Relentless by Simon Kernick

Star rating:* (only because we couldn't give it any less) Not recommended

Plot: Jack Kalley receives a telephone call from a friend whom he has not heard from in some time - the friend is dying and manages to gasp out the 1st line of Jack's address. Someone wants to kill Jack...but who and why?

Review: A load of far-fetched rubbish with gratuitous violence thrown in for good measure!!! Very formulaic and americanised. You don't care about the characters, what happens to them or why. Book peters out at the end rather than tying up all the loose ends but doesn't leave the reader wanting more.

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

Star rating: ***** Highly recommended

Plot: Tracking down Dracula - librarians are not safe in this novel

Review: Good read, very detailed - requires concentration but very worth the effort. Underlying romantic/family relationships involved in the plot, subtle, not slushy. Our favourite read so far.

The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde

Star rating: ***

Plot: Detective Jack Spratt (head of the nursery crime division) has to solve the murder of Humpty Dumpty - this is not a children's story, so don't be put off by the idea.

Review: Interesting, clever idea. Quite nostalgic but rambled a bit. Picked up pace towards the conclusion. By the end, you were drawn into the book and it had a good twist at the end. However, enjoyment of this book depends on your sense of humour!!

Scared to Live by Stephen Booth

Star rating: **

Comments: Predictable, the literary equivalent of paint by numbers. Easy to read, but better if you've read others by Booth first. Characterisation weak, but some characters true to life. As it is set around Derbyshire, it’s good to read a book set in places you recognise.

Last year's book reviews

The next few posts will concern the books we read last year as a group. I will be posting our review. All star ratings are out of a maximum of 5 stars. These reviews are entirely the opinions of the staff reading group at Sinfin Community school. If anyone else has read any of these books and would like to leave a comment, please feel free to do so.

1st attempt

Hi everyone and welcome to the staff reading group blog.

Last year, we read a number of books and are hoping to continue this year.

I would appreciate it if anyone who is interested in joining could let me know - just leave a comment on the page (with your real name if your using a blog name, so I know who you are!!! ;^))

The reviews of last year's books will appear shortly.