September 3, 2026 · 8:03 am

Henrietta – Georgette Heyer

Cover of Sophie Irwin's novel 'Henrietta'.

As I like both Georgette Heyer and Sophie Irwin, I had to read this novel (and it didn’t disappoint)

Here’s the blurb …

Could this be the Season she wins his heart? 

Henrietta has secretly loved Arthur, Lord Allerton, since childhood. He is the only man who is interested in her rather than her fortune – just not in the way that she wants.

After three years away at war, Arthur has returned to London to find everything changed. His finances are ruined, his family in chaos. And sweet, shy Hetty is … different.

For Hetty has set herself a challenge: she has one summer to become the charming, dashing Diamond she’s always wished to be. And either Arthur will notice her, or she’ll give up her dreams entirely.

But in a glittering Season plagued by scandal and intrigue, is there still room for love …?

I loved this novel – the characters were fabulous – Arthur, the older brother, very responsible, Timothy, the dandy younger brother, Trixie, the younger sister determined to find some excitement (and probably ruin herself), and Henrietta, our heroine, who was a ward of the Allertons, but now just lives with them. She’s also incredibly wealthy (80 000 pounds) and very shy and awkward. The perfect set up for a regency romance.

There is descriptions of frocks, regency cant (slang), balls, the theatre and a balloon ascension. We’re just missing a trip to Vauxhall Gardens. There are fortune hunters and lovely shy young men.

Sophie Irwin has done a fabulous job of emulating Georgette Heyer. This is one of my favourite novels of the year.

A review.

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September 1, 2026 · 3:26 pm

Clown Town – Mick Herron

Cover of Mick Herron's novel Clown Town

This is number 9 in the Slough House series – I haven’t read many of the halves, but this is the latest full novel. I read eight before seven, but now I think I know the order of the action.

Here’s the blurb …

Old spies grow ridiculous, River. Old spies aren’t much better than clowns.

Or so David Cartwright used to say, but he forgot to add they can be dangerous too, especially if they’ve fallen on hard times – as Diana Taverner learns when the past lands on her desk. An operation carried out during the height of the Troubles laid bare the ugly side of state security, and those involved are threatening to expose details. But every threat hides an opportunity, and the would-be blackmailer is soon being used as Taverner’s solution to a much newer problem. 

The O.B. himself is long buried, and has left his library to the Spooks’ College, where it turns out that one of the books has gone missing. Or perhaps never existed . . . River Cartwright has time to kill while waiting to be passed fit for work, and investigating the secrets his grandfather’s library hid seems a harmless activity. But nothing involving the slow horses stays harmless for long. 

Louisa Guy is pondering her future, but before making any big decisions, she might as well check River’s not about to come a cropper. Shirley Dander is wondering if the new kid, Ash Khan, is as annoying as she seems. Roddy Ho wants the team to know that his tattoo is a hummingbird, and not, as Lech Wicinski claims, a platypus. And Catherine Standish just wants everyone to play nice. 

As far as Lamb’s concerned, they should all be at their desks – when Taverner starts plotting mischief people get hurt, and Lamb has no plans to send in the clowns. On the other hand, if the clowns ignore his instructions, any harm that befalls them is hardly his fault. 

But they’re his clowns. And if they don’t all come home, there’ll be a reckoning. 

Do not mess with one of Lamb’s Joes. Slough House is working on reduced numbers, and that is only going to get worse. No one has ‘plot armour’ in Herron’s novels.

I love the way he writes, particularly his metaphors and similes. His plots are ingenious as well. I always like to spend a bit of time with the slow horses.

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August 24, 2026 · 9:41 am

The Unselected Journals of Emma M Lion (Vol 1) – Beth Brower

f Emma M Lion

I pre-ordered this novel (on Kobo) and then I received an email telling me I could download it, but no I couldn’t. Then I got a surly email from Booktopia informing that it wasn’t available yet. So eventually it arrived.

Here’s the blurb …

“I’ve arrived in London without incident. There are few triumphs in my recent life, but I count this as one. My existence of the last three years has been nothing but incident.”The Year is 1883 and Emma M. Lion has returned to her London neighbourhood of St. Crispian’s. But Emma’s plans for a charmed and studious life are sabotaged by her eccentric Cousin Archibald, her formidable Aunt Eugenia, and the slightly odd denizens of St. Crispian’s.Emma M. Lion offers up her Unselected Journals, however self-incriminating they may be, which comprise a series of novella-length volumes. Armed with wit and a sideways amusement, Emma documents the curious realities of her life at Lapis Lazuli House.

This is a series of journal entries set in the late 1800s. It does feel quite authentic and Emma is a charming character.

Here she is describing how she wants to live to her banker.

I simply wish to keep myself in London, in Lapis Lazuli House, and buy books. I have considered owning a cat, but I believe that expense won’t put mw out in the streets just yet.

This is a short, quick to read, and charming novella. I will definitely move onto Volume 2 (I want to know about the tenant in Lapis Lazuli Minor – is there going to be romance?)

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August 22, 2026 · 6:19 pm

Sophie, Standing There – Meg Mason

As I loved Sorrow and Bliss, I was very keen to read this new novel. I pre-ordered it in paper, and then also bought a kindle version (I am finding it easier to read on my Boox as I can fit it easily into my handbag and therefore take my book with me everywhere).

Here’s the blurb ..,

Sophie Lockwood is a lovely person – warm, kind, relentlessly positive. She’s cherished by her brother Laurie, adored by her best friend Emma and valued by her colleagues. But she is deeply lonely.

Her marriage is over. She’s moved out of the home she shared with her now ex-husband and all she has in the fridge is two eggs and sliced bread in the freezer. Sometimes one day in her life can feel like the entire month of January. But she’s fine.

She spends her time reading, finding comfort in the pages of the books she devours. Until one day she stumbles upon an author she’s never read before – Lilac Dunne. Her books, interviews and podcasts soon become a lifeline; every word is solace, company she hasn’t felt in so long. It’s almost like love.

Love at first read. And Sophie would love to meet her, although she never will obviously. In a way, thank goodness, because that would change everything. Sophie’s entire life.

Hilariously candid and raw, Sophie, Standing There is a bittersweet story of love, loneliness and finding connection in the most unlikely of places.

I watched a podcast, where Meg Mason described Sophie as a happy person. And I thought, ‘gosh that’s not how I would describe her’. When we first meet Sophie things are pretty miserable – she has separated from her husband, and is living in his dingy investment property (paying a peppercorn rent – why isn’t it also her investment property?). She has a job she loves, but it is not well-paid, and she is lonely (for some reason she is no longer contacting her best friend Emma).

However, Sophie is a fabulous character – kind, competent, and thoughtful. The writing is beautiful, it felt like I was inside the terrible flat or the dodgy restaurant across the road. Some of the characters were suitably awful in their selfish disregard for anyone else. Laurie, her brother, was lovely, and their backstory was intriguing.

The action in this book is ordinary and I mean that in a positive way – we could all be Sophie. Getting through each day, doing the best we can, and hoping for something better.

For all of us readers, this novel is also about reading, and the relationship between the reader and the author, and finding that connection with someone else who loves the same novel that you do.

This is one of my favourite books of the year.

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August 20, 2026 · 10:51 am

The Odyssey – Homer (Translated by Emily Wilson)

Cover of The Odyssey by Homer - translated by Emily Wilson

Obviously I had to read this after seeing the latest film, which was visually spectacular, but, to me, felt like ‘a boy’s own adventure’. I selected this version because it was translated by a woman, and I chose an audible version because I thought it would be easier to listen to it than read it myself.

Here’s the blurb …

Acclaimed actress Claire Danes burnishes an epic story of heroes, gods, and monsters in a groundbreaking translation of The Odyssey, the first great adventure story in the Western literary tradition. When the wily warrior-king Odysseus sets off for home after the Trojan War, he doesn’t realize this simple undertaking will become a perilous journey of 10 years. Beset at every turn, he encounters obstacles, detours, and temptations—both supernatural and human—while his wife Penelope fends off would-be suitors desperate to take the throne.

Emily Wilson is the first woman to take on the daunting task of translating over 100,000 lines of a three-millennium-old poem from Ancient Greek to modern-day English. Her breathtaking rendition captures the poetic immediacy of the original text, while allowing listeners to experience The Odyssey with an honesty and directness few other versions have achieved. The result is a lean, fleet-footed translation that recaptures Homer’s “nimble gallop” and brings an ancient epic to new life. A fascinating introduction provides an informative overview of the Bronze Age milieu that produced the epic, the major themes of the poem, the controversies about its origins, and the unparalleled scope of its impact and influence. 

I enjoyed it. The introduction was extremely informative – it gave me information about the time, location, social history of its creation. It’s a beautiful translation with many mentions of ‘rosy fingered dawn’ and ‘the wine dark seas’. Not to mention all of the weaving of purple cloth, putting sandals on well-oiled feet and a lot of weeping. There is a lovely flow and rhythm to it, and Claire Danes is a fabulous narrator.

I can see now that Nolan removed most of the women’s agency from the film. In my opinion Athena is the architect of everything. She transforms herself into various characters, makes Odysseus look old, handsome and virile, and even taller as required. She convinces Zeus to force Calypso to let Odysseus go – none of that is apparent in the film.

I am going to be one of those people who say ‘the book is better than the film’. However, would I have read it if I hadn’t seen the film? No, so Nolan is bringing new people to the book.

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August 15, 2026 · 1:11 pm

The Hexologists – Josiah Bancroft

Cover of The Hexologists by Josiah Bancroft
The Hexologists – Josiah Bancroft

I wanted to read something that wasn’t miserable. My aim was to find a folk lore re-telling, but Stefan (from Stefan’s books) suggested this one. It’s supernatural crime and mystery.

Here’s the blurb …

From the acclaimed author of Senlin Ascends comes the first book in a wildly inventive new fantasy series where magical mysteries abound and only one team can solve them: The Hexologists.

 The Hexologists, Iz and Warren Wilby, are quite accustomed to helping desperate clients with the bugbears of city life. Aided by hexes and a bag of charmed relics, the Wilbies have recovered children abducted by chimney-wraiths, removed infestations of barb-nosed incubi, and ventured into the Gray Plains of the Unmade to soothe a troubled ghost. Well-acquainted with the weird, they never shy away from a challenging case.

 But when they are approached by the royal secretary and told the king pleads to be baked into a cake – going so far as to wedge himself inside a lit oven – the Wilbies soon find themselves embroiled in a mystery that could very well see the nation turned on its head. Their effort to expose a royal secret buried under forty years of lies brings them nose to nose with a violent antiroyalist gang, avaricious ghouls, alchemists who draw their power from a hell-like dimension, and a bookish dragon who only occasionally eats people.

 Armed with a love toughened by adversity and a stick of chalk that can conjure light from the darkness, hope from the hopeless, Iz and Warren Wilby are ready for whatever springs from the alleys, graves, and shadows next.

There is great world building here – it feels like London in the 1920s, but different. Although there is a nod to some modern concerns as well – pollution, etc. Iz and Warren are delightful characters – Warren in particular. Not to mention the dragon, who is quite a character, and lives in the Gladstone bag called Grandpa. There are adventures, double-crossings, and some lovely domestic scenes. There was one thing I found a tad annoying, Iz made an assumption early on, when there wasn’t enough evidence to make such a firm decision. The rest of the plot unfolds from there, which was disappointing (and in my opinion went against her character).

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August 8, 2026 · 2:04 pm

The Madness of Crowds (Gamache #17) – Louise Penny

The Madness of Crowds - Louise Penny It shows an aerial view of a red car driving through a snowy landscape
The Madness of Crowds – Louise Penny

As I have now finished the 17th Gamache novel, I think it is clear that I am a fan. I think there is 20 with a new one due out soon.

Here’s the blurb …

You’re a coward. 

Time and again, as the New Year approaches, that charge is leveled against Armand Gamache. 

It starts innocently enough. 

While the residents of the Québec village of Three Pines take advantage of the deep snow to ski and toboggan, to drink hot chocolate in the bistro and share meals together, the Chief Inspector finds his holiday with his family interrupted by a simple request. 

He’s asked to provide security for what promises to be a non-event. A visiting Professor of Statistics will be giving a lecture at the nearby university. 

While he is perplexed as to why the head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec would be assigned this task, it sounds easy enough. That is until Gamache starts looking into Professor Abigail Robinson and discovers an agenda so repulsive he begs the university to cancel the lecture.

They refuse, citing academic freedom, and accuse Gamache of censorship and intellectual cowardice. Before long, Professor Robinson’s views start seeping into conversations. Spreading and infecting. So that truth and fact, reality and delusion are so confused it’s near impossible to tell them apart.

Discussions become debates, debates become arguments, which turn into fights. As sides are declared, a madness takes hold. 

Abigail Robinson promises that, if they follow her, ça va bien aller. All will be well. But not, Gamache and his team know, for everyone.

When a murder is committed it falls to Armand Gamache, his second-in-command Jean-Guy Beauvoir, and their team to investigate the crime as well as this extraordinary popular delusion.

And the madness of crowds.

This one was set just after the pandemic, which is the first one I can pin down in time. It takes a while to get to the murder, although there is an attempted murder and an almost riot before that. Once again, the delightful community of Three Pines is involved (there is even a joke made about the number of murders in Three Pines!). Reine-Marie has a bigger role in this one, which I enjoyed and I hope to see again. Jean-Guy struggles with his feelings about being the parent of a disabled child – a major plot point is mercy killings – removing the elderly and inform to leave more resources for everyone else).

It’s winter and Penny does a fabulous job of describing the bitter coldness, but also the joys of hot chocolate.

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August 5, 2026 · 3:12 pm

Handiwork – Sara Baume

Cover of Handiwork by Sara Baume
handiwork – Sara Baume

I can’t remember where I first heard about this book, but I do like a ‘craft memoir’.

Here’s the blurb …

handiwork is a contemplative short narrative from acclaimed writer and visual artist Sara Baume. It charts her daily process of making and writing, exploring what it is to create and to live as an artist. handiwork offers observations at once gentle and devastating, on the nature of art, grief and a life lived well. Baume’s first work of non-fiction offers readers a glimpse into the process of one Ireland’s best writers, written with the keen eye for nature and beauty as well as the extraordinary versatility Sara Baume’s fans have come to expect.

This is beautifully written – I will have to read more of Ms Baum’s work. It’s also a very personal account of making things, family, collections of objects, and out space – how we fill it and how we use it.

I do this too – knitting or stitching in front of the TV.

The television flickers and I listen to it. In most cases, a story can be followed from sound alone, but I glance up every now and again in order to identify speakers, in order to maintain some kind of visual momentum through each programme.

This too withe post its

[…] several post-its glued to the window frame – they are luminous pink, green and yellow; they are measurements and calculations, instructions and reminders; they are mantras, spells, codes.

Surely all craft’s people know this

it is not always a case of finishing one thing and going on to the next.’

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July 30, 2026 · 3:06 pm

With her Own Hands – Nicole Nehrig

With Her Own Hands – Nicole Nehrig

This book was all the rage among my crafty friends. Who doesn’t like to read a book about textiles, grief, mental health, etc.?

Here’s the description

A rich and intimate exploration of how women have used textile work to create meaningful lives, from ancient mythology to our current moment.

Knitting, sewing, embroidery, quilting?throughout history, these and other forms of textile work have often been dismissed as merely “women’s work” and attached to ideas of domesticity and obedience. Yet, as psychologist and avid knitter Nicole Nehrig wonderfully explores in this captivating book, textile work has often been a way for women to exercise power. When their voices were silenced and other avenues were closed off to them, women used the tools they had?often a needle and thread?to seek freedom within the restrictive societies they lived in.

Spanning continents and centuries, With Her Own Hands brings together remarkable stories of women who have used textiles as a means of liberation, from an eighteenth-century Quaker boarding school that used embroidered samplers to teach girls math and geography to the Quechua weavers working to preserve and revive Incan traditions today, and from the Miao women of southern China who, in the absence of a written language, pass down their histories in elaborate “story cloths” to a midcentury British women’s postal art exchange. Textiles have been a way for women to explore their intellectual capacities, seek economic independence, create community, process traumas, and convey powerful messages of self-expression and political protest.

Heartfelt and deeply moving, With Her Own Hands is a celebration of women who have woven their own stories?and a testament to their resilience.

This was incredibly well researched – a PhD thesis, but still accessible to a casual (uniformed) reader. I did get a bit stuck with all of the terrible things that happened and how women used textile craft to find solace and meaning. There is only so much misery I can read about it one go.

If you are at all interested in social history, textiles, women’s history, then you will find this book fascinating and insightful.

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July 29, 2026 · 4:31 pm

A Tale for the Time Being – Ruth Ozeki

A Tale for the Time Being – Ruth Ozeki

I don’t know where I first heard about this novel. I think it was one of the Lit Hub Recommends emails, which is a fabulous resource.

Here is the blurb …

Nao lives in Tokyo. She is sixteen, and has decided to write a diary before she kills herself, she particularly wants to chronicle the life of her great-grandmother, a Buddhist nun. Ruth lives on the Pacific coast of Canada. A few months after the 2010 tsunami she finds a Hello Kitty lunchbox washed up on the shore.

This is a beautiful, enchanting novel. Like Ruth, I wanted to keep reading Nao’s story. The structure is fabulous, we switch between Nao’s and Ruth’s perspective. Learning about their lives both inner and outer. Who knew that Japanese school children could be so brutal?

A review

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