Reviews by Helen

Thank goodness Ian has brought Rebus out of retirement and back into our lives. This novel, though, reminds us just how old school he is and how out of place in the modern world of police procedure. A gripping read.

I bought this after reading an article in the Guardian which interviewed publishing editors and asking them which books they wish they had published but that went to other houses. Two of them mentioned Canada, which I thought was as good a recommendation as possible. It has the second best opening line that I have ever come across (Earthly Powers is still in first place) and demonstrates again how normal we think our childhood is whilst we are living it and it is only with hindsight when we can compare it to others' lives that we realise that none of us have a 'normal' up bringing.

haven't we all wondered about Hole's fist case where he made his name? well now we have it. Jo Nesbo's first in the series. it has all the essential Harry characteristics but it does read like a first novel - some padding with (very interesting) aboriginal tales. worth a read for all his fans.

Not as good as many of his other titles but engaging enough and I read to the end.

What a lyrical and poetically written story. Vivid characters thrown together in what was almost an Agatha Christie setting - an isolated house in France with a very small cast of characters. And an unexpected ending which I had to play again. Highly recommended.

I SO want to spoil it for you but I won't. I'll just say that I was shocked. What a read and what an unexpected conclusion.

A prayer for Owen Meany has been in my top 5 for many years so I was instantly drawn to this latest book by one of my favourite authors and I was not disappointed. Once again he explores our ideas of gender, sexuality and family relationships with a cast of characters that are rounded and real. The book covers decades and, as in real life, not all the ends tie up a nicely as you might hope and with other authors would have turned into a Hollywood style ending that never happens in reality. Thoroughly recommend it.

Please just say what you mean. Everything was 'like' something else. Then there were sentences made up of perfectly ordinary words with a very long extraordinary word thrown in randomly. Only got a couple of hours into it before I gave up. Also, set in Ireland, there was not a great breadth of Irish accents so many characters sounded the same.

The narrator made this for me. I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much as a written book. A reminder than everyone you pass every day has their own story to tell and that while you might think of yourself as original and 'different', so are they.

I'm 54 and loved this. So not just for teenagers. I've always been a fan of science fantasy and this world is remenicent of other creations and sill retains its own character. I have ordered the next part as my next month's download.