My Week in Books – 21st March 2021 – What Cathy Read Next…

On What Cathy Read Next last week

Blog posts

Monday – I published my review of The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger by Suzanne Fortin as part of the blog tour.

Tuesday – This week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic was Books On My Spring 2021 TBR.

Wednesday – WWW Wednesday is the opportunity to share what I’ve just read, what I’m currently reading and what I plan to read next…as well as have a good nose around to see what books others have plucked from their shelves.

Thursday – I shared my publication day review of Blood Runs Thicker (Bradecote and Catchpoll #8) by Sarah Hawkswood.

Saturday – I published my review of The Spanish Girl by Jules Hayes as part of the blog tour.

Sunday – I joined the blog tour for thriller, Every Last Fear by Alex Finlay, sharing an extract from the book.

As always, thanks to everyone who has liked, commented on or shared my blog posts on social media.

New arrivals

After last week’s bumper haul, it’s back to more ‘normal’ levels this week.

The Heretic’s Mark (Jackdaw Mysteries #4) by S. W. Perry (ARC, courtesy of Corvus and Readers First)

The Elizabethan world is in flux. Radical new ideas are challenging the old. But the quest for knowledge can lead down dangerous paths.

London, 1594. The Queen’s physician has been executed for treason, and conspiracy theories flood the streets. When Nicholas Shelby, unorthodox physician and unwilling associate of spymaster Robert Cecil, is accused of being part of the plot, he and his new wife Bianca must flee for their lives. With agents of the Crown on their tail, they make for Padua, following the ancient pilgrimage route, the Via Francigena.

But the pursuing English aren’t the only threat Nicholas and Bianca face. Hella, a strange and fervently religious young woman, has joined them on their journey. When the trio finally reach relative safety, they become embroiled in a radical and dangerous scheme to shatter the old world’s limits of knowledge. But Hella’s dire predictions of an impending apocalypse, and the brutal murder of a friend of Bianca’s forces them to wonder: who is this troublingly pious woman? And what does she want?

Skelton’s Guide to Suitcase Murders (Arthur Skelton #2) by David Stafford (eARC, courtesy of Allison & Busby via NetGalley)

A woman’s dismembered corpse is discovered in a suitcase, and police quickly identify her husband, Doctor Ibrahim Aziz, as their chief suspect. Incriminating evidence is discovered at his home and his wife was rumoured to be having an affair, giving him clear motive.

With his reputation for winning hopeless cases, barrister Arthur Skelton is asked to represent the accused. Though Aziz’s guilt does not seem to be in doubt, a question of diplomacy and misplaced larvae soon lead Skelton to suspect there may be more to the victim’s death. Aided by his loyal clerk Edgar, Skelton soon finds himself seeking justice for both victim and defendant. But can he uncover the truth before an innocent man is put on trial and condemned to the gallows?

The Fair Botanists by Sara Sheridan (eARC, courtesy of Hodder & Stoughton via NetGalley)

It’s the summer of 1822 and Edinburgh is abuzz with rumours of King George IV’s impending visit. In botanical circles, however, a different kind of excitement has gripped the city. In the newly-installed Botanic Garden, the Agave Americana plant looks set to flower – an event which only occurs once in several decades.

When newly widowed Elizabeth arrives in Edinburgh to live with her late husband’s aunt Clementina, she’s determined to put her unhappy past in London behind her. As she settles into her new home, she becomes fascinated by the beautiful Botanic Garden which border the grand house and offers her services as an artist to record the rare plant’s impending bloom. In this pursuit, she meets Belle Brodie, a vivacious young woman with a passion for botany and the lucrative, dark art of perfume creation. Belle is determined to keep both her real identity and the reason for her interest the Garden secret from her new friend. But as Elizabeth and Belle are about to discover, secrets don’t last long in this Enlightenment city. And when they are revealed, they can carry the greatest of consequences…