Review: Cat Fight by Kit Conway (2025)

Blurb

When the peace shatters in suburbia, the claws come out . . .

Coralie King, Emma Brooks and Twig Dorsett are friends. Sort of. They’re neighbours on an exclusive Sevenoaks estate who get along. It’s convenient.

But one May bank holiday, Coralie’s husband insists he saw a panther on the bonnet of his car. And cracks between the elite of the Briar Heart Estate begin to emerge.

As the summer wears on and there are more sightings, the big cat frenzy reaches a fever pitch. Tensions between neighbours threaten to boil over. Everyone is watching their back. But is the real predator a seventy-kilo cat with razor-sharp claws? Or is the actual danger of a much more domestic variety?

Review

I am very grateful to the publishers and the lovely Squadpod for my ARC of Cat Fight, which I received in exchange for an honest review. Apologies for the delay in posting this – at least it means this glorious book is already out and you can get your paws (sorry) on it straightaway!

I was sold right from the start by the premise – I’m a Big Cat geek myself, having spent part of my childhood in southern Africa (one of the best days of my life involved watching a leopard fall out of a tree and then stalk sheepishly away as if to say ‘I MEANT to do that;’ another involved cuddling a rescued cheetah named Gigi) – and since moving back to the UK, I’ve always been fascinated by wild cat sighting stories in this country. The book does a brilliant job of playing up the unverified, wafting rumour element – we don’t know who to believe, and there are so many delicious twists in the story, and yet of course, as readers, we find ourselves willing the stories of the Sevenoaks Panther to be true.

The twists and turns of the plot are such an integral part of the fun of this novel, so it’s hard to say too much about the story itself, except that there are plenty of surprises to be had. Come for the excellent premise, stay for the brilliantly observed character dynamics of the Briar Heart Estate set – the ensemble cast is populated with complex, varied characters who interact with all the veracity of the weight of shared history and too much knowledge of each other – these are neighbours whose lives have become intertwined, whose relationships teeter on the edge of dysfunctional right from the start, and then plunge headlong over the cliff. It’s enormously entertaining, in a voyeuristic, almost guilty pleasure way, which feels apt for the dynamics of the Estate itself.

If ever there was a book that’s perfect for summer reading, it’s Kit Conway’s debut novel. Set over one long, hot summer in a privileged Kent community, the story simmers with tension, the aforementioned character dynamics, and a wonderful sense of everything building to an explosive conclusion. This book really pulls you along; there’s an energy to it that’s sexy, dangerous and addictive, and it becomes more and more intriguing and shocking – set aside a proper chunk of time to devour the final chapters, as you won’t want to stop once you’ve started! This is an elegantly constructed, tautly written story that more than delivers on its excellent premise, and I absolutely loved it. I can’t wait to see what comes next from Kit Conway.

Cat Fight by Kit Conway is published by Bantam and is available to purchase here.

Review: Where Snowbirds Play by Gina Goldhammer (2025)

Blurb

Was it pure chance that he had run into her so soon? Philip had never believed in destiny, and his father had believed in nothing but his own genius. And yet…

From the moment recent Oxford graduate Philip takes the helm of a new marine life institute in Palm Beach, his presence revives old feuds and sparks rivalries among the wealthy resident snowbirds, many of whom have invested heavily in a biotech company soon to be exposed for insider trading. It quickly becomes clear that Philip’s quest for atonement on the behalf of his father will embroil many of the community’s most prominent members.

Interwoven with snippets of real-life drama from an insider-trading scandal, Where Snowbirds Play paints a compelling portrait of the lives of the privileged, and what happens when their world is turned upside down.

Review

I am always intrigued by the new offerings from Renard Press and its imprint Hay Press – they’re an independent publisher that never fails to disappoint, pushing the boundaries and offering readers something out of the ordinary. I was delighted to be offered a chance to read and review this book, receiving an advance copy in exchange for my honest opinion. I apologise for the lateness of this review – life has been life-ing recently, as indeed it does for the characters in Gina Goldhammer’s brilliant novel!

The novel follows a group of wealthy residents in Palm Beach, with the new arrival, Philip, providing an outsider’s perspective that helps the reader orientate themselves amongst this extraordinary cast of characters. It is a world of luxury and privilege, but there is so much more going on beneath the surface, and one of the things I loved about this book is how many different aspects are at play. We’ve got the voyeuristic thrill of seeing how the very rich spend their days, with elaborate parties and eccentric pursuits, but also the secrets and griefs of the inhabitants, from Hannah Caulfield’s struggle to improve the life of her terminally ill son, to Sunny Sloan’s tragic past, and against these personal trials and tribulations, we also get a sense of the environmental crises lurching ever closer. Philip’s role at the Marine Institute and the ominously worsening weather both provide opportunities to reflect on wider issues that go beyond the tightly-knit lives of the characters. It takes a very talented writer to weave all of these elements together, and Gina Goldhammer pulls it off with panache.

This really is an original book, with a flavour all of its own. There’s a dash of The Great Gatsby in the luxurious setting and Philip’s admiration for Hannah; a concern with the natural world that reminded me of some of Barbara Kingsolver’s work; and some wonderfully nineteenth century melodrama from the lovesick Philip, particularly when combined with the incoming storms – he’s like a 1990s Heathcliff brooding among the palm trees! It’s a heady mix, and Goldhammer’s skill with natural description and character development make this a very rewarding book to spend time with. I highly recommend Where Snowbirds Play to anyone looking for a book that’ll push them outside their usual comfort zone and provide a rich, fascinating reading experience.

Where Snowbirds Play by Gina Goldhammer is published by Renard Press and is available to purchase here.

Review: Hail Mary by Funmi Fetto (2025)

Blurb

* A Harper’s Bazaar ‘Best New Short-Story Collection’ for 2025 *

A stunning collection of short stories capturing the lives of nine Nigerian women, each very different, each determined to fight for themselves.

Meet Ifeoma. She’s been ready to leave her violent husband for some time, but her plans for a quiet departure take an unexpectedly gruesome turn…

Nkechi, a housemaid for a rich Lagos family, bears the weight of her Madam’s wrath when she discovers her husband’s dark secret.

In London, Riliwa meets Mary, a guardian angel full of advice, wisdom and practical support as she navigates her unfamiliar new home. But it soon becomes clear that Mary’s kindness comes at a price.

Passionate, raw, full of heart and humour, these are stories about women who will not be broken by the challenges life puts in their way.

Review

I have been falling back in love with short stories this year, so I was thrilled to get the chance to read this debut collection from Vogue Style Editor Funmi Fetto. Huge thanks to the publisher and the Squadpod for my beautiful finished copy, which I received in exchange for an honest review.

This collection of stories presents a series of portraits of Nigerian women, taking us back and forth between Nigeria and the UK. From Ifeoma in 2 Samuel 6:14, planning her escape from her abusive, religiously zealous husband, to young Lara arriving in London for the first time in Trip, from Nkechi negotiating the perilous whims of her Madam and master in House Girl, to Riliwa in the eponymous story Hail Mary seeking advice from a ‘fixer’ for immigrants like herself, there is such a wide range of experiences in these raw, emotionally charged stories, and it’s impossible not to be as captivated by them as the narrator of Wait is to the irresistible magnetism of Ngozi.

I loved all of the nine tales in Hail Mary, but my standout favourites are: Unspoken, an incredibly powerful story of trauma and how it is buried; Dodo is Yoruba for Fried Plantain, in which a widow rediscovers her love of Nigerian food and cooks up a storm (mouth-watering descriptions that will make you hungry as you read!); and Underneath the Mango Tree, Kemi’s story of her battle with infertility. These are brave, resilient, complex characters making their way through a world that throws obstacles at them at every turn, and there is such a tender mix of fierceness and vulnerability in these women – it’s both moving and inspiring to read their stories, to hear their voices lifting off the page.

Funmi Fetto excels at one of the trickiest aspects of the short story form: the sting in the (lizard’s!) tail. One of the signs of an excellent short story for me is when I do a sharp intake of breath after reading the last lines, and with this collection, that happened several times. It never feels contrived or forced, but it lends such an elegant shape to the carefully wrought, emotionally rich stories that are woven across the pages of this outstanding debut collection. I will be eagerly looking out for more from this author in the future, and I highly recommend getting your hands on this wonderful book.

Hail Mary by Funmi Fetto is published by Oneworld and is available to purchase here.

Review: The Man She Married by Alison Stockham (2025)

Blurb

The BRAND NEW thriller from the top ten bestselling author of The Cuckoo Sister

How can you fight for a life you can’t remember?

One moment I was just living my life, finding my way in the world. The next I woke up in a hospital bed with years of my life missing.

The man by my side – Rob, my husband – looks familiar, but I can’t remember marrying him. I can’t remember our life together. Most haunting of all: I can’t remember anything about the last five years.

Rob keeps telling me that everything will be fine, that my memories will return, but something feels… wrong. Why does our flat feel so unfamiliar? Why does he flinch when I ask questions? Why are none of my friends and family in touch?

The more I try to piece my life back together, the more I question everything – even myself. Who is Rob, really? And can I trust him? More importantly, can I trust myself?

A compulsive and obsessive read that will have you saying ‘just one more chapter!’ Perfect for fans of Before I Go To Sleep and Alice Feeney

Review

Huge thanks to the author and the Squadpod for my copy of the book, which I received in exchange for an honest review.

I’m a big fan of Alison Stockham’s writing – I loved her bestselling debut novel The Cuckoo Sister and last year’s The New Girl. As I’ve said before, her books aren’t straightforward thrillers; they’re incredibly psychologically complex, and they always offer a fresh take on what you might expect from the blurb. I’m pleased to report that The Man She Married is no exception – in fact, I think it’s her best book yet.

It is so hard to write amnesiac characters well – we rely so much on characters’ memories and backstories to build them up as developed personalities with the weight of history behind them – which makes what the author manages with Beth in this novel all the more impressive. It’s impossible not to sympathise with the position she finds herself in, waking up after a car crash with no memory of the last five years, and a man looming over her who claims to be her husband. The grief of loss of memory is so specific and difficult to express, but it’s done brilliantly here, as is the vulnerable position Beth finds herself in – alone in the world except for this one man who feels like a stranger to her.

As the story progresses, the twists and turns become more and more delicious, with the narrative ramping up the tension in a way that feels almost cinematic. There’s a visual quality to the writing that’s stronger here than in her previous books – this is crying out for a screen adaptation! The characters who come into the story as Beth tries to work out what on earth is going on are never straightforward, and we share her doubts as to where the truth really lies. It’s a tense, gripping, sometimes outright terrifying read, and one of the biggest reveals (which of course I won’t mention here!) is hinted at so subtly that it really does feel like a gut punch when it occurs.

No spoilers, but the finale of this book is absolutely brilliant, such a brave and dramatic ending. I loved it, and I think it shows what a skilled writer Alison Stockham is that she pulls it off with such aplomb. I’m in awe of the way it implicates the reader – I won’t go into detail, but you’ll see – you finish this book so thoroughly caught up in the dilemmas faced by the characters that it’s almost as if you’ve lived through it with them, which is the sign of a writer at the height of her powers! If you’re a thriller fan and you haven’t yet got onto this author’s books, I urge you to do so, and this latest offering is one hell of a place to start.

The Man She Married by Alison Stockham is published by Boldwood Books and is available to purchase here.

Review: The Alternatives by Caoilinn Hughes (2024)

Blurb

OLWEN. NELL. MAEVE. RHONA. MEET THE FLATTERY SISTERS.

Olwen, Nell, Maeve and Rhona were plunged prematurely into adulthood when their parents died in a tragic twist of fate. Now in their thirties, the sisters barely speak, each too busy carving out impressive careers. But when Olwen – reluctant matriarch, lodestar and, of late, zealous consumer of gin – abruptly disappears, her sisters are cast back together to find her, whether she likes it or not.

When they eventually track Olwen down, she is holed up in a remote bungalow in rural Ireland, with little electricity and a patchy connection to the outside world. Together for the first time in years, the sisters vie to confront old wounds and diagnose new ills – most urgently, Olwen’s.

Fiercely witty and unexpectedly hopeful, The Alternatives is an unforgettable portrait of a family perched on a precipice, told by one of Ireland’s most gifted storytellers.

Review

Many thanks to the publisher and the Squadpod for my copy, which I received in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the opening chapters of this book, as we’re introduced to each of the Flattery sisters in the context of their lives. There’s an immediate sense that we’re in the hands of a consummate storyteller, weaving together the sisters’ past and present lives with a skill that seems effortless. Each of the four women is compelling, fascinating, complex – and I would have read a whole novel in their alternating point of views and been a very satisfied reader.

But Hughes does something even more clever – as the stories converge and the sisters come together to ‘rescue’ Olwen from her self-imposed exile, we flick into script format, with brief descriptive lines like stage directions and dialogue so sharp you can hear it. At first, I found this slightly jarring, but when I started to relax into it and get used to the style, I could see how it allows the narration to swirl in and out of the different characters’ consciousnesses in an incredibly effective way (reminding me a little of Damon Galgut’s The Promise, which drifts through different points of view without any of the dreaded ‘head-hopping’ awkwardness). It is a bold technique that fits very well with the intellectually challenging material presented in the novel – as well as moving from character to character, the story grapples with weighty topics of philosophy, history, politics: this is a book that wears its academic credentials as proudly as the four fiercely intelligent Flattery women.

It is not a quick read, and I found it a book I needed to be in the right mood for – it demands engagement, thought, concentration – but the rewards for careful consideration are a rich and varied flow of ideas that provoke new ways of looking at things. And there is humour, it isn’t all doom and seriousness – there are lines and scenes of wonderful comic delight, as well as emotional moments that strike to the core of what it means to be ‘family.’ It reminded me in some ways of Anne Enright’s The Green Road, another brilliant novel that hinges on a family reunion. The Alternatives was my first book by Caoilinn Hughes, but I will definitely be seeking out more of her work.

The Alternatives by Caoilinn Hughes is published by OneWorld and is out in paperback now.

Review: The Boy from the Sea by Garrett Carr (2025)

Blurb

1973. In a close-knit community on Ireland’s west coast, a baby is found abandoned on the beach. Named Brendan by Ambrose Bonnar, the fisherman who adopts him, the baby captivates the town and the boy he grows to be will captivate them still – no one can quite fathom Brendan Bonnar.

For Christine, Ambrose’s wife, Brendan brings both love and worry. For Declan, their son, his new brother’s arrival is the start of a life-long rivalry. And though Ambrose brings Brendan into his home out of love, it is a decision that will fracture his family and force this man – more comfortable at sea than on land – to try to understand himself and those he cares for.

Told over two decades, Garrett Carr’s The Boy from the Sea is a novel about a restless boy trying to find his place in the world and a family fighting to hold itself together. It is a story of ordinary lives made extraordinary, a drama about a community who can’t help but look to the boy from the sea for answers as they face the storm of a rapidly changing world.

Review

Many thanks to Camilla Elworthy for sending me a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved so many things about this gorgeous novel, but I think what struck me the most was the way the narration zooms in and out of a kind of communal point of view. Right from the opening lines, the reader is presented to the ‘we’ of the town, in a tone that reminded me of Cannery Row by Steinbeck or Our Town by Thornton Wilder: “We were a hardy people, raised facing the Atlantic. A few thousand men, women and children clinging to the coast to stay dry. Our town wasn’t just a town, it was a logic and a fate.” The sense of place is so strong in this book, the Donegal Bay setting coming to life on every page, and interwoven with that is the idea of community, of a group of people utterly bound together by the town they live in. It’s nostalgic and old-fashioned, but it is also powerful and all-encompassing, and as the story unfurls and the years pass, there’s a sense of this tale being more than one specific story – it has a folkloric, emblematic quality that stretches beyond the town and reaches all of us.

The baby who ‘washes up’ on the shores and is adopted by the Bonner family turns into a child observed by the whole community, and eventually a young man who must find his own path in the world. Brendan and his older brother Declan are, for me, the heart of this book, and I loved that this isn’t a saccharine tale of brotherly bonding: the rivalry between them, particularly on Declan’s side, is fierce and often ugly, and yet we can see where his resentment comes from, in the well-meaning but fumbled attempts of his parents to bring up the boys together, and the almost reverent awe the town has for Brendan. There is so much emotion packed into these pages, and so much left unsaid, with actions speaking louder than words on many occasions. The characters are flawed and complex, but the bonds between them run deep – I particularly enjoyed the relationship between Christine, the boys’ mother, and her sister, Phyllis. Ambrose Bonner is a beautifully drawn character, too – a man suspicious of modernity and progress, who nevertheless is forced to acknowledge that the world is changing.

It is a real joy to read a book so full of detail and specifics that also feels larger than the sum of its parts, a universal story that will stand the test of time. It reminded me of writers like Claire Keegan, who can say so much in so few words, but there’s also a freshness here, an originality and a voice that is all Garrett Carr’s own. I was mesmerised by this novel, and I can’t wait to read more by this incredibly talented author.

The Boy from the Sea by Garrett Carr is published by Picador and is available to purchase here.

Review: Life Hacks For a Little Alien by Alice Franklin (2025)

Blurb

Perfect for fans of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine and Remarkably Bright Creatures, this is a charming, witty and moving novel about what it feels like to grow up neurodivergent.

‘Climb up here, Little Alien. Sit next to me. I will tell you about life on this planet. I will tell you how it goes’

From her first words to her first day at school, Little Alien can’t help but get things wrong. She doesn’t understand the world the way others seem to, and the world doesn’t seem to understand her either. Her anxious mum and meticulous dad, while well-intentioned, are of little help.

But when Little Alien sees a documentary about the Voynich Manuscript – a mediaeval codex written in an unknown language and script – she begins to suspect that there are other people who feel just like her. Convinced that translating this manuscript will offer the answers she needs, she sets out on a journey that will show her a delicious taste of freedom.

So begins this charming, witty, and profoundly moving novel about the power of language, the wonder of libraries – and how to find a path that fits, when you yourself do not.

Review

Many thanks to the publisher and to the Squadpod for my copy, which I received in exchange for an honest review.

I was really excited to read this novel, which I could tell from its brilliant title was going to be something completely different, and I wasn’t disappointed. This is a lovely, unique, gentle book that is full of warmth and humour and new ways of looking at the world.

The narration, which is in second person ‘you’ addressing the unnamed ‘Little Alien’ of our story, takes a little getting used to, but I found it added so much to the reading experience. At times I took it as the older version of the protagonist speaking to her younger self, although it’s open to interpretation, and it allows for a really special kind of insider/outsider viewpoint: we can both identify with Little Alien and also step back and see her struggle to make sense of a world that isn’t designed for neurodivergence.

There is a lot here that will resonate with neurodivergent individuals, or those close to them, including, unfortunately, systemic failures and a lack of support. But there’s also joy to be had in sharing the way Little Alien views things, in her discovery of the wonders of libraries, and her journey of fascination with the mysterious Voynich Manuscript. The text itself has various fun features such as footnotes and Further Reading sections, which adds to the quirkiness of the book and the off-beat humour. Her friendship with Bobby, and later, her connection with the Linguist, provide moments of light and hope, and on the whole I would say that this is an optimistic book.

I really enjoyed spending time seeing the world from Little Alien’s perspective, and I think there is a lot here to enjoy. It feels fresh and original, an interlude of poignant and skilful writing to take the reader away and provide them with plenty of food for thought. I look forward to seeing what comes next from Alice Franklin after this heart-warming debut novel.

Life Hacks For a Little Alien by Alice Franklin is published by Riverrun and is available to purchase here.

Review: May All Your Skies Be Blue by Fíona Scarlett (2025)

Blurb

Summer, 1991.

Dean: sun-stung and sticky with cool ice-pop juice, walks to the middle of The Green to get a good gawk at the new salon. And at the owner’s kid. Hands deep in his pockets, his jet-black mop of hair hides the tension in his face at the thought of going back home.

Shauna: stands well hid behind her ma – her eyes dark and haunted like the rest of her. The salon is theirs, a fresh start. The smell of her ma’s Body Shop perfume clings to her jumper – Shauna can’t be anywhere else other than here.

Instantly inseparable, their friendship blooms. But as time passes and tell-tale blushes and school fights develop into something deeper, conflicting responsibilities threaten to pull Shauna and Dean apart.

When all seems lost, will they find each other under the same blue sky?

Review

Many thanks to the publisher for inviting me onto the blog tour for May All Your Skies Be Blue and for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited to read this book, but also slightly trepidatious, for two reasons: firstly, I’d ADORED the author’s previous novel, Boys Don’t Cry, so my expectations were (excuse the pun) sky high, and secondly, the ominous packet of tissues sent with the proof copy I received, which suggested I was in for another utterly heart-breaking reading experience. I’m not sure whether I was more afraid of crying as much as I had with her previous book, or not being as moved, but in the end, I can tell you that Fíona Scarlett has somehow done it again. May All Your Skies Be Blue is as rich and raw and emotionally stirring as I could have wished for, with characters that feel completely fresh and original and yet totally real.

The writing is so beautiful – it captures the vivid colours and brightly lit feelings of childhood and adolescence perfectly, and the style, with gorgeous use of dialect and a startling eye for descriptions, is unique and full of depth. It’s a properly immersive novel, one where you take a deep breath before you dive in, and swim through it without wanting to come up for air. The characters, from the protagonists Shauna and Dean to their friends and family, are so well-drawn that there is an almost documentary-like feel, particularly to the present storyline sections where different clients enter the salon for their appointments. You can visualise every one of them, and hear the conversations – this is the mark of a storyteller at the top of their game.

The structure works really well, weaving the single day of appointments at the salon in among flashbacks to Shauna and her mum’s arrival in the Dublin neighbourhood in the early nineties and the growing bond between Shauna and Dean over the years. It’s sophisticated without being distracting, and it builds up such a sense of lives intertwining and paths crossing, of dynamics playing out over many years, so that even though it’s not a huge novel, it has an epic feel and span, a sense of lives lived, of changes undergone and phases left behind. It’s so structurally clever, but it never feels overly literary because of the down-to-earth nature of the characters and the beautiful realism of the prose.

It is important to go into this novel without spoilers and without too much advance knowledge of the plot, so I will keep this review brief, but suffice it to say that if you loved Boys Don’t Cry, you will NOT be disappointed by this next novel. When I wrote my review of BDC, I talked about what a rare thing it is for an author to be able to pull so much emotion out of the reader without it feeling sentimental or forced in any way, and to create characters whose voices echo in the reader’s head long after they finish the book – I think it must be even rarer to conjure up the same magic again in an entirely fresh story. Fíona Scarlett’s gift for gently breaking our hearts and giving us characters who take us on such powerful emotional journeys surely puts her among the very best of contemporary storytellers, and I can’t wait to see what comes next from this astoundingly talented author.

May All Your Skies Be Blue by Fíona Scarlett is published by Faber and is available to purchase here.

Check out the other lovely blog tour posts for more reviews of this beautiful book!

Review: Black Woods, Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey (2025)

Blurb

Where there is wonder, there is love – an unforgettable story of the beauty and savagery of the Alaskan wilderness, from the author of the million-copy international bestseller, The Snow Child.

‘I read with my heart in my mouth, filled with wonder’ Rachel Joyce, author of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
‘An enthralling novel about the endurance of love, the power of forgiveness and the savage, irresistible allure of wild places’ Paula Hawkins, author of The Girl on the Train

Birdie’s keeping it together, of course she is. So she’s a little hungover on her shifts, and has to bring her daughter to the lodge while she waits tables, but Emaleen never goes hungry. It’s a tough town to be a single mother, and Birdie just needs to get by.
And then Birdie meets Arthur, who is quieter than most men, but makes her want to listen; who is gentle with Emaleen, and understands Birdie’s fascination with the mountains in whose shadow they live. When Arthur asks Birdie and Emaleen to leave the lodge and make a home, just the three of them, in his off-grid cabin, Birdie’s answer, in a heartbeat, is yes.

Out in the wilderness Birdie’s days are harsher and richer than she ever imagined possible. Here she will feel truly at one with nature. Here she, and Emaleen, will learn the whole, fearful truth about Arthur.

Review

Many thanks to the publisher and to the Squadpod for my ARC of this book, which I received in exchange for an honest review. It came with a copy of The Snow Child, which I hadn’t read for years, so I reread that first and was just as enchanted as I had been the first time.

Black Woods, Blue Sky is darker than The Snow Child, and there’s a more modern slant to it, as embodied by Birdie, a single mother bringing up her daughter on the edge of the Alaskan wilderness. It also goes harder on the magical realism, bringing to mind some of my favourite writers like Margaret Atwood and Angela Carter. There’s a tough beauty here that extends beyond the gorgeous prose and into the characters themselves. Birdie, Emaleen and Arthur are all utterly compelling, and the added perspective we gain from Arthur’s father, Warren, makes this a richly complex novel.

I was mesmerised by Eowyn Ivey’s writing in this novel – she conjures up the wilderness like no other writer, and plunges into the human heart just as seamlessly. The balancing act of terror and hope is woven around the reader like a spell, and I found myself captivated by the gradual, powerful momentum of the story. The tension is built so slowly and subtly, and the descriptions are both raw and beautiful – nature red in tooth and claw but also unbearably tender. It is so cleverly written that we enter suspension of disbelief as readily as a child listening to a fairytale, and we’re held in the story’s gentle grasp until the last page.

There’s an unexpected jump at the end that I thought worked brilliantly; it surprised me at a point in the book where I thought we’d reached an inevitable conclusion, and for me, it added a whole extra layer of meaning to an already deliciously nuanced story.

There is something so rich and strange and profound about this novel – it moved me so deeply, and I know it is one that I will revisit. I can’t recommend this book highly enough – it has so much to teach us about nature, about love, and about the power of stories. An unforgettable reading experience.

Black Woods, Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey is published by Tinder Press and is available to purchase here.

Spotlight: The Hangman’s Master by Elyse Hoffman (2025)

Blurb

In a world torn by hatred, reckless Stefan Harkel finds himself expelled from home at sixteen and drawn to the Nazi Party’s Brownshirt Unit. But when the Führer turns against his own during the Night of Long Knives, Stefan vows vengeance for those he lost.

Joining an anti-Nazi resistance, Stefan’s thirst for revenge leads him to a supernatural twist: he’s chosen as a warden in Hell, granted a Contract for Zone N-1, home to the soul of Reinhard Heydrich, a key architect of the Holocaust. Yet, he’s not alone in this dark game; a ruthless Nazi seeks to claim the power of the Contracts for himself.

As the fate of Europe hangs in the balance, Stefan must protect his Contract from falling into enemy hands, confronting the ultimate battle between good and evil.

Elyse Hoffman delivers a gripping tale of redemption and resilience in the shadow of World War II.

What The Write Reads Reviewers are Saying

_ForBooksSake gave it 4.5 stars: “Elyse Hoffman is fast becoming one of my favourite historical fiction writers.”

Left on the Shelf says: “The author weaves the present, past and supernatural elements of the books together splendidly”

Marie Sinadjan gave it 5 stars: “I found Stefan to be an incredible protagonist”

Beyond the Books says: “Yes! Again, Elyse Hoffman has excellently crafted a tale that takes your heart and stomps all over it.”

About the Author

Elyse Hoffman is an award-winning author who strives to tell historical tales with new twists. Having studied WWII since the age of thirteen and with interests in fantasy and Jewish folklore, she loves to combine them in her writing. Elyse started writing novels at fourteen and finished her first historical fiction work at fifteen. She has published eight books: five in a series called The Barracks of the Holocaust, and three novels, including The Book of Uriel, Where David Threw Stones, and Fracture. In her spare time, she loves to read, work on pretty keyboards, and hang out with her co-authors – her Goldendoodle Ari and her ex-feral cat, Echo.