Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the theme is Book Titles That Include the Word “[insert word of your choice here]” (Pick a word and share ten book titles that include that word!).
Given that I am currently participating in Paris in July, my favourite annual blogging event, my word of choice is Paris! I have done this type of Paris post before but it has been a couple of years, and I have read more than 10 books that fit this prompt since then so there will be no double ups!
Here are the last 10 books I have read with the word Paris in the title.
In the Paris Fashion by Sophie Beaumont - I have really enjoyed all three of Sophie Beaumont's books. My review for this one will be posted in a couple of weeks.
The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl - I liked quite a lot about this book but there was one thing that bothered me. Here's my review.
A Bakery in Paris by Aimie K Runyan - A bakery? In Paris? Yes, please. Here'smy review from last year.
A Secret Garden in Paris by Sophie Beaumont - Yes, another Sophie Beaumont book. Here's my review.
The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris by Evie Woods - This one is a bit deceptive because it is set in France, but not in Paris. (my review)
The Paris Dancer by Nicola Rayner - This is a dual timeline WWII novel set in Paris. (my review)
The Paris Bookshop for the Broken Hearted by Rebecca Raisin - I love the way that Rebecca Raisin writes about food, books, and yes, Paris. (my review)
The Paris Chapter by Victoria Walters - This is another contemporary novel set in Paris. (my review)
Midnight in Paris by Gillian Harvey - Gillian Harvey writes a lot of books set in France. This is one of my favourites. (my review)
Christmas at the Little Paris Hotel by Rebecca Raisin - I forgot Christmas on my list of things I like about her list.
Check out more Paris in July posts by visiting the host, Emma from Words and Peace.
Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.This week the theme is Green Book Covers (In honor of St. Patrick’s Day today!)
To be sure, to be sure, to be sure! Green book covers. Maybe not as easy to find as some other colours but I found enough!
Before We Forget Kindness by Toshikazu Kawaguchi - This is the fifth book in the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series by this Japanese author!
A Bakery in Paris by Aimie K Runyan - A dual timeline set in 1890s and just after WWII Paris! (my review)
Relish: My Life in the Kitchen by Lucy Knisley - I have read this a couple of times, most recently for Cook the Books. (my review)
Bite by Bite: Nourishments and Jamborees by Aimee Nexhukumatathil - This was another Cook the Books selection (my review)
The Bellbird River Country Choir by Sophie Green - the cover is green but so is the author name!
Sunbirds by Mirandi Riwoe - This book is set in WWII Indonesia and talks about the struggle for independence (my review)
The House of Lost Whispers by Jenni Keer - a sliding doors book set in the aftermath of the sinking of the Titanic and during WWI. (my review)
Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan - I had to have at least one Irish author in my list!
The Secrets of the Huon Wren by Claire van Ryn - This cover is so pretty! It had to make the list. (my review)
A Secret Garden in Paris by Sophie Beaumont - I have enjoyed both the Sophie Beaumont books I have read which are set in Paris! (my review)
Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the theme is Genre Freebie (Pick a genre and build a list around it. You could do historical fiction featuring strong female leads, contemporary romance set in foreign countries, mysteries starring unreliable narrators, lyrical fiction books in verse, historical romance featuring pirates, Gothic novels with birds on the cover, etc. There are so many options!)
Recently I was honoured to be asked to co-host one of the Cook the Books selections later in the year. Cook the Books is an online book club where you read the chosen selection, but you also cook something inspired by the book. When I was looking through the books that have been chosen over the last few years I was surprised to see that I have been doing this for a while now so today I am sharing the last ten books I read for Cook the Books, as well as what I was inspired to make!
Before that, you might be curious about what book I chose? I couldn't see many Japanese books on the list, so I have chosen The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai. My selection will be up in October/November. You can see all the upcoming selections in this post
Every month I share some of the statistics related to the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge. I try very hard to visit every post which has been linked (time permitting) and I find it interesting to see what are the books that people are reading and reviewing! I often end up adding a couple of books to my never ending TBR list.
In terms of the books read in July, there were 77 reviews linked up for the challenge, shared by 21 participants. There were 74 individual titles reviewed, written by 68 different authors, although one of the books reviewed had 8 contributing authors which I only count that as one for the purposes of the statistics. There were 6 reviewers who reviewed 5 or more books each. Thank you to everyone who shared their links whether it be 9 or just 1.
So which books were reviewed more than once in July? There were actually 3, and interestingly they are all somewhat foodie.
The fact that Paris in July was happening during the month, it probably isn't surprising that two of the books that were reviewed twice were set in France and posted for that event. The first book that had two reviews was A Bakery in Paris by Aimie K Runyan which was reviewed by Deb at Readerbuzz and by me! This was also the Cook the Books selection so both of these posts also include a recipe, although Deb's was much more ambitious than mine!!
I also reviewed The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris by Evie Woods as did Constance from Staircase Wit. This is a dual timeline featuring lots of delicious sounding goodies!
The third book which was reviewed twice was The Art of a Lie by Laura Shepherd-Robinson which was reviewed by both Helen at She Reads Novels and Cathy at What Cathy Read Next. Part of this story includes some history about ice cream! I've added this one to my TBR!
We also had a couple of author who were read multiple times this month.
Agatha Christie made two appearances this month with reviews of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Alexis on Goodreads and Death Comes at the End by Kay at What Me Read.
By far the author who was reviewed the most this month was Laurie R King thanks to Kim on Goodreads who is doing a read through of the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series. Kim read 5 different books in the series.
If you love historical fiction and reading challenges, it isn't too late to join us! All the details can be found in the sign up post.
We are already two months through the 20 Books of Summer/Winter event! Can you believe how quickly that has gone?
Our hosts, Emma from Words and Peace and Annabel from Annabookbel have come up with some fun questions for our end of month recaps.
I think I am a little bit behind at this point and that I am going to struggle to get some of the remaining books read. I read 7 books in June and 5 of the books that I nominated on my original lists in July I did read 19 books in total in June and 18 in July so I do have some opportunities for swaps should I need them later.
Here's my full list. The ones in bold are the titles I have read. The purple ones are the ones I read in June and the ones in red are the ones I read in July
20 Books of Winter
Beartown by Fredrik Backman - Review will be posted soon
Emily Wildes Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett
Butter by Asako Yuzuki
The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson
Dallergut Dream Department Store by Miye Lee
Our hosts, Emma from Words and Peace and Annabel from Annabookbel have come up with some fun questions for our end of month recaps.
Which book surprised you the most this month?
I think that would have to be Beartown by Fredrik Backman. I knew that this book was going to be good as lots of people I know have loved it. I think what surprised me the most about this book was the way that the tension built throughout the book. There were times when I knew that something momentous was about to happen and the tension was ramping up so much that I had to put the book down for a while to psych myself up for the action.
If your July reading experience was a weather forecast, what would it be and why?
Dreamy with a chance of snow - winter was very much the setting in both Beartown and Emily Wilde! The dreamy comes from both Dallergut and Emily Wilde.
Name a setting from your July books where you’d love (or hate) to take a summer vacation.
Well......I don't think it would surprise anyone if I say France. I would love to wander the streets of Montmartre to find the Bakery in Paris and then I would be more than happy to find a cafe in the Loire Valley to sit and watch the world pass by!
If you could turn one book into a summer festival, what would the main event be?
I think that the Dallergut Dream Store would be a perfect theme for a summer festival. The idea of the book is that when we are sleeping we visit the store and choose to buy our dream themes, and there are even dreams for your pets. You could do an amazing festival with all the different types of dreams.
Choose your own adventure—recap July in the style of your choice:
I am not terribly creative so here is my cover collage
Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is Books Set in/Take Place During X (Pick a place, time, era, etc. Examples: Books set in Europe/Italy/Australia/Chicago, books set in Regency England, books that take place during the 1900s, books set in imaginary worlds/post-apocalyptic/dystopian worlds, books set on the ocean, books set it castles, books that take place during WW2, etc.)
On a recent post Deb from Readerbuzz asked me to do a post on historical fiction set in France. Challenge accepted Deb!
When I read books set in France, they are most often either contemporary stories about people moving to France (usually from the UK) or they are set during WWII. For the purposes of today's exercise I am going to mostly books avoid set during WWII as I could probably do multiple TTT posts on that theme. The books I have chosen are mostly shown in chronological order. There are some relatively old books on the list too!
Let's get started.
The Summer Queen by Elizabeth Chadwick - Eleanor of Aquitaine is a woman who I have read quite a bit about. I find her completely fascinating. Did you know that she is the only woman who was queen of both France and England and a major landowner in her own right? This is the first book in a trilogy about her life and it starts in 1137
The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C W Gortner - Catherine de Medici is another fascinating woman from history, although her life and actions are much darker. A member of the famous Italian Medici family, Catherine married the man who became Henri II. This books starts in 1527 and charts the tumultuous reigns of both her husband and her son. We visited the beautiful chateau at Chennonceaux when we went to France a couple of years ago. This was one of her homes after she confiscated it from her husband's lover following his death. (My review)
The Dark Queen by Susan Carroll - This is the first in the Faire Isle trilogy which is set in the 1570s during Catherine de Medici's reign. In theory, this is a romance, but it is firmly based in history, albeit with a bit of witchcraft thrown in. This whole trilogy is excellent and I was obsessed with them for a while. (My review)
Angelique by Sergeanne Golon - If you want to read a rip roaring, huge and epic novel try this series which was originally published in 1957. This book starts in 1648 and Angelique gets into all sorts of adventures throughout the series. At various times she is welcomed at the highest levels of court, at others she lives with the poorest of the poor. At one point later in the series she is even captured by pirates. Towards the end of the series it all gets a bit silly but the early books are spectacular. (My review)
An Astronomer in Love by Antoine Laurain - Antoine Laurain is the first of three French authors I have in this list. In this book Antoine Laurain tells the story of Guillaume Joseph Hyacinthe Jean-Baptiste Le Gentil de La Galaisiere, astronomer to the Academie Royale des Sciences who is chasing the first of two Transits of Venus which occurred during the 1760s. (My review)
The Many Lives and Secret Sorrows of Josephine B by Sandra Gulland - This book is the first in a trilogy that tells the story of the woman who we now know as Josephine Bonaparte. This story starts 1777 when we first meet young Rose, a planters daughter from Martinique in the Carribean. This author has also written about a couple of other infamous women who were mistresses of kings (My review)
Champagne Widows by Rebecca Rosenberg - This story starts in the late 1790s and tells the story of a young woman called Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin, who we now remember more famously as Veuve Cliquot - the widow Cliquot. This tells the story of how this remarkable woman revolutionised the champagne industry. (My review)
For the King by Catherine Delors - Set in 1800, this book tells the story of an assassination plot against Napoleon. Delors is a French author. I read a couple of her books and really liked them but apparently never reviewed them!
Les Miserables by Victor Hugo - What a huge book this is! It took me a good couple of months to gt through this story that starts in 1815 and follows the political upheaval through to the 1830s. This story would be as well known through the musical and movies as it from the book, but I am glad that I took the time to read it a few years ago. (My thoughts)
A Bakery in Paris by Aimie K Runyan - This is the most recent historical novel that I have read set in France (as at the time when I am writing the post any way). This is a dual timeline set in the 1870s and in the immediate aftermath of WWII in 1946. I did say I was going to avoid WWII but I really wanted to include this book because of the 1870s storyline which is about the Prussian siege of Paris and the subsequent uprising of the Communards. (My review)
I am sure that there are lots of other books I could have included on this list. What books would you add?
I am also sharing this post as part of Paris in July, hosted by Emma at Words and Peace.
When A Bakery in Paris was announced as one of the selection for Cook the Books I was very pleased. Runyan is an author who I have been meaning to read for a long time and I started this book with pretty high expectations. Fortunately, I was not disappointed. I enjoyed this a lot.
This is a dual timeline novel with a difference. Both timelunes are historical. The first timeline tells the story of Lisette Vigneau who lives in an affluent area of Paris at the time that that the Prussians are blockading the city in 1870. The second timeline is set in the immediate aftermath of WWII. It is 1946 and Micheline Chartier is a young girl who is doing her best to look after her younger sisters until her mother returns.
Lisette is a young woman who has been bought up in a life of privilege. Her parents are wealthy but they are remote, and often Lisette is invisible to them. As a child all her best memories are from the times that she spent in the kitchen with their cook, Nanette. It is 1870 and the Prussians are at the gates of Paris. Many of the other wealthy inhabitants of Paris have previously left the city but her father doesn't believe that the Prussians will be successful and if they are, then he isn't going to give up his house without a fight.
One day, Lisette borrows the kitchen servants dress to go to the markets in disguise. She meets a young National Guardsman who helps her with an embarrassing situation, and Theo asks her to come and learn how the other half lives in Paris.
With her parents arranging a marriage to a worth (in their opinion) man, and Lisette's growing feelings for Theo, she leaves behind everything she knows - all the wealth, the food and more. With her skills that she learned in the kitchen, Lisette is able to start a bakery in her local area of Montparnasse, and become an integral part of the local community. It isn't always easy, especially as the siege tightens and ingredients become scarce. Things come to a head as Lisette and Theo become involved in the communard uprising of 1871.
In the second timeline, Micheline is struggling to care for her sisters following the death of her father early in the war and the subsequent disappearance of their mother. Micheline is determined that her mother must still be alive and does everything in her power to find her, despite the authorities telling her they have no news. Her family has a little income from the rent of the little restaurant below their apartment, but when the tenants leave unexpectedly she knows that life is going to get a lot harder for the little family.
Fortunately, Micheline has something of a fairy godmother in the form of Madame Dupuis who offers to support the family while Micheline completes a course which will enable her to re-open the bakery. At first, Micheline struggles a little with the course, but she prevails, often assisted by another student on the course, Laurent.
Armed with the cookbook that originally belonged to her grandmother and working together with Laurent, Micheline practices many of the recipes that she learnt at her mother's feet, determined to do the best that she can in her mother's absence, and to re-open the bakery.
This was a great selection for Cook the Books. The operation of the bakery in both time lines was integral to the story, and we watched as Micheline, in particular, learned all the skills she needed to be able to be successful. There were also lots of recipes throughout the book including for brioche, croissants, hot chocolate, clafoutis aux fruits and so much more. I am almost a bit sad that I need to return this book to the library.
I do still like a dual timeline novel, but I did really like that the timelines were both historical. Normally you would see a modern timeline with a WWII timeline. Even the fact that the second timeline was set just after the end of the war was a point of difference too. The war was still very much an influence on every day life in Paris, particularly for families like the Chartiers.
When it came to choosing a recipe to make I struggled a little bit as there were almost too many options. I did think about making the macaron kit that I have sitting here but eventually decided against it given that I did not recall seeing the word macaron once in the book! I might still make that next weekend and post about it for Paris in July but we'll see if that happens or not.
In the end I decided to try and make a clafoutis which is a traditional dish, originally from the Limousin region of France. The question then was whether to make the most traditional version which is made with cherries or to do a variation like a caramelised apple version (recipe here). In the end I decided to use a Mary Berry recipe which calls for raspberries, but I used the frozen mixed berries that I had in my freezer.
This is a deceptively easy recipe, and very tasty, with a kind of baked custard texture.
Raspberry Clafoutis (Mary Berry)
3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted (plus a bit extra to butter the dish) ½ cup plain flour ¼ cup + 2 tbsp granulated sugar small pinch of kosher salt 3 large eggs zest of 1 lemon ¼ cup + 2 tbsp whole milk 1½ pints raspberries (about 3 cups) icing sugar, for dusting
Set your oven to 350°F (or 175°C). Grease the outsides of a shallow baking dish. Melt the butter and allow to cool a little.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Crack in the eggs, the melted butter and the lemon zest.
Gradually add the milk, whisking as you go until the batter is smooth and a little bubbly.
Pour your batter into the buttered dish then scatter the raspberries over the top
Bake for about 30 minutes until the edges are puffed and the centre is just set
Cool for approximately 10 minutes and then dust with icing sugar just before serving.
Note: You can use frozen fruit for this but don't thaw them out before adding them to the batter. Also, when you take the clafoutis from the oven the puffed edges will deflate. This is meant to happen.
Now I just need to decide which book I am going to read by this author next! There are several that are of immediate interest.
The next four selections for Cook the Books have been announced, so if you would like to join us you would be most welcome. A couple of the new selections are a bit tricky for me to get hold of, and one of the others is a book that I already read, but I will be doing my best to join in when I can.
I am sharing this review with Cook the Books, Foodies Read hosted at Based on a True Story, the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge which I host and with Paris In July hosted by Words and Peace. It was also one of the books that I nominated for 20 Books of Summer and I counted it as a read for the my read on a theme book club where the theme was war.
Rating 4.5/5
Weekly meals
Saturday - Malaysian Chicken Curry with roti Sunday - Spaghetti Bolognaise Monday - Chicken Stirfry Tuesday - Out for dinner Wednesday - Baked potatoes with beef brisket Thursday - Green Curry Chicken Pie Friday - Out for dinner
Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page
I mentioned in last week's post that I had started a few books. I still have a couple of those books in progress.
I did finish A Bakery in Paris by Aimie K Runyan. This is the current Cook the Books selection so now I just have to decide what to make before I post my review this weekend.
I also finished The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl. I did like this one, but there was something that bothered me about the book. The review for this one will be up soon where I will elaborate!
I read The Village Cafe in the Loire by Gillian Harvey for a blog tour this week. I do have another blog tour later in the week but I haven't started reading that book. I best get onto that.
I also started Adam and Evie's Matchmaking Tour by Nora Nguyen. I have no idea where I saw this book which then prompted me to then request it from the library. It's a romance that is set in Vietnam which is interesting. I am enjoying visiting lots of the famous sites of Vietnam through the book.
We had our read on a theme book club meeting on the weekend. The theme for this meeting was war and I actually read 4 books that fit the theme. They were The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn, The Lost Story of Sofia Castello by Siobhan Curham, The Girl from Normandy by Rachel Sweasy and A Bakery in Paris by Aimie K Runyan. The picture above shows some of the books that were read by the whole group. Next month we are doing something a little different for us as a group and that is we are all going to read the same book. The book we have chosen to read is Butter by Asako Yuzuki.
I was very excited this week. I got some physical book mail from a publisher for the first time in forever! So excited! I have booked to go and see this author at an event soon so I will be trying to read the book before then!
I'm watching
We watched a documentary that was produced by the Sail GP team called Uncharted. Basically it was about Australian sailor Jimmy Spithill leaving the US team and starting a new Italian team and how both teams fared following the changes
I stumbled across a TV show on Disney called No Taste Like Home with Antoni Porowski. I had no idea who the host is (apparently he is the food and wine expert on Queer Eye), but the show certainly looked interesting. The idea is that he takes a special guest through their family history but also focusses on the food that their ancestors would have eaten. Think Who Do You Think You Are but foodie. The first episode was with Florence Pugh and I really liked it. I will be watching more this week.
We finished watching the first season of Murderbot. I was pleased to see that the series has been renewed for a second series!
I also saw that there is an adaptation of Before the Coffee Gets Cold announced. Will definitely watch that. There is already a Japanese language adaptation but I haven't been able to watch it yet. I might see if I can find it on any of the streaming services this week.
Life
After being sick for weeks, I finally feel better although I do still sound a little croaky.
My first social outing in weeks with anyone other than family was to go and see the play Julia, which is a two woman show which tells the story of Julia Gillard who was the Prime Minister of Australia from 2010 to 2013. The show builds up to the famous speech that she gave in Parliament on 9 October 2012 about misogyny. It was an exceptional play.
On Sunday went to the Bastille Day Festival at the Queen Victoria Markets. We were only able to be there for just over an hour but loved the vibe. We wandered around drinking hot chocolate, having a very nice macaron, listening to music and we bought some delicious pate which we will find an opportunity to eat soon.
I'm readingIt's been another busy reading and blogging week! I feel like I have had a lot of different books in my hands and this list will confirm that!
I finished The Cryptic Clue by Amanda Hampson as I had to return it to the library. My review is here. This is the second book in the Tea Ladies series and I have already requested the third book.
I had to put Beartown by Fredrik Backman down in order to finish The Cryptic Clue. Once I picked it up again I was absolutely absorbed. This is one of my 20 Books of Winter and counts as a Big Book of Summer. It was a 5/5 read for me and I have already requested the next book in the trilogy.
Then I started a couple of books but I will need to go back to them again this week. I started The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl because of Paris in July. I also started Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett, which is another of my 20 Books of Winter reads.
Once again, the library conspired against me and said I couldn't renew Secrets of the Huon Wren by Claire van Ryn so I read that. This was Claire van Ryn's debut novel, but I had already read her second book. I hope to have a review for this one up shortly.
In order to try to get in front of the library I then read Dallergut Dream Department Store by Miye Lee who is from South Korea This is also one of my 20 Books of Winter. It's a different read for me but I did like it enough to request the second book in the series. The idea is that in our sleep we all go to the dream store to purchase the dreams that we want. We then pay for them using our emotions.
Finally, I started reading A Bakery in Paris by Aimie K. Runyan which is the current Cook the Books selection.
I did do a summary of the books that I read for June for the 20 Books of Winter . You can read my recap post here.
Bookish Travel
I did a fair bit of travelling through the pages of books during June. Here's some of the places I visited.
Australia
Melbourne - The Butterfly Women
Sydney - The Cryptic Club
America
Maine- The Mirror
Washington - The Diamond Eye
Michigan/New York - The Page Turner
Europe
England - The Silver Ladies Seize the Day, Once Upon a Thyme, The Storytellers
Scotland - Over the Seas to Skye, the Woman Who Got Her Spark Back
Ukraine/USSR -- The Diamond Eye
France - A Secret Garden in Paris, French Rhapsody, The Girl from Normandy
Greece - The Island of Hope and Dreams, Not My Greek Wedding
Portugal - The Lost Story of Sofia Costello
The Cruise Club (visited several countries!)
Africa
Morocco - Half Truth
Best of June
In June I read 19 books and these 6 are the ones I rated as 4.5/5 reads.
I'm watching
I finished watching Gary Barlow's Wine Tour: Australia. I will finish watching his South Africa show this week I think.
I also re-watched The Three Musketeers: D'Artagnan this week. I originally watched it last year as part of the French Film Festival (and I posted about it here). I was surprised to see it on the normal movie channels on our cable provider as normally if I want to watch any foreign language films you have to go searching for it.
Life
After 3 weeks, I still sound a bit husky but finally feel like I am getting better.
We did have a busy weekend as our kids were down from Brisbane for the day on Saturday so Robert was being dad's taxi service driving all over the city while I cooked dinner. Then we had my sister and her family around for dinner on Sunday along with my mum who is over from Adelaide.
Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week is a Summer/Winter Freebie so there is no set theme.
Recently it was announced that Emma from Words and Peace and Annabel from Annabookbel have taken over the 20 Books of Summer event that was previously hosted by Cathy at 746Books. It was an event that I always intended to participate in, but it's winter here and so it just didn't happen. This year though, there is even a 20 Books of Winter graphic, so my post this week is 10 of the 20 books that I intend to read for the Books of Winter event. I haven't decided if I am going to aim for 15 or 20 books and chances are that I won't review everything even if I do read them. We'll see. We also have a Books of my Winter TBR topic coming up in a couple of weeks so I will probably share the rest then.
The books themselves are a combination of old and new books, books that I want to read for events, and some that I have been meaning to read for the longest time but just haven't gotten to yet.
Beartown by Fredrik Backman - I know a few people who LOVE Fredrik Backman. So far, the only thing I have read from him is a short story called The Answer is No.
A Bakery in Paris by Aimie K Runyan - This is the current Cook the Books selection and also will be one of my posts for Paris In July.
Half Truth by Nadia Mahjouri - I heard Nadia speak at the Rachael John's Readers Retreat last month, and I just had to buy the book straight away. I am really looking forward to this one! In fact, I have hold myself back from starting this one too early in case I finished it before 1 June.
Three Juliets by Minnie Darke - I have really enjoyed everything I have read from Minnie Darke so I have high hopes for this one too!
A Secret Garden in Paris by Sophie Beaumont - I really liked The Paris Cooking School, and I have been intending to read this one ever since it came out. Sophie Beaumont has just announced her next Paris book which will be out later in the year.
French Rhapsody by Antoine Laurain - I have read a number of Antoine Laurain books over the last couple of years. This year I think I will read this one.
The French Kitchen by Emma Davies - Unsurprisingly this will likely be a Paris in July books too.
The Village Cafe in the Loire by Gillian Harvey - I am on a blog tour for this book in July, and it will also be a Paris in July book.
The Story Collector by Evie Woods - I have read two Evie Woods books now. I thought one was fine but the other was fantastic so I am keen to read this one to see where it lands!
The Kings Jewel by Elizabeth Chadwick - I have had this on several lists as a book I really want to read. I am determined to read it soon!
Each month I share the statistics for the previous month for the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge. I always find it interesting to see what are the books that people are reading and reviewing! This month I have visited most of the reviews that have been linked up. Hopefully I can get to the rest over the weekend.
In terms of the books, it was another really good month for reviews with 84 reviews linked up for the challenge, shared by 22 participants. This is 19 more reviews than for the same month last year. There were 81 individual titles reviewed, written by 75 different authors. There were 7 reviewers who reviewed 5 or more books each. Thank you to everyone who shared their links whether it be 7 or just 1.
Let's move onto the books. There were 3 books that were reviewed twice during May. Interestingly, one of these books was also on our most reviewed list for last month, which is quite unusual.
The Castle Keepers by Aimie K Runyan, J'Nell Ciesielski and Rachel McMillan - Whenever I am doing these statistics I am never sure whether to count books with multiple authors as one author or three in this case. I seem to have landed on one for now. This book, which follows the lives of multiple generations who live in a castle was reviewed by Davida at The Chocolate Ladies Book Reviews and by Shirley on Goodreads. Each story is written by one of the authors.
The Letter Reader by Jan Casey was reviewed by Shirley on Goodreads and also by Cathy at What Cathy Read Next. This book sounds very interesting as it features someone who worked as a censor during WWII. I have never thought about the people who did this work!
There were a number of authors who were reviewed more than once but for separate titles
It will be no surprise to regular participants to see that there were multiple reviews for Agatha Christie. This month the books reviewed were Death on the Nile which was reviewed at Laura's Reviews and Towards Zero which was reviewed at Shellie Loves Books
Daphne du Maurier
The final author to have multiple books reviewed is Martin Edwards, author of the Rachel Savanake series. Bev at My Reader's Block reviewed Blackstone Fell, which is the third book in the series whilst Cathy at What Cathy Read Next reviewed Sepulchre Street which is the fourth book in the series.
I am looking forward to seeing what people share during June. Next month, in addition to the normal monthly stats, I will share some stats at the halfway point of the challenge for this year. I know, I can't believe it either!
I am also sharing this post with Sunday Salon, hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.
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