Month: April 2026
+ crime fiction, family, fiction, friendship, murder, police procedural, review, spiritualism, thriller
The Dying Hour by Jane Jesmond
The wind still carries the memory of a recent storm across the Yorkshire hills. But it’s not the weather that’s set the dogs howling all day… When police officer Josh Mason is sent to investigate a complaint at Cooper’s Stables, he expects nothing more than an awkward conversation with the yard’s notoriously difficult owner. What waits behind the locked gates will haunt him forever. … Read More The Dying Hour by Jane Jesmond
The Blind Woman of Sorrento by Francesco Mastriani extract translated from the Italian by Idara Crespi
A Gothic mystery set in the labyrinthine alleys of 1840s Naples — the first modern English translation of Mastriani’s masterwork. Naples, 1840. In the anatomy hall of the Hospital for the Incurables, a young medical student stands over his dead sister’s body and makes a vow. What follows is one of the most gripping novels of the Italian Romantic era: a story of hidden … Read More The Blind Woman of Sorrento by Francesco Mastriani extract translated from the Italian by Idara Crespi
+ 1930s, diary, family, female friendship, fiction, friendship, germany, grief, Historical fiction, jews, loss, love, music, nazi germany, review, siblings, twins
The Diva’s Daughter by Heather Walrath
Munich & Vienna, 1932. Aspiring opera singer Angelika Eder thought she had it all — a cultured life in Vienna, along with the guidance of her glamorous mother, a world-famous soprano. But when tragedy strikes and her mother dies amidst a swirling family scandal, eighteen-year-old Angelika finds herself uprooted to Munich, where civil unrest is rife and leaders of the increasingly powerful Nazi Party … Read More The Diva’s Daughter by Heather Walrath
My 4 Favourite Audiobooks of 2026 – Part One
I have actually listened to quite a few more audiobooks so far in 2026 than I did at the end of last year, so once again I am giving them their own post. However, I am going to put all three Crimson Lake books into one, as they follow on in the series. I am then going to do the same with the Harriet … Read More My 4 Favourite Audiobooks of 2026 – Part One
+ crime fiction, gothic, gothic horror, Gothic mystery, Historical fiction, List, murder mystery, mystery, supernatural, superstition, thriller
My Top 10 Books of 2026 – Part One
So here we go again into another year of reading. And here are ten of my favourite books of 2026 Part One, excluding audiobooks, of which there are loads so far. As usual a disparate selection, with a fair bit of superstition thrown in, but only one Gothic this time. It was a difficult decision as I had to leave out about three more … Read More My Top 10 Books of 2026 – Part One
The Tradwife’s Lie by Bella Ellwood-Clayton
In Westbrook, wives are currency. Belonging has a price. And the most dangerous thing a woman can do is change her mind. MARNII didn’t come here to be brave…I came to disappear. After New York, after the firm, after everything that broke me, Westbrook felt safe. Predictable. A place where the rules were clear, and someone else made the decisions. Elke chose me. That … Read More The Tradwife’s Lie by Bella Ellwood-Clayton
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