His Bloody Project - No Happy Ending

It's time for the letter B ... His Bloody Project by Gordon Macrae Burnett. Set up as if it is a true crime, this is the story of a triple murder in a remote community in the Scottish Highlands in the 19th Century. This is a harsh story - it's a tough life as a crofter and there aren't many bright spots to your day. Without much love in the home following his mother's death, kept low by a harsh landlord and victimised by the village constable, Roderick Macrae is just trying to survive. But after one final incident, the misery and despair of his situation overwhelm him and he takes the law into his own hands and murders the constable, and his two children. He doesn't run, but admits to the crime. Yet somehow, as we hear his confession and hear, via witness statements, about Roderick's life, the reader cannot help but be sympathetic towards him. It almost felt like his actions were just a desperate attempt to escape from a life he believed held no other future than the continuing misfortune he had already suffered. This was an interesting concept, but the subject matter did not make for an easy read. Not one for the faint hearted.

My STAR rating: THREE

Length: 288 print pages.

Price I paid: £2.98.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.

Half Blood Blues - fractured relationships!

It's time for the letter E ... which brought me to Half Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan. Shortlisted for the 2011 Man Booker Prize, this is the story of a set of jazz musicians performing in the cafes of Berlin and then, once the nazi regime begins, they move to Paris to escape. But when Paris falls during the second world war, they are desperate to move on once again. Narrated by African American, Sid Griffiths, he reflects both on the past and the present and we see his feelings of guilt rise to the surface regarding one of the band members, Hieronymous Falk, who was arrested in a cafe in Paris and never heard from again. But now in their 80s, Sid's old friend and band member, Chip, persuades him to go back to Europe, where he reveals a mysterious letter, which leads them on a voyage of discovery. This is a tale of jealousy, jazz and betrayal - pretty much what many bands go through. The narrative style takes some getting used to, but feels authentic in its lyrical quality. You may not always feel sympathy for the main protagonist, but you are always interested in what he's going to do next. The friendship between Sid and Chip is often volatile and sways between love and hate and back to love again. We even get a cameo from Louis Armstrong which is a bonus as far as I'm concerned. Not your usual war story, but a great study on how relationships can falter or remain firm under the immense pressure. 

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 352 print pages.

Price I paid: free, borrowed from my husband.

Formats available: print, audio CD, ebook.

Alias Grace - did she, or didn't she?

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood. This is a book I purchased some time ago but hadn't got around to reading. So when the letter A was pulled from the bag I was more than happy! Based on a real life person, this is the story of Grace Marks, one of the most notorious women of the 1840s. At the age of 16, she, and another man, are accused of a double murder and although convicted, she is sentenced to life imprisonment rather than facing the noose her supposed accomplice suffered. Following a mental breakdown, she also spends time in an asylum. Through a series of interviews with Doctor Simon Jordan, plus letters written between various doctors, clergy and judiciary, we learn about Grace's short life and what brought her to the day of the crime. It's a sad tale of hardship, deprivation and the unfair treatment of women. Grace herself gave three different accounts of the events that led to the murder of her employer, Thomas Kinnear, and his housekeeper and lover, Nancy Montgomery. And as the book progresses, it is hard to stay whether she was the instigator, coerced or completely innocent? There was much debate at the time, with opinions varying wildly, and still the debate continues. This is a fascinating dive into the politics, treatment of mental health patients and criminals of the time. I liked that it was told from different points of view, so that you are never quite sure which one to listen to, and can find yourself swaying one way and then the other. As you would expect from the author, this is well written and the only reason it failed to receive five stars from myself is that I found some parts a little repetitive, but that's probably just me! I can definitely recommend this to anyone wanting a meaty read and who doesn't mind that the light moments are few and far between! 

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 560 print pages.

Price I paid: £3.00

Formats available: print, unabridged audiobook, ebook. 

The Messenger of Athens - Mystery on the Greek Islands

Another testing pick from the bag produced a Z. After a bit of digging I came across The Messenger of Athens by Anne Zouroudi. This is the first in a series of mysteries featuring "detective" Hermes Diaktoros, who arrives on a remote Greek island to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of a young woman. The local police are, to put it mildly, irritated by this, as they have already cited this as an accidental death. But Hermes is not so sure and begins to stir up the population. He is a most unusual man - he appears to know things about everyone without ever having met them, or perhaps he is just incredibly intuitive? We follow Hermes as he travels around the island, interviewing a vast range of people and digging deep to find the truth. In a community where there are many secrets, it is hard for him to get people to open up, but he is nothing if not quietly persistent. There is a sprinkling of Poirot to the main character, but he is definitely his own man. There is a relaxed pace to this book and sometimes I wanted things to progress a little more quickly. But the pace is in keeping with island life, and gives the reader the opportunity to ponder and take their time to get to know the characters well - something I found hard at the beginning with some of the names sounding similar (in the audio edition) and the narrative switching between timeframes (we see the events leading up to the woman's death as well as the investigation itself). I would suggest this is a great holiday read - not too taxing, but with an interesting main character and setting.

My STAR rating: THREE.

Length: 288 print pages.

Price I paid: Free, borrowed from library as an audiobook.

Formats available: print, unabridged audiobook, ebook.

The Mermaid of Black Conch - beautifully strange

And now onto the letter R and an unusual tale called The Mermaid of Black Conch, by Monique Roffey. Mostly set in the Caribbean in the 1970s, we open with David, a fisherman whose singing attracts a mermaid. Enchanted by this encounter, he returns to the same spot time and time again in order to sing for her. But one day, some American tourists catch her, bring her ashore and hang her up just like any other fish on the dock. While they celebrate in the local tavern, David rescues her and takes her home to help her recover, with the intention of returning her to the sea. But, the mermaid starts to lose her scales, then her tail and reverts to womanhood. Slowly, but surely David and Aycayia (the mermaid) fall in love. Told from different points of views and from different times, this is a strange, but beautiful story of love, friendship, devotion and separation. We learn that Aycayia was cursed by jealous women in her circle, and, as a result, has been a mermaid for hundreds of years. We see her blossom into the woman she was destined to be, but there is always a shadow looming and it becomes apparent that she cannot escape the curse for long. There are tender moments and incredibly sad moments too. I really enjoyed the relationship between the two main characters, and there are some good supporting roles. The dialogue and descriptions really bring the reader into the world of Black Conch. Many people have gone wild over this book and indeed, it was the winner of the Costa Book of the Year. I did appreciate the magical realism that this book offered, but, for me, some parts felt a little repetitive. However, if you are looking for a mermaid story that isn't saccharine, then this could be the book for you. 

My STAR rating: FOUR. 

Length: 272 print pages.

Price I paid: £2.98

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.

Hellion - Wise Woman or Witch?

The letter Y was the next out of the bag and it took me a while to hone in on a book, but I found The Hellion, by Harriet Young in a random search on Audible and I am mightily glad I did. The story starts in 1537, when youngsters Elizabeth and best friend Anne, witness a devastating fire. Following this, they are raised by Anne's grandmother, who teaches them the ways of a wise woman. This leads them to being able to earn a living for themselves by providing healing remedies, spells and the odd curse! A feud develops between them, and Elizabeth finds herself living in the grim Malkin Towers, on the edge of Pendle, where, in 1612, the most notorious witchcraft trials in England are taking place. Elizabeth's granddaughter, Alison, becomes embroiled in a scandal and she is accused of witchcraft. Before long, her whole family and that of Anne are also accused, thanks to the evidence of a nine year old girl - who is not as innocent or sweet as she appears! This is a gripping debut novel and gives a real insight into the prejudices and misunderstandings of the time where a woman earning an independent living was always viewed as suspicious. Love, betrayal, misunderstandings and manipulation all feature among a cast made up primarily of strong females, who, despite their strength, will always be at the mercy of men. Full of historical detail, you will learn something about that era, without realising it! It isn't always an easy read, but it is well worth the effort. If this her debut, I can't wait to see what Ms Young does next.

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 300 print pages.

Price I paid: £7.99.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.

Emotionally Weird - weird yes, emotional ... not so much!

The letter A was the next to be pulled from the alphabet bag, and it brought me to Kate Atkinson, an author whose work I have enjoyed in the past. There were several books of hers that I hadn't read sitting on the shelf and I plumped for Emotionally Weird. I find it hard to describe this book, or indeed give an adequate outline of the plot, such as it was. Effie, a student at Dundee University, is holed up on a bleak island off the Scottish coast with her mother Nora, and they begin to tell each other stories. Effie wants to know about her father, but Nora seems evasive or incapable of telling her anything useful, or indeed truthful. Effie relates her time as a student amongst a bunch of untalented creative writers, and ineffectual tutors, whilst living with her accidental boyfriend. There are many, many characters, all, apparently writing books, of which we get to see various extracts scattered throughout the book. The plot felt very loose and incomprehensible at times. I didn't relate to anyone, and I didn't really care what happened to a single one of them - which is a big problem for me when reading a book. However, there were some nice passages of prose where I felt that we were getting somewhere and the next minute - boom, either a book extract or another trip in a car to a random place came in and it took me out of the story again. As you can probably tell, this was not the book for me and I was pleased to finish it and move onto something new. Sorry Ms Atkinson, but I might just have to go back to your Jackson Brodie series rather than tackle another of your standalone novels. Hey ho!

My STAR rating: TWO

Length: 496 print pages.

Price I paid: Free, borrowed from my husband.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.

61 Hours - Jack Reacher is back!

It's the letter C and I felt I needed something little lighter than what I've been reading of late, so pounced on 61 Hours by Lee Child, which had also been gathering dust for a while. It is a Jack Reacher novel - which I have been reading in chronological order over the last couple of years. And while this wasn't the next on the list, you can read them as standalone novels so I thought, what the heck! The action opens at "Hour 61", with a bus skidding and crashing during a winter storm in South Dakota. On the back seat is Jack Reacher, an ex military policeman who wanders the country without luggage, travelling wherever the whim takes him. Jack tries to help the mostly elderly passengers, and is relieved when they are taken to a nearby small town to rest up. The local policeman is drawn to Jack who exudes a forceful but sensible capability and puts him up in his own house, and it's not long before he entrusts him with helping to protect a local woman who is waiting to testify against a dangerous criminal. Sinister forces are at play, and a suspected assassin is coming their way. Was the bus crash deliberate? Who are the bikers stationed at the old air base? And what has the local prison got to do with it? As each hour is counted down to the denouement, it becomes increasingly hard to know who to trust, and it will take all of Jack's guile and strength to come out of this one alive. This is a book for fans of action - it is relentless, but satisfying, and sometimes surprising. The descriptions of the intense cold and stormy conditions are very effective - I'd recommend having a cup of hot chocolate on standby to help take the chill off while you read! There are some interesting characters too, I particularly liked the dignified lady Jack is trying to protect, and the relationship between her and Reacher is quite touching. As always, the body count whenever Jack Reacher is around is high, but the hour by hour countdown format of this book provides a real momentum and it's definitely a great page turner.

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 395 print pages.

Price I paid: £1 in a charity shop.

Formats available: print, audio download, ebook.

Death Descends on Saturn Villa - deliciously dark!

When the letter K was pulled from the alphabet soup bag, I was exceedingly happy, as it meant I could crack on with the next book in the Gower Street Detective Series written by M.R.C. Kasasian. Set in Victorian England, Death Descends on Saturn Villa is the third outing for Sidney Grice and his ward March Middleton. When London's foremost (and possibly rudest) personal detective is called away to Yorkshire on a case, March is left behind in Gower Street. Determined to prove her own worth as a detective she takes on the case of a missing pet - well, we all have to start somewhere! So far, so ordinary. Then March receives a letter from a long-lost uncle, inviting her to his house. Although not 100% convinced of the veracity of this claim, March cannot resist this invitation, as she is intrigued to find out whether, after believing herself to be all on her own in this world, she actually has a living relative. And so she heads to Saturn Villa to meet her new Uncle Tolly, who is eccentrically delightful, and they spend an indulgent evening together. In the morning, however, Uncle Tolly appears to be very dead, and March is accused of his murder. But all is not as it seems and March starts to believe that she may be going mad, rather than bad! Her mind keeps returning to two childhood traumas - one where her friend almost died in a fall, and the other when she witnessed the testing of a new poisonous gas on some pigs - and she soon begins to struggle to know what is real. Trying to prove her innocence is Inspector George Pound, who is still suffering from wounds received while rescuing March in the previous book. He is besotted with MS Middleton and she is exceedingly fond of him too, but the course of true love is hindered by her memories of her first love who, although dead, won't let her go. Poor George! At last, Sydney Grice returns from Yorkshire and the chase is on to find the real perpetrator before March is lost forever. This is a superbly entertaining book. Although Grice is an extremely rude and preposterously opinionated man, we see more of his heart in this outing and begin to realise that he genuinely cares for March, despite all the indications to the opposite. The regular characters are pretty much fully developed, but we are still finding out more, which is great. Packed with humour and crisp dialogue, this is a great read that certainly kept me guessing until the end. I have no hesitation in recommending this to pretty much anyone, especially the audio edition, brilliantly narrated by Emma Gregory. I'm already looking forward to the next in the series. 

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 416 print pages.

Price I paid: £2.98.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.

The Three Musketeers - a good old-fashioned swashbuckling romp!

And now we come to the letter D, which led me to The Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas, a book I bought in a charity shop a few years ago as part of a previous reading challenge, but then ran out of time to read, and has been gathering dust ever since. This classic romp, set in France between 1625 and 1628, follows the exploits of D'Artagnan, an eager young man from Gascony who heads to Paris in the hope of joining the Musketeers of the Guard, an elite corps serving the King. Although he isn't able to join them right away, he is mentored by their captain, M. De Treville, and then befriended by the three most formidable musketeers in the corps, Porthos, Aramis and Athos. He soon becomes embroiled in the politics of the royal court, falling in love with Constance, one of the Queen's most trusted companions, who persuades him to help her get the Queen out of a sticky situation involving her affair with the (very English) Duke of Buckingham. This brings him up against the formidable Cardinal Richelieu, who is very much working against the Queen and is hungry for power. Blinded by love and honour, D'Artagnan keeps ending up in duels and the three musketeers save him on many occasions. Their friendship is the centre of the book, and we start to find out more about each individual, culminating with the revelation that the Cardinal's most formidable spy, known as Milady (Lady de Winter), was once married to one of them. Milady is definitely one of literatures greatest female villains - devious, beguiling and incredibly deadly. It is only by working together that the musketeers can defeat her, and some semblance of order returned to the kingdom. This is such a romp, with endless action and sword fights, sneaky political machinations and love interest to boot. While it is lengthy and the language is definitely "of the time" (this was written in 1844), it is still highly enjoyable. As there is so much going on, and many characters to get your head around, it did get a little confusing at times, but not to the extent where you really get lost. There is also a little bit too much duelling and I wanted to shake D'Artagnan for getting himself into yet another brawl ... will he never learn? However, despite these minor irritations, this is a book that rewards the reader with twists and turns and the last 100 pages are especially good. Even if you have seen one of the many films based on these characters - and I have - this book will still hold surprises and keep you entertained right to the end.

My STAR rating: 4 STARS.

Length: 576 print pages.

Price I paid: £2.50.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio, ebook.

My Name is Leon - utterly fabulous!

And now onto the letter W, which brought me, by chance, to Kit De Waal and after a short search on Audible, I selected My Name is Leon. This is the story of a year in the life of a boy called Leon, and begins just before he turns nine, when his baby brother Jake is born. Although the two boys have different fathers, Leon is besotted with Jake and, as their mother Carol is a bit of a mess both physically and psychologically, it is Leon who ends up trying to take care of them all. Needless to say, he cannot manage it for long, and when the authorities find out what's going on, the boys are taken into foster care by the wonderful, no-nonsense, Maureen. Leon believes this will only be temporary, but then the unthinkable happens - Jake is adopted, leaving Leon behind. He doesn't know what to do with himself, and becomes anxious and angry. Luckily, he is given a bike, and this at least allows him to get out of the house and expend some energy. Soon he discovers an allotment and finds two very different father figures, and he begins to spend more and more time there. But Leon misses his family, and decides that the only thing to do is to find Jake, then go to their Mum and be a family once again. Set in the early eighties, this story is interwoven with race riots, a royal wedding and the parlous state of social care. The characters are glorious and the story is heartbreaking, funny and uplifting without ever being mawkish. The dialogue is excellent and the journey of Leon is totally believable. You cannot help but root for him. I know this is a book that that will stay with me for along time and I have to admit, I was very sad when it came to an end. And coming soo, there's to be a BBC adaptation of this wonderful book, featuring Lenny Henry, who narrated my audio edition with real heart and skill, barring a slightly dodgy Irish accent for one of the characters - but I can forgive him that as the rest was so good! With Sir Lenny on board, I am expecting great things!!!!

My STAR rating: FIVE (no surprise there!)

Length: 272 print pages.

Price I paid: £5.84

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.

The Rose Code - Bletchley Park drama!

The random letter picker has become adept at picking out the more uncommon letters, so it was no surprise when Q was drawn from the "reading bag of destiny"! After a random search on Audible, I plumped for The Rose Code by Kate Quinn, writer of historical fiction. This is the story of three very different women who find themselves being recruited to Bletchley Park in 1940. Osla is an outgoing society girl and paramour of the dashing Prince Philip of Greece (yes, that Prince Philip!). Mab comes from the East End and is trying to reinvent herself after her poverty stricken upbringing and devastating trauma in her teens. And finally there is Beth, a shy local girl with a domineering mother who is adept at crosswords. The three women room together and, although they are completely different and have specific roles to perform for the war effort - translating decoded messages; working the codebreaking machine; being a cryptanalyst - they form a remarkable bond that few outside of such a secret set up as Bletchley could understand. The story revolves around their loves, their work, the war and how the relationship between the three women forms and splinters over time. And when, towards the end of the war, Beth is carted away to an asylum, they go their separate ways. That is, until 1947, just prior to Prince Philip's marriage to Princess Elizabeth, when Beth sends Osla and Mab a message to come and rescue her as a matter of national security. There is much to like about this story - for instance, it's great to see these women front and centre of the codebreaking activities Bletchley Park is famous for. The story also unfolds in a pleasing way and there are some shocks and surprises along the journey too. However, I wasn't totally convinced about using Prince Philip as a "character", particularly a romantic character. In addition, the characters felt like unreal extreme versions of people to get the plot moving forward. Plus, there were Americanisms used throughout, which jarred as a UK reader. However, saying all of that, it was still an enjoyable read and it did feature some interesting history around what happened at Bletchley - the work and the lives of those involved. As long as you suspend your disbelief at times, and let yourself be carried along by the yarn, you will not be disappointed. Plus, the revelation of "who done it" will keep you guessing up to the point of the big reveal - which is always pleasing!

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 592 print pages.

Price I paid: £5.84

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.

Rabbit, Run - Not for the faint hearted

When the letter U was picked from the alphabet bag of destiny, there was only one author in mind - John Updike, and his "Rabbit" series, a quarter of books that my husband has recommended to me for many years. The first book in the series is Rabbit, Run, which is set in 1959, where we meet one time high school sports star, Harry "Rabbit" Angstrom. Now aged 26, Harry feels trapped in a job he doesn't enjoy, and whose home life is no great shakes - he has a two year old son, and his fragile wife is an alcoholic with another baby on the way. He cannot help but reflect on his former glory, and seems to be overwhelmed by a feeling of "how did it come to this"? And so, it is no great surprise when he decides to leave it all behind and heads off on a thousand mile journey to a better life. But he can't even do this right - he only gets a few miles before stopping and then shacks up with a woman he has only just met. And soon, of course, the inevitable happens, and this existence becomes as humdrum as his previous one. Rabbit, Run is a character study of a man searching for something better, something he thinks he deserves, but who doesn't really have the get up and go to actually find it. I found it incredibly difficult to like Harry, or indeed have any empathy for him (maybe I'm a bit hard), and kept wondering why any woman would think being with him was the best they could do. He is selfish, self-obsessed and a terrible husband and father. While I can admire the writing of John Updike, I just couldn't warm to the subject matter of this book. Bleak is putting it mildly! I didn't think that I would want to spend any more time with this character, but I have come to realise that Harry has stayed with me (I finished this book a month ago), and despite my reservations, I am kind of curious to know what he will do next. Definitely not a book for the faint hearted, and if you like a book with plenty of plot (which I do), then this might not be the one for you. However, if you are looking for a slice of life in 1950s America populated by flawed human beings (aren't we all), then give this one a go!

My STAR rating: 3 STARS

Length: 288 print pages.

Price I paid: Free, borrowed from my husband.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.

The Pirate's Daughter - thirty years of hurt!

The letter C was next to be drawn out of the hat, and it led me to The Pirate's Daughter by Margaret Cezar-Thomson, a book I picked up in a charity shop many years ago but never quite got around to reading ... until now! Set in Jamaica, the story opens in 1946 when Errol Flynn washes up on the island in his yacht, Zaca. This is, of course, big news, and Ida Joseph, a local teenager, is determined to meet the "world's most handsomest man". Meanwhile, Flynn falls in love with the tropical paradise and sets up home on Navy Island, where he entertains his Hollywood friends and rekindles some of the spark that has been lacking of late. Despite the age gap, Flynn takes a shine to Ida and pays her special attention. She is convinced that they will soon marry, but Flynn's interest wanes and he moves on to other women (no big surprise there), and barely acknowledges that he has left a teenager pregnant and facing hardship. Ida fights to bring up her daughter, May, the best way she can, even leaving her on the island for years while she moves to America for work. When Flynn returns to the island, May meets him just the once and it is a strangely sad encounter. By a strange quirk of fate, Ida finally comes home as the wife of one of Flynn's closest friends. She is reunited with her daughter, and they take up residence in Flynn's old house on Navy Island. Despite the relationship often being fraught, life goes on as they try to live with the spectre of Flynn constantly haunting them. All of this is set against the backdrop of a Jamaica struggling for, and then living with the early years of independence. Whilst there was much about this book that I enjoyed, I couldn't help but feel a little squeamish about the relationship with Flynn. The two central women, Ida and her daughter May, weren't always easy to like (but then, who of us is) and I wanted to shout at them a few times for repeating mistakes or getting things so wrong in the first place. There were also many, many characters and I sometimes got confused as to who was who, but that could just be me! What was most pleasing was that the writing totally transported me to another place, one I am not familiar with. Overall, an interesting read, with a hint of "what if ..." about it. I can definitely see this as a great holiday read too.

My STAR rating: THREE.

Length: 528 print pages.

Price I paid: £1.50 (from a charity shop).

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.

The Blackwater Lightship - let go of those grudges!

And onto the letter T ... Set in Ireland in the 1990's, The Blackwater Lightship, by Colm Toibin, is a story of heartbreak and humour within the Devereaux family, as told by Helen, who became estranged from her mother Lily some ten years previous to the opening of the story. Helen is contacted by a friend of her brother Declan. Her beloved sibling is dying of AIDS and is in hospital, but this is the first Helen is hearing about his illness. So instead of departing on her own family's planned holiday to Donegal, she goes to spend time with him. But Declan wants to leave hospital and visit their grandmother, who he and Helen lived with during their childhood at a time when their own father was dying. This brings the grandmother, mother and daughter together in the same place at the same time for a decade. Into this mix are two of Declan's closest friends who also come to stay. As Declan's condition deteriorates (and no details are spared here), this proves to be a catalyst for the family who are desperate to support Declan but who cannot help but bring up grievances and deep felt hurt from the past, which lead us to the root cause of the estrangement. Whilst this could be an overly sentimental story, there is grit and edginess in the dialogue that is very convincing of a family who have held onto grudges for a long time. There are lighter moments, especially between Declan's friends and Dora, the grandmother, which are very welcome. The characters are distinct and well drawn, although I found Lily, the mother, maybe not quite so three dimensional as the others. There are beautiful passages, and emotions do run high, but overall a very satisfying read that reinforces the adage that  you shouldn't wait for a tragedy to bring healing to a broken relationship - because then it might be too late!

My STAR rating: FOUR

Length: 288 print pages.

Price I paid: £2.98

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download.

Paris Echo - dreamlike, with the odd nightmare thrown in!

Today I bring you the letter F, which gave me the chance to read Paris Echo, by Sebastian Faulks, a book my big sister gave me as a birthday present last year. Set in Paris, this novel brings together two characters who seem to have very little in common. There is Hannah, an American postdoctoral researcher who is looking into the lives of women living in Paris during the German Occupation of the Second World War, and Tariq, a Moroccan teenager who has run away from his home in Tangiers, who thinks he might be able to find out something about his mother's history. Tariq ends up living in Hannah's spare room and, occasionally, helps her to translate some of the narrated histories of the women Hannah is researching. To earn money, he works in a fast food restaurant, but he becomes swept up in the boulevards, Metro stations and people he meets in the city. While Hannah begins to uncover the lives of the women, it stirs up memories and feelings from a previous relationship which has affected her more deeply than she would probably admit to. Tariq is full of wonder and keen to experience pretty much everything, whereas Hannah is more reserved and thinks only of her work, at least until an old acquaintance appears on the horizon. This is an exploration of a city the author obviously loves and the people who inhabit it, both in the past and the present. Sometimes it's hard to get a grip on it and the narrative has a dreamlike quality in places, but that kind of worked for me. There are sections to do with the Occupation that are incredibly hard to read, but stick with it and you will be rewarded. This book has received quite mixed reviews and while it may not reach the heights of, say, Birdsong (one of my all time favourite books), there is still much to admire and enjoy.

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 320 print pages.

Price I paid: free.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook

The Word Is Murder - Crackingly Good!

So, for the letter "H", my choice was The Word Is Murder, by Anthony Horowitz. This is a murder mystery like no other. A woman walks into a funeral home and makes arrangements for her own funeral. Later that day, she is murdered. Coincidence ... I don't think so! And neither does ex-policeman Hawthorne, who now works as a consultant for the force, as well as consulting on TV crime dramas such as Foyle's War, which is how he knows Anthony Horowitz, as he is the scriptwriter for it. Hawthorne approaches Horowitz (yes, the author has placed himself into this fictional novel) with a proposition - to write a book about his investigation into the murder of this woman, a Mrs Cooper. Horowitz doesn't really like the man or his idea, but is finally persuaded to give it a try, and so begins a twisty-turny story with trawler loads of red herrings. Hawthorne is brusque, sweary and not much fun to be around, and Horowitz thinks he's made a big mistake in becoming this man's "Watson". But as time progresses, the investigation takes hold and he puts up with all the irritations of this modern day "Sherlock", as he really wants to solve it - becoming almost gleeful when he thinks he's found a clue that Hawthorne has missed. When Damian, the famous actor son of the murder victim is also found dead within a couple of hours of her funeral, things really begin to heat up. Everything points to these violent crimes being an act of revenge for something that happened 10 years ago, but that would be too easy ... wouldn't it, or would it, or wouldn't it???? The investigation is interwoven with what purports to be real events from Anthony Horowitz's real life - like a meeting with Stephen Spielberg and Peter Jackson regarding a film script for another Tintin movie. The reader doesn't really know whether none, some, or all of these things are made up - but they all help to make the lives of the two protagonists, and how they interact, totally believable. Excellent characterisation and a crime thriller that keeps you guessing right to the very end. I can highly recommend this book, especially the audio edition which is brilliantly narrated by the fabulous Rory Kinnear.  

My STAR rating: FIVE.

Length: 400 print pages.

Price I paid: £5.84.

Formats available: print; unabridged audio download; audio CD; ebook.

Single & Single - What just happened?

When the letter L was pulled out for my next read, I was happy to find that John Le Carre was listed under that letter. I have read a few of his books in the past (The Constant Gardener definitely being a highlight) and so was more than happy to pick up one of his titles from my husband's bookshelf. Single & Single opens with a corporate lawyer being shot somewhere in Turkey, then cuts to a children's entertainer in Devon, who is called in to his bank to explain a sudden influx of cash. The latter, Oliver Single, isn't all that he seems - he is the son of a celebrated London financier who has just disappeared, and Oliver is sucked into the world he had previously turned his back on, in an effort to find out what is going on. But he is not the only one and things take a more ominous tone when he comes up against dangerous businessmen and shadowy "official" figures. This is certainly a thriller, which is usually a winner for me, but I found this book incredibly hard to get into. I had to reread the first 50 pages as I realised at that point that I wasn't entirely sure who anyone was or what they were doing. But I'm not sure even that helped. I spent most of the book wondering what was going on, and even though at times I felt I was starting to get a grip on things, the story slipped from my grasp once again. There were a lot of characters, as well as multiple locations and the scenes chopped and changed very quickly. I didn't find any of the characters sympathetic, which didn't help. I have to say that I ploughed through this book, page by page, waiting for some clarity, but it never came. It left me confused and slightly annoyed, particularly as even the ending left matters kind of hanging. Disappointed.

My STAR rating: ONE.

Length: 416 print pages.

Price I paid: free, borrowed from my husband.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.

Shangai Tango - an unusual memoir

So, hot on the heels of the letter Z came the letter X! This might have presented a bit of a challenge until I came across Shanghai Tango by Jin Xing in the e-library collection. This is an autobiographical account of Jin Xing, who was born a boy, but became a prima ballerina and one of the brightest stars of the Shanghai Ballet. This boy loved to dance from an early age, but never quite felt comfortable in his own body. At age 9, he joined the People's Liberation Army, to receive both dance and military training. He excelled at dance and, aged 19, received a scholarship to study dance in New York. It was here that Jin Xing experienced different forms of dance as well as having his eyes opened up to the possibilities of a different way of living. Always attracted to men, Jin engaged upon numerous relationships - feeling that he was relating to them as a female, rather than as a gay man. Then, when he discovered that it was feasible for someone to change sex, he took the decision to return to China to make his dreams come true and physically undergo surgery to become the woman he'd always felt he was. The surgery was almost a disaster, and almost wrecked her career, but she was determined to continue dancing and finally achieved her goal, being lauded throughout her country and becoming an ambassador for China through her artistic work. Whilst this story is amazing, I found this book quite bitty and unsatisfying. I think it was because it felt quite superficial and more like a list of dates/events - some of which were monumental in her life - but which weren't explored in depth. For instance, I never quite understood her inner feelings or what she was really thinking at key moments in her life. I wanted to feel the emotions that she must have been experiencing, but they didn't come across. I would rather have had more time on this than the descriptions of her numerous sexual exploits, which left me quite cold. Still, this book does give an insight into some elements of communist China which will surprise the reader, so for that, I am thankful. 

My STAR rating: TWO.

Length: 288 print pages.

Price I paid: free, borrowed from the library.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio book, ebook.

How Much of These Hills Is Gold - It lost me!

And so onto the letter "Z" - I was a bit worried about finding a suitable author, but after a quick search, I came up with C Pam Zhang, which is why I found myself reading How Much of These Hills Is Gold. This is the story of Lucy and Sam, who, at age twelve and eleven respectively, find themselves on their own towards the end of the gold rush in the American West. When their Ba dies (Ma already having left them some time earlier), they leave their ramshackle home in search of a new life. Lucy tries to take charge, but it is Sam who dominates and, Lucy discovers, has hidden Ba's body in the trunk their horse is carrying. Sam is determined to find the proper place to bury Ba, deep in the country where buffalo still roam and veins of gold run deep. But the two siblings have different ideas of how they want their lives to go, and while Lucy heads for the security of a town, Sam disappears into the country. Lucy tries to fit in, but is always aware that, as a child of Chinese immigrants, she may never quite fit in, and it isn't until many years later, when Sam reappears, that she realises how much she has missed her sibling and the relationship and shared history that they had. Sam allows her to be truly herself again. Much of the story is told in a series of flashbacks, not necessarily in a linear timeframe. We see how the dreams of, and promises made to, Chinese immigrants who were tempted by the stories of gold, never came to fruition and that the odds were always stacked against them. We also see how the land was stolen from the native American population and how the rich get richer and the poor, poorer. The two main characters are very engaging and there is a real sense of sibling friction, interwoven with an immense amount of love, that felt very real. This is certainly a perspective on history that is new to me. The book is well crafted and the description of the beautiful scenery, juxtaposed with the grim living conditions of those people living on the outskirts of what "civilised" society purported to be, are well told - beauty and ugliness in equal measure. I was totally engaged until the last section of the book, which, for me, suddenly seemed to lose its way and kind of petered out. Maybe it was because what I thought was going to happen didn't, and I didn't get the end I actually wanted. Still worth reading, and for anyone interested in the American West and the Gold Rush, there's a bucketload of things to enjoy!

My STAR rating: THREE.

Length: 288 print pages.

Price I paid: £3.00.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.

Neverwhere - for those who fall between the cracks!

I was delighted to pull out a "G" from the alphabet bag for my next read as it provided me with the opportunity to plunge into the catalogue of Neil Gaiman once again, an author I usually enjoy immensely. Neverwhere follows Richard Mayhew, an average man with a dull job and a very demanding fiancee, who comes across an injured girl in the street, and stops to help her. The next morning, the girl has disappeared and, so it appears, has Richard's normal life. His bank card doesn't work, he can't get a taxi and his landlord seems to be renting out his apartment. Even when he gets to work, no one knows who he is, or even seems to see him. Determined to get his life back on track, Richard sets out to find the mysterious girl to get her to put it right ... and so begins his adventure in the dark, brooding underbelly of London. The girl is the Lady Door, a person of power and nobility who is on a quest to find those responsible for the slaughter of her family, and who now appear to be hunting her too. Richard thinks that if he can help her on her quest, he can find his way back to the London he knows. Along the way, he meets strange and mystical people, as well as forces he never believed could exist, including an Angel called Islington and an Earl who holds Court on a tube train. It is hard to know who to trust, let alone make sense of what's happening under the streets of London. But Richard has a destiny to fulfil - he just doesn't realise what it might cost him! Gaiman brings his chaotic world, populated by bizarre characters, to life with ease and aplomb. Full of danger, delights and utter strangeness, you cannot help but get sucked into this story of a fish out of water who has to reach deep into himself to survive and stay sane. For such a dark book, there is, as usual with Gaiman, an immense amount of humour. An absolute tour de force I would recommend this to anyone looking for a thrilling adventure with a dark plot and even darker humour (thank you Mr Croup and Mr Vandemar for the most bloodthirsty comedy double act ever!) Packed with twists and turns, superb dialogue, great set pieces and some unexpected treats - just read it!

My STAR rating: FIVE.

Length: 400 print pages.

Price I paid: £5.84

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.

Capital - a capital read!

At last, I am able to report on the first book to be completed as part of my 2021 challenge ... and the letter I had to use for this first book was L. And so, I chose Capital, by John Lanchester, which is a book focusing on one single street in London, its residents and those who work in it. Pepys Road is populated by an array of diverse characters, from an up and coming African footballer, a British banker, a Hungarian nanny, a Muslim shopkeeper and an elderly lady dying of cancer. Their family members come and go, as does the local Traffic Warden, a refugee from Zimbabwe working illegally and a Polish builder working hard to save enough money to go back home. We see each in detail, their trials, tribulations, hopes and expectations over the course of a few months. Few of them really intermingle, but they suddenly find themselves the focus of unwanted attention when postcards start to drop through their doors with the message: We Want What You Have. Most ignore them until things start to take a turn when the messages become a bit darker and the vandalism begins, which is when the police become involved. This creates a threatening undertone to all of the events that are going on in each character's individual life - the romances, the financial worries, the family tensions and the building up and dashing of dreams. This is a complex book, with many threads and a real ensemble piece reflecting how we can live cheek by jowl with our neighbours but not know them at all. Touching and funny and heartbreaking, it's a very enjoyable read, and it's no wonder this was made into a TV series some years ago.

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 577 print pages.

Price I paid: free, borrowed from my husband.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle - murderous Groundhog Day!

This is a book I started in 2020, and is my last book to be completed before my new reading challenge begins (a month late, but hey, I seem to be a bit of a slow reader at the moment!). I have a feeling that The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton could be a bit of a "marmite"book - you love it, or hate it. Fortunately, I am fall into the former camp. We start with a man coming to his senses in a forest. He doesn't know who he is, or how he got there, but when he hears a scream and sees a man chasing a woman through the trees, one memory strikes home - the woman is called Anna and she is important to him. He hears a shot and assumes that things have taken a tragic turn, but before he gets a chance to find out, someone creeps up behind him, thrusts a compass into his hand and gives him an instruction - "East!" He flees from the forest and heads towards a country house. As he bursts in to try and get help, the people there seem to know who he is and try to take care of him. As his day of confusion progresses, he comes across a whole gamut of characters, many of whom are deeply unpleasant. The only one who seems to want to help him find out what happened to Anna is Evelyn Hardcastle. So when she dies at the end of the evening, it is an horrific shock. But the next day, Aidan wakes up in a different person, and the day starts all over again. With the guidance of a shady figure he calls The Plague Doctor, he is told that he must solve the murder, and that the day will repeat in different hosts until he does, but he only has a set number of hosts. If, at the end of that time, the murder isn't solved, he goes all the way back to the beginning, with all of his memories removed once more. With me so far? This is most definitely a novel where you have to keep on your toes, with Aidan switching between hosts as each one loses consciousness. As I listened to the audio version, which I do when I can't sleep, I found that when I had nodded off and woke up late, I kept having to rewind as Aidan had switched bodies ... and I knew I couldn't afford to miss one single clue. There are so many threads and switches in action, or the same action but from different perspectives. It's a cracking read for anyone who thinks ... what if Christopher Nolan took on an Agatha Christie novel? The development of the main character, who has to fight with the character of whoever's body he is inhabiting at that moment in time, as well as the relationships he forms, is really clever. We slowly start to unravel the sequence of events, and when Aidan realises he can actually change those events, things get really interesting. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and it did surprise me, which you wouldn't have thought it would after reliving the same day so many times. Complex it may be, but still totally accessible. Would definitely recommend.

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 528 print pages.

Price I paid: £2.85

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.

The Pillars of the Earth - Cathedral Building Epic

The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett, is the first of a trilogy set in medieval times. This book spans 1123 to 1155. Tom Builder is a master mason struggling to find work. As he and his young family travel the country looking for a job, his wife tragically dies during childbirth. Knowing he cannot look after the baby, he leaves it to die, but very soon regrets his decision and returns to the spot to retrieve it, only to discover it has gone. He finds comfort with a woman who has been living in the forest with her own child, Jack, and she goes with Tom and his two children to Kingsbridge. Unbeknownst to him, his baby had been rescued by a passing monk, and was taken to Philip, the prior at the monastery, who decides to raise the boy himself. When the cathedral at Kingsbridge is destroyed by fire, Philip hires Tom to rebuild it. Meanwhile, brother and sister, Aliena and Richard, suddenly find themselves homeless after supreme baddy William Hamleigh takes over their father's castle (and, in effect, his earldom) and rapes Aliena. Upon their escape, Aliena supports her brother and becomes a canny business woman, only to lose it all at the hands of William. With the passing years, Aliena and Jack grow close and finally fall in love despite many missteps and misunderstandings along the way. Jack inherits his stepfather's love of building and, when Tom is tragically killed, becomes a master builder in his own right. This all happens against the backdrop of political intrigue and unrest as King Stephen and Maud are battling over the kingdom. Plus, the general nastiness of the power-hungry Hamleigh family is a constant threat to Philip and Aliena. There is plenty of action and the plots come thick and fast. It's a mixture of architecture (flying buttresses anyone?), politics, religion and family trials and tribulations. There are way more bad times than good, but it's the little victories that keep you going. There are some grim and violent scenes, and this certainly won't be to everyone's taste. But if you like your historical fiction to be full of intrigue, where the baddies really are baddies and the setting isn't during the well-worn Tudor period, then this could be for you. As if the trilogy weren't enough, he's also just finished a prequel! Many hours of reading to come I fear!

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 1076 print pages.

Price I paid: 50p (in a second hand bookshop).

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.

The Hoarder - Funny but painful

In The Hoarder, by Jess Kidd, we enter the world of Maud Drennan, a care worker tasked with keeping the belligerent, and downright rude, Cathal Flood alive. Left to his own devices, he has accumulated a houseful of rubbish that threatens to overwhelm anyone who dares enter the property. Maud is at the end of a long line of carers who have come and swiftly gone, and Mr Flood is on his last warning following his assault on her immediate predecessor. Behave, or go into care! Maud is not your run of the mill carer, her life has fuzzy edges to it in that she has a number of Saints who accompany her every move, making comment on her life wherever she goes. She also has endless patience, and slowly Cathal starts to open up to her, as does his house - or at least, the restless spirits who inhabit it. Did Cathal murder his wife and daughter? Why is his son so desperate to get his hands on the house and is there any chance that Maud will find love and recover from a childhood trauma? Part thriller, part supernatural fantasy, the different strands of past and present are woven together with great skill. There is so much humour in this book - I particularly like the asides with the Saints, who don't always act very saintly (yes St Valentine, I'm looking at you!) But there is also a murder mystery to solve, packed with danger and plenty of red herrings. There are immensely tender moments too as we see the friendship develop between Cathal and Maud. I really enjoyed this book, although I did kind of guess the ending. This is the second book of Jess Kidd that I have read (Things in Jars being the first), and while the strange worlds the author conjures up are ones that might not be for everyone, I will certainly be seeking out more of her work.

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 352 print pages.

Price I paid: £3.00.

Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.

Thank goodness it's 2021!

Happy New Year to you all.

Never have I been so glad to see the end of a year - and I know I'm not alone in that sentiment.

Many things took a bit of a back seat during 2020 and one of those was reading for pleasure ... but now that the COVID-19 vaccination programme has begun, there is a new hope dawning and I am determined to approach 2021 with a bit more of a spring in my step.

I am still finishing off a couple of books that didn't quite squeeze onto the 2020 blog, but once they are done, I'll be getting my Alphabet Randomizer Programme (which may or may not resemble a bag of letters purloined from Scrabble) at the ready to select my first author (and book) of 2021.

Any recommendations for authors whose surname begins with X, Y or Z will be gratefully received!

So, here we go 2021 ... onwards and upwards!