I love a bit of eclectic reading, and that is certainly what I have lined up for you for Spring. From historical to hubris, reflection to reinvention, there is plenty ot get your teeth into from these debut authors, with three new books to broaden your Spring reading choices. 

Something Changed by Julie Tovey
£10.99

Split between “Now” and “Then” (the end of Anna’s university years in the late 1980’s and into the 90’s), Something Changes tells the story of Anna as she navigates university, relationships, work, and family, and the emotional turmoil and growth that comes with it. 

Something Changed by debut author Julie Tovey

Life for Anna comes full circle as the story begins with her visiting the London university that shaped her formative years, accompanied by her teenage son, Jack, as he embarks on his own journey into adulthood. 

As the story progresses, we learn about Anna’s life through flashbacks to her youth, from friendship, love, disappointment, and heartbreak – things that so many of us can relate to. It isn’t all reminiscences through rose-tinted glasses, though. Tovey tackles the hard-hitting subject of emotional and physical abuse as it creeps into Anna’s life. The issue slowly builds to a crescendo, with Anna dismissing her friends’ concerns as she avoids facing the painful truth. It’s beautifully handled by the author, giving readers an insight into Anna’s fragile mind as she begins to move forward again. 

From horrendous hangovers at work to dealing with misplaced affection, Tovey creates a cast of characters and situations that will make you cringe, cry and laugh out loud. It’s well written and, despite flicking in and out of the past, flows well, keeping the story moving forward at a nice pace. 

Filled with humour and humanity, it’s a great, highly relatable read that will keep you engaged to the very end. 

The Rose Amongst The Thorns by Laura Johnson-Smith
£10.99

Leicester, 1484 – the role of a well-born woman was to be demure and lady-like in order to make the most advantageous marriage possible. For Lady Katherine Turner, this wasn’t the case. After the death of her father and brother, she finds herself the Countess of Leicester, which, in a world governed by powerful men, was not an easy position to fulfil.

The Rose Amongst The Thorns by debut author Laura Johnson-Smith

Debut author Laura Johnson-Smith does a nice job of setting the scene from Katherine’s first-person perspective and giving us insight into her thoughts, feelings, and frustration at not being taken seriously at court and by those outside her direct circle. 

With her newfound wealth and power as the Countess of Leicester, Katherine begins to attract suitors, most of whom are more interested in winning her heart to take charge of her status than love. With her aunt, the older matriarch of the story, as her mother died in childbirth, pushing her to marry, Katherine opens her heart to love, only to find that people are not always what they seem. 

The reimagined historical setting makes a great backdrop for the story, showing the potential of this interesting novice author. What it lacks is character depth. Katherine should be the feminist heroine we can all root for, but she is never quite stirred enough emotion for me to fully get behind her. 

That said, it did keep me engaged, albeit with a slightly predictable ending. If you enjoy a historical novel with a little romance and power-play, you’ll enjoy The Rose Amongst The Thorns. I look forward to reading Johnson-Smith’s next offering, as the quality of writing was excellent. 

Innocent Bystander: Lessons From The Abyss by Murfy Richards
£12.99

Part life story, part travel memoir, this unusual book follows Murfy Richards from his youth in Scotland as a self-described “sassenach” to his travels across the globe, driven by his need for adventure and his career in the oil industry. 

It’s far from the straightforward read you might expect, jumping from story to story, across differing timelines with what feels like little reason or relevance. If you can cut through that noise and keep a track of things, and set aside what often seems like storytelling bravado, there are some genuinely poignant moments of self-reflection. 

There is no doubt that Richards has led an interesting life with plenty of ups and downs, brushes with the wrong people and moments of astonishingly bad judgment. The book offers interesting insight into his view of risks and consequences and how that has shaped his life choices, but there is perhaps a little too much emphasis on dramatic storytelling and not enough on the human and emotional impact it has had on him, which is surely the point of writing such a memoir. 

Innocent Bystander is an interesting read if you stick with it, but for me, it wasn’t a committed page turner. I found the second half much more engaging than the first, but getting there did feel like a struggle at times. 

Sam Huff
Latest posts by Sam Huff (see all)
Published On