Libby Page has done it again and written a warming book that lifts the spirits, whilst the wintry weather in the real world rumbles on. It may just be her best yet at penetrating the heart and soul. Check out my review and the blurb below, thanks to Penguin for the e-book and opportunity…
Review
This Book Made Me Think of You shows human complexities in relationships and navigating life. It pulls on the heartstrings.
Tilly Nightengale’s birthday has arrived. Imagine receiving 12 handpicked books from your fiance as a gift. Sounds amazing for book lovers right? Except her fiance has sadly died. The carefully chosen books are a gesture to help her through her grief and move onwards with her life. She sets out to begin a vlog in her adventurous journey, she ends up sharing her journey with not just family and friends, but Alfie, a bookshop owner and other followers.
In time, Libby Page takes readers from feeling raw and heart-wrenched from where we initially meet Tilly to warmth and humanity. Tilly is someone you can really get behind and want life and love to co-exist for her again.
The power of books truly lives within and out-with the page, something that is realised and understood within this book. It’s something that seems important for readers and non-readers to truly see and experience as they travel through the complexities of life, loss and love.
Blurb
The unforgettable new novel from Sunday Times bestseller Libby Page
Twelve stories. Twelve months. Once chance to heal her heart . . .
When Tilly Nightingale receives a call telling her there’s a birthday gift from her fiancé waiting for her at her local bookshop, it couldn’t come as more of a shock. Partly because she can’t remember the last time she read a book for pleasure. Mainly because Joe died five months ago . . .
The gift is simple – twelve carefully-chosen books from Joe, one for each month, to help her turn the page on her first year without him. Tilly sets out on a series of reading-inspired adventures that take her around the world. But as she begins to vlog her journey, her story becomes more than her own. With help from Alfie, the bookshop owner, her budding new following and her friends and family, can Tilly’s year of books show her how to love again?
Somewhere, a Boy and A Bear Talk and book by Gyles Brandreth
review by Louise Cannon
Gyles Brandreth has a new book out now and I caught up with him, whilst he was on the Edinburgh leg of his book tour talking about Somewhere, a Boy and a Bear, so wrote a review of the talk. See some photo fun below too. The biography coincides with the centenary of that lovable bear, Winnie the Pooh. The book delves into the complexities of A.A. Milne and family relationships with each other and with the period of fame and fortune as well as life beyond the bear and One Hundred Acre Wood. The talk was engaging with fascinating insights and discoveries as well as plenty of humorous anecdotes.
Gyles Brandreth is known for his many jumpers, (you may have seen them on This Morning or Gogglebox or in events), so of course he was sporting a Winnie the Pooh and Piglet jumper.
After reciting some relevant Shakespeare with gusto in his opening. Gyles Brandreth reveals a lot of the, perhaps, lesser known facts about A.A. Milne. There’s more to him than Winnie the Pooh, such as a murder mystery book, plays and more… and there’s more revealed about Gyles Brandreth than perhaps people know too.
Nostalgically, the poetry of A.A Milne from When We Were Very Young and Now We Are Six, gets a mention too as he pleasingly quoted from Alice and the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. I still have those books and I’m sure many others do too.
What links Gyles Brandreth and Christopher Robin? Yes, that Christopher Robin who was son to A.A. Milne and Daphne. Gyles Brandreth once had the opportunity to meet the largely quiet Christopher Robin and at his bookshop in Devon, where he was also introduced to his daughter, who had cerebral palsy. Now, this is where some heartwarming magic happened. This is where Gyles wonderfully learnt about the prism that if you see someone with a disability, you just see the disability, but if you look past that and see a person, you see the personality and what the person can do.
What connects Devon, Jamaica, New York and Texas to Gyles Brandreth and A.A. Milne’s family?
These are the places where Gyles and his wife, Michèle ended up travelling to whilst researching for the book. It turns out there are all manner of items relating to the family for various reasons and it isn’t just the cuddly stuffed toys from One Hundred Acre Wood. One place was the source of the rather special end papers you’ll find in the book. You’ll need to discover the book as to why they’re incredibly unique and special.
Gyles concluded with the most powerful conclusions of any talk I’ve ever heard. Even writing this makes me feel all fuzzy and warm. He wanted the audience to think about their childhood and (I paraphrase), good or bad and to know that there is always a place to escape to, in this instance, a Winnie the Pooh book.
One thing is for sure, you’ll come away from a talk by Gyles Brandreth feeling more informed and utterly entertained after spending some time in his charismatic, engaging company.
The book is available to buy now at various bookshops, including Toppings and Co (the hosts), Waterstones and more… you can also check out his website here: https://www.gylesbrandreth.net/
Some fun with Gyles Brandreth… how will you read your copy of the book? Which Gyles pic would you be like?
The Dead Will Rise in an unexpected way. This is a Simon Westow mystery that will transport you to a time in history to the grim, dark streets of Leeds, where crimes need solving by the unlikeliest of duos. Check out the blurb and my review below to find out more…
Blurb
Thief-taker Simon Westow is used to finding stolen goods, not stolen bodies . . . Can he hunt down those committing crimes against the dead in Leeds?
Leeds. April, 1824. Wealthy engineer Joseph Clark employs thief-taker Simon Westow to find the men who stole the buried corpse of Catherine Jordan, his employee’s daughter.
Simon is stunned and horrified to realize there’s a gang of body snatchers in Leeds. He needs to discover who bought Catherine’s body and where it is now. As he hunts for answers, he learns that a number of corpses have vanished from graveyards in the town. Can Simon and his assistant Jane bring the brutal, violent Resurrection men who are selling the dead to medical schools to justice and give some peace to the bereft families?
Review
The cover isn’t the only evocative part of this book. The descriptions of the streets is too and is for the senses as he describes the sites and smells in a way that transports your mind to 1824, Leeds. It sounds almost an idyll, but lurking around is quite the opposite. There’s a rather brutal mystery to be solved. Bodies are being resurrected in the name of medical science. The subject seems well-researched with a time in history and fictional plot weaving succinctly together.
Simon Westow is aware of body snatchers (the infamous Burk and Hare in Edinburgh come to mind), but had never seen anything like that in Leeds, until now…
Simon and Jane make a formidable team. After a bit of complication, they take on the case. It, however puts extra pressure and strain on their relationship as time goes on. There’s been a lot of trust between them, but now its fragile and is hanging in the balance.
The Dead Will Rise is full of twists and history that will have readers turning the pages to see what’s coming next and how it ends.
The Intrepid Steps of John Ruffam By Robert Ferguson
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
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
Bookmarks and Stages by Lou 