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Madeleine's Book Log - ongoing


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One more for April, a good reading month!

 

The Miller's Dance by Winston Graham - this is the 9th instalment in the Poldark series and much better than it's predecessor, although I can now see how the author set things up in "The Stranger from the Sea" for what happens in this book. We get to know the "Stranger" much better as Ross and Demelza's daughter, Clowance, falls for him and the pair have a whirlwind romance, but to say he's unsavoury is putting it mildly, especially when he and the Poldarks' son, Jeremy, hatch a shocking scheme. In the meantime there's plenty going on, as George Warleggan carries on with his social climbing, and the fortunes of the various families rise and fall. There's less of Demelza's brothers in this book, which focuses mainly on Ross, Demelza, and their two eldest children, Jeremy and Clowance. One of the best books in the series. 9/10

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Nice reviews. :) I know what you mean about the sex scenes in Under A Pole Star; there were so many of them that eventually I was rolling my eyes, thinking 'Here we go again.' :rolleyes: It's a shame as it was so different from The Tenderness of Wolves, which I loved. Anyway, I never ended up finished Under A Pole Star as I had to return it to the library. I do have it on my Kindle though and I will probably finish it at some point. 

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In total agreement with you about "Pole Star", I did a lot of eye-rolling too!  I also loved Tenderness... but wasn't so keen on The Invisible Ones, her 2nd book ,have you read that one?

 

I haven't read any of Gyles's books yet but he 's a witty raconteur, so I would think he's a good writer too.

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On 04/05/2018 at 1:09 PM, Janet said:

Have you read anything by him before?  I'm quite curious as to what he's like as an author!  :)

 

I tried reading his political memoirs.  Didn't get very far - he was just a mite too pleased with himself,  but that's how I find him on radio/TV.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The Riviera Express by T P Fielden - this is the first in a new cosy crime series set in the seaside town of Temple Regis, following the fortunes of a reporter on the local newspaper of the title. Judy Dimont is the intrepid reporter desperate for a story other than lost cats and the local flower show, and one day her dream comes true, when not one but two high-profile men die on the same day. One of them is a famous actor, who is found dead on the other Riviera Express - the train from London. It's first thought he had a heart attack, but when another local journalist falls to his death from nearby cliffs, although his death is put down to suicide, Judy thinks something must be going on, especially when the owner of the local theatre goes missing. But of course, the local townsfolk don't want a little thing like 2 murders tarnishing their image, and Judy is also faced with the actor's temperamental widow who, it turns out, has lots of secrets, but she's not the only one. This was an enjoyable story, and I look forward to more of Judy's adventures in the pretty seaside town. 7/10


A Voice in the Night by Andrea Camilleri - this is the latest in the Montalbano series (although I don't think it's the latest chronologically) and the Inspector is feeling his age as he turns 58. A road rage incident takes on a more sinister turn when the young male culprit reports that he has found his girlfriend dead, but his story doesn't ring true and Montalbano is soon determined to get to the real killer, a difficult task as the young man's father is a prominent local politician. Meanwhile a burglary at a local supermarket is also giving the team a headache; again it seems that people much higher up than a supermarket manager (who reportedly hung himself after the robbery) are involved, and that the burglary was merely a distraction from a much bigger crime. This was another entertaining read, with Montalbano and his team a likeable albeit very eccentric bunch, and despite using unorthodox methods, they are a decent determined team. Very funny in parts as well.  I was however a bit thrown as  the blurb on the back of the book gives the wrong murder victim, so I spent half the book waiting for this character to be bumped off, which didn't happen! 8/10

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On 5/16/2018 at 4:33 PM, Madeleine said:

I was however a bit thrown as  the blurb on the back of the book gives the wrong murder victim, so I spent half the book waiting for this character to be bumped off, which didn't happen! 8/10

 

What?! Someone must have messed up :doh:. A Voice in the Night sounds quite good though, so I'm going to see about adding the first Inspector Montalbano book to my wishlist.

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The Secret of High Eldersham by Miles Burton - this is the first in a series of novels featuring amateur detective Merrion, and is one of the British Library Crime Classics. High Eldersham is rocked when the landlord of the local pub, Samuel Whitehead, is found dead one evening. Inspector Young is called in, but the locals seem reluctant to talk, and once the prime suspect has been cleared, Young finds himself having strange suspicions after he finds a doll with the murder victim's name on it in the house of the chief suspect. So he calls in his friend Merrion, who discovers that Young's hunch about witchcraft could be correct, when he sees many of the locals enacting a strange ritual in the woods, although initially it seems harmless enough. But then other dolls start appearing, and there are signs of smuggling in the local estuary. Who's behind the smuggling ring, and is it connected to the witchcraft? It all gets a bit convoluted, and Merrion becomes personally involved when he falls in love with the daughter of the man whom he thinks may be the self-styled Devil who leads the witchy services. It all builds up to an exciting climax and is a genuine ripping yarn, with the somewhat now outdated language giving it the feel of a real Boys' Own adventure. A fun read, and more fast-paced than some of others I've read in this series. More like an episode of Midsomer Murders in fact! 7/10

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6 hours ago, Athena said:

 

What?! Someone must have messed up :doh:. A Voice in the Night sounds quite good though, so I'm going to see about adding the first Inspector Montalbano book to my wishlist.

 

The first one is The Shape of Water and it`s 99p here atm. ;)  A Voice in the Night sounds good ; I`m up to around book...13 ? So I`m a few books behind. :)

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17 hours ago, Little Pixie said:

The first one is The Shape of Water and it`s 99p here atm. ;)  A Voice in the Night sounds good ; I`m up to around book...13 ? So I`m a few books behind. :)

 

That's good to know :). I found an omnibus of the first 3 books (paperback) for a great price as well. I'll have a think about it.. :P.

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On 5/6/2018 at 1:01 PM, Madeleine said:

In total agreement with you about "Pole Star", I did a lot of eye-rolling too!  I also loved Tenderness... but wasn't so keen on The Invisible Ones, her 2nd book ,have you read that one?

 

 

Yeah, I've read The Invisible Ones but didn't find it nearly as good as The Tenderness of Wolves:)

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8 hours ago, Athena said:

 

That's good to know :). I found an omnibus of the first 3 books (paperback) for a great price as well. I'll have a think about it.. :P.

 

Now I feel complicit, like I`m an accessory to someone`s increasing TBR. :lol:

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Not sure how many books there are, and it looks they're not being published (in English) anyway in chronological order as the translator's note said that the one I've just read was written 12 years ago, which explains the disparity in Montalbano's age (it starts with his birthday).

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27 minutes ago, Madeleine said:

Not sure how many books there are, and it looks they're not being published (in English) anyway in chronological order as the translator's note said that the one I've just read was written 12 years ago, which explains the disparity in Montalbano's age (it starts with his birthday).

 

There are 22 full novels that have now been translated and published in English.  Three others remain in Italian only.  There's also a couple of shorter stories translated as well (Montalbano's First Case, and The Fourth Secret).  A Voice in the Night was first published in Italy in 2012.  When it was written is a different matter!

 

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2 hours ago, willoyd said:

 

There are 22 full novels that have now been translated and published in English.  Three others remain in Italian only.  There's also a couple of shorter stories translated as well (Montalbano's First Case, and The Fourth Secret).  A Voice in the Night was first published in Italy in 2012.  When it was written is a different matter!

 

 

Considering Andrea Camilleri`s in his 90`s, his work ethic is still extraordinary. :) 

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Yes it's great he's still going at his age.  I thought there were about 20 books in the series (thanks for that info Will!) and two more are due out in various forms this year, plus he's written a couple of other stand alone books too.

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On 06/05/2018 at 11:05 PM, willoyd said:

 

I tried reading his political memoirs.  Didn't get very far - he was just a mite too pleased with himself,  but that's how I find him on radio/TV.

Sorry, I missed this.   This is what worries me - he comes across as a bit... smug, I suppose, in real life.   I might have a look at one of his detective books next time I'm in the library (if I remember) to get a taste of it!   :)

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  • 2 weeks later...

The Venetian Game by Philip Wynne Jones - this is the first in a new series of crime novels set, as the title suggests, in Venice, where the main investigator is the British honorary consul, Nathan Sunderland. Separated from his wife who's gone back to Edinburgh, he gets by translating boring instruction manuals, in between helping UK tourists who've had lost their passports or been robbed, or who simply want directions, plus the occasional drug dealing teenager. So when a strange man offers him a large sum of money to keep a small package safe for a few days, he's dubious about getting involved, but naturally of course his curiosity gets the better of him and he opens the package, which turns out to be a small book which may or may not be an original artwork by one of the famous Venetian artists, Bellini. But other people want the book too, and as he traces it's history (it was supposedly stolen many years ago) he comes across many shady characters and finds himself in increasing danger. This was an entertaining read, with a likeable main character, although the baddies were a bit stereotypical. However it was engrossing enough to make me buy the next one, and it looks like there are a couple of others too. It also has a nice sense of humour, especially where Nathan's psychotic cat is concerned! 7/10

The Furthest Station by Ben Aaronovitch - this is a novella in the Peter Grant series, and stands alone from the main thread of the books, but most of the old favourites are here - Toby the dog, Nightingale, Molly gliding around, and Peter's cousin Abigail and Jaget, his friend and contact in the British Transport Police, who is much needed here as the little team find themselves investigating ghost commuters on the Metropolitan Line (which is the oldest underground line in London). This leads them to something more sinister though, when it looks like a woman has been kidnapped and it becomes a race against time to find her whilst she's still alive. This was another entertaining read and a worthy addition to this series. 7/10

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The Furthest Station by Ben Aaronovitch - this is a novella in the Peter Grant series, and stands alone from the main thread of the books, but most of the old favourites are here - Toby the dog, Nightingale, Molly gliding around, and Peter's cousin Abigail and Jaget, his friend and contact in the British Transport Police, who is much needed here as the little team find themselves investigating ghost commuters on the Metropolitan Line (which is the oldest underground line in London). This leads them to something more sinister though, when it looks like a woman has been kidnapped and it becomes a race against time to find her whilst she's still alive. This was another entertaining read and a worthy addition to this series. 7/10

Sycamore Gap by L J Ross - this is the second in the DCI Ryan series, this time set near Hadrian's Wall when a woman's body is found hidden in the section of the wall near Sycamore Gap (which is a real place). It looks like she has been there for around a decade and was reported missing at the time. Then another much more recent body also turns up, again at the Wall in almost the same place, so the obvious question is - could these murders be linked? And there are also clues which link them to Ryan's nemesis, the serial killer called The Hacker, who murdered Ryan's sister and has been taunting him ever since. It was another very entertaining, atmospheric read with great settings and characters, despite a not particularly original story arc involving corrupt police and a mysterious group called The Circle, who we first met in Holy Island (and thought we'd seen the back of). But there's certainly enough to make me have the next books in the series lined up! 8/10

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Great reviews! These both seem like just my kind of book. I've read the first Peter Grant book (Rivers of London?), but have just never got around to the others.  I've not heard of L.J.Ross before; I  shall have to look into that series.

 

 

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The Music Shop by Rachel Joyce - I haven't read any of this author's books before and read this as a BOTM read on another book forum. It's set mainly in the late 1980s and the main character is Frank, who owns a music shop in a run-down street in an unspecified English city. He claims to be able to match up any style of music with anyone who comes into his shop, so that a heavy metal lover might find his or herself being sent off with a Vivaldi album. One day a woman standing outside the shop faints, so Frank and his other customers bring her in to look after her, and Frank is instantly smitten. She turns out to be German, says she is engaged and has a job locally, and from then on a tentative friendship, in which she and Frank meet in a café whilst he tells her what music she should listen to, and why. He thinks she in unattainable as it becomes apparent that she has many secrets. Eventually, due to a misunderstanding, they part company and after this the book jumps forward to 2009 and circumstances have changed for everyone. I can't really say much more, and although many others rave about this week I found it quite twee and almost gave up a couple of times as I was so fed up with nothing happening, and the unbearable, almost child-like procrastination of the main characters, especially when the woman's secret turned out to be something relatively basic (is that it? was my immediate thought) and I really wanted to tell them to get a grip and get on with it! We also eventually gradually get Frank's background, brought up by a rather feckless, bohemian mother forms a lot of his character. It did remind me a bit of "Chocolat" with music, but that was much better. I would think of it as almost a modern fairytale, a bit like a frothy romantic comedy, especially given the ending. It didn't really do it for me, and my favourite character was the tattooist, Maud, who was the most vivid character for me. It did bring back memories of record shops though, the smell of all those records and the crackle which you don't get with CDs - the first part is set just as CDs where coming in and vinyl (which is now making a bit of a comeback) was on it's way out - Frank's stubbornness to stock CDs is part of his problem, but I think it does give a bit of a golden view of the recent past. 6/10

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