The Withered Arm by Thomas Hardy

 

From Goodreads

In southern England, a man and a woman's summer love affair leads to an illegitimate child, broken promises, unfulfilled desires, and timeless regrets.

This comes to you courtesy of Miniature Masterpieces who have an excellent range of quality short stories from the masters of the craft. Do search for Miniature Masterpieces at any digital store for further information. This, and these are, Miniature Masterpieces. Join us for the journey. Thomas Hardy – An Introduction Many giants of Literature originate from the shores of these emerald isles; Shakespeare, Dickens, Chaucer, The Bronte’s and Austen to which most people would willingly add the name Thomas Hardy. Far From The Madding Crowd, Tess Of The D’Urbervilles, The Mayor Of Casterbridge are but three of his literary masterpieces. But let us add to this his short stories. They are often overlooked as being the poor, under-developed relative of a greater work. But from writers of the calibre of Hardy this is just not so. He picks stories and creates characters that drive, meld and create pages that in their numerically shorter length are in fact the perfect length.

My thoughts

I am not a big reader of books written by authors of the classics.  However, I grabbed a copy of this as my local Library Reading group had been reading Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy, which I still have to read.    

This is a short story at only 36 pages long that I grabbed.  It's a great little read that will keep you tuning the pages, as the withered arm develops both in profile on the arm of Gertrude and in story,  With hints of the supernatural, magic and secrets this short story will keep you reading too.  

20 Books of Summer 2025 Reading Challenge roundup

Thanks to @annabookbel and @wordsandpeace who can both be found on Twitter for taking over the organising of the 20 Books of Summer Reading Challenge from @Cathy746Brown.

I am late at doing my round up this year.  As the Summer has been and gone some time ago.  The clocks have now gone back too and the days are getting shorter and the nights are getting longer.  So Wiinter here we come.

I didn't read 20 books this year, but I did make an attempt at doing so.  I actually managed to read half of that amount and read 10 books.

The books that I read are below:

1.   Strange Pictures by Uketsu.

2.   One Cornish Summer with You by Philippa Ashley.

3.   To Love a Liar by L.V. Matthews.

4.   The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. 

.5.  Isolation Ward by Martine Bailey.

6.   The Frozen People by Elly Griffiths.

7.   Wasp Trap by Mark Edwards.

8.   Into the Mist (Into the Mist #1) by P.C. Cast.  

9.   The Paris Dancer by Nicola Rayner.

10,  Secret Keeper (The House of Morgan #1) by Victoria Pinder.

Wedlock: How Georgian Britain's Worst Husband Met His Match by Wendy Moore

 From Goodreads

WEDLOCK is the remarkable story of the Countess of Strathmore and her marriage to Andrew Robinson Stoney. Mary Eleanor Bowes was one of Britain's richest young heiresses. She married the Count of Strathmore who died young, and pregnant with her lover's child, Mary became engaged to George Gray. Then in swooped Andrew Robinson Stoney. Mary was bowled over and married him within the week. But nothing was as it seemed. Stoney was broke, and his pursuit of the wealthy Countess a calculated ploy. Once married to Mary, he embarked on years of ill treatment, seizing her lands, beating her, terrorising servants, introducing prostitutes to the family home, kidnapping his own sister. But finally after many years, a servant helped Mary to escape. She began a high-profile divorce case that was the scandal of the day and was successful. But then Andrew kidnapped her and undertook a week-long rampage of terror and cruelty until the law finally caught up with him

My thoughts

I grabbed a paper copy of this from somewhere, I was taken by the title and the synopsis.  This is a non fiction book that reads almost like a story.  It is a book that I dipped in and out of over 4 years, as it sadly kept getting put to one side with being non fiction..  The majority of the last 200 or so pages have been read over the last couple of months though.

This book is based upon the ancestors of the Royal family and boy, what a history lesson it is of them. All I can say, is what a hellishly sadistic and  man Andrew Robinson Stoney was.  He married Mary Eleanor Bowes was one of Britain's richest young heiresses.  He had plans to get his filthy hands on her wealth and had no thoughts or concerns as to what lengths he would go to to get at it.

I really enjoyed reading about the history behind the family and I can recommend it to others if the book ever crosses your path..

The last line sums the book up well and is what I was thinking about it as I really enjoyed reading it.

'An outlandish fantastical  story, only the truth could be more astonishing.'

A Prairie Girl's Faith: The Spiritual Legacy of Laura Ingalls Wilder by Stephen W. Hines

From Goodreads

The beloved author of the Little House books was not only one of America's great pioneer storytellers but a woman of vibrant faith.

A Prairie Girl's Faith provides the first extended, in depth discussion of the Christian faith of one of America's most beloved pioneer women--Laura Ingalls Wilder. Although the faith of the Ingalls' family pervades books in the Little House series, the more specific details of Laura's faith have never been fully explored. It took extraordinary pluck for anyone to survive the harshness of frontier life--from the heartbreak of sudden crop losses to murderous storms to unrelentling loneliness. This book reveals how in surviving, the brave Laura drew not just on her character, but found encouragement, strength, and hope in her relationship with God.

My thoughts

I was an avid viewer of the Little House on the Prairie series back in my youth and watched it several times over the years since, when the series has aired on TV.  It was a proper feel good, heart warming series based on people with a strong Christian faith and moral values 

The book is based mostly on Laura Ingalls Wilder, the writer of the Little House on the Prairie series and delves deeper into her link with religion, than the series of books goes into.  The book links her family into the life that they all lived living in the frontier and all that  they coped with. 

I enjoyed the book and the amount of info that the author divulged to us through his investigation into the life of Laura and her family.

It's well worth a read.

Let It Snow by Sue Moorcroft

 

From Goodreads

This Christmas, the villagers of Middledip are off on a very Swiss adventure…

Family means everything to Lily and Zinnia Cortez and, growing up in their non-conventional family unit, they and their two mums couldn’t have been closer.

So it’s a bolt out of the blue when Lily finds her father wasn’t the anonymous one-night stand she’s always believed. She is in fact the result of her mum's reckless affair with a married man.

Confused, but determined to discover her true roots, Lily sets out to find the family she’s never known – an adventure that takes her from the frosted, thatched cottages of Middledip to the snow-capped mountains of Switzerland, via a Christmas market or two along the way…

My thoughts

My thanks to the Publishers via NetGalley for a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

Lily and Zinnia Cortez could be classed as sisters', yet theirs is not a traditional family, growing up in their non-conventional family, the two girls and their two mums couldn’t have been closer though.  When Lily finds out that what she had been led to believe for most of her life, was not the way she came into the world and finds out a secret that had been hidden.       

She decides to find out as much of the truth as she can, but this comes with it's own perils.  So off she goes on her journey of discovery,.  Which happens to tie in well with the Swiss trip!

This is a lovely seasonal tale and is a typical gentle story with a hint of romance thrown in that Sue Moorcroft has become well established at writing.  I enjoyed escaping to Switzerland with the handful of Middledip villagers and immersing myself in all that happened to them both at home and abroad.  

When I was in my early 20's, I was once asked 'What my family life was like?'  My reply was 'That we were just like any normal family.'  They came back at me with 'But what is a normal family?'  This question is even more poignant.  

The Duke's Desire (12 Dukes of Christmas #8) by Erica Ridley

From Goodreads

 Meg Church adores two things: life in a village of perennial Yuletide, and the freedom of being a spinster with no reputation to protect. Oh, very well, three things: She’s harbored a secret tendre for Christmas curmudgeon Lucien le Duc since the moment she first glimpsed him. But the sexy blacksmith won’t give her the time of day, much less a night of torrid passion.

Ever since Lucien le Duc was forced to flee his beloved France during the revolution, his all-consuming goal has been to recover not only his lost land and fortune, but also his rightful place among the French aristocracy. He would never be distracted by an English dairy maid’s sultry glances… or her soul-consuming kisses… or the temptation to turn one night into forever…

My thoughts

My thanks to the Publishers via NetGalley for the opportunity to read the story in exchange for an honest review.

This novella features Meg Church local spinster and dairy maid in Yuletde an English village and Lucien le Duc, a handsome French blacksmith that has piqued  her interest in more ways than one.

Will this couple become more than just acquaintances as their paths begin to cross?  

This was an enjoyable addition to the 12 Dukes of Christmas series by this author.  A novella romance with just the right amount of erotic addition that we readers have become used to in the series.  I do like settling down with these and find them a nice escape from day to day life.

   

Killing Jericho (Scott Jericho #1) by William Hussey

From Goodreads

Murder this twisted demands a new kind of detective

Fresh out of prison, former Detective Constable Scott Jericho is a desperate man.

Disgraced and penniless after his assault on a violent suspect, he is forced to seek refuge with the fairground family he once rejected. Now, troubled by his failure, Jericho’s brilliant mind stagnates.

That is until a series of bizarre murders reawaken his interest. Men and women with no obvious link to each other are being ritualistically slaughtered.

Slaughtered in ways that recall an old legend of the Jericho Travelling Fair.

Now, in a race against time, he must unpick the threads of a baffling mystery. But as his investigation unfolds and the corpses pile up, a shocking truth awaits him. A revelation that will test not only Jericho’s intellect but challenge the very core of his morality... 

,My thoughts

This was a book that I grabbed from my local Library.  The author is aka Will Harker, he has written books in both names and in different genres..  As far as I can see, this is the first book that I have read by this author.    

Telling the story of Scott Jericho a former Detective Constable who is fresh out of prison.  How the hell is he going to fit back into normal life?  He has had a chequered past and has secrets that he needs to overcome in order to move forward and make a new life for himself.   

I enjoyed the story and the relationship that developed between the characters.  I look forward to reading the next in this series and seeing where Scott Jericho is likely to take us, as he is a man with issues that he needs to overcome.