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Well, this month I seemed to have a couple of authors run a way with my TBR! Not that I am complaining,as I enjoyed what I read!

I have also read the fantastic Children of the Quicksands, ready for me to teach to my year 4’s and it was SUCH a good read! Definitely one to grab if you have a child in KS2!

Read more: Book Reviews – March and April 2026

Children of the Quicksands

by Efua Traore

The Blurb

City girl Simi is sent to stay with her long-lost grandmother in a remote Nigerian village. There’s no TV, internet or phone. Not a single human-made sound can be heard at night, just the noise of birds and animals rustling in the dark forest outside.

Her witchlike grandmother dispenses advice and herbal medicine to the village, but she’s tight lipped about their family history. Something must have happened, but what?

Determined to find out, Simi disobeys her grandmother and goes exploring. Caught in the sinking red quicksand of a forbidden lake, her fantastical journey begins …

What I Thought

When this was added to the year 4 reading list for this year, I said I had never heard of it but added it to my TBR to read before AI started planning lessons and reading the story with my class.

Well, we all fell in love with the book. Beautifully written, the author brings Nigeria alive. Simi is a character we could all identify with, a fish out of water , going to stay with her Grandmother in a remote village.

The storytelling is wonderful, immersing you in the culture and traditions, along with the superstitions of Nigeria. My only, very slight, criticism is that the ending feels rushed in comparison to the rest of the book, where this magical story is built up so beautifully.

It is, however, truly captivating and got a 5/5 from all of us!

Where To Buy

Buy on Amazon

Dear Debbie

by Freida McFadden

The Blurb

Sometimes, enough is enough…

Debbie Mullen is losing it. For years, she has compiled all her best advice into her column, Dear Debbie, where the wives of New England come for sympathy and neighbourly advice. Through her work, Debbie has heard from countless women who are ignored, belittled, or even abused by their husbands. And Debbie does her best to guide them in the right direction.

Or at least, she did.

These days, Debbie’s life seems to be spiralling out of control. She just lost her job. Something strange is happening with her teenage daughters. And her husband is keeping secrets, according to the tracking app she installed on his phone. Now, Debbie’s done being the bigger person. She’s done being reasonable and practical. It’s time to take her own advice.

And now it’s time for payback against all the people in her life who deserve it the most.

What I Thought

This is a fast-paced thriller, building up the suspense and feeling of unease from the very start.

There are plenty of twists, some more unexpected than others but they do keep you guessing for the most part!

Debbie is a good main character who you really cheer for. I know that Freida’s books divide people, but I loved this one!

Where To Buy

Buy on Amazon

The Kennedy Curse

by James Patterson and Cynthia Fagen

The Blurb

The Kennedys were always taught to win at all costs. And they did – but the price they paid was unimaginable . . .

Across decades and generations, the Kennedys have been a family of charismatic adventurers, raised to take risks and excel. Their name is synonymous with American royalty. Their commitment to public service is legendary. But, for all the successes, the family has been blighted by assassinations, fatal accidents, drug and alcohol abuse and sex scandals.

To this day, the Kennedys occupy a unique, contradictory place in the world’s imagination: at once familiar and unknowable; charmed and cursed.

What I Thought

This is a good and well written book about the famous family.

I liked the way it was set out, going through family members in turn. As an overview of the whole family, it did not dive too deeply into any of the members, but gave a good amount of information about how the ‘curse’ affected them in turn.

I have always been interested in the Kennedy’s and have read a few things about the, but I found out something new from this book – that one of them is buried in the very county I live in!

An interesting and well written book, which I would recommend even if you have the slightest interest in the family.

Where To Buy

Buy on Amazon

The Last Days of Marilyn Munroe

by James Patterson and Imogen Edwards-Jones

The Blurb

BORN IN THE SHADOWS. LIVED FOR THE SPOTLIGHT. WAS SHE MURDERED?

Before Marilyn Monroe, there was Norma Jeane. No one would have thought that the girl who spent her childhood between foster homes and orphanages would one day become a global star.

The Last Days of Marilyn Monroe tells the extraordinary story of Marilyn Monroe’s life – and the shocking circumstances of her death.

For decades, fans have speculated about the truth of her final days. Was it suicide? A tragic accident? Murder? Drawn from rigorous research, this book seeks answers.

Told in vivid, dramatic scenes, James Patterson and Imogen Edwards-Jones uncover the life and death of the remarkable woman who was Marilyn Monroe.

What I Thought

The title is a little misleading – this book goes through Marilyn’s whole short, but extraordinary life, not just the last few days of hers.

I enjoy reading and watching things about Marilyn, such a sad story of this beautiful lady! This book didn’t offer much in the way of new information, but it was well written. The short chapters made it very easy to read and it kept you hooked.

If you are a true Marilyn connoisseur you probably won’t get much out of this one but if like me, you are a fan and just want to read a bit more about her, you will enjoy it.

Where To Buy

Buy on Amazon

The Scandalous Lady W.

by Hallie Rubenhold

The Blurb

It was the divorce that scandalised Georgian England… She was a spirited
young heiress. He was a handsome baronet with a promising career in government. Their marriage had the makings of a fairy tale but ended as one of the most salacious and highly publicised divorces in history.

For over two hundred years the story of Lady Worsley, her vengeful husband, and her lover, George Maurice Bisset, lay forgotten. Now Hallie Rubenhold, in her impeccably researched book, throws open a window to a rarely seen view of Georgian England, one coloured by passion, adventure and the defiance of social convention. The Worsley’s story, their struggles and outrageous lifestyle, promises to shock even the modern reader.

What I Thought

I loved Rubenhold’s The Five, enjoyed The Covent Garden Ladies and so was looking forward to this one… but I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much!

The book was well researched and well written, but I felt it often went off topic, and while some may enjoy this, I got a bit bored of it and wanted it to be stay focused on the story. Unfortunately, I felt Lady Worsley got a bit lost in this one!

Where To Buy

Buy on Amazon

The Tenant

by Freida McFadden

The Blurb

There’s no place like home…

Blake Porter is riding high, until he’s not. Fired abruptly from his job as a VP of marketing and unable to make the mortgage payments on the new townhouse he shares with his fiancée, he’s desperate to make ends meet.

Enter Whitney. Beautiful, charming, down-to-earth, and looking for a room to rent. She’s exactly what Blake’s looking for. Or is she?

Because something isn’t quite right. The neighbours start treating Blake differently. The smell of decay permeates his home, no matter how hard he scrubs. Strange noises jar him awake in the middle of the night. And soon, Blake fears someone knows his darkest secrets…

Danger lives right at home, and by the time Blake realises it, it’ll be far too late. The trap is already set.

What I Thought

Wow, what a page turner. I know some people love or hate Frieda’s books but surely this is one of the better ones, right?!

Just when you thought you had it all sussed out, there was another twist – the book was full of them and they were really good!

I went down a bit of a Freida rabbit hole with my reading this month, but I was really impressed with this one and struggled to put it down! Definitely one for thriller fans out there!

Where To Buy

Buy on Amazon

Want To Know A Secret?*

by Freida McFadden

The Blurb

From #1 internationally bestselling author Freida McFadden!

Everyone has secrets. Some are worse than others.

Influencer and baking sensation April Masterson knows the secret to the perfect gooey brownies. Or how to make key lime squares that will melt in your mouth. But if you keep watching her offline, you may find out some other secrets about April. Secrets she’d rather you didn’t know.

Like… Where did her son go when he snuck out late at night? What was she doing with the local soccer coach behind fogged windows?

And what’s buried in her backyard?

April’s secrets are enough to destroy her.

I’ll make sure of that.

What I Thought

I was kindly given this by NetGalley, so got to read it just before it came out.

Just like her other books I have read this month, it was full of twists and turns, which kept me picking it back up whenever I had a chance to read!

The book is told from two perspectives, but rather than going between the two, it is similar to The Housemaid, where we read one character’s POV in the first half of the book, then another.

The only criticism I would have of this one is that sometimes, it does seem a little far-fetched. The thrillers that really grab me and get under my skin are the ones where you think… this could actually happen. With this one, I didn’t quite have that, but it was a good read and still kept me on my toes and guessing along the way.

Where To Buy

Buy on Amazon

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Have you read any of these? Let me know what you thought in the comments below!

Take care and keep reading,