Becky – Sarah May

Combining a modern re-telling of “Vanity Fair” with elements of the early career of Rebekah Brooks, the eponymous Becky will do anything to get a place at the Mercury newspaper and make a name for herself. Determined to put her past behind her and reinvent herself she thinks nothing of lying and cheating to get what she wants but will she get caught out in the end?

Jimmy Murphy: The Man Who Kept The Red Flag Flying – Wayne Barton

In the darkest days of Manchester United, Jimmy Murphy stepped up to keep the red flag flying. With Matt Busby in an oxygen tent in Munich following the plane crash that cost the lives of 23 people, including 8 of United’s players, Murphy had a tough challenge ahead of him.

Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland – Patrick Radden Keefe

Centring on the kidnap and murder of Jean McConville, a widowed Mother of 10 who was taken from her home in December 1972 by members of the provisional IRA allegedly for being an informant, Keefe details some of the history of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Covering the actions of the Price sisters, Delours and Marian, who were involved in the bombing of the Old Bailey, Brendan Hughes, an IRA Commander who took part in a hunger strike in prison but eventually broke the code of silence in his later years, and Gerry Adams, a politician who continues to deny any involvement in the IRA.

Stephen King: A Complete Exploration of His Work, Life and Influences – Bev Vincent

A look through King’s entire body of work, up to and including “Fairy Tale”, this book is packed full of rare memorabilia, quotes from Stephen King himself and insights into real life settings and incidents that inspired some of his most famous books.

Drop Shot – Harlan Coben

A former young tennis star is looking to make a comeback and wants Myron Bolitar to represent her but before he gets a chance to meet with her she’s murdered outside a stadium at the US Open. Myron is pulled into her case and feels there may be a connection between her murder and the murder of her fiancée, the son of a US Senator, 6 years earlier but even he couldn’t have imagined where his investigation would take him.

January Round Up

January has finally left the building!

I know a lot of people complain about January but actually I kind of enjoy the slightly slower pace after all the hustle and bustle of December. It’s also given me plenty of reading time so I read 6 books, totalling 2,568 pages. Here’s how they broke down:-

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels – Janice Hallett ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

White Riot – Joe Thomas ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Just After Sunset – Stephen King ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery – Robert Kolker ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

My Other Husband – Dorothy Koomson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Deal Breaker – Harlan Coben ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I’ve been pretty good at controlling my tbr this month too. I’ve only acquired one book and that was a NetGalley one so I haven’t actually bought any. I started the month with 61 books on my tbr and I’m ending it with 56.

I’ve got a fairly busy February with some pretty full weekends but I’m really looking forward to all the plans I’ve made and I’ve got a little solo weekend away at the end of the month that I’m really excited about.