C is for Callaghan (A-Z Challenge 2026) 3/4/26

The A-Z home page can be found here.

My theme this year is authors that I've read.  More about the books I've read than the authors themselves. 

I'm an avid reader.  I'm a member of 2 in person reading groups through my local library.  I'm gradually working my way through an old BBC reading list of 100 books (I'm about half way through) and I'm taking part in the online 52 Book Club Challenge for the third time this year where the challenge is to read 52 books over the year based on 52 different prompts.  You can also find me on Goodreads here.

The C authors I've read are:

• Callaghan Helen
• Campbell Karen
• Candlish Louise
• Cannon Joanna
• Carel Eric
• Carr Charlene
• Carroll Claudia
• Carroll Lewis
• Carruth Jane
• Casey Anne-Marie
• Chamberlain Diane
• Chambers Clare
• Chevalier Tracy
• Child Lee
• Christie Agatha
• Clark-Platts Alice
• Clarke Angele
• Cleeves Ann
• Clegg Bill
• Clinton Bill
• Coben Harlen
• Cohen Tammy
• Colman Rowan
• Colgan Jenny
• Connelly Michael
• Connolly John
• Coolidge Susan
• Cooper Emma
• Cornwell Patricia
• Corry Jane
• Cotterill Colin
• Cousens Sophie
• Cox Sara
• Crawford Susan H
• Cumming Charles
• Cummins Jeanine
• Cutts Lisa

Lee Child wins for the letter C, I’ve read 21 of his Jack Reacher books, mostly in order but I am a few missing which I’ll probably catch up on at some point. I still can’t get my head around the casting of Tom Cruise in the role though. (Apart of course from his money and his clout.) But yes I have watched the films.

I’ve probably read more Christie than I have logged on Goodreads but many of them were read when I was in my late teens/early twenties. I did read one recently – Who Killed Roger Ackroyd? Unfortunately it was disappointing as I mistakenly ordered an edition that was specifically aimed at readers where English isn’t their first language. Consequently it was abridged and simplified. I did not enjoy it at all.

I also think I’ve probably read more of Patricia Cornwall’s Kay Scarpetta series than I’ve got recorded, another series I was working my way through.

Harlan Coben is another favourite, he rarely disappoints and Michael Connelly also makes my list quite often.

Of course these are mainly crime stories in one way and another but I enjoy Diane Chamberlain’s books for a take on a moral dilemma.

An author that I didn’t pick for myself initially was Charles Cumming – I was gifted Box 88 and loved it so I searched out a few more of his spy thrillers.

I must also give a shout out to Lewis Carroll – his Alice in Wonderland book gave me inspiration for a previous A-Z challenge.

The daftest book from the C’s though has to be “Grandad there’s a Head on the Beach” by Colin Cotterill. Set in Thailand and told in a first person POV it’s bonkers. If this was ever made into a film it would be fast and furious and completely farcical. Which is a shame given that at the heart of the story is the awful way Burmese people are treated in Thailand and used as slaves in the fishing trade. But I just couldn’t get on board with it. It took me 10 days to read this book and it’s only just over 300 pages long! It probably wasn’t helped by it being the 2nd book in a series but I’m certainly not going to read the first or the last.

Which is the silliest adult book you’ve read?

B is for Backman (A-Z Challenge 2026) 2/4/26

The A-Z Home page can be found here.

My theme this year is authors that I've read.  More about the books I've read than the authors themselves. 

I'm an avid reader.  I'm a member of 2 in person reading groups through my local library.  I'm gradually working my way through an old BBC reading list of 100 books (I'm about half way through) and I'm taking part in the online 52 Book Club Challenge for the third time this year where the challenge is to read 52 books over the year based on 52 different prompts.  You can also find me on Goodreads here.

The B authors I've read are:

• Backman Fredrik
• Bailey Lily
• Baldacci David
• Ballantyne Lisa
• Barclay Linwood
• Barker JD
• Barton Fiona
• Baumeister Roy F
• Bayard Ines
• Beckerman Hannah
• Beirne Olivia
• Bell Cindy
• Billingham Mark
• Binchy Maeve
• Bjork Samuel
• Blackhurst Jenny
• Blake Fanny
• Blatty William Peter
• Blyton Enid
• Bowen Rhys
• Boyd William
• Bradford Barbara Taylor
• Bramley Cathy
• Bronte Charlotte
• Brookmyre Christopher
• Brown Carolyn and Dan
• Burley WJ
• Burnett Frances Hodgson
• Burton Jessie
• Butland Stephanie

David Baldacci takes the prize for the most books for letter B. 24 in total and counting. I do like his books.

Close behind though is Mark Billingham with 19. All of which are the Tom Thorne series – an English police detective which has also been a TV series here in the UK.

Although the list doesn’t include all my books – only those that made it onto Shelfari and then subsequently Goodreads. I’ve probably read more Enid Blyton books than I’ve logged. Of course they’re very dated now but our grandkids have still enjoyed “Noddy” stories.

I did enjoy reading Maeve Binchy when I was younger and you’ll notice Barbara Bradford Taylor on the list too. Who didn’t want to read about women of substance? And of course I’ll be watching the new TV version of it that airs in March starring Brenda Blethyn who I loved in “Vera”.

I loved all the Dan Brown books and of course I’ve watched the various films.

I recently finished The Muse by Jessie Burton which I enjoyed more than The Miniaturist.

A bit light on classics though, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte is probably the most noted one.  I had hoped to have Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte on there by now but I've started it twice and don't seem to be able to get through it. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett is on there but I must confess to only reading that for the first time in 2024 but I loved it. One of my few 5* ratings.

I’m a bit stingy with 5* ratings. One deciding factor with me as to whether a book is 5* rather than 4 is would I recommend it to others to read with no reservation?

What makes a book 5* for you?

Wednesday Hodgepodge - 1/4/26

Joyce provides the questions, we compile our answers and we link up here.  Come join the fun.

1. March is rolling on out of here. Sum up your March in ten words or less. 

Windy, wet, cold, sunny, warm, sometimes all the same day!

2. Are you afraid of heights? When was the last time you found yourself dealing with a height, and did it make you nervous?

I don't think so.  I've never really tested the theory to any extreme although I did have to lean out of a second storey window once when there wasn't actually a window in place.  I was being shown why the telephone lines weren't working properly - the roof on a school extension building had been put on the telephone line.  I did think I should have been wearing a hard hat but the height didn't bother me.

3. What's a word you struggle to spell on a regular basis, and sometimes need to double check before writing it down? Use the word in a sentence that tells us something about your April calendar. 

Well not wanting to brag here but I don't usually struggle with spelling (although typing is another thing altogether lol)  We're actually taking part in a quiz in April organised by the local wine bar so I might struggle with the names of wines!

4. Love 'em or hate 'em, with Easter comes the sweet treat known as Peeps. So... do you love 'em or hate 'em? Speaking of peeps, what's your favourite way to have chicken? 

I don't hate marshmallow but it's not a treat I would automatically choose - not so common here in the UK either.  When I think of PEEPS I think of Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans - I might be retired but Health & Safety is hard to forget when you've been responsible for it at work.

I pretty much enjoy chicken however it's cooked - especially if I haven't done the cooking.

5. This week's Hodgepodge lands on the first day of April, which happens to be National Poetry Month. Do you like poetry?  Share a favourite line or two from one of your favourite poems. What makes this one a favourite? 

I don't dislike poetry but it's not something I usually read so I don't have a favourite to share.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

There were some good April Fool jokes floating around this morning but April signifies the A-Z challenge for me.  I'm hoping to keep up with my regular posts too such as the Hodgepodge but as usual I'm not as prepared as I wanted to be.  I always used to work well under pressure though.  Trouble is when you're retired there is usually very little pressure! But I do love a challenge.

A is for Aaronovich (A-Z Challenge 2026) 1/4/26

The A-Z Home page can be found here.

My theme this year is authors that I've read.  More about the books I've read than the authors themselves. 

I'm an avid reader.  I'm a member of 2 in person reading groups through my local library.  I'm gradually working my way through an old BBC reading list of 100 books (I'm about half way through) and I'm taking part in the online 52 Book Club Challenge for the third time this year where the challenge is to read 52 books over the year based on 52 different prompts.  You can also find me on Goodreads here.

The A authors I've read are:

• Aaronovitch Ben
• Adams Douglas & Milly
• Ahern Cecelia
• Alcott Louis M.
• Alderman Naomi
• Alger Christina
• Ali Monica
• Anderson Celia
• Andrews V C
• Archer Jeffrey
• Arlidge M J
• Arnold Johann Christoph
• Ashe Lucy
• Ashley Tricia
• Ashton Juliet
• Atkins Dani & Lucy
• Atkinson Kate
• Atwood Margaret &
• Austen Jane

The standout author on this list for me is M J Arlidge – I’ve read 10 of his books which all feature Detective Helen Grace and are set in the south of England.  I love a good crime thriller and these haven’t disappointed.

I loved Louisa May Alcott’s books as a child – Little Women etc. and I can also remember reading the Flowers in the Attic series by V C Andrews.  I was a little surprised to find my 13 year old reading Flowers in the Attic from her Catholic school library though.

At the time I started preparing this post (June 25!) I’d only managed to read Pride and Prejudice by Austen despite having the complete works.  I’ve earmarked 2 more to read by the end of the year for the 52 Book Club challenge.

I do like to stretch myself.  Hitchhiker’s guide to the Galaxy is an example of that.  Not my usual choice but it's on the BBC list.  Not my usual genre of crime fiction or chick lit but it was a fairly easy read.

Funny how with some authors you can love one of their books but hate something else.  (Although I very rarely DNF (did not finish) a book.  Both Cecelia Ahern and Monica Ali fall into that category.  I enjoyed Ahern’s PS I love you but almost DNF A Place called here.  Monica Ali’s debut Brick Lane was quite good but her novel Untold Story was another one that was a slog.

I read Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and found it quite chilling.  I haven’t managed to watch much of the TV series though but I would like to read The Testaments at some point. (Although I’d probably need to reread Handmaid’s Tale first to refresh my memory!

So these are my A authors.  Have you read any of their books?  What’s your favourite genre?

PS I’ve now read Sense and Sensibility by Austen and I have Mansfield Park on my “to read” list for this year’s 52 Book Club challenge.