Sam's Fireside - Cosy Book Reviews & Recommendations

“A multitude of people and yet a solitude.” December's choice for #classiclitbookclub was A Tale of Two Cities, and I have to be honest—having finished it, I don't think Dickens and I click! 😬 This was tough, slow-going, and, quite frankly, boring. I tried to mix it up: I read some, but listened to most of it—let's be honest, it was the only way I was going to get through it! 🎧 That's fifteen hours of my life I'm never getting back. ⏳ I don't know whether it was the subject—the French Revolution 🇫🇷—or the writing, maybe some of both. I know people who love Dickens, so I’ll give others a go at some point, but this one will never be on my list again—sorry, not sorry! 😅 While I didn't enjoy most of the book, I did have a soft spot for Dr. Manette and his daughter Lucie ❤️, who comes to his rescue after many years of imprisonment in France and helps him regain relatively stable mental health. But yep, that was about it. The only other Dickens novel I’ve rea...

"Say the lines as written or I swear I will write your character as a dickless mute monk." This book has a pet alligator called Bubbles, so honestly, I was already in! Add Ethan with his awesome, loving Floridian family and Chase, who’s all attitude with some very real confidence issues underneath, and I was hooked. Fake It ’Til You Sleigh It is hot, spicy, and funny, with a fake dating set-up that works really well. I will say, Christmas in the sun just doesn’t feel right to me — I want to be wrapped in a million layers on Christmas Day, not wearing a bikini on the beach — but I still had a great time with this one. I really enjoyed watching Chase and Ethan take on their challenge to gain new subscribers for the TV channel they both work for, especially the clever (and sometimes ridiculous) ideas they come up with. It was a great listen overall, and the narrators did an excellent job bringing both characters to life. Thank you to MeLisa Ryun and Literary Media Tours for the ...

“Sometimes bridges aren’t meant to be rebuilt.” Good Spirits was December's pick for #thatindiebookclub, and since I already had it on my Libro FM shelf, I decided to listen 🎧. I loved it! Going in with zero expectations, I was completely blown away 😍. It's cute, ghostly 👻, magical ✨, and fun 🎄. I was so proud of Harriet as she finally stands up to her family. Nolan gives her the confidence to do so, and in return, she has a huge, positive effect on him 💛. The narrators were fantastic—especially Nolan! I’m a sucker for an Irish accent 🇮🇪, and it made his character even more charming and enjoyable to listen to. December seems to be my month for reading books featuring the undead 🧟‍♂️—but in a cutesy, romantic way 💕. Listening to Good Spirits gave me cosy, “relaxing by the fire under a warm blanket” vibes 🔥🛋️, especially with the rain 🌧️ (yes, more likely in the UK than snow ❄️) falling outside. If you’re into fun, romantic Christmas stories with lots of ghostly magic...

"She felt a surge of affection for all of them; to think that, just six months before, they had been at each other's throats, and now they shared friendships that she considered unbreakable." I'm finally getting around to writing my review for Witchcraft and Fury by T.T. Greenshaw. I really enjoyed this one, and although it has a slightly slow start while the world-building settles in 🏗️, the pace soon picks up and I raced through the second half ⚡️. Solar, our seventeen-year-old protagonist, is a witch-in-training who’s sassy, bold, and full of confidence ✨. Nothing and no one is going to stand in the way of her training or her dream of becoming the witch she’s always imagined—even if it once felt impossible. I loved Solar's adventures; the friends she made along the way became like family 💛, and by the end, they all had each other's backs. “All for one” and all that! 🧙‍♀️ Full of magic, potions, weird creatures 🧪🦑, and even a flying carpet 🪄, Witchcraf...

“No, my friend. We are lunatics from the hospital up the highway, psycho-ceramics, the cracked pots of mankind." One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was November’s read for #classiclitbookclub, and I opted for the audiobook. I found a great copy on Libby narrated by Tom Parker, who absolutely nailed it 🎧. I went in with zero expectations — classic me, never reading the synopsis 😜 — and it’s not a book I ever came across in school. So I was genuinely surprised when the opening chapters gave me The Green Mile vibes (I know it’s a book too, but I’ve only seen the movie!) 🎬. The story was incredibly eye-opening. From what I understand, treatments like electric shock therapy, lobotomies, and simply locking people away for having mental health issues were all considered normal at the time ⚡🧠. Horrifying, honestly. And the wildest part is that it really wasn’t that long ago. We’ve come such a long way since then. Nurse Ratched, though… wow. She should’ve been running a prison, not a ward...

"A good cuppa tea can solve most problems, and if it can't, you've probably got bigger issues than a biscuit can fix".  Peter Kay is one of the UK's top comedians 🎤 and he's absolutely hilarious. In my opinion, he's one of the best at observational comedy 😂 in the business. I was lucky enough to see him on tour earlier this year, which was fantastic, and because I adore his Yorkshire accent 😍, I wanted to listen to his new autobiography so I could linger in those dulcet tones. In this one, each chapter focuses on a month of the year 📅 — from January through to December. Peter picks a memory or two for each month and captivates the listener as he shares his humorous take on whatever he's talking about, whether it's summer holidays ☀️, Valentine's Day ❤️, or Christmas 🎄. In his own inimitable way, Peter draws you into his world and makes you feel as though you were right there with him. Never do I laugh so hard as when I'm watching Peter...

“I have tickets to the Nutcracker. Expensive tickets.”  A Ferry Merry Christmas was my first venture into Debbie Macomber’s books, and off we trotted to Seattle for a ferry ride across the Puget Sound. The entire story unfolds over just a few hours, as we follow the passengers aboard a rather dodgy ferry  ⛴️  that decides to break down mid-journey. 😬 Avery, Harrison, Virginia, James, Beth, Logan, and Olivia are our main characters, all stranded together. And in just a short space of time, each of their lives is going to change—naturally, for the better. 💛 I love how their stories intertwine, how Debbie weaves her Christmas  🎅🏼 magic throughout the ferry, and how joy, forgiveness, understanding, and love ripple through every chapter. 💫 If you’re after a cute, Christmassy  🎁  read that will leave you smiling, definitely pick up a copy of this one. 😊 Thank you to Sphere, Little, Brown Book Group, and Hachette UK for the gifted copy of A Ferry Merry Chri...

“When everything went to hell, at least she could always count on scones.” I honestly wasn’t expecting to enjoy Foxglove more than Belladonna, but I did! Why did I wait so long to read this series?! 🤦‍♀️ We created a “sequel shelf” at #thatindiebookclub, and thank goodness we did. This one has been sitting there ever since we read Belladonna last year — such a good idea, because otherwise I know I’d never have picked it back up! I also seem to be on a bit of a run reading about the undead 😁. First this one, and now I’m listening to Good Spirits. Apparently I’m leaning into a theme! I ended up switching between reading and listening to Foxglove because once I’d started, I didn’t want to take a break — but unfortunately real life insisted I get on with things 😅. I still struggle with the whole “human getting it on with Death” situation 😂. Signa continues her very weird relationship with Death, but this time Fate throws himself into the mix — and what an arrogant twonk he is! (Google ...

“Even alligators have parents, Dawes. That doesn't stop them from biting” Ninth House 📚 was the book of choice for November's read for #thatindiebookclub. I didn’t really know what “Dark Academia” 🏛️ was all about when the theme for that month was revealed, and that’s exactly what I love about these book club reads—they push you to try things you might not have picked up otherwise! ✨ I decided to listen to the audiobook 🎧 for this one, and I really liked it. It was slow to start as we’re dropped into Alex’s Yale world—a world she was recruited into rather than earned through school achievements, all because she can see ghosts! 👻 The story is told across two timelines: Spring 🌸 and Winter ❄️. I’m still not entirely sure when Alex arrived at Yale and which timeline features Darlington training her versus after he disappears. But honestly, it doesn’t really matter—I don’t feel the need to understand every single detail to enjoy a story, and I absolutely did. 😄 I loved Alex’s...