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Bobbie’s Year In Books

Bobbie’s 2024 Year in Books

Take a look at Bobbie’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

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Debbie Blake

124 books | 1,058 friends

Katie

756 books | 54 friends

Sonya Wanvig

4,491 books | 112 friends

Caroline

1,092 books | 232 friends

Micha

542 books | 48 friends

Ron McMillan

31 books | 6 friends

Chris Catty

795 books | 24 friends

Mahyar Tehrani

282 books | 25 friends

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Bobbie Darbyshire

Goodreads Author

Born

London, The United Kingdom

Website

http://is.gd/u8V4hA

Twitter

bobbiedar

Genre

Fiction, Humor and Comedy

Member Since

May 2011

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/bobbiedar

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Bobbie's fifth novel, 'The Third Bus' was published in October 2023. Her earlier novels are: 'The Posthumous Adventures of Harry Whittaker', 'Oz', 'Love, Revenge & Buttered Scones' and 'Truth Games'.

She won the 2008 fiction prize at the National Academy of Writing and the New Delta Review Creative Nonfiction Prize 2010. She has worked as barmaid, mushroom picker, film extra, maths coach, cabinet minister's private secretary, care assistant and volunteer adult-literacy teacher, as well as in social research and government policy.

Her latest novel is 'The Third Bus': An unappreciated man walks out of his dispiriting 42-year marriage with no destination in mind. At Victoria coach station, on the spur of the moment he boards a coach to Norwich. Bobbie's fifth novel, 'The Third Bus' was published in October 2023. Her earlier novels are: 'The Posthumous Adventures of Harry Whittaker', 'Oz', 'Love, Revenge & Buttered Scones' and 'Truth Games'.

She won the 2008 fiction prize at the National Academy of Writing and the New Delta Review Creative Nonfiction Prize 2010. She has worked as barmaid, mushroom picker, film extra, maths coach, cabinet minister's private secretary, care assistant and volunteer adult-literacy teacher, as well as in social research and government policy.

Her latest novel is 'The Third Bus': An unappreciated man walks out of his dispiriting 42-year marriage with no destination in mind. At Victoria coach station, on the spur of the moment he boards a coach to Norwich. A late-life coming-of-age story, mixing humour and sorrow, hope and regret.

Bobbie's four earlier novels are:

'The Posthumous Adventures of Harry Whittaker': A world-famous superstar actor – think Laurence Olivier crossed with Jack Nicholson – dies, but to his astonishment finds he’s still here among us. He’s able to watch the effect of his mean-spirited will on those left behind, including his son (cycling along on the cover) and even his cat. If your spirits are in need of a lift, it’s a real feel-good book that will keep you hooked.

'OZ': Mark Jonnson's life is a mess. He fears his marriage is over, but can't bear to leave his boisterous 7-year-old daughter, Matilda. Just when he thinks things can't get worse, his mother is killed in a road accident. Shocked and grieving, he decamps to her house, where he uncovers a secret that turns his life upside-down and sends him and his daughter on a whirlwind search for the truth.

Sarah Rayner, author of 'One Moment, One Morning', says of 'Oz', "What a delight to find a novel that's both a page-turner and a nuanced exploration of characters. The tensions and subtleties of relationships of marriage and parenting across the decades are explored with delicacy, yet the storytelling never falters, as a constantly evolving plot keeps you hooked until the last page."

'Love, Revenge & Buttered Scones': Long-listed for the 2011 International Rubery Book Award. In this comedy of errors, three troubled people dash off to the Scottish Highlands, where their destinies are mysteriously entwined around a reading group in the Inverness public library. Twists & surprises, very funny with also some dark, serious threads, it keeps you guessing throughout.

'Truth Games': In 1970s London, the blazing summers of 75 & 76, a group of friends get out of their depth in infidelity. Thought-provoking, amusing & sexy, a book about how we hurt each other with lies and with truths.

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Combine Editions
Bobbie Darbyshire’s books

Average rating: 3.68 · 234 ratings · 70 reviews · 10 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Posthumous Adventures of Harry Whittaker 3.67 avg rating — 121 ratings — published 2019 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Love, Revenge and Buttered Scones 3.17 avg rating — 52 ratings — published 2010 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Oz 4.24 avg rating — 29 ratings — published 2014 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Third Bus 4.35 avg rating — 17 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Truth Games 3.64 avg rating — 14 ratings — published 2009 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Lovers' Lies by Clare Sandling, Katy Darby (editor), Cherry Potts (Goodreads Author) (editor) it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Posthumous Adventures Of Harry Whittaker by Bobbie Darbyshire (Goodreads Author), Peter Kenny (Reader) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Posthumous Adventures of Harry Whittaker by Bobbie Darbyshire (Goodreads Author), Peter Kenny (Reader) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Love, Revenge & Buttered Scones 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	OZ 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book it was amazing Rubbernecker by Belinda Bauer (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Patrick, an anatomy student with Asperger’s syndrome, becomes obsessed with finding out how and why the person whose body he is helping to dissect died. I saw a friend’s glowing recommendation of this on Facebook, so added it to the TBR queue, and ye ...more
Nov 30, 2025 09:51AM · like · see review
Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book it was amazing Yellowface by R.F. Kuang (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Failed writer June Hayward happens to be there when her much-envied Chinese American rival dies in a freak accident, leaving the first draft of a novel shared so far with no one. It’s a brilliant first draft that needs a whole lot more work to make i ...more
Nov 23, 2025 05:46AM · like · see review
Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book it was amazing Orbital by Samantha Harvey	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
At an unspecified future date, we spend twenty-four hours with six astronauts (American, Japanese, British, Italian, Russian and Russian), who in those hours orbit the earth sixteen times. The mice orbiting with them learn to fly in zero gravity. A m ...more
Nov 15, 2025 03:51AM · like · see review
Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book it was amazing Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sam and Sadie’s friendship, formed in childhood over sharing computer games, becomes an adult collaboration for creating and selling their own games. A book, much praised, that I approached warily, as I’m not and don’t want to be a gamer. I feared it ...more
Nov 10, 2025 01:53AM · like · see review
Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book it was amazing Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
A modern take on ‘The taming of the shrew’. Anne Tyler is reliably enjoyable, almost too much so—I gobble up her books far too fast. I wasn’t sure about this one to start with, but it soon pulled me in and I was feasting on it into the small hours. D ...more
Oct 28, 2025 04:45AM · like · see review
Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book it was amazing Fatherland by Robert Harris (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I've just finished reading Fatherland by Robert Harris. The Greater German Reich in 1964 is still ruled by Adolf Hitler and the Nazis after Germany won WWII. A middle-ranking policeman begins to uncover a conspiracy. This is the ninth of Harris’s nov ...more
Oct 25, 2025 02:25AM · like · see review
Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book it was amazing Transit by Rachel Cusk	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Back in February, I very much enjoyed Outline, the first of a trilogy of short novels by Rachel Cusk, so added this, the second, to the TBR queue. The numb, sad, intriguingly silent woman we met teaching a short creative-writing course in Athens in O ...more
Oct 18, 2025 02:07AM · like · see review
Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book did not like it London Rules (Slough House, #5) by Mick Herron	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Spies, politicians and terror attacks. This is the fifth of at least eight ‘Slough House Thrillers’, and is the first and last of them that I will try to read. As it was picked by my reading group, I hung on in until page 100, instead of page 30, whi ...more
Oct 12, 2025 01:43AM · like · see review
Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book really liked it The Snow and the Works on the Northern Line by Ruth Thomas	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sybil is happy with her work in the Institute of Prehistorical Studies, and with her love life, until glamorous Helen Hansen is appointed Head of Trustees and promptly steals Sybil’s boyfriend. When a friend of mine mentioned having read this in her ...more
Oct 07, 2025 01:39AM · like · see review
Bobbie Darbyshire rated a book liked it Cat Chaser by Elmore Leonard	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
A peaceable Florida motel owner falls in love with the wife of a former death-squad general in exile from the Dominican Republic. I’m reading all Leonard’s books in order of publication, one every six months or so. Usually I am quickly drawn in, but ...more
Oct 03, 2025 04:50AM · like · see review