Welcome to the latest edition of My Favourite Reads, the blog series where I share the best of the books I’ve recently read and love hearing yours. Cos I’m a stickybeak like that. And you can never have enough good book recommendations.
I had a quiet reading month in July with four read and only one DNF. Those four reads all appear here, so while quantity may have been down, quality was excellent. Yay!
I’m not sure August will be better quantity-wise. It’s the Romance Writers of Australia annual conference, this time in Hobart, Tasmania, and we’re making a road (and ferry) trip of it. With all there is to see and do, and the excitement of the conference, I doubt there’ll be much reading done.
Here are my favourite reads from July. All beauties!
The Path of Thorns by AG Slatter
I read Australian author A G Slatter’s All the Murmuring Bones back in late 2023 (you can find my thoughts on that here) and said then that I wanted to read more of this author. It took a while, but I finally fulfilled that goal last month. Did I have the same excellent experience? Indeedy I did.
The Path of Thorns was smack in my reading zone. A beautifully written gothic story with paranormal and magical elements, great atmosphere and fantastic characters, especially the females and, just to top it off, a little dash of horror. Happy days!
Asher, the heroine, was particularly intriguing. What was she searching for? What was she hiding? What was everyone hiding, because it felt like they were all protecting secrets.
Most enjoyable. Yep, I still want to read more by this author.
The Heiress’s Daughter by Anne Gracie
You can always guarantee a wonderful time with an Anne Gracie read, and The Heiress’s Daughter is no exception. I read book one in this Brides of Bellaire Gardens series, The Scoundrel’s Daughter, back in February last year (my thoughts here) and enjoyed it immensely, so I was looking forward to the next. Alas, I greedily picked up book three instead of two. My mistake and not world-ending, but it meant I missed what I suspect was an important scene in book two.
Clarissa was gorgeous. I love how determined she is to marry someone who adores her. Thanks to her notorious father, she’s had enough of rakes, and why shouldn’t she deserve love? With his womanising reputation, Lord Randall should be the furthest from her mind, but her heart refuses to play along. Besides, he’s only being nice to her because her brother ordered him to look after her in his absence. Isn’t he?
Loaded with Gracie’s usual warmth and humour, The Heiress’s Daughter was just the kind of heartwarming, happy-making romance you need in the depths of winter.
Another book that landed smack in my gothic horror-loving zone.
When Henry Hamilton disappears on a business trip to the small fishing town of Tidepool to establish its suitability for development, his headstrong sister Sorrow is determined to defy her father and investigate. Tidepool is rundown and hostile, and its inhabitants are clearly keeping secrets. Nor will anyone admit to knowing anything about Henry. Sorrow is determined to leave and let professionals take over, but when mutilated bodies begin washing up on the shore, she’s forced to stay. And the horror begins.
Huge fun with a great creepy atmosphere, twists galore and some very satisfying comeuppances. More of the same, please!
The Outcast Dead by Elly Griffiths
The Outcast Dead is book six in Griffiths’ excellent Dr Ruth Galloway, forensic archaeologist series and another unputdownable read.
Ah, it was nice to catch up with Ruth, Nelson, Cathbad, Judy and the rest. I love the way Griffiths draws us into their personal worlds while still capturing us with her mysteries—in this case, the recent death of a child, and the discovery of the bones of a notorious convicted murderess from the past.
Very, very enjoyable and with a good twist at the end. I also look forward to seeing if Ruth’s relationship with her new admirer goes anywhere. He sounds perfect, which means he’ll probably get murdered. We shall see!
What book recommendations do you have this month? Share away!
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