Tag Archives: Summer reading

WWW Wednesday – Currently Reading, Finished Reading, Reading Next

It’s W W W Wednesday! Hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words, here are my 3 Ws (Currently Reading, Just Finished Reading and Future Reading):

What I Am Currently Reading:

Queen Charlotte by Julia Quinn and Shonda Rhimes (click for link to Goodreads)

I have read a bit more of this book, but prioritised a Blog Tour book over it, so I am not as far through as I could be!

What I Have Finished Reading:

Summer at the Ice Cream Cafe by Jo Thomas (click for link to Goodreads)

Keep your eyes peeled for my review on 8 June!

What I Am Reading Next:

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (click for link to Goodreads)

I keep meaning to start this book, but other ones get in the way! I have a couple of Blog Tours coming up and I am waiting for those books to come through, so if they do arrive then this book might be put back again…

What are your 3 Ws for this week?

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #currentlyreading #finishedreading #bookreview #instaread #lovetoread #booksarelife #readingisfundamental #whatimreading #bookreviewer #bookaddicts #bookpost #tbrpile #justread #bookishphotography #whattoreadnext #readallday #bookworms #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #bookpic #newreads #booknerd #library #popularbooks #newbooks #wwwwednesday #springreading

“book”, “read”, “book review”, “book blog”, “new”, “recommended”, “easy read”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “reading slump” “entertaining”, “what should I read next”, “what books do you recommend”, “popular books”

Sunday Post

Welcome to my Sunday post hosted by Caffeinated Reviewer. A busy week this week with book reviews, coronation posts and book memes!

On the Blog this week:

👑Red, White and Blue Covers for The King’s Coronation Weekend👑

👑Goodreads Monday – Coronation Bank Holiday Special – The Windsor Knot by S.J. Bennett👑

👑Red,White & Blue Covers for The King’s Coronation Bank Holiday👑

Library Book Review – Royals by Rachel Hawkins

WWW Wednesday – Currently Reading, Finished Reading, Reading Next

Library Book Review -The Boy Who Would Be King by Michael Porpurgo

Time Travel Thursday

Random Things Tours – Book Review – Sylvia by Maithryi Karnoor

First Line Friday – Summer Wedding by Sarah Morgan

Stacking The Shelves

Eurovision Final – Books that are set in the Countries that are in the Final!

Happy Mother’s Day!

I hope that you have all had a good week!

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #currentlyreading #bookreview #instaread #lovetoread #booksarelife #readingisfundamental #whatimreading #bookreviewer #bookaddicts #bookpost #tbrpile #justread #bookishphotography #whattoreadnext #readallday #bookworms #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #bookpic #newreads #booknerd #sundaypost #springreading #bookmeme #coronation #royal #eurovision

“book”, “read”, “book review”, “book blog”,”recommended”, “easy read”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “entertaining”, “what should I read next”, “what books do you recommend”, “spring reading”, “coronation”, “royal”, “eurovision”

Happy Mother’s Day!

Happy Mother’s Day!

As I am in the UK I had my Mother’s Day in March, but Happy Mother’s Day to those of you celebrating today!

I have decided to highlight my latest read, a Netgalley book, Summer Wedding by Sarah Morgan. I have chosen this book because it centres around a Mother and the outcomes of the decisions that she has had to make in her life. My review is due on 25 May so keep your eyes peeled for that!

Summer Wedding by Sarah Morgan (click for link to Goodreads)

Book Description From Goodreads:

“A family wedding
Catherine Swift is a bestselling romance author, but her personal story hasn’t been quite so successful; three failed marriages have left her relationship with her daughters strained. Engaged once again, Catherine is counting on this wedding, at her villa in Corfu, to finally bring the family together.

A summer of secrets
Adeline can’t believe her mother is getting married for a fourth time, or that she’s expected to attend. It brings back the pain of her mother’s infidelity and the baby who was the result. Not that she blames her half-sister Cassie, but then she’s never tried to know her, either. Cassie, on the other hand, is thrilled by her mother’s news – she’s always admired Catherine’s resilience, and is excited to meet the mystery groom. Cassie also has a secret of her own, and a summer in Corfu will give her the time she needs to process everything.

A chance to start over again
As the guests arrive on the island, and the big day approaches, Catherine begins to reveal secrets from her past, and suddenly both Cassie and Adeline realise that they don’t know their mother at all…”

Have a great day!

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #currentlyreading #bookreview #instaread #lovetoread #booksarelife #readingisfundamental #whatimreading #bookreviewer #bookaddicts #bookpost #tbrpile #justread #bookishphotography #whattoreadnext #readallday #bookworms #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #bookpic #newreads #booknerd #mothersday

“book”, “read”, “book review”, “book blog”,”recommended”, “easy read”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “entertaining”, “what should I read next”, “mother’s day”

Sunday Salon

Welcome to my Sunday Salon post! Hosted by Readerbuzz this post is a chance to have a weekly bookish and non-bookish catch up with other bloggers.

Books that I have been reading this week:

If It Looks Like A Duck by Frank Malley

This is my Author’s Request book

American Royals by Katharine McGee (click for link to Goodreads)

One of my books from my TBR shelves!

My Book Of The Week That Took Part In This Week’s Memes Was:

If It Looks Like A Duck by Frank Malley

Memes that I have participated in this week:

Goodreads Monday – Hosted by me Budget Tales Book Blog

Top Ten Tuesday – Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros – Hosted by Socrates Book Reviews

WWW Wednesday – Hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words

Goodreads Top 5 Wednesday – Hosted by Goodreads T5W group

Time Travel Thursday – Hosted by me Budget Tales Blog

Book Blogger Hop – Hosted by Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer

The Friday 56 – Hosted by Freda’s Voice

Let’s Talk Bookish – Hosted by Aria @ Book Nook Bits

Stacking the Shelves – Hosted by Reading Reality

Library Loot – Hosted by The Captive Reader and Real Life Reading

All Over Instagram – Hosted by me Budget Tales Book Blog

Places My Books Have Taken Me – Hosted by me Budget Tales Book Blog

Sunday Post – Hosted by Caffeinated Reviewer

What else has been happening this week:

So we have just had the final week of the Summer Holidays. I can’t believe that this time has come! My son is excited to start school though which is good. 

For our final week we have been fairly busy. On Bank Holiday Monday we went to Chartwell, the home of Winston Churchill, which was lovely. Such a beautiful house with great views! Tuesday we had a play date with one of my son’s new class mates which was nice, Wednesday we drove to Deal for a pub lunch and an outside paddling pool. It was so windy and the sea was very rough so we didn’t even contemplate going in! We also went to an Ice Cream Parlour and a walk along the pier. My partner went back to work on Thursday (he is a teacher so goes back a couple of days before the students) whilst my son and I had a quiet day that included a short walk to the library. On Friday we went to a 45 minute session to get to know the classroom that he will be in from Monday (!!) then went into Cranbrook for another library visit, a play in the playground and a milkshake. Saturday we went to a family BBQ and Sunday we had a quiet day sorting out school clothes!

Chartwell House

Chartwell Gardens

Chartwell Gardens

Chartwell Gardens

View across the Garden

Chartwell Gardens – a herd of cows!

Zoomed in picture of the calf

Deal Beach and Pier

Deal Beach

Deal Beach and Town

Deal Town

Deal Ice Cream Parlour – honestly it was the size of a vase!

Aurthur’s Cafe in Cranbrook for a Jaffa Cake Milkshake!

How has your week been?

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #bookreview #instaread #lovetoread #booksarelife #readingisfundamental #whatimreading #bookreviewer #bookaddicts #bookpost #tbrpile #justread #bookishphotography #whattoreadnext #readallday #bookworms #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #bookpic #newreads #booknerd #bibliophile #library #sundaysalon #mystery #summerreading

“book”, “read”, “book review”, “book blog”,”recommended”, “easy read”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “entertaining”, “book meme”, “weekly wrap up”, “sunday salon”, “what books do you recommend”, “what books are popular on social media”, “what book should I read next”, “mystery”, “summer reading”

Sunday Post

Welcome to my Sunday post hosted by Caffeinated Reviewer. A very busy week this week both on and off the blog, with end of the month posts in addtion to my normal posting schedule and ending with a 45 minute school session on Friday for my son – where have those 4 years gone?!

Here are this week’s posts:

Sunday Salon (last week)

Sunday Night Reading

Goodreads Monday (add your links in the comments section for all to see!) – French Children Don’t Throw Food by Pamela Druckerman

Bank Holiday Monday Reading Plans!

My Book Of The Week – If It Looks Like A Duck by Frank Malley

Bank Holiday Monday Reading

Top Ten Tuesday – Books With A School Theme

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros – If It Looks Like A Duck by Frank Malley

Tuesday Night Reading

WWW Wednesday – Currently Reading, Finished Reading, Reading Next

What I have been reading this month – August 2022 Reading List END OF THE MONTH WRAP UP POST

Wondrous Words Wednesday

Book of the Month – My Favourite Book Of August 2022 END OF THE MONTH WRAP UP POST

Goodreads Top 5 Wednesday – Books Where The Characters Are Skilled Fighters

New Month New Goals! Reading Goals for September

Wednesday Night Reading

Happy Publication Day! Double or Nothing by Kim Sherwood

Time Travel Thursday

August Monthly Wrap-Up – END OF THE MONTH WRAP UP POST

One Word Reviews For Books I Read In August – END OF THE MONTH WRAP UP POST

5 Star Summer Reads Part 2 (July to August)

Thursday Night Reading

Random Things Tours – Book Review – Double or Nothing by Kim Sherwood

Friday 56 – If It Looks Like A Duck by Frank Malley

Book Blogger Hop – Is it difficult to find new books in local bookstores?

Lets Talk Bookish – Overwhelming TBR piles!

Places My Books Have Taken Me This Month – August 2022 – END OF THE MONTH WRAP UP POST

Books that I have been seeing all over Instagram this week

Stacking The Shelves/Library Loot

Weekend Reading – What I am planning on reading this weekend – #weekendreading #whatshouldIreadnext

Saturday Night Reading

Top 10 Tuesday post I participated in with links to other Bloggers Top 10 Tuesday posts:

That Artsy Reader Girl – Top 10 Tuesday

WWW Wednesday post I participated in with links (in the comments section) to other Bloggers WWW Wednesday posts:

Taking On A World Of Words – WWW Wednesday

Friday 56 I participated in with links to other Bloggers Friday 56 posts:

Freda’s Voice – Friday 56

Book Blogger Hop I participated in with links to other Bloggers Book Blogger Hop posts:

Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer – Book Blogger Hop

Stacking The Shelves I participated in with links to other Bloggers Stacking The Shelves posts:

Reading Reality – Stacking The Shelves

I hope that you have all had a good week!

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #currentlyreading #bookreview #instaread #lovetoread #booksarelife #readingisfundamental #whatimreading #bookreviewer #bookaddicts #bookpost #tbrpile #justread #bookishphotography #whattoreadnext #readallday #bookworms #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #bookpic #newreads #booknerd #sundaypost #mystery #romance

“book”, “read”, “book review”, “book blog”,”recommended”, “easy read”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “entertaining”, “mystery”, “what should I read next”, “what books do you recommend”, “which books are popular at the moment”, “what is everyone reading”

5 Star Summer Reads Part 2 (July to August)

Every season I like to look back and revisit my 5 star reads. As well as trying to read different genres, I also like to try and match my reading to the season as far as possible.

So here were my 5 star reads for the second half of Summer (click for my reviews):

Book Review – Paris For One and Other Stories by Jojo Moyes – SHORT STORIES

Book Review – Last Time We Met by Emily Houghton – ROMANCE

Book Review – The Little Paris Patisserie by Julie Caplin – ROMANCE

Book Review – The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict – CHRISTMAS/MYSTERY

Book Review – The Weekend Before The Wedding by Tracy Bloom – ROM COM

Book Review – Quarter To Midnight by Karen Rose – THRILLER/MYSTERY

What have been your 5 star Summer reads? Have you read any of these?

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #currentlyreading #bookreview #instaread #lovetoread #booksarelife #readingisfundamental #whatimreading #bookreviewer #bookaddicts #bookpost #tbrpile #justread #bookishphotography #whattoreadnext #readallday #bookworms #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #bookpic #newreads #booknerd #bookblog #5starsummerreads #5starbook

“book”, “read”, “book review”, “book blog”,”recommended”, “easy read”, “don’t miss out”, “rom com”, “mystery”, “thriller”, “summer reading”, “reading slump”, “what should I read next”, “what book do you recommend”, “library”, “what book should I get from the library”, “what books should I read this summer”

August Monthly Wrap-Up

I can’t believe that it is the end of August and the end of the Summer Holidays (and Summer itself!). Next week everyone will be back at school and it will be my son’s first day. I can’t believe how fast those 4 years went!

It has been an average reading month for me with only two 5 star books and also quite a slow reading month as I have been out and about having fun!

Anyway, here is a wrap up of my month:

Here is what I have been reading this month:

August Reading List

August Book Of The Month

My Book Reviews:

Random Things Tours – Book Review – The Weekend Before The Wedding by Tracy Bloom

Library Book Review – Circe by Madeline Miller

Random Things Tours – Book Review – Quarter To Midnight by Karen Rose

Library Book Review – Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

Buddy Read Book Review – The Christie Affair by Nina De Gramont

My Sunday Wrap Up Posts:

Sunday Post 7 August 2022

Sunday Post 14 August 2022

Sunday Post 21 August 2022

Sunday Post 28 August 2022

I hope that you have enjoyed my reviews and other posts. Here’s to next month!

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #currentlyreading #bookreview #instaread #lovetoread #booksarelife #readingisfundamental #whatimreading #bookreviewer #bookaddicts #bookpost #tbrpile #justread #bookishphotography #whattoreadnext #readallday #bookworms #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #bookpic #newreads #booknerd #augustreading #readinggoals #wrapup

“book”, “read”, “book review”, “book blog”,”recommended”, “easy read”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “entertaining”, “august reading”, “reading goals”, “romance”, “what book should I read next”, “which books are popular on social media”, “what books would you recommend”, “wrap up”

Buddy Read Book Review – The Christie Affair by Nina De Gramont

My own copy, but it is available at the library

Genre: Mystery

Number of Pages: 320

📖PLOT SUMMARY📖

Why would the world’s most famous mystery writer disappear for eleven days? What makes a woman desperate enough to destroy another woman’s marriage? How deeply can a person crave revenge?

In 1925, Miss Nan O’Dea infiltrated the wealthy, rarefied world of author Agatha Christie and her husband, Archie. In every way, she became a part of their life––first, both Christies. Then, just Archie. Soon, Nan became Archie’s mistress, luring him away from his devoted wife, desperate to marry him. Nan’s plot didn’t begin the day she met Archie and Agatha.

It began decades before, in Ireland, when Nan was a young girl. She and the man she loved were a star-crossed couple who were destined to be together––until the Great War, a pandemic, and shameful secrets tore them apart. Then acts of unspeakable cruelty kept them separated.

What drives someone to murder? What will someone do in the name of love? What kind of crime can someone never forgive? Nina de Gramont’s brilliant, unforgettable novel explores these questions and more.

💭MY THOUGHTS💭

This was my first buddy read and I have to say that I rather enjoyed it. It was nice knowing that there were other people reading the same thing as me and that we could all share our views. 

It was an interesting book. I had seen it on Instagram a while ago and had it on my TBR shelf. I thought that it would be a good one for us all to read. For me it was a good read, with an excellent twist. It wasn’t outstanding, but I don’t regret reading it! 

The writing was interesting in that it was from the point of view from ‘the other woman’. It also went back and forth in time, mixing the tenses and adding ‘future’ comments which I have to say at some points confused me. I ended up actually ignoring the chapter titles as they made matters worse. I did however like that it was written in a ‘chatty’ style and made you feel as if you were being spoken to directly. 

The book itself was split into 3 parts. I am not entirely sure why it was done that way as it was very to and fro throughout the whole book. I usually enjoy a book’s chapter titles, but, as mentioned above, in this case it just confused me and so I ignored them. 

The chapters themselves varied in length and some were split into smaller sections. This helped give the story a good pace. There was always something happening that kept my interest. 

Whilst I enjoyed reading it at the time, once I had put it down I didn’t rush to pick it back up again. I was surprised at this because I thought that I would genuinely want to know how the story ended, but the feeling wasn’t there for me. 

The characters however were excellent. I felt a mix of emotions towards the narrator and I enjoyed hearing from her about a fictional Agatha Christie and what she got up to during those eleven days. 

Lastly the settings. I loved that we were taken on a journey around the UK and Ireland and enjoyed the number of different settings. I loved the little bits of detail about the places here and there. They definitely added to the story.  

Overall a good read for me. Here are the thoughts from my sister (Elizabeth) and cousin (Bethany):

💭ELIZABETH’S THOUGHTS💭

“I tend to go for crime or thriller books and I was expecting this to fit into these categories. However, it wasn’t quite as fast paced with dramatic twists as I had hoped for the first half of the book.

I liked the characters and felt that they helped move the story along quite well even if there wasn’t much action happening. I liked reading about the younger mistress to understand her life beforehand and bring a little more context to the story.

There were a few small questions I wanted answered as the story progressed which encouraged me to keep reading, but otherwise I did find that I wasn’t itching to get back to reading it again.

However, the last 100 pages were well worth the wait. There were lots of twists and turns and unexpected revelations. I felt like most of the questions I had were answered but some mystery remained at the end.”

💭BETHANY’S THOUGHTS💭

“This book was not my usual genre of choice, and though at the beginning I struggled to fully immerse myself in the storyline, through persistence I managed to enjoy the book for the most part. With the many unexpected twists and emotional scenes I ended up sympathising with many of the characters, one of which was very surprising. It re-established the thought that there are many different sides to one story!”

#bookstagram #instabook #bookphotography #igbooks #ilovereading #bookhaul #bookhoarder #bookaddiction #bookstoread #whattoread #fortheloveofbooks #bookblogging #bookpics #weekendreads #bookrecs #booknerdproblems #bookpictures #bookstagram #amreading #booksbooksbooks #instablog #booknerds #bookphotos #bibliophile #mystery #library #buddyread

“book”, “read”, “book blog”, “easy read”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “mystery”, “summer reading”, “buddy read”

Books that I have been seeing all over Instagram this week

Welcome to my All Over Instagram post! I am always interested in seeing what other people are reading, so each week I will highlight the book/s/ author/s that have been catching my attention on Instagram.

This week we have a new popular book, Love On The Brain by Ali Hazelwood (click for link to Goodreads). This came out earlier this week and it seems to be all over Instagram! I can’t wait to get a copy of my own!

The most popular author this week is Colleen Hoover (click for link to Goodreads). There are a mix of her books floating around.

Love On The Brain by Ali Hazelwood (click for link to Goodreads)

Book Description From Goodreads:

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis comes a new STEMinist rom-com in which a scientist is forced to work on a project with her nemesis—with explosive results.

Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered her the lead on a neuroengineering project – a literal dream come true – Marie would accept without hesitation. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to co-lead with Levi Ward.

Sure, Levi is attractive in a tall, dark, and piercing-eyes kind of way. But Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school – archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away.

But when her equipment starts to go missing and the staff ignore her, Bee could swear she sees Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays, seconding her ideas… devouring her with those eyes. The possibilities have all her neurons firing.

But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there’s only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?”

What books/authors have caught your attention this week?

Add your links in the comments!

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #currentlyreading #bookreview #instaread #lovetoread #booksarelife #readingisfundamental #whatimreading #bookreviewer #bookaddicts #bookpost #tbrpile #justread #bookishphotography #whattoreadnext #readallday #bookworms #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #bookpic #newreads #booknerd #alloverinstagram #popularbooks #popularbooksof2022 #summer #summerreading #summerbooks

“book”, “read”, “book blog”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “entertaining”, “what should I read next”, “what is everyone reading”, “what is popular on Instagram”, “popular books of 2022”, “summer reading”, “summer books”, “what books should I read this summer”

Favourite Genre – Books This Summer – Friday Musings inspired by Six For Sunday

Welcome to my Friday Musings Post! This is where every week I will scour the Blogosphere and find past meme questions and incorporate them into a current post (linking back to the blog who set the meme).

This week I have chosen:

Six For Sunday hosted by A Little But A Lot

On 8 October 2017 the prompt was Favourite Genre. As you know I set myself genre goals each month so that I can broaden my reading. For this post I thought that I would do the tough job of finding a favourite book in each of the genres that I have read this Summer (NOTE: It is for this Summer only and therefore doesn’t include the rest of the year):

ROMANCE

Book Review – Last Time We Met by Emily Houghton

MYSTERY

Book Review – The 13th Assassin by Frank Malley

COSY MYSTERY

Book Review – Daisy and the Dazzling Dachshunds by Janey Clarke

THRILLER

Book Review – Do No Harm by Jack Jordan

CHRISTMAS

Library Book Review – The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict

MYTHOLOGY RETELLING

Library Book Review – Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

What genres and books would be on your Summer list?

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #currentlyreading #bookreview #instaread #lovetoread #booksarelife #readingisfundamental #whatimreading #bookreviewer #bookaddicts #bookpost #tbrpile #justread #bookishphotography #whattoreadnext #readallday #bookworms #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #bookpic #newreads #booknerd #friday #summerreading #favouritegenre

“book”, “read”, “book review”, “book blog”,”recommended”, “easy read”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “entertaining”, “what should I read next”, “favourite genre”