Reviews by HCLC

A tale of hardship and triumph in the face of adversity. Very easy to read but it could have done with just a little extra depth. Entertaining yet a bit predictable, Paycheque is Fiona's debut novel. Fiona may be the next Rachael Treasure yet, I am looking forward to her next novel. [Link removed - login to see]

I really wanted to like this book, but didn’t. The heroine, if you could call her that, was flaccid and predictable and Evan’s treatment of a sensitive topic—domestic violence—employed every stereotype imaginable. A dull and irritating read complete with annoying flashbacks and trite characters.

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A creepy cocktail of violence and religion, Sanctuary is as chilling as an Irish winter. Bruen’s protagonist, P.I. Jack Taylor, has been given some sharp lines and entertains the reader by falling off the wagon, insulting the establishment and alienating his friends. There are some good twists in this darkly humorous tale and it’s sent me looking for the other books in the series.
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Expresso dark and shot through with stilletto humour, this malevolent first novel is a twisted crime story set in the days before gangsters had moblie phones and listened to rap music. Short, sharp and shocking.
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Set in Paris in an elegant apartment building, Renee, the concierge, is witness to the vacuous life of her many employers. Outwardly she conforms to the stereotype of a concierge: obese, grumpy, a television addict.
However, Renee is educated. She loves art, philosophy, music and Japanese culture. With humour and wit, she scrutinizes the lives of the buildings tenants who barely notice her.
A real feel good story!!

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What happens when your life is built on a fragile platform of lies and thoughtless acts? Does violence and deception taint the blood of future generations? Are we doomed to follow the same patterns and make the same mistakes as our forbears? In The Brave, Nicholas Evans continues his fascination with the American West but this is not a cowboy story. Very readable, and available in large print.

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Everyone has heard of Oscar Schindler and his humanitarian work during the war saving the lives of Jews. Not so well known is Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat based in Budapest. Wallenberg saved the lives of over 100,000 Hungarian Jews by issuing them with Swedish passports, at times placing himself in extreme danger, and continually trying to outwit Adolf Eichmann and the Nazi hierarchy.
Kershaw writes an enthralling account of Wallenberg’s actions in 1944, using contemporary documents, eye witness accounts and the testimony of both Jewish and Nazi survivors.
Wallenberg is a “Righteous Gentile” and deservedly so. At the end of the war he was taken prisoner by the Soviets, and even today there is no definitive proof of what happened to him after he was taken to Moscow in 1945.

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