I like narratives with a distinctive voice. That said, I find narrators with a truly distinctive voice can take a bit of getting used to. My first perusal of the opening pages of Ken Bruen’s ‘Purgatory’ didn’t inspire me to read further and I let most of the month slip by, reading other things, until […]
I’m always interested in the reasons writers choose to adopt pseudonyms. Crime novelist Agatha Christie published six “romance” novels as Mary Westmacott; adult sci-fi legend Isaac Asimov wrote a series of YA novels as Paul French; and, of course, Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling was recently unmasked as Robert Galbraith, author of ‘The Cuckoo’s […]
When I learned that Maggie O’Farrell would be speaking at my local library I immediately resolved to reread her debut novel, ‘After You’d Gone’*. What’s it about? Alice Raikes randomly boards a train from London to Edinburgh, thinking she will visit her family. Almost as soon as she arrives, she sees something that stuns her […]
This is why I love book groups: they draw your attention to books you might otherwise never have discovered. What’s it about? Jenn Ashworth’s debut novel, ‘A kind of Intimacy’, stars Annie, a lonely, obese woman who narrates her increasingly awkward attempts to build a new life and get to know her new neighbours – […]
Why are libraries constantly having book sales these days? Once upon a time I’m sure they had sales bi-annually or every quarter, but these days – much like the high street – the sales seem to be on constantly. This means bad things for my overcrowded bookshelves which this week became reluctant hosts to another […]
I’ll be honest: this was not a book that appealed to me. The title suggested fantastical doings and the blurb made reference to three equally irritating ideas: our hero has a “nemesis” and will be “pulled into the sinister and mysterious world of Georgian London” where he “must make a journey that will change his life forever”. So we have a set of clichés and a novel that’s keen to assert its historical credentials. And, to add insult to boredom, there was a Richard and Judy sticker slapped onto the top left hand corner.
Recently my reading group tried some books by Reginald Hill. I didn’t think the book I read was especially gripping or well-written but I knew that in 1995 Hill had won the Crime Writers’ Association Cartier Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement and thought I should give the author another try. I decided to read one […]
When I first heard about this on the TV Book Club I was intrigued and immediately added it to my Amazon wish list. Fast-forward a few months and I was delighted to receive it as a birthday gift. This is S. J. Watson’s first novel and can best by described as a psychological thriller. What’s […]
David Hewson has worked as a journalist for most of his life and has written several travel and crime fiction books. This is the second book in a crime series which features Detective Nic Costa and is set in Rome. Personally, I didn’t find the title or the brilliant green cover appealing and only read […]
Having previously read and enjoyed Grenville’s 2006 novel ‘The Secret River’ I was pleased to be given ‘The Lieutenant’ as a book group read. Grenville is an Australian author whose fiction has won national and international awards. The copy I read was an uncorrected proof copy. What’s it about? Daniel Rooke is an outsider from […]