THE PLOT: ‘In the Time of the Butterflies’ by Julia Alvarez is a historical novel based on the real lives of the Mirabel sisters aka Las Mariposas (the Butterflies). The sisters were revolutionaries, fighting against the Dominican Republic’s dictator Trujillo … Continue reading Review: In the Time of the Butterflies
THE PLOT: ‘Katheryn Howard: The Tainted Queen’ is the fifth book in the ‘Six Tudor Queens’ series by Alison Weir. Starting with her mother’s death, it follows Katheryn’s tumultuous upbringing as she’s shunted between different family members. She ends up … Continue reading Review: Katheryn Howard
THE PLOT: ‘The Thursday Murder Club’ by Richard Osman is a cosy mystery about four old-age pensioners who try to catch a murderer. Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron live in an expensive, peaceful retirement village and each Thursday they meet up … Continue reading Review: The Thursday Murder Club
Last year, I put together a list of debuts by black authors that were being released in 2021. I’ll be honest, I didn’t get to read them all… BUT, it did encourage me to make loads of pre-orders and I’ve … Continue reading Black Debut Authors 2022
THE PLOT: ‘The Unbroken’ by C.L. Clark is a fantasy novel set in the empire of Balladaire. It opens with Touraine, a woman from the colony of Qazal who was stolen from her family as a child to fight in the … Continue reading Review: The Unbroken
The Plot: ‘The Wedding’ by Dorothy West is a novel set in 1950’s America. It follows a light-skinned Black girl, Shelby, on the eve of her wedding to a white jazz musician. Shelby comes from a wealthy family who oppose the … Continue reading Review: The Wedding
THE PLOT: ‘The Haunting Season’ is a collection of ghostly short stories by different pre-eminent authors. Each story has a wintry, gothic feel, with most of them set in Victorian times. From a woman running away from her husband to … Continue reading Review: The Haunting Season
THE PLOT: ‘Into the Woods’ by John Yorke is a non-fiction book about storytelling. Written for screenwriters and novelists, it explores the underlying structure behind all narrative forms, including why we tell stories and how they function. Using lots of examples … Continue reading Review: Into the Woods
The Plot: ‘At Night All Blood is Black’ by David Diop is a literary novel set during the first world war. It centres two Senegalese soldiers who are fighting for the French in the trenches. The novel opens with Alfa as … Continue reading Review: At Night All Blood is Black
THE PLOT: ‘Women & Power’ by Mary Beard contains two non-fiction essays comparing ancient and modern examples of the silencing of women in public discourse. The book is a written version of two lectures delivered in 2014 and 2017, courtesy … Continue reading Review: Women & Power
Amina's Bookshelf 