I’m sharing another instalment of my Mini Review Mondays, the most recent of which was last week. In case you haven’t seen any of my previous posts, I do ‘mini’ reviews of books that I’ve previously read and am now ready to share my full thoughts about. All of today’s books are published this Thursday, the 23rd.
First up, I’d like to talk about I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue. Thank you to The Borough Press for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Would you want to know what your colleagues say behind your back?
Meet Jolene.
She’s socially awkward, depressed and hates her work colleagues. Due to a serious IT error, she’s also just been granted access to all of their emails and private messages. She knows she should tell HR, but finds it hard to resist knowing what they all really think of her…
When her access informs her of forthcoming redundancies, Jolene realises she could wield her new-found knowledge even more powerfully. But the more she learns about the people she spends most of her waking hours with, the harder she finds it to hate them. In the end, Jolene will have to decide if she can keep living her life between the lines of an email, or whether she’s ready to experience the world she’s avoided for so long.
TW: cheating, cancer, terminal illness, addiction, alcoholism, anxiety, depression, grief, flashbacks
My Thoughts:
I Hope This Finds You Well in an unexpectedly moving, humorous look at when the power shifts in the petty landscape of office politics.
I came for the biting office satire and I stayed for the beating heart of this book. Jolene is a complex, somewhat unlikable character at times, but you still root for her and cackle at her newfound power. She is fraught, caught up in family expectations and a crushing realisation that she is not where she wants to be at work. Her voice is sparky and spiky, drawing you in and pushing you away at equal measure. Life is solitary and unremarkable, but the IT malfunction changes everything. With her newfound power, she can use it for good or bad and that central ethical dilemma drives this book. Further secrets and lies are exposed and she gets further and further caught up in a web of deception.
Also running through this book is a very prominent theme of grief. Much of Jolene’s isolation and deliberate alienation stems from a bereavement she has never really started to live with. Sue handles this with delicacy, unpacking the myriad of emotions that surround this for Jolene. We swing from anger to blame to denial and guilt. It adds an unexpected gut punch to the book and takes it from solely satirical observations to something that has a bit more heart to it. In this space, Jolene herself evolves from caricature to character and takes up space in our hearts in the meantime.
I loved her relationships with other characters and how they developed. Many of them went from fairly stereotypical office types, which we’ve all seen and/or experienced before, to fully realised and three dimensional people with their own issues and motivations. These people went from punchlines to people you wanted to get to know. Sue does not overly explain or justify everything, instead she just leaves people as people, as messy and fractured as that can be.
I Hope This Finds You Well is a complex character study that also delves into the little nuances of humanity and life we often forget in a more monotone existence of work. Prepare to both laugh and cry.
Next up, I’d like to talk about Moth to a Flame by Finn Longman. Thank you to Simon and Schuster Children’s UK for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Isabel Ryans has fled Espera, leaving behind her identity as teen assassin the Moth. Now she’s trying to adjust to the reality of the outside world. But her grief and trauma are catching up with her, and surrounded by civilians who will never understand what life is like in the walled city, she feels more alone than ever.
When a journalist is murdered nearby, suspicion automatically falls on Isabel. And inside Espera’s walls, the abolitionist movement is gaining strength. When Isabel’s search for the killer leads to an unexpected reunion, she’s forced to decide whether she can really leave the city behind, and what part the Moth might have to play in the uprising.
Is Isabel Ryans the city’s saviour . . . or its scapegoat?
TW: death, murder, violence, gore, blood, injury, depression, PTSD, grief, past child abuse, traumatic flashbacks, unsafe sexual activity, drug use, alcohol abuse, self-destructive behaviours
My Thoughts:
Moth to a Flame is a brave, brilliant and blistering conclusion to an exceptional YA trilogy.
Finn Longman has crafted one of the best YA trilogies I’ve ever read. The Butterfly Assassin, The Hummingbird Killer and now Moth to a Flame together carve out a bloody and brutal tale of revenge, trauma and starting a process of recovery. This has never been a series to hold back from going there and getting knee-deep in guts and gore. However, I adore that Longman ultimately choses to focus on the hope of recovery and healing, as long and arduous as that road may be. This is just as dark and deadly as previous books, primarily grappling with the central theme of justice, forgiveness and absolution. Longman asks what does true justice look like and who gets to wield it?
Someone heavily grappling with that question is Isabel Ryans, who will remain one of my favourite protagonists ever. She is mired in blood and regret from her past actions, but consistently fails to forgive herself within the horrendous circumstances of her past. She is bruised and broken at the beginning of this book and it is only through various forms of love and acceptance that she can start to make amends with herself. I still cannot get over how fantastic and nuanced the disability and mental health representation is within this book. It is heavy reading at times, but it is heart-breaking honest. Even extrapolated to a fantasy space, it rings very true to life. Longman fills a space that has historically been neglected and tells a story that will resonate with so many readers who otherwise do not get to hear their voices reflected.
This conclusion to the trilogy also brings some of the political themes that have always been driving forces of the narrative further into the spotlight. It kind of is a murder mystery/conspiracy narrative that deals with dehumanisation and othering, drawing parallels with our society. Longman has never been shy about speaking out and this continues in fine fashion. Their writing is filled with fury, but also with kindness and a message of being able to face our past & start to heal from it.
Moth to a Flame closes out a spectacular YA trilogy in suitably brilliant fashion. If you’ve not picked up these books by now, you’re missing out on amazing stories and unforgettable characters.
Finally, I’d like to delve into The Guests by Nikki Smith. Thank you to Viking Books for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
WELCOME TO PARADISE!
Or so the staff say as they greet the Hamiltons on the pristine shores of the idyllic Maldives resort.
And it starts off that way: snorkelling in the serene blue sea, champagne picnics on powder-white sand, and moonlit walks under the stars.
But lies lurk beneath the luxury, because each of the guests has a secret… and they’re not the only ones.
Months later, a grisly discovery is made.
Whatever happened to the Hamiltons? And how did their once-in-a-lifetime trip turn into the holiday from hell?
TW: death, murder, infidelity, gaslighting, manipulation, PTSD, traumatic flashbacks
My Thoughts:
The Guests was the type of sizzling mystery that makes you long for summer – it was scorching, full of secrets and had some breath-taking twists.
I love a good thriller and it’s even better when it sheds light on somethign i find fascinating. The Guests aims at the luxurious holidays of the uber rich, in far off destinations. It peels back the mystique of the rich and their ‘perfect holiday’ to instead show a grimy, gritty story full of deceit and despicable acts. In particular, I liked how Smith used the theme of corruption over various acts – showing how it corroded people’s ethics, motivations and actions beyond the pale. It is all about power – having it and maintaining it. This manifests through money and status but also influence over the actions of others. Smith exemplifies this through the issue of climate change – something supposedly near to these people’s hearts and a selling point of the resort. Nothing is really as it seems and that ideal is soon torn down in favour of more self-serving purposes.
Smith excells with the use of multiple narratives. We get to see everything play out and eventually learn the different motivations behind it all. There are so many layers to this twisted tale, each darker and more surprising than the last. It is also such a satifying experience to see the pieces fall into place as you finally start to work out precisely what happened when. You are set up with a grisly opening and stay guessing as to exactly what is behind it throughout. There is even one final flourish to close out the book. I love when a book sits in morally murky territory and The Guests is firmly there. It is ambiguous and follows a cast of majorly flawed characters, each pursuing their own goals no matter the cost. No one here is really that good.
The Guests is an excellent summer mystery, tinged with sun and secrets. Let Smith transport you to paradise, but beware what may await you there.
A Short Book Lover 
What a fantastic review of Moth to a Flame. I’m getting emotional just reading it. Thank you so much. 🥹
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Thank you so much for reading and responding & what lovely comments – this has made my day! Your trilogy means so much to me.
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