book review Archives - Luke’s Blog

10Jan 2023 by Luke Harkness 1 Comment

Snowed in For Christmas by Sarah Morgan book review

Prior to the Christmas period I was struggling to get into the festive spirit. When you're in your late 20s, you don't really know any kids who get excited by Christmas and you don't break up from work until a couple of days before, it's hard to get into the festive spirit. So when I saw Snowed In For Christmas by Sarah Morgan for sale for 99p on Kindle and then at my local Asda supermarket for only £4, I knew I couldn't say no. Did it make me feel festive? Weeelll... eh, kinda. Please note that this article contains affiliate links. This means that if you choose to purchase any products via the links below, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Please note…

12Jan 2022 by Luke Harkness 2 Comments

Book Review of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Book reviews, Classics, Fantasy

If you do any searching on the internet for "books that changed my life", many people will list The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho as one that will affect your life in some way. But did it have any effect on mine? Pin me to Pinterest! The Alchemist is a novella that comes in under 150 pages and took me less than a day to complete the audiobook. It tells the story of a boy who goes on a journey to find a treasure and to fulfil his dream but along the way meets people who teach him more about life than he thought there was to learn. The Alchemist plot – 4/5 The Alchemist, as I stated above, is the story of a boy (who is only ever called 'the…

04Jan 2022 by Luke Harkness

Book Review of Sweetpea by C.J. Skuse

Book reviews, Contemporary Fiction, Crime, Thriller

As I start many book reviews, I’d seen quite a lot of good things about Sweet Pea on my Bookstagram before I picked it up with some even stating it’s their favourite book series. Therefore when it came on offer on Kindle and was a cheap Audible buy, I had to pick it up! [caption id="attachment_1573" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Pin me to Pinterest![/caption] Sweet Pea by C.J. Skuse is a book about a psychopath who lives a normal life alongside her murderous other life. We follow Rhiannon as she goes about her everyday duties via the entries of her diary. Plot – 3.5/5 Rhiannon seems like a very regular person to most people - she may be a little odd, but no more so than everybody these days. However, little does…

28Dec 2021 by Luke Harkness 2 Comments

Book Review: Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Book reviews, Fantasy

I picked up Graceling by Kristin Cashore because it was, what I thought, a relatively short fantasy novel to dig my teeth into before the festive period started. However, it ended up being a bit more of a slog than I would have hoped. [caption id="attachment_1548" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Pin me to Pinterest![/caption] Please note that this review contains affiliate links. This means if you decide to purchase Graceling via any of the links in this article, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you from Amazon which supports the blog. These affiliate links do not influence my final opinion of the product. Graceling focuses on the story of Katsa who has learned from a young age that she has something called a “Grace” which means she…

20Dec 2021 by Luke Harkness No Comments

Book Review: The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs by Steve Brusatte

Book reviews, Nonfiction

If you didn’t know - like the big kid I am - I absolutely adore all things Dinosaurs. Admittedly my interest hasn’t spread out into much more than simply reading up about them and watching films/documentaries about them. But either way - I love these enormous, dangerous creatures that lived millions of years ago. [caption id="attachment_1524" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Pin me to Pinterest![/caption] That’s why, when I saw The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs by Steve Brusatte on sale on Amazon, I just had to pick it up. In all honesty, I wasn’t 100% sure what I was purchasing, I’d just seen it was a celebrated book and had quite an appealing front cover. The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs is actually a non-fictional telling of the… well… the…

14Nov 2021 by Luke Harkness No Comments

Book Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Book reviews, Fantasy

I think if you’re a fan of YA fantasy, you’ll likely have heard of Laini Taylor and the Daughter of Smoke & Bone book. - I certainly had. So when I saw the incredible deal to get all three books in the series on Amazon for £5, I jumped at the opportunity and picked them up. [caption id="attachment_1404" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Pin me to Pinterest![/caption] Daughter of Smoke & Bone is the first book in the Daughter of Smoke & Bone series which focuses on Karou and her exploration of where she came from and how truly important she is to stop a war that’s lasted thousands of years between two mythical factions in another world. Plot – 5/5 Karou fills her days drawing in her sketchbook everything around her,…

10Nov 2021 by Luke Harkness No Comments

Book Review: The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang

Book reviews, Fantasy

The Dragon Republic is the second book in The Poppy War series written by R.F. Kuang. The first book was a huge success in the fantasy community with the Asian-inspired fantasy setting really drawing fans into some unique and fun. But does the sequel live up to the original? [caption id="attachment_1380" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Pin me to Pinterest![/caption] Please note that the article contains affiliate links. This means if you choose to purchase The Dragon Republic via one of these links, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you to support the blog. These links do not affect my final opinion of the product. I’ll start out by suggesting you go and read my review of The Poppy War before starting my review of The Dragon Republic…

20Oct 2021 by Luke Harkness No Comments

Book review: Animal Farm by George Orwell

Book reviews, Classics, Fantasy

George Orwell is a name that needs no introduction if you’re a fan of literature and Animal Farm is one of, if not his most, famous books. Animal Farm centres around animals rebelling against humans on a farm and rising up as part of a revolution. [caption id="attachment_1293" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Pin me to Pinterest![/caption] Please note that this article contains affiliate links. This means if you choose to purchase Animal Farm via one of these links, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you to support the blog. These links do not affect my final opinion of the product. Animal Farm was written in 1945 by George Orwell and as noted above tells the story of a group of farm animals who decide to overthrow the…

18Oct 2021 by Luke Harkness 1 Comment

Book review: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling

Book reviews, Fantasy

Harry Potter is the biggest-selling book series of all time. The books have gone on to produce one of the biggest movie series of all time. If you haven’t heard of Harry Potter, you’ve surely been living under a rock? But is the first book The Philosopher's Stone actually any good? [caption id="attachment_1288" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Pin me to Pinterest![/caption] Please note that this article contains affiliate links. This means if you choose to purchase The Fellowship of the RIng via one of these links, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you to support the blog. These links do not affect my final opinion of the product. An introduction to Harry Potter For the one person reading this who’s never heard of Harry Potter - it’s…

15Oct 2021 by Luke Harkness No Comments

Book Review: The Fellowship of The Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

Book reviews, Classics, Fantasy

Hands up if you've never heard of The Lord of the Rings. OK, anybody who put their hands up, keep reading as you're in for a treat. Anybody who didn't put their hands up, also keep reading as you're the only normal people here!! The Fellowship of The Ring is the first in the three The Lord of the Ring books and it starts off strongly. [caption id="attachment_1267" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Pin me to Pinterest![/caption] Please note that this article contains affiliate links. This means if you choose to purchase The Fellowship of the RIng via one of these links, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you to support the blog. These links do not affect my final opinion of the product. An introduction to The…

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