Welcome back to Behind the Pen. Today I am joined by fellow reviewer and esteemed author, Isobel Blackthorn, here to talk about her novel, A Perfect Square. When did you start writing and what was the catalyst? I started writing creatively in 2010. The catalyst was actually two years earlier when I worked as a … Continue reading Behind the Pen with Isobel Blackthorn
Literary Fiction
New Release Book Review: States of Passion by Nihad Sirees
States of Passion… Translated from the Arabic by Max Weiss About the Book: A hapless Aleppo bureaucrat is stranded in the middle of the deserted countryside as a violent storm sets in. When he seeks refuge in an isolated old mansion, inhabited by an aged gentleman and his sinister servant, he begins to uncover a … Continue reading New Release Book Review: States of Passion by Nihad Sirees
New Release Book Review: Unsheltered by Barbara Kingsolver
Unsheltered... About the Book: The international bestselling author of The Lacuna, Flight Behaviour and The Poisonwood Bible and recipient of numerous literary awards - including the National Humanities Medal, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and the Orange Prize - returns with a timely novel that interweaves past and present to explore the human capacity for … Continue reading New Release Book Review: Unsheltered by Barbara Kingsolver
New Release Book Review: Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss
Ghost Wall… About the Book: A masterclass in the art of the short, unnerving novel; a story of forbidden borders, haunted landscapes and bodies in danger. 'This book ratcheted the breath out of me so skilfully, that as soon as I'd finished, the only thing I wanted was to read it again.' - Jessie Burton … Continue reading New Release Book Review: Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss
New Release Book Review: The Second Cure by Margaret Morgan
The Second Cure… About the Book: Control the brain and you control the world. In a fractured nation, two women are left with a choice – risk all to bring humanity together or let it fall apart. A pandemic is racing through our world, changing people subtly but irrevocably. The first sign for some is … Continue reading New Release Book Review: The Second Cure by Margaret Morgan
New Release Book Review: The Children’s House by Alice Nelson
The Children's House... About the Book: A love song to the idea of families in all their mysteries and complexities, their different configurations and the hope that creates them. Marina and her husband, Jacob, were each born on a kibbutz in Israel. They meet years later at a university in California, when Jacob is a … Continue reading New Release Book Review: The Children’s House by Alice Nelson
Pre-Release Book Review: Becoming Mrs. Lewis by Patti Callahan
Becoming Mrs. Lewis: The Improbable Love Story of Joy Davidman and C.S. Lewis… About the Book: The love story of C. S. Lewis and his wife, Helen Joy Davidman Gresham, was improbable – and seemingly impossible. Their Eros-story led to some of Lewis’s greatest works, yet Joy is most commonly known for how she died. … Continue reading Pre-Release Book Review: Becoming Mrs. Lewis by Patti Callahan
New Release Book Review: Inappropriation by Lexi Freiman
Inappropriation... About the Book: Starting at a prestigious private Australian girls' school, fifteen-year-old Ziggy Klein is confronted with an alienating social hierarchy that hurls her into the arms of her grade's most radical feminists. Plagued by fantasies of offensive sexual stereotypes and a psychotherapist mother who thinks bum-pinching is fine if it comes from the … Continue reading New Release Book Review: Inappropriation by Lexi Freiman
New Release Book Review: A Superior Spectre by Angela Meyer
A Superior Spectre... About the Book: Jeff is dying. Haunted by memories and grappling with the shame of his desires, he runs away to remote Scotland with a piece of experimental tech that allows him to enter the mind of someone in the past. Instructed to only use it three times, Jeff – self-indulgent, isolated … Continue reading New Release Book Review: A Superior Spectre by Angela Meyer
Behind the Pen with Belinda Castles
I recently read the outstanding new release from Belinda Castles, Bluebottle. I enjoyed this novel so much I rather stalked Belinda’s publicist for an interview and I’m thrilled to announce that persistence pays as I welcome Belinda to Behind the Pen today. Over to you Belinda! Where did Bluebottle come from? What was … Continue reading Behind the Pen with Belinda Castles
