What are you reading now?: July 5, 2025

Still working on Barbary Station but have just started Sauber-Mercedes C9.

Moving on to Young Heroes of the Soviet Union and Sinostan.

starting this audio via Libby ~

Broken Country
by Clare Leslie Hall

Twist: A Novel
Colum McCann
3/5 stars
The book surrounds Anthony Fennell who is a journalist about to cover the underwater cables off the coast of Africa which may break. Interesting book but hard to describe! Fiction

I'm reading Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. It is a fascinating story. I've always been drawn to East African settings; the knowledge I'm picking up about Ethiopia is such a pleasure, and it has roused in me the desire to know more about the country and its inhabitants.

I'm listening to Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi. It's not holding my interest, but as it's a short work I will finish it.

I am reading Murder in her Stocking by G. A. McKevett so far I love this book keeps a smile on my face.

I've just settled down with a new Jacqueline Winspear book, Messenger of Truth, this long weekend. And I want to start The Night Travellers by Elizabeth Spencer which has been sitting, half-started, for many years on my shelves.

Oh, and I am going to read some more of Heir by Sabaa Tahir. I put it down to read some others, and I really must get back to it.

I’m reading Missing Person: Alice by Simon Mason and it’s an enjoyable, well written mystery. This is the first in a trilogy.

I’m also making my way through The Scapegoat: the Brilliant Brief Life of the Duke of Buckingham which has been a delight to read. Great writing - the Duke is a fascinating character as is James I, surprisingly!

On the back burner, I’ve got Republic: Britain’s Revolutionary Decade.

I'm reading The Book of Magic by Alice Hoffman with my sister. I'm not too far in and I'm hooked already.

I've just finished Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourncenar and enjoyed it, though it is a bit slow in parts. It's included in the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die list, so I guess would be considered a modern classic. The book is a fictionalized memoir offered by the Roman emperor Hadrian on his death bed to his named successor, Marcus Aurelius. Highly recommended to anyone interested in a deeply researched and beautifully written novel and who doesn't mind dense prose with very little plot or narrative drive.

My longer review is on my 50-Book Challenge thread.

Next up for me will be the next book in my two-per-year read through of Isaac B. Singer's novels in order of their publication in English: Shosha.

The Legend of the Bluebonnet – Tomie DePaola
5*****


Subtitle: An Old Tale of Texas

This is a lovely children’s story book that relates some of the Native American legends about the wildflower that is the Texas state flower – the Bluebonnet.

Drought is adversely affecting the Comanche people. They sing and dance and plead with the Great Spirit, but still there is no rain. Many of the elderly, the sick and the youngest children have died as a result of the drought. Finally the Shaman tells the people that the Great Spirit is ashamed of them, because they have become selfish, always taking from the Earth, but not giving back. So they are instructed to make a burnt offering of their most cherished possessions, scattering the ashes to the four winds. But one by one they refuse to make give up their treasures.

One young child, an orphan now called She-Who-Is-Alone, has only one possession left after losing her entire family – a doll made of buckskin. It was made for her by her grandmother but she willingly gives it up for the good of the people. The Great Spirit is so moved by her sacrifice that after the rain finally falls, the landscape bursts into beautiful blue blooms.

It’s a wonderful lesson about family, community, sacrifice and selflessness.

DiPaolo provided the beautiful illustrations, too.

A Tarnished Canvas by Anna Lee Huber
New and 13th entry in the Lady Darby Mystery series. Kiera and Gage are back in Edinburgh for the winter months. When the floor collapses during an art auction, the couple are lucky to be able to get out. Was it an accident or something more?

Starting to read book 2 of A Granny Reid Mystery series Murder in the Corn Maze by G. A. McKevett

>11 BookConcierge:
Born and raised in Texas I read that book so many times as a child; it was a major favorite. Unfortunately I don't know if many Texas children now would know of the book so it's nice to see it pop up again.

And now for a little Christmas in July ...


A Merry Little Meet Cute– Julie Murphy & Sierra Simone
Book on CD performed by Joy Nash and Sebastian York
3***

From the book jacket: A steamy plus-size holiday rom-com about an adult film star who is semi-accidentally cast as a lead in a family-friendly Christmas movie, and the former bad-boy pop star she falls in love with.

My reactions
This is the first in a series written by this writing duo.

Oh, my! Part of my surprise is my own fault for not reading the blurb but picking this up strictly based on the cover, which is darn cute in my opinion.

Okay, one of the leads is a porn star, so I was expecting lots of sex, but it seems that is almost all I got. Oh, yes, there is a plot, but mostly these two are just in lust and f*&king each other’s brains out over and over and over again.

Still, I did come to like Bee, her unapologetic self-esteem, and her best friend’s constant affirmation that Bee is a wonderful woman who has chosen this career and become a success. Nolan seems a little lost in the snow by comparison, and while I totally understood his need to support his mother and little sister, the constant reminders of what a great guy he really his and how much he is counting on this Christmas movie to launch a career that will allow him to care for his family got tiresome.

I also enjoyed some of the supporting characters, even if they were rather over the top.

At heart it’s still a Christmas romance with a HEA ending.

The audio is performed by Joy Nash (voicing the sections narrated by Bee) and Sebastian York (voicing Nolan). They make a good team, and this was an effective way to produce the audio version.

Evening Class
Maeve Binchy
This story revolves around Aidan Dunne, a Latin teacher and Nora Donoghue from Dublin and their relationship.
1996

The new thread is up over here.