WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words. It’s open for anyone to join in and is a great way to share what you’ve been reading!

Current Reads

When They Call You A Terrorist by Patrisse Khan Cullors & Asha Bandele

At the time of writing this I’ve only read the opening pages of this book but I can tell that this is going to be a memoir that is completely engrossing. I wanted to read this one while They Can’t Kill Us All is still fresh in my mind as I feel this is going to be a good companion book to that one in understanding how the Black Lives Matter movement is evolving.

Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams

I started reading this novel in March and was really enjoying it but then my mind become so full of anxiety over Coronavirus that I hit a reading slump and just couldn’t read anything. I knew this was a book that I wanted to come back to so yesterday I picked it back up and started it again from the beginning and I’m enjoying it every bit as much as I was before.

The Last Wife by Karen Hamilton

I’m reading this book on the Pigeonhole app and am utterly gripped, I find myself eagerly refreshing the app after midnight each day waiting for the next stave (set of chapters) to arrive on my phone. This book follows Marie who is most definitely an unreliable narrator! Her best friend Nina has died and Marie is determined to help her grieving husband and children through this awful time. She inserts herself into their life and is fixated on being a part of their family. I’m really enjoying this one!

All the Lonely People by David Owen

This is a NetGalley book that I’ve had on my Kindle for quite a long time. I’m so pleased that I finally picked it up now as it’s such an interesting read. It follows Kat and Wesley, two teenagers who go to the same school. Kat has been the victim of a horrible campaign that has forced her offline and isolated her and she finds herself literally fading. Wesley got involved with two other boys who are behind the attacks on Kat but he feels awful about what he’s done and wants to somehow fix it. It’s a very prescient and powerful novel.

Recent Reads

Black and British: A Forgotten History by David Olusoga

I’ve been reading this book over the last couple of weeks and have deliberately taken my time with it as I wanted to really take in what I was reading and process it. Olusoga takes us through the forgotten history of black people in Britain and I learnt so much that I didn’t know before. I really appreciated how this book joined so many dots for me that I hadn’t fully connected before. I learnt about the white parts of some of this history in school but it was never, ever taught to us how it connected to what was happening in America and across the world as part of the slave trade. I’m ashamed that I’ve never properly sought out this history before but now I know better I’m determined to do better. As an aside I’ve discovered that the TV series of the same name which accompanies this book is being repeated on BBC4 if anyone is interested in watching it.

Be Careful What You Swipe For by Jemma Forte

This book is brilliant! It follows Charlotte as she shares her dating disasters but the novel has so much depth and it deals with some very serious issues. Charlotte has had quite a few dating dramas but through the novel she meets her Mr Right on Tinder but things don’t work out and we slowly find out what happened. I couldn’t put this book down, I read it all in one sitting as I just wanted to know what was going to happen. I reviewed this book yesterday so you can find my full thoughts here but I absolutely recommend this one.

#MeToo by Patricia Dixon

I got a month of Kindle Unlimited a few days ago and downloaded this book as I’ve seen it featured on quite a few blogs recently. It was a quick and gripping read. It follows three characters – Stan who is in prison convicted of raping his girlfriend; Billie who was Stan’s ex-girlfriend; and Kelly the woman who accused Stan of rape. I enjoyed seeing how this story played out and getting the different perspectives as a picture gradually emerges of just what happened the night of the rape. I read this in a couple of sittings and was gripped by it.

The Old You by Louise Voss

This is one of my 20 Books of Summer and I’m so pleased I finally picked it up. It follows Lynn as she comes to terms with her husband being diagnosed with early-onset dementia. Strange things start happening in and around the house and Lynn begins to doubt her own sanity. This is such a twisty book that you completely derails you on more than one occasion. I love Louise’s writing and this is one of her best novels. I’ve already reviewed it so you can find out more here.

Moonrise by Sarah Crossan

I borrowed this book from BorrowBox this week and read it in one sitting. It follows a teenage boy whose brother has been on death row for most of his life and he gets to visit him during the two months before he’s due to be put to death. This is an emotional read and I got swept up in this story. It’s heartbreaking but also beautifully written.

Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner

I started reading a NetGalley Arc of this but switched to audio book when I was struggling with it. It worked better for me on audio but ultimately this wasn’t really a book for me. I have reviewed this so you can see more of my thoughts here.

What I Might Read Next

How to be an AntiRacist by Ibram X. Kendi

I want to read this book as soon as I’ve finished reading When They Call You A Terrorist. I have Stamped from the Beginning by this author on my TBR but I think How to be an AntiRacist is the one I want to read first. As I watch documentaries and news reports and listen to the discussions that are happening in the wake of George Floyd’s murder I am increasingly aware of the insidious nature of the racism that people think isn’t racism and how we need to be better at calling this out. I think this book will open my eyes even further so I’m keen to read it very soon.

One Step Behind by Lauren North

I read and loved Lauren North’s previous novel The Perfect Betrayal so am excited to read her new one, I have such high hopes for this one. This book follows Jenna – a wife, mother and a doctor but she’s also the victim of a stalker. But one day her stalker is brought into the hospital after an accident and she suddenly finds the power back in her hands. I’m so intrigued by this and can’t wait to start reading it!

The Life We Almost Had by Amelia Henley

I’ve read and loved all of Louise Jenson’s thrillers so when I found out she had a book coming out under a pseudonym in a different genre I knew I had to read it! This follows a couple – Anna and Adam – who believed they’d be together forever but now a few years down the line cracks are showing and something happens to break them apart. This sounds like such an emotional read but one I’m really looking forward to picking up.

The 24 Hour Cafe by Libby Page

I was sent a copy of this book a while ago for review and haven’t managed to pick it up so I put it on my 20 Books of Summer TBR and hope to pick it up this week. I’m hoping for the predicted heatwave to finally arrive so that I can read it in the garden. This book follows Stella who runs a cafe that never sleeps, and two women who work there – Hannah and Mona. People come to the cafe for all sorts of reasons and I’m looking forward to meeting the staff and customers in this novel. It sounds like a lovely summer read!

What have you been reading this week? I’d love to hear. And if you take part in WWW Wednesdays or This Week in Books please feel free to leave your link below and I’ll make sure to visit and comment on your post. 🙂