I love to read, recommend books and open the world of reading to others. I tutor to ensure that the next generation of readers will know the joys of a good book because their reading skills have improved. I am an avid reader, especially of mysteries and fiction. I believe that two of the world's greatest inventions were the public library and eyeglasses!
The Memory Library tells the story of a mother and daughter who have a complex relationship-is that not always the case? For Sally and Ella in particular, their issues lead them to live on opposite sides of the world (England and Australia) for decades. When Sally suffers a bad fall, Ella returns to England for a month and the stage is set.
One thing that I very much liked in this story was the love for books that came across quite clearly. Early on Sally reads Little Women to Ella and gives her a copy of her very own. They enjoy a tradition of a new birthday book each year. What a nice idea!
The title comes from what Sally did during Ella’s absence. Each year she purchased a book for Ella and inscribed it. What happened to them? Can they ever be shared?
This story delves into the lives of these two characters and those around them. It looks at how a parent-child relationship might fall apart and how it could be healed. It offers a heartwarming and enjoyable read.
Recommended for anyone who enjoys stories about relationships and families.
Note for those with Kindle Unlimited, this is a free read. For others, it is worth buying.
This absolutely gorgeous, WWI-set, historical fiction title is one to savor and read at a leisurely pace. At 448 pages in length, it is one that requires the reader’s time.
Oxford, England-right before war (WWI) breaks out. Two sisters (twins), Peggy and Maude, live on a narrowboat on a canal. They work at the Oxford University Press putting together the books that will one day be read. The job is tedious but, in compensation, Peggy takes home any books with faults, adding to an already large home library.
Maude has an undiagnosed condition that seems somewhat like what today would be called autism. She requires much supervision from Peggy as the story opens. Maude seems content to live in the moment while Peggy is aware of the academic life in Oxford and deeply wishes that she could be part of it.
Oxford-war has begun. A group of Belgian refugees come to work at the press; each has her own backstory. Much attention is given to Lotte, someone who bonds with Maude. Wounded soldiers also come to town and Peggy begins to read to them.
This is how the novel begins; it slowly entrances the reader who wants to spend time in this community and its wide range of characters. There are those who live on the water, those who work in publishing, Gwen (who has the life that Peggy seems to want), the Belgians and many others. Spending time with all of them is a wonderful experience.
Highly recommended to historical fiction readers. They will want to know how the lives of the characters unfold in friendship, family, work and love.
As an aside, those who are interested in how books were actually made in the days long before a digital world, will learn a great deal here. These details enhanced the reader’s ability to enter the characters’ worlds.
Note that the author has written one previous novel; readers may well want to look for that one as well.
Here is what Library Journal concluded in a starred review:
VERDICT Highly recommended for readers who enjoy historical fiction about strong women, like the works of Kate Quinn, Beatriz Williams, and Laura Willig.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.
This is Stig Abell’s second title; it follows on Death Under a Little Sky. While it is not necessary to have read the first book to enjoy this one, anyone who likes Death in a Lonely Place will want to read the origin story.
Here are many of the characters from the first book starting with Jake. He is a former detective who has chosen to live largely off the grid in a remote home that he was left by a relative (although he has many go arounds).
Readers should take a look at the map of the estate that is in the front of the book. Jake has charmingly named the various spots for well-known detective fiction people and characters. There are other mysteries and authors mentioned in the text as well.
Jake is in a relationship with a local vet, Livia, who has a young daughter named Diana. He wants this relationship to succeed. He and Livia are in different spots as an old case surfaces and Jake becomes involved while Livia’s main wish is to keep Diana safe.
No Taboo-it is a dark organization that offers people the unthinkable. In investigating it Jake has to think about a very dark place. Readers will wonder how the events unfold. Will Diana’s newest and very wealthy client put her and/or Diana in danger?
This book offers an interesting mix between Jake’s rather cozy domestic life and some very nasty business. Abell manages both of these story aspects well.
I recommend this title to those who enjoy crime stories. I look forward to whatever Abell writes next.
Many thanks to Harper Collins UK and NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 11 April 2024
Praise for Death in a Lonely Place
‘Loved this. Multiple layers of delight for crime fiction fans’ Lee Child, creator of Jack Reacher
‘Abell is a skilled storyteller and it’s easy to fall into the pages of Death in a Lonely Place. Highly recommend’ Karin Slaughter, creator of Will Trent
‘An immersive, intelligent delight with huge atmosphere and heart. My favourite new crime series’ Lucy Foley, author of The Paris Apartment
‘Utterly beautiful descriptive prose that brings Jake Jackson’s world to life’ Jane Casey, author of the Maeve Kerrigan series
‘A darkly elegant, thrilling, escapist slice of countryside crime’ Chris Whitaker, author of We Begin at the End
Narrated by Pauline Chalamet; Jean Brassard; Corey Brill; Marisa Calin; Danny Campbell; James Fouhey; Matt Godfrey; Helen Lloyd; Jackie Sanders; Gary Tiedemann; Elizabeth Wiley; Gabra Zackman
#TheParisianChapter #NetGalley
Anyone who has read books by this author will want to listen to this audio recording (and if readers have not read her earlier novels, I highly recommend them). Some characters and places from the earlier works are in The Parisian Chapter, especially Lily, Odile and the wonderful American Library in Paris.
This recording tells an involving story through many characters. It is voiced by twelve narrators representing the different people. They include , in addition to Odile and Lily, Lily’s close friend Mary Louise, a young man in whom Lily becomes interested, authors, and the many who work at the library, are on the board, or attend events there.
This audio production is of very high quality. I loved hearing the different voices as each character narrated their chapters. I recommend this audio book to anyone who enjoys stories set in Paris with believable characters who have dreams.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Audio Originals for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 27 May 2025
Note that as far as I know, The Parisian Chapter will only be an audio resource. I do not think that there are plans to publish this one in book form.
I had learned about this title long before it was published and knew that I wanted to read it. I was absolutely thrilled to be given an advance e-galley.
I could not wait to sit down and begin this novel. I went on to savor it and find it easy to give an excellent review.
WWI led to devastation and a reorganization of British society. Many men died; many women were unlikely to marry. Social changes came as with the suffrage movement and (finally) the admittance of women to Oxford degrees. (Prior to this, women could attend but would not formally graduate).
This engrossing historical novel follows four women from this time period who were known as “the eights” because of the corridor that they lived on at their Oxford College. Readers meet Beatrice, Marianne, Otto, and Dora. Each has their own history and backstory.
Beatrice is the daughter of a very politically active mother who was an absent parent. Readers learn that it was difficult for Beatrice to confide in her mother. Beatrice s studying PPE (Philosophy, Politics and Economics).
Marianne is a cleric’s daughter. It is clear that she is hiding something. Marianne is also less financially well off than some of her peers.
Otto is part of a family with socialite sisters. Her parents would like her to marry. Otto is studying Mathematics.
Dora has had two major losses from the war relating to both her brother and finace. These men would have been at Oxford had there been no war. Dora feels that she is there in their place. Dora is studying English.
The world of Oxford in this time period is engagingly portrayed through many characters in addition to these four. I came to care very deeply for the eights and did not want the book to end. It is my sincere hope that Miller is penning her next novel even as I write this.
Note that there is a helpful glossary at the back of the book for those who are unfamiliar with British higher education.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 15 April 2025
Historical fiction
382 pages
Note:
Recommended those who have enjoyed the novels by Pip Williams.
A Goodreads Most Anticipated Book of Spring A Book Riot Best Historical Fiction of April A Brit & Co. New April Book to Add to Your Calendar STAT
“The Eights is an entertaining and moving imagining of four smart women dealing with the engrained misogyny of the time. I came to love these four women as though they were my sisters.” —Tracy Chevalier, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Girl with a Pearl Earring and The Glassmaker
“A story about women taking their place in a man’s world, The Eights beautifully captures the power of friendship and love in the wake of extraordinary loss. It was a pleasure to read.” —Pip Williams, New York Times bestselling author of The Dictionary of Lost Words
“Miller’s engrossing debut follows the first women undergraduates eligible to earn degrees at Oxford University. …. They’re unlikely allies, a novelistic trope that Miller transcends through insightful and surprising characterizations…. It’s a memorable tale of a fast-changing world.” —Publishers Weekly
“Miller describes campus life in vivid detail, and her protagonists are complex, with hidden motivations and insecurities that are gradually revealed as their friendships develop. This pairs well with Helen Simonson’s The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club and Kate Quinn’s The Briar Club.” —Booklist
“A heartfelt, thoughtful and engaging book about the first women students to go to Oxford University – their friendships, their secrets, their ambitions and their opponents – in the tremulous, haunted years immediately after the First World War. Joanna Miller brings 1920s Oxford to life with a vivid immediacy and makes us care deeply about four young women who find themselves pioneers in a strange new world, trying to find a way forward in the aftermath of war. A thoroughly lovely debut that will win many hearts, with its celebration of friendship and the persistence of hope.” —Joanna Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Whalebone Theatre
“My book of the year. The writing is wonderful, the subject fascinating and the storylines utterly absorbing. I’m so sad I’ve finished it. I loved everything about this book. I ADORED it.” —Jill Mansell, Sunday Times bestselling author of Rumor Has It
“The past feels astonishingly present in Joanna Miller’s debut…Rigorously researched, The Eights brilliantly synthesizes fact and fiction, and the trials and triumphs of the quartet are deeply relatable. [Surrounding a] debate about whether women have any business being at Oxford … The Eights is a rewarding read for anyone who enjoys emotional, character-driven narratives and for anyone who celebrates impeccable writing. But most of all, it’s for anyone who has ever been told they couldn’t do something but did it anyway.” —BookPage
This book offers a compilation of Christie tales in which many share a common theme of love in some manifestation. Inside are well-known sleuths including favorites Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, Jane Marple, and Hercule Poirot, along with the lesser known Parker Pyne.
Inside this volume, the stories are not new, often having been written in the 20s or 30s but they are combined here for the first time. All are good reads.
Sometimes a short story is just the right read. Maybe a reader is too busy for a long novel or maybe it is a day with a short attention span or possibly a reader’s preferred format is the short story. For all of these readers, here is a treat.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
I always enjoy seeing a new Cozy Case Files. Each time, readers are given ideas of books to read in this popular genre.
Here is info on books by Donna Andrews; Carolyn Haines; Katharine Schellman; Korina Moss; and Elizabeth Penney. I am already a fan of several of these writers so definitely will be looking forward to some new reads.
For each title, take a peek at the cover. Next, read what the book is about and then look at a generous excerpt. Finally, read the author’s biographies.
This is a wonderful way to check out some future reads. It is very easy to recommend this title.
Important note: This resource is free! Also, there is a link should readers want to receive email updates on any of these authors.
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press-Minotaur for this title. All opinions are my own.
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 