Dit verhaal wordt tegenwoordig zo beroemd, met twee grote televisieseries ervan gemaakt, dat ik de hoofdpersonages al kende hoewel heb ik noch de Britse noch de Amerikaanse tv-series bekeken. Om het boek eindelijk te lezen voelt best vreemd.

 

Het grootste verschil tussen boek en televisie is de relatie tussen de verslaggeefster en de meedogenloze politicus die probeert hoog in de politiek te klimmen. In het book ontmoeten ze elkaar bijna nooit: de verslaggeefster doet al haar onderzoek over hem vanaf een afstand. Dit lijkt me een groot verschil in haar karakter tussen book en televisie. Zij is nog steeds ambitieus, wat leidt tot gevaarlijke situaties, maar professioneler dan in de tv-series.

 

Een ander groot verschil is dat het boek plaatsvindt in een vroegere tijd, waar politiek en politiek rapportage waren gebeiden waar weinig vrouwen of minderheden intreden. Nog vandaag is De Britse politiek vol met mensen die naar kostschool gingen. De schrijver doet hier fantatische werk om een gevarieerde cast karakters te verzamelen, en het nog steeds geloofwaardig te houden. Ook is hij uitstekend in de tonen van de kleine maar heel belangrijke verschillen in klas tussen de Britse politici. Bij voorbeeld, hij maakt de politicus Urquart van hogere klas Schotse afkomst. De Britse publiek stemt graag voor Schotse eerst ministers. Maar als een Schot voelt Urquart altijd wat buiten de 'ouwe jongens krentenbrood' club van de Engelse politici. Het is details zoals dit dat maakt het boek nog meer overtuigend.

 

Het was ongetwijfeld een vreemde beslissing van mij dit boek in het Nederlands te lezen, omdat het verhaal gaat zo over de Britse politiek. De vertaler worstelt soms met politieke dingen die geen exacte equivalent hebben tussen de Nederlandse en VK politiek, maar ik vond dat ook interessant.

I wasn't going to tackle this series not for any reason in particular just because I have so many books...specifically series on the go right now that I thought I'd try and behave because seriously the books in this series have gotten some really good reviews but I was trying to behave myself and then I saw "House of Cards' by Leigh Garrett...what can I say, willpower...I has none. 

 

Add to this the fact that Calum's last name is 'Hardy' and seriously how could I ignore a book with such an awesome name in it? Well obviously I couldn't.

 

'House of Cards' was one of those books that grabbed me from the start, as seems to be the case with me and Garrett Leigh stories.  First off for me this was not a romance story...it was more...so, so much more. This was friendship, love, second chances, starting over all wrapped up in a beautiful gift of words. 

 

When Calum Hardy's life takes a very rapid nose dive he gets on a train and heads out of London neither knowing nor caring where he's going. When Brix Lusmoore spots a familiar form at Truro station it doesn't really enter his mind not to stop. It's been years since he's seen Calum but he'd know him anywhere. Calum's hit rock bottom both in his life and in the bottle he's been consoling himself with on his train ride to who-know's-where so he's pretty sure he's imagining seeing the friend who disappeared from his life years earlier the friend he's missed every day since.

 

Brix loads Calum into his van and takes him home but for Brix and Calum this is only the beginning. Both men have a lot to sort out and work through before they can find their way home to each other.

 

I loved, loved, loved everything about this book...well, everything except Rob and Jordan they can go die in a fire both of them. They are the dickiest of dicks...yep, I hated them both.

 

Ok enough of that on to better things like Calum. He's so broken seriously, I didn't think a vat of crazy glue was going to put him back together but still there was also such a sweet and decent man there. Thank heavens Brix is better than crazy glue, but sadly he's got his own problems and issues and yet, he's got a strength of character that's amazing. He's a fixer, a nurturer. He takes Calum back into his life and he gives him the a home and the strength to he needs to start rebuilding his life and in doing this he finds the strength to begin fixing his own fragmented life.

 

As well as Calum and Brix there's a wonderful collection of characters in Porthkanneck who definitely keep life interesting, so needless to say I was more than a little happy to learn that book #6 in the Porthkannek series will be Kim's story. We met him here in 'House of Cards' and I have to admit the blurb for his book promises to be every bit as good as this one.

 

'House of Cards' is a story that will make you both smile and cry.  It will leave you wishing that you could visit this quirky, fictional place where people can nurse their wounds and make themselves whole again and at the end of it all it'll leave you feeling like you went to Porthkanneck without leaving your favorite reading chair.

 

********************

 A copy of 'House of Cards' was graciously provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 40%

It is my own fault. I shouldn't have asked for an ARC, because after my last book by the author I swore to myself not to read anything by Garrett Leigh again. But I fell into the trap of nice reviews and...my own sloppiness.

Reading [b:House of Cards|34093924|House of Cards (Porthkennack, #4)|Garrett Leigh|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1487206401s/34093924.jpg|55111015] simultaneously with Elena Ferrante's L'amica geniale Series (an audio version) was not a good idea and not to the advantage of this book, but I like to combine audio books and eBooks in different genres with each other. Until now it worked perfectly. But here the difference is simply galactic. Sorry.

I don't like the story, I don't care about the characters, I dislike the writing. I don't like the vulgarity of her language. Too many f*ck words, and THAT can your read in a nice conversation on one single page:

a prize wanker
a cunt
a lecherous prick
wankers
a slut
lucky fucker
an arsehole

It pains. The dialogues are painful to read. The characters are painful to follow. No, not because it is a heartbreaking, it is jut bad. It is just not my kind of book.

But the author is popular among the MM readers, and so it looks like her works make many people happy, unfortunately I'm not among them. I was bored to death.


***Copy provided kindly by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

4.5 Stars.







The sign of a good book(for me) is if I'm still thinking about it hours after I've finished it-and this was definitely the case here.I found my thoughts drifting back to Calum and Brix's story a lot.
House of Cards isn't a fluffy MM romance.It deals with some difficult topics but the story felt real.


Calum Hardy's life fell apart in the blink of an eye.After the worst kind of betrayal,he's lost his home,his job...
Desperate to get away from London he gets on a train with no idea where he's going or what the future holds for him.He ends up in Truro,in Cornwall.


Brix Lusmoore had his own reasons for leaving London 4 years ago and is now settled in his home town of Porthkennack.He's reasonably content with his life but something is definitely missing.Brix is one of life's givers, he rescues chickens,he opened a Tattoo shop..more for others than himself.He can't quite believe it when he stumbles across his old friend,Calum,one night outside the Truro train station.

This book worked for me in so many ways,

-the writing just drew me in right from the start,

-Brix and Calum had great chemistry,not just sexually...in fact that almost took a back seat.I enjoyed them talking and just being together,

-some fascinating supporting characters,

-the setting in the County of Cornwall was so beautifully described and atmospheric.


Both men are struggling,both have pasts and issues to deal with and the Author definitely kept it real.

Given the subject matter it's understandably an extremely slow burn and anything less wouldn't have worked here and I was so caught up in the story I really didn't notice.

Conclusion: Brix and Calum stole my heart and I loved their story.
Highly Recommended.


I received an Arc of House of Cards from Riptide Publishing,via the Author,in exchange for an honest review..

I enjoyed this second book far more than the first. Ethan begins writing a journal to try and overcome his troubled past. 'I was the boy on the milk carton. I was the tortured soul. I was the doctor. I was the Master. I am Ethan Richard Hughes Bryant. Now I am all of them.'