Medieval Love and War by Terry Mott-Bellin

King Matthew is kind and generous. However, not everyone loves him: Calibor is King Matthew's enemy and wants to win the Great Sea Kingdom and rule it himself. The Springtide Festival is held annually, and people from miles around come to enjoy a day out. Fifteen-year-old Princess Eden persuades her father to let her participate in The Spring Moon Dance. King Matthew feels his only daughter will be safe with her lady-in-waiting, her tutor, and guards with her. However, when the dance finishes, Eden accepts gifts from the spectators and overlooks Calibor. Calibor is angry that he has been snubbed and commands his sorcerer to put a spell of pox on all the young men! What plans does Calibor have for Princess Eden? What is different about Tomas? Moreover, who do the servants help to seduce Princess Eden? Read Medieval love and War by Terry Mott-Bellin to find the answers.

This book only has one hundred and ninety-seven pages, but by the end of chapter four, more than sixteen main characters have been introduced. I found trying to remember whom everyone was confusing, spoiling the book's flow. There are also many grammar errors. This book needs to be proofread as mistakes like 'beforeheading' would have been picked up if it had.

Despite the errors, I did enjoy this book. It has all the ingredients of an adult fairy tale. King Matthew, adored by his people, has a beautiful daughter who falls in love with a handsome man. And his adversary, the evil Calibor, rules his people with fear and punishments and has a sorcerer to cast horrific spells on anyone in his way. Furthermore, there is a supposed faithful servant working for the other side, a village of little people, and a good witch. I also enjoyed all the pagan references, particularly the handfasting of Maia and Tomas.

I recommend Medieval Love and War by Terry Mott-Bellin to anyone who enjoys romance, good versus evil, or an adult fairy tale. Many medieval words are used, which a historian would also enjoy. Sex is mainly hinted at, but I would not recommend this book to people under sixteen.

I want to give Medieval Love and War 3 out of 5 stars because, although I enjoyed the story, introducing so many characters in the first few chapters confused me. I re-read the first four chapters and made a list of the people, their characteristics, and which of the other characters they knew. Terry Mott-Bellin should add this information at the beginning of the book for readers to refer back to. A map of all the places mentioned in the book would also be helpful. I have reduced the stars because this book has yet to be edited or proofread, and there are errors on most pages. So many mistakes are annoying and spoil the book's flow!

I want to thank Terry Mott-Bellin for a copy of Medieval Love and War in exchange for my honest and impartial review. 

You can see more of my reviews here http://onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-tara-d-morgan.html

Children's book review - Unicorns Know Magic by Charles Adkins

 

Two children see a family of unicorns moving in next door and make friends with them. The unicorns all have unique tricks which they show the children. One day the friends head off on a fantastic adventure, and the children ride on the unicorns and visit famous places. What do they eat in Paris? What do they do in London? Moreover, what happens when the unicorns go to school? Read Unicorns Know Magic by Charles Adkins to discover the answers to these questions.

Unicorns Know Magic is written entirely in rhyme, but this does not always work. For example, on page ten, "We were hungry and stopped at a French restaurant, we've never had something as good as a croissant." Also, I did not enjoy the fact that on one page Charles Adkins writes that the unicorns had apples and carrots for lunch, and on the next page, he says unicorns only eat vegetables! 

The colorful illustrations are beautiful and very appealing. The landmarks are recognizable and add another level of learning for small children. Unicorns Know Magic by Charles Adkins will be a lovely way to introduce young children to poetry; once the grammatical errors are corrected. This book needs to be proofread and edited.

I recommend this book to children aged up to eight years of age. Younger children will love having the poem read to them while they enjoy the illustrations. Older children will enjoy reading it to themselves. Children will find Unicorns Know Magic a fun and interesting adventure and enjoy the rhyme.

I want to give Unicorns Know Magic by Charles Adkins 3 out of 5 stars. I have reduced the score by one star as there are a lot of proofreading errors, and the poem does not always flow or rhyme very well. I have taken off another star because of the mixed information, which would confuse small children. When you are writing for children, the book has to be perfect!

I want to thank Charles Adkins for a copy of Unicorns Know Magic in exchange for my honest and impartial review. 

You can see more of my reviews here http://onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-tara-d-morgan.html

Book review - 28 Disastrous Dates: A (Mostly True) Humourous Memoir by Poppy Mortimer

 As a child of divorced parents, Poppy lost herself in romantic novels and romantic Hollywood films with dashing, handsome heroes. Furthermore, she blames these pastimes on her lack of intuition when going on a date. The book is a memoir of Poppy's dates which range from the funny to the scary, over ten years and three continents. How does Poppy find herself on a scary date with a fireman? How does Poppy deal with the date who asks her out by sending her a photograph of his penis? Moreover, does Poppy's memoir finish with her finding the love of her life? Read 28 Disastrous Dates: A (Mostly True) Humourous Memoir by Poppy Mortimer to find the answers to these and other questions. 

I liked that Poppy Mortimer starts each chapter with details of her age, where she is living, where she meets each man and how they ask her out. Which helps to visualize the scene created. The end of each chapter has Poppy reminiscing over what she has learnt from her date and what she will take from it. Sadly by the next chapter, she has forgotten most of what she has learned and gone out with another disastrous man!

I was disappointed with this book. For me, it was like reading a teenager's diary. Some dates were mildly funny but less humorous than the author would lead us to believe. The book is well written and flows very well, and I enjoyed the first half of the book; it was interesting being an onlooker of someone else's disasters. Unfortunately, the stories became formulaic after a while, and I felt that Poppy Mortimer needed to try harder to make the book funny, which made it boring. I struggled to read to the end of the book. 

I would recommend 28 Disastrous Dates: A (Mostly True) Humourous Memoir by Poppy Mortimer to young adults. There is no swearing in the book ( as Poppy can not bring herself to type expletives), but there is a fair sprinkling of penises, so I would not recommend it to a younger audience! 

I want to give 28 Disastrous Dates: A (Mostly True) Humourous Memoir by Poppy Mortimer 3 out of 5 stars. The book did not live up to my expectations; it was more of a groan-out-loud than a laugh-out-loud book. There were some spelling and grammatical errors, and the book could do with another proofreading, although these did not distract from the stories. The dates became too formulaic and similar the more I read, which made the last half of the book boring, and I struggled to finish it. I did enjoy Poppy Mortimer's style of writing, and the fact I was not keen on 28 Disastrous Dates: A (Mostly True) Humourous Memoir would not stop me from reading another book by this author.

Audio book review - 1979 by Val McDermid

 

1979 is the first instalment in the Allie Burns series set against the bustling backdrop of nineteen-seventies Glasgow. The story introduces us to Allie Burns. Allie is a young journalist whose investigative work leads her into a world of murder, corruption and terror. It is January nineteen seventy-nine. The year has brought strikes, blizzards, political unrest and power cuts. However, the bad news is a chance for Allie to move on from the "women's stories" to which the editors at the Scottish daily The Clarion have confined her. She becomes close friends with budding investigative journalist Danny Sullivan. Together, they uncover a story of international tax fraud involving Scots ultranationalists who plan to cause mayhem ahead of a referendum on breaking away from the UK. Danny and Allie's stories quickly get attention and create enemies for the two young reporters. As they get closer to breaking the news, will Allie and Danny find their lives on the line? Read 1979 by Val McDermid to find out.

Drawing on McDermid's experiences as a young journalist, 1979 is redolent of the thundering presses, hammering typewriters, and wreaths of the smoke of the Clarion newsroom. It is the latest suspenseful addition to McDermid's crime pantheon. It is compulsive, enthralling, and atmospheric. It not only looks at crime and the city's gritty underbelly but also touches on the changes in technology, fashion and music. The novel explores class, gender, sexuality, and politics alongside a high-stakes investigation into corruption and unrest in Glasgow in the Seventies. A riveting, captivating, and propulsive start to a series that shows much promise.

I was surprised to read that in Scotland it was still illegal for people to be gay until 1981. I liked the way McDermid dealt with the fact that Danny was gay and how that had an effect on his life.

I listened to the audiobook, which is eleven hours and six minutes long. Sadly the thing I disliked about this audiobook was the fact that the reader, Katie Leung, often mispronounced words. I thought this was because she is Scottish and the book is set in Scotland, but having researched the words, they should be pronounced the same as in England.

I want to give this book 3 out of 5 stars. It is an exciting read, but the ending is disappointing, and the Allie I got to know whilst listening to the audiobook would not have jumped into bed with Rhona after hearing that her best friend Danny had been murdered. I am also taking one star off for the mispronunciation of the reader as this should have been picked up on and is as bad as grammar and spelling errors in a print book!

Book review - House of Eire by June Gillam

 

House of Eire by June Gillam begins with Hillary Broome, a writer, and her husband Ed, a detective. They live in California. Hillary is busy finalizing plans for a two-week belated honeymoon in Ireland with Ed, their seven-year-old daughter Claire and Ed's mother, Sarah. They will stay with their friends Seamus, a solicitor, and his American wife, Bridget, living in Galway. Bridget has been studying the history of Ireland and wants a memorial built to honor the Irish people. Seamus has been working with Dermot Connolly, an American developer who plans to buy land to build a Disneyland-style theme park. Connolly has decided on land where Bridget wants to build her memorial and is taking devious measures to get his way.

Hillary has been trying to trace her family tree. Her mother ran off, leaving Hillary when she was ten; she hopes that researching the Irish family background will help her find out why. Why has Bridget been receiving strange dolls in the post? Can Seamus convince Bridget to build the monument outside the theme park? Is the rumor that Connolly runs an Irish Mafia true? Why do nightmares plague Bridget? Moreover, what is Seamus not telling Bridget? For the answers to these and other questions, read House of Eire by June Gillam.

I liked the sensitive way June Gillam approaches Irish history. Having traced my Irish ancestry, I felt the pain Bridget suffers every time she finds another piece of evidence of the troubled times the Irish poor went through. Quote from page fifty-one "But, there are hundreds and thousands more who lived and died without mention—I feel for them, and I wasn't even born here!" Many interesting themes are touched upon, and the tension builds slowly. House of Eire is the third book in the Hillary Broome series, but I found it easy to read as a stand-alone book.

The first half of House of Eire is unnecessarily long and detailed. The story takes a long time to build up, and the many long-winded conversations really could have moved the story along more. June Gillam tends to end each chapter with something dramatic, which often feels forced and awkward. I did not find the conclusion was worth the wait. The book was described as a mystery, but there are very few surprises, which I  found disappointing. House of Eire does not seem to have been edited or proofread at all. I found many errors in spelling and grammar throughout the book.

I recommend House of Eire by June Gillam to adults who enjoy reading fictional books about Ireland, murder, and mysteries. There is swearing in the book, which makes it inappropriate for a younger audience.

I want to give House of Eire 3 out of 5 stars. I have removed one star due to the lack of proofreading and the other because the conversations were far too long-winded, making the book drag. I would have liked there to have been more depth to what could have been an exciting story, and the ending was disappointing.

Book Review - Timeless Love by Stella Gioacas

Timeless Love by Stella Gioacas introduces us to Emily and her best friend, Stacey. Emily has just broken up with her boyfriend of two years. Stacey and Emily had not seen each other for months because Emily had accused Stacey of wanting her man when Stacey tried to tell her that Craig had been seeing other women behind her back. In the two years Emily had been with Craig, he had alienated her from all her friends and family and made her leave her job. However, now she has found him with another woman in their bed! Stacey and Emily go for a walk to talk and get Craig out of their systems. They end up sitting in a park under a big tree. They start heading back to Stacey's house when the weather changes to rain, thunder, and lightning. Suddenly, Emily hears a loud crack, and everything goes white! Emily wakes up in a tiny bed in a room with equally small furniture. What has happened? Where is she? Moreover, who is Henry, the man with striking hazel-colored eyes? Read Timeless Love by Stella Gioacas to discover the answers to these questions.

I liked the humor Stella Gioacas included in the story. For instance, when the Dr. in eighteen hundred and seventy-four is trying to work out what all the strange things are that Emily is talking about example, on page thirty-one," 'And this Uber you mentioned earlier?' 'Oh, I believe that's some sort of luncheon meat, sir,' Henry said." I also enjoyed the fact that Emily goes back in time but is still in the exact location. I especially liked the comparisons and descriptions between the present and the past. 

I did not enjoy some of Emily's expressions which were not what people would typically say. For example, on page forty, "And thirdly, sit and join me, you silly goose." Emily and Henry are the main protagonists in this story, but as we are told very little about their backstories, they are relatively flat and bland. I found the conversational passages too long-winded, making the book boring. I would have liked there to have been more depth to what could have been a fascinating story. 

I recommend Timeless Love by Stella Gioacas to adults and older teenagers who enjoy time travel, romance, and historical fiction. There are some swearing and mild sexual scenes in the book, which make it inappropriate for a younger audience. 

I want to give Timeless Love by Stella Gioacas 3 out of 5 stars, it was an interesting read, but it needed more substance for my liking. There was a good beginning, and the ending was exciting with a lot of twists and turns which I wasn't expecting. However, the middle of the book was very slow going. The book would also benefit from further proofreading due to grammar and spelling errors. Because of these reasons, I have taken two stars off my rating!

book review - That Weekend by Kara Thomas

 

That Weekend by Kara Thomas begins with Claire waking up in the middle of a pathway with no memory of how she got there. She has no memory of the last day. An entire day wiped from her memory! When Claire breaks up with her cheating boyfriend just before the school prom, her best friends Kat and Jesse invite her with them for a camping trip. She has been friends with them for years, and she is ready for some fun after her heartbreak. However, when Claire wakes up, her friends are missing. They have vanished without a trace, and everyone looks to Claire for answers. The trip has become a nightmare Claire cannot even remember! Why is Claire on her own on a pathway in a forest? What has happened to Kat and Jesse? Why does Kat's grandma hate Jesse? Moreover, how is Kat's cousin involved in the mystery? To find answers to these questions, read That Weekend by Kara Thomas.

The story starts slowly. While we wait to find out if Claire's memory returns, it feels right that the pace is slow. The story only gains momentum halfway through when Claire starts an investigation of her own. She follows some bizarre clues, and the book becomes more interesting. While I was hoping for a little more mystery, danger, and edge, I was entirely unprepared for the twist that happened and took me utterly by surprise!

I was hoping for more danger and more chills. I wanted a page-turning mystery that gripped me. That Weekend was a good read, it just was not the chilling mystery that I was hoping for. True, I needed to find out all the who, what, where, when, why, and how of everything, and some shocking details came out throughout the book's second half. The ending was where things became exciting.

I recommend That Weekend by Kara Thomas to readers who enjoy mystery. This book still has enough mystery and shocks to make it an enjoyable read.

I rate That Weekend by Kara Thomas 3 out of 5 stars. It was readable but did not have the edge-of-the-seat shocks, twists and turns I want from a murder mystery.

Book Review - Now I can See The Moon by Bonar Ash

 

Now I Can See The Moon by Bonar Ash begins in nineteen fifty-five in Surrey, England. It begins by telling us about Milly and her best friend, Izzy. The girls are seven years old and are inseparable. They spend much of their time in the attic, where Milly feels closest to her mother. Milly's mother, Miranda, died the year before. Luke, who grew up next door to Miranda and was her lifelong friend, becomes Milly's guardian and caretaker of their big house. The story then moves on ten years, and we begin learning about the other people who live in the house. The two lodgers are Esme and Felix. Babe, the housekeeper, is a surrogate mother to Milly. Also, Pascale, the one person in the house who hates Milly, was Miranda's childhood nurse. By this time, Luke is an award-winning carpenter running a successful business. Several women in the village are hoping he will want to have them as romantic partners.

Since her mother died, Milly has been plagued by a recurring nightmare: she falls off a boat into the water. She always wakes up at the point where she would have drowned, but Milly has no memory of ever being on a boat, and no one in the house can help her. As Milly gets older, she starts to see that most of the people she knows have secrets which they have been keeping from her. What is the nightmare all about? Why is Felix estranged from his daughter and granddaughter? Why does Pascale, who worshipped Miranda, hate Milly so much? Furthermore, what is the secret that everyone but Milly seems to know?

I loved the description Bonar Ash used for the child's view of where people go when they die. For example, on page one, "I could lose myself in the night sky with its overwhelming stars. I would search the glittering mass, looking for answers. I wondered if Grandma and Grandpa and my mother had somehow got tangled up in them and were wandering about, wondering what on earth had happened and why they couldn't come home." Some of the writing is almost poetic, which was beautiful to read. For example, on page thirteen, "I reached under the bed, which lolled like a vast beached boat in the middle of the attic floor."

I learnt a lot about the social history of the sixties. Babe loves music, so the top singers of the day are mentioned at one point, as are the advertising jingles. For example, on page eighteen, "go to work on an egg", it was lovely to have these reminders of a life my parents grew up in. However, as the book progresses, there are constant quotes from books and songs; these start to feel like padding; they are distracting and not helpful in helping the story progress. I would prefer the author to take all the quotes out and have a shorter book!

There are also many quotes from French songs which Miranda loved. It would have been nice to have a translation at the back of the book. The flow of the story was interrupted by having to keep googling to find out what the translation was.

Now I Can See The Moon by Bonar Ash started with great potential. However, the continuous quotes soon became tiresome. They were used to pad out the story, did not feel relevant in most cases, and I felt they were lazy on the author's part. The overuse of french song lyrics with no translation also spoilt the flow of the story considerably. Furthermore, I  feel the storyline is an unlikely one. Luke would have been eighteen or nineteen when Miranda died. Nevertheless, he was happy to take on the responsibility of a six-year-old girl. I have never met a teenage boy who could look after themselves, let alone a young child!

The editing was very good. I only found three errors. However, due to the mentioned dislikes, which spoiled the book for me, I want to give Now I Can See The Moon by Bonar Ash 3 out of 5 stars

I recommend this book to adult readers, especially people who enjoy a mystery with a hint of romance. There is some swearing, so I do not think this book is appropriate for younger audiences.

Thank you to Bonar Ash for a free copy of this book in exchange for an impartial review.

Book Review - Predator/Nomad by Daniel Micko

Predator / Nomad by Daniel Micko revolves around two main characters; Princess Saleh, the twin sister of Prince Faruq, and a geneticist Dr. Jordan Roberts. The book starts with the inauguration ceremony for the Emir Prince Faruq bint Bandar al Saudi, who has now become the city's newly elected governor. At the reception, Dr. Roberts converses with someone she believes to be the Prince's bodyguard. Later that evening, she discovers that the bodyguard is Princess Saleh, the Prince's twin sister. Saleh and Jordan instantly feel a connection and begin a relationship. 

With Saleh's help, Dr. Roberts, a geneticist, attends a meeting with Prince Faruq, and she explains her new project involving genetic splicing, cell regeneration, and organ 3D printing. Dr. Roberts hopes to get funding for her new project and convinces the Prince to sponsor her research. In return, she promises to cure his subjects of all the diseases they are suffering from. Princess Saleh becomes suspicious when she discovers that one of Dr. Roberts's investors is a known terrorist. She contacts Interpol to try and find out who else is backing the Dr.'s work; when Princess Saleh discovers that Dr. Roberts is cloning people in a secret and highly guarded camp in the mountains in Afghanistan, she finds out that this is just the beginning!

I like Micko's excellent plot involving human cloning. He has done a great job of mixing the genres of science fiction and thriller, and I liked reading this book. I also enjoyed the subplots woven into the story. For example, Prince Faruq is a notorious playboy, but he needs to find a wife of which his family and country will approve, and when Princess Saleh is not spying on Dr. Roberts, she is trying to make her brother toe the line.

However, there are spelling and grammar mistakes. I was particularly aghast that the title on the title page was misspelled! It is a great shame that the editing and proofreading have let Predator/Nomad by Daniel Micko down so badly! I also did not like the overuse of the word 'giggle,' which is used forty-four times in the book; I feel there are other words that could have been used. I did not particularly appreciate how Dr. Roberts and Princess Saleh had a sexual relationship so quickly; it felt like the author needed to somehow put a lesbian angle in. However, once it happened, that relationship was almost forgotten. It felt to me as if Micko might as well not have bothered with the relationship, as this added very little to the story. I also felt some conversations were unnecessarily wordy and detracted from the story.

I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars. Predator/Nomad has an exciting storyline, but it is badly let down by the editing, and the misspelling of the title is unforgivable! Also it is not a book I would choose to read again.

Some of the topics in this book are very scientific and weighty, but Micko has written them in simple language, which makes the story easy to understand. There is no need for the reader to have a scientific background. The book contains swearing, so I recommend it to older teenagers and adults who enjoy the genres of crime, thrillers, science fiction, and anything with a science-related plot.

 

 Thank you to Daniel Micko for a free copy of this book in exchange for an impartial review.

Book Review - Three loves and other stories by Lata Gullapalli

 

 

A few years ago, Lata Gullapalli was asked by a friend to write some stories for a book he was publishing. Her stories got such great reviews that she was inspired to write Three loves and other stories. This book contains 'nine' intimate and compelling novellas exploring the pressures Indian women have regarding marriage and family life. Although the stories revolve around Indian culture, these are stories that all cultures can relate to in some way. Each story has a different theme ranging from love to bullying, parenting to long-distance relationships. Each theme is sensitively and compellingly written. The story I liked best was called "Growing Up", about the struggles the older children in a family have when their parents expect them to be more adult than their siblings.

I love the lyrical way that Lata Gullpalli expresses herself. She uses similes to significant effect. For example, on page twenty-two, when Sia explains what it is like to be in an abusive relationship, "It felt like the woodcutters axe heaving blows on the strong trunk again and again, with force and the chips were flying, weakening the tree all the time." Gullpalli uses vivid descriptions of the people and places, and they instantly become real, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I think these are stories that the reader will remember for a long time after they are read.

 

I like that the novellas in Three loves and other stories by Lata Gullpalli are written in such a way that they stay true to their Indian roots, but there are so many errors in grammar and spelling, often several on a page. It shows that this is a self-published book, and the lack of proofreading and editing is so apparent that it impedes the flow of the stories and lets the book down! It was also strange that all the stories had titles except the sixth one. I presume this is an error! 

I want to give this book 3 out of 5 stars as there were grammatical errors on most pages. I was disappointed not to be able to give the top rating as I thoroughly enjoyed the novellas and hope that Lata Gullapalli publishes more books that I could enjoy.

I would recommend Three loves and other stories to anyone who likes short stories, particularly readers who want to know a little more about Indian culture. There is no swearing, but sex is touched upon, so I would suggest it is aimed at an adult audience.

 

 Thank you to Lata Gullapalli for a free copy of this book in exchange for an impartial review.

Book Review - Just Die by E. Alan Fleischauer

 

In his book, Just Die, E Alan Fleischauer introduces the reader to his main character Jake Silver when he finds himself in the hospital recovering from a stroke. Jake is far from impressed that he is sharing a room with another stroke victim who spends all his time moaning loudly. As a teenager, Jake was taught to drive by his Mum, who advised him never to show his anger to other car drivers as this could get him into trouble. Instead, she says he should point his finger at his protagonist and say, "Just Die." By midnight Jake is still being kept awake by his roommate; he is so frustrated that he points his finger at him and says, "Just Die." Before he can think, nurses rush into the room, and the man dies. Many people imagine what it would be like to have a superpower for Jake Silver; that day has come, and there is no going back. Just Die by E. Alan Fleischauer is a supernatural thriller that takes the reader on a fast-paced journey into real life with super-human abilities.

The writing is clear and concise; it is descriptive enough to paint a decent picture and allows the reader to visualize the story and the characters portrayed in it. The plot is unusual, and Fleischauer builds the story while keeping the reader on the edge of their seat, turning the pages as quickly as possible to find out what will happen next. I also found that the book was exceptionally well-edited.

I love the suspense that builds up, but I feel there are areas of the book that waffle along, especially in the dialogues between characters. For me, Just Die was a good story, but I feel it did not reach its potential of being great. In my opinion, Fleischauer could have used more detailed descriptions to draw us into Jake's life and his relationships with the other character's in the book, particularly his fiancee. The sub-stories were very loose, and Fleischauer let himself down here as I feel the narrative could have been more substantial and detailed.

 

I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars.

I would recommend this book to an adult audience as there is a lot of swearing and drug use. Due to the way Jake can kill people after his stroke, I think Just Die by E Alan Fleischauer would particularly appeal to readers who are fans of superheroes or the supernatural.

 

Thank you to Alan Fleischauer for a free copy of this book in exchange for an impartial review.

Book review : First Lessons by Lina J Potter

 

First Lessons by Lina J Potter begins as Aliya, a high achieving medical student, is heading home, she has presents for her family and is so excited to share that she has all A grades. Her parents meet her at the end of her train journey. In the car they are busy catching up on all the news when a large truck comes over the hill straddling the lanes, it crashes into their car flipping it several times before it crashes into a tree. When Aliya comes round she is in a lot of pain, she doesn’t recognize the room she is in, the person who is sitting by the bed or the extremely overweight body she now has. Aliya has taken over the body of Countess Lilian! With the help of Lilian’s nanny Aliya realises that she has time-travelled to Medieval times. The resourceful Aliya has to quickly learn how to behave but she doesn’t want to be like Lilian who spends her time lazing around eating, stitching and waiting for the occasional visits from her husband who needs an heir. These are scary times there are robbers, pirates, slave traders, murderers and spies who are only too happy to bring about Aliya’s downfall. Aliya remains strong and adjusts to this unknown world, starting with a major upheaval of the staff she employs and then by repairing and building up her crumbling and unkempt estate. As she has always done she rolls up her sleeves and with sheer hard work and determination she works to get the best she can for her kingdom!
 

I appreciate the extensive research Lina J Potter has done in order to give us an insight into the life and times of the era, in particular the use of herbs as medicines. The author has also followed closely the fact that Aliya is a medical student in the present day and brings this knowledge to the fore when Lily is hunting out the skills of the crafts people of the day. The author cleverly shows the reader how important these skills were, for survival, in Medieval times. 

I was frustrated with the way Aliya got on with life and fell into the role of medieval Countess. Aliya is never going to return to the present day but doesn’t seem to be particularly bothered, I appreciate that she doesn’t want to draw attention to herself but surely in private moments she would have shown some fear and upset about the life she has left behind. I also felt that the change in character that Aliya brings to Lily would have been questioned particularly by the nanny who is always by her side. First Lessons starts off really well and I was excited to see how it developed but for me it never did. Lina J Potter is a clever researcher and writes a good narrative but there is nothing to get the reader excited. Lina J Potter hints at friction, murderous intent and slavery but these fizzle out really quickly and left me thinking ‘that could have been great, if only….!’ 

There were a few minor errors but in the main this book was well edited. I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars, it was an interesting read but it just didn’t have enough substance for my liking and there was a great beginning but the middle and ending all merged into one and was very much the same. 

I think this book would appeal to teenagers who like historical fiction. I think they would find it entertaining but they would also learn a lot through the history and science without realising as it is so well woven into the structure of the book.

Thank you to Lina J. Potter for a free copy of this book in exchange for an impartial review.