An e book bargain

Colm Toibin is a beautiful writer. I adored his novel, Brooklyn, and there are other titles by him that I would like to read. The Shortest Day by this favorite author is a short story and one that seems appropriate for this time of year with the solstice approaching.

The Shortest Day is a gorgeous story written by a master. I was immersed in its world so quickly. The tale is about an archaeologist who is researching a site, Newgrange, that brings to mind a sacred site like Stonehenge. He is a man of reason and proofs. Readers observe him, his wife and his personality.

Within Newgrange are the spirits of those from a time almost before time. These spirits have personalities, vanities, tempers and other qualities of humans. They await a special light that comes only once each year on the shortest day. This light sustains them in times ahead. The spirits do NOT want an archaeologist to visit at this sacred time.

From this set up, what happens? I highly encourage you to read this short story to find out. I was engrossed in this tale while I was told a story by a most competent, capable and intriguing master.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.

A Novel

by Satoshi Yagisawa

 #MoreDaysattheMorisakiBookshop #NetGalley

Anyone who read Days at the Morisaki Bookshop will, I am sure, be delighted to spend “More Days” there. Here is everything that made the first novel charming-the narrator and her family, a number of quirky characters, the neighborhood filled with bookshops, and, of course the books.

Those who have not read the first book will be easily brought up to date though they may well want to seek out the earlier title. Both books are short and quick reads even as readers may wish they were longer.

This is a book for bibliophiles, lovers of Japan and those who like unique and quirky stories.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Perennial for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 02 July 2024

From the Publisher

The first book:

I would like to spend some: Days at the Morisaki Bookshop (by Satsoshi Yagisawa)

This novel has received a good deal of attention, including being selected for Reese Witherspoon’s book club.  It is the story of Laurie and Jack, their friends and families.  It is a story of a romance that may or may not go to a happy ending.  It is definitely one in which the course of true love “never did  run smooth.”  If you enjoy light, romantic fiction you might want to join the many who have read this title.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-galley.  The opinions are my own.#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick “Get ready to be swept up in a whirlwind romance. It absolutely charmed me.” —Reese Witherspoon

“Josie Silver writes with a warmth so palpable her characters sneak their way into your heart and stay for a long time.”—Jill Santopolo, New York Times-bestselling author of The Light We Lost #OneDayInDecember #NetGalley

Close to Death is a take on an AgathaChristie style mystery with the additional spin of this author”s cleverness. It is the latest in the series that features Detective Hawthorne and, yes, the character Anthony Horowitz.

This time the structure of the book is a bit different. Hawthorne, who gives Horowitz case material for his novels, is revealing a past puzzler. Some of the novel is a take on those events and other parts involve the perspectives of the two protagonists.

A close is a kind of dead end street. In this upscale one, a number of neighbors detest the newest family. The annoying, inconsiderate and very wealthy Kenworthy is murdered. The suspects include a GP, a retired barrister, two elderly former nuns, a chess grandmaster, a dentist and those around them. Whodunnit? Why? The pages turn as readers wait to fond out.

Last year I heard the author speak. He was very entertaining, just as he is in his writing. i think that he was enjoying himself here. The book offers a good read.

Note that, although this is part of a series, it can be read on its own.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 16 April 2024

About the book:

From the publisher

The new cozy crime novel from the bestselling author of The Marlow Murder Club, soon to be a major TV series on PBS Masterpiece

Verity Beresford is worried about her husband. Oliver didn’t come home last night, so of course Verity goes straight to Judith Potts, Marlow’s resident amateur sleuth, for help. Oliver, founder of the Marlow Amateur Dramatic Society, had rented The Marlow Belle, a private pleasure cruiser, to host an exclusive party for the society, but no one remembers seeing him disembark. And when Oliver’s body washes up on the Thames with two bullet holes in him, it’s time for the Marlow Murder Club to leap into action.

Oliver was, by all accounts, a rather complicated fellow, with a reputation for bullying children during nativity play rehearsals, and he wasn’t short of enemies. Judith, Suzie, and Becks are convinced they’ll find his killer in no time. But things are not as they seem in the Marlow Amateur Dramatic Society, and this case is not so clear-cut after all. The gang will need to keep their wits about them to solve this case… otherwise a killer will walk free.

My thoughts:

I was absolutely delighted to spend time with the gang in this newest entry in the Marlow series. This, like the others, is a traditional mystery with good characters and an interesting plot. Readers will want to see if they can solve the case before the three amateurs and the police.

Anyone who has read others in the series, or who has seen the television adaptations, will I think be happy to pick this one up. It was enjoyable.

Those who are new to the residents of Marlow may want to read this too. They will then pick up all of the others, I think.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this title. All thoughts are my own.

Pub date: 16 September 2025

Others in the series:

Now out: Death Comes to Marlow

Would you join: The Marlow Murder Club

Beware: The Queen of Poisons (Robert Thorogood)

He wrote them:

Robert Thorogood

About the author

I’m the author of THE MARLOW MURDER CLUB books, set in my hometown of Marlow in Buckinghamshire.

The first book in the series has been made into a TV show and can be watched in the UK on the Freeview channel U&Drama and in the USA on PBS/Masterpiece. A second TV series is coming out in 2025 and is based on Death Comes to Marlow, but also includes some brand new murders as well.

Before all of this, I created DEATH IN PARADISE for the BBC and have also written four standalone Richard Poole murder mystery novels. I’m really proud of them, and if you like Death in Paradise, I hope you’ll love the books as well.

Imagine that your family sends you (alone) to the U.S. because of financial hardship in Ireland and you will need to support your relatives back home. Imagine that you are able to take on someone else’s identity to become the servant of Andrew Carnegie’s mother. Will you be found out? Will your position be secure? These are among the premises of this richly detailed historical novel. Relationships between upstairs and downstairs, specifically between Clara and Andrew Carnegie are a major part of this novel. Read it too to learn more about the business world and women’s roles in the post Civil War U.S. Overall, an enjoyable read.

This title is the third and last novel that Horowitz is writing about Atticus Pund and Susan Ryeland. It is a corker written by an author who, I think, is just the teeniest bit smug about his talent and expansive knowledge of publishing and other aspects of modern life.

Anyone who has not read The Magpie Murders can read this novel but there are definitely many aspects of that story that are revealed in this one. It may be best to read the series in order or at least catch up on events via the PBS series.

Susan Ryeland is back in England with her trusty MG. She is freelancing and hoping for a more permanent position as an editor when she is invited/lured into working with Eliot Crace. He is writing an entry in the Atticus Pund series, continuing what the original author (SPOILER! and murder victim) had begun.

As is true of others in the series, there is a story in the present (that has roots in the past) along with the manuscript of the new Pund novel. I love how authentic this looks with Horowitz making this look just like others that I have received from Harper Collins. It is quite clever.

It begins to appear that Eliot’s book may be a bit too closely related to his take on events in his family. Where will this lead? Nothing else here so that there will be no spoilers.

Suffice it to say that this read is immersive, long, filled with numerous characters and plots, clever and perhaps a modern classic.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 13 May 2025

Mystery & Thriller

592 pages

From the Publisher

A Novel

by Elizabeth Strout

#TellMeEverything #NetGalley

Anyone who has read one book by Elizabeth Strout will surely read all of her others. I found this one to be a special treat because it brings together characters from earlier titles including (my favorite) Bob Burgess, Olive Kitteridge, Lucy Barton and others.

The prose is beautiful, the story is engaging and the visit to Crosby, Maine is most welcome. I was delighted to follow the challenges and relationships in this small community.

I find Strout to be such a wise author. This is definitely a book to add to a fiction lover’s TBR list.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 10 September 2024

#IntheSpiritofFrenchMurder #NetGalley

In the Spirit of French Murder is the fourth in a wonderful historical mystery series that features Julia Child as a main character. I dare anyone to read about her cooking without getting hungry! Also, Paris is beautifully evoked and might make a person want to visit. Other areas in France also come into the story.

Look at the cover. It reflects some things that are important in this novel. Also, it is possible that the title of this one has more than one meaning.

Anyone who has read the earlier books, will be delighted to visit with the many familiar characters including Tabitha, her love interests, her uncle and grandfather, the market stall owners and more. Note that I don’t think that it is necessary to have read the other books to enjoy this one but I think readers might want to.

What is the significance of the warnings of a psychic? What do the bluets mean? Will the murders be solved? Read this entertaining, atmospheric story to find out.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for this title. All thoughts are my own.

Pub date: 28 April 2026

Post first published on 17 April 2026

Note the other titles in this series are reviewed on my blog.

Description:

from the publisher

After moving to France, Tabitha Knight has a new friend in fellow expat and Cordon Bleu student Julia Child, whose culinary tips can come in quite handy. But something’s cooking in postwar Paris, and it isn’t just cheese soufflé…

Tabitha has enjoyed an entertaining afternoon in Julia’s kitchen, but her return home is a bit jarring. As she arrives at her grandfather’s rue de l’Université mansion, a woman bursts out the door babbling about messages from spirits and a warning Grand-père must heed. Oncle Rafe angrily sends the woman on her way, and neither man will answer Tabitha’s questions.

It’s not the last she sees of the mysterious visitor. While she’s on a date that evening, she’s accosted by her again—and learns that Madame Vierca is a medium who claims to have visions of a dark fate that awaits Grand-père and Oncle Rafe. The very next night, Tabitha’s messieurs host a soiree at their new restaurant, inviting fellow Resistance fighters from the war known as the Nine Bluets. To commemorate the work of the Resistance network, the vase on the dinner table sports nine of the pretty blue flowers.

But shortly after the revelers leave the restaurant, one of Grand-père’s old friends is found dead on the street . . . and one of the nine flowers is missing from the vase. When a second member of the Nine Bluets is found poisoned the next day, and a bluet flower is left with the body, Tabitha cannot ignore Madame Vierca’s frightening predictions about her dear messieurs. She has no choice but to share her suspicions and fears with the enigmatic and unruffled Inspecteur Merveille.

Tabitha soon finds herself caught up in an investigation that takes her and Merveille to the seediest, most dangerous parts of the Left Bank—home of strange, fantastical legends, disquieting events, and unusual people. As she and Merveille desperately try to find a killer, they know they don’t have much time before the rest of the Nine Bluets are targeted . . . including Grand-père and Oncle Rafe.

From the Publisher:

#FamiliusBooks #NetGalley

The illustrations are absolutely adorable. I love the main character in his bright red glasses. He needs more to read and wants to figure out how to make books. He gets busy! The machine is created but will it work? (There is a message here about books not coming from machines.) What will this book loving child do next?

Anyone who wants kids to read books that have been thoughtfully produced (and AI free) will, might want to share this book with a child they know.

Note that at the end of the story, there are also suggestions for writing a story.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Familius for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 21 July 2026

From the publisher (who notes that this could change)

A boy’s innovative genius proves that machines can never replace writers in this picture book about creativity, imagination, and the writing process

I need more books. I just can’t get enough. But how does one make a book? I’ve seen books at the school and the library. How do they get their books? They must use a book-making machine.

What happens when a book-loving child can’t get books fast enough? He’ll build a machine that will produce an entire library, of course! With a doohickey here and a whatchamacallit there, he puts his book machine together and waits for the books to pop out . . . and waits . . . and waits. After checking to make sure there wasn’t a dragon inside the machine gobbling up all his books, he deduces that he must write his own story.

Combining science with art and writing, The Book Machine introduces kids to creativity and critical thinking, teaching them to solve problems and utilize all their talents in order to reach their goals. With adorable illustrations that spark the imagination, every page will have kids falling in love with making ideas come to life. And a list of helpful, easy-to-follow steps at the end will walk kids through the writing process, encouraging them to begin writing their own stories with the book machines built right inside of them.