Fountain of Forever by K.D. Berry

The Fountain of Forever promises the gift of eternal youth. To turn back the years and make you young again, if you pay enough money.

People come from all over the country in a desperate attempt to regain some time and to live a little longer.Unfortunately it's all just a very elaborate scam, at least it is until Persephone turns up.

Speaking of turning back time, Vilnius is fleeing from his obligations. The payment for his wishes is still outstanding and the bailiff is hot on his heels. If that wasn't enough going on, Persephone is being hunted and temporal agents are afoot.

The time-traveller Merrivel also makes an appearance in this story. Readers may remember him from previous Berry novels.

Fate and time are changed and played with like pawns on a chess board in this story that mixes wit with fantasy and the fantastical. Berry likes to keep it funny and playful, whilst incorporating elements of mythology, fantasy and sci-fi.

Buy Fountain of Forever at Amazon UK or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

Be warned you might have to dig into your sci-fi chest of knowledge for this one or a wee bit of Dr Who may do the trick. In essence we are talking a causal loop paradox with an endless stream of different parallel worlds or realities.

It's interesting to note however that these realities are determined and influenced by the conscious, and perhaps even the subconscious thoughts and choices of the subjects.

The state of choice is arrived at via drug that creates a loophole or perhaps even a type of black-hole, both from a psychological and physical point of view.

I have to hand it to Crouch he makes quantum physics seem semi-understandable. He explains it in a way that anyone can understand. I especially enjoyed his explanation of Schrödinger's cat. Quantum superposition 101.

The main character finds himself in the middle of a complex conundrum. Everything he loves has been taken from him, The world he knows has literally disappeared.

Crouch makes a valid point about crossroads in life and the paths we choose to take. Many people are guilty of living off of what ifs or if only I hads, especially when life becomes a little mediocre and repetitive. The grass is always greener on the other side, eh? Well the truth is it isn't, because the grass is just grass and it's the same shade of green on either side.

Jason has that kind of important crossroad in his life. One road leads to fame and a brilliant career, and the other to a family life with a white picket fence.

What would you do if you could go back to your own personal crossroads and change your entire future with just one small choice? Keeping in mind that it would completely erase anything you loved or valued up to that point.

Dark Matter is the kind of innovative read that makes you wonder whether or not you are the only one of you and if our world is the only one that exists.

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Sarah by J.T. LeRoy

It is an unusual but strangely compelling read. It's as if the world of truck stop prostitution exists as a solitary planet in the universe called earth. To the so-called lizards it is the only life they know and nothing seems to be able to penetrate the bubble of pay as you go sexual relations.

Sarah, Cherry Vanilla or Sam are all one and the same person, who he or she is depends on the situation and environment they find themselves in. Sometimes she is the pretty little girl mirage, sometimes she is the raunchy cherry on the top of the sexual sundae and towards the end he is just himself.

For Sarah/Sam everything he does leads back to Sarah the mother and Sarah the hooker. There is a constant need for acceptance, love and acknowledgement. The neglected child resurfaces over and over again, despite the fact the mother doesn't acknowledge their biological relationship.

A sleazy tale of abuse via Sarah's johns emerges, which eventually leads to him working in the same industry as her. As a reader I felt pity for the behaviour he has to endure. He is so desperate for any kind of attention from her that he even misses the insults when she is gone. A sad little boy who only knows the affection of truckers in need of sexual gratification.

It is a bit of an oddball read, but I really enjoyed  it. LeRoy is a breath of fresh air, albeit one that is tainted by the sordid world of prostitution.

Unlike many other reviewers my review is based solely on the book I have read and not on the bizarre story of the pseudo writer and the actual writer behind the pseudonym.

Buy Sarah at Amazon UK or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty

Moriarty has a very specific style of storytelling. Her stories tend to be intricately woven slow-burners. This story is a perfect example of her particular style.

Nearly the entire length of the book is spent arriving at 'the event' and nearly all the interactions and characters are linked to said event. The before, the after and the duration of the traumatic event.

The truth is accidents happen. None of us are perfect and we all make mistakes. This could happen to anyone. It only takes one small moment, a few seconds or the blink of an eye and everything can change forever.

There is no such thing as a perfect person with the perfect life. Glass houses, as they say. The only difference is the severity of our mishaps and bad decisions.

Clementine needs to tell her mother to get a grip and get stuffed. Nothing is ever good enough and after the event Clementine needs support and not admonishments. From Erika's point of view Pam is the surrogate mother who has kept her going. However Clementine just sees Pam as the woman who always treated her as second best. Being usurped by the pseudo daughter. Someone she never wanted to befriend in the first place.

The author really examines the friendship between the two women. It seems to be based on falsehoods and forced situations. The two of them keep up the pretence for themselves and Pam, almost as if it's a routine and cycle they can't get out of. Or is it really that straightforward?

I liked the way Moriarty approached this story like a jigsaw puzzle. Each person owns an important piece of the solution, and yet no one admits to it, which means in the end the truth still remains a secret to the majority of the participants.

Buy Truly Madly Guilty at Amazon UK or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

Machinations by Hayley Stone

Artificial Intelligence has started a war against humans. Initially the machines are infected with a virus that in essence turns them against all things two-legged and breathing.

Humans become the targets of extermination and slavery. The machines are trying to annihilate the pockets of rebellion, which exist all over the globe, but are isolated due to the nature of the threat.

The machines can pick up any signal or message sent via any type of equipment. All humans have become sitting ducks and face the threat of extinction.

Rhona or rather the new and improved version of Rhona finds herself torn between her friend Samuel and her old lover Camus. Not all of her memories, and the emotions attached to them, have been restored after her rebirth.

On top of that she isn't considered trustworthy by the upper echelon. and yet the underlings still consider her to be in charge. Talk about mixed messages. Nobody quite knows where she fits in, including Rhona.

Machinations is a fast-paced story with plenty of room for development. It is certainly the type of read I tend to enjoy.

What Stone really needs to do is pick a genre and stick with it. Not that you can't mix, but this has a great post-apocalyptic premise, which is weakened slightly by the strong romantic vein flowing through it.

If you're writing sci-fi, dystopian, fantasy or post-apocalyptic stories you have to be bold and ruthless enough to do without the en vogue popular formula you think will draw in readers from other genres. It is absolutely doable. Not that you can't have a love interest or romance, you just shouldn't let it overpower the premise or main genre you're going for.

Saying all that, I did enjoy the premise and the read. I also look forward to seeing where Stone takes the story in the sequel, Counterpart.

Buy Machinations at Amazon UK or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

All these Perfect Strangers by Aoife Clifford

I would really like to start this review with a 'the moral of this story is; never....., but then I would give the ending away in one fell swoop.

Pen is an interesting and diverse character. The reader experiences her as the victim, as the manipulative young woman with dangerous secrets, and also as the normal girl trying to fit in.

It then becomes hard to decide whether Pen is the character we shouldn't trust or just someone who happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Pen lives under a cloud of suspicion in her own town. To this day she denies any involvement in a local killing that put her best friend behind bars. On top of all that she has to deal with the string of useless and nasty boyfriends her needy mother brings into their home on a regular basis.

I really enjoyed the way Clifford played with the question of guilt, and whether or not Pen is simply a killer.Will her need for her own sense of justice and retribution always lead to the inevitable? Does self preservation always equal violence, death or revenge in her mind?

Even towards the end I still felt myself feeling empathy towards her, feeling anger on her behalf at the betrayal. Is she a so-called criminal due to the circumstances she finds herself in? Is she just one of those people who seem to live under a dark cloud of bad luck?

It is a compelling thought-provoking read by an author who knows how to create memorable characters. Clifford also knows how play with the questions of innocence and guilt in a way that may leave the reader with a conundrum

Buy All These Perfect Strangers at Amazon UK or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena

It starts off quite well, but it gets a wee bit overzealous after that. The ending is especially 'out there' and in complete contradiction to how a character would behave after such an awful ordeal, then again Anne isn't really the super-mommy she pretends to be.

Marco and Anne are faced with one of the worst nightmares a parent can face. What's worse is the fact their careless attitude and behaviour allowed it to happen. The two of them are ridden with guilt.

From the very beginning the police take a close look at every angle. including the parents. Did Anne make a drunken mistake? Did Marco lie about checking the baby? Was their home targeted specifically?

Turns out everyone has some kind of secret to hide. Anne has a dark past. Marco isn't as innocent as he seems, and the next door neighbours are more than just a modern happy couple.

Suspicion and paranoia seep into the relationships and the investigation. Is it a crime of opportunity or a well-planned and thought out intrigue?

The first scenes and the beginning of the premise are well thought out, in fact it's fine until Marco drives off with the ransom demand. After that it isn't structured enough and everything seems a little rushed, far-fetched and overambitious.

Buy The Couple Next Door at Amazon UK or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.