Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you are all having a wonderful day today. Can you believe it is already time to be sharing my TBR for January 2026?! This year, in my reading journal, I have a 100 book challenge so I tried to fill it with books I am really excited to read and I will be trying to choose from that sheet when I am building my monthly TBR’s.
What I will be reading in January:
Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber
A Season of Scandal by Laura Wood
Book of Night by Holly Black
A Disaster in Three Acts by Kelsey Rodkey
Restore Me by Taherah Mafi
Bloodlines by Richelle Mead
A Matter of Murder by Tirzah Price
The Mysterious Affair of Judith Potts by Robert Thorogood
What’s on your January TBR? What are you excited about reading?
Happy Friday bookish people! How are you all today? I hope you are all doing well. Today I am bringing something a little bit different. If you have seen a lot of my posts you probably know that I am doing a PhD surrounding the topic of Cosy Crime and so I have had to read a LOT of it, especially recently. When I started my degree I thought, this will be fin I love Cosy crime, it’s my favourite style of murder mystery novel. And it still is, which is good at least. However, I have thoughts. And I thought it might be fun to share some of these thoughts and see what other people are thinking about the genre at the moment. If you are a cosy crime reader, let me know what you think of some of these books!
The Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman
Okay, I have a love hate relationship with this series. I didn’t mind the first book, I enjoyed the second book and then hated the third and fourth books so I have decided not to continue the series with number five when it comes out later this year. It’s difficult to explain what I don’t like about this series, I’m not overly keen on elderly characters as the sleuths because it is so overdone now but this series was one of the first to do it so that didn’t bother me so much with books one and two. I think one of the things that I dislike is that the tone, trying to stay cosy, goes too far into conversational and the people who are meant to be villains their voices are too similar to each other and to the ‘heroes’ of the story. There are also mentions of our main four characters, especially Elizabeth, being involved with these other things that really belong more in a thriller than in cosy crime in my opinion. As it has gone on these things have grated on me more and more to the point that after I have finished my PhD I will be unhauling the series.
The Miss Underhay series by Helena Dixon
Now, from a love/hate relationship to one of pure love. This series took over my life from the minute I picked up the first book. It follows Kitty Underhay, her Grandmother runs a hotel called The Dolphin in Torquay and the series is set in the 1930s England. (It’s actually set close to the area where I live so being able to recognise locations is really fun). When it starts we learn that Kitty’s Mother went missing when she was a child and has never been found. Then we meet Captain Matthew Bryant. Over the series Matthew and Kitty become involved in a variety of murder mysteries. If you are looking for something groundbreaking then this series is not for you but if you like something classic, with good twists and brilliant loveable characters then you will enjoy this.
The Marlow Murder Club series by Robert Thorogood
This series follows Judith – an older woman, Suzy – a dog walker, and Becks – the wife of the vicar and their lives in Marlow and how they meet and become involved in murder investigations. This is another series that I absolutely love, I do think as we are going into later books that it might start feeling a bit flat with the way the characters are, I don’t think we learn much more about them as the series progresses but at the moment I love it. They are intriguing and keep my interest which is good because I get bored easily especially with series. I like the connection between the characters and I think that is what keeps pulling me back to this series.
The Finlay Donovan series by Elle Cosimano
This series, well, I loved book one and then I found book two a drag to get through but then I loved book three so it is a bit up and down for me. I love the premise, a writer is accidentally overheard talking about her novel plot and gets hired to kill this woman’s husband. That was really different and intriguing and Finlay, the writer, is with respect, very chaotic and messy. Her life is falling to pieces and somehow she gets caught up in all these things while also holding a very interesting romantic subplot with a policeman no less. That ups the stakes drastically. It’s really just a very fun series that doesn’t take itself seriously. Sometimes the plots can be a little confusing but overall I enjoy it.
The Windsor Knot series by S J Bennett
This series is very interesting because it follows elderly characters like is the trend in cosy, but in this series that elderly woman is Queen Elizabeth II of England and members of her staff. It is another series where overall I enjoy it but the individual books can be hit or miss for me. I enjoy it’s uniqueness but it is middle of the road for me, I couldn’t tell you much about the books after six months from reading them.
The Dog Sitter Detective series by Antony Johnston
This series follows another older lady, named Gwinny, who is an actress that was big in the day but now has faded into the background but struggling for money she has had to get more roles again. As a character I don’t mind Gwinny, she dog sits hence the name, she’s independent, curious and frankly, finds trouble no matter where she goes. The romantic subplot that shows up here is not one that I am interested in and I’d prefer if the series didn’t have it but I can overlook it for the plots. So far there has been a rockstar on a canal boat, a theatre play and a film set murder and I enjoyed all of them. It’s not a favourite series but it is a fun, easy read.
The Vera Wong series by Jessie Q Sutanto
This series follows Vera Wong, a lady who owns a tea shop and comes downstairs one morning and finds a man murdered inside her shop, believing the Police aren’t doing their job she decides to investigate for herself. I liked the brazenness of the main character, Vera and I also liked the element of found family that develops in this book but I think there were some aspects that weren’t memorable so again it is a middle of the road series but I am looking forward to reading the new book in the series.
The Castle Knoll series by Kristen Perrin
This series is interesting. I actually have unhauled the first book because I didn’t like it but then I bought the second book because it sounded a lot better, so when I read that we will see what it is like. But for now lets talk about book 1, How To Solve Your Own Murder. It follows the Granddaughter of a woman who was told many years ago by a fortune teller that one day she will be murdered and she spends the rest of her time watching everyone and then when the novel begins her Granddaughter arrives at her house and finds her there, murdered. There’s also some flirting with the local policeman that somewhat disappointingly doesn’t come to anything in the first book but I am hopeful that there will be in the second book. The thing I didn’t like about this first book was that most of the plot progression came about in letters from the past, which I enjoyed reading but it felt like there wasn’t enough substance in the present day parts of the novel.
The Three Dahlias series by Katy Watson
This is one of my favourite cosy mystery series. It follows three generations who have played the character Dahlia Lively – Caro, Rosalind and Posy. In the first book you see the characters meet and form a team without knowing it and I love the way their characters interact with each other but keep their own distinct personalities. The mysteries are incredibly bingeable as well, twisty and well written. I can’t describe how good these books are. You get the perfect balance between plot and character.
Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a good day today.
Today I am bringing you the wrap up for my February reading, which, spoiler alert, did not go well.
I did a lot in February. I went to a Nightcourt Ball! based on the ACOTAR books and it was a very cool experience, I got to dress up like a fantasy princess and dance for a night and they had people dressed up as the characters from the books and even a live singer, who was excellent. It was tiring but fun. Then next up in February, I went to Disneyland Paris with my Mum and my sister and my Sister’s family. This was also great but it didn’t give me much time for reading unfortunately.
So, onto what I read this month. I’ll save the list this month I had five books on my February TBR and I only read one (which I literally finished this morning.)
So, in February I read The Queen of Poisons by Robert Thorogood, the third book in the Marlow Murder Club series. I have loved the previous two books in the series but for me this third one fell a bit flat and well, it took me a month to finish it. I’ll give my thoughts in a review later this month but for now that’s it for this post, I didn’t manage to read anything else in February. All I hope is that I get some good books read in March.
How was your reading in February? What was your favourite book that you have read recently?
Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a good day today.
Today I am sharing with you what books I hope to read in February, I am trying to prioritise books that I can use as references in my PhD thesis so mostly I am reading murder mystery novels at the moment but sometimes I do need a break from that.
The Queen of Poisons by Robert Thorogood
The Dog Sitter Detective Takes The Lead by Antony Johnston
Happy Friday Bookish people! I hope you’re all having a good day today.
Today I wanted to bring you a small list of some of the books that are being released in January that I have heard about. This is not a complete list, this is only a small list of the books I know about.
House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J Maas – 30th January
Bryce Quinlan never expected to see a world other than Midgard, but now that she has, all she wants is to get back. Everything she loves is in Midgard: her family, her friends, her mate. Stranded in a strange new world, she’s going to need all her wits about her to get home again. And that’s no easy feat when she has no idea who to trust.
Hunt Athalar has found himself in some deep holes in his life, but this one might be the deepest of all. After a few brief months with everything he ever wanted, he’s in the Asteri’s dungeons again, stripped of his freedom and without a clue as to Bryce’s fate. He’s desperate to help her, but until he can escape the Asteri’s leash, his hands are quite literally tied.
In this sexy, breathtaking sequel to the #1 bestsellers House of Earth and Blood and House of Sky and Breath, Sarah J. Maas’s Crescent City series reaches new heights as Bryce and Hunt’s world is brought to the brink of collapse-with its future resting on their shoulders.
The Atlas Complex by Olivie Blake – 9th January
An explosive return to the library leaves the six Alexandrians vulnerable to the lethal terms of their recruitment.
Old alliances quickly fracture as the initiates take opposing strategies as to how to deal with the deadly bargain they have so far failed to uphold. Those who remain with the archives wrestle with the ethics of their astronomical abilities, while elsewhere, an unlikely pair from the Society cohort partner to influence politics on a global stage.
And still the outside world mobilizes to destroy them, while the Caretaker himself, Atlas Blakely, may yet succeed with a plan foreseen to have world-ending stakes. It’s a race to survive as the six Society recruits are faced with the question of what they’re willing to betray for limitless power―and who will be destroyed along the way.
So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole – 16th January
Whip-smart and immersive, this Jamaican-inspired fantasy follows a gods-blessed heroine who’s forced to choose between saving her sister or protecting her homeland.
Faron Vincent can channel the power of the gods. Five years ago, she used her divine magic to liberate her island from its enemies, the dragon-riding Langley Empire. But now, at seventeen, Faron is all powered up with no wars to fight. She’s a legend to her people and a nuisance to her neighbors.
When she’s forced to attend an international peace summit, Faron expects that she will perform tricks like a trained pet and then go home. She doesn’t expect her older sister, Elara, forming an unprecedented bond with an enemy dragon—or the gods claiming the only way to break that bond is to kill her sister.
As Faron’s desperation to find another solution takes her down a dark path, and Elara discovers the shocking secrets at the heart of the Langley Empire, both must make difficult choices that will shape each other’s lives, as well as the fate of their world.
A Fragile Enchantment by Alison Saft – 4th January
Niamh Ó Conchobhair has never let herself long for more. The magic in her blood that lets her stitch emotions and memories into fabric is the same magic that will eventually kill her. Determined to spend the little time she has left guaranteeing a better life for her family, Niamh jumps at the chance to design the wardrobe for a royal wedding in the neighboring kingdom of Avaland.
But Avaland is far from the fairytale that she imagined. While young nobles attend candlelit balls and elegant garden parties, unrest brews amid the working class. The groom himself, Kit Carmine, is prickly, abrasive, and begrudgingly being dragged to the altar as a political pawn. But when Niamh and Kit grow closer, an unlikely friendship blossoms into something more—until an anonymous columnist starts buzzing about their chemistry, promising to leave them alone only if Niamh helps to uncover the royal family’s secrets. The rot at the heart of Avaland runs deep, but exposing it could risk a future she never let herself dream of, and a love she never thought possible.
Transporting readers to a Regency England-inspired fantasy world, A Fragile Enchantment is a sweeping romance threaded with intrigue, unforgettable characters, and a love story for the ages.
The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins – 4th January
When Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore dies, she’s not only North Carolina’s richest woman, she’s also its most notorious. The victim of a famous kidnapping as a child and a widow four times over, Ruby ruled the tiny town of Tavistock from Ashby House, her family’s estate high in the Blue Ridge mountains. In the aftermath of her death, that estate—along with a nine-figure fortune and the complicated legacy of being a McTavish—pass to her adopted son, Camden.
But to everyone’s surprise, Cam wants little to do with the house or the money—and even less to do with the surviving McTavishes. Instead, he rejects his inheritance, settling into a normal life as an English teacher in Colorado and marrying Jules, a woman just as eager to escape her own messy past.
Ten years later, Camden is a McTavish in name only, but a summons in the wake of his uncle’s death brings him and Jules back into the family fold at Ashby House. Its views are just as stunning as ever, its rooms just as elegant, but coming home reminds Cam why he was so quick to leave in the first place.
Jules, however, has other ideas, and the more she learns about Cam’s estranged family—and the twisted secrets they keep—the more determined she is for her husband to claim everything Ruby once intended for him to have.
But Ruby’s plans were always more complicated than they appeared. As Ashby House tightens its grip on Jules and Camden, questions about the infamous heiress come to light. Was there any truth to the persistent rumors following her disappearance as a girl? What really happened to those four husbands, who all died under mysterious circumstances? And why did she adopt Cam in the first place? Soon, Jules and Cam realize that an inheritance can entail far more than what’s written in a will––and that the bonds of family stretch far beyond the grave.
The Getaway List by Emma Lord – 25th January
The day of her high school graduation, Riley realizes two things: One, that she has spent the last four years trying so hard to be a Good Kid for her mom that she has no idea who she really is anymore, and two, she has no idea what she wants because of it. The solution? Pack her bags and move to New York for the summer, where her childhood best friend Tom and co-creator of The Getaway List ― a list of all the adventures they’ve wanted to do together since he moved away ― will hopefully help her get in touch with her old adventurous self, and pave the road to a new future.
Riley isn’t sure what to expect from Tom, who has been distant since his famous mom’s scriptwriting career pulled him away. But when Riley arrives in the city, their reconnection is as effortless as it was when they were young―except with one, unexpected complication that will pull Riley’s feelings in a direction she didn’t know they could take. As she, Tom, and their newfound friends work their way through the delightfully chaotic items on The Getaway List, Riley learns that sometimes the biggest adventure is not one you take, but one you feel in your heart.
The Queen of Poisons by Robert Thorogood – 18th January
Geoffrey Lushington, Mayor of Marlow, dies suddenly during a Town Council meeting. When traces of aconite – also known as the queen of poisons – are found in his coffee cup, the police realise he was murdered. But who did it? And why?
The police bring Judith, Suzie and Becks in to investigate as Civilian Advisors right from the start, so they have free rein to interview suspects and follow the evidence to their heart’s content, which is perfect because Judith has no time for rules and standard procedure. But this case has the Marlow Murder Club stumped. Who would want to kill the affable Mayor of Marlow? How did they even get the poison into his coffee? And is anyone else in danger? The Marlow Murder Club are about to face their most difficult case yet . . .
Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett – 18th January
When mysterious faeries from other realms appear at her university, curmudgeonly professor Emily Wilde must uncover their secrets before it’s too late in this heartwarming, enchanting second installment of the Emily Wilde series.
Emily Wilde is a genius scholar of faerie folklore—she just wrote the world’s first comprehensive of encylopaedia of faeries. She’s learned many of the secrets of the Hidden Folk on her adventures . . . and also from her fellow scholar and former rival, Wendell Bambleby.
Because Bambleby is more than infuriatingly charming. He’s an exiled faerie king on the run from his murderous mother, and in search of a door back to his realm. So despite Emily’s feelings for Bambleby, she’s not ready to accept his proposal of marriage. Loving one of the Fair Folk comes with secrets and danger.
And she also has a new project to focus a map of the realms of faerie. While she is preparing her research, Bambleby lands her in trouble yet again, when assassins sent by Bambleby’s mother invade Cambridge. Now Bambleby and Emily are on another adventure, this time to the picturesque Austrian Alps, where Emily believes they may find the door to Bambley’s realm, and the key to freeing him from his family’s dark plans.
But with new relationships for the prickly Emily to navigate and dangerous Folk lurking in every forest and hollow, Emily must unravel the mysterious workings of faerie doors, and of her own heart.
The Troublemakers by Tamzin merchant – 18th January
Cordelia Hatmaker has finally united the Maker families and restored the kingdom’s trust in Maker magic. But mysterious outbreaks of chaotic magic are beginning to happen across London… And then the unthinkable happens. Cordelia is accused of treason.
As the guards close in, she must flee London at once. With her father Prospero, and friends Sam and Goose, Cordelia sets sail on her family’s ship, the Little Bear, for the adventure of a lifetime. They’re determined to solve the mystery of a missing girl, and to clear Cordelia’s name once and for all.
But soon they are in the dangerous territory of a band of legendary pirates: the Troublemakers, captained by a fierce and unstoppable pirate queen…
Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all having a good day today. I realise this post is quite a bit later in the month than it usually is but today I am bringing you what I want to read in the month of November!
Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all doing well today. Seeing as it is spooky season I thought it may be fun to share with you all my top 15 murder mystery books and this is one of my favourite genres to read so this was a difficult choice. Let me know if any of your favourites are on this list or if there are any you would have put on here instead.
The London Seance Society by Sarah Penner
Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco
Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price
Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco
The Three Dahlias by Katy Watson
Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
Dangerous Women by Hope Adams
The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood
Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
Happy Friday bookish people! Today I am doing the Amy’s Book Tag which I believe was originally started by The Dusty Bookshelf on Youtube. I hope you all enjoy!
Double Bergamot Ear Grey: A robust, deep, intellectual and flavourful book
I read this book while I was in primary school and there are so many layers to the story, that build emotion within the reader.
Tim Horton’s Steeped: A book you read on the go that you came back to again and again
I will always come back to this book, it is in a very very well read condition!
Meyer Lemon: A tangy fast paced read gone before you’ve fully savoured the flavour
This was difficult but I eventually settled on
Chamomile Lavender: A relaxing, calming, late night read
To be honest I mainly read in the evening, especially before I go to bed so for this question I am cheating a little because I am choosing every book!
Lady Grey: A smooth, subtle classic book perfect for a serene winter morning
This book is the first book I think of when I think of winter
English Breakfast: A british classic
I had to choose this one, I read it for my BA degree and loved it
Canadian Breakfast: A title that tastes a little like an english breakfast but reads like the new world
Orange Petloe: a popular novel that everyone has read
Green: A healthy book that that feeds your mind
For this I am choosing a genre rather than a book, I think that historical fiction gives me this feeling.
Iced Tea: A sweet summer treat for the days of summer
Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you are all having a good day today. I am excited to be bringing you one of my favourite reads so far this year – Death Comes to Marlow by Robert Thorogood.
As usual, I will give star ratings to four categories and I will write a little bit about each one. I will do my best to keep this review as spoiler free as possible.
Death Comes To Marlow Plot:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
This book is the second in the Marlow Murder Club series by Death In Paradise writer, Robert Thorogood. It has some of the best mystery elements, an expensive manor house, a locked room mystery and every suspect has an alibi. For me personally I love these types of mystery stories because it is all about the puzzle, I knew pretty much from the beginning who the murderer was but the fun for me was figuring out how they did it.
Death Comes To Marlow Characters:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
The three main characters in this novel are Judith, Suzie and Becks. Three woman who, in other circumstances, should not get along as well as they do. Their relationship is started in the first book in the series but it gets developed much more in this novel. I love how each character is so different, there are parts about each of them that can grate on me but it is balanced out by their brilliant amateur detective skills.
Death Comes to Marlow Writing and Dialogue:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
The writing style Thorogood uses is extremely cosy which is the style I think fits this type of mystery best, it stops the darkness of the crime overtaking the whole novel and lets it stay enjoyable.
Death Comes to Marlow Overall:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
I gave this book four stars overall because I thoroughly enjoyed it, even more than the first book in the series.
Blurb/Synopsis:
It’s been an enjoyable and murder-free time for Judith, Suzie and Becks – AKA the Marlow Murder Club – since the events of last year. The most exciting thing on the horizon is the upcoming wedding of Marlow grandee, Sir Peter Bailey, to his nurse, Jenny Page. Sir Peter is having a party at his grand mansion on the river Thames the day before the wedding, and Judith and Co. are looking forward to a bit of free champagne.
But during the soiree, there’s a crash from inside the house, and when the Marlow Murder Club rush to investigate, they are shocked to find the groom-to-be crushed to death in his study.
The study was locked from the inside, so the police don’t consider the death suspicious. But Judith disagrees. As far as she’s concerned, Peter was murdered! And it’s up to the Marlow Murder Club to find the killer before he or she strikes again…
Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you are all having a good day today. I am bringing you my book review of The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood.
As always in this book review I will be giving star ratings to four categories and I will write a little bit about each one. I will do my best to avoid any spoilers.
The Marlow Murder Club Plot:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
I have to be honest, I went into this book with some preconceptions. First was that I had already read The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman a while before this and I had heard that they were similar and they were a bit, the characters were in the older age group and the overall tone of the book is quite light. For me that was the end of the similarities which I was happy about because I ended up enjoying The Marlow Murder Club more then The Thursday Murder Club. The other preconception I had was that Robert Thorogood wrote a lot of the Death In Paradise episodes and my friend and I have seen every single episode, we love the series, actually we compete over it to see who gets the most right by the end of each series. I was worried that the book would feel like a repeat of one of the episodes, and personally that meant that I was a bit disappointed by the ending of this book because, without spoiling anything, I was able to guess the ending early on because it was a similar plot to one of the episodes.
The Marlow Murder Club Characters:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Judith Potts is the main character (there are more of them in the group later in the book but I won’t spoil anything) and I really felt like I could relate to her, an elderly lady who can’t help herself but be nosy. That’s definitely going to be me. It’s really hard to talk about the characters in this book without spoiling anything so I won’t say too much more but I will say I loved the energy of Judith Potts and her friends, this book was a great introduction to them and I hope that we will see more of them in coming books.
The Marlow Murder Club Writing and Dialogue
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
As I said earlier, this book has a very light tone to it, there’s a lot of comedic elements to it which was something that I thought worked really well for the mystery in this book.
The Marlow Murder Club Overall:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Overall, I gave this book a rating of four stars because I enjoyed the gathering pace of the novel and I thought the mystery was well-plotted, the only thing I didn’t enjoy was the ending and how similar it was to the episodes of Death In Paradise.
Blurb/Synopsis:
To solve an impossible murder, you need an impossible hero…
Judith Potts is seventy-seven years old and blissfully happy. She lives on her own in a faded mansion just outside Marlow, there’s no man in her life to tell her what to do or how much whisky to drink, and to keep herself busy she sets crosswords for The Times newspaper.
One evening, while out swimming in the Thames, Judith witnesses a brutal murder. The local police don’t believe her story, so she decides to investigate for herself, and is soon joined in her quest by Suzie, a salt-of-the-earth dog-walker, and Becks, the prim and proper wife of the local Vicar.
Together, they are the Marlow Murder Club.
When another body turns up, they realise they have a real-life serial killer on their hands. And the puzzle they set out to solve has become a trap from which they might never escape…
That’s it for this book review, I hope you all enjoyed it!
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