Hello, everyone! It’s Ely from Earl Grey Books here again to share another post with you all. Today I’ll be telling you all about five of my favourite reads of 2021 so far. So without further ado, let’s just get into it.
The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare: I was extremely hesitant going into this book because it seemed like everyone in the romance community had read and loved Tessa Dare and I was worried it was going to be overhyped. Turns out I should’ve listened to Angel and everyone else who told me to read this because this was incredible. This is just such a sweet and fun book, as well as being sexy as hell. What more could you want in a historical romance? If you haven’t read any Tessa Dare yet, here’s yet another person telling you to do that.
Naked in Death by J.D Robb: 2021 has definitely been a year of me trying new genres and tropes and discovering that I actually like them. It turns out that J.D Robb is one of those new things—I won’t commit and say that I like this genre of futuristic romantic suspense. But I did really love this one. I’m genuinely shocked because I hated my first Nora Roberts book that I tried last year. But as J.D Robb I really enjoyed her writing and this story. This is, of course, is a huge series. I haven’t continued it yet but I’ll definitely be dedicating some time to it very soon.
A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh: I’ve thought for years now that Agatha Christie is where my enjoyment of crime fiction pretty much began and ended, but last year I tried Dorothy L. Sayers and enjoyed her writing. Because of that, I decided to test myself and pick up some Ngaio Marsh as well and instantly fell in love. A Man Lay Dead has one of my favourite tropes which is the whole murder game thing. People at a party decide to play basically a real-life game of Cluedo only someone is actually murdered. Shock horror! I thought this was just done really well and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it.
Angels’ Blood by Nalini Singh: Here’s another thing Angel has been screaming at me to read…kinda. I’ve been listening to her talk about the Psy-Changeling series by Nalini Singh for months. And so I decided to instead go out and read Singh’s other series so I could torture both of us just a little. Again, this is not my usual genre at all but I was completely in love with this by page 20. I often struggle with the writing in paranormal romances. But this is really well-written and just has this incredibly interesting world and set of characters that I couldn’t help but devour it. It’s made me really excited to get to the Psy-Changeling series as well now.
And that’s it from me today. I hope you’re all doing well and I’ll see you again next month!
Hi, everyone! It’s Ely from Earl Grey Books, back here to share my next monthly post. Today I thought it would be fun to share some recommendations of the perfect books for each of the four seasons, so let’s jump in.
I don’t know what it is about this book that screams summer. I think it’s less so the actual story and more the fact that this is the sort of book to spend a hot summer’s day reading in a single day, or over a weekend. It’s not an easy read but it’s the kind of book that draws you in and won’t let you go until you’ve finished reading. It was one of my favourite books of last year and quite possibly a new all-time favourite too.
Okay so this one technically takes place in the Summer, but in my mind, it has these perfect Autumnal/Fall feelings to it. It takes place in Illinois, there are corn mazes and stuff-you know Autumn stuff right? Anyway, this is a truly gorgeous book and one of my all-time favourites. It’s a little strange as well, so perfect for reading around the Halloween season too.
Is there anything more wintery than the His Dark Materials series? No, no there isn’t. A lot of this series takes place in sort of would-be Scandinavia, there are polar bears as important characters and the Northern Lights. It’s all just very wintery in mind. Plus it’s the kind of book you want to read curled up with a blanket and a hot drink in front of the fire.
There’s something about Juliet Marillier’s books in general that make me think of Spring. They’re sort of a weird mix of a cosy and comforting read though some really dark stuff happens in the actual story. I think it might be the fae aspect, but the cover definitely plays a part in that too. This is admittedly not my favourite of Marillier’s but I think it’s a really great place to start with her books.
What books do you recommend for each of the seasons? Have you read any of these?
Hi everyone, it’s Ely here and for today’s monthly post I’m going to be talking about the different places I’m travelling to this week…in books. Of course, international travel is still not happening so I thought I’d take this week to try something a little different!
I bought this one very recently, actually while I was out with Angel. It’s not my usual sort of book—it’s an adult historical literary fiction with maybe some kind of fantastical or magical realism elements, but it sounds amazing. I won’t lie—it was the cover that originally drew me into this one, but it’s also set in Scotland. I think Scotland is an amazing setting for historical fiction—there’s just something so mysterious and atmospheric about it. Of course, it’s also a gorgeous place in real life as well. Since it’ll probably be years before I can get back to Scotland for a visit, I’m instead using this as a way of escaping there!
One of my absolute favourite places in the world is Cornwall. I was lucky enough to live there for a few months back in 2015/2016 and so it will always have a special place in my heart. And of course, no one writes Cornwall better than Daphne du Maurier. I’ve read most of her books now, and this is one of the last ones that I currently own that remains unread. It’s also currently the oldest book on my TBR so I’m really looking forward to getting around to this one this week if for nothing other than finally taking it off my TBR.
Getting to go into space right now feels about as likely as getting to go anywhere else, so I’m counting this one! This is actually part of a challenge/project thing I’m doing that is scheduled to go live later in June over on my channel, so I really need to get to this one before it’s too late. I really don’t know what to expect with this one. It’s honestly been a while since I picked up any sci-fi books, or even watched anything so I guess we’re about to find out whether it’s a genre I still enjoy or not. Stay tuned for my thoughts on this one.
And that’s all from me this month. I hope you’re all doing super well, and I’ll see you all for my monthly post in June!
The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare: I was extremely hesitant going into this book because it seemed like everyone in the romance community had read and loved Tessa Dare and I was worried it was going to be overhyped. Turns out I should’ve listened to Angel and everyone else who told me to read this because this was incredible. This is just such a sweet and fun book, as well as being sexy as hell. What more could you want in a historical romance? If you haven’t read any Tessa Dare yet, here’s yet another person telling you to do that.
A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh: I’ve thought for years now that Agatha Christie is where my enjoyment of crime fiction pretty much began and ended, but last year I tried Dorothy L. Sayers and enjoyed her writing. Because of that, I decided to test myself and pick up some Ngaio Marsh as well and instantly fell in love. A Man Lay Dead has one of my favourite tropes which is the whole murder game thing. People at a party decide to play basically a real-life game of Cluedo only someone is actually murdered. Shock horror! I thought this was just done really well and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it.
