Tuesday 3 September 2019

Books read in August


Not sure what I did in August but it appears it did not include heaps of reading. Just four books read last month and these are they:


50. Black Roses - Jane Thynne

51. Superfluous Women - Carola Dunn

52. The Case of the Gilded Fly - Edmund Crispin

53. The Grave Tattoo - Val McDermid


All four were fiction and crime yarns which probably indicates I was looking for escapism as opposed to serious reading. I did read one non-fiction through August, Blue River, Black Sea by Andrew Eames, but have only just finished it so that will go on the books for September list. Anyway, all four of these books were very good, equally 'very good', so I can't really choose a favourite although I must say I did really enjoy this:




These are the two books I'm about to start:



It now being September (yaaay!) I'm in the mood for something a bit Gothicky and I'm hoping Melmoth will fit the bill. I enjoyed Sarah Perry's The Essex Serpent very much at my second attempt to read it. (Couldn't get on with it on the first try.) And this one sounds pretty good too.

And here's a 3000 piece jigsaw puzzle I did in August, which probably partly explains why in June and July I read 9 books, and in August, 4.


Happy autumn reading... I do love September.

~~~oOo~~~

13 comments:

Margaret @ BooksPlease said...

I think four books is really good with everything else that goes on in the summer, let alone finishing that fantastic jigsaw. It's time for the RIP challenge again - your Gothicky reads look good for that ... hope September is another excellent reading month.

DesLily said...

No no sis... a "bad reading month is"... one book! LOL In your case it would be 2 books and no puzzle! Of course that would probably mean you were sick! I did the best in August that I have done in probably 3 years, for one month! I don't expect to do it again LOL...

love you!!

Sam said...

Well I think you answered your question about what you were doing in August that kept you to four completed books (which is still more than some folks read in a whole year). Any 3,000-piece puzzle would take me at least 50 or 60 hours (maybe more, not real sure because the largest I've ever done is a 2,000-piecer). I still haven't gotten back into puzzles since I got my new eyes, but did a little culling last week and took about 60 puzzles to a couple of assisted living facilities in the area.

Cath said...

Margaret: Thank you. Yes, it has been particularly busy this summer, we've had our 12 year old grandson almost every weekday but it's been great fun. We've done a lot of baking together and thus he seems to have developed a love of cooking... which was partly my aim.

I don't think I'll be doing RIP this year, to be honest I'm all 'challenged out'. Thinking about doing just one next year, The European one, of course... that may change. LOL

Pat: Well done on doing the best in August than for a long time. You're a star!

Sam: Yes, I think I did answer my own question. And funnily enough another friend pointed that same thing out to me, that four books is more than some folk read in year. In fact plenty of people are 'really' proud of never reading anything.

That's so nice of you to take a load of puzzles to an assisted living facility, I bet they were delighted.

Nan said...

So you are up to how many so far? I've had a slow year, it seems to me, but I caught up tremendously in August. Just wondering if we will end up the same as so often happens. Have you ever read anything by H Y Hanna? I am quite hooked, having read three different series by her. A teeny bit formulaic, and a little bit too much romance, but still I love the mysteries, and the writing is clever and sharp. Am now reading Susan Branch' trilogy memoir. Do you know her in England? She is quite a thing in the US. A lovely woman who is a wonderful artist and cook. She is a "homey" sort of person.

Yvonne @ Fiction Books Reviews said...

Hi Cath,

In my world, four books read in the space of a month is good going, especially when you have got the feature post organized and published so quickly!

Sadly, I'm not sure that any of the four featured books really 'floats my boat' enough to rush around trying to track down copies for my shelf. I really do want to get involved with reading some of the vintage and classic crime books, but I just don't know when I am likely to get the time!

On the other hand, I really liked both the jigsaw puzzle you featured in this post and the one you showcased on Twitter earlier this evening. I have just chosen my next jigsaw, however this one shouldn't take quite so long to finish, as it only has 500 pieces.

I hope that you have a great weekend :)

Yvonne xx

Cath said...

Nan: I've just finished book 56. No, I haven't heard of either of the authors you mention so will look them up on Goodreads later. Thanks for the recs. Talking of being a 'homey' sort of person, we've become addicted to your Pioneer Woman cookery shows. Do you watch those?

Yvonne: That's OK. I don't really do book reviews expecting people who read them to rush out and get the books. Really, I'm sharing my love of books and opinions on the ones I read. 'Giving people ideas' is perhaps the best description.

Thank you re the jigsaws. I'm trying to decide which one to do next and note that I have every bit as much difficulty as when choosing the next book...

Thanks, a very quiet weekend for me, Strictly tonight too. Hope you're also having a good weekend.

Susan said...

It's so easy to get obsessed with finishing a puzzle, isn't it? And that one looks super fun!

Cath said...

Susan: Yes, and I do tend to be obsessive about puzzles, once I start one I have to be dragged kicking and screaming away from it. LOL

TracyK said...

Reading has gone up and down for me over the years. There was one period (a good while ago) where work was really demanding and I read no fiction for close to ten years. I am glad I got over that slump. Anyway if you are doing things you enjoy that are not reading, that is great. Especially spending time with family.

Cath said...

Tracy: I can believe that, my husband, also a huge reader since he was a young child, had a period of some years when work was so hard and stressful that he couldn't read either. I got him back into it slowly but it was not easy.

It's just been a busy summer with grandkids and the garden and so on, it's quieter now so I'm back reading but actually it was quite a nice summer.

Vintage Reading said...

September is my favourite month, too. I like the look of Superfluous Women, hope you review it. I'm reading for an autumn jigsaw too, Last one I completed was a Krispy Kreme doughnuts jigsaw which I really enjoyed!

Cath said...

Nicola: The link to my review of Superfluous Women is in this post. A very enjoyable read.