What We're Reading in December

Nicola here, welcoming you to the Word Wench "What We’re Reading" feature for December. It’s a bumper edition, including both Christmas-themed and other books, so jump right in and check out our choices, and let us know what you recommend this month!

Anne here, and as usual I've read quite a bit in the last month and have several recommendations. The first is The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley. Elderly artist, Julian Jessop is lonely and unhappy and, claiming that authenticity is the only possible solution for changing his life, he writes down how he feels in a small exercise book, and leaves it in a local cafe. The owner of the cafe finds it, and inspired by his words of wisdom, writes down her own secret dreams and fears. And leaves the book in a nearby park. And so it goes from person to person. Of course, all their paths begin to cross, and various stories begin to unfold. Quirky and fun -- I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

In crime, I’ve just finished the latest JD Kirk — A Snowball's Chance in Hell. This is  the 9th book in JD Kirk's excellent Scottish crime series. I've mentioned his books before. Crime, good characterization, humor, tension and a compelling mystery. I put his books on pre-order the minute they appear. They develop, so start with the first book in the series.

I'm also rereading E F Benson's "Lucia" novels, which I haven't read for years. They're delightful novels — very funny and gently satirical, about the intense rivalry, pretensions and ruthless one-upmanship (one upwomanship?) that takes place in the upper middle class society of a small English village in the 1930s. The series builds — for my money the pick of the crop is the middle book, Mapp and Lucia, where two strong-minded ladies battle it out for queen (or top of the pecking order) of their little society.

As the moment you can buy all six of the books in one collection for the ridiculous price of $2 (with a slight variation according to country.) But they're all good. If you have any doubts about whether you'd enjoy the books, read the first few pages of Mapp and Lucia (by clicking on the "look inside" feature on Amazon.)

Christina – As it’s the festive season, I have been reading my way through a pile of Christmas-themed books and I’ve enjoyed the snow and seasonal cheer vicariously – the snow especially since it’s done nothing but rain where I am! I started off with One More for Christmas by Sarah Morgan which Nicola recommended a while back and I absolutely loved it so I’m seconding her recommendation to read it. This was exactly the kind of feel-good book I needed right now!

Ever since I read Summer Island by Natalie Normann I’ve been waiting for the sequel, Christmas Island, and I wasn’t disappointed – it’s wonderful! I read it in one sitting and couldn’t put it down. I fell in love with that idyllic island in the summer time, but despite the horrible weather, it was just as lovely during Christmas and I so want to go there. This was in large part due to a big, grumpy Viking named Tor, with whom I fell instantly in love (despite his enormous beard!). He was tough and vulnerable in equal measures, and so very appealing. The heroine too is someone the reader can really empathise with – her humour and kind nature make that really easy. And I so enjoyed hearing about all the Norwegian Christmas traditions, many of which are very similar to the Swedish ones I grew up with. Made me feel very nostalgic! If you want to escape to a small island full of people with big hearts and a strong sense of community, and lose yourself in a gorgeous romance, this book is for you!

Finally, there was One Family Christmas by Bella Osborne. The Collins family Christmas has always been organised by Nana Rose, the matriarch who owns a lovely little manor house in the Cotswolds. She’s also acted as surrogate mother to Lottie and her brother since their mother is a total flake, and she’s the person everyone runs to in a crisis. When she suddenly dies just a few weeks before the holidays, Lottie is determined to have one last family Christmas just as her grandmother would have wanted before the house is sold. But there are a few problems with that, mainly that her family is completely dysfunctional, she can’t cook, and to top it all, the guy she was in love with nine years ago is suddenly back in the village and messing with her head. This is a heart-warming story with a very likeable heroine who tries so hard to make everyone around her happy that she loses sight of her own needs. I was rooting for her from page one and loved the satisfying ending! The US Amazon book links are:

https://www.amazon.com/One-More-Christmas-Sarah-Morgan-ebook/dp/B084Q65YSV/wordwench-20 https://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Island-Natalie-Normann-ebook/dp/B08691C9CK/wordwench-20  https://www.amazon.com/One-Family-Christmas-Bella-Osborne-ebook/dp/B085XQXDB9/wordwench-20 

Pat here: THE LIBRARY OF LOST AND FOUND, Phaedra Patrick--If you’re in the mood for a lovely women’s fiction-y story that includes lots of books, take a look at this one. The protagonist volunteers at the local library in a small seaside town. She’s been taking care of her parents for years and since they’ve died, she’s been filling the emptiness with volunteer jobs. There’s a fascinating back story, well drawn characters, and the usual family drama, but somehow Patrick makes this fresh and fascinating, the kind of feel-good book you can sink into, even as the layers of lies are peeled back one-by-one until the protagonist finally sees her life clearly.

Mary Jo here, with two books that aren't Christmassy but are definitely fun.

 Pet Noir by Pati Nagle

 A native New Mexican, Pati Nagle (http://patinagle.com/ )is a very versatile author who has written a wide range of fantasy under her own name, historical novels as P. G. Nagle, and cozy tearoom mysteries as Patrice Greenwood. 

 Pet Noir is science fiction for cat lovers.  Her protagonist, Leon, is a genetically engineered Maine Coon with many special abilities such as a really quick mind, a tongue designed to speak human languages, and thumbs.  He's been commissioned by the security chief of a space station to be an undercover agent because cats go everywhere and can hear everything. 

 Leon has all these special abilities but is also totally a cat who is always scrounging for food.  <G>  He's great fun as he makes friends, learns to manage in zero gravity, and solves several mysteries on the space station.  My enjoyment was enhanced because Leon reminded me of my Maine Coon-ish Princess Flufferbella, who hasn't learned to speak English yet, but is very gogd at conveying her meanings. <G>

The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa

 Like Jasmine Guillory, Mia Sosa writes romantic comedy with diverse characters.  (Interestingly, Guillory is a graduate of Stanford Law and Sosa is a graduate of Harvard Law. There are a fair number of lawyers who have escaped over the wall into writing romance. <G>)

 Told in alternating first person chapters, The Worst Best Man features Max Hartley, a marketing guy who wakes up to a text by his brother Andrew on the morning of what should be Andrew's wedding day to be told that the wedding is off so Max must break the news to the jilted bride, and by the way, Max, thanks for what you said last night about why Carolina Santos and I wouldn't suit.

 Needless to say, Lina is not pleased by the news, especially since she's a wedding planner.   Lina is Brazilian-American and her mother, aunts, and other elements of Brazilian culture are a hoot. 

 Lina is a survivor so she carries on.  Time passes, she is about to lose her office space and real estate is Washington, DC is crazy expensive.  Then she gets a chance to make a presentation to a high class hotel that wants to create itself as a major DC wedding venue.  It's a dream job. The hitch?  She has to develop her pitch with Max, the marketing man and ex-best man, while the other candidate for the job is working with ex-fiancé Andrew.  NOT a good situation, particularly since Lina and the Hartley brothers all panic when introduced to each other by the hotel owner and don't mention their prior relationships. 

 What follows is a fun story that has both over the top comedy and serious relationship issues.  I'm looking forward to reading more of Mia Sosa's books.

Nicola here and I have been on a crime spree this Christmas, at least in my reading. First was Richard Osman’s runaway bestseller The Thursday Murder Club. Plot-wise I’m always reluctant to say much about crime novels since I don’t want to give anything away but basically there are some very dodgy businessmen who are looking to make money out of building developments at a retirement village and when they all start to meet a grisly end, a group of intrepid elderly sleuths step in to solve the case.

I can see why this book is such a success. It’s funny, clever and has the sort of warmth that is very appealing in the current climate when a lot of us are looking for a reading and viewing experience that is cosy and reassuring (murders notwithstanding). The retirement village setting is well drawn and the cast of characters is absolutely wonderful. The resourcefulness, humour and fascinating past lives of the members of the Thursday Murder Club is a reminder of how interesting our older friends and relatives can be. Very highly recommended!

I also read Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz which is a book within a book and two murder stories in one. It’s fiendishly clever and complicated, drawing on the classic country house Agatha Christie type story but with very modern twists. There aren’t many likeable characters in the book which does make it all the more satisfying when the thoroughly dislikeable ones get their comeuppance!

On the historical fiction side of things I really enjoyed Fools and Mortals by Bernard Cornwell. The hero is Richard Shakespeare, lesser-known brother of the famous William, and the story takes place against a background of London’s Tudor playhouses, filthy back streets and palaces. It’s atmospheric and vividly written, there’s a great mystery at the heart of it, we see Richard mature and step out of his brother’s shadow and there’s a cute romance for good measure!

Andrea: A friend recently recommended Rules of Civility by Amor Towles, which came out a while ago and garnered great acclaim. I’m not sure how I missed it back then, but am so happy to have gotten the heads-up. It’s a wonderfully stylish novel, with echos of The Great Gatsby’s complicated—and sometimes ruthless—high society world. Set in 1938 New York, the reader follows Katey Content, daughter of Russian immigrants, who has climbed up a rung or two of the social ladder to garner a good secretarial job in Manhattan. On New Year’s Eve, she and her firecracker girlfriend from the boarding house for struggling professionals are at a second-rate jazz dive, musing on life and men, when a handsome, charismatic Ivy League banker walks in, expecting to meet his brother. The brother never turns up and the three of them begin to party together . . .

Katey soon finds herself drawn into the world of WASPs and Old Money, and as she navigates through the shoals of innuendo and privilege, she slowly discovering that things aren’t always what they seem. She’s also plotting her own path in life, and as a narrator on finding one’s place in the world, she’s full of fascinating insights and reflections on friendship, desire, and what ultimately makes one happy. The writing is beautiful, and the charcters compelling. I highly recommend it!

Susan: Despite good intentions over the holiday weeks, I didn't read Christmas stories, but did finish a few books on my PRL (partly read list!). Days ago I finished Beach Read by Emily Henry. The tempting premise sends romance writer January Andrews to a beach house to discover that former high-school crush and literary fiction success Gus Everett is her next-door neighbor. Both plagued with writer's block, they decide it's easier to write what the other writes; so they compete, and tumble headlong into the emotional secrets each is shielding. The story has plenty of energy, with character depth, romantic fire, and palpable and sometimes dark emotion. And I love that Henry goes into what it's really truly like being an author. As love rekindles and secrets are exposed, the story grows more complex and takes on challenging emotional directions that while surprising are ultimately rewarding. An excellent read, whether you're at the (socially distanced) beach or stuck inside in winter!  

Just now I'm halfway through News of the World by Paulette Jiles, which has been in my TBR pile--but seeing the movie trailer, I jumped on it and I'm barreling along in a terrific story set in the Old West. Captain Kidd is a literate man in the dusty ol' West who travels around reading newspaper accounts to groups eager to pay to hear the news. Soon he agrees to return a ten-year-old girl to her family. A Kiowa captive for so long that she barely remembers her earlier life, she is wild and wise, and fascinating. Kidd is a good man challenged to communicate and to protect her as they travel. The dry prose is fresh and quick, very effective, the historical setting is authentic, and the fullness and subtlety in the characters is superb. I'm finding it a palate cleanser after reading a slew of contemporaries, along the lines of True Grit (which I have read three times), and I am loving this!

And I'm happy to report I finally got to Lucy Parker, a favorite among the Wenches, so you'll have heard about her books before. Act Like It, the first in her London Celebrities series, pairs stage actress and good-girl Lainie Graham with temperamental bad-boy celeb Richard Troy as they fake a romantic relationship to rescue his reputation from a hungry press. Frustrated with each other, they begin to see behind their seemingly opposite temperaments, balancing each other's strengths and weaknesses as they fall in love. Lucy Parker writes smart, snappy, sexy books filled with convincing characters and a sense of wraparound love and friendship that's just a joy to read. I absolutely blew through the second book in the series--Pretty Face is equally enjoyable. TV actress Lily Lamprey and stage director Luc Savage must work together on a stage production while protecting deep secrets--it's real, compelling, full of spark, humor, and passion. Lucy Parker is a real find, and I'm about to glom all of her books! 

So there you have it - our reads and recommendations for the month of December. Now over to you! What have you been reading and enjoying this month?

Comments

[Misti]

I got caught up on Anna Lee Huber's Lady Darby series this month. Before that I read The Bright and Breaking Sea by Chloe Neill and that one surprised me how much I liked it. It's a Napoleonic War alternate universe type of story. The heroine, Captain Kit Brightling, gets to deal with magic, pirates, and a Viscount. :) It was fun.

[Teresa Broderick]

My reading has been dismal for the last two weeks of the month. Can't seem to get into anything. I'm half way through a Poiret book on audio for a group read and have another group read starting tomorrow.
Nicola, glad you cleared up about the crime spree you were on was reading and not the actual deed :):)

A very happy new year to everyone. Lets hope things pick up!!

[Beverly Abney]

I always enjoy your reading lists and write down authors and titles that sound interesting to me. If I can then find them at the library I enjoy reading them. Most of them I can find, I am happy to say. Thank you all.

[Vicki L]

My reading in December report is very, very short! I was still on my purging binge and then I plunged into Christmas cooking, camping and festive doings

Murder at Queen's Landing by Andrea Penrose - my turn finally came at the library so that was an early Christmas present. I enjoyed reading it and seeing how all the characters are adapting to new circumstances and tentative revealing of tender feelings.

The Banty House by Carolyn Brown. Light, fun and made me laugh out loud frequently. Really enjoyed this one. Contemporary Women's Fiction.

Tricia Ashley - read 3 new to me books by her that were sitting on my TBR. Plus also reread Twelve Days of Christmas. Truly do love that one and thanks to all the Wenches (and readers) who kept mentioning that one so I finally splurged and paid big bucks for it last year.

My other Have TO Christmas read, actually listen, has been Winter Solstice by Rosamund Pilcher. I know I mention it each year. But It is a great book to listen to while chopping and washing umpteen dirty dishes while doing Christmas cooking. I hadn't really thought about it before but it really shows Christmas doesn't have to be a big glitzy production. 5 different people at different states of life end up sharing a house and creating a wonderful Christmas that suits them all.

I have really enjoyed reading the Wenches Read feature each month. To see what they are reading and what all the Wenchly commenters are reading. I've found many a good book I would never have read through mentions and discussion.

Thank you to everyone for participating!

[Christina Courtenay]

I loved Winter Solstice! Might have to reread it soon!

[Nicola Cornick]

Wow, The Bright and Breaking Sea sounds really interesting. Thanks for the recommendation, Misti. I will look out for that!

[Nicola Cornick]

LOL, Teresa! Yes, it's all fictional crime!

Sorry to hear you've been in a reading slump. It seems to be a problem for quite a few people at the moment; I was exactly the same until I turned to crime! I got back into things and read a few Regency historicals but they didn't grab me as much as I had hoped. Let's hope we can all find some brilliant books to enjoy in 2021!

[Nicola Cornick]

You are very welcome, Beverly! I'm so glad that you find the choices interesting. That's why we enjoy hearing recommendations from other people too - so much more to explore!

[Nicola Cornick]

Thank you, Vicki! We love getting recommendations from everyone as well! I'm so glad you enjoyed Andrea's book. I love the Wrexford and Sloane series.

[Nicola Cornick]

Yes, me too, Christina!

[Minna Puustinen]

I've been reading Eugenia Riley's Bushwacked in Time series and Fading Into the Limelight by Peter Sallis (Last of the Summer Wine, anyone?).

[Nicola Cornick]

Oh, I remember that, Minna! I may even have read Peter Sallis's book a while ago.

[Minna Puustinen]

Oh, I also read Dumpty by John Lithgow. "And as fire in the West dealt out mass devastation,
Its victims heard Dumpty’s inane explanation:
“Bad forest management! Stupid mistakes!
They say that all Finns are provided with rakes!” I found it really funny John Lithgow had even drawn a rake, with a word metsäpaloharava (though he had misspelled the Finnsih word)-forest fire rake. He's also written Trumpty Dumpty Wanted a Crown.

[Kareni]

Thank you for sharing your reading, Word Wenches; I always find some new titles to investigate! Curiously, Susan, I've read and enjoyed all the books you mentioned. Let me scrounge up my list. I'll be back soon.

[Kareni]

December reading ~

-- The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab. I REALLY enjoyed this book; in fact, my husband (who hasn't read it) could likely tell you quite a bit about this book given how much I shared with him! Right after I finished the book, I reread portions.
-- Axiom's End: A Novel (Noumena, 1) by Lindsay Ellis. This science fiction was an intriguing read which frequently strained credulity; I read it over the course of a few weeks and nearly abandoned it. I notice now that it is the first in a series. I have to admit to being curious as to where the next volume will go, but by the time the next book is published I may have lost that interest.
-- And a book that I quite enjoyed ~ The Lost Love Song: A Novel by Minnie Darke. I think I'll be rereading this at some point.

— Season of the Wolf (The Legend of All Wolves Book 4) by Maria Vale was an enjoyable read. I think it would be best appreciated by someone who has read the earlier books in the series.
— Common Goal: A Gay Sports Romance (Game Changers Book 4) by Rachel Reid which I enjoyed (but not as much as other books in the series).
— My Christmas Spirit by KC Wells which was a pleasant(-ly silly) m/m romance that featured a matchmaking ghost.
— His Knight (Shining Armor Book 1) by Charity Parkerson which was another pleasant story.
— The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After by Julia Quinn was a fun read but would make little sense if you’ve not read The Bridgerton series. I enjoyed it.
— His Bewildered Mate by Brea Alepoú was an okay read that ended on a cliffhanger. I don’t plan to read on.
— My Christmas Number One by Leonie Mack which I quite enjoyed.

— Spooky Business (The Spectral Files Book 3) by S.E. Harmon. This is the third book in a series which needs to be read in order. While I enjoyed revisiting the main characters, the storyline was a tad eerie for my taste and kept me awake!
— Secret Santa by Kati Wilde was an enjoyable contemporary erotic romance.
— Marked by Death (Necromancer Book 1) by Kaje Harper. I enjoyed this paranormal romance featuring two men; I look forward to reading the sequel.
— Secret Light by Z.A. Maxfield: I enjoyed this historical male/male romance set in California in the mid 1950s.
— the story “Boyfriend” by Sarina Bowen which is in the anthology ‘Tis the Season for Romance by multiple authors. It was a pleasant read but not my favorite by the author.

-- A Royal Affair: A Sparks & Bainbridge Mystery by Allison Montclair which I quite enjoyed. It's the second in a series that is best read in order. Book three will be published in June, and I look forward to reading it.
-- enjoyed First Impressions (Auckland Med Book 1) by Jay Hogan; this is a contemporary romance featuring two men.
-- the science fiction/space opera Second Chance Angel (The Last Stop Station Series Book 1) by Griffin Barber and Kacey Ezell. This was recommended by favorite author SK Dunstall, so I had high hopes. While I enjoyed it and will happily read on in the series, it's not an immediate favorite like the Linesman books.
-- enjoyed the short romance To Touch the Light: An Irons and Works Holiday Novel by E.M. Lindsey which has a Hanukkah focus and features a trans character.

-- a book I received as a Christmas gift, One Giant Leap by Kay Simone, which I quite enjoyed. You could describe it as a slow burn and a long distance romance. For about three quarters of the book, one character is on the earth while the other, an astronaut, is in space. I expect that this is a book I'll reread.

-- Sourdough: or, Lois and Her Adventures in the Underground Market: A Novel by Robin Sloan. I'd describe it as fiction with a hint of magical realism.
-- read and enjoyed Greyson's Doom (The Endurance Book 1) by Tracy Cooper-Posey which happens to be currently free for Kindle readers. It's a science fiction romance; I may or may not read on in the series.
-- read about half of Unbreak Me by Michelle Hazen.
It was telling a good story; however, it was making me sad. I may continue with it some other time.

[Janice Jacobson]

December was mostly Blursday to me. I do remember reading Mary Jo's Once Dishonored, Loretta Chase's Ten Things I Hate About the Duke and listening to a number of Georgette Heyers on audio.

Mostly I have been more in the mood for mysteries and thrillers. I really liked The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James, and with The Sentinel I'm up to date on Lee Child & Son.

I've also had a hunger for old fashioned literature with its extended vocabulary and complex prose styles. Fast reads are all very well, but sometimes I want something that challenges me. I reread Agnes Grey and found it oddly contemporary in that Agnes, a teacher, struggles with lack of backup from parents, which is a major complaint from the teachers I know. I'm still reading a few pages of War and Peace per day - but it's a terrible slog, flat and dull. Maybe it's better in Russian.

For Christmas I read An Ivy Hill Christmas by Julie Klassen. I like her regencies very much. She isn't preachy; these people are aware of their religious teachings and going to church is part of their normal lives - that is not ignored but not modernized or overemphasized either. It's part of life, taken for natural and normal. I don't see much of that in other regencies.

Right now I'm reading The Vixen's Revenge by Paula Allardyce, aka The Lady and the Pirate. Her regencies can be hard to find but they're worth the search.

I have also unearthed a Tana French from the TBR stashes - The Likeness. I had read Into the Woods some years ago and liked it. She knows how to pull one into a story.

I'm also reading an old Dorothy Mack on my Kindle. I'm glad to see her books available to a new audience.

[Nicola Cornick]

Oh, I remember when the story of the Finnish rakes was in the news!

[Nicola Cornick]

Kareni, as ever I'm in awe of your list! You're like a one person book club. I know there are books I've only found via your recommendations and really appreciate you spreading the word!

[Nicola Cornick]

Janice, it feels as though a number of us have been in the mood for thrillers and mysteries. I must say, though, that I most identified with your re-read of Agnes Grey. I read that again a few months ago and enjoyed it very much. I do like Anne Bronte's writing, probably the best of all the sisters. It was great to rediscover it and as you say, there are a number of resonant themes.

[Minna Puustinen]

Yeah, we found it quite funny:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYnXBRo9TVA&t=149s

[Andrea Penrose]

A belated thank you, Vicki. So glad you enjoyed Murder at Queen's Landing!

[Susan/DC]

Liked Amor Towles "Rules of Civility" but absolutely loved his "A Gentleman in Moscow". The former is beautifully written, the characters well developed, and the setting pulls you right in, but it is, in the end, a bit sad. The latter book has its quite serious moments, but it is such a lovely fairy tale of making the best of things, found families, and appreciating love and friendship no matter where and how you find them. I will say that Rules has a beautifully romantic cover, with the curve of her body and dress and the young man leaning toward her.

The book I've recommended and bought as a gift (I think I've purchased 6 copies so far) is "Miss Buncle's Book" by DE Stevenson. Written in 1934, it remains charming and fanciful and probably exactly what we need in these dark times.

[Nicola Cornick]

I will definitely follow up both of those recommendations, Susan. I love the sound of "Miss Buncle's Book. It sounds exactly what we need!