Book Review Year 7 No 1
Feb. 1st, 2021 03:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
smallhobbitBefore I launch into my first review of the year, I need to make two comments.
The first is thatcorvidology suggested February as being a good month to post on Stuff I Love. Clearly, reading is within this category, so this is Stuff I Love Post 1.
Secondly, at the end of last year, I said I was aiming to read 50 books with one a month from each of 4 lists, plus a couple of not-finished's from 2020. So to keep record I will mark which list each book belongs to in square brackets after the review. Naturally, the library did what libraries always do and 4 reservations, made at very different times, all arrived at once, which slightly throws my plans, but they are flexible.
Onto the reviews:
Checkmate to Murder - E C R Lorac
A more recent re-issue of a Lorac book, so I bought myself a copy. This is set in WWII London, with an interesting cast of characters. Again, the descriptions are very compelling, showing London during the blackout. Inspector MacDonald and his team continue to be competent and the slow unravelling of the case was a delight to read. [2020+]
Hand in Glove - Ngaio Marsh
We had seen this story on the television in late autumn, with Patrick Malahide as Alleyn, but I had completely forgotten whodunnit. Also, some of the plot was completely different, which meant I enjoyed the read. [2020+]
Death is No Sportsman - Cyril Hare
Having read all the Cyril Hare books in the library, I'd bought a couple which have been on the shelf for a while. I wouldn't try to devour the Hare books as I have Lorac's, but I still enjoy them. This one is set in the countryside, and there are several references to a river and fishing, which I enjoyed. I've never been a particular fan of descriptions, but some of these Golden Age mystery writers seem to have a way of giving a feel for the place without long paragraphs to wade through. Again, the murder is solved by a police detective, clearly I have a type! [C1]
Miss Clare Remembers - Miss Read
Part of the Fairacre Chronicles. Miss Clare was a fairly elderly teacher at the village school when Miss Read arrives, and this story looks back at her own life, from her birth in 1888 through the two world wars up to the 1960s. The depth of her thoughts and reactions, although fictional, are clearly very representative of those she is modelled on and are far more nuanced than is often portrayed. [D1]
Murder in the Mill Race - E C R Lorac
A slightly later Lorac, and the last one the library has. It's set in Devon again, this time in a small village which seems cut off from the larger places around. I wasn't entirely sure how much I'd enjoy it, but once again the descriptions of Dartmoor were engaging and the plot interesting. MacDonald and his sidekick (Inspector Reeves) have a good relationship and I enjoy seeing them working together. [A1]
The Slaves of Solitude - Patrick Hamilton
I had been listening to Matthew Bourne on the radio and he recommended this book, so, in the spirit of reading something different, and because the library had a copy, I decided to read it. It's set in WWII, so again there's life in the blackout, the absence of small essentials, and in this case, the presence of American airmen. The action takes place in and around a boarding house in the outskirts of London by the Thames, and is as much a character study as anything else. One of the reviews says it is funny, but I wouldn't describe it in that way. It was an interesting read, but I was left with a sense the male author couldn't quite understand their main character, a middle-aged spinster. [B1]
The Port of London Murders - Josephine Bell
A new addition to the county library, and also the Shedunnit book for January. Set in the London Docklands of 1938, this was another book where the descriptions of the Thames and life close by were engaging. There were a number of different strands, which slowly came together, as the police built their case. Again, what I enjoy is the methodical police work, sometimes frustrated, rather than the tiny clue which solves the whole crime. [B2]
My current book bingo card, which includes audiobooks:
The first is that
corvidology suggested February as being a good month to post on Stuff I Love. Clearly, reading is within this category, so this is Stuff I Love Post 1.Secondly, at the end of last year, I said I was aiming to read 50 books with one a month from each of 4 lists, plus a couple of not-finished's from 2020. So to keep record I will mark which list each book belongs to in square brackets after the review. Naturally, the library did what libraries always do and 4 reservations, made at very different times, all arrived at once, which slightly throws my plans, but they are flexible.
Onto the reviews:
Checkmate to Murder - E C R Lorac
A more recent re-issue of a Lorac book, so I bought myself a copy. This is set in WWII London, with an interesting cast of characters. Again, the descriptions are very compelling, showing London during the blackout. Inspector MacDonald and his team continue to be competent and the slow unravelling of the case was a delight to read. [2020+]
Hand in Glove - Ngaio Marsh
We had seen this story on the television in late autumn, with Patrick Malahide as Alleyn, but I had completely forgotten whodunnit. Also, some of the plot was completely different, which meant I enjoyed the read. [2020+]
Death is No Sportsman - Cyril Hare
Having read all the Cyril Hare books in the library, I'd bought a couple which have been on the shelf for a while. I wouldn't try to devour the Hare books as I have Lorac's, but I still enjoy them. This one is set in the countryside, and there are several references to a river and fishing, which I enjoyed. I've never been a particular fan of descriptions, but some of these Golden Age mystery writers seem to have a way of giving a feel for the place without long paragraphs to wade through. Again, the murder is solved by a police detective, clearly I have a type! [C1]
Miss Clare Remembers - Miss Read
Part of the Fairacre Chronicles. Miss Clare was a fairly elderly teacher at the village school when Miss Read arrives, and this story looks back at her own life, from her birth in 1888 through the two world wars up to the 1960s. The depth of her thoughts and reactions, although fictional, are clearly very representative of those she is modelled on and are far more nuanced than is often portrayed. [D1]
Murder in the Mill Race - E C R Lorac
A slightly later Lorac, and the last one the library has. It's set in Devon again, this time in a small village which seems cut off from the larger places around. I wasn't entirely sure how much I'd enjoy it, but once again the descriptions of Dartmoor were engaging and the plot interesting. MacDonald and his sidekick (Inspector Reeves) have a good relationship and I enjoy seeing them working together. [A1]
The Slaves of Solitude - Patrick Hamilton
I had been listening to Matthew Bourne on the radio and he recommended this book, so, in the spirit of reading something different, and because the library had a copy, I decided to read it. It's set in WWII, so again there's life in the blackout, the absence of small essentials, and in this case, the presence of American airmen. The action takes place in and around a boarding house in the outskirts of London by the Thames, and is as much a character study as anything else. One of the reviews says it is funny, but I wouldn't describe it in that way. It was an interesting read, but I was left with a sense the male author couldn't quite understand their main character, a middle-aged spinster. [B1]
The Port of London Murders - Josephine Bell
A new addition to the county library, and also the Shedunnit book for January. Set in the London Docklands of 1938, this was another book where the descriptions of the Thames and life close by were engaging. There were a number of different strands, which slowly came together, as the police built their case. Again, what I enjoy is the methodical police work, sometimes frustrated, rather than the tiny clue which solves the whole crime. [B2]
My current book bingo card, which includes audiobooks:
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Date: 2021-02-02 05:55 pm (UTC)