October 2021 - Diary of Difference

Midnight in the Snow by Karen Swan [BOOK REVIEW]

Karen Swan’s books have become a comforting and safe space for me over the past year. I always look forward to picking her newest book up and I’ve not once been left disappointed. Midnight in the Snow is definitely at the top of the list!

About The Book:

Pages: 457

Format I read it in: Paperback

Purchase Links:
Amazon UK | Amazon US

★★★★★

Synopsis:

The story follows the award-winning movie director Clover, who rose to fame when she filmed the documentary about Cory Allbright, a surfer whose life went downhill after an accident, because of a controversy with his rival, Kit Foley.

Now that Kit has been labeled as the bad guy, he has decided to retire from surfing and make his debut into snowboarding. And Clover is the one tasked to document his journey now, all whilst she is struggling to hide her personal bias.

My Thoughts:

I loved everything about Midnight in the Snow. The beginning is very captivating and I was instantly pulled into Clover’s world, where she has just become the star of a documentary. We get to meet her in the spotlight and outside of it, and find out two different Clovers for a little while.

“An ending doesn’t have to be happy for a new beginning to spring up; it will follow anyway, just as surely as the sun chasing the moon.”

Then, very soon after, the plot thickens, and she’s on another adventure, filming another documentary. Only this time around, she is filming the “bad guy”. Trying to keep her personal bias aside, Clover and her crew members are determined to film his story and be as neutral as possible. However, once they meet Kit and his team, they realise nothing will be that easy.

Because Kit is terrible and rude, but also very dedicated to his sport. You never know where you stand with him, and he seems like he doesn’t care about anything else but winning. And as a former competitors, I have met many Kit’s in my life, and I can completely understand the determination to be the number one, and the arrogance that sometimes comes with it.

“When you already are more, where is there to go? What becomes of your humanity? The need to win comes at what cost? And are the sacrifices worth it? Because it seems to me, that when we reach for the sun, we always get burned.”

Karen Swan’s writing is as captivating as always.

And it’s not only Clover and Kit that get the spotlight. We meet so many different characters that we end up loving equally as much. Their stories and their paths are very beautifully written, and they cross in a very calculated manner. I ended up loving a lot of characters that I didn’t like at the beginning. The more I get to know them throughout the book, and understand why they made the choices that they did, and why they are the way they are – it left me with a heartwarming feeling in my heart. There is, as always, a little bit of mystery behind the story as well, and I greatly enjoyed discovering the clues and solving the questions.

With Midnight in the Snow, you are in for an adventure, trust me! You’ll be heading up and down your own emotional snowy slope and enjoy every single moment of it!

About The Author:

Karen Swan is the Sunday Times top three bestselling author of twenty books and her novels sell all over the world. She writes two books each year – one for the summer period and one for the Christmas season. Previous summer titles include The Spanish Promise, The Hidden Beach and The Secret Path and for winter, Christmas at Tiffany’s, The Christmas Secret and Together by Christmas.

★★★★★

Synopsis:

It’s the following Thursday. Our lovely group of pensioners is going on about their day-to-day routine, when Elizabeth receives a letter from an old colleague. He’s in danger and he needs her help, and he’s somehow managed to get himself involved with some stolen diamonds and some angry people capable of a lot of violence.

When things get heated and people start to die, Elizabeth needs the Thursday Murder Club crew to assist her. And Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim can’t wait to embark on another adventure.

My Thoughts:

This book is everything I expected it to be, but it still amazed me. First of all, Richard Osman is such an amazing storyteller. It was so easy to get into the story and read the book. The pace was steady and the chapters ended with a bit of suspense and mystery that made me keep going. The story was very well thought of, kept me hooked until the very end.

The group of four people that we already know and love work so well! Each one of them is a unique character and I loved reading their individual scenes just as much as I enjoyed them hanging around together and solving mysteries. They have a certain bond that I crave to have when I make it to that age. When I think of the Thursday Murder Club crew, I have the Friends crew in mind, when they are in their 80’s. I usually get bored and distracted when reading dialogues that don’t contribute to moving the story forward – but with this book, I craved more interactions and never ceased to be amazed.

The mystery side of the book was very interesting.

We get a few clues along the way and at some point, I was sure I cracked the case. But boy, oh, boy, was I wrong! And not only that, but there is a smaller mystery as well that happens side-by-side, making the reading journey very unpredictable. I loved how everything comes together in the end, and it all makes perfect sense.

I very much enjoyed the adventure that was The Man Who Died Twice and I’ll be looking forward to reading the next book Richard Osman decides to throw my way. Funny and mysterious, smart and adventurous – this book is a wonderful sequel to a brilliant series. If you’re still in doubt – go for it! The Thursday Murder Club crew will immediately grow on you, as they did on me.

About The Author:

Best known as the creator and co-presenter of the beloved BBC quiz show Pointless, Richard Osman’s career in television and comedy spans more than two decades. Osman studied Politics and Sociology at Trinity College, Cambridge, and began his career in television by producing numerous shows, including Deal or No Deal.