Category: Monthly update

My Five Favourite October Reads

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My 5 Favourite October Reads

I read eleven books in October and, as always, it was difficult to narrow it down to my five favourite. However, you can find the results of my deliberations below.

You can keep up to date with all my reading in 2019 here with links to my reviews.  If we’re not already friends on Goodreads, send me a friend request or follow my reviews.

The Glittering HourFirst up it’s historical fiction and The Glittering Hour by Iona Grey. The story moves between 1936, as nine year old Alice seeks to uncover the secrets of her mother’s past, and 1925 in which her mother, Selina, recalls her days as one of the ‘Bright Young People’.

I described the experience of reading it as an ‘intense but spellbinding emotional journey’. Read my review to find out why.

Asylum RoadNext it’s Asylum Road by James L. Weaver, the fourth book in the Jake Caldwell crime series. When I need a break from historical fiction this is the series I turn to for some gripping, page-turning action. I’m never disappointed.

You can read my full review here.

A Ration Book ChildhoodBack to historical fiction and a book that’s also the latest in a series, A Ration Book Childhood by Jean Fullerton. The book follows the fortunes (and misfortunes) of the Brogan family in London’s East End during World War 2. I particularly like the way the author completely immerses you in the atmosphere of the period. Read my full review here.

Olive, AgainNext it’s Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout the long-anticipated sequel to the much-praised Olive Kitteridge.

Set, like the first book, in the coastal town of Crosby, Maine it follows Olive through her later years in a series of linked short stories. As always, the author’s gift for observation is brilliant.

You can read my full review here.

20190916_105554_resizedDid you know John Buchan, author of The Thirty-Nine Steps, wrote historical fiction? Well, he did and The Blanket of the Dark is widely considered one of his best. Set in the reign of Henry VIII in the Oxfordshire countryside Buchan knew so well, its premise is a ‘what if’ of history. Read my full review here to find out more.

I can’t end this month’s update without mentioning my trip to Henley Literary Festival. I attended four fantastic events and you can read my reviews of them by following the links below.

Michael Joseph Proof Party

Anne de Courcy – Riviera Tales

David Suchet – Poirot’s Pictures

Victoria Hislop – Greek Fable

What were your favourite books you read in October? Have you read any of my picks?

My 5 Favourite April Reads

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My 5 Favourite April Reads

I read fifteen books in April including a couple of five-star reads and several that came close.  You can find details of my five favourite books below.  Click on the book title to view the book description on Goodreads.

You can keep up to date with all the books I’ve read so far in 2019 here with links to my reviews.  If we’re not already friends on Goodreads, send me a friend request or follow my reviews.

The Conviction of Cora BurnsFirst up is historical novel, The Conviction of Cora Burns by Carolyn Kirby. Set in 1880s Birmingham, it tells the story of a young woman born in a prison to a convicted criminal she never knew. Like others, I thought it was an impressive debut and described it as ‘an intensely satisfying read’.  You can read my full review here.

sunwiseStaying with historical fiction, Sunwise by Helen Steadman is the follow-up to the author’s debut novel, Widdershins.  It continues the stories of herbalist, Jane Chandler, and witch-finder, John Sharpe.  The latter is a quite terrifying figure and I found the book as compelling and powerful as its predecessor.  You can read my full review here.

The_Storyteller_CoverMy next choice is The Storyteller by Pierre Jarawan (translated by Rachel McNicholl and  Sinead Crowe). Moving between Lebanon and Germany over a period of more than thirty years, it tells of Samir’s search for his father, Brahim, who disappeared suddenly one night. I found it to be ‘a fascinating, intriguing and beautifully written book’.  You can read my full review here to find out why.

Beyond the Thirty-Nine StepsStaying with the subject of storytelling, my next choice is a biography of arguably a master of the art – Beyond the Thirty-Nine Steps: A Life of John Buchan by Ursula Buchan. The author, who is also Buchan’s granddaughter, sets out to demonstrate – successfully, to my mind – that there was much more to him than just the author of the classic spy thriller, The Thirty-Nine Steps.  You can read my full review here.

PilgrimMy final choice is Pilgrim by Louise Hall.  It follows the journey of father and daughter, Jen and Charlie, to Medjugorje, a small village in Yugoslavia, where six children have experienced a vision of the Virgin Mary.  Like the other characters the reader encounters, they are struggling to cope with tragedy in their lives.  I praised its message of hope and the possibility of starting over again. You can read my full review here.

What were some of your favourite books you read in April?  Have you read any of my picks?