This year I have set myself the same goal as last year – to read 25 books!

Got a good xmas haul this year so should keep me going for at least a few months!

I was feeling a little underwhelmed by my goal as 25 books doesn’t seem like a lot (I used to be able to read up to 40 books a year before I had kids!) – however my daughter has pointed out that if I include all of the story books I read to my youngest daughter every night at bedtime I am probably reading around 1000 books a year, so that certainly made me feel better!

For the 5th year in a row, my dad and I are embarking on the Popsugar reading challenge. It’s been a fairly slow reading year for me what with one thing and another, so I haven’t read much at all this year but here’s what I’ve read in 2021

Book 1: The Survivors, by Jane Harper

Category: A book published in 2021

I love this author. Her first book The Dry was AMAZING and has just been made into a movie. I didn’t love Force of Nature, her second book, but her third The Lost Man and this one were both also excellent. They are proper, gripping, page turners. There is almost always a murder or suspected murder and a whodunnit style exploration of a small town and it’s inhabitants, who all seem to have secrets and motives etc. They are quintessentially Australian and the scenery and setting is vividly pictured.

This was technically released in Australia in 2020, but is not released in the UK until later in Jan 2021 so I’m counting it. My friend in Oz sent it to me as a Christmas present so I was able to read it before it’s even released here, and I literally raced through it in 2 days. A strong start to the year! Continue reading →