Rave Reads of the Year – 9
Rave Reads of the Year – 9
This month I invite author friends to share one of their Rave Reads of the Year. Today’s choices come from Maureen Myant, Chris Curran and Jackie Baldwin.
#RaveReads2025
Maureen Myant’s Rave Read
The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller
The Land in Winter is set during the 'big freeze' of early 1963. It concerns the lives of two couples, farmer Bill and his wife, Rita, and the village doctor, Eric and his wife, Iris. The two women, both pregnant, strike up an unlikely friendship. Andrew Miller’s prose is beautiful. The detailed descriptions allow you to picture scenes clearly. From the beginning, the reader is drawn into the lives of these four people. I’m old enough to remember that winter and the detail of life in the early sixties, the drabness of those post war years, is very well done. This is a character-driven book so if you like twisty plots then it’s maybe not for you. It’s a book to be read slowly, best savoured in front of a fire on a bleak winter’s day and if there’s snow falling, so much the better.
Maureen Myant writes crime stories mainly set in her home town of Glasgow. The latest book in her Glasgow southside series is The Fallen.
Chris Curran’s Rave Read
What We Can Know by Ian McEwan
I love discussing and sharing books, so I was thrilled when Rachel asked me to recommend one of the 2025 titles I’ve enjoyed this year. However, the task proved much more difficult than I’d imagined because it’s been a bumper year. So, which recent complete read has stuck firmly in my mind? Well, it has to be the latest Ian McEwan, What We Can Know. I’m a McEwan fan, but his novels and short stories are so varied that for me there have been some misses as well as hits. However, this one was a total delight
A story of two halves, one set in a near future where climate change and war has turned Britain into an archipelago, and another in our own time which the hero, a professor in one of the few remaining universities, imagines as a lost a golden age. It blends speculative sci-fi with a treasure hunt, a murder mystery and even a romance.
A cautionary tale, but so delicately told that you needn’t fear being depressed by reading it over the festive season.
Chris Curran writes psychological thrillers. Visit her website to find out about her books and stories.
Jackie Baldwin’s Rave Read
In Dying Light by Daniel Aubrey
I thoroughly enjoyed Dark Island, the first book in this series and The Dying Light was a terrific follow up. The main character, Freya Sinclair is a journalist and strong female lead who struggles in both her personal and professional life with autism. This gave the book a depth and power that is not easily forgotten. Her dogged determination to find out who killed her father propels her headlong into danger. The setting of Orkney in the height of summer was brilliantly evoked and really added to the scorching intensity of this fine crime thriller. Highly recommended!
Jackie Baldwin writes cosy crime novels, including The Wild Haggis Bookshop mystery series.
Other Rave Reads of the Year Posts
#RaveReads2025
Linda Huber, Georgia Hill and Maggie Christensen
Michael Wood, Penny Batchelor and Terri Nixon
Fergus Smith, A.S. Andrejevic and Anne Coates
Della Galton, Brian Price and Gillian Walker
Peter Garrett, Mary-Jane Riley and Victoria Gemmell
Rob Gittins, Rosemary Gemmell and Julie Anderson