This book was a difficult, uncomfortable and painful read. I guess it was supposed to be. It is not a book that mourns the Queen‘s death. It is a book full of anger directed at part of what the ‘white queen‘ represented. I.e colonisation, dispossession and genocide. It also focuses on ‘whiteness‘ and white privilege and everyday racism that indigenous people face. The writing was hard to follow at times. Raw pain radiates from these pages.

A friend recommended this. Out of politeness I persisted. The reason I didn‘t want to read it is because I‘ve read another Kristin Hannah book, ‘The Great Alone‘ and found it frustrating and at times, implausible. This book was slightly better but I think that is because I was expecting to be annoyed. Certain details just irked me. How can they make cannolis when there is barely any butter or milk? The subject matter was interesting though.

I liked this one better than the first one in the series.

Well, it‘s taken me 7 years but I‘ve finally finished this series! I had to check my Goodreads to find out exactly when I finished the first book in this quartet. It‘s taken me so long because I didn‘t want it to end. I‘ve eked it out until now. Knowing that this series has been waiting for me has been a pleasure. It‘s been something to look forward to. It did not disappoint. Simply beautiful and moving. What an ending!

This book has all the answers to most people‘s questions about the Voice and upcoming referendum…..I think. It‘s less than 100 pages long and easy to whizz through.

I always wonder, whenever I read diaries like this, did the person writing them intend them to be published? As he was writing these words did he somewhere in the back of his mind know they‘d be read by strangers? Interesting thought. I found this entertaining and I was interested in his opinions on various films and plays. He seemed to hate every film I like which made me smile. His criticisms are valid though.

Oooh! This one was good! A teenager recommended it to me and I‘m glad they did! Well written, fast paced, sci fi YA read. Lots of action to keep you on your toes. And an ending that will make you want to read book 2 &3!

This is one that I am truly glad I persisted with! I really struggled with the start of it and it took me ages to warm to it. But I ended up loving it! Celeste Ng is a wonderful author. This book is a cross between Handmaid‘s Tale and 1984 and is very relevant to what is happening in the world today. Very cleverly written

This book was informative but still left me with questions. It is very pro HRT, which is great, but I felt it glossed over general side effects of HRT. I‘m not talking about the discredited research link between HRT breast cancer. That is explained, which is great. I‘m still left wondering how long HRT can be taken? What happens when women stop taking HRT? The book is full of other women‘s stories. Some are truly harrowing but most are helpful.

I don‘t know how to review this one. It started off really well but I wasn‘t quite ready for the spiritual aspects of the book. This is what happens when you pick up a book without knowing much about it beforehand! 😊 It‘s the type of book where I want to call a friend and ask ‘What did you think of this book?‘ Cos I‘m really not sure how I feel about it. It‘s left me a bit speechless.

Wow! This was great!! It has been on my ‘To read‘ list for a while. Every turn in this book had me riveted. Lots of themes and topics run through this book that are ripe for discussion. It was really nicely developed (no pun intended but a main character is a photographer) very cleverly written book. I will definitely be reading more by this author

This is a very funny and poignant book that my husband has been telling me to read for years. I‘ve finally read it and I‘m not disappointed. This follows Clive‘s early life in Australia as a young child and young adult. Laugh out loud funny at times ( the dunny can man story and the billy cart story amongst others) it is well worth reading.

The fantasy genre is not my favourite but I needed to pick a fantasy book for a Book Bingo I‘m doing. So here we are 😊 I felt like this book needed a map and a glossary. I was having trouble getting where and what things were at the start. Interesting concept and I did enjoy it but I needed more explanations. But that might be just me. I‘d be interested to hear what regular fantasy YA readers think. Overall, I did enjoy it.

A really interesting read. The author‘s husband had an affair with one of her closest friends. She has written about the betrayal and aftermath years after the event. She also traces the infidelities that run through four generations of her husband‘s family and asks the question as to whether infidelity has a generational aspect. Part memoir, part family history and part essay about life in general, I really enjoyed this book.

A friend highly recommended this book. I really loved it too! Beautifully written. The characters were wonderful. I loved the way it swung from East London to Florence throughout. I thought the author captured both cities and their people perfectly.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Best short story collection I‘ve read in a long time! The book is over 500 pages long and I found every single story riveting! Nesbo is one of the best mystery/suspense writers around. If you‘ve never read him, I highly recommend you try.

This was wonderful! I loved it.I was lucky enough to hear him talk about this book in person recently. I‘d only just started reading it, at that point. I wanted to race home afterwards to finish it! The way he deals with what he is facing health wise, at the moment, is inspiring. And the way this influences his reflections in the book are very moving. His sense of clarity shines through. And his wicked sense of humour made me laugh out loud!

Loved, loved, loved this book! A refreshing take on a daughter and father family dynamic. Beautifully written!

I really liked this book. I‘m not a gamer and don‘t have much idea about that world but I still found this interesting. It was a really unique book, both in its content and writing style. Well worth reading.

I enjoyed this book but can‘t say I loved it. I did, however, love the dog character! Six Thirty (the dog) was a highlight of this book, for me!

The book I‘ve tagged is not the right one but another book by the author on the same subject. I‘ve read ‘The Dismissal in the Queen‘s Name‘ by Paul Kelly and Troy Bramston This is an updated 2015 book which was written after more archival documents were released. A fascinating, turbulent time in Australia‘s political history. How does an elected Prime Minister get dismissed by an appointed official? Lots of egos, incompetence and deception.

This is just what I needed at the moment. An easy yet thought provoking read that I was eager to keep reading. Centres around the Strick family, in small town America. The matriarch, Astrid, kind of reminded me of Olive Ketteridge a bit. As did the whole book. Little secrets revealed a long the way kept me hooked. Nice read.

A fantastic read and one I will keep thinking about for a long time to come. No review I post will do this justice. All I can say is, if you see this in a bookshop, buy it. If you see it in a library, borrow it. Well worth reading.

I really liked this one.. Three generations of women starting in World War 2 and ending in the nineties in England and Ireland. Well written story that is at times heartbreaking.

This was a good ‘teen‘ mystery. Mycroft and Watts (yes, there are lots of Sherlock Holmes references) discover a dead body of a homeless man, they had befriended, outside Melbourne Zoo. They solve the mystery and fall in love along the way. Teens and young adults will enjoy this one. I thought it was OK.

Well, I felt like saying to this book ‘It‘s not you, it‘s me‘ and then walking away. But I stuck at it even though I didn‘t really enjoy it. There‘s a part where she says during filming of Accidental Tourist that William Hurt got exasperated and told the director she was driving him crazy. I‘m with William Hurt on this one! She drove me crazy and I only read her book! Too much craziness for me! But enjoyed the Thelma and Louise references.

They say ‘don‘t judge a book by it‘s cover‘. This is definitely true of this one! I really enjoyed it. It‘s both an historical novel and a detective mystery. Set in Florence in 1943 and 2006. It delves into the world of partisan resistance fighters, during the war,that leads to present day murders. This book is far more interesting than the cover, which I think is misleading. Someone assumed I was reading a romance novel. It‘s not.

Starting this one today that my husband got me for Christmas. He says he chose it for me because it has things that I like in it. Italy, history and a mystery. The fact he put some thought into what I like to read about makes it a special book already 😊

Wow! What a great book! The last of the Aaron Falk series (but you really don‘t need to read them in order). Set in a fictional South Australian wine region, this is a mystery that will keep you enthralled. There is one death and one unexplained disappearance within a group of friends that have been friends since their teenage years. All their histories combine and will keep you guessing til the end. Great read!

I‘ve read Anne Tyler years ago and I think I liked her books back then. This book just sort of meandered along at a slow and easy pace. A bit like it‘s main character. Maybe that was the point.

This was another great book by Isabel Allende. It follows the story of Eliza Summers who as a baby is left on a doorstep of a wealthy family in Valparaiso, Chile. The story also recounts the beginnings of the gold rush in California. A really interesting read.

The content of this one was a bit ‘Eww‘. Can‘t go into details without spoilers. I can‘t say I liked this book but I still finished it. Ironically, I can‘t remember how this book ended up on my bookshelves. I‘ve questioned everyone who normally shares their books with me and they all deny giving it to me. Maybe it ‘invited‘ itself in 😂

It‘s the last day of the year! And I was one book short of reaching my Goodreads Reading Challenge for the year. So, I shamelessly chose the shortest book on my bookshelf that I‘d never read before! 😂 Turns out it was my son‘s copy of this book. It was ok. Whilst I appreciate the HP phenomenon and the good it‘s done in getting more people to read books….it‘s not really my thing.

Short, sharp and to the point. ✔️

I absolutely love Billy Connolly! He always makes me laugh and smile. Whenever I‘m feeling flat or low, a good dose of Billy always cheers me up. This book is wonderful. A really great snapshot of his early life and career in Glasgow. Well worth reading. He doesn‘t mention ‘The old lady on a bus‘ but it is still one the funniest stories I‘ve ever heard in my life. I cry with laughter EVERY time I hear it.

I found this one really hard to get into. I liked the humour and the premise. Parts of it were really clever. But I found my self having to re read passages, which isn‘t a good sign. I will, however, carry on reading the series as they were a birthday gift!

I really disliked this book. There were times I wanted to throw it across the room. But I didn‘t. Nor did I stop reading it. I guess it was supposed to shock and make the reader uncomfortable but I just thought it was disappointing drivel.

I didn‘t enjoy this one as much as I usually enjoy her books. It was ok but not as good as her usual Temperance Brennan books.

This book is so rich and densely captivating. I love this author. She has a uniquely perceptive way of voicing things that are usually left unsaid. Almost every page has a moment that makes you think more deeply about everyday interactions. In particular, her observations about ‘choicelessness‘ really struck me.

Easy, entertaining read. Some dark topics covered in this one. Overall a good read. If you like Marian Keyes, Jane Green and Sheila O‘Flanagan, you‘ll enjoy this one.

What a GREAT read! This is the second book I‘ve read by this author. She is fantastic. Great characters and plot. She‘s good at building a creepy atmosphere too. I couldn‘t put this one down. Lots of secrets and twists that keep you guessing. Highly recommend any book by this author.

Wow! This one was really disturbing. Creepy, scary and strange.

Yay!! I‘m so happy! 👏👏I‘ve found another mystery/thriller/crime writer that is really good! I know this author has written a lot of books but I‘ve completely missed him until now! Well written, engaging, no plot holes or eye roll moments. Kept me guessing until the end. Just what you want in a mystery! I will definitely be reading more John Sandford.

This was another ‘impulse borrow‘ from the library 😊 I recognised the author‘s name as I‘ve read something by her before. It‘s was a simple and quaint story about 2 people meeting at an airport in their 70s and then the relationship that develops between them. It wasn‘t an exciting read but it was ok

I picked this up on a whim during a quick dash to the Library. I didn‘t realise it was the 2nd in a series but it didn‘t matter. Kept me enthralled and I kept wanting to get back to it. Then at around page 300 there was a plot development that was central to everything and was really weak and completely implausible. Left me really disappointed. I also find her books quite brutal and violent. Lots of callous characters. But I keep reading them!

Another great book by one of my favourite authors. It is written as a letter by Violeta at the end of her life. She recounts her life and the historical events that she has witnessed. It covers her loves and family tragedies along side the political upheavals during her lifetime. I couldn‘t put it down.

A friend recommended this book. I‘m glad they did! Reading it made me realise that this war has been raging for decades! Discusses phonics based vs whole word reading strategies and how these have been dragged onto the political stage with conservatives vs liberal arguments. I think most educators on the ground agree that it should be a combination of both. Fascinating read. Only negative, it‘s published in 2008. An updated edition would be great

This was a great read! Great characters, good plot. I couldn‘t put it down!

This is the last in the series. It‘s was ok but I felt that the ending was really disappointing. It read like the author wasn‘t sure how to end the series

Finished my book and my wine! Both were great! 😊 I really enjoyed this book and all of its twists and turns. Will definitely read more by this author