Book reviews, and other muses
Camp Nanowrimo 2022
I finally did it 🥳📖✒️ After having finished writing my first draft over two years ago, it has taken so long to drag myself back to editing it, only managing a little bit here and there. But #campnanowrimo was the boost that I needed to get over the finish line at last! I have finally finished editing…
Book Review of Oz by Bobbie Darbyshire
So I said that I wouldn’t write reviews for fiction because it would hinder the experience of getting lost in a book – and going into a book wanting to review it is still something I won’t do. But this one, that I found today in the bargain box due to a slightly damaged spine,…
Book Review of The Hollow Crown by Dan Jones
The Hollow Crown is the second book that I have read by Dan Jones (and I have just bought his new book Power and Thrones which I am very much looking forward to reading), the first being the Plantagenets, which I fully enjoyed. Having also watched his series Great British Castles (many times) which he…
Book Review of What I talk about when I talk about Running by Haruki Murakami
If I could ever say that a book had made me at least even think about picking up regular exercise of any kind, the one that comes closest is Murakami’s memoir about writing and running, What I talk about when I talk about running. I have been a fan of Murakami’s writing ever since reading…
Book Review of Hidden Nature by Alys Fowler
This book was a cruel one for the sole fact that it made me bawl like a child. The tale of Alys’ life upheavals coupled with her travels up and down the canals of Birmingham (and sometimes London) is one that both intrigued me at points – Fowler is a gardener at heart and the…
Book Review of The Celts by Alice Roberts
So I waited to read this book for no good reason, it was just one of those things. But I’m glad I got around to it because this book is brilliantly written and excellently put together. Alice Roberts really looks at all the practical, rather than ’emotional’ evidence which is out there in the world…
Book Review: Alice by Christina Henry
(Mild Spoilers) Alice by Christina Henry is a dark/dystopian fantasy rendition of Alice in Wonderland. And one that I wholly enjoyed. The story follows the main character Alice who the reader joins in her cell where she is locked in an uncaring asylum in the ‘Old City’ alongside her cell neighbour Hatcher. The story follows…
Building a Story Ep2: Plot
Hello and welcome back to Imagination Mansion. In this blogpost I will be discussing plots and how I come up with them. Now plots are the trickiest thing, for me, to narrow down into how I come up with them and how I construct them because they tend to come tied to the character or…
My Creative Influences: Books
Hello and welcome back to Imagination Mansion. Today I thought I would talk about the things that have inspired me to write and what I write over the years.  In this blog, I will focus on the books that have influenced my ideas throughout my reading life. The first book in my list, which I think…
Book Review of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Great Gatsby is a fantastic piece of literature. As soon as I read this book I fell in love with it; the plot, setting, characters, and everything else. The main reason I think as to why I took to this book so quickly was the fact that I found myself comparing myself with the…
Imagination Mansion 