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It was nice to 'meet' the current tenants from the Landlord of Hummingbird House and to hear mischievous Betty's perspective on those events. Weaving in Betty's arrival in the house with her husband in the 1960's provided an interesting contrast to the modern story, allowing the reader to see who Betty once was, and how her past made her who and how she is now.

I've never read anything with two timelines in the same person's life before, and was interested and entertained by the contrast, which the author uses to maximises story tension between past and present perspectives. An enjoyable read, with a delightful twist at the end.

Callie's work with her wild army and Child's with the Forest was reminiscent of Narnia, of hero characters attuned too and co-operating with the natural world, as humans in the present era are so rarely prone to do. This book 3 continued the entertaining and engaging pace and plots of books 1 and 2, and was a satisfying and age (MG) appropriate end to the trilogy.

Perfect. That was the first word that came to my mind as I read the final page. It was mysterious, there were unknowns, and the pov character wasn't sure what was happening. But via this company who rock up on your doorstep when you wish your day wouldn't end, and the experiences they offer and people who run them, Isabella is getting more than pov character Keenan can understand. Its deep, sad and perfect.

I'm not normally a short story fan, but there's something captivating about these ones, about meeting a character at a pivotal moment in their life and following them for a key chapter in that journey. This selection had me reading on at the end of each story.

My favourite was The Wild. There's something magical about adult office workers and links to their childhood dream jobs.

I wasn't sure if I could give it a star rating, having enjoyed some stories more than others, but as the longest ones captivated me, I'll round it up to 5 stars as a collection.

19 yo Latinx Izo presents as a smart arse who often maintains a light hearted, smart arsed attitude despite the severity of having been abducted by aliens and whisked away to a distant galaxy. Izo tries to mask his 'less manly feelings', and to restrict his swearing to Spanish (though the general meaning is easy to infer

I'm not much of a romance fan, but the collision of worlds this story offered when Viking shieldmaiden Halla meets Frankish, Christian landowner Taurin drew me in. As did their relationships with close friends, their people and each other. As a history lover, I also learnt a thing or two about Vikings and medieval Christians both. The length was just right to appreciate the world the main characters live in, how each thinks and feels, and the tensions between both the Halla and Taurin and their people. This was an enjoyable, heartwarming read.

It was nice to 'meet' the current tenants from the Landlord of Hummingbird House and to hear mischievous Betty's perspective on those events. Weaving in Betty's arrival in the house with her husband in the 1960's provided an interesting contrast to the modern story, allowing the reader to see who Betty once was, and how her past made her who and how she is now.

I've never read anything with two timelines in the same person's life before, and was interested and entertained by the contrast, which the author uses to maximises story tension between past and present perspectives. An enjoyable read, with a delightful twist at the end.

So many snippets of feels, and peeks at moments of time. From a punctuation poem that made me smile, to calls to pause, reflect, take action, to appreciate life and make the most of it. A good read for anyone wishing to pause, imagine, remember and think and feel about what it is to be human. Or to escape to a scene of another's life, and walk a vivid moment in someone else's shoes.

I enjoyed immersing myself in Lily's words and their vivid imagery. This is a collection of wonderful moments captured in words. One of my favourites was the clever structure of Book Is Open, which gave depth to and cleverly led from one theme to the next. It was a delight to read. I also enjoyed how the layout of some poems added to their meaning, and kept me hanging on each word, especially in Truth.

Nicely developed characters and an entertaining, well paced story to pass a day's reading. There was story tension from the outset, and finding an 80 year-old lady teaching a teenage girl knife-throwing in a 19th century setting was a pleasant surprise. Mystery and danger were promised in the opening pages and this book delivered both. I found Emma to be a realistic, relatable adventurer after my own heart.
The book also features yummy sounding recipes throughout (fitting, seeing as Emma’s family are bakers), so you may want to read this one with post it notes on hand to try your favourite recipes later.

Just finished my advanced reader copy. This was a new way to explore another planet -through the eyes of a film crew found of banter and digs at each other, as they seek footage exotic enough to keep their show on the galaxy's airwaves. The crew are good natured, and I enjoyed their company, and the conceited but very entertaining, endless digs that robot lead Hubcap makes at his 'meatbag' companions, which, along with the story, built to what I found to being a satisfying finale.

Frenzy, a space illness of mysterious origins was an interesting and realistic concept as a 'villain'. And naturally, an interesting original new alien species makes an appearance too. This was an immersive adventure, and an up-beat distraction from the sickbed in which I read it. An enjoyable and entertaining read.