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Madeleine's Book Log - ongoing


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I saw the list of counties for all the UK countries about 10 posts up on the previous page, and you seemed to have entered some book names beside a Scottish county as well as English ones, so I thought maybe you had a goal for all the countries! I couldn't find any context for the list, it's just there a few posts up. Apologies if I was wrong!

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Night Shift by Charlaine Harris - 3rd and final part of the "Midnight, Texas" trilogy and the residents of the strange little town are increasingly disturbed when people begin arriving in the town and committing suicide at the intersection. Something seems to be stirring underneath the junction, and after Lemeul finally manages to translate some ancient texts, they realise that the key to it all seems to be the local witch, Fiji, who has family problems of her own. This was an enjoyable finale, which pretty much wrapped everything up, and saw the main characters develop further, with even a bit of romance for some of them, written with the author's trademark humour with a touch of darkness. 8/10

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 I Found You by Lisa Jewell - in this thriller, Alison, a single mother of 3 living in a small Yorkshire seaside town, is intrigued by a man who she sees sitting on the local beach during a rainy day. She takes pity on him, eventually taking him in for the evening as he's soaked to the skin and seems to be very upset about something - except he can't remember anything: how he got there, who he is or where he came from, although a soggy train ticket gives a bit of a clue. Gradually Alison helps him to remember, and their story unfolds, along with Frank's (as he decides he wants to be called) history as he slowly starts to recall how he came to be sitting on that bleak beach. I enjoyed this, although I did have to suspend belief at times, and felt that Alison was being rather reckless (although she does at least admit this) in taking in a strange man, especially as she has a rather chequered history to say the least. But the story unfolds to a satisfactory, if slightly rushed, conclusion, and although it sounds incredible there have been some real-life cases in a similar vein - I wonder if one of those inspired the author? I'd recommend this as fast-paced holiday read. 7.5/10

The Stranger from the Sea by Winston Graham - this is the 8th book in the Poldark series, and picks up 10 years after the shocking events of "The Angry Tide", and was in fact written several years after that book, and it shows; Ross and Demelza's eldest children are almost grown and beginning to make their own way, and much of the book is about them and, inevitably, their love lives. It also unfortunately, for this reader at least, spends a lot of time going into detail about boilers, steam engines and other technical things involved in running a mine, as the Poldarks' son, Jeremy, wants to re-open one of the old mines and find better ways of working it. I had heard that the later books aren't as good as the earlier ones, and this seems to be true, although Ross and Demelza are as incorrigible as ever, and overall it was still enjoyable. 7/10

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Death wears a Mask by Ashley Weaver - second in the series set in the early 1930s in which Amory Ames and her playboy husband, Milo, find themselves caught in up in crimes involving high society, this time, the death of a young man at a masked ball (hence the title) which is at first thought to be suicide but soon turns out, of course, to be murder. Amory investigates whilst trying to keep her marriage together, as Milo is photographed in a clinch with a famous actress and she wonders how much more of his lifestyle she can take. It's a light-hearted romp but there are so many Americanisms I wonder if the author (who is American) has ever even been to England, eg cars being referred to as automobiles - I have never heard any British person refer to a car as an automobile. This does grate slightly but apart from that I like Amory and the books provide some light-hearted escapism. 7.5/10

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The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith - this is the second in the crime series written by J K Rowling, and better than the first (which wasn't bad). When a famous author is found murdered in the same style as the main character of his latest book, private detective Cormoran Strike is faced with a long list of suspects, for the author had written a thinly veiled attack on pretty much everyone he knew - fellow authors, agents, friends, who were all very upset by their treatment in the novel. So Strike, helped by his assistant Robin, who is about to get married, sets out to find out who the culprit is. We get more of Strike and Robin's relationship in this book, as it develops nicely, and we also find out more of Strike's background (chequered to say the least, with several half siblings thanks to his feckless parents) and meet Robin's fiance, Matthew, who isn't happy with her choice of career. I enjoyed this, although I wasn't totally convinced by the reveal of the murderer's identity. 7.5/10

 

And I've just received a set of the 4 McLevy books (Victorian crime set in Edinburgh) which I ordered from an Amazon seller, brand new and very reasonably priced!

 

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10 hours ago, Madeleine said:

The Long and the short of it by Jodi Taylor -novellas and short stories, now in one paperback, hooray.

 

Do you know if they need to be read in order ? I've read the first 3 books, but am holding off on reading my copy of the shorties, in case there are major spoilers. :)

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5 hours ago, chesilbeach said:

The first few stories were standalone Christmas stories, but at one point, they start fitting into the overall timeline, so I'd suggest reading them in order, just to be on the safe side and avoid spoilers and confusion!

 

Thank you. :)

 

So, I hear you saying that I should treat myself to the rest of the books so I can safely read the short stories in the book ? ;)

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On 3-7-2017 at 11:48 PM, Little Pixie said:

So, I hear you saying that I should treat myself to the rest of the books so I can safely read the short stories in the book ? ;)

 

Now that's my kind of logic :D.

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The Seeker by S G MacLean - first in a new crime series set during the "reign" of Oliver Cromwell. Damian Seeker is one of Cromwell's main "agents", keeping a very close eye on anyone suspected of trying to bring down the self-styled Lord Protector. When a high ranking official is found murdered, a local lawyer, Elias Ellingworth, who is known for his rebellious views and writings, is the chief suspect, especially as he is found standing over the body, with a blood-stained knife in his hands. It looks like a simple case of convicting him, but Seeker, who is feared by pretty much everyone, doesn't think Elias is the culprit, despite the man's refusal to do much to help his own case. Meanwhile various plots against Cromwell are uncovered and thwarted, whilst Seeker desperately tries to find the real killer, and rescue Elias from execution, in an increasingly secretive London. I enjoyed this, it's a promising start and Seeker is be turns terrifying and likeable, (and there is a hint of romance too) and I'm sure he'll have plenty more adventures, with a rich, mysterious background of his own to be revealed as well. There's definitely a touch of James Bond about him, and there are modern resonances with the current security/surveillance issues of today. And the author's previous hero, Alexander Seaton (I have those books too but haven't read them yet!) also makes an appearance. 8/10

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The Waters of Eternal Youth by Donna Leon - this latest instalment of the Commissario Brunetti series is slightly different, in that it isn't, for the most part, about a murder. Instead it's a bit of a cold case - at a tedious dinner party given by his in-laws, Brunetti is introduced to an elderly friend of his wife's mother, who wants him to find out what really happened some 15 years ago, when her grand-daughter was allegedly pushed into one of the canals and, although she was rescued, sadly she was underwater long enough to suffer brain damage, and as a result was left with the mental age of a 7 year old. After all this time, it's difficult to prove it was anything more than an accident (and not a suicide attempt as some have suggested); the man who rescued her was a known drunk back then, and is even more so now, but he is the only definite witness. But Brunetti does his best, and despite being thwarted at pretty much every turn, he persists. This is another enjoyable book, with some nice dry humour, and plenty of food too! It's quite languid, but there are a few twists later on, and Brunetti and his family and colleagues (well some of them anyway) are likeable as ever. 8/10

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