Part of the Dark Tales series - novellas retelling tales from Scottish folklore and history. This is about a true crime committed in 1857 in the Outer Hebrides. Benbecula by Graeme Macrae Burnet. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/5b24...

Seascraper by Benjamin Wood is £1.99 on Kobo and Kindle today. Well worth it. Lovely book. Orbital by Samantha Harvey is 99p. I didn't get on with it but many people rate it very highly.

I'm afraid this didn't live up to the hype for me. Katabasis by R F Kuang. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/0e33...

Some Kazuo Ishiguros going cheap on Kindle today (and a couple on Kobo).

Wowzers. A short book with a slow burn. If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English by Noor Naga. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/2fad...

I love a book that leaves me feeling a bit emotional. The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/6bd6...

People rave about this book but it didn't do it for me. Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/4af2...

My hibiscus has bees feeding on its flowers, my pelargoniums are not only in bloom but producing new buds, and my spring bulbs are popping up. It's also November.

A Fantasia jack-o'-lantern this year.

Absolutely gorgeous novella. I can see why people were upset it didn't make the Booker shortlist. Seascraper by Benjamin Wood. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/dd7c...

People seem to either love or hate this book. I was kind of in the middle. Helm, by Sarah Hall. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/d882...

They said we might get some good autumn colour. This is by the entrance to Bromley Palace Park where I was delighted to be surrounded by huge flocks of long tailed tits and goldcrests. Lovely!

I've been struggling with my concentration recently so took a while to get through this book, but I loved it nevertheless. Muckle Flugga by Michael Pedersen. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/10ae...

Interesting that this was on BBC News today as I took my two cats in for their yearly jabs. The receptionist was so shocked at my bill that she took considerable time to show me how I could bring it down. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Some Booker longlisters are cheap on Kindle (but not Kobo) today: - The Rest of Our Lives - Love Forms - Endling Also Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go, which disgracefully I've never read.

I enjoyed this, but I don't know why blurbs are so often misleading. Greater Sins by Gabrielle Griffiths. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/6f4a...

I went on a bat walk in a local park this evening. We saw pipistrelles, and heard on our bat detectors (but didn't see) daubenton's bats. You can hear the bat detectors in the background.

Highly recommend this book. I loved it. The Original by Nell Stevens. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/e827...

Great fun, but changes might be needed to keep future instalments fresh. The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/dd87...

Having complained about the state of a Church House Gardens I didn't have much of an excuse not to turn up to a volunteers day recently. In just three hours we cut back and uncovered the path behind the lake that had been completely lost to overgrown plants. More volunteers days to come.

Sadly unimpressed by this. The Ghost Cat by Alex Howard. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/0040...

I think this shortlist might prove controversial. The popular favourite (Seascraper) isn't there, and some less well liked ones are. Personally I'm happy that Audition made it, although not everyone will agree.

Very sweet, but flowery writing isn't for me. A Room Above a Shop by Anthony Shapland. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/7cfd...

It took me a while to get on with this book but I'm so glad I persevered. Just wow. We Pretty Pieces of Flesh by Colwill Brown. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/671e...

There were a couple of points where I started to get a bit frustrated with this book - it felt much longer than its 200 pages - but I'm glad I persevered. Love forms by Claire Adam. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/c7a0...

I didn't dislike it, but I doubt I'll be reading the other three volumes when they come out. The South by Tash Aw. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/f2b3...

Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon is 99p on Kobo and Kindle today. If for some crazy reason you haven't already read it, I insist you buy it now.

Of the five Booker longlisters I've read so far, this is in equal first place with Audition. Flesh by David Szalay. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/5a3f...

Another novel about an unhinged woman. I enjoyed it for the most part, but the end section stumped me somewhat. The Coin by Yasmin Zaher. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/97bd...

I liked this, but I don't think it's a Booker winner. The Rest of our Lives by Benjamin Markovits. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/af6c...

I'm left a bit confused by this book, and I don't seem to be the only one. Universality by Natasha Brown. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/63c2...

A book that divides people, but I loved it. I suspect skim-readers won't get as much out of this book. The author does tell you what's going on. Audition by Katie Kitamura. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/c408...

The first of this year's Booker longlist that I've read. Some excellent parts. Some not so much. Saved in part for me by its setting in Greece, a country I absolutely adore. One Boat by Jonathan Buckley. app.thestorygraph.com/books/11ea8e...

I enjoyed this book, but not as much as the hype led me to believe I would. Dusk by Robbie Arnott. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/c450...

Went out to watch the Perseids last night. Only saw one, plus a couple of maybes. Loads of satellites/space junk though. Sadly no bats around this year.

Brown hairstreak butterfly just landed next to me in the garden. On the red list and not often seen this far east, I believe.

How sad. Mr Benn was my absolute favourite as a child. Actor Ray Brooks, voice of Mr Benn, dies aged 86. www.bbc.com/news/article...

This was one of Amazon's Kindle pre-publication freebies for Prime members. I've never been tempted by any before but this sounded like it could be interesting. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. The First Witch of Boston by Andrea Catalano. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/c2ae...

Legend says they’re still looking for the ball.. 😂

Ooh, if I'd been born on Mars, today would be my 31st birthday 🎂 #mathaversaries

Not as horrific, when taken in context, as some reviews would lead you to believe, but still not for the weak stomached. Butcher, by Joyce Carol Oates. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/a4c4...

Lots of Kindle versions of Barbara Kingsolver novels on sale today. Plus There are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak and Butter by Asako Yuzuki are 99p on Kindle. Butter is 99p on Kobo too.

I've not read any of these, and only heard of about half. I'm not going to attempt the entire longlist but I'll see how many I can get through. I've maxed out my holds limit at the library!

Rather passive-aggressive of @thestorygraph.com AI 😂

An excellent book, but one I found quite hard work. Brotherless Night by V V Ganeshananthan. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/d000...

NEWS: The leasehold sale of the Regency Café in Pimlico (founded 1946) has just been announced, for an undisclosed sum. C20 Society explored the possibility of a listing application, however it was concluded that the tiled facade and signage, a key feature, was not original but a recent facsimile.

Good grief, it's still July!

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout is 99p on Kindle and Kobo today. Buy it! Now!

Not sure why there's been such hype about this book. Strange Pictures by Uketsu. app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/f3d6...