Recommendations

I always like the start of the year when publishers, at last, start to produce more paperbacks. I have had a lovely time reading some great books, and these are my favourites. Most Enthralling Speculative Fiction  Both Olivia and I loved Annie Bot by Sierra Greer. It is set in …

I have been looking back at the books I read in 2024, and realising how many I have really enjoyed, but here are the ones which I loved reading the most. Please note that they were not necessarily published in 2024, and that on another day I might choose a …

Looking at the titles I have selected, I realise that all of them are set quite far away from Maldon either in time or place. I’m not sure if this reflects a need for escapism, a desire to broaden my horizons, or is just a coincidence! Most Enjoyable Science Fiction …

I have read some excellent books this month, but have not been particularly impressed by any children’s or YA fiction. I have therefore included two from earlier this year. Most Enjoyable Novel I bought The Whalebone Theatre by Joanna Quinn quite a while ago but its length of over 500 …

September is one of my favourite months, and I always feel that it offers a new beginning with the start of the academic year. This mood is reflected in the books that I have most enjoyed reading this month. Although some deal with difficult times, I found all of them …

I have not seen as many classic crime reissues this year as in previous times. Dean Street Press hasn’t published anything for a while, though there are signs that that will change, and they have an excellent backlist. Oreon Press also seems to have stopped publishing anything. But, other publishers, …

There have been many excellent novels published in paperback this year, and Olivia and Eleanor are very good at creating piles of enticing books on the tables. Two that they have promoted which I have particularly loved are Alice Winn’s In Memoriam (even though I am not usually that keen …

It may seem a bit random to focus on this year, but bear with me. Twice-yearly Reading Clubs are co-hosted by two bloggers: https://kaggsysbookishramblings.wordpress.com/club-pages/ and https://www.stuckinabook.com/. In the words of the former ‘We choose a particular year, usually between 1920 and 1980, and encourage fellow bloggers (and anyone online!) to …

Speculative fiction seems to be becoming increasingly popular, and I can understand why given the opportunities it offers authors to use their imagination and play with ideas. Here are five of my favourite speculative fiction titles which have been published in paperback in the last year. This Time Tomorrow – …

‘The Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing is awarded by children’s librarians for an outstanding book written in English for children and young people’ (https://carnegiegreenaway.org.uk/about-the-awards/). The 2024 longlist includes 19 titles from the 69 nominations, and I am excited to see some of my favourites have been selected. Let’s look at …

~January 2024~ I have greatly enjoyed a lot of recent children’s paperbacks. Here are some of my favourites. Time Travelling With a Hamster – Ross Welford I am always interested in books with time travel, and liked Ross Welford’s Time Travelling With a Hamster (9+) which was published some years …

I have loved books about parallel worlds ever since I was young and read Diana Wynne Jones’ Charmed Life (followed by others featuring Chrestomanci). Parallel worlds fascinate me as authors can write about them from a realist perspective, or turn to fantasy or science fiction. I like the way that …