catch up on what Ive been reading!

Its been a while so Im going to do a what Ive been reading post and then a seperate what Ive been making post Heres the reading/listening list and commentary

The Last Anniversary by Liane Moriarty This is the story of Sophie who inherits a house on Scribbly Gum Island, the site of a mystery, when her ex-boyfriend's aunt passes away. She moves there and is soon swept along in the drama of everyone who lives on the island. There promises to be intrigue everywhere, as it seems each person has something to hide. There are twists and turns and it was an enjoyable easy read - probably not this authors best book, but still quite ok and 3 and 1/3 stars

The Ballad of Smallhope and Pennyroyal by Jodi Taylor I listened to this via audible and who doesnt love a St Marys novel? This is a side story on the two characers Smallhope and Pennyroyal who are bounty hunters whoops I should say recovery agents. To be honest I didnt like these characters when they appeared in other books but now I do - they are funny, dedicated to their work, thorough and just a whole heap of laughing out loud fun. I mean who wouldnt laugh at a christmas tree air freshener in a time travel pod? Of course this is 5 stars

The Soul Thief by Kim Richardson I really didnt enjoy this book at all - in fact I skim read it just to get through it. The premise of the book is good - an angel on earth that had to fix murders, but in reality it just lacked everything. And I felt like i had read parts of it in other books. 1 star

Three Sisters by Heather Morris Id been putting off reading this as I knew it would be sad - its the third book in the Tattooist of Auschwitz series but I surprised myself and read it in three days it totally had me hooked. Yes the content is at time terrible, but the underlying story is one of family being true to its promises, being resilient and fighting through to the end. Yes its about lives in the death camps but its also one of triumph and so very well written 5 stars

Counting Miracles by Nicholas Sparks My daughter had read this book and said it was really good and I have to agree with her. Its the story of Tanner who goes looking for his grandfather, and Jasper an old man who has had a lot of terrible and said things happen to him in his life. Jaspers father believed in God and there are quite a few bible references in it appropriate to the circumstances. Of course as a Christian this didnt bother me at all and in fact it added to the story. Also add in a divorcee and her children and a dog and you have a love story. 5 stars of course. And finally onto a new audio series recommended by someone on Tiktok and what a fabulous series it is - the Red Rising saga by Pierce Brown

Book 1 is Red rising and its the story of Darrow - he is a hell diver miner on Mars (yep outerspace) and dystopian so an alternate world/universe/time. Darrow tries to get revenge on his enemies for things that have happened to him and his family and he achieves that in different ways. He has to go to an institute and survive against others as well as weaving in Roman gods who come into play. This series is so very well written and Ive been listening to it non stop 5 plus stars! Book 2 in the series -

Darrows adventures continue and those who he thought he could trust he cant and many are disloyal to him. However others surprise him with their loyalty. This book is every bit as good as the third one and they are super long - 20 plus hours but the time goes quickly as they are so well written - cant wait to read book 3 and yep 5 stars Thats quite a list - didnt realise how far behind I was updating this Hope this gave you some ideas for books to either read as a physical book or as an audio book Enjoy