books, stats

August Stats

Books read this month: 33*

New books: 16

Re-reads: 17 (7 audiobooks, 10 books)

Books from the to-read pile: 5

NetGalley books read: 4

Kindle Unlimited read: 2

Ebooks: 5

Library books: 0

Audiobooks: 7

Non-fiction books: 1

Favourite book this month: of the new stuff, Thank You for Listening or Husband Material. But all the Lucy Parkers are still great!

Most read author: Lucy Parker because of that London Celebrities reread!

Books bought: Lets not talk about it. It all went a bit wild at conference and because so many summer reads were on sale!

Books read in 2022: 265

Books on the Goodreads to-read shelf (I don’t have copies of all of these!): 658

Shall we just christen this the month of the reread? It started with rereading a bunch of the Sadlers Wells books again, then there were a few rereads/relistens of classic crime – including a Miss Marple ! – and ending with all five London Celebrities books. Quite a fun month all in all – what with outings and conference and some lovely reading.

Bonus picture: another picture from my day out on the way home from Bristol.

*Usually includes some short stories/novellas/comics/graphic novels – although this month it doesn’t!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: August 22 – August 28

I mean I said writing the London Celebrities post had started me on rereading them, but it may have got a little out of control… Anyway, a good week in reading, ending in a bank holiday weekend with an overnight shift at work, so we’ll see what happens as my brain tries to deal with that! I have made some good progress on the long runners too, just not enough to get them off the list!

Read:

The Boardwalk Bookshop by Susan Mallery

Star Trap by Simon Brett

Act Like It by Lucy Parker

Pretty Face by Lucy Parker

Making Up by Lucy Parker

Venetia by Georgette Heyer

The Austen Playbook by Lucy Parker

Headliners by Lucy Parker

Quick Curtain by Alan Melville

Piglettes by Clémentine Beauvais

Started:

This Side of Murder by Anna Lee Huber

Still reading:

Godemersham Park by Gill Hornby*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Another Time, Another Place by Jodi Taylor

Femina by Janina Ramirez*

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra*

A restrained week in purchasing – which we can chalk up to lingering guilt after the spree that was Bristol and the fact that I didn’t walk past Foyles when I was in London last week!

Bonus photo: an aperol spritz and curly fries. So orange, but so good!

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, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: August 15 – August 21

The week started in Bristol at the end of conference and then had more nights in London than usual because of the train strikes. But the list is actually pretty good – the new to me books include a couple of my conference purchases, a new release, the latest Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes book and a whole bunch of romantic comedies. The extra nights away from home explain why the still reading list is so long – a lot of the stuff on it is actual books – some of them hardbacks – which are at home and I was not!

Read:

Dimsie Carries On by Dorita Fairlie Bruce

The Twist of the Knife by Anthony Horowitz*

Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie

The Friendship Pact by Jill Shalvis

Donut Fall In Love by Jackie Lau

Castle Shade by Laurie R King

A Time to Dance by Robina Beckles Willson

Death and the Dancing Footman by Ngaio Marsh

Deeds of the Disturber by Elizabeth Peters

In a New York Minute by Kate Spencer*

Started:

The Boardwalk Bookshop by Susan Mallery

Still reading:

Godemersham Park by Gill Hornby*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Another Time, Another Place by Jodi Taylor

Femina by Janina Ramirez*

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra*

Piglettes by Clémentine Beauvais

Four books at the National Trust secondhand bookshop on the way home from conference. And another one at Foyles. And then a couple of ebooks. Oopsie daisy.

Bonus photo: the gardens at Dyrham Park, the aforementioned National Trust house on Monday. It was delightful.

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, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: August 8 – August 14

Two nights in London for work? Check. Three nights at book conference? Check. More chatting than book reading? Check. I mean I’m sure I’ll have a lot to say about my weekend talking Girl’s Own books, but today basically all you need to know is that I mostly listened to talks about books and bought books rwther than actually reading them!

Read:

Sweet Danger by Margery Allingham

Something Wilder by Christina Lauren

Thank You for Listening by Julia Whelan

No Castanets at the Wells by Lorna Hill

Started:

Piglettes by Clémentine Beauvais

Still reading:

Godemersham Park by Gill Hornby*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Another Time, Another Place by Jodi Taylor

Femina by Janina Ramirez*

Castle Shade by Laurie R King

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

The Twist of the Knife by Anthony Horowitz*

Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra*

About 20 actual books and a couple of ebooks too. And I’m not even sorry about it!

Bonus photo: a return to student life for the weekend!

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, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: August 1 – August 7

Two nights away from home, three theatre trips and an evening at the Commonwealth Games. Truly it is a miracle I read anything this week! But I did, go me. This week is looking equally frantic, so goodness knows what next week’s list will look like too.

Read:

Husband Material by Alexis Hall*

Murder at the Brightwell by Ashley Weaver

The Beckoning Lady by Margery Allingham

Death Wears a Mask by Ashley Weaver

A Dream of Sadlers Wells by Lorna Hill

Veronica Goes to the Wells by Lorna Hill

Started:

Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra*

The Twist of the Knife by Anthony Horowitz*

Still reading:

Godemersham Park by Gill Hornby*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Another Time, Another Place by Jodi Taylor

Femina by Janina Ramirez*

Castle Shade by Laurie R King

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

Two books in Foyles on Monday. I said the willpower wouldn’t last!

Bonus photo: theatre trio three – Glass Menagerie, which I studied at school but had never seen.

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

July Stats

Books read this month: 29*

New books: 16

Re-reads: 13 (6 audiobooks, 7 books)

Books from the to-read pile: 5

NetGalley books read: 3

Kindle Unlimited read: 1

Ebooks: 6

Library books: 1

Audiobooks: 6

Non-fiction books: 2

Favourite book this month: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow

Most read author: Kerry Greenwood as I finished the Phryne re-read

Books bought: 13 – 3 books and ten ebooks.

Books read in 2022: 232

Books on the Goodreads to-read shelf (I don’t have copies of all of these!): 657

A fairly steady month in reading. I didn’t go too mad with purchases, but we also had a heat wave where it was too hot to concentrate and I’m back in the groove of a night or two in London each week with a social life going on. And then there’s the commonwealth games. So not quite as much read as I expected, but not too bad all in all.

Bonus picture: the Lionesses Mural going up on Thursday evening on Euston Road

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

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: July 25 – July 31

Well it’s been an amazing week – Martha Wainwright, Commonwealth Games Gymnastics and then England won the women’s Euros. Is it any surprise that the list is slightly shorter that usual this week? It’s the end of the month too so we have the usual array of review posts coming up this week too. You’re welcome.

Read:

Mean Baby by Selma Blair

The Quiet Gentleman by Georgette Heyer

Infamous by Lex Croucher*

The Affair of the Blood Stained Egg Cozy by James Anderson

Riviera Gold by Laurie R King

Rhode Island Rooster by Charlotte Carter

My Italian Bulldozer by Alexander McCall Smith

Started:

Husband Material by Alexis Hall*

Castle Shade by Laurie R King

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

Still reading:

Godemersham Park by Gill Hornby*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Another Time, Another Place by Jodi Taylor

Femina by Janina Ramirez*

No books bought – despite that visit to Waterstones. Don’t worry. It won’t last!

Bonus photo: the giant bull from the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony in Birmingham city centre on Friday.

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, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: July 18 – July 24

Check me out. A remarkably good and varied week in reading by recent standards. Non fiction, new fiction, contemporary romance, adventure and golden age crime. This week I have two nights away (only one last week) and a day out at the Commonwealth Games so who knows how much reading time I have. This could be the high point of the whole month!

Read:

Dead Water by Ngaio Marsh

Children of the Storm by Elizabeth Peters

That Woman by Anne Sebba

Singing in the Shrouds by Ngaio Marsh

Method Acting by Adele Buck

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin*

Acting Lessons by Adele Buck

Fast Acting by Adele Buck

Started:

Infamous by Lex Croucher*

Femina by Janina Ramirez*

Riviera Gold by Laurie R King

Still reading:

Godemersham Park by Gill Hornby*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Mean Baby by Selma Blair

Another Time, Another Place by Jodi Taylor

Positively restrained – two Adele Bucks to enable the binge, but that’s it.

Bonus photo: The British Museum on Thursday evening as I walked past on my way to a gig at the Museum of Comedy. We’ve just started The Deeds of the Disturber as our next Amelia Peabody relisten so it seemed apt for this week’s photo!

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, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: July 11 – July 17

So a shorter list this week. Partly because I finished the Phryne Fisher re-read rather than read new stuff, partly because of an overnight in London where I went out, but mostly because of a nightshift on Friday, that made my brain tired and not great at concentrating, and also meant I slept through part of the weekend. What I will write about tomorrow I do not know. And we’ve got a mega heatwave continuing this week, so that may also fry my brain!

Read:

Murder and Mendelssohn by Kerry Greenwood

Death in Daylesford by Kerry Greenwood

Death at Victoria Dock by Kerry Greenwood

Lumberjanes/Gotham Academy by Chynna Clugston Flores et al

Heartstopper Vol 2 by Alice Oseman

Started:

That Woman by Anne Sebba

Still reading:

Godemersham Park by Gill Hornby*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Mean Baby by Selma Blair

Another Time, Another Place by Jodi Taylor

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin*

Three actual books bought and two ebooks

Bonus photo: hostel life! Before the nightshift at the end of the week, there was a night away in London at the start of the week. And things are starting to get back to normal at the hostels – this was my first time back at my second favourite/choice one since October 2021 before the Omicron wave hit.

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, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: July 4 – July 10

Only two “new” books on the list this week. Oopsie daisy. But I have reached a good point in the Phryne Fisher series – Death by Water (as mentioned in the cruise ship mysteries) and Dead Man’s Chest are really good. And I finished the Vicky Bliss reread (as evidenced in the series I love post!) too. And on top of that there were two nights in London, one of which was spent watching Pretty Woman: the Musical and another recovering from the strains of a day of breaking political news. It was really quite a week!

Read:

Death by Water by Kerry Greenwood

The Laughter of Dead Kings by Elizabeth Peters

Death at the Dolphin by Ngaio Marsh

The Incredible Crime by Lois Austen-Leigh

Dead Man’s Chest by Kerry Greenwood

Unnatural Habits by Kerry Greenwood

Shipped by Angie Hockman

Started:

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin*

Still reading:

Godemersham Park by Gill Hornby*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Mean Baby by Selma Blair

Another Time, Another Place by Jodi Taylor

One preorder and the Persephone subscription arrived, but I didn’t make it to any bookshops during my stay in London, so that meant I managed not to buy more any *actual* books, which is good because the books incoming pile is already huge! I did however start compiling the July kindle offer post, which lead to a certain level of ebook acquisition – I think five.

Bonus photo:

There was a book fair at the church hall on Saturday! I had a good browse, but there weren’t any of my particular passions – and although there were a few books I was interested in, they all cost way too much money. It has however reminded me that I need to start compiling my lists ready for Bristol next month!

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