Dictionary editor Martha returns to Oxford an after the disappearance of her sister. Cryptic letters start arriving alluding to the mystery. Martha and her colleagues set to figuring out the puzzle, through a maze of words and Shakespearean clues. At times this lost me; I didn‘t have the headspace for the lexicography. The pace soon speeds up however, and the writing has a gentle cleverness that suits the Oxford setting

A book that I didn‘t particularly enjoy whilst reading; I found the prose a tricky style and it took me an age to settle into it and read it with any sort of flow. However once I got past that it was a lovely, moving love story, with some unexpected drama in the final third that really upped the pace. I‘ve realised I don‘t tend to enjoy books with anything mythical or magical, here I didn‘t feel those elements worked yet didn‘t intrude too much.

A reread; I do like to do a reading deep-dive before holidays, so I‘m seeking out the 🇬🇷 stories. The writing was a bit more flowery and overdone than I remembered, but still a solidly good read.

In the world of 1970s ballet, Joan is coming to accept she is only a good dancer, will never be a soloist. She falls hard for Russian star Arslan, to the extent she helps him defect to the US. Joan‘s then must accept her average talent and the story follows the compromises she makes for contentment, prior to her world again being thrown into disarray by her son Harry‘s emerging talent, and collision course towards Arslan. Quietly beautiful

A delightful surprise of a historical fiction novel. We meet 14 year old vagabond Tibb as she finds herself alone in a hostile England in the 1500s. I fully loved the cast of characters - “one patchwork man … one dark and good-to-look-at baker … one handsome vicar, one haystack-wielding Flemish woman, a tall and thin juggler named John and a false angel” - and the story is both incredibly dark, moving and funny all at the same time.

A short, sweet story but one I didn‘t feel fully delivered on the bookshop vibe, and feels ultimately forgettable. It gave me similar vibes to Before the Coffee Gets Cold, which also left me unmoved. Either I‘ve a heart of stone, or the current batch of Japanese fiction in translation isn‘t for me (or certainly not the ones with cats on the cover! 😆)

A thriller where I absolutely didn‘t guess any of the twists and turns, I loved it. It‘s not entirely perfect - the writing leans towards the flowery and I did feel the lull of a long book at times - yet it is so much more than a thriller, it is such a beautifully sad and sweeping story. To me this had echoes of The Goldfinch‘s Theo Decker; that sad boy and his attempts to find his way. Here, Patch had me in his thrall from about page three 🏴‍☠️

Am I going off my trusty genre of the family saga? I fear I might be because this was everything I should love but I just didn‘t. We‘re launched into characters without much introduction then we‘re teased with secrets yet not in a page-turning way, more in a JUST TELL ME way. Then once it moved past those it just became terribly sad. By the end the characters and overarching story fell into place and there were some rewards but overall I‘m 🤷‍♀️

I could NOT put this one down. A “will they/won‘t they” love story spanning the 00s New York and San Francisco college and music scenes, it quickly stole my heart (despite - or because of? - the deep-dive music-nerd parts). Imagine Normal People / One Day / Daisy Jones & The Six with a kind of music-nerd version of Lee from Curtis Sittenfeld‘s Prep as the self-absorbed main character. I loved it deeply.

This is not a pleasant story; rising star criminal defence barrister Tessa is assaulted and has to decide whether to take her turn on the other side of the bar table, as victim and witness. I was completely hooked; if I have any criticism it‘s that the odd element felt overdone or heavy handed; a little formulaic in novel format perhaps. I am a sucker for the apparent glamour of the barrister/courtroom life and this was excellent on that.

Thoughts on the Women‘s Prize longlist, with my fave tagged. See previous post for the shortlist:-

Ministry of Time, Kaliane Bradley ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (I fell hard for this!)
The Artist, Lucy Steeds ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Birding, Rose Ruane ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Dream Hotel, Laila Lalami ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Nesting, Roisin O‘Donnell ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Dream Count, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Crooked Seeds, Karen Jennings ⭐️⭐️

I found the LL stronger than the SL, some great reads.

The Women‘s Prize for Fiction 2025 winner is announced on Thursday; here‘s my thoughts on the short list:-

The Safekeep, Yael Van der Wouden ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
All Fours, Miranda July ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Tell Me Everything, Elizabeth Strout ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Good Girl, Aria Aber ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Fundamentally, Nussaibah Yunis ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Persians, Sanam Mahloudji ⭐️⭐️

Overall, as I‘ve seen so many others say, I‘m disappointed with the SL. I suspect All Fours will win!

An easy reading historical fiction set in Enlightenment Edinburgh. An odd combination of not being drawn to pick this up, but enjoying it every time I did!

I so wanted to like this, but I kind of didn‘t. The novel follows a quartet of women, all linked, as they ruminate on their loves, their careers, their mothers. Elements I loved and the writing is as good as you‘d expect, but other than Kadiatou‘s story - loosely based on the real case of a New York maid assaulted by a powerful man - the rest left me unmoved and at times, I admit, bored. In fact I skim read the last quarter.

“I have no more questions,” The Defendant concluded with a parasitic smile, looking tremendously self-satisfied for doing f*** all but attach himself to a woman who was good at her job.” A pick based on this sentence alone! Never once is the culprit named; he is The Defendant throughout. The story is not about him; it is about the victims and those who fought for them and I loved this perspective. Tricky to get into but overall a good read.

Weretigers, severed fingers, mysterious dreams. Chinese and Malaysian superstitions and mythology in 1930s Malaya clash against colonialism and the medical world; for the large part I thoroughly enjoyed this (although got tired of all the severed finger talk until the action ramped up!) The romance didn‘t do it for me, but otherwise a compelling story.

I‘m not entirely sure what to make of this. Nadia, a criminology lecturer, lands a job with a new UN agency tasked with rehabilitating ISIS brides, and digs herself in deeper than intended. A really interesting topic, yet it‘s told in a light hearted comedic tone which I just could not get on with.There is, however, a lot to take away from this, although at the same time it wouldn‘t have been a WP short list choice for me. A light pick.

Nearly didn‘t read it, glad I did. This is not *the* mid-life novel; the protagonist‘s life bears no resemblance to mine, nor that of any other woman I know. She is the most self-absorbed, self-indulgent person you‘ll probably ever hear from yet despite that I found this utterly compelling, with a knowingness I suspect you‘ll recognise if you too are mid-40s. I also found the absurdity quite good fun in a way I didn‘t expect.

On paper this was my kind of book; a family saga focused on the matriarch, her daughters and granddaughters, spanning Iran and the US. I really wanted to love it, but just…didn‘t. I found the fast-paced narrative sometimes tricky to keep up with, and actively disliked just about everyone in an irritated rather than amused way. Slightly puzzled by the inclusion of this on the Women‘s Prize short list.

I‘m really torn with this; I can‘t decide whether it is quietly majestic, or just a, sometimes repetitive, back and forth between the residents of a small town. On balance I think, perhaps, that you ignore the power of this gentle story at your peril (and also beware that it contains unexpected darkness). I never once wanted to pick it up, but was hooked every time I did.

Travel writer Gabriel is in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the 60s when he is asked to interview Patrice Lumumba. From there his life takes a turn and he becomes an unlikely Cold War spy, caught up in more than he realises. I loved Gabriel‘s gentle yet sharp character, his attempts to play with those leading him, combined with his sad backstory and the will he/won‘t he romance. Stylish, good fun, yet also thought provoking.

Set in post-reunification Germany, Nila‘s Afghan parents & Nila struggle to find their cultural place in Berlin. Nila is coming of age in techno clubs and a drug-fuelled lifestyle of self-loathing & an obsession with her older American boyfriend. Her struggle to find her place & the cultural expectation that she be a good girl were all excellent. The messy narrative surrounding Nila & Marlowe less so. Overall this is an intriguing, absorbing read

We start this with Lily in New York in the 1990s, then her son Nick in 2021, then jump to her mother May in 2030, who looks back on her youth in the midst of the Chinese Cultural Revolution. They all struggle to find their own identity and this runs as a theme through all three stories. A really absorbing, lovely yet also sad read (there are some science-y bits which didn‘t always work for me, but didn‘t detract from the overall).

The Green family have moved from Ireland to London for reasons unknown, their neighbours are suspicious of them. Then a toddler is found dead, and suspicion falls on the Greens, and specifically 10-year-old Lucy. Enter a tabloid journalist keen to mark his mark. Rather than the expected drama this is a thoughtful and gently done character study of, well, ordinary human failings. Overall I found it hopeful and lovely, despite the subjects tackled.

Oh I loved this as much as I hoped I would. It‘s a time travel story, it‘s a love story, a friendship story. Read it even if you don‘t think you want a time travel story; I defy you not to fall for Commander Graham Gore.

As all good dystopian fiction should be, this is eerily prescient and portrays a future one can almost see, and certain fully imagine. What was lacking for me is a full exploration of tech firm DreamSaver Inc; we get a chapter or two focussed on one of their developers, but nothing more and this felt a missed opportunity to take the story further. It also had echoes of other dystopian fiction I‘ve read, however overall a great read.

“An exhilarating tale of twisted desire, histories and homes.” I started out being clever, thinking I knew what this was about, where it was going. It turns out I really didn‘t, and I LOVED realising I‘d misjudged it entirely. I‘m not saying anything more for fear of spoilers. It‘s not an easy read in terms of the subject, on several levels, but after a slow start I couldn‘t put it down, it delivers a real gut-punch. Loved it (love the cover too)

This is fiction, but is based on/inspired by a true crime which culminated in the penultimate execution of a woman in Britain in the 1950s. It‘s told from the viewpoint of Zina and also her young Greek translator, Eva, and encompasses immigration, cultural translation and the treatment of women, particularly in the legal system, as well as the “whodunnit” element itself. The courtroom scenes are particularly sobering.

I love well done historical fiction; Joseph travels to post-war South of France after receiving an enigmatic invitation from reclusive artist Tartuffe. Once there he is drawn into the life of Tartuffe, his paintings and his niece Ettie. I was so taken with and drawn into the setting, the descriptions of the colours and light, the food, and then the unsettling sense of menace that builds alongside Ettie‘s frustrations and awakening. Excellent.

I love Sarah Winman but this one had passed me by. It‘s a lovely book, I thoroughly enjoyed it, even if the whimsical elements lost me slightly at times. There‘s a little mystery here as I pass a lot of my books onto my mum. I found this on her shelves but it didn‘t come from me and she has no recollection where it did come from. So who else is passing her books of this quality I ask?! I thought I was the one who gave her the best books 😆

Love Kate Atkinson, love the cover, love the title and love Jackson Brodie. This was great fun with a mix of knowing humour, Downton-vibes, and a lost-art murder-mystery crime caper (I can‘t decide if I love or hate the word caper 😆). You‘ll love to hate the Miltons, and I loved the gentleness with which Ben and Simon were treated. And of course, Jackson himself never disappoints.

Lydia has washed up in a forgotten seaside town, reeling from her on-off lover‘s apology for appalling behaviour she‘s not yet recognised as such. Joyce is living a claustrophobic life under the oppressive thumb of her mother. I loved both Joyce and Lydia‘s stories and particularly enjoyed the building tension, the dark humour that almost felt it would merge into horror, and the sense their worlds are about to collide and implode. A great read.

I went in having seen great reviews but was initially a bit disappointed. It is no doubt an important subject (emotional abuse, family homelessness) yet as a novel at first it didn‘t feel like a fresh take sufficient to be nominated for a literary prize. However this poor judgement is all mine as by halfway through I was completely hooked, unable to look away. It is so tense and claustrophobic, so simply told yet heartbreaking.

In parts I actively disliked this; set in post-apartheid South Africa, Deirdre is a mess with no apparent desire to make changes. Her mother, in a care home, is convinced her presumably dead son is visiting her. Deirdre never visits. There‘s a drought, everyone is dirty, drinking too much. This was an unpleasant read, yet at the same time draws you in. I didn‘t love it, I‘m glad it‘s done, yet it‘s niggling at me and I guess that‘s the point 👇

Set in a small town in the Mojave desert, Driss, is found dead at the side of the road. Was it a hate crime? Told from alternating perspectives the story winds back and forth, touching on Driss‘ life, but also his family and neighbours, whilst also trying to discover the cause of his death. For me, this was about grief, combined with small town tensions. The whodunnit element I felt was less successful for me. Overall though, I enjoyed it.

A great story of the family dynamics between four sisters, reflecting on their childhood, addiction and troubled parents, I tore through it. Her books seem to be targeting/resonating with a younger generation of female readers and I quietly wonder if she might turn out to be their Maggie O‘Farrell, thinking back to the vibe of MO‘Fs very early books. Watching with interest!

A very Booker Prize-ish book - it was a bit tricky. This is a series of stories spanning 1908 to 2025 covering love, both romantic and between parent and child, loss, war and science. What I struggled with was the telling, individual stories moving back and forth in time, the narrative in each story also moving around from paragraph to paragraph. Lovely in parts, but it was harder work than I‘m willing to invest.

When you‘ve adored Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, do you delve into the author‘s backlist, or keep the love with TTT? Turns out it is ok to keep reading, I absolutely loved this one too. A completely different book to TTT, this was short, sweet and gave me several love stories I didn‘t know I was looking for. It leaves the best possible bookish-hug feeling. If you need a winter pick me up, highly recommend 💙

With a blurb that references One Day and Normal People, this just about lives up to that. A sweet story of perceived “bad boy” Will, studious Rosie, and Rosie‘s twin, Josh, as they finish sixth form and try to find their way. It really is a lovely story - with that ever elusive romance without the cringe factor - yet I‘d say this didn‘t quite reach the heights of Sally Rooney genius for me, I agree more with the One Day vibes.

From the blurb this story sounded like my worst nightmare. First third, nope, can‘t do it. Mother is up in the night with young kids, husband not there, realises there‘s someone else in the house. No, not 300 pages of a house invasion with kids in the mix. Yet then the story changes, we go back into various parts of the narrators life, stories slowly evolve. A third in I was suddenly so invested I read the rest almost in one sitting.

Started out strong, limped to 786 pages somewhat exhausted. I am not the intended audience - my younger self would have adored the page-turning storytelling and world building, but this older, slightly jaded reader didn‘t fall for it. Right now, I never want to read about a dragon again, and I‘m glad Violet‘s narrative voice can begone from my head. On the other hand my 17 yo is desperate to get his hands on it, and that is how it should be 🐉

The premise was strong, and intriguing. Jivan comments on Facebook then finds herself arrested for playing a part in a terror attack. Her former teacher is being pulled into nationalist politics, Jivan‘s student Lovely could possibly help her, but no one is asking. There‘s a lot being said here, yet at the same time I felt a strange disconnect from the three main characters, and from how their stories interconnected. Overall, mixed feelings.

Kate is struggling with self-isolating in November 2020, she breaks and goes for a forbidden walk in the hills of the Peak District. Her 16 year old son Matthew is home alone when he realises she‘s gone and turns to their elderly and vulnerable neighbour Alice. The fourth character is mountain rescue volunteer Rob, helping search for Kate. A third in, I was racing through this desperate to know the outcome. And when it comes, it packs a punch.

Visitors to a Tokyo cafe get to travel in time if they sit on a certain chair and follow very specific rules. Four segments follow four different people as they travel, along with snippets of their back stories, and the stories of those who work in the cafe. The premise is intriguing and some of the stories sweet, yet the delivery not so much so. It dragged, despite being a short book, I lost track of who was who and found the narrative overdone.

I went into this a bit judgy - the Yorkshireness of the characters feeling overdone, and I was unsure if I liked the true story of the Yorkshire Ripper being the backdrop (was it insensitive to the victims?) - yet it won me over and had me having a little cry too. Sweet characters, the resolutions I wanted and a bit of nostalgia for childhood in the 80s.

A sweet, short and sharp little book that in large part I loved. Yet holding me back was a quite intense dislike of the main character that I never quite got past.

Oh goodness, what do you say about the Booker Prize winner? This is beautiful writing and an interesting premise, I get it. However, purely based on what I want from a book, it was a skim read for the main part with my focus being on the rare moments of character and their narratives. I‘d have read a longer book about the astronauts and their back stories but 135 pages about what they can see of Earth from their spaceship was enough for me.

At the start I was totally lost and nearly bailed. I just couldn‘t get on with the prose and the number of characters and the tangents we take to hear snippets of their back stories just had my head spinning. Yet as with all good books, and when I gave it the time, it pulled me in, and by the end I was heartbroken, heart-warmed, and had a tear on my cheek. I defy you not to fall for the characters of 12 year old Dodo and his friend Monkey Pants.

A courtroom drama with family and friendship dynamics plus immigration, neurodiversity and science. This is my second book by this author, both have a similar vibe which I like but also find a bit intense. This felt too long and not as page-turner-ish as the blurb promised, or as much as her second book, which overall I think I enjoyed more, perhaps as I disliked all the characters here! Still, an interesting read and a pick overall.

A great read, I really enjoyed this. The story follows the quirky, bohemian family of rock star Matthew Radlett who now lives a reclusive life in the country, and predominantly his daughter Linda as she lurches through various love affairs. Funny and sweet this was a hug of the book and I loved every character no matter how improbable. (However. The final page takes some getting over, no spoilers but be warned.)