What constitutes a trashy novel?

I always thought the answer was gratuitous sex scenes amongst shallow characters, but others have told me it's an insignificant plot.

I Googled the answer and (palpitations!) it brought up chick lit. Chick lit! Surely not. Other answers are a formulaic book written for scandal or simply a badly-written book. It seems no one really knows the true answer. Maybe it's an easy-reading book that you've enjoyed?

When I brought up this question with a group of writers, a gentleman answered: ‘Any book written by a female.’

Yeah, I know, idiot, and not because the group was mainly made up of women. So the question is still out there—what constitutes a trashy novel?

Meanwhile, my own trashy, chicklit novel (with no gratuitous sex scenes or insignificant plot) is now free in the Amazon lending library. Feel free to check it out:

  

A Proper Charlie

 What’s a girl to do when she discovers her boss is a wanted man?

Amazon

She's losing her job.
She's losing her boyfriend.
She can only afford to eat spaghetti hoops on toast.
She's called Charlie... Charlotte, ginger, ginge, Duracell or carrot.
Yet with all these odds against her, she pushes forward to take the lead story on her paper at London Core.

Shame no one knows.

Shame she's the office general assistant and not a real journalist. Shame it's on missing prostitutes and Charlie thinks pretending to be a 'tart with a heart' will get her that story.
She doesn't just get a story.
She becomes the starring role.

 Unashamedly trashy!

Jason Ayres

5/5

My Tomorrow Your Yesterday

Amazon.UK
Amazon.com

Sometimes I buy and review a book just because it's one I want to read for pleasure, and My Tomorrow Your Yesterday was one such book.


It wasn't the cover that pulled me in on this occasion, it was the strong blurb. The first sentence tells us about the protagonist, he's 54 and he's about to die. The second sentence tells us 'the next day, he woke up'. If that doesn't pull in time travel-loving readers nothing will!

The cover is strong. The back to front calendar and a lone man staring up at it in confusion completely matched the blurb.

The title also summed up the story, so all in all, blurb, title and cover all corresponded nicely together.


Look inside began with the Epilogue with the title Death and introduced the protagonist Thomas Scott. He’s in hospital, confused and obviously dying. There is a woman sitting by his bedside and she says, ‘Happy New Year Dad.’ Then he dies.

The next chapter is labelled Cancer, and Thomas wakes feeling well enough to watch TV. A news broadcast tells him ‘preparations are underway for tonight’s New Year celebrations’ and so, remembering the woman’s ‘Happy New Year’ words from yesterday is confusing for the protagonist. 

It's a strong opening.

During the story we are taken, alongside the lead character, on a journey to slowly realise we’re going backwards in life. Each day runs forwards, but in the early hours of the morning we’re pinged back to the start of the day before.

So as Thomas slowly starts to ‘get better’ from cancer he realises he can make changes so he never gets the illness in the first place by not smoking and eating healthy, although he wakes up every day with nicotine withdrawal symptoms until he hits the point where he first began smoking and simply doesn’t begin. Here, I wonder why he went through the pain of the withdrawal when, by not starting to smoke, it’d never happen anyway?

Thomas doesn’t remember his life so the people coming and going are new to him ie his daughter, but the connection between him and his family is strong and touching.

The author takes Thomas through a sticky patch where he seeks out prostitutes and has a girlfriend almost thirty years his junior, which I found distasteful, but Thomas is obviously a lonely middle-aged man. There is evidence of a wife, killed by a drunk driver, and as Thomas is pulled backwards through time he plans to save her and maybe change his sad future.

The author doesn’t take us through every single day of Thomas’ backwards life but in significant periods where the character makes changes to alter his future. We’re not told why any of this has happened but that only adds to the mystery and appeal of this book.

And when Thomas relives his own birth it 'resets' time and he begins life going the correct way but we're not told if he remembers anything of his other topsy-turvy life or even he’s destined to yo-yo for eternity.

All in all this is a fantastic story for time-travel lovers. So unique and quirky, and worthy of a 5/5. It’s British so expect Britishisms.

I didn’t find any errors in the book.

Blurb:

When 54 year old Thomas Scott wakes up in a hospital bed on New Year’s Day he has no memory of who he is or why he is there. Racked with pain from a terminal illness, death swiftly follows.

The next day he awakes to find himself alive again and confused, especially when he discovers that it is now New Year’s Eve. As the days pass he begins to realise that he is living his life backwards one day at a time.

So begins the extraordinary tale of a man who goes to sleep on Sunday nights and wakes up on Saturday mornings: A man who cannot form a meaningful relationship with a woman because when he jumps back to the previous day, she has no memory of him. And a man who can win a fortune from gambling any time he likes, but has only one day to spend it.

Trying to find some purpose in life he resolves to find out as much about his own personal history as he can. Learning of the death of his wife and an attack on his daughter, he prepares to make changes in the past to secure their future.

From middle-aged father all the way back to childhood, the passing years present all manner of different challenges as he grows ever more youthful.

Set in and around Oxford between the years of 1970 and 2025, this unique concept for a time travel novel features plenty of humour, nostalgia and “what if?” moments.

Taking place in the same universe as the author's Time Bubble series, this is a standalone novel aimed at a more adult audience. It can be enjoyed without the need to have read those earlier books.

Vivian Mayne

3/5

The Flame and The Moth (Etherea Book 2)
by 

Vivian Mayne

Amazon.UK
Amazon.com 

The cover didn't draw me in at all. I loved the rich chocolate colour but the design, picture and silhouette of the person was nondescript to me. All it made me think of was the genre history, and The Flame and the Moth is as far from history as you could get.

The title was intriguing: it told me of something dangerous (the flame) and something vulnerable (the moth) and of course it's book 2 of a book that I've already read: The Curse of Fin Milton. The theme is magic, sorcery, ghosts, adventure and a family feud. It isn't a light read and it's in multi viewpoint, which does make it difficult to stay in tune with the main character.

The look inside got straight into the story with Fin Milton astral planing (a sort of out-of-body travel. Beats rush hour, that's for sure!) through New York. The first line made me think of impending doom for this strong character: It wasn't the first time Finn Milton had astral planed through New York city, but it would prove to be his last.

Finn has many magical abilities: astral planing, reading minds and heightened hearing. He lives alongside others with his abilities in modern England in the seaside town of Cornwall. An excellent location because Cornwall is steeped with folklore legends.

Finn's now with his sweetheart, Ellie, and she's heavily pregnant. Together they travel back to Cornwall because Finn's father had been involved in an incident, which has put him in a coma in hospital. Finn was shocked to hear this news, so I couldn't understand why it took him several more days to visit his dad, albeit he sent someone else (Branna) before he'd even left New York, but still, once back in England Finn slept, ate and chatted about NY before seeing his dad. 

And again, when his beloved wife went into labour, he spent more time with new friends instead of rushing to her side. These characterizations make Finn a little cold, and I don't think that was the author's intention. Also, there was a lot of talk about Finn being powerful, but he didn't come across like that to me. He was a likeable character, but he relied on too many people to be 'powerful'.

Branna was a character that was powerful, however. She didn't seem to need anyone, and she is one character who stayed with me since book 1. She was the reason for the family feud beginning by killing her evil father and brother in book 1, but they were the bad guys so they had to go.

Other than my nitpicks, this is an interesting story of a family at war with one another, and I was so batting for the Milton's! 

The Connelly's (the baddies) are an evil bunch and don't care who they hurt to get to Finn Milton. The book seemed to come alive the more madder and crazier Cillian became. He was one scary person!

The book was addictive, and I couldn't once predict the ending. It had lovely friendships between the characters and The Flame and The Moth truly was bad verses evil.

A few typos, mainly the speech mark being inside punctuation, but nothing spectacular. The men in the story, with an exception to Cillian, appeared a little effeminate but otherwise great characterisation.

The mixed POV took away some of the story's power and needs to be contained, or even eradicated completely, to make this an excellent book.

Overall, an interesting story which would probably appeal to the YA genre.



Blurb:

A violent family is bent on revenge using enchantments and mind control. This time Finn needs help. Aside from mastering soul light and telekinesis to astral planing to a deadly spiritual realm filled with Sentries, he is getting married and having a baby. 

 Welcome to the crazy world of Finn Milton!

Set in modern day New York, London and Cornwall, England, this enchanted ghost story follows the trials of Finn Milton and his fiancée Ellie Morgan who are about to start a normal family life. But a dark omen has proven they will always have a part to play. For all parties, breaking from their past has grave consequences.

After Finn's destruction of Shannon Connelly’s talisman the year before, another one surfaces. Its existence and unknown location threatens the lives of all Finn cares for. At the same time he is targeted by a ruthless nemesis who is attracted by his unique and powerful soul light. This time Finn needs help and forms a possé. Aside from mastering soul light and telekinesis, the choice he makes has massive repercussions.

When I started writing The Flame and The Moth I wanted it to be a solid follow-up to The Curse of Finn Milton. For this reason alone there are more ghosts, new characters and a spiritual location far far away in the distant cosmos. As with the first book, I undertook intensive research into the local history of Cornwall. Wartime in St Ives caught my imagination and found itself fused within an integral flash back. – Vivian Mayne, 2015
 

Previous review: GBU Reviews: The Curse of Fin Milton 

Kathy May Davies

Hint of Satin

Amazon.com
Amazon.UK

A nice bright cover that shouted women's fiction. The only thing that ruined it for me was the tweed cap. It didn't match the 'satin' in the title or material at the bottom of the cover. I'd have liked to see her hair for a more sophisticated look--but, hey, maybe she's a tomboy!

3/5

The title Hint of Satin has an erotic feel to it, and I'm wondering what I'm about to read. The blurb, however, indicated mystery crossed with a bit of horror. 

The first paragraph of the blurb is excellent, but then the  second paragraph contradicts it all and ruins it. 

First paragraph: she 'finds herself in a house with strangers and then the lights go out'. Second: as a taxi driver Lee is safer driving the streets of Texas 'than being with her two new acquaintances who are as leery of her as she is of them'.


The 'leery' part undid the strong first paragraph and made the strangers appear like loutish youths, and where I felt the book was going down the erotica route (not a problem if that's what you're after).

The very last line in the paragraph could be perceived as having an error: Hint of Satin has mystery, intrigue and just a tad bit of romance to spice the adventure.The 'tad' and 'bit' mean the same in this context so one or the other should be removed.

The look inside has no acknowledgements or praise to scroll through, which is a bugbear of mine, so I'm thrilled at getting straight into chapter one and into the mind and actions of protagonist Lee (we never find out her last name). 

She's late for her university finals, and when she notices a case on the back seat of her car she takes it in with her rather than leave in in the cab--at this point I couldn't understand if the case belonged to Lee or had been left by a customer (she's a taxi driver, and is a allowed to use the taxi for personal use), but when I read on it becomes apparent that the case had been left by a customer.

So Lee takes the case back to its owner, and disregarding her own safety, enters a house occupied by two strange men, and my interest in this book wanes a little as I expect this is where the 'erotica feel' comes into play, but I'm wrong. Other than a strong sexual attraction between Lee and Blake Stone nothing happens.

Instead, Lee is embroiled in a sinister run and hide from someone trying to kill her. Blake, thinking it's because of him, becomes her protector.Together they set out to find out who is responsible for this reign of terror and the mystery surrounding the case.

So over all, Hint of Satin is a sweet romance, nothing erotic (not even a sex scene!), between two people thrown together in exceptional circumstances.

Lee and Blake are well-rounded characters and both easy to visualise, but the supporting cast (with the exception of Jimmy) appeared cardboard. Secondary characters such as Jennifer and Macho popped up from time to time but added nothing to the story. I felt Macho was only there so Blake had someone to shout at and be the 'formidable' character I felt the author wanted him to be.


Due to the formatting of this book, it is at times, hard to follow. With the changes of POV between Lee and Blake it was difficult to know when a scene or POV change happened, so sometimes I was merrily reading thinking I was in Lee's POV but it was Blakes--and it was the following day!

There wasn't many grammar or spelling errors as such, but there were punctuation errors--mainly missing speech tags or errant commas, so I would suggest a good editor for this novel to correct that and to tighten its structure.

That aside, the book was visual and it did have two very likeable characters who you routed for throughout the book. There were some terrific lines and scenes of intense sexual tension, and even comedy with Blake and Macho as they argued and teased one another.

Hint of Satin had a HEA and it suggested at more to come, maybe they will be a Hint of Satin 2, there was certainly enough intrigue and plot for more with Lee's background history.

Kathy May Davies is an author who can only grow and get better. Hint of Satin has lifelike characters embroiled in intrigue and sweet romantic moments.

Blurb:

Taxi driver and student, Lee, finds herself in a predicament that could be sinister - in the same house with an unusually large man and another who wears dark glasses, black clothes and has a scar on his face that very probably runs the length of his torso. She can only guess, of course, but the ragged line is fresh. And then the lights go out.

Driving the streets of San Antonio, Texas is safer than being with her two new acquaintances who are as leery of her as she is of them. But, they need each other to discover why their lives are in danger, or at the very least, which one is the intended target.

Hint of Satin has mystery, intrigue and just a tad bit of romance to spice the adventure.

Successio by Alison Morton

4/5

  Successio

Amazon.com
Amazon.UK


This is the last of the Roma Nova saga. I can't say much about the cover other than it's similar to the last two books, and although I found the covers dull, together they make an impressive collection.

The title Successio, in Latin, means

descent, inheritance, succeeding etc so I think this book could focus on the main protagonist's family life. Maybe the grandmother, Aurelia Mitela (Nonnie), elderly in the last book, has died and Carina inherits? Shall have to read to find out.

The blurb nicely includes a first line hint at the troubles of the previous episodes before drawing me back into Carina's life. The blurb also reinforces my belief that this book will concentrate on troubles brewing in the Mitela household.

The look inside is again (almost) the same as the others--background story--which because I commented on before I shan't do so here.The only difference was the illustration of Carina. A nice touch.

Straight into the review of the story...

The beginning hinted at friction between Carina and her stepdaughter, Stella, which was nicely done. Nothing heavy handed. Then Conrad received a mysterious letter where Carina, instead of asking him about its contents, decided to be sneaky and follow him.I've always come away feeling that Conrad and Carina aren't a strong match for one another. They seem to mistrust the other, and in Book 1 and 2 I felt it was because he'd picked up on the sexual spark between Carina and Apollodorus--maybe he'll just never forgive her. Maybe I read too many romances!

Anyway, instead of asking her husband what the hell is going on Carina follows him and discovers he has a daughter from a past relationship laying claim to his affections. Nicola Sandbrook is resentful of Conrad's other family (Carina and her children) but worse, she is now the heir to the throne after the beloved death of Grandmother Nonnie (I came to love this character, and it was a sad moment when she passed).

Nicola is a nasty, flawed character, and intent on destructing the entire foundations of the Mitela household. She first causes trouble by trying to lead Carina and Conrad's oldest daughter, Allegra, astray, but then settles on Stella (another daughter from Conrad's past) and uses Stella's jealously over her stepmother Carina to worm her way into the Mitela household.

Then her destruction gets steadily worse as Carina and Conrad drift even further apart.

Successio, like the others in the series, is a plot driven book rather than character but I preferred Successio to the others because in this one, Carina seems more human and less of a superwoman. Conrad was allowed emotions as well, but so much so, I began to think he was a wimp! Neither could I understand why he was blind to Nicola's evilness and turn his back on Carina and their other children.

Subtly, Morton had dropped into the story that Conrad had had an accident and although recovered physically I felt his mental state was still in rehabilitation (because of his eagerness to side with his villainous daughter), but whether this was intended or not, I wasn't sure.

Even so, Carina was cruel to break the news in front of others about the activities of this bad daughter. She should have waited until they were alone. Their massive bust-up over it could still have happened, but the reader would have been more in Carina's court. Instead, I lost sympathy for her a little.

It's a tight read, tighter than the others, which seemed to have many little sub-plots feeding through. I did think that Carina would have had more respect at work by now, and the constant put downs she received was unnecessary because she'd proved herself time and again that she was an effective solider.


Successio is probably the only book out of the three that you could read as a stand-alone novel. It's genre is an alternative history (and well thought out) but first it's a crime story with a strong emphasis on thriller.

Very well done. Another strong 4/5.

Blurb

Roma Nova – the last remnant of the Roman Empire that has survived into the 21st century – is at peace. Carina Mitela, the heir of a leading family, but choosing the life of an officer in the Praetorian Guard Special Forces, is not so sure.

She senses danger crawling towards her when she encounters a strangely self-possessed member of the unit hosting their exchange exercise in Britain. When a blackmailing letter arrives from a woman claiming to be her husband Conrad’s lost daughter and Conrad tries to shut Carina out, she knows the threat is real.

Trying to resolve a young man’s indiscretion twenty-five years before turns into a nightmare that not only threatens to destroy all the Mitelae but also attacks the core of the imperial family itself. With her enemy holding a gun to the head of the heir to the imperial throne, Carina has to make the hardest decision of her life…

Alison Morton

4/5

 Perfiditas

Amazon.UK
Amazon.com

The cover is in line with the rest of the books in the series. I haven't changed my opinion on the cover, I still dislike it. But this time I looked up what Perfiditas means: faithlessness and treachery. Oooh, piqued my interest instantly!

The blurb  gives a little from the previous book, which acts as a nice reminder for those who have read it. Perfiditas begins seven years after the first, and Carina has got it together with love interest, Conrad, and is now a mother of two. I'm disappointed that I wasn't privy to their 'coming together'. In book one, they'd split up and I'd have loved to have seen them make up. But that's a romance reader talking. I have to remind myself that this is a thriller. 


The look inside was all taken up with the same intro that had appeared in the first book, which I thought unnecessary, but these books could possibly be read as stand-alone reads (not something I'd recommend because there is a LOT going on with characters carrying on their role from the previous instalment), so the author probably thought it was needed for that reason.

Perfiditas opened with Carina discovering the 'entrapment' of Aidan, seemingly, he had disappeared after dipping his hand into the cash drawer at work. It seemed trivial, and Carina was ready to dismiss it as such, but a hunch made her pursue it. Aidan was under surveillance from several minders: at home and work.

The build to his 'kidnap' was a brilliant hook and held my attention as Carina took charge, taking on many disguises to discover what was going on, so I was disappointed when I was just told that he had been liberated.

That wasn't the end though, Carina needed to find out why he'd been held and why she, are all those held dear to her, were being slandered. The plot thickens... but like the first book Morton tends to have her characters plan and discuss the tactics to be used instead of having actions. It is a little disappointing (for me), but it's the author style, and in no way 'wrong'.

I'd have liked Conrad to be her sidekick, instead of being pushed to one side. Other men are listed as 'dangerous' and 'exciting' instead, and I feel this should have been Conrad's role. Anyway, Carina finds herself in the middle of a plot to overthrow the government (her family) and kidnap her children and herself (to possibly kill them) so no female heirs can carry the 'throne'.

She goes on the run, seeking out her old villainous friends, whom we become acquainted with again, it was good to meet them, but Carina's children, and the rest of her family, seemed like mere observers in her exciting life. 

I could understand that she wanted to separate her dangerous working life from that of her family but maybe, slowing down, and allowing the reader into this calmer life would turn this into an amazing thriller. As it stands, it felt like something was missing--a spark--emotion--can't quite put my finger on it.

I just wish they'd been more of this: Normally, I relished the buzz of going undercover on an operation. But no adrenaline raced through my body now. I had no doubt I'd been on the brink of being arrested as a conspirator; I'd been trapped into deserting my post so would be pursued; I was cut off from my family, my children and my love. A cold wave washed through me. Deep down, I had never felt so alone.


And less emotionless planning to bring down her enemies or sudden 'Oh, I have children/a husband' mentions. Because of this I couldn't feel much empathy for Captain Carina Mitela.

Also, the revelation that Renschman had died was placed into the story so matter-of-factly I almost missed it. I know I described him as a pantomime villain in the first book, but felt his character was a waste to just kill him off in a sentence. 

Over all, this story focuses on a treason plot on her family (the government), and the fallout of Carina’s attempt to put things right. I was disappointed with Conrad for not understanding her reasons for getting things done quickly (illegally) but the sexual tension between Carina and Apollodorus was so strong I knew why.

And Alison Morton can do emotional; the ending actually made me go awwww. So I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series: Successio.


Blurb

Captain Carina Mitela of the Praetorian Guard Special Forces is in trouble – one colleague has tried to kill her and another has set a trap to incriminate her in a conspiracy to topple the government of Roma Nova. Founded sixteen hundred years ago by Roman dissidents and ruled by women, Roma Nova barely survived a devastating coup d’état thirty years ago. Carina swears to prevent a repeat and not merely for love of country.

Seeking help from a not quite legal old friend could wreck her marriage to the enigmatic Conrad. Once proscribed and operating illegally, she risks being terminated by both security services and conspirators. As she struggles to overcome the desperate odds and save her beloved Roma Nova and her own life, she faces the ultimate betrayal…