Hello!
My chosen quote today is by the American writer William Faulkner (1897-1962).
“You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.”
William Faulkner
Happy Reading
Mid Week Quote: William Faulkner
Author: higgy88
Crazy dog owning musician who loves knitting, reading and exercising in her spare time.
WWW Wednesday: 8/1/2025
WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words.
The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.
- What are you currently reading?
- What did you recently finish reading?
- What do you think you will read next?
Hello!
I hope everyone is having a good week so far. I have had a busy teaching but in every gap I have had I have managed some reading which has been nice. I am thoroughly enjoying my chapter a day of my buddy read book and I am finding it a nice way to start my day.
What I am Currently Reading
Unleashed which is my buddy read is going really well and I am finding it really interesting so far. A Three Dog Problem is absolutely brilliant and I can’t put it down. I am already looking forward to the next book in the series.
What I have Recently Finished Reading
I quite enjoyed this but it wasn’t what I was expecting. My review will be posted soon.
What I Think I will Read Next
As usual I have no idea what I will read next. I have so many books planned at the moment that I feel a bit overwhelmed and have no idea what to read next as I just want to read them all!
Please drop me a comment with your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit.
Happy Reading
Death Comes at Christmas edited by Marie O’Regan and Paul Kane (Review)
Death Comes at Christmas edited by Marie O’Regan and Paul Kane
Blurb
The award-winning Marie O’Regan and Paul Kane invite you to a festive gathering of bestselling, critically acclaimed and award-winning writers in tribute to classic, British period crime stories. From locked room mysteries on Christmas eve to devilish whodunits and tales of simmering rivalries unfolding at the dinner table, these thirteen original seasonal tales will delight and shock at every twist and turn. So, unwrap the presents, pour a mug of mulled wine and follow the bloodstained footprints through the freshly fallen snow as winter descends and darkness lurks in the shadows.
Review
I’m not a huge short story fan but at Christmas I always make an exception and buy some short story books because you can’t beat a good Christmas murder mystery.
I will be honest I wasn’t overly enthralled with this book. There were some stories that really caught my interest but most just lacked the lustre that I usually enjoy in a short story about a Christmas murder mystery. I won’t go into every story but here are the ones which have stayed with me for good and bad reasons.
One of the stories that I really enjoyed was one of the first stories in the book. How to Commit Murder in a Bookshop. I thought this story was very clever and I really had no idea what was going on till the very end. It was beautifully written and I loved the characters, especially the bookshop staff.
The Red Angel was also a good story and was very surprising. I loved the ending and really didn’t see it coming.
Christmas Yet to Come was a piggy back on the classic A Christmas Carol and to be honest I thought it was rather an insult to Dickens. I could see what the author was trying to do but I didn’t enjoy the story and didn’t find that it flowed very well. It was also rather predictable.
Icarus was probably my least favourite story of the collection as it felt unfinished and it was also the shortest story in the book. It just felt like the author had forgotten the storyline and then not bothered to finish it.
Overall, I could take or leave this book as it just felt a bit ‘meh’. I give this book 3 out of 5 Dragons.
🐲🐲🐲
Purchase Links
Bookshop.org | Waterstones | WH Smith
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January 2025 TBR
Hello!
I hope everyone has had a good start to the week so far. I’ve not managed any reading yet but I am hoping to do some reading later.
I currently have a huge pile of books on my landing which is one of my many TBR piles. I really want to reduce this pile so that is the inspiration for my January TBR.
I doubt I will manage to read all of these books but I’m hoping to make a reasonable dent in the TBR.
Happy Reading
The Weekly Brief
Hello!
I hope everyone has had a good weekend so far. I am back teaching tomorrow and I must admit I will miss my extra reading time. Blogging has been back on track this week but I still have a few book reviews to catch up with.
Blog Posts
- Goodreads Monday
- Murder at the Christmas Emporium by Andreina Cordani (Review)
- WWW Wednesday
- Mid Week Quote: Rainer Maria Rilke
- December Wrap Up
- Friday Poetry: Ravi Shankar
- Bookish Goals for 2025
Currently Reading
Unleashed by Boris Johnson is my current buddy read with my best friend. We are reading a chapter today and really enjoying it so far. I have also recently started A Three Dog Problem and I am thoroughly enjoying it so far.
Happy Reading
Bookish Goals for 2025
Hello!
I have been doing quite a bit of thought regarding my Bookish Goals for 2025. My 2024 goals did not go exactly to plan. I had to lower my book goal, I didn’t finish the Shardlake series, I didn’t manage to read my planned 24 books of 2024. However, I did keep up with my book reviews and I did make progress with The Wheel of Time series so it wasn’t all bad.
Goals for 2025
- Read 50 books
- Work on my Classics Club Challenge
- Keep up to date with my book reviews
- Do more buddy reads (if you are interested please drop me a message)
- Try to finish at least one series I have started.
- Explore different genres.
I managed 45 books in 2024 but a lot of those books were huge. In fact 2024 was the year of big books so I’m planning some shorter reads for 2025.
I haven’t really done much on my Classics Club Challenge recently and I am missing my classics. I really want to read more classics this year as my deadline is 2027.
As my challenge to keep up with book reviews kept me well on track last year I am hoping to do the same this year. I have also been planning my blogging content more which has been a big help in pushing me to do my book reviews. I just need to be as organised for my Bookstagram!
This year I want to do more buddy reads. I have already started my first buddy read this year with my best friend and I am really enjoying it. Each day we read a chapter and then chat about it and it is lovely.
I currently have the Wheel of Time series, The Expanse series and the Shardlake series to finish! I am determined that this year I will finish one of these series. I really don’t want to start another series whilst I still have these series sat making me feel guilty.
I also hope to read some different genres this year. I have certain genres that I tend to avoid and other genres I cling to like a security blanket. This year I want to try some of the genres I avoid. I’ve already started by reading a ghost story and I’m currently reading a biography, neither of which I would usually touch but both that I’m thoroughly enjoying so far.
So there are my goals for 2025. I really hope I do better than I did in 2024. Good luck with your bookish goals!
Happy Reading
Friday Poetry: Ravi Shankar
Happy Friday!
My chosen poem this week is by the American poet, editor and former literature professor at Central Connecticut State University and City University of Hong Kong and Chairman of the APWT, Dr Ravi Shankar (1975).
Snowfall
Particulate as ash, new year's first snow falls
upon peaked roofs, car hoods, undulant hills,
in imitation of motion that moves the way
static cascades down screens when the cable
zaps out, persistent & granular with a flicker
of legibility that dissipates before it can be
interpolated into any succession of imagery.
One hour stretches sixty minutes into a field
of white flurry: hexagonal lattices of water
molecules that accumulate in drifts too soon
strewn with sand, hewn into browning
mounds by plow blade, left to turn to slush.
Ravi Shankar
Happy Reading
December 2024 Wrap Up
Hello!
December was definitely my best reading month of 2024. Most months in 2024 I was lucky to read 3 or 4 books but in December I managed to finish a massive 9 books! I have fallen slightly behind with my book reviews though sadly. I promise I will catch up soon.
Statistics
Books
Pages: 64
Format Read: Hardback
Dragon Rating: 🐲🐲🐲
New Book
Pages: 448
Format Read: Hardback
Dragon Rating: 🐲🐲🐲🐲🐲
New Book
Pages: 240
Format Read: Hardback
Dragon Rating: 🐲🐲🐲
New Book
Pages: 336
Format Read: Hardback
Dragon Rating: 🐲🐲🐲🐲🐲
New Book
Pages: 368
Format Read: Hardback
Dragon Rating: 🐲🐲🐲🐲
Review to follow
New Book
Pages: 106
Format Read: Hardback
Dragon Rating: 🐲🐲🐲🐲🐲
New Book
Pages: 14
Format Read: Hardback
Dragon Rating: 🐲🐲🐲🐲🐲
Old Book
Pages: 48
Format Read: Hardback
Dragon Rating: 🐲🐲🐲🐲🐲
Review to follow
New Book
Pages: 75
Format Read: Hardback
Dragon Rating: 🐲🐲🐲
Review to follow
New Book
New Books: 8
Old Books: 1
24 Books in 2024: 14/24
Goodreads: 45/40
Happy Reading
Mid Week Quote: Rainer Maria Rilke
Hello!
My chosen quote today is by the Austrian poet and novelist Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926).
“And now we welcome the new year. Full of things that have never been.”
Rainer Maria Rilke
Happy Reading
WWW Wednesday: 1/1/2025
WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words.
The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.
- What are you currently reading?
- What did you recently finish reading?
- What do you think you will read next?
Happy New Year!
I hope everyone had a good New Year’s Eve. I’ve had a lovely day of reading today which has been bliss. I’m still reading my Christmas books until 6th January but I have also started my first buddy read of the year.
What I am Currently Reading
Unleashed by Boris Johnson is my buddy read and we are aiming for a chapter a day. I’m a bit dubious of A Christmas Ghost Story so far but I’m hoping it proves to be good.
What I have Recently Finished Reading
I have just finished my reread of the Hogfather by Terry Pratchett and absolutely loved it. My reviews of these books will be posted very soon.
What I Think I will Read Next
I have a huge pile of books sat on my landing and they are all TBR. I’m not sure what I will next but I’m very excited about these.
Please drop me a comment with your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit.
Happy Reading
Lady Book Dragon 