stormlightreader's reviews
872 reviews

The opening chapters were...aggravating. The plot around Ava's backstory was interesting, but the kidnapping plot took away from pacing and the resolution was quite underwhelming. That said, Bill looking after Alex is beautiful and this is a series I am becoming more invested in, although not yet on the level of DCI Ryan.

Sidenote: I read the previous Alex Gregory book (Panic), then read the newest DCI Ryan book (Poison Garden), then I read this book (all by the same author). When I got to the end of this book, I was confused as to why a certain plot thread hadn't been picked up. Then I realised that plot thread is in the DCI Ryan series 😂 The perils of reading two series by one author back-to-back  😂 

Still Born was a book I wasn't expecting to be so gripped by, but I am happy that my first Guadalupe Nettel book was a hit. It is a book that explores female friendships of varying degrees: a childfree woman, her friend who becomes a mother to a disabled child, a woman who is still suffering after losing her husband and being left with a very angry son. The writing style was a winner for me. Still Born is told straightforwardly but you can still feel the emotions of the women without the book being unnecessarily long. Nettel explores the feelings of ambivalence towards motherhood, the emotions of motherhood, and the importance of the wider support system that mothers need.

My only complaint (and the only reason this isn't a 5 star read) is because I feel the childfree aspect could have been explored further.

I thought at one point, that our childfree character, Laura, was going to succumb and get pregnant, but I'm incredibly happy that Nettel didn't give in and take this easy option. However, the fact that Laura, still became so invested in a child for a large chunk of the story felt like a bit of a disservice to her childfree choice. I would have liked more exploration around being childfree and that being childfree doesn't mean you need to invest so heavily in another person's child to feel well-rounded, because this is not the reality for all childfree people. However, this is the first book I have read where I have encountered intentional exploration of a childfree character that hasn't just gone on to get pregnant.

I have been devouring the HMRC books and this novella was no exception. Queen B was loads better than the overall rating led me to believe it was. I was expecting to be majorly disappointed, but no! Dawson's writing, even in a novella, is just as good and kept me gripped. I am not a history buff and I did not expect to enjoy this as much as HMRC or The Shadow Cabinet, but I loved it. Queen B was a great insight into the early days of HRMC, but I would've liked just a little bit more. I am honestly so impressed that Dawson made history this intriguing to me. When I finished the novella, I just wanted to keep on reading about all of the witches between Anne Boleyn and Niamh and co.

I had to use CAWPILE for this because I couldn't decide on an objective rating. CAWPILE came out at 4, but I feel it's more of a 3, so I'm going with a 3.5.

This book will be great for somebody who is brand new to Formula 1 and doesn't know the ins and outs of the sport.

We're given sections on figures at different levels of F1, from Oscar Piastri's race engineer, Tom Stallard (I loved this), to Carlos Sainz's performance coach. While I do like this approach when I'm reading a book about one team, I don't think it worked very well for this broader book, as we were getting quick segues from one team to another. There may have been clear headings informing the reader of this switch, however, due to the formatting issues with this book, I won't have seen them.

I don't think this book provided much in the way of new information for long time F1 followers. Much of the information about the drivers has been given by them in interviews on Sky Sports etc. 

The formatting of the NetGalley eARC is not good and letters (particularly f's and t's) were frequently missing. There were no headings, which this book should have (I checked the Kindle sample). 

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for a review.

I've now read Wraith (almost 6 years to the day I read N0S4R2 - back in 2018) and I may have left it too long to read this. I didn't need the Manx backstory and it hasn't enhanced N0S for me, but my curiosity is cured. 

Marrs just produces pure popcorn reads that I end up reading in a day. Every POV had something unhinged going on.

I read The Family Experiment, then The Marriage Act then The One - I'm pretty sure I've literally read these in reverse order, but they are still so impactful. The scariest thing about these books would be if they actually happened.

I love the DCI Ryan books. I really enjoy series; I like staying with the same characters and seeing them encounter different scenarios. Since I binge-read most of the DCI Ryan books last year to now, Ryan has become a firm favourite of mine. L.J. Ross has left Poison Garden on a tasty little cliff-hanger and I'm gutted I have to wait for the next one. 

No POV that I could get behind. The cop just loves dropping famous serial killer names and the killer was so cliché. The book is no show, all tell.

Getting Steiner's insights into one of the smallest Formula 1 teams in Surviving to Drive was really interesting, and getting to hear from him after his departure from Haas was just as good. I thoroughly enjoy Steiner’s narration and Unfiltered had just as many hilarious moments as Surviving to Drive.  I automatically go to the audiobook for Guenther's books, because just reading it wouldn't be anywhere near as entertaining.