Winter is the perfect time to stay indoors and snuggle up with a good book and this time of year is a great time to get your hands on some new titles coming out by established writers and new ones to the scene alike.
When the weather turns, or you find yourself in a cosy corner during a holiday, reaching for a book is a good way to entertain yourself or keep yourself occupied during a long train or car journey.
I struggle to get into books these days, but it helps if the content itself is gripping – I can get lost in it if I find the content is entertaining enough!
So, if you have a book lover in your life, or you are one yourself, then I’ve put together a few ideas here which you may want to slip in someone’s stocking, or perhaps find in your own!
I have three books for you today, all of which are available and ready for the bookworm in your life.
Countdown To A Killing By Tom Vaughn Macaulay (Released in July 2022)
Wen Li, an anxious young woman who suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder, is tormented by an incessant fear that she might have homicidal impulses. Wen falls for her self-absorbed colleague, Lomax Clipper, who is writing a whodunnit in his spare time.
Lomax is pining for Italy and a Sicilian woman he met while on secondment, despite his recurring nightmare about someone being killed on a picturesque street in Palermo.
Wen and Lomax both loathe their boss, Julian Pickering, who, unbeknown to them, is struggling... as is Fifi de Angelis, a vulnerable man who has been ostracised by his family.
Told through interwoven correspondence, emails and WhatsApp messages, with the suspense around an impending murder steadily building, Countdown to a Killing is a deep exploration of multiple perspectives of individuals who are inextricably bound.
The key themes of love, sexuality, ethnicity, mental health and acceptance are sensitively explored in a unique linear yet multi-layered and meta-fictional narrative.
Packed with humour, heartache and a cast of expertly-crafted characters, this contemporary take on the epistolary novel will have you laughing and crying in equal measure.
39 Plus One by Ragh Bir (Released on 24th November 2022)
Based on real life events, 39 Plus One tells the story of singleton, Rachel Collins, who lives in Royal Windsor. She has a wonderful friendship circle, loving and supportive parents, and enjoys her job working in a dysfunctional family-run office supplies company.
On her 39th birthday, she decides to embark on a quest, for a year, to date anyone who is bold enough to show interest, regardless of how he looks, in a bid to find her perfect imperfect soulmate.
She brushes aside her high standards and actively pursues her dream of finding 'the one', before she turns 40. Her quest takes her on a roller-coaster ride into situations she never imagined she would find herself in; and the sometimes hilarious and weird world of dating becomes her life.
Her best friends, Harriet and Naomi, enjoy their weekly get-togethers, listening to Rachel's latest dating disaster; and Vince and Harry also lend an ear, sharing in the frivolity.
The quest comes to an end on her 40th birthday. After a holiday to Ibiza, where after a day of mishaps, she discovers the truth - that her perfect imperfect soulmate is not quite what he seems.
While she sits on the beach, contemplating whether the last year has been worthwhile, she realises that the quest has been more of a journey of self discovery than anything else. Then serendipity steps in and pays her a visit...
Snowed In For Christmas by Sarah Morgan (Released October 2022)
A family gathering
This Christmas the Miller siblings have one goal- to avoid their family’s well-meaning questions. Ross, Alice and Clemmie have secrets that they don’t intend to share, and they are relying on each other to deflect attention.
An uninvited guest
Lucy Clarke is facing a Christmas alone, and the prospect of losing her job – unless she can win a major piece of business from Ross Miller.
She’ll deliver her proposal to his family home in the Scottish Highlands and then leave. After all, she wouldn’t want to intrude on the Miller’s perfect family Christmas.
A Christmas to remember
When Lucy appears on the Miller’s snow-covered doorstep, she is mistaken for Ross’s girlfriend. But by the time the confusion is cleared up, a storm has hit and Lucy is stuck.
As everyone settles in for a snowed-in Christmas, tensions bubble to the surface and suddenly Lucy finds herself facing a big family fallout with a family that isn’t hers…
So there you have it, three books all ready for your Christmas shopping!
I haven’t read any of them yet, but I’m hoping to be able to carve out some time to really be able to dive into these new titles – if I’m not too busy at work of course!
Are you a bookworm? Or do you know someone who is? Have you heard of any of these titles before, which one takes your fancy? Let me know!
Love Sarah
xoxoxo
