What are you reading 2024/25

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

New year, new thread.

I have fallen way behind over the last few weeks and I'm still slowly making my way through novels for last months group reads.

However, this morning, I did finish listening to Crossed Skis by Carol Carnac, which was very entertaining, and an easy listen.

[Bronwyn]

Happy new year!

I started the year with the novella My Death by Lisa Tuttle and loved it so, so much. I’m also a couple chapters into Perfume by Patrick Süskind and will be starting a reread of Anne of Green Gables soon.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Happy New Year.

It's been years since I read Anne of Green Gables, I have vague intentions of a re-read, so maybe this year.

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer is another book I have owned for years and still not got to. Must see if I can find it.

[Bronwyn]

It’s L. M. Montgomery’s 150th birthday this year, so it’s a good time to do it. :) There are a few readalongs I’ve seen, I’m in a group through instagram reading them in publication order over the year.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Thanks. I'll try to fit it in then. As you say, now is a good time.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Today I finished A Lady and Her Husband by Amber Reeves. I can definitely see why Persephone have publushed it, it is an interesting novel, but I felt it was too focused on delivering its message and forgot about the rest. The writing wasn't great, and the characters were two dimentional. I'm glad I read it, but won't be picking it back up for a re-read.

[Antoinette]

Good to know. I won’t rush to order it, Tania!

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

No. If you want to read it, I think it's on the Canadian Gutenberg - no need to buy it.

[Julia]

Bronwyn - I didn't know it was LM Montgomery's 150th birthday this year! Maybe this year I'll try to finish the series!

I've started listening to audiobooks again, and since I've been doing pretty thoughtless jobs at work I've listened through Pride and Prejudice and have started Emma. It's been years since I read these and it's been a pleasant distraction.

[Diana]

Thank you for your report, Tania. „A Lady and Her Husband“ was on my list - Persephone books are lovely but expensive, too!

[Peggy]

I’m currently reading Murder While You Work. It’s different than the other Susan Scarlett books I’ve read, but I’m liking it so far.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Julia wrote: "Bronwyn - I didn't know it was LM Montgomery's 150th birthday this year! Maybe this year I'll try to finish the series!

I've started listening to audiobooks again, and since I've been doing pretty..."

I quite often pop a Jane Austen audio book on if I have a day of housework. Makes the work pass quicker, and I've read them so many times I don't have to concentrate

Diana wrote: "Thank you for your report, Tania. „A Lady and Her Husband“ was on my list - Persephone books are lovely but expensive, too!"

You're welcome. This one is in the publuc domain so you can read it and then decide if you want to buy it.

Peggy wrote: "I’m currently reading Murder While You Work. It’s different than the other Susan Scarlett books I’ve read, but I’m liking it so far."

I have that one, but haven't read it yet; I do enjoy her novels and this one looks like fun.

[Susan in NC]

Currently reading Homo Deus: A History of Tomorrow, on my nonfiction TBR for a long time, but I figured a good start to a new year of nonfiction; Quietly in Their Sleep by Donna Leon for a Buddy read in my mystery group here on GR, and Miss Marjoribanks lurking in the background until I’m in the mood to get back to her! Library books to try out first, and fiction for another group - this year I mean to read more of what suits my mood at the moment. I read for entertainment, enjoyment and information, so I’ll probably avoid dark books this year.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

A very good idea Susan; more of what you fancy. Reading isn't supposed to be a chore.

[Susan in NC]

Tania wrote: "A very good idea Susan; more of what you fancy. Reading isn't supposed to be a chore."

You’re right! When it begins to seem like homework…

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Yep. That's why I never join the challenge, though I completely understand why others would want to.

[Susan in NC]

Tania wrote: "Yep. That's why I never join the challenge, though I completely understand why others would want to."

True, although the GR challenge doesn’t really matter, I just plug in the same number every year, always go past that number - it’s really books I want to read, you look at the book summary and say ‘yes, please!’ Vs books I look at and say ‘meh, no thanks’! ;o)

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

I have had a busy month, but have been able to fit a few books in. I really love One Afternoon by Siân James - one of the newer Persephone titles. It became very engaging and I found I really cared about what happened to the characters.

Miss Austen Investigates is the first in a new series with Jane Austen as the sleuth; once I had suspended my disbelief it was pretty good fun.

Another mystery I really enjoyed was The Wheel Spins by Ethel Lina White, on which Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes is based. I would like to read more of her books.

I also finally got the the front of the library queue for The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman. I really do enjoy this series. I have watched him for years, and he often talks of some of his favourite authors;Patricia Highsmith, Agatha Christie and Barbara Pym, so it's nice to see they've rubbed off oh him a bit.

Ii am now reading Fraulein Schmidt and Mr Anstruther by Elizabeth von Arnim, very good so far.

[Susan in NC]

You have been a busy girl! All good stuff, Osman has become a favorite, and Ethel Lina White is very good - I read that book (under alternative title, The Lady Vanishes) a few years ago, wow! And just before Christmas I read a short story mystery collection, her story was one of the best! I don’t think you’ll be disappointed if you read on. Your “Miss Austen” series is on my TBR (mystery is my favorite genre), and I just read the last Stephanie Barron-Austen mystery, so perfect timing, thanks for that!

I look forward to your thoughts on the von Arnim book, I’ve got that on my TBR as well.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

I recently read Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild, which was just lovely. I'm not actually sure whether or not I read this as a child, but I did find it enjoyable as an adult.

I have also just finished The Riviera Set by Mary S. Lovell, a lot at the glitzy, set of the Riviera. Really interesting, but I preferred her biography of the Mitford sisters (The Mitford Girls: The Biography of an Extraordinary Family), I just find them endlessly fascinating.

I have picked up a biography of Stella Gibbons from the library - written by her nephew, Out of the Woodshed: A Portrait of Stella Gibbons, so I'm currently reading that one, and I'm about to start A World Within a School by Lucy Kinloch.

[Antoinette]

Thanks, Tania for mentioning The Ballet Shoes-I was trying to e if I would find it too young. You’ve answered my question.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Antoinette wrote: "Thanks, Tania for mentioning The Ballet Shoes-I was trying to e if I would find it too young. You’ve answered my question."

I think it's fairly well grounded in reality and not too saccharine. I was curious about it because I have enjoyed her adult novels and this is her best known novel. It is rather charming.

[Susan in NC]

I’ve enjoyed several Stella Gibbons novels, was trying to get into A Swiss Summer because it was in a book pool, I could get it, and a GR friend highly recommended it - got almost Half through, some lovely descriptions of scenery, but it was sooooo slooooow, and the characters were so awful, but one-I chucked it! Life’s too short, promised myself this year I wouldn’t “make” myself read anything that didn’t appeal to me.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

A very sensible plan. I did enjoy The Swiss Summer; I read it during lockdown, so it felt like the closest I was going to get to a holiday, and the descriptions of the Alps were wonderful. Coincidentally, I have just posted a blog post rankng some of her novels in her author thread. I agree with the top spot - Cold Comfort Farm, best known is actually the best in my opinion.

[Susan in NC]

I could definitely see the attraction during lockdown- fabulous descriptions to soothe and delight, and knowing you don’t have to spend time with the awful denizens of the chalet like the poor heroine!

[Susan in NC]

I did enjoy Cold Comfort Farm and Nightingale Wood!

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

I have recently finished The Crime At Black Dudley which was my first by Margery Allingham. It was more like a thriller than I was expecting, but I'm told the series gets better as it goes on.

Also finished Very Good, Jeeves! read by Jonathan Cecil who is he best narrator for the books. Last but not least, I finished a re-read of Emma, I do love it, but it's not my favourite.

I have started China Court by Rumer Godden which was a Christmas present, and Lucia's Progress by E.F. Benson - another favourite.

[Susan in NC]

Definitely agree about Jonathan Cecil, he’s a wonderful narrator for Wodehouse! As for Allingham, I’ve never read that one, but the other early Campion’s were fun. I read China Court and a few other Godden books, my favorite so far has been In This House of Brede - stayed with me a long time.

And of course, Lucia is supreme!

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Thanks Susan, I haven't read that one yet, I really enjoyed Kingfishers Catch Fire, but felt a bit disappointed by Black Narcissus - perhaps too high expectations and bad timing. Looking forward to this one though.

[Susan in NC]

Enjoy! And thanks for the reminder to moderate expectations on Black Narcissus - I want to read it, but it’s been dramatized twice already (that I know of), so I would go into it expecting to be blown away! Better to take it as it comes, try and go in without expectations.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

March got very hectic for me and I found myself with very little reading time, but I did manage to fit in the new novel from the British Library Women Writers series, Forest Silver: A Lake District Story by E. M. Ward. I hadn't heard of her before, but really enjoyed this one. It reminded me of Dorothy Evelyn Smith, but with a Lake District setting instead of the Yorkshire Moors.

I also listened to The Whalebone Theatre which has been compared to the Cazalet Chronicles and The Camomile Lawn. I think those comparisons set it up for a fall, of course it's not as good as those, but I did like it and I'm glad I got to it.

I also finished an ARC of The Household by Stacey Halls about Urania Cottage - the house for fallen women that Charles Dickens was involved with. I've enjoyed her novels in the past, but this wasn't a favourite. Still good though.

Today I'm planning on starting Don't Tell Alfred for our buddy read.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Yesterday I finished The Wells of St Mary's by R.C. Sherriff, it was quirky and really good fun. Not quite up there with The Fortnight in September but not much reaches those heights.

Today I finished Greenery Street by Denis Mackail, I must admit, I do prefer him to Angela Thirkell, he just comes across as a nicer person; she's by far the more successful of the two however.

[Susan in NC]

I’ve started Thrush Green from my city library, they seem to have several titles in the series as ebooks - I’m so glad, it’s lovely so far!

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Enjoy Susan. I will be picking this one up soon too.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Susan - I have set the thread up for Thrush Green: The classic nostalgic novel set in 1950s Cotswolds so it's all ready for you.

[Susan in NC]

Thanks!

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

I haven't updated this one for sometime. Lately, I have only had easy access to the Goodreads app, which I hate, but I should now be able to use the desktop version. I have still been reading of course. The ones I have particularly enjoyed lately are Jane's Country Year by Malcolm Saville, a lovely story about Jane's year convalescing on her Uncle's farm. It reads like a nature diary and was quite charming.

Also, Because of the Lockwoods by Dorothy Whipple, she is just such a wonderful writer who always sucks me into her stories, I love her characterisation, I have found some wonderful, (and some decidedly less wonderful) characters in her novels, and I'm looking forward to re-reading them all.

I listened to The Vet's Daughter by Barbara Comyns, another of her more bizarre books, but one I'm really glad I have read.

I loved Letter from New York: BBC Woman's Hour Broadcasts by Helene Hanff which I would highly recommend; I love her voice.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

A some that I'm currently enjoying are two I picked up in a phone box book exchange - The Stubborn Light of Things: A Nature Diary by Melissa Harrison - a nature diary she wrote over a number of years for a newspaper, great to dip into, and Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk; I kept hearing about this one so I was delighted to come across it.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

I finished some good ones recently Faber are re-publishing Ex-Wife by Ursula Parrott, so I read an ARC which I thoroughly enjoyed.

I also really liked Twice Round the Clock by Billie Houston. It was great fun so it's a shame this was her only one.

I hadn't realised that Georgette Heyer had made a foray into the gothic genre, but Cousin Kate was just that. Not my favourite of hers, with a very dark ending, but once I realised what I was reading I was able to enjoy it.

This weekend I'm off to WOMAD, my favourite music festival, There is also a bookshop, Mr B's Emporium - a wonderful Bath based bookshop, that runs author events. I tried to get a look at the program last night, but it wasn't up; It'll be one of the first things I do when I get back there today. Last year, I saw Mike Dilger talk about One Thousand Shades of Green: A Year in Search of Britain's Wild Plants, which was great, and a wonderful book too.

[Susan in NC]

Have a delightful time!

[Bronwyn]

Oh I adored Ex-Wife!

I’ve started too many books lately and don’t like it… I’m mainly reading Rhine Journey right now. McNally Editions just republished it (it was their rerelease of Ex-Wife that I read) and Lost Ladies of Lit just did an episode and it sounded good. I have one chapter left, but we’re away this weekend so don’t know how quick I’ll finish. It’s been really lovely but a little odd but I’m enjoying it.

Ages ago I started One Year’s Time from the British Library Women Writers series. It’s a little too light for me though and I’m really dragging with it…

I have a couple others started too but haven’t picked at them in a while.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Susan in NC wrote: "Have a delightful time!"

Thank you. I did have a wonderful time. I saw lots of fabulous music, and rather excitingly, Backlisted did a live podcast from the World of Words tent so I got to see that as well.

[Susan in NC]

Yay!

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

Today I finished Matty and the Dearingroydes which is one of Richmal Crompton's books for adults. I think it's a shame she isn't better known for her adult books, as I have really enjoyed the ones I have read. This one is excellent; now my second favourite after Family Roundabout. I now want to get to more of them, as well as revisiting some of the Just William books.

I have started The Feast for this group, and also started The Exiles Return by Elisabeth de Waal which looks really good. Should be a good reading month.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

As ever, I have a few on the go.

I have recently finished a re-read of 4.50 from Paddington. Miss Marple is the ultimate spinster, so I read it for Spinster September. I also bought a copy of Rhine Journey by Ann Schlee which there is a readalong on instagram for SinSept, and I would like to get to The Camomile: An Invention by Catherine Carswell for it Such a great theme for a readathon.

I have picked up The Hireling by L.P. Hartley, about a third of the way through and I think I shall rate it as highly as The Go-Between; I don't see why that one is the only book he's known for, but would definitely like to seek out more of his books. My copy is from the library, and looks as though it has barely been touched.

For the Persephone group I'm reading Maman, What Are We Called Now?, Jacqueline Mesnil-Amar's diary from when her Jewish husband was arrested by the Gestapo, towards the end of the war.

I couldn't resist a bit more Dorothy Whipple, so I picked up The Closed Door and Other Stories, and equally comforting, but completely different, Green Grows the City: The Story of a London Garden by Beverley Nichols about creating a garden at his London house, which has already had me laughing out loud several times.

[Tania, Gloucestershire Wild Daffodil.]

It's been a while, but I thought I would revive this thread. Everything seems pretty quiet now the notifications are on the blink.

Yesterday I finished The Eights, a thoroughly enjoyable historical fiction about a group of women studying at Oxford, (the first to be allowed to get their degrees. Cameos from Robert Greene and Winifred Holtby added to the fun.

I am also reading My Grandmothers and I by Diana Holman-Hunt who was the granddaughter of William Holman-Hunt. This memoir tells us about her childhood with her two grandmothers, one of which was the artists widow. I'm not far in yet, but it has been compared to Nancy Mitford, so I'm expecting good things.