Roberta Reads

The Plastic Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg My rating: 5 of 5 stars I read this without reading any of the previous books in the series. I hugely enjoyed this book, it is so much fun. A type of magic that is new to me. It is very well written (unlike this review), easy to read, and only contains mild peril. It also contains a gentle romance that I enjoyed. The one downside: use of the word pants for trousers by an English character. This is the only lapse due to the author being (I assume) American that really stuck out. Otherwise an excellent, fun read, full of magic and romance. View all my reviews

A Conformable Wife by Alice Chetwynd Ley My rating: 4 of 5 stars A light-hearted and entertaining Regency romance, set (mostly) in Bath. I greatly enjoyed this book, although it seemed quite long, it made me laugh multiple times, and has a very satisfactory ending. As with other books by this author, almost as good as Georgette Heyer (which is a high accolade). View all my reviews

Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho My rating: 5 of 5 stars This is an excellent book. My second favourite new book this year (and given that I get through one a day, that’s saying a lot). I found the first 2 or 3 chapters dull - this was partly how I was feeling at the time, exhausted and brainfogged, and partly the language being a little heavy on the big, obscure words - but as soon as Prunella sauntered onto the page I was sold. From that point forwards, it just got better and better. Regency Era but with magic - excellent Magical creatures - excellent Fun and just a teeny bit of silliness here and there - excellent Sense of humour - excellent Politics - urgh I hate reading about these, but (apart from the first couple of chapters) this was handled with a relatively light touch, being just one element of the plot. Prunella - excellent, I love everything about her Yep, second only to the 5th Gender by Gail Carriger. Highly recommended. V...

A Vicarage Reunion by Kate Hewitt My rating: 3 of 5 stars Very well written, realistic to life, an excellent story. I really enjoyed this, but reading is my escape from the overwhelming emotionalness that is life, so I won’t be reading any more of this particular series. I would definitely recommend it if you like romances and people working through their issues and finding themselves. It really is very good, just not my cup of tea. View all my reviews

Timeless by Gail Carriger My rating: 5 of 5 stars This is my current favourite of the Parasol Protectorate books, for the scene where they arrive in Egypt and load themselves onto donkeys alone. Wonderful silliness, supernatural adventure, genuine love and affection, and tea. What more could anyone ask for? Everything I’ve come to expect from my favourite author. View all my reviews

Duke In Disguise by G.L. Snodgrass My rating: 2 of 5 stars After reading a previous book by the author, which had a good story, but needed a proof reader, I decided to buy this more recent book, in the hope that things had improved. I was sadly disappointed. The proof reading has improved a little - there are still many errors, and lots of extraneous punctuation, but it wasn’t as irritating this time. My main issue is with the story. I’m not a massive fan of insta-love, marriage due to being compromised and lack of communication, but these are tolerable if the rest of the story makes up for it. That is not the case here. The Duke actually tells his new wife that she is there to serve him and facilitate his life, that is all, and this is never contradicted, or grown out of. I expected them (after their hasty marriage) to gradually get to know one another and fall in love, instead he eventually says he always loved her, then everything is magically fin...

We'll Meet Again by Cathy Bramley My rating: 5 of 5 stars A wonderful short story of second love. View all my reviews

Heartless by Gail Carriger My rating: 5 of 5 stars Gail Carriger is a delight, as always. In this book, Alexia Maccon, in her capacity as Muhja, has to unravel a plot against the queen. Along the way, she also unravels some of the past, solves everyone’s problems (to her own satisfaction anyway), and drinks a lot of tea. Silly in the best way! View all my reviews

A Brazen Curiosity: A Regency Cozy by Lynn Messina My rating: 4 of 5 stars An entertaining cozy crime set during the Regency Era, this audiobook is light-hearted and amusing to listen to. For me, this audiobook is let down by the narrator. Although the expression and emotion used by the narrator is excellent, it’s a shame that her rather obvious American accent keeps sneaking its way in. This may not be an issue for American listeners, but as a British listener, it stands out a lot to start with. After a while I became used to it, and no longer noticed (except for an occasional word that was pronounced so oddly I had to think about what it was). I’m told this has improved for the next book, which I shall certainly be listening to. The story itself, however, is great fun. Though not necessarily highly accurate to the Regency Era (I wouldn’t know, all I know about the era comes from Heyer and Austen), there was nothing that stood out to me as an anachronism. I greatly e...

The Frights of Fiji by Sunayna Prasad My rating: 2 of 5 stars I’m sorry to give such a negative review, but I really didn’t enjoy this book. I’m an adult, rather than of middle grade age, but I have read many MG books and really enjoyed them (Stephanie Burgis, for example). The language used in this story is really odd, almost as though it has been translated from another language. For example, people were frequently “bending” their eyebrows - both for (presumably) surprise/enquiry and when they might have been frowning. Emotions are never referenced. The physical manifestations of emotions (sighs etc) are described. The whole book reads almost as an official report of some kind, everything feels at a distance, it’s impossible to feel involved in the story. The writing comes across as very stiff. There were also excessive quantities of description of food, clothing, detailing routine tasks, mentioning the number of minutes things took. The heroine wa...