Tag: 3stars

horror · Short Stories · suspense · thriller

Blanky – Kealan Patrick Burke ★★★

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Blurb; In the wake of his infant daughter’s tragic death, Steve Brannigan is struggling to keep himself together. Estranged from his wife, who refuses to be inside the house where the unthinkable happened, and unable to work, he seeks solace in an endless parade of old sitcoms and a bottle of bourbon.

Until one night he hears a sound from his daughter’s old room, a room now stripped bare of anything that identified it as hers…except for her security blanket, affectionately known as Blanky.

Blanky, old and frayed, with its antiquated patchwork of badly sewn rabbits with black button eyes, who appear to be staring at the viewer…

Blanky, purchased from a strange old man at an antique stall selling “BABY CLOSE” at a discount.

The presence of Blanky in his dead daughter’s room heralds nothing short of an unspeakable nightmare that threatens to take away what little light remains in Steve’s shattered world.

Because his daughter loved Blanky so much, he buried her with it.

My Review; This was the first book I have read by this author. He was highly recommended by many bookstagrammers. I went into this story expecting pure horror but this was not the case. For me this was more of a spooky read. Creepy. But still a great read. A short read at 75 pages. This gave me a great introduction to this author and his level of horror so I knew what to expect for his following books I read. I would recommend. Perfect for those who don’t have time for the big books. Its brilliant written. Gripping. Tense. Edgy. I really felt sorry for Steve’s character throughout. Poor man.

A well deserved three stars from me. Mostly cause I went in expecting dark horror. I was wrong. This also gave me a phobia of baby blankets. Good job my kids have both grown up now.

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mystery · suspense · thriller

The Donor – Helen Fitzgerald ★★★

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Blurb; Will Marion has two perfect kidneys. His daughters aren’t so lucky. Question is: which one should he save? Will’s 47. His wife bailed out when the twins were in nappies and hasn’t been seen since. He coped OK by himself at first, giving Georgie and Kay all the love he could, working in a boring admin job to support them. Just after the twins turn sixteen, Georgie suffers kidney failure and is placed on dialysis. Her type is rare, and Will immediately offers to donate an organ. Without a transplant, she would probably never see adulthood. So far so good. But then Kay gets sick. She’s also sixteen. Just as precious. Her kidney type just as rare. Time is critical, and he has to make a decision. Should be buy a kidney – be an organ tourist? Should be save one child? If so, which one? Should be sacrifice himself? Or is there a fourth solution – one so terrible it has never even crossed his mind?

My Review; Another great read from Helen. Finished it in one day an easy read for me. It’s every parents worst nightmare. What can we do? Are they going to make it? Who should he chose?

Let me tell you now this family is far from normal… We have a mother who doesn’t care and leaves for drugs and a thug. A dad who doesnt know what to do and drinks a lot. Twin Kay is the perfect member of the family the only character I actually liked. Then the other twin Georgie is off the rails and has an attitude problem and lives on the wild side. Every single character wound me up in some way except Kays.

We get an unexpected, shocking outcome towards the end but personally I felt a lot of the good stuff was happening towards the end and then it was suddenly cut short, open to the readers interpretation of what happens next.

I awarded three stars as for me I enjoyed her other books miles more than this one but this was still a great read which I devoured in a day.

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Medical · Non-Fiction

*BLOG TOUR* Alcoholic Doctor – Dr Anish Kurar ★★★

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Blurb; Retired orthopaedic consultant Dr. Anish Kumar Kurar has worked in three countries accruing a wealth of experience managing critical conditions as well as taking fundamental steps to succeed amidst a climate of harsh reality. From scarring childhood memories during an impoverished upbringing, he has managed to climb to the top of his profession. Childhood abuse, a shift to alcohol as an insurance measure during adulthood, and the intense clinical demands of medical practice has resulted in a tough exterior; the journey from his primitive youth to an experienced consultant has been no holds barred. He has been publicly acclaimed in the media and presented with international awards from the Saudi Arabian government. Dr. Kurar proves that a little bit of grit can go a long way. This is his story.

My Review; This is a short book at only 75 pages long, a short read. The writing is also very small. I read this and it was not what I expected really. It is not similar to Adam Kays book or that genre. I would say this is more a biography. Yes, he is an alcoholic and a doctor but we dont get any stories of him working inside the hospital, more about his life, family, achievements and all the different countries and hospitals he has worked at.

It was still a good read, enlightening. Just not what I expected. There’s no chapters in this book just one story from beginning to end. However, I did read this in a day. He is a wise, clever and a thoughtful man regardless of the alcoholism. I award three stars for The Alcoholic Doctor. Still enjoyed it.

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