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Hi all :)

 

I have a problem. Yes, apart from the obvious one(s) :lol:

 

It's my mum's birthday coming up soon, and I always buy her some books because she loves to read. Unfortunately, I'm running out of ideas, and I'm hoping someone here could point me in the right direction.

 

She tends to like novels that are about family, and/or multiple generations of said families. She tends to like stories set in the past, rather than modern day. At the moment she is into Phillipa Gregory, and has enjoyed her Wideacre trilogy and The Other Boleyn Girl, and has The White Queen waiting to be read (all of which I bought for her :lol: ). In the past she has read the likes of Catherine Cookson, Jean Plaidy, Maeve Binchey. Nothing too raunchy or sweary. There are other authors she has tried, but I can't remember them at the moment, and - apart from anything else - it's becoming impossible to recall what she has or hasn't read, as she hasn't kept all her books for me to check. Pretty inconsiderate, I'm sure you'd agree :lol:

 

So I think my only alternative is to try an author who is something like one of the above, and who she hasn't read before.

 

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! :)

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A couple of titles come to mind: Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell and Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. The latter one has some possibly none-interesting bits which your Mum might not like, I. e. hermaphrod..ilia? Is that a word? An excellent book anyways.

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The book I was going to suggest is long since out of print, unfortunately.

 

If she wouldn't mind a second-hand copy though there are loads on Amazon! It's Hardacre by C L Skelton. It's been donkey's years since I read it when I was about 15 (so 30 years, give or take!) but I remember really enjoying it, although it's not the sort of thing I'd buy now.

 

I think it's probably fairly Catherine Cookson-esque - I hadn't thought about it for years until I read this but it immediately sprang to mind! :)

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Has she read the Kate Morton books,House at Riverton, The Forgotten Garden and The Distant Hours? Also The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield may appeal. I'm sure she would also like The Novel in the Viola by Natasha Solomons too, I just read it last week and thought it was brilliant.

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Ooh, thank you! I know she's got Gone With The Wind (that's one that's still on her shelf), but the C L Skelton, Kate Morton and Natasha Solomons ones sound just her kind of thing :D

 

Has anyone read anything by Christie Dickason or Gabrielle Kimm?

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Has she read the Kate Morton books,House at Riverton, The Forgotten Garden and The Distant Hours? Also The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield may appeal. I'm sure she would also like The Novel in the Viola by Natasha Solomons too, I just read it last week and thought it was brilliant.

 

I was going to suggest the very same. it sounds like my mum has very similar tastes to yours, Karsa Orlong... and if I remember correctly she loved these.

 

A little bit left-field, but something my mum has been obsessive about for years... I bought her the Harry Potter books on audio CD read by Stephen Fry, and she absolutely loves them. Has listened to the whole thing more times than any of us know! Just another idea :)

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I think your mum has similar tastes to mine. Has she tried any Elisabeth Chadwick books. If she likes Philippa Gregory she might like to try some of Elisabeth's books - they take place earlier in history (usually around 12th Century) but they are great stories.

 

If she is wanting a doorstep challenge, they maybe try some Edward Rutherfurd. His sagas start in various countries from the beginning of time to present day. I'd recommend London, Russka and Sarum.

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  • 2 months later...

Thanks everyone for the suggestions - I got her The Forgotten Garden in the end - and she hasn't read it yet, she's still reading Phillipa Gregory! :lol:

 

Anyway, I'm now plundering the suggestions in here again for one of her Christmas prezzies :D

 

Edit: The Rosamunde Pilcher one looks like exactly the sort of book she likes, thanks :)

Edited by Karsa Orlong
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May I also suggest a translation of Scandinavia's Margit Sandemoe's great work - The Legend of the Ice People :) Don't let the strange-sounding name put you off. They are family oriented, there are HEAPS of them (47), they come with a supernatural evil twist (a blood line curse) but they are addictive and captivating and a great read. They include upper class / royalty as well as lower class.

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