Sunday Salon: Spell the Month in Books - January

 

Reviews From the Stacks

For 2025 I have decided to have a go at Spell the Month in Books which is hosted at Reviews From the Stacks. The link party opens on the first Saturday of the month, but I won't be posting until the third Sunday as I already have other things scheduled every Saturday and for the first two Sundays of the month.

The idea is that you use the title of books to spell the month name. There is also a theme each month, with the theme for January being New.

The Jam Queens by Josephine Moon - I read this back in 2021, and it was the first book I read from this author which made her a new author to me.  I had owned another book for a while, and still do! (My review)

At the Foot of the Cherry Tree by Alli Parker - I listened to this book at the beginning of last year. It was my first book by this author, and told the story of her grandparents, and in particular her Japanese grandmother starting a new life here in Australia

A New Dawn at Owl's Lodge by Jessica Redland - This was my first book from this author, and I couldn't resist using the word new given the theme for this month! (My review)

Under a Summer Skye by Sue Moorcroft - This is the first book in Sue Moorcroft's The Skye Sisters trilogy. We visited Isle of Skye last year which was a new destination for me (My review)

The Answer is No by Fredrik Backman - This short story was my first read from a new to me author (My mini review)

A Recipe for Christmas by Jo Thomas - This book features a character moving to Switzerland to learn new skills as a chocolate maker and to make a new start (My review)

Yellowface by R F Kuang - I bought this recently which makes this a new book on my TBR pile.

That was actually harder than I expected, especially the letter Y! And there's another Y in February so I have a few weeks to work out how I am going to approach that as I would prefer to not repeat the books I use very often. The theme for next month is Valentines Day/Something sweet on the cover.

I am also sharing this post with Sunday Salon hosted at Readerbuzz

Top Ten Tuesday: Books with Yellow Covers

 

 

 

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the theme is Characters from Different Books Who Should Team Up (or date, be friends with, etc.) (Submitted by Cathy @ WhatCathyReadNext) but I am going off piste!


Last weekend we went to an exhibition of French artist Pierre Bonnard. We saw a poster there that he created in the 1890s and I am seriously contemplating buying a print to put in our dining room. It's a bit odd really because yellow is not usually my colour, and the poster was very yellow.


So here are ten books with yellow covers.

Honey: Recipes from a Beekeepers Kitchen by Amy Newsome - I recently bought this cookbook!

Heartbake: A Bittersweet Memoir by Charlotte Ree - This is on my TBR list!

The Wonderful Thing About Phoebe Rose by Josephine Moon - I recently had this out from the library but had to return it unread unfortunately!

Yellowcake by Margo Lanagan - I read this short story collection years ago and loved it!

Half a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie  - Gosh, it's been a long time since I read this book (my review)

The Yellow House by Patricia Falvey - Another book I read years ago.

A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley - Among the many series that I keep on saying I really need to get back to soon is the Flavia de Luce mystery series, featuring a precocious young girl as the sleuth. This is book 3 in the series.


Yellowface by R F Kuang - This book seems to be everywhere at the moment, so I had to include it in a list of books with yellow covers

Miss Cecily's Recipes for Exceptional Ladies by Vicky Zimmerman - I bought this book a while ago but still haven't read it! 


Lemon Meringue Pie Murder by Joanne Fluke - Another book I read years ago!

Can you think of any other books with yellow covers?

Top Ten Tuesday - Books I Read About Vacations

 

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. 

This week the theme is Books I Read on Vacation. It might surprise you to know that when I am on holidays, I don't really read a lot. I read a Rachel Johns book when we were on our way to Vanuatu and I read Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi when I went to Africa a few years ago, but other than that I can't really read while on holidays.

So my list today is books about holidays/vacations

Rachel's Holiday by Marian Keyes -  This one isn't really about a holiday, but the word is in the title so it counts!

You and Me on Vacation by Emily Henry - Poppy and Alex have done several trips together but this one just feels different!

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson - I love the cover on this one.

Sixty Summers by Amanda Hampson - Three friends travel around Europe for a summer.

Almost French by Sarah Turnbull - A holiday fling turns into a whole new life in Paris for this Australian woman.

A Wedding in Tuscany by Sandy Barker - This is the fifth book in a series which is called The Holiday Romance series

The Jam Queens  by Josephine Moon - Whilst the title doesn't suggest it is about a holiday, one of the big parts of this book is a trip on the Ghan train from Darwin to Adelaide. That's a trip I would love to do.

The Road Trip by Beth O'Leary - I do enjoy a good road trip myself.

Along for the Ride by Mimi Grace - This isn't really a holiday story, but the start of the story is two people who dislike each other going on a road trip across country.

How to Mend a Broken Heart by Rachael Johns - Features a woman who goes on an extended holiday to New Orleans! Bought back lots of memories of my own holiday there a few years ago.

Thanks for stopping by my Top Ten Tuesday post.

Top Ten Tuesday: Chocolate anyone?

 

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the topic is  Books with [___] On the Cover (Pick a thing (a color, an item, a place, an animal, a scripty font, a sexy person, etc.) and share covers that have that thing on the cover.) My thing is chocolate! Originally I was thinking about posting this last week in honour of Easter but then I saw that this was the next theme it seemed perfect for this week!

I'll start with the chocolate themed books I have read, then a few that I want to read.

Friends, Lovers, Chocolate by Alexander McCall Smith - The second book in the Isabel Dalhousie series set in Edinburgh (review here)

Bread and Chocolate by Philippa Gregory - I read this short story collection more than 15 years ago. I don't remember a thing about it though! (review here)

The Chocolate Run by Dorothy Koomson - I read several Koomson books and then haven't read another for years. I do remember really liking this one

The Chocolate Thief by Laura Florand - Laura Florand has an entire series of books with chocolate titles, and then a couple of others. If you love foodie romances, especially set in France, then this series is for you. (review here)

The Chocolate Tin by Fiona McIntosh - This book was chock-full of chocolate history, set just after the end of WWI.

Chocolate Cake for Breakfast by Danielle Hawkins - I've been known to have chocolate cake for breakfast on occasion! (review)

The Chocolate Chip Murder by Joanna Fluke - This ws the first book in the Hannah Swensen cozy mystery series. I read about 8 books in the series until I got annoyed with the love triangle. There are now 28 books in the series, many with chocolate titles, but I won't be going back seeing as it appears that the love triangle thing is still going.

The Chocolate Promise by Josephine Moon - Last year I read The Jam Queens by this author, and I still have this on my Kindle to read at some point.

The Chocolate Maker's Wife by Karen Brooks - I have this book sitting on my Kindle for a while too.

The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris by Jenny Colgan - I have read a number of books by Jenny Colgan over the years, but this one is still on the TBR list.

Have you read any other chocolate themed books?

Top Ten Tuesday: Going Shopping!

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the topic Bookish Merchandise I’d Love to Own. I don't really do bookish merchandise so my twist this week is to spin on the fact that you have to go to the shops to buy merchandise, or you might receive something as a gift or present.

The Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber

The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George

The Greatest Gift by Rachael Johns

The Little Bookshop on the Seine by Rebecca Raisin

The Bookshop on the Shore by Jenny Colgan

The Gift by Tiffany Reisz

The Gift of Life by Josephine Moon 

Coffee Shop Girl by Katie Cross 

The Foyles Bookshop Girls by Elaine Roberts 

 The Little Teashop in Tokyo by Juliie Caplin

There's my TTT for this week? Feel free to share yours when you comment below!

Six Degrees of Separation: From Postcards from the Edge to Queen of the Road

Welcome to this month's edition of Six Degrees of Separation, which is a monthly meme hosted by Kate from Books Are My Favourite and Best.  The idea is to start with a specific book and make a series of links from one book to the next using whatever link you can find and see where you end up after six links.  I am also linking this post up with The Sunday Salon, hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

This month the starting point is Postcards from the Edge by Carrie Fisher. I actually had a number of different ideas about how to start this chain, from using the names Carrie or Fisher to something about postcards or stars, but in the end I have gone in another direction. Carrie Fisher's most famous role is undoubtedly that of Princess Leia in Star Wars, and so my chain this month is about princesses and queens. 

Another famous movie princess is Princess Buttercup from The Princess Bride by William Goldman. As I was preparing this post I searched for some key words on my blog and found that I participated in a readalong for this book more than 10 years ago which I had completely forgotten about.

Whereas I intended to go to a fantasy book about a queen, now I find myself wondering about other readalongs that I have participated in, but wait, I think I can get this back on track.  Many of the readalongs I have participated in over the years have been for blog events such Once Upon a Time that Carl from Stainless Steel Droppings used to host which was about reading fantasy, myth, folklore and fairy tale.

Now it's a generalisation but if we work on the basis that fantasy is a genre that starts with the words "once upon a time" and the fact my next book, Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner is a fantasy novel which is part of a great series there's my link. There was a really long gap between books 4 and 5 in this series, and I still haven't read the latest books.

Speaking of series where there has been a big gap between books and I still haven't read the final book, my next choice is Queen of the Darkness by Anne Bishop. This is the third book in the Black Jewels series and looking back at my review, I loved it!

In my mind, if The Princess Bride is fantasy light, then Queen of Attolia is fantasy medium whereas the Black Jewel books are pretty dark fantasy. I therefore need to dial it back a little so my next queen book is more magical realism style of fantasy.  I have enjoyed a lot of Sarah Addison Allen's books, and The Sugar Queen ties in nicely with my next book.

I reviewed The Jam Queens by Australian author Josephine Moon yesterday. You definitely need sugar of some kind to make jam right?

My final choice is by another Australian author, Tricia Stringer, with one her earlier books, Queen of the Road. This book is about a female truck driver who finds love and was one of the earliest rural romance novels I read

This month we started with a princess and then graduated to fantasy queens and ending up with two Australian authors.

Where has your string taken you this month?

Next month we start with Second Place by Rachel Cusk.