'Deceived' by Sarah Smith (with Kate Snell)

RRP: £7.99 Pages: 319 Paperback Non-fiction

Incredible. Amazing. How one man can weave such an intricate web of deceit that he can trap one person in that web for over 10 years without her ever breaking free. That person is Sarah Smith, and this book is her story. There was one similar book I read previously (review on MySpace) regarding a conman who managed to manipulate women for monetary gain, but Robert Freegard seemed to do it for the power and control also. And he did it well.

In the spring of 1993 Sarah Smith found herself at the centre of a living nightmare. Told she was on a terrorist hit list, she was forced on the run.

Always in fear of a sniper's bullet, Sarah was constantly moved around the country, working in low-paid jobs, never knowing who she could trust. Only one man was there to protect her: a British 'secret agent' codenamed Robert Freegard. To survive Sarah had to follow his rules with complete compliance: sever ties with family and friends, speak to no one and wait for his orders.

During her spine-chilling journey, Sarah spent ten lonely years on the edge of existence, sometimes starving, often penniless and alone, doing nothing without Freegard's permission. But what she could never have guessed was that she was the victime of a ruthless conman who would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. this is the heart-wrenching and gripping tale of a criminal mastermind and a victim who bravely confronted her captor and pieced a stolen life back together.

Rating - 10 out of 10 - not just for the writing (which was suberb) but also for the story (which is captivating)

'Lessons in Heartbreak' by Cathy Kelly

RRP: £6.99 Pages: 454 Paperback Novel Fiction

This is a typical 'novel' - predictable characters, 'samey' storylines, easy reading - but enjoyable all the same. Reading a book like this is kind of like going for a Mc Donalds instead of a restaurant meal - sometimes quick & easy & tasty is all you need, even if it isn't doing you any good!

Izzie Silver left the small Irish town of Tamarin behind for New York. Life is good - until she breaks her own rules and falls for a married man.

On the other side of the ocean, Izzie's aunt Anneliese discovers the pain of infidelity for herself.
Then Lily, the wise and compassionate family matriarch, is taken ill. Back in Ireland, Izzie discovers a past her grandmother has never spoken of, while Anneliese feels the one person she could have turned to is starting to slip away.

The lessons each of the women learns - both past and present - bring joy and heartbreak. And the hardest lesson of all is learning to let go.

Rating - does what it says on the tin - 7 out of 10

'Baby Catcher; Chronicles of a Modern Midwife' by Peggy Vincent

Pages: 338 Ebook Non-Fiction

Once you get past the peculiar way in which Peggy Vincent skips between different decades, and the confusing way in which she uses her 'first person', this is actually a very good read and one that I really enjoyed. It was really entertaining and, sometimes, heart-rending, to read about other peoples experiences of childbirth and everything that goes with it! I admit a tear did come to my eye on some occasions! Vincent writes ... interestingly ... but stick with it, and you will enjoy this book too!

She never tired of the miracle. Each time she knelt to "catch" another baby, beloved California midwife Peggy Vincent paid homage to the moment when pain bows to joy, one person becomes two, woman turns to goddess, and the world moves aside to make room for one more soul.

Trained as a nurse at Duke University in the early 1960s, Vincent begins working in the delivery room of a local hospital in the San Francisco Bay area. Even after establishing an alternative birth center at the hospital, however, she is still frustrated with her lack of autonomy. Too often she witnesses births changing from normal to high risk because of routine obstetrical interventions.
Vincent then devotes herself to creating unique birth experiences for her clients and their families. She becomes a licensed midwife, opens her own practice, and delivers nearly three thousand babies during her remarkable career.

With every birth comes an unforgettable story. Each time Vincent "catches" a wet and wriggling baby, she encounters another memorable woman busy negotiating her unique path through the labyrinth of childbirth.

Meet Catherine as she rides out her labor in a car careening down a mountain road, her husband clueless at the wheel. Megan delivers on a leaky sailboat during the storm of the decade. Susannah gives birth so quietly and effortlessly, neither husband nor midwife notice much of anything until they see a baby lying on the bed, and Sofia spends her labor trying to keep her hyper doctor-father from burning down the house.

More than just a collection of birth stories, Baby Catcher is a provocative, moving, and highly personal account of the ongoing difficulties midwives face in the United States. With vivid portraits of courage, perseverance, and love, this is a passionate call to rethink today's technological hospital births in favor of a more individualized and profound experience in which mothers and fathers take the stage in the timeless drama of birth and renewal.

Rating - 8 out of 10 - get past the beginning and you will really enjoy this book!

'Magic Bites' by Ilona Andrews

RRP: £6.99 Pages: 260 Fantasy Fiction Paperback

This is the first time that I have read an Ilona Andrews novel, but it won't be the last! She has captured the essence of fantasy fiction this edgy, dark story. Yet, with the right amount of humour injected too. I ended this book wanting to read the sequel which, thankfully for me, is already out in the shops (Magic Bites)! It was fast-paced and easy to read with entertaining plot twists and also just the right mixtures of humour/romance/action/gore!

When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problems in its wake.

Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercernary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems. But when Kate's guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta's magic circles.

The Masters of the Dead, necromancers who can control vampires, and the Pack, a paramilitary clan of shapechangers, blame each other for a series of bizarre killings - and the death of Kate's guardian may be part of the same mystery. Pressured by both sides to find the killer, Kate realises she's way out of her league - but she wouldn't have it any other way!

Rating - 10 out of 10! The new sequel is finding its way to me now!

'Poison' by Chris Wooding

RRP: £6.99 Pages: 269 Fantasy Fiction Paperback

What a fantastic read! I really enjoyed this quick, but entertaining and captivating story! It was short and definately sweet! This book is definately aimed at the younger category of readrs - say, teenagers - but, will also appeal to those fans of fantasy fiction as it encompasses goblins, faeries, huge spiders, different Realms etc!

Poison has always been a wilful, contrary girl, prone to being argumentative and stubborn. So when she discovers that her younger sister has been snatched by the phaeries, she decides to seek out the Phaerie Lord herself to get her back.

But finding him is not easy, and he's a little preoccupied when she does. Poison has stepped into a murderous world of intrigue, where the Lords of the Realms, a sinister pantheon of demi-gods, conspire and plot to overthrow the Hierophant - the most powerful lord of all. For the Hierophant is writing again, and his pen will decide all their fates...

With only her wits and her friends to aid her, Poison must survive the lethal attentions of the Phaerie Lord, rescue her sister and thwart a plot that could mean the end of her people. What awaits her is beyond anything she can imagine ...

Rating - definately 10 out of 10 for this fun and entertaining read!

'Shallow Graves' by Jeffery Deaver

RRP: £7.99 Pages: 324 Paperback Crime Fiction

I am a fan of Jeffery Deaver's work, but I found this one incredibly hard to read. I admit to skipping over sections of it which I just couldn't read. This wasn't his usual Lincoln Rhyme series and maybe I have been spoiled by that series for all of Deavers' other books. This one just didn't come up to par. It took really long (actually, never) to get into the story, and the story just didn't grab my attention - it was predictable and dull. Shame.

John Pellam had been in the trenches of filmmaking, with a promising Hollywood career - until tragedy sidetracked him. Now he is a location scout, travelling the country in search of shooting sites for films. When he rides down Main Street, locals usually clamour for their chance at fifteen minutes of fame.

But in a small town in upstate New York, Pellam experiences a very different reception. His illusionary world is shattered by a savage murder, and Pellam is suddenly centre stage in an unfolding drama of violence, lust and conspiracy in this less-than-picture-perfect locale.

Rating - 3 out of 10 - a disappointing facimile of Deavers normal work

'The Executioners Song' by Norman Mailer

RRP: £12.99 Pages: 1050 True Crime/Biography Paperback

I did my best. I really did. I wanted to read this book, and found I just couldn't get past page 350. And that was fairly easy to do until page 300 when it just seemed to slow down so much it was like wading through sticky treacle sauce - just couldn't seem to go any faster, any easier.
To begin with, the book was easy and quick off of the mark. It gave the background of the main character - Gary Gilmore - who the book is about. And that was interesting and easy to read. However, after he got arrested, the book took a downward turn in that it went into too much detail. It was kind of like reading the encyclopedia cover-to-cover instead of just picking out the interesting bits. I always thought that books with lots of info would be good to read, but this once gave way too much. I personally felt it did not need to go into so much detail. For some readers, this might work, but not for me unfortunately.

In the summer of 1976 Gary Gilmore robbed two men. Then he shot them in cold blood. For those murders Gilmore was sent languish on Death Row - and could confidently expect his sentence to be commuted to life imprisonment. In America, no one had been executed for twn years.

But Gary Gilmore wanted to die, and his ensuing battle with the authorities for the right to do so made him into a world-wide celebrity - and ensured that his execution turned into the most gruesome media event of the decade.

Maybe I will try and read this book again in a few months. It is well-written, but just not to my taste at the moment as too hard to really concentrate well on. And this book needs the concentration and the focus on details!

Rating - 7 out of 10