smallhobbit | Book Review Year 6 No 1

A new year and new books.

The Christmas Card Crime and other stories edited by Martin Edwards

My annual golden age of crime short story collection, bought using my MIL's book token. I started this just before Christmas, but only read one story each day so I didn't finish it until the new year. I enjoyed the selection.

Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett

The sixth of the Industrial Revolution series and the third featuring Moist von Lipwig. Once again great fun and particularly so since I'd taken a course on railways and railway workers in the autumn. This was another of the Small Hobbit confounds the library system. I could see the book was on the way, but after nearly a month it hadn't arrived. So I went in and enquired whether it would be best to cancel and re-order. They had a look and confirmed it had left Newent (in the Forest of Dean) but in the end they cancelled it and re-ordered for me, after which the book arrived in less than a week.

The Frangipani Tree Mystery by Ovidia Yu

The first book in my 'new reads' for 2020, as suggested by members of

ushobwri I started with this book because it was on the library shelf in my local library so there was no hassle borrowing it. The book is set in Singapore in 1936 and as well as being an interesting mystery contains a lot of historical detail. It was suggested by

aome and I'm very grateful, once again, for her excellent suggestion of something to read.

Died in the Wool by Ngaio Marsh

The next in the Roderick Alleyn series (I'm slowly working my way through them). Set in New Zealand, I enjoyed the local colour as well as the mystery. Nothing particularly exciting, but still an enjoyable read.

Mrs Bradshaw's Handbook by Terry Pratchett

A take off of the famous George Bradshaw, of railway journeys fame. Even Sherlock Holmes consulted his Bradshaw. And, of course, all Michael Portillo's railway journeys are based on the various Bradshaws. This book was 'advertised' at the back of Raising Steam and when I realised it actually existed and the county library had copies, I knew I had to read it. It is indeed the Discworld equivalent of Bradshaw's and very entertaining.

The Betel Nut Tree Mystery by Ovidia Yu

The second in the Crown Colony series. Also in our local library. So naturally I borrowed it. Just as enjoyable as the first. There's a further book which was published last year, but as yet the library doesn't have any copies and it's too new to pick it up cheaply secondhand. But it's on my list!

I currently have three library books which are reserved and supposedly on their way to me. I could be spending quite some time reading in the next few weeks.