#Review of The Healing Season Of Pottery By Yeon Somin @PenguinRandom #YeonSomin #TheHealingSeasonOfPottery #Healing #Pottery #UpliftingFiction #Book

The Healing Season of Pottery
By Yeon Somin

When I first saw The Healing Season of Pottery, it felt like it would capture warmth and peace to flood the heart and soul. It also sounded rather interesting in our fast moving world to slow it down a bit. I’ve not read anything by a Korean author before, so I thought I’d give it a go. After the blurb, you’ll find out what I thought in my review.

Blurb

‘She rubbed the spoiled clay with her fingertips. Like a wound as it heals, the traces faded, and had soon vanished completely, as if they’d never been there at all.’

—

Burnt out by her newswriting job, Jungmin abruptly quits; she’s worked tirelessly for years and she needs to make a change.

Now, after months of hibernation, it’s time to put her life back together. Venturing out into the streets near Seoul, she stumbles upon the Soyo pottery workshop. Drawn in by its light and warmth, and the smell of clay and coffee, Jungmin feels something unfurl within her . . .

Here, everyone has a story to share, and as the seasons change, Jungmin returns to herself. Pot by pot, plate by plate, Jungmin discovers that as her hands become busier, her mind becomes calmer, and her heart opens up like never before.

From a rising talent, this is a heartwarming story of new friends and old practices, of finding community, and of what happens when you finally slow down in this fast-paced world.

Review

In a fast-paced world that wants the next big thing, to get to a destination quicker than ever before, this, although a fictional novel, reminds us just how unnecessary this is, to live at speed all the time, how tiring to the extent of burnout even it becomes. This reminds us to slow down and make some changes.

Winter is coming to an end and with spring just around the corner, everything is coming to life and emerging from as near hibernation as people can get. It’s also a period of time to reflect on what we want out of the year. Jungmin has decided to quit her job. She’s done in and near burnout from her work and has decided its time for change, one in which she can allow herself to heal. She comes across a pottery group and decides to get creative. As she creates pots and mugs, she rediscovers her spark and also some friends and a bit of romance along the way. Her mind quietens and makes space for new people to enter her life and for creativity and imagination to once again be allowed room to once again flourish.

It’s a heart-warming, quiet read. It’s nicely paced. Nothing dramatic happens, but it does have interesting characters and a plot to think about. It is also great escapism to nourish the soul.

#Review By Lou of The Suspect By Rob Rinder @RobbieRinder @PenguinRandom #CourtroomDrama #TheSuspect #CrimeFiction

The Suspect
By Rob Rinder

A worthy second book, Rob Rinder has done it again and written an entertaining courtroom drama.

**THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BEST SELLER! THE GRIPPING SECOND NOVEL FROM ROB RINDER AND FOLLOW-UP TO NO. 1 BESTSELLER THE TRIAL**

When the UK’s favourite breakfast TV presenter dies live on air in front of millions of viewers, the nation is left devastated.

More devastated still when it becomes clear that her death was not an accident.

The evidence points to one culprit: celebrity chef Sebastian Brooks. But junior barrister Adam Green is about to discover that the case is not as open-and-shut as it first seemed.

And although her angelic persona would suggest otherwise, she was not short of enemies in the glittery TV world . . .

Can Adam uncover the truth?

Review

It was good being reunited with Adam Green. He’s now passed his pupilage and is a junior barrister. So, he’s climbing up the ranks as it were. It’s interesting to see his life moving onwards and upwards and what he has to deal with and investigate at each stage.
This time Adam is wrapped up in a mysterious case involving a murder mixed with the world of tv in the form of pointing the finger at celebrity chef. Sebastian Brooks.

Whilst being an entertaining book, it also takes you into the world of tv and the courtrooms, which is interesting.

The pace is good. I would say it probably is better to read The Trial by Rob Rinder first because of the way the books flow into each other. The books are a compelling read.

#Review By Lou of Sisters Making Mischief By Maddie Please @MaddiePlease1 @BoldwoodBooks #SistersMakingMischief #readingcommunity #writingcommunity #booktoread #bookrecommendation

Sisters Making Mischief
By Maddie Please

The old girls just want to have fun. I really like these books showing people having fun and being full of life and spirit as they get older. It gives hope and pure escapism. I have enjoyed books by Maddie Please before, so I am pleased to be able to review another.

Blurb

Don’t miss the hilarious novel from the #1 bestselling author, Maddie Please, author of the brilliantly funny, Old Girls on Deck!

A fresh start with a French twist!

Joy Chandler had one simple wish: a nice, drama-free family reunion. But instead? Daughter Sara announces she’s getting divorced and seems determined to drown her sorrows in wine, while son John and his perfect wife Vanessa casually drop the bombshell that they’re moving to New York—without so much as making her a cup of tea!

So, with her patience gone, Joy packs her bags and heads to France to visit her free-spirited sister Isabel. Isabel’s potato farm might be rustic chaos but the sisters soon find themselves sloshing red wine, rediscovering their wild sides, and laughing until their sides hurt.

Before long, Joy has a new job, a new man, and a life that’s looking très magnifique. Turns out, drama isn’t so bad…when it comes with red wine and a side of sisterly mischief! Because these golden girls just want to have fun!

A glorious uplifting and hilarious story about living life to the full and always, always having fun! Perfect for fans of Judy Leigh and Dee Macdonald.

Review

Life is changing, there’s a divorce and a surprise move to New York.
There’s hope for those moving onto different stages in life, even though family isn’t always appreciative. There’s adventure and fun to be gained.

Sister’s Making Mischief brings wonderful escapism and light as we age. I am not quite middle-aged at time of writing this but I sure am enjoying the storytelling that depicts middle-aged people. Maddie Please’s writing is in a style that is easy to relax into and lose yourself in the story of other people’s lives.

In this particular book, there’s humour and charm that is uplifting.
It’s a book I recommend to ease the weight of the day.

#Review By Lou of Same Time Next Week By Milly Johnson @millyjohnson @BookMinxSJV #TeamBATC #RespectRomFic #sametimenextweek

Same Time Next Week
By Milly Johnson

Milly Johnson has now written her next heart-warming, feel-good book that is easy to be drawn into the lives of the people who inhabit it and meet up once a week over something warming, even through the complexities of life.
Same Time Next Week and The Mother Of All Christmases just might be my favourite books by Milly Johnson so far.
Thanks to Books and the City/Simon & Schuster, I am on the blog tour for Same Time Next Week with a review, that follows the cover pic and blurb…
a bit late due to an on-going cat health thing going on that I’m dealing with…
Same Time Next Week publishes on 27th Feb 2025. Take a look below to find out more…

Blurb

Welcome to Spring Hill, home to a square of independent shops and cafes, a thriving local community and nearby the newest venture, Ray’s Diner. Here a group of women meet once a week over a cup of something warming.

Amanda is primary carer to her elderly mother and one of the only women in a male-dominated company. Used to being second-best all her life, is this her time to finally break ranks and shine?

Sky works at the repair shop, patching up old teddy bears, and their owners’ hearts. But her heart beats for the one man who is strictly off-limits.

Mel has been a loyal and loving wife to Steve for thirty years. Then when he goes to his old school reunion, life as she knows it will never be the same again.

Erin is trying to get over a traumatic loss where her guilt weighs more than her grief. Can she find the first step to healing lies in sharing an hour with strangers once a week?

Astrid is feeling in need of a change and a challenge. But when a fantastic opportunity presents itself, who is around to convince her she is worthy enough to take the risk?

Can these women find the answers to their worries, acceptance, courage, support here? Join them at the same time next week to find out…

Review

Milly Johnson’s five characters, Amanda, Sky, Mel, Erin and Astrid are a wonderfully interesting bunch to get wrapped up into their lives.
Ray’s American style Diner becomes a meet up place for women to have a chat.

Amanda really captured my attention, even when I saw her segment in the blurb because I am also a carer to my mum and have been for over 20 years and counting… She’s on HRT (I’m no where near that age, but its good to read about what seems like the eventual inevitable). You’ll need to read the book to see if its working out for her as she deals with her lot in life.

It’s really fun reading about reunions, such as posh Joss who drives a Porsche and Mel when they rock up at a garden centre…

Chloe Clitheroe is something else and things are about to get messy! It may have readers seeing her name through dagger shot eyes…

You’ll find out about an all ages welcome Friendship Club too, which sounds a delightfully interesting concept.

When it comes to Erin, you can really root for her and feel for her and hope that life turns a corner and things pick up for her.

Sky makes you think of the clever people at The Repair Shop. It’s rather sweet that she uses her skills for mending teddy bears and warms the heart. You can really feel the bittersweetness of her story.

There are twists and turns as you read along, just as life doesn’t go in a straight line. Milly Johnson has the art of writing about heart-warming scenarios and ideas, pricking them with a whole spectrum of emotions. She writes about people who are relatable and makes it all feel as though it could all be tangibly real.

#Review By Lou of The Mongoose and the Cobra by David Jarvis @David_Jarvis_ @HobeckBooks #BlogTour #CrimeFiction #MikeKingdomSeries #BookRecommendations

The Mongoose and the Cobra
By David Jarvis

The Mongoose and the Cobra is the latest exciting instalment of the Mike Kingdom series. Today I am on the blog tour with a review, which you can read after the blurb.

Blurb

The cost of wealth and power
Valentina Ortiz, the largest political donor in the USA, has made many enemies. That’s made her overprotective of her two sons: her youngest, Chuck, is working under a false name as an analyst for the CIA in London, and the eldest, Diego, never leaves her side as she directs her global business empire.

A mother’s worst nightmare
When Chuck fails to turn up for work in London, the alarm is raised. But when Diego is kidnapped in Switzerland, Valentina faces a mother’s worst nightmare. Desperate about the fate of her sons, she’ll stop at nothing to save them. The US President’s chief of staff is soon pressuring Leonard de Vries, the CIA director in London: “Find Chuck and get him somewhere safe – real safe.”

A mission for Mike
Leonard De Vries turns to the one asset he truly trusts, analyst Michaela ‘Mike’ Kingdom, who was the last person to see Chuck alive when he turned up unannounced at her woodland home in Oxfordshire. Why was he convinced his life was in danger? And what did he mean when he announced he was “going to see the tulips”? The search for an answer to that riddle will propel Mike on a frightening and life-changing journey.

Review

Valentina Ortiz is a very overprotective mother. She also has a lot of money, so much that she donates substantial amounts in the US for political activities. Even the most over-protective parent can’t always protect their offspring from danger.
It becomes another case for Leonard De Vries and Mike Kingdom, whom we also follow their working relationship, trust and friendship develop as well as how they solve cases.

There’s much food for thought when it comes to undersea cables given global issues as illustrated within the plot. In lovely, interesting settings, there’s also lots of geo-political issues that come to the fore. There is also a subplot involving drugs, it remains more in the background for quite a while, but it gets its shocking turn of coming to the fore later on.

It’s another compelling, fast-paced case to solve with strange goings on regarding Chuck and certain unusual things he says at a cabin that could be clues. There are plenty of riddles and dots to join before reaching the last page.

In a tightly written plot with an explosive conclusion, this is one not to miss!

#Review By Lou of The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam By Robert Ferguson #RobertFerguson @leamingtonbooks #TheIntrepidStepsOfJohnRuffam along with info about #SpiritAid #Charity founded by #DavidHayman #Bookish #BooksWorthReading

The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam
By Robert Ferguson

Cover pic showing Scott’s Monument, Edinburgh

Walk up the steps to Sir Water Scott’s Monument and immerse yourself in the intrepid steps of John Ruffam, along the way, discover just how powerful art is. Life an culture and more… are linked together in this novella that packs a punch. It’s great for if you like Life-stories, Edinburgh, Art, Triumph Over Adversity and perfect for Reading Groups.

Find out more below in the blurb and then my full review below. The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam by Robert Ferguson is a book you won’t want to miss nor underestimate in its storytelling nor in just how far-reaching it is.

Before I move on, I’d like to make you aware of something amazing happening.
This book is raising money is supporting Spirit Aid. A charity founded by famous actor David Hayman, currently starring in Death of A Salesman in UK theatres and has been most recently on tv in The Paradise and Taboo. Spirit Aid reaches out to vulnerable children in need across Scotland and abroad to provide vital resources. You can check out more after my review more about the charity. I also have a link for how you can buy The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam by Robert Ferguson.

Blurb

The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam is a deeply introspective novella that follows the extraordinary life of John Ruffam.

From a young age, John’s passion for art and his connection to the past shaped his journey of self-discovery and resistance, growing up in foster homes, enduring physical and mental abuse, and finding solace in his artistic pursuit.

The narrative weaves together historical connections, karmic balancing, and a unique bond with painted figures from the past.

John’s encounters with Edinburgh’s gothic Scott Monument become symbolic of his search for identity and meaning.

When John is injured in a war, losing his legs, his resilience shines through as he learns to walk again with prosthetic limbs. His near-death experience reveals a vision of his loved ones, urging him to take the steps towards his destiny.

The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam is a thought-provoking and emotionally charged novella that explores themes of strength, self-discovery, and the power of art.

Review

From the very beginning, The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam is intriguingly thought-provoking and starts to become an immersive read, before becoming increasingly deeply immersive as the story goes on.

It is said there are seven stages in the art process:
Inspiration, establishing, Uncertainty, Gauge, Sophistication, Achievement, Judgement.

These are all cleverly broken down into chapter headings and weave in and out of the story, linking all to the main character, John Ruffam’s life. It’s ingenious how the threads all intermingle and weave together making a fascinating and intriguing plot.

Each chapter begins with an insightful sentence about the process of art, indicating the book is well-researched and a lot of thought put into it to then have it link to the rest of the plot.

It starts with a young woman’s waters breaking at the National Art Gallery in Edinburgh and becomes emotional from there, with certain events happening.
The author shows something good can happen from something sad. The Scott Monument becomes quite the focus for John Ruffam, so much so that he goes to Princes Street Gardens and draws it and his work gets noticed at the age of 10 years old. Just when all is having a warm feeling of positivity, tragedy strikes again, creating an immense twist, this time to John Ruffam not long after he’s joined the army in his teenage years. What happens to him next is life changing. This period is written with respect, sensitivity and skill. It gives the reader increasing hope for his life through immense struggle and small wins and a whole lot of determination to keep living, keep going and do life to reach your goals.
The end of the book is equally thought-provoking and heartfelt, showing just how influential and inspirational art is. Whether its Rembrandt, like in the story who you admire or someone else, there’s no getting away from the power of it.

The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam mixes what’s real and what’s fictional into a compelling story that may well stay with you.

Buy Link and About the Author Link

You can get your copy of The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam here: Amazon
You can find out more about the author here: Alloa Advertiser Interview

More About The Charity – Spirit Aid

You can find out more about Spirit Aid, headed up by David Hayman in the link below. He runs operations in Scotland (it’s heart), Palestine, Afghanistan and Malawi. The charity works to make a difference to those people’s lives affected by poverty, neglect, abuse, lack of opportunity, humanitarian crisis, war by clicking into the official website: Spirit Aid
Feel free to donate here: https://www.justgiving.com/SpiritAidLimited