Welcome to Litsy!

This is a dark tale (with a whiff of Hilary Mantel's "Beyond Black"?) of disappearance and suspicious death, set in a crumbling mansion with the principal characters being cantankerous (and possibly dangerous) old Cathal Flood and his carer Maud. It's an engrossing mystery that manages to be slyly funny and also poignant.
Extra marks for Renata, Maud's agoraphobic trans landlady.
Top marks for Aoife McMahon's superb narration.

Ok Sir👀

I thought this was a strange book. It is about a social worker who is helping an old aritist who is a hoarder. The social worker has regular conversations with saints, who show up and comment on goings-on. I liked the premise, but the saints were annoying and in the end, I lost interest. I skimmed through the last few chapters, the book just got way too weird.

🪴 Todays listen. I intend to water all my plants and hopefully do some cross stitch while reading this. What are you reading and doing today? 🧵

A great read. Probably my favourite of Kidd's. Fun and endearing.

The unique characters really hooked me into this read. Also the supernatural feel and appearance of saints as supporting characters was so imaginative. Not my usual genre, but I did enjoy this mystery.
3/5⭐️s
I‘m still working on my #alphabetchallenge using my stacks.

My youngest moved out and I took over one wall of his room! Just a fraction of my books!

Just a tiny fraction of my book hoard. I donated these to the local hospital

Past & present collide for Maud, a care worker for Mr Flood, an eccentric hoarder. With the encouragement of her agoraphobic friend, she begins to investigate what happened to the late Mrs Flood when she finds a couple of pictures with the faces burnt out. Maud has secrets and issues of her own - she‘s never recovered from her older sisters disappearance when she was a child & Saints appear to her at different times of the day - to offer advice.

An Enid Blyton and an Agatha Christie reference in one book 🥰

👞

I do love an Enid Blyton reference

The character descriptions so far have been excellent

Book 15 2021- I whole heartedly recommend this book. I did feel that familiar disappointment that the end had been tied up a little too quickly but for me this one was about the journey, the wonderful characters and even more wonderful prose. I listened to the Audiobook and it was fantastic. Multiple characters and genders done convincingly and consistently. For me the narrator is make or break with audio and this was great.

Read in June 2021 ...
#suvataReads #JuneStats #Bookly #BooklyApp #Bookstagram

I‘m listening to this at the moment and I‘m really glad I am. The narrator Aoife McMahon is excellent and really conveys they quick witty nature of the main character. It‘s quite fantastical but has a mystery at its core and I‘m really enjoying it so far. But the cover art... I can‘t stop looking at it. My brain is trying to work it out!

“Irish magical realism saturates this double mystery with saints, mistaken identities, and a hoarder‘s creepy house.… The author of Himself has prepared a fine Irish feast for the literary crowd; she simultaneously delights and appalls with her odd and troubled characters, never resorting to formula.” —Library Journal

I give it 5-Stars for its cleverness and intrigue. Jess Kidd Is definitely one of my favorite authors.

I had a visit from my cute nephew this past weekend. My sister snapped this pic of us in my library bed when we were sound asleep. I ❤️ it. I thought he coughed all night but obviously not. He is a sensitive soul like his mother, my sis and loves to be read to by his Aunt. I took him to see Paw Patrol live as part of his b‘day present & when it had finished he said ‘Can we watch it again?‘ He missed out on playing at the beach thanks to the cold.

Jess Kidd has a quirky and magical way of storytelling. I love the additions of little bits of magic and her deliciously odd characters. Made me smile.

3.5/5, I enjoyed this gothic-style mystery, Kidd has a nice writing style, and I like the humour. The main characters of Maud, Cathal and Renata are well drawn, as are the relationships between them. Lost half a star due to some obvious conclusions that I saw about 60 pages before the characters did, but still a pleasant read.

This was my #DoubleSpin selection for this month.

@TheAromaofBooks

Absolutely loved this one! As a care worker myself I could relate straight from the first page to Maud and to Mr Flood. The twists were unexpected yet done well. Not at all what I thought it would be.

I havent picked up my book in almost 2weeks :o I've been addicted to ghost hunting on youtube instead and fall asleep watching that instead. So I'm making an effort this week to at least read 2 chapters per night and get back to my books. This book is great I'm just distracted elsewhere lol

Next book. #thehoarder

I‘m not sure what to say about this book, other than I was probably not its right reader. From every praise I‘ve heard about this author, I expected to enjoy it more than I did.

We follow the psychic Maud Drennan as she‘s doing her job of clearing out Cathal Flood‘s house. The old man‘s a hoarder that has quite the collection of everything. While there Maud discovers that Cathal‘s wife died under mysterious circumstances and then there‘s always

#TBRChallenge #AudioBook #ABookThats

I really enjoyed this story. The Saints were a curious bunch; a wonderfully flawed collective of apparitions - lending just enough information to Maud to keep her going in the right direction, and keep me guessing as to what would happen next. Maud and Cathal were an excellent pairing for the story, and Renata was glorious! I loved them and was totally committed to finding out their story.

...

I thought I should finally join in on #BookSpin. I‘ve seen it for a couple months and it‘s such a great idea and looks fun.

I know we‘re supposed to pick 20 books, but these are the 10 books I want to pick from, they are in order from top to bottom. They each count as 2, initially I‘m thinking 1/11, 2/12 etc.

I‘m also thinking about joining in on the #DoubleSpin and the #TripleSpin

#BarnesandNoble #LastHurrah #nonessentialclosings
#bookmail #gift #longdistancelearning #keeplitsypositive
My son & I did a last run to Barnes & Noble this past week. Picked up 2 books. The 5th Wave we are reading in senior English- unit on Dystopia linked to Julius Caesar & how governments rise and fall.... I left my book at school so Robert surprised me with a copy in the mail.

I enjoyed this light read. After reading Things in Jars, I wanted to experience another one of her books. She‘s my new favorite author. Now to go and grab Himself!

My January books. Enjoyed them all!

Yep...Happy Friday xoxo

Take a mysterious stately old home, fill it with 25 years of detritus, antiques and taxidermied curiosities, an angry old man and a care worker with a strange kind of sixth sense. Then throw in a clue suggesting the house has a terrible secret.... and you have this gorgeous book. A little like Diane Setterfield‘s The Thirteenth Tale but faster paced and with more supernatural shenanigans. 🌟🌟🌟🌟

A quirky interesting book with supernatural elements and strong characters. I found this to be an interesting and fun read, although maybe not as strong as her other two books; Things in Jars and Himself. My full review can be found on https://thecuriousmagpie2018.wordpress.com/2019/07/16/review-the-hoarder-by-jess...

Relaxing on a Saturday in bed, reading a somewhat spooky but fun book.

#readinbed #funreads #saturdayrelaxing

After all of the hype when this book came out, I was seriously underwhelmed. in fact, if I hadn't committed to reading this book for a challenge I may have bailed. I just couldn't get into it until near the end. I enjoyed the mystery aspect of this book and that may have been its saving grace but other than the mystery aspect, getting to the end was the best part for me. 🤔🤔🤔
#6 of #14Books14Weeks

I'm about a third of the way into this and I have to say, I'm really struggling to get into it. Is it just me? Was it slow starting for anyone else? Will it get better? I'm going to keep pushing through in the hope that it will. I'm moving on to another book for this evening though, I need a break lol

This morning‘s haul from The Book Grocer‘s End of Financial Year Sale not including a couple I got for swaps. Celebrating with tea and cake at my local bakery on the way home. Don‘t worry #SmallSteppers I went to yoga this morning and am off for a walk this arvo. #BFC2 @wanderinglynn

#riotgrams #day21 - #clinchcovers

These book covers have really nice textures: those radiating lines on Sourdough are raised, and the wallpaper on Mr. Flood is more coarse than the other parts.

I'm so envious of Jess Kidd's beautiful poetic soul and writing talent

First completed read of #24in48. And this book... wow. It is magical realism and artistic brilliance packed into 340 pages. The cast is complete with an eccentric hoarder, a quirky and flawed caregiver who hangs out with teeth-picking saints no one else can see, and a classy gumshoe sidekick intent on solving a mystery, even if to her own peril. Oh, and some taxidermy. I. LOVE. THIS. BOOK.

Trying to read with my “cat scarf” crushing my windpipe...

#catsoflitsy

So, I'm settling down to start this. I mentioned that I would like it and my brother- and sister-in-law kindly obliged for my birthday. I love the feeling of excitement and anticipation of holding a new book in your hands (and sniffing it) ...❤📚

“Mr. Flood switches to English. He wishes me a barren womb (no changes there, then), eating without ever shitting, sodomy by all of hell‘s demons (simultaneously and one after the other), fierce constriction of the throat, a relentless smoldering of the groin, and an eternity in hell with my eyes on fire.” 🤣🤣🤣

Saw this on Twitter. 😂

Recommended by a friend,this looks interesting. I‘m a fan of quirky characters,so I‘m looking forward to reading it. 🤓📚

A delightful read. A woman who sees saints and talks with them, many times funny and surprising dialogue. It presents stubborn and gruff Mr. Flood and Maud‘s care for him. Maud will not be scared away by his harsh words. In fact, she gives it right back. Great book with characters, such as Renata. I loved this book, and I highly recommend it.

Great read, especially around this time of year. An eerie old house, a missing girl, a funny narrator who sees saints, an agoraphobic magicians assistant - what‘s not to love!

I loved this book! It had such sparkling wit & humour, with a dash of pathos & hints of magic, I highly recommend it. Cathal is fiery old goat & Maud is his perfect counterpoint, I‘ve known crotchety old men just like him & Maud is that pious Irish girl that‘s a wee bit touched in the head & together they form the beating heart of this story. The end was heartbreaking & totally fitting. 5⭐️

“Murdering usually runs in the family; it‘s an inherited condition, like a squint.” - Renata Sparks - The Hoarder: Jess Kidd. This book has such an Irish sense of humour, in my head I can hear Brendan O‘Carroll narrating it!

#Riotgrams #day1 #CurrentRead I‘m 85pg into this strange but charming book & I‘m still not sure where the story‘s going. Maud Drennan is a care worker assigned to Cathal Flood,the terrifying old codger who has turned his large house into a monument to waste.Hoping to scare her into submission, the wily old man threatens & looms but Maud,an Irish psychic that is surrounded by ghostly saints is made of sterner stuff.Quietly funny & highly enjoyable.