Tag: books

Book of the Week, books

Book of the Week: Scattered Showers

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A familiar name on the cover of this week’s pick, but this time it’s a short story collection from Rainbow Rowell and not a novel

Scattered Showers is a collection of short stories and novellas, some of which have been published before and some of which have some familiar faces from other Rowell novels. My edition is also very, very pretty. You can’t see it in the photo, but the long edge is sprayed in rainbow colours and the type itself is a sort of dark pinky purple colour that is really nice.

I think my favourite might be the last in the book – about two characters waiting to be used by a writer. It’s a bit meta but it really is charming. But it was also nice to spend time with Simon and Baz again and I loved the text conversation short story with the women from Attachments, and also the college dorm story set in the same world as Fangirl. And that’s already at half the book without mentioning the two that I had already read which are also good. Some old friends and some new friends and really it’s a lovely way to spend a few hours.

My copy was a preorder because it’s a nice signed one, but it should be fairly easy to get hold of this in hardback – I saw it in a shop just the other week – but it’s also on Kindle and Kobo. And a couple are available on their own too on Kindle Unlimited if you just want to sample a bit of the range.

Happy Reading!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: March 6 – March 12

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Well. I smell a binge, which isn’t at all what I should be doing. But it is very typical of me of late. Anyhow, I’m enjoying myself so that’s fine, although the length of the still reading list is definitely not. And I have at least one evening entertainment this week coming which is always a risk.

Read:

The Grilling Season by Diane Mott Davidson

Died in the Wool by Ngaio Marsh

The Main Corpse by Diane Mott Davidson

The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by K J Charles*

Final Curtain by Ngaio Marsh

The Cereal Murders by Diane Mott Davidson

Scattered Showers by Rainbow Rowell

Started:

The Final Revival of Opal and Nev by Dawnie Walton*

The Lady with the Gun Asks the Questions by Kerry Greenwood

Still reading:

No Life for a Lady by Hannah Dolby*

The Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes by Kate Strasdin*

Shadows of London by Andrew Taylor*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

One pre-order and a couple of ebooks but I nobly avoided bookshops for reasons that you will understand when you see the next Books Incoming post!

Bonus photo: winter refuses to go away and treated us to snow this week. Snow. Just want none of us needed. Then it turned to rain and everything was just soggy and squelchy and miserable. And cold. Really quite cold. Even buying a bunch of daffodils didn’t make it feel any more spring like.

*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, books on offer, Recommendsday

Recommendsday: March Kindle Offers

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Yes, I have once again gallantly trawled this month’s offers to find stuff that I’ve talked about – or am interested in that is a bargain this month. You’re welcome.

Let’s start with news that will possibly surprise no one, the tie-in edition of Daisy Jones and the Six is 99p this month. You all know I loved the book – and the other three in the related universe so if you haven’t read it yet, then do it now! Another recently adapted book (albeit one I haven’t read yet) also has a tie in edition on offer – Fleishman is in Trouble.

In buzzy books, Ali Hazelwood’s Love on the Brain is 99p. Also in the “TikTok made me buy it” group is Sarah Adams’s When in Rome, which I am tempted by but am holding off on buying because I have on of her other books on the to-read pile so I should really read that first! Mhairi McFarlane’s Mad About You is on offer too – I loved it when I read it last year, but it comes with a warning for emotional abuse/gaslighting in the heroine’s immediate past. Second First Impressions is 99p as well if you want a romance with a bit of a different setting – I do love meddling old people.

Cover of An Impossible Imposter

The new Veronica Speedwell is out next week – so the previous one An Impossible Imposter is £1.99 – you do need to read them in order for best effect though. This month’s discount Terry Pratchett is Pyramids for £1.99, which isn’t one of my favourites but I know that other people do love it. The cheap Peter Wimseys are the first two – Whose Body and Clouds of Witness – the latter of which sets up Charles Parker’s interest in Lady Mary. We still don’t have a date for the next series of Bridgerton, but this month’s cheap Julia Quinns are Just Like Heaven (from the Smyth Smith series) and The Lost Duke of Wyndham. Frederica is the 99p Georgette Heyer. The latest Agatha Raisin, Devil’s Delight, is 99p – it’s three years since M C Beaton died, but there are still new books coming out, with a co-author on the cover. I haven’t read any of the “with R W Green” books yet, but I’m sure I’ll get to it at some point – the very first book in the series, Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death, is also 99p as is the first Hamish MacBeth Death of a Gossip.

Back in the mists of time I wrote about The Rosie Project – if you’re looking for something a bit different from the last decade, that would do you quite well for 99p. There was meant to be an adaptation happening, but it hasn’t materialised yet… Not quite as long ago, I recommended Dial A for Aunties, which is 99p at the moment as well presumably because Jesse Sutano’s new novel is out imminently. If you’ve read Crazy Rich Asians, the final book in that trilogy, Rich People Problems, is on offer.

If you want some non fiction, Andrew Lownie’s Traitor King is £1.99 – I read this on holiday nearly 18 months ago and have since recommended it to lots of people. On my pile waiting to be read is Katja Hoyer’s Blood and Iron about the German Empire – which is 99p. Lucy Worsley’s Queen Victoria is also on my list to read – but I should probably get to her Agatha Christie biography first… Also in history books, The Radium Girls – which is one of a series of books I read a few years ago about women doing dangerous jobs (and sometimes not knowing they were dangerous) in the first half of the 20th century. Hannah Fry’s Hello World about the age of the machines and machine learning which I read a couple of years ago but seems even more relevant than ever with the appearance of ChatGPT and the other AIs. Also on offer is Helen O’Hara’s Women vs Hollywood which I read a couple of years ago and is a total bargain at 99p at time of writing

And finally – in stuff I bought while writing this post, we have Chanel Cleeton’s latest novel Our Last Days in Barcelona which is £1.99, Fiona Davis’s latest The Magnolia Palace – also £1.99 when I wrote this and David de Jong’s Nazi Billionaires which was £2.99. Positively restrained.

Happy Reading!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: February 27 – March 5

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Well. There’s good news and bad news on this reading list isn’t there. The good news is that I read some really good stuff and found a new cozy crime series to binge. The bad news is that I found a new cozy crime series to binge and everything else went out of the window so the still reading list is even longer than it was before. How typical of me. Anyway, as well as all that we had a lovely weekend in Carlisle visiting my sister – and listened to two entire series of Cabin Pressure and started a third on the journey up and back as Him Indoors was jealous of my trip to see John Finnemore last week. Oh and we finished the new Drive to Survive just in time for the first race of the new F1 season. Motorsport is back baby.

Read:

Catering to Nobody by Diane Mott Davidson

Colour Scheme by Ngaio Marsh

Dying for Chocolate by Diane Mott Davidson

The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer

Soulless by Gail Carriger

The Last Suppers by Diane Mott Davidson

Deck the Halls by Kate Carlisle

Gone But Not for Garden by Kate Collins*

Started:

No Life for a Lady by Hannah Dolby*

Still reading:

The Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes by Kate Strasdin*

Shadows of London by Andrew Taylor*

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

Quite a lot of books bought to be honest – becuase not only did I buy the Diane Mott Davisons, I’ve also written the Kindle offers post which is always dangerous *and* we went to Bookends/Bookcase and I spent literal hours in there and got a bit carried away. Oops.

Bonus photo: the amazing ceiling in Carlisle cathedral. So cool.

*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, Recommendsday

Recommendsday: February Quick Reviews

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Another month is over so we have a fresh batch of quick reviews for your delectation, and for once it’s all non-fiction – which I didn’t really realise until I had finished writing the post, but I guess sort of gives it an extra theme. Go past Verity.

Going with the Boys by Judith Mackrell

Judith Mackrell’s group biography (which is called The Correspondents in some countries) took me ages to read mostly because I own it I hardcover (as you can see) and as you all know I don’t tote those around with me. But it’s also because the subject matter required me to be in the right frame of mind. The six extraordinary women of the subtitle are war reporters struggling for the right to cover conflicts in the first half of the 20th century. It’s fascinating and infuriating and sobering. Very much worth a read.

I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki by Baek Se-hee

This is the English translation of a very successful South Korean memoir about the author’s therapy for depression. I read it in an afternoon but it gave me a lot to think about – not least that I didn’t think her therapist was very good, if the exchanges you see on the page are accurate! Anyway, there are some thoughts here about living with anxiety and self doubt and how it affects your perception of others and yourself.

Movie Star by Jessica Simpson

Just throwing an Amazon short story in here – because I read Jessica Simpson’s autobiography three years ago and if you’re interested in getting a taste of what her book is like, this will do that for you. My review of Open Book said that it’s very American and “There’s also a lot of god and a lot of evidence that Simpson has had some really awful men in her life – her dad is terrible and her boyfriend choices were also not great.” This has some of the terrible taste in men but a lot less of the god than the full length book does. I enjoyed it – and have enjoyed playing the guessing game as to who the movie star in question is! This is free if you’re in Kindle Unlimited too.

And that’s your lot. It’s a short month so the rest of this list is a bit shorter than usual. The books of the week were The Pot Thief who studied Pythagoras, The Soulmate Equation, Nora Goes of Script and Death of an Author. And there were recommendsday posts on novels with food and Swoony Romances.

Happy March everyone!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: February 20 – February 26

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How is it nearly the end of February already? I know that it’s the shortest month, and January always feels like it goes on forever, but this year it seems to have gone even quicker. Anyway, what have I done in the last week? Ummmmm. Well. Lots of work? And quite a bit of reading? Oh. I know. We watched seven episodes of Drive To Survive after it came out on Friday. That would explain it. Anyway, there are another couple of books nearly finished, so we’ll see how that goes this week, when I have another couple of nights away in London and an event or two I’m planning to go to. All the usual stuff coming up this week by the way including the Stats and Quick Reviews.

Read:

Movie Star by Jessica Simpson

The Unknown Ajax by Georgette Heyer

Murder Served Neat by Michelle Hillen Klump*

The Pot Thief Who Studied Pythagoras by J Michael Orenduff

Death in the Stars by Frances Brody

I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki by Baek Se-hee

Started:

Gone But Not for Garden by Kate Collins*

The Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes by Kate Strasdin*

Catering to Nobody by Diane Mott Davison

Shadows of London by Andrew Taylor*

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

Two books bought in Foyles because I just can’t help myself and another two books in the post plus two Kindle books. Whoops.

Bonus photo: The park again as that’s the prettiest photo I have from the week. It’s starting to look more green and less muddy and the hope that spring is coming is rising.

*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: February 13 – February 19

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Another very busy week including a few nights away from home, but with a bit of excitement as well – like a panel about Eurovision and a trip to the Cotswolds. Oh and Valentine’s Day and even more romance reading because why not!

Read:

A Surfeit of Lampreys by Ngaio Marsh

In Farm’s Way by Amanda Flower*

A Lie for a Lie by Emilie Richards

Fudge Cupcake Murder by Joanne Fluke

Peril in Paris by Rhys Bowen

Death and the Dancing Footman by Ngaio Marsh

The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren

Started:

Murder Served Neat by Michelle Hillen Klump*

The Pot Thief Who Studied Pythagoras by J Michael Orenduff

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

One book pre-ordered, but that’s about it. I’m surprised at myself.

Bonus photo: Bourton-on-the-Water on Saturday. Beautiful but jam packed with people, although I think I’ve done quite a good job of disguising that in the picture!

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

Book previews

Upcoming releases

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When I wrote the Anticipated Books post at the very start of the year, I was lamenting the lack of detail on what was coming and when, but things are getting a little clearer now, so I’m back with a release update.

There are a couple of things coming next month. Firstly there is a new novel from Jacqueline Winspear, that is not in her Maisie Dobbs series. The White Lady is about a former spy living a retired life in 1947 Kent but who gets drawn (back) into a world of violence. And there’s a new novel from Jesse Sutano – I loved Dial A for Aunties, but didn’t like the sequel anywhere near as much, so I’m looking forward to seeing what she does with something different – Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murders has a 60 year old heroine who discovers a dead body in her tea shop.

The most exciting (for me anyway) might be the new Curtis Sittenfeld which is coming out in early April and is called Romantic Comedy. The blurb promises a TV screenwriter who is over romance but who meets an unlikely love interest that might change her mind. It’s nearly three years since Rodham and given that Eligible (her Pride and Prejudice retelling) is my favourite of her novels, I just can’t wait. Also in April is the new Emily Henry, which I did mention in the previous post and a new book from T J Klune – which is a Pinocchio retelling called In the Lives of Puppets.

Going even further into the future, I’m looking forward to the next Ali Hazelwood romance and Alice Bell’s Grave Expectations – a murder mystery about a medium with a ghost who follows her around and which has got a quote from Ben Aaronovitch on the cover. Talking of Aaronovitch, there’s a new Rivers of London novella coming in June called Winter’s Gifts. And there are a fair few of my regular autobuys who have books coming up – I wrote about Donna Andrews Meg Langslow series last week, and she has two more in the series coming in the second half of the year, including the fabulous pun Birder, She Wrote. Sarah MacLean’s next, Knockout is out in August, Christina Lauren have The True Love Experiment coming in May, Bridgerton author Julia Quinn is due to have a new book out in May, although there isn’t even a title yet – just a date on Amazon! And there’s a new Veronica Speedwell just a couple of weeks away too.

And no, I’m not telling you how many of these I have already preordered…

Book of the Week, books, romance

Book of the Week: Nora Goes Off Script

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It’s Valentine’s Day today and we have a romance pick this week. Nora Goes Off Script is probably the easiest BotW choice in ages, for reasons which I will explain later in the post and (spoiler alert) are not the fact that it’s a romance and today is February 14th!

The plot: Nora is a scriptwriter for a romance channel, but after her husband leaves her and their two children she uses their breakup to write a script that doesn’t end in a chaste kiss and a happily ever after. And it sells to a movie company who want to film part of it on location at her farmhouse. Along with the film crew comes the film’s star: Leo Vance, former sexiest man alive and playing Nora’s ex. But when the film crew leaves, Leo doesn’t. And what turns into a week for him to clear his head turns into something more, something that can break your heart…

The Goodreads blurb calls this Evvie Drake Starts over meets Beach Read, and although I haven’t read Beach Read (yet) I have read Book Lovers and have been comparing it to Emily Henry to people so let’s call that pretty accurate. It’s romantic and sweet but it’s also relaxing. Yes Leo and Nora’s relationship doesn’t go smoothly but there’s no peril, and actually Nora does that thing I love in books of figuring out who she is and what she wants and the fact that she gets a handsome man by the end is a delightful bonus not the solution to her problems. Did that make any sense? It’s like in Legally Blonde: Elle is successful by the end because of her hard work and brains not because of a relationship. Yes she ends up with Emmett but he’s not the reason why she wins the case and gets voted valedictorian*.

I bought this while writing the Recommendsday post, started it in bed on Tuesday night and read nearly 100 pages without noticing (and definitely not what I meant to do and had finished it before bedtime on Wednesday. And then I read the last 20 percent again on the train to work on Thursday. Yup. I liked it that much. In fact writing this has made me want to go and read it all over again. It’s Annabel Monaghan’s first adult novel and I am already really looking forward to her second one which is due out in June. If it’s anything like as good as this I’ll be a happy girl.

As I said last week – this is 99p on Kindle at the moment and I don’t think you will regret it. I don’t know how easy the paperback will be to find – I couldn’t see it in Foyles on Friday, but that’s not foolproof.

Happy Reading!

* this is the crux of my biggest issue with the stage musical version of the show where Elle definitely succeeds because Emmet helps her and tells her what to do. But I digress.

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: February 6 – February 12

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Well in case you couldn’t tell, I had quite a fun week last week – with a trip to the theatre and a nice meal out with my parents. Work continues a little busy, but I’m hoping this week coming will be better as it is half term week for the people with children. I’m due to be in town a couple of nights again and I’m hoping to have a bit of fun, so we’ll see what they does to next week’s list. As for this week, I finally got a book off the long running list, which is quite the achievement given my recent record. If only I can manage another before the end of the month!

Read:

Overture to Death by Ngaio Marsh

Going With the Boys by Judith Mackrell

Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan

Death at the Bar by Ngaio Marsh

Invitation to a Killer by G M Malliet*

Vera Kelly: Lost and Found by Rosalie Knecht

Exes and O’s by Amy Lea*

Started:

A Lie for a Lie by Emilie Richards

In Farm’s Way by Amanda Flower*

Still reading:

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

The Empire by Michael Ball*

Travellers in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd

Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe

Peril in Paris by Rhys Bowen

Well, one book in Foyles (on top of the three in there last week) ahead of Noises Off, and one on kindle while I was writing the Kindle Offers post.

Bonus photo: a frosty morning in Fitzroy Square last week. For once I had a whole week of cold but dry on the commute!

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