This week I received 2 rather exciting emails. One was from the wonderful Lucy at The Literary Edit, which contained her favourite 5 books read in 2024, and the other was from the folks at Goodreads providing an update on my personal reading challenge.

If you haven't checked out Lucy's blog, you can find it here.

Read all about my Year in Books 2020

Read all about my Year in Books 2021

It seemed like a sign, so I got my thinking cap on to pick my my top 5. And to be honest I struggled a bit. I think this says a little bit more about the place I was in. I love my reading, but having way over-committed myself to a blog schedule, I ended up reading books that I felt I should read rather than wanted to read. I was reminded of this this week as I saw a brilliant post from Penguin basically saying that Reading should always be a pleasure and never a challenge. Clearly it has been quite the week for inspiration.

I'm pleased to say that my focus has shifted for the second half of the year, and I am reading exactly what I want to read and have fallen in love with reading and blogging again. Which is just lovely.

Having said all of the above I am going to dive a little into some statistics and can tell you that so far, I have read 29 books out of my 50 books to be read. 58% complete. hehe you didn't think you'd get away that easily did you? And so without further ado, here are my Top 5, so far from 2024. These are in no particular order. And contain a LOT of crime.

Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg

This book has always been knocking on the door of my Top 10 favourite books of all time, and it was wonderful to read this at Twixmas. Like snow, it is hard to capture just how beautiful this book is. A child falls off a roof in Copenhagen in a tragic accident, but Miss Smilla understands snow, and knows that this was no accident. Tenacious and uncompromising, Smilla sets about solving the mystery and as the truth unravels, finds herself in danger.

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett

My most recent read, and one which harkened back to The Appeal which was a runner up for my 2021 Book of the Year. Here we follow Amanda Bailey, as she writes a True Crime book following the case of the Alperton Angels and trying to find the baby involved in the mystery 18 years ago. Told through emails, letters, transcriptions and fragments it is up to us, the reader, to make a difficult decision.

The Mysterious Mr Badman by W.F. Harvey

From a mysterious case to an out of print book that causes a mystery. I read this on holiday in Grenada and loved it. Whilst minding a bookshop, Athelstan Digby is asked by 3 separate customers for a copy of an obscure book The Mysterious Mr Badman. Unable to find a copy, he is astonished when an edition arrives that afternoon following a sort out in a local country home. Determined to find out what makes this book so interesting, Athelstan finds himself on the trail of a blackmailer leading all the way to the higher echelons of power.

What You are Looking For is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama

This was a wonderful present from a dear group of friends and has definitely stayed with me. Each chapter focuses on an individual struggling with the demands of modern life. They enter the library where an extraordinary woman who can type at an astonishing speed gives them a library book requested and another more unusual recommendation. A love story to reading and our libraries.

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

I read this on the flight to Grenada and had pretty much finished it by the time we landed. It was perfect, snowy and with a seemingly perfect crime that stumped our Hercule and left him with quite the dilemma. The hours flew by on that 13 hour flight.

I was going to pop in a cheeky book review of a book that will be a contender for the next 6 months top 5 books, but I'll keep that for next time. In the meantime, I hope you have a wonderful weekend. I will be watching lots of sport - Triathlon, tennis and of course the football on Sunday night, but am also reading a Christmas novels involving a dysfunctional group of friends. I am very much enjoying it, but it is not going to be on my #12booksofchristmas unless something dramatic happens.

See you soon.

xxx