Tag: fiction

Blackberry Wine – Book Review

As a fan of contemporary literature, I love a good story. Over the years I have developed a taste for narratives that are complex, well told and written in short chapters. This week I want to share a book which has all of these elements and many more.

BlackBerry Wine – Delicious and Tempting

This story is about Jay Mackintosh and is partly told through the lens of a bottle of long-brewed wine which he holds dear to him. His ‘specials’ (the wine bottles) remind him of his childhood stays at his grandparents’ where he explored the northern landscapes and befriended an old man who was filled with tall tales and gardening tips. He also made homemade blackberry wine.

Now, Jay has decided to follow his dream and move to a quaint village in France -Lansquenet- where he bought a run-down farm house and began writing another book. His big selling novel was several years earlier and he hadn’t been able to replicate that book for lack of ideas.

In Lansquenet (also a setting for the Chocolat novels) he finds a split family with a mysterious rift. He also makes friends with the initially suspicious locals. When an ex arrives from England to mix things up, Jay has a wake up call that changes his outlook on things.

Haunted by memories of the intriguing old man, Joe, he finds himself torn between memories, hopes and emotional awakening.

In A Nutshell

As always, Joanne has written a narrative which is fascinating, warm and full of twists and turns. It is not a thriller but sits well as a strong drama. The story is carefully written, with elements which seem unrelated but then become clearly woven together in a satisfying way.

Final Thoughts

Check out Blackberry Wine and see for yourself. Even though it was published in 2000 it is still highly relevant, really entertaining and well worth reading with a coffee on a rainy day (I say this as rain is going to soon be the most common type of weather in the UK – thanks climate change). Please comment your own thoughts on this book and share if possible.

To learn more about Joanne Harris’ books, visit her author website.

For another of my book review posts, check out my thoughts on Three Wishes by Australian author Liane Moriarty.

If you have Kindle Unlimited, perhaps you would like to check out my original short stories. I would appreciate some reads to celebrate the fourth birthday of my book Short Dates. Thank you so much for checking out my bookish blog,

Dear Book Snobs: It’s Okay To Read YA

I love this article which explains why YA books are just as credible and incredible as other stories. I agree that is is definitely OK to read YA fiction.

YA (Young Adult) fiction kind of gets a bad rap amongst some echelons of society, a phenomenon that’s been well-documented by bloggers and defensive …

Dear Book Snobs: It’s Okay To Read YA

For another article about YA fiction, check out 5 Talented YA Writers.

Do You Read Widely?

I was reflecting upon my own reading list this morning and was thinking about just how narrow some of my reading could often be. I tend to go through the back lists of my favourite authors and therefore stick to the types of books that I am used to and generally give me pleasure.

A bookshelf that is diverse is always fascinating to discover.

But then I thought about some of the very different books that I have read this year. Some non-fiction, fantasy and even romantic ones that don’t normally crop up in my reading have satisfied me as much as any contemporary family drama.

Just for fun I have come up with some questions to enable us all to reflect upon our reading habits. I will put my own answers under every question and I encourage you to share your thoughts in the comments section below.

1) When was the last time you tried a book by a new author (an author whose books you had never read before)?

Today. I had a book sample in my Apple Books and decided to try it and then persuaded myself to buy the full ebook. It is called ‘The Dragon of Ynes’ and was recently recommended in another blog review that I read. It has LGBT aspects to its storyline and already I am loving it.

2) Have you read any non-fiction books this year?

Having just bought Matt Haig’s ‘The Comfort Book’ I am definitely going to soon. I also read a couple of biographies by Julie Andrews and Mindy Kaling, amongst others.

3) Have you read outside of your comfort zone lately?

‘The Order of the Day’ was a historical short book and definitely new territory for me as a reader. Written about the German invasion of Austria and various events that led to the Second World War, it was interesting but also scary. Scary in the sense that it illustrated just how easily people were fooled by Hitler in the early days.

4) When did you last try an Indie writer’s book?

Being an indie author myself, I try hard to often buy and read books by fellow indie writers. A couple of months ago I read ‘Crossings’ by Elizabeth Thomas which was a compelling collection of short stories. I also read the marvellous, ‘The Vintage Bookshop of Memories’ by Elizabeth Holland.

5) Do you read books written by authors from other countries?

This one is easy for me as I love so many American and Australian authors. My go-to Australian writing legend is Liane Moriarty and I am regularly pleased by the works of such writers as Celeste Ng, Becky Albertalli, John Green and David Levithan.

You will notice that I included a picture of Jane Austin books as recently I overheard someone talking about having read them all. I hope that I have become more of a varied reader than I used to be, but I will always read novels by my favourites, such as Matt Haig, Joanne Harris and Liane Moriarty. Click here for a post about some of their books that I enjoyed recently.

If you enjoyed this article perhaps you will consider popping a comment down below and even following my blog for similar content in future.