The Whimsy Bookworm: A Book Blog from India

 Hello Loves!  September comes to an end.  It was a month of many unusual reading sojourns for me.  For one I read some Russian Literature.  Then for one week straight, I read a romance novel every night.  I also didn't read a single book from India this month. Not one. And if you know me at all, you know that is not common around these parts. At all. I don't even have a specific reason for doing so, it's just something that happened.  I also didn't buy a single book.  I read a book on my iPad after years and was reminded of how much I love it.  I read 19 books in total and had a very happy reading month.  So let's just jump into it.  Here is everything I read in September and my thoughts and little reviews.  BOOKS OF SEPTEMBER 2022:  1. The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky: I started my month with a classic. My first proper foray into Russian Lit. My first full length novel from a Russian master. I have, so far in life only ev...

  Book: The Murder List  Author: Jackie Kabler  Pages: 338 Read on: Kindle  Read in: ~3 hours  Plot Summary:  When Mary receives a blank diary as a present, she thinks nothing of it. Until she opens the diary, and sees it’s not blank after all… 1st January  MURDER LISA, OXFORD 1st February  MURDER JANE, BIRMINGHAM 1st March  MURDER DAVID, CARDIFF 1st April  MURDER MARY, CHELTENHAM Is this a sick joke? But…it’s the end of January now. And a woman called Lisa  was  murdered in Oxford on 1st January. Could there really be a killer out there, planning to commit a new murder each month? And is the Mary due to be killed on 1st April  her ? The clock is ticking for Mary to uncover the truth, before she becomes the next victim on the killer’s list.  Things I Liked:  1. Imagine a serial killer sending you a diary with the names and locations and dates of his planned murders. Except, the names are first names and super com...

Book: The Retreat  Author: Sarah Pearse  Pages: 361 Read on: Kindle  Read in: ~3 hours  Plot Summary:  They couldn't wait to stay here. An idyllic wellness retreat has opened on an island off the coast of Devon, promising rest and relaxation - but the island itself, known locally as Reaper's Rock, has a dark past. Once the playground of a serial killer, it's rumored to be cursed. But now they can't leave. A woman is found dead below the yoga pavilion in what seems to be a tragic fall. But DS Elin Warner soon learns that the victim wasn't a guest - she wasn't meant to be on the island at all. And they would do anything to escape . . . The longer Elin stays, the more secrets she uncovers. And when someone else drowns in a diving incident, Elin begins to suspect that the old stories about the island are true. Because history seems to be repeating itself - and the guests might not make it home alive.  General Thoughts: Sarah Pearse's first book The Sanator...

  Book: Daisy Darker Author: Alice Feeney  Pages: 338 Read on: Kindle  Read in: ~3 hours  Plot Summary:  Daisy Darker’s family were as dark as dark can be, when one of them died all of them lied and pretended not to see . . . As the leaves of Autumn are falling Daisy Darker is arriving at her grandmother’s house, for eightieth birthday celebrations. Seaglass, the Darker’s ancestral home, is a crumbling Cornish house perched upon its own tiny private island and is at one with the granite rocks it sits on. The Darker family haven’t all been in the same place for over a decade, and when the tide comes in they’ll be cut off from the rest of the world for eight hours. When the tide goes back out, nothing will ever be the same again, because one of them is a killer.  Things I Like:  1. This book's premise is very interesting! A mix of some deep, dark family secrets meets And Then There Were None ! So, what's not to like, eh? A dysfunctional family meets for ...

  Book: The Bullet That Missed (Thursday Murder Club Book 3)  Author: Richard Osman  Pages: 400 Read on: Kindle  Read in: ~3 hours  Plot Summary:  It is an ordinary Thursday, and things should  finally  be returning to normal. Except trouble is never far away where the Thursday Murder Club are concerned. A local news legend is on the hunt for a sensational headline, and soon the gang are hot on the trail of two murders, ten years apart. To make matters worse, a new nemesis pays Elizabeth a visit, presenting her with a deadly mission: kill or be killed... While Elizabeth grapples with her conscience (and a gun), the gang and their unlikely new friends (including TV stars, money launderers and ex-KGB colonels) unravel a new mystery. But can they catch the culprit and save Elizabeth before the murderer strikes again? General Thoughts: I have really enjoyed the previous two books in the Thursday Murder Club Series, They've been reviewed on the blog an...

 Hello Loves!  It's a drizzly and rainy Monday in my part of the world, so I am making the most of it and reading something thriller-y and drinking lemon tea.  Here some moments of joy to brighten up your Monday morning.  Sunshine and these beautiful blooms.  These pictures were clicked on a crisp and cold November morning.  Up close and lovely.  Art lighting up corners of my home.  Pages and Bookmarks.  Journaling in bed.  A second favourite, close after reading in bed. Have a good week ahead folks.  My plans this week include~  Reading a whole lot. Making more progress on The Idiot, which I am reading very slowly the month.  Read some Christie, I've been in such a mood for Christie all of last week and most of this past weekend was spent re-watching some Marple episodes. They are streaming on Sony Liv.  Clean the house and prep for Pujo.  Enjoy the rains.  Eat Waffles. I haven't had waffles in over two yea...

Here are some things I love...   A good book and a beautiful bookmark.  The book here is Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri.  The embroidered bookmark is from Tori.   Books with art.  This is Sapiens, illustrated and wonderful.  Planners.  This is my sister's Traveler's Company insert for the first half of 2022.  Light and gentle nights.  Kid Lit.  This is Volumer II of the Kakababu Adventures.  Flowers. 

 Hello, hello, Over the past couple of weeks, we've watched a few things and thought we'd recommend some of our favourites here!  Let's get into it, shall we?! 1. Thor: Love and Thunder (Disney+ Hotstar) The latest instalment in the Thor series of films, Thor: Love and Thunder  continues Thor's journey in dealing with his grief and loss after the events of Avengers: Endgame. Directed and written by Taika Waititi, the movie has the hallmark Waititi wit and zany humour that made Thor: Ragnarok such a hit with Marvel fans! It is a fun ride and if you are a Marvel fan, then this is definitely worth watching!  2. End of the Road (on Netflix) When a recently widowed (and deeply in debt) mother decides to leave LA to move back home (Houston, Texas) with her teenaged kids and her younger brother, she never thought that a simple cross-country road trip will end up becoming a nightmare when they unwittingly witness a murder at a motel.  Queen Latifah helms this action-adv...

 Hello Loves!  How was the weekend for you?  In my corner of the world it was a long weekend. It was Visarjan on Friday and that meant we had a three day weekend.  It's always sad to see Ganpu leave.  We got some laddoos fro Ganpu before he left.  :)  My main weekend read was Dumb Witness by Agatha Christie.  It was a re-read but one I came back to after a while, so a lot of the little details I had sorta forgotten. And it's been such a thundering and midly rainy weekend that it felt nice to find comfort in a Christie mystery.  The rest of my weekend was spend chilling out.  Watching quite a few funny films..older ones. I have found a lot of comfort in watching films I watched a decade or so ago.  Set up my planner pages for the next three weeks. I am mostly using Washi Tapes to do up my pages because I really missed having my stash when I was away from home. Plus, I do want to use up some of my older tapes.  I am trying to mak...

  Book: The Ink Black Heart  Author: Robert Galbraith (JK Rowling)  Pages: 1024 Read on: Kindle  Read in: ~9 hours over 2 days  Plot Summary:  When frantic, dishevelled Edie Ledwell appears in the office begging to speak to her, private detective Robin Ellacott doesn't know quite what to make of the situation. The co-creator of a popular cartoon,  The Ink Black Heart , Edie is being persecuted by a mysterious online figure who goes by the pseudonym of Anomie. Edie is desperate to uncover Anomie's true identity. Robin decides that the agency can't help with this - and thinks nothing more of it until a few days later, when she reads the shocking news that Edie has been tasered and then murdered in Highgate Cemetery, the location of  The Ink Black Heart . Robin and her business partner Cormoran Strike become drawn into the quest to uncover Anomie's true identity. But with a complex web of online aliases, business interests and family conflicts to nav...

 Hello Loves! A quick post today to share my Daily Journal for September.  I finally finished my previous journal, one I had been using since May sometime in August, then I used a teeny tiny journal for the rest of the month and now I started this journal.  It's a traditional Indian Journal, a Bahikhaata. One used to keep accounts.  I bought this from Anokhi a few years ago and love the aesthetic of it.  This is what she looks like.  Look at her sitting pretty with Ganpati Bappa.  A little sunkissed moment.  The first page has a gold foil image of Ganpu, perfect for this month.  :)  Front page decor.  In shades of brown and gold.  Have Faith.  Some more low key collage-ing.  This is how I like starting my month, by setting up my planner and journals.  The inside is kept clean and functional and it's all about just venting my thoughts and feelings.  :)  The supplies used are from:  Amazon.  Cla...

  Book: Small Things Like These  Author: Claire Keegan  Pages: 118 Read On: Kin dle  How Long it Took Me To Read: 1 day  Publisher: Grove Pres s  Plot Summary:   It is 1985 in a small Irish town. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, Bill Furlong, a coal merchant and family man faces into his busiest season. Early one morning, while delivering an order to the local convent, Bill makes a discovery which forces him to confront both his past and the complicit silences of a town controlled by the church. Already an international bestseller, Small Things Like These is a deeply affecting story of hope, quiet heroism, and empathy from one of our most critically lauded and iconic writers. Review: I'll be honest, I am not, at least no longer, one of those readers who read the entire Booker Prize Long List and then make predictions and really invest (in more ways than one) into the winner. I keep my eye on the proceedings. Look up the books on the lis...