A collection of five spooky short stories from the master of classic horror with a contemporary twist, I loved the different themes Hill gets into in this collection. You may…
The Travelling Bag and Other Ghostly Stories by Susan Hill (Review)
Dracula by Bram Stoker
What a joy to read! I think the legend built around this book sometimes obscure what a great read it really is… Some beautiful plotting in this 1897 bestseller. I…
84 Charing Cross Road & The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street by Helene Hanff
Two books in one, and what a treat these are! These works are absolutely iconic, and the first one catapulted Helene to instant cult fame. I can really see why….
It Lasts Forever and then It’s Over by Anne De Marcken
So this was a weird one for me! Have you ever read a book you respect and like, but maybe don’t always enjoy so much? I think some of the…
Cover Her Face by P.D James
This great pastel edition celebrates her first 1962 novel, Cover Her Face, and it actually is part of an imprint that celebrates first novels: the Faber Firsts. Caught my eye…
The Professor’s House by Willa Cather
Cather is a great writer. I recently started her Plains trilogy and was pleased to find another “city” novel by her. I liked the idea of a closely followed narrative…
Whale Fall by Elizabeth O’Connor
This is a really unique book, set in a Welsh island community in the 1930s, a young woman seeks to reconcile her need for adventure and the love she has…
The Rise by Ian Rankin
Another audiobook. Can you believe I only did my first audiobook read a few months ago? It’s definitely a nice way to mix things up. This is a short novella…
Prima Facie by Suzie Miller
This is a powerful one-woman play. Having it read by Jodie Comer who also played Tessa (the protagonist – an ambitious young barrister) during its London run is a real…
Madonna In a Fur Coat by Sabahattin Ali
A modern Turkish classic, first published in 1943, this is a bittersweet tale of love, identity, intimacy, and friendship. It wasn’t translated into English until 2016! Raif, an “innocent” Turkish…
The Mysterious Affair at Styles (Stylesin Tapaus) by Agatha Christie
I’ve read two books in Finnish so far this year, something I rarely do these days, but I’m very pleased I did! Reading Christie in Finnish takes me back to…
Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert
Dune part two packs a punch! What a way to start off my 2025…. (this was actually the first book I finished this year). We pick up the action quite…
Dead Man’s Folly by Agatha Christie
One of my early year reads: an easy one to keep up with amongst all the festive and travel shenanigans. Ariadne Oliver and Hercule Poirot join forces in this tale…
The Sculptor’s Daughter (Bildhuggarens dotter/Kuvanveistäjän tytär) by Tove Jansson
My first Finnish-language book in years, and what a banger to start with!! Reading this in snowy Helsinki and visiting Tove’s childhood street and looking up at the studio she…
The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide
Last review of the year! This was a really sweet & short book. Constructed as a series of vignettes, this story maps out how a visiting cat transforms a young…
So Late in the Day by Claire Keegan
A novella that follows a lonely Friday summer evening during which Cathal leaves his Dublin office, takes the bus home, and wanders around his place, thinking about Sabine. Sabine, the…
Murder at Christmas murder mystery collection ed. Cecily Gayford
Classic crime fiction writers’ stories collected into one festive edition, each story with a slightly different take on the festive murder. The authors featured are the likes of Dorothy L…
Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie
Despite the subtitle, this did not have much in it that made it seem like “the last Marple case” – she seemed her usual sprightly self! This cover is another…
Dune by Frank Herbert
I’m not the biggest science fiction aficionado but this was a real pleasure to read. Herbert didn’t necessarily make it easy to get into the book, but once it gets…
A Whole Life by Robert Seethaler
I read his The Tobacconist years ago, which was a wonderful read as well – a moving tale of wartime Vienna seen through the eyes of a young apprentice to…
Murder is Easy by Agatha Christie
I love a Christmas Christie! This is not a Poirot or a Marple, but it’s a fun detective novel anyways. Published in 1939, this is actually the first edition dust…
The Third Man and The Fallen Idol by Graham Greene
Firstly, Greene is such an incredible writer and I was again reminded of this fact reading these two stories of his! The premise of this book is to present two…
The Last Devil To Die by Richard Osman
I love this book series and felt like this one was definitely a highlight. It’s always a bit of a nerve-wracking time to sit down and read the latest book…
Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout
Reading the Lucy Barton series has been a lot of fun, and this one was the probably my favourite one yet. In this book we examine Lucy’s relationship with her…
Leaf Storm (La Hojarasca) by Gabriel García Márquez
Oh how I enjoy a Márquez! La próxima vez yo lo leeré en español (quizás). It’s a typical short novella by Márquez, with some echoes of Love in the Time…
Real Estate by Deborah Levy
The final instalment of the Living Autobiography series! These books have been super easy for me to read. Not necessarily always wholly relatable, they are beautiful, satisfying, and full of…
A Jealous Ghost by A.N Wilson
This was a fun seasonal horror remake! Massive fan of books inspired by literary classics, just can’t help myself. Retelling/ engaging with The Turn of the Screw by Henry James,…
I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy (Review)
I’d seen a lot of hype around this book, and I was curious to see how the title and the story would play out. I’d seen some promotional material, so…
Strong Female Character by Fern Brady
Can you believe this was my first ever audiobook?! What a way to start. When I saw that Fern Brady had written a book about her autism diagnosis and that…
A Fatal Crossing by Tom Hindle
This book and writer has crossed my path before, so I was curious to dive in. There’s a few of these murder mysteries by Tom Hindle, often set in very…
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Wow, what a powerful read. Jeannette, New York journalist, tells us the story of her chaotic childhood with her charismatic alcoholic father and her depressive artist mother. With her three…
Slow Days, Fast Company: The World, The Flesh, And LA by Eve Babitz
I didn’t know I’d love this as much as I did! Eve Babitz is a bit of a legend, a Hollywood muse, and I thought it was really powerful to…
The Last Song of Penelope by Claire North
I’ve read the entire Penelope series by Claire North. Feminist, comic, engaging, and insightful, the retelling of Penelope focuses on her queenhood on Ithaca and female solidarity. This final book…
Aftermath: On Marriage and Separation by Rachel Cusk
Now, I love Rachel Cusk and have hoovered up a lot of her work. This one is more of a memoir than some of the other Rachel Cusk stuff I’ve…
The Safe Keep by Yael van der Wounden
This was good, but it’s hard to say much about it as there’s some essential things that you find out during the story that change things! So I don’t want…
The Immoralist by André Gide
A random pick from the library, this short French novel is about the sexual awakening of a young man on his honeymoon to Tunisia. For its time it was a…
Hardboiled, Hard Luck by Banana Yoshimoto
Two beautiful stories in one! What a great double bill. These tender stories are about grief, love, and connection. The first one is about a woman’s meditative and supernatural night…
The Hotel Avocado 🥑 by Bob Mortimer
This is the second book in the series, and I definitely loved this as much as previous one, The Satsuma Complex🍊 I’m not even usually a big comic writing fan,…
A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen
First of all, I need to see this in performance! I can really see how the text would come alive with dialogue and physical drama. This play is a very…
Woman Without Shame: Poems by Sandra Cisneros
Funny, powerful, tragic, visceral, intelligent, lively…. Just some of the words I’d use to describe these poems. Of House on Mango Street fame, Cisneros is a versatile poet and storyteller,…
My Evil Mother by Margaret Atwood
This was actually a bit of fun! A novella/short story by Atwood about the funny yet sinister suburban mum who is documented through her daughter’s eyes. It’s great to see…
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
I can’t believe I hadn’t read this one before! It’s a surreal and though-provoking gem. I really enjoyed this book and the premise: one woman’s journey to her own kind…
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
This has become a book I recommend on a regular basis! An important piece of investigative journalism led to this book that intersects topics such as race, medical ethics, gynaecology,…
Ordinary Human Failings by Megan Nolan
Devastating in the best possible way. I don’t know if that’s a real thing, but that is how the book felt to me. Exquisite and painful. Such unbelievable human and…
Hera by Jennifer Saint
Catching up with my holiday reading reviews! Jennifer Saint is another author I’ve followed for awhile, reading her Ariadne, Atalanta, and Elektra books in this same “series” of revisionist books…
Death Valley by Melissa Broder
I’m a fan of Broder’s writing and have hoovered up her novels as they come out, and this one was no different. It’s a simple premise sprinkled with some funky…
Peril at End House by Agatha Christie
Another Hercule Poirot mystery from the Queen of crime! This one wasn’t as good as Sad Cypress that I have just recently read, but it’s still pretty good. The premise…
The List by Yomi Adegoke
This book was hyped, which I always have mixed feelings about. It can be hard to drop the “what’s the hype” lens. Here’s the premise: what if your fiancé ends…
Rizzio by Denise Mina
A short novel about David Rizzio’s murder? Yes please! Rizzio was a confidante of Mary Queen of Scots and he was assassinated by Darnley (her husband) and a group of…
O’Pioneers by Willa Cather
My family book club read! This is technically part of her plains novel trilogy, but I think most people read her much more famous work My Antonia. (I’m not sure…