I began with a book I probably wouldn’t have picked up myself, but which was the book of choice for one of my two reading groups.The Girl Under The Olive Tree by Leah Fleming (published Simon and Schuster UK 2013). It should have been a good read (interesting storyline about an English nurse working for the resistance in Crete during WW2) but there were some irritating anomalies and frequent failures to capitalise on opportunities for dramatic tension. I was left feeling dissatisfied, though I did learn some fascinating facts about Crete and WW2.

My second book also failed to grab me fully. I recently went to a talk by author Natasha Solomons and thought she spoke well and interestingly. I picked up a copy of The Gallery of Vanished Husbands(published Sceptre 2013) and keenly anticipated reading it. But I wasn’t completely convinced by her portrayal of the main character and I found the plot unrealistic in places. However, it is well written; her use of language appealed to me, as did the pace of the book, and there are some excellent descriptive passages. I think I will try another of her books. One more to add to my list.

Next I moved on to another reading group choice: The Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks(published Fourth Estate 2002). This was in fact a re-read for me, but I relished the opportunity to have a fresh look at a book which has long been on my Top Ten List. It’s based on the true story of a Derbyshire village coping with an outbreak of plague in the seventeenth century and is one of those books which is almost unbearable to read, and yet equally you can hardly bear to put it down.

As an aspiring short story and flash fiction writer, I have been eagerly awaiting the chance to read Hilary Mantel’s new short story collection The Assassination of Margaret Thatcher(published Fourth Estate 2014) and I wasn’t disappointed. Each individual story is a compelling read and all are powerful, harrowing, disturbing and haunting. In fact they made me question why I read. Is it for pleasure and relaxation? To learn? To be challenged? Or to appreciate the skill of the writer? In the case of this book, I think it is the latter two. And that is a tribute to Hilary Mantel who is a supremely good writer.

After that, I needed something less stressful and turned to Claire Sandy’s novel What Would Mary Berry Do?(published Pan Books 2014) Who doesn’t love Mary Berry and the Bake Off programmes? I’m a big fan, and this lighthearted tale of a harassed mother teaching herself with Mary Berry’s help to bake appealed to me. In fact I could have done with a bit more of the baking and a bit less of the rest of the story. It isn’t a book that will stick in my mind for years to come, but it is an enjoyable and relaxing read and I definitely recommend it if that’s the sort of book you’re looking for.

It’s a truism to say variety is the spice of life, but I’m learning that my choice of books reflects just that. So now I have a problem. What to pick up first for month 3?