Book Review: Fat, Fifty & Fu*ked by Geoffrey McGeachin

 Fat, Fifty & Fu*ked

by

Geoffrey McGeachin

20th Anniversary Edition

Publisher: Clan Destine Press

Publication date: Rereleased on 13th November 2023 

Genre: Crime / Humour

Pages: 232

RRP: $32.95 (paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Review: Fat, Fifty & Fu*ked

Set in the fictitious small country town of Burrinjuruk, Fat, Fifty and Fu*ked is the quintessential Australian novel. The small town is dying since the main road was diverted and the local bank is the latest business to be closed down. Get ready for the ride of your life with an armed hold-up, murder,  mayhem, benevolent bikies, Government cover-ups and a madcap journey in a sidecar.

 

Martin Carter's life couldn't get any lower. His wife is playing the field, his step-children hate him and the bank he manages is closing today; his fiftieth birthday.

With a mid-life crisis looming Martin decides to hold up the armoured car delivering the payouts for the local miners. He steals a police car and goes on the run. Along the way he meets up with Faith, an ex-librarian ready to have some fun.

Originally published in 2003, and re-released this year by Clan Destine Press, McGeachin decided to stick with the year 2000 setting. It was a simpler time before smartphones, limited social media and the search for the perfect cup of coffee.

It is very easy to like Martin, the underdog, and barrack for him along the way. Faith is also a fabulous character, putting her librarian smarts to use throughout the journey.

Fat, Fifty & Fu*ked is fast-paced, witty, wild and outrageously funny, served with a side dish of romance.

It's a book I found hard to put down wanting to know how Martin and Faith would get out of this mess.

Fat, Fifty & Fu*ked is the funniest book I have read in a while.

My rating 5 / 5  🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Wishing you a Merry Christmas from The Burgeoning Bookshelf - 2023

 A big thank you to all my followers for all your support. I will be back soon with my 2023 challenge update (let's see how I went). Until then have a wonderful Christmas and I hope you find a favourite book, or two, under the Christmas tree.

 

I know, on my last review, I promised that a giveaway would be coming soon and I haven't forgotten. Last week I was struck down by the dreaded Covid and spent a few days in hospital so all my reading and reviewing has been sidelined while I rest and recover. 

Not having read anything for well over a week I started on Jo Dixon's latest offering A Shadow at the Door (which will be released on 3rd January 2024) and I can assure you it's going to be another massive hit for Jo. Jo's debut was The House of Now and Then which I rated 5 stars.

Book Review: For Once in My Life by Karly Lane

 For Once in My Life

by

Karly Lane

Sometimes love can show up in the most unexpected places

 

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Publication date: 28th November 2023

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 363

RRP: $32.99AU (paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

 Review: For Once in My Life

For Once in My Life is another huge success from author Karly Lane.

I absolutely enjoyed everything about this story!

The main character, Jenny, is easy to warm to. Jenny is turning fifty and after a very hectic two years, post divorce, getting her life back on track she is ready to relax a little. However her three grown daughters, who have all returned home after differing life events, decide mum needs to have some fun, maybe even find love again. The girls secretly set up a dating profile for their mum and start chatting and setting up dates with potential love interests.

We follow Jenny on her dates, all at the local pub, most are a disaster and she is a little embarrassed and a little annoyed that the cute barman seems to be taking it all in.

Jenny is such a lovely person and wonderful mum and grandmother. She was so patient with her daughters' antics. There are lots of laugh-out-loud moments throughout the story and most are at Jenny's expense but she comes across as the sort of person who would be mortified one minute and laughing along the next.

As with all Karly's books, between the humour and flirting, there are many pertinent themes explored, such as; reviving small country towns, restaurants sourcing local food, small-town gossip, age gap relationships and life after divorce.

For Once in My Life (honestly, I can't get that Stevie Wonder song out of my head) is engaging and fun, a feel good story not to be missed.

My rating 5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I have giveaways coming soon - stay tuned!

 

Book Review: Deep in the Forest by Erina Reddan

Deep in the Forest

by

Erina Reddan

What lies behind the walls of the Sanctuary? 

 

Publisher: Pantera Press

Publication date: 28th November 2023

Genre: Contemporary Fiction/Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 296

RRP: $32.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher via DMCPRMedia

 

Review: Deep in the Forest

Deep in the Forest by Erina Reddan is a fascinating story rich in secrets, lies and betrayal. Filled  with simmering menace it has me hooked from start to finish.

Town pariah Charli Trethan is fed up with being blamed for a crime she didn't commit and plans to leave Stone Lake for a new life overseas.

A gruesome discovery just a few weeks before she is due to leave sees her under police scrutiny again. Then Charli finds a hidden message, a cry for help, from someone within the nearby closed community called The Sanctuary. 

Narrated in first person by Charli who has bouts of depression, I found myself questioning her actions and reasoning. Erina Reddan had me reeling back and forward with who could be trusted and what the truth was.

Reddan digs deep into communal living and exactly how voluntary joining a cult is when they prey on the vulnerable.

Deep in the Forest starts out at a slow pace as the scene is set but as the story twists and turns and the suspense ramps up it had me questioning what I thought was true right up to the adrenaline fuelled ending.

My rating 4 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

If you are on Instagram you can follow along on the blog tour below:

 

Book Review: The Goldminer's Sister by Alison Stuart

The Goldminer's Sister

by

Alison Stuart

Gold is a fever. Will it lead her to love ..... or death? 

 

Publisher: Harlequin Australia

Publication date: 8th July 2020

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 381

RRP: $29.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher 

Review: The Goldminer's Sister

In The Goldminer's Sister, Alison Stuart deftly evokes the attitudes and nuances of 1800's Australia.

Set in the goldfields of country Victoria, Stuart depicts the small towns of the late 1800's with startling clarity.

 

Eliza sails from the UK to Australia, after her mother's death, to be with her brother, Will. It isn't until she arrives in Maiden's Creek that she learns of her brother's accidental death and her Uncle offers her lodgings.

Eliza's curiosity over her brother's death starts to mount as she gets to know more people in the town and she begins to wonder why her uncle is so keen to be rid of her.

Mysteries start to appear right from the start of the book and as the story progresses the mysteries deepen and an element of suspense is added. The Goldmines are a dangerous place for women however Eliza will not back down, she is outspoken and feisty. Stuart's characterisation is perfect, Eliza is well formed and believable.

The introduction of Alec, a man of honour, Will's friend and mine manager, gives a good balance to the other lecherous men and introduces an element of romance.

 

The Goldminer's Sister is a fabulous read, rich in mystery and danger, theft and deception, showing how profit quite often came before people's lives.

 

My rating 5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

Challenges: Mount TBR challenge

 

 

Book Review: The Girls by Chloe Higgins

 The Girls

by

Chloe Higgins

A memoir of family, grief and sexuality

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia

Imprint: Picador

Publication date: 27th August 2019

Genre: Non fiction / Memoir

Pages: 320

RRP: $32.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Review: The Girls

When Chloe was seventeen she and her mother stayed home, so she could study for HSC exams, whilst her father took her two younger sisters on a ski trip. On the way back from the trip the car was involved in an accident and burst into flames. Both the sisters were killed.

The Girls is what followed, for Chloe, after that fatal day.

 

I find it very hard to review memoirs, especially those that involve grief and mental illness as I've never had this extreme level of grief.  

 

I appreciated that Chloe was candid in her writing. It is no use writing a memoir if you are only going to write the good stuff and gloss over the bad. It's all included; the drugs, the sex and the bouts of depression.

 

The words flow and her writing is easy to read even though the content is tough.

The story jumps around a lot in time and sometimes I found the time stamp hard to figure out.

I am glad writing this book has helped Chloe work through her own grief and by the end of the book I was pleased she was starting to heal.

My rating 4 / 5  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Challenges: TBR challenge

                    Non-fiction challenge

Book Review: Vendetta by Sarah Barrie

 Vendetta

by

Sarah Barrie

COP OR CRIMINAL? UNDERCOVER, THE LINES ARE A LITTLE BLURRY

 

Publisher: Harlequin Australia

Publication date: 15th November 2023

Series: Lexi Winter #3

Genre: Crime / Thriller

Pages: 400

RRP: $32.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Review: Vendetta

The much anticipated Lexi Winter #3 is here! 

In Vendetta by Sarah Barrie Lexi finds herself with no one to turn to for help, once again relying on her hacking skills to keep herself alive. It is not only Lexi's life that is at stake.

Dawny is back in book 3 and she is in fine form. Her quick wit and sarcasm cracks me up.

Lexi is still not sure if the police force is the right job for her when people from her past pop up again in her life.

Lexi didn't disappoint! She was tough and wanted it all her way, she doesn't concede to anyone, police or criminal.

The suspense ramps up as the pages turn and I was worried this could be the case that destroys Lexi.

The book ends on a teaser which makes me feel that the next book is  going to be even more heart-stopping - if that's possible!!

Vendetta is fast-paced and suspenseful, readers following the Lexi Winter series will not be disappointed.

My rating 5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books in the series:

https://theburgeoningbookshelf.blogspot.com/2022/01/book-review-giveaway-unforgiven-by.html

https://theburgeoningbookshelf.blogspot.com/2023/02/book-review-retribution-by-sarah-barrie.html