Books I’ve enjoyed 010

Posted on March 3, 2024 by The Little Room of Rachell

1. The Book of Beginnings by Sally Page

A warm hug of a book about friendship and belonging, forgiveness and acceptance of oneself, faults and all, with twinkling Christmas lights and snow near the end too.
This is well written and nicely researched, with added historical figures for depth and interest. A little poetry thrown in to the mix and some lovely quotes from the characters. Perfect!

2. Travels with my Aunt by Graham Greene

Henry Pulling, a retired bank manager, meets his septuagenarian Aunt Augusta for the first time in over fifty years at what he supposes to be his mother’s funeral. Soon after, she persuades Henry to abandon Southwood, his dahlias and the Major next door to travel her way, Brighton, Paris, Istanbul, Paraguay.

Through Aunt Augusta, a veteran of Europe’s hotel bedrooms, Henry joins a shiftless, twilight society: mixing with hippies, war criminals, CIA men; smoking pot, breaking all the currency regulations and eventually coming alive after a dull suburban life. In Travels with my Aunt Graham Greene not only gives us intoxicating entertainment but also confronts us with some of the most perplexing of human dilemmas.’ From GoodReads

A riotous journey! I decided it was time to read this classic story, first published in 1969.

3. The House of Fortune by Jessie Burton

‘1705, Amsterdam. Thea Brandt is about to turn eighteen, and at the theatre in the heart of the city she has met the love of her life. At home, however, her family faces ruin. Desperate to change their fortunes, Thea’s aunt Nella is convinced that she must find Thea a wealthy husband, to get her away from the theatre and solidify her place in the society in which she truly belongs. As Thea and Nella clash over the demands of duty and the heart, past secrets begin to overwhelm their present.

And then there is the elusive miniaturist – when mysterious figurines begin to arrive on the family doorstep, it seems someone may have unexpected plans for Thea’s family. Will each woman be able to rescue her destiny from the whims of fortune?’ From GoodReads

The second in The Miniaturist series. I felt there is plenty of scope for another story by the end of The House of Fortune. I really enjoyed visiting eighteenth century Amsterdam.

4. The Whispering Muse by Laura Purcell

Jenny is sought out to come and work at the Mercury theatre in London’s West End by Mrs Dyer, the wife of the theatre’s proprietor. She is engaged as a member of the wardrobe room and as dresser to leading lady Lilith, whom she is also to spy upon. Mrs Dyer is suspicious and jealous of Lilith and her suspected attachment to her husband. Meanwhile, Lilith is obsessed with a watch that belonged to a tragic actor. It is said to be possessed by the spirit of Melpomene, the tragic Greek muse of theatre. The watch is said to bestow anything an actor desires, but comes with a gory history. Jenny has witnessed the upsetting event which occurred to its last owner…

Is Mrs Dyer as caring and supportive as she seems? Is Lilith the unpleasant diva she seems, or more human and fallible? What is happening to the people and fabric of the building at the Mercury?

This is a really good premise for a story; there is an array of interesting characters and an excellent setting (a Victorian theatre has to be one of the best, on par with a huge old ancestral home in the country.) The story is structured around the five plays that the company stage.

5. A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins

‘When a young man is found gruesomely murdered in a London houseboat, it triggers questions about three women who knew him. Laura is the troubled one-night-stand last seen in the victim’s home. Carla is his grief-stricken aunt, already mourning the recent death of yet another family member. And Miriam is the nosy neighbor clearly keeping secrets from the police. Three women with separate connections to the victim. Three women who are – for different reasons – simmering with resentment. Who are, whether they know it or not, burning to right the wrongs done to them. When it comes to revenge, even good people might be capable of terrible deeds. How far might any one of them go to find peace? How long can secrets smolder before they explode into flame? Look what you started.’ From GoodReads

It’s not a jolly read, which is a great understatement, but kept me guessing and turning the pages.

6. Black Rabbit Hall by Eve Chase

‘The hours pass differently at Black Rabbit Hall. For the four Alton children, it’s the perfect summer escape where not much ever happens – until one stormy evening, something does.And their idyllic world is shattered. Decades later, Lorna is drawn to a beautiful yet crumbling old house she hazily remembers from childhood – feels a bond she does not understand. But a disturbing message left by one of the Alton children tells her that Black Rabbit Hall’s history is as dark and tangled as its woods. And much like her own past, it must be brought into the light…’ From GoodReads

I’m always drawn to English county house settings! I also recommend The Glass House by Eve Chase.

7. Into the Uncanny by Danny Robins

‘This book is the story of these ordinary people who have experienced extraordinary things and want to make sense of them. Each one is a brand-new case I have never shared before; modern day ghost stories that make my blood run cold as effectively as anything that Charles Dickens could rustle up. And they are all entirely true.It’s also a story of my own personal journey of discovery because l’ve realised something from hearing all these incredible stories that come my way. I’ve realised how much I want to believe. I’m asking you to join me, to keep an open mind and to prepare to have your very concept of reality challenged. Are you ready?’ From GoodReads

Excellent audiobook voiced by the author. Genuinely gripping! #TeamNotSure

There’s also the Uncanny podcast, The Witch Farm (haven’t listened to this one yet) and The Battersea Poltergeist podcasts by Danny, also three TV episodes of Uncanny which are on the BBC iPlayer.

8. Winter Animals by Ashani Lewis

Thirtysomething-year-old Elen find herself adrift, lonely and drinking excessively, after the departure of her husband, who leaves her virtually penniless and subsequently homeless. She meets four British teenagers in a bar one day and becomes attached to the group. They travel and squat in empty buildings during the ski season and spend the majority of their days hiking up mountains and skiing back down. This is all possible by the fact that all of the teenagers come from well-off families. They live in relative comfort and without undue anxiety despite the fact they may be discovered by the authority or owners of the properties.

Luka feels himself to be the leader of the group and endlessly spouts the beliefs and ideas of a long-dead philosopher. Due to their isolation and days skiing without seeing many people the group of five become cultish and cut-off from the outside world.

9. Night watching by Tracy Sierra

A women and her two small children are at home in their old house late at night, in a raging snowstorm, the children are asleep. The woman hears a sound, she’s on instant alert and realises that they are definitely not in the house alone. What should she do? Run? Hide? Can she alert anyone without giving their location in the large house away?

This is an on the edge of your seat psychological thriller which manages to sustain the tension of what is happening in the house, even while including flashbacks to allow us to discover more about the woman, her husband and his family.

10. The Story Collector by Iris Costello

The Story Collector tells the stories of three women: Katerina, a German living in the East End of London, running a bakery in 1915, Miriam, a nurse and researcher who is working in a prisoner of war camp in Germany in 1918 and grief stricken Edie who has left London to live in Cornwall, in the present day. There are links which connect the three women. A mysterious box is found with items which will help to reveal the mystery…

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There you go, a good selection of books to check out. Many of those I read as advance copies, months ago before publication. I’m glad that there’s been a buzz around several of them. It pleases me that I picked some goodies.

I’ve currently got a batch of 7 new advance books to read and review from NetGalley, before publication including: Kate Grenville, Harlan Coben and Sarah Perry’s forthcoming releases. Exciting.

Amongst others I’m still ploughing through The Running Grave by Robert Galbraith (JK Rowling.) It’s an epic 960 pages, but like the rest of the Strike series is a total page turner. I’m also listening to it a bit on Spotify Premium, because the beauty is you don’t have to commit to the whole audiobook, like on Audible, you can dip in and out of lots of books within a 15 hour listening allowance for the month. I listened for an hour cosied sat up in bed yesterday morning, while crocheting more rounds of my last Coast Blanket granny square. That was a satisfyingly chilled start to Saturday, before I went out for the rest of the day.

Have you any good book recommendations? I enjoy reading about books you’ve enjoyed. It’s always nice when I’ve already read and enjoyed it too.

I wonder if I should start a Books I’ve Hated series?! That could provoke some interesting discussion!

Books I’ve enjoyed 009

Posted on November 9, 2023 by The Little Room of Rachell

It’s cold, grey and windy outside today, luckily I’ve got a pot of Teapigs darjeeling earl grey brewing, will stack the log burner and light it soon, I also plan to maybe do a bit of crochet. I’m using chunky yarn, it’s black and what I’m making is, I suspect, probably quite eccentric. More about that another time!

The Hotel by Louise Mumford

A dual storyline thriller. Four teenagers go to an abandoned Victorian hotel, which of course comes with a murky past. They plan to make a film and generally get up to hijinks in the gap between school and university. Things go terribly wrong and only three leave the hotel. Where is Leo? What happened on that fateful night?

It is now ten years later and there are fans who organise an annual convention, complete with merchandise, which has grown up around the original film that was put online. There is also intense speculation about what really happened.

The now scarred twenty eight year olds are invited to meet at the hotel once again, to join in the making of a reunion film with a professional company. What could possibly go wrong?

The Housekeepers by Alex Hay

The Housekeepers is about a heist in the Edwardian era, dreamt up, planned and executed (mostly) by women in a Park Lane mansion in London.

This is a story of revenge, for deeply personal reasons and an attempt to right some wrongs. There are female friendships which tug at the heartstrings and a few love stories too. It’s an absolutely cracking read.

When I read an advance review copy of The Housekeepers, at the beginning of the year, I remember thinking that I wouldn’t be at all surprised if there was a film or TV series commissioned in the future…

The Bookbinder of Jericho by Pip Williams

The story of twin sisters, Peg and Maude, who live on a narrow boat on the Oxford canal and work in the book bindery in nearby Jericho, at the Clarendon Press.

Peg wants far more from her life, but is stymied due to her gender and place in the world. Society is fixed for the working class and generations of families have worked in the same buildings. She is continually told not to read the books, but to bind them. Peg is tied to her sister Maude and feels that her life is narrow, full of responsibilities and a frustrating lack of freedoms.

Women are still not allowed to vote. Despite being accepted into university and able to study at Oxford, they are not awarded a degree. Going to study English at Somerville college is Peg’s dream, but this feels completely unattainable to a woman of her class and educational background. Then, World War 1 begins, bringing a wave of Belgian refugees fleeing devastated cities, through this mixing of the classes society begins to be irrevocably altered. Peg’s life alters she forms different relationships and new opportunities begin seem to be possible.

PS, if you are a fan of Pip’s The Dictionary of Lost Words, then you should know that this is set in the same period of time, in another area of Oxford. Look out for a few familiar characters.

No! I Don’t Want to Join a Bookclub by Virginia Ironside

I Don’t Want to Join a Book Club. Marie swears off all kinds of things that her friends and contemporaries are embracing: book clubs, yes, but also learning new things like foreign languages and joining gyms. Activities that challenge the mind and body, activities that others like to brag about—these are not for Marie. From the Penguin and Random House website

This was one of my holiday reads when we were away at the end of May. I picked it up from a community centre bookshelf where I’ve found lots of good reads before. Something about it grabbed me. And I realised I kept picking it up and putting it down. It’s basically the diary of Bridget Jones when she’s sixty and quite grumpy.

There are four books in the Marie Sharp series. I may look for the next sometime.

The Beginning of Everything by Jackie Fraser

A linear story about Jess who has escaped a bad situation and arrived in Wales seeking sanctuary. She and Gethin begin a friendship which is sustaining and positive for both, albeit beginning with a very unusual meeting.

This feels like an original story. The author gently and sensitively reveals Jess’s emotions, how she really feels about herself and about the beginning of a new relationship. It’s really beautifully written, I’m not sure that it will be for everyone as it’s not dramatic, it doesn’t have huge twists, but it’s really compelling. You want to find out what will happen and you root for them both.

For such a simple story I really could not put this book down! I read until the early hours to finish it; always the sign of an enjoyable book.

And Away by Bob Mortimer

Bob Mortimer’s life was trundling along happily until suddenly in 2015 he was diagnosed with a heart condition that required immediate surgery and forced him to cancel an upcoming tour. The episode unnerved him, but forced him to reflect on his life so far. This is the framework for his hilarious and moving memoir, And Away… From Goodreads

I’m not sure that you will have heard of Bob if you’re not in the UK and haven’t ever lived here. Would Shooting Stars etc have been shown internationally? I wasn’t ever a fan of Bob’s comedy with Vic Reeves a.k.a. Jim Moir, but absolutely LOVE Gone Fishing, which he presents with Paul Whitehouse. (It’s not about fishing!)

This was the first audio book I listened to last month, when I delightedly discovered Spotify Premium membership now gives you 15 hours of audiobooks a month. I was missing Audible but didn’t want to pay for another subscription.

Lovely audio book. Laugh out loud funny, particularly the first half, really warm, classic Bob.

Soups by Maggie Ramsay

There is a wide variety of soups; plenty of vegetarian, some meat and fish based varieties, also those containing pulses and grains. There are 80 recipes in all, including garnishes.

The author has given plenty of instruction, so it would be suitable for a novice cook. There are suggestions for adding or substituting ingredients. Many soups can be adapted to be vegetarian and vegan.

The one downside for me was there are no photos at all, bar the one on the front cover. I really do not care for the illustrations, as I felt that they neither represented the recipes, or were particularly attractive. The book is lacking in this respect.

I am planning to cook the Moroccan-Style Vegetable and Chicken Soup for dinner soon, the recipe instantly appealed as it will be a warming autumn meal.

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Currently I’m re-reading The Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan, before I can borrow her latest; Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop from the library. It’s warm, cosy and easy reading at bedtime, or in the middle of the night when I’m wide awake. I’m trying Simon Mayo’s Mad Blood Stirring again after abandoning it in 2019, listening to Oh Miriam! By Miriam Margoyles (NOT for the faint hearted) on Spotify. Lastly, I’m considering ditching Stanley Tucci’s Taste which is boring me, although I have got to the 60% point, so it seems a shame to give up now. I’ve tried a bit of the audiobook too, but for an actor his reading style seems very monotone.

Are you stuck into any books at the moment? Can you recommend something you’ve enjoyed this year?

Books I’ve enjoyed 008

Posted on April 29, 2023 by The Little Room of Rachell

Helloooo all. How are you? It’s been a while hasn’t it…

I’ve gathered some more of my favourite reads for you. Some I’ve read fairly recently and others were advance reader copies, read quite some time ago before publication. What I haven’t done this time is link the titles to GoodReads since I figure you probably have your own favourite book-site. Let me know if you miss the links.

The Garnett Girls by Georgina Moore

The story of three sisters: Rachel, Imogen, Sasha and their mother Margo, their relationships, secrets and glimpses into their past after they were abandoned by Richard their father, Margo’s husband.

The seaside setting in the large family house on The Isle of Wight was perfect, and the characters so real that I feel genuinely sad to leave them.

The writing is so good, the story just flows off the page; this is the first book that I have read into the early hours in ages, far beyond when I should have gone to sleep. I’ve loved it. The Garnett Girls is one of my reads of the year. I predict it’s going to be a huge hit and wouldn’t be at all surprised if it’s adapted into a film, and rightly so!

The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith

The latest installment in the highly acclaimed, internationally bestselling Strike series finds Cormoran and Robin ensnared in another winding, wicked case. When frantic, disheveled Edie Ledwell appears in the office begging to speak to her, private detective Robin Ellacott doesn’t know quite what to make of the situation. The co-creator of a popular cartoon, The Ink Black Heart, Edie is being persecuted by a mysterious online figure who goes by the pseudonym of Anomie. Edie is desperate to uncover Anomie’s true identity. Robin decides that the agency can’t help with this-and thinks nothing more of it until a few days later, when she reads the shocking news that Edie has been tasered and then murdered in Highgate Cemetery, the location of The Ink Black Heart. From GoodReads.

Wow! I finally finished it – having paused at just over halfway through to pick up Landlines by Raynor Winn. I was enjoying this, but not enthralled. It’s hard to feel sympathy for the victim and a compulsion to find out whodunnit when you’ve met the murdered character in only one or two pages. However, things really start mounting up after that and then I was completely in it for the long haul.

It was so cleverly done, lots of red herrings and diversions. I’m pretty good at picking the criminal, as I read a fair bit of detective fiction, but this time not at all! Even as they entered the building, in my mind it still could have been one of two others. I got it totally wrong! And it’s there fairly early on…

So, so, so glad I read this on my Kindle. I couldn’t have held that brick of the hardback and due to the extremely large cast I found the search function invaluable to check who is who and where they fit in. I gave it 4/5 stars because it was unnecessarily long. The editor could take a stronger stance!

Obviously a lot of the author’s personal experience of the internet, Fandom, Twitter etc has gone into the writing of this book. There is much more swearing in it, not offended by it, but I noticed the increase.

I bet Strike’s meeting with Prudence will lead into the next instalment…

Landlines by Raynor Winn

Some people live to walk. Raynor and Moth walk to live . . . Raynor Winn knows that her husband Moth’s health is declining, getting worse by the day. She knows of only one cure. It worked once before. But will he – can he? – set out with her on another healing walk? The Cape Wrath Trail is over two hundred miles of gruelling terrain through Scotland’s remotest mountains and lochs. But the lure of the wilderness and the beguiling beauty of the awaiting glens draw them northwards. Being one with nature saved them in their darkest hour and their hope is that it can work its magic again. As they set out on their incredible thousand-mile journey back to the familiar shores of the South-west Coast Path, Raynor and Moth map the landscape of an island nation facing an uncertain path ahead. In Landlines, she records in luminous prose the strangers and friends, wilderness and wildlife they encounter on the way – it’s a journey that begins in fear but can only end in hope.

Loved it! Alternated it in two halves with the mega long Ink Black Heart.

I recommend you read The Salt Path, and then read this! The afterword is bone tingling and I hope really helps to spur on further research.

Go as a River by Shelley Read

A chance meeting on the street between a teenager and a young drifter starts this story, which is set in rural Colorado. Beginning in the 1940s, we leave them three decades later in the 1970s. It’s hauntingly written, lyrical and really rather beautiful. This is a book about family, about love and about loss. But it’s also about resilience and strength. Victoria the main character is a force to be reckoned with, she is the definition of a strong woman and yet you also see her vulnerabilities and feel her pain. You follow her growing up from a young teenager in charge of the household, on her family’s peach farm, into an independent woman with a place of her own, dealing with loss and grief in her own way.

All the characters are sympathetic, even the troubled Seth, his uncle and father to an extent. This is a tough life, the family has experienced tragedy and huge losses, they do the best they can, but often fall short. Victoria is holding it all together, at least in a practical sense. Other members of the local community are believable and well drawn; the trouble making vinegar-tongued woman who runs the flop house, the jolly large woman who is friendly to customers and excels at selling the Nash family peaches at the roadside stall, the odd neighbour who is one of the most touchingly written. I could picture them all clearly, the writing is crystal clear.

I gather that there really was the damming and flooding of the Gunnison river to make the huge Blue Mesa Dam. I am interested to find out more about the communities who had to move and the houses and farms that were lost in Colorado.

Admittedly I preferred the first half of the book. I was not so keen on the diary extracts, but it was a clever device to move the story forward and to explain what happened in the interim, between the two main events of Victoria’s adult life. I did find that I really missed reading about the trees and the peaches though!

Homecoming by Kate Morton

Homecoming has a dual timeline which switches back and forth 60 years, between 1958 and 2018. There is an historic murder investigation, a missing baby, fractured mother daughter relationships and three women who reflect on their lives and place where they feel most at home. The characters are distinctly drawn and sympathetic for the most part. The author is clever at giving the reader an insight into what has shaped them and their relationships (or lack of) with each other.

This is a long book at over 500 pages, it’s a slow telling of a period in time when a tragic event occurs which rocks a community, changing the lives of everyone connected to the Turner family. The backstory loops around and around revealing more through a variety of devices. The chapters from the true crime book were an effective way to provide background. However, it took until around halfway through the book for me to become gripped, it’s rather turgid in places, but by then it really hooked me and got me guessing. Even when I was confident I could easily explain exactly what had happened, I was wrong!

The descriptions of the countryside, big skies, houses and rural life were well described. I used to be familiar with most of the locations mentioned as I lived in the hills of Adelaide, travelling down to ‘the flats’ via the Greenhill road daily for work, before the expressway was built, so this greatly added to my enjoyment of the book as it brought back many memories.

The Roasting Tin by Rukmini Lyer

Pop your ingredients in a tin and let the oven do the work. The Roasting Tin has recipes for 75 delicious one dish dinners ranging from chicken traybakes to supergrains. The concept is simple: fresh, easy ingredients, a few minutes prep, and let the oven do the work. Each chapter also includes a helpful infographic for how to build your own roasting tin dinner using whatever is in your fridge tonight. These quick, clever and delicious recipes are for anvone who wants to eat nutritious food made from scratch that fits around their busy lives. (And for anyone who doesn’t like washing up). GoodReads

Such a good book. I’ve made a few recipes, so far, and the one that’s already been cooked several times is the Crispy olive & pine nut* crusted cod with roasted red onions and cheery tomatoes. I made the tapenade with reduced salt green olives, using the recipe HERE

* Actually I forgot to buy the pine nuts, equal quantities of grated grana padano (or parmesan) works well instead. I stuck with that combo instead, as it tasted so good.

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Have you read any goodies lately? I’m currently reading an advance reader copy of Pip Williams next book, which runs parallel, time wise, with The Dictionary of Lost Words. It’s an interesting read, so far. And I started a new audiobook the other day, but I’m not altogether sure about it. I’ll have to listen to a bit more, before making up my mind whether to continue. (Quite gory.)

If you read any of the books I’ve featured, today or in the other posts, let me know what you thought of them? I’d love to know if we share some of the same tastes.

Books I’ve enjoyed 004

Posted on August 28, 2022 by The Little Room of Rachell

The Green Roasting Tin by Rukmini Lyer

My current favourite recipe book which I’m using to bring some fresh meat-free meals to the table. Last week I made the courgettes roasted with olives, feta and tomato bake. It was delicious both hot and cold, though perhaps not for someone who is advised to use eat a low-salt diet. You could maybe miss out the olives and cut it down that way, but it wouldn’t be quite the same. Tomorrow when I’m doing my groceries order I’ll choose another recipe to make this week.

The Diet Myth by Tim Spector

Tim trained in medicine and rose to the position of consultant rheumatologist before turning to genetic epidemiology, the study of genetic factors in health and disease. Now he is professor of genetic epidemiology and director of the TwinsUK registry at Kings College London. He is a specialist in twin study, genetics, epigenetics and microbiome, and diet. (Wikipedia) You may also recognise his name and his face from the Zoe website. He’s very active on Instagram and Twitter too.

The Diet Myth is an exploration and explanation of why most diets fail, why despite, the multi million pound diet industry, and so much advice about what to eat, and what to avoid, people are still gaining weight and populations are becoming fatter every decade. This is a fascinating read.

The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Von Arnim

Published a hundred years ago, in 1922, this story is about a couple of women who are unsatisfied in their marriages and leading pretty dreary lives. They decide to rent a small castle on the Italian Riviera and gather two others to help pay for it during a summer holiday, without their husbands. It’s a lovely read, with some very touching and humorous lines. Apparently at the time it did wonders to advertise and bring tourism to the area. This paperback was a surprise sent by a friend when I was unwell, along with Midnight Chicken which I wrote about in my last books post. Friends who post books they think you’ll enjoy and cheer you up are treasures!

Telling Tales by Ann Cleeves

The second in the Vera series. This time she’s investigating a crime which happened ten years before. New evidence has come to light, which throws doubt on the original verdict. I found this absolutely masterful; the characterisation, setting and plotting. It could be any one of the community, it’s impossible to guess the ending.

The Woman on the Island by Ann Cleeves

If you have any interest in reading the Vera series then you MUST go to Amazon next and select this because it’s currently FREE! (Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can get the free Kindle app on your phone or tablet and read the short story.) We learn the motivation for Vera becoming a detective during this short backstory. As she goes on a day trip to Holy Island with her father Hector. There’s an excerpt at the end for the new Vera book (number ten) The Rising Tide, which is set on the same island. This should whet your appetite for when it comes out on 1st September (sorry, I’m not sure of international publication dates) next week. I read of a proof copy, back in May, and it’s a 5 star read.

The Night Ship by Jess Kidd

I’ve been looking forward to telling you about this one. The Night Ship is structured with a dual time period, which tells the stories of two nine year old children Mayken and Gil more than 300 years apart. The author weaves fiction around fact to tell the story of Mayken, who is a newly motherless child en route to the care of her father. She is travelling with her nursemaid Imke on an East India Company ship The Batavia. The ship is undertaking the long and hazardous sea voyage from Holland to Batavia, the capital of the Dutch East Indies as it was (Jakarta in Indonesia as it is now called.) It is carrying goods and 200 passengers. Gil is also newly motherless and has been sent to his Grandfather Joss to spend the fishing season on a remote island off the west coast of Australia. Their story and developing relationship is rather touching as both adjust to each other and become closer.

Mayken is a fabulous character, she and Imke definitely have all the best lines. Mayken’s story made me both laugh and cry. She is a character who will stay with me.

Jess Kidd paces this atmospheric story perfectly, as usual in her writing there is folklore and supernatural elements. The tension gradually ramps up until the denouement for both children. I enjoyed the parallels between the two and found myself thinking a lot about cultural norms and what is thought of as endearing, or alternatively as weird; particularly from a gendered point of view.

From now on I shall be keeping witch’s stones / hagstones that I find on the beach and trying to see what has already been and what is to come! This is another 5 star read. If any of you have not yet read any of Jess Kidd’s books I urge you to find them. She’s such a talented and entertaining writer. I cannot wait to see what she writes next.

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There are some absolutely cracking books coming out in the autumn, I’ve read a fair few advance reader copies this year and I’m looking forward to writing about them, when I get the publishing dates.

We’ve had a good summer here, albeit far too dry, but now I’m looking forward to autumn. This is usual for me at this point in the holidays. I’m beginning to anticipate apple picking, soup making, cooking stews, walking through crunchy leaves and having cosy evenings crafting (crossed fingers) with lots more good books to curl up with on the sofa.

Want to share what you’re currently reading? Any book recommendations for us?

Books I’ve enjoyed 003

Posted on August 12, 2022 by The Little Room of Rachell

Midnight Chicken by Ella Risbridger

Part memoir of a specific period in Ella’s life, mostly recipe book. What makes this an ideal book to dip in and out of is the lovely way that she writes about food in the introduction to each recipe. And the recipes sound good too!

Very sad endnote, but I’m glad she’s sounding happier and all is ok on the other side of everything now.

I’m definitely going to make the Midnight Chicken and a few other recipes too.

Kiss Myself Goodbye by Ferdinand Mount

‘Aunt Munca never told the truth about anything. Calling herself after the mouse in a Beatrix Potter story, she was already a figure of mystery during the childhood of her nephew Ferdinand Mount. Half a century later, a series of startling revelations sets him off on a tortuous quest to find out who this extraordinary millionairess really was. What he discovers is shocking and irretrievably sad, involving multiple deceptions, false identities and abandonments. The story leads us from the back streets of Sheffield at the end of the Victorian age to the highest echelons of English society between the wars.’ From GoodReads

This is a rollercoaster of discoveries, and it never stops! I read it while away last weekend by the sea and found it distracted me from paddling, ice cream and rock throwing games. It’s a goodie.

An Island Wedding by Jenny Colgan

A welcome return to the Scottish fictional island of Mure and lots of familiar characters. I enjoyed catching up with Flora, her family and friends. It was a welcome escape from the news and everything going on in the world. (I read an advance copy in March.)

I feel Jenny Colgan is at her best writing this series; it’s not sickly sweet like some of the others and it’s not repeating the same basic premise over and over like the recent Bookshop series. (Girl moves to new area due to unhappy previous situation, has to find a job, ends up selling books, meets a cast of quirky characters, including one or two possible boyfriends. Chooses one, lives happily ever after.) There’s some attempt at reality, grit, hardship and exploration of how characters really feel in the Mure books. These aspects take you on rather an emotional journey and you find you care about them.
The story has really moved on throughout the series, sometimes in unexpected ways, and there is definitely space for more; as this latest book ended with plenty of ends dangling. I’m glad.

(It is odd how from book 1 to book 4 Jan’s maiden name and both her father’s first and last names have been changed. I couldn’t work out why I didn’t recognise Malcy Doherty, head of the local council. Well, that’s because he was Fraser Mathieson in the first book!)

Factory Girls by Michelle Gallen

For Maeve and her friends daily life holds not just the common feelings experienced by all teens: anxiety waiting for exam results, the mad swings of love and lust, boredom with where they grew up, and worry about earning enough money to save for what comes next. Their days are also full of frustration and fear as the threat of violence flares up around them on a daily basis as there’s continual tension between the Catholics and Protestants and resignation about the troubled political situation in the country. Mixed into this mix there is heaps of black humour. It’s hilarious from the beginning and the humour doesn’t let up. This is a story where well-drawn characters are living in dangerous and strained circumstances over the border from the Free State, under British control in Northern Ireland, but it’s not nearly as grim as it sounds.

‘But it’s all these good intentions that’s killing me,’ Maeve said. ‘Everyone’s always asking us to paint pictures or write poems. Ye’ve artists sculpting doves. Teachers sucking the fucken lifeblood outtay us by asking us tae sing “Imagine” – like, no harm, but is that not showing a total lack of imagination?’ ‘Aye,’ Fidelma said. ‘Nobody’s tackling the hard stuff.’

Maeve and her friends then outline how they believe life could be different without segregation, starting the process of integration from the earliest years. The insider knowledge and lived experience of the author shines out, this is not clearly not researched, but drawn from the author’s own life growing up in County Tyrone.

It has to be said (and I know I won’t be the first to say this and certainly not the last) but it is a good companion if you’re watching Derry Girls. Some of what is sketched out in Derry Girls will make much more sense after reading Factory Girls.

Factory Girls is laugh out loud funny, irreverent and touching. I loved it. I know this because I read it slowly and properly, always a good sign as I did not want it to end.

How long until until there is a film or television series? I’m positive the rights will be snapped up. At the end I felt there was also a lot of scope for a follow up book about what Maeve (and friend) do next ….

The Crow Trap by Ann Cleeves

Detective Vera Stanhope’s first appearance, this was published in 1999.

Three very different women are living together in an isolated cottage, while undertaking an environmental survey. An apparent suicide, then another death and Vera Stanhope appears to try to piece together what has happened…

The first ever I read in the series was a proof of the tenth book, lucky lucky me. That’s coming out in the autumn. I have to say that’s a fabulous read, if you’re a fan then you’re in for a treat! Then because I enjoyed that so much, I decided to read all of the books in order.

I was already a fan of the tv series, but I think you need to let some time go by to forget details if you watch first, then read. In the TV adaptations motives have often quite changed and it can be disorienting to remember who and why, then find a completely different murderer in the book. That was why I stopped at the first Shetland book; it was too soon after I’d watched that episode. I’ll go back to the books when I’ve finished Vera and have forgotten a lot of what I’ve seen. (By the way: do you know the last series of Shetland has begun to air? The first episode is available on the BBC iplayer now.)

Ann Cleeves writes so well. I love her clear style of writing. I’ve got to look out for the fourth book, I keep checking on Amazon and finding random Kindle deals on different books in the series. I’ve only paid full price for one so far. Huzzah!

The Corset by Laura Purcell

Melodramatic and tense gothic storytelling set in the Victorian era. I started out listening to the audiobook, but I was finding it so anxiety inducing and generally horrible that I decided to read at my own speed (faster! Get past the gory parts!) and power through the e-library book instead.

I underestimated this book. It was a 3 star read all the way. Then, I got to maybe 80% of the way through, maybe more, and realised that it was going to be quite a rollercoaster of an ending. Upgraded to 4/5 stars, don’t underestimate a talented author like Laura Purcell.

~~~~~

What have you been reading lately? Anything you want to recommend to us all?

Books I’ve enjoyed 001

Posted on April 29, 2022 by The Little Room of Rachell

The Aerialists by Katie Munnik is a fictionalised account of a true event which happened in Cardiff at the Fine Art, Industrial and Maritime exhibition in 1896. I was unaware of this exhibition despite it being on a scale to rival England’s 1851 Great Exhibition, held at Crystal Palace. It’s such an interesting story, but I do not want to give any spoilers. At it’s heart this is a story about Laura, we find out about the journey that brought her to the streets of Paris and her life with the Gauldrons. Her story, as you’ve probably guessed, involves flying!

I have to be honest and say that I felt there were some weaknesses in the writing and depiction of the behaviours and dialogue of the characters, particularly as it is set during Victorian times, but overall the story is a good one.

When you’ve read it look up the BBC article published on 24/07/21, 125 years after the festival. (Not before, because it will ruin the book for you.)

French Braid by Anne Tyler follows one family from the 1950s up to the pandemic present day.

The Garrett family take their first and last family holiday in the summer of 1959. They hardly leave their home city Baltimore, but despite this are not a close family.

I love Mercy, the mother of the family. She is definitely a free spirit!

As an Anne Tyler fan I read everything that she publishes, this was definitely a five star read, one of my favourites, alongside Breathing Lessons.

The Language of Food by Annabel Abbs is the fictionalised account of the real life and work of Eliza Acton, while she wrote her famous cookery book in England in 1837. The story also focuses upon Ann Kirby although no facts about her are known, beyond that she worked for Eliza and her mother. But her story helps to round out the book and is a good device to compare and contrast the differing lives and opportunities of the two women.

The Language of Food explores women’s freedoms (or lack of) and limited opportunities to work creatively under their own name. I felt the author successfully conveys the frustration and difficulties which must have been felt by so many.

And finally of course; the food! Luscious descriptions and well written passages illuminate Eliza’s process of developing and testing recipes. (Perhaps luscious is the wrong word for the recipe for brawn featured at the end?!)

Other People Manage by Ellen Hawley is written by a new-to-me author, but I will certainly look out for more of her books.

Set in Minneapolis in the 1970s, it tells the story of two women who meet in a cafe. Marge is a bus driver and Peg is training to be a psychotherapist. You find out about their relationship, the challenges and surprises they face over the next twenty years. Then one day things drastically change. It’s a story about family, love and loss.

I really enjoyed it; the style of writing and low-key tone reminded me of an Anne Tyler novel.

If you read this and don’t fancy making meatloaf (veggies excepted) by the end I’ll be really surprised!

One Day I Shall Astonish the World by Nina Stibbe. Have you read any of Nina’s books? If not, then do! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read Love Nina. And seen the TV adaptation. That’s one of my comfort reads / watches.

I also really liked Paradise Lodge, that’s great fun, with laugh out loud moments. I recommend the Audible version with Helen Baxendale narrating. She really cracked the Leicestershire accent, that isn’t easy.

Anyway, back to One Day I Shall Astonish the World; it focuses on the friendship between Susan and Norma. They are thrown together in a haberdashery shop in Leicestershire in the 1990s. Thirty years later Susan begins to wonder about the choices she has made in her life.

I’m sure all of us can agree that female friendships are weird, brilliant and challenging, when they’re good they can be one of the best things, but strange and stressful when they go awry. I think Nina Stibbe has captured this complex mix extremely well.

A Song for the Dark Times by Ian Rankin. I have a confession to make; this was my first book by Rankin, although I’ve heard him interviewed about every new John Rebus crime novel for years.

It was a bit mad to start with this one, because it is his latest. Number 23 in the series! I haven’t stayed up reading and chanting ‘just one more chapter’ for a long time, but found myself still reading this at 1 AM a few weeks ago. I just couldn’t put it down. I will look out for others in the series now.

Rebus is now retired, but definitely not planning on avoiding looking into other people’s secrets and crimes, he has kept hold of a large pile of folders of unsolved cases…

Before he evens finishes unpacking from downsizing his home, his daughter calls to say that her husband has been missing for two days. Rebus fears the worst and knows that his daughter will be prime suspect. He has to decide if he’s going to go to her as a father, or a detective.

The Keeper of Stories by Sally Page I read last week. It’s such a goody! I felt a little bereft at the end.

Janice is a cleaner and notices people always tell her their stories. (I’ve always experienced that too, so I was drawn to Janice.) Her rule is that she can save one story from each person, but she is very clear: she is the Keeper of Stories and doesn’t have a story to tell about herself. But when she meets Mrs B (who is no fool) things begin to change. Set in Cambridge this is a really lovely story about supporting other people, while finding yourself and realising what you do and do not want. There’s much empathy and masses of everything practical, including DIY. If Janice’s skills don’t leave you feeling a tad inadequate, then I’ll be surprised. There is lots of humour, I laughed out loud often. Look out for the dog. (Warning for the faint-hearted…he swears. A lot.)

Let me know if you decide to read any of the books I’ve recommended. Or maybe you’ve already read some of them? I’d love to know your take.

Time to make a G&T (it’s not Dry Lent anymore woohoo!) and quickly sort out what I want to watch. Someone is fishing with a friend this evening, so I shall make the most of the P&Q. New Grace & Frankie eps are now on Neflix, or do I rewatch The Split’s third series and cry all over again? Or…?

Yarn Along

Posted on July 24, 2013 by The Little Room of Rachell

I get this real urge to knit sometimes. I’m not great at it and even more so since I’m trying to use another technique. I look like a beginner and have dropped stitches*, had them slide off the end of the circular needle** and keep stabbing my hand***. It never used to happen before, but I’m determined to try holding the right needle underneath and have a go at sliding my hand along the needle, rather than on top and throwing the wool. It’s not easy when I’ve knitted the other way since childhood, albeit sporadically.

I thought a washcloth/dishcloth would be a useful thing to make as it’s small and fast to complete. Well it would be if I didn’t do *, ** and *** but I’ll get there!

The pattern’s here. I really like the raised box stitch, it’s amazing what you can do with a simple knit and purl combo.

I think I saw this book on someone else’s yarn along post last week, when I caught sight of it at the library yesterday I grabbed it. As you’d imagine it’s no literary masterpiece and I have made predictions a third of the way through about what’s likely going to happen. I’m sure I’ll be right too. That’s ok – it’s relaxing and not in the slightest demanding. My brain can slowly continue morphing into custard!

Basically the story centres around four female characters who been drawn back to the inn (B&B?) one runs. None of them are particularly close but because of the news the inn keeper shares and Meryl’s films they’re beginning to finally bond and become suportive of each other. If you’ve read The Reading Group, The Beach Street Knitting Society and Yarn Club (aka Divas don’t Knit,) The Jane Austin Book-club or The Friday Night Knitting Club then you’ll know what to expect.

I really like Meryl Streep. There’s a few films from the book’s list I haven’t watched yet: Heartburn, though I have read the original book by Nora Ephron, and Defending your Life which doesn’t ring any bells.

I’m still listening to The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K Rowling.) It’s going to take me a weeks to listen to it in chunks. I’m really enjoying it so far, Robert Glenister (of the tv prog Hustle, brother of Philip – who was the brilliant Gene Hunt in Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes) reads superbly. I can’t recommend it enough so far. Check it out on Audible.co.uk or Audible.com.

I’m joining in again with Ginny this week. What are you reading, crocheting or knitting?

PS: Are you following Cat of the Slugs on the Refrigerator blog and her Crochet Camp? Did you – *~*cough! cough! *~*- see the guest post on Sunday?

Yarn Along

Posted on July 10, 2013 by The Little Room of Rachell

It’s summer this week in England and the weather’s beautiful. Last night we walked around the village inhaling the scent of roses climbing cottage walls, elderflower and many BBQs!

I’ve started to crochet a very unseasonal item – a swirly scarf from Nicki Trench’s Cute and Easy Crochet book. The yarn is King Cole ‘Wicked’ which I bought last week. It was a reduced bargain price so I bought two balls, as you do. I like not knowing what colour’s going to appear next as I crochet (living life on the wild side.) It’s a bit of a different choice for me but I like the tweedy but bright mix.

The books are new today, from the library, and look like pretty good Summertime reads. ‘Everything and Nothing’ is a thriller and described variously as chilling, suspenseful and disturbing on the blurb. It seems a super-nanny has come to look after a family’s two children, but all is not as it seems. The other novel drew me because of the cover recommendation from Kate Atkinson, she’s one of my favourite authors. It’s the tale of two girlhood friends who are inseparable, until one goes missing. I must be in a mystery frame of mind this week, maybe influenced by my audio book. I’m three-quarters of the way through Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan, it’s a great book to crochet or sew along to (I’ve been x stitching lately.) As a wanna-be be spy it’s a fantastic book and the 1972 London setting to the story is interesting.

Am I going to get (another) urge to knit?

Posted on September 26, 2012 by The Little Room of Rachell

I borrowed the Friday Night Knitting Club from my cousin and read it last weekend, but it left me so wanting more of the characters and shop that I immediately ordered the next in the series and it’s just arrived.

Grin

Cosy rainy day reading.

It’s the embroidery workshop tomorrow and I’m meeting my friend for lunch and a mooch around the shops too. Exciting girly day ahead.

I’ve just had a message from the friend who is redecorating: her Mum has more crochet patterns to give away, including more vintage ones, and would I like them? With bells on!

And the birthday present that keeps on giving (every month for a whole year, until the next birthday!) has just arrived. I’m hibernating for the rest of the day.