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• TBR since July 2, 2018
So glad that I finally picked this up.

A dark midwinter‘s night. The Swan, an ancient inn on the banks of the Thames. The regulars are entertaining themselves by telling stories when the door bursts open on an injured stranger. In his arms is the corpse of a drowned child. Hours later the dead girl stirs, takes a breath and returns to life. Is it a miracle? Is it magic? Or can it be explained by science?

Nearly Bailed on this in the early stage - due more to a gnarly reading slump rather than the quality of the writing/plot - I'm so glad I stuck with it as it is quite delightful. A well told, enthralling tale with some fantastic characters & a touch of magic. As it unfolded its layers to me, I became more & more bewitched. I loved Rita - I related to her in some deeply personal & moving ways. Good ending too, resolution AND a touch of mystery.

This was tough. First, I had to pick a book for the month. The Taking of Jemima Boone or Louisa May Alcott‘s Hospital Sketches were also amazing, recommendable reads. I went with a book that was amazing and also accessible, being a YA book. But then I had to choose between Straight on Til Morning and Empire of Pain. EoP was a slog but an accessible slog, and an important slog. I‘ve talked about it SO MUCH since reading it. But I know it would👇🏻

Not sure what to say about this book. It was interesting, but didn‘t pull me in. The ending was reasonably satisfying (in a “no clear answers” kind of way). It relied heavily on a pet peeve of mine, POV characters knowing/realizing something but that information being deliberately kept from the reader until later.

#TBRPile 📚 “There was once an inn that sat peacefully on the bank of the Thames at Radcot, a long day‘s walk from the source.”

On the night of the winter solstice an injured man arrives at The Swan, an ancient inn on the banks of the Thames, with a dead girl in his arms. A little later she is alive but unable to speak and no one knows for sure who she is. This was beautifully written with a bit of magical realism.

My #doublespin for April @TheAromaofBooks

Starting this one today. Two nice cover variations here but I think I prefer the one on the left.

The Swan at Radcot, local watering hole and ancient inn, where strong ale is poured and stories are told. Wonderful book.

#Pub #SavvySettings
@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

This was a tough #bracket. Both books were excellent, but I can imagine myself recommending Once Upon A River to a wider group of people.

This is one of those once in a blue moon books where you are really sad to finish it and also envious of anyone yet to discover it. It has absolutely incredible, poetic writing, not just in the characterisations, scenery and weather but overall a complete sense of inclusion with that time period. You actually feel like part of the crowd, or I did. It is one of my all time favourite reads.

Finished the tagged book and thus completed February‘s double spin. ENGROSSING. I brought my Kindle but also bought Grim Reader yesterday, so in a fit of vacation reading I will tackle some cozy mysteries. #bookspin

Feb Finished:
Missing of Clairdelune — so good!
Once Upon a River — EXTRA GOOD!
King‘s Mountain — decent
Trials of Phillis Wheatley — eh, decent

DNF So Many Beginnings — sad 😔

TBR: Grim Reader, Fatal Fried Rice

2.5⭐️ I didn‘t like nor did I understand what the book was about; found it confusing as to what the storyline was. I thought the book was too long. May need a reread in the future. #fiction #2021 #historicalfiction #magicalrealism #bookreview #bookstagram #fantasy

Was my #bookspin book for October

There was once an inn that sat peacefully on the bank of the Thames at Radcot, a long day‘s walk from the source.

#firstlinefridays

My goals are to work on my #bookspin (the tagged book) and #doublespin selections for #bookspinbingo

#outstandingoctober

This was a fun book. The writing is humorous in parts and reflective in the others. The banter between characters was really enjoyable.

The author kept up the mystery well and although it's not a life changing book, it's good enough to entertain you.

The last one hour of the book felt a little drawn out. But it doesn't hamper the reading experience.

Julia Stevenson's narration brought the characters to life. Makes for a good one time listen.

An injured man walks into a pub close to the river. He is carrying a girl who looks to be dead. Later in the day, the girl wakes up.

Setterfield has a way of telling a story that just pulls you in. Can‘t wait to read her next book.

Three Claims:
“The Leach, the Churn and the Coln all have their separate journeys before they join the Thames to swell its waters, and in similar fashion the Vaughans and the Armstrongs and Lily White had their own stories in the years and days before they became a part of this one. But join it they did, and now we come to the meeting of the waterways. “

Walking Fort Hill in my hometown on Cape Cod while listening to my book.

Listening and puzzling. Laugh all you want. The only puzzles I am patient enough to do are tiny puzzles. On the plus side I finished a puzzle so I feel successful!🤪😜
How‘s your thousand piece puzzle coming along?🤣😂😅

Picked this up a while ago as a 99p deal and then never got round to reading it. I'm so very glad I finally did, I loved getting caught up in the mystery of the girl, who is she, where has she come from and is it really magic? The tantalising hints of stories kept me guessing and I thought I had it figured out until another twist had me rethinking! There are a lot of characters, but their distinct characteristics helps to keep them straight.

I went against the age old advice and chose this book because I fell in love with the design of its cover. Fortunately, the content was not too disappointing. The language is ornamented with metaphors, poetry and symbolism. The book is much like the river it draws so much from. It has its ups and downs, wild and gentle movements and touches different banks like mystery, mysticism, science and so on. It is a good casual read

I‘m glad I waited to read this one in winter, as it begins on a midwinter‘s night and, more importantly, has a winter‘s night‘s pace. Warm and slow, satisfying and pleasing, like a belly full of stew and feet before a fire and snow falling around. The narration is fantastic, but slow—I varied between 1x and 2x speed at times.

It took some time to get into but about a fourth of the way through it picked up a bit more. It was an unexpected who done it. Very enjoyable read after a stressful holiday weekend.

Thank you to @AmyG for this birthday happy! Thanks for thinking of me on my special day! I can‘t wait to read another Setterfield novel! ❤️❤️❤️ #litsylove

It had a great lead —-could not stop reading it. Then I was half through and for me it dragged. I put a bookmark 🔖 in it.....maybe I‘ll pick it up again. Not sure.

In this novel, a young child is rescued from the River Thames, and three different families believe her to be their child.

#WhatChildIsThis
#DecemberSong
@Eggs

Work is very slow lately so I ll be in my comfy chair by the window dreaming of the Thames

Another purchase today! I liked The Thirteenth Tale so this has been on my tbr list.

I finally was able to finish this and oh man did it hurt my heart. This story was so beautiful and it kept me on the edge of seat, I could not figure out anything and I loved that! The author did an amazing job making sure to keep you in the dark but also hooked. I still don‘t know how to categorize it genre wise but I‘m glad I picked up thinking it was regular fantasy Haha.

Another one down for #bookspinbingo! This is also my #doublespin book. I really enjoyed this, it was very atmospheric and almost magical. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Back from our road trip and power has been off since Tuesday. Staying with my mum until we can return home. Gallons of tea being consumed. Hope our fellow northeastern littens are keeping well after the storm.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ A slow and melodic story that follows the lives of those live by a stretch of the Thames near Oxford. On the Winter Solstice a man enters The Swan Pub with a drowned girl, hours later she is alive, but mute. Three families stake their claim on the child, is she Ann, Alice or Amelia? Time flows by and events unfold until it is time for the Solstice again.

“There was once an inn that sat peacefully on the bank of the Thames at Radcot, a day‘s walk from the source.”
#firstlinefridays

Lovely morning.

I wasn‘t in the mood when I started this last time. I think I‘m in the right place for it now.

Starting this - has me captivated within the first two chapters!!

When she's good, she's very very good! This is a thoroughly absorbing, good old fashioned yarn about parents and children, about storytelling, and about the Thames. At it's heart is an intriguing question: if something is impossible, might it still happen? There's factual truth, then there's emotional truth.
Tiny complaint: DS favours tying up her endings in a bow, when I prefer things to be left more open to interpretation.
Loved. This. Book.

"They were collectors of words..."
I'm warming to these folk already! ?

Couldn‘t resist for 99p, gets good reviews on Litsy, fingers crossed! 🤞

A twisty tale full mystery and uncertainty.
I.liked the ambiguity. I found some of the characters confusing together so had to keep checking back!

😊😋

Another intricate cover full.of folklore and tales...

Have you ever received a book from a publisher but that you were excited to read but when you tried it just didn‘t seem like the right time, this is what happened to me I received this as an arc from a bookish first contest that I won when I received it I tried to read it but I couldn‘t get into it.. finally picked it up 2 weekends ago and dived in and it was the right time.. I loved it. But I knew I would!

'm really not sure what it was about this one, but I had such a challenging time getting through it. The beginning felt so slow, and I had trouble keeping the characters sorted. I enjoyed the final third of the book quite a bit! Setterfield does a fine job wrapping up the tangled web she'a woven at the beginning of the novel -- I just wish the first parts had been a little more engrossing.⁣ 😔

Well final time for #24B4Monday wasn't great but I did finish three books in that time so not all is lost. Thanks for another one and you're unending support @Andrew65 . Been lots of fun.
@SumisBooks @jb72

Day 1 of #24B4Monday and just over four hours in. No books finished yet but made a way through three books so going well. Hoping for about 12 hours. @SumisBooks @Andrew65 @jb72

This magical mystery about storytelling and a child who is found dead from the river and then comes back to life was thematically quite interesting. Several people in the community believe her to be their lost relative, but no one is sure. I also liked the setting (19th century London) and most of the characters. However, it often felt overly descriptive and too fragmented. I probably would have liked it more if it didn't drag for 500+ pages.

For having a mystery at its core, I liked how whimsical this story was. I enjoyed it and the wonderment surrounding it.

I listened to this one and I think some of the beautiful pieces of this book may have been a little lost on me. I liked the audiobook but I think this book would be a little more appreciated read in print.

Such a delightful reading

Celebrating Orthodox Easter this weekend. Extra time to dive into this novel

"For one thing, the river that flows ever onwards is also seeping sideways, irrigating the fields and land to one side and the other. It finds its way into wells and is drawn up to launder petticoats and be boiled for tea. It is sucked into root membranes, travels up cell by cell to the surface, is held in the leaves of watercress." (illustration by Nasim Norouzi)