Have you ever just read a truly hyped up book and wondered what you were missing? Maybe it was Fourth Wing or Twilight, or Harry Potter? The Ministry of Time was so hyped before it was released that the BBC in the UK purchased the rights to make it into a TV series... As with every episode, I am not going to spoil the ending, but I am going to talk about my feelings as I read and finished this time-travelling debut by British-Cambodian author, Kaliane Bradley. Did I like it? Did I rate it? Find ...
May 26, 2024•29 min•Season 5Ep. 14
This week I am heading all over the country with Lorraine from Once Upon a Nightmare as we follow Hercule Poirot on one of his toughest early investigations, The ABC Murders. Not only does he have to contend with a serial killer who seemingly has no discernable MO, but he is up against the clock as this murderer is putting a timer on it all. Will he solve the case? Will he beat the killer at his own game? We will reveal some, but not all of this, this week in the usual Being Bookish spoiler-free...
May 12, 2024•48 min•Season 5Ep. 13
As you may know, there are few genres I enjoy more than cosy mysteries, so when this one kept on popping up on my Insta feed I knew that I had to give it a whirl. Based in 1795, this novel follows one of my author idols, Jane Austen as she navigates social niceties, attends balls, spends time with her friends and...solves the murder of a milliner from whom she once purchased a hat in Basingstoke. As always, I won't be spoiling the ending, revealing the murder or unveiling their motive...but I wi...
Apr 28, 2024•25 min•Season 5Ep. 12
Not all monsters are what they seem...This week I am taking a look at probably one of the most famous 'monsters' in Greek Mythology, Medusa, with Natalie Haynes' mythological retelling of the story, Stone Blind. So, does this book live up to the hype I have heard from fans over the last couple of years? Is the book as amazing as the stunning cover would have it appear? Join me to find out what I thought, during my spoiler-free review. As ever, I will be completely honest as I take the story apar...
Apr 14, 2024•30 min•Season 5Ep. 11
Most of you will easily remember the 1996 film starring the iconic trio that is Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn and Diane Keaton. But did you know that before it was a movie it was a book written by socialite and author Olivia Goldsmith? Released in 1992, the book is a study in society, in revenge and this book is probably what Shakespeare meant when he said 'Hell Hath No Fury Like a Woman Scorned'. For these women are 100% vindictive and out for blood. Unlike the film, this is not all sweetness and l...
Apr 07, 2024•23 min•Season 5Ep. 10
Sit back, relax and enjoy this incredible chat with author F.T. Lukens as we talk about their new YA Fantasy novel, Otherworldly (due for release on the 2nd of April 2024). Otherworldly is the story of non-believer Ellery who moved from their family farm to the city when the winter didn't end five years previously, destroying the family's livelihood. When they meet Knox, a familiar who has been living in the mortal realm for five years, they find themselves involved in things they don't believe ...
Mar 31, 2024•1 hr 29 min•Season 5Ep. 9
A compelling combination of Six of Crows and Peaky Blinders is the way that book promoters have been selling the third novel by American author Hafsah Faizal. As someone who has never seen Peaky Blinders, but loved Six of Crows (see my review of that from 2021), does this claim actually ring true? Enter White Roaring, a town that is full of intrigue and insurrection. A town under the tyrannical rule of the mysterious Ram and meet Arthie and Jin Casimir, proprietors of Spindrift, a charming tea r...
Mar 17, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 8
This one book is not like the others...and that is certainly true where The Secret Adversary is concerned. With a career spanning more than 50 years, Agatha Christie created and wrote about a lot of different characters, though her most well-known and most beloved are an elderly woman who loves to knit and observe and a rotund Belgian who knows and sees everything! In 1922, Christie wrote about Tommy Beresford and his friend Tuppence Cowley for the first time. Though they would only appear in a ...
Mar 10, 2024•25 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Just over a year ago I reviewed a fantasy novel by a debut author, and was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. That book was Godkiller, and as a treat to myself for the end of the month I picked up the sequel, and second book in a trilogy titled Fallen Gods. That second book is called Sunbringer and as well as answering the question 'what happened to everyone after that cliffhanger?' the book also gives us further insight into the battles being fought across the kingdom of Middren. I ...
Mar 03, 2024•28 min•Season 5Ep. 6
I know, I know, I said that I would probably be staying away from Agatha Raisin for a while, but I was trying to find something on my bedside table and this book just happened to be there. So join me and Agatha and her reliable crew in Carsely as she attempts to solve the mystery of a body that disappeared, and discover what connection it has with ice cream, a naturist society and drug smuggling...it's a doozy, but did it impress me? Remember, there will be no spoilers, I am not going to tell yo...
Feb 25, 2024•30 min•Season 5Ep. 5
The Changeover was first published in 1984 so while I am celebrating a milestone, it's not far behind. As I have already established while talking about other 1980s YA novels, these were few and far between during that era. The happy medium where books were written with more grown-up themes targeting an audience that was going through changes was incredibly rare. Sure, we had Judy Blume, Sweet Valley High and the Sweet Dreams series, but really, that was it. The Changeover was an original, proba...
Feb 18, 2024•40 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Every once in a while you have to try something new, but perhaps now isn't exactly the time. I guess that's why, this week, on the recommendation of a reviewer on YouTube, I picked up the first book in the Hamish Macbeth series. If you are a fan of 1990s BBC mysteries then you may be familiar with the series (as I was), but this isn't exactly that. While you're transported to the beautiful Highland village of Lochdubh (pronounced Lochdoo) and you meet the fantastic and laid-back Hamish Macbeth, ...
Feb 04, 2024•32 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Ruthless Vows is the long-awaited and greatly anticipated sequel to last year's romantasy hit, Divine Rivals. Did this book change the path of our two lead characters, Iris and Roman? Did they get their happy ever after at the end of this duology? You know I won't spoil anything (so you can find that out for yourselves), but I am going to talk about how I felt about the book, what I loved, what I didn't...so join me on my journey through Oath and discover what I thought. Will it be controversial...
Jan 28, 2024•28 min•Season 5Ep. 2
There is probably more mystery surrounding the author of this new spy thriller than there is about the book itself. In this week's episode I take a look at this debut novel, is it worth a read? Did it convert me? Am I now going to be reviewing more spy thrillers than anything else (listen to find out!)? So, what is it about Argylle? Is it truly going to be the start of a fantastic new gripping franchise? I dipped my toes into the book to find out. So give this 100% spoiler-free review a listen a...
Jan 21, 2024•35 min•Season 5Ep. 1
This week I am looking at my favourite books of the year, according to the reviews I released. So while I have read much more than I have reviewed here, I thought I would stick to the books on Being Bookish. Did I pick an unexpected book? Did I miss out one of the books you felt deserved to be on the list? Give this episode a listen to find out which books I felt were deserving of a second (or possibly third) visit. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank every one of you for listeni...
Dec 28, 2023•15 min•Season 4Ep. 45
The year has been full of incredible fantasy debuts and what better way to round up the year than with another one? This time it is a book inspired by Filipino mythology, full of vibrant colours and strong characters. The Hurricane Wars by Thea Guanzon was released in October 2023 and probably has one of the most beautiful covers I have seen in years, and that's saying something when I look at some of the books I have added to my collection over the last 18 months. It's a beautiful story of enem...
Dec 17, 2023•36 min•Season 4Ep. 44
Richard Ainsworth is a 53-year-old English man who has made his home in the fictional Val de Follet, running a quiet B&B where nothing happens, until the day one of his elderly guests goes missing and he, along with a mysterious and glamorous guest, Valerie D'Orcay find a bloody handprint on the wall. Will this staid and sensible B&B owner make the most of this opportunity to seek adventure? Will the mismatched couple manage to solve the mystery? You know I won't tell you everything, but...
Dec 10, 2023•28 min•Season 4Ep. 43
Returning to the world of science fiction with the first in The Illuminae Files trilogy by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff - I found I couldn't stay away from their collaborations and I am sad that after I finish the third book in the series, Obsidio, there are no more. What happens when it seems as though the only beings talking sense after a planet is invaded by a violent and greedy corporation are a psychotic AI and two teenagers? Through medical files, IM chat records, illustrations and milita...
Nov 26, 2023•39 min•Season 4Ep. 42
I couldn't stay away from Carsely, so I decided that I wouldn't. With a whole series to choose from I decided to return to the small Cotswold Village with book 31 in the series, Hot to Trot. Agatha and Charles are in trouble, and it's not the fun kind. Charles's new and admittedly unbearable young wife, Mary, has been found dead and of course, CI Wilkes is placing Agatha on the suspect list. Agatha knows that she has to solve the murder before Charles is jailed for killing his bride...but the su...
Nov 19, 2023•40 min•Season 4Ep. 41
Iron Flame was released on Tuesday the 7th of November, the second in The Empyrean Series by author Rebecca Yarros. If you want to know more about the next biggest fantasy fad to hit after A Court of Thorns and Roses then you're in the right place. I had a few days off this week and read my way through the 623-page sequel to Fourth Wing to learn more about Violet, Xaden and that surprise revelation in Iron Flame. It's the second year at Basgiath and a lot is changing, with the dragons, the stude...
Nov 12, 2023•43 min•Season 4Ep. 40
I thought I would switch it up a bit for the first true Winter episode, and this week I am joined by Lorraine from Once Upon a Nightmare to talk about the 2012 novella In the Tall Grass, written by father and son, Stephen King and Joe Hill. This episode is part of a short planned series across Being Bookish and Once Upon a Nightmare where we will talk about a book and a film in our two shows, so if you want to find out what we thought about the Netflix film of the same title, head over to Once U...
Nov 05, 2023•50 min•Season 4Ep. 39
This debut cosy crime by new author Jessa Maxwell has everything a cosy crime baking fan could want. You have a baking competition taking place in a somewhat isolated location, a group of people who seemingly have zero connection to each other but are all keeping secrets. But more than that, there's a mystery victim, who could possibly have wanted to murder them? Were they keeping a secret? I love cosy crime, so when I saw this promoted a few weeks ago, the idea of baking and murder just piqued ...
Oct 29, 2023•37 min•Season 4Ep. 38
Probably better known for her stint on I'm a Celebrity (though I am going to admit right now I have never seen that show), Rosemary Shrager is a TV cook who has appeared on a lot of shows with lots of recipes. With her latest creation, Prudence Bulstrode (herself a retired TV cook), Shrager has put on another hat, that of cosy mystery writer. When Prudence Bulstrode is asked to take over as chef at a Cotswolds Manor house where her TV rival has recently died, she doesn't exactly jump at the chan...
Oct 15, 2023•34 min•Season 4Ep. 37
I am back in the world of fantasy this week with the first in a spin-off romantasy by Stephanie Garber. I am taking you to the Magnificent North where miniature dragons aid in the creation of exquisite sweet treats and magic just is. Where the Immortal Fates have a hand to play in your life and where Evangeline Fox is about to discover that life isn't as straightforward as you wish it was. Being jilted is one thing, but making a bargain with the beautiful but deadly Prince of Hearts is another t...
Oct 08, 2023•39 min•Season 4Ep. 36
What can I say? Agatha Raisin keeps on drawing me back in and when I got approved for the latest addition to the series I wasn't sure whether it would be a topic I chose or if I would just write a review and talk about something else. The 34th book in the Agatha Raisin series was released on the 19th of September and though still published under the name MC Beaton, the baton has been taken up by co-writer RW Green. So, what does that mean for our beloved Agatha and her friends in Carsley? Join m...
Oct 01, 2023•38 min•Season 4Ep. 35
Could I have picked something a little less obscure this week? Possibly. However, if you're a fan of John Carpenter films, then the story behind this book will definitely be familiar, for Who Goes There? written in 1938 went on to become the 1982 Kurt Russell film, The Thing! As part of a special crossover event, I am joined by Lorraine from Once Upon a Nightmare to talk about the book that inspired the film. As always, there will be no spoilers here! Give this episode a listen to discover if we...
Sep 24, 2023•36 min•Season 4Ep. 34
This week I am celebrating a huge milestone, my 150th episode. After three years and a lot of changes, I am going to be taking a look at my last 9 months of reading and picking out my top (and bottom) 5 books. Which ones did I love, and which ones did I unhaul? Believe me when I say that it took me a long time to put together lists that I was happy with, but I have no doubt by the time I listen to this back at the end of the year I will have changed my mind several times. What books are you surp...
Sep 17, 2023•37 min•Season 4Ep. 33
If you love Dark Academia, or Dark Fantasy, and haven't yet managed to get a copy of Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs, then what are you waiting for? This debut novel from the Minneapolis writer has everything from enchanted books to secret societies. It spans the generations of two families who are about as far apart in culture and status as it seems they could be, but they are tied by one thing that both are unaware of. So, what secrets have their relatives been hiding? Are they worth dyi...
Sep 10, 2023•36 min•Season 4Ep. 32
I am back after a week off with an episode about a half-vampire, half-Huli Jing (fox spirit) rebel with this week's fantasy debut from author A. Y. Chao. Shanghai Immortal is set in 1930s Shanghai and introduces us to Lady Jing, who is sent on a mission by her guardian, the King of Hell, to find herself and discover who is plotting against him. With Mr Lee, a mortal finance expert, at her side, she ventures forth into mortal Shanghai and learns more about herself and her past than she expects. W...
Sep 03, 2023•38 min•Season 4Ep. 31
You know how much I love cosy crime, so I thought that after almost 3 months I would take a trip down memory lane and remind you why this is a genre I think you may enjoy. This week I am taking a look at the first cosy crime novel by author Jesse Sutanto, Dial A for Aunties. It's a fun jaunt with a sort of 1980s Weekend at Bernie's twist. There are jewel heists, a dead body in a cooler, 4 incredible Indo-Chinese aunties who would do anything for their family and a woman who suddenly reunites wit...
Aug 20, 2023•37 min•Season 4Ep. 30
