Update - the weekend didn't much improve (now my love caught his son's stomach bug) and no, the library had none of the books people recommended to me. Bleh. I stil got a number of good books though and listened to an episode of A strong sense of place and really enjoyed it (and now really want to read Daryl Gregory).

Thanks, @Chrissyreadit !

Another Richard Osman raced through in a day 🙂 I feel like I like each one more than the last! Such an enjoyable distraction.

Today was a hard day. My partner has so many health and mental health issues and when I saw him today, I realised how scary tired he is - more than usual. It's just always something, it seems. Anyway I'm heading to the library in the morning as I read all my other loans except Homegoing, which I'm finding not exactly uplifting.

Any suggestions for reads that are light and/or engaging but not cheesy?

The night Effia Otcher was born into the musky heat of Fanteland, a fire raged through the woods just outside her father's compound.

#firstlinefridays
@ShyBookOwl

I don't remember when I last read this one - the joys of getting older and being able to forget every single thing about a Christie novel. It's one of her (underrated, in my opinion) novels with no Poirot or Miss Marple, just a cast of characters we get to know who solve the mystery on their own. Emily is delightfully plucky, brave and loyal. I really enjoyed it again!

I flew through this second installment and loved it. A lovely group of companions on a rainy Saturday. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

A wonderful Litten (I feel awful - I've completely forgotten who) sent me a parcel of books a few years ago (now our post office system has almost completely collapsed). I read Fates and Furies and it was good, but intense. I can't explain why it took me so long to pick this one up. Her writing is definitely unique; I often find it difficult to understand her characters emotionally. But the story is engrossing and the magical realism so well done.

"The day I returned to Templeton steeped in disgrace, the fifty-foot corpse of a monster surfaces in Lake Glimmerglass."

#firstlinefridays @ShyBookOwl

Thanks for the tag, @Trashcanman!

I'm no good at tagging people, though! Play along if the spirit moves you ?

Ever since I bought The Folded Earth by accident and loved it, I felt like Anuradha Roy was my own special secret. I hadn't thought to look for more of her books but came across this in the library and it was wonderful. I read it slowly, through many interruptions. Her writing is clear, precise and rich; never flowery or sentimental. Such a contrast to the previous book I finished. Just beautiful.

I have so many opinions. I don't really care for her writing and the way the timeline went back and forth in beginning I really disliked - all throughout the book actually it felt like she was writing about the same thing over and over again from different angles to get the most mileage out of it and it annoyed me. Other peeves included Alice the miracle baby who didn't need food or attention for 15 hours or something, the number of times ⬇️

This was one of those serendipitous times when I browse the Kindle for a book people have been racing about and it's a wonderful deal!

I loved it so much. It gave me a lot to think about regarding my own depression, suicidal thoughts and divorce. It made me think about my current love and the kind of life I want. I loved all the themes she touched on lightly, like asking for what you want. I can see why everyone loves it so much!

I adore this book. But oh my word, how did the editor miss this?

This was my rescue (I guess my sister bought it for Kindle) when I ran out of books on the plane and the flight left at 23:15. I have mixed feelings about Jennifer Weiner's writing but found this quite enjoyable. I could relate somewhat to her difficult child and financial worries though my situation was never that bad. I did want to throttle her while she was in denial and thinking she was so much better than others, though.

Maybe I need to accept that I just don't like Ishiguro's books since Never let me go. This had its moments but was mostly strange and ended on such a depressing note. Maybe one needs more knowledge on Arthurian legends.

Wonderful as always, this was my companion on the 13 hours or so I spent at Jomo Kenyatta airport trying to get home (and on the plane when we still thought we were leaving on time, haha.) The unravelling mystery from the past felt a bit like it had been done before but it was still good. I was super anxious about having packed my other book in my suitcase for some stupid reason.

Why is only the Spanish version on the database? Anyhoo... Don't expect brilliant writing, but it was entertaining on my flight to Kenya. I'm not sure Andy Weir should be writing female characters.

On my way to Zanzibar via Kenya. Flights keep getting delayed and I have to spend the night in Nairobi. At least I packed 3 books so I should be sorted. But I also wish we could just get going!

Having coffee while getting my car washed. This weekend has involved so many errands! The book is super stressful but good.

I had this on my shelves for at least 11 years and never noticed the Ophrah's Book Club bubble. I'm not sorry I finally read it but the blurb on the back uses words like "sweet" and "tender" and for me it was brutal! Women trapped in awful marriages with no love. I wonder what I would have made of this if I read it long before I left my own marriage. It was another book from the 90s where the 10/11-year-old acts very much more grown up ⬇️

This was a random library loan for me and I kept postponing it but when I read it, I ended up really enjoying it. Based on true events in Ireland in the late 1800s, the story is told from the dual perspectives of the landowner's wife in prison and one of the servant girls who worked in the house, told in 1968. The events themselves are sad and the writing gets a bit flowery at the end but overall is beautiful and insightful.

It was quite weird but mostly in a good way! The writing was beautiful, of course. 🌟🌟🌟🌟

This book was just wonderful. An 80-year-old man ends up taking his great-nephew, who he has never met, with him on a trip to Nice, where he was born. Together they unravel the story behind some photographs taken by his mother and discover her role in World War II. The writing flows easily and there is humour and poignancy but all done with a masterful touch, not too heavy. Just beautiful. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

I have devoured this book and am literally so sad that there is so little left. Will be posting my 5-star review far too soon 😢

I'm desperately in need of a year that is better than this past one. At times I struggled with this book because reading about Maisie's pain reminded me of my own (very different) pain. But in the end the intricate (convoluted?) storyline drew me in and distracted me. 🌟🌟🌟🌟

I ended up enjoying this a lot although words fail me a bit to describe why. Maybe it was being able to relate so closely to the descriptions of love and longing; he also has a gift to state some truth about a characters' life in a beautiful and startling way. Altogether, though, I wish the story was a bit less bleak!

I never posted about this and forgot that I read it. The hopeful parts were good but the deep recollection of childhood trauma was a bit upsetting to read at times. It looks like the other books in the series are better?

I need to pick my next read - maybe one of the unknowns instead of having no self control with the Maisie Dobbs. The top two are both wildcards from the library that looked interesting but could be a total bust. I liked Autumn and am fairly confident I'll like Winter...

This was an enjoyable, distracting, quick read. The writing isn't brilliant IMO but the events drive the book along nicely. I'm keen to read the others!

I loved this. The story unfolds slowly, bit by bit, and the detailed descriptions of motherhood, of colours and sensations and experiences are beautiful. I really really hate Margot! A book to make you hold your own child(ren) tightly and appreciate anew the privilege and joy of being their mother. I miss my babies!

I'm giving this a go although I didn't see any of the others on the shelf. I don't really understand how this library branch groups their fantasy and scifi. Anyway, I've had a headache since Friday night, tomorrow is an incredibly welcome public holiday, my babies are going on a long holiday with their dad and on my bed under the fan is where I will be until further notice.

I still haven't completely made up my mind whether I hate the bits where people blame God for all bad things, or simplistically and irrationally see his hands in events, but I do love the general feel and writing of the book. I laughed out loud once and cried multiple times. It made me think a lot about my life right now and my hopes and dreams, and what gives true joy. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

I loved this one as I do all the others. It's strange how India is a theme in my life right now. I look forward to the next one!

At times I feel like this book should be called "How many horrible things can happen to one family".

From the connecting train being delayed this morning to finding out I would be spending the whole of the afternoon and evening alone instead of seeing a friend, I was quite low by the time I got off the aeroplane in Cape Town. And my book, my one book I had idiotically packed, was nearly finished. So I consoled myself...

On the train to the airport - > Cape Town for 3 nights. Year-end function and meeting as a team.

You know I'm hard-up for light reading when I dig out the AC. I never noticed this racist aside before 😂

I just finished this but I wish I had another one 😢 They've been such a comfort. My ex-husband is starting radiation therapy tomorrow and my girls can't see him for at least 22 days. I've gotten very used to my divorced life and my week off in which I work extra hard at my job and get a bit more exercise and sleep. I already don't read that much but seeing even less happening the next week. What lies ahead for us all, nobody knows.

I really loved this latest novel so much. It was a tiny bit like a racier Maisie Dobbs 😂 but of course also very different. She brings all the different threads together so well. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I'm starting to really love Kate Grenville. The novel is a tiny bit heavy-handed here and there and to be honest I think one entire storyline could have been left out, but I loved Harley and Dennis, the setting, the detail, the beautiful descriptions. 🌟🌟🌟🌟

For someone who almost always scans the shelves in libraries and bookstores for Ish..., I've actually read shockingly few of his books. I wasn't crazy about Never let me go and I also didn't love this one, sadly. Some ideas were fascinating but the conversations were exhausting to read and the premise a bit lacking to me.

I really enjoy anything by Kate Atkinson and these stories were her wonderful sort of weirdness. I especially liked Blithe Spirit. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Is each Maisie Dobbs just better than the last? This was so excellent. I could barely put it down and finished it way too quickly 😢

I was excited to come across this book, plus there was a sequel on the shelf written something like 30 years later, but... The sex. I couldn't handle all the writing about prostitution and fellow travellers talking about their sexual adventures in these countries. I'm sad that I wasted 4 days of reading time before realising it was just going to get worse.

I have a cold (surprise surprise after two horrible weeks at work) and it's my week without my girls so I'm trying to force myself to rest. I bought this because it was heavily discounted and I had been browsing in a bookshop to pass the time and it seemed depressing to buy nothing at all - does that sound demented? I just don't have the budget for new books when even simple children's books cost what I used to pay for new books for myself.

I loved this! The MC is in a coma and the reason why unravels in a non-linear way throughout the book (which sometimes irritates but was done so well). Her explorations of love and connection always touch me deeply. One fact that seems highly improbable to me was the only thing I didn't like. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I thought I was going to return this to the library unfinished - I found the beginning of Elizabeth's marriage terribly depressing. I'm so glad I gave it one more shot! It turned out to be absolutely beautiful and comforting and challenging and I loved it. ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

This is for sure an example of a movie taking the basic idea of a book and running wildly in different directions wirh it. It's for the better, though, I think. The clumsy treatment of class differences, the depressing reflections on married life and the unappealing character of Sonny are all vastly improved in the movie.

Well, now I can say I've read it, I guess. I unfortunately found the writing corny and heavy-handed, but it's a compelling story and I can understand why it's popular. Just not my kind of writing.

I really liked this one, maybe even more than Messenger of Truth, although there is no need to compare. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This was so beautiful. It made me very sad in places but I loved it. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐