I'm going to stick to updating some new books, some I've finished reading in May and what I've started since. I'll get back to my Author's A - Z next entry.
New Books
Two new book arrived in the mail this week, both from new authors for me.
"The murder of a leader of the Palestinian Martyrs Brigade leads to the arrest of George Saba, a Palestinian Christian accused of collaborating with the Israelis. Omar Yussef, a modest history teacher at a United Nations school in the West Bank, is impelled to investigate the murder to exonerate his former pupil, who he knows is innocent. As he struggles to save George, Omar Yussef is drawn into a complex plot where it is impossible to tell friend from enemy."
"In the wee hours of a 1960s Tokyo morning, a dead body is found under the rails of a train, and the victim’s face is so badly damaged that police have a hard time figuring out the victim’s identity. Only two clues surface: an old man, overheard talking in a distinctive accent to a young man, and the word “kameda.” Inspector Imanishi leaves his beloved bonsai and his haiku and goes off to investigate - and runs up against a blank wall. Months pass in fruitless questioning, in following up leads, until the case is closed, unsolved.
But Imanishi is dissatisfied, and a series of coincidences lead him back to the case. Why did a young woman scatter pieces of white paper out of the window of a train? Why did a bar girl leave for home right after Imanishi spoke to her? Why did an actor, on the verge of telling Imanishi something important, drop dead of a heart attack? What can a group of nouveau young artists possibly have to do with the murder of a quiet and “saintly” provincial old ex-policemen? Inspector Imanishi investigates
Just Finished
I've finished 3 books in May so far.
"Faithful Place by Tana French is the third book in her Dublin Murder Squad series and the 2nd that I've read. This book features Undercover cop, Frank Mackey.
Mackey's life is turned upside down with the discovery of a body in an abandoned house on the street, Faithful Place of the title, where he grew up. It turns out to be the body of his old girl friend, who he had planned to leave for London with when she disappeared. Frank left his neighborhood anyway and became a member of the Guard.
Frank is a troubled and angry man. He has issues with his ex-wife Olivia, long-term issues with his family back in Faithful Place. He's not been back since he left 20 years ago. The only member that he is in contact with is his younger sister, Jackie. His father was an angry drunk who beat his wife and kids and had issues with his neighbour across the way. (the reason will come out later in the book.) Of course, Rosie Daly, Frank's girl-friend is the daughter of this neighbor, who refused to let Rosie and Frank see each other.
Returning to Faithful Place to find out who killed Rosie is fraught with tension and memories for Frank and his siblings. Who killed Rosie and dumped her body in the abandoned house; her father?, his father? someone else?
Frank is told to stay away from the investigation by the investigating officer from the Murder Squad, 'Scorcher' but, well you know, he can't do that. Frank continues his own private investigation and also uses a young member of the Murder Squad to keep him informed. Another death / murder adds further impetus to the investigations.
I readily admit I struggled with this book. Frank wasn't sympathetic to me whatsoever; his anger is off-putting at times and often seems irrational. When he finds out that Jackie and Olivia have been letting Frank's daughter meet his family, I felt his reaction was unreasonable. But then again, I've not been in that situation. The investigation is part of the story but the more important part is Frank's dealings with his family and his ex-wife and his own internal feelings about his past and present. I liked Olivia and there daughter, Holly and actually liked Jackie and Frank's other sister Carmel and Frank's younger brother, Kevin. But Frank made it difficult for me to really love the story. Still worth reading and I will look for French's other books. (3.5 stars)"
"The Accident is the 2nd mystery I've read by Linwood Barclay. I loved it. Barclay is a writer I tried on a whim and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. The Accident continues my enjoyment of his writing style and his story - telling. Surprisingly, the story featured Police Detective Rona Wedmore, a character I enjoyed immensely in the first book, Never Saw it Coming.
The story is set in a small Connecticut town. Contractor Glen Garber has his life turned upside - down when his wife, Sheila, supposedly out at her evening college class is killed in a car accident, one it appears she may have caused due to drinking and driving. This is totally out of character for Sheila.
As Glen tries to deal with this tragedy, he is also dealing with issues with his contracting business; a previous house fire on one of his building sites may be due to negligence on his part, e.g. the use of faulty electrical parts. As well, as Glen explores the truth regarding Sheila's death, a neighbor and friend is also found dead; accident or murder? She may have been involved in the sale of knock-off products, including pharmaceuticals and maybe Sheila was involved? And who is the mysterious man knocking on Glen's door demanding money?
It's all very intense and exciting and told in a non-stop, page turning style. Not lots of car chases and such just interesting twists and turns and enough action to keep you excited. Great characters, like Glen, his daughter Kelly and also the aforementioned Detective Wedmore who also moves the story along nicely.
The story moves nicely between Glen and other characters as we advance the plot neatly and tidily. The chapters are just big enough that when you finish one, you immediately want to check out the next to see what is going to happen. I liked the story and mystery very much. In some ways Barclay's story-telling reminded me of that of another favorite of mine, Margaret Millar. The characters aren't larger than life but could be your neighbor, one that is caught up in a situation beyond their imagination but possessing a strength of character that will hopefully help them get through their situation. Most enjoyable. (4.5 stars)"
"What a technically perfect a story and concept Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs is! It's a book I'd thought about reading for awhile but once I finally bought it, it sat somewhat neglected on my bookshelf. It was selected as a challenge book for me and I'm glad it was.
We meet sixteen year old Jacob, a bit of a loner, who lives with his parents in Florida. Jacob is greatly influenced by his grandfather who tells him stories of his childhood at a school in Wales. He shows Jacob pictures of strange children; one floating, one holding a large boulder, etc. Jacob can't believe his grandfather's stories are real but then when his grandfather is tragically murdered, he finds other clues.
Jacob and his father head off to the island off the coast of Wales; Jacob's father to try to get ideas for a book, Jacob to try and find Miss Peregrine's school and see if her grandfather was telling the truth. Thus begins a fascinating adventure for Jacob which involves time travel, 'peculiar' children, and ultimately a battle against others who would destroy Miss Peregrine and her children.
It's a fascinating concept and there are many unique features to the story that offers unique aspects such as the photos that people the story. The photos play an important role in telling this story and are part of the reason the story was thought of. The characters themselves are also interesting and the concept of the time loop is well described and makes an added interesting part of this story. It took me awhile to get totally engrossed in the story and the people, but all in all, I enjoyed very much and look forward to reading the next book, Hollow City to discover the children's further adventures as they try to battle the wights and Hollowgasts. Try it. (4.5 stars)"
Currently Reading
Besides the book I'm working on already, Autumn All the Cats Return by Philippe Georget, I've started the following three books.
"When a young man accidentally drives off a bridge and into the Malminster river, and a prominent town official's mistress is murdered, Chief Inspector Morrisey delves deeply into a burgeoning town scandal."
"WAR
William Mandella is a reluctant hero, drafted to fight in a distant interstellar war against unknowable and unconquerable aliens. But his greatest test will come when he returns to Earth. Relativity means that every time he returns home after a few months' tour of duty, centuries have passed on Earth, making him and his fellows ever more isolated from the world for whose future they are fighting.
FREE
When Mandella returns for the last time he finds humanity has evolved into a group mind called Man. Living a dull life in an autocratic and intrusive society, missing the certainties of combat and feeling increasingly alienated, the veterans plan an escape. But when their ship starts to fail, their journey becomes a search for the unknown.
PEACE
2043. The Ngumi War rages, fought by 'soldier-boys', indestructible machines operated remotely by soldiers hundreds of miles away. Julian Class is one of those soldiers, and for him war is truly hell. But he and his companion, Dr Amelia Harding, have discovered something that could literally take the universe back to square one. For Julian, the discovery isn't so much terrifying as tempting..."
"Always secretive about his background and Secret Service career (blocking one biography from publication in the 1990s, then choosing a biographer who abandoned the project), John le Carre (David Cornwell) has finally given his blessing to Adam Sisman, who has delivered a biography that reads like a novel.From his bleak childhood--the departure of his mother when he was five was followed by "sixteen hugless years" in the dubious care of his father, a serial-seducer and con-man--through recruitment by both MI5 and MI6, his years as an agent for British Intelligence during the Cold War, to his emergence as the master of the espionage novel, le Carre has repeatedly quarried his life for his fiction. His acute psychological renderings of undercover operations and the moral ambiguities of the Cold War and our present-day politics lend his novels a level of credibility that is unmistakable. Sisman's great biography uncovers for us the remarkable story of an enigmatic writer whose commercial success has sometimes overshadowed appreciation for his extraordinary abilities."
Well there you go. Jo and I just watched an excellent episode of Grey's Anatomy. A few tears were shed.... Now it's time for Chicago Fire.... Take care!
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