Summer Camp:A Memoir by Diane Hanks

This is the true story of the author's appallingly sad childhood at the hands of her alcoholic parents.in it she lays bare all the horrors she endured and the impact her childhood had on her and her siblings.

This is a very heartbreaking and moving story. But it is also a story of hope. I identified with the author, having had an alcoholic father and a mother who was too sick to look after me properly. The courage that the author showed throughout the book was nothing short of a miracle. The story flowed nicely and (through blurry eyes sometimes) I found it quite hard to put down. my heart goes out to the author and I hope she found some sort of peace in writing this.

I recommend this if you like this sort of book. It is moving but uplifting in places and is a story of survival first and foremost. This book will stay with you for a long time.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in order to review.

Wizard of Time by Sue Owen

This is a time travelling story. 3 teenagers are abruptly taken from their own times and brought to a wizard who needs help returning Excalibur to King Arthur, after it was stolen. They are given animal companions and new powers to help them on their quest.

I am a great fan of this type of story, I think the possibilities are endless. I also am very interested in the Arthurian legend, so to me this was a winner before I had even started! I loved the characters, and their animal companions were very endearing. I particularly liked the white tiger. the story moved at a good pace, and my fingers were constantly clicking the next page button to see what happened next.

This is aimed at the YA market but I think it would appeal to readers of all ages. I recommend it, particularly if you like the sort of dungeons and dragons type of story. This will have you gripped from page one.

Men Dancing by Cherry Radford

This is the story of Rosie, a wife and mother slightly discontented with life. Her husband has a habit of cheating on her, she has an autistic son and her oldest son is starting to become an 'enfant terrible'. Her main love in life is the Ballet. A chance meeting with a ballet dancer on a train sets off a chain of events that will change her life forever.

For a debut book this was amazing, and endorsed by Sir Bruce (Forsyth) himself! Rosie was a very likeable and identifiable heroine. I am a partner and a mother myself so I could relate to her problems especially as my youngest has attention problems. The characters were all well-defined and I had no trouble imagining them. The storyline was believable and went along at a fair pace until just before the end when it took a shocking twist. I am sitting here with hanky in hand just thinking about it!

In short this is a very good book - if you like the Ballet and dancing you will love it. For a debut novel it shows great promise.

Spores by Ian Woodhead

This is the story of a fungal spore that has wiped out everyone over the age of 40. It is essentially the recounting of them rebuilding their lives thinking all is well when the spore cloud dissipates. Is everything ok or not?

This didn't start off like a typical 'Ian' story. The build up was quite gradual, lulling you into a false sense of security because about half way through...WALLOP! You are smacked around the face and the pace is totally unrelenting.I was carried along by the story and just had to keep reading. There were some decent characters and I was rooting for them to survive. There were the obligatory obnoxious characters and it was SUCH a relief for them to get their comeuppance! There are some quite shocking points and the imagination that went into the creatures was amazing.

In short this is well worth a read. An absolute must if you are a fan already but still worth a read if not.

Through a Dark Mist (Robin Hood Series #1) by Marsha Canham

This was a really enjoyable romp through history. Based on the Robin Hood legend but using different characters (although some were the same, such as Prince John, Richard the Lionheart & Sir Guy of Gisbourne). At it's heart was a story of revenge between two brothers with the thread of a story running through it.

This was so much fun! It started off fairly slowly but soon picked up pace. The back story of the rivalry between 'The Black Wolf of Lincoln' and 'The Dragon of Bloodmoor' was supenseful and action filled. The love story between Lucien and Servanne was tender and and teased out - almost to the point of torture but when they eventually got together it was beautiful. Of course no story is complete without a lunatic bad guy, played wonderfully by a woman, Nicolaa. She was deliciously evil and completely without conscience.

This was a wonderful book and I can heartily recommend it for all lovers of historical romance or if you just fancy a rollicking swashbuckling romp!

Trafficked:The Diary of a Sex Slave by Sibel Hodge

This is the story of a young woman who, promised the job of a lifetime, ends up being trafficked to Italy and being sold as a sex slave. It is written in diary form and tells of her life therein and what happens to her.

First off, may I issue a warning? This story is utterly heartbreaking. Some of the things that happen to Elena are truly horrific but somehow she never quite loses hope that she will be reunited with her daughter again. Being written in diary form I could see her in my head and I truly felt the things she was going through. I am not ashamed to admit I was in tears in places.

This is somewhat of a departure for this author as she is best known for her chick-lit novels. All I can say is 'Well done Sibel. This is an amazing novella and the jump from chick-lit to serious has been made successfully!'

I urge everyone to read this so more people are aware of this terrible trade in human lives. It must be stopped and can only be stopped if more are aware that it is going on. Well done, and thank you Sibel for opening my eyes.

Honk Honk My Darling by James Finn Garner

This is the story of a clown, down on his luck, now working as a detective. He has been tasked with finding the wife of one of the high fliers. Then the bodies start piling up....

This is the first time I have read a 'clown noir' and I hope it will not be the last. I found it to be achingly funny. It reads like a 'gumshoe' novel but set in the fictional town of Top Town which is where all the circus folk live. It reminded me a little bit of 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit?' in its approach. The characters were all larger than life and had fantastic names. The story was well paced, and a great page turner.

If you have never read a book like this you are missing a treat. I urge you to give it a go, you won't be disappointed.