10 Favourite Books of 2017

My annual tradition of listing my favourites of the books I read this year. Observant readers will have noticed there haven't been as many book reviews recently. With the wedding and honeymoon in the Autumn I was reading less and I had decided to go back and reread The Song of Ice and Fire series …

Book Review: Kung Fu Trip by Benjamin Zephaniah

There are very few living poets I could name and even less I could recognise. In fact other than Zephaniah, I can't think of any. Having been impressed by an interview he did with Russell Howard I decided to check out some of his stuff and found this quick read. It follows him on a …

Book Review: I Can Make You Hate by Charlie Brooker

I've long been a fan of Charlie Brooker, who previously wrote a beautifully scathing television column for The Guardian. And have read a few of his collections before, and this captures the end of his Screen Burn column. The pieces cover 2009-12 and so it's a little out of date, although it is quite nice …

Unfinished Business: A sort of review of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel by Deborah Moggach

The movie adaptation of this book became a massive success due to the "grey pound", a cast of familiar faces and exotic locations won over viewers. So, what of the book? Well, I got it because MWF spotted a bunch of surprise books and picked it for me.  I took it on a night shift …

Book Review: Riff-Raff, Rebels and Rock Gods by Garry Bushell

I knew of Garry Bushell before as a slightly laddish TV critic, but with this book covering his time as a rock journalist during the late 70s and early 80s I decided to check it out as it featured some bands I like. I also like tales of old time rock and roll stars who …

Book Review: The Princess and the Queen by George R. R. Martin

Currently loving the Game of Thrones TV show and still annoyed by the long, long wait for The Winds of Winter to be released and continue the series (it's been almost 4 years since I finished last part) I needed my George R. R. Martin itch scratching so chose this short novel. Set 200 years before …

Book Review: Strange Places, Questionable People by John Simpson

Having enjoyed his short book about his adventures as a news reporter I decided to check this book out, a longer more detailed account of John Simpson's life and career.  While a lot of the same ground is covered, there are plenty of fresh tales to tell, and Simpson's globetrotting to some of the world's most dangerous …

Book Review: The Empty Hours by Ed McBain

Next up from the out of order omnibus I bought is this book, actually a collection of three separate stories involving the men of the 87th Precinct. All are loaded with McBain's usual hard boiled, fast flowing dialogue and knack for character. While each story is shorter than the normal adventures, each is a well …

Book Review: Lost at Sea by Jon Ronson

Subtitled The Jon Ronson Mysteries this book is a collection of articles by the writer which sees him focus on a wide range of topics. There are criminals, missing persons, mad scientists and superheroes. All are tackled with wit and insight, with Ronson showing a keen eye for detail and ear for the offhand remarks …

Book Review: Lady, Lady I Did It! By Ed McBain

This book was a bit of a pain to track down, for some reason while most of McBain's 87th Precinct books are easy to find on Amazon, this one wasn't and I had to find a second hand omnibus with it in. Thankfully, it was worth the effort. While it's shorter than a lot of …