The Dubrovnik Book Club by Eva Glyn - #bookreview

Prologue

He raises his head from the sink and looks in the mirror. Sunken eyes, stubble. The bruise a livid purple-red on his cheek...

The Blurb

In a tiny bookshop in Dubrovnik’s historic Old Town, a book club begins…

Newly arrived on the sun-drenched shores of Croatia, Claire Thomson’s life is about to change forever when she starts working at a local bookshop. With her cousin Vedran, employee Luna and Karmela, a professor, they form an unlikely book club.

But when their first book club pick – an engrossing cosy crime – inspires them to embark upon an investigation that is close to the group’s heart, they quickly learn the value of keeping their new-found friends close as lives and stories begin to entwine…My Review

Each chapter is the name of the book which the book club is reading each month. At the back of the book the author provides a list along with the author of each of these books in case the reader would like to read them for themselves.

Helpful glossary at the beginning of the book which translates some of the words used throughout the novel.

My Review

As a member of two book clubs myself, I am often drawn to books which have a book club as their setting.

The titular book club is set in Croatia, within the walls of The Welcoming Bookshop. This book uses this setting to introduce the readers to a lovely array of characters. 

The book is told from the perspectives of main characters Claire and Luna. Claire has left England to join her grandparents in Dubrovnik for a year. She has had long Covid and as a result has lost her confidence and fears groups of people. Her grandmother is convinced that working in the book shop will help her regain it. 

Luna works with Claire in the bookshop. She comes from a rural Croatian village where she finds the community small-minded. She is hiding a secret of her own but finds a friend and confidante in Claire.

Setting up the book club allows the author to introduce an array of other characters, who each have an important part to play in the story. Vedran is Claire's cousin. He is a lawyer who has been through a tough time – and then there is Karmella, an academic who retreats to a place of safety behind her books.

These characters all come together within the book shop and find an emotional support circle. The book has much to say about friendship, self-acceptance and facing our fears.

The author depicted the charm and history of Dubrovnik beautifully without shying away from the hardships that the residents faced during and following the war. In fact, having read this made me want to hop on a plane so that I could stroll around its streets and have coffee outside a café, whilst reading a book. 

This was a gem of a book to read.  It had me absorbed by every page. It was a life-affirming book which made for wonderful reading. In fact, I already have the next book in the series, The Santorini Writing Retreat, waiting to be read. 

I highly recommend this book. I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

Book Details

ISBN:  978-0008648114

Publisher:  One More Chapter

Formats:  e-book, audio and paperback (currently available on Kindle Unlimited)

No. of Pages:  384 (paperback)

Series:  Book 1 in the Bookish Escapes series

Purchase Links

Bookshop.org

Amazon UK

Amazon US

About the Author

Over the last couple of years Eva has become adept at writing with two hats on; under her own name Jane Cable it’s romance with a twist, and as Eva Glyn she creates escapist relationship-driven fiction. MHer inspiration comes from the nuggets of history she discovers both at home and abroad, and the beautiful places she finds them.

Eva Glyn’s books are mainly set in Croatia, a country she fell in love with in 2019. Her friendship with tour guide Darko Barisic has proved invaluable to gain an insight into Croatian daily life that few foreign authors can dream of. Her first book set in the country, The Olive Grove, was inspired by Darko’s experiences of the war in the 1990s. Both An Island of Secrets and The Collaborator's Daughter are dual timeline looking back to a little known period of World War 2 history.

 Eva is published by One More Chapter, a division of Harper Collins and has been contracted to write two books about unlikely friendships... and books under the title of Bookish Escapes. The first, The Dubrovnik Book Club, was published in March 2024 with The Santorini Writing Retreat following a year later and The Croatian Island Library in early 2026. 

Although she is Welsh she lives in Cornwall with her husband of more than thirty years. Unless, of course, they're off on their travels!

You can also find Eva at:

Author Website

X

Instagram

Bluesky

(media courtesy of the author's website)

(all opinions are my own)

(Bookshop.org affiliated)

This is Me Trying by Jenna Adams - #bookreview #blogtour

 

The Blurb

In this contemporary coming-of-age YA novel, a teenage girl navigates a romance with an older boy when they're cast as the leading roles in their drama group's production of Romeo and Juliet.

When Brooke and Matt are cast as romantic leads in their drama group's performance of Romeo and Juliet, they don’t mean to actually fall in love. Secrets and lies seem a small price for Brooke to pay for an older boyfriend, until they take their relationship to the next level one night in an empty auditorium. After she learns of the illegality of Matt’s actions, Brooke’s anxiety reaches breaking point and she makes a decision that changes her life forever. Years later, Matt is reunited with Brooke, desperately seeking redemption. But what sense can they make now of a love that never did run smoothly?

Exploring mental health, co-dependency, and the blurred lines of sexual consent, this captivating debut recounts a young woman’s journey to independence as she strays beyond all she has ever known to confront her traumatic past.

Previously published as Can I Stray.

My Review

This was a five-star read for me, and I enjoyed every page.

The two main characters in this book meet at a drama group when Brooke is fourteen, and Matt is eighteen. They are cast in the roles of Romeo and Juliet. Brooke already has a crush on Matt, and it is not long before her feelings are reciprocated. What follows is a complicated, messy romance, which made for fascinating reading. 

The chapters are alternated between Brooke and Matt and cover the coming few years. We can observe them mature through their individual narratives, which gave a fabulous insight into their thoughts and emotions. 

This is a very heartfelt and emotive book. There were times when I felt heartbroken at the story that they had to tell. They both had to face some very complex issues. The author did a fantastic job of portraying the range of emotion and complex needs that both Brooke and Matt have to face.

Thus, the book deals with some difficult themes, and Ms. Adams deals with them with sensitivity and compassion. The issues of consent, depression, and codependency are covered in this book with realism and honesty. My heart went out to Brooke in particular, and how her lack of self-esteem affected her and those around her. It would be impossible not to feel devastated on behalf of her mother.

This is Me Trying is being published tomorrow, and I highly recommend that you get your hands on a copy. However, I should add some trigger warnings to that recommendation. Issues of consent, mental health issues, and abandonment are all present in this book. But it is a brilliant book and well worth reading.

Book Details

ISBN:  978 1917275101

Publisher:  Neem Tree Press

Formats:  e-book and paperback

No. of Pages:  432 (paperback)

Previously published as Can I Stray

Preorder Links

Bookshop.org

Blackwell's

Amazon UK

Amazon US

About the Author

Jenna Adams began writing at the age of fourteen and now writes from her third-floor flat, which is full of houseplants. She has written for a variety of publications including The Book Network, Brook Charity, and The Content Wolf, and is passionate about exploring mental health, consent, and codependency in her writing.

You can also find Jenna at:

Author Website

Instagram

Tik Tok

Facebook

Why not check out some of the other fabulous bloggers on this tour.

 

(ARC and media courtesy of The Write Reads)

(all opinions are my own)

(Bookshop.org affiliated)

A Brilliant Life: An Unforgettable Memoir of Love, Loss and the Ability of the Heart to Heal by Rachelle Unreich - #bookreview

 

My mother has always told her stories perfectly. When her grandchildren were little, they would long to stay overnight at her house - in part for the nightly ritual of hot chocolate and the heavy European bedding that wrapped them up in a buddle of goose down until they succumbed to sleep, but mostly for the magical way she could tell a story...

***

A powerful, true story of a Holocaust survivor told by her daughter - a tale that reminds us of the resilience of the soul and the ability of the heart to heal.

Born in Czechoslovakia, Mira was only 12 years old when World War II broke out and 17 when the Nazis finally caught up with her. Torn apart from her family, she went on to survive four concentration camps, including Auschwitz, and a Death March when she was too weak to walk. She lived when almost everyone she knew did not.

At 88, living in Australia, Mira is diagnosed with cancer and her daughter, a journalist, decides to interview her to distract her from her illness. As Mira gives her testimony Rachelle comes to understand how Mira's unique perspective - seeing her experiences through the lens of the goodness of the people who helped her - protected her from the depths of humanity's cruelty, and enabled her to go on to live a full and brilliant life.

Rachelle also fits together the jigsaw pieces of her own life as a child of a survivor. She comes to understand that however different their lives have been, she and her mother are uniquely united by a fierce inner strength to live, and a mystery of strange things that always seem to happen around them.

A beautiful story of love, loss, wonder and the deepest kind of trust in life, A Brilliant Life questions the role that fate, chance and destiny play. It is a tribute to family, a story of incredible resilience, and a chronicle of the deep connection between a mother and a child which not even death can destroy.

***

When I sit down to write a review of a book, I try to compare it to similar books that I have read in the same genre. However, that method never works when it comes to reviewing Holocaust memoirs. How can I possibly compare them? I have no right to judge the experience of one over another. So, I tend to give all Holocaust memoirs five stars for this reason because I admire the bravery and courage it has taken a survivor to tell of their extreme trauma. 

However, as the number of them lessen, the mantle is taken up by second generation Holocaust survivors. In A Brilliant Life, Rachelle Unreich tells the story of her mother, Mira, and she does so with skill, love and admiration of a mother who gifted her daughter with love and understanding.

Ms. Unrecich, a journalist, conveys us from the point of Mira's birth in Czechoslovakia through to the time of her death in Australia. She interviewed her mother towards the end of Mira's life, utilizing the skills of her profession, and this book is the result. She writes extremely well and factually. 

I have read many Holocaust memoirs over the years, and even though we are decades on, they still have the power to shock. The author details the experiences of Mira's time in the concentration camps, the murders of her family at the hands of the Nazis, and yet still she was capable of seeing the goodness in people.

It is impossible to read this book without feeling emotional. The author has the skill to transport the reader to a time and place in history that we should all be grateful we did not have the misfortune to live through. She writes with compassion and eloquence and has produced an excellent account of the life of her mother.

Mira's legacy was happiness and gratitude. Throughout the devastating losses and suffering, she chose happiness. While surrounded by the most despicable of human behaviours, Mira still chose to see the best in people. What a brave and admiral woman and I applaud the author for telling us Mira's story. What an extraordinary woman she was and this is an equally remarkable book. I highly recommend it.

ISBN: 978 1785306525

Publisher:  Black and White Publishing

Formats:  audio and hardback

No. of Pages:  336 (hardback)

About the Author:

Rachelle Unreich started her journalism career when she was completing her Arts/ Law degrees at Monash University. In addition to studying writing at UCLA, she has lived in New York, Los Angeles, Sydney and Melbourne. She has been a journalist for over 35 years, and has had regular columns in the Sydney Morning Herald, the Herald Sun and Elle magazine. Her work has appeared extensively in Australia, US, UK and South-East Asia. She currently lives in Melbourne.

(ARC courtesy of Net Galley)

(author media courtesy of Curtis Brown)

(all opinions are my own)

House of Sticks by Marc Scott - #BookReview #Blogtour

 

Some say she was pushed, but most thought she had jumped. Whichever was the sad reality, the wiry-framed girl with the soft voice and the ever-teary eyes was gone. She was, in the words of Karen Walpole from B Wing, 'As dead as a doornail.' Only two people would ever know the truth behind her demise.

Just one cell door was unlocked, slightly ajar, that bright August morning. An enforced, but welcomed, lay-in for the rest of the inmates. Poppy peered through the small gap in the doorframe, across the landing to where her former cell mate had fallen without grace to her bleak fate the previous week.

***

They are united now, two sisters who were kept apart by the cruel twists in their lives. And, despite the fact these siblings grew up at the opposite end of the social ladder, they have discovered that they share an unbreakable bond. It is like a modern-day fairy tale coming to life.

However, the pathway to their shared happiness is littered with misgivings and depraved memories from which they can never escape. Brianna is still haunted by the tragic death of her twin brother while Poppy finds it hard to let go of the ghosts of her abusive childhood. 

It seems that the forces around them will never leave them alone. Neddy, a ruthless drug dealer is hell-bent on revenge. A worried mother who is desperate to unlock the darkest of secrets. A stranger with tattooed fingers who must face retribution for his evil sins. These women must be strong to survive.

But remember, not all girls are made of sugar and spice.

Be prepared! This is not a fairy tale...

***

In all honesty, it took me a little while to get into this book. Not because there is anything wrong with the book; it was more that it was not what I had expected. However, once I did, it made for compelling reading and I am so glad that I hung in there.

Poppy was an interesting character. She had experienced a traumatic childhood, and being an adult had brought extreme challenges too. Even though she addressed her problems through violence, she was likeable and the author did a great job of presenting her as a fully formed character. I could not help but feel empathetic towards her. I enjoyed observing the relationship between her and her very different half-sister, Bree, and it was the connection between the two that kept me really hooked.

I did not read the book's predecessor, House of Straw, but that did not impede my reading experience of this novel.

There were a good number of twists and turns that I had not anticipated which inevitably makes for exciting reading. It was fast paced and something significant occurs in every chapter.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book. However, it is a dark story and there were points when I felt a little uncomfortable. It was rather violent at times and deals with the issue of child abuse, brutality and other adult themes. However, if you like your fiction to be fast and gritty then you will enjoy this novel.

ISBN:  978 1803131016

Publisher:  Matador

Formats:  e-book and paperback

No. of Pages:  384 (paperback)

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About the Author:

Marc Scott was born and raised in the heart of the East End of London. He spent more than 25 years working in the video and film industry, including a 12-month spell on a project in Los Angeles. More recently he has been involved with assisting at the rehabilitation section of theUK court service, working predominantly with young offenders.  It was here where he met the people that would inspire him to write his first novel House of Straw.

He is unapologetic for the dark backdrop and raw brutality in his books. ‘You can’t sugar-coat some of these damaged individuals that live in a broken society and make excuses for them.’ he says. ‘Not everyone wants the chance to redeem themselves.’

His gritty writing style has earned him much praise from reviewers and bloggers. The second book in his trilogy, House of Sticks, will be available later this year. A story that Marc describes as, ‘An even darker and more twisted journey into the depths of depravity.’

Marc lives in Halstead in England. He has a son and two daughters, who, he says, have given him the proudest moments in his life. He lists his favourite author as Kazuo Ishiguro, and his favourite book as ‘Birdy’ by William Wharton. He sums up his reading choices with a method which he applies to his own works.  ‘When I read a book, I want to feel like a bystander, watching on, as an ‘extra’ as everything unfolds. If any of the characters in the book are bland and don’t affect you in some way, the author has wasted an opportunity.’

(book, author photo and bio provided courtesy of R & R Book Tours)

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The Girls of Summer by Katie Bishop - #BookReview

 

It's TOO HOT to be outside for long. Sweat is starting to dampen my scalp, thickening in the roots of my hair and pooling in the crevices of my collar bone. My t-shirt sticks to my spine and my arms are tinged pink, an ungainly line of skin beginning to blister along the top of my thigh in the almost unseasonable blaze of sun. I curl my toes into the damp sand and feel the sharpness of a small shell against the sole of my foot.

Please, don't let him have left without me, I think, I'll do anything. I need him to come for me.

From my spot on the sand I can just make out the dock. Rising out of the sea is the rickety wooden platform where I disembarked months ago, seasick and tired...

***

Rachel has loved Alistair since she was seventeen.

Even though she hasn't seen him for sixteen years and she's now married to someone else.

Even though she was a teenager when they met.

Even though he is almost twenty years older than her.

Now in her thirties, Rachel has never been able to forget their golden summer together on a remote, sun-trapped Greek island. But as dark and deeply suppressed memories rise to the surface, Rachel begins to understand that Alistair - and the enigmatic, wealthy man he worked for - controlled much more than she ever realized.

Rachel has never once considered herself a victim - until now.

***

This is such a powerful novel that I hardly know where to begin. It is a book that is highly relevant to todays society and to the #MeToo campaign. 

Written in chapters alternately titled 'Then' and 'Now' it is a story of manipulation, control and deception. Consequently, it does not always make for comfortable reading. That said, the author treats the subject with sensitivity.

The main character, Rachel, is an innocent abroad and cannot see how she and her friends were being lured into a situation that they had not anticipated. She, in particular, becomes completely embroiled in the attentions of Alaistair, a man twenty years her senior, and is completely blind to the situation that is playing out around her. 

The descriptions of the stunning scenery were beautiful and a distinct contrast to the dark theme of the story. However, with the story being told from the perspective of Rachel, to whom life appeared wonderful, it is important that the author was able to portray her view of the surroundings and relationships. 

As the reader, I flitted between wanting to hug Rachel to giving her a strong wake up call. I was completely absorbed in the book and found Rachel a frustrating character. Her inability to later comprehend what had happened to her, how she had been used and abused and how she let this impact her future life in the way that she did made me feel rather exasperated with her at times. 

This is a sedately paced and atmospheric novel which is sufficiently compelling to ensure that I was fully engaged by the story. It has been well written and is an excellent debut from Ms. Bishop.

ISBN:  978 1787636002

Publisher:  Bantam

Formats:  e-book and hardback

No. of Pages:  353 (hardback)

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About the Author:

Katie Bishop is a writer and journalist based in Birmingham, UK. She grew up in the Midlands before moving to Oxford to work in publishing in her early twenties.

Whilst working as an assistant editor she started writing articles in her spare time, going on to be published in the New York Times, Guardian, Independent and Vogue.

Katie started writing The Girls of Summer during the first UK COVID lockdown, after becoming increasingly interested in stories emerging from the #MeToo movement.

The novel is inspired by her own experiences of backpacking, and by her interest in how personal narratives can be reshaped and understood in light of cultural and social changes.

In 2020, Katie moved back to the Midlands, and now lives in Birmingham with her partner. She is a full-time writer.

(book courtesy of the publisher)

(Author photo and information courtesy of the author's website https://www.katiebishopwrites.com/)

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