I’m sure most of us were in bed early on New Year’s Eve. I hope fireworks didn’t keep you awake.
We’re heading into a week of cold weather, but I don’t have too many places I need to be. So, I’ll tuck in, and stay cozy as long as I can. What about you? How are you starting the new year?
Yes, I’m reading John Oller’s Gangster Hunters about the FBI from 1933-1936. But, I’m also reading something lighter, Irish Soda Bread Murder. I know Mark was reading it sometime in the last couple weeks. It’s a mystery collection set around St. Patrick’s Day with stories by Carlene O’Connor, Peggy Ehrhart and Liz Ireland. I’ve read the first two stories, and just started the third.
What about you? What are. you reading this week?
We were both awake to welcome the New Year, but I welcomed it with my nose in a book and Donald welcomed it watching a movie. We are wild and crazy, huh?! 😀
I have discovered a new (to me) author. Maggie O’Farrell. After reading her THIS MUST BE THE PLACE I’m looking forward to reading more.
Description from Amazon:
An irresistible love story, an unforgettable family. The New York Times bestselling author of The Marriage Portrait and Hamnet captures an extraordinary marriage with insight and laugh-out-loud humor in what Richard Russo calls “her breakout book.”
Daniel Sullivan leads a complicated life. A New Yorker living in the wilds of Ireland, he has children he never sees in California, a father he loathes in Brooklyn, and his wife, Claudette, is a reclusive ex–film star given to pulling a gun on anyone who ventures up their driveway. Together, they have made an idyllic life in the country, but a secret from Daniel’s past threatens to destroy their meticulously constructed and fiercely protected home. Shot through with humor and wisdom, This Must Be the Place is an irresistible love story that crisscrosses continents and time zones as it captures an extraordinary marriage, and an unforgettable family, with wit and deep affection.
This sounds good Kaye! Another one to add to my long list.
Perfect New Year’s welcome, Kaye!
I haven’t read any of O’Farrell’s books, but I remember when Hamnet was one of the most popular books at the library.
I went to an NYE party that went pretty well, then went to a New Year Day party today. It’s all about momentum.
This week I read:
Quarry’s Return by Max Allan Collins; Like the last one of these old man action novels, it isn’t Quarry that’s gone soft, it’s Collins. Quarry answers the door to a fellow hitman, and ends up trying to find his true crime writing daughter who is missing. Anne Rule didn’t get abducted that I remember. It also uses a solution he used in an earlier book in the series.
Dark Pacific by David E. Meadows; an ocean base is in trouble, when North Korea gets on war footing when rogue Americans bomb their embassies, and there’s a Chinese sub stalking them as well. A lot of pages for not a lot of payoff.
Like Love by Ed McBain; The guys at the 87 find what appears to be a lovers’ pact suicide, but decide to poke around anyway. I think McBain was still feeling his way, as this feels more like a straight mystery than a police procedural.
Fatal Obligation by J Clifton Slater; It’s peaceful in Ancient Rome, so his patron sends Sisera to Greece, to buy some art. After island hopping for a while, he eventually finds trouble, getting framed for a coup. Not bad, but certainly a minor chapter in Sisera’s adventures.
Love your comment, Glen, that it’s all about momentum. I guess those of us who tend to stay home, continue to do so.
Interesting to go back and read early books by bestselling authors such as Ed McBain, and see the growth.
I was at a New Year’s Eve game night Tuesday night. Fortunately, the friends live close by because I didn’t leave until after 1 AM. I had a lot of fun and a lot of laughs.
I’m currently reading one of my Christmas presents – The Sinister Sitcom Caper by Sally Carpenter. This is the second in her Sandy Fairfax Teen Idol Mysteries. Sandy is guest starring on a sitcom in this one (obviously) and it’s on the lot where his hit show was filmed in the 1970’s. One of the stars of the sitcom has been murdered. I’m almost half way through it and enjoying it.
Happy New Year!
Mark, I’ve read the whole Sandy Fairfax series, and really enjoyed it.
The author also wrote another series, I think a spy series, but I haven’t got to it yet.
Mark, I like the sound of that series, so I just bought the first on Kindle. Thanks for the suggestion to both you and Glen.
That’s my kind of New Year’s party, Mark, game night cloxe by.
Hi Lesa,
I hope everyone enjoyed New Year’s Eve as much as I did – which for me was on my own with two cats, watching television and going to bed early! I did hear the ships in the dock all sounding their horns at midnight, but they didn’t really wake me up. I imagine most of the pubs in Leith were packed out, especially as the big events in Princes Street here in Edinburgh all had to be cancelled owing to the weather – one promotor’s loss is another’s gain, as I should think all the bars, restaurants and clubs across the city were only too happy to pick up the slack.
I feel as though I haven’t been in here for weeks – we’ve done quite a lot over that time, including our trip to London, which was great. ABBA Voyage was brilliant – it’s staged in a purpose-built arena in East London, so you’ve first to take the Docklands Light Railway to Pudding Lane station. It’s years since I went on the DLR, which was quite an innovation in its day, as it has neither drivers nor crew. Now it seems completely normal.
The show was very well done – if you didn’t know it wasn’t, you’d be forgiven for believing the real ABBA was on stage. Very clever projections, a live band (ie real people!), and fabulous music. The arena isn’t that big, so it feels quite intimate. Needless to say, before you go in you are held in a foyer full of bars, food outlets and merchandise stores – the prices are ridiculous, but there’s no real pressure to buy, and you are allowed to take water bottles in with you.
While we were in London, we also saw CONCLAVE. We only really chose it because it was on at an independent cinema very near our hotel in Whitechapel. The cinema – called Genesis – was lovely. Very spacious, very comfortable leather sofas with footstools, and well laid out so that you’d have no trouble seeing the screen from any seat. Tickets were only £11 – in central London they’d be easily double that.
I didn’t know much about Conclave – apparently it’s based on a book by Robert Harris (which Anna has now lent to me); cardinals from all over the world meet in Rome to elect a new Pope. To do this they are locked into the Vatican until a decisive result is reached. So far, so not very exciting – but there is so much intrigue and skullduggery going on that I was sometimes literally on the edge of my seat. The cinematography was excellent, with some spectacular scenes, and the acting was outstanding, especially from Ralph Fiennes as the cardinal burdened with the task of overseeing the election, Stanley Tucci as a progressive, liberal, cardinal who stands for change, which is rarely popular in any church, and John Lithgow as a cardinal so desperate to win that he’s prepared to resort to all sorts of underhand shenanigans. Isabella Rossellini was also very good as the austere and somewhat creepy nun in charge of the cardinals’ accommodation and catering.
Finally, we visited Tate Modern on the South Bank. There were Christmas lights on most of the buildings along the river, and Tower Bridge, which we walked over, was festooned with them too. I enjoyed the room at the Tate showing Guerilla Girls posters – they create art to highlight the lack of female representation in galleries, and the lack of opportunities for emerging female artists.
My reading has probably been even slower than yours Lesa. I took two books to London and – despite being on the train for 4.5 hours each way – read half of one of them. FRAMED IN CORNWALL by Janie Bolitho is the second in her series about Rose Trevelyan, an artist and widow living in the (real) Cornish village of Newlyn. In this outing, Rose’s friend Dorothy Pengelly has been murdered (or has she? The police insist it was suicide) at her remote home on the moors. Dorothy owned some valuable paintings, and Rose notices that one of them has been replaced by a forgery. Suspects abound, and Rose can’t help herself from getting involved, despite warnings from her on-off love interest, Detective Jack Pearce. I enjoyed revisiting the characters and locations from the first book, but I did get a bit annoyed with Rose when she walked into obviously dangerous situations, and refused to share information with Jack because she seemed to have developed an entirely unconvincing dislike for him. Some of the supporting characters are, however, well drawn and enjoyable, and I’m sure I’ll continue to read these books (I bought them all years ago as a set.)
So now I’m reading THE CAT WHO COULD TURN ON AND OFF by Lilian Jackson Braun. I enjoyed THE CAT WHO COULD READ BACKWARDS last year, and so far I’m also enjoying this one. Journalist Jim Qwilleran is sent to Junk Town (an area full of antiques shops, not junkies!) to write a Christmas article. He’s soon intrigued by the death of a well known dealer, who was, apparently accidentally, impaled on a filial. Braun creates good characters, but of course the ones I’m really interested in are Koko and YumYum, Qwilleran’s Siamese cats.
Yesterday I also borrowed far too many books from the Edinburgh Central Library – I went in to find a book by Harry Fisher, an author whose talk I attended in Aberdeen recently, and whose publicist has asked me to review one of his crime novels. I thought I’d read it first just to see if I liked it. But need I tell you bookish people that I couldn’t leave it at that? I’ve come home with NINE books, including DEAD FLOWERS by Mark Timlin, who sets his Nick Sharman thrillers in South London (where I grew up), RE-ENTER FU MANCHU by Sax Rohmer (I know absolutely nothing about this but the title intrigued me), HUNTER’S CHASE by Val Penny, who’s a member of a Facebook group I’m in, and who sets her crime novels in Edinburgh, and SOMETHING WICKED; New Scottish Crime Fiction – with contributions from Christopher Brookmyre, Janice Galloway, Val McDermid, Denise Mina, Ian Rankin, Ali Smith, Ruth Thomas and many more.
On TV we all so enjoyed the much-anticipated Christmas Day finale of GAVIN AND STACEY. I think you would have needed to watch all of the preceding series to get the most from this wonderful swan song – both the writing and acting were first class, and the ending was exactly what everybody had hoped for, though Ruth Jones and James Corden kept us on tenterhooks until the very last minute.
So now I’m watching DEADLOCH, an Australian series set in Tasmania and streaming here on Prime. The body of football coach and gym owner Trent Latham washes up on the beach. The local police officer Dulcie Collins, aided by her two sweet but inept constables Abby and Sven, starts work on the case, but her commissioner insists on sending down a detective from Darwin, who turns out to be the complete antithesis of Dulcie. Eddie Radcliffe (female) is loud, outspoken, rude, impossible, uncooperative, but occasionally brilliant. The two of them must work together to solve Trent’s murder – but meanwhile more bodies start to pile up. Deadloch is a very black comedy. It’s unusual in that the town of Deadloch is populated partly by a large contingent of lesbians, who have moved there because it was run down and cheap. They clash regularly with the misogynistic, hard drinking men who have lived there all their lives. The writers highlight the inevitable tensions between old and new communities, and this is something we very much have here in Leith, where people who have lived here for generations hugely resent the influx of younger, more affluent people, especially as they bring with them things like artisan cafes, arty gift shops and ‘alternative’ bars.
But the best thing about Deadloch so far is that it’s also hilariously funny. The oddball characters and ridiculous but lifelike scenes are so well done – then every so often something really shocking (eg the method used to murder the men) pulls you up short.
There’s also a rogue seal called Kevin. Half the town wants him shot. Dulcie’s wife Cath, a veterinarian, forbids this and wants to sedate him. Meanwhile, some residents firmly believe that Kevin is the murderer. Make of that what you will.
Don’t watch this if you would prefer not to hear a LOT of swearing or see graphic bedroom scenes – but otherwise I’d recommend it, it’s already had me laughing out loud (and I’m the one in our family who usually doesn’t get the jokes in comedies…)
We haven’t seen so much live music over the past few weeks, but on Saturday we went to see SKERRYVORE, a Celtic rock band originally from the island of Tiree, who play trad music mixed with pop, jazz, country and goodness knows what else. It’s all very fast and exciting. The concert had been sold out for ages – it’s something of an annual December tradition – so the Music Hall was packed, but everyone was very good natured, and by standing at the back we had a good view and space to breath, and even dance. The eight guys in the band play fiddle, accordion, keyboard, drums, whistles, bagpipes and guitar, and some of them sing. On Saturday they were also joined, for some numbers, by a large group of young pipers and drummers from Dumfries, who were excellent – everybody loved them. It was a really fun night, great for blowing away the Christmas cobwebs. Although Skerryvore only do Scottish concerts in December, for the rest of the year they tour widely – they’re about to start a series of dates in Australia, and after that they will moving on to the US, with concerts in Washington, Oregon, Wisconsin and Illinois.
After all the rain and wind, we now have warnings for ice and then snow this week. I am staying put – but on Friday I’ll need to venture forth, as I am taking the bus back to Aberdeenshire.
I hope everyone has a good week. Keep warm, stay home!
I have 3 or 4 books in progress this week, but haven’t completed many. I did finish one “everything you want in a British procedural: a dark world, a tangled case, a clear and logical solution, and a deeply flawed hero who’s still well worth rooting for.” From 2020 – A gritty thriller featuring Detective Inspector Avison Fluke in a series by M. W. Craven, BORN IN A BURIAL GOWN. Unfortunately, while the author has written many other books, this seems to be a series of two.
And I heard a wonderful recommendation for “Eleanore of Avignon: a novel” A book the reviewer read in the final week of the year that made their best of 2024 list. I immediately signed up for a hold at the library.
Well drat! I always update the page before I post, but it’s apparently a busy morning and I ended up tagging onto Rosemary’s! Happy New Year Rosemary
That’s okay, MM. It happens to all of us. Thank you for the update on your books!
Rosemary, I agree with you about DEADLOCH – wild and goofy comes to mind as appropriate descriptions, and Eddie seemed ready to strip for any reason. I believe a second series is coming soon.
What an interesting life you lead Rosemary. I don’t need to go anywhere myself; I can just read about where you’ve gone and what you’ve seen, because your writing always makes me feel like I’m right there!
Oh thank you so much Lindy, that’s really kind. And I can always rely on your book recommendations, so it’s a two-way benefit!
Hi Rosemary! It’s a treat to catch up with everything you’ve been doing. Speaking of catching up, I meant to start this blog with a reminder that your Favorites list will be up tomorrow, but it’s too late now. Most of us have already dropped by!
Everything from ABBA to Celtic groups to intimate evenings with books and cats. I so enjoy your posts! Thank you!
Thank you for reading them Lesa!
And as for those cats – they have just rampaged right through my very difficult jigsaw puzzle, then rushed into the study, where Herbie promptly threw up on the floor (luckily its a wooden one…) – he’d been eating a plastic bag he’d stolen. My only comfort is that Koko and Yum Yum have just been doing more or less the same thing in The Cat Who Could Turn On and Off!
Isabella Rossellini was so good looking in her youth, that nobody gave her credit for acting, but she was always very talented. She’s come a long way from Blue Velvet.
The whole Fu Manchu series is very un-PC, but are effective mood pieces, even if they don’t always make sense.
Well that sounds interesting Glen!
I’m just about to start the Mark Timlin one I got from the library. His books are also quite un-PC. In one of them his main character managed to find a girlfriend who liked curries, tucked into full fries (for us this is a plateful of fried bacon sausages, eggs, fried bread, beans, etc) every morning and downed pints with the lads – but amazingly remained a size 8 (that is very small in UK sizes, which are different from US ones). She was also permanently hot to trot, as Timlin would no doubt put it. Authorial fantasy? Surely not…
Happy New Year to the lovely Lesa book community. I recently read Stanley Tucci’s latest book “What I Ate in One Year”and sadly did not enjoy it quite as much as his earlier volumes. I enjoy his writing style and his life is interesting. But something that struck me this time were his fairly frequent comments/complaints about money. He also spent a lot of time discussing his new cookware line from Williams Sonoma, hoping it would create another revenue stream for him. This irritated me as he mentioned that he and his wife just bought an English country home as well as their London Town home. Since his financial circumstances are so different from the average person I found it to be a bit grating.
I haven’t yet read this one Eileen, but I certainly agree with you – Stanley Tucci and his wife are very wealthy, their London house is in Barnes, which though not Knightsbridge, is still extremely expensive, and you can bet your bottom dollar that their country home is somewhere like the Cotswolds – which only people with money can afford to live in, let alone buy second homes in. I’d be annoyed if I heard Stanley complaining about money!
Happy New Year, Ellen! Tucci also complains a lot about being away from his family, but that’s the life he chose, one that provides him the money to have homes several places, and go where he does.
Happy New Year! We have a dusting of snow – just enough to make it look pretty and to dissuade me from my plans of taking my Christmas tree down. It all just looks too festive still!
I am almost finished with two books and I will do a review on them next week – The Dark Edge of Night (the 2nd book in the Henri Lefort mystery series) by Mark Pryor, and The Secret Hours by Mick Heron. Both are keeping my interest, I’m glad to say!
Mary, Just a dusting is my only kind of snow, but you’re right. The tree, with all the light, is too pretty to take down in a perfect setting. I know I enjoyed the tree the entire time I was at my Mom’s. She had it lit every morning when I got up.
With my cold, I was asleep by 10:30 on NYE, though I was woken up around midnight by morons shooting off fireworks despite the threat of fires. The cold is much better today and I am hoping by the time we leave tomorrow, I will be fully recovered. Unfortunately, Jackie is still sick, though she never had it as bad as I did. She has always been slow to recover from illnesses.
This wasn’t the level of reading I hoped for at the start of the year, but I did OK I read 54 books the first half of the year, 58 the second, for a total of 112. Of that total, 48 books (43%) were short story collections, 40 individual author collections and 8 anthologies. I read a record (for me) 928 stories (topping 2021’s 920). You’ll see my favorites when Lesa gets around to my list at the end of the month.
This week I finished my last two collections, both previously mentioned. Lydia Davis writes mostly very short stories, some a page or less, most not much longer. Our Strangers is the latest collection of hers I read. The anthology was Agents of Treachery: Spy Stories, edited by Otto Penzler.
Current short story reading is Peter Tremayne, Hemlock at Bespers, his first collection of Sister Fidelma stories. She is the sister of the King of Cashel in 7h C. Ireland and a religeuse of the Celtic Church and advocate for the Brehon Court, a top lawyer who solves a series of murders and other crimes in both novels and short stories. There is a second collection of her later stories who I’ve already read. If you think you don’t like historical mysteries, trust me. You will probably like these.
Shelley Burr’s Wake was her first, set in a small Outback town and involving a mysterious, unsolved disappearance from 19 years earlier. It also introduces PI Lane Holland, who has solved several previously unsolved historical cases, but whose main goal is to prove his own father is a serial killer. Murder Town is her second, set several years after the previous book, and again involves an old crime. Holland is the only connection between the two books. He is now in prison after his actions in the previous books – so, yes, you need to read that one first. Here, in Rainier, a small town halfway between Sydney and Melbourne, the 17 year old case of the Rainier Ripper has resurfaced again, as a man from Sydney wants to start running a tour of the murder sites, which he claims will profit the town too. Holland comes into it as he is in the same prison as the killer, and it might help him get earlier parole if he can get the killer to talk about who the third, unidentified, victim was. Again, Burr does a wonderful job with the setting and keeps things moving along quickly, if you can keep all the small town characters separate in your head. I see she has a third one coming in a few months, with Holland, still in prison, still trying to solve things.
Jackie read the last two of Kelley Armstrong’s Rockton books (yes, she will read the spinoff books) and is finally up to Nora Roberts’s THE MIRROR.
Stay safe out there.
I hope you have a good journey south Jeff, and that Jackie feels better soon – hopefully the Florida sun will have a beneficial effect!
That’s an amzing number of books. I think I managd about 70, which is pretty good for me. I am far too easily distracted!
As Rosemary said, Jeff, I hope you and Jackie are both back on your feet for the trip to Florida tomorrow. Drive carefully. Some of those people from New Year’s Eve will probably be on the road.
And, I know you don’t read as much when you’re in Florida, but I hope you find a good book or two for enjoyment!
Well, between the books I download from the library here, and the ones I take out from the Palm Beach County Library – so much faster than waiting for hundreds of people to read and return them in Brooklyn! – plus the many hundreds I have on the Kindle, there is never a shortage of reading material.
We watched the fireworks live from Sydney Australia at 8am our time so we didn’t bother staying up t midnight. We get a lot of people shooting off fireworks here but I turned on our white noise machine and we slept through most of them.
I read two arcs this week. Both were the second book in the series which I didn’t know when I took them. I hadn’t read the first book in either series.
The Old Girl’s Chateau Escape by Kate Galley. Based on the description and cover I was expecting a funny senior road trip type book but it wound up being a character driven story with a bit of mystery thrown in. It took me a while to get into it because the author kept referring back to events from the first book but I liked the characters and wound up enjoying the book.
Stone Certainty by Simon R Green. This was book two of his Holy Terrors series and I have no desire to go back and read book one.
I also re-read Wolf Hollow by Victoria Houston. It’s the first of her spin-offs from the Loon Lake series. It was an easy read to start the year off.
And, no reason to go back and read Simon R. Green’s earlier book, Sandy. While I liked the first one, the second one didn’t work for me at all, and I’m not continuing with the series.
Good morning, everyone! I forgot to post last night, but here I am at 6:47 a.m. I didn’t have any special plans for New Year’s, but I closed out New Year’s Eve watching the filmed version of the musical Come From Away, even though I just saw it (for the second time) in person in October. Just can’t get enough of it! Last night I watched Sara Bareilles’ concert at the Kennedy Center, and I’m going to have to look for more from her, and to watch the filmed version of the Broadway Show Waitress. Yesterday was also a great way to start the year, although it wasn’t really thanks to me. My son Nick set up my much-needed new iPad (that I bought Black Friday week), transferred everything from the old one, and put on the new keyboard stand he bought me for Christmas. Then my other son, Zach, came over and worked on our front door, which now can’t easily be opened from the inside or outside! He managed to fix it enough that we can open it from the inside, and he had me buy some hardware that will fix it from the outside. While he was there, he installed the Ring doorbell I received for Christmas. My old Nest doorbell never rang inside the house, only on my phone, and with a delay. All is fixed now. Hallelujah! Here’s what I finished reading this week:
In the fourth in Debbie Johnson’s Starshine Cove series, it’s refreshing to focus on Connie, who runs the local café. She has appeared in the first three books in the series, and now this 55-year-old gets her own story. It starts with a flashback, showing Connie as a flamboyant celebrity chef who is about to seal a deal that will take her to the next level. But her personal life has gotten out of control and she is on the verge of a breakdown. Fast forward to present day, when Connie has become a treasured member of the Starshine Cove community, but she is still mourning the unexpected and untimely death of her husband and soulmate after five years. When her daughter brings home her college roommate for a visit, Connie is startled to meet someone from her long-ago past, and she is shaken out of her complacency with a view of how her life might change once again. Connie is a lovely character, engaging and mature. She has found her niche cooking great food and reveling in her friendships. The potential romance is not my favorite in the series, but I did enjoy the characters of Connie’s friends and daughter, and the book continues the series’ heart-warming tone. (February)
It’s difficult to do justice to the newest Fredrik Backman novel, MY FRIENDS, because there’s just so much to talk about. There were many times when reading the book that I felt exhausted and downhearted, but in the next chapter I found hope and humor. It is a roller coaster of a ride, and I came away even more impressed about Backman’s talent than before. This novel focuses on a small group of 14-year-olds who come together as “found family” and best friends 25 years ago. The teens all face family issues and personal problems that could easily break them, but their friendship keeps them going through good times and bad. One of the friends is an uber-talented artist, creating his art based on how he feels, not necessarily what he sees, and his friends want him to enter and win a contest so he can become confident in his own talent. More than two decades later, the artist has a brief encounter with an 18-year-old foster care veteran who creates art in a similar way, and he recognizes her as an artistic soulmate. After he gives her a surprising gift, she embarks on a train trip with another of the teenaged friends, now a floundering ex-teacher who is trying to find his true path in life in the face of daunting circumstances and self-doubt. Along the way, he tells her the story of that time–warts and all– and what was so special and enduring about it. Backman has a wonderful flair for creating genuine characters with believable quirks and realistic dialogue. He brings readers along with them as they experience grief, joy, family struggles, violence, love, friendship, and survival with grace and humor. The details are what makes the story so beautiful, tragic, and life-affirming at the same time. The book is also a paean to the power of art, and Backman sprinkles quotations from a bevy of writers and philosophers throughout the story. Don’t miss this one! (May)
THE MAID’S SECRET finishes Nita Prose’s popular Molly the Maid series after three books and one novella. If you haven’t read the series, you should start with the author’s multiple-award-winning debut, The Maid, to get a feel for Molly, who isn’t the best at interpreting social cues but has no equal in her commitment and ability to become the perfect hotel maid. In the first two books, Molly’s career and social life evolve, as she also finds herself helping to solve murders that threaten the reputation of the posh hotel where she works. In this book, much of the focus is on Molly’s cherished, late Gran, who lovingly raised her and prepared her for the life challenges she would experience. With new access to her grandmother’s journal, Molly (along with the reader) gains a new understanding of the early years of Flora Grey’s often-harrowing life. The journal also yields clues to help Molly with a challenging situation she is facing, at the same time as she prepares for her upcoming wedding. The author has a light touch with the mystery, with little real danger and no violence, although the details are entertaining. The mystery takes a bit of a back seat here, as the book is more of a character study of Molly and, in alternating chapters, her grandmother Flora. It is the singular character of Molly that impressed me in the first book and has carried me through the rest of the series. I particularly enjoyed seeing how she approaches life and its trials. (April)
All of those books sound great Margie – I am still only half way through the first Starshine Cove book, which I left at home over Christmas as I was worried about losing it in London or leaving it in our hotel room by mistake. My husband insisted on taking a large hardback book that was out on my library ticket. Thank goodness it came back safe and sound (it only just missed being engulfed in coffee when our train went round one of the big curves in the track in the Scottish borders and all of our drinks went flying…)
Margie, You’re so lucky to have sons who can handle all those little issues that drive us nuts-iPads, doors, doorbells. Very nice! Makes your new year start on a smooth path.
I’ve never read one of Backman’s books, but this one sounds good. Thank you!
I always look forward to your recommendations! Can you please tell me how you watched the filmed version of the Broadway play? Was it on a streaming platform?
Thank you – and Happy New Year!
Yes Margi, do tell us! I’d love to see it again.
Hi, Mary M and Rosemary! The filmed version of Come From Away is streaming on Apple TV+. It is a wonderful representation of a fantastic Broadway show.
Glad that I am not the only one who keeps stats. I read 92 books this year. In 2014, I had access to many more books and read 142! This year, I set my goal for 85, I usually increase when getting to the end of the year but it is getting more difficult to get more books. I won 30 this year .
I finished Vivien Chen’s Misfortune Cookie which was prefaced by her acknowledgment of thanks to her friends and family during her battle with cancer. She made it through and wrote this great cozy which was masterfully done.
Starting a book won from Library Thing, Bend, Don’t Break by Julie Brown, a historical fiction, meaty about 440 pages and I can’t wait to get into it.
Carol, I keep stats too on my reading. I ended up with 113 books which was surprising. I don’t set goals for myself though. I enjoyed the Chien mysteries, so I am going to keep up with the series.
It must be so difficult to write a book. let alone a masterful cozy, when one has cancer. Kudos to Vivien Chien for her success.
Actually, this was the first year I didn’t keep stats. Retirement did mess some with my organization.
Carol, when I look back at my college days, I see that one year I rad 333 books! Over 100 were plays – I took several theater courses – but it was still an amazing amount for me. For years I wanted to get back to 200 books (which I read a couple of years), but that is unlikely these days. I reached my goal of 104 (two a week). Maybe next goal is 156.?
People keep asking me how many books I read during the year. I don’t know. I kept track of what I read and I have posted my list a my blog, but haven’t counted them. I should do that . . .
There were times during the pandemic that I read 200+ books a year. This year it was about 150, but who’s counting (I am, I guess, just for curiosity). For some reason, Goodreads had me at a slightly lower figure, but I can live with that. There are people on NetGalley who claim to read 300-400 books A MONTH! That sounds insane to me, and I’m a fast reader.
A bit late, but I wish all of you the happiest of New Years, filled with fabulous books, good times with family, and more of all the things that embody contentment for you.
A quiet New Year’s Eve at our house – David and I had take-out Chinese food for dinner, watched the Call the Midwife Christmas special, and managed to stay awake till 11:40.
Our annual Boxing Day family gathering at our house was a lot of fun. (I did get behind in my prep by a couple of hours because my heart was going out of rhythm again but thankfully it resolved itself this time and I didn’t have to cancel the gathering) There were twelve of us, and a dog, so it was quite lively. I always prepare a 20-question trivia quiz for them and there’s always much moaning and groaning when the sheets of papers are placed before them because they know it’s going to be difficult, but I know they like it. Or should I say they make an effort in order to win one of the prizes. Top score this year was 8. Made a separate quiz for the 7-year-old; she’s a bit young for the adult version.
Two books:
OVER MY DEAD BODY by Max Evans
This book has a great premise – Miriam has died and her life has been ruled a ‘misadventure’ which, according to the rules of the afterlife means that she must live in Limbo until what would have been the natural date of her demise. In her case this means fifty years of Limbo before she’ll be granted access to Eternity. However, if she can prove she was murdered (she insists she was) she will be allowed to enter Eternity immediately. But Miriam is dead; how can she possibly solve her own murder?
On a trip back down to earth she discovers that her hated neighbour Winnie can see and hear her. How can this be you ask? It appears that the almost-dead can communicate with the recently-living. This is possibly very helpful for Miriam since she can do nothing by herself in her ghostly state but is rather sad news for the poor elderly Winnie whose death date is mere days away. How these two sworn enemies work together to solve Miriam’s murder makes for an entertaining story.
I must say that in the beginning I was a little put off by Miriam’s (and others’) characters because of language that wasn’t necessary in my humble opinion, and by the fact that Miriam wasn’t very likeable at that point – snarky and mean with her comments. However! The twist of a ghost solving her own murder, and the truly terrific interaction between Miriam and Winnie, and the addition of some serious issues between other characters elevated the book from a frothy mystery to something deeper; and by the time I reached the last third of the book I wasn’t going to leave it for any reason until I’d finished.
HISTORY by Miles Jupp
Clive is a history teacher at a private school in the country. He’d imagined a more relaxed way of life for his family once they got away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Unfortunately it doesn’t live up to expectations – the headteacher is a dishonest, conniving man who takes advantage of everyone; the head of department is a vile man; and the entitlement the pupils display irks him greatly. Where is the kindness, the integrity, the working-together-as-a-team? Nowhere. His marriage is hanging by a thread and he feels helpless to fix any of it. Then an incident happens in one of his classes which ultimately brings it all to the boiling-over point.
This book was written by a famous (although I’d not heard of him myself) British comedian. I had expected it to have a fair bit of humour and to be full of amusing anecdotes about life at this boarding school. Instead, I found the whole thing just one long, sad, depressing tale of the unravelling of a marriage, a career, and a man. Other than the last twenty pages or so, I truly didn’t like it. I don’t feel good saying that about someone’s hard work on their first novel, but I sure didn’t find it uplifting in any way. Maybe I wasn’t meant to, and missed the whole point of the book. Who knows.
Oh, Lindy. I’m sure no one cared that prep for Boxing Day was a little late. I’m sure they’d rather have you feeling good than working to get everything done on time. I hope you’re okay now! I like the sound of your trivia contest. It sounds fun!
Two interesting sounding books, but I think I’ll skip that second one.
Happy New Year!
I finished my Christmas reading with the disappointing novella A Snowlit Christmas Kiss by Larrisa Lyons. Just not for me.
Next, I read Sylvia’s Second Act by Hillary Yablon. Sylvia walks in on her husband with another woman in their Boca Raton condo. She pawns her jewelry and moves to New York with her best friend. She then gets a job as a wedding planner with the woman who took over Sylvia’s wedding planner clients when she lived in New York. There were lots of 5 stars on Goodreads for this one and it made several best books in 2025 lists. I found it enjoyable but really only okay.
Lastly, I finished Death by Dumpling by Vivien Chien. I haven’t read this series before but really enjoyed this one especially since it takes place in Cleveland which is where I am originally from. I like reading about familiar places.
We were able to stream Conclave off Peacock on Saturday, Rosemary. I agree it was very good. Watched the Death in Paradise Christmas special. The mystery itself was pretty lame, but we like the new detective. We also watched the entire series of Protection on Britbox. We also liked that one but felt a little let down by the ending. And of course, we are getting our weekly dose of Shetland. Plus, we caught snippets of our grandson marching in University of Iowa Hawkeye marching band on TV during the Nashville bowl game with Mizzou.
Big storm (allegedly) coming our way over the weekend. We are hunkering down with lots of books.
Happy Reading!
Sharon, I wondered where that storm was going after it leaves southern Indiana. Please keep it your way. I have a dentist appointment on Monday, and I’m not interested in driving in snow.
I should rent Conclave on Amazon Prime. Sounds as if it’s riveting.
For the New Year’s Eve fun, we watched the Fiesta Bowl – BSU vs. Penn State. It was a rather disappointing game. Considering BSU had a 12-1 record for the season, they sure didn’t play like winners. Penn State was well prepared to block Ashton Jeanty at every play.
It snowed for the 1st time yesterday here in the southwest part of Idaho. It was getting close to breaking the record for the latest snowfall. It’s supposed to get up in the 50s tomorrow and melt it all.
From Netgallery, I had the pleasure of reading Steven Havill’s new book, “If it isn’t One Thing..” I started it last night and couldn’t put it down. I finally finished it at 1:30 a.m. and had to be up at 5:00 a.m. to get ready for work. It’s going to be a long day but so worth it.
Undersheriff Estelle Reyes-Guzman is trying to sort out a domestic violence call when she gets the call that there is an accident on the state highway. A pickup truck hauling a horse trailer hits a loaded semi. What would seem like a straightforward accident is anything but. As she works on the scene of the accident, more and more strange things are discovered.
Estelle is supposedly retiring in a month. I hope this doesn’t mean the end of the series. Reading some of the earlier books will help with identifying with some of the characters. Overall, the book is a great addition.
Bev, I’ve heard from a couple friends who also read “If It Ain’t One Thing”. I read it, too, and it does feel as if Havill is wrapping up the series.
I would think that’s late for Idaho to get snow! You probably need it, too.
He has said we get at least one more.
That’s good. Thank you, Kevin!
Bev, I’ve read all the Havill books from the first and I’m looking forward to the new one. Glad you enjoyed it.
Happy New Year, everyone! Today, January 2, is still part of the holiday season in Switzerland–it’s called Saint Berchtold’s Day, and everything is closed. My husband and I welcomed the new year with friends and a great public fireworks display at midnight–we were in bed by 2 a.m. (much earlier than when we were in our thirties and celebrating with the same set of friends!) I’m listening to the much-praised THE GOD OF THE WOODS by Liz Moore, which is beautifully written. I’m not far enough along yet to say if I recommend it; the ends of books are very important! At the same time, I’m reading HORSE by Geraldine Brooks, an author whose earlier books I’ve found superb. So far, I like it very much.
Happy New Year, Kim! Here, it’s still the season for football games – college games, so that’s how we extend our holidays.
I’ll be interested to see what you think of The God of the Woods. I haven’t read it yet, but it topped a lot of lists for 2024.
This has been a very different from planned holiday. My son had a stomach bug and granddaughter had the flu, so we finally celebrated Christmas on the 27th. Good news is that we were all together, including the granddog and grandkitty. We had a wonderful day.
We usually stay in for NYE and hang out with my daughter and her family. My son in law used the smoker to make delicious pulled pork for dinner and my 11 year old granddaughter made delicious cookies by herself. We were to spend the night and then drive to NC to visit my mother in law, who is in hospice care. She had a sudden down turn and died on NYE. We carried on as best we could and will head south next week for the funeral. We have a lot to be grateful for. She had 87 happy years. She and my father in law were wonderful parents and grandparents. We will miss her terribly, but know how lucky we are to have her for our mother. And no more suffering.
I have managed to read the first 25 pages of a book that was recommended on this blog, City of Windows by Robert Pobi. An FBI agent is shot while driving. The shot was apparently one that called for great skill in making. The FBI is trying to enlist the help of a former agent who retired due to a severe in the line of duty injury. So far, this has been a good book, good diversion from what is going on.
Oh, Jennifer. I read the beginning of your post and was going to say I know something is really going around.
Then, I read the second half. I’m so sorry about the loss of your mother-in-law. The end may have been difficult, but I hope the good memories are the ones that linger with you. I’m sorry. Take care of yourself and your family as you go through the next couple weeks.
I was up reading at midnight on New Year’s Eve; I always read late. Glen probably went to bed before 12. Not too much noise in the area, less than previous New Year’s Eves.
Last week I finished TOM LAKE by Ann Patchett, and loved it. I finished two more short books also. A REDBIRD CHRISTMAS by Fannie Flagg. Set in Alabama, my home state, in a small town near Mobile.
Also PARTING BREATH by Catherine Aird. The 7th book in the Inspector Sloan series set in the fictional county of Calleshire in the UK. I have read 8 books in the series (jumped ahead to #8 accidentally) and plan to read all 28 of the books. I was sad to learn today at Martin Edwards’ blog that she died last month at 94. The last book in the series was published in 2023.
Glen is still reading THE EARLY TUDORS AT HOME, 1485-1558, but he is very close to finishing it. The short story book he is reading is GHOSTS OF THE CHIT-CHAT, edited by Robert Lloyd Parry. Includes stories and more by members of the the Chit-Chat Club at Cambridge University. He is half way through with that one and enjoying all the information about the Chit-Chat Club and the authors.
I saw that, Tracy, on Martin Edwards’ blog, about Catherine Aird. I was sorry to read that.
It sounds as if you ended the year on a high note for reading. Good for you!
I never heard of the Chit-Chat Club. Now, I’m going to have to look it up.
We had a very noisy NYE with fireworks and gunfire here in NE Dallas. What was sporadic starting just after 7, became very intense and steady from about midnight to 2: 30 or so in the morning. It tapered off to sporadic and finally ended around 4:30. Though, I may have finally slept through it as I was so exhausted.
At one point, around 1 or so, a Dallas PD helicopter came over and started orbiting. It got to just above the treetop with the rotor wash beating the heck out of everything. I thought the pilot was doing an emergency landing on our street. After he made a second pass, i realized the pilot must have been trying to get the fools shooting stuff to stop. It was not working, so he lifted back up, orbited twice more, and left. It takes a special kind of stupid to stand out in the street, face off the helicopter, and fire off bottle rockets in front of it. Yet, we had that.
Anyway, my current read has moved on to EARLY TERMINATION: A PROBATION CASE FILES MYSTERY by Cindy Goyette. Comes out next week and I just got the ARC yesterday. It is second in the series that began with OBEY ALL LAWS which I every much enjoyed and made my favorites of the year list.
Kevin! I can’t believe fools were facing off a helicopter. And, I guess, in their minds they won, so it won’t bother them next time, either. Probably 4th of July. I hope you get some sleep now, although you had a football game to sweat over yesterday.
I’m going to have to look for Obey All Laws.
I stayed up late (11!) on New Years Eve to finish We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman. Sigh. Loved it. It’s hard because losing a friend is so tough, but it’s also very funny and real. Now I’m reading Chris Whitaker’s We Begin At The End. I loved All the Colors of the Dark and this earlier novel is just as good so far.
No snow in Glendale, Arizona! Just lots of sun and amazing sunrises and sunsets.
Melanie, I wish I had Arizona’s sunrises and sunsets here. We have snow – blah. And, I’m tucked up, not going anyplace. I hate snow.
It sounds as if you ended and started years on good reading notes. I’m anticipating some other good books in your future.