Book Swap: Murder mysteries

The postman brought me more book swap goodies today!!

I've got another Agatha Raisin book to add to my collection and A Market for Murder is a murder mystery based in the West Country. After reading the blurb on the back I can't wait to read it!!

I'll keep you posted!

My favourite books of 2011

As it's fast approaching the end of 2011 I thought it would be a good opportunity to think of the books I have read this year and which ones were my favourite.

2011 has been a good year for books for me. Although I didn't have much time for reading at the beginning of the year I have so far managed to read 30 books, none of which were re-reads and I discovered loads of new authors.

So in no particular order...

1. The Crimson Petal and the White - Michel Faber

I bought this book after watching the BBC adaptation, which I loved. This was a huge book and took me ages to read but I absolutely loved it. Faber's writing style hooked me completely from the word go. I enjoyed the way it was told and the descriptions in the book which made the story and it's characters come alive. The book brings the seedy side of the Victorians to light and is graphic in places, but what is the point in writing a book about prostitutes if you don't write about their job?

I would recommend this book to those who love historical fiction and reading about the less discussed side of life!





2. A Spoonful of Poison - MC Beaton

This is one of my more recent reads, but was the book to introduce me to MC Beaton and Agatha Raisin.

I am a huge fan of Midsomer Murders and the way it has weird and wonderful murders in the idyllic countryside. This is also captured by the Agatha Raisin series. In this book, Agatha investigates murders caused by LSD being put into the jam at a village fete. For me, there is nothing not to love!

I am now ploughing through this series and hope to buy more of the books in 2012. I also intend to try the Hamish Macbeth books, also by MC Beaton as they sound right up my street! Lovely easy reads with enjoyable stories!





3. Jamrach's Menagerie - Carol Birch

When I started reading this book I didn't know what to expect. And what the few expectations I did have were totally blown out of the water.

I loved the way this book was written and it easily drew me into the story, even though it wasn't a normal choice for me. The story was descriptive and had strong, likeable characters.

This book really suprised me as I could not have predicted the turn that the story took. I was shocked but equally desperate to find out what happened to Jaffy and the others.

This book will stay with me for a long time and I have already recommended it to others.



4. I Capture the Castle - Dodie Smith

I only found out about this book by chance after reading about it on a blog. Since joining Goodreads I have found that this is a really well loved book and is at the top of many people's favourite book list.

I truly loved reading this book and totally understand why people describe it as a "cosy" read. I had never heard this term before but now I have my own "cosy" list!

I wish I had found this book earlier and am already looking forward to a future re-read!






5. The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern

As soon as I read the reviews of this book, I knew I had to read it! I'm not really a fan of fantasy books generall, apart from Harry Potter, but this book just appealed to me.

I loved the physical book itself as much as the story. The black and white dust jacket with the dash of red covers a bright red hard cover decorated with mysterious symbols and black edged pages. I was excited about the book before I even opened it!

Even though the story itself was quite slow and very descriptive, I got to know the characters and could really picture the word being described in my minds eye.

A lovely book and I would highly recommend it!


All of the above books have really had an effect on me in some way or another, but I have really enjoyed most of the books I have read this year. 2011 was a good year for reading!!

I am looking forward to welcoming 2012 now and hoping that my to-read pile will not only get smaller through me reading what is already there, but will also continue to grow as I discover new books and authors!

There are still 2 weeks left of 2011, and I happen to have 2 weeks off for Christmas so heres to reading that little bit more before I completely close the door on this year!

Book Review: Kissing Christmas Goodbye

Another enjoyable Agatha Raisin mystery.

This time, Agatha is approached by the murderee (whilst still alive) as she believes one of her children is out to murder her before she can get a chance to change her will to cut them out.

Lo and behold, Mrs Tamworthy is suddenly found dead and super-sleuth Agatha is put on the case by her daughter in law.

This book is a fun romp to find the wrongdoer and has an impressive body count of 6, although not all are related to the main plot.

My only disappointment with this book was that the title was slightly misleading. I was expecting a festive murder but the Christmas scenes had no relation to the main story and seemed to be tagged on at the end. Still a fun and enjoyable read!

Book Review: A Spoonful of Poison

I'm a bit late with the review but I finished reading A Spoonful of Poison by M.C. Beaton on Wednesday and really enjoyed it!

This is the first Agatha Raisin book I have read and am glad that I have discovered the series! As a huge Midsomer Murders fan the series appealed to me when I saw it in The Book People catalogue. And as it was a bargain £9.99 for 10 books I couldn't go wrong!

This book was easy to read and enjoyable with good characters.

In this book Agatha's detective agency is investigating two deaths caused by LSD being put into jam samples at a village summer fair (I love stuff like this!!) and has to spend a lot of time in the village with the local characters to try figure out who would possibly do such a thing in a sleepy Cotswold village.

Although being put off the scent a few time she persevered and got to the bottom of the case!

The book was quite funny and I really liked Agatha herself, even though she is a hard career woman. I can't wait to go through the rest of the series! And if I'm lucky Santa may bring me a few more Agatha Raisin books!

A little update

I've been so busy this week I haven't had much time to do anything, including blog!

My friend came round for dinner and a gossip on Tuesday evening and I missed out on teaser Tuesday and Top Ten Tuesday!

I haven't had much time to read either but have been grabbing time whenever I can to read The Night Circus. I'm nearly 3 quarters of the way through and am really enjoying it. It isn't action packed, but is beautifully written and I am enjoying imagining the circus and reading the unfolding love story!

As The Night Circus is so big and heavy I haven't been taking it to work to read at lunchtime. This is also because I'm afraid of damaging the beautiful cover. So I have started reading an Agatha Raisin book during my breaks and am enjoying it. It is just as fun as I thought and very Midsomer-esque, so just up my street! My to read pile seems to keep growing though and I have an ever growing pile of self help type books on my bedside table which I just can't seem to motivate myself to read!