ShellieLovesBooks

  Publication Date:  1936 Length: 332 pages My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I have loved the book Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier all my life and have watched the 1939 movie adaptation countless times. I am not sure what took me so long to try another of her books but I'm glad I did. Jamaica Inn was so different from Rebecca  (except for the Gothic touch) that it almost felt like it was written by a different author. It touches on a topic that is definitely unique and the only other book that comes to mind is Poldark , which is set in Cornwall as well. I love all things associated with the ocean, pirates, and Cornwall so I was really looking forward to reading this. Mary Yellan has lost her mother and is traveling to Jamaica Inn, a long way from her home in Helford, to fulfull her mother's dying wish. The women had lived a bare bones, hardscrabble life on their farm without Mary's father to help them and now that Mary is alone, her mother wants her to go and live with her Aunt Patience and

  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. Here are this week's new to me books!  This is the Read Christie 2023 June book and I can't wait to get started. It's actually on hold through the Libby App but I'm hopeful I'll get it any day now. I like to stay ahead on these and am starting to feel like a Christie book a month is a habit I'll keep....weird how I didn't like her much a year ago. Now it is strange not to have a book going all the time. This book is not a subject I've seen before. Yes the Nevills appear in any book on the Wars of the Roses but not in a book exclusively their own. Glad I ran across it. Not sure if I'll love it, but I had to try it out and see if I learn some interesting side stories not found elsewhere about this powerful family.  This book was one of my free choices for May

  Publication Date:  June 1944 Length:  257 pages My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ I did not intend to read this book during the month of May but was unable to get a hard or digital copy of the current Read Christie book, Unfinished Portrait . This book was one of their suggestions for an alternate that was in keeping with the theme of betrayal. I am glad now that I chose it as the other book didn't appeal to me much. This is book five with Superintendent Battle as the investigator and I don't know much about him. So a good choice for me I'd say.  As is common in Christie books, our story opens with an array of characters and events, seemingly unrelated and a bit confusing. There is a prologue where a group of lawyers are gathered around discussing hypothetical situations, the first chapter showcases a man who has attempted suicide, and then it moves to the main detective, Superintendent Battle, rescuing his daughter from a stressful situation at her boarding school.  We continue to be int

This week's Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by  That Artsy Reader Girl , is "things that make me instantly want to read a book." When I first saw this topic I thought it would be more about the actual words on the page in a book. But the more I pondered my reasons I realized I often want to read a book for the strangest or silliest reasons. This was surprising to think about but we are often drawn to books in all kinds of ways. Here are the ten ways I decide whether or not to give a book a go.  1. The cover  This has fooled me many times....a beautiful cover with a gorgeous setting and a colorful display can really suck me in. I have to watch out for this and remember that often the cover is the end for me if the book is not great. 2. The author  I am a huge fan of sequels...maybe it's just comforting to know that I already enjoyed the other books and I know what I'm getting. So if it's one of my favorite authors like Anne Perry or Diana Gabaldon, I am going to want t

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. Here are this week's new to me books!  It's time for the next book in my favorite 1920's cozy mystery series! Lady Eleanor, her butler, and her bulldog are going to the fair and I can't wait to see what trouble she will find there. I absolutely love these and look forward to buying the next one each time I am ready to continue. I try to read them "in season" as the authors write one for each time of the year. June is the perfect time to begin book six. The only book I've seen that really delves into the life of Katherine Swynford is Anya Seton's Katherine and that one is historical fiction. I love Alison Weir so this book is sure to be thorough and engaging. I might have to wait a bit to dive into it though. I'm tired and not feeling able to concentrate on

  Publication Date: 1985 Length: 313 pages My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐☆☆ This is the third installment in a very entertaining series. I'd also say informative because I have learned a lot about pyramids and archaeology from these books! The author held a Ph.D. in Egyptology so even though these books are fiction and meant for fun, she really knows her stuff and it shines through as authentic. The main characters, Amelia Peabody and her husband Emerson Radcliffe, as well as their precocious tyke Ramses are witty and sarcastic and all the things I love about good historical fiction heroes and heroines.  When this story begins, Amelia and Emerson are in England, trying to adjust to domestic life. They dream of working in Egypt again and Emerson longs to go to a place called Dahshoor for their next adventure. When another archaeologist is given the permission to excavate the site they are disheartened and even more so when the only place they are able to go is Mazghunah, not their first choice as t

This week's Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl , is "things getting in the way of reading." Boy do I need this one because it feels like when you are a teacher and a mother there is no way to read in the month of May! This post should really be "what isn't getting in the way of my reading? But for me, June is coming and hopefully a lot of reading time for summer! Here is my list of things sucking up all my reading time right now though. If you identify with some of these let me know....it's nice to know I'm not the only one! 1. School-    When you are a teacher, April is testing month and May is all the things month....field trips, wrapping up the end of the year, etc. I'm tired and out of schedule as the days get a little unpredictable. There is barely time to eat lunch much less take a few minutes to catch up on a chapter or two in my latest book. 2. Baseball - Well this one might as well be labeled year round for my house. My son ha

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. Here are this week's new to me books!  This has been on my Classics Club list for awhile and I've always intended to read it.   I loved Rebecca  so I'm hoping this one is just as good.  The current choice for Read Christie May is one I just couldn't get my hands on....digitally or otherwise. So I'm tackling this one with the same theme of betrayal. The third in a series I love....hoping this one is good. It continues the story of Amelia Peabody and her husband Emerson as they spend their days in 19th century Egypt, pyramid hunting and getting into trouble.  What new reads are you adding to your shelves this week? Are they new books, yet to be published books, or old classics?

Publication Date: July 1, 1992 Length: 752 pages My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ One of my goals for my blog is to eventually review all of Gabaldon's books. I know it's been done by so many blogs but they are my favorite series of books and having read them all years ago before I started my book blog, I am behind on the review part. I always have a re-read going of one of them and am currently on my third re-read of book 3, Voyager. I finished my third re-read of Dragonfly in Amber last year so I thought it was time to get going on the review. Since I'm only halfway through the book I originally planned to review this week, it's a perfect time to turn to this goal. And FYI.....it's hard to review this book without a few spoilers if you haven't read book one...you've been warned! Always reviewing with the assumption that one hasn't read the previous book, it's a good idea to explain where we are when this one begins. Time traveler Claire Beauchamp Randall Fraser at

  If you've read any reviews on this blog or any of my top ten lists, then you probably already know some of the books I'm going to list here. I'm honestly not someone who "recommends" books to others. I find reading is so personal that what I like is often not for others and those who read my reviews on my blog are usually either already looking for the genres I prefer or are open to anything.  But I will list the ones I'd recommend if someone asked me, "What should I read?" Some are non-fiction, some serious fiction, and some are for pure enjoyment. Hopefully you find one you'd like to try and be sure to share some of yours with me in the comments. Happy Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl ) and happy reading! 1. William Monk Mysteries by Anne Perry- my favorite Victorian mystery series. Perry passed away last month and now her books will be even more special. I had hoped there would be more but sadly the series has come to an en