Happy October 1! Just a little closer to 2021. I don’t know when a new year will be so welcome.
How are you doing? I hope this week has been a little kinder to you. The weather has been a little cooler here, and I broke out the sweaters for the low 50s. What about you? How is the weather and the world treating you this week? What are you reading?
I’m reading Winter Counts, a debut novel by David Heska Wanbli Weiden. It’s about Virgil Wounded Horse, a vigilante, an enforcer on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota. He takes on punishment when the federal and tribal police won’t handle crime. This time, it’s personal when Virgil’s nephew overdoses on heroin just after Virgil was asked to track and punish a local man suspected as being the source of the drug on the reservation.
What about you? What are you reading this week? Most of all, I hope you’re doing okay.
I'm about to start The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, and The First Rul – A joe Pike novel by Robert Crais, and I'm almost done Dead Run by P.J. Tracy – I'm rereading the Monkeewrench series. Also Forensics : what bugs, burns, prints, DNA, and more tell us about crime by Val McDermid, and Verse and Vengeance by Amanda Flower. Deadlock by Catherine Coulter is waiting for me at the library.
Doing OK. Weather has been pretty good – we got a lot of rain yesterday but in the best way: it was overnight and gone by morning. And it has been cooler but still nice and mild.
Books? Just picked up the new Longmire by Craig Johnson at the library yesterday and hope to get to it shortly. I'm reading the third Vinyl Detective by Andrew Cartmel, VICTORY DISC, where he finds a vintage World War II era 78 big band record. Also went back to the collected F. Scott Fitzgerald short stories.
I read:
FALSE KNIGHT by Peter Turnbull, another in his Hennessey & Yellich police procedural series.
20th CENTURY GHOSTS was the first short story collection by Joe Hill, which I enjoyed, though less than his later horror collections. I'm still put off his novels by the excessive (700 pages +!) length.
BEFORE THE POISON was a non-series book by Peter Robinson, though set in the same area of Yorkshire as his Alan Banks series. A year after his wife's death, film composer Chris Lowndes returns to his native Yorkshire after 30+ years in Hollywood. He buys (sight unseen) a big isolated house, then discovers a supposed murder took place there in 1953. He becomes obsessed with the apparent killer (who was executed), former nurse Grace Fox, and sets out to investigate the circumstances 60 years later. I liked it quite a bit. At least there was no people trafficking as in recent Banks books.
We’re doing OK. It’s gotten to cool to eat breakfast on the porch anymore but it’s been sunny, our flowers are still blooming and I’m still picking vegetables from the garden.
This week I read KILLER KING PAO by Vivian Chien. I felt that this one dragged a bit.
TOME TO TOMB by ACF Bookens, a Christmas cozy set in a small town bookstore.
THE ANSWER IS by Alex Trebek. It was s light read but interesting since I’m a Jeopardy fan.
And my two favorite books were:
HANGING FALLS by Margaret Mizushima. I really enjoyed the lates adventures of Mattie and her K-9 partner Robo.
A KILLING FROST by Seanan McGuire. The 14th book in her series featuring a changeling, October Daye, navigating through the world of faerie where changelings are considered worthless but someone has to step up and be a hero.
It was so cold, overcast and windy yesterday I finally broke down and turned on the furnace last night.
Only one book this week but it was a good one. THE PARIS IS CHILDREN by Gloria Goldreich. Biofiction about Madeleine Levy (granddaughter of Alfred Dreyfus) who worked in the Resistance getting Jewish children out of France.
A third of the way through THE SWITCH by Beth O'Leary. I am enjoying it.
Happy Reading!
I hope you enjoy The Thursday Murder Club, Gram! Oh, The Monkeewrench books! Terrific, aren't they? Kaye Wilkinson Barley reports that P.J. Tracy's forthcoming book, Not a Monkeewrench one, is very good.
I just thought this new Longmire was fun, Jeff. He said in a virtual event that he thought readers needed something a little lighter this time around. I agree! I've said before that I need to read Peter Robinson. I think I'd like his books.
Sandy, You read a couple books I liked, too, the Alex Trebek (another Jeopardy fan) and Hanging Falls. You're right. The Trebek was light, but it was what I expected.
Sharon, I thought the Gloria Goldreich sounded good. Thanks for the comments about it. And, I still need to read The Switch.
In the nineties here this week, but within a week, highs in the seventies are expected. It's up and down. My house is pretty cool, so I make do with ceiling and Dyson fans and only turn on the A/C in the evening. I love reading on my old La-Z-Boy on the covered patio in the mornings.
In VANESSA YU's MAGICAL PARIS TEA SHOP by Roselle Lim, Vanessa hates her ability to make predictions after reading others' tea leaves. The predictions come to her unwanted, and she can't help blurting them out, although some of them leave the recipients upset and heartbroken. Evelyn, one of Vanessa's family of aunties, has the same gift and has been trying to train her since Vanessa was six, but to no avail. Now, finally, Vanessa gives in, and she accompanies Evelyn to Paris, where her aunt is setting up a tea shop. But she is making little progress controlling and refining her abilities as a clairvoyant. She meets a handsome chef and starts a relationship with him, even though Evelyn has told her that clairvoyants in their family are destined never to find romantic love. What happens to both Vanessa and Evelyn (who has an unspoken reason for returning to Paris) is the heart of the story. With a bit of magical realism thrown in, it's a pleasure to read and a good way to escape life for a little while.
Thanks to Lesa, I won a copy of Jeffrey B. Burton's enjoyable quick read, THE FINDERS. Mace is reeling from a failed marriage and the death of his favorite dog, so he jumps at the chance to add golden retriever Vira to his family when she is almost killed by her owner. He trains her, along with the others, as a cadaver dog, but she begins to exhibit uncanny skills in identifying murderers. When the police call on Mace and his dogs to assist in murder cases, Vira demonstrates her abilities in several situations. And when Mace becomes involved in tracking down a serial killer, he and his dogs are tested to their limits, with the help of an attractive police detective. I do hope this is the start of a new series.
Since Sunday I have been reading Robert Galbraith's (JK Rowling) new Cormoran Strike book, which is why I've only finished two books. I am past page 400 and have more than half to go!!
So sorry you had such a run of spammers. I saw a few, you probably deleted many more.
I'm about halfway in C.Pam Zhang's HOW MUCH OF THESE HILLS IS GOLD. It recieved many positive recommendations, but I keep bumping up to my pet peeve of sense of place. I think if a real place/time is used it should be accurate. The claim to taking place at the end of the California Gold Rush isn't supported by the geography or fauna. But the writing is good, so I'm sure to finish.
Your reviews had me reflect on how trendy "unreliable narrator" theme was for awhile and hoping "London detective to NY" doesn't follow suit. This is the second reference I've seen in less than a week.
The smoke is back, but no fires nearby, so I'm thankful for that.
Marjorie, Vanessa Yu is on a TBR pile, so I'm happy to hear you liked it. As for The Finders, I do think it's the start of a series. Yay!
This week has been a tad better at work. Although I was in a 30 minute meeting last night that went 3 hours. And it started at 4:15.
However, my family lives up in Santa Rosa, one of the communities impacted by the massive fires in Sonoma and Napa counties right now. My parents were evacuated Sunday night through Tuesday. They are still under an evacuation warning, although it isn't mandatory any more. The fire is still only 2% contained, so there is a long way to go. And so many homes and businesses have been destroyed already.
I've been reading this week. Hoping to finish up CAKE POPPED OFF by Kim Davis today, which I am completely enjoying.
Mo, I'm always interested to see what pet peeves other people have when they're reading. I never really thought much about sense of place, but I understand. If you know a place, or its history, that would throw you out of the story.
Oh, I agree. I hope London detective to NY doesn't become a trend.
I hope the fires are controlled. I feel so sorry for everyone who has to deal with them – firefighters and everyone who lives in the area, as well as those who suffer from breathing problems and have to cope.
Oh, Mark. I'm so sorry about your family, your parents. That's so tough to worry about them while also dealing with your issues at work. I'm sorry.
Books are an escape, but I know family comes first. I hope they're all set.
After a couple days of cold and rainy days, today is cool and gorgeous. Fall is near – my favorite time of the year in these mountains.
What I'm reading:
Right now I'm about half way through Lost in Paris by Elizabeth Thompson (ARC). This is a book that was inspired by the mysterious locked apartment discovered in Paris a few years back. There are several of these books and I've enjoyed all of them, although I'm not crazy about the characters in this one.
The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult. I admit skimming through this one – not my cup of tea.
The Last Tiara by M. J. Rose (ARC). Very good.
The Velvet Hours by Alyson Richman. EXCELLENT!!!!!
Stay well, everyone!
Lesa, thank you for caring about all of us. I'm doing all right except for something with my knee – I have no idea what I did but it was quite painful earlier this week so I decided to just rest it yesterday which seemed to help. I hope you're doing all right also and that you're not feeling too sad that your visit home is over.
Rosemary, I answered you on last week's "what are you reading" about Kate Fansler.
I finished ALL THE DEVILS ARE HERE (Louise Penny) & it was every bit as good as I expected. And last night I stayed up to finish ANXIOUS PEOPLE (Fredrik Backman) – loved it. A quote: "You could get it into your head to do some unbelievably stupid things when you run out of tears, when you can't silence the voices no one else can hear, when you've never been in a room where you felt normal." Next is Mary Gordon's PAYBACK.
Kaye, Fall in your mountains always looks gorgeous! It's winter in those mountains that would not be for me.
I think you're the second person to tell me that The Book of Two Ways wasn't for you. Either that, or we'd talked about it personally. (smile)
You stay well, too!
Hi Lesa
I'm fine, very happy to be back up on Deeside after 10 days in Edinburgh. We got back late on Tuesday night and the house was freezing as the temperatures have dropped dramatically – but I didn't even care, I was so glad to be here. However, my husband then guilted me into letting my cat Gracie have the only hot water bottle, so today I have been out and bought her her own half-sized one and tonight I may yet have warm feet for once.
It's been raining solidly for 2 days here. I went for a forest walk with my friend this morning so now my coat, boots and scarf are all in the airing cupboard drying out, but we still had a good time. I just hope the river at the end of the garden stays where it is supposed to – it's only flooded once in the years we have owned this house, but I'm always a little nervous about it.
Books! I am reading Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days and enjoying it much more than I thought I would – it's an easy and entertaining read. For anyone who doesn't know it, wealthy bachelor Phileas Fogg takes a bet that he can travel round the world in 80 days – and this being the 19th century, he has to do it by train, ship or on horseback. He is a mysterious man whose life runs like clockwork – but is he also a clever criminal who has stolen £50,000 from the Bank of England? With him on his travels is his French manservant Passepartout, who observes his master's behaviour with amazement – while Passepartout always explores any country through which the two men pass if he gets the chance, Fogg has no interest whatsoever in seeing the sights or learning anything about the people and their customs, he just wants to do the trip and win the bet. I'm enjoying it – we've got to Bombay so far.
After this I will start the book I have chosen for October's #1956Club read, run by one of my favourite bloggers, Simon Thomas. My choice is Mary Stewart's Wildfire at Midnight – the back of the book says 'Gianetta is hoping for a tranquil interlude on the Isle of Skye. Bruised by divorce from her writer husband, she seeks solace in the island's savage beauty. But a vicious murder throws the community into confusion…and then her ex-husband arrives…' I like Mary Stewart a lot so I'm looking forward to this one.
Keep safe everyone, and have a good weekend.
Sally, I do care, and I wonder about people when I don't hear from them week-to-week, although I know people have personal lives, get busy, and it's easy to forget to read a blog. I'm the only one who HAS to remember.
Oh, no. Not too sad. It was so good to be home that, unless someone gets sick, I'm going one more time this year before the weather gets bad. I just want to see my mother again before next spring. So, I'll drive home one more time this year. It's a seven hour drive.
I'm so glad you loved All the Devils are Here as much as some of us did!
Sally – I did reply to your comment last week, but I think I posted it too late for you to see – so here it is again!
'Sally, according to Fantastic Fiction there are 14:
https://www.fantasticfiction.com/c/amanda-cross/
I think I’ve probably read the first 9 at some point over the years, but not the later ones. I think I’ll try to complete my collection if they’re not too expensive. I’ve re-read some of them recently & was glad to find that I still loved them – though oh my goodness, Vietnam war or no Vietnam war, life was so much simpler then.
Carolyn Heilbrun was a wealthy, well educated, successful woman. I wonder if she based Kate on herself or on the person she would have liked to have been?
Which books have you read?'
I had no idea Gloria Goldreich was still writing. Jackie used to read a lot of those books 40 years ago, like LEAH'S JOURNEY. Cynthia Freeman was another of those writers. Jackie always called them "From the Shtetl to Scarsdale" books.
I’m reading GRANT. I was reading all last month, it seems, and I’m still going. At 1,100 + pages, it’s taking a long time. I may have to take a break and read something else. THE TRAITOR BARU CORMORANT just came from the library, so there’s that.
I didn’t even know a new Longmeyer was out. Sigh. I bet there’s a long wait at the library.
Jeff, your wife and I must have similar reading tastes. I read all the Cynthia Freeman books years ago as well.
It's over 100 degrees and smoky here. Every time the air starts to clear up a little, there's a new fire.
I read:
Murder, My Love by Spillane/Collins: Somebody is blackmailing a philandering politician and murder results. Pretty good 80's style Hammer, but I like 50's style best.
Winter Count by David Heska Wanbli Weider: A hired thug on a reservation gets in way over his head. Not bad, but I didn't think it lived up to the hype.
e-books
Dukkha Hungery Ghosts; A martial arts thriller with supernatural overtones, that doesn't always make sense.
Jate's Boy; A guy gets out of prison and gets back into harness racing despite the mob still being after him. Very 90s, and not really in a good way.