Thursday 3 March 2016

My Holiday Reading
On Sunday, I shall be leaving for a ten day holiday so this will be the last blog post for a while. We're flying to Barcelona to take up a cruise to North Africa, Madeira and the Canary Islands. It appears to be quite leisurely, having three days at sea. Therefore, as well as what clothes to pack, there are important decisions to be made regarding my holiday reading. If given a choice, I still prefer the feel of a real book over reading an e-book but since I've had my Kindle, I recognise the benefits of being able to download as many books as I like without the worry of exceeding the weight allowance. Here are some of the books I have ready to read:

    I am half way through 'Daffodils' by Alex Martin and thoroughly enjoying it. It is set in Wiltshire during the First World War and is the first in a trilogy, The Katherine Wheel Series. So far I have got to know the characters of Jem and Katy who have faced a personal tragedy. Jem becomes a reluctant soldier and leaves to joins others on the battlefields and Katy plays her part by signing up as a WAAC girl.

     'Left and Leaving' is Jo Verity's fifth book. It's about an Australian ex-pat, Gil who is on a gap-year working in the London hospital to which Vivian brings Irene for treatment. 'Together they try to bring calm where terror reigns.' I bought this book on recommendation and from reading its reviews. 

     'The Truth Will Out' by Jane Isaac promises to be something very different. I enjoy crime novels and look forward to meeting DCI Helen Lavery who is in charge of the murder case. From what I've read about the book, the characters are well drawn and very believable.

     'Ross Poldark: A Novel of Cornwall 1783 - 1787' by Winston Graham. This is the first of the twelve books in the Poldark saga. Ross Poldark returns to Cornwall and his family after fighting in a war in America. He finds his father dead, his estate is derelict and the girl he loves is engaged to his cousin. He rescues an urchin girl, Demelza, from a fairground brawl and takes her home. I normally prefer to see a TV series after reading the book so this may be difficult not to keep seeing images of Aidan Turner as I read the words. ;-)

     I have a number of other books downloaded to read if I finish these. What books do you recommend for holiday reading? What are you reading at the moment?

    Thank you for reading. You may also follow me on Twitter @JanBayLit and on Jan Baynham Writer Face book page. 

    See you all in a few weeks!
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    8 comments:

    1. Unknown3 March 2016 at 20:33

      Jan, I found the Poldark books so enjoyable that I read all twelve back to back this time last year. Really no stress to see Aidan Turner, I promise, and Winston Graham is a masterful storyteller! My other recommendations would be The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt - 800 odd unputdownable pages - and The Martian, which I read before the film came out and which gripped me totally. Def worth reading before seeing the movie, Happy hols! Xx

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      1. Jan Baynham4 March 2016 at 23:35

        Thanks for the recommendations, Lynne. I'm impressed that you read all twelve! I shall make a start with book one anyway. Thank you for popping by to comment.

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    2. Sam Carrington4 March 2016 at 00:45

      Wow, sounds a fabulous holiday! Enjoy the books you've chosen. I read Jane's 'The Truth Will Out' while I was on a cruise with my mum :) Have a great time - will look forward to a blog post with pics on your return!

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      1. Jan Baynham4 March 2016 at 23:43

        Thanks for commenting, Samantha. I like the sound of Jane's book and shall certainly take loads of photos over the next few weeks. 🙂

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    3. Patsy4 March 2016 at 02:42

      I hope you have a great trip.

      I always take my kindle when travelling and already have LOADS of books on there, waiting to be read.

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      1. Jan Baynham4 March 2016 at 23:45

        Thanks, Patsy. Yes, you never run out of books if you have a Kindle. My 'to-be-read' list gets ever longer! Thank you for dropping in.

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    4. Linda D5 March 2016 at 09:53

      I don't take any books with me on holiday, but I do love finding other peoples' bookshelves in holiday cottages and B&B's. One we stayed at in the Lake District had a wonderful collection of old local history books - I could have happily spent the whole holiday reading them! I also can't resist visiting any independent bookshops I come across so I usually go home with some new books.
      Have a good holiday!

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      1. Jan Baynham21 March 2016 at 04:32

        That's an interesting way of dealing with holiday reading, Linda. Once, before Kindle, I ran out of books and found an excellent book in the hotel library called 'Fearney' by James Long. It was very different to anything I'd ever read before and inspired a couple of short stories involving past lives. Thank you for commenting and sorry for the late reply.

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