Glorious weather! I hope you’ve all had beautiful weather as well. This week, it’s been sunny and about 78 degrees here. I’d take that year round. I know we’re supposed to get cooler weather and some rain this weekend, but this sun and the temperatures just make me feel good.
Mystery field news. Did you see that Anne Perry died? Janet Rudolph always seems to be first in the know, so I’m sharing a link to her website, for those interested. https://mysteryreadersinc.blogspot.com/2023/04/anne-perry-rip.html
I have to admit I have something in common with Mark. We both seem to start books just before Thursday, so I don’t have much to say about Ari Shapiro’s new book, The Best Strangers in the World: Stories from a Life Spent Listening. Here’s the summary of the book.
From the beloved host of NPR’s All Things Considered, a stirring memoir-in-essays that is also a lover letter to journalism.
In his first book, broadcaster Ari Shapiro takes us around the globe to reveal the stories behind narratives that are sometimes heartwarming, sometimes heartbreaking, but always poignant. He details his time traveling on Air Force One with President Obama, or following the path of Syrian refugees fleeing war, or learning from those fighting for social justice both at home and abroad. As the self-reinforcing bubbles we live in become more impenetrable, Ari Shapiro keeps seeking ways to help people listen to one another; to find connection and commonality with those who may seem different; to remind us that, before religion, or nationality, or politics, we are all human. The Best Strangers in the World is a testament to one journalist’s passion for Considering All Things—and sharing what he finds with the rest of us.
I started it yesterday on my lunch hour, and I liked the introduction, but I’m not far into the book.
What about you? What are you reading this week?
This has been a very good book week.
Three novels by three of my favorite authors and a book of importance written by a woman i greatly admired.
Émilienne A Novel of Belle Epoque Paris by Pamela Binnings Ewen’s newest historical fiction “reveals the story of Émilienne, once the most beautiful, sought-after woman in Paris during the Belle Époque, the era of peaceful years just before World War I. As a girl, Émilienne fights her way through poverty in Montmartre, drawn to the lights of Paris below. Soon, she stars at the Folies Bergère, mistress of kings and princes, known as the most beautiful woman in Europe.”
I was not familiar with Émilienne d’Alençon, but ended up wanting to know more about her by the end of the book. That’s what always happens when an interesting bit history is placed in the hands of an accomplished novelist, which Ms. Ewens most definitely is.
Homecoming by Kate Morton – “An epic story that spans generations, Homecoming asks what we would do for those we love, how we protect the lies we tell, and what it means to come home. Above all, it is an intricate and spellbinding novel from one of the finest writers working today.”
Being a fan of Kate Morton’s, I have waited for this one and was not disappointed. She feeds my need for a good, long saga.
The Secret of FBI File 100-3-116 by Mark de Castrique (yet another favorite writer) is the 9th entry in his Blackman Agency Investigations series.
“The summer of 2020. COVID-19 is spreading like wildfire. Racial reckoning and Confederate monuments fuel nationwide protests. And Asheville, North Carolina, is not immune.
When Sam Blackman and Nakayla Robertson see an elderly man knocked to the pavement by a Confederate sympathizer, they rush to his aid. The assailant runs away and the fatally injured man struggles to say, “I’m so sorry, Nakayla. Can you forgive me?” Nakayla has never seen him before. Why does he want her forgiveness?”
Mr. de Castrique writes about a town I love. Asheville,NC is about 2 1/2 hours from where we live, so we visit fairly often. It’s a beautiful town with a lot of interesting history which the author always manages to share woven seamlessly in the stories he tells.
This is a timely novel covering important social issues in an even-handed, although not subtle, manner.
My final book is one I’m reading slowly. And one i recommend.
Fascism: A Warning by Madeleine Albright – “A personal and urgent examination of Fascism in the twentieth century and how its legacy shapes today’s world, written by one of the most admired public servants in American history, the first woman to serve as U.S. secretary of state.”
Oh, you did have a good reading week, Kaye! What an interesting collection of books. I know Mom’s waiting for the Kate Morton book, so it’s good to know she didn’t disappoint you. And, I agree. Isn’t it fun to discover a real person you didn’t know existed?
Kaye I too eagerly anticipated the new Kate Morton book, Homecoming, and read it over the weekend. I enjoyed the book but felt as if it could have benefited from some tighter editing. It could have been at least 75 pages shorter and would still have been a good read. The length may put some readers off.
Susan, i agree that it could, indeed, put some readers off. But I’m in the C. S. Lewis school of thinking; “You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”
😊
Jane Austen agreed – “but for my own part, if a book is well written, I always find it too short.”
Kaye, I’ve always enjoyed Kate Morton, too, but I’m a bit behind. I haven’t yet read The Clockmaker’s Daughter. It seems I read some negative comments about it, but I can’t remember what they were. Maybe you can let me know if I need to read it. I will be buying and reading Homecoming.
As for weather, ours has been a bit erratic, but the rain seems to have stopped, at least for the moment. Easter was a beautiful day, spent going to brunch with my family and then bowling with them (first time for me in decades, and my score proved it). But it was a lot of fun and, as my 4-year-old granddaughter says, “I give it a 9 out of 6!.” We’ll be celebrating Easter again this Sunday at my daughter-in-law’s older sister’s house in Chico, about a 2-hour drive away.
As for the books I read:
Angie Kim created a stunning, award-winning novel with Miracle Creek and follows it now with a HAPPINESS FALLS, a book that is just as extraordinary, just as intelligently written. It opens with a Korean-American family’s realization that Adam, the father, is missing after his usual morning hike at River Falls Park with his disabled 14-year-old son, Eugene. Autistic and with a rare genetic disorder that affects his communication and motor skills, Eugene has surprised everyone by running home alone, braving a busy intersection that usually challenges him, but he is unable to tell his mother and siblings what he has witnessed. Eugene’s sister Mia, a brilliant college student studying philosophy and music, narrates the book as the story unfolds, resulting in an investigation that may implicate Eugene and threaten to separate him from his loving family. We come to know the missing Adam, who is obsessed with quantifying the emotion of happiness and devoted to his children, through Mia’s memories and experiences and from the notebooks she finds. Mia’s twin brother John is just as bright as Mia and is interning at a nearby facility that provides services to Eugene and others like him. Their mother, born in Korea, has a Ph.D. in applied linguistics and has taken over the role of breadwinner while Adam stays home and spends much of his time with Eugene. Although the mystery of what happened to Adam is addressed throughout the investigation–could Adam be suicidal, ill, having an affair, descending into dementia–it is also an in-depth study of Eugene’s condition. I was fascinated by the question of whether he and other nonspeakers are capable of learning to communicate in a meaningful way, and whether society’s expectations of them are much lower than they should be. This is a book that I will be thinking about for quite a while. The unforgettable characters, multifaceted plot, and exceptional writing will no doubt catch the attention of discerning readers. The author, a Korean-American herself, has done her research on these disorders and has worked with nonspeakers, lending authenticity to this thrilling, intense book. I can’t recommend it highly enough. (Sept.)
If you love quirky characters and a twisty plot with a plethora of murder suspects, Daryl Wood Gerber’s Cookbook Nook Mysteries may be for you. You don’t need to have read any of the previous 11 in the series to enjoy POACHING IS PUZZLING because the author lists all of the characters in alphabetical order by first name, including a short statement of each’s role, at the beginning of the book. And there are helpful references throughout to give you context. What I particularly enjoyed about this book was the crossword puzzle theme. Not only is there a crossword contest held in Crystal Cove, there are also other puzzle-themed events, not to mention a wealth of information related to this very popular pastime. The obsessed competitors are also frequently heard displaying their encyclopedic (or should I say thesaurus-like) knowledge of synonyms and arcane vocabulary. For a word nerd like me, it was a lot of fun. Since the protagonist is proprietor of a culinary bookshop and cafe, you can also expect to have your taste buds tickled by some tempting treats, with recipes at the end of the book. (April 25)
One of my favorite historical mystery series is Deanna Raybourn’s Veronica Speedwell Mysteries. Set in the late 1880s, the stories are narrated by Veronica herself, a “liberated” English woman at a time when that was an anomaly. An avid lepidopterist, she loves nothing more than traveling the world to hunt down unusually beautiful, living butterflies for her vivarium. But she also often (this is the 8th book in the series) embarks on adventures with her dashing lover, Stoker (Lord Revelstoke Templeton-Vane), a natural historian with a penchant for taking on dangerous assignments for various clients. In A SINISTER REVENGE, Stoker and Veronica have been out of contact for six months, after Veronica discovered she may still be married to her ex-husband. But an urgent request for their services from Stoker’s older brother Tiberius brings them together as he plans a reunion of the remaining members of his old group of friends at his estate. It seems that two members of the group have recently been murdered, and Tiberius has started receiving letters implying he might be next. He worries that someone may be avenging the death of another member of their group 20 years earlier, after he had discovered an extraordinary dinosaur skeleton coveted by rival paleontologists. What makes this series stand out for me is the author’s writing, so beautifully capturing Veronica’s voice as courageous, witty, sardonic, and utterly delightful. Her relationship with Stoker has had its ups and downs, but the pair remain steadfast in their love for each other, with a few hiccups and misunderstandings. Their dangerous exploits may be a bit unrealistic, but it’s that sort of book. We thrill to their adventures and hope for them to be triumphant, both in their personal and professional lives. I think this book is one of the best in the series and I can only hope that the series continues.
Margie, I love a mystery that provides me with a list of characters. In fact, I think all novels should do that if there are more than 5-6 characters. It would be so helpful!
I agree with you. I hope the Veronica Speedwell series continues, too. I love the relationship between Veronica and Stoker.
I am one of the world’s worst bowlers, although I always had fun, and even had my own ball, shoes and bag at one point. But, I got a C in bowling in college, which shows you how bad I am. But, I had fun!
LOL. I’m actually NOT starting a new book right now.
I’m a 1/3 of the way into CURDS OF PREY by Korina Moss, the third Cheese Shop Mystery that just came out a couple of weeks ago. I’m enjoying it.
I didn’t get as much reading time in this weekend as I normally would have since I went to Northern California to spend Easter weekend with my family. While I might not have gotten much reading time in, the time with family was wonderful.
And I listened to most of X by Sue Grafton on the way home on Monday. I enjoyed it, although I think if I had read the official teaser for the book, I would have been disappointed by it.
That’s funny, Mark.
It’s usually much better to have family time than reading time. You notice I said “usually”.
I don’t think I read X. I had given up on the series a few years before Sue Grafton died.
Mark, I still haven’t read X and Y in the Kinsey Millhone series by Sue Grafton. I’m not sure why. I have both books, so I do plan on getting to them sometime. I won’t read the teaser for X now. Thanks for the heads-up.
Good morning from a damp and drizzly northern Scotland – but we had fabulous weather over the Easter weekend, so I am not complaining!
I didn’t manage to post last week as we were once again in Edinburgh and the time just flew past.
On Thursday evening we went to the Usher Hall to see Big Thief in concert.
My younger daughter, Madeleine, loves this band, and most of the audience did indeed consist of people her age. I’m afraid it was all a bit wasted on us, but I don’t want to be too critical as the venue was packed out, and everybody else seemed to love every minute. I felt that the lead singer was being far too deliberately ditzy (‘oh I’ve forgotten the words to this song, let’s do another one’…’oh this is a big venue’ – well yes…) There was also an awful lot of messing about with speakers and sound levels, during which none of the band members spoke, so we were all just sitting there waiting. I think we enjoyed the support, L’Rain, more – but I’m sure Madeleine wouldn’t have shared our views – we’re just too old!
The week before my friend Heather and I went to Dundee to see a George Michael tribute act (Fastlove) and had a wonderful time. At least half the audience (not us!) was well oiled before it started (David: ‘that’s Dundee for you…’!) but everyone was very good natured, the singer really did sound and look like GM, and the band was good too. It was all very jolly and great fun, lots of dancing and singing along. I do of course wish I could see GM in person, but as that is sadly impossible, this was the next best thing.
We took my mother for a Saturday drive around East Lothian and the Borders. It was a beautiful day, with fantastic views of the hills and the fields. We had our coffee at a café at Soutra that had the most delicious lemon and blackberry scones, and our lunch at another small cafe, Lanterne Rouge (popular with cyclists), in the very pretty village of Gifford.
Anna was singing all the Easter services at Old St Paul’s in Edinburgh’s Old Town. As OSP is very high Episcopal, many of these services were several hours long, so it was a bit of a marathon.
On Easter Sunday the first one started at 5am – I’m afraid I didn’t get out of bed for that, but I did attend the 6.30pm Evensong, which was absolutely wonderful, with the altar redressed, the organ back in full throttle, and bells and incense to the fore again. The music could be loud after all the Lenten sobriety, and I came away feeling so refreshed and calmed. I think Evensong is a service anyone can enjoy, regardless of whether they have any faith or none, as there is no real participation, no sermon, no Communion, just spectacular music.
And on Monday, before coming back up the road to Deeside, I managed to fit in a visit to the New Contemporaries exhibition at the Royal Scottish Academy. This is an annual show for which they choose (their opinion of) the best work by recent graduates of all five Scottish art schools. Some of Madeleine’s friends had stuff in it. As ever, I felt that the ‘big’ art schools, ie Glasgow and Edinburgh, really don’t teach technique any more. The students have lots of great ideas, but their painting in particular is so poor and amateurish that for me it detracts from the meaning.
I prefer the work of students from the University of the Highlands and Islands, who seem to stay much more grounded, and who actually make work about something other than themselves. I loved an installation by Orkney artist Ruth Tait about what happened in a remote village on the islands in the 1700s. There was a famine, and fifteen of the men set out to walk to the coast to try to find seabirds for food. A blizzard came over and all of them perished. The installation was about the women they left behind, how they coped both physically and mentally, with all their hopes for the future dashed. It was accompanied by a haunting, beautiful, soundtrack, of the women’s ‘voices’.
So on Monday I took the bus back to Aberdeen, and the following day Nancy and I walked in the woods around Hazlehead Park, one of Aberdeen’s oldest historic properties, which was gifted to the city by Robert the Bruce in 1319 to thank the people for their support. it previously formed part of the hunting grounds of Stocket on the outskirts of the city. The park itself has beautiful gardens, a pets’ corner, a playground, a café, and also a special memorial garden for the victims of the Piper Alpha disaster, which affected the city so much. The woods are much quieter than the park, so we had a very nice walk.
Books!
I am taking part in Simon and Kaggsy’s six monthly online Book Club – this time the year they have chosen is 1940, and I have read two books:
THE ENGLISH AIR by DE Stevenson – which opens in 1938, when an affluent English family, the Braithwaites, are awaiting the arrival of Mrs B’s late cousin’s son, Franz, who has a German Nazi father. Otto has sent Franz to England to improve his English and also to observe the thoughts and behaviour of the people of a country with whom Germany will soon be at war. Franz is ignorant of his father’s party’s intentions, and believes Hitler to be a good man and Germany’s saviour.
Need I tell you that he soon changes his ideas, falls in love with the daughter of the house, Wynne (who spends her entire time at tennis parties or on the beach), and realises that England is perfect in every way?
DE Stevenson always writes well, so this was an easy read and a fairly enjoyable one, but I’m afraid it was altogether too full of propaganda for me. Of course I am not suggesting that Hitler was a good person, or that Nazism was anything other than abhorrent, but England had plenty of its own problems, and basing Franz’s opinions solely on his stay with a very comfortably off and very cosseted (plenty of servants, plenty of money) family does not exactly paint the country as it really was.
I also got increasingly irritated by Sophie – Mrs Braithwaite – who is apparently ‘incapable of managing her own affairs’ and doesn’t even attend the first aid classes that start up when war is imminent, because ‘she wouldn’t be very good at bandaging.’ I think this is meant to persuade us that she is sweet and charming, whereas I just wanted to shake her. All she ever does is write a lot of letters, preside over the teapot, and send to Harrods for more socks for her son Roy.
The second book was:
VERDICT OF TWELVE by Raymond Postgate.
This is one of the British Library Crime Classics, and the first one that I have enjoyed. It’s about a woman being tried for the murder of her young nephew, but it’s mostly about the twelve members of the jury. Postgate gives us an insight into each of their lives and backgrounds, and it really did make me think about what baggage every jury member must bring with him/her, and how, whatever the judge tells them, this must affect their views and decisions. It is not possible for lawyers to challenge jury members here as it is in the US – they can of course be barred or dismissed on some technicalities (eg I, as a former lawyer, am not eligible, even though I have not been in practice for years) but there can be no examining every detail of each member’s personal history. A fascinating, and again well written, book.
And I am still reading PAUL TAKES THE FORM OF A MORTAL GIRL by Andrea Lawlor. This is about a 20 year old Film Studies student (and slacker) in Iowa City, who has the power to change himself into a woman and back again just by concentrating. Paul is immensely self-centered and self-interested, and obsessed with his own appearance. At first I did struggle with this book, especially with all the very hip language, but now that I am two thirds of the way through I have started really to enjoy it. It is very funny in parts, and also does make you think about sex and gender. I’d never read this kind of thing if Madeleine didn’t recommend it, but I’m glad she does – I need to broaden my horizons.
And on BBC Sounds I listened to SWEET SORROW by David Nicholls, read by James Norton. It’s the story of Charlie, a 16 year old boy whose parents have split up. He’s still at school, and also working in a local petrol station, where he and his friend are running a minor scam to make money out of scratch cards.
His mother asks Charlie to remain living with his Dad, who has lost his job and is drinking all day while on antidepressants, in order to look after him. He meets the lovely Fran, and in an effort to get to know her, very reluctantly becomes involved with an amateur theatre group putting on a version of Romeo and Juliet.
Eventually things start to implode.
It’s a great story, and Norton was just the right actor to read it.
On TV I finished AM I BEING UNREASONABLE? and started watching the new-ish adaptation of Agatha Christie’s WHY DIDN’T THEY ASK EVANS? – but I don’t think I was really concentrating properly, so I gave up and might try again tonight. Anna watched Kenneth Branagh’s new adaptation of DEATH ON THE NILE and said she enjoyed the locations and costumes more than the plot – which I have to say is something I find with many Christie films.
Today we have to go to see the lawyer about our wills and various other stuff, groan.
At the weekend I will be helping with the Art Gallery’s Friends’ Open Days – I have no idea what that’s going to involve, but it includes a talk by the artist Ade Asina, which I think will be interesting.
I hope everyone has a great week. We are getting into the time for what feels like endless public holidays – Easter, May Day, Spring Bank Holiday (Whitsun), and now another one for the coronation. I don’t really like all these holidays, but I appreciate that my life is one long holiday these days – if I were still at work I expect I’d feel differently!
Rosemary
Rosemary, I read VERDICT OF TWELVE back in the ’70s, after I read a rave for it in Barzun & Taylor’s A CATALOGUE OF CRIME, which was my mystery go-to Bible back then. Postgate was the brother of Margaret Postgate, better known as half of the writing team of G.D.H. & M. Cole.
You’re right, Rosemary. I’m still working for another 4 1/2 months, and I look forward to every holiday.
I’ll admit I had to look up the Piper Alpha disaster. I’m sure I knew what was going on at the time, but I had no memory at all when I looked it up.
That sounds like such a tragic exhibit about the Orkneys, but the history sounds fascinating.
And, Evensong sounds wonderful.
I’m so glad you had time to write today so we could catch up with your life. I love to see what you’re doing with your time. Thank you.
Good morning. We’ve had nice weather here too so I’ve been trying to catch my mom up with some of the appointments that she couldn’t get to during the winter. I also discovered how difficult it is to buy shoes for someone who can’t go out to try them on. Fortunately Amazon returns are easy.
I only read one fiction book this week. GHOST WALK. by Melissa Bowersock. A medium and a former police officer team up to solve the crimes behind haunted houses. I liked this one – it’s a bit different.
The rest of my reading for the week was nonfiction:
CASSOULET CONFESSIONS: FOOD, FRANCE, FAMILY AND THE STEW THAT SAVED MY SOUL by Sylvia Bigar. This was very disjointed. I’m not sure the author knew what book she wanted to write.
CHASING GIANTS: IN SEARCH OF THE WORLDS LARGEST FRESHWATER FISH by Zeb Hogan. Scientists search for giant species of freshwater fish and work to conserve them and the rivers they live in them.
BIRD BROTHER. By Rodney Stotts. It’s the story of how Rodney grew up in the projects in D.C, became a drug, dealer, went to jail, and turned his life around by becoming a master falconer. I enjoyed it and so did my mom.
Catch up in the spring is so tough, isn’t it, Sandy? And, everyone wants appointments with doctors and dentists in order to catch up.
Ghost Walk sounds interesting. Thank you for mentioning that one.
Sandy, I took a look at Ghost Walk this morning on Facebook, and since it was only 99 cents, I bought it. Good to know that if I like it, there are 37 more in the series!!! Thanks for the shout-out.
Sorry, I meant Amazon.
Weather! It was snowing when I headed west Friday morning via Lassen National Forest. Had a lovely visit in Eugene with family. Returned to brilliant sun and upper-seventies. The snow is still piled high alongside the road in the higher elevations, but I hear it’s melting fast.
I was only able to get in one book this week, a well-written suspense novel, WHAT LIES IN THE WOODS by Kate Alice Marshall. Twenty years after, three childhood friends revisit the event that bound them together.
After my visit to the library yesterday, I’m now in possession of a wonderful new stack of books for the coming week. Although the book you started, Lesa, does sound like something I would enjoy – more for the list.
So many for the list, MM! It does sound like a book you might enjoy.
Happy to hear your book was well-written! It makes such a difference.
Yes, wonderful weather. Yesterday was a gorgeous 84 but with incredibly low (like 14%!) humidity, which is Arizona-like rather than the Florida-like feel you get in the summer. It was wall to wall sunshine too, with a nice breeze. Today and tomorrow will be the same or warmer, before we return to normal over the weekend. Ah!
But to books. Jackie is still reading the Keri Arthur book. I got the new Margaret Mizushima from the library for both of us, but she will have to wait until she finishes the other book.
I did finish THE ADVENTURE OF THE CASTLE THIEF by Art Taylor, as discussed last week. I’ve started two more short story collections (while waiting for the Gloria Maxwell book to arrive, but neither is really holding my attention. I will probably finish PHONE CALL FROM HELL and other stories by Jonathan Woods, as I bought it on the Kindle (probably either for free or 99 cents) a while ago, and I am trying to at least read some of them. This is mostly horror, but there was also a mediocre story about Ernest Hemingway and Graham Greene in Cuba in 1959.
I read Jane Harper’s fifth (and third with Aaron Falk), EXILES. This is set in South Australia. Falk, who works for the national financial police, is visiting his friend and fellow cop Greg Raco and his family when a local woman, Kim Gillespie, disappears without a trace on opening day of the local festival. The book then skips ahead one year, with Falk back in the small town to act as Godfather to the friend’s baby. Meanwhile, Kim’s body has still not been found int he reservoir where she is presumed to have drowned after one sneaker was found. It is all about the families involved, and after a long buildup it does come to a satisfactory end (for Falk too). I like her writing very much and will go back and get the one book of hers I haven’t yet read.
Margaret Mizushima’s STANDING DEAD is the eighth in her Timber Creek, Colorado series about local cop Mattie Cobb (now using her birth name of Mattie Wray) her fiancee, veterinarian Cole Walker, and her K-9 partner Robo. I’m just a little ways into this, so my review will have to wait until next week, but I wish they would drop the family history story and stick to the present.
Jeff, That’s exactly what I said about Standing Dead. I’m tired of the family history storyline, and ready to move on to just crimes. Totally agree with you.
I know! That’s why I raved about the weather, the low humidity. I was never fond of Florida’s humidity, although I lived there for 18 years. I appreciated Arizona so much more.
We hit 90 in New York today, the first 90 degree day in April since 2010.
Exiles was one of the books I picked up at the library yesterday. It has been very popular locally. I thought her first one, The Dry, was quite good.
I am currently reading Lone Women by Victor Lavalle.
The story is captivating but I can’t quite decide if I like it.
Caryn,
What’s holding you back with Lone Women – character, writing? Just curious. I haven’t read it, so can’t comment, but I always wonder when I feel as if the book just isn’t holding my attention.
Finished Dead Man’s Island by Carolyn Hart. I enjoyed it but wondered if she always does a spin off from an Agatha Christie book. I may eventually read the read of the series. I loved that the sleuth was a woman about my age. And that she set me running to Google for more information. I really crave books that teach about history and science.
I have started Where the Heart Leads by Kim Vogel Sawyer. There is a male main character who cannot figure out what business he wants to start. Thomas Ollenburger, recently completed an MBA at Harvard. He met an an extrodinary beautiful, rich but spoiled woman who always gets what he wants. This is in 1902 before a lot of modern convenices.
He makes a trip back to his father, step mother, and his younger sisters. He only intended a visit but that may change. His father is depressed. His father had intended to leave the gristmill to his son but times have changed and his business declined. He had to sell it and get a job at a steam powered mill in town. His step mother,
Daphne is the heart of the family. Loving and giving, although Mennonite, she gained acceptance from the whole communuty through her care and loving kindness.
Belinda who has a living Hell with her recently widowed mother and bitter older sister lives in the same town. Her mother refuses to get out of bed and acts like she is the only one grieving for her husband. Her old daugher was engaged but had a bad fever which left her weak and her suitor broke the engagement. Now the older sister attacks Belinda verbally all day long and all Belinda can do is to escape once in a while and cry. Her family is very against tears.
That’s where I am in the book, I don’t want Thomas to go back to Boston but how will it turn out?
Carol, I can’t answer your questions about Carolyn Hart’s series. I came late to it, and didn’t go through the years when the main character struggled with her adolescent daughter. I do know I enjoyed later books with the pictures on the wall in the bookstore, and the references to other mysteries.
The weather has been improving. We might get some rain over the weekend, they say. Easter was very nice.
This week I read:
The Last Cold Place by Naira de Gracia; A scientist tells us about her time in Antarctica, counting the penguins. I think I’ll just stay in California.
In The Shadows of Sherlock Holmes by Leslie S. Klinger; A collection of stories featuring detectives contemporary with Holmes. Pretty good, but I could think of a number of detectives left out.
Fancy Anders For The Boys by Max Allan Collins; Sort of a WWII era Honey West, Fancy goes to work at the famous Hollywood Canteen, to find saboteurs. Neo-pulp hits the mainstream!
Atlantic High by William F. Buckley; Buckley decides to cross the Atlantic Ocean in his sail boat. He had a great time. The last time I went sailing I got sea sick.
Just Over The Horizon by Ruth Logan Herne; Finally, the last book in the Mysteries of Martha’s Vineyard. It was a long haul. In this one, Priscilla is finally going to marry Gerald, when somebody decides to sabotage the local pirate-themed tourist trap. They investigate, and the the church steeple falls. Is their wedding ruined?
Deuces Wild by Scott McCrea; Are we going through a cycle of westerns under everybody’s radar? There seem to be more and more westerns on the streaming services, and these books are pretty popular. Tom Mix is marshal of Dewey, OK, when a card sharp is lynched. Like the movie 5 Card Stud, only with Tom Mix instead of Dean Martin.
Innumeracy by John Allen Paulos; A mathematician explains math, and why everybody should know more about it, especially as we live in a high tech world. I don’t think the country ever really recovered from the New Math back in the 1960’s.
Frankly, Glen, I never recovered from watching third graders add in the last few years. The addition I learned was so much easier and faster than theirs!
As for Just Over the Horizon, I’m going to take a wild guess and say the wedding went on by the end of the book.
We may get rain over the weekend, too, but I’ve enjoyed our recent weather.
Currently reading Everybody Knows: A Novel by Jordan Harper.
I recognize that name, but don’t know why, Kevin.
Lesa, I am so glad I joined in your Thursday “What Are You Reading?” blog. I look forward to it now every week and love seeing what everyone’s reading and little snippets into their worlds. We had a lovely Easter lunch with daughter Ashley and her family on Sunday. My thirteen-year-old granddaughter Isabella is so tall and on the thin side. She is going to make the perfect Morticia in the upcoming school musical, The Addams family. I can’t wait to see it tomorrow and Saturday.
My reading is better, gaining momentum. Thank goodness. And, I’m getting back to writing my reviews. I finally got the one up last night for Edith Maxwell’s short story collection, A Questionable Death and Other Historical Midwife Stories. I really enjoyed reading them, and they seemed a perfect way to get my reading mojo going again. But, I’m pretty sure I talked about them last week, so I won’t say anymore.
Last week, I said I’d started Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAlister, and I’ve finished it. I loved it, with its twist on time travel. The main character Jen Brotherhood (this surname is explained some later, but it’s the one thing I didn’t like) witnesses her eighteen-year-old son kill a man in front of their house and is horrified. She goes to sleep that night thinking about her son in jail and what she and her husband will need to do to help him. But, the next day she wakes up and it’s the day before her son kills the man. Jen keeps going back in time in small chunks and large chunks trying to find the answer to why this murder happened or will happen. I thought the twists were well-done, and the plot kept me intrigued. Oh, besides the last name, I was just a bit unsure about the ending, but in thinking more about it, I think the thing it addressed at the end needed to be. It will be on my favorites list this year.
I’ve started No Time to Breathe, Lisa Jamison #3, by Lori Duffy Foster. When news reporter Lisa Jamison finds her kick-boxing instructor murdered, she naturally becomes involved, since she was the one who found him. She’s dealt with the police before when she headed up the crime desk at the newspaper, but the detective who is in charge of her friend’s case is particularly trusting of Lisa. This makes her a suspect of sorts, even though the detective isn’t focused on her. Lisa has a boyfriend of two years who is ex-FBI and now completing a law degree. A former undercover partner of his shows up and needs his help. Lisa is distrustful of this woman, and I’m waiting to see what havoc she brings to their lives and if it’s connected to the murder.
I am planning (of course, we all know how plans go) to catch up on a few books next. I absolutely should have already read James Ziskins’ Bombay Monsoon, Martin Edwards’ Blackstone Fell (Rachel Savernake #3, Simone St. Simmons’ The Book of Cold Cases, Clare Mackintosh’s The Last Party, Geraldine Brooks’ Horse, and too many others to think about.
Oh, gosh, Kathy, I “should” have read an entire list of books on NetGalley. They may not allow me to have books soon, if I don’t pick up speed a little.
I’m glad you join us on Thursdays, too. I like to see what you’re reading. I enjoy seeing what everyone is reading.
Oh, The Addams Family! That should be fun, especially since a proud grandmother will be sitting there beaming through the entire show. Enjoy!
Like you, I enjoy catching up with what people are reading, as well as having that glimpse into lives.
This was a good reading week for me. I needed some quiet after all the excitement of Holy Week & Easter. To my surprise I greatly enjoyed The Splendid and the Vile, a nonfiction very personal and intimate look at how the household of Winston Churchill worked and how his first year as PM (which included the Blitz) went. I read it for a book club.
Lesa’s recent review of Rip Through Time #2 led me to pick up the first one, and I liked the way the narrator had multiple mysteries to solve and had to make the best of suddenly being a housemaid in the Victorian Era.
Now I am reading the 7th Lady Sherlock book and thoroughly enjoying it. I do like a clever Sherlock Holmes retelling.
Trisha, I’m glad you had a good reading week, and enjoyed A Rip Through Time. The second book is good, too. I don’t always like to read two books in a row by the same author, though.
I am already too, too late so making it brief:
Last week I was reading THE SO BLUE MARBLE by Dorothy B. Hughes, published in 1940, and now I have I finished it. (For Simon and Kaggsy’s 1940 book club, like Rosemary’s books.) The premise is weirder and more fantastical books than her noirish books that I have read (IN A LONELY PLACE, RIDE A PINK HORSE), but I liked it a lot. A very short book, about 160 pages in length.
I am still reading THE ECHOING STRANGERS by Gladys Mitchell, published in 1952 for a group read.
I have also started reading THE BLIND MAN OF SEVILLE (2003) by Robert Wilson, set in Seville, Spain. I had just about given up on that author’s books because of excessive violence and sex, but decided to give this one a chance before passing it on to the book sale.
My husband is now reading the book you mentioned last week, A FEVER IN THE HEARTLAND by Timothy Egan. He is finding it a good read, but it seems like things never change.
You’re never too late, Tracy.
You’re right. It’s sad that things don’t change.
I love to read about the reading challenges some of you do.
Hey Leesa ,
We are scheduled for rain and thunderstorms today. I just finished listening to the audio of The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth. In print, I am reading Three Can Keep a Secret by M. E. Hilliard.
Oh, I read the Hilliard series, Katherine. And, I just posted an interview with Sally Hepworth for The Poisoned Pen’s blog on Saturday.