Portobello Book Blog

I think I may have done this last year but spotted it today on Janet Emson’s blog From First Page to Last and thought I’d give it a go again. So from 158 books read in 2018, can I mark off all the 25 Bingo squares? Click the titles to read my reviews. Here goes…

A book with more than 500 pages.

The longest book I read this year was The Facts of Life by Patrick Gale, coming in at 560 pages.

A forgotten classic

I haven’t actually read any classics this year although I read a few which were imagined sequels or prequels. From those What Kitty Did Next by Carrie Kablean was a favourite. It told the story of Kitty Bennet after the marriages of her sisters Jane and Lizzy.

A book that became a movie

I haven’t read anything which has been made into a film. There are a few I’d love to see on the big screen but I can’t really tick off this box.

A book published this year (2018)

Well, most of my books were published in 2018 so picking one at random, I’m going to use Peter May’s I’ll Keep You Safe, a thriller which was full of surprises and which I read while on holiday in Lewis, where a large part of the story takes place.

A book with a number in the title

It Takes One to Know One by Isla Dewar fits this category. A gentle detective story set right here in Portobello.

A book written by someone under thirty

I don’t think that any of my books this year were written by someone under thirty. The only thing I can think of is that perhaps some of the contributors to the compilation marking 100 years of women’s suffrage, The Word for Freedom, may have been but I’m honestly not sure.

A book with non-human characters

The cat Schubert played a very significant role in Kirsty Ferry’s Christmas novella A Christmas Secret!

A funny book

The funniest book I read this year was definitely Miss Blaine’s Prefect and the Golden Samovar by Olga Wojtas.

A book by a female author

The vast majority of the books I read are by women so I have a huge number to choose from. The one I am choosing for this square though is Still Me by JojoMoyes, the last in the You Before Me trilogy featuring Louisa Clark. I loved meeting up with this character again.

A book with a mystery

One of the last books I read in 2018 was The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths (included in my mini reviews yesterday) which was a murder mystery with a hint of the supernatural too.

A book with a one word title

Not many to choose from so I have gone for Ghost by Helen Grant. Again there was a hint of the supernatural in this book which was set in a dilapidated old house in the countryside.

A book of short stories

I recently enjoyed Shelley Day’s collection of short stories What Are You Like.

Free square

For this I am choosing another favourite read this year, the very romantic Somewhere Beyond The Sea by Miranda Dickinson. A beautiful story which made me cry a bit but also smile a lot.

A book set on a different continent

Most of my reading this year has been firmly set in the UK but a book which made my Top Reads list was One Thousand Stars and You by Isabelle Broom. This beautiful love story was set in Sri Lanka.

A book of non fiction

It has to be I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O’Farrell. Beautifully written account of some incredible experiences. I don’t appear to have written a blog post review for it though.

The first book by a favourite author

Since most of my books are recently published, I don’t have any which fit this category although have read a few by people who I think will become favourite authors!

A book you heard about online

I hear about most of my books online. I am going to choose CS Duffy’s series of books called Dark of Night for this square. I met the author through a Facebook group first, then in real life and that’s how I cam across these fast paced, thrilling books.

A best-selling book

Elinor Oliphant is Completely Fine fits in this square. I think I read recently that it is still one of the best-selling books this year. Again, I haven’t written a blog review for it.

A book based on a true story

Just yesterday was the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the ship the Iolaire which resulted in the deaths of over 200 men, many of whom were returning from fighting in the First World War. Donald Murray’s As The Women Lay Dreaming is inspired by this tragic event.

A book at the bottom of your TBR pile

From Paris With Love This Christmas by Jules Wake was a book I’d had on my Kindle for a couple of years. Finally got around to reading it over Christmas this year and I loved it! It’s included in yesterday’s mini reviews.

A book your friend loves

I’m going to cheat a little here and pick The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes by Ruth Hogan. Again a book which made my Top Reads list this year. It’s only a cheat because I recommended it to my friend rather than the other way around. But she did love it!

A book that scares you

I don’t really read scary books so can’t mark this square. Quite a few books had unsettling parts in them but nothing I would say was actually frightening.

A book that is more than 10 years old

I can’t tick off this square as all the books are too new!

The second book in a series

I was looking forward to the second in Jackie Baldwin’s series featuring DI Frank Farrell and I loved it! Perfect Dead is the second book about the ex-priest and set in beautiful Dumfries and Galloway.

A book with a blue cover

I had lots to choose from here, blue seems a popular colour this year! I have chosen The Trick to Time by Kit de Waal – another of my top reads for 2018.

So if I am being generous and allowing myself that almost classic and if someone under thirty was in that anthology, I managed 21 /25. Have a go yourself and see how many you get.