Tag: peter swanson

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Top 5 Least Favourite Books of 2024!

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all doing well today. It is that time f the year, time for me to share of the 50+ books I have read this year, which ones are the five I have least enjoyed. I can tell you this year has been very varied, I have had a few five stars which you will see next week in my favourite books of the year post so keep your eyes peeled for that but on the other end I have also had some books that I really did not enjoy.

Of those, here are the five books I enjoyed the least this year.

In at number five is…

The Twat Files by Dawn French

This is a nonfiction book that I got a signed edition of when I went to see her at my local Theatre with Darcey Bussell, I enjoyed the show but the book was a miss for me. I didn’t find it funny and I wasn’t entertained by it. That’s why it is number five on my least favourite books of this year.

In Number four is…

The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman

This is the fourth book in the Thursday Murder Club series and some of the books in the series I have enjoyed but this one I really did not. I have put up a book review for this one in November if you’d like to read all of my thoughts.

In number three is…

Love Letters to a Serial Killer by Tasha Coryell

This one was such a disappointment for me. The premise of this book was very promising with a woman needing something in her life and writing letters to a serial killer and then getting wrapped up in a murder mystery but the execution of this novel was not good. It could have been much better in my opinion.

In number two is…

The Housekeepers by Alex Hay

This was another mystery book that had a great premise but poor execution. In my opinion this book felt lazy and there were more than one plot point that didn’t fit or was never finished and it was a book that I wish I had DNF’d it instead of pushing on to finish it.

My least favourite book of this year was….

Nine Lives by Peter Swanson

This was not a terrible book, I will say that, my problem with it was that it too closely resembled another book to the point where I felt that it bordered on plagiarism. Obviously it was a more modern version of that book but the plot was very similar and that ruined it for me.

Book Reviews

Book Review: Nine Lives by Peter Swanson

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Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a good day today.

Today I am bringing you my book review for Nine Lives by Peter Swanson, I read this during September and honestly I had been putting off reading the book because of the things I had heard about it. So, I am glad that I have finally read it and if you want to hear my thoughts, read on! Just so you know there might be light spoilers in this post.

Blurb/Synopsis:

Nine strangers receive a list with their names on it in the mail. Nothing else, just a list of names on a single sheet of paper. None of the nine people know or have ever met the others on the list. They dismiss it as junk mail, a fluke – until very, very bad things begin happening to people on the list. First, a well-liked old man is drowned on a beach in the small town of Kennewick, Maine. Then, a father is shot in the back while running through his quiet neighborhood in suburban Massachusetts. A frightening pattern is emerging, but what do these nine people have in common? Their professions range from oncology nurse to aspiring actor.

FBI agent Jessica Winslow, who is on the list herself, is determined to find out. Could there be some dark secret that binds them all together? Or is this the work of a murderous madman? As the mysterious sender stalks these nine strangers, they find themselves constantly looking over their shoulders, wondering who will be crossed off next….

My Review:

I have read one of Peter Swanson’s books before and I found it to be quite enjoyable, it was easy to guess the ending but good none the less. So, when Nine Lives came out a few years ago it sounded interesting and I bought a copy but then I started seeing other people not enjoy the book and it put me off reading it but I was looking for a short, quick read and I decided to pick it up and.. it was exactly like everyone said it was.

Okay, in terms of the novel itself it was well written and overall plotted quite nicely. The problem is that it very clearly was inspired by Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, I think had I read Nine Lives without ever seeing, hearing about or reading And Then There Were None I would have enjoyed Nine Lives more as a quick easy read but as it was I found it a bit dragging because I sort of knew what was coming. I also couldn’t get a connection with any of the characters because they weren’t on the page for very long and I also didn’t understand the overall motivations of the killer, it didn’t make much sense to me.

Overall I gave this book a three star rating because as a book I would describe it as ‘fine’ but as a novel with the intentions it had it wasn’t to my taste.

Have you read this book? What did you think of it?

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September Wrap Up!

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a lovely day today.

It is October already, the skies are getting darker and it is time to talk about what I read in the month of September.

From my September TBR:

  • Nightshade by E S Thomson – I did not read this book
  • The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent – I was really hoping I would find the time for this book but unfortunately this month I ran out of time.
  • The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern – I am currently reading this book with ten days left in the month when I am typing this so there should be no problem there, I should finish it by the end of the month.
  • Nine Lives by Peter Swanson – I did read this book and my review is coming on the 21st October.
  • Five Broken Blades by Mai Cortland – I did not read this book. I have been trying to prioritize reading the books that have been on my TBR the longest.
  • Murder at the Dolphin Hotel by Helena Dixon – I did read this book and loved it. I recommend this to everyone.
  • Covent Garden Ladies by Hallie Rubenhold – I did read this book and the review is coming on the 14th October.
  • The Wren in the Holly Library by K A Linde – I did not read this.
  • An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir – I did read this, as I am writing this it is the last book I finished.
  • Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber – as it stands right now if I finish the Night Circus quickly then I may get this book read as well.

That means I definitely read 4 books, and two depending on how quickly I can read for the rest of the month. So 4 – 6 books read this month is pretty good.

What books did you read this month? Which one was your favourite? My favourite read this month was Murder at the Dolphin Hotel by Helena Dixon.

Monthly TBRs

December TBR!

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Happy Friday bookish people! And welcome to December, I can’t believe we are this close to Christmas already. It seems to have flown by this year.

There are so many birthdays for my family this month, my Dad, my sister and my Nan so this will be a really busy month.

Anyway, onto the TBR!

The It Girl by Ruth Ware

Lore by Alexandra Bracken

Nine Lives by Peter Swanson

Emma by Jane Austen

European Travels for the Monstrous Gentlewomen by Theodora Goss

Belladonna by Adalyn Grace

Down Comes The Night by Alison Saft

My Fine Fellow by Jennieke Cohen

Only A Monster by Vanessa Len

Love On The Brain by Ali Hazelwood

That’s it for my December TBR, have you read any of these books?

Monthly Wrap Ups

July Wrap Up!

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Happy Monday bookish people! I know this post is going up on the first day of August when I usually post them at the end of the month I am writing about but July was quite the month! First there was YALC and Comic Con which I don’t really want to say that much about because it will turn into a rant, I did not have a good experience there this year because of the organization and well, they had no idea what to do with people who have disabilities so the less said about it the better. Then I found out I had gotten covid from YALC and I was so poorly, I still am a bit even a month on, I couldn’t do much. I rounded the month out with a trip to Bristol and a trip to Hampshire so I am pretty exhausted.

A good thing that happened this month is that I opened my Etsy shop! I have been thinking about this for a while and I have finally done it. I am creating bookish bookmarks, on card, wood and made of resin. If you’d like to visit my shop is TheBlindScribe

Anyway, my reading this month wasn’t great, I read some okay books but no books that I was really invested in. My book reviews of the books I did read will be coming on Mondays throughout August!

  • The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood – I did read this and actually I quite enjoyed it but I had one very specific issue with it which I will talk about in my book review of it.
  • A Perilous Undertaking by Deanna Raybourn – I did not read this book
  • Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li – I did not read this
  • The Box in the Woods by Maureen Johnson – I did not read this book either
  • Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead by Elle Cosimano – I haven’t read this book
  • The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton – I haven’t read this book yet either
  • Nine Lives by Peter Swanson – I did not read this
  • Daughters of Night by Laura Shepard Robinson – I started this book a while ago but I haven’t continued with it yet
  • The Three Dog Problem by S J Bennett – I did read this!
  • The Mystery of Three Quarters by Sophie Hannah – I also read this book!
  • The Perfect Escape by Leah Konen – I did not read this book

Overall, I read three books this month which considering how poorly I was and how much has been going on this month is pretty good, I’m happy with it.

That’s it for my July wrap-up! I hope you all enjoyed it, my August TBR is coming on Friday!

Monthly TBRs

April Wrap Up!

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Happy Sunday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a good day. Today I am bringing you my April wrap up and I’m so glad to say that my reading has been a little bit better this month, not amazing to the extent that I was at this time last year but so much better than March and February. So I’m going to get straight into which books I did and didn’t read in April!

  • Small Favours by Erin A Craig – I did not read this book – I just wasn’t in the mood for this style of plot this month
  • Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas – I finally managed to read this book, my review for it will be up soon but I really enjoyed it
  • Daughters of Night by Laura Shepard-Robinson – I have started this book but I haven’t finished it yet, it’s a pretty big book so it might take me some time
  • Rose by Holly Webb – I did read this book
  • there was a non-bookish prompt and for this I had a nice warm bath and I watched some videos
  • Lily by Rose Tremain – I did read this book too so a review of this book will also be up soon
  • The City Beautiful by Aden Polydoros – I did not read this book
  • The Mapmakers by Tamzin Merchant – I read this book too!
  • Down Comes the Night by Alison Saft – I did not read this book
  • Nine Lives by Peter Swanson – I did not read this book and I’m sad about that because I am really excited for it
  • Queenslayer by Sebastien de Castell – I am currently 3/4 of the way through this book and it is also on my May tbr so I will be finishing it in the next few days
  • An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir – I did not read this book
  • The Five – I did not read this book
  • A Marvelous Light by Freya Marske – I did not read this book but it is on my May tbr
  • Cecily by Annie Garthwaite – Again I didn’t read this book but it is on my May tbr
  • Only A Monster by Vanessa Len – I didn’t read this book
  • Assassins Apprentice by Robin Hobb – I did not read this book
  • Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore – I did read this book!
  • An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson – I did not read this book
  • Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody – I did not read this book – I did take it all the way to London with me and then still didn’t read it
  • House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J Maas – I did not read this

So that was what I did and didn’t read in April. I ended up reading 5 books and started two others, one of which I will finish in a few days so I am really happy with that.

Monthly TBRs

April TBR!

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Happy Friday bookish people! Today I am bringing you my April TBR which includes what books I will be reading for the prompts of the Easter readathon I am co-hosting this month.

Once again, my TBR game gave me a lot of rolls so there are quite a few books to read this month, I am hoping that my reading will improve this month.

So, onto my TBR!

  • Flower – first book you look at: Small Favours by Erin A Craig – I read her first book, House of Salt and Sorrows and really enjoyed it so I am looking forward to this one
  • Chocolate – Plot twist: Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas – this is a book that I have been putting off but I am looking forward to reading it
  • Cake – Multiple POV: Daughters of Night by Laura Shepard-Robinson – I think this book has multiple points of view but also, it is a haunting, dark victorian mystery so it sounds right up my alley
  • Bunny – a short read: Rose by Holly Webb – I read this book when I was younger but I love this story
  • The sun – a non-book, self care prompt: I am not sure what I will do for this, probably watch some bookish videos and have a warm bath
  • Moon – a mystery: Lily by Rose Tremain – I am so excited to read this book
  • Carrot – a title starts with a c: The City Beautiful by Aden Polydoros
  • The Mapmakers by Tamzen Merchant – I loved the hatmakers so I am very excited to continue this series
  • Down comes the night by Alison Saft – I love Victorian, gothic themed novels
  • Nine Lives by Peter Swanson – I love his books and the premise of this book sounds really good
  • Queenslayer by Sebastien de Castell – I am two books away from finishing this series so I would love to read this one soon
  • An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir – this is another book that has been on my TBR for a long time
  • The Five: the untold story of the victims of Jack the ripper – I love anything about the jack the ripper mystery and I think it is great to see the women he killed as women
  • A Marvelous Light by Freya Marske – I got this in my Illumicrate box and it sounds very interesting
  • Cecily by Anne Garthwaite – I am looking forward to reading historical fiction again
  • Only A Monster by Vanessa Len – this sounds very dark and fantastical
  • Assassins Apprentice by Robin Hobb – I am excited to start reading the Hobb books
  • Bringing down the duke by Evie Dunmore – this will be interesting to try and read another genre outside of my comfort zone
  • An enchantment of ravens by Margaret Rogerson – the cover is beautiful and I love this author’s writing
  • Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody – this book looks like it has a morally grey male lead that I think i will like
  • House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J Maas – carrying on over from March TBR

That’s it for my April TBR!

Monthly Wrap Ups

March Wrap-Up

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Happy Wednesday bookish people! It is the last day of March and today I’m bringing you my March wrap up! This was such a good reading month for me. February put me in a big reading slump and for the first half of March I was still feeling it a bit but I did manage to read some books and then there was the Becca and the Books 48 hour Bookopoly reading challenge where I read eight books in one weekend!

Also this month I had more appointments, I got a new teacher for my dramatic writing University module and he’s not much better than the previous one, I completed my first case study for my new job and I’ve started my second one so that’s going well and I still haven’t heard back about my PhD application so that’s a bit worrying but hopefully I’ll hear soon.

It was my birthday in March! I’m now 22 and I keep forgetting and telling people I’m 21… I got a couple of books as presents so I’m happy with that, my sister got me an art set and my boyfriend got me an Alice in Wonderland teapot which I love! I didn’t do any reading on my actual birthday but I’ve read one or two books since – I actually skipped ahead and read one of the books of my April tbr already…

Anyway, I didn’t finish my March tbr but it has been my best reading month so far this year so I’m still pretty happy with how I did. This was my tbr:

  • What A Way To Go by Julia Forster – I did read
  • Uprooted by Niami Novik – I did not read
  • The Ravens by Kass Morgan and Danielle Paige – I did read
  • The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman – I did read
  • Rules for Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson – I did read
  • The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater – I did read
  • The Once and Future Witches by Alix E Harrow – I did not read
  • Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty – I did not read
  • Map of Days by Ransom Riggs – I did not read
  • Lives of Saints by Leigh Bardugo – I did read
  • The Library of the Unwritten by A J Hackwith – I did not read
  • Ever Cursed by Corey Ann Haydu – I did read
  • Chain of gold by Cassandra Clare – I did not read
  • A Curse So Dark and Lonely – I did read

What I read: so from my TBR I managed to read eight books which is much better than February but I also read four books that were not from my March TBR which were: The Cousins by Karen M McManus, The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh, Bridge of Souls by Victoria Schwab and Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I have put up the book reviews for all the books I read this month except for the Cousins and Lives of Saints so check those out if you’re interested in what I thought of them.

There were also two five star reads this month! Those were Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell which I didn’t expect to enjoy as much as I did and A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer. They were my favourite reads this month.

Most disappointing reads: It’s actually been a really great month, there’s only one book I didn’t enjoy which was What A Way to go by Julia Forster. It just wasn’t for me.

Current reads: well I read the Cousins off my April tbr last night so today I’ll be choosing a new book off my April tbr to start reading and I’m very excited about it.

That’s it for my March wrap up I hope you enjoyed it!