1.The Volcano Lover - Susan Sontag
Intelligent but ultimately long and boring book with unsympathetic characters. Mainly focusses on the life of Sir William Hamilton (husband of Lady Emma Hamilton, mistress of Nelson), but called throughout The Cavaliere, whilst he was British envoy in Naples. He is interested in art, music, the classics and volcanos and so the novel is bogged down in lots of extraneous information. It's a shame because it is, in parts, an interesting story and I did learn a lot.
2.Warlight - Michael Ondaatje
Wartime (and post-war) exploits and those it affected through the prism of one person's memories and imagination. 8/10
3.Fifty-Fifty - Steve Cavanagh
Page turner with a twisty plot but the ending wasn't that surprising
4.Any Human Heart - William Boyd
Really great read. The beginning had shades of Adrian Mole which made me smile. Fictional account of a man's life from late teens until old age during interesting times through his diary entries. I found it gripping and had a few tears. There are several famous or historical people mentioned that put me in mind of Forest Gump. Shows the extraordinary in the everyday and ordinary. Clever writer - I want to read more of him
5.A Boy and his Dog at the End of the World - C.A. Fletcher
A teenager chases a thief in a bleak dystopian future UK. The journey helps explain the future landscape, their family and their place in this world. 8/10
6.The Reading List - Sara Nisha Adams
Lovely story about grief, community, friendship and books/reading.
7.Echogenesis - Gary Gibson
An alien world teeming with deadly life. And fifteen strangers with no memory of how they came to be there. 6/10
8.The Silent Companions - Laura Purcell
Good sense of foreboding but I found it dragged and could have done with serious pruning. Personally didn't think it was particularly well written (it was a bit "messy") and would possibly have sounded better if it had not been written in the third person. There was some majorly odd occurrences that some characters either seemed unaware of or dismissed. The twist ending wasn't a huge surprise either. Not my cup of tea.
9.The Twins - L.V. Matthews
Struggled to get into it. Didn't warm to any of the characters. Feels like a padded out short story. Far too many coincidences. Didn't see 'the twist' coming but it would be impossible on a practical level.
10.The Silver Linings Playbook - Matthew Quick
Told from the perspective of someone with mental health problems as they attempt to navigate their world and their relationships. Bit too (American) football heavy. 6/10
11.Lessons in Chemistry - Bonnie Garmus
On the whole enjoyed the story. Oddly I liked the first half when times were tough than later on when things fell into place sometimes very conveniently. Shocking how women were viewed in the 50s and how relevant some of Zott's treatment is today. There is still gender bias today within many scientific fields. I was surprised in a book about inequality that racism was not mentioned. This was set at a time of segregation and a dangerous era for black Americans. This book was heartbreaking at times but ultimately uplifting - what more could you ask for?
12.The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
Not perfect and it is dated, but that kind of worked for me. It's chillingly prescient but also partially historical - there is nothing in there that has not been done in some shape or form at some point in time somewhere on this planet. Like the main character, you are not 100% sure exactly what is happening more broadly/politically. It's difficult to gauge how widespread it is as it is all contained in one town or exactly how they got to this point. But I didn't particularly want it all explained and don't think that would add anything to the story. I found the (relatively short) timescale of how they got to this point a little unbelievable and the fact that A LOT of people in the US have guns and, you would imagine, would have put up more of a fight! Also not sure about the Historical Notes at the end, although I understand this was a plot device to explain and tie up the story. I thought it was kind of brilliant and wanted to find out more about Gilead and the underground movement.
13.Insomnia - Sarah Pinborough
Initially quite an interesting story, but I found much of the details repetitive and I got bored and wanted it to be over. The piling on of more and more paranoia was quite uncomfortable. Some of the set ups were pretty implausible and the ending just plain daft IMO. I imagine it would make a good cure for insomnia!