Author: Pam

Recent Reads: Agatha Raisin and the Deadly Dance by M. C. Beaton (Agatha Raisin book 15)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

Agatha Raisin and the Deadly Dance has Agatha starting her own detective agency, finally!  She has been talking about it for a couple of books, but now she finally does it!  Next door has been bought by a woman, Emma, who is a widow.

Charles is back on the scene.  He got married in a previous book, but it didn’t work out – she was using him as she was pregnant with twins.  This felt a little confusing to me as I would have sworn that it turned out that she wasn’t actually pregnant, but anyway!  There is a floating mention of the twins, and that’s about it!  All a little odd as though the author has written him out but has decided to keep him around now!

Agatha’s detective agency is hired to protect Catherine Legget-Brown’s daughter as she’s had a death threat.  As you would expect by now, there is a murder, and Agatha gets to investigate!

Agatha Raisin and the Deadly Dance was published in 2004, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

My review of the previous book in the Agatha Raisin series are below:

Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death (book 1)

Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet (book 2)

Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener (book 3)

Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley (book 4)

Agatha Raisin and the Murderous Marriage (book 5)

Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist (book 6)

Agatha Raisin and the Wellspring of Death (book 7)

Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham (book 8)

Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden (book 9)

Agatha Raisin and the fairies of Fryfam (book 10)

Agatha Raisin and the Love from Hell (book 11)

Agatha Raisin and the Day the Floods Came (book 12)

Agatha Raisin and the Case of the Curious Curate (book 13)

Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House (book 14)

Recent Reads: What Could Possibly Go Wrong? by Jodi Taylor (The Chronicles of St Mary’s book 6)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

What Could Possibly Go Wrong? by Jodi Taylor (The Chronicles of St Mary’s book 6) has Max unleashed to train new historians.

Max and Leon have gotten married, and because Max was hurt in the last book, she’s swapped with Tim to become Chief Training Officer, since there’s no one to train, and she can recover.  This lasts until 5 trainees arrive, and they put Max through her paces!

Max has ideas about how to change the training program, and Dr Bairstow gives his blessing, and that’s the beginning of the chaos of this book!

Max is in a different role to her normal one, since historians know how everything works, and their place in it.  Trainees just have a lot of questions, and enough interest about ‘what happens if they’… about everything that not even Markham has the same level of crazy making on Max.

I thought this was a good way to add characters to the series, with very different attitudes, and the culture and personality clashes that comes from a group of strangers who need to work closely together.

What could Possibly Go Wrong? was published on 20th August 2015, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can read my reviews of the other books in the series below:

Just One Damned Thing After Another – book 1

A Symphony of Echoes – book 2

A Second Chance – book 3

A Trail Through Time – book 4

No Time Like the Past – book 5

You can follow Jodi Taylor on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and her website.

Recent Reads: In Dublin’s Fair City by Rhys Bowen (Molly Murphy book 6)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

Molly is hired by Tommy Burke, a big deal in the theatre scene.  He wants her to find his long lost sister who was left in Ireland when the rest of the family fled the famine.  With Daniel on suspension pending his trail, this is a difficult time for both of them.

On the trip back to Ireland, Molly gets hired by Oona Sheehan, a leading theatre actress, to pose as her on the ship.  Needless to say, things aren’t as simple as they appear, and so Molly gets to Ireland with Oona vanished and her maid dead.

The trip on the ship is very different to Molly’s trip to America.  I really enjoy the historical details in these books as I find they really help with the story.

The experience Molly had in the previous book of wanting to get rid of her pregnancy gave a real insight into the options had at the time.  Her decision not to tell Daniel is explained and reinforced a couple of times in this book.

In Dublin’s Fair City was published on 6th March 2007, and is available from Amazon and Waterstones.

You can follow Rhys Bowen on Twitter, Facebook and her website.

You can read my review of books in this series: 

Murphy’s Choice (book 1)

Death of Riley (book 2)

For The Love Of Mike (book 3)

In Like Flynn (book 4)

Oh Danny Boy (book 5)

Recent Reads: With This Kiss by Carrie Hope Fletcher

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟

With This Kiss by Carrie Hope Fletcher is about Lorelai, who loves reading and adapting books into screenplays.  She works full time at a cinema in London, and when she kisses someone, she sees their death.  The only one who knows is her best friend, and Lorelai doesn’t plan to change that!

Until, that is, she meets Grayson, the first man who makes Lorelai want more from life, and to find out if she is seeing death or making it happen.

This is a romantic fantasy about Lorelai’s choices regarding this power.  I loved the idea of this book, and found myself getting frustrated at Lorelai, and not being swept away in the story.  

I found this to be lacking in character depth, and romantic connection.  I finished it, but I won’t be looking for another book by this author.

With This Kiss was published on 14th April 2022, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Carrie Hope Fletcher on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and her website.

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to HQ.

Recent Reads: Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House by M. C. Beaton (Agatha Raisin book 14)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House has Agatha hurt after finding out at the end of the last book that James didn’t go back to the monastery after selling his house, and divorcing her!

She has a new neighbour, Paul, an IT consultant, whose wife is in Spain with her family, and comes back for a bit, then returns to Spain.

Paul and Agatha both become interested in a local house which is said to be haunted, and so they stay the night there.  When the old lady who lives there is later found to have died, Agatha and Paul investigate!

The rotating men next door to Agatha felt a little unlikely, and I couldn’t decide if the author was trying out new characters for a bit to see if she could replace James with another man for Agatha to investigate with, or what was happening!  Other than that, this was a good book in the series!

Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House was published in August 2003 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

My review of the previous book in the Agatha Raisin series are below:

Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death (book 1)

Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet (book 2)

Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener (book 3)

Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley (book 4)

Agatha Raisin and the Murderous Marriage (book 5)

Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist (book 6)

Agatha Raisin and the Wellspring of Death (book 7)

Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham (book 8)

Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden (book 9)

Agatha Raisin and the fairies of Fryfam (book 10)

Agatha Raisin and the Love from Hell (book 11)

Agatha Raisin and the Day the Floods Came (book 12)

Agatha Raisin and the Case of the Curious Curate (book 13)

Recent Reads: The Wicked King by Holly Black (The Folk of the Air book 2)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Wicked King is the second book in the series, and Jude had gotten Cardan on the throne, and is protecting her little brother.  

There is plotting, as you would expect from a court of the fae, and as the power behind the throne, who is going to protect Jude?  

I’ve been enjoying this series – there’s is sexual tension between Jude and Cardan, and I’ve been enjoying the fae politics.  I’ve been cheering on both Jude and Cardan, even when they’re being cruel to each other.  I’m looking forward to what happens next, which I haven’t been able to predict in this book!

The Wicked King was published on 8th January 2019, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can read my review of the other books in this series:

The Cruel Prince (book 1)

The Lost Sisters (book 1.5)

You can follow Holly Black on Twitter, Instagram and her website.

Recent Reads: The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont; Narrated by Lucy Scott

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont; Narrated by Lucy Scott is written about the time that Agatha Christie famously disappeared for 11 days, and this is an imagining of the whole event told from the point of view of Christie’s husband’s mistress!

This is an entertaining mystery with a murder along the way!

I though this was a good story, and was one that tries to make sense of the events that occurred, and how Agatha Christie’s life changed so much.

I enjoyed the narrator, and felt that Lucy Scott did a good job, and added to the story.

The Christie Affair was released as an audiobook on 20th January 2022, and is available from Amazon/ Audible.

You can follow Nina de Gramont on Twitter, Instagram and her website.

You can follow Lucy Scott on Twitter.

I was given access to this audiobook in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Macmillan UK Audio.

Recent Reads: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus is set in the 1960s, Elizabeth Zott struggles with the world – she is a briliant chemist in a time where women are overlooked.  She falls in love and through a series of events, she ends up on tv as a cook with a popular tv show.

Elizabeth Zott is a wonderful character, full of zeal and ready to overturn and not accept the norms, or the way people feel she should act.

This is being made into an Apple tv series, starring Brie Larson, and I imagine it’s going to be great!

Lessons in Chemistry was published on 5th April 2022 and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Bonnie Garmus on Instagram and her website.

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Random House.

Recent Reads: No Time Like the Past by Jodi Taylor (The Chronicles of St Mary’s book 5)

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

No Time Like the Past by Jodi Taylor (The Chronicles of St Mary’s book 5) continues the chaos that is St Mary’s, no matter how Dr Bairstow tries to contain them.

Markham is the only one who can see a 17th century ghost at St Mary’s, and so you know that means a mission!  He’s one of my favourite characters in the series, and I enjoyed the supernatural element added!

Each book in the series has a cast of characters, all with funny descriptions such as ‘Turning a blind eye’, and I feel this adds to the story, as you get to anticipate a character’s actions, even when you don’t have any clue who they are!

I think of this series as romps through time, and that they are a very enjoyable series, with catch phrase swearing!

No Time Like the Past was published on 21st April 2015, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can read my reviews of the other books in the series below:

Just One Damned Thing After Another – book 1

A Symphony of Echoes – book 2

A Second Chance – book 3

A Trail Through Time – book 4

You can follow Jodi Taylor on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and her website.

My review: Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao

Posted on by Pam

My review:🌟🌟🌟🌟

I think the best way to describe Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao is to say it’s like Pacific Rim, except that one of the pair is female and the other male.  Typically the male is the one in charge, with the female subjugated to the male, and all set in a pseudo China.

Zeita wants to avenge the death of her big sister, who was killed by a pilot, and so Zeita works to get chosen, and is set on her mission.

This is action packed science fiction with kaiju and giant mechs! If you enjoyed Pacific Rim, then you’re sure to enjoy this!

Iron Widow was published on 21st September 2021, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Xiran Jay Zhao on Instagram, Twitter, Youtube and their website.