Currently Reading

Britain’s Ghosts: A spine-chilling tour of our most haunted places (National Trust)

26th Feb 2026

Publication Date: September 2024 Publisher: National Trust Books Having previously read ‘Chasing the Dark’ by Ben Machell early last month, it would seem I am enjoying books on all things supernatural. Anna Groves’ book ‘Britain’s Ghosts: A spine-chilling tour of our most haunted places’ is a perfect dip in and dip out dictionary for supernatural … More Britain’s Ghosts: A spine-chilling tour of our most haunted places (National Trust)

Cleopatra by Natasha Solomons

26th Feb 2026

Publication Day: May 2025 Publisher: Manilla Press As someone who was not familiar with the story of Cleopatra, I went into this book expecting to learn lots of interesting facts about her life and her rule as monarch. The book switches between Cleopatra’s first-person perspective and that of Servilla, an older female who for many … More Cleopatra by Natasha Solomons

Old Soul by Susan Barker

25th Feb 2025

Publisher: Penguin Publication Date: February 2025 Currently I am taking part in my local library’s ‘Book Bingo’ challenge for 2025. One of the categories within the challenge, to read 12 books over 12 months, is to read a book from a genre I would never normally read. Susan Barker’s book ‘Old Soul’ definitely fits that … More Old Soul by Susan Barker

Madame Matisse by Sophie Haydock

3rd Feb 2025

Publisher: Doubleday Published: 6th March 2025 Sophie Haydock’s ‘The Flames was one of my favourite books of 2022. I was utterly captivated by the world of artist Egon Schiele and the depiction of 20th Century Vienna. Even more so, the female muses that Schiele painted and was inspired by were characters that were instantly memorable. … More Madame Matisse by Sophie Haydock

The Children’s Almanac 2025 by Collins Kids

2nd Feb 2025

Publisher: Collins Publication Date: September 2024 I started using the Children’s Almanac on the 1st of January 2025 with my seven-year-old son and it has been such a delight. As a home educator, sometimes thinking about what topics we will cover or focus on at specific points in time can feel a bit arbitrary. What … More The Children’s Almanac 2025 by Collins Kids

The Boy From the Sea by Garrett Carr

6th Jan 2025

Publisher: Picador Publication Date: 6th February 2025 The Boy from the Sea is a novel that is set in Ireland in the 1970s. It opens prophetically with the arrival of a single baby boy, cast adrift and alone. The baby washes up ashore in a makeshift style float much to the interest and shock of … More The Boy From the Sea by Garrett Carr

Our Evenings by Alan Hollinghurst

11th Dec 2024

Publisher: Picador Publication Date: October 2024 This has been my first read of a novel by Alan Hollinghurst and I am so pleased I decided to select this for one of my December reads. Having had a bit of a bumpy reading year, I have found that I have been picking up books reading a … More Our Evenings by Alan Hollinghurst

The Dead of Winter: The Demons, Witches and Ghosts of Christmas by Sarah Clegg

10th Dec 2024

Published: October 2024 Publisher: Granta Books I know we should not judge a book by its cover however this non-fiction text by Sarah Clegg really does ask to be picked up and read! It is a beautiful book that is perfect for the darker months of winter and the current festive season. The text explores … More The Dead of Winter: The Demons, Witches and Ghosts of Christmas by Sarah Clegg

Evie Wyld ‘The Echoes’

12th Aug 2024

Publication Date: 1st August 2024 Publisher: Jonathan Cape Evie Wyld is just simply a great writer!This book is a haunting read that is so beautifully and evocatively written the characters and the feelings you have whilst reading it stay with you for a long time. That feels like a cliché to write but it is … More Evie Wyld ‘The Echoes’

And Then She Fell by Alicia Elliott

18th Apr 2024

Published: September 2023 Publisher: Allen and Unwin This novel centres around Alice, a young indigenous woman, who on the surface has the most perfect life. She has just given birth to a beautiful baby girl called Dawn and is married to Steve, her charismatic white husband whose academic focus is the study of Mohawk … More And Then She Fell by Alicia Elliott