The Little Library Project

Kate Morton is an auto-read for both me and my mum. Since discovering The House At Riverton many years ago, we've both enjoyed her unique style of storytelling - twisting historical fiction and mystery expertly time and time again.  So when I saw Homecoming available through NetGalley - I of course opted straight away to grab an ARC.  It's Christmas 1959 and Percy Summers takes a detour through the Australian country to a waterhole to allow his horse to bathe and cool down. Noticing a family of their local town asleep by the waterside, he moves to make a neighbourly greeting to discover that they're not asleep at all and something awful has befallen then.  In London 2018, Jess finds out her Grandmother, Nora, has taken a fall back in Australia. Arriving back "home" after the long journey, she finds out that Nora has been acting strange for a while and Jess cannot work out why. Whilst Homecoming didn't incite the same emotions as some of her other books, the st

  To avoid getting overwhelmed by choice everytime I look to pick my next book, I'm attempting to but a TBR list together for each month. That way I only need to choose the order to read them in! (And hopefully, slow down my book buying problem...) The Witches of Ardo - Anya Bergman A new addition to my TBR list because I cannot resist a witchy book. This one focusses on a series of witch trials in Scandinavia. The Hundred Loves of Juliet - Evelyn Skye The latest ARC release from NetGalley - this one is promising to be cute and cosy and very romantic.  One Christmas Morning - Rachel Greenlaw I KNOW that it's too early but I need to research for the December recommendations at some point surely? Another ARC release from NetGalley that I'm saving for the next cold snap before Spring.  Fairytale - Stephen King I don't think I need to justify this one. I have been a fan of Stephen King for years so as well as reading through the back-catalogue when I can, I also read his ne

Hot off the back of some intense historical fiction and fantasy reads, I thought I'd delve into a thriller courtesy of Paula Hawkins! I loved The Girl On The Train and it completely grabbed me from the start.  A Slow Fire Burning is based once again in London, and focusses on the death of Daniel and those who are implicated in his murder. A complex web of family history is revealed, with young Laura finding herself caught up in it all.  There were plenty of twists in this one and I had no idea who was going to come out as the murderer until the very end.  A Slow Fire Burning has a brilliant plot - did it grip me as much as The Girl on the Train? No. But it's still a must-read for easy thriller fans. 

The Betrayals has been sat on my bookshelf for a little while now. I read The Binding by Bridget Collins a couple of years ago and loved it. But it was one of those books that really got under my skin. The storytelling was fantastic but it gave me such an almighty book-hangover that I didn't want to willingly set myself up again.  Leo has resigned from his job as Minister of Culture and sent back to the monastery where he spent his time learning, mastering and perfecting the grand jeu. Being back at Montverre brings about the memories of his time there, including his reluctant friendship with his rival.  I will admit that I had to look up a few things whilst I was reading it - especially in the first 100 or so pages because I just couldn't get my head around what a "grand jeu" was, where the book was set, or what time period the book was based in. And by the time I finished there were still so many unanswered questions. A few speculations:  I like think that the book

The Mad Women's Ball was an impulse purchase in Waterstones... and yes, it's because I absolutely fell in love with the cover.  Set in a 19th century asylum in Paris, the book follows two women - Genevieve, the matron of t he Salpetriere Asylum  and Eugenie, the daughter of a well-respected family.  After finding a long lost necklace amongst the furniture, Eugenie confides in her grandmother that her dead grandfather had told her where it was. But her relatives take this is a sign that she is mad and quickly sends her off to the asylum. Genevieve mistrusts her almost instantly and sets about making sure the rules are follows. Until a series of events leads her to question everything she's ever known.  The Mad Womens Ball is an insight into the views of the medical professional at the time towards women - with delightful and realistic characters that are each held for their own reasons.  Whilst it was never going to be a 'nice' book, it definitely gave me pause for t

An impulse selection on NetGalley, the Foxglove King the beginning of a fantasy series by Hannah Whitten. Having not read any of her previous books, I had no idea what to expect.  In a world where poison has recreational use, Lore is a poison-runner recruiting by the King to spy on his son and heir. Villages outside of the central kingdom are being wiped up by an unknown power with no evidence is its wake. Using her birth power of channeling Mortem, Lore teams up with Gabe and Bastian to find out who is behind the murders whilst they also navigate the politics of the court and the religion that rules it.  This is a great first book for a series. The characters have been set up really well; Lore is fierce, Gabe is brooding and Bastian... he's probably the epitome of ideal fantasy guy for me.  I don't want to drop any spoilers but (of course) there's a budding romance but I honestly have no idea which way Whitten is going to go with it.  Will I be eagerly awaiting the second

The Thorns Remain is set in Scotland, in the wake of the First World War and in the midst of the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1919. In a rural Scottish village, Moira Jean is celebrating with her friends, a last hurrah before they go on their separate ways to make their lives their own. But the evening takes a turn when a beautiful stranger comes upon them. Awaking from a daze filled with dancing and strange music, Moira Jean finds herself alone. Her friends have disappeared and it's down to her to find them again. Making bargains with Fae is exactly what she's been told not to do, but how else will she get her friends back? The story was brilliantly written and Moira Jean's character was fantastic - absolutely fearless and possibly even reckless but very likeable. Her determination and almost cavalier behaviour made my inner feminist squeal with joy. The only thing I wish for - MORE OF THE DREAMER. I would have loved to see more of a relationship between him and Moira, the

As I rule, I'm not a sci-fi fan. I don't know why, it's just never really pulled me in. Maybe it's deeprooted trauma from being made to watch Star Wars on repeat when I was younger both by my Dad and my brother. My brain just shuts down and I'm not interested.  But a few years ago I went to see The Martian and I thoroughly enjoyed it. (If I remember rightly I was on a bit of Matt Damon binge at the time). I then read Artemis and though that was cool as hell, and then I went back and read The Martian... incredible. So when Project Hail Mary came out, I was obviously going to give it a go.  I cannot put into words how impressive I found this book. It might be because I have a limited point of reference but: It was the first time I've ever had to put a book down because I actually felt like I was going to throw up from Vertigo. WEIR MANAGED TO MAKE ME FEEL LIKE I WAS PHYSICALLY IN SPACE  I actually had to sit up in my pit  bed at points because I was so tense.  Now

Along with many other women who read, I've become fixated on a few characters over the years who, if I could, I may well sell a kidney for.  I'd like to think that none of them are particularly problematic... as such. Well maybe one.  I'm not ashamed to admit that I have been infatuated with each of these fictional men at some point in the not-to-distant past.. and I probably will continue to be in the future!  It also has not escaped my attention that the majority of these feature in a series of a book. I don't think this is too surprising. Saga's allow for character arcs, and we've all felt the book "hangover" and feeling of loss when a series comes to an end right? So here they are... my fictional soulmates. I will not be taking questions. James Alexander Malcolm Mackenzie Fraser - Outlander I'll start with the original. Falling in love with the Outlander series started years ago for me, before the TV series was even a thing BUT I will say that

  After an intense few weeks of romance and fantasy, I wanted to break things up with a something a little darker. The Sanatorium has been sat on my bookshelf and TBR for a little while now so I figured now would be as good a time as any to jump right in.  Elin is on leave from the police force following a case that left her emotionally, physically and mentally scarred. Invited to her brothers engagement celebrations at a new hotel in the Swiss Alps, she and her boyfriend Will take the trip to the middle of nowhere in the midst of one of the worst storms the area has seen in decades.  As well as the complex family history that Elin has to overcome, the threat of evacuation due to the weather is made that much more urgent when her soon-to-be sister in law goes missing.  What I loved most about this story wasn't the "thriller" aspect surprisingly, though it was done very well. It was the history of the building itself. The way the medical practises were described and the fe

Ali Hazelwood is a relatively new author discovery for me after reading The Love Hypothesis last year. What I love about her books - they are equal parts spice and science lesson.. and I'm here for it. Bee is a neuroscientist who has been asked to work on a project with and for NASA. The only problem is, her nemesis Levi is her co-lead and since a few unfortunate interactions in years before, has managed to put him out of her mind.  But working with him is going to throw her into an uncomfortable work environment. She never did find out why he hated her so much.  Can you see where this is heading? I adored this. Levi is loveable and Bee is definitely someone I can see myself being friends with.  If you've read any of Hazelwood's other books - make sure you add this to the list. 

This was SUCH an eagerly awaited sequel. But I was good, I waited and let the bloke buy it for me as a Christmas present.  And then I waited to finish the books I already had on my TBR before I dove straight in. I even waited until I had a full weekend of nothing so I could reread OUABH before I started it.  And it was worth the wait. Firstly, getting reacquainted with Evangeline and Jacks was amazing. Seeing their begrudging friendship develop was a treat. Finding out more about The Archer and The Fox was... well... delightfully unpredictable.  I know this is still a relatively new book to the market so all I'm going to say is... I will be booking the 13th September off of work so I can the third and final instalment in one day. 

I think I'm going to have to review my reading goal for 2023... I worked out that 5 books a month was a pretty realistic target but I hit that by the 8th January!! I'm going to see how it goes.  I read some fantastic books this month and I definitely peaked early with The Priory of the Orange Tree.  I was actually convinced through most of the month that I wasn't going to get any better than The Priory but I was pleasantly surprised to see that Project Hail Mary and The Betrayals were also 5* reads for me! The Priory still tops the list because it was so immersive but they were each so good into their own unique genres.  Most of the reviews are available already.... if they're not live yet - check back later! THE PRIORY OF THE ORANGE TREE - Samantha Shannon Read the full review HERE THE SHORT-TERM RENTAL PLAYBOOK - Andy Wen Read the full review HERE THE SHADOWS BETWEEN US - Tricia Levenseller Read the full review HERE THE WALLED GARDEN - Sarah Hardy Read the full review

I don't often re-read books; a book has to be really special for me to do that. It's one of the reasons I tend to not read series until they're at completion - so I can devour in one swoop. However, after being so invested in the Caraval series, I knew I wouldn't have been able to wait with Stephanie Garber's next series.  I first read Once Upon A Broken Heart back in February last year and I have been EAGERLY *impatiently* waiting for The Ballad of Never After ever since.  If I remember rightly, the first read was over the course of maybe a couple of days... the re-read was the same.  This is a book that is so easy to get invested in. As a YA novel, the language is easy without being patronising, and the plot is deep enough without being over complex. Whist this is a continuation of the world featured in the Caraval series, you can read OUABH as a standalone series (though I'm also itching to reread Caraval) Evangeline Fox is orphaned. She thought she'd fou