Tag: NetGalley

#BookReview Dublin’s Girl by Eimear Lawlor @Aria_Fiction

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Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for Dublin’s Girl by Eimear Lawlor. My thanks to Vicky at Aria for inviting me to take part in the tour and for my digital review copy via NetGalley. Dublin’s Girl was published as an ebook on 28th January and will be available in hardcover in April.

Dublin's GirlAbout the Book

1917. A farm girl from Cavan, Veronica McDermott is desperate to find more to life than peeling potatoes. Persuading her family to let her stay with her aunt and uncle in Dublin so she can attend secretarial college, she has no idea what she is getting into. Recruited by Father Michael O’Flanagan to type for Éamon de Valera, Veronica is soon caught up in the danger and intrigue of those fighting for Ireland’s independence from Britain.

The attentions of a handsome British soldier, Major Harry Fairfax, do not go unnoticed by Veronica’s superiors. But when Veronica is tasked with earning his affections to gather intelligence for Sinn Féin, it isn’t long before her loyalty to her countrymen and her feelings for Harry are in conflict. To choose one is to betray the other…

Format: ebook (278 pages)                    Publisher: Aria
Publication date: 28th January 2021 Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance

Find Dublin’s Girl on Goodreads

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

My Review

Published to coincide with the centenary of the end of the Irish War of Independence in 1921 and inspired by real life events, the book transports the reader to the city of Dublin in the wake of the Easter Rising in 1916, a troubled period of Ireland’s history.

I enjoyed witnessing Dublin through Veronica’s eyes. With its grand hotels, tearooms and picture houses it’s a far cry from the countryside where she grew up. If you’re familiar with the city, I’m sure you’ll be able to follow Veronica’s travels in your mind’s eye. As vividly conveyed by the author, it’s a city where wealth resides side by side with extreme poverty, poor housing and children scrabbling for scraps in alleyways. Furthermore, hanging over much of the population is the threat of arrest – or worse – by British forces.

Thanks to her shorthand and typing skills, Veronica gets to rub shoulders with some of the key figures in the fight for Irish independence, in particular Michael Collins. It’s a role not without danger because of the frequent raids on the Sinn Féin offices, although Veronica has already demonstrated her courage and commitment to the cause earlier in the book. Like Veronica, the reader gets to witness key events such as Sinn Féin’s victory in the 1918 election, the establishment of an independent parliament (the Dail Eireann) and, eventually, the birth of the Irish Free State.

The historical aspects of the story I found especially interesting, filling in many gaps in my knowledge of Irish history during this period.  The relationship between Veronica and Harry, while touching and heartfelt did seem to rely a fair bit on coincidence – or perhaps it was fate? And I had my doubts about how useful the few bits of information Veronica gleaned from Harry over tea and scones would have been. However, Harry’s more enlightened view of the Irish people’s situation made an interesting counterpoint to the attitude of other British soldiers. It was certainly easy to understand Veronica’s conflicted feelings. “She wanted to be repulsed by him, she wanted to hate him, but she felt herself becoming comfortable in his company.” No doubt the handsome Harry’s broad shoulders and ‘chiselled chin’ helped a bit!

As they find themselves on opposing sides of a conflict, can there be a place in Veronica’s life for Harry, her ‘guardian angel’? You’ll have to read the book – and its touching epilogue – to find out.

In three words: Dramatic, emotional, engaging

Try something similar: The Girl From Vichy by Andie Newton

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Eimear LawlorAbout the Author

Dublin’s Girl is Eimear Lawlor’s first novel and is inspired by the true story of her aunt who typed for Éamon De Valera. She lives with her family in Kilkenny. (Photo credit: author Facebook profile)

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#BookReview To The Dark by Chris Nickson @SevernHouse @RandomTTours

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To The Dark BT Poster

Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for To The Dark by Chris Nickson, the third book in his Simon Westow historical mystery series. My thanks to Anne at Random Things Tours for inviting me to participate in the tour and to Severn House for my digital review copy via NetGalley.

To The DarkAbout the Book

Winter is about to take a chilling twist…

Leeds, 1822. The city is in the grip of winter, but the chill deepens for thief-taker Simon Westow and his young assistant, Jane, when the body of Laurence Poole, a petty local thief, emerges from the melting snow by the river at Flay Cross Mill.

A coded notebook found in Laurence’s room mentions Charlie Harker, the most notorious fence in Leeds who’s now running for his life, and the mysterious words: To the dark. What was Laurence hiding that caused his death? Simon’s hunt for the truth pits him against some dangerous, powerful enemies who’ll happily kill him in a heartbeat – if they can.

Format: ebook (224 pages)                       Publisher: Severn House
Publication date: 31st December 2020 Genre: Historical Fiction, Crime, Mystery

Find To The Dark on Goodreads

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

My Review

To The Dark is the third book in Chris Nickson’s historical crime series featuring thief-taker Simon Westow. Having not read the previous two books in the series, I can testify to the fact To The Dark works perfectly well as a standalone. Indeed for the benefit of new readers like myself the author includes nuggets of information about the back stories of the main characters – Simon himself, his wife Rosie and his assistant Jane.

Jane is a particularly intriguing character. Clearly she has a troubled past but possesses an uncanny ability to pass unnoticed in a crowd, mingling with those on the boundaries of society in order to gather information helpful to Simon’s investigations. And she’s more than capable of looking after herself in risky situations.

Simon is an intuitive reader of others’ actions and intentions – useful in a fight, when seeking information or in a game of cards. It’s just as well because his work as a thief-taker (recovering stolen goods for a fee) brings him into contact with some pretty shady types. Now a family man, he has more to protect than before.

Set in early 19th century Leeds, readers familiar with that city are likely to recognize many of the locations featured in the book. It’s a city that is changing though as it becomes more industrialized with many of its inhabitants taking up employment in the new “manufactories” that fill the air with smog and smoke. I enjoyed the way the author conjured up the sights and sounds of the city such as during this evening stroll down Briggate.

“The night was alive with people. Groups moved from beer shop to dram shop, singing and laughing. The whores stood their pitches at the entrances to courts, joking and teasing for business. Lights glowed behind shutters and reflected in puddles on the pavement. Someone played a fiddle, a rousing jig that carried in the winter air.”

From the beginning, Simon senses there’s more than meets the eye about his engagement to help find the murderer of Laurence Poole, especially as that should be the responsibility of the city’s Constable. “He knew he was caught up in something political, a twisted, grubby little spectacle.” His suspicions are proved correct when the hunter becomes the hunted. Soon there are scores to be settled and justice to be served.

To The Dark is a well-crafted historical mystery with plenty of twists and turns. I liked the fact that Simon’s role is not that of traditional detective or police officer. It’s certainly a series I shall be looking out for more of in the future.

In three words: Suspenseful, assured, atmospheric

Try something similar: None So Blind by Alis Hawkins

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Chris Nickson Author PicAbout the Author

Chris Nickson has published 28 novels, all historical crime, most of them set in Leeds, whose people and history are his passion. The Richard Nottingham series began things, taking place in the 1730s, followed by the Tom Harper novels, which begin in 1890 and have now moved to the 20th century. Between them, Lottie Armstrong, Urban Raven and Dan Markham cover Leeds from the 1920s to the 1950s.

The three books featuring thief-taker Simon Westow explore a changing Leeds, growing rapidly in the 1820s as industry – the factories and mills and belching chimneys – comes to dominate the town. The Hocus Girl, the second in the series, received starred reviews from Kirkus, which called it a “tour de force,” and Publishers Weekly, which declared “historical mysteries don’t get much better than this.’

Chris grew up in Leeds, but lived in the US for many years, making his living as a music journalist. He still reviews occasional releases, but his focus these days is fiction.

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