Happy New Year to you.
I’ve been intending to post book reviews. Not just regular book reviews…although there will be some aspect of that too. However, I’m also looking for something unique to offer in regards to content and I thought how about a book review from the eye of a writing coach and teacher. I’ll tell you why I kept on reading, why I liked the book, and why I think it hit all the must have qualities of a good book.
I’ll be going into more in depth detail about each of my five top picks from my 2024 reading sometime later, but for now here are the ones that stood out and there’s also an extra pick too. One criteria I have is, would I read more of this author’s works and all of these were a definite yes. In fact, I’m hoping to get all of them to stop by This Writer’s Life to do an interview.
I’m now an Amazon associate so I’m including my affiliate link to all these books so if you do buy them, I will get compensated.
Have you read any of these books? If so, what did you think? Let me know in the comments.
The Maid’s Diary
Loreth Anne White
I’ll be honest, I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this one but it pulled me in and wouldn’t let me go. The characters are interesting, the plot intriguing and it has that essential I must turn the page to see what happens next.
A Girl Called Samson
Amy Harmon
I’m not sure how I acquired this book. Maybe an Amazon First Reads but I’m not positive. I don’t read a lot of young adult novels and not too many historicals but I’m so glad I got this one. This is the story of a girl who pretends to be a boy so she can fight in the War of Independence. Great characters, wonderful historical perspective, and yes, there’s even some romance too.
Air Raid Book Club
Annie Lyons
I really loved this one and it had the quality that I enjoy the most…you’re sad when you finish the book wishing there was more. Once again, historical and set during World War II in my hometown of London, England. It’s about people making the best of a terrible time in history. Beautifully crafted characters and a nicely paced plot. It brought back memories of all the stories my parents and grandparents told me about London during bomb raids.
Mother’s Day
Patricia MacDonald
This one pulled me in straight away and I think I read it in a day or two. Sometimes it’s hard for me to find a book where I don’t figure out what’s going on but this one kept me guessing until the end.
Murder on the First Date
T.E. Scott
Remember the shows Remington Steele and Moonlighting? While this book isn’t anything like them, it does have the combination of two things they had… mystery with a good dash of humor. Wonderful characters that are all facing some problem…that’s sometimes hard to pull off in a book but the author does it so well.
The Cat Behind the Curtain
Peter Scottsdale
This is my bonus one because I love a good laugh while I’m reading and yes, I love cats. This one did have me laughing out loud. An extra bonus is if you’re a cat owner you’ll recognize some of the behavior and feline antics of the character cats in this one and makes it even more delightful.