I do love it when I get a surprise book in the post and today was the day I have been eagerly awaiting since the beginning of the month.
My book was sadly not in its usual gorgeous wrapping due to staff shortages in the company but I got something even better included with my book, a little notebook to write all of my bookish notes in. I do love notebooks, so this was right up my street.
The book that I received was Meet Me In Bombay by Jenny Ashcroft. Jenny Ashcroft is another new author to me but her books have been recommended to me more than once by various people so I am looking forward to reading it.
The voucher code for 10% off a Willoughby Book Club subscription is still valid until the 25th February 2021 if you wish to join this fantastic club and get fabulous books through the post, then click the link below.
I hope everyone is well and have good bookish plans for the weekend. We might be having some snow over the weekend and my husband and myself love having a walk through the snow so my chosen poem seemed very apt.
A Winter Bluejay
Crisply the bright snow whispered,
Crunching beneath our feet;
Behind us as we walked along the parkway,
Our shadows danced
Fantastic shapes in vivid blue,
Across the lake the skaters
Flew to and fro,
With sharp turns weaving
A frail invisible net.
In ecstasy the earth
Drank the silver sunlight;
In ecstasy the skaters
Drank the wine of speed;
In ecstasy we laughed
Drinking the wine of love.
Had not the music of our joy
Sounded its highest note?
But no,
For suddenly, with lifted eyes you said,
'Oh look!'
There, on the black bough of a snow-flecked maple,
Fearless and gay as our love,
A bluejay cocked his crest!
Oh, who can tell the range of joy
Or set the bounds of beauty?
Sara Teasdale
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. There appears to be some sunshine here today so I am hoping to get out for a walk in a bit.
So here is what I have been up to in the world of books.
Currently Reading
I am absolutely loving this so far and I can already tell that I will fly through this series.
Recently Finished
I will be honest I did struggle with The Dark Veil and I am beginning to realise that James Swallow is just not an author for me. Here is my review.
The Butcher of Anderson Station was brilliant and a fantastic short story that excellently fills out the back story to Fred Johnson. Review.
What I Think I will Read Next
I will be honest if I had the next in the series then I would go straight on to the next book in The Expanse series but sadly funds are a bit tight for book buying so I must be well behaved and read some of the books I already own. It will definitely be one of these as three of them are from The Willoughby Book Club and I’ve promised myself that I will read at least one of my Willoughby books a month. The others I got in the last Waterstones sale and they are sat tempting me as I type.
The Willoughby Book Club Voucher code for 10% off is still available if anybody is interested: Voucher
Please drop me a comment with your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit.
The Butcher of Anderson Station by James S. A. Corey
Blurb
A new story set in the world of The Expanse. One day, Colonel Fred Johnson will be hailed as a hero to the system. One day, he will meet a desperate man in possession of a stolen spaceship and a deadly secret and extend a hand of friendship. But long before he became the leader of the Outer Planets Alliance, Fred Johnson had a very different name. The Butcher of Anderson Station.
Review
We first meet Fred Johnson in Leviathan Wakes and we soon realise that he has a past and this short story tells us what that past is.
I really enjoyed reading this short story as it shows what made Johnson join the OPA and become an advocate for their cause. It also introduces us to Anderson Dawes who is a member of the OPA and we get a brief introduction to his character as well which is really interesting.
I already know the story of Johnson from watching the TV series but it was really heart breaking to read the story of the slaughter of the workers and families of Anderson station.
I read this short story in one setting and really enjoyed it as it filled in a bit of background story. The more I read of this series the more I fall in love with the writing. I give this story 5 out of 5 Dragons.
James S. A. Corey is the pen name of fantasy author Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, George R. R. Martin’s assistant. They both live Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Within the United Federation of Planets, a terrorist strike on the shipyards of Mars has led to the shutdown of all relief efforts for millions of Romulans facing certain doom from an impending supernova. But when the USS Titan is drawn into a catastrophic incident on the Romulan-Federation border, Captain William Riker, his family, and his crew find themselves caught between the shocking secrets of an enigmatic alien species and the deadly agenda of a ruthless Tal Shiar operative. Forced into a wary alliance with a Romulan starship commander, Riker and the Titan crew must uncover the truth to stop a devastating attack, but one wrong move could plunge the entire sector into open conflict!
Review
Having read and loved the first book in the Star Trek Picard series I was really excited to read this book especially as it was to feature two of my favourite characters, Riker and Troi.
As soon as the book arrived through the post I started to read it and got very excited with the opening scene where we see Riker standing on trial. However, I will be honest my excitement soon waned with this book. I loved reading about my favourite characters and meeting Thaddeus, Riker and Troi’s son, but I just found that the story was very slow moving and frustrated me because of the lack of pace.
Riker with a family was wonderful to see and the times where he was torn between duty to his ship and crew and duty to his wife and child was very moving. Troi was her usual calming and caring self who brings calm and order to any situation.
I loved learning more about the back story to the TV series Picard and what has happened a year after the attack on Mars and I found the Jazari fascinating and wanted to learn more about them. I also felt rather sorry for them because due to living so secretly from other species it all sounded rather lonely. Zade was my favourite Jazari and his relationship with Thad was very sweet.
My biggest problem with this book was the lack of pace and at one point I did consider quitting but I am glad I continued reading because once I was past half way the story really picked up and I couldn’t put it down till I had finished it. After finishing this book I realised that I had had the same experience with Swallows book Fear Itself from The Discovery series. I give this book 3 out of 5 Dragons.
James Swallow is a New York Times, Sunday Times and Amazon #1 bestselling author and scriptwriter, a BAFTA nominee, a former journalist and the award-winning writer of over fifty books, along with scripts for video games, comics, radio and television.
Lady Book Dragon 