I found "Needle in the Blood" a compelling read, incredibly well researched with so many insights into the historical context of the story. The Bayeux Tapestry truly comes to life, as does the Church's influence on the lives of Bishop Odo, William and Gytha. A great book!

I have just finished reading Needle in the Blood. A very well researched and written book. The picture of life in those turbulent times was so well painted that you could almost feel yourself there. The consistency in the character portrayal gave the story added potency and it was so like Gytha to plan to give birth on her own - a passage in the book that I found particluarly moving. Hopefully this author will give us plenty more to enjoy. Well done!

I hope you get a lot of blurbs for Lint, because that's #1 on my list of Snowbooks I Want to Buy. I'm holding off because I really can't afford to buy books in pounds right now. Anna needs to get off her bum and get Lint (and Needle in the Blood, and Drugs Are Nice) distributed on this side of the pond!

The Needle In The Blood is a book to relish. The details of the period, the making of the tapestry, the morals and beliefs and day-to-day life are brought brilliantly into focus. The textures of the writing are wonderful - the richness of the colours and the fabrics... I wanted to climb into Odo's bed and snuggle down.

The story of the Bayeux tapestry is woven through with Odo's passion for both it and Gytha, the embroiderer who caught his eye and held his heart.

I adored this book, and will definitely read it again.

"Needle in the Blood" is one of the most well-researched book with fabulous characterisation and strong narration. The details, subtly intriguing, are the most fascinating thing about the book. Sarah Bower has certainly mastered the writing of historical fiction.

Needle in the Blood was my favourite read of 2007. All my book group loved it. It has everything - history, passion, romance, violence...it really is a book for everyone. The characters are colourful and vibrant, it's a really satisfying book.

Within the corpse laden pages of Monster Island, David Wellington paints a series of tragically human stories against an apocalyptic backdrop. As with all the best horror stories, the book works not because of the terrors on the page, but through the crisp portrait of humanity's reaction to catastrophes without and within.

Wellington provides credible, flawed characters to achieve this, and it is the experience of suffering alongside them, as the zombie pandemic necessitates ever more desperate measures, that powers this novel. Some triumph, others embrace their own darkness, and in watching them we see ourselves.

Also, it has zombies. Thousands of them. And they're hungry...

As a 15 year survivor of my own disastrous wedding, "Taking the Plunge" made me laugh until my sides hurt. Funny, down to earth, Bernie only wants what we all want; her dream wedding. She's a girl after our own heart. A group of my girlfriends and I got together to read this memoir and discovered it had real "bibliotherapy" appeal!

Having just got married this year I was passed 'Taking the plunge' from my enthusiastic wife-to-be who had just finished it. It is one of the funniest, most insightful and poignant books that I can remember reading. That it is a true story makes it all the more remarkable.

I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Having just got married this year I was passed 'Taking the plunge' from my enthusiastic wife-to-be who had just finished it. It is one of the funniest, most insightful and poignant books that I can remember reading. That it is a true story makes it all the more remarkable.

I cannot recommend it highly enough.

I can think of no better better preparation for the big day than studying the numerous lessons held between the pages of 'Taking the Plunge' by Stacie Lewis. It is instantly identifiable, easy to read and a fantastically witty emotional roller-coaster that will be so very familiar to those who have learnt to swim and those about to take their own plunge...

I am reading Taking the Plunge at the moment. This is a refreshing look at the trials and tribulations planning a wedding brings. Ms Lewis also describes with painful clarity how “family” can affect every girl’s dream of the perfect wedding day. I cannot wait to see how it all turns out. I hope we see more of this talented new writer’s work.

I rarely read historical fiction, but I couldn't put Sarah Bower's The Needle in the Blood down. Bower recreates history with dazzling detail, writing equally well about battle and the passion with which two enemies fall in love: Bishop Odo of Bayeux, half brother of William the Conqueror, who commissions a tapestry to commemorate the Battle of Hastings, and Gytha, handmaiden of King Harold's mistress, Edith Swan Neck. The story moves deftly from the battlefield to the nunnery where women stitch the Bayeux Tapestry, from Winchester to Normandy. But it's the love of the second most powerful man in England for an impoverished needlewoman that makes this a brilliant read.

Having recently read Lint whilst on holiday, I can honestly say this was one of the funniest, most intelligent books I have read for a long time. There are numerous inspired moments throughout the book, with a clever subversion of fiction cliches and brilliant twists of logic throughout. Few books have ever made me laugh out loud and this did so consistently, with classic, quoteable lines scattered throughout every chapter of Jeff Lint's life. Even the artwork in the centrefold of the book is brilliantly done, funny in its own right (if you're not sure about buying the book, flick to the centre pages and look through the artworks - if they make you smile, then the book will definitely make you laugh!)

Reading Michael McBride's novel THE FALL you will be treated to an apocalyptic horror of biblical proportion, from the all too plausible opening with the world on the brink of nuclear war, through to the struggle of humanity to survive what is certain obliteration. You'll be mesmerised as you meet and follow the survivors - people real enough to be your friends or your neighbours - each fighting their way through a landscape ravaged by nuclear war and a much greater evil, as they struggle to figure out and locate Mormon Tears. But the evil opposing them has a grudge against God and will stop at nothing to create an army to achieve its goal of damning mankind. These events are brought together in a blend of sadness and optimism, with elements of a very real horror that will definitely leave you asking for more.

I was laughing out loud while reading "Taking the Plunge", until I realised that it is a true story. I was then horrified at having taken so much pleasure from someone else's misfortune. It just goes to show that what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. The fact that Stacie Lewis can recount the tale now with such elegance and humour is to her great credit.

I wanted to weigh in and say how much I enjoyed needle in the blood. I'm usually put off by weighty books: but the excellent characterisation and the convincing recreation of eleventh century England pulled me in from about the third page. A couple of months after I read it I still have flashes (some welcome others rather nightmarish) of the good bishop, the dream visit to a hermit, the amputated hand and those initial, surreal battle scenes. The B. Tapestry will never seem the same again... Exceptional style and measured changes in tone make this a fine, fine achievement in writing. Look forward to more from SB, a new voice in historical fiction.

Hope I am not too late to write a recommendation about Needle in the Blood. This was a wonderful summer read transporting me from a dull British summer into the colourful life of Gytha and Odo and their tubulent love affair which became as intricately woven as the Bayeux Tapestry itself. The intensity of their love sent shivers through me as the story unfolded amongst politcal intrigues and power struggles. Definitely a book I would recommend to my friends.

As a wedding co-ordinator, wedding based novels are staple reading for me! I didn't know whether to laugh or cry reading 'Taking the Plunge'. The scenarios were all to familiar but written with a humour and acceptance that I found quite inspiring. Even more so once I realised it was fact based! Even without the vested interest in weddings, this book is a wonderful exploration of family dynamics and the effect momentous events like a wedding have on them.