Quiet Echoes at Night - L.G.Jenkins

 This story is the third in the Merit Hunters series. I read the first two, originally titled Crowned Worthy and Stolen Crowns but I believe they have been republished with different titles; Sun of Endless Days and Storm at Dusk respectively. 

I wrote about them on my blog.

 https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2021/04/crowned-worthy-lg-jenkins-blog-tour.html

https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2022/01/stolen-crowns-lgjenkins.html

Both of the previous two stories ended with the most infuriating cliff hangers! I say infuriating because I just had to know what happened next! And...... it's happened again!! Another ending that leaves you hungry for more. 

I would say that to fully enjoy and appreciate this book you do really need to have read the first two. I don't necessarily believe that to be a flaw. I would say the same of The Maze Runner and Hunger Games series, for example. But there is always a complexity to dystopian landscapes and regimes that begin to be established in the initial book and developed in subsequent titles. This has been done very effectively in this series.

We meet some old "friends' - Ajay and Genni for example - and some new. The dystopian landscape strikes a balance between those things we experience in our current, contemporary lives and can readily relate to and those fantasy things and beings that populate dystopia. Some of the desert creatures (Ooops, I really don't want to give too much away) derive from an oasis of imagination. 

The allegorical inference did not escape me either and I fully expect further exposition in the final book in the series. As the collection develops the reader can see the moral and political implications with a greater clarity. Something that I find delightful is how this author has grown and developed her craft. In terms of the quality of the writing and plotting I would say this book is the best yet. It's an engaging story where we are invited to engage and root for characters who may not always have behaved appropriately. Emotions are conflicted and the fragility of the human nature is exposed as well as the endurance of the human spirit and the strength of belief.  

I can't wait for the next book!!!!

 

November Wrap Up

 When I say it’s been an average month I’m NOT referring to the quality of the books I’ve read! No, I’m referring to the quantity. I average seven or eight books a month. So this month is ……….average! What is not average is the number of blog posts I've written. Counting this one - just two. 😞Clearly, it isn't because I'm not reading books. I just don't seem to be reviewing many. Perhaps my New Years resolution should be to up my game regardless of whether anyone reads them or not. Anyway..... to this months books......

 

First up is Georgia Spearing’s Soul. I had the pleasure of meeting this exciting young writer at my local bookshop. This was a book that I didn’t feel I read as much as experienced. It’s a very emotional book for a start. It put me in mind of several things. 

One it was very much like navigating a dreamworld, there were elements that made me think of my own dreams, that strange netherworld where people meander in and out and topography’s change and you have no say in it. 

Secondly, there were some passages that reminded me of some of those guided meditations where you are led into some deeply symbolic and spiritual landscapes. And finally, it took me back to the 80s; before Windows and before MacBooks, when computer games were so much less sophisticated than they are now. I remember loading the game data into the machine (a Sinclair Spectrum, okay so I’m old!) via a cassette player and it took ages! Because the graphics were limited the role-playing games relied on words and there were passages in this book which reminded me of those. And then, if you were playing the game, you’d be given a number of options to choose from which would determine the outcome and the next path that you took. And the main character, Dee, passes through doors which seem to dictate the course of her soul journey, for that is how I saw the story, someone mining the very depths of her soul to find the truths of her life and its outcomes. It’s almost a fictional self-help book!

Soul is the first in the Soulbound Trilogy. And Dee’s journey takes her through a labyrinth of doors and mirrors that reflect her life and open pathways in her heart and mind that help her to understand so much of her previous life AND understand the people closest to her. Luke, her lover and her soul mate is her Holy Grail in this fantasy romance that isn’t afraid to speak the truth and confront life changing issues. It’s a remarkable achievement for a debut novel.  And I understand, having met the author recently, that Book Two in the series looks at events from Luke’s perspective. It’s an exciting prospect. 

 

Next was Kate Atkinson’s Normal Rules Don’t Apply. I love Atkinson’s writing. I love her diversity. This book is a collection of short stories. Some with recurring characters and some linked in some way or another to previous stories. It was an absolute delight to read. The stories themselves were quirky and with unpredictable outcomes. They are imaginative and somehow otherworldly. So entertaining.

 

JP Delaney’s The New Wife was my only library book this month I’m ashamed to say. I have some reserved but I’m waiting on them to come to my local library. I used to be sent proofs and arcs of Delaney’s books back in the day. I loved them. Full of unsettling twists, unreliable narrators and psychological thrills. This one was apparently influenced by Du Maurier’s My Cousin Rachel. As always with his books I couldn’t put it down until I found out exactly what happened.

 

With a proliferation of detective duos in the crime genre it’s refreshing for an author to come up with a slightly different slant. Simon Mason’s is to give his two detectives the same surname but diametrically opposed personalities! A Voice in the Night is the fourth in the series and won’t be published until January so I’m sitting on my review until then. But….. it’s a corker! The two Wilkins have a new boss to answer to and she seems to have their measure.

 

Raising Hare was shortlisted for the Waterstone Book of the Year and just this week has been announced as the Hay Festival Book of the Year. And just this week too, I met Chloe Dalton when she spoke about the book at my local bookshop. She is a delight and so is the book. It’s not often that you can say a non-fiction book that he is unputdownable, but I really couldn’t stop reading this. It’s beautifully written. It’s an account of how a writer and political advisor found an abandoned leveret during lockdown and hand reared the baby hare. I’m one of those people who has never seen a hare in the wild. I’ve always wanted to, and this book has made me want to all the more. I’ve learned so much about these incredible creatures. What I also loved about the book was how transformative the experience has been for the writer. I’m always happy when people find a way to engage fully with the natural world.

 

Even though my TBR shelves are heaving and groaning under the weight of their numerous tomes I still browse in the charity shop bookshelves. I found this little book, AJ Pearce’s Dear Mrs. Bird. I’d heard of it but when I started tor mead it I thought I might have confused it with something else because it wasn’t what I was expecting. Nevertheless I read it and was thoroughly entertained by this tale of women and war and problems. It was amusing in places but also heartbreaking as one might expect with a war story.

 

I bought Miranda Hart’s I Haven’t Been Entirely Honest with You at my local bookshop on National Bookshop Day. It was very much an impulse buy, an ‘of the moment’ purchase. Had I not been caught up in the day I might not have bought it, reserved it at the library possibly.  It reads like a self-help book and perhaps that was the intent. There were some comic moments. My favourite was when Miranda admitted that she had thought Dua Lipa was a family car !

 

Samantha Harvey’s Orbital  won the Booker Prize this year and this was another impulse buy at the bookshop and I had actually reserved it at the library! It’s a deceptively slender volume but it exerts a power that befits a work twice its size. A team of six astronauts make a journey around the earth, philosophising, meditating and commenting upon the very essence of life on earth. It is quite beautiful.

 

Soul - Georgia Spearing

 

This was a book that I didn’t feel I read as much as experienced. It’s a very emotional book for a start. It put me in mind of several things. 

 

One it was very much like navigating a dreamworld, there were elements that made me think of my own dreams, that strange netherworld where people meander in and out and topography’s change and you have no say in it. 

 

Secondly, there were some passages that reminded me of some of those guided meditations where you are led into some deeply symbolic and spiritual landscapes. 

 

‘The trees are tall and bare, their bark adorned with leaves shaped like vibrant green birds that blended seamlessly with the branches. The sky above was a stunning sunset of oranges and purple, illuminated by two delicate pink moons that cast a serene otherworldly glow. The forest floor was alive with movement as flowers wandered on their stems, their petals fluttering shyly. The ground was soft and cushion-like, creating a gentle, living carpet underfoot. The air was crisp and cool, filled with the fresh foliage and the faint sweet fragrance of the wandering flowers.’

 

And finally, it took me back to the 80s; before Windows and before MacBooks, when computer games were so much less sophisticated than they are now. I remember loading the game data into the machine (a Sinclair Spectrum, okay so I’m old!) via a cassette player and it took ages! Because the graphics were limited the role-playing games relied on words and there were passages in this book which reminded me of those –

 

‘Its surface began to shimmer, undulating in mesmerising waves of liquid gold that seemed to breathe with a life of their own. Each ripple caught the light, casting golden sparkles that danced across the room, making the air feel electric and charged with anticipation. The mirrors glow grew stronger…’

 

And then, if you were playing the game, you’d be given a number of options to choose from which would determine the outcome and the next path that you took. And the main character, Dee, passes through doors which seem to dictate the course of her soul journey, for that is how I saw the story, someone mining the very depths of her soul to find the truths of her life and its outcomes. It’s almost a fictional self-help book!

Soul is the first in the Soulbound Trilogy. The cover blurb tells us –

 

‘Dee’s world shatters in an instant when a devastating car crash leaves her trapped in limbo, each door revealing a fragment of her past. Driven to reunite with her soulmate, Luke, she travels through heartfelt and haunting moments, confronting the defining events of her life. Dee must piece together her past in this surreal journey and face long avoided truths. Will she find her way back to Luke or remain lost in her memory?’

 

And Dee’s journey takes her through a labyrinth of doors and mirrors that reflect her life and open pathways in her heart and mind that help her to understand so much of her previous life AND understand the people closest to her. Luke, her lover and her soul mate is her Holy Grail in this fantasy romance that isn’t afraid to speak the truth and confront life changing issues.

 

It's a remarkable achievement for a debut novel.  And I understand, having met the author recently, that Book Two in the series looks at events from Luke’s perspective. It’s an exciting prospect. 

October Round Up

I started the month with another Ann Cleeves. This one was procured from a charity shop which pleases me greatly. Another Vera story. Entirely predictable but always enjoyable.

Next stop is a completely different kettle of fish. Nicola Dinan's Disappoint Me. It's not published until January next year. I have read it, obviously, and I've reviewed it but I'll keep the wraps on the review until nearer publication date. Suffice to say that I think this writer is somebody quite special. If you've read Bellies, you'll know what I mean. 

So, it's turning out to be a month of contrast! Nothing wrong with that. This paperback was republished to tie in with the screen version of the story. I reviewed it on my blog. https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2024/10/the-radleys-matt-haig.html

I won this in a Librarything giveaway. It's the third in a series. The series is called The Race is On. it worked reasonably well as a standalone, but I think reading the first two might have enhanced to my enjoyment of this one. It was an action packed rea,  very topical since quantum teleportation could mean the end of global warming! So it's dystopian and futuristic.

Fly on the Wall Press continue to publish interesting quirky collections and this is no exception. I wrote about the stories on my blog. https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2024/10/modern-gothic-various-authors.html

This next book was an utter delight. I began reading it with no expectations. I knew nothing of the author previously only that she was local and I met her in our local bookshop. But it's easily one of my favourite books this year. I reviewed it on my blog. https://bookphace.blogspot.com/2024/10/if-crows-could-talk-debs-hobbs-wyatt.html

If Crows Could Talk - Debz Hobbs-Wyatt

 

I sometimes look at the best sellers lists in bookstores, in papers and magazines. I see the latest celebrity to commit the minutiae of their life to paper, the author who already has an impressive oeuvre of best-selling work, the personality turned novelist selling books by the bucketful, the latest film/TV ties in. Then I look at the book I’m holding in my hand, and I ask – why? Why isn’t this book on those lists?  It’s every bit as good if not better than some appearing there. And then I understand that publishing is a funny old business these days. Quality doesn’t always equate with sales and success. 

On paper this book sounds like an anomaly – an Essex lass from Canvey Island writes a novel about America and civil rights? Yet it is so good on so many levels that it is easily one of my favourite books this year. 

 

Debz Hobbs-Wyatt is an award-winning writer for her short stories. So unsurprisingly, it's very well written. There’s an intriguing premise; the two main characters both share the same birthday, but they were born fifty years apart in the same town. George’s story is set over fifty years, April’s over a single year. The narrative yoyos between the two protagonists who initially seem to have nothing in common aside from their birthplace and birthdate. But as the story unfolds the astute reader can pick up the signs that there has to be some kind of link between the two. It’s so cleverly done it blew me away as I started to make the connections.

 

I think this is the best example I’ve come across of the leitmotiv technique in a contemporary novel. It’s used so simply, yet so subtly - here it’s an utter delight to experience. 

 

The story is an immersive one and you could be forgiven for believing it to be written by an American author with roots in the South.  It is so authentic. The research is impeccable from the USA school system to the rules of baseball! The dialogue so convincing it envelops you from the start and transports to you to Georgia and Florida. The atmosphere of those times for African Americans is palpable. The politics are there but it is not an overtly political novel, more a sociological one.

 

George is just such a wonderful character. He has his flaws, but it makes him so real. A man of dignity but hurting so much inside. Troubled teen, April, will tug at your heart. The amateur psychologist in you will try to diagnose but the truth will not be revealed until you near the conclusion of the book. All the characters have their roles to play and they do so very well. I loved Lydia, and I understand she features as a character in a previous novel which I’m keen to get my hands on! Molly is a beautiful character with her perception and understanding.

 

The denouement is heartbreaking and will perhaps remind you of similar events that have occurred in various places over time. Once understanding has been reached all the strands of this spider web tale are drawn together. I suppose if I’m honest I found the last few pages lacked the impact of the bulk of the book, I saw them as an attempt to tie all the ends up neatly and that goal was achieved with compassion and hope.

 

For inasmuch as some of the events in this book are shocking and upsetting there is redemption. It’s a multi themed book – racism, bigotry as one might expect from a civil rights story but there’s family and friendship and spiritualism and faith and hope and love abide and the greatest of these is love. 

 

But what of the crows, I hear you ask? Oh no, I’m not going to say. Best you read the book. 😉

 

 

 

Lying Perfectly Still - Laura Fish

 I read this book and drafted this review before the tragic news that Laura Fish had passed away. Her book publishes today in Black History Month. Through her work her legacy lives on. 

Lying Perfectly Still by Laura Fish is an observation of the corruption within the aid industry from a fictional perspective.

Set in Swaziland Koliwe (Xolile) raised in England, but returning to the land of her late father begins a hopeful career as an aid worker. But soon finds herself caught up in cultural and moral conflicts, which cause her to question everything and everyone.

The novel is a quite beautiful and sustained exploration of a world where beliefs contradict each other around every corner, and one girl gets caught up in it all. Koliwe is a mass of contradictions. There are times when you want to protect her from the evils that are lurking and threaten to engulf her vulnerability and naivety. There are other times when she seems to perceive the entire root of the problem and behave accordingly. Her dual name suggests this paradox within her, a split personality almost. Xolile is the Swazi pronunciation of her name. I certainly felt a lot of empathy towards her and the disillusion that she was experiencing. It’s very well portrayed by the author and I found Koliwe a very endearing character. I cannot say the same for Cameron Cuthbert! An exacting portrayal of an odious and immoral man. And you get to wonder how somebody so obnoxious secures a position of seniority.

In tandem with Koliwe’s story is also the story of a Swazi girl, Thandi which will break your heart. Or at least it broke mine. It offers an injection of mystery and intrigue into the novel as well as further highlighting the failures in some aid programmes. 

I’ve always been in admiration of aid workers believing that their input could only improve the lives of those in developing countries. This book has challenged that, perhaps very stereotypical, perception. I’m sure that there are some excellent aide agencies out there, but for the purposes of this fiction, this particular organization fails to meet the needs of its community. And there also seemed to be an incredible gulf between the local people and the bureaucrats and foreign aid workers.

I think that one of the mistakes the Western world makes is that it only tries to understand different cultures from its own perspective instead of from the perspective of that particular culture so in effect, there is no real understanding, and without that effective aid can’t take place. I think the book illustrates this very well.

I found it fascinating to read about the rituals performed formed by the indigenous peoples, such an important part of different cultures and I thought that in this instance opened Koliwe's eyes to her heritage and allowed her to connect with her ancestry.

It's certainly a book that poses questions and considerations for the reader to ponder. It's not a light read but it's well written and engaging.

My thanks to Fly on the Wall Press for a gifted copy. 

 

Modern Gothic - Various Authors

 

"Gothic" is a term oft bandied about within the realms of fiction. Frequently it's applied to an historical novel that presents as quite dark and bleak. But in many instances it's not really Gothic at all - just a bleak and dark historical novel!

Wikipedia would have us believe that Gothic is a  'loose literary aesthetic of fear and haunting.' I've always been intrigued by the definitions of the term which are many. For me a true gothic story bestows upon me an indefinable sense of horror and disquiet, an atmosphere that shrouds the soul. One thinks of Frankenstein and Melmoth,  Edgar Allan Poe and H P Lovecraft. So I found it a bold assertion to offer a collection of Modern Gothic tales. But as I read this engrossing collection I realised that the modern refers to them being written recently! For, apart from references to emails in one story, there is an otherworldly, historical, timeless even, flavour to these stories which adhere to those elements that produce that 'gothic feel' but the settings never feel modern.

It's a modest sized collection than spans less than one hundred and fifty pages but it's quality not quantity that counts here. Every story is a compelling tour de force of unease, incredulity with that necessary chill factor that is a must for the true gothic. 

I think my favourite was Rose Biggins' A Respectable Tenancy. A short epistolary story it defies belief in its premise! I'll say no more! (There maybe be tenant readers who feel it is a metaphoric allusion to the state of affairs today! 😉) I also really enjoyed Dark Water (not to be confused with the Elizabeth Lowry novel of the same name which does pertain to the Gothic!) But all of the stories filled me with a sense of foreboding and unease. 

The writing in all of the stories is excellent. All of these authors understand the short story medium so well, not to mention the elements of a gothic fiction! It's a well arranged collection of stories too. The stories are diverse yet they work very well together. I think in part that is due to how well curated the collection is. For example had the last story in the collection been the first it would have evoked a different sense to the anthology as a whole.

I would like to credit all the writers here, for although I have cited two of my favourite stories I can't say that there were any that I didn't enjoy. 

So Lerah Mae Barcenilla, Lauren Archer, Rose Biggin, Michael Bird, Pete Hartley and Edward Karshner Thank you!! And further thanks to Fly on the Wall Press who've done a grand job with this book.  

The Radleys - Matt Haig

 

I don't know about you but my TBR is heaving and shows no signs of diminishing. And that's just the physical copies of books. I have my handwritten lists too that seem to multiply faster than a colony of rabbits. Sometimes I despair because there are books on the list that I fear I will never get to read. Trust me, the older you get the worse that fear becomes, and yikes,  I'm getting old. Matt Haig's The Radleys was one of the books on that list. Originally published in 2010 I always had Boo Radley in my mind ( a character in To Kill a Mockingbird) which was the motivation for my wanting to read the book! As it turns out there is little to link the two other than, perhaps, a sense of mystery. Precipitated by the screen adaptation of the story and a republication of the paperback edition with a movie tie in cover those lovely folk at Canongate Book sent me a copy. I have now triumphantly crossed it off my TBR list! It was worth the wait!

'Life with a Radleys: Radio 4, dinner parties with the Bishopthorpe neighbours and self denial. Loads of self denial. But all hell is about to break loose. When teenage daughter Clara gets attacked on the way home from a party, she and her brother Rowan finally discover why they can't sleep, can't eat a Thai salad without fear of asphyxiation and can't go outside unless they're smothered in factor 50.

With a visit from their lethally louche Uncle Will and an increasingly suspicious police force, life in Bishopthorpe is about to change. Drastically.'

Funny and entertaining in a quite gruesome way on occasions! I loved the juxtaposition of this family desperately trying to be 'normal' when they were anything but. I don't want to give away the premise for anyone who doesn't know because the gradual exposition of exactly who and what the Radleys are is delightfully done. 

If you're a fan of Matt Haig and you've read any of his other books -  I can't say you know what to expect because his books are all so different - but you will recognise the overall flavour. 

This paperback edition published on October 10th so I'm a little tardy with this review. I apologise. 

Smoke and Murders - J.L.Blackhurst

There's no shortage of crime fighting duos in books or TV shows so it takes some doing to come up with a different slant on the concept. But J.L.Blackhurst has done just that with her sisters, Tess Fox and Sarah Jacobs. The twist is that one is a bona fide cop on the right side of the law and the other is........ a con artist! Think Hustle meets Jane Tennison. 

Smoke and Murders is the second in the series and when I was informed that I would be receiving an advance copy of the book I made sure to read the first, Three Card Murder, prior to it. However I don't believe it is vital to have read the first book ahead of the second but it does furnish the reader with the back stories. These are disclosed throughout the second book but I will admit to being glad I did read Three Card Murder first.

I enjoyed the characters of Tess and Sarah. They are so different but the dynamic between them works well and they achieve a balance that underpins the whole story. In fact it did occur to me that this book is more character driven than the first one which is plot driven. Family is explored in more depth and other characters are introduced.

The plots of both books hinge on the locked room or impossible crime mystery which is always a winner for me! I love the theories put forward and usually marvel at the actual explanation. 

There are two murders in this story, a local politician's toasted remains are found inside an effigy and it is unclear how they got there and the second body is murdered in a locked room while Tess and Sarah are in the building.

Plenty of mystery to be unraveled, some through conventional policing and others through more nefarious means. It all makes for an entertaining read with an audacious cliffhanger twist at the end. It's a killer! No pun intended. I'm desperate for the third book even before the second is published! 

My thanks to HQ stories for a gifted copy. 

Sylvia Plath Watches Us Sleep… but we don't mind – Victoria Richards

 

If ever a title was going to lure you in then this is it! An arresting short story collection by journalist Victoria Richards will have you entertained and 'thought provoked' in equal measure. 

There's something almost ghostly, sinister even about many of the stories, some dystopian others just plain weird! But in a good way.

Victoria Richards uses the short story medium well. It's an underrated art - to create your characters, scene and plot in a more limited number of words requires concise thinking and an aptitude for the salient without compromising the story. This author understands her genre so well.

The stories are diverse but there are clear themes - mental health, loss, relationships gone awry - all dealt with in compassionate ways that favours the female perspective. 

Favourites? Several. The story that gives the collection its title, subliminally your knowledge of Plath, her life and her work, influences your response to the story. And The World Was Water  bleakly apocalyptic. Earnest Magnitude's Infinite Sadness which blends magical realism with political and environmental concerns.  

The writing is crisp and assured, economic without being sparse. Without doubt a writer to watch.

Thank you Fly on the Wall Press for my subscription copy.  

Missing Person: Alice and The Case of the Lonely Accountant - Simon Mason

It is not my habit to review two books at once in a blog post but is felt fitting here as I received both books together from riverrun books.

I've read all of Simon Mason's DI Ryan Wilkins' mysteries and I thoroughly enjoyed them. And whilst these novellas remain in the crime genre they are very different stories. 

These stories are the first two in the Finder series which feature a character known as ....... The Finder. His specialises in finding missing persons. Cold cases. In the first the case of Alice is reopened when the body of a girl is found and the perpetrator is thought by the police to be guilty of Alice's disappearance too. I'll give nothing away! This might be classed as a novella but I found it packed as hefty a punch as a novel twice its length. It's meticulously plotted and our intrepid Finder is thorough to a fault. He interviews all and sundry with a tenacity that would put a terrier to shame. We learn a little of his back story too. The final denouement a delight.

The second book looks at the disappearance of Don Bayliss who has been missing for seven years, presumed dead. When his wife finds a business card amongst his possessions many years later the police interest is piqued, the case is reopened and the services of the Finder once more engaged. Whilst the story is very different from the first one the same doggedness and painstaking attention to detail is employed and once again the final conclusion is most congenial.

I love the DI Wilkins stories but I'd also greatly enjoy reading some more of these. There's some of the classic detective tradition in the narrative. I loved the way the author ran the Finder's investigations alongside a classic book - What Maisie Knew and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

I think that contributed to the classic and almost traditional feel that the books had yet the actual writing felt very contemporary. 

I think these stories cement Simon Mason's position as one of our most interesting and imaginative crime writers.

Thanks to riverrun books for my gifted copies. 

Listen - on Music, Sounds and Us - Michel Faber

 The paperback edition of this book was published on 1st August so I'm a little behind with this review, okay a lot behind, but sometimes life gets in the way of blogging and reviewing. 

It's an interesting take on the hows and whys of our listening habits but it is very much one man's views and opinions which won't be universally shared. Faber makes many assertions that in many cases are his and his alone. Maybe it's just me but I found his tone condescending and at times superior as if he has some kind of edge on music that sets him above the majority of the rest of us. 

In many ways it's more a sociological work, a dissertation if you wish, than a book about music. Faber claims that it will change the way you listen. It hasn't, not for me, anyway.

I've been a music lover and collector of music all my life. And I'm old now. I have eclectic tastes and am not governed by what is currently in vogue. From Beethoven to Barry Manilow I'll listen. If my ears like it that's fine by me. I pass no judgement on what anyone else enjoys listening, we're all different. But I felt at times that Faber was ridiculing folk such as myself. 

This book could be seen as contentious. But you don't necessarily have to agree with all of Faber's views to enjoy the book. It seemed that he was very negative much of the time. It's both interesting and irritating but seems likely to generate a deal of discussion. I found the frequent footnotes annoying as they interfered with my reading of the main text. 

It's certainly not the best book I've read on the subject of music but there's plenty of challenging ideas here. 

My thanks to Canongate Books for a gifted copy.

September Wrap up

It seems to be that I average about 7 books a month, this month its 9, but does it matter?  I loathe it when reading becomes a race, a competition. I don't set myself any kind of reading goals. I'm here to enjoy the pursuit and pen a review or two when a publisher has entrusted their books to me, which isn't so often these days but so be it. I'm old and the impression I get from social media is that young is beautiful. Enough.

First up this month was Listen by Michel Faber. (A review is on its way....) Yes, it is Michel Faber of The Crimson Petal and the White fame but hold fire before you hyperventilate with excitement because this is a non fiction book. It's ostensibly about music but it's more to do with the hows and the whys of listening to music. It is very much his personal view and I would warn Spandau Ballet fans that the book might not please them. 😉

A library book next, and the winner of the Waterstone's debut novel prize, Ferdia Lennon's Glorious Exploits. I feel quite smug here because the library didn't have a copy. I thought they should! So they invited me to complete a form making a case for why they should purchase the book for the library. I did. And so did they! It meant that I was the first person to read this library book and for no good reason that pleased me greatly. It's a poignant, bittersweet tale of Syracuse and Euripides and the power of stories. Lampo and Gelon somehow had me thinking Rosencrantz anad Guildenstern, Waiting for Godot with their lopsided friendship. 

After a couple of more intense reads I lightened things up with the latest offering from Ann Cleeves, The Dark Wives. It's a Vera Stanhope mystery and if you've read others in the series you know exactly what to expect and this is no disappointment. My introduction to Vera was via the TV series and when I read I see and hear Brenda Blethyn. It's an example of how sometimes the TV adaptation is the catalyst for a rewarding reading experience. I think I've read all of the Vera books. I've got several of the Shetland series  on my TBR shelf.

I found this book on the 'New Arrivals' shelf in the library when I returned the Ferdia Lennon! Emma Donoghue's Learned by Heart. I've read many of Ms. Donoghue's books but I knew nothing of this. It is a fictional imagining of Anne Lister's (Gentleman Jack) boarding school days and her relationship with Eliza Raine. Absorbing story in the hands of a master story teller. 

The next two books I read were sent to me by Quercus Books. Two novellas by Simon Mason - reviews to follow, I know I've got behind....😞 I loved Mason's previous Wilkins novels, two detectives within the same surname but polar opposites. These little novellas feature The Finder who is a specialist in locating missing persons from cold cases. They may be novellas but they pass as much punch as full length novels. Completely absorbing, quite complex, yet easy to read. 

I don't often do this but I treated myself to a preorder, signed copy of this next book. I prefer my books to be signed face to face somehow but with this author I'll make an exception since the chances of actually meeting her in person is as remote as me winning the Booker Prize! 🤣 The wonderful Elizabeth Strout and Tell Me Everything. I love her style. And I love the fictional world she's created and the character of Lucy Barton. Here Lucy pals up with - Olive Kitteridge! Other characters return and their own narratives intertwine with each other. It's masterful. 

I enjoy reading short stories. I enjoy knowing that I can read a complete story within a shorter space of time. Most of the short story collections I read these days are from the incredible Fly on the Wall Press, a one woman show founded in 2018 by Isabelle Kenyon. She has the knack of selecting authors who have created  unnerving and off kilter fictional landscapes that can range from futuristic dystopian to ethereal fairy tale narratives. This latest collection is Victoria Richard's Sylvia Plath Watches Us Sleep. Stories about grief and dysfunction that are unsettling yet addictive. 

The Edge of Solitude - Katie Hale

 

Against the backdrop of a physical landscape with ice and cold Katie Hale creates a stunning exploration of people who court their desires with flawed ethics and make choices that seem at times almost feral instincts rather than reasoned choices. 

It's a chilling dystopia depicting a future where climate catastrophe is imminent. And Ivy Cunningham, now in her seventies, an environmentalist who has fallen out of favour is recruited for a trip to Antarctica by a millionaire who wants to save the planet . 

The trip becomes a metaphor, in a Heart of Darkness kind of way, for Ivy as she hopes to salvage her reputation and reconnect with her seemingly estranged son.

Parallel to story of the journey to the Antarctic is the story of Ivy's life and relationship with Bree. Poignantly, we learn of how ambition and love can conspire to test the foundations of an intimate rapport. But there is also something of the eco thriller to as Ivy investigates both her fellow passengers and their intentions. 

With a beautifully constructed narrative that is as unsettling as the katabatic storm that engulfs the ship, aptly called The Lone Star, Hale allows us to accompany Ivy on her journey as she fortifies herself with guilt and alcohol. I found it hard to warm to her, in fact I don't think I really engaged with any of the characters except Bree! But that may be intentional. 

It's a cerebral book, there is some action but I feel the author's intent is to get us to think. And from my own perspective she's certainly succeeded in that! With the climate crisis much to the forefront of our news these days, it’s a very pertinent book.

Thanks to Canongate Books for a gifted copy.

The Taylor Swift Activity Book - Nathan Joyce

 

I am not a bona fide Swiftie. At least not yet. I remember buying the Fearless CD for my niece and burning myself a copy. I listened to it and found the countryish twang pleasant and some of the lyrics clever. But it didn’t have me impatient for her next album. Over the years I became familiar with some of her songs like Blank Space, Shake it Off.  But it is only recently that I have begun to listen more intently. That is due in part to several people whose opinions I respect who have lavished praise on her. And the Eras Tour phenomenen that has impacted in the media in recent weeks. (My current favourite song is August from the Folklore album.) And so I was quite interested to receive this activity book. On first reading it seemed that the author was a true, if recent, Swiftie and was possibly indulging his obsession and getting a publication deal to boot! Then I did some research and found that this same writer has produced similar activity books on David Attenborough, Dolly Parton -  two on Dolly - Elton John and Michelle Obama! So his credibility diminished a bit. But I figure and hope that he is producing these books because he truly does admire the subjects. What he does do is understand the nature of fandom and how consuming it can be for devotees.

I think the book is aimed at a relatively young audience, certainly with some of the activities that involve colouring and designing, spot the difference, join the dots etc.  There are some quizzes and word games too. For those not fluent in Swift lore there are facts, quotes  and information a plenty so you leave the book feeling better informed than when you began. And I guess for the experienced Swifties it might satisfy the withdrawal symptoms of the Eras tour being over and fill a gap till the next album maybe. It's fun and could wile away an hour or two. It is unofficial, though, and not endorsed by Taylor Swift, although I’m sure she would think it fun, and there are only drawings, no photos. 

A fact I uncovered, which isn’t in this book I don’t think, is that Taylor Swift is the third cousin, six times removed, of Emily Dickinson. I feel pleased about that and it endears her to me more. I am Enchanted.

My thanks to HQ stories for a gifted copy. 

Virginia Lane is not a Hero - Rosalind Stopps

 

There is something wonderfully uplifting about a novel that has a protagonist of mature years kicking butt. The title doesn't suggest that, it suggests it's going to be an Eleanor Oliphant, Dawn Brightside kinda story but it isn't! Many nails were bitten and many tissues were used during the reading of this book.

Ever since her beloved Jed died, all Virginia wants is to be left alone. But the little girl who lives down the street is so sweet, that even in her grief state Virginia's heart softens whenever she sees her.

And that's why Virginia knows there's something wrong in the little girl's house. So when the mother asks Virginia to take her child far away, somewhere safe, Virginia says yes.

The last thing Virginia would call herself is a hero. She's just doing what anyone else would do, right? But when she realises how much danger the child is in, she knows she needs to do everything she can to keep her safe… Because sometimes it's the most ordinary people who end up doing the most extraordinary things. 

Thus sayeth the blurb! But the book is so much more. For a start there are some memorable characters, not least Virginia herself, but Jackson and his brother, Noah (surely one of the most philosophically precocious and preceptive eleven year olds to populate the pages of a story!) And then there's Annie, a pen pal of Virginia's late husband whose own story could have been the subject of a full length novel, not to mention Noah and Jackson's grandmother, battling illness. And yet it is not a wholly character driven story, there is a dark, tense plot that explores several contemporary social issues not in a preachy, teachy way but in the best way for maximum impact - a novel. 

Whilst on the face of it the events in this story are very unlikely in a reality situation this is fiction and in the hands of a gifted story teller it all works. There is a pleasing balance between the darker aspects of the story and  some deadpan humour in some places.  

Rosalind Stoops gets under the skin of all her characters and enables the reader to feel what they are feeling, no mean feat, given the range of ages contained within the book from a toddler to a pensioner! So whilst Virginia is ostensibly the main character the others are never far behind her. 

You read a book like this and are forced to consider what you might do in a similar situation. Could you be bold enough? It is a fiction that offers more than the mere telling of a story it asks us to consider some of the more dire aspects of today's world and the impact on others. In this story there is a resolutions but an astute reader will know that it is not always the case.

My thanks to HQ Stories for a gifted copy of this book.