26ish books 2026

Finished book number 9 - All the Broken Places by John Boyne. This is a sequel to the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, which I know is controversial (as is this one). This was a brilliant read about the child of a German commandant who grew into a woman riddled with guilt. It has an interesting format, where alternate chapters are about her young adulthood, and her life as an elderly woman who has tried to hide their identity throughout their life. Definitely recommended.

Finished book number 9, Another England: How to Reclaim Our National Story by Caroline Lucas. Quite an interesting read especially as I'm someone who'd describe myself as British rather than English but I think it was quite weak in places. Much better where she was talking about politics, but I'm not sure she quite managed to define an alternative "Englishness" to the one currently espoused by certain sections of our media and politicians.

@MargotMoon I have it on in the background whilst I’m working and think I probably need to concentrate on it a bit more. There’s a fair bit of scientific jargon that goes straight over my head and the duel timeline often confuses me. I guess the duel timeline would be easier to follow written than it is spoken.

it is starting to get a bit better though I think I’m about halfway so will stick to it.

my last audio was none of this is true by Lisa Jewell which was bloody brilliant. I’m not sure anything will top that!

@MammaGnomesI’ve got Project Hail Mary downloaded on my Audible app, was going to be my next audiobook - interested to know why it is a struggle to listen to?

7. James by Percival Everett

this has been on my want list for a while and I saw a few recommend it on this thread so was delighted to see it available on my library app.

it didn’t disappoint. Heartbreakingly fantastic.

im currently listening to Project Hail Mary but im struggling a bit. I’m about 5 hours in but im going to stick with it

list so far
What a Way to Go - Bella Mackie
All the Colours of the Dark - Christopher Whittaker
The Briar Club - Kate Quinn
The Names - Florence Knapp
None of this is True - Lisa Jewell (audio)
A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J Maas

Book 8: The House We Grew Up In by Lisa Jewell - what a read, I found this an incredibly sad but interesting story

2026 books so far:
then she was gone
beautiful ugly
the intruder
the shadowman
the family upstairs
Rock Paper Scissors
The Family Remains

@TranslatethedogI’m just reading Slags, really enjoying it. Have you read any of her other ones? Hope Allen Carr did the trick, I used that book to stop smoking, it was a godsend!

@EnchantedDays yes I have heard the musical is good.

8 - Ordinary Saints - Niamh Ni Mhaoileoin I generally enjoy Irish contemporary fiction so had high expectations for this but it didn’t work for me. The protagonist is unlikeable and has a constant victim mindset with the inability to empathise with anyone else ,and it was difficult to connect with the rest of the characters. The story rambles and could be a lot shorter and sharper. The author has a good command of words and I think she has the potential for something good one day as this was readable, but it wasn’t for me.

16 Sisters in Science by Olivia Campbell. Four female physicists who escaped Nazi Germany. Really interesting but a tiny bit preachy at times.
17 The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. Good, evocative, well written and short! Very poetic.

I went to see the musical of this last month and loved it, but haven’t read the book.

5) the unlikely pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce.

not my usual read. Was OK, nice story, easy to read but quite forgettable.

11 How to Say Babylon - A Jamaican Memoir - Safyia Sinclair

This took me ages to read but that's not indicative of how good it was. Its a beautiful book about a challenging story.

I have been sucked in to scrolling on my phone again instead of reading which has really annoyed me.

Yes, I should have just left it, but I bought Purity a few years back and I'm trying to read through my stack! I don't think I'll bother with the new one. I feel he's too pompous now to listen to an editor and they just let him wrote whatever, unedited.

Kind of stuck what to read next. I picked up The Marriage Portrait and Fundamentally from the charity shop, both quite popular here. I also have a few short reads, and few in my tbr pile from years back. Suddenly feel a bit like I'm in a bit of a slump.

I have to say I started with those two as well and every book I’ve read by him since has got worse. His self awareness and hype plus deeply misogynistic telling of female characters gets stronger with Purity so I wouldn’t bother continuing if I were you!!

#12 I Who Have Never Known Men - Jacqueline Harpman

an extraordinary book, beautifully written without being aware of the fact. Might be the bleakest book I’ve ever read and I read a lot of bleak books. This is one will haunt me for a long time

Ok so far;
The Woman who Lied by Claire Douglas
Three hours by Rosamund Lupton
I am I am I am by Maggie O Farrell
The Barbeque at No.9 by Jennie Godfrey

About to start The Wasp Trap by Mark Edwards.

Hello all,
Joining in this great thread. I've been reading loads lately as I was stuck in bed for over a week in February. Have loved all books so far apart from The Housemaid, which is not usually my type of thing and I was sucked in by the hype...

1. If on a winter's night a traveler by Italo Calvino
2. The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré
3. Postcards from a Stranger by Imogen Clark
4. The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
5. The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
6. Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
7. The Names by Florence Knapp
8. Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico
9. Les Choses by Georges Perec (in French; English title Things: A Story of the Sixties)

Decided to join in.

1. Peaches for monsieur le curé by Joanne Harris. (Not as good as the others in the series imo).
2. Allen Carr easy way.
3. The sirens by Emilia Hart. Loved this!
4. The compound by Aisling Rule.
5. Slags by Emma Jane Unsworth.
6. Where the Crawdads sing by Delia Owens. Feel silly for not reading sooner! I loved it!
7. The other wife by Michael Robotham
8. The life impossible by Matt Haig. My favourite so far!

Just started ‘For richer for poorer’ by Danielle Steel which isn’t my usual read but I saw it in the charity shop and thought that I would try it.

6. Confessions by Catherine Airey. Not what I thought it would be but brilliant. Starts on 9/11 with a teenager taking acid then turning on the TV and seeing the twin towers -where her dad works- fall.
I thought it would be more about her in the period after that, but after a while it shifted off to other women in the family in different years and places. I found it really engrossing.

11. Purity by Jonathan Franzen

I started this almost 2 years ago, got 200 pages into it and gave up. For some reason, I picked it up again and finished it, but it's my least favourite book this year so far. It's too long and rambling, and needed editing with a strong hand. The detailed descriptions of every conversation, with ever grandparent ever just made me lose interest. Shame, because I love Corrections and Freedom.

You'll have to let me know what you think once you've read it!

@Scout2016 I really enjoyed Hagstone. Imagined Jessie Buckley as the lead in the film version if someone decides to make it.

Now halfway through Demon Copperhead. I need to do a round up list after this and decide what’s next. I’m trying to read only from my own pile of books but some things on here that have piqued my interest.

Update:

1. Silence of the girls 5/10
2. By Any Other Name - Jodi Picoult. Good tale about feminism 6/10
3. We live here now - Sarah Pinborough. Great horror story with some good twists and turns. 7/10
4. Lone Wolf - Jodi Picoult. Great book, ethical dilemma explored alongside family dynamics 9/10.

Next - all the colours of the dark -chris whitaker

Evening 👋

(1) The French for Christmas by Fiona Valpy
(2) The Outside Boy by Jeannie Cummins
(3) Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
(4) All the Broken Places by John Boyne
(5) A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

Latest Books

(6) Crooked Branch by Jeannie Cummins

Description taken from the world wide web 😏

The deeply moving story of two mothers from two very different times.
After the birth of her daughter Emma, the usually resilient Majella finds herself feeling isolated and exhausted. Then, at her childhood home in Queens, Majella discovers the diary of her maternal ancestor Ginny—and is shocked to read a story of murder in her family history.
With the famine upon her, Ginny Doyle fled from Ireland to America, but not all of her family made it. What happened during those harrowing years, and why does Ginny call herself a killer? Is Majella genetically fated to be a bad mother, despite the fierce tenderness she feels for her baby? Determined to uncover the truth of her heritage and her own identity, Majella sets out to explore Ginny’s past—and discovers surprising truths about her family and ultimately, herself.

I really enjoyed this book - easy to read and kept me engaged throughout - I did think the ending was a bit unrealistic however.

(7) Nesting by Roisin O'Donnell

Description taken from Google...

In this beautiful, urgent, and ultimately uplifting novel by a rising Irish literary star comes a heart-pounding, life-affirming story about one woman trying to leave her marriage and start over.

On a bright spring afternoon, Ciara Fay makes a split-second decision that will change everything. Grabbing an armful of clothes off the clothesline, she straps her two young daughters into her car and drives away. Head spinning, all she knows for certain is that home is no longer safe—and that this time, when she leaves, she must stay away.

On the surface, she has a perfect life: her sometimes kind and attentive husband, Ryan, is a good provider from a nice family, and they have another baby on the way. But he also monitors Ciara's every move, flies into unpredictable rages where he convinces her she can do nothing right, and has isolated her from work, friends, and her beloved family.

Was fleeing the right thing to do? With no job and no support, Ciara struggles to provide a sense of normalcy for her little girls. Facing a broken housing system, they move into a hotel room on a floor reserved for women like her, eating takeout, washing their clothes in the bathroom sink, and building a community with the other residents. Ryan, meanwhile, wages a relentless campaign to win her back, and Ciara wavers. He never hit her, after all, and don't the girls need a stable home?

Suspenseful and all-consuming, Roisín O'Donnell’s extraordinary debut creates a devastating portrait of gaslighting and emotional abuse. Ultimately, Nesting is a triumphant story about self-determination, family, and resilience.
Longlisted for the Women's Prize • An Instant Bestseller in Ireland and the UK

This book was a tough read - sitting in M&S cafe trying not to cry tough but I am so glad I read it - another book which had a huge impact on me - a must read.

I love reading - baffles me that I am the minority in today's society!

Onto the next

Happy reading everyone :)