Do you know how much I enjoy reading about the weather you’re experiencing? I know that’s a little weird, but I enjoy reading about the differences. We’re having 80s here, but it’s starting to get more humid. I had to turn on the air conditioning over the weekend so I could sleep. And, next weekend is going to be in the 90s and humid.
As to reading, I’m in the middle. I finished all the books I was reading for the August issues of Library Journal. Then, last night I participated in an event for The Poisoned Pen, the interview of Sarah Stewart Taylor, author of A Stolen Child. So, I have my next book lined up, but haven’t even started it.
Jeffrey Archer’s Traitors Gate is the sixth book in his William Warwick series. But, I’ve read occasional ones in the series. I have the feeling Traitors Gate will be fine as a standalone. Here’s the online summary.
24 hours to stop the crime of the century
The race against time is about to begin…
THE TOWER OF LONDON…
Impenetrable. Well protected. Secure. Home to the most valuable jewels on earth. But once a year, when the Queen attends the State Opening of Parliament, the Metropolitan Police must execute the most secret operation in their armory as they transport the Crown Jewels across London.
SCOTLAND YARD…
For decades, the elite squad at Scotland Yard have been in charge of the operation. And for decades, it’s run like clockwork.
THE HEIST…
But this year, everything is about to change. Because a master criminal has set his sights on pulling off the most outrageous theft in history―and with a man on the inside, the odds are in his favor.
Unless the team can stop him before it’s too late…
***
Sounds fun. I enjoy heist novels. In this case, I’m cheering for Scotland Yard. What about you? What are you reading this week? Tell us!
Hello, all. Well, Lesa, the weather in Northern CA is quite pleasant–low 80s today, high 70s tomorrow. I’m happy unless we get into the 90s. No rain now, and probably all or most of the summer, but it was a very wet winter for us (thank goodness). I’m hoping wildfire season will be like last summer–fewer fires than the summer before that.
This was another roller coaster of a reading week for me, but there were two winners, one almost-winner, and one that I wish I hadn’t read. Here goes:
Let’s start with one of the winners. If you are in the mood for something different from your usual reading fare, incorporating a super-creative, tongue-in-cheek plot, original characters, and clever word play delivered by a master, I highly recommend MURDER YOUR EMPLOYER: McMASTERS GUIDE TO HOMICIDE, VOL. 1. Author Rupert Holmes has Tony Awards, Edgar Awards, and several top hit songs–e.g., “Escape (The Pina Colada Song),”– to his credit, along with a diabolically dexterous mind. In this book he has created the fictional McMasters Conservatory, where students in the 1950s learn to “delete” their horrible bosses through a comprehensive curriculum in a lavish setting. Where is the school located? None of the students know, as most have arrived by mysterious means. The story follows three such students from their ultra-painful experiences with their employers through their McMasters education, the creation of their “thesis,” and their “graduation” into the real world to apply their newly learned skills to their ultimate goal. The cost of failure, by the way–either during their McMasters days or afterward–is their own “deletion.” Holmes’ depiction of the McMasters campus, instructors, programs of study, and rules is detailed, ingenious, and often hilarious. The way the three protagonists plan and execute their goals is impressively meticulous, and the suspense that ensues is palpable. Most exciting to me: Since this is “Volume 1” of the McMasters Guide to Homicide, I can only assume (and devoutly hope) there will be more volumes.
The one I didn’t like: AMAZING GRACE ADAMS by Fran Littlewood. Grace Adams had at least one amazing quality when she was younger. She could speak five languages and won a competition for Polyglot of the Year, also winning the heart of the young man she defeated by just one point. But now, at the age of 45, her life has imploded. Her teenage daughter, Lotte, is receiving inappropriate messages on social media and won’t talk about them, Grace herself has lost two jobs simultaneously, her perimenopausal body is letting her down, and her estranged husband has moved out. But Grace is determined to deliver a birthday cake to Lotte, who now lives with her father, even though she hasn’t been invited to her daughter’s 16th birthday party, and even though she has mindlessly abandoned her car in the middle of the road. In short, Grace is a mess and, to me, not an endearing one. Yes, she has been through some traumatic events, but her seeming refusal to take responsibility for her spiraling life makes her unrelatable. The constant time shifts are jarring as well. I found this to be a way more depressing book than I would ever knowingly choose to read (the blurbs are misleading), so it wasn’t the right read for me. (September)
A good one, if slightly disappointing: In DEATH AT A SCOTTISH WEDDING, the second Scottish Isle Mystery by Lucy Connelly, Emilia feels as if she’s made a successful transition in the past three months from her hectic Seattle ER physician position to town doctor and coroner in tiny Sea Isle, Scotland. She is looking forward to attending her new friend Angie’s four-day wedding extravaganza in Morrigan Castle, although the snowstorm of the century seems to be closing in. But as it turns out, the weather isn’t the most traumatic thing the guests will be facing. The suspicious death in the castle of an unidentified man who was not invited to the festivities causes everyone to speculate whether someone is trying to derail the wedding altogether. I was happy to see that interesting characters we met in the first book in the series are in attendance: Em’s wealthy landlord and town constable Ewan; her housekeeper and medical assistant, Abigail, and her neurodivergent brother, Tommy; and other new friends, Mara and Jasper. There’s also the groom, his brother and disapproving parents, and Angie’s multiple stepmothers in the mix. Narrator Emilia details her own involvement as the only doctor available when suspicious injuries to occur to other guests and her attempts to help Ewan sift through the many suspects sometimes put herself in dangerous situations. While the author knows how to ratchet up the suspense successfully, I wanted more balance between the mystery and Em’s personal life, as in the first book. I’m hoping the next in the series will take her back to her Sea Isle home for more about the delightful town, its quirky inhabitants, and Emilia’s new life and relationships, not to mention the requisite murder. (January)
And the other winner: ‘I was thrilled to discover that one of my favorite reads of 2022 has a sequel, and that EMILY WILDE’S MAP OF THE OTHERLANDS is a worthy successor to Heather Fawcett’s Emily Wilde and the Encyclopedia of Faeries. Although I don’t read a lot of fantasy, I couldn’t help being sucked in by both books about the adventures of two dryadology scholars in the early 1900s, researching and documenting various types of Faeries as they build relationships with helpful mortals and Folk and battle a panoply of unfriendly Faeries. Having published her Encyclopedia of Faeries and gained tenure at Cambridge University, Emily is now pursuing her new project, a book with maps of all known Faerie realms and their doors. But it ultimately turns into a search for a nexus–a door that connects multiple realms–and the researcher who disappeared while searching for it decades ago. Yet another quest taken on by the duo is related to startling revelations in the first book about Wendell, who is no longer a competitor but now romantically involved with Emily. PLEASE NOTE: I highly recommend reading the first book before this one, to learn about these revelations rather than having them spoiled in this review. Suffice it to say that Emily and Wendell have their work cut out for them. Accompanied by Emily’s eager 19-year-old niece (and assistant), her huge and surprising dog, and an older university professor (Emily and Wendell are both thirtyish), they embark on an adventure that is both exciting and whimsical, featuring many species of the Fae–both friendly and vicious–, enchanted inanimate objects, talismans, and eccentric characters. I particularly admire the author’s impressive imagination and attention to detail. It’s a fun read, and one that makes me long for (hopefully) more books in the series. (January)
I think we have the same taste, Margie! I am looking forward to checking out the next Heather Fawcett and also the Lucy Connelly.
Margie, My friend Donna listened to the audiobook of Murder Your Employer, and said it was hilarious. She loved it.
I am disappointed, though. You’re the second person in two days to say Death at a Scottish Wedding was a disappointment. After the first book was so good, too! Darn. I’ll still give it a shot, but I have the feeling you and Jean are probably not wrong.
I still have hope for the Scottish series, Lesa. The first one was so much fun, and I loved discovering the town and its inhabitants, along with the mystery. In this one, the mystery just took over and there wasn’t really room for much else. That’s why I hope that if there are future books, they will be back in that town.
I hope you’re right, Margie!
We finally hit the upper 70’s here in So Cal, too. Maybe 80 or 81, although I don’t remember seeing that. And sun, too! So nice to finally be seeing some nicer weather.
I am currently half way through CHARLOTTE ILLES IS NOT A DETECTIVE by Katie Siegel. The premise is fun, a former child detective (think Harriet the Spy or Encyclopedia Brown) is now trying to solve a case as a young adult after supposedly leaving that part of her life behind her. Even though it is aimed at adults, I think it is a bit young for me, or at least targeted at those younger than me, but I’m enjoying it anyway.
I had a copy of Charlotte Illes in Not a Detective, Mark, and finally passed it on. Interesting that you’re finding it a bit young for you, since you do read some YA and middle school books. Guess I’m glad I passed it on. Thank you!
Many of the kids books I read are written to kids and they are facing universal issues along with the plot, so anyone can really relate to them.
The characters in this book are very millennial. A lot of who they are is wrapped up in that vs. universal characters. I had a feeling that would be the case after I got the ARC.
As I said, I am enjoying it overall, but it’s definitely an age thing I’m not used to seeing in my books.
I think I’ll pass, Mark. Thanks for the clarification.
Ah, the final days of springtime. And what a week, the invasion of “Mormon Crickets” (technically called shield-backed, short-winged katydids) finally moved on, but a cold wind snuck in resulting in a few days of near freezing lows. It’s summer now and it will be 90 in another week.
I do have one fun book to mention – Gigi Pandian’s latest Secret Staircase Mystery, THE RAVEN THIEF. The story starts with a tour of a basement newly redone to reflect the owner’s love of classic mysteries. So many creative ideas.Then on to the locked-room murder mystery…or maybe there’s a secret passage.
Started a debut thriller from 2022 yesterday, Josh Haven’s FAKE MONEY, BLUE SMOKE. Art theft, counterfeit money and interesting characters. Also got to the library to restock my reading so more to look forward to.
Lesa – I had an opportunity to watch the recording of the Sarah Stewart Taylor interview this morning. Wonderful questions and responses. Thanks for providing the links yesterday.
You’re welcome, MM! Thank you for watching. I’m glad you enjoyed it. I think Sarah does such a terrific job answering questions.
In my hometown, it’s June bugs that invade, MM, and another one that I can’t think of right now. Never pleasant.
I really do need to read those Gigi Pandian mysteries. I like Gigi personally, and I know I’d enjoy the books, too.
Good morning. It’s rainy and in the 60s in NJ today but we’ll be back in the upper 70s and 80s in a day or two. The cooler weather is extending my snow pea harvest a few extra weeks so that’s something.
I’m working my way through SUCH GOOD FRIENDS A NOVEL OF TRUMAN CAPOTE AND LEE RADZIWILL by Stephen Greco. It’s interesting because I was too young during the 60s to care what was in the news but it didn’t really need to be over 400 pages.
Rainy and in the 60s is not my kind of weather, but I’m glad you found a positive spin on it, Sandy.
I wondered about that book. You’re right. 400 pages just sounds too long.
Hi, Lesa! I just finished CJ Box’s latest Cassie Dewell mystery, Treasure State. The story was a little far-fetched but it was still a fun read (I listened to the audiobook). I recommend the series. It is not a cozy but it does have good characters and appealing western US settings.
Hi, Susan! Good to hear from you.
Oh, the books don’t have to be cozies. They don’t even have to be mysteries when we talk on Thursdays. We’re all interested in discovering what others are reading. Thank you for mentioning CJ Box. He doesn’t come up often here.
Hi everyone! It has been a slow reading week for me. I wrapped up another Jeri Howard mystery and then last night I finished Anatomy: A Love Story, which I kind of lost interest in about 2/3 of the way through. I am at a conference this week, which is taking a lot of brain power, so I went ahead and finished it so I didn’t have to do the work of picking a new book. Anyway, Anatomy has a lot of the elements I like, a feisty feminist heroine coming of age, a moody historical setting, lots of books and a mystery, but it felt like there was too much going on in the end.
I think I need to move on from the Jeri Howard I’m reading, Trisha, to the next one. This one just isn’t catching my attention like the earlier ones did.
Sorry the conference escape book didn’t really work!
So we’re supposed to have on and off showers through the weekend here in CT -Ugh! I read Peter Robinson’s last book Standing in the Shadows -I found it difficult to totally enjoy knowing it was his last book. I can’t believe that I won’t be reading any more about DCI Peter Banks. However, on a happier note – I did discover a new Swedish mystery writer – Tove Alsterdal who is quite well-known in Sweden and just had 2 of her books translated into English -We Know you Remember and You will Never Be Found – I read them in order which was good as the second book refers to things that happened in the first. Good mysteries and also the background of Sweden and the differences from here was interesting.
I’m sorry about the weather and the last Peter Robinson book, Donna.
However, I’ll take that happier note for you, and that you found a new author you like!
I’m having a hard time getting interested in any novel these days. That’s partly due to the lousy state of my health, but the books themselves just haven’t appealed to me. One crime novel started with a man’s stinking, dripping severed head perched on an open Bible, surrounded by seven women who had ample reason to put it there. No, thanks, Another book, sent to me by a major publisher in finished hardcover form in the hope that I would recommend it, is written as the transcript of a podcast, and although I tried I just couldn’t get into it because it lacks all the ingredients I love in fiction — description, the inner life and thoughts of characters, ACTION. Maybe it has all those things, but I couldn’t get far enough to find out. I think I’m a little burned out on crime fiction in general. But I have found one book I think I can finish: The Forgotten Woman by Joan Kwok, coming out Oct. 10 from William Morrow. It tells the dual stories of Jasmine Yang, a Chinese woman who comes to the US to find the child that was taken away from her under China’s cruel one-child rule years ago, and publishing executive Rebecca Whitney, who adopted the girl and adores her. Jasmine’s domineering husband is pursuing her, and Rebecca is facing a scandal that threatens her career — and the two of them, who love the same child, are on a collision course. I hope it continues to hold my interest.
I’m sorry, Sandra. I get it. Sometimes, there are just no books that catch my attention. And, when you’re not feeling well, it’s even harder to get into something to read.
I hope you continue to enjoy reading The Forgotten Woman.
Lesa, this is a SMH correction. The novel I’ve started reading is The Leftover Woman, not The Forgotten Woman. Sorry! 🙄
Our heat is returning after the rain predicted for tonight in Cincinnati. It has been an odd June with more cooler windy days than sunny warm days.
Three books this week. I really enjoyed Esme Cahill Fails Spectacularly by Marie Bostwick. Esme loses her job in publishing and returns home to North Carolina to help save her grandparents’ resort. I enjoyed the backstory of her grandmother and how she became a nontraditional quilter and her work protecting artwork at the Biltmore.
The next book was Playing it Safe by Ashley Weaver, the third in the Electra McDonnell series. Something was off with this one for me. It spent more time than usual moving the snail pace relationship between the Major and Electra than the actual mystery.
Lastly, I read Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn. It has been reviewed by other commentators here. I thought it was great fun and entirely different in writing style from the Veronica Speedwell books.
Happy Reading!
Hi Sharon! We’ve had the best spring here, just good temperatures with low humidity. Now, we’re starting to move into the humid season for the summer. Yech at humidity.
I know I’m the one who originally mentioned Esme Cahill. I just haven’t had a chance to get into it. I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I’m also happy that you enjoyed Killers of a Certain Age. One of my favorite books last year.
Sharon, I’m happy to hear you enjoyed Esme Cahill Fails Spectacularly. I’m trying to get it from the library, but no luck putting it on hold just yet.
Well, that’s a shame, Sharon. I know I’ve had my copy checked out from the library for a couple weeks now.
I think you will enjoy it, Margie.
Weather in Plano, Texas is severe hot weather. Our electricity went off for a while a few ago and I couldn’t breathe. I hope that it stays on for a long time!
I am struggling through the end of The Glass Chateau by Stephen P. Kiernan. It is a novel inspired by Marc Chagall. The main character has lost his wife and daughter in WWII, fought in the French Resistance, killed 22, and feels that all hope is gone. The devastation description reminds me of Ukraine. But the love story is too soap opera for me. I would have preferred to read another book about Chagall. Both the main character and Chagall did stained glass windows. I have a blue glass lion from the New York World’s Fair and was fascinated by how the glass blower made it. Now I know more than I wanted to know about the craft and will never ever attempt it! The book slogged along and suddenly pops in a fascinating fact here and there.
Just started Others Were Emeralds, written by a daughter of a Cambodian immigrant to Australia. When I entered for the book, I thought I was going to get a book of her poetry but instead received a young adult book that may be semi-autobiographical. The author has some brilliantly written poetry about her mother’s experience with the Khmer Rouge. Later in the book, anti-Asian hatred will be addressed as it is in Australia.
For relief, as soon as I finish The Glass Cathedral, I have picked out Flamenco, Flan, and Fatalities. That might spur me to the finish line. I would give up on the first book but the author sneaks a lot fascinating facts enough to keep me reading.
Oh, good luck, Carol, both with weather, breathing, and getting to the end of The Glass Chateau. Especially the breathing part! Take care of yourself.
I think Flamenco, Flan, and Fatalities might be just the change you need.
Good afternoon everyone, from fairly sunny northern Scotland. It is about 64F here just now. Yesterday we were supposed to have a full afternoon of thunderstorms but after a few rumbles it all died away. (I quite enjoy a thunderstorm if I am indoors.)
I have had a busy few days – on Saturday we went through to Glasgow to see Graham Costello and his band, STRATA, perform as part of the Glasgow Jazz festival. These are relatively young performers who all graduated from the university’s music department a few years ago – it had started a special degree in jazz, and the results have been spectacular. This performance was held in a brewery that also has a bar, restaurant, etc. The room we were in was very hot and airless, but the music was very good, we enjoyed it.
We also managed to meet up with our youngest, Madeleine, beforehand, and had tea with her. It is always so nice to see her, as we don’t get to do so too often, and on the whole she is the most chilled of the three, so we had a good time.
We returned to Edinburgh after the show, and on Sunday we went to a big event on Leith Links, which started at 4pm. Three bands, starting with Hamish Hawk, whom I think is absolutely brilliant, then a Glaswegian group called Admiral Fallow, and finally, around 8.30pm. The Proclaimers. Charlie and Craig Reid are Leithers through and through, and Hamish comes from Edinburgh too, so they were all on home ground. Leith is a very tight-knit community, and singing hits like Cap in Hand (a pro-indy song) and Sunshine on Leith in the company of thousands of locals was an amazing experience. The tent was absolutely packed out – something I don’t usually like – but everyone was very good natured and friendly. It was a night to remember.
Then last night we finally got to see the Pet Shop Boys here in Aberdeen. Fantastic show, so much fun. Non-stop hits (them) and non-stop dancing (me!) for two hours, accompanied by a sensational light show. They don’t bother trying to play any new music (in fact I’m not sure they’ve actually got any…), they know what their audiences want and they dish it up so well. So we had West End Girls, Rent, It’s A Sin, Always On My Mind, Heart, Left to my Own Devices, Go West, and their trademark last song, Being Boring, and every single one was great. I had looked forward to this for so long that I was worried it’d turn out to be a disappointment, but my goodness it certainly wasn’t.
The last time we were at this arena it was December, snow was lying on the ground, and we almost froze waiting to pay for the parking, so it seemed strange, last night, to come outside to bright daylight and the air still so warm that we didn’t even need a jacket. Aberdeen is a place of extremes.
Books!
I finished WHAT MEN SAY by Joan Smith and I’m now about to finish VILLAGE MATTERS, the third of Rebecca Shaw’s Turnham Malpas series about life in a Cotswolds village. I couldn’t read too many of these in one go, but I enjoy one from time to time. In Village Matters, a landowner has plans to build social housing on fields – his project causes big divisions in the village – and the daughter of the local shop owner is knocked down by the pub barman, who was driving without insurance and in an unsafe vehicle.
Everything always turns out OK in the end in these books, and I do get fed up with the way some of the characters are portrayed as saints, notably the vicar’s wife Caroline (who’s raising twins that her husband fathered with another woman and not even complaining about it) and Muriel, the rather ditzy wife of the landowner, who ‘couldn’t cope with life’ till he came along and put her out of her misery.
But I enjoy catching up with some of the other characters, and they are easy reads. They are also extremely popular, so what do I know? I think many people enjoy series in which nothing too awful really happens, and any wrongdoing receives karma sooner or later. I suppose it’s a variation on detective stories, or at least traditional ones, where everything is neatly tied up at the end, and people can persuade themselves, if only for a few hours, that that is possible in real life.
On the radio I am listening to Elizabeth Bowen’s THE LAST SEPTEMBER, set in an affluent Anglo-Irish family during the Irish War of Independence. So far I’m liking it a lot. Before that I listened to Ian Rankin’s DEATH IS NOT THE END, in which Inspector John Rebus gets caught up in shady Edinburgh night club wars while searching for the missing son of an old school friend.
On Monday I had my first ride on the new tram extension, which starts very near our house in Leith and goes all the way to the airport via Princes Street (centre of Edinburgh). I have of course been on the tram before, but it’s only just opened up down to the northern harbours. I have to say it’s going to be a real boon to me, especially in the festivals – it’s so much quicker and smoother than the buses, and doesn’t get stuck in traffic.
While I was waiting for the tram, I started chatting with an older lady who couldn’t work out the ticket machine. Neither could I (I have a pass) but we finally managed it together. We continued to chat on our way up to town, and it turned out that she was the aunt of the Proclaimers’ drummer! She is Edinburgh-born but now lives with her daughter’s family in California; her daughter had paid for her to have a 6 week holiday back to the UK. Her nephew had reserved wheelchair seating for her at the concert – she could actually walk fine, but it would have been awful for her to have had to stand for 5 hours at her age. So she had had a good view, and had in fact attended both nights, she loved it. She was now on her way to visit friends on Deeside, then going back to London, where she was basing herself with another friend. She was travelling entirely independently and was such an interesting, nice person. I really enjoyed meeting her, and I walked with her to the train station to make sure she found her train. Such an intrepid woman.
The rest of my week is looking quite quiet, thank goodness. I have a lot of writing to do. I also need to go through the brochures for all three festivals and mark up what I would like to review. I started with the Book Festival yesterday, but to be honest I couldn’t find that much of interest. I don’t know how people can afford to come to Edinburgh to ‘do the festivals’ these days – the tickets for each book festival session (and they are a very strictly timed one hour each) cost £15 or more, and people who don’t live here have also to pay travel costs, exorbitantly over-inflated accommodation prices, and for food, drinks, etc.
We end up with a book festival largely consisting of authors of whom nobody has heard – which is good in a way but probably deters people from forking out £15 a go – and a Fringe consisting largely of big-name comedians, which was never the idea behind it – but less famous performers simply can’t afford the outrageous costs of being in the city for a month., plus hiring a venue. Edinburgh really does need to take a long hard look at itself – but that will never happen while landlords and venue owners see how much money they can make.
Nevertheless, I’ll go! But it’s easy for me, I have accommodation already, and review tickets are free (even if I do have to spend 3 weeks frantically writing reviews…)
So those are my random thoughts on the festivals (the third one for me is the art festival, as I don’t really get involved in the International Festival – I’d never be able to review classical music or very highbrow theatre.)
And now I must go down to the river.
Have a good week all,
Rosemary
Rosemary, it always makes me nostalgic when I read about your travels around Edinburgh, still one of my favorite cities, though we haven’t been there in too many years.
I’d be curious about your take, if you’ve seen it, on the BBC series (from last year) MARRIAGE. It stars Nicola Walker (who seems to be in everything, though sadly, not in the new series of UNFORGOTTEN) and Sean Bean, one of my wife’s favorites, and is supposed to be a picture of a “typical” long-time marriage. Apparently critics in Britain loved it, though the reaction of ordinary viewers was more mixed. Well, two ordinary viewers in New York watched the first episode watched the first episode and found it just deadly boring! Yes, parts were OK, and the bickering of the two as they returned from their holiday abroad was believable, but otherwise? No. Their adopted daughter comes to dinner with her new boyfriend, who they clearly dislike (though he didn’t seem that bad so far). The couple leaves and we get a scene of Bean loading the dishwasher while Walker stands there, and… neither one says a word for about five minutes! Then suddenly, both start talking about how awful he is. Does this sound like a realistic view of any marriage? It wasn’t to us. The 56 minute running time seemed much longer.
We have only one more episode (next Monday) of HAPPY VALLEY yet to watch, and we’re trying to guess if Catherine will personally end Tommy Lee Royce or some other fate will befall him. Such a well done show, and so much better than MARRIAGE.
Jeff, I saw Marriage was available on PBS Passport. Sounds like we will be giving it a pass. It’s a shame because we too are Nicola Walker / Sean Bean fans. We are also anxiously awaiting the last Happy Valley on Monday.
Rosemary, I see Jeff often picks out the television series you mention. I don’t watch much TV. I picked out the concert with the Proclaimers, and went onto YouTube to listen to their song “Cap in Hand”. I can see why it was a memorable experience to be in that crowd with thousands of others singing those songs. I wouldn’t have done it. I don’t think I could have stood for 5 hours in that crowd. And, I’m short, so I couldn’t have seen anything anyways.
I like your “random thoughts on the festivals”. And, your comment about the tram and your companion were interesting. Thank you for finding time for us in the midst of all your adventures.
Weather? For the first full day of summer, we are way cooler than we should be – not that I mind, because I don’t. Instead of a normal 81 degrees, it is only 64, and not going any higher. We did have some rain this morning, but not nearly the severe weather they predicted, so that’s good, but it looks warmer and humid with possible thunderstorms through the weekend and into next week. We’ll see, I guess.
Books. Jackie read Christine Feehan’s GHOSTLY GAME. By my estimate, she has read around 100 of her books, a total she has already surpassed with Nora Roberts, Jayne Ann Krentz and Diana Palmer. She is now reading Roberts’ THE SEARCH, a K-9 search & rescue story from 2010 that she somehow missed.
I did finally finish S.A. Cosby’s ALL THE SINNERS BLEED, another outstanding book by one of the best writers working today. My problem was, I had to put it down and read something else at times because it was too dark and intense to read straight through. I still prefer RAZORBLADE TEARS, but it is a great book.
The problem for me is, between this and the non fiction and short story collections I’ve been reading, I only have four days remaining before I have to return the Anne Hillerman book whichc I have barely started, so…do I try and get to it right away and read it fast or return it and take it out again. I doubt it will take too long until it pops up again, or indeed I can pick up the hardback edition. That is because I already have T. J. Newman’s second thriller, DROWNING, and I just downloaded Chris Offutt’s CODE OF THE HILLS.
I’m almost done with a couple of short story collections, John Lutz’s THE NUDGET DILEMMAS, which I am enjoying more than I’d expected to (having a wrong picture of Alo Nudger in my mind), and Helen Ellis’s very amusing AMERICAN HOUSEWIFE. A friend recommended her books of essays and I picked up the short story collection first, Will definitely be reading the essays next. I also have a collection of stories by Lauren Groff, DELICATE EDIBLE BIRDS.
I’m reading Jane Smiley’s 600 page 13 WAYS OF LOOKING AT THE NOVEL, with her take on 100 novels taking up the second half of the book.
Have a good week, everyone.
Decisions, decisions, Jeff. I guess we’ll see what you decided when you drop by next Thursday.
I agree with you that S.A. Cosby is one of the best writers today. I also agree that Razorblade Tears was better, but I still thought All the Sinners Bleed was outstanding.
I always appreciate that you mention what Jackie is reading, or what her preferences are. Thank you!
Good luck with your reading decisions!
Since they have the Anne Hillerman book available I decided to return the ebook and pick up the hardback, so will read the other two books first.
Thanks for the answer, Jeff!
Pretty cool weather here, 70s and 80s. Not good for the rice, which needs so many days of 90 degree weather.
I went to the Palladio concert last night. They had an up and coming country band. I left during the intermission. Country music has never recovered from Bro country and American Idol. Oh well. I’d better go to all the concerts I can because Margie’s town cancelled their whole concert season, and there’s no telling how many bureaucrats in other towns will glom onto that idea. Personally, I think maybe it’s time for a return of charivari for some of these unaccountable bureaucrats. This guy deserves a double dip in the tar.
This week I read:
Lost Holiday by Brett Scott Ermilio; when icons of a holiday lost in the mists of time find themselves, they get kicked out of the club. The only way back in is to find two people to believe in the holiday. It was sort of like an 80’s slob comedy, only with cartoon characters.
Ten Against Napoleon by Douglas Hilt; Written before “Resistance” became a fad, the title tells it all. Nowadays, they say Napoleon was a proto-fascist, but there’s a reason we call Waterloo a defeat.
Paper Cuts by Ellery Adams; DNF–Everyone was so traumatized, I wondered how they got out of the house.
American Fantastica by Tim O’Brien; Inspired by Hunter Thompson (maybe pick an idol who didn’t kill himself?). A reporter robs a bank and travels around trying not to get arrested, or otherwise harmed.
Devil’s Way by Robert Bryndza; A female PI is hired to find a kid missing for years by his pickled grandmother. It’s a conspiracy! Felt more like a 90’s novel.
Well, lousy books, lousy concert. I’m sorry, Glen. I hope the rest of your week has been better. And, I hope the concerts continue at the Palladio.
But, you did make me look up the word charivari. For a change, I had only heard it, and never seen it in print. I knew immediately what it was when I saw the definition.
It’s a shivaree, like in OKLAHOMA. Not a word we use.
Even before looking it up, Jeff, I could see what Glen meant by it!
Lesa, Glen texted me with that word a couple of days ago, and I had to look it up as well! Always nice to have a new vocabulary word (I would have understood shivaree from “Oklahoma” (I think). As for the Palladio concerts, they are still on, and I want to go to the one in August. They are monthly, as opposed to weekly. I’m hoping the July 3 event will still go in my town (I’ve heard it will), even though it’s in the same place as the cancelled concerts. I understand there will be patrolling for liquor that’s brought in, open containers, and the like. I went last year, and it was terrific. I didn’t see any problems. So I’m hoping for the best.
The weather has been nice in Goleta / Santa Barbara. Up until a couple of days ago we were getting overcast skies most days, which is not unusual for June. But now we have had two sunny days in a row. The high today is 68 degrees, low is 52, which I think is unusual. But summers here are variable and you never know what to expect. In the next week, the highs will be in the low 70s.
My reading is still relatively slow but I did finish two books in the last week. Both of them had a major theme centered around the King Arthur legend, and this was entirely unplanned. The first was OUR MAN IN CAMELOT by Anthony Price. This is part of the David Audley espionage series, book 6. I loved it. The series always features some historical topic. The next book was A DYING FALL by Elly Griffiths, the fifth book in the Ruth Galloway series. Ruth gets involved with the death of a friend of hers from college. The friend had discovered some bones which he hopes are the the bones of King Arthur. I usually have reservations about the Ruth Galloway books, but this one I enjoyed a lot.
Now I am reading THE HEART IS A LONELY HUNTER by Carson McCullers, a book on my Classics Club list. (and also on my 20 Books of Summer list).
My husband recently finished SCAM by Parnell Hall, and now he is reading IN MEMORY OF ENGLAND: A Novelist’s View of History by Peter Vansittart.
I love it when it’s serendipity but my books have some odd connection, Tracy. King Arthur!
That second book your husband is reading, In Memory of England, sounds interesting.
Peter Vansittart wrote a good number of novels and nonfiction from 1942 to 2005, but I don’t know anything about him or his writing. I will let you know how he likes it next week.
Great! Thanks, Tracy.
Good afternoon, Lesa. I’m running late today because I spent my morning trying to get all of my books/ducks in a row on Amazon. Adding my latest frontier fiction in ebook and paperback and getting all the pages to show up correctly in searches has been an adventure.
This week I’m reading Paper Cuts by Ellery Adams. I won this book on Goodreads and wish I’d started reading the series with book one, mostly because I’m enjoying book six so much. I look forward to starting at the beginning to follow the interesting characters forward through their complicated lives. A Secret, Book, and Scone Society is a group I’d like membership in myself.
That’s interesting, Patricia, that you are liking Paper Cuts when Glen didn’t even finish. Some books work for people, and don’t work for others.
Oh, I know how rough it can be trying to get book lists sorted out. Good job!
Patricia, if you liked Paper Cuts, you will like all of the books in the series. It’s one of my favorite mystery series. It might make a bit more sense to go back and read the first at least.
My current reads are Hard Rain by Samantha Jayne Allen and Sunrise by Karen Kingsbury (for book club). I am starting Zero Days by Ruth Ware on audiobook.
Katherine, how is the Ruth Ware book so far? I am on my library’s wait list for that one. Ware’s books are fun audio “reads.”
Susan, I have just barely started but I have heard good things. She has the same narrator, Imogen Church as before.
Hard Rain isn’t quite as good as Allen’s first book. I hope it’s okay, Katherine.
Hi Lesa, I am not loving it as much as I did Pay Dirt Road. But I am invested enough that I will keep going to see how it ties up in the end.