness?

An insight into the reality of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), anxiety and depression.

About Lana

Lana Grace Riva has written two books, one nonfiction the other fiction, both based on her experiences of mental health. Her first book 'Happier Thinking' is a short collection of tips and exercises to maintain a healthy mind. Her second book 'The Existence Of Amy' is a fictional story based on the reality of life with OCD, depression and anxiety.

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My Review for The Drowners by David A. Anderson

'We're all sprinkled with crazy. Some of us are just better at hiding it.'

You know those books that stay with you for a long time after you've read it? Well, I think this is going to be one of those. The Drowners was incredible, from start to finish. I never know what to expect from a new author, and I often open that first page with a certain amount of trepidation. I needn't have worried about this one though, I was hooked. 

Set in the early 1990s, Aaron is just beginning to understand his sexuality, and it's difficult, the stigma, the apprehension and the judgment of being queer in 1990s Ireland. Aaron is funny, so funny, and when he and Robbie get together the puns are never-ending. I highlighted just a couple of the lines, which had me spitting my coffee out!

'All those years without draining your nuts is enough to send you loopy.'

'That miserable old bollix isn't knocking on Heaven's door, he's booting it off its hinges.'

It wasn't lost on me that the protagonist has the same name as part of the author's and I have no idea whether this novel is semi-autobiographical. If it is, then it's even more heartbreaking, as some of the crap the main character went through was awful.

Check the trigger warnings before you read this, but if you're all good, then I'd 100% recommend you read it. 

Thank you to David A. Anderson for the opportunity to read and review The Drowners.

About the Book

For Aaron, this world is an unfathomable puzzle. Haunted by disturbing dreams, he drifts through empty days, shielding himself behind sarcasm and cynical wit. After being expelled, he sees an opportunity to rewrite his future at a new school. Connecting over a shared love for De Niro films with Robbie, an aspiring actor of Jamaican descent, he unexpectedly finds his companion piece, one person who truly understands him. Together, they navigate the chaotic waters of adolescence, from dramatic first dates to sociopathic bullies, iconic concerts, drugs, and a dead body.

With adulthood fast approaching, can their unique bond survive the crushing weight of societal pressures and devastating revelations? Confronted by the ghosts of his past, Aaron must choose whether to blaze bright or fade away.

A funny and poignant meditation on the forces that shape us, The Drowners transports us back to a time when our tolerance for hypocrisy was zero and life seemed infinite.

About David

Award-winning author of The Drowners, David Anderson hails from the cold, wet streets of Dublin. Like a Hummingbird, after college, he migrated south to warmer climes. Namely, sunny Spain, where he teaches students who are bemused by hearing the Queen's English delivered in an Irish brogue. In his early thirties, he caught the writing bug. In 2021, he won a YA Watty award.

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The Sporty One - My Life as a Spice Girl by Melanie C, read by Melanie C.

I wasn’t really what I’d call a Spice Girls fan, not like some people were. I was probably a bit too old at twenty-something when they were at the height of their fame, but I enjoyed some of their music and, well; they are more or less the same age as me so of course I’m nosey and interested in how lives pan out.

Melanie Chisholm - Mel C - Sporty Spice, one of five girls who responded to an advertisement in the paper to form what was to become one of the most famous girl groups of all time.

Listening to Melanie narrate her own story was at times fun, at other times a hard listen, but amazingly entertaining and interesting. She is open and honest about the good and bad times. The difficult times she had with her fellow band members but also, and what stood out for me, was the amount of fun and friendship that was evident for much of the time.

Throughout the book, Melanie’s fighting spirit shone through, and I’m so glad she decided to share her story. I would recommend the audiobook to anyone who loved or was even the slightest bit interested in the Spice Girls. It was a delight to listen to.

About the Book

An intimate memoir from international pop star Melanie Chisholm--better known as Mel C. or Sporty Spice--chronicling her trajectory from small-town girl to overnight icon as part of the Spice Girls.

25 years ago, The Spice Girls, a girl band that began after five women answered an ad in the paper, released their first single. 'Wannabe' became a hit and from that moment and, almost overnight, Melanie Chisholm went from small town girl to Sporty Spice, part of one of the biggest music groups in history. 

Beginning in her bedroom in the north-west of England dreaming of performing on stage, THE SPORTY ONE follows the meteoric rise of the Melanie and The Spice Girls, from the incredible highs of becoming one of the world’s most recognizable popstars – playing at Wembley, conquering the BRITs, closing the Olympics – to the difficult lows. For the first time ever, Melanie talks about the pressures of fame, the shaming and bullying she experienced, the struggles she has had with her body image and mental health, and the difficulty of finding yourself when the whole world knows your name. 

THE SPORTY ONE is an incredible story of resilience, hope and how you can find your power.

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My Review for The Things I Should Have Told You by Carmel Harrington, Read by Aidan Kelly, Caroline Lennon and Emer O'Connor

Continuing with my Carmel Harrington binge, I grabbed myself an audiobook copy of The Things I Should Have Told You from Libby, popped my AirPods in and set about tidying the garden. Another story of Carmel’s which blew me away, with lovely characters, gorgeous settings and lots and lots of sentimental moments.

The storyline was delightful, if a little sad at times, and I was blown away with the whole ‘road trip in a camper van’ idea, even if camping isn’t my idea of a fun holiday! Pops, even after death, manages to travel along with the Guinness family as they wend their way through Europe, on the trip of a lifetime, not knowing which country they’ll be visiting next, let alone what surprises Pops had arranged for them once they arrived.

As with the previous Carmel Harrington books I’ve listened to, this also has underlying themes. This time we see a destructive case of school bullying, marriage difficulties and family illness. Carmel writes about all the issues sensitively and with empathy and I really enjoy that her books aren’t just a simple story, but that they’re written with so much more in mind. 

Thank you to Libby for providing the opportunity and the availability to bring books to life for so many people and thank you to Carmel Harrington for being such an incredible writer. Never stop writing!

About the Book

Every family has a story…

But for the Guinness family a happy ending looks out of reach. Olly and Mae's marriage is crumbling, their teenage daughter Evie is on a mission to self-destruct and their beloved Pops is dying of cancer. Their once strong family unit is slowly falling apart.

But Pops has one final gift to offer his beloved family – a ray of hope to cling to. As his life's journey draws to a close, he sends his family on an adventure across Europe in a camper van, guided by his letters, his wisdom and his love.

Because Pops knows that all his family need is time to be together, to find their love for each other and to find their way back home…

About Carmel

International bestseller Carmel Harrington lives in Wexford with her family & rescue dog. Carmel writes domestic dramas filled with emotional reveals and twists. Her trademark is to write authentic, relatable characters that readers can root for, and has been described as a ‘storyteller with heart, hope and humour.’ (RTE Culture)

A confessed wearer-of-heart-on-her-sleeve, Carmel smiles a lot because life is good. She knowingly overuses the word lovely. Speaking of which, she calls it chasing the lovely when she writes. A few of her favourite things include rainbows, good coffee and gin, notions – all of them, lemon drizzle cake and books. Always books.

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My Review for The Woman in Me by Britney Spears, read by Michelle Williams

I’m not a massive Britney Spears fan. In fact, I can’t say I’m a fan at all, but I was intrigued to listen to her story after hearing so much about it from other readers. I was also a little curious as to why she had cancelled her Las Vegas residency so quickly when it was evident she had a huge amount of fans out there.

Honestly, it was heartbreaking that someone who was so talented and wanted to live the dream they had had as a little girl could be squashed flat and controlled so heartlessly by her family, but predominantly by her father. 

Her conservatorship battle in court goes to show that hopefully, in the majority of cases, right will win and evil will be punished. Yes, Britney is a little bat-shit crazy, but no one deserves to be treated like that. I’m pleased she got the right outcome in the end.

Britney opens the audiobook by stating that she cannot bear to read her story herself without getting upset which is the reason Michelle Williams narrates it. Although her voice did grate on me a little at the beginning, I did get used to it and ultimately it was really interesting listen.

Autobiographies always fascinate and intrigue me, (probably because I’m a nosey so-and-so)! This was no exception, and I’d definitely recommend The Woman in Me if you’re simply interested in famous people and what goes on in their lives.

About the Book

In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice—her truth—was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey—and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history.

Written with remarkable candor and humor, Spears’s groundbreaking book illuminates the enduring power of music and love—and the importance of a woman telling her own story, on her own terms, at last.

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My Review for One of A Kind by Jane Lovering

I finished this book yesterday afternoon, and I’m still unsure what to make of it - in a good way. Was it a romance, cosy mystery, thriller? I think I’ll plump for all three, probably in equal measure! Whatever it is, I enjoyed it immensely. Character-wise, I found it slow to begin with, whereas the plot moved forward pretty quickly. 

Once I realised that Ivo had ADHD, everything about him made a lot more sense, and I found him quirky and loveable. Our female protagonist, Cressida, was slightly slower on the uptake, but she got there in the end!

The author explained Ivo’s ADHD in great detail, and I love understanding how brains are wired differently to give them the diagnosis they receive. I find any book containing an element of neurodivergence fascinating and educational. 

If you want a summer read, then go and grab yourself a copy of this book. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Oh, and Fred is the best character of all - I think perhaps he’s wired a little differently too!

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review One of A Kind by Jane Lovering.

About the Book

A long-held secret, and a beautiful heart hoping to be understood. Cressida Tarbet loves her job at an animal rescue centre, even if it means she’s resigned herself to scrimping to make ends meet - a lifestyle far removed from her best friend Ivo’s, in his ancestral gatehouse stuffed with antiques and art.

But although their upbringings were different, Ivo has held Cress’s heart ever since she clapped eyes on him at university. The trouble is – she has never told him. So, when a mystery and a baffling crime throw Cress and Ivo together, she can’t help but wonder if fate is telling her something.

As the puzzle takes them from beautiful Yorkshire, to the stunning Isle of Wight, the pair get closer. Ivo begins to understand the cause of Cress’s risk-aversion and she puts her irritation at his brilliant mind to one side as she starts to appreciate Ivo’s uniqueness. But then the unthinkable happens and their worlds are turned upside down, and Cress has to wonder if fate was calling after all.

About Jane

Jane Lovering is a bestselling and multi-award winning romantic comedy writer. Most recently Jane won the RNA Contemporary Romantic Novel Award in 2023 with A Cottage Full of Secrets. She lives in Yorkshire and has a cat and a bonkers terrier, as well as five children who have now left home.

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