#WWWWednesdays – 6th November ‘19

WWWWednesdays

Hosted by Taking on a World of Words, this meme is all about the three Ws:

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you’ll read next?

Why not join in too?  Leave a comment with your link at Taking on a World of Words and then go blog hopping!


Currently reading

Having got blog tour reads for early November out of the way, I’m now turning my attention to some books from my Nonfiction November reading list.

The Tide Between UsThe Tide Between Us by Olive Collins (e-book, review copy courtesy of the author)

1821: After the landlord of Lugdale Estate in Kerry is assassinated, young Art O’Neill’s innocent father is hanged and Art is deported to the cane fields of Jamaica as an indentured servant. On Mangrove Plantation he gradually acclimatises to the exotic country and unfamiliar customs of the African slaves, and achieves a kind of contentment. Then the new heirs to the plantation arrive.

His new owner is Colonel Stratford-Rice from Lugdale Estate, the man who hanged his father. Art must overcome his hatred to survive the harsh life of a slave and live to see the eventual emancipation which liberates his coloured children. Eventually he is promised seven gold coins when he finishes his service, but he doubts his master will part with the coins.

One hundred years later in Ireland, a skeleton is discovered beneath a fallen tree on the grounds of Lugdale Estate. By its side is a gold coin minted in 1870. Yseult, the owner of the estate, watches as events unfold, fearful of the long-buried truths that may emerge about her family’s past and its links to the slave trade. As the body gives up its secrets, Yseult realises she too can no longer hide.

the outrunThe Outrun by Amy Liptrot (audio book)

At the age of thirty, Amy Liptrot finds herself washed up back home on Orkney. Standing unstable on the island, she tries to come to terms with the addiction that has swallowed the last decade of her life.

As she spends her mornings swimming in the bracingly cold sea, her days tracking Orkney’s wildlife, and her nights searching the sky for the Merry Dancers, Amy discovers how the wild can restore life and renew hope.

9781911445562There’s Something About Darcy by Gabrielle Malcolm (eARC, courtesy of Endeavour Media)

For some, Colin Firth emerging from a lake in that clinging wet shirt is one of the most iconic moments in television. What is it about the two-hundred-year-old hero that we so ardently admire and love?

Dr Malcolm examines Jane Austen’s influences in creating Darcy’s potent mix of brooding Gothic hero, aristocratic elitist and romantic Regency man of action. She investigates how he paved the way for later characters like Heathcliff, Rochester and even Dracula, and what his impact has been on popular culture over the past two centuries. For twenty-first century readers the world over have their idea of the ‘perfect’ Darcy in mind when they read the novel and will defend their choice passionately.

In this insightful and entertaining study, every variety of Darcy jostles for attention: vampire Darcy, digital Darcy, Mormon Darcy and gay Darcy. Who does it best and how did a clergyman’s daughter from Hampshire create such an enduring character?


Recently finished (click on titles for my review)

The House That Alice Built by Chris Penhall (ebook, courtesy of Ruby Fiction)

The Photographer of the Lost by Caroline Scott (eARC, courtesy of Simon & Schuster)

Christmas at Ladywell by Nicola Slade (eARC, courtesy of Crooked Cat Books)


What Cathy (will) Read Next

The Listening WallsThe Listening Walls by Margaret Millar (paperback, courtesy of Pushkin Press)

Amy Kellogg is not having a pleasant vacation in Mexico. She’s been arguing nonstop with her friend and traveling companion, Wilma, and she wants nothing more than to go home to California. But their holiday takes a nightmarish turn when Wilma is found dead on the street below their room-an apparent suicide.

Rupert Kellogg has just returned from seeing his wife Amy through the difficulties surrounding the apparent suicide of her friend in Mexico. But Rupert is returning alone-which worries Amy’s brother. Amy was traumatized by the suicide, Rupert explains, and has taken a holiday in New York City to settle her nerves. But as gone girl Amy’s absence drags on for weeks and then months, the sense of unease among her family changes to suspicion and eventual allegations.

#NonficNov Nonfiction November Week 2: Book Pairings

nonficnovgraphic-e1569211904841-768x768Nonfiction November has commenced and the second of this year’s weekly discussion prompts is Book Pairings, hosted by Sarah of Sarah’s Book Shelves.

The idea is to pair up a nonfiction book with a fiction title. It can be a “If you loved this book, read this!” or just two titles that you think would go well together. Maybe it’s a historical novel and you’d like to get the real history by reading a nonfiction version of the story.

Looking back at the nonfiction books I’ve read so far this year, here are some suggested pairings. Links from the titles will take you to my review or the book description on Goodreads.


Pair Where The Hornbeam Grows by Beth Lynch with The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett – the much-loved classic that demonstrates the healing power of nature and gardening

Pair Beyond The Thirty-Nine Steps: A Life of John Buchan by Ursula Buchan with (obviously) The Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan – the classic spy thriller for which the author is best known (or watch the Hitchcock film version starring Robert Donat which Buchan generously described as improving on the book)

Pair In My Life: A Music Memoir by Alan Johnson with The Commitments by Roddy Doyle – set in 1980s Dublin (rather than 1960s South London), Jimmy Rabbitte forms a soul band, The Commitments, and dreams of musical success.

Pair Monopoli Blues by Tim Clark and Nick Cook with Eight Hours From England by Anthony Quayle – the author’s fictionalized account of his wartime service with the SOE.

Pair Untitled: The Real Wallis Simpson, Duchess of Windsor by Anna Pasternak with Ike and Kay by James MacManus – a fictionalized account of the real life relationship between another couple in the public eye.

Pair Chanel’s Riviera: Peace and War on the Cote d’Azur, 1930 – 1944 by Anne de Courcy with The Dressmaker’s War by Mary Chamberlain – the story of an English dressmaker caught in Germany during World War II, the choices she must make to stay alive and the implications of those choices in the aftermath of the war.