Hello Everybody,
How are you? I can’t believe we are now at the end of March! I managed to completely run out of time in February for a book review post and I have to confess March was a bit of a doozy for me as we were hit by a Cyclone!
Thankfully, no major damage but we lost power for five days. The whole experience was a little scary, but I had a few really good books keeping me company.
So, without further ado, here are my Book Reviews March 2025
We Solve Murders – Richard Osman (fiction)
As my brain was feeling rather frazzled by the whole pending Cyclone stuff, this was a really relaxing, easy and comforting read, even though it’s all about murders!
This is the first in a new series from Osman, with completely different characters to his Thursday Murder Club series. I love Richard’s writing style which is full of wit and humour, and his characters just leap off the page. I wish I could be friends with them all, well maybe not the murderers!
The story had great pace, good twists and a very cosy English feeling.
The blurb:
Steve Wheeler is enjoying retirement with familiar habits and routines. He loves his pub quiz, his night time patrol of the village, his cat Trouble and the odd bit of private investigation work.
Amy Wheeler – loves the adrenaline of her private security/body guard job. She is currently working on a remote island keeping author Rosie D’Antonio alive.
When a dead body turns up, a bag of money and a killer chasing after Amy, she is forced to contact the only person she trusts – her father-in-law Steve Wheeler.
A breakneck race around the world ensues, but can Steve and Amy stay one step ahead of a deadly enemy who is out to get them?
The Cryptic Clue – Amanda Hampson (fiction)
This is actually the second book in the tea ladies series, but I felt I already knew the characters after attending an author talk with Amanda back in April 2024
Again, this was a comforting cyclone read about a bunch of 1960s Sydney tea ladies who solve murders and mysteries. Great characters who all seemed to remind me of aunts and grandmothers from my childhood. I will definitely read more of this series.
The blurb:
Tea ladies Hazel, Betty, and Irene are back in business after their last success at solving a murder, a kidnapping, and an arson case.
When Irene receives a coded letter from her estranged criminal husband directing her to the spoils of a bank robbery, the tea ladies set off on a treasure hunt with a surprising outcome. Meanwhile, the very role of the tea ladies is under threat at Empire Fashionware, causing Hazel to call the tea ladies into action to save their livelihoods. In the midst of all this action and the bustling streets of Sydney’s rag-trade, they also uncover a plot threatening national security.
By Any Other Name – Jodi Picoult (fiction)
This was a Christmas present I requested after attending an author talk with Jodi Picoult. You can read more about that here
Many will view this as a heretical book, as Picoult delves into the swirling allegations that Shakespeare may not have written his infamous plays.
Picoult’s premise in the book is that he didn’t. He was a full-time actor and businessman, but when he died, there was no evidence of a writing life. His daughters were illiterate and there were no books in his personal effects. Instead, through a fictional format, she proposes that maybe a woman wrote the majority of the plays. She suggests that Shakespeare bought the plays from the woman and passed them off as his to make a profit. In return, she gained her work in print and saw it performed in theatres, something that was not possible for a woman at that time.
The story follows a dual timeline – the Elizabethan era where we follow Emilia Bassano and her relationship with Shakespeare and Melina Green, a modern female playwright still struggling with the same prejudices.
Personally, I much preferred the historical sections and really enjoyed experiencing Emilia’s life and struggles. Overall, it is quite a feminist text, which is why I assume the modern timeline was included, but I felt this was a weaker part of the storyline.
Overall though, this was a really enjoyable read and makes me want to explore that historical era more.
PS I loved the book cover, but it took me weeks before I realised it’s not just a picture of flowers!
The Blurb:
1581: Emilia Bassano has become the Lord Chamberlain’s mistress and through him has access to the world of theatre in England. Desperate to bring her own work to the stage, she secretly begins to sell her work to a man – Shakespeare. Whilst her work begins to gain an audience, her own name is being completely written out of history.
Present day: Melina Green has written a play about her Elizabethan ancestor Emilia Bassano. Whilst she is writing four hundred years later, access to theatre for women is still challenging. Is she prepared to hide her name behind a man to ensure its performance?
Body of Lies – Sarah Bailey (fiction)
So, I’ve managed to read another series out of sequence! I have read the first Gemma Woodstock, The Dark Lake, so was excited to find this book on our free community book shelf. Then I realised there are another two books in the series in between, but it didn’t really matter as the novel is written to standalone too.
This is a really gripping, fast-paced story set in rural Australia. I couldn’t put it down and was reading far too late into the night!
The blurb:
When a seriously injured car crash victim dies in hospital, the corpse is mysteriously stolen from the morgue. No one knows who the woman was or why her body was taken.
Detective Sergeant Gemma Woodstock is on maternity leave and is intrigued by the case, but reluctant to get involved. But then the town is rocked by another shocking crime and Gemma can’t resist joining the investigation.
With the help of her best friend, journalist Candy Fyfe, Gemma follows the clues the dead woman left behind and begins to uncover devastating secrets about the people she knows best. As she steps closer to the truth, the more danger she is in. Is there anyone she can trust in her small hometown?
The Tenderness of Wolves – Stef Penney (fiction)
Canada 1867: A man is murdered in an isolated cabin and the young murder suspect flees across the snowy wilderness.
Tracking him down is what passes as the law in this frontier land – trappers, sheriffs, traders and the suspect’s own mother, desperate to clear his name.
On Writing – Stephen King (memoir/non fiction)
The first part of the book is more of a writing memoir of Stephen King’s career.
The Second part focuses on writing practice and the tools to make a good writer.
I particularly liked his description of writing as a form of telepathy. The writer writes and describes a scene and the reader reads and immediately imagines the same scene, across time, space and culture. The combination of reading and writing causes a meeting of two minds. Very Cool!
The last part of the book goes back into a memoir format and details the horrific car accident that King was involved in and his struggle to regain his health and his desire to write.
A great read if you are interested in Stephen King, the writing process and/or how to be a writer.
Well, that’s it for this month. Drop me a comment below, and do let me know what you’ve been reading this month. I love hearing about good books!
If you missed my last book review you can catch up here
