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OutsmartYourShelf
The Prison Healer | Lynette Noni
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Pickpick

I was absolutely glued to the start of this book & the premise was intriguing, unfortunately it suffered from the tendency to prioritise romantic relationships over the Trials which made the middle section drag a bit. The ending almost made up for it though, I was surprised by that extra twist, & that doesn't happen often. I was 50-50 on carrying on but the ending caught my attention again, so I probably will read the next one. 3.75🌟

TheSpineView Great job!🤩📖📚 3d
DieAReader 🎉🎉🎉 3d
Tove_Reads Ah, these books are a bit challenging, but good that you‘ll continue. 3d
28 likes4 comments
review
Andrew65
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Pickpick

This was an excellent read. Can never beat time travel, but this one had intrigue, a slow burn love story and bees thrown in! Made it very difficult to put down towards the end. Now I desperately need book 2 to find out what happens, check out my full review at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7566675966

#SeriesLove2025 #Readaway2025 @TheSpineView @DieaReader @Ghabi4Roses

Andrew65 Counting this for the #Shelfsweeper Readathon as been on my Kindle for a month or two. @Tove_Reads 5d
TheSpineView Fantastic! 🤩📖📚 5d
DieAReader 🎉💖Excellent!! 4d
56 likes3 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
The Darkest Minds | Alexandra Bracken
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Pickpick

In a dystopian USA, children start dying from a new illness which has a high mortality rate. Those that do survive develop alarming new abilities, making the adults afraid of them. From the age of 10 all surviving children are taken into federal custody & placed into camps run by guards. The children are sorted into colours according to their abilities: green is the least dangerous, then blue, yellow, & orange, with red being the most dangerous.

OutsmartYourShelf Ruby is locked up on her 10th birthday & is categorised as green but when she reaches 16, she is broken out of the camp by The League. Ruby soon realises that they are wanting to use her ability for themselves so runs away at the first opportunity. She joins 3 other teenagers on a road trip to find East River - a group of kids living out in the woods with a leader who is rumoured to be able to do the impossible. 5d
OutsmartYourShelf Ruby knows that all of them are hiding secrets from her, but she is hiding one from them, you see she's not really a green....

At heart this is your standard YA dystopia: kids against adults, sorted into factions, hot guy, second hot guy for the obligatory love triangle, etc. It started off quite slow & I almost DNF'd but it did pick up about a third of the way through. I already have the next 2 so will probably read them at some point. 3.75🌟
5d
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TheSpineView Well done! 5d
DieAReader 🎉🎉🎉 5d
Andrew65 Looks good, well done 🎉🎉🎉 5d
34 likes6 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
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Mehso-so

England, 1942 & American & Canadian soldiers were billeted in the Surrey countryside awaiting details of their next posting. One soldier was Private August Sangret who struck up a relationship with local girl, Joan Wolfe, one that Joan thought would be leading to marriage. For weeks witnesses usually saw them together, including living in a hastily constructed 'wigwam' or tipi in the woods until one day Joan disappeared. (continued)

OutsmartYourShelf Sangret searched for her for a while but then seemed to be over it & he told anyone who asked that Joan had gone away on a course.

When Joan's body was found in a shallow grave, the lead detective honed in on Sangret. He was not the first or only soldier that Joan had been involved with, but he was executed by hanging for her murder. The forensic evidence was mainly inconclusive so was Sangret actually guilty,
1w
OutsmartYourShelf or was he a scapegoat due to his Métis (mixed European & indigenous Canadian ancestry) background?

This was an interesting read about a case I had never heard of before, but the timeline seemed a bit confusing to me. The narrative jumped around over lots of different background stories & it was difficult to work out what had happened when. The author argues that Sangret did not get a fair trial due to his skin colour & background.
1w
OutsmartYourShelf The investigation was certainly perfunctory in some respects as Sangret was by no means the first or only soldier to have a relationship with Joan, but none of the others seem to have been investigated. At present, I'm not 100% convinced that Sangret wasn't the killer but there is certainly enough evidence to suggest that other avenues should have been investigated more fully. Overall, an interesting if slightly confusing read. 3⭐
1w
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DieAReader 🎉Excellent! 1w
Andrew65 Well done 🎉🎉🎉 5d
29 likes6 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
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Pickpick

The fifth outing for the team of Detective Sergeant Washington Poe & civilian analyst, Tilly Bradshaw sees them tackle two puzzling cases. A poisoner is running amok, seemingly able to get to his victims even if they are under police protection, & for his fourth victim he uses the might of social media to get the public to vote on who he kills next. (continued)

OutsmartYourShelf Meanwhile pathologist Estelle Doyle has been arrested for killing her father. She says she's innocent but there's physical evidence including firearms discharge residue on her hands, & hers are the only footprints in the snow going in. The house has been thoroughly searched & no weapon has been found.

Intriguing cases for Poe & Bradshaw & they were well plotted. For me though, there was too much Doyle & not enough Bradshaw.
1w
DieAReader Excellent!!🎉🥳 1w
See All 6 Comments
TheSpineView Fantastic! 🤩📖📚 1w
Tove_Reads Love, love, love his books! 1w
Andrew65 Excellent 🎉🎉🎉 5d
35 likes1 stack add6 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
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Pickpick

n earlier times, life was a lot more communal than it is today, & the concept of a private life didn't really exist in a balanced way. This is an examination of the concept', those who helped shape it, & how it came into being from its initial start in the Reformation, through the 17th & 18th centuries & Sir Edward Coke (who was responsible for the saying 'An Englishman's home is his castle') through to supporters of women's rights (continued)

OutsmartYourShelf including Mary Astell, Mary Wollstonecraft, & John Stuart Mill in the 19th century. Today the ownership of one's image & the 21st century has brought forth new questions about privacy & the public space.

This was both an interesting & thought-provoking read. I especially enjoyed the historical chapters but found myself a little less engrossed as we neared modern day. The argument that privacy was historically looked on as a way to hide things
2w
OutsmartYourShelf from others rather than being a retreat from the outside world was intriguing & it shows how much society has changed & mainly uncoupled from religious influence in England. Well-researched & well-written, I recommend this if you like challenging reads. 4🌟

My thanks to #NetGalley & publishers, Pan Macmillan/Picador, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Full Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7254294359
Read 14th-17th May 2025
2w
DieAReader 💖💖💖 2w
Andrew65 Excellent 🎉🎉🎉 5d
31 likes5 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
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Pickpick

London, 1873 & Madeleine Brewster's marriage to Dr Lucius Everley is hastily arranged to assuage the tide of rejection & ill-feeling from their neighbours. Ever since Maddie's older sister left home under a cloud of suspicion, the Brewsters have been ostracised & Maddie's marriage is their passport back to respectability but it means Maddie moving to London far from her family to where she knows no-one. (continued)

OutsmartYourShelf Lucius is solemn & secretive, working in his 'Small Museum' as a collector of natural curiosities, & consumed with finding the evidence to prove his evolutionary theory. He doesn't seem all that interested in Maddie - his sister, Grace, spends more time with him than his wife. The house is also odd with two sullen servants, the Barkers, & odd noises at night, like crying infants but whenever she mentions anything, everyone denies hearing them. 2w
OutsmartYourShelf Pushing to find the truth, Maddie finds herself accused of a hideous crime & on trial for her life.

I read this one as I received the sequel as an ARC, so wanted to get an idea of the story. I would say that you really do need to read this one first, there's a lot going on. It was a very dark, almost gothic, read with a possible haunting & furtive servants. The narrative alternates between Maddie's early marriage & scenes from the court case.
2w
OutsmartYourShelf I mostly enjoyed it apart from one thing which happened at the end which really irked me. Although there is nothing really graphic here, there are some upsetting themes (please see TWs below). 4🌟

TWs: death of a child, death of a parent, animal death, misogyny, & gaslighting.

Full Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7568002022
Read 15th-17th May 2025

#ReadAway2025 @Andrew65 @DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES
2w
DieAReader 💖💖💖 2w
Andrew65 Looks good, well done 🎉🎉🎉 5d
28 likes5 comments