Rainbow Readers

The Asylum

by Karen Coles

This story can be a tough read as we discover the different methods used in asylums at this time on vulnerable women, the effects that the various treatments had and the dismal prognosis for a cure and eventual release. It is a tragic place and the women’s suffering is tough to read.

One day, a new young and ambitious doctor arrives at the asylum eager to try out new treatments such as hypnosis, which he believes may help ‘cure’ some of the patients. He chooses Maud as an ideal candidate and slowly he gains her trust and willingness to try this new technique. It is through this hypnosis, that we the readers, finally begin to learn more about Maud/Mary’s past and how she came to be incarcerated. We learn that she loves botany and drawing and Dr Diamond (as Maud calls him) allows her a pencil and notebook which has to remain hidden from the other doctors and medical staff for fear of it being taken away.  As we travel deeper into Maud’s past, we learn that her parents and brothers tragically died an untimely death leaving her alone with no means of support. She seeks refuge at the nearby Banville household where she hopes to work hard but be safe, but sadly for Maud, this is not the case.

As the story progressed, I found I was desperate to find out what had happened to Maud to cause her to be admitted to the asylum and I was rooting for her and Dr Dimmond to secure her release. The slow reveal is tantalising to the reader, encouraging our sympathies to lie with Maud as we witness her memories and the details of her past life coming together. How does she survive such brutal treatment? Was she wrongfully incarcerated?  Will she ever be released? Readers will discover all this for themselves and will hopefully be rooting for Maud from the moment her true background is revealed.  Dr Dimmond believes that if Maud can confront the traumas from her past, she has hope for a future to look forward to, for Maud, the slow revelation and return of her memory inspires a deep need for revenge. When the good doctor finds himself in battle with the bad doctor, there is tension – who will win and what will happen to Maud?

I’ve not read many Gothic mysteries before, so this style of writing with its dark and depressing gloomy atmosphere was relatively new to me but it did make everything seem more realistic, distressing and desperate, with the eventual reason for Maud’s incarceration proving to be particularly heart breaking.

A dark read with lots of information on the horrendous treatment of women during the 18th and 19th centuries and the incredible beliefs and mistreatment of those suffering from poor mental health at the time.  Well worth a read if you are looking for something a little bit different.

Keep the Home Fires Burning

A Woman’s War

A Woman’s Courage

By Simon Block

And then just recently, much to my delight,  I came across the three books above whilst scrolling through the UWI (Unofficial Women's Institute Facebook page.) Written by S Block, the creator and writer of Home Fires, they take us through what would have happened had the series been allowed to continue. I’ve just read them all one after the other without a break, such was my eagerness to find out what had happened to the women of Great Paxford WI and whether their menfolk survived the war.  Block has followed the storylines immediately following the aircraft crash at the end of series 2 and tied up all those loose ends - rather satisfactorily in my opinion.

The plane crash was to change the lives of all the villagers.  Pat Simms and her abusive husband Bob lost their home and moved in with Joyce the formidable ex chair of the WI.  Pat longs to escape her hideous marriage but will her Polish lover Marek survive the war and come back for her or is she stuck forever in her nightmare existence?  Frances Barden, the current Chair of Great Paxford WI, has just lost her husband and gained a child she knew nothing about. Will she accept the child knowing he was the outcome of her husband’s illicit affair?  Teresa Lucas has married a dashing pilot and is playing the role of a devoted wife  and mother to be, but what will happen when her husband’s attractive female friend comes to live with them?  Laura Campbell, still recovering from her affair with an older man and the scandal it caused, is grieving for her father and contemplating training to be a doctor, but will she be able to?  Is it the right thing for her to do or is she just following the wishes of her dying father? Steph Farrow has acted in haste and must live with the consequences for the rest of her life. But can she? Prim Alison Scotlock is causing a stir with her new friendship – a black man from Liverpool – which shocks the small village and Sarah Collingborne is finally learning to be the Vicar’s wife she never wanted to be, when her husband is taken prisoner.

Each character has their own fascinating story, forever interlinked with the other members of the Women’s Institute. They are always there to support and encourage each other, to do what they can to get through difficult times and to be there for one another through good times and the bad.

I am happy now that I know the outcome for each of these wonderful ladies and many of the other characters that appear throughout the series. The abrupt ending to the TV series was a shock since it finished on such a huge and dramatic event, but at the time, the writer was certain another series would be commissioned.  With these books, he has managed to complete the story lines so that we,  the readers and viewers, can be happy that there are no stones unturned and no story left untold.

These books are a delightful read. As a WI member myself, I can relate to many of the characteristics demonstrated by the various characters and I can understand the link between them. There is a whole gamut of emotions to go through when reading their stories but ultimately, to me, the final chapters provide a satisfactory ending.  Re runs of the TV series are still being shown and DVDs are available if you want to refresh your memory of the storylines before the books begin but equally the books can be read just as they are. It’s such a shame that the TV channel did not complete the series especially when it was so popular, but at least now we can find out what happened to the women of Great Paxford and how the village evolved through the rest of the war.

If you like stories about strong women, friendships and WW2, then you should enjoy this series of books. 

First to Die

by James Patterson

She is told of a brutal murder that has taken place.  David and Melanie Brandt have just got married and have been murdered in their hotel bedroom.  It is brutal. There are no obvious clues. Their wedding rings are missing.  And the bride’s body has been defiled. ( Here I will place a warning – some of the scenes are very graphic and quite unpleasant to read. If you find this kind of subject matter difficult then please avoid this book.) Hit with the brutality of this murder, a young couple struck down on what should have been the happiest day of their lives whilst also dealing with her doctor’s diagnosis, Lindsay is struggling.  She bumps into Cindy Thomas, a reporter from the San Francisco Chronicle who has just been promoted to working on the crime desk and is caught at a vulnerable moment. Cindy has somehow managed to blag her way not only into the hotel, but close enough for her to actually see the murder victims and she seizes her chance when she meets Lindsay to hand over her business card.

With so little to go on and a new partner to work with, Lindsay turns to her friend Claire Washburn, a medical examiner for support. As the story progresses they join forces with reporter Cindy and form the Women’s Murder Club discussing their ideas and theories in their desire to find the sadistic killer. They are later joined by Jill Bernhardt an assistant DA.  They are a crime solving group but also a great support network to each other, becoming closer as they discuss and try to solve the murders.

A second couple, Michael and Becky De George disappear on their honeymoon and are later found murdered.  Again, the woman’s body has been defiled and humiliated. A third couple, James and Kathy are killed during their wedding reception. The murders become known as ‘The Honeymoon Murders’ and are believed to be connected but how? Why are their wedding rings missing?  Are they trophies for the killer? How are the couples chosen?  And just who is the Bride and Groom killer?

Lindsay is tough and determined but struggling as so few clues have been left.

In time, we learn that there are links to a well-known author, a huge public figure. If they target him, they run a huge risk of humiliating the entire force.  He is known to treat his partners badly but he has strong alibis.

This is a fast-paced book.  Written mostly from Lindsay’s point of view, but with sections written by the killer, it has lots of short chapters which is apparently a trademark of Patterson. It keeps the reader hooked and wanting to discover more. As such I found this a quick read.  It was also quick as there were so many twists and turns, I was desperate to discover the truth behind the murders and how they would be resolved. And I had absolutely no idea!

Along the way, we learn more about Lindsay’s character, her growing attraction to her new partner Chris Raleigh and the strong bond between the four main female characters. This makes her character more believable and relatable.

The ending when it comes is a shocker! One of the tag lines is ‘Everything they thought they knew turned on its head,’ and that is certainly what happened to me, one of those Wow moments when I physically gasped at what was happening. That doesn’t happen often.

If you like thrillers, crime dramas and can cope with graphic descriptions of a sexual nature, then you will probably enjoy this book. It keeps you guessing right to the end, but the ending when it comes is sudden and explosive!

Enjoy but don't have nightmares!

The Lighthouse Witches

by CJ Cooke

Since then, mysterious events have occurred – children disappearing and returning months later with no memory of where they have been or what happened to them, and with mysterious numbers branded on their bodies. But have the local children really returned or are they wildlings – sinister beings that take on the characteristics and appearance of the missing children? Who are they?  What do they want? And can they be eradicated before their evil takes over? (Liv soon discovers that this can only be done by the parent taking their child/wildling to the forest, tying them to the burned witch trees and stabbing them).

Liv has her own problems and worries to deal with and doesn’t believe in such nonsense – she is here to do a job and work out her future.  But then Sapphie, her eldest daughter, disappears. After an argument with her mother, Sapphie has run away, aiming to teach her mother a lesson. One minute she is hiding out in a deserted cabin, the next she is gone and whilst out looking for her, Liv suffers the devastating disappearance of Clover, her youngest daughter too. What has happened to them? Where have they gone? Why is she being punished so cruelly?

There is only Luna left and when we meet her much later in life, with no knowledge of what happened to her mother or her sisters, we find out that she has a vague memory of being tied to a tree in the forest, by her mother.  Tiny fragments of her previous life return but we are never quite sure what has happened or if she is remembering correctly and Luna hasn’t seen her mother or two sisters since. Luna doesn’t understand what has happened in the missing part of her life, but then, out of the blue, she gets news that her sister Clover has been found! Twenty years have passed, but miraculously the authorities are convinced it is her. Arriving at the hospital to meet her now adult sister, Luna is confronted with a young girl. She has the same face, the same mannerisms and the same smile as her missing sister, but terrifyingly, she is also the same age Clover was when she disappeared!

So what did happen all those years ago? How has her sister not aged in the past twenty years? What happened to Liv and Sapphie? And why does Luna herself, have strange numbers branded on the back of her leg?

I’ve found this quite a creepy book in parts but totally fascinating too. The setting of the dark deserted lighthouse, the crashing waves and tales of witchcraft are very atmospheric – capturing the darkness of the remote island and the history of witchcraft that was prevalent at the time, causing hysteria in small communities.

There are plenty of twists and turns to keep you on edge, so maybe not a book to be reading in the dead of night! It’s an interesting concept and not one I had read about before and I had no idea of the ending until it happened, so I didn’t find the storyline predictable at all.

This was another of my telephone library box finds and not one I would normally choose, but I was fascinated by it and the fact that I have completed it quite quickly is testament to how much I enjoyed it.

So if you are looking for something a bit different, a bit sinister and a bit scary, this one might be for you!