Tag: 5 favourite

I managed to read seventeen books in August, including a few five-star reads and some others that came fairly close.  Click on the title in my list below to go to the book description on Goodreads.  You can find a complete list of all the books I’ve read so far this year here, with links to my reviews.  If we’re not already friends on Goodreads, send me a friend request or follow my reviews.

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First up there’s  In the Blood by Ruth Mancini, published on 1^st August 2018 by Head of Zeus. I described it as ‘a compelling, accomplished thriller’ that also explores some contemporary social issues with ‘insight and acute observation’.  Click here to read my full review on my blog.

Next it’s the intriguingly titled The Unlikely Heroics of Sam Holloway by Rhys Thomas, published on 9^th August 2018 by Wildfire Books.  I described it as ‘a story of grief and guilt but also of friendship, generosity, love, the resilience of the human spirit and the importance of community’.   To read my full review, click here.

My third choice is The Glass Diplomat by S.R. Wilsher, self-published in ebook on 21^st August 2018.   Set in Chile, I found the book ‘a completely absorbing and thoroughly satisfying read’.  Click here to read my full review of this intelligent, literary thriller.

My next choice is The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas, published by Head of Zeus on 9^th August 2018.  An imaginative fusion of crime thriller, time travel and sci-fi, I described it as ‘a clever, funny, exhilarating, mind-bending mystery’.  You can read my full review here.

My final choice is WW2 historical thriller, Night Flight to Paris by David Gilman, published on 9^th August 2018 by Head of Zeus (yes, them again!).  I loved the way the book ‘immerses the reader in a world where danger, suspicion and fear is a constant companion’.  Click here to read my full review.

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So there you have it – five great reads, in my opinion.  Well done, Head of Zeus, for getting three of your books into my list for August.  You clearly know what I love to read!

December was a quieter reading month for me as I only finished 11 books (down on the record 19 of the previous month). Here are my five favourite, in no particular order.  Click on the book title to read my review.

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The Last Train by Michael Pronko

The author has been patiently waiting for my review of his book for several months and now I have read it, I’m sorry it took me so long to get around to it.  Set in Tokyo, it had a great plot, authentic locations and an interesting central character, Detective Hiroshi.  Recommended for crime thriller fans.

Corpus (Tom Wilde #1) by Rory Clements

I’ve loved Rory Clements’ John Shakespeare series of historical mysteries set in Elizabethan England.  His new series is set in the 1930s but there are echoes of the Tudor period with plenty of plots, intrigue and competing political factions.  Corpus was a great, action-packed read and a promising start to a new series.  I’ll be reading the next book, Nucleus, shortly.

Fortune’s Wheel (Meonbridge Chronicles #1) by Carolyn Hughes

Another author who’s been waiting a while for a review of her book and, once again, a book I wished I’d got to earlier.  Set in a small Hampshire village in the aftermath of the Black Death, it had a great cast of characters, an interesting mystery at its heart and a wealth of very believable detail about everyday life in that period.

The Twelve-Mile Straight by Eleanor Henderson

With echoes of To Kill A Mockingbird in its depiction of racial prejudice, this was a powerful story about poverty, family secrets and the misuse of power in a small rural community.

The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck

This was another powerful story, this time about the struggles of a Chinese family to eke out a living from the land.  Written in 1931, the author was the daughter of American missionaries and spent the first half of her life in China.   The book was my Classics Club spin for December.

 

What were your favourite reads last month?