Stacking the Shelves #80

 

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Reading Reality. It's a place to showcase any books I have purchased, borrowed, or been lucky enough to have been given an advance copy of. 

Hope you find something that looks interesting to you or that makes you remember a favorite book you need to finish. Happy reading y'all!

The Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog by Elizabeth Peters (Amelia Peabody Book 7)

Libby borrow: Free

I am up to book seven in this series and decided January is the time to get back to it. In this adventure, Amelia has to rescue her beloved Emerson who has lost his memory. Knowing the couple's interactions this should be an interesting and probably hilarious read, while having fun experiencing their romp through ancient excavations too. 

The Royal Bastards of Twelfth Century England: Power and Blood by James Turner

Free with Kindle points

I have way too many books about the wild and crazy Plantagenets and their dysfunctional children but I don't care. They are always a source of fascination and family dynamics for me. This book covers drama in the reigns of Henry I through Henry II. I may not learn a whole lot of new information but I never get tired of the stories. 

The King's Daughter by Christie Dickason

Free with Kindle points

I know nothing about Elizabeth Stuart, James I 's daughter but her story looks fascinating. This novel covers her relationship with her father, brother, and the court and then her marriage to Frederick of Bohemia, who I also know nothing about. I always love learning about royals from countries that aren't often featured and, of course, anything about the Stuarts. 

The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding by Agatha Christie (Hercule Poirot Book #37)

Publication Date:

October 24, 1960

Genre: 

Cozy Mystery/Historical Mystery

Length:  

65 pages

Series:

Hercule Poirot

Book description courtesy of Goodreads

In Agatha Christie’s short story, “The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding,” Poirot is asked to attend a Christmas celebration in order to apprehend a jewel-thief who has taken advantage of an unwary eastern prince. Full of English holiday tradition and plenty of intrigue, this holiday tale first appeared in the December 12, 1923 issue of The Sketch magazine.

My Thoughts

Halfway through this short story I realized I knew it sounded familiar! I'd seen the TV episode on Prime on Poirot. It was a nice quick read for Christmas week and I hadn't intended to do so but it was free with my Kindle points. 

Poirot is his usual confident self as he tries to figure out what has happened to a large ruby lost by a Prince eager to show off to a pretty girl. Staying at the country house where the thief is suspected to be proves to be a fun holiday time for him via the hospitality of the hosts, oblivious as to why he's really there. 

I enjoyed reading it rather than watching it this time but also was impressed at how the show really stuck to the book's details. It's not creepy or scary in any way, light hearted but with a "murder" occurring halfway through that he has to solve. The ruby mystery is all linked as Christie always does well. The characters involve a lot of younger people who are vying to be cool and hip and jokesters. They can't get anything over on Poirot though. 

Descriptions of the Christmas festivities and food, especially the plum pudding really sets the tone for an authentic English Christmas and being American I was loving reading about the little presents in the pudding. A wonderful addition to read right before the big day. 

Merry Christmas everyone!!!

Merry Christmas 2025

 

Just a quick post to say Merry Christmas to everyone today and thank you to anyone who has read or commented on my blog. It means so much to me especially the last two years with major family and health challenges. I am so grateful for this bookish community and just continue to love it more and more. 

Have a wonderful day with family and friends, always remembering why we celebrate..... for the child born this day who came to save the world. 

Can't Wait Wednesday: Nun Shall Sleep by Graham Brack (Master Mercurius Mysteries Book Nine)

 

For this week's Can't Wait Wednesday hosted by Tressa at the book blog, Wishful Endings, I'm featuring, Nun Shall Sleep by Graham Brack. These are similar in tone to Anne Perry's Monk series. That darker tone with the whole "back alley London" vibe. In this story Master Mercurius is drawn into the mystery of a missing relic at a local convent. 

Hope you have found something you can't wait for! Happy reading y'all!

Historical Mystery

January 9, 2026

Book description courtesy of Goodreads

Mercurius can’t believe his luck … but are things too good to be true?

1689

Master Mercurius is making plans for a holiday tour of cathedrals when a letter arrives from Abbess Mathilde asking for his help. Her convent has been left a substantial legacy which the abbess plans to use to fill the library, and she would like Mercurius to be in charge of buying the books. Mercurius has never accepted a mission so quickly. But as the summer wears on, strange things start to happen in the convent. A precious relic goes missing and an important key is lost. Mercurius is fairly certain somebody is up to something, but he doesn’t know who and he doesn’t know what. Desperate to hold on to the dream position he has been given, he finds himself drawn into the mystery. But is there something more sinister going on…?

Nun Shall Sleep is the ninth historical murder investigation in the Master Mercurius Mystery atmospheric crime thrillers set in seventeenth-century Europe.

Stacking the Shelves #79

 

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Reading Reality. It's a place to showcase any books I have purchased, borrowed, or been lucky enough to have been given an advance copy of. 

Hope you find something that looks interesting to you or that makes you remember a favorite book you need to finish. Happy reading y'all!

Bloody Crowns: A New History of the Hundred Years War by Michael Livingston

Library Hold: Patience required!

This author was interviewed about this new book on a recent podcast The Medieval Podcast with host Daniele Cybulskie and I enjoyed his new take on how the hundred years war should actually be considered the two hundred years war. It is very hard to find material on this subject that isn't historical fiction or military based. I am sure it will be very interesting if you like this era. 

It is pretty expensive right now to either buy hardback or on Kindle, so I just have to wait in line at the library or hope it goes on sale. 

The Return of Captain John Emmett by Elizabeth Speller (Laurence Bartram Mysteries Book One)

Kindle Unlimited: Free with my 3 month trial

This series only has two books written over a decade ago but that's okay because I'm constantly getting roped into ones with 20 plus books I can never finish. It was free to try so I thought why not? A veteran of the Great War tries to solve the why behind the mysterious deaths of fellow veterans. From the description on Goodreads it looks like an edgier, William Monk type of book, which I'm a fan of if things aren't too dark.

Hieroglyphs and Homicide by Tracy Higley (A Clarissa Bell Mystery Book One)

Kindle Unlimited: Free with my 3 month trial

I hadn't heard of this series which is surprising since I love all things set in Egypt especially during the 1920's era. So when I looked ahead at the other books in the series I was excited to see this setting continues throughout. I'm hooked! The author has a degree in Ancient History and has actually traveled to Egypt. She has other books set in Egypt and Rome. In this book, the heroine discovers an ancient artifact which lands her in a lot of trouble, along with a love interest. I can't wait to get started on these.