Thursday, 6 August 2026

Audio: An ordinary sort of evil by Kelley Armstrong


Narrated by: Kate Handford


Series: A Rip Through Time, Book 5


Length: 12 hrs and 52 mins


Release date: 05-19-26


Publisher: Macmillan Audio


Historical mystery/own





A new adventure, and finally! Mallory and Grey will get a bit closer. I get why nothing has happened before, but these two would be so perfect together.




But first there is a mystery, a psychic claims that Lady Adler´s maid is dead and Grey and Mallory is called in. There is no body, just a girl who seems to have quit her job.




A missing maid. More mysteries. How does the psychic know?




Though I must say, Mallory sure is sceptic of ghosts considering she time travelled from modern time to 1860s.




I enjoyed this one. Especially since these two clearly has something going on between them.






Modern-day homicide detective Mallory Mitchell has grown accustomed to life in Victorian Scotland after travelling 150 years into the past into the body of a housemaid. She’s built a new life for herself. Even though she works as an assistant to forensic-science pioneer Dr. Duncan Gray and Detective Hugh McCreadie, she considers them true friends. And with Gray in particular, perhaps, someday, something more.




Late one night, Gray and Mallory are summoned urgently to the home of Lady Adler, a patron of Gray’s undertaking business, and they assume there's been a death in the household. But instead, they arrive in the midst of a séance with a ghost demanding Gray's presence. The ghost is Lady Adler's former maid, who had gone missing but now requests that Gray investigate her murder. Although Gray and Mallory are skeptical, they agree to look into the matter, whether she's dead or alive. But unsure if there's been a murder or not, unable to call out the medium as a fraud, and concerned for the fate of the young maid, Gray and Mallory are once again drawn into a mystery much more puzzling—and more dangerous—than it first seems


Tuesday, 4 August 2026

The Belle of Belgrave square by Mimi Matthews


Series: Belles of London (#2)


Format: 432 pages, Paperback


Published: October 11, 2022 by Berkley


Historical romance/own





Julia loves reading, she hates parties and gatherings. Her parents are hypochondriacs, and she does pretend to be ill at times so she does not have to attend balls.




Jasper is called the hero of Crimea, but at the same time people gossip about how sadistic he was and about his brood of bastards. Also he needs a rich wife since his estate needs repairs. And he has his eye on Julia.




Of course it will happen, and sure he wants her money but he is falling. And she really needs to get out of her house, her parents are horrible.




I liked it, they fit well together. At first I was a bit worried about those kids, I hate when a stepmum comes in and the kids are just mean beyond words. But it all works out.






A London heiress rides out to the wilds of the English countryside to honor a marriage of convenience with a mysterious and reclusive stranger. Tall, dark, and dour, the notorious Captain Jasper Blunt was once hailed a military hero, but tales abound of his bastard children and his haunted estate in Yorkshire. What he requires now is a rich wife to ornament his isolated ruin, and he has his sights set on the enchanting Julia Wychwood. For Julia, an incurable romantic cursed with a crippling social anxiety, navigating a London ballroom is absolute torture. The only time Julia feels any degree of confidence is when she’s on her horse. Unfortunately, a young lady can’t spend the whole of her life in the saddle, so Julia makes an impetuous decision to take her future by the reins—she proposes to Captain Blunt. In exchange for her dowry and her hand, Jasper must promise to grant her freedom to do as she pleases. To ride—and to read—as much as she likes without masculine interference. He readily agrees to her conditions, with one provision of his own: Julia is forbidden from going into the tower rooms of his estate and snooping around his affairs. But the more she learns of the beastly former hero, the more intrigued she becomes…



Monday, 3 August 2026

Carole's Monday

 



Author: Martha Wells
Title: Compulsory
Series: The Murderbot Diaries #0.5
Genre: SciFi, Humor, Short Story
Format: ebook
Pages: 8
Published: December 17, 2018
Where I got It: My shelf (Amazon)



Summary: 
Murderbot—the sardonic, almost-homicidal, media-loving android created by Martha Wells—has proven to be one of the most popular characters in 21 st century science fiction. Everything that makes this protagonist (it would be wrong to call Murderbot a hero) beloved of fans is on display in Compulsory.

While trying to watch episode 44 of The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon, Murderbot is—again, what is it with humans?—distracted by something that is technically outside its purview. A miner is suddenly in danger following a pointless (to Murderbot’s way of thinking) argument, and the choice is to risk discovery and leap into action, which would require hitting the pause button during a very exciting part of SanctuaryMoon, or to follow orders and stay still.

This is a tougher choice than it seems. But then, when has Murderbot ever been faced with an easy choice?



Review:
I'm finally going back and reading the short stories. Not sure why I skipped them. Maybe because my library didn't have them? Perhaps, per maybe. 

But yes. For this guy, we are at the very beginning. Back to when it all started. 

Murderbot faces a tough decision... follow orders and do nothing, or do something. This decision will change his future forever.

Quick story but a big one. I liked it. It was weird going back, but it was nice seeing the difference of the Murderbot he has become vs when he was just following orders and just a bot. 

Def worth it. Honestly....I say wait to read this until after a couple of the books. The difference was fun to see. Love a good origin story. 

This could've been a hair longer methinks. I would've liked to see more of the origin. 

4 stars. 








Author: Martha Wells
Title: Rapport
Series: The Murderbot Diaries #2.5
Genre: SciFi, Humor, Short Story
Format: ebook
Pages: 34
Published: July 11, 2025
Where I got It: My shelf (Amazon)



Summary: 
Perihelion and its crew embark on a dangerous new mission at a corporate-controlled station in the throes of a hostile takeover...



Review:

This was an interesting one. I wasn't sure I really wanted to read this one, but I'm in it to win it with these shorts!

So we are with Perihelion and its crew. We get to see a whole new POV. We get further insight into the Corporates from Iris' perspective.

I was a little nervous because we are not in the mind of Murderbot. I was scared, but I was pleasantly surprised. I did enjoy this lil guy. 

Def read book 1 and book 2 before diving into this one. 

But yes, short and entertaining. I'm glad I didn't skip it. 

4 stars. Not the same without our main ;) 












Author: Martha Wells
Title: Home
Series: The Murderbot Diaries #4.5
Genre: SciFi, Humor, Short Story
Format: ebook
Pages: 19
Published: May 5, 2020
Where I got It: Borrowed from library



Summary: 
This short story is told from the point of view of Dr. Mensah and follows the events in Exit Strategy.

The story picks up with Mensah returning to Preservation Station. While she deals with the bureaucratic and political aftermath, Murderbot is physically recovering and emotionally distancing itself — a typical defense mechanism for it.


Review:
Another short where we get to see from someone else's POV. Again...I nearly wanted to skip it but it didn't feel right. 

Here we follow Menash who is returning to the Preservation Station. While she is dealing with the aftermath, Murderbot is physically recovering and emotionally distancing....typical. 

I really enjoyed this one. I actually went back and re-read it. It was entertaining for sure! I like Mensah. 

You need to read the others before this one. There are some references and things you won't understand esp about Murderbot. 

This was my favorite of the shorts. I really liked it. 

5 stars. 





Reading Challenges
- Library Love #19



Sunday, 2 August 2026

Best of July

 


August!! Here we come!!

Here are our faves for July.



Best Book of the Month:

Blodeuedd - Bunny by Mona Awad

"Best book goes to Bunny because I like weird lit."







"Not the best month for books for me. But this one was so dang good! Last inning book for the win!"




Best Movie of the Month:


"No 5 star movies this month, but I did really enjoy this one! Loved seeing George before he became a hero to this nation."





Blodeuedd - 72 Hours (2026)

"Movie of the month was 72 hours, it was fun and crazy."






Best TV show of the Month:


Blodeuedd - Ghosts (s4) & The Mentalist (s6)

"I finally watched s4 of Ghosts, and s6 of The Mentalist.  Almost done now."























"This needed a season 4, but I still enjoyed re-watching this after so many years."





Best Cover of the Month:

C's pick: "I don't know why, but I just love this cover!"






B's pick: "So pretty!"





Honorable Mention:



"A good horror that made me want more."






















"I was pleasantly surprised how much I liked all three!"





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I review from most genres on this blog, and those genres are: fantasy, urban fantasy, YA, historical/+romance, contemporary romance and literary fiction, horror, thrillers. + some other genres read by my guest reviewers.

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