It was one of those surreal chance things. There I was, browsing the Bookmooch forums when I came across a link to Blog A Penguin Classic.

What a fabulous marketing idea. Give one free copy of each classic to a volunteer who will then blog about their book on the penguin website and on their own blog. It’s a brilliant way to spread the word about some of the more obscure classics as well as to remind people of some of the fab books out there. Needless to say, I leapt on the bandwagon with gusto and have been allocated Voltaire’s Letters on England. It’s got a 5* review on Amazon and I laughed a lot when I read ‘Candide’, so I’m hopeful. The hubby, on the other hand, is donning his tux to read some Ian Fleming.

My current ‘to be read’ stash is full of light and flippant stuff. It’s a tough time of the year and bright and breezy stuff that doesn’t require a lot of brain power is definitely on the cards. I’m in the middle of Julia Quinn’s series on the Bridgerton family. I’ve read books 1-6 and am currently waiting Gregory and Hyacinth’s stories from lovely people on Bookmooch. I’m surprised by just how much I’ve enjoyed these books as I never would have gone out of my way to buy them. Julia Quinn is very witty and she develops characters that you really grow to care about. One of the things that I’ve loved about the series so far is that no matter where Colin goes, he’s hungry. Food miraculously materialises with long-suffering butlers, or he grazes from what food is there. Little motifs like that just make it for me.

The banter between the siblings is fantastic, but mostly I love how she develops her characters. The relationships between them are so well done, and of course, there is the constant question of ‘Who exactly is the mysterious Lady Whistledown?’ to contend with. They’re real feel-good books, and I’d definitely recommend them!