I can't believe how quickly this year is flying! More books coming...

The Survivors - Jane Harper

I have already read 'The Dry' by Harper and really enjoyed it. The Survivors follows Kieran returning to his home town with his partner, Mia, and new baby girl in tow. Life is tough at home - his dad is in the grips of dementia which can make his behaviour challenging to say the least. Kieran and Mia meet up with some old friends at the local cafe. The following morning, a body is found on the beach. It turns out to be the girl who is a waitress from the cafe they had been the night before. This girl also just so happens to live with Kieran's friend, Olivia.

This recent death brings up memories of another unsolved death; that of Gabby (who was best friends with Mia). The current narrative is that Gabby died in a storm 12 years ago - the same storm that killed Kieran's brother and his friend.

Whilst there are no heart-stopping moments, this book weaves the narrative between past and present in a very clever way. The ending was slightly disappointing and it felt unfinished to me. However, I was gripped up until that point!

The Godmothers - Monica McInerney

Eliza is brought up in a single household, and often felt that she had to be the parent. Whilst her mother never received a mental health diagnosis, the reader learns of alcoholism, manic highs and crashing lows. Eliza's mother dies unexpectedly when Eliza was 17. Eliza still had so much to learn about her family; her mother had promised to tell Eliza who her father was when she turned 18.

Eliza has always had two doting godmothers, Olivia and Maxie. As Eliza turns 30, she is made redundant and is getting kicked out of her flat. So she jumps at the chance to visit her godmothers in Edinburgh - a pretty long way from Melbourne in Australia! In Edinburgh, Eliza makes friendships and starts to learn about her mother's lifestyle and fabricated stories. Eliza does eventually learn who her father was - note the past tense.

I think I automatically felt sorry for Eliza, imagining a 12 year old getting home from school to do the cleaning, washing and cooking. Moving the empty wine bottles outside. You want her to have a happy ending, and I'm glad to say she finds happiness in her knowledge of her family as well as in a new relationship. A cute book and an easy read, but I'm not convinced it will stick with me forever.

The Book of Two Ways - Jodi Picoult

I have seen this on the shelf of every supermarket and bookstore; luckily my friend very kindly bought it for me for my birthday.

This book starts off quite heavy - you have to stick with it. It follows Dawn, who very nearly completed her PhD in Egyptology before she was wrenched away from Egypt to be by her dying mother's bedside. Whilst Dawn had been in Egypt, she had a passionate affair with Wyatt but knew she had to leave to be with her mother. Whilst her mum is in a hospice, Dawn meets Brian and the two soon become entwined. Before you know it, Dawn is pregnant. She and Brian make a life together and fall into the easy daily routines of life. Dawn becomes a "death doula" - she supports people at the end of life. She will sort out practicalities of hospice care, funerals, writing letters etc, as well as managing the emotional turmoil of death. She gets great satisfaction from this job.

However, Dawn knows something is missing from her life. The fiery passion she had with Wyatt is still burning. Her husband, lovely Brian, is the safe and dependable option. Wyatt, is the opposite. But still, Dawn goes searching for him, and boy does she find him. But this is to the detriment of other relationships in her life...

Like I said, this took me a long time to get into. The book is heavy on Egyptology - whilst it is incredibly interesting, it at times felt a bit like an academic text as opposed to a novel. But I ended up really enjoying this book - it will also definitely be one I'll be recommending to my mum!

Safe - S. K. Barnett

I picked this book up from our communal book shelf at work.

Six year old Jenny Kristal suddenly goes missing - she was meant to be walking to her friends house two doors away but never makes it. The community all get involved in the search but to no avail. That is, until 12 years later. Jenny suddenly returns as an 18 year old but things aren't quite what they seem... Spoiler alert. 18 year old Jenny is an imposter. This young woman has a track record of impersonating little girls who had gone missing. All she wants is a place to stay and people to love her.

However, 'Jenny' soon discovers that the family she dupes have their own secrets. The parents seem to know she isn't their little Jenny, but yet keep quiet. Why would they do that? And the older brother Ben; he's chaotic and quite often stoned. But he also knows something isn't right and wants to expose it.

This is such a far-fetched tale to the extent it was ridiculous. And yet, I kept reading. I didn't quite know whose side I should be on. I mean, can you really root for a woman who impersonates missing people? Somehow, you can. That shows how dark and murky the Kristal family is...

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