Frances Moloney
Frances Moloney is a writer and reader based in London. She is currently working on two children's books and works for Simon and Schuster UK. Her favourite authors include Thomas Hardy, Wilkie Collins, Hanif Kureishi, Michel Houllebecq and Gabriel Garcia Marquez. She is open to reading most things although is not a big fan of science fiction!
Death Comes to Pemberley by P. D. James
Reviewed on July 16, 2012
In her latest novel Death Comes to Pemberley, the highly successful crime writer Baroness P.D. James writes the sequel to Jane Austen’s most famous novel Pride and Prejudice and imagines life at Pemberley after the marriage of Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy. Pride and Prejudice has been subject to many reworkings, from a Bollywood inspired [...]
The Queen’s Secret, by Victoria Lamb
Reviewed on May 31, 2012
Victoria Lamb’s historical début is set in the court of Queen Elizabeth the First during her summer progress of 1575. Catholics are still trying to overthrow the queen and restore England to its true faith and it is up to Walsingham and his network of spies and informants to keep the queen safe from harm. [...]
Wonder, by R.J. Palacio
Reviewed on May 17, 2012
August knows he is a normal ten year old boy- only he wishes every one else viewed him in the same way. He is kind, funny and warm-hearted, and loves nothing more than a cuddle with his dog Daisy- the only person he knows that doesn’t judge him differently from others. August was born with [...]
How To Be a Woman, by Caitlin Moran
Reviewed on April 17, 2012
Times columnist Caitlin Moran’s non-fiction début is part memoir, part modern feminist manifesto. It is a highly readable story of growing up and the rites of passage every woman experiences; periods, sex, bras and first loves, in the vein of An Education and Call the Midwife, and a call for a fifth wave of feminism, [...]
The Berlin Crossing, by Kevin Brophy
Reviewed on April 13, 2012
Kevin Brophy’s novel The Berlin Crossing, is an exciting debut set after the fall of the German Democratic Republic. Set soon after the demise of the GDR and the end of the partition of East and West Germany, The Berlin Crossing examines the social and political effects of these changes. Brophy’s hero is card-carrying, party [...]
The Virgin Queen’s Daughter, by Ella March Chase
Reviewed on March 17, 2012
The Virgin Queen’s Daughter by Ella March Chase follows the latest trend for historical romance novels which mix historical fact with fictional hypotheses, mystery, intrigue and passionate liaisons. Set in the Elizabethan period, this novel follows the story of Nell De Lacey a wilful, scholarly young woman who, after the death of her beloved father [...]
The Sookie Stackhouse Companion: A Complete Guide to the Sookie Stackhouse Series, by Charlaine Harris
Reviewed on January 21, 2012
The Sookie Stackhouse Companion is the complete guide to the Sookie Stackhouse series, aimed at fans of both the novels by Charlaine Harris and the HBO drama series. The series follows the adventures of Sookie Stackhouse, a girl from the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana. Sookie is a homely, all American girl with one vital difference – she is also a [...]
Shakespeare’s Mistress, by Karen Harper
Reviewed on December 15, 2011
There has always been great interest in the life of William Shakespeare. His work, his personal life, his inspiration and his birth have all been subject to endless re-imaginings. Shakespeare in Love, Anonymous and many other contemporary films, novels and biographies have all tried to piece together the man who was William Shakespeare and discover [...]
The Tin Kin, by Eleanor Thom
Reviewed on December 1, 2011
Eleanor Thom’s début novel, The Tin Kin, was on The Culture Show’s list of the twelve best novels from new literary talents earlier this year. In the commercial market interest in gypsy culture is high, with the success of Channel 4′s My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding and Mikey Walsh’s Gypsy Boy leading the way. In [...]
The Sealed Letter by Emma Donoghue
Reviewed on November 2, 2011
Emma Donoghue’s latest novel The Sealed Letter has been eagerly anticipated following the resounding success of her previous book Room which was nominated for both the Booker and Orange Prizes. However it may not be what the readers of Room are expecting- whilst Room has a contemporary setting, and deals with the story of a woman who has [...]
Damned by Chuck Palahniuk
Reviewed on October 19, 2011
Damned, Chuck Palahniuk’s latest novel, re-imagines Judy Blume’s 1970 young adult classic Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret for a new generation. The novel follows Madison Spencer, a thirteen year old girl on the verge of puberty, who finds herself in Hell following a drug overdose. As the publisher states ‘this is Hell as [...]
The Submission, by Amy Waldman
Reviewed on September 8, 2011
The Submission is the striking new novel by American journalist Amy Waldman. One of the best debuts of the year, Waldman’s novel, set in New York City two years after the events of 9/11, centres around a competition to design a memorial for the victims. The book is released just ahead of the opening of [...]
Deliverance from Evil, by Frances Hill
Reviewed on August 31, 2011
Deliverance from Evil is the third novel by Frances Hill. Author of several non fiction titles on the same subject, Hill’s novel charts the events of the 1692-1693 Salem Witch Trials, which took place in Massachusetts, New England, following the emigration of puritans escaping persecution in England during the 1620′s. The novel follows the true [...]
Derby Day by D.J. Taylor
Reviewed on July 27, 2011
D.J. Taylor’s latest novel Derby Day is what one would expect from the biographer of Thackeray, and expert on the Victorian novel and society. The novel as a form found its home in the Victorian world: plot driven and some what scandalous, it gathered a mass readership from the expanding middle classes, with writers such as Charles Dickens finding exposure [...]
Faulks on Fiction by Sebastian Faulks
Reviewed on May 26, 2011
Faulks on Fiction, Sebastian Faulks’ celebration of the British novel, is a companion to the recent BBC four part documentary of the same name. Within the series Faulks’ examines four character types: heroes, villains, snobs and lovers. He discusses the novel via these archetypal characters, using them to highlight the importance of certain novels to [...]
Theatre: I Am Camera – A Play Inspired by Christopher Isherwood
Reviewed on May 14, 2011
This year marks the twenty fifth anniversary of Christopher Isherwood’s death and this commemoration brings a renewed interest in his life and work. Christopher and his Kind, A Single Man and I Am Camera are all work inspired by Isherwood and his novels. Cornelius Cooke’s new revival of John Van Druten’s 1951 play hosts a [...]
My Dear I Wanted to Tell You, by Louisa Young
Reviewed on April 4, 2011
Louisa Young’s latest novel My Dear I Wanted to Tell You has been hailed as the new Birdsong, a return to the First World War for the Twenty First Century. It is an epoch which writers return to time and again, as they try to explain the atrocities man can commit, and the effect they have on [...]
A Tiny Bit Marvellous, by Dawn French
Reviewed on March 25, 2011
Meet Mo, a woman who lives the same routine day after day, year after year, and swears she could drive to work blind folded… Following the success of her memoir Dear Fatty, Dawn French’s debut novel A Tiny Bit Marvellous was bound to be a bestseller. Dawn French is a likeable, popular celebrity who draws [...]
Being Billy, by Phil Earle
Reviewed on March 6, 2011
Phil Earle’s teen debut Being Billy is a stark, brave novel about the realities of life in the British care system. It would not be impertinent to compare Earle’s work with the issue fiction of the 1990′s, before young adult fiction became a haven for the paranormal. Influences such as Melvin Burgess’ Junk, Malorie Blackman’s [...]
The Wilding, by Maria McCann
Reviewed on January 27, 2011
Maria McCann’s Orange Prize nominated novel The Wilding is a passionate, illicit romp set in seventeenth century post Civil War ruhttp://www.bookgeeks.co.uk/2011/01/27/the-wilding-by-maria-mccann/ral England. McCann adds conviction to her setting, by using a convincing, and uncomplicated voice, and although at first this voice seems artificial, it quickly draws the reader into her scandalous mystery and envelopes the reader [...]
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, by Horace McCoy
Reviewed on December 2, 2010
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? by Horace McCoy has been reissued by Serpent’s Tail as part of their new classics range featuring authors such as James M. Cain and Jim Thompson. Although less well known They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? places McCoy amongst American authors such as Fitzgerald, Steinbeck and Chandler and at the forefront [...]
Room by Emma Donoghue
Reviewed on October 21, 2010
Room is a novel about freedom. It asks the reader: What constitutes freedom? Are we actually free to do as we choose? As Room demonstrates, social conditioning plays a huge part in who we are. Jack who at five years old, has never left Room, believes that everything he sees on TV isn’t real. For Jack the world [...]
Tell All, by Chuck Palahniuk
Reviewed on September 20, 2010
Chuck Palakniuk’s latest novel Tell All has been hailed as ‘vintage Palahniuk’, marking a shift away from his later works such as Snuff and Pygmy towards his earlier more thought provoking novels. It is an ironic title for an author whose career is founded on brutally parodying the post modern and the falsities and corruptions of [...]
An Education, by Lynn Barber
Reviewed on September 7, 2010
Lynn Barber’s memoir An Education came to my attention after the release of the 2009 film of the same name – scripted by Nick Hornby. Based in chapter two of Barber’s book, the film follows Barber’s misadventure as a naive school girl, with a charming crook, Simon. The film – set in 1960s London suburbia [...]
The Haunted Hotel, by Wilkie Collins
Reviewed on August 24, 2010
Penguin has reissued Wilkie Collins’ The Haunted Hotel as part of their Gothic Classics: Gothic Reds series, a collection of stories featuring quintessential horror writers such as H. P. Lovecraft, Bram Stoker and Edgar Allan Poe. This edition brings to light one of Collins’ smaller works, and set aside such company places him at the [...]
Dead in the Family, by Charlaine Harris
Reviewed on July 23, 2010
Charlaine Harris’ tenth Sookie Stackhouse novel Dead in the Family delves even deeper into the life of Sookie and the vampires, shapeshifters, werewolves, fairies and other creatures which surround her. The magic of Charlaine Harris is that she has succeeded in creating a world where nothing shocks the reader, is unacceptable or unbelievable. After the [...]
A Truth Universally Acknowledged: 33 Reasons Why We Can’t Stop Reading Jane Austen
Reviewed on July 7, 2010
It strikes me that Jane Austen has two types of admirer; the fierce critic; defender of Austen’s canonical works and the avid fan; passionate about the world of the novels, the romance and the regency setting. The two are not mutually exclusive, however the critic is quick to defend Austen’s quick wit, irony and understanding [...]
The Angel’s Game, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Reviewed on May 30, 2010
In the second of his novels to be translated from the Spanish, Carlos Ruiz Zafon revisits his The Shadow of the Wind creation; The Cemetery of Forgotten Books. The Cemetery of Forgotten Books is a treasure trove of prohibited and secret manuscripts which have been hidden until someone chooses one, takes it home- a book [...]
The Little Stranger, by Sarah Waters
Reviewed on May 20, 2010
Sarah Waters, famed for her historical novels with a lesbian lilt, probably needs no introduction. During her relatively short, five book career, Water’s has been nominated for (and won) a host of awards, and The Little Stranger saw her nominated for a third time for the Man Booker Prize. Her latest novel, set in a [...]
Pygmy, by Chuck Palahniuk
Reviewed on May 7, 2010
Chuck Palahniuk’s latest tirade against a postmodern American culture of obese fast-food junkies, religious fanatics and ADHD school children is not for those seeking the usual calm oasis of summer beach reading. If you look on with growing horror at the media spectacle society has become, Pygmy is the totalitarian rant for you. Famous for [...]
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The Bookgeeks Interview
Mark Oldfield
Mark Oldfield has worked in criminological research for over 20 years. He has a PhD in Criminology from the University of Kent and has carried out research in the areas of risk assessment and prediction and as well as evaluative research on policing, prisons and probation. He has also taught in various Universities on research, crime and criminal justice.
