My resolution to read 50 books this year is going well so far. In fact, I’ve February was a great month for reading, as I managed to get through eight books.
Even better, pretty much all the books I read this month were really enjoyable. My favourite has to be Longbourn, by Jo Baker, which is a retelling of Pride and Prejudice, but from the perspective of the Bennet family’s servants. This novel was beautifully written and really brought to life the characters that spend much of Jane Austen’s novel in the background, giving them their own concerns and love affairs.
I also got into the Kate Daniels novels by Northern writer Mari Hannah, whose work I’ve been following on Twitter for ages. The first three books were on offer on Kindle so I downloaded them and raced through the stories, all of which are compelling crime thrillers set in and around Newcastle.
Here’s the list in full, including affiliate links, so if you do click through and buy anything I make a tiny commission, but it doesn’t cost you anything extra.
February’s reads:
- Don’t Stand So Close, by Luana Lewis – read my review here
- Boy, Snow, Bird, by Helen Oyeyemi
- The Murder Wall (Kate Daniels), by Mari Hannah
- Settled Blood (Kate Daniels Book 2), by Mari Hannah
- Deadly Deceit (Kate Daniels Book 3), by Mari Hannah
- Angelfall (Penryn and the End of Days), by Susan Ee
- Longbourn, by Jo Baker
- The Thirty-Nine Steps (Collins Classics), by John Buchan
Have you read anything good lately?
Disclaimer: Please note that I was provided with review copies of Don’t Stand So Close and Boy, Snow, Bird from NetGalley and the Amazon Vine programme respectively.
Sara Strauss says
I read Longbourn in February too! It was so wonderful and well-written! I thought it was interesting to read Pride and Prejudice but from the servants perspective — we still go along with the story, but get a better understanding of the time period!
~Sara
Amy Lord says
Definitely! It made me see the Bennet family in a new light too. If you haven’t read it already, you should check out Death Comes to Pemberley, that’s also a great read.