Karsa Orlong

Some of them in the latest book are less than a page long - blink and you miss them! Not all that long to go We're almost halfway through the year already - it's going far too quickly for my liking

Just starting The Many-Coloured Land. It's all your fault

Next up I think I'm going to return to the Pliocene Epoch

Thanks, Kylie, and that philosophy is very wise Yes, that was an odd decision. I kind of understood why he did it in the end, but the humour that seemed forced to me in the early stages made the first half of the book a bit . . . odd, and that particular decision of his didn't help, I felt. I was thinking about this after my post and I only mentioned the number of chapters very briefly - but I think the chapters are so short that it made it difficult to settle into the book. It makes it a very fast read, though, because I was always thinking 'oh, just one more chapter before I put it down'. I hope you enjoy it I'm actually kind of curious to find out if I enjoy it more in re-read, knowing how good the latter stages are - it might put the first half or so in a different light Yep, that's why I'm here I did find it a little disappointing, comparatively, but I've read far, far worse books If I was still giving scores in my reviews I think the first two thirds would've been on course for a 6, but the last third pulled it up to an 8 Yeah, I rushed in a bit there - I had it pre-ordered ages ago. And then they reduced the price on the day it was released! I hope you enjoy The Curse of the House of Foskett - I thought it was fab It really, really did I noticed the first review on goodreads said similar - and it wasn't written by me

Probably the result of 100+ hours on DA:I

I've had The Yard sitting on the shelf for over a year - a friend gave it to me for my birthday but I've been put off reading it by the comments about the lack of historical accuracy. I think I've been spoiled by Patrick O'Brian

Just finished it whilst eating my lunch I'd say it's the weakest of the three so far. Review here

Death Descends On Saturn Villa (The Gower Street Detective Book #3) by M.R.C. Kasasian 2015 - Head of Zeus ebook - 400 pages London: 1883 125 Gower Street was once a house of justice, truth and perspicacity. Now madness, murder and scandal lurk in its empty halls. It is rumoured that its owner Sidney Grice - London's foremost personal detective - has been driven to the brink of despair. But, as with all good stories, we must begin at the beginning. With Sidney Grice journeying to Yorkshire to solve a mysterious death. And with March Middleton, his ward, left to her own devices in a London swarming with danger and vice. Curiosity, as we know, has a dark edge. So when an intriguing letter leads March to the gates of the palatial Saturn Villa, and into the nightmarish world of her long-lost uncle, it could be the beginning of an end, for all... I've been looking forward to this book since reading the first two entries in the series (The Mangle Street Murders and The Curse of the House of Foskett) last year. I thoroughly enjoyed both of those novels, loved the characters, the humour, the mysteries. So, yes, my expectations were heightened going into this one - and we all know that's a recipe for a fall from grace (Grice? ). I don't want to say too much about the plot because I'm fairly certain there will be a few people reading the book in the not too distant future. The blurb says more than enough. What I will say is that Kasasian uses a couple of narrative tricks new to this novel which took a bit of getting used to. I'll spoilerise them and would recommend not reading them if you're planning to read the book: I am quite confused by this book. The first half to two thirds of it are the problem. The normally sharp and witty dialogue seemed a little forced and repetitive, and I got the sense that it was trying to be a little too clever for its own good. The endless put-downs of March seemed to be every other line. The result is that it felt like some kind of bizarre comedy, unlike the previous novels where I thought the story and the characters came first and foremost, and the humour as an extension of that, and it all began to feel a little tedious. Maybe my expectations were too high, but this one felt clunky to me, and I was on the verge of tearing it to shreds, to be honest, because everything I loved about the first two seemed to be missing here. But then it somehow managed to turn things around in the last third. Even though the problems didn't entirely go away, the plot started to come together in clever and satisfying ways, and the book ends in such a fashion that the first two thirds seem like something of a long-forgotten dream. I suspect that some good editing could've reduced my problems with it - the plot, as intricate as it is, would probably have been better served if 100 pages shorter. Did I mention that this 400-page novel has over a hundred chapters in it? Crikey. Anyway, long and short, I ended up enjoying it but wishing the beginning had matched the ending. I like it when authors experiment with narrative tricks. Those used here are not entirely successful, but I think the book as a whole was enjoyable, if a trifle disappointing. It's the weakest of the three books, but then the standards had been set so high, perhaps I wanted to love it just a little too much. Memorable Quotes:

^^ The Curse of the House of Foskett is currently £1.19, although that's not a Daily Deal, so no idea how long it'll remain at that price

Seconded!

Ah, the old 'trying to read the series in chronological order trick Which probably means reading Forge of Darkness first, which would probably put anyone off for good I agree with you, though

I've got about 30 pages left to go of Death Descends On Saturn Villa, the third of M.R.C. Kasasian's 'Gower Street Detectives' novels.

Neither did I, until I Googled that food. Seems good, though. The food turned up the next day at the specified time. I'd actually forgotten it was coming and, when I saw the truck pull up, thought it was the fridge being delivered early If they don't make them already then they should! I sense a business opportunity, if only I could make the science bit work Oh it's not crappy, just seems a bit of a squeeze to get everything that was in the old one into the freezer part. On the plus side, it's frost free, so no more having to de-frost it myself. Yay. Thanks, Kay She seems to be much better since she's been on this food, and had the various injections. She actually did a solid poo last night Christmas without trifle?? Should be against the law

Fridge turned up and seems to be working. It's a bit like a reverse TARDIS, though. It's much bigger than my old one on the outside, but the inside seems smaller

Fantastic review, Laura

Nichelle Nichols has suffered a stroke. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-33018975

Pixie's shredded the rubber surround of the patio windows. She sits outside staring at me and then starts clawing them when I ignore her I had to get someone in to see if it could be fixed That special food the vet's put her on, Royal Canin, they wanted £54 for four boxes of it. That's 48 pouches in total. She's on to the last box of it now. I thought the price was outrageous, so I searched online and found that Fetch (Ocado's pet store) did the same for £38.90 and free next day delivery. Just shows how the vets take advantage Yeah, got money off and free repair of the furniture. Plus the carpet hadn't been laid properly (they have sub-contractors to do it) so they had to send someone else to fix it. As angry as I was when it happened (which was on a Saturday afternoon just before Christmas) I was even angrier when I phoned JL on the Monday morning and found that the sub-contractor had already phoned them and told them there had been a 'problem', but tried to make out that one of the pieces of furniture was already damaged before they arrived JL immediately agreed to pay for the repairs, but the sub-contractor refused to make any contribution, so JL had to pay for it all. And the guy who did it - another third party - also took a nest of tables to restore them, and they weren't anything to do with the carpet fitters, and charge that to JL as well In the meantime the sub-contractor had sent out one of their bosses to see the damage - and he didn't even apologise! Sitting here waiting for fridge to arrive . . . again

The Commodore (Aubrey/Maturin Book #17) by Patrick O'Brian 1994 - Harper ebook - 351 pages Jack Aubrey’s long service is at last rewarded: he is promoted to the rank of Commodore and given a squadron of ships to command. His mission is twofold – to make a large dent in the slave trade off the coast of Africa and, on his return, to intercept a French fleet set for Bantry Bay with a cargo of weapons for the disaffected among the Irish. Invention and surprise follow at every turn in this tale of nineteenth-century seamanship, as rich, as compelling, as masterly as any of its predecessors. This is where the series returns to 'real' time, as Jack and Stephen return home after the lengthy voyage which has taken up the previous five books. It picks up a short while after The Wine Dark Sea. As seems to be happening a lot with me at the moment, I didn't think I was in the mood for it when I first thought about reading it next. It only took about half a page for me to be completely immersed again. I am amazed at how easy I find these books to read now. I will be fascinated to go back to the first couple and read them again and see how I get on. Obviously, O'Brian's writing style will have developed over 17 books, but that much? Even though the latest mission isn't comfortable for the characters (yellow fever, slavery, animosity between the crew members, not to mention marital problems and a first meeting with a child born in absentia) but as a reading experience it's like settling into a deep, comfy chair. It's reached the point where I don't think the books are getting any better, as such, but they are maintaining such a level of consistency, never failing to involve, engage or entertain. And of course they are always exciting and bursting with character and humour. I never want to get up out of that chair again. Words I learned whilst reading this book: jactitation - the restless tossing of the body in illness otiose - serving no practical purpose or result surcingle - a wide strap which runs over the back and under the belly of a horse, used to keep a rug or other equipment in place peccavi - used to express one's guilt pratique - permission granted to a ship to have dealings with a port, given after quarantine or on showing a clean bill of health tertians - denoting a mild form of malaria causing a fever that recurs every second day quartans - denoting a mild form of malaria causing a fever that recurs every third day Memorable Quotes: I love Killick

Ah now that's interesting - you're the second person to recommend AO in the past 24 hours. Shall have to look them up next time I need white goods . . . which hopefully won't be for a while now. My instant concern was the meat - I figured the peas would be cheaper to replace Of course, this would happen when we're having a sudden bout of warm weather. I just found that the last pint of milk has turned Cool! Have you read any of China's other books?

I thought Ana was going to get to the final. Then I woke up

No, I left it too long to get insurance and the prices were astronomical. This is the first time she's had to have treatment like this, and she's nearly 10, so I suppose it's not too bad. The special food seems to be helping. She's only stunk the house out once since she's been on it, and she's stopped crapping on the lawn, which has made me happy seeing as I haven't had to negotiate a minefield whilst cutting the grass Yeah, they did, thanks. I was in and out in about 10 minutes, looked at the ones they had in stock, chose a Samsung, and it's being delivered tomorrow afternoon. Good old friendly service, too. It's a family business. Should've thought of going there in the first place Thanks Kylie! I hope you like them as much as I did Thanks Tim. Hmm, so this poor service seems to be the norm, then. I got my new TV from them without any hassle at all (I've got my last three TVs from them cos the free 5 year guarantee is too good to pass up), but I had them fit a new carpet a few years back and they broke two pieces of furniture in the process

Feeling the need to rant. My fridge freezer broke down on Monday night so, after relocating all the frozen stuff to a neighbour's freezer, I spent Tuesday looking at new ones, then came home and ordered one from the John Lewis website, with express delivery for today between 7am and 2pm. So I was up at 6am and waited . . . and waited. I checked the order confirmation email and it says "The following Standard delivery product(s) will be delivered on Thursday 4th June between 7am and 2pm", so that was all okay. But then, at about 1:30 when it still hadn't arrived, I logged into my account on their website and it still said 'order processing' against it. So I got on the phone to them and discovered that, because I'd placed the order at just about bang on 5pm on Tuesday it had got stuck in some kind of loop, because orders after 5pm would be delivered Friday, not Thursday. I was furious. Why hadn't they contacted me when my order got stuck? Why wasn't my order rejected when I placed it? Why did it let me specify today for delivery? Etc etc. Then I asked if they could deliver it tomorrow. Nope, the earliest now is Monday. I asked to speak to someone in management. He wouldn't let me. Then he went off, came back, said it would still be Monday, but they would refund the delivery fee, the disposal fee for the old fridge, and give me some money off the new one as well. But it doesn't change the fact that I need it NOW. So I said no, cancel the order. Gaaaaagh! /rant So now I've got to go off to a shop a few miles away who said they can deliver tomorrow if I choose one they've got in stock.

I'm fine thanks. Pixie's not been too well recently, having to go to the vet every week for vitamin injections and such, and she's had to go on special food cos she's got a sensitive stomach. Costing a fortune! Hope you're feeling better now

I didn't find it creepy, tbh - I thought it was completely lacking in atmosphere which, for me, is a cardinal sin in horror

I had exactly the same problem with Apartment 16. Hmm.