Page-Turner Wanted

[Taffybird]

I'm a bit out of the loop after a 9-month reading hiatus but thanks to my Kindle app and a little girl who has finally worked out what bedtime is for, I'm ready to read again. Can anyone point me towards something unputdownable? I think I'm in the mood for a bit of a mystery, with likeable, convincing characters and a satisfying ending. A bit of humour wouldn't go amiss.

Any genre will do, although I have a fondness for historical fiction and fantasy.

Are you into sci-fi/fantasy and interested in computers Taffy? I have found an absolute cracker which also has a more than a dash of real history in it, brilliant characters, absolutely mind-bending and riveting (but it does have over 900 pages....if you like it as much as I did, though, you honestly won't mind!! you'll want it to go on forever). I got so addicted to it (and I am a very choosy reader too) - that I couldn't wait for bedtime, read it way into the wee small hours and neglected DS and DH for days on end! Blissful escapism! (Oh, and loads of wacky humour too...)

It's Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson

If 900+ pages sounds a bit too daunting, why not try

You Are Awful (But I Like You) (Travels Through Unloved Britain) by Tim Moore. A laugh-out-loud travelogue, a bit similar to Bill Bryson but with even drier humour if that's possible. My fave bit was how he bought the worst possible British car and then got Ozzie Osbourne's voiceover for his Sat-Nav!

Thank you! Interestingly, I bought Cryptonomicon for my hubby for Christmas but he hasn't really got into it. Maybe I'll relieve him of it - it sounds like it would be more up my street. And I adore Bill Bryson (re-reading A Walk in the Woods at the moment) so I'll definitely give the travelogue a try.

I've just finished 'The Blue Afternoon' by William Boyd, and I really got into it, and couldn't put it down. The only thing I didn't like was that I felt the ending was a little rushed, but apart from that it's definitely made me want to try some his other novels.

I couldn't put down Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes. Best book I've read in ages.

I really liked Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell - up your street? Couldn't put it down.