"The Fire Child" S K Tremayne

I loved "The Ice Twins" and rated it 5/5 stars so when I saw that there was a new title from Tremayne I knew I had to read it! I was thrilled when my request for an advanced copy from NetGalley was approved!

This story is set in Cornwall and the setting is evoked as strongly and with as much atmosphere as Scotland was in her previous novel. Rachel Daly has left London, giving up a job and a "supposedly exciting life" to marry the handsome David; an older, richer widower with an 8 year old son, Jamie. She feels happy to have left London behind reflecting that she is "no longer hanging on to dear life anymore" and embraces her new start with her new husband, new son, new house which they share with her new mother in law Juliet. Rachel is excited by the prospect of continuing the renovation of the ancestral home with its 18 bedrooms, huge hall ways and drawing rooms- such a contrast from her own council estate upbringing. She also has a deeply buried past which she hopes to have truly left behind, making sure it is forever carefully hidden from David.

Rachel wants to "heal" David and Jamie who are both still in the grips of grief following the death of wife and mother Nina, who died in an accident 18 months ago in the Morvellon Mines which are owned by David's family and close to the house. Although Rachel is highly conscious that she is struggling to live in the shadow of the perfect Nina, she still sees it as her job "to rescue things" and repair this hurting family.

From the beginning Tremayne sows the seeds of suspense with the chilling description of West Cornwall as a land where "hard granite glistens after the rain, rivers run through words like deep secrets, terrible cliffs conceal exquisite caves where moorland valleys cradle wonderful houses." The landscape's rich history and captivating natural raw beauty are a perfect setting for a story full of ghostly shadows from the past. David's family have run the mines for centuries; a business which has made them wealthy and powerful but at the expense of the lives of many of their employees who were sent deep into the tunnels that run under the sea. From the drawing room, David's ancestors would sip their claret and "hear the picks of the miners working the tin that paid for the wine...crawling under the sea that sometimes broke through and poured into the tunnels .. the sea claiming them while (we) sat in Carnhallow eating canapés." Imagery is vivid and it reminded me of "Jamaica Inn", "Moonfleet", "Lorna Doone" and a very brooding version of "Poldark"!

The chapter headings count down the days before Christmas so the reader is already tense, sensing events will build towards a dramatic climax. They will not be disappointed! Tension increases as Rachel's new home, Carnhallow, though stunning, it "glares at (her) with disapproval" and she is never far from hearing the "brutal sea in the distance, kicking at the rocks beneath Morvellan...like an atrocity that will never stop." Rachel is also haunted by the shadow of Nina as her presence lingers in a way Rebecca haunted the narrator in the brilliant novel by Daphne Du Maurier. It is highly compelling.

Rachel is the prime narrator but we also hear from David and this adds a more complicated layer to the plot. There is a suggestion that Nina's death was not an accident. David reveals "only he knows the truth", a truth which torments him daily. Jamie also seems to have seen and heard things he shouldn't have on the night of Nina's accident and it seems everyone is keeping secrets about what actually happened. Although David is in love with Rachel and sees her as a refreshing contrast to Nina, admiring her as a survivor with opinions he never usually hears in his highly pressured, workaholic life as a talented QC, this affection and respect is not always obvious to Rachel. It is also questioned by the reader as Rachel's behaviour begins to change following Jamie's strange predictions about the future as he develops an unnerving conviction that he can still see Nina and Rachel overhears him to "talking" to her. Jamie makes frightening statements that threaten Rachel and claim she will be dead by Christmas. David becomes compromised and suspicious of her- disbelieving her claims about Jamie and trying to ignore her persistent search for answers. He thinks she is becoming rather unstable but she in turn becomes fearful of him, suspecting that he might have been involved in Nina's "accident" and is therefore capable of violence or even murder. Both begin to believe the other of committing murder, both see the other as dangerous and the reader is unsure who to trust and who to believe. Both narrators seem unreliable and this confuses the reader who has been led to form a fond affection for Rachel, identifying with her and rooting for her to succeed in "mending" her new family. All the way through I was kept guessing as to what had actually happened - there were so many possible explanations planted by Tremayne and several twists and revelations. Is Nina really dead? Has she come back? Is David seeing her? Did he kill her? Did Jamie? Did his mother, Juliet? How dangerous is David? How unstable is Rachel? As I said before, compelling stuff!

I liked the way the house still seemed to belong to Nina and it was impossible to escape her legacy. Rachel even imagines seeing her with them while she sleeps with David. Juliet tries to get her to wear some of Nina's clothes, observing that there is an uncanny likeness between them. As the novel progresses, Rachel seems to become more haunted. Tremayne then begins to mix the two stories - David's and Rachel's secret pasts, to create fantastic tension and mounting suspense. There is more confusion, repetition and subtle hints. The atmosphere becomes more foreboding and I honestly couldn't drag myself away from the pages! Tremayne's use of weather and location are deeply eerie and affecting. My fear was palpable and literally heart-stopping. I was truly gripped and truly scared.

This is the best ghost story I have read in a long time. Jamie's character is convincing and authentic and he helps to influence the reader of Rachel's reliability. He is a little like the boy in "Sixth Sense", as sensitive and as receptive to atmosphere and emotion but more exaggerated because of his grief and confusion. I was impressed with how Tremayne manipulated me to respond to David and how I was still trying to fit the puzzle together until the last minute. The plot is well controlled and skilfully managed.

And I was too scared to turn the light off when I eventually finished reading it late at night!

I highly recommend this book, especially if you are fans of the film "Sixth Sense" or books like Du Maurier's "Rebecca", Stephen King's"The Shining" and Sarah Water's "The Little Stranger."

My huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers Harper Collins for approving an advanced copy of this book in return for an honest review - it has been a real treat to review this book!

For more recommendations and reviews please follow me on Twitter @katherinesunde3 (bibliomaniacUK) or sign up to receive future posts by email.

"Four Weddings and a Fiasco" Catherine Ferguson

This was a very enjoyable, entertaining, feel good romantic comedy - absolutely perfect for the summer!

As the title suggests, this is a story about four weddings and a fiasco! Katy Peacock runs her own business as a successful, hardworking wedding photographer. She makes her money from snapping away at everyone else's big day, capturing the drama, the tears, the happiness and ultimately the love, from the couple's big day. But behind her fun loving facade, Katy is full of her own troubles. Firstly she is unable to shake off an ex boyfriend who follows her around in a threatening and intimidating manner as she tries desperately to pay back the money she owes him. Secondly, she is estranged from her former business partner and sister who walked out on her - and the business which they ran jointly - leaving her penniless and vulnerable. Thirdly, while working at a wedding, she meets the handsome and enigmatic Gabe, who she finds herself falling for. And so ensues a serious of cringeworthy and laugh out loud incidents as she tries to remain professional, disinterested and alluring all at the same time!

Although this novel follows a well worn path typical of chick lit rom coms, it still feels fresh and funny. The story is well structured into four parts based around four weddings and this helps move the plot along swiftly and with focus. Katy is a very likeable character; the reader empathises with her as she tries to face her problems alone- juggling a job, a recently bereaved mother, an estranged sister, a best friend and a potential love interest without letting anyone see how desperate she feels or the pressure she finds herself under. There are several different threads of storyline going on which gives the book more depth; twists, revelations and moments of seriousness carefully balanced against the humour and romantic moments. It is a light hearted read, largely humorous and witty, but Katy also has real problems that give the book more gravitas and prevent it from being too frivolous.

There are a cast of many characters but all are created well and feel believable. Katy's best friend is particularly engaging and it feels like Ferguson enjoyed writing this character with her down to earth comments and observations. She is a great tonic for Katy and prevents the book from becoming too serious or bogged down with the difficult reality of living with family complications and debt. Ferguson also writes convincingly about the relationship between Katy and her mother which feels heartfelt and real. Her mother's friends offer Ferguson an opportunity for a bit more fun and colourful characterisation too!

Even though I was pretty sure I could guess the outcome of each plot line, I still enjoyed the ride and still felt engaged throughout the novel. I still found myself wondering what would happen between Gabe and Katy and also how things would work out with her sister. I wanted to read to the end and I found this a very easy read in which the pages kept turning without me really realising. Ferguson's writing is fluid and natural. A great read to have taken away with me over half term - particularly as I had just attended a wedding myself!

The role of a wedding photographer is a great angle (excuse the pun!) for a romantic comedy and provides a perfect set up for a story about love and marriage. It is a great way to explore couples, relationships, love and how moments captured publicly are often not a true representation of what is going on behind the scenes - even between the lucky couple themselves on their special day!

Ultimately this is a feel good story about love, friendship, families and happy endings and will suit anyone who enjoys a bit of light relief, escapism and a gentle holiday read! If you like novels like "Bridget Jones" and "The Rosie Project" and authors like Marion Keyes, Lucy Diamond, Sophie Kinsella and Cecelia Ahern, I would recommend you give this book a whirl!

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book in return for a fair review.

For more recommendations and reviews, follow me on Twitter @katherinesunde3 (bibliomaniacuk) or sign up to receive future blog posts via email.

"The Killing Files" Nikki Owen

I am absolutely delighted to be part of the "Killing Files Blog Tour" and today it is my turn to host Nikki Owen's tour with a review of the book!

 No matter how fast you run, the past always catches up with you
Dr Maria Martinez is out of prison and on the run.
Her mission? To get back to the safety of her family.
Little does she know that this might be the most dangerous place of all…

This is the second book in "The Project Trilogy" by Nikki Owen. Although it is possible to read this as a stand alone novel, it's probably much better to read part one, "The Spider in the Corner of the Room" first.

The opening of this novel is absolutely gripping:

I don't know how I got here. I don't know how I'm going to escape. A room. A cell? Prison confinement again? But I was found innocent, I am free......I have not killed anyone....
....It's as if my memory has been erased. As if who I am doesn't really exist. We are all in danger now, all of us. There is only one way it will end. Someone will die.

I was hooked! I'd promised myself I would only read the first few pages before bed - but I couldn't put it down! Immediately we are thrown into a tense and sinister situation. We are reunited with Dr Mary Martinez, the protagonist from part one, and reminded that the last book ended with her being on trial for murder. In this book, Martinez finds herself still being chased by "The Project" and is desperate to find out why and how she became part of this secret and powerful organisation that flies under the radar of everyone including the government. Opening with her in a dark, unknown, confined and imprisoned place where yet again, she has no clear memory of exactly what has happened to her, is a compelling way to kick off another roller coaster of an adventure. Owen's first lines reminded me that this is a writer who will drag you along an action packed, fast and exciting adventure. Short chapters and short sentences propel you along deeper and deeper into the mystery behind Martinez and "The Project".

The narrative then abandons Martinez in her "undisclosed place of confinement" and the next section is headed "34 hours and 59 minutes to confinement." The novel then alternates between the present moment of Martinez's imprisonment (or capture) and the count down from 34 hours as to how this happened. With the clock ticking down, the reader is automatically on edge. We know Maria is under threat despite her repetition of "I am Maria Martinez. I am 33 years old. I am innocent of murder. I am free." We suspect "The Project" is going to catch up with her and this automatically creates a sense of pressure and panic for her safety. Owen then intensifies this panic with a fast paced storyline that literally jumps of the pages.

Martinez continues to be an original and engaging character. She has a high IQ, a photographic memory, dextrous skills and fast technical assimilation. She is subject 375 from a covert group led by M15 to fight terrorism. She is the only one on whom "the conditioning appears to be working." In the short lived safety of the spanish hills where she thought she could escape the clutches of those who seek to control her, she is haunted by graphic flash backs to her childhood which offer her confused snap shots about how she became part of "The Project". She realises that she has been controlled by a drug that induces memory loss. She knows that she has been "programmed" with information that she will be forced to recall at a later stage when required by "The Project". She was a "test child", surrounded by "handlers" that would observe her and monitor her closely while she unsuspectingly went about her "normal" life.

Marinez also has Asperges. She keeps a notebook where she writes everything down: "I need my notebook to write it all down, record it so I can track it and try to make sense of what is hidden in my head." She is dependent on algorithms, codes, scores of data, times and geolocations. In this second book, Owen continues to develop a convincing, intriguing and complex character and the added detail about the way her mind works is fascinating. She has presented a character with Asperges with deft skill and conviction. It adds a deeper dimension to the novel and another layer of intrigue. Female protagonists are very popular at the moment, particularly characters like the leads in "The Bridge", "Marcella" and "The Killing" who suffer some kind of emotional awkwardness - their methods and behaviour unconventional but their ability to solve a crime completely faultless. This book is not detective fiction, but it is great to read about a female character with the intelligence, courage and bravery to equal and possibly surpass any male contemporary. Writing in the voice of Martinez exaggerates the confusion, the tension and the puzzle; the reader is as involved in Martinez's search for the truth as she is herself. It also gives her a edge of vulnerability and empathy. When she has to leave her villa she reflects that "I have been happy here. No social rules to follow, no chit chat to make, no confusing body signals to be unable to read." She does not want our pity, but we sympathise with her as she tries to survive in a world to which not only is she already struggling to understand and operate within, but also piece together her past and try to figure out why it is that she knows and can do the things she does.

My eyelids vibrate, my brain attempts to calibrate a conniption, find an answer to what is happening to me, but the codes, numbers, solutions that instinctively inhabit my head are all jumbled up, as if I have been shaken like some unwanted toy then discarded on the ground and kicked under a bed to gather dust and wither.

There are some lighter moments provided by Martinez, for example her lack of understanding about some of the phrases people use like "my legs are killing me," and "hold your horses". She is referred to as the "human google" and with these sorts of asides, Owen makes her more human and realistic.

Owen writes with skill, pace and plenty of dynamic images and detail. I loved the moment that Martinez has to flee from her villa. It was like watching one of the best action adventure films and the growing danger of the whole inescapable conspiracy is frightening. The sense of being chased, hunted and unable to escape from something so much bigger and powerful than you is palpable and very dramatic. I liked the way she described the flashes of memory and how moments are revealed to her like a "cloak slipping down from her memory block". The significance of the journal is clever and the way Martinez processes all her data is also very clever. Owen's writing is full of effective and well chosen detail making it incredibly easy to visualise and the reader is able to keep up with the plot despite its complexity. The themes of betrayal and revelation are well managed and delivered at the most crucial moments generating a real sense of climax.

To be honest, this probably isn't the sort of book I would normally read - although it is definitely the sort of thing I watch as a film or a TV series - but with a lead female character, I found that I did enjoy it and did engage with the plight of the protagonist. I think her highly intelligent brain mixed with her emotional and social clumsiness create a new kind of heroine who can offer more than the slightly predictable and cliched male hero who features in most of the movies about spies and government operations.

If you like "The Bourne Identity" you will love this book. If you like any of the nordic noir series, you will love this. If you are looking for something a bit different -that mixes adventure, conspiracy, murder and secret pasts - then this is the next book for you!

Thank you so much to Mira Books and Nikki Owen for letting me be part of this Blog Tour. For more details about the tour and dates please see the banner below.



Author bio:

Nikki Owen is an award-winning freelance writer and columnist currently based in Gloucestershire.
Previously, Nikki was a marketing consultant and University teaching fellow before turning to writing full time. As part of her degree, she studied at the acclaimed University of Salamanca – the same city where her protagonist of the Project trilogy, Dr Maria Martinez, hails from.

Social info:
Author website: www.nikkiowenauthor.com
Twitter: @NikkiWriter   @Mira_BooksUK   #TheKillingFiles
Amazon link: http://amzn.to/20Fwhdc

My thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Publishers for the advanced copy of this book in return for a fair and honest review.

For more recommendations and reviews please follow me on Twitter @katherinesunde3 (bibliomaniacUK) or sign up to receive future posts via email.

YA Fiction: "Beetle Boy" by MG Leonard

Dr Bartholomew Cuttle is at work at the National History Museum where he is the Director of Science on an unremarkable Tuesday afternoon. He has locked himself into the Entomology Room to continue his research. But he never comes home that evening. The room was locked from the inside but completely empty. He had simply vanished from a sealed chamber. 

Thirteen year old Darkus Cuttle sets out to solve the crime and to find his father. 

This book is full of wonderful characters. It has flavours of Lemony Snickett, Gerald Durrell, Roald Dahl, recent films like "Paddington" as well as the classic "101 Dalmations". It is a real treat and a really well written adventure that will appeal to all readers between the ages of 8-11.

Following the disappearance of his father, crazy Prof Max, Darkus's uncle, agrees to take him in, his mother having died when Darkus was younger and there being no other family member to help out. Max lives above a health food shop in Camden but he's "not much good with guests as he never knows what to do with them." He's an extrovert and gives Darkus a hammock to sleep in as he tries to work out how to accommodate a child in his home. However, he is also full of astute insights and advice like pointing out that "grown up life can be terribly dull, full of politics and compromise." These throwaway remarks actually work as clues about Bartholomew's past and what might actually have happened to him. Max supports Darkus's plan to investigate his father's disappearance, commending him on his "grit and determination" - a phrase which is repeated frequently throughout the story.

Darkus is a sensitive and unsuspecting hero. He is lonely. He doesn't know how to talk to people about the things in his head. He has terrible nightmares and lives in a "chasm of fear". He is not a typical hero. But he makes new friends - the vivacious and lively Bertock and Virginia who ooze charisma and spirit. And most importantly, he finds Baxter the Beetle.

Baxter comes to the rescue and together Darkus as they set out to defeat the villainous Lucreita Cutter - coleopterist - collector and studier of insects. Lucretia is a highly imaginative creation. She is a mixture of Cruella DeVille and Millicent Clyde in "Paddington." Leonard's collection of villainous characters are entertaining, cartoon like in their evilness, vivid and very easy to picture. The children are equally appealing and full of vitality and life. It's an engaging and hugely enjoyable read.

The real stars of the show are the beetles. Leonard combines scientific terminology and language effortlessly in a way which is not inaccessible or off putting. There is a glossary at the end of the book but actually, the references to proper vocabulary and terms is part of the charm and appeal of the book. This will captivate any young adventurer or insect lover. It will also captivate any child with an imagination. The scenes with the beetles and the way in which they assist Darkus are very well described and form great images in the reader's mind. Leonard's choice of description and detail make this story original and fresh as well as retaining all the key elements of a classic adventure mystery book.

Although most of the book is about nature and insects, themes of friendship, family, grief, confidence and happiness are also explored with deft control and effectiveness. It is a funny book, a quirky book, ....a book that will send you out in to the garden to look at all the creatures you might uncover there. It is book full of facts and information as well as a great adventure and mystery. This book goes to show that with a bit of grit and determination, anyone can be unbeatable!

For more recommendations and reviews, please follow me on Twitter @katherinesunde3 (bibliomaniacUK) or sign up to receive future posts via email.

"Exposure" Ava Marsh

Kitty Sweet is in prison, charged with double murder. She’s as damaged as she is charismatic, as dangerous as she is charming. And now she’s been invited to tell her story, to explain how on earth it came to this.

Hers is a story of heartbreak and desperation, of adulation and glamour. Of ruin. She’s descended to an underworld that most people can only imagine and she’s lived to tell the tale…

This novel opens in 2016, with Leanne (Kitty Sweet) in prison serving her sentence for double murder. The writing is gritty, making the reader very aware of the brutal world of prison with its favours, game playing and the need to be constantly alert and wary of every other inmate. Leanne knows she must never give anyone leverage over her despite how tempting it is to confide in someone you think could be a friend. The language is brutal, coarse, offensive and harsh but used by Marsh to create authentic and believable characters. She ensures that the right atmosphere and setting for her hard hitting story is established. By the end of the first page it is clear this novel is not for the faint hearted!

We then move back to 2004 when Leanne was only 19 years old, returning right to the beginning in order to find out just how she has ended up in prison for murder. Finding herself in serious financial difficulty thanks to her ex-boyfriend, Leanne starts to earn extra money by posing nude. The lure of the thick wad of notes becomes too enticing and too "soothing for the soul" and before she really can stop herself, she has entered the world of porn movies and begins to earn a significant income this way. She doesn't walk into this lightheartedly; there is plenty of dilemma and conflict surrounding her decision which she is never fully comfortable with but she is young and this is "easy" money. It is not until the work becomes more pornographic that she realises there is no going back. The passages describing her work and the seedy world of the porn industry are incredibly explicit and graphic. Again, they are not for the faint hearted or prudish. They are eye opening and hard hitting.

Leanne is a character you can care about. She is naive from the outset and the truth of her situation - of the effect it will have on her and how it will shape her- only dawns on her later. Marsh has written a book which "exposes" the porn industry and explores the effect it has on the people within it. From the outset the reader is pulled in and pulled down in to a dark, violent, exploitative and uncomfortable world. She doesn't hesitate to include shocking detail and language, but manages to create a story in which she is not passing judgement or making moral comment.

The chapters are short. The novel is well paced with a good build up of tension. It is full of action and colour. The language is explicit and there is a lot of erotic and sexual content which at times is quite overwhelming. However, there are lots of reviewers who are captivated by Kitty Sweet and compelled to find out her full story. This could be the next "Fifty Shades of Grey", albeit a much more gritty version.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book in return for a fair review.

"Too Close" by Gayle Curtis

This is a gripping and unsettling story about the relationship between twins Sebastian and Cecelia. Growing up on a farm in the isolated Fens with their abusive and violent father, Sebastian and Cecelia have always looked out for each other, relied on each other and shared a deep bond. After the disappearance of their mother when they were children, they become even closer despite the fact their father is so disapproving of their intimacy. Sebastian is determined to protect Cecelia from their father's aggression- especially as it becomes more threatening- at all costs. Then events take a dramatic turn which changes the relationship between the twins forever.

The novel opens with the most brilliant prologue. Cecelia lies in bed at night, her dream "becoming an unreachable memory as it cusped its way up to the high ceiling and burst on the victorian cornice." She is haunted by a mysterious green suitcase. Then her daughter Caroline appears by her bedside. Getting up to help her Cecelia takes her out into the landing. "Cecelia, there's no one there," her husband Samuel tells her when he finds her wandering about the house. "Caroline's asleep in bed, I just checked." Cecelia is convinced she could still "feel the tiny hand ..in hers, her quiet whispering voice in the memory of her mind." It is a ghostly opening; one which raises many questions in the reader's mind and suggests that there is something strange, something disturbing, playing on Cecelia's mind. As we read on, nightmares and sleep walking become a recurrent theme within the novel. Cecelia's vivid dreaming confuses her and the reader, the lines between what is real and what is imagined becoming blurred and intertwined. It creates a haunting, mysterious and threatening edge to the already unnerving tale.

Following the prologue, we start the book in 1984 just after the twins' mother has disappeared. Yvonne, their mother, has been planning to leave her husband Roger for a long time, promising the twins she would take them with her. But she doesn't. For Cecelia, without her mother everything was grey and she misses the "magic liquid (of her mother) to colour her dim grey world." For Sebastian, he is haunted by the last time he saw his mother; her legs and feet under the kitchen table and his father whispering "You didn't see anything," in his ear. They believe her to be dead, murdered by their father.

As they grow up living with Roger, a "foreboding atmosphere settles over the farmhouse." They feel "unsure, unsafe, unsteady." Cecelia's night walking increases and her nightmares more realistic. Her temper becomes a problem at school. At home, they learn to gauge Roger's moods, endure his punishments; they seek refuge in each other's company, hiding together and trying to protect each other. Then during a particularly violent altercation with the twins, Roger is shot.

The book then continues 18 years later. Sebastian is released from prison after serving a sentence for killing Roger, a sentence he served to protect Cecelia and save her future. Cecelia is married and has one daughter Caroline. Their mother has returned. Cecelia remains a haunted character, still deeply traumatised by her past - and a recent tragedy that has deeply affected her as a mother. She is still prone to nightmares, hallucinations and night walking - sometimes these "spells" seem more like fugues or something more psychologically sinister than just a bad dream. The confusion between her ghostly visions, dreams and reality create a sense of madness. Sebastian has also become more menacing. He seems to seek revenge for his incarceration. He seems bitter and dangerous. He stalks Cecelia, unable to accept that their relationship is broken and ignoring her wish not to see him. He befriends her daughter Caroline in a way that suggests he has a hidden motivation. They are great characters and cleverly drawn. It is hard to know who to believe, what is real, who is reliable and trustworthy, who to sympathise with and who to be scared of. The exploration of their relationship and how it has changed and been affected by their shared history is captivating.

The ending is incredible. It really picks up pace with a menacing crescendo. Events and characters begin to spiral out of control as the purpose of the characters becomes clear and more twists are revealed. The reader watches helplessly as characters hurtle toward their inevitable fates. It was chilling and powerful. It is an ending that makes a lasting impression on the reader, leaving them reeling. It is a great story about siblings who just become "too close".

My thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this novel in return for a fair review.

For more recommendations and reviews please follow me on Twitter @katherinesunde3 (bibliomaniacUK) or sign up to receive future posts via email.

"Knickers Model's Own: A Year of Frugal Fashion" Caroline Jones

In 2014, Caroline Jones' mum died of Cancer. Looking for a way to raise money for Cancer Research UK, a charity her mum had supported for 13 years, a way to help her come to terms with her grief and creating a meaningful legacy for her mum, Caroline hit on the idea of an innovative project: for 365 days she would wear 365 outfits and pose for 365 photos on social media. Each of these 365 outfits would be self styled using only the preloved clothes from the racks of Cancer Research shops.

Caroline began her challenge by posting her photos on Facebook with a link to her Just Giving page. Within a week, her photos had attracted thousands of visitors, press interest, radio interviews and generated generous donations to her fundraising campaign, "Knickers Model's Own". By the end of the year, the inspiring and original project had captured the attention of the national media, won Caroline JustGiving Creative Fundraiser of the Year and Highly Commended Pioneer of the Year by CRUK as well as the Points of Light Volunteer Award from David Cameron. To date she has raised nearly £60,000 for CRUK through her JustGiving page, as well as inspiring hundreds of thousands of people to buy from the charity shops. This book, published by CRUK with 100% profit going to CRUK, is a record of her 365 outfits and her year of "Frugal Fashion". It is an amazing legacy in memory of her mum.

The opening pages include a forward from designer Henry Holland, whose famous line of clothes sell in high profile high street and online places like Debenhams and ASOS. He refers to Caroline's campaign as "inventive, creative, fun and effective." He writes that fashion can unite people; "it brings together a shared love for shopping and self expression and therefore this fundraising project is a way of offering some light relief during a time of grief, tragedy and pain. It gives people a way of sharing something, of bringing them together."

The book is beautifully produced. It is of an exceptional quality. The photography (some of which is by Rankin) is stunning and each page is artistically and attractively put together. Each double page shows each of Jones' 52 weeks of eye-catching outfits on a budget. Jones' talks through her choices, with each week given a heading like "Cape of Good Hope", "Go Faster Stripes," "Follow the Rainbow" and "My Kilty Pleasure." She offers advice about how to get the look and a top tip on every page. The book is fun and reflects Caroline's humour, flair and vitality. The outfits are attractive, contemporary, colourful and most importantly, achievable every day ensembles.

There are also pages with some advice on how to transform your preloved purchases with simple tweaks and twists; how to make the right choice in store and how to select items that suit you best and enhance your shape, colouring and size. There are copies of some of the newspaper interviews and television appearances as well as contributions for famous celebrities. There are also comments about how to take a good photo and how to select outfits for specific occasions. This is a book to read, dip in and out of, to look at again and again and to keep to hand for fashion inspiration as well as a reminder of what can be achieved through self motivation, love and voluntary work.

Jones obvious has a great eye for colour, fashion and style. She does make bold choices with some of her outfits, but what I liked most about the book was that the look Caroline achieved with her purchases was contemporary- not quirky, outlandish or deliberately headline grabbing - but "ordinary" and most definitely enviable! They will appeal to everyone. One of the most important things she has achieved is getting people to consider charity shops to be a serious rival to the High Street chains. This book offers people a way to stay fashionable, to change or update their look regularly and constantly add variety to their wardrobe by buying preloved items. It offers top tips on "How to Shop Preloved," and how to achieve great fashion on a budget. Jones has broken the taboo of charity shops, recycling clothes and rewritten the public's preconception of charity shops. Buying clothes from Cancer Research shops is not something to be ashamed of or hide. In fact, some of the outfits are designer labels, but as Jones points out, ignore the label and look at the detail - think about the colour and shape and what you could do with the item to refresh it and give it a new lease of life. Most of the clothes listed for the photos are High Street names like Top Shop and H&M and 90% of the outfits were bought at her local branch of Cancer Research.

Jones' commitment to her project is unfaltering - she wore her preloved wardrobe to Royal Ascot and for meeting with celebrities and the appearing on the television. Preloved clothing does not have to mean old clothes, tatty clothes, frumpy, causal and "for the garden only" clothes. You can fill your wardrobe for all occasions and eventualities with a bit of insightful rummaging and accessorising!

One of Jones' highlights of the year was when she created a pop up shop to sell off her "year of frugal fashion". She filled a local hall with rails and rails of things that had been considered second hand, discarded, rejected clothes and transformed them into this seasons "must haves". They became exciting and coveted. They were seen as they always had been seen to Jones: beautiful, wanted, cared for, colourful wonders.

This is a gorgeous book for people interested in fashion and clothes - and even those that aren't! The style tips are realistic, authentic, achievable and aimed at the everyday shopper. They are "ordinary" outfits from a woman who is absolutely nothing but "ordinary"!

If you are interested in supporting Caroline Jones' campaign, please go to www.justgiving.com/fundraising/knickers-models-own to donate. "A Year of Frugal Fashion" can be purchased online from CRUK (www.cruk.org) or through the shops. You can follow Caroline Jones on Facebook (Knickers Models Own) or Twitter @knickersmyown.