Ahhhh, it’s that time of the year when I realise I miscounted and then go back and find the missing day/week. This year I went off timetable very early on, jumping straight from week 5 to 7, doh!
Christmas is looming and the kids are getting into the festive spirit. Zach had an outdoor carol concert (brrr, it was very cold) and Matthew made gingerbread. Anya and I have been planning colour schemes for next year’s decorations.
The main event this week was Dad’s 70th birthday (and Chris’ on the same day). We had a lovely day together and it was great to have something to celebrate.
Gary has quite a mundane existence until an acquaintance turns up dead and he becomes involved in a murder investigation. His alibi is an elusive woman whose name he doesn’t even know…
The Satsuma Complex is a wonderfully funny novel which is also surprisingly deep emotionally. The audiobook is read by author Bob Mortimer and Sally Philips who are both sensational. The recording has breath sounds and feels like they are chatting directly to you, making the text seem realistic and authentic instead of fiction.
I have been a fan of Bob for years and love his apprearances on Would I Lie To You? This book feels very much like one of his tall tales which then turn out to be true! He is simply wonderful and the nuances of Gary’s existence are vividly brought to life. The tiny details are just divine, so natural and a tad crazy, just like all of us!
Book blurb:
My name is Gary. I’m a thirty-year-old legal assistant with a firm of solicitors in London. To describe me as anonymous would be unfair but to notice me other than in passing would be a rarity. I did make a good connection with a girl, but that blew up in my face and smacked my arse with a fish slice.
Gary Thorn goes for a pint with a work acquaintance called Brendan. When Brendan leaves early, Gary meets a girl in the pub. He doesn’t catch her name, but falls for her anyway. When she suddenly disappears without saying goodbye, all Gary has to remember her by is the book she was reading: The Satsuma Complex. But when Brendan goes missing, Gary needs to track down the girl he now calls Satsuma to get some answers.
And so begins Gary’s quest, through the estates and pie shops of South London, to finally bring some love and excitement into his unremarkable life…
A page-turning story with a cast of unforgettable characters, The Satsuma Complex is the brilliantly funny smash hit first novel by bestselling author and comedian Bob Mortimer.
Leo doesn’t want anything for Christmas. His mum died during the year and he is determined to keep the festive spirit in her honour. However, things don’t go to plan and time is running out…
The Boy Who Slept Through Christmas is a children’s book written by Matt Lucas. I think it is probably aimed at children aged 8-10 but think families would enjoy sharing this together.
Poor Leo is grieving for his mum and it is his first Christmas without her. He wants everything to be perfect but nothing goes right and he despairs. There are some big emotions featured in this book but I think it is important for children to see that Christmas goes beyond the presents and celebrations.
To contrast and soften the emotion, there are lots of funny moments as well as references to Bake Off, plus Baked Potato songs! Personally, the musical interludes didn’t really work for me as I was listening to the main narration at 2.5x speed which made the songs almost incomprehensible! The writing is warm and easy to read/listen to, so I’m sure it will be a family favourite.
The Boy Who Slept Through Christmas is an enjoyable children’s book with a careful balance of emotion and humour.
Book Blurb:
Dive in to this funny and heart-warming debut magical adventure from star of stage and screen, Matt Lucas – a festive modern classic for young readers of 8-12!
Leo LOVES Christmas. And this Christmas needs to be absolutely perfect, because it’s the first one without Mum. Only it all keeps going wrong!
The fairylights are in a tangle. The Christmas cards aren’t finished. The tree isn’t decorated. And the Christmas cakes have all been destroyed!
Soon Leo decides he’s had enough – he makes a heartfelt wish that it would all GO AWAY.
Then Leo wakes up on what SHOULD be Christmas Day – and it’s gone!! All of Christmas! But Leo isn’t going to let it escape that easily . . .
Join Leo as he sets out on a mission to undo his wish and get Christmas back in the brand-new festive classic by bestselling author Matt Lucas.
Home Alone meets A Christmas Carol in a hilarious adventure with a big dollop of festive magic. Funny, sensitive and emotional in all the best ways, this warm and seasonal family story touches ever so gently on childhood grief but is wrapped up in a chaotic and heart-warming adventure.
Listen to over 20 original songs, written and recorded by Matt to accompany the story, bringing the joy of a musical to book form!
The body of a man is found among the rubbish, his own severed finger in his mouth. Then more bodies are discovered with the same mutilation. Smith and his team are met with a vow of silence from the suspects…
The Creed is the 30th book in the DS Jason Smith series of police procedurals. The whole series is brilliant so read them ASAP!
A sinister cult/group is targeting abusers. One member breaks her vow of silence to contact the police but this only leads to more questions for Smith and his colleagues. Could hypnotism be responsible for the silent suspects? Smith decides to explore this angle and it puts him at odds with his superiors once again.
On the personal side of the plot, Smith and Whitton’s plan to adopt Fran meets with difficulty in the shape of a jobsworth social worker. His colleagues also have their fair share of emotional turmoil in the form of break ups and this leads to the usual banter and teasing.
The style of writing is easy to read and the characters are brilliantly depicted and brought to life through their dialogue. There is a humour in the character relationships which lightens the tone as well as adding realism. The deaths were not as grisly as other books in the series and the hypnotism gave a unique angle to the case.
The Creed is another excellent addition to the series.
THE CREED (Detective Jason Smith #30) by Stewart Giles
From bestselling author: Stewart Giles comes another brilliant addition to the Detective Jason Smith.
Detective Sergeant Jason Smith thought he’d seen every kind of murderer there was to see.
Until now.
When the body of a man is found in an alley, Smith thinks it’s just one more unlucky soul in the wrong place at the wrong time.
But why was his index finger severed, and shoved inside his mouth?
When another corpse is discovered with a finger in his mouth, Smith is baffled.
He gets a break in the investigation in the form of an anonymous call from a woman who claims to know why the men had to die, but the trail hits a dead end when Smith realises what he’s dealing with.
A group of people are hell bent on killing, but every one of them has pledged a vow of silence to the creed they hold sacred.
As the bodies keep on piling up, Smith wonders if the silent killers devoted to The Creed are going to be the ones to finally outsmart him.
What readers are saying about THE CREED:
I adore this series and get through the books rather quickly as they are all tantalising page turners. Stewart has a gift of a twisty mind (that is a compliment! honest!) that can take the reader on a journey quite like no other whereas one small piece comes into place and then boom! – Misfits Farm
I enjoyed the murder investigation. Smith’s personal life is like a soap opera and this for me is the addiction! When I reach the end of the book, I am eagerly awaiting the next installment! Once again, a thoroughly enjoyable read, highly recommended.- Carol
This author never writes two books the same, mind-blowing cases that keep you entertained. Smith is a fantastic detective and a family man that brings the books to life. I loved it. Once again it’s a five stars and more. – Booklover Bev
There are usually plenty of bodies through these books, but they are fun reads mainly due to the great characters. The storylines are usually nasty and twisted, and goodness knows where Stewart gets his ideas from, but the darkness is certainly offset by plenty of humour. – Maureen
Stewart Giles – Author Bio
After reading English at 3 Universities and graduating from none of them, I set off travelling around the world with my wife, Ann, finally settling in South Africa, where we still live.
In 2014 Ann dropped a rather large speaker on my head and I came up with the idea for a detective series. DS Jason Smith was born. Smith, the first in the series was finished a few months later.
3 years and 8 DS Smith books later, Joffe Books wondered if I would be interested in working with them. As a self-published author, I agreed. However, we decided on a new series – the DC Harriet Taylor: Cornwall series.
The Beekeeper was published and soon hit the number one spot in Australia. The second in the series, The Perfect Murder did just as well.
I continued to self-publish the Smith series and Unworthy hit the shelves in 2018 with amazing results. I therefore made the decision to self-publish The Backpacker which is book 3 in the Detective Harriet Taylor series which was published in July 2018.
After The Backpacker I had an idea for a totally new start to a series – a collaboration between the Smith and Harriet thrillers and The Enigma was born. It brought together the broody, enigmatic Jason Smith and the more level-headed Harriet Taylor.
The Miranda trilogy is something totally different. A psychological thriller trilogy. It is a real departure from anything else I’ve written before.
The Detective Jason Smith series continues to grow. I also have another series featuring an Irish detective who relocated to Guernsey, the Detective Liam O’Reilly series. There are also 3 stand alone novels.
This week we said a final goodbye to my great uncle Roy. He was awarded an OBE for being an MOD languages lecturer for over 40 years and received the Order of the Rising Sun (the third highest honour in Japan, for his languages skills that promoted international relations).
It’s that time of year again where Duolingo tells you how you’ve been doing, and it felt apt that my language learning has been good again and Uncle Roy would have been proud.
