Yorkshire Pudding Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 I've just read through this thread - I also loved The 100 year old man who climbed out the window, and Winter in Madrid. Hurray for the 20p kindle books! I'm currently reading Wolf Hall and I have Bring up the Bodies next... from talking to friends it seems they are "Marmite' books, either loved or hated. I'm enjoying them hugely. Has anyone read any of the Shardlake series? Having enjoyed one book by CJ Sansom I quite fancy them and I see rt hey also involve Thomas Cromwell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickencam Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 I have just read 'The Forgotten Garden' by Kate Morton. 3 parallel stories are told in the book which all link together. It's beautifully written and a super read. I think that I posted about the House at Riverton earlier on this thread I have bought the Forgotten Garden but not started it yet, good to know it is a worthwhile read Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
counturchickens Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 I can recommend the shardlake series, really gripping. Since being on here I have become addicted to the merrily Watkins books though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LolaLayla Posted March 2, 2013 Share Posted March 2, 2013 Just read 'Gone Girl' with our book club and really enjoyed it. It was especially interesting for those who work in 'Mental Health'. We have selected 'After the Fall' for our next one so hopefully it will be good too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowyhen Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 If anyone is medieval inclined; Elizabeth Chadwick (romances) and Sharon K Penman. For all those of us on the RIII thread I heartily recommend Sunne in Splendour by SKP, but do have tissues handy for the end. Fantasy-wise; Patrick Rothfuss; The Name of the Wind and Wise Man's Fear Joanne Bertin The Last Dragonlord, Dragon and Phoenix, Bard's Oath(bit spooky this one) Read in order Hunger Games is also fantastic, though Mockingjay had to grow on me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soapdragon Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 The Diana Gabaldon books are great - beautifully observed and well written and lots of them! The author is American but you would imagine that she is Scottish from the beautiful descriptions of the Highlands. To say they are about time travel might put lots of people off but they are not at all alternative; basically about a 2nd World War nurse who 'falls' through a stone circle in the highlands and gets mixed up with the Jacobites. Really gripping stuff - starts with 'Cross Stitch'; I urge you to read at least this one...you will be hooked! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clunie Posted March 27, 2013 Share Posted March 27, 2013 Hi soapdragon My Mum adores Diana Gabldon, so as we got her a Kindle for christmas we also bouught her the new Diana G book for it. She has just started it and is loving it. Unfortunately she is not on the net so we will have to download new bookd etc for her! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickencam Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 I've just finished "The rivers of London"by Ben Aaronovitch. I enjoyed it very much. It is another book in the theme of magic existing in the modern world. The different take is that it is written from the point of view of a policeman who gets employed to combat crime committed by magic practitioners. It won an award recently. I'm about to look for the second in the series. Just did a search to see if anyone had read this. DS gave it to me on Mothering Sunday, I am normally not keen on magical or fantasy books, but this has enough of its roots in reality to be a great read. The story is well constructed and the characters are likeable. I have just started the second book which seems better still, DS bought me this one for my birthday, I am guessing number three maybe for Christmas if I can wait that long I get the feeling that the author lives and breathes London which adds a whole extra dimension to the books, with both historical and cultural insight. It is good to be dragged out of a reading comfort zone from time to time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LolaLayla Posted April 28, 2013 Share Posted April 28, 2013 Just read After the Fall for our book club. It is an interesting book exploring how far you would go to protect your family. We are just about to read Wonder which I understand is classed as a children's book too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinnamon Posted April 28, 2013 Author Share Posted April 28, 2013 Has anyone read any of the Shardlake series? Having enjoyed one book by CJ Sansom I quite fancy them and I see rt hey also involve Thomas Cromwell. These books are absolutely brilliant - I loved them & re read them regularly. Who recommended 'Cross Stitch'? I wasn't sure about it,but am really immersed in it now - another cracking book. I am also trawling through the Jack Reacher books, which are not my usual type of thing, but are totally gripping & Reacher is a fantastic character. I am loving them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pips_pekins Posted April 28, 2013 Share Posted April 28, 2013 Not been on for a while so interesting to see what is being recommended. I would also recommend Gone Girl. Couldn't put it down. The Bubble Gum Thief and Tiny Sunbirds Far Away were also good Kindle purchases I read Dissolution which is the first in the Shardlake series. I am not sure what I thought of it really I have got the second one to read but am not in any hurry to start it. I found Dissolution ok but wouldn't rate it a great read. I have recently read books I have enjoyed more (like Gone Girl and also Into the Darkest Corner). The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry is a really lovely read. Have recently finished a book called Edward Adrift by Craig Lancaster. I read the first in the series, 600 Hours of Edward about a man with Asperger’s Syndrome and pre-ordered the second book as soon as I saw it. Has anyone else read it? I would love to know what others thought of it. I really enjoyed it and was sorry to say 'goodbye' to Edward Stanton at the end of each book. Currently reading This is Where I Am by Karen Campbell, another Kindle Daily Deal which sadly I missed so am having to resort to a real book from the library Only just started it but seems promising. The 20p Kindle specials appear to have stopped and new titles seem to have got much more expensive, (the Karen Campbell book is currently £8 something for Kindle or paperback and the newest Kate Atkinson one is over £7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soapdragon Posted April 28, 2013 Share Posted April 28, 2013 Cross Stitch is fantastic - really glad that you are enjoying it. You have all the rest in the series to look forward to as well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted April 28, 2013 Share Posted April 28, 2013 The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry is a really lovely read. I read that and enjoyed it very much too. The 20p Kindle specials appear to have stopped and new titles seem to have got much more expensive, (the Karen Campbell book is currently £8 something for Kindle or paperback and the newest Kate Atkinson one is over £7 That's a shame about the 20p Kindle specials. I had downloaded quite a few - some were books I wouldn't otherwise have chosen but thought they were worth a read for 20p - and enjoyed them all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickendoodle Posted April 29, 2013 Share Posted April 29, 2013 What I do is to put books that are too expensive (like the Kate Atkinson one) into my Kindle wish list and check it every week or so. It will eventually come down but sometimes there is an odd day when they are really cheap and you can snap it up. I have a self imposed kindle limit of £5 on any book Just read a good one called What Have I Done. I was put off by the rather silly title for a long time but it is excellent - about domestic abuse told in a series of flashbacks. You know right from the opening page that the lead character has murdered her husband and you gradually discover the whole story. The abuse is pretty horrible so don't read if you are squeamish but the lead character is very well written and the book is full of hope. http://www.amazon.co.uk/What-Have-I-Done-ebook/dp/B00APDVENO/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1367224553&sr=1-1&keywords=what+have+i+done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluekarin Posted April 29, 2013 Share Posted April 29, 2013 Just bought it, thanks for the recommendation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted April 29, 2013 Share Posted April 29, 2013 I read 'What Have I Done?' too - and was also put off by the title. But once you get into it, it's really gripping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickendoodle Posted April 29, 2013 Share Posted April 29, 2013 Isn't it strange how much a title can influence what you think a book might be like. "What Have I done" to me conjured up a badly written trashy book when in fact it is extremely well crafted. Authors have to be so careful not to give the wrong impression. It is an art in itself, thinking up a good title. I think it must have created a bit of a Mills & Boon type connection in my mind as they all seem to have that sort of title - never read a Mills & Boon by the way so they may not be as trashy as I think Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted April 30, 2013 Share Posted April 30, 2013 I used to work for a book shop owner and he basically decided what to stock by the look of the cover - just shows how easily influenced we the book-buying public are ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 I've just finished 'Winter in Madrid' and thought it was a great read. Set in Spain in the Second World War, with references to the civil war and the politics of the time. I studied Spanish at school (quite a long time ago now ) so found the historical side of it interesting. There's something for everyone in this book - history, politics, espionage, romance... ETA I have just looked back through this thread and noticed that this book has already been recommended (probably why I downloaded it then ) so take this as a endorsement of the recommendation! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daphne Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Just wanted to say thank to everybody who has added things to this thread I am reading a lot at the moment on my Kindle, but I seem to be stuck on the classics and old favourites - I can't see the point of recommending them as everybody knows about them! I find it bewildering having so much choice without the cover or a few pages to dip into (although I know you can on some of them). And there are literally thousands of authors I haven't heard of, so its really good to have somebody else's take on things. I'm going to go through this thread and see which ones I like the sound of. They will have to be cheap though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Daphne, most of the books I download are less than £1. I rarely pay more than £2 and feel very extravagant if I pay more than that! I think Winter in Madrid was an exception at £3/4 but well worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickendoodle Posted July 22, 2013 Share Posted July 22, 2013 I have just read an amazing book called Wonder by R J Palacio (don't think it's been on this thread before but there's quite a lot to search through) It's about a little boy who has a severe genetic facial deformity. He has been home schooled due to medical problems and this is all about him starting at school for the first time - it is a US Middle School so I had trouble working out exactly how old he is but I think about 11/12. It is told from his point of view for most of the book but there are chapters from others talking about him. He is a normal little boy apart from his face and it really makes you think how you react to seeing "different" people and how your reactions can be so hurtful. Although his situation is really difficult it is not a depressing book but it is very moving. I think it was written for teenaged readers but don't be put off by this. I can't stop thinking about the fictional little boy Auggie since I finished the book Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted July 22, 2013 Share Posted July 22, 2013 Yay, my Kindle is here . It's tiny . But very cute . I've been reading through this thread again and have found quite a few of the books on Edinburgh "Library2go" facility - which are all now in my Wish List . I'm so excited . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 This was on the Yahoo home page today - thought it might be worth sharing (I think one of them has been mentioned on the forum before) What to read next: 10 books that you might have missed... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 Thanks ANH, there's one or two there I really like the look of. Just heading over to Amazon now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...