Tag: NetGalley

#BookReview Skelton’s Guide to Suitcase Murders by David Stafford @AllisonandBusby

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Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for Skelton’s Guide to Suitcase Murders by David Stafford, the second book in the historical crime series featuring barrister, Arthur Skelton. My thanks to Christina at Allison & Busby for inviting me to take part in the tour and for my digital review copy via NetGalley.

Skelton's Guide to Suitcase MurdersAbout the Book

A woman’s dismembered corpse is discovered in a suitcase, and police quickly identify her husband, Doctor Ibrahim Aziz, as their chief suspect. Incriminating evidence is discovered at his home and his wife was rumoured to be having an affair, giving him clear motive.

With his reputation for winning hopeless cases, barrister Arthur Skelton is asked to represent the accused. Though Aziz’s guilt does not seem to be in doubt, a question of diplomacy and misplaced larvae soon lead Skelton to suspect there may be more to the victim’s death.

Aided by his loyal clerk Edgar, Skelton soon finds himself seeking justice for both victim and defendant. But can he uncover the truth before an innocent man is put on trial and condemned to the gallows?

Format: Hardcover (352 pages)      Publisher: Allison & Busby
Publication date: 22nd April 2021 Genre: Historical Fiction, Crime, Mystery

Find Skelton’s Guide to Suitcase Murders (Arthur Skelton #2) on Goodreads

Purchase links
Bookshop.org
Disclosure: If you buy a book via the above link, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Publisher | Hive | Amazon UK
Links provided for convenience only, not as part of an affiliate programme

My Review

It was an absolute pleasure to be reunited with barrister Arthur Skelton and his trusty clerk – and friend – Edgar Hobbes. I loved the scenes where Arthur and Edgar discuss the briefs that have been sent to him. By the way, if you want to discover the inspiration for the character of Arthur, read David’s blog post on how Arthur came to be. I should say at this point that it’s not necessary to have read the first book to enjoy this second one.

Having said that, for fans of the series Skelton’s Guide to Suitcase Murders sees the return of characters from the first book, including Arthur’s cousin, Alan, and his sister, Norah, who travel the country with their caravan spreading the word of God at meetings. Often they gather useful nuggets of information for Arthur’s cases along the way, relayed to him in Alan’s chatty letters.

Another returning characters is Rose Critchlow who helped Arthur with his previous case and is now working as an articled clerk in the solicitors who provide most of Arthur’s work. Once again, Rose makes a valuable contribution, one that leads to an important discovery and provides an insight into the emerging science of forensic entomology (the lifecycles of creepy crawlies) at the same time. Amongst her other attributes, the reader learns, are superb navigational skills. ‘Rose knew the way. Of course she did. Five minutes with a map and Rose would be able to take you straight to the green-eyed yellow idol to the north of Kathmandu or the lost kingdom of She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed.‘ I was particularly delighted to come across the latter reference having already decided on my ‘Try Something Similar’ suggestion below.

As in the first book, the reader gets an insight into Skelton’s domestic life with wife, Mila, and children, Lawrence and Elizabeth. I particularly enjoyed the episode in which Arthur is entrusted with the Christmas shopping list, including purchasing gifts for the children and hits the busy streets of London. ‘He’d been told by many people that, if you value your health and sanity, you should never venture into a toyshop at Christmas time. Climb the Matterhorn by all means, take the waters in Moscow during a cholera epidemic, but stay away from toyshops.’ Does Arthur return with exactly what was specified on the list? Come on, he’s a man isn’t he?

Arthur’s wife, Mila, is a wonderful character and definitely nothing like the ‘She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed’ of John Mortimer’s Rumpole series. Mila is an avid reader of the newspapers, teaches archery to local girls and has lately developed a rather grand ambition, keen to outdo her acquaintance, Cissy Pemberton.  Mila and Arthur have a touching relationship such that I found it hard to forgive the author for putting Arthur through the mill when there is a a sudden turn of events.

Alongside Arthur’s attempts to find the evidence needed to achieve the acquittal of his client, Doctor Aziz, are entertaining interludes where the reader witnesses Arthur’s court appearances in other cases in which he has been instructed. He frequently ponders on the small things that can turn a case and influence a jury.

The book is also enlivened by references to real life figures such as the renowned pathologist, Sir Bernard Spilsbury. And I especially enjoyed Arthur and Edgar’s memorable encounter with a star of stage and screen in their favourite eating place, Kembles. By the way, it’s here that Edgar, seeking to reduce his portly stature for reasons he is initially reluctant to reveal, eschews the delights of veal and ham pie for an egg salad that Arthur describes as looking like ‘the sort of thing that Mr Gandhi might have eaten as a form of protest‘.

Do Arthur and Edgar get to the bottom of the (suit)case? What do you think…?

Skelton’s Guide to Suitcase Murders is another delightful addition to the series. I loved its combination of period detail, ingenious mystery and amiable humour, and I’m already looking forward to Arthur’s next guide to dastardly deeds.

In three words: Engaging, lively, clever

Try something similar: Rumpole and the Penge Bungalow Murders by John Mortimer

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David StaffordAbout the Author

David Stafford began his career in theatre. He has written countless dramas, comedies and documentaries including two TV films with Alexei Sayle, Dread Poets Society with Benjamin Zephaniah, and, with his wife, Caroline, a string of radio plays and comedies including The Brothers, The Day The Planes Came and The Year They Invented Sex as well as five biographies of musicians and showbusiness personalities. Fings Ain’t Wot They Use T’Be – The Life of Lionel Bart was chosen as Radio 4 Book of the Week and made into a BBC Four TV documentary.

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#BookReview Beyond This Broken Sky by Siobhan Curham @Bookouture

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Beyond This Broken Sky - Blog Tour

Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for Beyond This Broken Sky by Siobhan Curham. My thanks to Sarah Hardy for inviting me to take part in the tour and to Bookouture for my digital review copy via NetGalley.

Beyond This Broken SkyAbout the Book

1940, London. As a volunteer for the ambulance service, Ruby has the dangerous task of driving along pitch-dark roads during the blackout. With each survivor she pulls from the rubble, she is helping to fight back against the enemy bombers, who leave nothing but destruction in their wake. Assigned to her crew is Joseph, who is unable to fight but will stop at nothing to save innocent lives. Because he is not in uniform, people treat him with suspicion and Ruby becomes determined to protect this brave, compassionate man who has rescued so many, and captured her heart. Even if it means making an unthinkable choice between saving her own life and risking everything for his…

2019, London. Recently divorced Edi feels lost and alone when she moves to London to start a new life. Until she makes a discovery, hidden beneath a loose floorboard in her attic, that reveals a secret about the people who lived there in the 1940s. As she gradually uncovers a wartime love story full of danger and betrayal, Edi becomes inspired by the heroism of one incredible woman and the legacy that can be left behind by a single act of courage…

Format: ebook (316 pages)           Publisher: Bookouture
Publication date: 20th April 2021 Genre: Historical Fiction, Dual Time

Find Beyond This Broken Sky on Goodreads

Purchase links
Hive | Amazon UK
Links provided for convenience only, not as part of an affiliate programme

My Review

Beyond This Broken Sky alternates between two timelines – London in 1940 and 2019 – and is narrated from three points of view.

Set at the height of the Blitz on London in September 1940, the wartime storyline is shared between Ruby Glenville, owner of a large house converted into flats, and one of her tenants, Joseph O’Toole.

Ruby and Joseph’s initial reaction is one of mutual dislike, emulating the formula used so successfully by Jane Austen in Pride and Prejudice. While acknowledging her beauty, Joseph disapproves of what he sees as Ruby’s privileged life and the séances she holds, believing her guilty of deceiving those who take part. Meanwhile, Ruby, whilst noting his resemblance to Clark Gable, finds it difficult to overcome her distaste for Joseph’s pacifism, especially because of the impact on her deceased father of his experiences in the First World War.

I have to say I had some sympathy with Joseph’s view to begin with. From the evidence, Ruby’s séances are theatrical enterprises utilising the ventriloquism skills learned from her grandfather and the performance techniques passed on to her by her actor father. Her attempts to convince herself that her motivation is merely a desire to bring comfort to others doesn’t really stand up to scrutiny. Add to that her willingness to endure dinner with a man she describes as ‘an insufferable bore’ simply because it involves a trip to the Savoy Grill, and treating the news of the bombing of Burlington Arcade as a ‘personal affront’ because of the many afternoons she had spent there  purchasing a new silk scarf or perfume.

I began to warm a little more to Ruby as her protective instincts towards her friend and tenant, the ‘timid as a mouse’ Kitty, became evident and I shared Ruby’s view of Kitty’s husband as a particularly horrid specimen of manhood. Her efforts to inject a little happiness into Kitty’s life were laudable if, as it transpires, misguided. And I had to acknowledge Ruby’s bravery when she volunteers to become a member of an ambulance crew, a particularly dangerous occupation driving through the dark, bomb-damaged, streets of London. Eventually, both Ruby and Joseph are forced to question their previous beliefs.

In the modern day storyline, Edi recently divorced from husband Marty, is now living in the top floor apartment of a house in an exclusive square. Narrated in the first person, this storyline was enlivened for me by Edi’s friendship with Pearl, her downstairs neighbour. The formidable and rather eccentric Pearl is the owner of an extensive library and also an author, most recently of mysteries but previously of a book set in wartime London. When Edi acquires a copy of the  latter the two storylines begin to merge. So much so that it becomes a touch metafictional as Edi reads in Pearl’s book the thoughts of its female protagonist that she had ‘lived her entire adult life as if she were the heroine in a story of her own creation.’

I confess the wartime storyline held the most interest for me, with the modern day story feeling as if it was merely a framing device. Like Edi as she reaches the final chapters of Pearl’s book, I found myself keen to get back to the wartime story and find out how it ends.  I thought the author did a great job of conveying the atmosphere of London during the Blitz, such as this dramatic description of what Ruby and Joseph experience one night whilst out on call in the ambulance. ‘The sky up ahead of them was now ablaze with searchlights, tracer bullets and parachute flares and, every so often, the blinding flash of white light as a bomb exploded.  It was like a surreal storm in a surreal nightmare that just wouldn’t end.’

The romance element of the book was touching and no doubt representative of many a snatched wartime relationship. I also liked the way the author took the opportunity to point out the differences between the experiences of the privileged and those less fortunate during the Blitz, such as the lack of provision of proper underground shelters in the poorer parts of London.  And I certainly wasn’t aware The Savoy had its own rather sumptuously fitted out shelter for the use of hotel guests or that, initially, people were forbidden from taking shelter in Underground stations during air raids.

Beyond This Broken Sky will appeal to fans of dual time stories that combine a wealth of period detail, an element of mystery, a touch of melodrama and a generous helping of romance.

I received an advance review copy courtesy of Bookouture via NetGalley.

In three words: Romantic, atmospheric, engaging

Try something similar: The Night Train to Berlin by Melanie Hudson

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Siobhan Curham Author PhotoAbout the Author

Siobhan Curham is an award-winning author, ghost writer, editor and writing coach. She has also written for many newspapers, magazines and websites, including The Guardian, Breathe magazine, Cosmopolitan, Writers’ Forum, DatingAdvice.com, and Spirit & Destiny.

Siobhan has been a guest on various radio and TV shows, including Woman’s Hour, BBC News, GMTV and BBC Breakfast. And she has spoken at businesses, schools, universities and literary festivals around the world, including the BBC, Hay Festival, Cheltenham Festival, Bath Festival, Ilkley Festival, London Book Fair and Sharjah Reading Festival.

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