Minnie's Fiction Addiction
Because one more chapter is never enough
Category: Book Review
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👀 First impressions:Published in 1925, Mrs Dalloway is one of the defining novels of modernist literature, capturing a single day in post-World War I London. The story follows Clarissa Dalloway as she prepares to host an evening party, but beneath this seemingly simple premise lies a deeply introspective exploration of memory, identity, love, and mental health. Clarissa Dalloway moves…
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👀 First impressions:I went into The Gun Seller expecting something light and humorous, largely because of Hugh Laurie’s background in comedy. What I got instead was a surprisingly sharp, fast-paced thriller wrapped in dry, self-aware wit. First published in 1996, this novel follows Thomas Lang, a former soldier turned reluctant mercenary, who gets tangled up in a conspiracy involving…
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👀 First impressions:If you’re familiar with Stuart MacBride, you’ll already know you’re in for something gritty, grim, and laced with sharp humour. And the Corpse Wore Tartan drops us straight into the bleak, biting world of Scottish crime fiction, where the weather is miserable, the crimes are worse, and the sarcasm is razor-sharp. Set against a distinctly Scottish backdrop,…
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👀 First impressions:Set in 17th-century Rome, Costanza by Rachel Blackmore immediately immerses you in a world of heat, scandal, and artistic obsession. Inspired by the real-life relationship between Costanza Piccolomini and the renowned sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini, the novel blends historical fact with vivid storytelling to reimagine a woman long overshadowed by a man’s legacy. From the outset, there is a…
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👀 First impressions:The Trial immediately grabbed my attention with its dramatic premise. A respected police officer, Grant Cliveden, is poisoned inside the Old Bailey itself, an event that sends shockwaves through the justice system. The case lands in the hands of trainee barrister Adam Green, who suddenly finds himself defending Jimmy Knight, a man with a long…
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👀 First impressions:The Chemistry by A. A. Hand immediately positions itself as a dark romance with sharp psychological edges. From the outset, there is an undercurrent of danger simmering beneath every interaction. The premise leans into obsession, power imbalance and the intoxicating pull between two people who know they probably should not want each other but…
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👀 First impressions:Traumaland opens with a sharp, unsettling hook and never really loosens its grip. Eli wakes up after a near fatal accident with no memory and no emotional response, diagnosed with something chillingly named Overwhelming Emptiness. When he stumbles across TraumaLand, an underground club where people relive other people’s worst experiences through hyper realistic virtual…
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👀 First impressions:This novel is inspired by the real life wind phone in Japan, a place where people go to speak into the void and tell their loved ones what they never got the chance to say. Set in the aftermath of the 2011 tsunami, the story follows Yui as she grieves the loss of her…
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👀 First impressions:This is a novel that immediately promises darkness and moral messiness. Three women, each desperate for change, collide around a secret that refuses to stay buried. From the opening chapters it is clear this is not a redemption story or a cautionary tale delivered neatly. Instead, it is about desire, power, and the quiet…
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👀 First impressions:This book grabbed me immediately, partly because of the setting and partly because of how utterly unhinged the premise is in the best possible way. A struggling band playing awful pubs across the northeast, fictional gods of mishap, and a viral act of violence is already a wild mix, but setting it all in…
Minnie's Fiction Addiction 