Madeleine

The Last Hours by Minette Walters - this author is best known in the UK as a crime writer, with several of her books adapted for TV, but this is the first part of a trilogy (I think, the 2nd book has just come out in paperback) focussing on the plague in mid-14th century England, and is centred on the Dorset town of Develish, which quarantines itself to stop the pestilence spreading, following the death of it's lord, who was visiting another demesne to secure the marriage of his daughter - unfortunately, the plague had already reached that area, and he and his retinue soon succumbed, suffice to say, the wedding was off, leaving his wife in charge at Develish. The quarantine seems to be working, with no new casualties, although one high ranking serf, Gyles, who was the team, has somehow managed to avoid catching the terrifying illness. But after a while the villagers start to become fractious, and their rations will of course, not last forever, so the new steward, a mixed race, illegitimate serf called Thaddeus Thirkell, decides to venture outside and find out if any other villages have survived. He takes with him 5 sons, including twins, of some of the serfs, who have all been implicated in the death of his half-brother Jacob. Although saddened at the boy's death, there was no love lost and he wasn't a very likeable character, but Lady Anne and Sir Richard's daughter Eleanor has been causing trouble amongst the youths herself, with assignations in the church, and tensions are rising, so to try to defuse the situation, Thaddeus decides to remove the young men in his quest to find out what's happening in the outside world. At this point the book divides into two storylines, one telling of Thaddeus's adventures outside the only village he's ever known, the other chronicling Develish's fight to keep the plague out, and also repel attacks from other lords, as once word gets out that Sir Richard is no longer around, they see both his wife and the town as another possible asset. The book picked up at this point, and both stories were quite gripping, and although the writing never really felt like a historical novel, I liked the characters of Thaddeus and Lady Anne; the baddies are a bit clichéd however, but I'm intrigued enough to find out what happens next, and have bought the sequel. 7/10

The Hours - Michael Cunningham

After being horribly humid yesterday it seems much cooler today, thankfully the threatened storms and intense heat hasn't got here yet, had some rain yesterday but just heavy drizzle.

Lady Midnight - Cassandra Clare

A Season of Storms - Susanna Kearsley

I loved Company of Liars! Beautifully written, you got a bargain there. Hope you like it.

I think "Elsie" is only her second novel. I haven't read the other one.

I wish the makers of Shetland would film some of the books ,they would work well as a standalone story - Thin Air is a particularly good one. I find the TV series good but too slow. Worth watching though. I agree about Ann Cleeves's comment on Tosh's character, that's the one thing missing from the books.

This Time I know it's for Real - Donna Summer

A Storm of Swords by George R R Martin

The Mechanical Devil by Kate Ellis - when two people are shot dead near the site of an old manor house, the police assume that the main victim was event planning organiser, Andrea, who had made a few enemies in business, and that the other, a male walker, was in the wrong place at the wrong time and therefore had to be eliminated too. But as the police delve further, there seems to be a connection between Andrea and missing local girl, Jocasta Overard, whose father is a prominent local MP, tipped for big things in Parliament. Why was Jocasta seen getting out of Andrea's car not far from where the woman's body was found? And then there's another link, to Xander Southwark, a former fraudster who now runs a wellness (I hate that word!) spa nearby, which Andrea was on her way to when she was murdered? And if that wasn't enough, Wesley's wife Pam seems to have a stalker, something she doesn't need, as she's recovering from cancer treatment. This was another enjoyable instalment in the Wesley Peterson series, which got more involving after a rather slow start. Although I guessed parts of the story - the stalker's ID, to me, was pretty obvious all the way along, and there were other clues that I'm surprised the police didn't pick up sooner. But I found the accompanying historical story, that of the so-called Mechanical Devil, fascinating, and would love to see the little monk in action! 7/10

The Lost Man by Jane Harper

the first two Alien movies are excellent, wasn't so keen on the 3rd one.

speed

Careless Memories - Duran Duran

Thank you for the Music - Abba

That one brings back memories! The House on Sunset Lake by Tasmina Perry

I guessed the twist in GG as well. I haven't read GotT but saw the film a few weeks ago when it was on TV, it was OK, but apart from the starry cast it wasn't much different to those TV movies that turn up regularly on Channel 5 in the afternoon!

Boys of Summer - Don Henley (best summer song ever

Just finished number 21.

I've recently read the 2nd book in the series, and thought it was better than the first one, although she still makes some silly mistakes, she obviously hasn't learned her lesson though. But this was a more coherent story, I thought.

Three Things about Elsie by Joanna Cannon - Florence is in her 80s, and when we first meet her she's lying on the floor of her flat in an old people's home, having fallen over, and whilst she waits for help, she looks back over her life and recent events at the home, which have turned her world upside down. It all started when a new man arrived, calling himself Gabriel Price, but Elsie is convinced he is really Ronnie Butler, an old friend from her younger years who supposedly drowned sixty years ago. Then strange things start happening in her flat, she's convinced that things are going missing or being moved around eg the elephant ornament which always faces the same way, and then there's the incident involving several Battenburg cakes (hence the UK cover). No one believes her at first, and, terrified she'll be sent to the dementia home instead, she insists that something sinister is going on. Then a weekend in Whitby changes everything, and Florence's memory of a long buried incident finally comes back to her, and she starts to worry that she may be in danger. I wasn't sure what to make of this, it's quirky and quite funny at times, but also sad, although there are some lovely friendships, I especially liked her friend Jack, though I had my suspicions as to Elsie's true identity. I did find that the middle section dragged a bit, and it only really came alive when the group went to Whitby, and discovered the truth about the real Gabriel Price. 7/10

Easy mistake to make, I've done it myself When You're Gone - Bryan Adams and Melanie C

Prince

I think The Cruellest Month is one of the best so far as well.