Review: Out of Breath by Anna Snoekstra

 

Jo has spent her life running away from her problems, instead of trying to tackle them.    She run from her childhood in England, from Art School in London.  She ran from a failed relationship, after a miscarriage,  with her boyfriend Eric in Sydney and is now in Western Australia, working as a fruit picker on a farm in the middle of nowhere.

The work on the fruit farm is tough, but reasonable.  The fruit packers pick fruit by hand all day in the blistering heat, the retreat of an evening to a tin shed, with no electricity, they use a fire pit for some light, have showers and retreat to bed exhausted in preparation for the next gruelling day.

Jo befriends the famer and his young son and they form a bond together.  A tragic accident occurs at the farm with one of Jo's co-workers. Jo becomes traumatised by the accident and the urge to resurfaces again.

Whilst working at the farm, Jo meets Gabe, Jo describes to her the off the grid community that he resides with, it is remote and undiscovered and to Jo this sounds like heaven, a place that is unrecognised and unknown, a place that is welcoming and a place to escape from reality.

This novel was a great thriller, with lot of unexpected twists and turns.

Thankyou to Better Reading for my advanced copy, in return I offer my honest review.

4 Stars: I enjoyed it and would recommend it to people who like the genre. I will definitely want to read more books by this author

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Review: The Golden Ticket by Kate Egan

 

The Golden Ticket is a junior novel for, suitable for a child in perhaps years 4 - 6 at Primary School.

Ais is a talented and gifted student, and has special classes at school that cater for her abilities.   Ais is starting to fall behind at school and the pressures of keeping up her grades, to what is expected to her by not only her parents and teachers, but her friends and those around her also.

Ais decides to cheat on a school test, in hopes that by winning it two years in a row, her parents will be able to forgive her for her low report card and low score on her English Test.

Ais' plan comes undone when her cheating is found out by a fellow classmate.

There are lessons to be learned in this novel, not just to children about the consequences of cheating, but also to parents and caregivers about the pressure our children are under to succeed and always achieve the highest results.

Ais sees her sister and her peers having fun, playing sports etc, and going on hiking camps, whereby Ais has never been given these opportunities as she has always been epected to be the scholar of the family.

I quite enjoyed this story, and the lessons it teaches us.

4 Stars: I enjoyed it and would recommend it to people who like the genre. I will definitely want to read more books by this author.

Thankyou to Netgalley, RB Media and Recorded Books for my advanced audio copy in exchange for my honest review.

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Review: The Freedom of Birds by Stephanie Parkyn

 

The Freedom of Birds is the story of Remi and Pascal who are orphans, and have been trained by the Theatre to be entertainers.   As Remi and Pascal both come to age to perform their first acts, their dreams of being performs are ripped away from them by Remi's mother, who has resurfaced into Remi's life and attempts to hide both him and Pascal in lieu of being drafted to the war.

Remi and Pascal are released from their entrapment and spend their lives as travelling story tellers, they travel on horseback from town to town, telling the townfolk their story tales and fables.

Saskia was given to the Circus by her mother who no longer could care for her.  Saskia was small in stature, flexible and naturally agile, she was an attractive girl with shocking red hair.  When she was taken in by the circus she was trained as an entertainer who could bend and twist into any shape or form.   One day during her performances, she was kidnapped by a priest and was imprisoned to a horrifically torturous life of slavery, imprisonment and abuse.

Saskia plots a plan to escape her life of imprisonment and joins forces with Remi and Pascal and a form a bond of travelling entertainers.

Saskia's story is one of courage, passion and love, it is a lovely story, one that will leave an imprint on your heart.

Thankyou to Allen & Unwin and Stephanie Parkyn for the copy in return I offer my honest review.

Rated 3 stars - It was a good book and well-crafted. I would be happy to recommend  to the right person

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Review of: Oleander City by Matt Bondurant

 I read Oleander City as an audiobook.    

If it is even possible I enjoyed only half the book, yes I know this sounds very strange.  The book was narrated by two narrators, one of them the female, she was reading the story of six year old  Hester who was the only orphan to survive the hurricane.  Hester is a very small six year old, very small for her age.   When the hurricane hit their city, the nuns who ran the orphanage tied all of the orphans together with rope with a Nun at each end, in hope to keep them all safe.   Hester, however wiggled and wormed and refused to be tied in the rope with everyone else, and a Nun relented and held her arms tight around little Hester.   This ended up being Hester's saving grace, all the other orphans and the two Nun's did not survive.   

Hester was then stranded, and fighting to survive on her own.  She was a very tough little girl, with a lot of fight in her, but she came across some terrible things in her fight for survival, including the KKK.   

The male narrator was telling the story of Chrysanthemum Joe, a Jewish boxer, he is known as the greatest Jewish boxer in America.  He is contracted to a fight raising much needed relief funding for the Red Cross.

Obviously the two stories do come together later in the book, which made the story line, much more enjoyable for me, but Chrysanthemum Joe's story was just a little bland for me, until they became entwined.   I am not sure if this was because of the Narrator, or the the way the story was written.

Overall though, the book was intriguing and enlightening.

I would recommend it to the right person.

Thank you NetGalley and Blackstone Audio for this audio book. This book was available to purchase from 14 June, 2022

3 Stars:   It was a good book and well-crafted. I would recommend it to the right person.

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Review: A Dolphin Called Jock by Melody Horrill

 An incredible autobiography about a young girl, her violent and traumatic and abusive childhood.  How she navigated her way through life, and the gems of people and animals she has met among the way that has helped her to stay grounded and stay focused on life.

Her relationship with her Horse Eddie, her English Teacher who saw talent in her and encouraged her,  and then later on as an adult her relationship with the Dolphin named Jock.  These people have had a huge impact on Melody and without their friendship and encouragement, Melody would be a shell of the person that she is today.

Jock and Melody had a very close relationship, both of them having come from traumatic and abusive childhoods.     Melody father was abusive and violent, the police being called to their house multiple times a week.   

Melody's story is based on how she has survived such a traumatic childhood, with the friendship of Jock the Dolphin.

This is quite a sad, but also a beautiful story.   

Thankyou to Allen & Unwin for my advanced copy, in return I offer my honest review.

4 Stars: I enjoyed it and would recommend it to people who like the genre. I will definitely want to read more books by this author

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Review: The Paris Secret by Natasha Lester

The Paris Secret, is another wonderful book by Natasha Lester.     It is extremely difficult to put down, it is one of those books that you stay up all night reading.

This is a story of romance and War.   Brave women who fight for the rights and stand up for themselves in a world of men.

Skye is a pilot, she has been taught how to fly planes by her mother, a single mum, Vanessa Penrose.   When Skye's mother never returns from a flight one day, Skye and her sister Liberty are sent to live with their Aunt in France which Skye despises.     Skye misses her old life, by the beach, collecting sea shells, exploring the caves and swimming in the ocean.

When the war hits, Skye  joins the Airforce, and ends up becoming a pilot in the Airforce, to fly planes from one location to the other so that the male pilots have planes to use in the war.     

Skye, due to her talent and her fighting spirit,  is given an opportunity to fly bigger planes and again Skye proves herself talented and smart.

5 Stars: It was amazing. It was compelling, well-researched, entertaining and/or moving and often complex. I will definitely want to read more books by this author.

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Review: The House Sitter by Ellery Kane

 

The book has a dual timeline, which keeps us guessing.   It opens with a 911 call  wherein an elderly lady is seeking assistance as she is on her own, and there a possible burglar in the house.    Gunshots are head, the line goes silent and the dispatcher stays on the line listening.  

Iris Duncan lives in a big beautiful house, in the affluent suburb of Pacific Heights.  She has been on her own since her husband's passing a few years back and at 70 years of age she has been unable to keep up with the maintenance the house and beautiful garden requires.      Iris has also been quite lonely since her husband's passing, and doesn't really have anybody to talk to.

Iris meets Lidia, a waitress at a local cafe, who Iris takes pity on.   Lidia is clumsy and keeps getting in trouble with her boss, for spilling drinks and not keeping up with the orders.  Iris sees an opportunity and offers Lidia and her husband Seth a job as housekeepers.   Iris sees this as a win/win as Iris receives help around the house and companionship.

Lidia takes great care of Iris, cooking for her, assisting her with daily medications, and setting up little reminders around the house for every day tasks that Iris' is forgetting.

Suddenly Iris goes missing, police a called to the scene, the phone line is cut, there is pools of blood at the scene and broken glass.   Seth and Lidia are considered suspects.     Where is Iris, is she still alive, and what has happened to her. 

This is a great thriller, the suspense is epic.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for this audio book. This book was available to purchase from 14 June, 2022

4 Stars: I enjoyed it and would recommend it to people who like the genre. I will definitely want to read more books by this author.

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Review: The Understudy by Julie Bennett

 

The Understudy is a debut novel for Julie Bennett. The novel is based loosely on Julie's own experience as an extra in the Australian Opera in 1973. Julie's father was also a tenor in the Australian Opera.

The book tells two stories, that of the lead Opera singer Margaret and the story of her understudy Sophie Carlton.

Margaret is a famous Australian Opera Singer and has been cast in the role of Madame Butterfly, at the opening of the brand new Sydney Opera House. Sophie has a role in the Chorus, but has also been cast as Margaret's understudy.

Sophie has wanted nothing else in life, but to sing the lead singer of an Opera and sing beside her all time idol, Armando Cecchi. When Margaret goes missing, Sophie can't believe her dream has finally come true.

Suspicions arise around the convenience of Margaret's disappearance, and Sophie is questioned by her employer and work mates. Sophie is doing well in her role, whilst she is filling in for Margaret, but the suspicions continue to rise and the Media are also rising suspicions.

I found the book difficult to put down, every 5 minutes I had spare, I was reading this book to find out what was happening with Sophie and if there had been an update on the missing Margaret.

The book is full of love, suspicion, thrill and excitement. This is a good first novel, with a little room for improvement. Perhaps if the form of characters, I also found the ending a little rushed.

Thank you Simon and Schuster and Julie Bennett for gifting me this copy. In return for your generosity I offer you my review

3 Stars: It was a good book and well-crafted. I would recommend it to the right person.

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Review: Where the Road Bends by Rachal Fordham

 

Rachel Fordham has written a beautifully, heart warming romantic historical fiction. I loved this book from the very first chapter. It is such a beautiful story, full of forgiveness, hope, new beginnings, love and new friendships.

The book opens with a quote from Jane Austen's Persuasion - "You pierce my sole, I am half agony, half hope, I have loved none but you" This for me set the tone to a well researched, and thought provoking novel.

Nora is a hard working young woman who works the farm that was left to her by her parents. She is behind in mortgage repayments, and local man Jake has made her a reasonable offer to pay the bank the money owing in repayments in return for her hand in marriage. Nora accepts this practical deal as she is 22 years of age, has no other marriage prospects or means to pay the debt owing on the bank. She is not hopeful of a love match so she feels this is a practical and sensible solution to her problems.

Whilst having a dip in the lake on her property, and just 1 week prior to her intended marriage, Nora discovers a man on her property who is unconscious, he is covered in blood, has bruises all over his face and body, his hair is matted and stuck to his face. Nora uses all her strength to drag this man, Quincy, back to her house and nurses him back to health. Nora feels comfortable around Quincy, even though he is stranger, and finds him easy to talk to, and makes her laugh, like she has never laughed before. There are sparks between the two of them, but neither Quincy or Nora acknowledge them as Nora is due to be married in less then 1 week. Within a couple of days Quincy leaves Nora's home and hospitality and goes upon his own path, as it is not good for Nora to have a strange man staying in her house, especially as she is unwed.

Quincy has had a rough life, he was on his own since the age of fourteen, to try and make ends meet he was boxing for cash. Nora has also had it quite difficult, her parents dying young, loosing her brothers at a very young age, and having to work the farm on her own. Both of them having difficult beginnings, but have both made the best of their circumstances.

After leaving Nora's property, Quincy ends up doing quite well for himself and becomes a business man, he purchases a run down hotel, and works hard to bring it back to life. With the profits from the Hotel he then goes on to purchase the local cafe and the supermarket, not to make profit but to support the previous owners who needed some help at the time. Due to his successes in business, Quincy would like to repay back Nora for her kindness and hospitality and writes a letter to Nora and posts her some cash with it. When the letter is returned to Quincy as undeliverable, Quincy sets out to find Nora and to find out why his letter was not accepted.

What Quincy finds, when he returns to Norah's hometown, everything is not as he expected.

“Nothing in my life has gone how I thought it would, but it’s all getting me to where I want to be. I’d live it all again. It was my road to you.”

Thank you NetGalley and Tantor Audio for this audio book. This book was available to purchase from 7 June, 2022

5 Stars: It was amazing. It was compelling, well-researched, entertaining and/or moving and often complex. I will definitely want to read more books by this author.

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