The WWW Wednesday meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.
To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:
- What are you currently reading?
- What did you recently finish reading?
- What do you think you’ll read next?
Currently Reading
I got a little bit frustrated with the format of Spinning Silver over the weekend, the writing is minute and it’s a struggle to read, so I put it on hold for a bit so I could read something that’s easier on my eyes. It’s so annoying as it’s a wonderful story, dark and twisted and completely magical but it’s hard work. I’m kind of tempted to just give up on the ARC and wait for it to be published so I can get a proper copy
As I kind of expected I’ve made next to no progress on The Count of Monte Cristo but now that I no longer have so many books on the go at one time hopefully I can get back into it.
Recently Finished
So yeah I may have wandered off my reading plan over the weekend but I couldn’t resist picking up Circe by Madeline Miller and needless to say once I picked it up there was no way I was putting it down until I finished it. It is absolutely brilliant. It will definitely be making my list of favorite reads in 2018. I’ve always been fascinated by Greek mythology but had forgotten a lot of it. In Circe, the author really brings a lot of these stories to life and it actually feels like you’re living them. The character development is incredible and I loved how she made these Greek gods and heroes (Odysseus, Daedalus) so incredibly real and flawed. I am going to have to get my hands on a copy of The Song of Achilles as soon as possible.
I’d managed to get Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco on audio from Overdrive and it was due back on Monday so I had to push to get it finished before then. I think I made it with about 5 hours to spare 🙂 
I did enjoy this story but part of me wishes that I’d just bought it as an ebook rather than listening to it on audio. I can imagine it’s much better to just sit and immerse yourself in the story rather than dipping in and out every couple of days. It may just have been that I’ve been reading the original stories fairly recently but this reminded me a lot of Sherlock Holmes. One character in particular, Thomas Cresswell, seems to pretty much be Sherlock and a lot of his methods and character are absolutely identical. I did guess who Jack the Ripper was very early on (it was kinda obvious) but it was still a good read and I will no doubt read the next books in the series.
The third and final book finished this week was The Last Family in England which I’d received from NetGalley. I’m pretty sure this has been out for a while but it seems to be getting re released (probably due to the success of How to Stop Time). This was a very emotional read for me. I don’t think I would have requested this if I’d known just how upsetting this story would be. I love animals and tend to get more emotionally invested in them than I do in people so I generally avoid books about animals (even if I know they get a happy ending). It is however wonderfully written and contains so many keen insights and observations on the modern family and relationships. This was my first book by Haig and while I can’t say I “enjoyed” it (it was too sad for that). It has shown me how good his writing is.
Reading Next
Eek, I think I have the same list yet again (3rd week in a row). I do really need to read Smoke in the Sun and Ace of Shades as soon as possible but wasn’t sure it was fair to read another fantasy so soon after Circe (I’m not sure it’s fair on any book to read it after Circe). I might go for something of a different genre, either Cross Her Heart or Us Against You (it’s most likely to be Us Against You)
Have you read any of the books on my list this week? Any others you’d recommend? As always please feel free to leave comments and links below.
Happy Reading ❤
A Bookish Life 
I’m reading Us Against You at the moment and I suggest you do put that one at the top of your pile!
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Done. I started it on the train this morning 😀
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I ordered my copy of Ace of Shades earlier this week. I’m hoping to dive into it as soon as it arrives but we all know how it can go sometimes, haha!
I enjoyed Stalking Jack the Ripper, but I didn’t really.. feel the romance? People tell me it’s better in the sequel, but I haven’t read that one yet. 😛
Happy reading!
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The romance and the setting were probably the highlights for me as the mystery wasn’t too much of a mystery. I do want to read the next one but it could be a while till I get to it.
I have heard a lot of great things about Ace of Shades. I’m hoping to get to it soon.
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I’m so excited for Spinning Silver but ah that sucks that the formatting is making the ARC hard to read. I’m really excited to start Circe. I recently finished The Song of Achilles and that was amazing too! I love Stalking Jack the Ripper and the sequel is absolutely phenomenal. Hope you enjoy it!
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Having read Circe I want to read Song of Achilles so much. I have heard the writings a little stronger in Circe but I think Achilles could be a more exciting story.
I also need to get my hands on Hunting Prince Dracula, everyone keeps saying it’s brilliant and so much better. I just have so many books to read.
I’m disappointed in Spinning Silver. I really wish they’d just provided a proper e-arc. It’s not out for a little while so maybe they’ll fix it *crossing everything*
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I have Circe on my wishlist and your enthusiastic comments have convinced me I need to get it soon. I haven’t read any of the books you’re pondering for your next read but I’d probably go for Us Against You.
Here’s my WWW link: https://whatcathyreadnext.wordpress.com/2018/05/30/www-wednesdays-30th-may-18/
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It is such a pretty book too, I am in love with it. Even under the dust jacket it’s all sparkly and gorgeous. The writing is wonderful so I’m sure you’ll enjoy if you manage to get it.
I started Us Against You this morning and so far I’m both loving it and getting incredibly frustrated by it (there are so many hints of what’s to come in the story).
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I picked up both Stalking Jack the Ripper and Hunting Prince Dracula from the library yesterday; they were both just sitting there and I couldn’t help myself. I’ll be interested to compare notes with you once I’ve read the first.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard a bad word about Madeline Miller’s books. I should get onto them.
Here’s my WWW post.
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I saw the picture of them on your insta and I’m very jealous as I can’t seem to get a hold of Hunting Prince Dracula from my library. I’m gonna have to cave and buy it I think. I did like Stalking Jack the Ripper but it maybe had a few too many similarities to Sherlock Holmes. Will be interested to hear your take on it.
Would really recommend Circe. The writing and character development are wonderful. It has a bit of an epic tone to it but considering it’s about gods and legends it’s very fitting 🙂
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I picked up Circe a few weeks ago, but the mythology was really confusing me. I used to love Greek mythology in high school, but haven’t read anything about it in years. I’m going to try it again. I got The Song of Achilles on an Amazon Kindle deal, too. Hopefully I can get into them! I also want to read Beartown soon. Another book everyone raves about, and I haven’t been able to get into it.
Happy reading!!
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I’d forgotten most of it too which is probably not a bad thing as I couldn’t remember how the various character’s stories ended. I did google part way through but I wouldn’t recommend. Much better just to take it as it comes.
I’ve been on the hunt for a deal on Song of Achilles but no joy so far (especially since I spied a collectors edition)
Beartown was brilliant and having started Us Against You this morning it’s proving just as good. What I will say is the writing style is very unusual. It jumps between characters a lot which can be a bit frustrating.
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Reading that you liked Circe so much has me excited to read it even more! I’m hopefully going to get a start on it soon.
https://musewithmeblog.wordpress.com/2018/05/30/www-wednesday-2018-05-30/
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I have really got to stop obsessing over Circe but I probably won’t 🙂 I did it as a buddy read on GoodReads and out of around 8 people only one didn’t love it (and that was because they didn’t like Circe’s character).
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I read your review for the one with the dog. It sounded like a good, but kind of sad story. I loved how unique the POV was.
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It is very sad. There’s quite a bit of conflict and death and a lot of the characters don’t deserve what they go through. There are a few laughs though (teenage boy and a ruler – I’ll leave it to you to figure out what he was measuring).
Certainly one of the first I’ve read from the POV of the dog.
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Cross Her Heart looks tempting. Enjoy your reading, and I can never read a book with tiny print either. Sigh.
Here’s MY WWW POST
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Unfortunately what most people are hearing from me about Spinning Silver is how tiny the writing is 🙂 I keep showing everyone I meet how tiny it is so I can impress them with my eyesight.
I’ve wandered on to Us Against You but Cross Her Heart will be up soon.
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Arrrgghh I hate it when the formatting of an e-copy ARC spoils your enjoyment of the book! I know we’re appreciative that we have the opportunity to read the advance copy but it puts me off…as it has you – what a shame!
Here’s my WWW – https://bookboodle.co.uk/2018/05/30/www-wednesday-may-30th
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It is just so frustrating as I think the writing and story are brilliant but I can’t totally get into it. I will no doubt persevere a bit longer. I did contact NetGalley to see if they could do anything and they were contacting the publisher so who knows, maybe they’ll put up a better version I can actually read on my kindle.
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I haven’t read any of these, but Circe sounds really good. What I do when my Overdrive books are due is put my Kindle on airplane mode so that it can’t sync. It’s a dirty trick, I know, but it takes the stress out of the deadline!
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I’m really glad Circe was too good to put down! (even if it did interfere with your other reading plans 😉 )
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