Books - June 2023

Seven more books this month, bringing my total for the year to 45 out of my goal of 75.  There's a couple more I should finish this month, but I wanted to get this post written as next week is going to be quite busy.

Crimes of Cymru: Classic Mystery Tales of Wales edited by Martin Edwards
The latest BLCC short story collection.  Not as good as some - either the theme didn't allow for enough choice, or the general selection of short stories is becoming smaller as many are already published.  This time they were stories either set in Wales or written by Welsh authors.  Inevitably some short stories are better than others, but this time less appealed to me, although others may enjoy them. [F9]

Act of Oblivion by Robert Harris
The latest Harris novel, which is about the pursuit of two men who signed the death warrant for Charles I after the restoration of Charles II.  I found it a bit overlong, although worth reading, and the ending didn't really work for me.  I also felt that my main sympathies lay with what could be termed the villain of the piece.  I'd seen the book recommended by several people, but hadn't want to borrow it from the library (probably as well, it took me about four weeks to read which wouldn't have worked with the library), so when our vicar posted pictures of the vicarage hosting a tea party to celebrate the coronation of Charles III and one of the photos included this book, I enquired about it, since the subject matter didn't seem quite in keeping with the occasion.  It belongs to the vicar's husband, and he was happy for me to borrow it.

Smoke and Ashes by Abir Mukherjee
I've written about the Wyndham and Bannerjee novels as part of Fannish 50.  It's an interesting plot, although as I noted in my post, not all the events happened at the timing of the book.  It was particularly interesting to read about the arrival of the Prince of Wales (the future Edward VIII) in Calcutta, following the events in Bombay described in The Bombay Prince (Sujata Massey). [D6]

Bringing in the Sheaves: Wheat and Chaff from My Years as a Priest by Richard Coles
Rev Richard Coles was well known as a religious broadcaster, following his years in the Communards.  This is a reflection of the church's year, with a variety of events highlighting what the Church of England does in the various seasons.  I enjoyed it, but I'm coming from an insider's point of view.  [A6]

The Sibyl in her Grave by Sarah Caudwell
Another series I've written about for Fannish 50.  This is the final book of the four, and for me doesn't quite live up to the standard of the other three.  But it's good to have read them all. [C6]

Death and the Joyful Woman by Ellis Peters
The Shedunnit book choice for this month, with the theme being Later Queens of Crime.  Ellis Peters wrote the Cadfael series so I was hopeful about this book, but there was too much which simply annoyed me - my competency kink really wasn't happy.  This is part of a series The Felse Investigations, but I can't see myself wanting to read more, although it will be interesting to read the discussion on the book club and see if my objections purely relate to this book. [E6]

The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle by Jennifer Ryan
I pre-ordered this book in October 2021, so I was delighted to finally get my copy - the hardback came out last year.  I did enjoy it, both learning about the restrictions on clothing - I knew of the existence, but this told me a lot more - and also seeing the way the women came together and supported each other as they learned to throw off the pre-war expectations and take up a new, more confident, life. [F10]


[Letters refer to my reading lists.  I aim to read at least one book from each list every month]