{"id":8010,"date":"2017-07-09T10:30:32","date_gmt":"2017-07-09T09:30:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/janetgover.com\/?p=8010"},"modified":"2017-07-09T10:30:32","modified_gmt":"2017-07-09T09:30:32","slug":"what-i-have-been-reading","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/favourite-books\/what-i-have-been-reading\/","title":{"rendered":"What I have been reading"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A great read for a Sunday in the sun.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I am really enjoying writing these posts. It’s great to look back and remember the books that I have enjoyed.<\/p>\n

I’ve been writing a\u00a0new book during the last couple of months, so not reading as much as I normally would… but that still means I am reading a book a week. I have however, stayed away from new authors and stuck with friends and favourites.\u00a0I like comfort reads when I am writing.<\/p>\n

The Summer We Danced \u2013 Fiona Harper<\/strong> (paperback \u2013 known author)<\/p>\n

This is a Doris Day film in a book. It\u2019s a love story and a story about second chances. It\u2019s also the story of how wonderful it can be to be part of a community.<\/p>\n

I read most of this book sitting in the shade in the garden on a hot summer Sunday. It was a perfect combination.<\/p>\n

The book is uplifting and funny and a delight. It was a wonderful place to escape to for a few hours.<\/p>\n

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My only new author in this blog.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Under the Jewelled Sky \u2013 Alison McQueen<\/strong> (paperback \u2013 new author)<\/p>\n

This book was shortlisted to a RONA award a couple of years ago. It\u2019s been in my TBR pile for a long time, but I decided it was time for another new author, and what a good move that was.<\/p>\n

I really enjoyed this. The novel is set in India at the end of colonial rule and during the period of partition. It\u2019s a cross cultural love story \u2013 the young daughter of British colonial doctor falls for an Indian boy, with far reaching consequences.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s some depth to this romance, and the handling of India at a troubled and violent time is very well done. I shall read more of this author.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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An intriguing cover – and a really great read.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A Crack in Everything \u2013 Ruth Long <\/strong>(paperback \u2013\u00a0known author)<\/p>\n

Full disclosure here \u2013 the author is a friend of mine. That\u2019s why I own a signed copy of this book. It is not the reason I read it so eagerly. That was because this book is good. Very good. I don\u2019t read a lot of YA fantasy \u2013 but I definitely think it\u2019s time I read more.<\/p>\n

I loved the world of this book \u2013 it\u2019s Dublin \u2013 but it\u2019s not. I recognised places as I read it \u2013 but the world of the Fae is very different.<\/p>\n

Our heroine Izzy is lovely \u2013 strong and full of doubts and smart and all the things I want a heroine to be. Jinx, our hero, is so utterly damaged and at the same time, totally compelling.<\/p>\n

This book hit all the right notes for me and I am looking forward to reading the next in the series.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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The start of a new series – looking forward to more.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pocketful of Dreams \u2013 Jean Fullerton <\/strong>(a signed paperback from a good friend)<\/p>\n

Jean is a long term writing friend and so I was honoured to get an advance copy of her latest book. Jean writes sagas set in London\u2019s East End \u2013 and this is the first book in a new series set during WW2 and I think it\u2019s her best book yet.<\/p>\n

Having seen the books piled high Jean\u2019s office, I know just how much research goes into her books. She always gets the history right \u2013 but never lets that interfere with the main purpose of her books, which is to tell a story. She writes great villains \u2013 and the villain of this piece is no exception.<\/p>\n

But her heroes are always lovely \u2013 and I think Daniel might just have found his way into my list of literary crushes. A lovely book.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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I read this in about two sittings. Really enjoyable.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Girl Having A Ball \u2013 Rhoda Baxter<\/strong> (e-book and a known author)<\/p>\n

This book was shortlisted for the Romantic Novelists Association Romantic Comedy Award. And it well deserved that place.<\/p>\n

This book was fun and flirty. It\u2019s part of a series, and the first in the series, Girl on the Run, was an equally good read. I like that these book feature both heroes and heroines who are not stereotypes. And they tend to be smart as well.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve always thought smarty men were sexy \u2026 and here\u2019s an author who shares that view. It\u2019s also great to see some ethnic diversity in a book.<\/p>\n

Again, I will be honest and say Rhoda is a friend \u2013 but I liked her books before we became friends.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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Not my favourite book – but she remains a favourite author.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Wedding Party \u2013 Robyn Carr<\/strong> (e-book and a favourite author)<\/p>\n

As anyone who reads this blog regularly knows, I am a huge Robyn Carr fan. Her books are automatic buys for me. Mostly she writes small town romance, and her Virgin River and Thunder Point books are among my comfort reads.<\/p>\n

This book was originally published in 2001. It\u2019s presented as being a comedy and a therefore bit of a change of pace. I confess it was not my favourite of her books. It is well written and had pace and kept my interest, but I found I didn\u2019t particularly bond with the heroine. Robyn Carr always writes wonderful male characters, and this book was no exception, but I felt the hero deserved someone nicer than the heroine.<\/p>\n

That said, the book was written a long time ago, and maybe it\u2019s a good example of how writers change and improve over time. She remains on my automatic buy list \u2013 one book that didn\u2019t suit me doesn\u2019t change the fact that she is a fabulous writer whose work I really enjoy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I am really enjoying writing these posts. It’s great to look back and remember the books that I have enjoyed. I’ve been writing a\u00a0new book during the last couple of months, so…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8010","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-favourite-books","category-reading"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8010","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8010"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8010\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8010"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8010"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/johnhocking.net\/jg2025demo1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8010"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}