English Animals had some of the realest characters I think I‘ve ever met in a book. I felt like two of the main characters, Richard and Sophie especially were people I had met in real life before. It is a lovely slow read, with the relationships between the three characters developing, with an interesting backdrop of taxidermy and the English countryside

I love love loved this! My favourite book so far this year by a long way. It had so much feeling in it, and again... I loved it!!!

A great speedy read. I really felt for Marianne and Connel, despite sometimes wanting to shake some sense into them! I would definitely recommend 😊

DNF! A friend at work recommended this to me, he‘s not a massive reader but this book really stuck with him. I was excited to learn more about neuro surgery and the interesting stories and scenarios a book like this would contain. However the narrator and also the author rubbed me up the wrong way from the start. The narrator was shouty, and the author so self important that I couldn‘t face spending another 7 hours with them both.

Adoring this so far, I‘m about halfway through. It follows Arthur Opp, a 550 pound man who hasn‘t left his home for nearly 20 years, and Kel, the son of his ex student. Liz Moore‘s writing is so easy to sink into and it flows so well. I loved her other novel The Unseen World too which I read last year. I will definitely be reading more of her stuff!

A great audiobook about an incredible woman‘s life. The narration was perfect, and I feel a real connection with both the author and Sandra. Though her life has been a million miles away from mine, in ways I felt like I could really relate to her

I have always been curious about Elanor of Aquitaine, but this is the first time I‘ve properly read about her. I really enjoyed this! It took me a little while to get into, especially with some of the cringe sex-scene descriptions. But her life is fascinating and I‘m so excited to continue the series. Sadly I‘ve lent the next one to my mum, hopefully she‘ll give it back soon! Thanks @jenniferw88 for giving me this in the swap last year!

One chapter before bed 😴 my new bedtime routine starts tonight! Hopefully I can stick to it ⚡️

I had a lovely afternoon this weekend driving through the North Yorkshire moors with The Trauma Cleaner for company. This book is fascinating, and my first book looking at the experience of a transgender person

Nevermoor was fun and easy reading, and I would recommend it.
However... for me it doesn‘t come anywhere even close to Harry Potter like a lot of people are comparing it to. It sometimes felt a bit silly and superficial, and all a bit too easy. Also the characters lacked a bit of depth. Morrigan‘s friends were all quite 2D and I was looking for deeper characters and friendships like Harry, Ron and Hermione‘s relationships and personalities

Inspirational listening at work. Loving this so far! Currently at the very early stages of her relationship with Barack, it‘s very cute!

Tucking into this tonight, it‘s making having the England match on much more bearable! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿⚽️📚☂️

With a blurry Teddy sneaking into the picture 😽

I really wanted to like this, but even from a few pages in there felt like something was missing. It explores and discusses some really important ideas about race, but it felt like the characters and the plot were all just there to display another observation about race which left the story feeling a bit limp and the characters uninteresting.

I couldn‘t resist!

It‘s been a lovely weekend, reading Americanah on a romantic weekend away just outside York for my birthday. The hot tub is not the best place to read though! Really enjoying Americanah so far, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is such an inspiring woman

Getting my Thomas Cromwell fix while I wait for the third instalment of Hilary Mantel‘s series on Henry VIII‘s chief minister. Im really enjoying this biography‘s deep dive into his life, although I would definitely be struggling if I didn‘t already have a good basic knowledge of the main events and pivotal characters that contributed to the huge political changes during that period. But I‘m loving it!

My next read, and it‘s so pretty! 💐

Ahh so good! I loved this, I could barely put it down. Very well written and the story is very clever and complex. I loved it so much I had to buy my own copy after I spotted it in a second hand bookshop halfway through reading a copy I had borrowed from my sister in law. I recommend this to everyone and I will definitely be reading more Sarah Waters soon

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I did enjoy parts, especially towards the end. But it was a slog of detail to get there. I finished it a few weeks ago and only now just got round to taking a picture for litsy. But the further I‘ve got from it, the more negative my feelings have become. So I don‘t think I will have the resilience to continue with the series

This had the potential to be a really good and exciting story but it just fell a bit flat. As John moved through the time periods it began to feel more and more like a series of history lessons about the state of society, technology and culture in each age rather than an actual story. Just as things began to happen in one era you would move into the next and have to start all over again

I‘ve had a very successful lunchtime! I went to the local supermarket to buy a sandwich and as I was walking out I spotted this on the charity bookshelf where you can take a book for a small donation. It‘s usually filled with very old tattered books, so I did a double take when I spotted this brand new copy of Transcription and I had to take it home. Now to add it to the pile of books I‘m desperate to read!

I have had a reorganisation of my little bookcase so that I can see all the books I haven‘t read (as well as some favourites it would be a crime to hide away!)
I love it because it makes me excited to read them every single day, but I do really miss having a bookshelf big enough to proudly display all of my books

I‘ve been finding this a bit heavy going. Only managing a few pages at a time, and finding my attention sliding away from the page as the minute descriptions of a Stockholm street (and everything else) fail to draw me in. But yesterday I finally had a breakthrough with about 100 pages read, including staying up late to carry on reading. I had planned on reading the whole series... but we shall see if I have the willpower!

A very gripping twisty turny read with loads of twists I didn‘t see coming. It was at times a little confusing, especially that ending! But I‘ve heard there‘s a sequel coming so hopefully all will be revealed...

Finally on to the Deathly Hallows after starting my second listen-through of the Harry Potter series in June. I absolutely love them and Stephen Fry‘s narration. I think I may start them all over again afterwards. Although my other audiobook listening is falling behind and my credits are piling up (but I‘m not complaining!)

Sunday night sorted 😻

I waited an eternity for my hold to come through on Libby for this, and it was worth the wait! I loved the glamour and the gossipy side of this novel, but what really made it was the deeper more human side of the characters. My only criticism would be the scenes set in the present and the character of Monique as she was a bit annoying and the conversations with Evelyn seemed contrived and stilted. But the majority I loved

A quiet first day back in the office has meant time to plan all the books I want to read this year. I really want to get to them all, although I only managed 32 books in 2018 and with 23 on this list that doesn‘t leave too much room for spontaneous buys and Libby reads. But I am determined to try and read more this year 🤞🎉

Disappointing. I kept going waiting for something to happen, and even when things did eventually happen they were brushed past so quickly with such sparse details that I was left feeling frustrated

Merry Christmas Everyone! 🎄🎉🎁❤️ I‘ve been very spoilt, and had a very successful Christmas book haul! I can‘t wait to read them all. But I am struggling to pick which to read first 😍😍

This book has a really interesting subject matter, a young boy who wants to be a girl. I found it thoughtful and thought provoking. However as I listened to the audiobook, I found the narrator a little too slow and softly spoken. And by about hallway through, the story also felt like it was dragging. After a few weeks I realised I hadn‘t listened to it in a while, and hadn‘t thought of it once. So best to let go rather than waste another 6 hours

I really enjoyed The Birdcage Walk. There wasn‘t a huge amount of plot, but there was a steadily gathering simmering tension present throughout that kept it very interesting. I would have liked more about the French Revolution but as this was set far away from it I can understand why there wasn‘t

Only good things to say about this book!

I really wanted to like this as it‘s often held up as an important book in our culture. But I really struggled the whole way through. It is very dry, with pages and pages of explaining the society and the politics without anything particularly interesting happening. Brief flashes caught my attention but not enough to make up for the rest. And I wouldn‘t say that it even said anything particularly important or groundbreaking as I had expected it to

I was a little underwhelmed by this book. I expected strong characters taking a stand against the intolerance and hypocrisy of religion. But by the end it just seemed to fizzle out with no stand taken or change made. At first I enjoyed the descriptions of the religious practices and teachings but by the end they started to drag. All that said it did keep me interested all the way through, although maybe under incorrect expectations

I got some very funny looks from my colleagues while listening to this book, because I kept snorting with laughter and at one point gasping in horror. I would really recommend this to anyone. It‘s funny, but also scary. I love the NHS and I‘m so grateful we have it in the UK and this book really shows why we all need to cherish it and protect it. And also be very grateful to the superhuman effort of our junior doctors

My new lunchtime read can be started tomorrow as my Libby hold has arrived! I‘ve wanted to read this for ages. I enjoyed Naomi Alderman‘s The Power but I think this will be quite different!

Wolf Hall is one of my favourite books of all time. The writing is beautiful and I find it so easy to just sink into. Once you get your head around ‘He‘ always being Cromwell it all just slips into place. This was my second time reading it, and I loved it just as much as the first time. I have been waiting years for the third instalment to be released, I really hope we don‘t have to wait much longer!

I started reading 1984 the other day and I just had to share the cute bag that it came in from The Whitby Bookshop. It is a lovely little shop on a little street in Whitby, which is seaside town in North Yorkshire.

Thank you @jenniferw88 for the #myfavouritebookswap I love the bookmarks 😻 and I am very glad these books are both part of a series! I can‘t wait to get tucked in to one of them

My new Libby read. I have no idea what this is about but I loved Lionel Shriver‘s novella The Standing Chandelier and I enjoyed We Need To Talk About Kevin so hopefully this should be worth a read. It‘s quite exciting going into a book blind!

I absolutely loved this memoir. I listened to the audiobook - the narration was great and I just couldn‘t stop listening. Her story is powerful and fascinating and I loved seeing Tara slowly transform throughout the book from a downtrodden little girl to a strong woman. And it gives a fascinating insight into the mindset of some super religious survivalist communities

I‘ve had a lovely weekend away in not so sunny Scarborough with a little day trip to Whitby while we were there. Our room had the most beautiful view of Scarborough‘s North Bay 🌊☔️ Of course I couldn‘t come home empty handed! The Scarlet Lion was from a charity shop, and I convinced my boyfriend to get two (trying to turn him into a reader!) and 1984 from a beautiful little bookshop in Whitby

Thank you @jenniferw88 your #mfbs package arrived safe and sound a few days ago. Teddy and Finn are almost as excited as me to open it!!
I posted yours today so it should hopefully arrive in time 🤞
#myfavouritebookswap

Another bail from me! Life is too short to force yourself to carry on reading a book you‘re really not getting along with.
I managed to get almost halfway through The Night Brother, and I felt like it was just repeating the same scenes over and over again. Argue with Mum, Grandma trying and failing to explain, argue with Gnome - repeat. In the end I wasn‘t interested enough in the childish character‘s outcomes to continue.

A nice quiet day in the office with my boss away on holiday, means the perfect opportunity to start a new audiobook! I‘ve been wanting to read Educated ever since it came out, and I had wanted to get and read a physical copy. But after getting my new credit through yesterday I decided to just go for it!

I‘m so close to the end but I just can‘t force myself to listen to this anymore. I had heard lots about how hilarious this book is, but thinking back on my listening experience I don‘t remember laughing even once. I don‘t know if the narrators voice had something to do with it, as I sometimes found it a bit jarring. I also found the characters quite flat, and I just couldn‘t believe in the main characters relationship. They seemed like strangers

Getting back into the Libby swing of things with The Night Brother. This is set in Victorian Manchester and follows Edie and her brother Gnome who comes to visit at night. I am trying to read more different kinds of fiction rather than sticking to my usual ‘safe‘ types and I‘m hoping this will be a good way to start

The Party didn‘t turn out to be what I expected, but I still really enjoyed it. I would have liked a bit more glamour and a more Gatsby feel. The story was gripping and I really warmed to the main character Martin

After what has been the worst and most stressful few months of my life I finally feel like I can get curled up in bed again with a good book and just relax. I have really been missing reading and I am so glad to be coming back to it. Especially as I was already halfway through my favourite book and I can re-immerse myself in it ❤️ and I‘ve missed Litsy!