The bear family dramas Iv read ; part of the furniture was brilliant ! Just as good as the camomile lawn & now want to read all of Mary Wesley‘s back list . The family roundabout #persephonebookclub thank you @LeahBergen absolutely adored it ! Blew me away wonderful wonderful writing , any recommendations for more family dramas please 🙏 😃

Really ??? This was shortlisted for the women‘s prize ? I bought it after listening to a book tuber comparing the authors writing to Sarah waters. Sorry no ! First half is just boring , admittedly it does pick up and has a great twist at the end but sadly not worthy of more stars from me !

what a winner! Alongside highwages, to bed with grand music, the homemaker & someone from a distance this is in my favourite Persephone reads, actually I think it is my favourite. Iv tried to tag everyone in the group onto this and it wouldn‘t let me post came up with an error code … anyway the way the author captures the complexities of families , the different personalities the clashes the matriarchs of each clan -Mrs fowler & Mrs Willoughby 👇

Relaxing in the hairdressers half way into this little treat , poor poor juno. I‘m really surprised this book has such low ratings on all the main apps, perhaps 🤔 too many trigger warnings for modern sensibilities? Personally I think the writing is excellent : Mary Wesley reminds me of Elizabeth Jane Howard. Our young protagonist, juno is a victim of spoilt rich male cousins, frowned upon by their cruel mothers & ignored by her own, but is

Perfect 👌 ETL troupe bit of evil & murder thrown in, lots of smut ! 😆great valentines escapism and so much better than hooked & only book 2 !

It‘s arrived ! Did order a second hand copy this time #persephone but the cover is slightly dirty - so annoying when that happens I sell my books on or give away in pristine condition- anyway il be wiping 🧻 it down 😆and starting after the great 👍 escapist read scarred not highbrow but hey read what you fancy. Also have to get in the safe keep & before the coffee gets cold before starting this & now im back at work not so much reading time 🫤

Wonderful read , real women real stories of their amazing work and lives in ww2 all given in interviews to the author . Anyone with an interest in ww2 should read this , personally I think it should be on the secondary school curriculum, such an important part of our history “Lest we forget “ 🌺

Loved 🥰 it best fun Iv had reading a book for a while , like Bridget jones but with lots of different husbands 🤣

A very very slow paced story compared to the wonderful small pleasures which was one of my favourite books of the year when it was published. Sadly this one is lacking , I found the plot slow and boring the main protagonist as dull as dish water Helen not William . The author based the story on a real life event from the 50s which is terribly sad , at least this man got a happy ending but overall found it lacking #readinginthebath

Well that was a strange one , brilliantly translated, gothic horror , haunted house, thriller and possibly the closest thing Iv read that compares to an early Stephen king. Again alittle over long over descriptive in places but a unique different story to any other horror / gothic / thriller Iv read.

#bookspinbingo February picks a very long and very untidy TBR February Bookspin bingo list ! Edited and re edited I will tidy it up 😆thank you @TheAromaofBooks love our monthly bingo lists really helps to reduce the TBR pile 😆just throws a spanner 🔧 in the works when your bag of library books 📚 is due back plus you have 100s of your own ! Trying to stick to romance ❤️‍🔥 genre for feb happy 😊 reading all

Iv had a great 👍 reading 📖 month in January ☺️illness and no work helped so every cloud has a silver lining 😆and it‘s January it‘s cold 🥶 so what else is there to do but cosy on down with some good books 📚 favourites of the month are the 3 wonderful novellas by John Boyne Water Earth & Fire-Fire isn‘t published yet in the USA & has a controversial theme which has caused a lot of discussions,all uncomfortable topics but excellently tackled

Finished this delightful short read , set in the v wild Wild West a tale of two forlorn lovers , a hapless young poet a “doper” attracted to the shady side of life but somehow a loveable rogue who you want to seeturn around, falls for the captain of the local towns mine new bride & so they run away with a stolen horse and lots of stolen cash ,the bounty hunters and sheriff close down on them. Would never have picked itup bookclub pick, fantastic!

Just had to share this hilarious 🤣 text from one of my dear true soul sister buddies BFFs , she does make me laugh 🤭 but my goodness it is scary isn‘t it ? We have real life lex Luther‘s 😨😱😱😱😱

Anyone else suspicious 🤨 about this ???? Who is really in the White House , trump or the tech billionaires??? 😢 elite liberals what About elite far right ? Would they have followed hitler ???

Reading is such a personal thing some people hate this some like it wouldn‘t say anyone loves it , after watching a lot of Shakespeare recently at the RSC in Stratford upon Avon I bought this book there intrigued to find out more about Shakespeares dark lady Emilia bassano,100 odd pages in & chapters in Emilia‘s timeline I‘m so far enjoying but why the modern twist with Melina in manhattan?why didn‘t picoults editor tell her to ditch these parts?

Wow adebut novel so lucky to get an arc this one‘s gonna be a hit , it‘s out in March in the uk. With no spoilers - a story about the raw passion of first love , of mistakes , of loving two people at the same time , the discussions we make in youth and the consequences later in life , grief and the heartbreakof breavement, a crime , a thriller , a plot twist and ending you won‘t see coming,what more can I say , raced through itin 2days loved it

Mollie moonbeam (that is her actual kennel name 😆) and I have been lucky enough to receive an ARC of broken country & WOW 😮 a debut!it is fantastic.A love triangle, a reflection on grief,the age old question of can you be in love with 2 people at once? And a thriller/crime to boot, 76%into & it will be one of my favourite books of ‘25 already.not published here until March il be buying copies for myself & my friends. Compared to paper palace …..

This started well but oh my goodness Breen grated on me various times she needed a good shake ! The minor characters and her best friends Marco and Sally were excellent ! The romance ❤️‍🔥 wasn‘t as spicy or as full of attraction and lust as I usually like , however it is an easy escapist cosy read & the descriptions of Ireland are very realistic. Do I care enough to see the series out ?? As my library has all 3then yes, solid 3star read

We finally got snow ⛄️ in middle England 🇬🇧 instead of rain. My husband took this photo whilst walking the pups this is as deep as it‘ll get which is a shame I love it. And yes our house does look like the cottage in The holiday 😆that film has made it famous! #litsylove this is where your wonderful letters ✉️ ❤️🇬🇧come to, thank you

@MemoirsForMe hello 👋 Donna look what has arrived today thank you ☺️ mollie moonbeam and I reading 📖 with a pot of coffee ☕️ and a chocolate 🍫 biscuit 😆too cold 🥶 here to diet ! This one arrived a lot quicker, catch up soon lots of Litsy love ❤️ Karon x x x #litsylove

Well I‘m not working as I‘m poorly 🤒 winter ❄️ bugs here In UK 🇬🇧 plus I mixed a lot in December ! Anyway that means time to be cosy with my fur babies/ twins and binge read book 3 the brilliant 🤩 fire.Equally as disturbing but so well written don‘t be put off ! How characters are linked from each novella to the next is masterful im just sad about poor old Evan‘s outcome. Anyway now we have to wait until May for book 4 Aaron‘s story……..

2nd in this wonderful novella series from the wonderful John Boyne - let‘s see if it‘s as good as the wonderful water 💦 Mollie & her squeaky baby toy 🧸 agree 😆

Wow I LOVED this novella so much so I ordered the set so far published, John Boyne is not only one my favourite authors on the planet but he is also one of the nicest men Iv ever met, so lovely to talk to treating everyone with interest kindness and respect, perhaps it‘s this which makes him such a wonderful writer. Can‘t recommend this highly enough & my 1st 5star read of 2025 !

So so disappointed in Mrs miniver ! So much hype and perhaps my own fault as expected so much . Each chapter is a new short snippet story / glimpse into Mrs minivers life and whims, Jan struther was a v talented writer & perhaps this as a weekly column in the newspaper or in letter format was better. Personally I just found it rather boring some books where nothing happens are wonderful but Iv read far superior Persephone books to this one

Happy 😃 new year ; last day of the holidays in the UK (England not Scotland who get an extra day lucky 🍀 sausages ) cosy reading time with mollie moonbeam & Dear Mrs Miniver first new book of the new year

Well I was gonna read in bed 🛌 this morning 🤣🐶🤗 loving 🥰 rivals just as much as the tv series it‘s jilly coopers best , read most of her others as a teenager swiped from the adults 🤣happy NYE peeps 🥰

Loved 🥰 it super cosy easy read without being tacky second Christmas book of Emma Heatheringtons Iv read surely there‘s got to be a Christmas 🎅 film 🎥 soon ?? @Cupcake12 😀

Oh emmeline! I Had a discussion in the pub recently about how some people do genuinely seem to be born with no good luck or good fortune at all and seem to attract one disaster after another & so it is with emmeline. One of the most depressing books iv ever read because you just know what disaster is going to befall the beautiful but naive emmeline. It js a pacey page turner but I‘d never have read it if it wasn‘t my Persephone bookclub pick.

What a cracking little Christmas 🎄 caper this is , back on the train to London this morning for a great dickens Christmas 🎅 feast , I should really be reading a Christmas 🎄 Carol it‘s still the best and still my fav 🥰merry Christmas 🎄

@supanovashelley thank you 🤩 my lovely 🥰 reading buddy for this it‘s a great 👍 little festive read & for our Christmas 🎄 dinner 🍽️ get together and all our bookish love 🥰 💝

“What riches what an afternoon , the prospect of new friends excited her these days almost as much as new boyfriends had when she was young “ 🤣🤣yes it happens to us all , loved 🥰 the tv 📺 show and the book 📖 doesn‘t disappoint hooray for Jilly cooper if you want a funny sexy page turner to read over the holidays this is it ! 😀merry Christmas 🎄 you lovely 🥰 people 😘

I‘m so glad this was a kindle freebie because this is one of the worst books Iv read this year , it starts well but then disappears down the boring hole I found the world building tedious and at 259 odd pages still nothing has happened , I started to skim read it. I think romantasy books are either jam or marmite some are great some are truly awful and publishers are just desperate to publish more due to the current trend.not for me sorry

Started reading Demoncopperhead in our holiday cottage cosy by the fire 🔥 with a pup on my knee a cosy happy surrounding which is more than can be send for poor old Demon, this book is a misery fest & it made me want to foster and adopt children and teenagers right now ! It‘s a long one & I enjoyed reading it but wouldn‘t read it again, it‘s a worthy prize winner I enjoy BK‘s books but nothing will beat poisonwood bible for me that blew me away

Finished this on the train back from a long weekend last week in Manchester Christmas 🎄 markets. disappointed with this one to be honest ; I adored outlander and ordered this from the library (thankfully didn‘t buy it ) after synop compared it to outlander. Dual time lines I love & usually I prefer the historical plotline but this never got going for me & I preferred the modern storyline.It was OK read & slightly dull for me

#persephoneclub mine arrived today sorry Iv cheated and got a second hand copy rather than a Persephone - happy reading 📖 😀

Thank you 🙏 lovely litsys #litsylove for the birthday 🎈 cards the book marks the stickers the little note books & wonderful wonderful letters from here in the uk 🇬🇧and from overseas 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 🇦🇺 🇮🇱 international postage is now expensive (well it is from here ) so everything is very much appreciated,here‘s my little mollie moonbeam on the beach , as Wer away on the north Norfolk coast of England which is truly beautiful & winter sun is👌

#litsylove #novemberbirthdays thank you 🙏 lovely 🥰 litsys for my birthday 🎈 cards Wer back in north Norfolk for winter walks and cosy fires 🔥 in our cottage by the sea but must admit my reading this month has been very lax 😣

On the the train to London , first class treat and hotel 🏨 all paid for and not by me ☺️😍🥰 birthday 🎁 treats and the wonderful John Boyne is keeping me company 🥰

Another day another book 📖 and another photo of mollie moonbeams favourite 🤩 place 😂 #dogsonthebed #favouritereadingspot John Boyne is such a wonderful writer ✍️ and When I met him earlier this year a lovely 🥰 lovely 🥰 person ☺️so nice when you meet one of your favourite authors and your blown away by them #fangirl

#bookmail took the plunge and ordered the war time diaries of Joan Wyndham fitting it arrived on remembrance 🌺🌹day #lestweforget mollie moonbeam loves a photo bomb 💣 🐶💖

Mollie moonbeam and I finished this one in bed 🛌 this morning 🌅 😂one of our favourite ❤️ places to read , anyway a so so read for me the author states at the back of the book at stages she didn‘t think she‘d finish 🙃 writing this ; and I can see why . It isn‘t bad far from it , it just lakes depth - there‘s a great story in there somewhere and I appreciate how hard the writing process is. So on Remembrance Day remembering our brave & fallen

A great 👍 Christmas 🎄 gift idea for book lovers , I received it last year & it really is a cuddle 🤗 and a hot chocolate ☕️ in a book 📖 I‘d send it on prescription to everyone in USA 🇺🇸 if I could

With a thoroughly depressing day 😢😫 I was wondering 🤔 what are your cosy reads for dark times ?? Jane Austen‘s pride & prejudice ? The pumpkin 🎃 spice cafe ?? Harry Potter ? Claire Chambers ?? Dear Reader ?? What would you recommend ??☺️🤗

oh America🇺🇸 my heart weeps for you .Russia and North Korea are delighted , poor Ukraine 🇺🇦 😭. I cannot believe that people cannot see he has clear autocratic sympathies 😭😭😭😭 it is heart breaking 💔 are we on the way to ww3 , I‘m staying in bed 🛌 today with books 📚 puppies 🐶 coffee ☕️ food and Disney films 🎥 , I do have a chest infection but on top of that it‘s now depression

NOooooooo 😭how the hell has this happened ! a convicted felon , a misogynist, homophobic, racist leading one of the biggest nations in the world , if your a woman your gay or trans or a person of colour move to the uk , it‘s like a dystopian nightmare !! Omg poor Ukraine , poor world he‘s such a wild card iritic politics Wer all screwed.heart broken for America 🇺🇸 for us all 😭😭

Had to re arrange my bingo card due to library 📚 book holds@coming in & bookclub picks 🙈too many books 📚 too little time 🕰️ 😫happy November reading 📖 folks & thank you 🙏 @TheAromaofBooks

Part WW1 history part ghost 👻 story perfect November pick leading up to Remembrance Sunday “lest we forget 💔“ 🌺👩‍✈️👨🏻‍🚒👩🏾‍🚒💂🏻‍♀️💂🏿‍♂️🧑‍⚕️👩🏽‍⚕️👨🏽‍⚕️👨🏼‍✈️🕵️🕵️‍♀️🕵🏽‍♂️🕵🏻‍♂️

7books read in October, at the bottom of the list and a real drag was iron flame best readsof the month 2 outstanding books highly recommended:Strange sally diamond & The world that we knew both unlike anything Iv read before which is a true achievement as nothing is r truly original anymore , imagine reading Jekyll & Hyde , Frankenstein or Dracula for the first time and not knowing the story. Southern bookclub guide to vampireslaying was great

By far the best Grady Hendrix in my opinion, so far I tried my best friends exorcism and how to sell a haunted house which I dnf‘ed. SBCGTVS romps along it‘s a fast pasted horror but not to scary or disturbing and not really gruesome until the end , a perfect 👌 Halloween 🎃 read & I thoroughly enjoyed it. More spooky 👻 reads please