My Top Fifteen Books of 2024

 

 

  It's that time again...

I intended to do a Top Ten, but as usual when making my list it grew too long - you know how it is!  The books I've chosen were not necessarily published in 2024, but I read them this year.  If any of them pique your interest, please click the title for my review and universal links to Amazon and Goodreads.

I've listed them in the order I read them, aside from the last five, to which I awarded my rare and very special 5 Gold Stars.😊  I hope you see something that appeals, as I highly recommend them all!

The Drau River Flows to Siberia: The Victims of Victory

by Marina Osipova

The story of two people who survived Stalin's Siberian gulags, and the fate of the Cossacks under the care of the Allies in WWII.

I, Richard Plantagenet : Book 2 Loyaulte Me Lie 

by J P Reedman

The later life of Richard III

Hard to Forgive 

by Georgia Rose

Third book in the 'A Shade Darker' series.  A woman alone, a life lived in obsession and regret...

Pride & Pestilence 

by Carol Hedges

Book 11 of the Victorian Detectives murder mystery series

Live and Let 

by Judith Barrow

A short, amusing memoir, much of it about holiday lets.

Psittacide 

by Zeb Haradon

The crazy political arena of 2172, Book 2 in the Disposable Soma series

A Boundary of Stones 

by Millie Thom

The story of Eyam, the Derbyshire village that famously isolated itself during the 17th Century bubonic plague, stopping it from spreading to neighbouring villages.

Local Gods 

by Mark Hurst

An assassin who needs to lie low discovers strange happenings in the village of Little Baddington...

Operation Tulip 

by Deborah Swift

Working for the resistance in Nazi occupied Holland, 1944

The Queen's Avenger 

by Anna Legat

The story of a monk who supported Mary, Queen of Scots, through all she suffered.

*

5 GOLD Stars

All Quiet on the Western Front 

by Erich Maria Remarque

A young German man's experiences in World War I  

A Matter of Time 

by Judith Arnopp

The life of Henry VIII in his own words, from the Anne of Cleves era until his death.

The Swan Maiden 

by Gemma Lawrence

Book 2 of The Surface and the Deep, the story of Anne of Cleves.

Moments of Consequence 

by Thorne Moore

Short stories, dark themes.  Mostly.

Size Always Matters 

by Sally Cronin

Comprehensive guide to weight loss, exercise, nutrition and so much more.

A BOUNDARY OF STONES by Millie Thom @MillieThom

 5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: On X (Twitter) - I believe via via @Zeamee or @vallypee or both!

In a Nutshell: The story of Eyam, the Derbyshire village that famously isolated itself during the 17th Century bubonic plague, stopping it from spreading to neighbouring villages.

This is such a good book and stays so true to the history of this village; I've read more about it online since finishing the book.  We can't imagine how it must have been to have lost one's whole family but still carry on, as so many did back then.  The novel centres around Reverend William Mompesson who, with his predecessor Reverend Stanley, proposed the quarantine idea.  He was having a hard enough time as the new Church of England priest in a staunchly Puritan village, but gradually some of his congregation were softening towards him, just as the plague reached Eyam, via cloth delivered from London to a local tailor.

I liked very much how the author gives us just enough scene-setting before the plague takes hold, to show us the Reverend's trials, and to let us get to know the village.  Aside from Rev Mompesson's story, Millie Thom introduces us to the villagers themselves, in chapters that tell their own stories when the plague enters their houses.  I so much appreciated the writing style; these stories are incredibly emotive but never 'over-written'.

I highly recommend this book - and it made me want to visit Eyam again.  I did so in 1978, and can vaguely remember looking at the records of all the people who died, that was still kept in the church; I don't know if it still is, but then that was 46 years ago, and I imagine it's not so open now.  We just passed it one winter afternoon and had a look around; there was no evidence of any tourism trade back then.

I shall have to look at more photos and work out where I was standing!