The Mystery at Rake Hall by Maureen Paton BLOG TOUR #TheMysteryatRakeHall @maureen_paton @_SwiftPress #CSLewisInvestigates #BookExtract

 

In post-war Oxford, secrets lie behind every door.

In 1947, with rationing still biting and the black market thriving, university don C.S. ‘Jack’ Lewis finds himself pulled into a mystery straight from one of his friend Dorothy Sayers’ novels. Susan Temple, his brightest student, has hidden herself away at Rake Hall ― a hostel for unmarried, outcast mothers – and hasn’t been heard from since.

With no experience beyond catching the occasional student plagiarist, Lewis is hardly a detective. But when Susan’s absence continues to haunt him, he teams up with her concerned friend Lucy and together they delve into the disturbing rumours of a nasty racket at Rake Hall. Can Lewis’s nose for the truth separate fact from fiction?

In The Mystery at Rake Hall, Maureen Paton – whose mother lived at the real-life Rake Hall while pregnant with Maureen – brilliantly recreates a post-war Oxford world, as well as imagining an alternative life for one of its most famous residents.

The Mystery at Rake Hall : C S Lewis Investigates by Maureen Paton is published on 24 April 2025 by Swift Press.  As part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour today, I am delighted to share an extract from the book with you. 

Extract from The Mystery at Rake Hall by Maureen Paton 

Normally, he never took much notice of what a female student was wearing. That way danger lay, even if you were saying something gallant about their outfit. And Jack Lewis wasn’t that kind of man. But there had been something odd about Susan Temple’s appearance at tutorials recently that had puzzled him, try though he might to set his mind on higher things than the mystifying intricacies of young women’s wardrobes.

And now, for the second week in a row, there was no sign of her. Tapping his pipe on his desk to give himself time to ponder, he eventually looked up at the long, glum face of the other pupil, Christopher Henchard, who was probably also wondering why Temple hadn’t turned up to help him out of his usual scholarly jam with some well-chosen words. Although she looked as delicate and willowy as one of the wood nymphs from Lewis’s beloved Greek mythology, Temple stood up well to intellectual interrogation.

There was something defiant about her that amused him; despite his college image as a middle-aged bachelor terrified of what the university’s young bucks called ‘totty’, he secretly relished pitching his wits against the women students. Having fought to gain admission in the first place to the tiny minority of female colleges, they were almost guaranteed to be brighter than many of the men – especially the rugger buggers heading for thirds after spending too much time on the pitch. Lewis, a clumsy, butterfingered man, detested sport and left all that to his brother Warnie.

Yet the vulnerability of someone as rashly combative as Temple also disturbed him. There were men who would see that as a challenge and take advantage – especially with her lush-lipped, high-cheekboned, dark beauty, although he tried not to be too aware of that. He had always been bothered by the potential susceptibility of the female undergrads, so vastly outnumbered by their male counterparts after leaving home for the first time – and therefore only too ripe for exploitation and domination.

He knew he was being patronising – tantamount to suggesting that they were the weaker sex, not up to the demands of academia, which was certainly not his intention – yet it troubled him nonetheless. After all, the university had yet to recover from the strange and shocking case of the girl who had been found dead in her bed in Lady Margaret Hall only the previous term. The inquest had established that she had a weak heart, a condition confirmed by her family, yet the whisper was that she had been taking amphetamines to cram overnight for her finals.

Maureen Paton is a freelance journalist specialising in arts, showbusiness and women's issues.  

She is the author of two works of non-fiction and is a former committee member and former newsletter editor of the campaigning organisation Women in Journalism. 

The Mystery at Rake Hall is her first novel.

www.maureenpaton.co.uk

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The Cure by Eve Smith BLOG TOUR #TheCure @evecsmith @OrendaBooks #BookReview #SpeculativeFiction

 

Living forever can be lethal…

Ruth is a law-abiding elder, working out her national service, but she has secrets.

Her tireless research into the disease that killed her young daughter had an unexpected outcome: the discovery of a vaccine against old age. Just one jab a year reverses your biological clock, guaranteeing a long, healthy life.

But Ruth's cure was hijacked by her colleague, Erik Grundleger, who hungers for immortality, and the SuperJuve – a premium upgrade – was created, driving human lifespan to a new high. The wealthy elite who take it are dubbed Supers, and the population begins to skyrocket.

Then, a perilous side-effect of the SuperJuve emerges, with catastrophic consequences, and as the planet is threatened, the population rebels, and laws are passed to restore order: life ends at 120. Supers are tracked down by Omnicide investigators like Mara, and executed…

Mara has her own reasons for hunting Supers, and she forms an unlikely alliance with Ruth to find Grundleger.

But Grundleger has been working on something even more radical and is one step ahead, with a deadly surprise in store for them both…

The Cure by Eve Smith was published on 10 April 2025 by Orenda Books. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review as part of this Blog Tour 

This is Eve Smith's fourth novel.  I have read and adored her first three books, she's become a favourite author of mine and I've been looking forward to The Cure for a long time now. 

Speculative fiction is my favourite genre. I do love the fact that this is not 'science fiction', this is not something that is totally implausible. Speculative fiction concentrates on things that could happen, one could even say, that they are likely to happen. Whilst the plot lines are often terrifying, the reader can really see that these things are possible .... it's very frightening. 

It is sometime in the near future and the population is growing out of control. Despite that fact that poverty and hunger still exist, people seem to want to live forever ....  and some people can. Those who have enough money can become 'Supers'. It is against the law, and there's an army of Omnicide investigators whose job it is to track the Supers down and make sure that they make their transcendence day ..... the day that they are terminated, the day that they die. 

Our two main players are Ruth and Mara. Ruth is a woman who has obeyed the law throughout her life. However, it was Ruth that discovered Rejuve; the drug that means that humans can now live forever. Ironically, she discovered it as she searched for a cure for the illness that killed her young daughter. Mara is an Omnicide investigator, seeking out those people who have accessed the SuperJuve version of Rejuve. Both Ruth and Mara especially want to track down Erik Grundleger - the scientist who stole Ruth's discover and created the Superjuve. 

It is so easy to write reams and reams about this book. We can look at the exquisite characterisation that Smith never fails to deliver, we can talk about the science and the potential for the things in the novel to come true. We can look at the world in its current state and compare it to the author's creation in The Cure. 

The perfect book for a Book Group read, so much to dissect, to pick over, to debate. It is a chilling yet powerful story that is also very frightening. A thriller, an in-depth look at humanity, at greed, at power. Original, frank and very perceptive. Highly recommended by me. 

Eve Smith writes speculative thrillers, mainly about the things that scare her.


Longlisted for the Not the Booker Prize and described by Waterstones as ‘an exciting new voice in crime fiction’, Eve’s debut novel, The Waiting Rooms, set in the aftermath of an antibiotic resistance crisis, was shortlisted for the Bridport Prize First Novel Award and was a Book of the Month in the Guardian, who compared her writing to Michael Crichton’s.

It was followed by Off-Target, about a world where genetic engineering of children is routine, and ONE, about survival in a world ravaged by climate change.

Eve’s previous job at an environmental charity took her to research projects across Asia, Africa and the Americas, and she has an ongoing passion for wild creatures, wild science and far-flung places.

She lives in Oxfordshire with her family.

www.evesmithauthor.com

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The Summer Guests by Tess Gerritsen #TheSummerGuests @tessgerritsen @alisonbarrow @PenguinUKBooks #TheMartiniClub

 

THE MARTINI CLUB ISN’T OPEN TO EVERYONE . . .

Maggie Bird’s ‘book group’ is an unusual one – a group of retired spies living an anonymous life in the seaside town of Purity. And this summer they plan little more than ‘reading’ (whilst sipping martinis), and some gentle birdwatching.

But trouble is just around the corner as the summer guests arrive.

For acting Police Chief Jo Thibodeau, summer brings its own problems – packed streets, bar brawls, petty theft. And now, a missing teenager down by the lake.

When their good friend becomes a prime suspect in the girl's disappearance, Maggie and her Martini Club must put down their binoculars and roll up their sleeves. Leaving Jo to deal with not only a powerful family desperate for answers, but a meddlesome group of retirees.

Can Jo and the Martini Club find a way to work together, as they uncover one of the deadliest scandals their small town has ever seen?

The Summer Guests by Tess Gerritsen was published in hardback by Bantam on 27 March 2025. My thanks to the publisher who sent my book for review. 

The Summer Guests is book two in the Martini Club series. However it can easily be read as a stand alone story, the author ensures that her readers are kept well informed about who is who! 

The members of The Martini Club live and meet in a small town in Maine called Purity, and is led by Maggie Bird.  All of the members are retired after fascinating and often challenging careers as spies. They like to talk about books and have a drink together.  However, their backgrounds and their sharp minds mean that they often find themselves involved in things that are not really their business. 

The usual flock of summer guests have arrived in Purity. Susan and her teenage daughter Zoe have joined Susan's in-laws for a break.  Zoe goes missing and whilst Susan is distraught, other family members don't seem to be too worried.

Acting Police Chief Jo Thibodeau is soon on the case and her immediate suspect is an elderly local man. When Maggie and the rest of the Martini Club hear this, they are appalled. They know he's not responsible, they know him, he's their friend and he has a granddaughter who is a similar age to Zoe. Despite Jo's displeasure, Maggie and her gang start their own investigations.

The story is told from various points of view of some of the main characters, and the author does this very well. Each voice is unique and each character has their own take on what is happening.  I especially like the sense of place that the author creates. I know that Purity is based on the town in which she lives in real life and she really does bring it to life. 

This is quite an involved mystery, some may label it 'cosy', but there are some dark and dangerous issues covered within the plot, it's certainly not all sweetness and light. 

An enjoyable series with characters that have depth and are also fun. Recommended by me. 

International bestselling author TESS GERRITSEN began to write fiction whilst on maternity leave as a physician. She published her first novel in 1987 and has since sold over forty million copies of her books in forty countries.

Her series featuring homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles inspired the television series Rizzoli and Isles, starring Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander.

Now retired from medicine, she lives in Maine and writes full time.

www.tessgerritsen.com

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Comfort Eating by Grace Dent #ComfortEating @gracedent @FaberBooks @guardian #BookReview

 

Have you ever wondered why eating cheese can sometimes feel like a cuddle?
Or how a big bowl of pasta can be just what we need after a tough day?
Oh, and what is it about butter that seems to make everything just that little bit better . . . ?

The foods we turn to behind closed doors are deeply personal, steeped in nostalgia and topped with a healthy dollop of guilty pleasure. In Comfort Eating, Grace Dent throws open her kitchen cupboards to reveal why we hold these secret snacks and naughty nibbles so dear to our hearts.

Exploring her go-to comfort foods through a series of joyous encounters, Grace reflects on the memories they uncover and pays tribute to her parents, the people who taught her what comfort eating truly means. Along the way, she catches up with some famous friends to chat about their own favourites – from Jo Brand's fried bread sandwich and Russell T. Davies' 'butterpepperrice' to Scarlett Moffat's crushed-Wotsits-topped beans on toast and many, many more . . .

So grab a plate and pull up a chair: unfussy, honest and filled to the brim with heartwarming stories and comfort food tales, Comfort Eating is the perfect treat for food lovers everywhere.

Comfort Eating : The Joy of Secret Snacks and Naughty Nibbles by Grace Dent was published in paperback on 10 October 2024 by Guardian Faber Publishing.  My copy was a Christmas present from my husband. 

I adore Grace Dent!  She's one of those women that I'd love to go out for a drink with. She's sassy, bright, funny, down to earth and totally Northern and I just want to be her friend! 

This book; Comfort Eating, is inspired by her award-winning podcast of the same name. During the podcast, she welcomes guests into her home and they bring along their all time favourite secret snack or naughty nibble. It's such a fabulous podcast, sometimes it can get really emotional, but it is always hilarious in parts. 

In the book, Grace details her own secret snacks; the food that she reaches for when she's home alone, where she's not having to be 'Grace Dent Food Critic'. It's food for comfort, food that reminds her of her loved one, food that brings joy. 

The book features six main ingredients. I don't think anyone could argue that these are not comfort foods, just thinking about some of them, makes my stomach grumble. There's cheese, butter, pasta, bread, potatoes and sweet treats and each one is accompanied by a celebrity endorsed naughty nibble. 

This is not just a book about food though. It's also a memoir, where Grace talks candidly about her childhood and her parents. Her love for her late parents shines though in her writing. It is a book that deals with grief, but also with love and I absolutely devoured it. 

A truly wonderful read, highly recommended by me. 

Grace Dent is a popular columnist, author and broadcaster. She's a regular contributor to the Guardian, 'Grace Dent TV-OD' and a G2 columnist. Grace's Marie Claire column 'Graceland' appears monthly.

Grace has written eleven bestselling novels for young adults, translated into twelve languages. Diary of a Snob was recently acquired by Nickelodeon.

She's also a regular face and voice on British TV and radio, working on shows such as The Culture Show, Film 2011, Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe, The Apprentice: You're Hired and the Lauren Laverne Show on BBC6 Music.

Grace lives, mainly behind a laptop, in East London. She is originally from Carlisle ('The Manhattan of the North'). Currently she is trying to leave Twitter.

www.gracedent.komi.io

Instagram @gracedent

Asylum Years : Back To The Future? by Robert Hayward & Andrew Heenan BLOG TOUR #AsylumYears @FAB_publishing @RandomTTours #BookReview

 

At the core of this book is a series of 50- year-old recollections from people who worked in a mental hospital. 

From diverse sources, this collection forms probably the last written history of people who experienced institutional life as that generation grows old and passes away. 

It portrays the people in the institution, the patients (the Forgotten) and staff (the Custodians), in a more balanced, rounded and human

 manner than many accounts hitherto.

 There is some historical detail that will provide context and understandings into the workings of a real institution, the people who worked at grass roots and those that managed it, but also insights into the wider policies and politics of the time, including an official Inquiry into maltreatment and mismanagement of a mental hospital.

 The stories at the heart of this collection reveal the human cost of the policies employed and raises some key philosophical questions. 

The final section of the book examines the closure of the

 asylum, linking the legacy of the institution to present day policy-making and the questions

 that this raises.

Asylum Years: Back To The Future? by Robert Hayward and Andrew Heenan was published on 31 March 2025 by Free Association Books. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review as part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour. 

I have been fascinated by institutional life for years. Whether that's people who have chosen a particular way of life; for example, cult members, or those who have been locked up because of something they've done. 

I grew up in the shadow of Rampton Hospital. Rampton is sister hospital to the more well-known Broadmoor and Ashworth and sits in a small, sleepy village in the heart of rural Nottinghamshire. When I opened my bedroom curtains, I saw the imposing buildings of the hospital. Many of my family members worked at Rampton, I worked there myself, as a Ward Clerk for almost ten years. Locally, it was known as 'the asylum'.

In this book, the authors Robert Hayward and Andrew Heenan write candidly about their time spent as nurses at St Augustine's Hospital. It is not just their stories though, there's input from a wide range of people; other staff members and also from those who were patients in the hospital. 

It's a book that is perfect for dipping in and out of. At times it can be emotionally challenging as the reader hears about some things that are quite disturbing. It is also, at times, very poignant. We learn that not all of the staff have the patient's best interests at heart, and to be quite honest, that is not surprising at all. 

This book is of great historical importance. Detailing how asylums were run, how people were admitted and some of the reasons given is eye opening and often horrifying.  Fascinating reading and a well put together book that shines a light on past practices. 

 Robert Hayward trained as a nurse at St. Augustine’s Hospital. 

He later became an NGO training and development consultant in mental health working extensively in Central and Eastern Europe.

 

Andrew Heenan qualified as an RMN at St. Augustine’s Hospital in 1975 and graduated from the University of Kent in 1983. 

He had a career in nursing and journalism, including Clinical Editor of Nursing Times , TV documentary work and as a Trustee of a mental health charity.

Her Sister's Killer by Mari Hannah #HerSistersKiller @mariwriter @orionbooks #StoneandOliver #BookReview

 

Newly promoted Inspector Frankie Oliver has always been consumed by the idea of finding her sister's killer and bringing them to justice.

But when new evidence about the tragic unsolved murder comes to light, and her former boss DCI David Stone embarks on an investigation without her, everything starts to unravel.

After decades without answers, who knows where the trail might lead? And will knowing the answers be the very thing that breaks Frankie irreparably?

The past and present collide with devastating consequences in this taut, breathless new thriller from award-winning crime writer Mari Hannah.

Her Sister's Killer by Mari Hannah was published on 6 March 2025 by Orion, and is book five in the Stone and Oliver series. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review. 

Whilst Her Sister's Killer is book five in this series, it can easily be read as a stand alone novel. The author is skilled in creating back stories that enhance the current plot but also inform the reader. Saying that, I would advise that any new reader takes the plunge and reads the complete series. 

Frankie Stone and David Oliver have been partners, both professionally and personally for a while. Their personal relationship is something of an on/off affair, but they are fond of each other, not really being able to let go. 

Frankie has recently been promoted to Inspector and as part of this process, she must leave the Murder Investigation Team and spend some time in a very rural area of Northumberland, she also has to wear uniform again. Frankie's absence is beneficial to David as he's acting on loose talk overhead at a social function and has re-opened the investigation into the death of Frankie's sister.

Frankie's sister was murdered in 1992, and that tragic event has totally overshadowed her life, and her parent's lives ever since. David is determined to get to the bottom of the long unsolved crime, but needs Frankie out of the way whilst he is working on it. It becomes clear that he also needs to remain as silent as he can about what he's doing when he's in the office surroundings. His suspicions do not fall very far. 

As Frankie becomes more involved in the criminal goings on in her new patch, dealing with some dark and emotionally challenging issues that she really didn't expect; David also becomes more and more engrossed with his investigations. 

Mari Hannah has given her readers a crime novel with a dual plot and it's very very cleverly done. Her characters are solid and lifelike and the plot is tension filled and absolutely gripping.  Add the incredible sense of place that Hannah details so extremely well and you have a crime novel that is up there with the best of the year so far. Highly recommended by me. 

Mari Hannah is a multi-award-winning, bestselling author/screenwriter. 

She writes across three crime series: DCI Kate Daniels (in development for TV with Sprout Pictures & Atlantic Nomad); Stone & Oliver and Ryan & O'Neil. 

Among her numerous awards is a Crime Writers' Association Dagger in the Library 2017. 

In 2019, Mari was the programming chair of Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival. 

In 2020, she was the recipient of Capital Crime International Crime Writing Festival's Crime Book of the Year. 

She lives in rural Northumberland with her partner, an ex-murder detective.

www.marihannah.com

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IG @mariwriterinsta

Bare by Lorna Tucker BLOG TOUR #Bare @always_leyt @Octopus_Books @RandomTTours #BookReview

 

The inspirational true story of one woman's fight to survive on the streets of London

I, Lorna Tucker, have lived a life that most you can't even begin to imagine...

'You need to read this book' MICK JAGGER

'Unflinching and unforgettable' VOGUE

'An essential read showcasing the resilience of the human spirit' JUANO DIAZ

I have lived in London's piss-soaked streets, I have lived with the sweet embrace of heroin, I have lived when I should have died.

I have lied, I have thieved, I have stripped, I have tricked, I have loved, I have fallen, I have survived.

I could be your daughter, your mother, your lover - I could be you.

Come to hell and back with me.

AN EYE-OPENING, PERSONAL ACCOUNT OF FEMALE HOMELESSNESS, FROM ONE OF BRITAIN'S MOST EXCITING FILM-MAKERS

Bare by Lorna Tucker was published in hardback on 20 March 2025 by Brazen / Octopus Books. My thanks to the publishers who sent my copy as part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour 

The slim hardback edition of Bare by Lorna Tucker that I read has less than two hundred pages. However, it is certainly not a quick read, nor is it an easy read, or even a fulfilling read. It is stark, it is grim, it doesn't hold back. Tucker does not spare her reader. She does not use flowery language in the hope of disguising what she has done, how she has lived. She is honest, open and just so eye-opening. I finished the book wondering how on earth anyone who had experienced the things that she has could ever make something of themselves.  She has though. She is now a much acclaimed film maker, she has a husband and children, a home and a life. For many many months, she didn't have any of those things. She didn't even have hope. 

The book begins in the mid-1980s on a 'generic pebble-dashed housing estate, Watford). This opening tells the reader just how ordinary Lorna's life was . Her parents were working class, they'd been through tough times but the family, on the whole, were pretty average. 

Lorna's experiences are not average. Drink, drugs, violence, sexual predators, truancy, shop lifting, sleeping on the street, lice, filth, hunger, police cells. This is what made up Lorna's existence for the majority of her story. It is not pleasant, there are times when I wanted to put the book down and sanitise my hands, it's grubby and hard hitting. 

Lorna Tucker shows a huge amount of bravery in her words. She shows courage and determination. She shows a vulnerability that is heart breaking and she shows a rawness that is inspiring. 

Truly haunting, this is a book that I will remember for a very long time. 

Lorna Tucker is an artist, writer and filmmaker, who has secured her place as one of the most exciting documentary directors working today, known for tackling big social themes with humour, ease and grace.

Her first feature documentary, Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist, was an Official Selection at Sundance 2018. Her subsequent documentaries include: Amá, about the sterilisation abuse of Native American women over the past 60 years; Someone's Daughter, Someone's Son, chronicling stories of homelessness in the UK; and Call Me Kate, about the inner life of screen legend Katharine Hepburn.

She was named one of the biggest breakout female filmmakers by Harper's Bazaar and Elle in 2018, and one of Creative England's CE50 the following year.

She has written articles for British Vogue and the guardian and her first solo art exhibition will open at Saatchi Gallery in Spring 2026. Bare is her first book.

X @always_leyt