readbyjaniene

When They Find Her is immediately gripping. Lia Middleton doesn’t take too long to get into the dramatic mystery of Naomi’s night alone with her young daughter, Freya. There’s a near-instant air of intrigue that Middleton develops through a number of ways. The issue of Naomi’s past, and the secrets…More

Girl A is about healing, specifically Lex’s attempts to heal in the decades-long aftermath of a childhood characterised by pain, suffering, and deprivation. Through frequent flashbacks we learn about the the cruelty experienced by the Gracie children, all seven, all recognisable by the shock of their blonde hair. At 11 Moor Woods Road, now known as the notorious ‘House of Horrors’…More

This novel combines two genres I love: historical fiction and mystery, and so I had very high hopes for The Lost Sister. Even better, this book features a dual timeline, a storytelling technique I’m rather fond of, and is very much a woman-led piece of work. But perhaps my expectations were a little too high, because I was left feeling grossly underwhelmed and largely disappointed. More

In Klara and the Sun, Ishiguro completely reframes the genre of dystopian science-fiction by restructuring what one has come to expect from it: the despair; the desperation; the futurism; the love. This novel is such an enchanting and immersive read led by an exceptionally strong-willed and kind-hearted (artificial) girl that it easily earns five out of five stars.More

This review is spoiler-free! Two young people meet at a pub in South East London. Both are Black British, both won scholarships to private schools where they struggled to belong, both are now artists – he a photographer, she a dancer – trying to make their mark in a city…More