New member introductions and group read planning Showing 851-900 of 1,039

[Rebecca]

I haven’t read this one. Not sure how I missed it but looking forward to joining in.

[Myra]

Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ wrote: "Let's plan on reading (or rereading :D) Madam, Will You Talk? in April. I'll put it on the group c

This is one of my favourite MS novels!!

[Linda]

Welcome Myra..

[Myra]

Hello Linda! and everyone else!

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽, Moderator]

Welcome to our group, Myra! Feel free to join any of our current or upcoming group reads!

[Veronique]

Welcome 😊

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽, Moderator]

Hi everyone, June is almost here and for those who are working through Mary Stewart's books in order, this is the month for Thunder on the Right. I'll pin the discussion threads for this one to the top of the Buddy Reads thread. July is for The Crystal Cave and after that I think we'll plan for an Arthurian book every 2 or 3 months.

Also: The Moon-Spinners is currently on a Kindle sale for 99 cents, if you're interested. Most of her other Kindle books run from $1.99 to $3.99, so the price is generally good if you want to fill some holes in your Mary Stewart collection. :)

[Linda]

I'm in for Thunder on the Right - this will be a reread for me.

[Elizabeth]

Linda wrote: "I'm in for Thunder on the Right - this will be a reread for me."

I disliked Thunder on the Right extremely when I first read it, so I look forward to a group reread and hearing all your thoughts! Now all I have to do is find the book . . . Is it in one of those unpacked cardboard boxes? At my Mum's? Or did I lend it to my Auntie Caroline? That would be unfortunate, since she lives in Japan ;-).

[Abigail]

I reread it a few years ago in a different group so I won’t read it this time, but the memory is clear enough that I can chime in on the comments.

Don’t you hate it when Auntie Caroline takes a book you need off to Japan? 😁 I keep needing books someone has borrowed.

[Jackie]

I had planned to re-read Thunder but now I am moving and have so much to do it isn't going to happen. But I will likely read everyone's comments because my first read of it wasn't so long ago.

[Laura]

Hi... new to the group (and to GoodReads). So happy to see a discussion thread on my favorite author.

Something about Mary Stewart's writing fits my "wants" perfectly. I've read and reread her novels countless times.

I've lately been on a search for any other novels by anyone else with the only criteria that the read hold my interest. Alas, despite listening to dozens of recommendations from people and websites that say "if you like Mary Stewart, try xxx"... I have yet to find an author whose writing style is easy and suspends my disbelief, with stories may be a little cheesy but aren't solved with nonsense (or extreme divine intervention)... throw in a little non-PDA romance and some mystery and I'm all in.

I feel like *I* am looking for the holy grail. :-)

Laura

[Abigail]

Have you tried Helen MacInnes? She writes in the same period; her novels are mostly Cold War thrillers but have the same elements of suspense, danger, and plucky heroines.

[Jackie]

I should try her, thank you Abigail!

[Veronique]

I’ve only read a couple of her books so most are discoveries 😊 Looking forward to our month reads

[Linda]

Hi Laura - welcome to the group........... I will go look for a Helen MacInnes book now!!

[Lynnie]

Welcome Laura.

[Lynnie]

Abigail wrote: "Have you tried Helen MacInnes? She writes in the same period; her novels are mostly Cold War thrillers but have the same elements of suspense, danger, and plucky heroines."

I'm also going to try Helen MacInnes, thank you Abigail.

[Jackie]

I came here yesterday to post a welcome to Laura and then forgot! Welcome!

[Veronique]

Hope you’re all safe and staying cool, especially with all the heat waves (red alert here in the UK, today and tomorrow).

I believe The Crystal Cave is our choice this month. As usual, I have an unrealistic amount of books to read, but I should be able to fit this one soon. Wednesday I reckon. So looking forward to this :0)

[Jackie]

I finished The Crystal Cave so long ago I don't know if I'll remember it!
Did anyone else read it?

[Abigail]

I had over 4,000 pages to read this month and didn’t make it to The Crystal Cave, but I’ve read it often enough that I could probably converse about it.

[Linda]

I read The Crystal Cave earlier this year and didn't want to reread it again this month. I guess next month the book is Nine Coaches Waiting - which I also already read earlier this year.

[Abigail]

That will be the perfect book for taking on vacation!

[Veronique]

Delayed but still determined to read it. Should start tomorrow.

[Abigail]

Started reading Nine Coaches Waiting today—anyone else reading?

[Jackie]

Abigail wrote: "Started reading Nine Coaches Waiting today—anyone else reading?"
I got it and need to The Music of Bees first, then it's next on my list.

[Abigail]

Ooh, I’m a sucker for anything with “bees” in the title! I haven’t heard of that one—will look itup.

[Linda]

The main character in Nine Coaches Waiting has the same name I have. This is probably the only book in the world using my name. Love it!

[Ellen]

I think I reread it a few months ago and loved it as much as ever. I’m afriad to start one of her books when I’m busy because I won’t get anything else done!

[Abigail]

What fun to have a character named after you, Linda!

[Jackie]

Abigail wrote: "Ooh, I’m a sucker for anything with “bees” in the title! I haven’t heard of that one—will look itup."

This one is a first novel by a woman local to my area: The Columbia River Gorge. So it's very fun to read about towns and scenery that I've actually seen.

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽, Moderator]

Hi everyone! It's your Missing In Action Moderator. Sorry, real life has been busy and I've not been very active on Goodreads lately. But Nine Coaches Waiting is my favorite MS book so I'll plan to slide it into my schedule. If you haven't read it (or haven't read it for a while), please join in this buddy read - it's a Don't Miss book for Mary Stewart fans.

I just pinned the Nine Coaches Waiting threads to the top of the Buddy Reads discussion threads so please add your comments while you're reading. As always, the past comments can be very interesting to read through, and there are some great pictures posted in the threads.

[Abigail]

Hate to press you when you’re so overwhelmed, but what is the September book? Or is there a list somewhere that I might consult?

[Abigail]

Okay, I felt guilty about dumping a task on Tadiana so I dug up a list of Mary Stewart books in order. This includes the Arthurian books and children’s books, which we may or may not want to read in group. Looks like My Brother Michael would be our September book.

Madam, Will You Talk? (1954)
Wildfire at Midnight (1956)
Thunder on the Right (1957)
Nine Coaches Waiting (1958)
My Brother Michael (1959)
The Ivy Tree (1961)
The Moon-Spinners (1962)
This Rough Magic (1964)
Airs Above the Ground (1965)
The Gabriel Hounds (1967)
The Wind off the Small Isles (1968)
The Crystal Cave (1970)
The Little Broomstick (1971)
The Hollow Hills (1973)
Ludo and the Star Horse (1974)
Touch Not the Cat (1976)
The Last Enchantment (1979)
A Walk in Wolf Wood (1980)
The Wicked Day (1983)
Thornyhold (1988)
The Stormy Petrel (1991)
The Prince and the Pilgrim (1995)
Rose Cottage (1997)
The Wind Off the Small Isles and The Lost One (2017)

[Jackie]

I'd re-read My Brother Michael, I remember liking it.

[Abigail]

I’ll get to it sometime this month.

[Elizabeth]

Jackie wrote: "I'd re-read My Brother Michael, I remember liking it."

July and August simply blended into one long month called Summer, and now I've missed Nine Coaches Waiting. I was so keen on reading it with the group! I'll go and check out the thread, anyway, and follow the discussion for My Brother Michael. Thanks for putting together the list in order of publication, Abigail!

[Susan in Perthshire]

Thank you Abigail. I’m happy to read My Brother Michael! 😉

[Veronique]

Thanks for the list - makes it easier. All set for My Brother Michael.

[Myra]

My Brother Michael is a great choice!!!

[Abigail]

I’m about two-thirds of the way through and finding that it’s one I remember better than others.

[Abigail]

Nice to have you here, Suzanne! The Ivy Tree is our group read for October so I hope you’ll join the discussion.

[Jackie]

Abigail wrote: "Nice to have you here, Suzanne! The Ivy Tree is our group read for October so I hope you’ll join the discussion."

it is? somehow I missed that.

one thing I really dislike about goodreads is no way to have it give me a notification on everything I want to be notified about!

OK, apparently it's me and not goodreads.

I am going on vacation for 10 days coming up so I think I will try to plan for November, which would be The Moon Spinners?

[Abigail]

I just said that based on the chronological list of her publications you can see if you scroll up a bit. I am not a mod and have no authority for deciding what the group reads are going to be, but I understood that we were going in chron order and that Tadiana is busy so I’m trying to help. And yes, the November book would be Moon-Spinners (woohoo!) if my assumptions (presumptions?) are accurate.

[Elizabeth]

Abigail wrote: "My assumptions (presumptions?)"

Research is the word you're looking for ;-). Since we've started reading the works in chronological order, let's stick with that, shall we? I think it's fascinating to see how Mary Stewart experimented and developed as a writer. From a distance one tends to think she found her groove pretty soon, but up close the books are so different. Just look at My Brother Michael and The Ivy Tree!

[Abigail]

I haven’t read The Ivy Tree since the 1970s, but if I recall correctly, isn’t it the one with a plot somewhat similar to that of Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey?

[Elizabeth]

Abigail wrote: "I haven’t read The Ivy Tree since the 1970s, but if I recall correctly, isn’t it the one with a plot somewhat similar to that of Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey?"

What a memory you have! Yes, indeed – and Stewart elegantly acknowledges her debt in a dialogue between two of the characters.

[Abigail]

I’ll watch for that! I remember because I happened to read the two close together and kept getting confused.

[Linda]

I just finished reading My Brother Michael. What is our book for October? I'm expecting The Ivy Tree. Has anyone started reading it yet?