Reviews 

I love Susie Steiner’s 'Manon' book, of which I think this is the 2nd (maybe 3rd) and it is shocking and horrible to hear that she now...

I enjoyed this, particularly the last quarter after the boy’s death, but struggled with the early chapters where there were (for me) too...

Remains, probably, my favourite book, but it is seriously long! (although lots of distractions over the last few weeks – cricket,...

Book of the year so far. A lovely book by a lovely and very funny woman (I loved her hosting of ‘The News Quiz’, can’t get into Q1...

Thought I would try another Dickens after 819 and not really enjoying the 21st century 820. Quite enjoyed this, but Dickens' characters...

Not being a big Dickens fan, I thought I would try one yet again and took this on holiday. Deliberately chose a book I knew nothing...

A library book of Paddy's – we think this may have shared the Booker Prize with the new Margret Atwood. Predominantly, it initially...

This is by the author of ‘The Miniturist’ which I have seen on television if not read. Not in the George Eliot class (well what would...

I hate doing this but am half way through this book, and really can’t see any good reason to finish it, so I won’t. I really enjoyed...

This is a very good book, but muscular and not an easy read. About millennial London, but quite unlike 684 or Lanchester’s ‘Capital’;...

Bought 1977, so probably haven’t read for 40+ years! Brilliant, hasn’t aged at all and I had minimal memory of either the book or (I am...

Enjoyed this a lot (must have read it before). Quite similar, structurally, to John Lanchester’s ‘Capital’, but Faulkes is a better...

I have read this (and most of Rankin’s books) before, but unlike say Peter Robinson (and Rankin is I think a better writer) the titles...

I struggled with the first half of this book which seemed almost Dickensian in its slow development. 2 kids are abandoned by their...

I enjoyed no 636, so thought I would try another. This was probably not a great choice – sounded interesting but wasn’t really – the...

A library book of Paddy's. Couldn’t entirely make this out – an eponymous (Nell Stevens) PhD student in London has a love affair which...

No.598 which I convinced myself over dinner with Paddy in Korcula was worth re-reading (having re-started it and intending to be...

The first of the Slough House novels, possibly my 3rd read but they are so good and improve every time. This begins with River’s...

This sort of thing has not been done before, and I thought it was brilliant. Too complex a plot to summarise, but a very funny and clever...

Have read this before but took it as airport aeroplane reading, and as the flight to Stockholm was delayed got through a lot of it. It is...