Top Five Tuesday – Summer Reads

A new Top Five Tuesday, the prompts are created by Bionic Book Worm. This week it’s summer reads. I can’t believe it’s nearly summer, what a strange one it will be.

1. The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton

Kate Morton is always on my summer reads list. Her books always remind me of summer and make me a part of the stories. The Secret Keeper begins at a summer party, Laurel sees a stranger approach her house and her mother speaking with him. Before the day is over she witnesses a shocking crime and challenges everything she knows about her family.

2. The Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley

Most of this book is set in South America so it’s nice and hot. Maya goes to Rio to trace her roots. We also flashback to her ancestors and their lives in Rio. It’s a large book and set in a warm place, a perfect summer read. My full review is here.

3. The Help by Kathryn Stockett

I love this book, it’s so powerful and it’s set in Mississippi so it’s hot and it’s a very important read. It follows the lives of two women of colour who work as maids and nannies for white families in the 1960s, they meet a young journalist who grew up in Mississippi and was raised by her maid, she wants to tell their story.

4. Tangerine by Christine Mangan

5. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice reminds me of the countryside in the sunshine, it’s the perfect classic for the summer time. It’s also the only romance I will allow on my list!

What are some of your favourite summer reads?

My Top Five Reads of 2019

It is almost the end of the year so I thought I would pick my favourite reads from 2019! It’s been my first full year of running this blog which has been really fun, I might try and post more next year.

1. Fire and Blood by George R.R. Martin

I am fascinated by the history of Westeros and the Targaryens are the most interesting of them all. It is written like a history book but is still just as gripping as ASOIAF. I can’t wait for the second part to be published!

2. The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley

This is the second book in the series and we follow Ally on her journey of discovery to Norway. I loved reading about Norway and some of its history and Ally is such a strong character, I really connected with her.

3. The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye by David Lagercrantz

I love the Millennium series, Lisbeth Salander is one of my favourite characters ever, she’s so complex and badass. This is the fifth book in the series and at the beginning we find Lisbeth in prison. She’s only there for a few months but she finds out that as a child she was almost involved in a experiment carried out on twins. They separated twin children and put them into families with different wealth and status. As always Mikael and Lisbeth investigate and get into serious danger!

4. Tangerine by Christine Mangan

Tangerine is set in the 1950’s in Tangier, Morocco. We meet Alice first, she followed her husband to Tangier but has struggled with the city. The stifling heat and the crowds cause her to panic. Then an old school friend arrives out of the blue and brings back dark memories. I loved how strange all the relationships were and then we were gradually told the reasons why, very well written.

5.Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett

My favourite Discworld books are probably the City Watch ones, in this story a cult of bitter citezens try to summon a dragon to attack the city. Dragons haven’t been seen for hundreds of years, but somehow they manage it. The City Watch consists of only a handful people, they are not respected by anyone and the laws are so corrupt that normally they barely have to do anything, but with the threat of the dragon they must step up. Witty, engaging and bonkers as always.

There they all are, Happy New Year everyone!

Tangerine by Christine Mangan – Review

“I could already feel that same effect she always had over me: strengthening and emboldening me, her presence serving as an armour I could somehow never manage to affix on my own.”

Tangerine is set in the 1950’s in Tangier, Morocco. We meet Alice first, she followed her husband to Tangier but has struggled with the city. The stifling heat and the crowds cause her to panic. The way her anxiety is described in the first chapter is spot on. Alice’s relationship with her husband is strained, they had a whirlwind romance and it’s clear that he doesn’t understand her fear of going outside or getting lost in Tangier.

We then meet Lucy who went to college with Alice, they were roommates and very close friends. They used to talk about traveling the world together but they lost touch after school. I love the way we see Alice through Lucy’s eyes. Mangan’s style of describing her characters is quite special. The way Lucy idolises Alice and the time they spent together, it’s clear early on that she’s in love with her. Lucy finds out that Alice is now living in Tangier and decides to surprise her with a visit.

But when Lucy shows up on Alice’s doorstep it’s clear that something happened at their school in Vermont. They didn’t simply loose touch, there was an accident, something that has haunted Alice ever since. The way their relationship unfolds is very clever, all the chapters are told from one of the women’s point of view so we get to see both sides of the story.

Alice’s husband John and Lucy do not get on. Lucy can see straight through him to his rotten core. That spells serious trouble for John amd he doesn’t like it. The way all three characters interact is so well written.

“John was the problem, the patriarchal head that had to be cut off, the dragon that had to be slain in order to rescue the heroine.”

I have a tendency to relate to more morally ambiguous characters, Lucy is another one. She is manipulative and possessive but she is also deluded and needs help. I’m rooting for both the women still at the end, despite some of Lucy’s actions.

I really enjoyed this book, it was full of twists and turns. It’s a brilliant look into obsession and how dangerous it can be. The style of writing was really interesting and I would definitely recommend it.