March Book Haul #StackedShelves #BookReviews #BookBlogging #TBR #Bookmail

Welcome to my March book haul. Things are beginning to heat up this year with blog tours galore and many big titles starting to show up. There is plenty of fiction and non-fiction on this list. I have already started Soon and it is great to be learning the positiveness behind procrastination. Kin sounds really cool too, Viking Noir is not something to be sniffed at! I am also excited about getting into The Folded Land as I am really enjoying the Relics series. I adore the idea of Meddling Kids! I am also chuffed to see a new book from Mike Russell. It is going to be a seriously good year for books and this list is testament to that. Thank you to HarperCollins, Quercus, Bonnier Zaffre, Orenda Books, Titan Books, Mike Russell, John Murray, Orbit and Sceptre for these offerings and I hope to read them all as soon as possible.

Released 19/04/18 via Harper 360

Procrastination is one of the most human traits that we as a species fail to acknowledge. I have already read and reviewed Soon as I was intrigued by Andrew Santella’s arguments for and against procrastination. Some of our greatest innovators loved a good distraction and may be a little delay here and there might be good for us. My review will be published around the time of release.

Book Synopsis

In the vein of Quiet, a thought-provoking exploration of procrastination and its notable successes throughout history.

In an age where it has never been easier to fritter away time with a steady stream of distractions, we still feel the oppressive tick of the almighty clock. But what if instead of scolding ourselves from indulging in distraction, we rebelled against deadlines and indulged in dawdling in order to achieve greater creative success? In Soon, writer and self-proclaimed procrastinator Andrew Santella explores the universal habit of procrastination and gives it, at last, a vigorous defense. As Santella argues, procrastination is not pure sloth, nor is it even bad at its core. It can be, as a matter of fact, pleasurable and enriching. By putting ourselves in charge of our limited time-be it choosing to sweep the stairs before finishing a painting, or reading a novel instead of doing our taxes-we find ourselves unlocking new creative potential and success.

Through the lessons of history, philosophy, psychology and science, and the stories of notable procrastinators like Charles Darwin, Leonardo da Vinci, Frank Lloyd Wright and Moses, Santella makes a compelling case for the power of procrastination.

Released 08/03/18 via Jo Fletcher Books

Viking Noir? I have no idea how this novel is going to pan out but I sure am eager to try it out. Scandinavian fiction has always been a reliable source of entertainment for me as a blogger. This is set in the 900s, I think that might be the earliest setting I have been introduced to in a novel. I will let you know what I think very soon.

Book Synopsis

Everyone loves a family reunion.

He can deny it all he likes, but everyone knows Viking warlord Unnthor Reginsson brought home a great chest of gold when he retired from the longboats and settled down with Hildigunnur in a remote valley. Now, in the summer of 970, adopted daughter Helga is awaiting the arrival of her unknown siblings: dark, dangerous Karl, lithe, clever Jorunn, gentle Aslak, henpecked by his shrewish wife, and the giant Bjorn, made bitter by Volund, his idiot son.

And they’re coming with darkness in their hearts.

The siblings gather, bad blood simmers and old feuds resurface as Unnthor’s heirs make their moves on the old man’s treasure – until one morning Helga is awakened by screams. Blood has been shed: kin has been slain.

No one confesses, but all the clues point to one person – who cannot possibly be the murderer, at least in Helga’s eyes. But if she’s going to save the innocent from the axe and prevent more bloodshed, she’s got to solve the mystery – fast . . .

Lies. Manipulation. Murder. There’s nothing quite like family . . .

Released 22/03/18 via Bonnier Zaffre

I received Good Friday out of the blue (thanks Annabelle). It actually comes out the week before Good Friday but I might stall my review until then. I have seen Lynda La Plante around the book community but have never been introduced to her work. If you have anything good to say about LLP’s work then please let me know.

Book Synopsis

In the race to stop a deadly attack just pray she’s not too late . . .

March, 1976. The height of The Troubles. An IRA bombing campaign strikes terror across Britain. Nowhere and no one is safe.

When detective constable Jane Tennison survives a deadly explosion at Covent Garden tube station, she finds herself in the middle of a media storm. Minutes before the blast, she caught sight of the bomber. Too traumatised to identify him, she is nevertheless a key witness and put under 24-hour police protection.

As work continues round the clock to unmask the terrorists, the Metropolitan police are determined nothing will disrupt their annual Good Friday dinner dance. Amid tight security, hundreds of detectives and their wives and girlfriends will be at St Ermin’s Hotel in central London. Jane, too, is persuaded to attend.

But in the week leading up to Good Friday, Jane experiences a sudden flashback. She realises that not only can she identify the bomber, but that the IRA Active Service Unit is very close to her indeed. She is in real and present danger. In a nail-biting race against time, Jane must convince her senior officers that her instincts are right before London is engulfed in another bloodbath.

Released 20/03/18 via Titan Books

Yessssss. Part two of the Relics series. Relics split the crowd but I love mythology so much that I couldn’t get enough of Tim Lebbon’s fantasy/crime novel. I am in the process of reading The Folded Land and I can tell you that it gets even better, more mythological creatures/beings, wilder plot lines and more intense characters. Review very soon.

Book Synopsis

In the dark underbelly of our world, there’s a black market in arcane things—living and dead. Angela Gough has been pulled into this world, making her a criminal on the run.

In London she encountered the Kin—satyrs and centaurs, Nephilim and wraiths, they are hunted and slaughtered for their body parts. Fleeing back to the United States, Angela discovers that the Kin are everywhere, and they are tired of being prey.

When her niece Sammi is struck by lightning, she is drawn toward the mysterious Folded Land, and its powerful and deadly ruler. Helped by her lover Vince, caught in the midst of a Kin uprising, Angela must locate Sammi before the girl is lost forever.

Released 28/02/18 via Orenda Books

There is a huge blog tour for We Were The Salt Of The Sea happening right now! Go check it out now! I have heard great things about this novel and I am excited to get to it. I am not a huge fan of the sea but I am a lover of crime stories so hopefully it will appeal to the latter rather than the former 😀

Book Synopsis

As Montrealer Catherine Day sets foot in a remote fishing village and starts asking around about her birth mother, the body of a woman dredges up in a fisherman’s nets. Not just any woman, though: Marie Garant, an elusive, nomadic sailor and unbridled beauty who once tied many a man’s heart in knots. Detective Sergeant Joaquin Morales, newly drafted to the area from the suburbs of Montreal, barely has time to unpack his suitcase before he’s thrown into the deep end of the investigation.

On Quebec’s outlying Gaspé Peninsula, the truth can be slippery, especially down on the fishermen’s wharves. Interviews drift into idle chit-chat, evidence floats off with the tide and the truth lingers in murky waters. It’s enough to make DS Morales reach straight for a large whisky… Both a dark and consuming crime thriller and a lyrical, poetic ode to the sea, We Were the Salt of the Sea is a stunning, page-turning novel, from one of the most exciting new names in crime fiction.

Released 08/02/18 via Strange Books

I have read all of Mike Russell’s books so far they are certainly unique reading experiences. I love short stories and Mike Russell has an original vision which generates some truly fantastic narratives. I like the brevity of his prose, each story lasting around 1 to 9 pages. Strange Secrets seemed to sneak up on me but I am excited to read it and immerse myself in the strangeness 😀

Book Synopsis

Discover the mystery of the two-headed rose and many more Strange Secrets in this new collection of extraordinary stories by Mike Russell. ‘It can’t be real.’ ‘But it is.’ Strange Secrets invites you to discover the magical and the marvellous. Startlingly inventive and constantly entertaining, these unique, vital and vividly realised stories will take you to places you have never been before. Strange Secrets is Mike Russell’s third short-story collection.

Released 11/01/18 via John Murray

I have already read this as I couldn’t wait. What a book! My review was not hard to write at all. I love original non-fiction and Arnold van de Laar has put his surgical knowledge to good use here to tell us all about the rich history of how surgery developed over the ages. Under The Knife is hair-raisingly graphic but if you can stand that then you are in for an informative, fascinating and awesome treat.

Book Synopsis

How did a decision made in the operating theatre spark hundreds of conspiracy theories about JFK?
How did a backstage joke prove fatal to world-famous escape artist Harry Houdini?
How did Queen Victoria change the course of surgical history?

Through dark centuries of bloodletting and of amputations without anaesthetic to today’s sterile, high-tech operating theatres, surgeon Arnold van de Laar uses his experience and expertise to tell an incisive history of the past, present and future of surgery.

Released 03/04/18 via Titan Books

I had to start this straight away… I couldn’t resist a blatant yet nostalgic homage to adventure fiction like The Famous Five and Scooby Doo infused with a lovecraftian sense of horror. Meddling Kids is a condensed version of my childhood influences and I am loving every moment of it. It is certainly a unique perspective on some of our favourite tales.

Book Synopsis

A nostalgic celebration of horror, friendship and many-tentacled, interdimensional demon spawn.

In 1977 the Blyton Summer Detective Club unmasked the elusive Sleepy Lake monster—another low-life fortune hunter who would have gotten away with it too, if it weren’t for those meddling kids.

By 1990 the former detectives are haunted by strange, half-remembered events that cannot be explained by a guy in a mask. Andy, the once-intrepid tomboy now wanted in two states, wants answers. To find them she will need Kerri, the former kid genius now drinking her ghosts away in New York with Tim, an excitable Weimaraner descended from the original canine member of the club. They will also have to get Nate, the horror nerd currently residing in an asylum. Luckily Nate has not lost contact with Peter, the handsome jock turned movie star who was once their leader… which is remarkable, considering Peter has been dead for years.

The time has come to get the team back together and find out what actually happened all those years ago. It’s their only chance to end the nightmares and, perhaps, save the world.

Released 05/04/18 via Bloomsbury

Happiness sounds like a challenging yet rewarding read that I am looking forward to sinking into. I try and read as many evocative and meaningful stories as I can as I like to widen my perspective on cultural and sociological concepts, themes and ideologies. I hope to experience Aminatta Forna’s work very soon.

Book Synopsis

Waterloo Bridge, London. Two strangers collide. Attila, a Ghanaian psychiatrist, and Jean, an American studying the habits of urban foxes. From this chance encounter in the midst of the rush of a great city, numerous moments of connections span out and interweave, bringing disparate lives together.

Attila has arrived in London with two tasks: to deliver a keynote speech on trauma and to check up on the daughter of friends, his ‘niece’, Ama, who hasn’t called home in a while. It soon emerges that she has been swept up in an immigration crackdown – and now her young son Tano is missing.

When, by chance, Attila bumps into Jean again, she joins him in his search for Tano, mobilizing into action the network she has built up, mainly from the many West African immigrants working London’s myriad streets, of volunteer fox-spotters: security guards, hotel doormen, traffic wardens. All unite to help and as the search continues, a deepening friendship between Attila and Jean unfolds.

In this delicate yet powerful novel of loves lost and new, of past griefs and of the hidden side of a teeming metropolis, Aminatta Forna asks us to consider the values of the society we live in, our co-existence with one another and all living creatures – and the true nature of happiness.

Thank you for stopping by to check out my most recent book haul here on Always Trust In Books. Between March and May there a huge wave of great books coming our way so this list is just the beginning. I am grateful for every title that comes my way and I will work hard as usual to get through them all to share my thoughts here and on Instagram. Book post is certainly the best post and I have been insanely lucky this month already. If you are reading or have read any of these books then please let me know!

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