New Kindle Reads #1

Welcome to the first of two New On The Shelf blog posts for May 2020.  The first being this Kindle edition, the second to be an Audiobook haul.  The latter should follow swiftly, if I can manage to keep my head out of the fridge for long enough.

I read on my Kindle Paperwhite.  This post contains affiliate links.
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Wolf Hall – Hillary Mantel

For fans of: Philippa Gregory and Colson Whitehead

With the entirety of my Instagram feed tucking into the recently released Mirror and the Light, I naturally have had serious FOMO when it comes to the Wolf Hall trilogy.  A book where every character is unnecessarily named Thomas or Henry may not sound too appealing, but I am determined to fight through and feel the hype.  The world of Hillary Mantel is finally at my fingertips. 

 

A Thousand Ships – Natalie Haynes

For fans of: Madelline Miller, Pat Barker and Homer

A Thousand Ships is another re-telling of the spoils of the Trojan War.  A favourite subject of Ancient Greek writers, such as Euripides (Trojan Woman) and Homer (The Iliad) as well as modern-day counterparts, such as Pat Barker.  The latter paid tribute to the Trojan War via Silence Of The Girls.  It was so beautifully articulated, that I am skeptical A Thousand Ships will live up to its enormity. 

Natalie Haynes’ novel follows the story of Troy from an “all-female perspective. A Thousand Ships gives voices to the women, girls and goddesses who, for so long, have been silent.”  In the Women’s Prize 2020 shortlist for a reason, I am ready for my mythology fix.

 

Supper Club – Lara Williams

For fans of: Sally Rooney, Sophie Mackintosh and Polly Samson

Thriving female relationships, which both challenge and mould, are essential to everyday life.  Our worlds magically and often suddenly entwine with others, and they may unravel as quickly as they were welded.  Supper Club, by Lara Williams, is a toast to finding and embracing your quirky self through friendship and passion.  Girls are forever, boys are whatever.  Reclaim the right for girl power with Supper Club!

 

Jog On: How Running Saved My Life – Bella Mackie

For fans of: Bryony Gordon, Dolly Alderton and Scarlett Curtis

Legs and lungs, brain and body; pounding pavements is my cathartic soul food.  Hi, I am a runner.

Already a balm two months in, my thought pattern is rewiring and I am wheezing on an elation like no other.  Bella Mackie poignantly describes in her running love note, Jog On: How Running Saved My Life, that this feeling is the elusive runners high.  I need to know more.

Brutally frank and refreshingly honest, Mackie candidly drenches you with the desire to move alongside amusing anecdotes and how running has rehabilitated her mental health.  A shining star, and a rare non-fiction read for me!

 

The Starless Sea – Erin Morgenstern

For fans of: Bridget Collins and Margret Rogerson

Classic fantasy and reimagined myth swirl delectably with magic and beauty to produce the raved-about Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern.  Morgenstern is new on my author list as I seem to be one of the only people I know who hasn’t read The Night Circus.  The promise of a “romantic letter to literature” has me hooked. 

 

My Friend Anna: The True Story Of A Fake Heiress – Rachel DeLoache Williams

For fans of: Frank Abagnale and Darcey Bell

The Anna Delvey rabbit hole has trapped me a couple times over the years.  The sheer audacity, the overwrought confidence and her lacking urgency to care about other human beings is astounding.  It simply fascinates me. 

Remorseless, brutal and dazzling – I love the story of Anna Delvey and I am beyond ecstatic to read Rachel DeLoache Willams’ (Delvey’s ex-best friend) account of it all. 

 

The Herd – Andrea Bartz

For fans of: Dawn O’Porter, Liane Moriarty and Alice Sebold

Proclaimed to be both “suspenseful and chilling” how could this modern day millennial whodunnit not pique my attention?  Andrea Bartz has enrolled the elite of New York’s social scene to deliberate and uncover the secret of how and why their co-working space’s leader vanished.  The Herd promises an enthralling mystery of deceit, and one which will be gobbled in a heartbeat. 

 

The Everlasting – Katy Simpson Smith

For fans of: Hillary Mantel, Stephen Fry and Philippa Gregory

Besides Wolf Hall, The Everlasting may be the most ambitious novel on this ‘new in list’.  Not to put you off, but Katy Simpson Smith’s book spans a timeline of 2000 years.  This is only slightly daunting and endorses the idea that. The Everlasting may require some serious concentration. 

Endeavouring to create a snapshot of Rome, the novel collects around four wildly different characters in four different ages of the city.  Apparently, there is an “omniscient, time-traveling Satan” and the book hold morals at its core.  Intrigued?  Beyond!