Good morning everyone here are some of the new books I’ve added to my shelves this week:

❤️The Sound Of Gematria by Judith Field *
🧡Every Exquisite Thing by Laura Steven
💛Supper For Six by Fiona Sherlock*
💚The Daughter Of The Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller
💙 Night Train To Marrakech by Dinah Jefferies
💜The Farmer’s Wife by Helen Rebanks
🩷 The Good Part by Sophie Cousens *

The books with stars next to them were kindly gifted to me by the tagged publishers the rest I’ve bought.  I’m trying to be good and not buy too many books on the run up to Christmas but we’ll see how that goes 😂 I’m excited to read all of these as I’ve heard great things from my fellow booklovers!

Find out a bit more about each book below!

What was the last book you bought?

The Sound Of Gematria by Judith Field

‘It’s the last months of the nineteenth century and twenty-two year old Euphemia Thorniwork, is out of step with the men’s world she lives in. A mathematical research student at Oxford, looked on with suspicion by her her tutor, Professor Milton, she is forced to collaborate with fellow-student, Leo Lazarus, also under suspicion―for being Jewish.

At home in London, life is under pressure―for months a toxic fog has engulfed the city each evening, bringing illness to many, including Euphemia’s widowed mother. The fog has been accompanied by a wave of body-snatching and the body of Euphemia’s beloved cousin, Pearl, remains missing. Additionally, money is tight and Euphemia and her mother must move in with relatives who disapprove of her lifestyle.

Haunted by dreams of Pearl in which numbers, a red heifer and Biblical purification rites provide insoluble clues, she discovers an article about communicating with the dead using sound waves. Determined to cling to rational explanations, Euphemia returns to Oxford, but when she begins to fall in love with Leo, and learns something of esoteric Judaism, their research takes an unconventional turn and the questions mount.

Can Euphemia and Leo find the body snatchers? What is the origin of the toxic fog and can they find a way to defeat it? Will Leo and Euphemia’s love survive their religious divide? Blending Victorian romance and drama with a compelling supernatural story, The Sound of Gematria is an engaging debut novel not to be missed.’

Every Exquisite Thing by Laura Steven

A feminist YA horror-thriller-romance retelling of The Picture of Dorian Gray by the TikTok sensation and author of The Society for Soulless Girls…

Penny Paxton is the daughter of an icon. Her supermodel mother has legions of adoring fans around the world, and Penny is ready to begin her journey to international adoration, starting with joining the elite Dorian Drama School.

When Penny’s new mentor offers her an opportunity she cannot refuse, to have a portrait painted by a mysterious artist who can grant immortal beauty to all his subjects, Penny happily follows in the footsteps of Dorian’s most glittering alumni, knowing that stardom is sure to soon be hers.

But when her trusted mentor is found murdered, Penny realises she’s made a terrible mistake – a sinister someone is using the uncanny portraits to kill off the subjects one by one. As more perfectly beautiful students start to fall, Penny knows her time is running out . . .

A seductive and searing exploration of beauty, identity, and what the pursuit of perfection can truly cost.

Supper For Six by Fiona Sherlock

From the author of Twelve Motives for Murder comes another brilliant immersive murder mystery.

Supper for Six . . . but murder is on the menu

The mystery of Bruton Square has never been solved. On that infamous night in 1977, six strangers were invited for dinner at Lady Sybil Anderson’s Mayfair apartment. Only five made it out alive.

Welcome to Supper for Six, the true crime podcast. I’m your host, Felix.

Together, we’ll uncover what really happened that night . . . Let’s dig in.

A murderous Abigail’s Party – Fiona Sherlock’s Supper for Six is immersive and incredibly entertaining. Join Elizabeth Chalice and Felix Caerphilly on their quest to get to the bottom of this rather deadly dinner party . . .

Daughter Of A Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller

Seventeen-year-old Alosa, daughter of the feared Pirate King, is on a mission. She must retrieve an ancient hidden map, the key to a legendary treasure trove. The catch? Alosa needs to conceal her considerable combat skills and allow herself to be captured by her enemies, giving her the perfect opportunity to search their ship.

More than a match for the ruthless pirate crew, Alosa has only one thing standing between her and the map: her captor, the unexpectedly clever and unfairly attractive first mate, Riden. But luckily, she has a few tricks up her sleeve – and no lone pirate can stop the Daughter of the Pirate King.

Night Train To Marrakech by Dinah Jefferies

MARRAKECH 1966

Vicky Baudin steps onto a train winding through Morocco, looking for the grandmother she has never met.

It’s an epic journey that’ll take her to the edge of Atlas Mountains – and closer to the answers she’s been craving all her life.

But dark secrets whisper amongst the dunes. And in unlocking the mystery of Clemence’s past, Vicky will unearth great danger too . . .

The Good Part by Sophie Cousens

Lucy Young is only twenty-six, but she’s exhausted. She’s tired of bad dates, being on the bottom rung at work, and living off Rice Krispies.

She’s ready to skip to the good part.

The part where she’s happily married, running the office, and never even thinking about her overdraft.

But you should be careful what you wish for . . .

Good morning everyone September is World Alzheimer’s Awareness month and I was tagged by the lovely @she_loves_to_read to share a purple stack to raise awareness of this cause.

Other people are also getting involved with the @theromanticbibliotheca pledging to donate $100 dollars plus $1 for every purple book stack or book review for a book with a purple spine or cover.

The books in my stack are:

💜 Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata

💟 Business Or Pleasure by Rachel Lynn Solomon

💜Cursed Crowns by Catherine Doyle & Katherine Webber

💟Bad Actors by Mick Herron

💜The Gifts by Liz Hyder

💟That Bonesetter Woman by Frances Quinn

💜The List by Yomi Adegoke

💟The Valkyrie by Kate Heartfield

💜The Revels by Stacey Thomas

We lost my dad from heart failure 14 years ago and for the few months before he died he was acting very strangely. He kept repeating himself, sometimes telling us the same story twice in a row and forgetting things like what was for supper. In hindsight we now know he was suffering from vascular dementia but at the time we were just confused as to what was happening to him.

I’ve tagged a few people on Instagram who might want to take part but as it’s the last day of September today, no pressure.

What are your weekend plans?

Good morning everyone and happy Friday. I got a copy of The Farmer’s Wife by Helen Rebanks this week and it sounds wonderful. I suppose like most people I have an idyllic view of what it would be like to run a farm so I’m intrigued to find out more about what it’s really like. Helen has included some lovely sounding recipes in her book and I’m excited to try a few!

In other news my son’s back today! I’m so excited to see him again and give him a huge hug. It’s been a rubbish week for many reasons so I’m looking forward to the weekend.

Do you like reading memoirs?

Book Synopsis:

A portrait of life at Helen Rebanks’ Lake District farmhouse that beautifully captures the unsung work of keeping a home and raising a family.

As dawn breaks on the farm, Helen Rebanks makes a mug of tea, relishing the few minutes of quiet before the house stirs. Within the hour the sounds of her husband, James, and their four children will fill the kitchen. There are also six sheepdogs, two ponies, 20 chickens, 50 cattle and 500 sheep to care for. Helen is a farmer’s wife. Hers is a story that is rarely told, despite being one we think we know.

Weaving past and present, Helen shares the days that have shaped her. This is the truth of those days: from steering the family through the Beast from the East and the local authority planning committee, to finding the quiet strength to keep going, when supper is yet to be started, another delivery man has assumed he needs to speak to the ‘man of the house’, and she would rather punch a cushion than plump it.

This beautifully-illustrated memoir, which takes place across one day at the farm, offers a chance to think about where our food comes from and who puts it on the table. Helen’s recipes, lists and gentle wisdom helps us to get through our days, whatever they throw at us.

About The Author:

Helen Rebanks is a farmer, a businesswoman, a teacher, a conservationist and a working mother – and a cook.
She lives with her husband and four children in the Lake District and has been cooking and baking for more than 30 years, both professionally and in farmhouse kitchens. Her love and enthusiasm for food and farming is completely infectious, and her cooking is utterly delicious.  She and her family work as a tight-knit team that have made their farm globally important with their farming innovations. They advise internationally and host events regularly at the farm to share their expertise and encourage others to farm sustainably.

📚Book Chain Challenge!

Good morning everyone I was tagged by the lovely @book_lover_kent to take part in this fun looking challenge! It was great fun looking through my books and trying to find books that I could make a chain with.

❤️ Eleven LIARS
🧡 The Good LIARS
💛 GOOD Bad Girl
💚 The GIRL With The Red Hair
💙 RED, White & Royal Blue
💜 The WHITE Lie

I have tagged a few people on Instagram who might want to take part (apologies if you’ve already been tagged) but as always no pressure!

Book Synopsis:

Paris, 1940: Two sisters separated by the Nazis… After a devastating attack, Justine and Ève Beaufort find themselves on opposite sides of the war, both in their beloved Paris. But can they ever find their way back to each other?

It was the day that changed everything. When the Nazis broke into our home, destroying everything, taking our home and our security. I thought it couldn’t get worse. But then they also took my sister.

After that day nothing was the same. I thought I’d never see her again. I thought she was lost to me forever. I joined the Resistance, vowing to fight against the evil German army with every last spark of fire in my body. Nothing and nobody can stop me.

Until I catch a glimpse of a woman who looks just like my sister. Alive. But this is not the sweet darling girl I once knew. This is a platinum blonde happily conversing with a terrifying Gestapo officer. No longer my sister. But a traitor.

And I know what I must now do…

Could you choose your country – and what is right – over the person you once loved more than anyone in the world?

My Review:

Sister’s At War is a gripping, emotional read that I highly recommend.

Firstly I thought the author did a great job of setting the scene in this story and I felt like I had been transported to war time Berlin watching everything unfold. I felt like I could feel the fear of Nazi occupied Paris and see the devastation of war.

The story is told from the point of view of both sisters which I found very interesting as I liked seeing both sides of the war. It was especially interesting to be given a glimpse behind the scenes of the Nazi operations. I really felt for the sisters and the difficult situation they find themselves in. It must have been hard for many families to be on different sides like that.

Overall I really enjoyed this fast paced story, which I found very hard to put down. The author slowly increases the tension in the book until it is almost palpable and I felt like my heart was in my mouth at times as I watched everything unfold. It’s an incredibly emotional story and I found myself tearing up as I read, wondering how everything was going to turn out. I’m excited to read more from this author in the future.

Huge thanks to Rachel from Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

When I was a little girl, my nose was always in a book, taking me to faraway places. French châteaux, English Gothic mansions. Portraits of ladies in stiff, ivory-colored crinolines and worn satin slippers. I wondered what it was like to walk in those slippers when they were new. I wanted to find out so I traveled far and wide, visiting countless museums, palaces, historical landmarks, soaking up the past so I could create that world of long ago but make it fresh and new, as if you were there now.

I write historicals filled with adventure, glamour, and romance. And most of all, family. My heroines love adventure, but they know there’s nothing more important than to have someone to come home to.

I love writing about strong, powerful women who defy the standard of their time and fight for justice and equality and won’t take ‘no’ for an answer, especially when it comes to saving those they love.

I hope you’ll join me on my journey.

Good afternoon everyone I was lucky enough to get a copy of this fabulous sounding book through the post recently.

To Cage A God by Elizabeth May is the first in the Monstrous God’s duology. It’s inspired by Slavic fantasy and explores a fantastic world of Gods and magic which sounds right up my street.

Thanks so much to Blackcrow Pr and Daphne Press for my copy of this book.

Out 20th February 2024.

Book Synopsis:

Join the rebellion to burn down a cruel tyrant in this heartracing new fantasy duology, perfect for fans of Shadow and Bone and The Wolf and the Woodsman.

To cage a god is divine. To be divine is to rule. To rule is to destroy.

Using ancient secrets, Galina and Sera’s mother grafted gods into their bones. Bound to brutal deities and granted forbidden power no commoner has held in a millennia, the sisters have grown up to become living weapons. Raised to overthrow an empire―no matter the cost.With their mother gone and their country on the brink of war, it falls to the sisters to take the helm of the rebellion and end the cruel reign of a royal family possessed by destructive gods. Because when the ruling alurea invade, they conquer with fire and blood. And when they clash, common folk burn.

While Sera reunites with her estranged lover who now leads the rebellion, Galina infiltrates the palace. In this world of deception and danger, her only refuge is an isolated princess, whose whip-smart tongue and sharp gaze threaten to uncover Galina’s secret. Torn between desire and duty, Galina must make a choice: work together to expose the lies of the empire―or bring it all down.

About The Author:

Elizabeth May is the Sunday Times bestselling author of To Cage a God, the Seven Devils duology (co-written with Laura Lam), The Falconer series, and romance novels under the pseudonym Katrina Kendrick. She is Californian by birth and Scottish by choice, and holds a Ph.D. from the University of St Andrews. She currently resides on an 18th-century farm in the Scottish countryside with her husband, three cats, and a lively hive of honeybees that live inside the wall of her old farmhouse.

For more information, follow her on Instagram @_ElizabethMay or visit her website http://www.elizabethmaywrites.com

Good morning everyone today on Two For Tuesday I’m featuring the two books I’m currently reading.

The Turnglass is a book I’ve been very intrigued by since I received a copy through work. I’m currently half way through the first story and it’s getting very interesting. I’m reading Upon A Frosted Star with the lovely Sarah from A Cottage Full Of Books. I’m very excited to read it as I love magical retellings. I was a big fan of Midnight In Everwood and I’m enjoying this book so far too.

What are you currently reading?

The Turnglass by Gareth Rubin

Stuart Turton meets The Magpie Murders in this immersive and unique story for fans of clever crime fiction.

1880s England. On the bleak island of Ray, off the Essex coast, an idealistic young doctor, Simeon Lee, is called from London to treat his cousin, Parson Oliver Hawes, who is dying. Parson Hawes, who lives in the only house on the island – Turnglass House – believes he is being poisoned. And he points the finger at his sister-in-law, Florence. Florence was declared insane after killing Oliver’s brother in a jealous rage and is now kept in a glass-walled apartment in Oliver’s library. And the secret to how she came to be there is found in Oliver’s tête-bêche journal, where one side tells a very different story from the other.

1930s California. Celebrated author Oliver Tooke, the son of the state governor, is found dead in his writing hut off the coast of the family residence, Turnglass House. His friend Ken Kourian doesn’t believe that Oliver would take his own life. His investigations lead him to the mysterious kidnapping of Oliver’s brother when they were children, and the subsequent secret incarceration of his mother, Florence, in an asylum. But to discover the truth, Ken must decipher clues hidden in Oliver’s final book, a tête-bêche novel – which is about a young doctor called Simeon Lee . . . 

Upon A Frosted Star by M. A Kuzniar

When the snow falls, she will be free…

The invitations always arrive the same way – without warning, appearing around the city on the first snowfall of the year, simply inscribed with ‘Tonight.’

When struggling artist, Forster, finds an invitation, he’s bewitched by the magic of the evening, swept up in the glamour of this notorious annual party and intrigued as to who is behind them.

Determined to find out more about the mysterious host, Forster discovers an abandoned manor house silent with secrets and a cursed woman who is desparate to be free…

From the bestselling author of Midnight in Everwood, comes another spellbinding literary fairy tale that’s The Great Gatsby meets Swan Lake.

Good afternoon everyone I’m pleased to be featuring No Reserve by Felix Francis today.

I’ve read and enjoyed a few of Dick Francis’s books so I was very excited to be offered a copy of his son Felix’s new book. It sounds really good and I can’t wait to read it soon.

Coincidentally Rossiters in Cheltenham are hosting an event with Felix Francis on the 26th of October. Do visit the website or call into the shop to book tickets.

Huge thanks to Sophie from Ransom PR for my copy of this book.

Book Synopsis:

Theo Jennings is a young auctioneer at the Thoroughbred sales ring in Newmarket. The October yearling sales are where the big money exchanges hands in frenzied auctions: millions of Guineas paid for horses that are as yet unnamed, untested, and have never taken a step on the track. It’s the greatest gamble in all of horseracing, and one that can end in ruin.

Theo has just made the biggest sale of his life, when he overhears a secret conversation between the two bidders – can they really have colluded to fix the price of his big sale? When that same horse is found dead the next morning, he has no choice but to investigate, even against the wishes of his boss. But the more he uncovers, the less he can trust the people around him.

The higher the stakes, the greater the risk. And in the bloodstock game, the ultimate price can be murder . . .

About The Author:

FELIX FRANCIS is Dick Francis’s younger son. Born in 1953, Felix studied Physics and Electronics at London University and then embarked upon a 17-year career teaching Advanced Level physics at three schools, the last seven as head of the science department at Bloxham School in Oxfordshire. After leaving teaching, Felix then became a businessman, spending 13 years as deputy chairman of World Challenge Expeditions Ltd, before starting his third career as an author.

As a child, Felix remembers that conversations around the Francis breakfast table were somewhat unconventional. “The production of a Dick Francis novel has always been a mixture of inspiration, perspiration and teamwork. The first one was published when I was nine, and I grew up in a house where talk would be about the damage a bullet might do to a man’s guts rather than the more mundane topics of everyday life”.

Over the next 40 years, Felix assisted Dick with both the research and the writing of many of his novels. They shared a love of racing and often worked together on plot and character details at Dick’s home in the Cayman Islands. This partnership allowed Dick to draw upon Felix’s knowledge and experience as a physics teacher and marksman in Twice Shy, and as an outdoorsman in Longshot.

With the publication of Under Orders in 2006, Felix took over the writing of the ‘Dick Francis’ novels from his father. This was followed by Dead Heat in 2007, Silks in 2008, and Even Money in 2009. Crossfire was the book Felix was working on when Dick died in February 2010, marking the end of one chapter and the beginning of another in the Dick Francis brand. Since then there have been another twelve ‘Dick Francis’ novels, with Felix’s latest, No Reserve, published in September 2023.

Good morning everyone. I can’t believe it’s Monday again the weekend went way to fast.

I’ve got another match your bag bookstack for you today. All these books are tbr except Hello Beautiful which I started but had to stop for another book but I’m hoping to get back to it soon.

This is another bag my clever mother in law made me and it’s one of my favourites as I absolutely love the fabric. My kids call it my Mary Poppins bag as I can fit so much stuff in it!

Today’s an emotional day for me as my eldest son is off on his Year 6 trip for a whole week. I’m really going to miss him as we always hang out in the evening after the others have gone to bed so it will be weird without him though I know he’ll have a great time.

Have you got anything exciting happening this week?

Good morning everyone I hope you’re having a great weekend so far. These are some of the books I’ve added to my bookshelf this week.

❤️Lucy By The Sea by Elizabeth Stroud

🧡Love In Old Age by Hunter Davies

💛 Briefly, A Delicious Life by Nell Stevens

💚To Cage A God by Elizabeth May *

💙The White Lie by J.G Kelly *

🩵No Reserve by Felix Francis *

💜God And Monsters by Ana Sampson

🩷The Stargazers by Harriet Evans

The books with stars next to them are proof which were kindly sent to me the rest are from the returns pile at work.

I’ve always said I have an eclectic reading taste and I think this pile really shows that. I loved the look of all of these but I was especially excited to find a copy of God & Monsters as I love mythology so it instantly appealed. Love In Old Age is a memoir about living in the Isle Of Wight, a place I’ve always loved. Finally, Stargazers is a book I’ve been hearing lots about from my fellow book friends so I’m excited to read it soon.

Have you read any of these? What would you read first?