Instagram story viewer> @jayslibrary_> Tagged

jayslibrary_

@jayslibrary_

2.1K

followers

858

following

📍London
📚 Book Lover | ✨Reviews & Recs

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Take some inspiration from our #Libby community 💕 this #ReadAnEbookDay! 📱 📕

Get access to thousands of free eBooks, audiobooks and magazines in Libby at the 🔗 in bio - all you need is your library card!

#LibbyApp #Bookish #UKBookstagram

58

6

📚This July, I teamed up with some of my favourite Bookstagrammers to curate a list of 31 highly recommend books for 31 days of July.

📖Swipe through and save for later.

🥰Got a book you think everyone should read? Share it in the comments!

.
.
.
#fyp #bookstagram #bookrecommendations #reading #books

3

37

A book launch that makes you feel like you stepped straight into the pages of the book? Yeah, Blacklisted did that!

Foluso Agbaje’s latest novel ‘Talk of the Party’ is set against the backdrop of a Lagos Party and @blacklistedbookclub hosted a book launch that was true to the owanbe vibe. From the coordinated outfits, to the small chops, the live band, these are all the details that make up a Nigerian party and it was a refreshing and authentic spin on a traditional book launch and one that I haven’t experienced before!

Thank you @blacklistedbookclub and @foagbaje, I’m looking forward to reading the book even more now! 🎉

.
.
.

#bookstagram #booklaunch #nigerianauthors #blackbooks #ukbookstagrammer

73

13

Spent yesterday morning celebrating the launch of @deeshaphilyaw’s upcoming novel ‘The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman’.

I loved reading The Secret Lives of Church Ladies and after hearing Deesha speak about her book I’m even more excited to read this one! I just know it’s going to be packed with drama and humour!!

Thank you @doubledayukbooks for the invite! It was a lovely morning!

This book will be in stores September 2026 in the US and January 2027 in the UK! Will be reading this soon, so look out for my review!

#Bookishevent #booklaunch #nobodyreadsanymore #bookstagram #read

43

18

Super grateful to my bookish community for helping me pick the 26 books I need to read in 2026! It was hard to pick just 26 creators to help with recommendations but I reached out to these 26 because I love their reviews and I knew they would give me a wide range of books to get through this year and they did not disappoint! We have books that I already own, books I’ve had my eyes on and books I haven’t heard of across all different genres and I can’t wait to get stuck into each one of these! 🤩

Let me know if you have read any of these and which one I should start with first 🥰📚✨

Thank you again to everyone for your amazing recommendations! Everyone go and give them a follow for even more great book recommendations ❤️

@onyekaonline @evieschapters @readbyhillary @your_reading_friend @jayslibrary_ @readwithkapz @the_abundant_word @nomesreadsbooks @thebookalert @jotheblackbookworm @bukolayemi @ninasreadingnook_ @amareadss @_renrenee @jpreads6 @theblackbookblogg @elz.bookshelf @ramsrambles @rayslaterb @aaronreadsfantasy @indiareadsalot

#bookstagram #26booksfor26 #bookcommunity #bookrecommendations #diversebookrecs

163

55

Wholesome Day. Falana 2025 ❤️

161

2

Happy hump day 🐪☀️

Hitting that midweek point, it's almost the weekend AND it's almost Christmas 🤗 I'm still deep in prep, wishing I'd started sooner 🤪

As the end of the year draws closer, I'm starting to think about reading 'goals' for 2026. I've never been one to set a number of books to read, but the past few years I have tried (and mostly failed!) various reading / book challenges... ask me about those if you're interested 😅

This coming year, I'm pondering whether I should start using the old #tbrjar I made during one of the many lockdowns we endured! This will be full of books I had on my shelves pre-2021 - and I need an excuse to read some of the older ones, rather than being distracted by new, shiny releases 🤭

#qotd - what reading goals or book challenges do you have in mind for the New Year? I'm open to ideas!
.
.
.
#readinggoals #bookchallenges #newyearnewme #tbr #bookishthoughts #bookishmerch

38

26

✨B O O K R E V I E W✨
The Girlfriend - Michelle Frances
.
I tore through this at rocket pace, not without plenty of eye-rolls along the way, but I was flooded with anxiety in the final pages, and immediately watched the TV adaptation - which has some wild changes 😅
.
📖𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞 psychological thriller
📍𝐒𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 affluent London suburbia
💫𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭 girl meets boy, and when tragedy strikes, his mother tells her an unforgiveable lie. It is an act of desperation, but the fall-out changes their lives forever
🌈𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬 class divides, toxic relationships, power, control
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 Laura has it all; a successful career, a long marriage to a rich husband, and an arguably unhealthy obsession with her son Daniel, pinning her entire happiness on him. Cherry is young, beautiful, clever, and the character you love to hate; she hasn't had the same opportunities as Daniel, she is desperate to erase her humble beginnings, craving status so fiercely she treats her caring mother with cold disdain, becoming downright nasty and vindictive in her fight for the life she thinks she deserves
✍🏼𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐭𝐲𝐥𝐞 toxic and addictively readable. On the surface it’s juicy, bingeable drama; underneath, it’s two women vying for Daniel’s undivided attention, a slightly tired dynamic. Foxes slink around searching for scraps, a clever nod to Cherry’s sly, conniving nature. Suspicion and obsession are palpable
🏃🏻‍♀️𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐞/𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 fast and melodramatic. Dual pov makes it hard to pick a side, but ultimately I was with Daniel's mum 🤭
🌪️𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 plenty of reveals, some predictable, others wild enough to keep you hooked
❌𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐬 a needless animal-cruelty subplot, and disjointed, unnatural dialogue that occasionally pulled me out of the story
🏁𝐄𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 claustrophobic, tense, a dramatic payoff
💭𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 a compulsive domestic thriller, imperfect execution, and characters designed to get under your skin. If you love messy people doing unhinged things, this one will deliver
.
RATING 🌟🌟🌟.💫
.
Huge thanks to @bookbreakuk and @panmacmillan for dropping this through my letterbox!
.
.
.
#bookreview #thegirlfriend

29

6

⚡w e e k l y r e p o r t⚡

Another manic week, travelling to London and Nottingham for work, book club, and a wet weekend in Wales. My optimism to read five books this month is rapidly dwindling, and my January book club pick is so bloody festive - I'll need to fit that in before the year is out too!

📚 Reading: Hard by a Great Forest for book club - a mixed response, mostly tipping into disappointment 😬 I'm back to reading Men Who Hate Women this weekend, which is far more my bag!

🍴 Eating: Christmas themed meals are on the go! Brie and cranberry jacket potato, and turkey, mozzarella, stuffing and cranberry toastie have been this week's MVPs 😋

🎧 Playing: board games with my family this weekend, Sequence caused dirty fighting talk and fierce competition 😈

😍 Obsessing: over Christmas food, my algorithm has picked up that I can't stop watching and saving reels centred around creative, festive snacks, and I'm not mad about it 🤭

🔔 Recommending: a duvet day before Christmas, silly season is in full swing and I feel like I already need a guilt-free rest 😅

🛍️ Treating myself to: M&S pistachio creme with shortbread fingers, and I suggest you do too. Unreal 🤤

✨💭 What was the highlight of your week?
.
.
.
#weeklyreport #catchup #highlights #bookstagramcomunity #whatthisweek

51

16

✨B O O K R E V I E W✨
Summerwater - Sarah Moss
.
Sodden, sad and nostalgic, with moments that made me smirk despite the gloom. Moss doesn't exactly inspire a weekend in Scotland, but she sure knows how to write.
.
📖𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞 literary fiction
📍𝐒𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 a gloomy cluster of holiday cabins beside a loch in rural Scotland amidst unrelenting rainfall - the perfect book to curl up with under a blanket, hot drink in hand
💫𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭 twelve people on holiday with their families; one particular family, a mother and daughter with the wrong clothes and the wrong manners, start to draw the unwanted attention of the others
🌈𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬 community & isolation, kindness & cruelty; thinly veiled prejudice
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 each offers a new perspective; about-to-be-married, married-with-kids, married-and-retired, unhappily married, and children’s viewpoints. Their internal monologues interlock beautifully, each getting more frustrated, brittle and distrusting as the book unfolds
🏃🏻‍♀️𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐞/𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 a devastating story told over twenty-four hours. Short, tightly controlled chapters reveal the characters' private worries, irritations, prejudices and assumptions, spiralling toward an unexpected, brutal climax
✍🏼𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐭𝐲𝐥𝐞 sparse yet immersive, comedic in parts, and atmospheric enough that you can practically feel the damp seeping in. Moss generates a creeping claustrophobia, as tensions rise in these tight spaces, it serves a pressure cooker of emotions
🌪️𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 shocking, disorienting, and deliberately abrupt
🏁𝐄𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 arguably perfect. I was blindsided, scrambling for more pages, an explanation, a continuation
💭𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 a masterclass in perspective and mood. Although, wild creative liberties in the TV adaptation left me a bit confused; the book’s subtlety doesn’t translate easily and some nuance gets lost
.
“Isn't that the point of climbing a mountain, to look down on the people who haven't?” 🔥👏🏻
.
RATING 🌟🌟🌟🌟.💫
.
@thecuriouscatbookshop upped the ante with this one, it's definitely worth picking up for a winter read.
.
.
.
#summerwater #sarahmoss #bookreview #moodyreads #bookclub #tvadaptation

35

17

✨B O O K R E V I E W✨
The Unbroken Beauty of Rosalind Bone - Alex McCarthy
.
Now we're getting to the good stuff, August saw my favourite pick yet from @thecuriouscatbookshop supper book club 😍
.
📖𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞 literary fiction
📍𝐒𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 the fictional village of Cwmcysgod in the Welsh valleys
💫𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭 Mary had a sister once, a girl of unparalleled beauty, who disappeared in a shroud of shame. Now, the sins of the past are approaching, for it takes a village: to raise a child, to bring down a woman, to hide something monstrous and to look the other way
⚠️𝐓𝐖 suicide, child abuse
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 complex, wounded, shaped by the pressures of poverty, isolation and expectation. Rosalind herself becomes a symbol of beauty, which is mistaken for a strength, something to be cherished; instead she is punished by the curse of her beauty, envied to the point of dislike, judged without cause. Mary and Rosalind's sibling relationship is fraught, not wanting to be tarred with the same brush, struggling to be something different
✍🏼𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐭𝐲𝐥𝐞 gorgeous prose, measured and atmospheric. McCarthy captures the child abuse in a way that is quietly devastating rather than overt and gritty; penning a small village, cut off from the world, with it's own ecosystem, steeped in fear of revealing the abuse and being blamed
🏃🏻‍♀️𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐞/𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 thirty four concise chapters make for a brisk 160 page read, yet it's a book that says a lot and feels surprisingly weighty
🌪️𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 I guessed the twist but it didn't make the book any less beautiful
🏁𝐄𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 satisfying in it's sadness, poetic & fitting
💭𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 reminds you that it’s easy to judge, but we never know what secrets and trauma lie beyond the skin’s surface, a novel that understands the silent ways trauma shapes a life
.
RATING 🌟🌟🌟🌟.💫
.
“This was what a single word could do. Trap a woman.”
.
.
.
#bookreview #literaryfiction #bookstagram #readersofinstagram #bookclub #shortread #prettycover

39

7

⚡w e e k l y r e p o r t⚡

A busy working week, finished off with a very chilled, wholesome weekend 🎄🥰

📚 Reading: Men Who Hate Women by Laura Bates. I was warned I would be enraged, but I didn't expect to feel so sad 🥺

🍴 Eating: Deliciously Ella's five ingredient breakfast cookies, breaky has never been so easy and still so tasty 😋

🎧 Playing: pub quiz with my family this week, we didn't win but good craic 😅

😍 Obsessing: over my Christmas tree, we only recently had the living room decorated and it's just added that next level of cosy I needed 🤗

🔔 Recommending: The Block on Prime - it's an Aussie home reno competition, it's a commitment at ~50 episodes a season, but it is top tier tele. I sob at auction day every time 😭

🛍️ Treating myself to: Quality Streets whilst putting the tree up, be rude not to 🤭

✨💭 What was the highlight of your week?
.
.
.
#weeklyreport #catchup #highlights #bookstagramcomunity #christmastree

91

20