Goodreads Monday: 30/6/2025

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club.  All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Happy Monday Everyone!

I hope everyone has had a good start to the week. I have had a busy day of teaching but I have also been enjoying Wimbledon on TV.

My chosen book to feature this week is one that has been sat on my Kindle for a couple of years. I remember buying it for a holiday but not getting around to reading it.

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow

In the early 1900s, a young woman embarks on a fantastical journey of self-discovery after finding a mysterious book in this captivating and lyrical debut.

In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the halls: carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place.

Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

20 Books of Summer 2025 – Update

Hello!

One of the things I love about this challenge is that you can substitute certain books. I have made the decision to substitute some of the books on my list because I can’t find them! I have a lot of books in piles and a lot of books in boxes because I am still trying to sort out my library and now I can’t find certain books I had planned to read. I know I own them, I just can’t find them! You can find my original list here.

So here is my new list:

  1. Medea by Rosie Hewlett
  2. Hera by Jennifer Saint
  3. Vertigo by G. S. Jennsen
  4. Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
  5. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
  6. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
  7. The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
  8. The Help by Kathryn Stockett
  9. Blood of Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski
  10. Foundation by Isaac Asimov
  11. Solaris by Stanislaw Lem
  12. The Royal Game by Anne O’Brien
  13. The Last Song of Penelope by Claire North
  14. Lessons by Ian McEwan
  15. Lady Catherine and the real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
  16. The Princes in the Tower by Philippa Langley
  17. The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
  18. The Doll Factory by Elizabeth Macneal
  19. The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon
  20. The Shadow King by Harry Sidebottom

Hopefully I will manage to read these over the summer.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

WWW Wednesday: 26/6/2025

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 am managing loads of reading this week which is lovely.

What I am Currently Reading

I am flying through this and really enjoying it so far.

What I have Recently Finished Reading

I finished The Three Musketeers and I am really missing those wonderful friends. I needed a quick read whilst I was at school so I managed to finish the next short story in the Far Reaches series. Reviews to follow soon.

What I Think I will Read Next

As usual I have no idea what I will read next but I think one of these is a strong contender.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Goodreads Monday: 23/6/2025

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club.  All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Happy Monday!

I hope everyone has had a good start to the week. I have been going through my book trolleys to see what books I have on them that I have forgotten about and I found this one lurking at the back. I might pop this one on to my Summer TBR pile.

Dirty Little Secrets by Jo Spain

Death stalked the Vale. In every corner, every whisper. They just didn’t know it yet. Six neighbours, six secrets, six reasons to want Olive Collins dead. In the exclusive gated community of Withered Vale, people’s lives appear as perfect as their beautifully manicured lawns. Money, success, privilege – the residents have it all. Life is good. There’s just one problem. Olive Collins’ dead body has been rotting inside number four for the last three months. Her neighbours say they’re shocked at the discovery but nobody thought to check on her when she vanished from sight. The police start to ask questions and the seemingly flawless facade begins to crack. Because, when it comes to Olive’s neighbours, it seems each of them has something to hide, something to lose and everything to gain from her death.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Goodreads Monday: 16/6/2025

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club.  All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Hello!

I hope everyone has had a good start to the week. I have had a good day of teaching and reading. I can’t wait to go on holiday where I can spend more time reading.

My chosen book to feature this week is the second book of a series that I have recently started. I absolutely adored the first book so I hope the next one will not disappoint.

Vertigo by G. S. Jennsen

The year is 2322 and humanity is under attack. An engineered war between rival superpowers escalates even as the shadowy Metigen armada begins attacking colonies on the frontiers of settled space. 

Individuals from across the galaxy fight for their own survival and to protect those they hold dear, while a group of unlikely allies race to expose a secret cabal. As the aliens draw ever closer, leaving utter destruction and death in their wake, the strongest defenders of Earth and Seneca fall to one another in a war of lies and misdirection.

Alex Solovy and Caleb Marano stand accused of terrorism and murder. In a desperate gambit to clear their names and find a way to defeat the invaders, they breach the dimensional portal at the heart of the Metis Nebula. In a strange, mystical realm where nothing is what it seems, they will uncover secrets about humanity’s past and future—and one revelation which will change everything.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

June 2025 TBR

Hello!

My next three months are going to be based around my 20 Books of Summer Challenge but I am planning on dividing my planned 20 books between the three months. So here are the planned books I hope to read during June. This month I plan on focusing on physical books as I have my Kindle books planned for July when I am on holiday.

I am currently trying to finish two big books so I’m not sure when I will get around to these but hopefully soon.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

WWW Wednesday: 4/6/2025

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 will be honest I haven’t managed to finish many books recently so I was quite pleased to actually finish a book!

What I am Currently Reading

I’m plodding along with Under the Dome but I am finding it a bit slow at the moment. I am so happy to be back in the world of Musketeers again!

What I have Recently Finished Reading

I absolutely loved this book and can’t wait to read the next one. Review will follow soon.

What I Think I will Read Next

As usual I have no idea what to read next but I need to start working on my 20 Books of Summer challenge.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Goodreads Monday: 2/6/2025

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club.  All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Hello!

I hope everyone had a good start to the week. I was back at school today which was chaotic as most of my students had forgotten their books.

My chosen book to feature today is one that I have had on my Kindle for a couple of years but I am hoping to read it for my 20 Books of Summer challenge.

Lessons by Ian EcEwan

When the world is still counting the cost of the Second World War and the Iron Curtain has closed, eleven-year-old Roland Baines’s life is turned upside down. Two thousand miles from his mother’s protective love, stranded at an unusual boarding school, his vulnerability attracts piano teacher Miss Miriam Cornell, leaving scars as well as a memory of love that will never fade.

Now, when his wife vanishes, leaving him alone with his tiny son, Roland is forced to confront the reality of his restless existence. As the radiation from Chernobyl spreads across Europe, he begins a search for answers that looks deep into his family history and will last for the rest of his life.

Haunted by lost opportunities, Roland seeks solace through every possible means—music, literature, friends, sex, politics, and, finally, love cut tragically short, then love ultimately redeemed. His journey raises important questions for us all. Can we take full charge of the course of our lives without causing damage to others? How do global events beyond our control shape our lives and our memories? And what can we really learn from the traumas of the past?

Epic, mesmerising, and deeply humane, Lessons is a chronicle for our times—a powerful meditation on history and humanity through the prism of one man’s lifetime.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Goodreads Monday: 26/5/2025

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club.  All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Hello!

I hope everyone has had a good start to the week. I have had a busy day of Etsy orders which has been nice. The 12 Month Book boxes are proving very popular at the moment.

My chosen book to feature this week is another that has been sat on my Goodreads TBR for a very long time.

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

I Capture the Castle tells the story of seventeen-year-old Cassandra Mortmain and her family, who live in not-so-genteel poverty in a ramshackle old English castle. Here she strives, over six turbulent months, to hone her writing skills. She fills three notebooks with sharply funny yet poignant entries. Her journals candidly chronicle the great changes that take place within the castle’s walls and her own first descent into love. By the time she pens her final entry, she has “captured the castle”– and the heart of the reader– in one of literature’s most enchanting entertainments.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Goodreads Monday: 19/5/2025

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club.  All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Hello!

I hope everyone has had a good start to the week. I have been back at school today but I did manage a little bit of reading when I had a break.

My chosen book to feature today is one I am very excited about because I finally get to read a Miss Marple book on my Agatha Christie challenge.

The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie

‘Anyone who murdered Colonel Protheroe,’ declared the parson, brandishing a carving knife above a joint of roast beef, ‘would be doing the world a large favour!’

It was a careless remark for a man of the cloth. And one which comes back to haunt the clergyman just a few hours later – when the Colonel is found shot dead in the clergyman’s study. But as Miss Marple soon discovers, the whole village seems to have had a motive to kill Colonel Protheroe.

The first Miss Marple mystery, one which tests all her powers of observation and deduction.

Happy Reading

Etsy