Me Before You | Jojo Moyes

This novel tackles a difficult issue, with humour and a light touch, without taking away from the seriousness of the subject.

The main characters are Lou and Will, two people who are so vastly opposite it is unthinkable they would ever meet...But Lou is desperate for a job, her family depends on her income as her sister is a solo mum and her Dad is made redundant. Will is a high flyer in the business world, daring and adventurous and active...who suffers a terrible accident and becomes a quadriplegic. She is from a low income family, he is from a background of privilege and money.

Lou becomes a companion for Will, who does not want her around. He has a all the care money can buy but has no desire to engage with the world. Lou is funny, sharp and doing the job only for the money. Her contract is for six months, she can put up with his acid tongue and unwelcome manner because of the short term nature of her commitment.

As the story develops Lou finds out why her contract is only for six months: Will wants to die. The rest of the novel deals with the attitudes of people who can't abide by this decision and those, like Will, who have no other decisions they can make for themselves. Their only independent act is to choose to die.

Worth a read, interesting to see both sides of the argument well supported. This is the first time I have read a book by Moyes.

Due Preparations for the Plague | Janette Turner Hospital

What an incredible read! This author is the best discovery of the year for me, her work so well crafted and her stories draw me in and keep me engaged.

This novel is like a circular vortex, a slowly turning whirlpool which centres around one event, the highjacking of Flight 64. We move around this slowly twisting plot, nothing is as it seems.  I have enjoyed other circular rather than linear telling of stories and this one is one of the best.


The hijacking of Air France flight 64 took place twenty years before the start of the novel. We meet some of the survivors, they are the children on the flight who were released after a few days on board. They are now haunted adults, full of survivors guilt. They are slowly dying.

The story then twists around the plot of the flight. We hear from the hijacker, from the adults on board, the secret agents, the government officials and read classified documents about the incident.

We start to notice coincidences, like something you see out of the corner of your eye as you move around the story, nothing confirmed, but a suspicion about what actually happened on the flight...were the passengers actually chosen? assigned to the flight, to die?

This is a great book, you will find yourself abandoning your daily duties just to read more!

I rate this author highly, check out Orpheus Lost, another great story.

The Uninvited Guests | Sadie Jones

I love Jones' work. She has a great turn of phrase, characters come alive and the stories are beautiful. She has a fantastic way with words.

This story is a slight departure from her usual ones, but none the less, and enjoyable read. I would call it a gentle gothic tale, nothing too hard core but it has all the right elements: a dark and stormy night, uninvited guests who suddenly arrive, a hard-to-believe gregarious gentleman who seems to be menacing under the bonhomie...

It reminded me a  little of Florence and Giles by John Harding.

Worth reading, and all her other books as well.

Fish and Shellfish | Rick Stein

What a great book! Initially I borrowed it but then had to buy myself a copy as it's such a great book on how to handle, chop, dissect and buy seafood!!

Then it launches into recipes, which are making me look great at dinner parties. Lovely as a gift, but you will want your own copy. I have learned so much and the step by step photos are amazing. 

Thanks Rick!

The Long Shadow | Mark Mills

Mills has been a favourite author for some time and I try and keep up with what he writes. This is a somewhat disappointing read given the tight prose and tense thrillers he has written before.

The story is essentially about two childhood friends, Jacob and Ben, who lose touch as adults. In their early forties, Ben is a less than successful screenwriter. He is coming to terms with his divorce and the shared custody of his son whom he dotes on and loves.
All of a sudden he is offered a 'too good to be true' option on a screenplay he is finishing and it transpires Jacob is back in his life. Jacob, now called Victor Sheldon, is offering to make movies from Ben's scripts, offering him millions of dollars in salary, asking him to head his philanthropic enterprises and go live in Victor's country estate.

Ben is overwhelmed and loving it. But as the story develops, so do Ben's doubts. Is it all too good to be true? It seems so.
Intercalated with the men in their forties are chapters where they appear as children. They had a conflicted relationship as children which seems to spill out into their adult lives as the novel progresses.

Here is where it gets disappointing. As a reader you pick up on the fact that there is something amiss, but the tension is not tight enough to be a 'thriller', more like a mild annoyance. When all is revealed, it seems to fall flat.

I much preferred The Savage Garden and The Information Officer, which are more tightly woven and the story more controlled. I have Mill's next offering to read next, and I am keen to see which way it goes.

Dark Horizons | Dan Smith

This novel has a great setting, Indonesia. It's well described and one enters into the landscape and feel for the place. The food, climate and vegetation all take centre stage in this thriller.

BUT. It's not really that thrilling. I feel this book couldn't make up it's mind whether it was a thriller or a mindful meditation on life. There is a lot of introspection from the main character Alex. After a while it becomes repetitive and slows the action down, and I lost interest in what he was thinking because I'd heard it all before.

I feel the story has merit, the setting is exotic and the storyline interesting, but enough, Alex, with all the over-thinking!!

I really enjoy Smith's books and writing, his Dry Season being one example. I will read anything he writes, but this one I feel could have benefited from stronger editing and a stronger mindset as to what kind of novel  Smith wanted it to be.