Fresh bedtime reading!

Another holiday read. This is an atmospheric and unsettling book about the summer three girls went missing from a small Australian town and the lingering effects decades on. My only complaint with this was with the ending, but I think that means it probably did exactly what it was designed to to do!

Current romance read: a reissue of an early Jill Shalvis!

An actual lady detective from the 1930s? This new non fiction book ticks so many of my reading boxes!

Current romance read, once again courtesy of the library. Who knew I could like sports romances so much.

Finally treating myself to one of the last Discworld books I haven‘t read. #gnuterrypratchett

Loved this, although they‘re definitely getting more and more tied to the overarching plot. I think we‘re at a point now where they wouldn‘t make sense if you started here. I do love the nods to the graphic novels too.

Current nonfiction read, courtesy of the library (because I don‘t buy hardbacks)

I really like this series and this reminded me of some of the theatre-set Inspector Alleyn mysteries - and that‘s always nice. Amory and Milo‘s relarionship continues to be intriguing although I hope there‘ll be some progress/development in the next book in the series.

I‘m an outlier but I thought this was disappointing. There‘s probably a good cozy crime in here, with some serious editing. It‘s too long, too rambling, I had the solution figured early doors and the author is clearly still annoyed about all those complaints about lack of diversity in Harry Potter and is determined to make sure you know that she can do diversity.

I love this series so much. Charlotte is such an engaging heroine for all that she doesn‘t feel things like “normal” people, the mystery is good and the running plot is clever and intriguing. I broke all sorts of my own rules after I finished this and preordered the next one.

Loved this. This time the gang are searching for a super rare folk record and it‘s all a little bit KLF and weird and Wicker Man. Do I mean wicker man? Anyway, it‘s really good. And so clever.

I am on holiday (or vacation as the Americans say!) and have been doing a lot of reading. Here comes a posting blitz...

May have burned through all three of these in about as many days...

Look which library hold just came in. I can‘t wait to read the book that has made so many (male) “ripperologists” get so angry...

Sunday night reading: the latest Vinyl Detective book. Love this series so much.

Revisiting an old friend in honour of Judith Kerr and to mark her passing.

I liked the premise but not as much in the execution. Promising though so I‘ll try the next one.

Look what arrived!

So good. But surprisingly melancholic and with so much keeping the estranged couple apart that if it had been anything other than a romance I would not have expected it to have a happy ending. But it is and it does and it is very satisfying.

Liked this, I just wish these wouldn‘t keep ending on cliffhangers/with things unresolved!

New bedtime book!

I go away for less than an hour and I missed it!

So close to 20,000. I know there‘s many more with higher totals than me, but I still feel like I should be doing something to mark this!

Loved this. The enemies to lovers fake relationship romance is brilliant and the representation of everything and everyone is just effortless and excellent. Who knew I could love a modern royalty romance series so much.

Latest library book!

Fresh bedtime reading. I‘m on such a romance jag at the moment!

Of course two of my long awaited library holds came in the same week as the bride test came out. Of course.

Why hello! Look what dropped on to my Kindle overnight! I‘ve been looking forward to this since I finished Hoang‘s first book!

Current kindle screen. Recommend me more romances featuring LGTBQI+ characters and POC main characters (both is great but either or will do too!) pretty please!

Current bedtime book!

Bank holiday Monday afternoon (post run) treat!

So I might have binged this whole series over the course of the last month or so. I had a few quibbles here and there (just talk to each other guys!) but in the main these are fun contemporary m/m romances with a lot of on page action. Not safe for work/public transport!

A bit meh. Not enough Campion really and I didn‘t love all the other stories either.

Any week with new Alyssa Cole is a good week.

Really disappointed with this. Didn‘t like any of the characters, thought the plot was both predictable and not very well executed. Sad because I‘ve heard great things about earlier Mary Kay Andrews books.

I've seen this described as Cat Sebastian's first "traditional" historical, which I think does it a big disservice. Yes it's her first “traditional" m/f but to reduce this book to that is to underplay what Sebastian is trying to do. All I can hope is that that descriptor will tempt readers who haven't yet read Sebastian because they "don't do" lgtbqi+ romances to try Sebastian's work and see what they're missing. Because this is really great.

Friday was local election results here and I was working at our offices near the Houses of Parliament- which meant a lunch time trip to the Oxfam book shop, where I spotted this and the next two in the series. Why thank you. Don‘t mind if I do!

Out in paperback here now (my sister sent me the picture coz she wanted to know if I‘ve read it) and this is a great vacation read if you like historical fiction with heart and a sense of humour.

Honestly, this is the perfect series for binging. I just went from one to the next to the next. Thank you library and Libby!

But... but... but I don‘t like Westerns. Or historical westerns. Except when Miss Bev writes them it seems that I do.

Loved this. Edge of your seat stuff if you don‘t know what happened, or even if you do know about the space race because I was clueless about the rocket plane test pilots. Very good. Read as a pair with the Astronaut Wives Club and then watch First Man.

And yes, I‘m super behind on here, so it‘s Sunday night, here I come with a batch of reviews!

It‘s Easter week, so a bit of Christian inspirational seems apt for some of my week-off-work reading!

My Sunday night treat last night: nearly three hours in the company of Sir Ian to celebrate his 80th. Shakespeare, Tolkien, Gerald Manley Hopkins and more; along with wonderful stories about his life. And he was shaking a bucket in the foyer afterwards so I got to say thank you to him! Marvellous.

I‘ve shown prospective buyers our house, I‘ve been to the whole food shop, the butchers and the bakery. I‘ve run 5k. Now time for a bath and a book!

Spotted in the bookshop today and I finished the other night. I really wanted to like this more. I really did. The blurb sounded amazing and thinking about it after reading, the structure and narrative conceit is clever. But it just didn‘t properly click for me. The first part is slow. The second is great, the thrust is frustrating. And that‘s the emotion i finished with - frustration.

Loved this so much. So good. Lots of peril, lots of romance, on the right side of history and a happily ever after. What‘s not to enjoy?

I see I‘m not the only person who couldn‘t find this in the database! A treat for myself and my coffee table.

I really liked this. There‘s a lot of kink going on here (more than I usually read) but in contrast to similar books that I‘ve read the characters are actually 3D with traits beyond Dom and sub. And neither of them are psychopaths. Hurrah!

Saturday night library book!