Archives by Tag 'Fiction'
Review: ‘A Study in Scarlet’ by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Title: Author: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Published: Headline Review, 2006, pp. 164 Genre: Classic mystery fiction Blurb: Arriving in the wilderness of London and in need of lodgings, Dr John Watson finds himself living at 221b Baker Street with one Sherlock Holmes. When a corpse is discovered in a derelict house Watson, fascinated by his [...]
Review: ‘Twist of Gold’ by Michael Morpurgo
Title: Author: Michael Morpurgo Published: Egmont, 2001, pp. 300 Genre: Young adult historical fiction Blurb: Sean and Annie have fled the potato famine in Ireland for America, leaving their dying mother behind. They are the only O’Brien children to have survived their family’s suffering. The worst is not over as they embark on a hard [...]
Review: ‘The Woman in White’ by Wilkie Collins
Title: The Woman in White Author: Wilkie Collins Published: Penguin,1974, pp. 648 Genre: Classic mystery fiction Blurb: Wilkie Collins’ sixth novel took the fashionable world by storm on its appearance in 1860 when everything from dances to dresses was named after the ‘woman in white’. Its continuing power to fascinate stems in part from a distinctive [...]
Review: ‘The Invention of Hugo Cabret’ by Brian Selznick
Title: The Invention of Hugo Cabret Author: Brian Selznick Published: Scholastic, 2007, pp. 533 Genre: Young adult historical fiction Blurb: Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks — like the gears of [...]
Review: ‘Mary Anne’ by Daphne du Maurier
Title: Mary Anne Author: Daphne du Maurier Published: Pan, 1979, pp. 381 Genre: Historical fiction Blurb: In the glittering, corrupt world of Regency London, Mary Anne Clarke had beauty, brains and wit — but no money. Spurred on by the demands of a drunken husband, a wastrel brother and four children, she chose an exacting [...]
Review: ‘Crash’ by J. G. Ballard
Title: Crash Author: J. G. Ballard Published: Vintage, 2004, pp. 224 Genre: General fiction Blurb: In this hallucinatory novel, the car provides the hellish tableau in which Vaughan, a ‘TV scientist’, experiments with erotic attrocities among crash victims, each more sinister than the last. Ultimately, he craves a union of blood, semen and engine coolant [...]
Review: ‘Oops!’ by Darrell Bain
Title: Oops! Darrell Bain’s Latest Collection of Short Stories Author: Darrell Bain Published: LL-Publications, 2010, pp. 207 Genre: Short stories Blurb: Oops! is the third collection of stories by Darrell Bain. When Cupid and a Gremlin bump heads, the sparks fly in a rare fantasy story by the author. Other stories in the collection include [...]
Review: ‘The Thirteenth Tale’ by Diane Setterfield
Title: The Thirteenth Tale Author: Diane Setterfield Published: Orion, 2007, pp. 470 Genre: Historical gothic mystery Blurb: Angelfield House stands abandoned and forgotten. It was once the imposing home of the March family – fascinating, manipulative Isabelle, Charlie, her brutal and dangerous brother, and the wild, untamed twins, Emmeline and Adeline. But Angelfield House conceals [...]
Review: ‘Mina Laury’ by Charlotte Bronte
Title: Mina Laury Author: Charlotte Bronte Published: Penguin, 1995, pp. 55 Genre: Classic juvenilia Blurb: Set in the imaginary kingdom of Angria, Charlotte Bronte’s early story of the Duke of Zamorna and his loyal mistress, Mina Laury, demonstrates the birth of her lifelong obsession with the degrees and forms of human passion. When, where and [...]
Review: ‘The Novice’ by Trudi Canavan
Title: The Novice (Black Magician Trilogy II) Author: Trudi Canavan Published: Orbit, 2007, pp. 581 Genre: Fantasy Blurb: Imardin is a city of dark intrigues and deadly politics, where those who wield magic wield power. Into this established order has blundered a young street-girl with extraordinary magical gifts. Adopted by the Magicians’ Guild, her life is [...]