Category: stats

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: January 9 – January 15

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Another insanely busy week with a lot going on. But I started a new cozy crime series and continued the Meg Langslow binge so it’s all going well in the grand scheme of things!

Read:

Owl Be Home for Christmas by Donna Andrews

A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh

The Falcon Always Wings Twice by Donna Andrews

Enter a Murderer by Ngaio Marsh

Better Late than Never by Jenn McKinlay

A High-End Finish by Kate Carlisle

Started:

Death Spins the Wheel by George Bellairs

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

The Charity Shop Detective Agency by Peter Boland*

A Christmas Gone Perfectly Wrong by Cecilia Grant

A couple of books bought. As a special treat to myself!

Bonus photo: a few boxes from my parents’ garage arrived – containing a lot of old school and uni work. Astonishing how much work I actually did at uni, considering most of my memories are of hanging out in the student radio station!

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: January 2 – January 8

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Well. It’s been a week and half, metaphorically speaking I mean, it’s only seven days since the last week in books post. Anyway, I spent five nights away from home, not all of them in the places I expected to spend them thanks to a boiler issue, and had a super busy week at work on top of all that. And the list reflects that – although I have made a load of progress on the long runners even if I haven’t finished them (yet). Oh and I have no ideas what I’m doing for Book of the Week tomorrow, so wish me luck! Anyway, let’s see what this week brings…

Read:

Toucan Keep a Secret by Donna Andrews

Lark! The Herald Angels Sing by Donna Andrews

Resting Scrooge Face by Meghan Quinn

Best of Luck by Kate Clayborn

Terns of Endearment by Donna Andrews

Started:

Better Late than Never by Jenn McKinlay

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

The Charity Shop Detective Agency by Peter Boland*

A Christmas Gone Perfectly Wrong by Cecilia Grant

Two ebooks bought and another preordered. Relatively restrained!

Bonus photo: as seen on my Insta, here is my Christmas cactus, flowering for the first time! This was actually grown from a cutting taken from a plant that my mum has, which was a cutting from a plant that belonged to my granny’s sister, which was a cutting from a plant belonging to my granny’s mum. So absolutely no pressure to keep it alive…

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

books, stats

December Stats

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Books read this month: 38*

New books: 16

Re-reads: 22 – redressing the balance from last month!

Books from the to-read pile: 10

NetGalley books read: 3

Kindle Unlimited read: 1

Ebooks: 19

Library books: 0

Audiobooks: 2

Non-fiction books: 3

Favourite book this month: Can’t pick – probably one of the Donna Andrews in the reread I just can’t decide which!

Most read author: Donna Andrews by a country mile having read 20 (!) Meg Langslows in December!

Books bought: 5 physical books, 7 ebooks – mostly while writing the Christmas book gift posts!

Books read in 2022: 388

Books on the Goodreads to-read shelf (I don’t have copies of all of these!): 669

Here we are at the end of another year. And December both fits the pattern and breaks it. Rereading is the main theme – which is in keeping with the year, it’s just the sheer volume and bingey ness of it that isn’t. And the number of audiobooks at the end of the year is way down on earlier in the year – but that’s mostly because I’ve been relistening to ones that I’ve already counted once in the total for 2022. Kindle Unlimited uncharacteristically low – but that’s because of that massive binge. Roll on 2023, lets see what it brings!

Bonus picture: Christmas lights in Fitzroy Square – the home of Maisie Dobbs (although probably not on this side of the square!)

*includes some short stories/novellas/comics/graphic novels – including this month

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: December 26 – January 1

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What does a week off work and time to read look like? Well a list pretty much like this. My big old binge read of the Donna Andrews series continues and I’ve basically given up on getting anything else done until I finish it. Which given that I’m already in the 20s, might not be that far away! This week is back a more normal life so expect the list to change accordingly!

Read:

The Good, The Bad and the Emu by Donna Andrews

Rivers of London: Deadly Ever After by Ben Aaronovitch et al

The Nightingale Before Christmas by Donna Andrews

The Inverts by Crystal Jeans

Lord of the Wings by Donna Andrews

Heartstopper Vol 4 by Alice Oseman

The History of Europe in Bite-sized Chunks by Jacob F Field

Die Like An Eagle by Donna Andrews

Born Lucky by Rita Coatts

Zionism: A Very Short Introduction by Michael Stanislawski

Death of a Necromancer by Nick Bryan et al

Gone Gull by Donna Andrews

The Finch Before Christmas by Donna Andrews

Started:

Best of Luck by Kate Clayborn

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

The Charity Shop Detective Agency by Peter Boland*

A Christmas Gone Perfectly Wrong by Cecilia Grant

Five books bought – two which you saw in the Christmas Books Incoming and then three more later in the week. All actual books

Bonus photo: New Year’s Eve chez nous – a roaring fire and some good books. Exciting.

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

Best of..., stats

Goodbye 2022… hello 2023

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Well here we are. We’ve made it to the start of a year. What am I hoping for in 2023? Well this time last year I said we didn’t know that 2021 could be even more exhausting that 2020, and for me personally I think 2022 has been even worse again. I had covid in the first third of the year, shingles in the last third and an awful virus that lasted basically the whole of December. Sprinkled in between all of that, at work we had the War in Ukraine, the death of Elizabeth II and another structural reorganisation. So it’s been insanely busy and insanely hard. If 2023 could be a little bit less of all of that I would really appreciate it. I think you’ll see the stresses and strains in the stats, and the reflection posts that I’ve been writing for the next few days.

I’ve carried on with the rereading – including the massive Meg Langslow binge of the last month. I think I’ve reduced the NetGalley backlog a little – or at least I haven’t added to it. I was doing well at not requesting more books, but then a whole load of really interesting looking stuff for the first half of next year got added and I got trigger happy on the request button. I’ve definitely read less non-fiction this year, apart from Actor Memoirs, but I’ve enjoyed what I read. I have done better on the physical books front than this time last year, but not as well as I wanted to.

Here’s hoping for a calmer year in 2023.

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: December 19 – December 25

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It’s Boxing Day here at the end of a very emotional Christmas week. Big changes at work just before Christmas mean a longer Christmas break for me than usual, so I’m clinging on to that. And Christmas Day was lovely. I’m still on a Meg Langslow binge though… will I ever finish those long runners?!

Read:

To Get to the Other Side by Kelly Ohlert*

The Real Macaw by Donna Andrews

Some Like It Hawk by Donna Andrews

The Many Dates of Indigo by Amber D Samuel*

Hen of the Baskervilles by Donna Andrews

Duck the Halls by Donna Andrews

Started:

The Charity Shop Detective Agency by Peter Boland*

A Christmas Gone Perfectly Wrong by Cecilia Grant

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

The Inverts by Crystal Jeans

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

Several books received (watch this space) and the new Rivers of London graphic novel but that’s it…

Bonus photo: what else could it be but a Christmas tree?

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: December 12 – December 18

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Ah. Oh dear. Well it’s not really oh dear because I have enjoyed myself. But I have been burning through the Meg Langslow reread – because I was still poorly (or at least not 100 percent) and it was so cold outside and they’re such lovely comfort reads. Of course this means I have no idea what I’m writing about tomorrow! Never mind. It’s nearly Christmas and you’re allowed a treat!

Read:

A Clutch of Constables by Ngaio Marsh

No Nest for the Wicket by Donna Andrews

The Penguin who Knew too Much by Donna Andrews

Cockatiels at Seven by Donna Andrews

Six Geese A-Slaying by Donna Andrews

Swan for the Money by Donna Andrews

The White Priory Murders by Carter Dickson

Stork Raving Mad by Donna Andrews

Started:

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

The Inverts by Crystal Jeans

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

The Many Dates of Indigo by Amber D Samuel*

To Get to the Other Side by Kelly Ohlert*

Well, I bought a stack of second hand copies in a cozy crime series and they arrived – does that count? And I bought the Patrick Radden Keefe because it was on a kindle deal.

Bonus photo: shamelessly using one of mum’s picture this week as I barely left the house – but here is the Dachshund in the snow – I treated myself to a Christmas hoodie this year that says “Dachshund through the snow” so I’m going to claim this is a festive photo too!

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: December 5 – December 11

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Well I’ve had a rotten week – I started some sort of virus (not Covid) on Monday afternoon and it just got worse and worse all week – I ended up coming home from London a day early because I couldn’t face another night not in my own bed. I’ve been feeling very sorry for myself. So say hello to comfort reading central on this week’s list – including a lot of Meg Langslow because in my weakened state I appear to have embarked on a reread…

Read:

Trixie and Katya’s Guide to Modern Womanhood by Trixie Mattel and Katya Zamolodchikova

Death Checked Out by Leah Dobrinska*

Murder with Puffins by Donna Andrews

Revenge of the Wrought-Iron Flamingos by Donna Andrews

Masters in this Hall by K J Charles

The Chalet School Wins the Trick by Elinor M Brent Dyer

Crouching Buzzard, Leaping Loon by Donna Andrews

Well Traveled by Jen DeLuca

We’ll Always Have Parrots by Donna Andrews

Owls Well That End Well by Donna Andrews

Started:

The Many Dates of Indigo by Amber D Samuel*

To Get to the Other Side by Kelly Ohlert*

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

The Inverts by Crystal Jeans

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Only one – the K J Charles on the read list. And of course the pre-order of Well Traveled turned up too.

Bonus photo: a picture of one of the panels at the BBC 100 Women event at the Barbican on Monday before I came down with the lurgy.

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: November 28 – December 4

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A good week of reading in the end in terms of the mix of genres, even if I didn’t finish any more of the long runners. I’m still working on it though. We’re into December now though – so we have the quick reviews this week after last week’s stats but there is more Christmas stuff coming up and you’ve already had buy me a book and the stuff I bought myself.

Read:

Green for Danger by Christianna Brand

Murder Mystery Book Club by Danielle Collins

Mystery in the Channel by Freeman Willis Crofts

James Bond: My long and eventful search for his father by Len Deighton

This Telling by Cheryl Strayed

Luck of the Draw by Kate Claybourn

A Sunlit Weapon by Jacqueline Winspear

Murder with Peacocks by Donna Andrews

Started:

Death Checked Out by Leah Dobrinska*

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

The Inverts by Crystal Jeans

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Bonus photo: the South Bank arts complex on Tuesday night as I walked across the river

An * next to a book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

books, stats

November Stats

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Books read this month: 30*

New books: 30

Re-reads: 0 – which is frankly astonishing given this year so far

Books from the to-read pile: 8

NetGalley books read: 5

Kindle Unlimited read: 8

Ebooks: 9

Library books: 0

Audiobooks: 0

Non-fiction books: 1

Favourite book this month: Probably Carrie Soto is Back – for all that it took me ages to read

Most read author: SJ Bennett on that binge read of HM the Queen Investigates series

Books bought: Oh dear. Quite a lot. Because of the research for the Christmas books posts. Yes, posts. About 20 books, including a couple of pre-orders. Eeeeeeeeep.

Books read in 2022: 350

Books on the Goodreads to-read shelf (I don’t have copies of all of these!): 667

Well. This is quite an interesting list. I have two audiobooks that I’ve nearly finished, but not in time for this list. I’m on a big podcast kick at the moment, and the proportion of my listening time that is audiobooks has gone down. And the fact that I didn’t reread anything is interesting. But then it’s nearly the end of the year and I have been trying to get on top of the NetGalley list again so have focused on that a little. But good progress in reading stuff off the physical to-read pile so that’s good. Win some and lose some.

Bonus picture: an action shot from the figure skating. As I said, hard to do on a phone but this is the best I have!

*includes some short stories/novellas/comics/graphic novels – including 3 this month