It’s been a busy summer! Between the final two rounds of edits on my latest novel (coming September 2025) and sketching out the plan for my 2026 book, my writing desk has been a whirlwind of activity. I’m in the early stages of my first draft, which rarely looks anything like the neat outline I started with.
But in between writing sprints, editing marathons, and school holidays, I’ve been reading as much as I can. Below are some of the books that have kept me company over the last few months.
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Story of My Life by Lucy Score
Hazel Hart is a bestselling romance novelist, but her own love life has just gone up in flames. Single and creatively stuck, Hazel impulsively buys a crumbling old house in the quirky small town of Story Lake, hoping for a burst of inspiration. Instead, she finds out the townsfolk aren’t thrilled to welcome her, and the house needs more work than she imagined.
Hazel hires grumpy contractor Campbell Bishop to fix up the house and soon finds out he’s the spark she needed to reignite both her writing and her heart. But with the town facing its biggest challenge yet and Campbell dead against happily-ever-afters, Hazel has her work cut out for her.
Story of My Life is a joyful, uplifting read that’s as funny as it is heartfelt.
Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister
Imagine hearing about a hostage situation near your husband’s office… only to discover he’s not the victim. He’s the one holding the gun!
That’s Camilla’s nightmare in Famous Last Words. It makes no sense to her. Luke is a loving husband and father and a successful writer. He’s not a criminal and has no reason to take anyone hostage. So why is he suddenly armed and dangerous?
The only clue Camilla has is an unfinished note he left behind. Watching her scramble to piece everything together had me turning the pages way past bedtime.
The Italian Daughter by Soraya Lane
I’m a fan of Soraya Lane’s WWII fiction so I was eager to read her Lost Daughters series. The first book, The Italian Daughter, swept me straight into its dual timeline.
In 1946, a young woman in post-war Italy makes a heartbreaking sacrifice. Decades later, Lily is called to a lawyer’s office in London and presented with a mysterious box. Her grandmother died seemingly never knowing she was adopted. Now Lily has received the box containing an old theatre programme and a handwritten Italian recipe.
Following these clues to Italy, Lily takes a job at a vineyard, and begins unravelling her family’s history.
The Italian Daughter is perfect if you love your historical fiction with a side of mystery and a big glass of red wine.
A Postcard from Puffin Island by Christie Barlow
Verity Callaway sets off in her campervan to meet a friend in Amsterdam for six months of travel, but when her plans derail, she ends up on Puffin Island instead. Why Puffin Island? Because she once found an old postcard to her late grandmother from there, and her curiosity got the better of her.
Once on the island, Verity realises the adventure stories her grandmother told her were not made up. They were tales from Puffin Island – a place her grandmother must have visited. Now Verity plans to find out who the postcard is from and what they might be able to tell her about this period of her grandmother’s life. But are the islanders ready for the stories Verity uncovers?
A Postcard from Puffin Island is a feel-good escape with a charming island setting. I loved it so much I jumped straight into book two – The Lighthouse Daughters of Puffin Island.
The Women’s Orchestra of Auschwitz by Anne Sebba
Anne Sebba appeared at this year’s Edinburgh International Book Festival to discuss her latest book, The Women’s Orchestra of Auschwitz. I was in the audience, captivated by the stories Anne shared from her research and interviews with Auschwitz survivors.
In 1943, the SS set up a women’s orchestra at Auschwitz. On the surface, they played concerts for Nazi officers and provided marching music for prisoners sent to forced labour. But behind that facade lay a haunting paradox: music became both a cruel weapon wielded by the Nazis and, for the women musicians, a fragile means of survival.
The Women’s Orchestra of Auschwitz is a fascinating account of life in Auschwitz and the complicated role art can play in even the darkest of times.