Reading in January

When I finished my degree last summer, one of the things I was most excited about with having more time on my hands was being able to sit down and indulge in reading again. I've always been an avid reader, but throughout my degree and especially the final year when my dissertation was taking over my life, I simply did not have the time to indulge in reading for pleasure.

I've definitely upped my reading since, making sure to put some time aside every single day to sit down and read – even if it’s just for half an hour before I drift off at night. I'm forever reading more than one book at a time, so I decided it’d be a good idea to share with you the books I'm getting through each month. These are the books I’ll be reading this January.

I adore murder mysteries and one of my favourite authors for a good who-dun-it read is Carola Dunn. I first came across Dunn a few years back when looking for a Christmas themed read, settling upon Mistletoe and Murder, £4.49. Ever since, Dunn has been one of my favourite authors and as a Christmas present to myself, I decided it was time to seriously expand my Carola Dunn library, buying every single book in the addictive Daisy Dalrymple Mystery series. Now that I have all of the books in the series, I've decided to take reading them from the first through to the last and I’m currently making my way through The Winter Garden Mystery, £4.40.

“The merest hint of spring has arrived in Cheshire, and so has Daisy Dalrymple. The feisty flapper is a breath of fresh air to the occupants of gloomy Occles Hall, among them her former school chum, wallflower Bobbie Parslow, and the thorny mistress of the manor, Lady Valeria. While photographing the barren grounds behind the house, Daisy suspects someone has been digging amidst the soil’s first green shoots – and promptly unearths the corpse of Grace Moss, the missing parlour maid. So begins a harrowing romp as the dead woman’s shocking secret is revealed – leaving Daisy to catch a killer before she’s pushing up the daisies....”.

Set in 1923 England, the Daisy Dalrymple mysteries are perfect for cold winter nights, cosying up with a hot cup of tea and cheeky biscuit for a read that will leave you wondering who-dun-it right through til the end. I'm well and truly engrossed in this one, and already eager to continue the series!

Another book which I've started this January is one I'm only a few pages into, so not one I can say a lot about just yet – but a book many of you will have already heard of. A Sunday Times best-seller, The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton, £1.80, seems to have taken the book-world by storm and it’s a book which instantly grabbed my attention when I saw the cover (I am a real sucker for beautiful book covers!).

“On an autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman knocks at the door of a grand house in the wealthiest quarter of Amsterdam. She has come from the country to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt, but instead she is met by his sharp-tongued sister, Marin. Only later does Johannes appear and present her with an extraordinary wedding gift: a cabinet-sized replica of their home. It is to be furnished by an exclusive miniaturist, whose tiny creations mirror their real-life counterparts in unexpected ways....”.

Really excited to get more stuck into this one, but I’d love to hear your thoughts if you’ve read it already (although no spoilers, please!).

What’s on your reading list for January?

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