Top Ten Tuesday - Books I Recommend to Others the Most

Today I'm linking up with Top Ten Tuesday hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl which is all about lists.  Since lists are one of my favorite things this is one of my favorite linkups!  Today's topic is Books I Recommend to Others the Most.  I'm not sure if these are the books I recommend the most but these are some I remember recommending recently.  

1. Meet Your Baker by Ellie Alexander - This is one of my favorite cozy mystery series and is one of the first series I recommend to people wanting to start reading cozies - especially if they enjoy foodie books.

2.  The Story Girl by L.M. Montgomery - I love this book by Montgomery and it seems to be often overlooked.  The show Road to Avonlea back in the 80s/90s was loosely based on this book but the book is way way better.

3.  A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn - This is a fun historical mystery series with interesting characters and is always a good choice for someone who wants a cozy read but isn't really wanting a typical cozy mystery.

4.  Q's Legacy: A Delightful Account of a Lifelong Affair with Books by Helene Hanff - If you are a fan of 84, Charing Cross Road than you must read this one!  I think the book in between the two books, Duchess of Bloomsbury, can be skipped but this one is lovely.

5.  Murder in Retrospect by Agatha Christie - This is a slightly lesser known Christie mystery but is an excellent one and is a great book to meet Hercule Poirot - especially if you already know the ending of Murder on the Orient Express from the movies.

6.  The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Anne Shaffer and Annie Barrows - I love this book and cannot recommend the audio book enough.  It's one of my favorites.  

7.  As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes - If you are a fan of the movie you simply must read (or better yet - listen) this book.  It's absolutely wonderful.

8.  The Cottingley Secret by Hazel Gaynor - I really enjoy this book by Gaynor featuring a real life historical case of fairy pictures that fooled even Sir Arthur Conan Doyle along with a present time storyline of a woman dealing with some major life changes.

9.  Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan - I love this book and it is another favorite.  I've recommended it to pretty much everyone I know.  

10. Books Can Be Deceiving by Jenn McKinlay - Another cozy mystery!  This is a series I recommend if you enjoy bookish cozies with a strong multi-generational cast of characters.  

What books have you recommended recently?

The Ghost Goes to the Dogs - Cozy Mystery Review

Goodreads: The Ghost Goes to the Dogs (Haunted Bookshop Mystery #9) by Cleo Coyle

Rating:  Really Liked It (4 Stars)
Source:   Publisher

Description:  Pet Mystery Week brings brisk business to Penelope’s Rhode Island bookshop, but a real mystery comes barking at her door when a lost dog turns up in a panic. Pen and her son Spencer follow the furry fugitive to a wooded area where the dog’s owner lies unconscious. Mrs. Cunningham is a warm-hearted widow who volunteers at the animal shelter and runs Buy the Book’s pet lovers book club. Why would anyone shoot such a sweet soul?

The police believe it’s an accident, a shot by a careless deer hunter, but Pen remains skeptical. To straighten out this doggone mess, she whistles for the ghost of PI Jack Shepard, an expert in hounding as well as haunting. Jack has a dog story of his own, a case from the 1940s that may help Pen sniff out clues to her present predicament. Yet even with Jack’s hard-boiled help, Pen may not be able to stop the killer from striking again or letting this whole case go to the dogs...

Genre:  Mystery - Cozy

Why I Picked This Book:  I've liked the previous books in the series I've read and this one involves dogs so how could I resist?

My Impression:   This is an interesting series.  Single mother Pen is raising her son while running a bookstore with her Aunt Sadie and stumbling into murders periodically.  That's a fairly straightforward premise for a cozy mystery series but what makes this series a bit different is the ghost of the PI from the 1940s who helps Pen investigate and periodically helps her visit post-war New York to help her figure out the modern day cases while looking into ones that he has already solved.  

I liked that Pen's son Spencer was such a big part of this book as he took care of the victim's dog.  The dog element in both modern day and the 1940s mystery added a bit of fun.  The mystery was solid right from the beginning with some misdirection and a lot of questions.  

This is a fun series - a bit bookish, a bit ghostly and very entertaining.  I'm looking forward to going back and reading the first few books and will definitely be grabbing the next book in Pen and Jack's adventures.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Definitely!  I have really enjoyed all the books by this author that I have read in several different series and am looking forward to reading more of her books.

Would I Recommend this Book?   If you enjoy bookish cozy mysteries than this a series you should definitely try!

* I received this book in exchange for an honest review.  As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *

This Week in Reading - May 7

It's Sunday Post time!  This is hosted by the awesome Caffeinated Book Reviewer and gives us all a chance to recap our week.

What I Got:

I had a small birthday library haul:

Voice of Fear by Heather Graham

The Pagan Stone by Nora Roberts

Built to Last by Erin Hahn

The Cuban Heiress by Chanel Cleeton

I'm really looking forward to all of these!

Currently:

Reading:  Dressed to Drill by Kate Carlisle and Silent Auction by Jane K. Cleland

Listening:  Murder's No Votive Confidence by Cristin Brecher

Rover had a good week with classes and walks and not too hot weather.  He was very proud of the massive stick he hauled back from the neighbor's house.    Will had a good week too with school and video games and we all had a pretty quiet week.

This is my birthday weekend!  We went out to a really nice dinner yesterday and then tonight are going to my mother's after dog class for dinner and presents.  My main goal for celebrating my birthday month is getting some extra reading time in!  

Have a great week and happy reading!

Reading Recap - April 2023

 
Monthly Total: 21 - It was definitely an audiobook heavy month

Monthly Breakdown: 

Print: 7

Ebook: 4

Audio:  10

Mystery:  13

Fiction:  6

Middle Grade: 1 

Romance: 1

Favorite Book of the Month:

Audio:

Hotel of Secrets by Diana Biller - I thoroughly enjoyed this historical fiction set in late 19th century Vienna

Print:

Littlest Library by Poppy Alexander -  I thoroughly loved this story of a woman who is starting over in a small English village who ends up running the Littlest Library out of an old red telephone box.

Least Favorite Book of the Month:

The Vineyard Victims by Ellen Crosby - This is the 2nd book in this series that I've read and I think it's just not a series or writing style that works for me.

Where My Reading Took Me This Month:

Domestic Travel:

I visited South Carolina, Wisconsin, Virginia, Rhode Island, Maine, and Oregon for the first time this month and revisited California and Washington State.

International Travel:

In addition to my usual month visits to England I also visited Scotland, Ireland, and Austria.  And in one pretty crazy adventure I even went to the moon!

How was your reading for April?  Where did your reading take you this past month?

Friday Fives - May TBR

I'm taking a bit of a break from my usual Friday Linkups to try something a little different.  I'm in a list making kind of mood so I thought I'd start making random five lists.  Sometimes they'll be bookish other weeks not so much.  Since this is the first Friday in May I'm picking 5 books I hope to read this month.

1.  Identity by Nora Roberts - I love Nora Roberts' romantic suspense books and I'm super excited about this one.

2.  If You've Got It, Haunt It by Rose Pressey - I have had this eARC for years and haven't read it.  I'm looking forward to reading it this month!

3.  The Secret Life of Violet Grant by Beatriz Williams - I just listened to a Beatriz Williams and really enjoyed it.  This book was the first book of hers that landed on my TBR and I'm excited to finally be reading it.

4.  The Stately Home Murder by Catherine Aird - This is the next book I have to read by Catherine Aird and I'm really looking forward to it.  

5.  A Vintage Affair by Isabel Wolff - I love books about vintage clothing and this one has been calling me for awhile!  

What books are you hoping to read this May?

Books from the Backlog - Silent Auction

Today I'm linking up with Carole from Carole's Random Life of Books for Books from the Backlog.  I really enjoy the chance to feature a book that's been hiding in the piles of books for far too long!

Goodreads:  Silent Auction by Jane K. Cleland

Blurb:  The autumn foliage is in full fiery glory on a beautiful day in the little coastal town of Rocky Point, New Hampshire. Josie Prescott arrives at the town’s renovated lighthouse to conduct an antiques appraisal and is horrified to discover the bludgeoned body of her neighbor Zoë’s beloved nephew, Frankie. The owners of the lighthouse are avid antiques collectors, and Josie soon begins to suspect that a scrimshaw tooth from their collection may be the key to solving the crime that has shaken Rocky Point, and broken her dear friend’s heart.

Why It Needs to Come Off the Shelf:  This series is on my series list and even though I've really enjoyed the previous books I've kind of stalled.  I really need to pick this one up.

The Secret Book of Flora Lea - Historical Fiction Review

Goodreads:  The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry

Rating: Really Liked It! (4 Stars)
Source:   Publisher

Description:  When a woman discovers a rare book that has connections to her past, long-held secrets about her missing sister and their childhood spent in the English countryside during World War II are revealed.

In the war-torn London of 1939, fourteen-year-old Hazel and five-year-old Flora are evacuated to a rural village to escape the horrors of the Second World War. Living with the kind Bridie Aberdeen and her teenage son, Harry, in a charming stone cottage along the River Thames, Hazel fills their days with walks and games to distract her young sister, including one that she creates for her sister and her sister alone—a fairy tale about a magical land, a secret place they can escape to that is all their own.

But the unthinkable happens when young Flora suddenly vanishes while playing near the banks of the river. Shattered, Hazel blames herself for her sister’s disappearance, and she carries that guilt into adulthood as a private burden she feels she deserves.

Twenty years later, Hazel is in London, ready to move on from her job at a cozy rare bookstore to a career at Sotheby’s. With a charming boyfriend and her elegantly timeworn Bloomsbury flat, Hazel’s future seems determined. But her tidy life is turned upside down when she unwraps a package containing an illustrated book called Whisperwood and the River of Stars . Hazel never told a soul about the imaginary world she created just for Flora. Could this book hold the secrets to Flora’s disappearance? Could it be a sign that her beloved sister is still alive after all these years?

As Hazel embarks on a feverish quest, revisiting long-dormant relationships and bravely opening wounds from her past, her career and future hang in the balance. An astonishing twist ultimately reveals the truth in this transporting and refreshingly original novel about the bond between sisters, the complications of conflicted love, and the enduring magic of storytelling.

Genre:  Fiction - Historical 

Why I Picked This Book:  Henry's book Once Upon a Wardrobe was one of my favorite reads last year so I had to pick this one up.

My Impression:  This book is a dual timeline.  The first timeline starts in 1939 with Operation Pied Piper taking two sisters, Hazel and Flora, out of London and into the English countryside to stay safe from the bombs.  The next timeline is London 1960 and shows the reader how the events of the war are still shaping Hazel's life.  

In the 1960 timeline I really liked Hazel and sympathized with her mission.  She loves books, in very intelligent and can't help but being honest even at enormous risk to herself.  I loved her friendship with Kelty and liked that Kelty was able to add her own memories of the past and Flora.

The 1939 timeline was tragically magical.  I loved the sisters' relationship and the world of Whisperwood that they've created but my heart broke knowing just what was in front of the sisters.  The pace of this is a bit slow and I didn't quite connect with it as much as I wanted to but that was coming in with incredibly high expectations.

This would be a wonderful book to savor though you may need to keep a box of tissues handy as you read.  

Would I Read More of this Series/Author? Absolutely!  This is the third book I've read from this author and I have thoroughly enjoyed all three.

Would I Recommend this Book?  If you enjoy historical fiction with fairytale undercurrents this is a wonderful choice.

* I received this book in exchange for an honest review.  As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *