Top Five Tuesday – Books on my Christmas wish list

It’s Top Five Tuesday which is hosted by Meeghan Reads, every week we’re given a book related topic and we choose our top five! This week we’ve got to share the books on our holiday wish list! I’ve only actually asked for three of these but I’ve got a gift card from my birthday which I’ll use for the others.

1. The Pearl Sister by Lucinda Riley

I love this series and I’ve been waiting to continue it for a while so I’ve asked for the fourth and fifth books for Christmas. The Pearl Sister follows CeCe to Australia on her journey of self discovery.

2. Making History by Stephen Fry

An earnest history student and a German physicist have the idea to stop Hitler ever being born. From their success a new world is born, it’s different and in some ways better, but also worse. I am so excited to read this, I live alternate history ideas so to have a whole book…just brilliant!

3. The Moon Sister by Lucinda Riley

The fifth book in the series is focused on Tiggy, she currently lives in Scotland and loves her job looking after deer at a sanctuary. We also go back in time to Spain during their civil war. I don’t know a lot about that time so that will be really interesting.

4. The Forgotten Room by Karen White

I’ve had this on my TBR list forever but I’ve struggled to find a place to buy it from so I kept pushing it back! In New York 1945 a young woman is drawn into a mystery that connects three generations of women in her family to single room in Gilded Age mansion.

5. The Queen’s Choice by Anne O’Brien

“France, 1399: The Duke of Brittany is dead and his widow, Joanna of Navarre, has inherited control of their land – a testament to her intellect, integrity and political prowess. Then comes an unprecedented proposal from Henry IV, King of England. The price of becoming his Queen? Abandoning her homeland, leaving her children and sacrificing her independence. Henry’s hold on the crown is unsteady and war is brewing. With the constant threat of rebellion, Henry will trust no-one – not even his new Queen.“ It looks so good and I don’t know much about this time, so I’m pretty excited.

I just realised that these are all historical fiction! What books are on your holiday wishlist?

Top Five Tuesday – Books I haven’t read yet

It’s Top Five Tuesday which is hosted by Meeghan Reads, every week we’re given a book related topic and we choose our top five! This week we’ve got to choose five books that we wanted to read this year but haven’t yet, I’ve been pretty good this year, I’ve got through most of the books I wanted to but here are five that I may hve neglected:

1. The Pearl Sister by Lucinda Riley

It’s been a while since I finished The Shadow Sister which precedes this but it keeps getting bumped down my list! I love this series and I need to get a wriggle on and read the last three.

2. The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

Ever since I watched The Witcher on Netflix I’ve been desperate to read the books! Someone has just leant me the first three in the series so I can’t wait to read all of Geralt’s adventures.

3. The Unseen by Katherine Webb

I added this to my TBR list four years ago and it’s been creeping it’s way up but I still haven’t got around to it, it’s historical fiction set in the early 1900s with a mystery and suspense, my type of book!

4. Anne Boleyn: A King’s Obsession by Alison Weir

I started Alison Weir’s Six Queens series a while ago, each book focuses on one of Henry VIII’s wives. Her book about Katherine of Aragon was so detailed and incredibly written I felt like I knew more about Katherine than before, she felt far more real. I can’t wait to read Weir’s book about Anne Boleyn, I’ll probably be quite emotional as well.

5. Winter in Madrid by C.J. Sansom

I’ve been wanting to read more from C.J. Sansom ever since I read Dominion which was a terrifying take on what-if Britain made peace with Nazi Germany. It was so well written I was completely gripped, I need to get my hands on Winter in Madrid!

Do you have any books you were meant to read this year but haven’t yet?

Top Five Tuesday – A-Z Authors

A new Top Five Tuesday, the prompts are created by Bionic Book Worm. This month’s topics are A-Z authors, this week it’s P-T, I struggled with one letter this week, the rest were pretty easy. I hope everyone is well and safe in these strange times.

P: Philip Pullman

I used to love His Dark Materials when I was younger, the trilogy is still a great read now. My obsession with the nothern lights definitely started with these books. I’m so glad Philip Pullman has started a new series centred around Lyra Belacqua, I’ve read the first one in The Book of Dust trilogy and it has the same feeling as the original series, I’m very excited to read the rest.

R: Lucinda Riley

I discovered Lucinda through The Seven Sisters series, each book tells the story of one of the adopted sisters and how they discover their birth origins. The girls have lived a happy life altogether with their father and when he died he left them all a letter, a clue and coordinates to where from around the world he adopted them. It also goes back in history and tells the story of the sister’s ancestors. I highly recommend the series if you love historical fiction like me!

S: C.J.Sansom

I haven’t read all of his work yet but Dominion is one of my favourite books. It’s set in the 1950s except instead of going to war with Germany in 1939, Britain made a treaty with them instead. But there is a rebel force led by Churchill himself. We follow a government worker who has joined the resistance and his efforts to save a scientist from being discovered by the Nazis. This book made me so scared, but it is so clever, a must read.

S: Lemony Snicket

What a strange soul Lemony Snicket is, his books are quirky and brilliant in equal measure. I used to love A Series of Unfortunate Events when I was younger because it was so different to everything I had ever read.

T: Adrian Tchaikovsky

I first discovered this author when I read Children of Time which is set way in the future. Humanity has tried to reach out into the stars to find a place to live. They started terraforming selected planets and releasing our chimp ancestors down to those planets with a genetic accelerator so they evolve quicker. But the experiment is sabotaged. The last of humanity years later are stranded on a spaceship trying to find these planets, but what they find is more of a nightmare. One of the most interesting books I’ve read, it’s very clever and it even got me to like spiders for a while!

My Top Five Reads of 2019

It is almost the end of the year so I thought I would pick my favourite reads from 2019! It’s been my first full year of running this blog which has been really fun, I might try and post more next year.

1. Fire and Blood by George R.R. Martin

I am fascinated by the history of Westeros and the Targaryens are the most interesting of them all. It is written like a history book but is still just as gripping as ASOIAF. I can’t wait for the second part to be published!

2. The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley

This is the second book in the series and we follow Ally on her journey of discovery to Norway. I loved reading about Norway and some of its history and Ally is such a strong character, I really connected with her.

3. The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye by David Lagercrantz

I love the Millennium series, Lisbeth Salander is one of my favourite characters ever, she’s so complex and badass. This is the fifth book in the series and at the beginning we find Lisbeth in prison. She’s only there for a few months but she finds out that as a child she was almost involved in a experiment carried out on twins. They separated twin children and put them into families with different wealth and status. As always Mikael and Lisbeth investigate and get into serious danger!

4. Tangerine by Christine Mangan

Tangerine is set in the 1950’s in Tangier, Morocco. We meet Alice first, she followed her husband to Tangier but has struggled with the city. The stifling heat and the crowds cause her to panic. Then an old school friend arrives out of the blue and brings back dark memories. I loved how strange all the relationships were and then we were gradually told the reasons why, very well written.

5.Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett

My favourite Discworld books are probably the City Watch ones, in this story a cult of bitter citezens try to summon a dragon to attack the city. Dragons haven’t been seen for hundreds of years, but somehow they manage it. The City Watch consists of only a handful people, they are not respected by anyone and the laws are so corrupt that normally they barely have to do anything, but with the threat of the dragon they must step up. Witty, engaging and bonkers as always.

There they all are, Happy New Year everyone!

Top Five Tuesday – Books On My TBR List

A new Top Five Tuesday, the prompts are created by Bionic Book Worm. This weeks is books I’m most excited to read on my TBR list. The list itself has 150 books on it but I’ve decided to go for ones that are a bit further down.

1. The Moon Sister by Lucinda Riley

This is the fifth book is the Seven Sisters series and it follows Tiggy’s story. I’m excited to read about Tiggy, she’s quite spiritual and calm she seems like the grounding force of her siblings and she lives in Scoland looking after wild deer. What a job, I can’t say I would deal with the cold well but caring for animals is definitely life goals!

2. The Winds of Winter by George R.R. Martin

We still have no idea when this will be published but I will freak out when it’s announced. I can’t wait to read what happens next to my favourite characters. Please hurry George!

3. The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

Ever since I read about the premise of this book I’ve been really eager to read it. It’s a murder mystery with a twist. At a big party, Evelyn is murdered, Aiden a guest, must solve her murder or the day will keep repeating itself. Each day Aiden wakes in a different guests body so he has many perspectives to work with. I’ve read a few reviews and it’s praised highly, the concept alone is very clever so I can’t wait to get my hands on this one.

4. Circe by Madeline Miller

I’m a bit behind the times with this book, but I only recently found out about it and am already obsessed. Circe is born in Ancient Greece, she has the power to turn rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves. Zeus is threatened and banishes her to a deserted island where she hones her craft. I was looking up books told from villian’s points of view and this came up on the list. A powerful woman who threatens society is banished and decides to fight back, sign me up!

5. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

I am guilty of watching the tv adaptation of these books first but I’m still very excited to read them. It’s historical fiction, we’ve also got time travel and Claire and Jaime are the most adorable cannon couple in fiction ever without being soppy or annoying. The books are told from Claire’s point of view I think and I can’t wait to read her badass thoughts.

What books are you most excited about on your TBR list?

The Shadow Sister by Lucinda Riley Review

This series is so well written. This is the third book and we get to know Star, the quietest of her sisters and the most introverted. She’s spent most of her life overshadowed by her slightly younger sister CeCe. The pair have been inseparable even into adulthood, but when their father dies and leaves them both clues as to where he adopted them, Star starts to think about having a life to herself.

Star’s roots lie in England. We go back in time to the early 1900s where we meet Flora MacNichol a young girl with a secret that everyone knows but her. She’s about to make her debut into society through her mother’s friend but she has one last summer at home in the Lake District. Flora loves flowers and animals, she has her own menagerie of rescued animals. But when a childhood nemesis comes to make amends for the past and get to know her, they both find themselves falling in love. Flora is such a lovely person, her life is chaotic due to her mother keeping secrets from her.

I connected with both women, like Star I’m can be quiet around new people or those I distrust and like Flora I would love to remove myself from society and live in a little cottage with lots of animals! This is probably my favourite book in the series so far, next it’s CeCe’s turn to discover her ancestors but I’m not sure we’ll get on bery well. We shall see….

Top Five Tuesday – Series I Need to Finish

A new Top Five Tuesday, the prompts are created by Bionic Book Worm. I’m actually doing quite well at keeping up with series I’ve started, I don’t like to read similar books in a row so I do space out books by the same authors etc. These are all on my on my TBR list some are quite low down but shhh…

1. The Seven Sisters series by Lucinda Riley

I started reading these books this year, I’ve read the first two which were wonderful. They each focus on one of the sisters who were adopted from around the world by their father who recently passed away. He left them clues and coordinates to where they’re from in case they want to find out one day. I’m going to start the third book soon The Shadow Sister which follows Star and her journey to discovery in England.

2. Frieda Klein series by Nicci French

I have only two books left of this series, they are waiting on my bookshelf right now! I have taken my time with this one, I forgot it for a while, the first book was published in 2011 and the last in 2018. Frieda is a psychologist who liases with the police when they need help on cases. But trouble seems to follow her, she has a stalker who has followed her since the first book, he once saved her life. But he faked his own death so no one will believe Frieda when she claims it’s him that’s harming others around her.

3. Tudor Legacy series by Laura Andersen

This is the second series surrounding the Tudors, Elizabeth is now queen after her brother Henry died. It’s been fifteen years since the first series finished, Elizabeth has a child! And so do her dear friends Minuette and Dominic. As always at Tudor court there are spies and drama, I’ve only read the first book so far but the second isn’t far away.

4. Discworld series by Terry Pratchett

Although these books don’t have to be read in chronological order, each is a stand alone, they all take place on the strange Discworld and usually in the city of Ankh-Morpork. I love these books, I’ve lost count of how many I’ve read but I’ve still got many to go yet there are forty one in total!

5. Six Tudor Queens series by Alison Weir

I’ve only read the first of this series but it was so detailed and felt like a biography of Katherine of Aragon and her life in England. I am excited to read Anne Boleyn’s book because she has always fascinated me.

That’s all of them, I can’t believe it’s autumn already! Are there any series you have yet to finish or have forgotten?

Top Ten Tuesday – Auto-Buy Authors

I do have a collection of authors that I have to read everything they’ve ever written!

1. George R.R. Martin

This man though….he’s honestly a genius. I’ve read all of A Song of Ice and Fire and the first part of Fire and Blood which is about the Targaryen kings and queens. I’ve got Nightflyers waiting on my bookshelf which is a completely different genre from ASOIAF. It’s set in space in the future and I’m really looking forward to reading it.

2. Kate Morton

All of her books are stand alone but they all have a similar style. Set in different times but centred around the same place, usually an old house. The characters are so well written and I always form a strong connection to them. I love Kate’s descriptions of the houses and the different time periods feel real. I’m reading the Clockmaker’s Daughter at the moment which goes from 1862-2017 and lots in between but every time we switch there’s a different feel to the chapter, I don’t know how she does it. I’m always eagerly awaiting her next book!

3. Kate Atkinson

I first discovered Kate Atkinson when I read When Will There Be Good News? which is part of her Jackson Brodie series, he’s a private detective but the books aren’t so much focused on the crimes in them, more about the characters and how they’re affected. I read the rest of the series and when Life After Life came out I was bowled over with the incredible writing and depth of this book, it’s so beautiful and covers the theory of parallel worlds but not in a super sci-fi way. I recently read Transcription which was again historical fiction and I loved it.

4. Nicci French

Nicci French is actually a husband and wife duo! Their books are crime/psychological thrillers and some of them are super scary. I can’t stand scary films but these are different they’re full of suspense. The Frieda Klein series is really good, Frieda is a psychologist who consults with the police and seems to attract trouble. I’ve still got two books left to read from that series and then I’m going to tackle all the ones I haven’t yet read.

5. Laura Andersen

I’ve read her first trilogy The Boleyn Trilogy which is written as if Anne Boleyn had given birth to a son, she survived Henry and her son and daughter are heirs to England. It’s great historical fiction with a twist, the new characters who are friends of the Prince and Princess are Minuette and Dominic all four of them are true friends and have to try and navigate court life together. I’ve started the second trilogy which is set twenty years after the first, I can’t wait to read the rest. I really like Andersen’s style and choice of genre!

6. Lucinda Riley

I am loving her series of The Seven Sisters, every book tells the story of one of the D’Apliese sisters on the journey to discover where they were born. They also flashback to characters in history of each place, so far we’ve discovered Brazil and Norway! I really enjoy reading about the sister’s dynamics, I only have two sisters but they still reminded me of us a little bit! I’m really excited to read the rest of the series.

7. Ian McEwan

I read Atonement for the first time years ago and fell in love with it, since then I’ve read Sweet Tooth which is set in England during the Cold War, Solar and The Children Act. I love how all his novels are completely different, I’ve got all of his older ones on my TBR list and the newest one about robots!

8. Katherine Webb

Webb’s style is similar to Kate Morton, based in the past with ties to the present. The Legacy was the first book I read by Katherine Webb and I was completely hooked. Her others look just as intriguing, The Unseen is next on my list, it’s set in the early 1900s in a small village in England, when two strangers show up and change the town forever.

9. Stephen Fry

I’ve been reading Stephen’s books about Greek Mythology, the way he ties them all together is so clever. Mythos was great, I used to love learning about the many Greek Gods and Goddesses at school but I had forgotten how funny they were. I’ve started Heroes and there’s a third book still to come!

10. J K Rowling

Although we haven’t had anything from Rowling for a while and despite the epic disappointment the was Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (which wasn’t written by Rowling), I would probably still read anything she writes. After Harry Potter we had the Casual Vacancy about a small town, it’s residents and their complicated relationships and biases, I really enjoyed the book, I might re-read it soon.

So there they are, who are your must buy authors?

Top Five Tuesday – Top five sequels I need to get to

A new Top Five Tuesday, the prompts are created by Bionic Book Worm. Sometimes I’m really good at reading sequels fairly close together, other times not so much. Here are my top five that I know I have to read asap!

1. Saturday Requiem by Nicci French

I’ve waited way too long to read this, it’s the sixth book in the Frieda Klein series and it’s next on my TBR list! This series is always so interesting and gripping. This time Frieda agrees to do a psychological assessment on a young woman who was convicted of murder when she was eighteen.

2. The Virgin’s Spy by Laura Andersen

This is the second book in the Tudor Legacy series, the first was excellent. The characters were really compelling and I love alternate histories.

3. The Shadow Sister by Lucinda Riley

This is the third book in The Seven Sisters series. I only just finished the second book but I’m already looking forward to this one. In this book we find out more about Star and go with her on her journey to discover her roots.

4. Children of Ruin by Adrian Tchaikovsky

I didn’t know this book existed until the Top Five Tuesday Space week! It’s the sequel to Children in Time, it’s set in space still but thousands of years after the original book, the humans and spiders are living together harmoniously and have made a spaceship of their own.

5. No Tomorrow by Luke Jennings

This is the sequel to Killing Eve, I wish the first book had been longer so I’m excited to read more about what Villanelle gets up to.

What sequels are you eager to get to? Or have you read any of the ones on my list? Let me know what you think!

The Storm Sister Review

“In moments of weakness, you will find your greatest strength.”

This is the second book in the Seven Sisters series by Lucinda Riley. This time we follow Ally and her story. She’s a strong sailor and before he father’s death she was training with a group for a race around the Greek islands. There she meets Theo, a very talented sailor with a good reputation. The two of them click and Theo asks Ally to join him on his private yacht for a long weekend break just before the race. Their romance blossoms, they make a really sweet couple. Unfortunately Ally turned her phone off over the trip so was the last to find out about her father’s death. She immediately makes plans to get home and see her sisters.

Ally felt like she had to be strong for her sisters which was so sad, she couldn’t share her true pain at her father’s death. The girls are told about their father’s will and the clues he left them all about where he adopted them. Ally decides to head back for the race and spends the next month with Theo, although she lost her father she’s so happy to have found the love of her life.

Ally goes on quite a rollercoaster of emotions and eventually she decides to follow her father’s clues. She ends up in Norway, he also left her a book, a biography of Anna Horsten, a Norwegian singer in the 19th Century. Anna gets swept from her life in the country by a man scouting talented singers.

The writing is so wonderful and descriptive I felt as if I had been transported to Norway when we followed Anna’s story. She’s such a sweet girl, I’m really glad she got to follow her dreams of singing, I wish I could hear her voice! The characters feel so real, you feel their joy and excitement, their sorrow and fears with them. I really enjoyed the book, I can’t wait to read Star’s story next.