Robert Dinsdale

What an absolutely stunning, beautiful story this is. I know the year has only just begun but I think I will be hard pushed to find a book to rival this one this year. I want to say it is the best book and the MUST Read of 2018 but being that it is only the 6th January it wouldn’t do it justice, and as clichéd as it is – This really is, no matter the age, a MUST read for anyone and everyone! I can’t stress to you how blindingly good this book truly is.

This book conjures up the grand opulence of movies such as The Greatest Showman and the wonder and magic of books such as Caraval or The Night Circus and then takes them to a whole new level. The Toymakers is in a league of its own and shines even brighter than any star ever seen.

Another over used cliché but none the less true – I literally couldn’t put it down, the kids had to fend for themselves and I even had them fetching me cups of tea! I started reading 9pm Thursday evening and I was still reading 8am Friday morning, sleep didn’t even occur to me I was that engrossed. Suffice to say no housework got done at all Friday as I HAD to finish the book.

It begins in London 1917 and follows the lives of Papa Jack and his two sons, Kaspar and Emil in their wonderful Emporium and a young runaway girl, Cathy, who comes to the Emporium looking for work and a place of safety, all the way through to 1953.

Full of magic and wonder Papa Jack’s Toy Emporium is a place to behold, you can feel the enthusiasm of the children and adults alike and is a place you never want to leave. But as is with everything in life, real life can’t be ignored, bringing the war to the establishment, forever changing the lives within.

The ending wasn’t what I was expecting, not that I knew what to expect and there as a twist in the tale that had me wanting to shout out loud – Noooooo and shaking my head in disbelief!

Blending historical fiction and magical realism together to create a magical world full of passion, inspiration, imagination, love, secrets, loss and fear that will always stay with you long after the last page has been read.… (meer)

What an absolutely stunning, beautiful story this is. I know the year has only just begun but I think I will be hard pushed to find a book to rival this one this year. I want to say it is the best book and the MUST Read of 2018 but being that it is only the 6th January it wouldn’t do it justice, and as clichéd as it is – This really is, no matter the age, a MUST read for anyone and everyone! I can’t stress to you how blindingly good this book truly is.

This book conjures up the grand opulence of movies such as The Greatest Showman and the wonder and magic of books such as Caraval or The Night Circus and then takes them to a whole new level. The Toymakers is in a league of its own and shines even brighter than any star ever seen.

Another over used cliché but none the less true – I literally couldn’t put it down, the kids had to fend for themselves and I even had them fetching me cups of tea! I started reading 9pm Thursday evening and I was still reading 8am Friday morning, sleep didn’t even occur to me I was that engrossed. Suffice to say no housework got done at all Friday as I HAD to finish the book.

I can already see this book being a spectacular big budget movie, it would look amazing up on the big screen and I know this household would pay to watch it!

It begins in London 1917 and follows the lives of Papa Jack and his two sons, Kaspar and Emil in their wonderful Emporium and a young runaway girl, Cathy, who comes to the Emporium looking for work and a place of safety, all the way through to 1953.

Full of magic and wonder Papa Jack’s Toy Emporium is a place to behold, you can feel the enthusiasm of the children and adults alike and is a place you never want to leave. But as is with everything in life, real life can’t be ignored, bringing the war to the establishment, forever changing the lives within.

The ending wasn’t what I was expecting, not that I knew what to expect and there as a twist in the tale that had me wanting to shout out loud – Noooooo and shaking my head in disbelief!

Blending historical fiction and magical realism together to create a magical world full of passion, inspiration, imagination, love, secrets, loss and fear that will always stay with you long after the last page has been read.… (meer)

When this book came up on Bookbub as a 99p deal i was immediately attracted to it. Yes, i do judge books by their covers, and also by their titles. So i went to Amazon to check it out and it stated that it would suit those who enjoyed reading 'The Night Circus'.

So as i'd very much enjoyed 'The Night Circus' and it being only 99p i went ahead and bought it.

But to be quite honest, it's nothing like 'The Night Circus'. They're 2 very different books, IMHO.

'The Toymakers' is, at the end of the day, a story very much about unrequited love, and sibling envy, whereas 'The Night Circus' is neither of those things.

While both are set in magical worlds, there are no other real similarities whatsoever.

But having said all that, i did very much enjoy reading this book. It is a fantastic journey through decades of 20th century London, including WW1 and WW2. It also delves well into PTSD and it's affects on those who come back from the horrors of war and have to fit back into the lives they left behind.

And the ending...

...well, i never expected that. What a wonderful twist in the tale.

If you're looking for a really decent read, then look no further than 'The Toymakers'. I doubt many will be left disappointed.

Supurb!… (meer)

Having been totally blown away by Robert's 5th book, 'The Toymakers' i put him into 'Bookbub' as one of my saved writers and when this, Robert's 4th book, popped up, i didn't need asking twice to read more of Robert's words.

And i wasn't disappointed.

As with 'The Toymakers' there's the PTSD element in one of the main characters and how that affects their lives and the people in it.   Or, as Robert described it in his interview at the end of this book...

...those wild, desperate places that people learn to bury inside themselves so that, after having endured terrible things, they can find a way to live on.

And Robert does this masterfully, and he does so in a prose that is accessible, flowing, easy to read, and with that perfect level of descriptiveness that the story needs.

Within the story that is 'Gingerbread', there are tales being told from a grandfather to his grandson.   Tales at first that seem just that, folklore and myth, but as we go through the main story the little tales that grandfather tells reveal something far more.

At times this book is harrowing, it moves you, and deeply, or at least if you have any compassion it will.

At the end of any book, the question the reader has to ask themselves is this... 'Do i want to read more from this writer?   After ‘The Toymakers’, the answer was a definite... 'Absolutely', and after 'Gingerbread' i'm definitely more absolute about it.   Yes, i’m absolutely certain i'm going to be reading Robert's 3rd book, 'Little Exiles', in the not too distant future as it's in 'The Pile', and i’m also very much looking forward to many more incredible books from Robert in the years ahead -- i'm hooked.

Sadly, Robert's first and second book aren't yet in Kindle format -- we live in hope.… (meer)