Mix & Match 17

This cocktail sounded delicious and I had a craving for amaretto so it was obviously meant to be. To make a Bella Donna Daiquiri, add the following to a shaker with ice, shake well and pour into a coupe glass. 45ml dark rum, 45ml amaretto, 15ml lemon juice and 5ml sugar syrup.

Once you have your drink ready (and maybe a snack?) you can choose whichever book takes your fancy.

The Last Life of Lori Mills by Max Boucherat

Lori is finally allowed to stay home on her own while her mum goes to work and she is NOT planning to stick to the rules. A whole evening of Voxminer, her favourite game. But is it just a game?

This was soooo creepy! I wanted to run around locking all the doors and hide under the bedcovers. The most gripping book I've read in ages. So much so, that I somehow didn't realise that (spoiler alert) the chapters were counting down instead of up! I also almost missed my stop on the train.

I loved the different formatting of the pages and the fonts which really added to the feeling of getting lost in the game, it felt almost like being there myself.

School of Doom by Sarah Harrison

Eddie is not like the other children at school, not quite human? After one too many incidents, she is sent to 'Be The Worst' at the School of Doom.

I really enjoyed reading this. The characters were wonderful and warm and there was so much humour. Lots of hilarious antics and adventures. I would love to be able to eat as much as Eddie does, though I would draw the line at her nervous habit of eating her coat buttons or whatever else was to hand!

I'm really hoping this will be the start of a series as I want to read lots more about Eddie and her monstrous friends.

Tosh's Island by Linda Sargent, Joe Brady, Leo Marcell

Tosh's life seems to be pretty perfect from the outside, but she tries to hide just how much pain she is in. She doesn't want it to stop her having fun with her friends. Though it's sad to see her best friend branching out with others and she feels left behind. No wonder she leans more and more on her imagination.

This beautifully illustrated graphic novel gave me Anne of Green Gables vibes, though if I'm honest I can't remember if I ever actually read that! It was such a wonderful story, Tosh just so lovely and pure. I was in tears multiple times through the story, sad, angry, happy... ALL the emotions.

Ettie and the Midnight Pool by Julia Green

Ettie has spent the last few years running around the forest and swimming in the lake near her grandmother's secluded house. But lately she's feeling restless, and despite the amount of freedom, she feels suffocated by her grandma.

Cora comes along and urges her to take more risks, though she's so mysterious and secretive, you don't know whether or not she's trustworthy. It even feels quite supernatural.

I really enjoyed the descriptions of the places, animals and plants throughout the book. However I would have liked a little more of a finished conclusion about Cora. I'm left with questions!

Wendington Jones and The Lost Legacy by Daniel Dockery

Wendington is finding life a bit boring after her travels to find the Tree of Life and can't stop hoping for another adventure. A allegedly dead Russian monk appearing in her garden piques her interest immediately, despite Rohan's warnings to leave things alone.

I felt the tone of this book was quite different to the first. It was a lot more adult and had more violence. I guess Wendington has grown up a lot after the events of the first book! It was also less polished so I didn't find it as easy to read which is a shame as I enjoyed the first book so much.

Corey Crumbly and the Lost Amulet by Donn Swaby

I'm going to sound like an old grandma now but Corey is such a lovely boy! He's so sweet and self-deprecating, I love how much he cares about his mum and his best friend. I also love the family dynamics at the start of the book, it reminded me a bit of visiting family abroad when I was little.

I found it really interesting to read about the Taino culture, which I knew nothing about before reading this book. Following Corey as he discovered things was a good way to learn more.

This is quite a fast paced book and I found myself racing through it, eager to find out what would happen at every stage. It really was an Indiana Jones style adventure, complete with hidden underground caves and supernatural elements.

Book Summary

All Corey Crumbly wants is to win the annual Classic Arcade Game Tournament in memory of his dad. However, during a family reunion on the island of Jamaica, he discovers a mysterious amulet off the coast’s coral reef and his mostly uneventful life is turned upside down.

Returning home to Queens, New York, Corey soon learns that his ancient artefact shields him from all physical harm – a power that comes in handy when dealing with school bullies. But there’s a flip side: the amulet is haunted… and in more ways than one.

Corey must not only outsmart a criminal mastermind bent on using the amulet’s power for his own selfish ends, but also battle an ancient supernatural force aided by the resurgence of a sinister cult… all while confronting unresolved guilt surrounding his father’s untimely death.

Corey Crumbly and the Lost Amulet is a gripping adventure tale about heritage, courage and the healing power of letting go.

I have created the Apple Crumbly cocktail, especially for this book. In a tall glass pour 40ml gold or dark rum and add 10ml gingerbread syrup. Give it a little stir to combine, then fill the glass with ice and top up with apple juice. Dessert in a glass!

Book Tag: I’ll Get Around To It Later

In the true spirit of the tag, as soon as I started it, I realised I had another to do first so this has taken me a bit longer than planned!

I was tagged by Sifa Elizabeth Reads, click here to read her post. The tag was originally created by Quote, Unquote and the graphic came from their post.

I'm tagging The Artsy Reader and Quirinus 

A classic book that you have been meaning to read forever but haven’t yet

I'm not 100% sure but I don't think I ever read Through the Looking Glass, the sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. I have this lovely copy with both books so I really should get to it soon.

A book on your shelf that you haven’t read yet

Where do I start??? Here's a picture of my shelf which is already 2 deep so you're only seeing half of the books. Plus I have a few in piles around the house which don't even fit on the shelf.

A book that you got recently that you haven’t read

Peregrine Quinn and the Mask of Chaos by Ash Bond, this is book two and I really enjoyed the first one. I am planning to read this one soon but my plans don't necessarily work out, as we can see!

A book that you’ve had forever but haven’t read

The Girl Who Could Move Sh*t with Her Mind by Jackson Ford

I bought this for my sister years ago and she really enjoyed it so I borrowed it back but still never got round to it!

A book a friend recommended that you haven’t read

There are sure to have been many over the years as my own TBR is so overflowing that recommendations usually fall on the wayside, but Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes is a recent one which does sound intriguing...

A book you’re procrastinating on

I love all Laura Wood's books, including The Agency for Scandal so I really don't know why I haven't read A Season for Scandal yet! It's always on my 'soon' pile and I bought it as soon as it was released so I have no excuse. I guess I just haven't been in the mood or other books have been more urgent. But I WILL read it soon... 

The next book on your TBR

I'm currently in the middle of a few different books but I plan to start Wendington Jones and The Lost Legacy by Daniel Dockery next. This is the second book in a series and I loved the first so I'm really looking forward to it.

Eerie Exhibits: Five Macabre Museum Tales by Victoria Williamson

I have to say, the book title is extremely apt. I'll certainly be looking at museum exhibits a little differently from now on! 

A boy is haunted by the screaming butterflies from his childhood. A little girl just wants her father's attention, but what will she find in the Egyptian section of the museum? A museum guard can't get the new painting out of his mind. A bear out for revenge. A shell whispers dark ideas.

My favourite was the second story. Poor Amy just wanted some cake on her birthday and she's had to be so much more mature than her 7 years. Who can blame her for getting distracted by the spooky sarcophagus? I liked how the story ended too, slightly mysterious but still very satisfying.

Have you ever had a spooky experience in a museum? Let me know in the comments, I'd love to hear about them.

Book Summary

Five unnerving tales of the weird and uncanny from award-winning author Victoria Williamson.

A room full of screaming butterflies.

An unsettling smile on the face of a carved sarcophagus.

A painting that draws its viewer into the disturbing past.

A stuffed bear that growls in the dead of night.

And a shell that whispers more sinister sounds than the sigh of the sea…

Dare you cross the threshold of the old Museum and view its eerie exhibits?

Author Bio

Victoria Williamson is an award-winning author from Glasgow, Scotland, who has worked as an educator in a number of different countries, including as an English teacher in China, a secondary school science teacher in Cameroon, a teacher trainer in Malawi, and an

additional support needs teacher in the UK. Her many visits to Kelvingrove Art Gallery and

Museum from a young age inspired this set of short stories for adults based on the real and imaginary exhibits that captured her interest over the years, and led to her current studies of history and archaeology.

Victoria works part time writing books for the education company Twinkl and spends the rest of her time writing novels for children and adults, and visiting schools, libraries and literary festivals to give author talks and run creative writing workshops. When not writing or talking about books, she’s often to be found up to her knees in mud on an archaeological dig or tangled up in a ball of wool playing with a crochet hook.

I've chosen a Cairo Cocktail to go with my favourite of the stories. Shake the following with ice - 40ml vodka, 20ml blue curacao, 20ml almond syrup, 20ml lemon juice. Pour into a tall glass with ice and top with orange juice. I'll admit I was a bit dubious about the colour when I saw it was mixing blue curacao with orange juice but if you pour the juice slowly you can get a lovely marbled effect.

 

Mystery Solving Heroines

Today's post highlights three very different heroines, but they are all wonderful in their own ways.

I've made a Teaquila in honour of Vera's tea shop and the sheer amount of tea people in the old English times drank. 60ml cold black tea, 30ml tequila, 15ml honey vodka, 15ml sugar syrup, 15ml lemon juice, 2 dashes orange bitters. Shake and strain into a glass mug.

Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (On a Dead Man) by Jesse Sutanto

 

I'll start with Vera because she has to be my favourite mystery-solving heroine. She's so funny, I really love her. I definitely want to be more like Vera, she doesn't let anything faze her!

I have been wanting to try this series for a while and though it probably would have helped to know who some of the characters are, it's not necessary to have read the previous book. I have now bought book 1 though and I'm really looking forward to it.

One of the best things was the friendship between Vera and her neighbour Winifred. I love their sniping which just shows how much they really care about each other. There was so much humour on every page, as well as empathy and emotion. One of very few 5 star reads so far this year!

Book Summary

Vera Wong is perfectly content as a teashop owner. She is definitely not seeking opportunities for amateur sleuthing. But what else is she to do when a distressed woman called Millie asks for her help?

Okay, perhaps Vera wheedled the story out of her. And maybe the case file for Millie’s missing friend Thomas didn’t exactly fall into her lap. Everyone knows a locked briefcase is just asking to be opened by someone handy with a hairpin.

Not even the aroma of chrysanthemum tea can stop Vera from catching the scent of this mystery. However dangerous it is, Vera intends to uncover the truth in the only way that this Chinese mother knows how: by spilling the tea.

Miss Caroline Bingley, Private Investigator by Kelly Gardiner and Sharmini Kumar

 

It took me a little longer to warm to Caroline but as I got to know her and she learned more about her own prejudices I liked her more and more. Its quite interesting to see her grow and realise how little she has actually seen of how other people live. She also has some humour, though it is a lot more straight-laced, but I love her verbal sparring with the gentlemen who clearly have no idea who they are dealing with!

I haven't read Pride and Prejudice so while I know of the main characters I'm not really familiar with anyone else. I don't think this really matters to the story but fans of Pride and Prejudice will enjoy meeting some old friends.

Book Summary

A missing maid. A murder most foul. A highly imprudent adventure.

Two years after the events of Pride and Prejudice, Miss Caroline Bingley is staying at her brother's country estate within an easy ride of Mr and Mrs Darcy's home, Pemberley, and wondering if there's more to life than playing cribbage and paying calls on country neighbours.

So when Georgiana Darcy's maid, Jayani, vanishes – and worse, Georgiana disappears in search of her – Caroline races to London to find them both, and quickly discovers a shocking, cold-blooded murder.

Soon Caroline and Georgiana are careering through the gritty, grimy underbelly of London assisted by Caroline's trusty manservant, Gordon, and demanding answers of shady characters, police magistrates and mysterious East India Company-men to discover the killer. Along the way they uncover the cost of Empire on India and its people… and Miss Bingley's incomparable powers of investigation.

As Caroline puts her superior new talents to work, she finds out exactly what an accomplished, independent woman with a sharp mind and a large fortune can achieve – even when pitted against secrets, scandal, and a murderer with no mercy.

A Game Most Foul by Alison Gervais

 

Jules is attending her dream summer writing seminar, but she finds being new to London is difficult and trying to hide her hearing loss doesn't help either. I liked how determined she was to investigate when one of her new classmates goes missing and she's also not going to let any other mystery go unsolved either!

Her friendship dynamic with Suruthi and Percy (who are about as different as two people can be) is lots of fun to read and Dreams of Antiquity, her great-aunt's antique shop, is wonderful as one of the main settings.

Of course, as a Sherlock  fan I was very eager to find out how he and Watson were going to be involved in the book, this was quite a selling point for me.

Book Summary

Attending the prestigious Ashford College’s writing seminar is a dream come true for Jules Montgomery, but the summer isn’t unfolding as she hoped. Navigating London with her gradual hearing loss is difficult, and hiding it from her classmates is a challenge. Even worse, she can’t seem to shake a case of writer’s block. When a fellow student goes missing, neither the police nor their teacher, Professor Watson, seem that concerned. Jules and her new friends Percy and Suruthi are determined to get to the bottom of the case and they’re not the strange man who frequents Jules’ aunt’s antique shop is eager to help—and his name is none other than Sherlock Holmes.

Now there are two mysteries to solve. What happened to their missing classmate? And how can it be that Watson and Holmes—two fictional characters from the Victorian era—are alive and well in the 21st century? The only way to find answers might lie in a quote from one of Watson’s old “You see, but you do not observe.” Jules may not be able to hear all that well, but without her hearing aids, she can certainly see more than the average person. And nothing about this is case is average.