Category: UK - Alyce Caswell - Author

Alyce Caswell - Author

In the Beginning

28/11/2024

Solitaire by Alice Oseman

Tori Spring exists. The world exists around her. Apathy keeps her from seeing anything real in her school or her supposed friends - and she doesn't care that maybe something should be different. Then strange pranks start happening at school, enacted by the mysterious so-called Solitaire. Tori has no interest in Solitaire at first. But soon she realises it might have everything to do with her.

I was very disappointed in this book, having read some of Oseman's other work. It definitely reads like a first novel penned by a teenager. I suppose some of my reaction is due to my experience of teen depression and suicide ideation being quite different from Tori's... but also because this book was in dire need of more editing and redrafting (and apparently I read the newer version!). I'm not saying it had to be as slick as other YA novels published in 2014, but I did expect a certain quality.

A Charming Read 2.0

15/8/2024

One Enchanted Evening by Katie Fforde

Meg is determined to become a professional cook in 1960s England. She has it all planned. But when her mother urgently calls for her help, Meg finds herself working in a kitchen in a quaint Dorset hotel that has seen better days. She soon falls in love with the hotel and its people - except Justin, of course, the owner's son who it seems would rather see the hotel shut instead of thrive.

This is my second outing with Katie Fforde and once again I found myself drawn in by the charming setting she'd created (though I will admit that I find her writing slightly unpolished - the charm helps smooth things over!). I had found the other book too old fashioned for the modern era, so the 1960s setting solved that issue for me this time around. It was a very pleasant read.

Side note - I'd have finished it sooner, had Influenza A not robbed me of my ability to read for a whole week.

A Charming Read

24/7/2024

A Secret Garden by Katie Fforde

Philly and her grandfather have run away from home - that is, moved to England to pursue their independence and indulge in gardening and cooking respectively. Philly's work leads to a friendship with Lorna, who is trying to make a rundown estate respectable again - and trying to move on after decades of unrequited interest. Gardening is rewarding...and so is cultivating new relationships.

This was a charming, uncomplicated read that managed to smooth out a stressful week for me. Philly and her grandfather were my favourite characters, though I really did feel for Lorna. This book was oddly old fashioned for 2017 and seemed to reflect that the author hadn't updated her view of the world (and familial relations) in a really long time. Perhaps it should have been set in an earlier decade.

Oh no. Oh no no no no.

18/7/2024

Icebreaker (Maple Hills #1)
by Hannah Grace

Anastasia is aiming for gold at the Olympics in paired figure skating and she does not have time for a committed relationship - and she absolutely does not have time for Nate, whose hockey team is the reason that Maple Hills now has only one ice rink that everyone has to share. But Nate isn't the type to give up. He's determined to make her like him. He'll even get his face between her legs to do it.

This was... not what I expected - and I really, really dislike it when a blurb misrepresents the story of the book it's attached to. Nate being a stand-in skating partner was such a tiny part of things and could have been excised from this bloated mess. You can't convince me that a structural edit occurred at any stage. As for characters... most of them felt like names on a page instead of actual people. As for steamy scenes... hey I'm usually into that, but I prefer to read books where these scenes are used to convey the development of a relationship. It gets boring when they're just filler.

I've read a lot of debuts. Some can be rough. Few feel so amateurish as this one. Maybe the author gets better with the other books in this series, but I have limited time and I'm not risking any of it on another attempt.

EDIT: Oh. Just discovered that this started as a Wattpad book. This explains A LOT. I avoid these for reason... damn it, I should have checked and saved us all from a grumpy a review.

TW: eating disorder, sexual assault, emotional abuse

All's Well that Merriwells

29/6/2024

Never Wager with a Wallflower (The Merriwell Sisters #3)
by Virginia Heath

Galahad Sinclair is ready to pour his funds into a leisure establishment in London. The problem? He's bought the building right next door to the orphanage that Venus Merriwell feels extremely passionate about. Venus has had it with men betraying her. What she doesn't expect is her changing feelings for Galahad - or that he's been hiding the real reason for pursuing a connection with her.

I've loved every book in this series and so I'm sad to see it end, because its strength was the amusing array of characters connected to the Merriwell family. I also enjoy reading about a hero who makes mistakes and has to make it up to the heroine... so naturally, I enjoyed Never Wager with a Wallflower! I will say that there were some long passages that lingered inside characters' heads. This bogged things down a bit. Can't honestly remember if this was an issue in the previous books, though.

Ghosts and Ghosted

8/6/2024

The Man Who Didn't Call by Rosie Walsh

Sarah and Eddie meet and have a wonderful seven days together - and for Sarah, this short amount of time is enough to fall in love. She is sure Eddie feels the same way. So then why doesn't he answer her messages or calls, even though he promised to keep in contact? Where has he gone? Sarah's friends think she's wasting time trying to find out. But Sarah has to know - what happened?

I think I'm becoming a tad jaded, but it seems that nearly every British women's lit book I pick up lately is depressing AF and deliberately lays red herrings while preparing a secondary twist (which you know is coming, so you sigh and ignore the aforementioned red herrings). It's...tiring. That all said, this is a solid book and Walsh's prose is experienced and easy to roam through.

I Do Like to be Beside the Seaside

20/4/2024

The Burnout by Sophie Kinsella

After a desperate but unsuccessful attempt to join a convent, Sasha goes on leave to recover from the burnout her job has given her. Her holiday in Devon is going to be about mindfulness and health. She has the beach to herself - until she has to share it with Finn, who is also handling burnout. Sasha's annoyance with his presence fades when mysterious messages start appearing in the sand.

I actually haven't read anything by Sophie Kinsella before and now I wish I'd found her books sooner. I was hooked from the moment Sasha was being chased by a nun. Oh, how I cackled. This was such a charming and at times amusing story that had me fondly reliving memories of my own adventures in Devon (including a detour to some caves, ha!). I was a bit bemused that Sasha's supposed friend was more of a name instead of a character, but the rest of The Burnout is so good that it's easy to overlook this minor flaw.

A Big Warm Hug

17/4/2024

The Switch by Beth O'Leary

After suffering a breakdown, Leena Cotton is forcibly put on leave and no longer has work to distract her from her grief. Meanwhile, her grandmother Eileen is frustrated with the lack of suitors available to her in her village. The solution is as simple as it is ridiculous - a swap! Eileen heads to London, on the hunt for romance, and Leena returns home. Just how much can change in two months anyway?

Oh my goodness. This book is beautiful. I don't often weep when reading, but obviously this is an exception. I'm glad I persevered with Beth O'Leary's backlog. Because if I hadn't, I wouldn't have been wrapped up in the warm embrace of The Switch and its loveable characters - who I will dearly miss. I am so fortunate to have such remarkable women in my own family or I'd wish Eileen was my very own grandmother.

Epic 180

11/4/2024

The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary

Tiffy needs to get out of her rubbish ex's place but she's got a shoestring budget. Enter Leon, who needs the extra income of a flatmate. But there's only one bed! Not that Tiffy and Leon will ever share it, or be home at the same time, or ever actually meet. They start leaving notes for each other... then their lives begin to slowly mesh, until it's inevitable that they'll finally come face to face.

I've had to read O'Leary's books out of publication order, as I'm at the mercy of the local library's availability. The last two I read were sooo not for me and I was anxious about reading her first one. Well, I'm confused because this feels like an entirely different author. The Flatshare is awesome! The concept is wonderful, the characters are incredibly loveable (even the side randoms), and I'd happily share my bed with this book forever (alas, I must return it to the library). Tiffy's trauma is handled sensitively and so well... makes me wonder why similar themes fell so flat for me in The No-Show and The Road Trip. I suspect it's the execution.

Whew. That was a relief. Now I should go pick up The Switch, which is currently waiting for me on the hold shelf. Wish me luck with that one! xD

Content warning: gaslighting, emotional abuse, stalking

The Oh No Not Again Trip

7/4/2024

The Road Trip by Beth O'Leary

Addie has set off early on a road trip, with her sister Deb, and intends to get to her friend's wedding on time. Except she gets rear-ended by Dylan, her ex, and Marcus, the walking turd he calls a friend. Now they need a lift - and being stuck together inside a car for hours (along with another peculiar wedding guest) is going to be awkward. It'll be a miracle if they get to the wedding on time.

I have made a horrible mistake in using up my reservation slots on Beth O'Leary's books at the local library. I'd cancel the next one if it wasn't already in transit between libraries, destined for the nearest hold shelf. I'd thought that The No-Show was a one off, but it turns out O'Leary is NOT for me. This is yet another book that reads like Reddit drama. The characters are young enough that said drama is exhausting and annoying for someone past that stage.

The thing is, O'Leary is a fantastic writer and her prose is so easy to breeze through. You don't want to put the book down, even when you're not enjoying it. Her writing is the best part of The Road Trip - and Marcus is the worst part, hands down. Those of us who have known Marcuses in real life also know they never change or redeem themselves. Sorry. It's not believable.

And now I will anxiously check my library app and wonder if it's bad form to cancel a hold mid-transit. Someone please reassure me that The Flatshare is at least palatable??

Content warning: stalking, sexual assault