We break down all the books we read in October 2022, including new releases from Colleen Hoover, Malcolm Gaskell and Dolly Alderton.
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
Rating: B
This was exactly the cosy thriller I needed to spend time with in October. The story centres around Pip who decides to look into the closed case of schoolgirl Andie Bell. The novel is cleverly plotted with twists and turns, so that it is only until the bitter end that all is revealed.
It Starts With Us by Colleen Hoover
Rating: B-
Colleen Hoover’s sequel to her phenomenally successful novel It Ends With Us tells the love story between Lily and Atlas. The book is no literary sensation but it was everything I needed it to be as the winter months draw in.
Every Summer After by Carley Fortune
Rating: A-
For anyone who’s a fan of the TV show – The Summer I Turned Pretty – this novel embodies all the emotions that that series brought up. A delight of a novel, the story centres around Percy’s return to the coastal town where she grew up, where she reunites with the love of her life – Sam. It’s heartwarming, tender and joyful.
dear dolly by Dolly Alderton
Rating: A
Dolly Alderton’s collection of her Sunday Times columns feels like a warm hug from a big sister, though there are no big revelations in her advice, what Alderton brings is love, tenderness and charm delivered with a steady wit and humour throughout.
The Christie Affair by Nina De Gramont
Rating: A-
This is a fictional account of the real Agatha Christie disappearance on Friday 3 December 1926 at around 9:30 p.m. The novel is told from the perspective of Nan O’Dea, the mistress of Agatha’s husband, Archie. It is an immensely creative, fascinating and shocking account of what she imagines could have happened on those days that Christie was missing.
Something Wilder by Christina Lauren
Rating: B-
The Bounty Hunter meets a Hallmark movie in this novel from Christina Lauren. Though by no means the smartest of their novels, this is still an immensely quick and readable novel.
The Devil You Know by Dr Gwen Adshead
Rating: A+
An absolutely fascinating examination of Dr Adshead’s therapy sessions with various figures in the criminal system – from serial killers to mothers on the brink of losing their children. What this novel will give you is an empathy for the human side of these figures that are the topic of so much vitriol and it is fascinating.
The Ruin of All Witches by Malcolm Gaskill
Rating: B+
Another fascinating and eye-opening novel around one witch hunt in 1651 New England. The Ruin of All Witches by Malcolm Gaskill is a great nonfictional account of a witch hunt involving Mary and Hugh Parsons – a fascinating account and examination as to just how some of these innocent figures could have been accused of witchcraft.
