Dear Mrs Bird by A.J. Pearce

Mrs Bird is a renowned and formidable agony aunt and editor for the 'Women's Friends' Magazine, which is beginning to be grind to a stop. She has a long list of what are unacceptable problems for the magazine as well as articles or fiction which may be published. The fact other women's magazines are tackling the unacceptable aspects of the life that she ignores.

In December 1940, Emmy Lake is on the tram returning home from her job as a secretary at Strawman's solicitors. She dreams of becoming a lady war correspondent and flying around the world, reporting from far flung places, and imagines it a heroic profession. She is reading the adverts and jobs wanted sections of the Evening Chronicle, having read the news. Emmy chances across a job advertised for a Junior at the Launceston Press Ltd - the owners of the Evening Chronicle - it is a sign of her dream coming true. She decides to send off a letter of enquiry and gets an interview.

What the advert does not indicate is that the Junior being sort is for Mrs Bird and not in the main newspaper. Emmy gets to the offices of the paper and is directed up to the floor of the 'Women's Friends' Magazine. She takes in the dreary and thread bare decor but with her mind of the 'glitz' of reporting the war, she ignores the signs that not all is it should be. After an interview with Mr Collins who steps in for Mrs Bird when she's away from the office. His questions are nothing to do with the war, but Emmy is so determined to get the job that she ignores this oversight.

She comes away with the job, and looks forward to her first day as a junior, ready to prove her worth and work her way up to her dream job.

On the first day of her job Emmy encounters Kathleen and begins to fit the pieces together. The job however she feels could lead to her dream job, so she is determined to do all she can to gain a promotion. Her job involves typing up the answers to the problems she is prepared to answer. Emmy is also charged with ensuring the only problems Mrs Bird recieves are on her short list of acceptable ones, and to dispose of the others in the bin, cutting them up before hand.

Emmy cannot understand why those who gathered the courage to ask for help, who may have no one else they can ask are treated so harshly by Mrs Bird in her answers to them. And why so many problems are deemed unacceptable when they are problems so many people have, and are so widely shared with the war and its impact on lives. So she begins to write back to those who send in stamps, using Mrs Birds' name. 

She tells her best friend and flatmate Bunty, who grew up with her. Bunty thoroughly disproves and Emmy promises her she will stop, but knows in heart she won't. So secrets and shenanigans arise from her secret begin to arise. As does life under the blitz, it's gentleness, fun and devastation.

Mrs bird's formidable presence shouts from the page as much as her shouts resound around the office, and anywhere she is. She hops in and out of the office, in between good work. Mrs Bird is the only one who can do anything, without her the world would fall apart.

Emmy in contrast is quiet, gentle and caring, yet is also lacking lived experience of the world. Her view of the wars has been in some ways secondhand, she reads letters from her brother and boyfriend about their duties. As a fire-station telephone operator, she hears of the devastation bombs and firs have caused, but has experienced little of that devastation herself. She walks past bombed houses and shops, yet it is after the action and is in some sanitised.  Yet when she experiences heartbreak and devastation she begins to grow, and this can be seen in her understanding of the problems people are writing in with.

Bunty is more worldly, this could be because she works at the war office and is part of the hush hush of the war effort, so sees and speaks to those who see action. Yet when devastation occurs she goes into herself and struggles to cope, which any of us I feel would in the circumstances.

They both however as the book progresses grow in character and friendship.

This book has several areas of laughter. one is when Emmy is with Bunty queuing for a seat in a Tea House and sees Mr Collins who beckons them over. She is surprised to find that he has a younger half-sibling. The scene is written like a sketch and I can see many comics plying the roles to their funniest.

Throughout the book there is a mixture of emotions which has your heart being wrung and then laughing.

I also learnt more about the role of women in the war, which was an interesting tangent.

For a roller-coaster ride of life in 1940/41 then read in the comfort of your home, but be warned the bombs falling around you can be heard.

The Lunar Cats by Lynne Truss

This is the second in the adventures of Alec Charlesworth, a retired librarian. His first adventure was in 2014 and called 'Cat Out of Hell', in it Alec and his friend - Wiggy - along with Alec's dog Watson first come in contact and find themselves entangled with Evil Talking Cats (ETC's). This adventure is mentioned in the The Lunar Cats, and beware there is a spoiler as the ending is described.

The Prologue of The Lunar Cats is set in the 18th century just before the Endeavour and Captain Cook make their maiden voyage to Tahiti. The London Society are in a tavern concluding their meeting, it is only at the end of the prologue we are shown the group is made up of cats, with wigs and smoking, discussing the scientific development of the times as well as some rather unusual and only cat related developments.

Skip on a few hundred years and we come to Alec who is reading an email, which he decides to act on. Alec since his retirement helps authors to research their book, and in the email is being asked
 a Mr Thigmo Taxis to research the evidence for Mr Johnson's famous cat Hodge who was abroad the Endeavour on its voyage to Tahiti.

We read that he could after extensive research find any evidence that Hodge exists. We are also shown the journals that the cat Hodge's wrote while on that voyage. Along with the secret that the Endeavour brought back a strange and dangerous object which the history books refuse to mention.

Alec while putting out the recycling then finds a sweet and innocent kitten, far to young to manage on it's own, so much to Watson's umbridge the kitten is given a home.  Alec then phones Wiggy the next time he takes Watson for a walk and they discuss ways to test the kitten to see if it an ETC. But she's so cute, I mean look at her eyes and her so sweet paws, she in no way can be an ETC.

The action then flits between the 18th century and modern day, and near the end we see that some cats have more then none lives, or can either time travel or are just simply immortal.

The best scene in the book for me was the contract which the kitten signs between her and Beelzebub.

I found the writing easy to read and enjoyed having my imagination provoked by it. Although there was one scene which I found squeamish and has me looking at my cats claws in a different light. I wonder if dogs - oh the cats calling, yes Sir - now where was I, no the thoughts gone.

This is not a book for the serious reader, but if you want to have your senses befuddled then carry on.

i can't wait to read the first - Cat Out of Hell - and hope that there is another adventure with Alec battling ETC's in the near future.

A Ladder to the Sky by John Boyne

Maurice swift is a writer without ideas. So he sets about stealing those of others. His first 'victim' is Erich

who he meets while working as a waiter in the Savoy Hotel - Berlin. Eric falls in love with Maurice although the feeling is not receprecated. Once Maurice as bled Eric dry of a story from his youth during the war, he drops him. He the writes an award-winning novel, which leaves Erich destroyed.

Maurice then goes on using people to gain stories and to get what he wants from life. His own novels never reach the success of those taken from others. He uses anyone including his wife, and his child.

He is a disposable who is well written that his self-centredness flows of the page as does his attractivness which is mentioned regularly throughout the book, without it I wonder how far he would have got with plan.

There is however another equally dispicable character in the book. She like Maurice is willing to do anything to get her own way - even destroying lives. Out of the two I can honestly say it is her I hate the most. The malice of her character drips of the page leaving you feeling sullied.

Maurice is a craftsman of his role, he is charmingly written and in this I can see why those around him fall for him. The life of Maurice and the way he gains his stories is spectacularly written and leaves me wondering how much of our lives are fair game to the writers around us.

Although Maurice as you would expect out shines the other characters that does not mean they are in anyway inferior. They are written with gentleness and understanding along with the knowledge that we ourselves would inevitably be taken in by Maurice's charm. 

The ending is wonderful as we see Maurice becoming a shell of himself - does guilt play a part I wonder, or is it due to him growing older and not being as attractive which means he can't charm the way he once did.

The question is can someone enable him to fall completely and if so will he stay down or find away to bounce back.

Be prepard to hate and adore this lackluster writer in buckets.

Are You Watching by Vincent Ralph

Jessica Simmons was seven when her mum was killed by a serial killer. Ten years later and thirteen victims later, Jessica decides to use a new YouTube show - The Eye, to catch him. Five people each with a story to tell have one day every five days to gain the most followers and a three month contract. They are filmed from the moment they awake till midnight.

Jessica is determined not just for her, her dad and nan, but for all the families of the serial killers victims. After a time Jessica is the only participant left and she begins to taunt the killer. The events that follow make her understand that this is not a 'game' but reality and a dangerous one at that.

Her dad's grief and bewilderment of the past ten years is breath takingly papabke. This leads to feelings at times that we are invading in his sorrow and I was left wondering how to handle his grief.

Jessica was in some ways annoying, her determination to catch the killer, understandably is all encompassing. Due to this I felt she did not have any consideration for the pain and problems which her plans bring to those around her. However after an incident not relating to her 'task', she begins to grow in her understanding that others also have difficult lives.

All the characters brought either tension or relief to the story which allowed for a brilliant read.

The ending is delightful in its tension and suspense. 

The Gift by Cecelia Ahern

The tale is set in Ireland and the narrative is told by a cop who has arrested a young teenage boy in the hopes that he can convince him to change his ways, before he starts down the wrong path. Christmas is seen to through his unhappy eyes, and reminds us that it may be the best time of the year, yet it harbours much sadness the majority of most likely never see through the curtains of our own lives.

The story revolves around Lou who on his way notices a homeless man sitting in a doorway andgives him his coffee - this is extremely unusual for him. He then talks to Gab about the people going into the building where he works, which is an eye opening conversation about how shoes and the way people walk can be used to identify the people Gab has seen from his advantage point of sitting on the floor in a doorway. Lou then does something even more unusual for him, he takes Gab into his office and give him his spare suit and sends him to the post room as there is a job going. Lou can't believe what he has done, but doesn't intervene to lose Gab the job.

Gab proves himself to be efficient and effective at his job and seems to Lou to be dropping up in unexpected places and after Gab drives Lou - who's well over the drink drive limit - home one night, Lou finds he has stayed the night by seeing him at breakfast the next morning. Lou then begins to wonder if Gab is trying to take over his life.

It is through Gab though that Lou sees his life in a new light. Work becomes less important and he finds once again the love he has for his wife and children and spends time with them over work. Family he begins to understand is more important then work, money and friends.

The story is well written and the characters are full of life and the ending is written with love and understanding of the human heart. Secrets of other characters are revealed which, brings to light their role in the narrative.

The only question I have is where can I get those pills from.

Time is the essence of this story what you learn from it is your own story to find.

Never the Bride by Paul Magrs

This is the first in a four-book series.

Never the Bride is set in the famous literary town of Whitby. The main characters are Brenda and Effie who end up in awkward situations.

Brenda is full of life, with a past she choses not to tell anyone about – mainly she doubts they will believe her or will end up running her out of town.  She tuns a B&B which is cosy, quiet and efficiently run. Her morning routine is one of ensuring her make up is on just right and her wig looks it’s best.

Effie is funny in her tactlessness; she lives in the house next door to Brenda and runs a junk shop in the lower rooms. Her house is filled with books on magic and the paraphernalia that goes along with it. Effie herself wants nothing to do with the magic and has ‘distanced’ herself from it. No one knows her family line consists of many witches. However, she begins to realise that magic has not ‘distanced’ itself from her.

The first mishap that they encounter is when their usual waitress – Jess - at the ‘Christmas Hotel’ is looking 20 years younger and is acting as if she was 20 years younger. Effie decides to investigate the ‘Deadly Boutique’ that Jess visited, and havoc occurs. Although there is something tantalising about the boutique, but also something unnerving. Brenda and Effie then make another visit and all hell breaks loose.

For some visiting the ‘Christmas Hotel’ and enjoying Christmas anytime of the year may be a wonderful plan, but beware this one is dowdy, grubby and the elves are not as joyous as they should be. The owner rules the roost with staff and guests well under her thumb.

My favourite location in the book is a trip down memory lane to ‘Woolworths’ and their pick n mix – maybe that’s the reason I like the sound of the ‘Deadly Boutique’.

The friendship between Brenda and Effie is tested with a debonair gentleman comes to town and takes a shine to Effie.

The best of the book for me is my imagination linking a village and its Martian visitor with ‘War of the Worlds’ and offspring ensuing, the mind boggles at how that occurred though.

Whitby wouldn’t be the same though without its most famous literary visitor who is not as he once was. He has changed beyond all imagination.

The ending reminds me of a once watched horror movie, when I was a teenager and I didn’t sleep for days.

The location of Whitby is brought to life by the language used and its atmosphere is charged. The characters are wonderfully written and the interactions between them dances of the page.

Brenda is all for a quiet life, something she has always been short on, but it seems ‘fate’ has other ideas. Effie is prim and proper and believes her ‘respectability is vital to maintain her lifestyle. Stumbling into the ‘trouble’ which now surrounds her and Brenda is not welcomed but she takes a breath and accepts her role in the situation.

I cannot wait to read the second in the series.

If your looking for the weird and weirder then this is the book for you.

The Secrets of Ivy Garden by Catherine Ferguson

This is a book about the heartache and the beauty of life. It begins with goodbyes on a railway platform and the end of an era. Holly says goodbye to her beloved grandma who has brought her up from since the age of four, after Holly’s parents were killed in a car accident. We then see Holly eight months later struggling at work, her grief still raw after the death of Ivy four months earlier. Her boss is sympathetic and sends her home early, not for the first time I feel. Holly then goes home and prepares to go back to the village of Appleton where Ivy lived. She is planning to sell 'Moonbeam' cottage Ivy loved. Holly hates the countryside with a passion and even seems to fear it. Her arrival is not straight forward and she meets Sylivan who becomes a friend and she hopes in time maybe more. She doesn’t plan on staying in the village once the cottage is sold, but both the village and some of the villagers have other plans. In Appleton she will either find healing or heartache.

Village life is portrayed wonderfully, it’s not long before Holly’s arrival is sent along the grapevine and everyone knows Ivy’s granddaughter is back and planning to sell the cottage. It also shows the friendship, reviles and emites of village life which often bubble below the surface.

Holly becomes friends with seventeen-year-old Layla whose brother – James - is more than attractive and thirteen years older than Layla. Holly wants to shake her as she moans about her mum and brother – her dad died just before she was born – after all she has a family which Holly longed for as a child. But Layla is bright, fun and caring and helps Holly find her path in life as she helps Layla along hers.

Layla we found out is dyslexic and considers herself stupid but has a wonderful secret which with Holly and Sylivan's help, she finds out that she is not what she believes. The storyline of dyslexia is sensitively written and brings back memories of how I felt at times, before I found out the truth about my inability to write or spell well.

Holly ends up tending to Ivy’s beloved garden after a storm has destroyed it. With Layla's help she begins to understand why Ivy loved gardening so much – although Layla gets her into a tricky situation where she has to use all her wiles, to pretend that she is a more knowledgeable gardener then she is. The only thing she is confident in is who Alan Titchmarsh is. At one point her lack of knowledge is seen as she tackles a crop of tomato plants. The description of the garden is beautiful and even a non-gardener like me is able to see it in all of its splendour.

Holly also ends up discovering Ivy’s diary and with Layla’s 'help' she ends up partly solving the mystery it contains, but it is a surprise to many when the truth is found.

The best line in the book comes after Holly watches a female duck being 'courted' by three males. “Jemima Puddleduck's social life is racier than mine” I wonder how many of us would agree!

The characters are all wonderfully brought to life. Holly we see is growing from her grief into a blossoming flower, ready to begin life again.  Layla is a bolshie teenager with her family, who is insecure but with Holly we see the real her and with the boost given her by Sylivan and Holly is palpable. Sylivan is a delight with a view of life unfamiliar I feel to many. The others stand up and define themselves from those around them and truly show you who they are, the good and the bad. I’m not one to cry when reading but I admit this one, at several points, though had me reaching for the tissues.

A delightful, fun and tearful read.