#WWWWednesday – 16th November 2022

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

WakenhyrstWakenhyrst by Michelle Paver (Head of Zeus via NetGalley)

“Something has been let loose…”

In Edwardian Suffolk, a manor house stands alone in a lost corner of the Fens: a glinting wilderness of water whose whispering reeds guard ancient secrets. Maud is a lonely child growing up without a mother, ruled by her repressive father.

When he finds a painted medieval devil in a graveyard, unhallowed forces are awakened.

Maud’s battle has begun. She must survive a world haunted by witchcraft, the age-old legends of her beloved fen – and the even more nightmarish demons of her father’s past.

The Night ShipThe Night Ship by Jess Kidd (Canongate via Readers First)

1629. Embarking on a journey in search of her father, a young girl called Mayken boards the Batavia, the most impressive sea vessel of the age. During the long voyage, this curious and resourceful child must find her place in the ship’s busy world, and she soon uncovers shadowy secrets above and below deck. As tensions spiral, the fate of the ship and all on board becomes increasingly uncertain.

1989. Gil, a boy mourning the death of his mother, is placed in the care of his irritable and reclusive grandfather. Their home is a shack on a tiny fishing island off the Australian coast, notable only for its reefs and wrecked boats. This is no place for a teenager struggling with a dark past and Gil’s actions soon get him noticed by the wrong people.


Recently finished

The Sentence is Death by Anthony Horowitz (Century)

Thea and Denise by Caroline Bond (Head of Zeus via Readers First)


What Cathy (will) Read Next

Night-Time StoriesNight-Time Stories edited by Yen-Yen Lu (eARC, The Emma Press)

A child waits for the tooth fairy; a mother spends a night watching a recording of the previous night; two women face the ghosts that haunted their grandmothers. The nights in these ten stories are thick and substantial, ambiguous and alluring.

Eerie, magical, hushed and surprisingly alive, this anthology shows the night as a place where connections are made and daylit lives can be changed.

With stories from Valentine Carter, John Kitchen, Winifred Mok, Leanne Radojkovich, Angela Readman, Jane Roberts, Rebecca Rouillard, Miyuki Tatsuma, Zoë Wells and Sofija Ana Zovko.

The Labyrinth of the SpiritsThe Labyrinth of the Spirits by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, trans. by Lucia Graves (Weidenfeld & Nicolson via NetGalley)

As a child, Daniel Sempere discovered among the passageways of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books an extraordinary novel that would change the course of his life. Now a young man in the Barcelona of the late 1950s, Daniel runs the Sempere & Sons bookshop and enjoys a seemingly fulfilling life with his loving wife and son. Yet the mystery surrounding the death of his mother continues to plague his soul despite the moving efforts of his wife Bea and his faithful friend Fermín to save him.

Just when Daniel believes he is close to solving this enigma, a conspiracy more sinister than he could have imagined spreads its tentacles from the hellish regime. That is when Alicia Gris appears, a soul born out of the nightmare of the war. She is the one who will lead Daniel to the edge of the abyss and reveal the secret history of his family, although at a terrifying price.

 

My Week in Books – 13th November 2022

MyWeekinBooksOn What Cathy Read Next last week

Tuesday – This week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic was Book Series I’d Like To Finish

Wednesday – I published my review of futuristic thriller, The Coming Darkness by Greg Mosse, as part of the blog tour.  As always WWW Wednesday is a weekly opportunity to share what I’ve just read, what I’m currently reading and what I plan to read next… and to take a peek at what others are reading. 

Thursday – I shared my review of historical novel Death to the Emperor by Simon Scarrow as part of the blog tour. 

Friday – I published my review of The Weather Woman by Sally Gardner.

Saturday – I joined other gardeners with my #SixonSaturday update.


New arrivals

Becoming TedBecoming Ted by Matt Cain (eARC, Headline via NetGalley)

Ted Ainsworth has always worked at his family’s ice-cream business in the quiet Lancashire town of St Luke’s-on-Sea.

But the truth is, he’s never wanted to work for the family firm – he doesn’t even like ice-cream, though he’s never told his parents that. When Ted’s husband suddenly leaves him, the bottom falls out of his world.

But what if this could be an opportunity to put what he wants first? This could be the chance to finally follow his secret dream: something Ted has never told anyone …

The Long Way HomeThe Long Way Home by Fanny Blake (Simon & Schuster)

When Isla, a 65-year-old grandmother, is left nothing but an old painting in her mother’s will, while her sisters and aunt inherit the estate, she is devastated. Close to retirement, getting ready to live on her own terms, the last thing she expects at this time of her life is such turmoil. So, to find an explanation for her mother’s rejection, she embarks on a road-trip.

But, right at the last moment, she’s forced to take her sullen – and, in her view, impossible – 14-year-old granddaughter Charlie with her. Cramped together in Isla’s car with her smelly old dog, these ill-assorted travelling companions set off to uncover some shattering and life-changing family truths at the same time as learning to love each other…

Day of the CaesarsDay of the Caesars (Eagles of the Empire #16) by Simon Scarrow (Headline)

AD 55. Veteran soldiers of the Roman army Prefect Cato and Centurion Macro have fought side by side in battles, skirmishes and sieges across the vast Roman Empire, from Britannia to Egypt, from Spain to Syria.

Proven to be heroic in battle and loyal to the death to each other and to their men, they are selected for the most dangerous missions, and given command of troops whose lives as well as the fate of the Empire depend on their military might and vision.

As the reign of Emperor Claudius ends, turmoil in Rome spreads unease across the globe, giving heart to the enemy. There could be no more deadly time to be far from home, even for the army’s most experienced officers… 


On What Cathy Read Next this week

Currently reading

Planned posts

  • Book Review: The Sentence is Death by Anthony Horowitz
  • Book Review: Thea and Denise by Caroline Bond