My September 2018 Reading Summary and a Look at October

It's been raining all day and Jo and I are hunkered down watching curling... yes! Curling even though it's still September for a few more hours! I finished one last book today so, since I won't complete any more before tomorrow, I'm going to do my monthly update.

Sep 2018
I am 83% of the way to meeting my 2018 Goodreads reading goal of 110 books for the year. If I can read 9 books a month in the next three months I'll complete with room to spare. I've already selected 27 books to read before the end of the year. They currently reside in my night stand beside my bed.. :0)

General Info            Sep            Total
Books Read -            10                91
Pages Read -            3200          29300

Pages Breakdown
    < 250                    2            29       
250 - 350                  4            27
351 - 450                  3            21
   > 450                     1            14

Ratings
5 - star                      0            5
4 - star                      8            56
3 - star                      2            29
2 - star                      0            1

Gender
Female                     2            27
Male                        8            64

Genres
Fiction                     2            18
Mystery                   4            51
SciFi                        1            13
Non-Fic                   3            5
Classics                   0            2
Poetry                      0            2

Top 3 Books
 I had no 5-star books this month. I think I might be somewhat harder on my ratings than past years. Below are my top three. The reviews for each can be found in previous BLog entries if you feel like searching through..

1. Margaret Millar - A Stranger in my Grave (4 stars)
2. David Frum - Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic (4 stars)
3. Graham Greene - Loser Takes All (4 stars)

12 + 4  Challenge (completed 13)
Completed no books in this challenge although 2 currently on the go.

New Series (completed 23)
1. Jason Matthews - Red Sparrow (4 stars)
2. T. Frank Muir - Eye for an Eye (4 stars)

Ongoing Series (completed 18)
3. Peter James - Looking Good Dead (4 stars)

Decades Challenge (completed 22)
4. Hans Helmut Kirst - Last Stop Camp 7 (3.5 stars)
5. Colin Wilson - The Space Vampires (3.5 stars)
6. David Frum - Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic (4 stars)
7. Graham Greene - Loser Takes All (4 stars)
8. Katie Tur - Unbelievable - My Front - Row Seat to the Craziest Campaign in American History (4 stars)
9. Bob Woodward - Fear: Trump in the White House (4 stars)'

Canadian Content (completed 14)
10. Margaret Millar - A Stranger in My Grave (4 stars)

Oct Books

Currently Reading

1. Anthony Trollope - Can You Forgive Her? (12 + 4 Challenge) I've been reading this since Aug 21 but it's a long 'un. Really getting interesting now though so I should finish shortly
2. Orson Scott Card - Ender's Game (12 + 4 Challenge) I'm enjoying. It's not necessarily a quick read
3. Craig Johnson - Death without Company (Ongoing Series) I like the folksiness of this one
4. Jake Tapper - The Hellfire Club (Decades Challenge) I haven't got too far into this one yet but I like the style
5. Marina Endicott - Good to a Fault (Canadian Lit) Just starting this one.

In the Mill

1. Hilary Mantel - Wolf Hall (12 + 4 Challenge). I've had this one for a few years. It will be my last 12 + 4 challenge book.


"England, the 1520s. Henry VIII is on the throne, but has no heir. Cardinal Wolsey is his chief advisor, charged with securing the divorce the pope refuses to grant. Into this atmosphere of distrust and need comes Thomas Cromwell, first as Wolsey's clerk, and later his successor. Cromwell is a wholly original man: the son of a brutal blacksmith, a political genius, a briber, a charmer, a bully, a man with a delicate and deadly expertise in manipulating people and events. Ruthless in pursuit of his own interests, he is as ambitious in his wider politics as he is for himself. His reforming agenda is carried out in the grip of a self-interested parliament and a king who fluctuates between romantic passions and murderous rages."

2. Robert B. Parker - The Godwulf Manuscript (Spenser #1) (New Series). I'm looking forward to trying this series.



"Spenser earned his degree in the school of hard knocks, so he is ready when a Boston university hires him to recover a rare, stolen manuscript. He is hardly surprised that his only clue is a radical student with four bullets in his chest.

The cops are ready to throw the book at the pretty blond coed whose prints are all over the murder weapon but Spenser knows there are no easy answers. He tackles some very heavy homework and knows that if he doesn't finish his assignment soon, he could end up marked "D" -- for dead."

3. Hugh Howey - Shift (Ongoing Series). I enjoyed the first compilation in the Silo series, Wool, very much. I've had this for awhile and have been looking forward to it.


"In 2007, the Center for Automation in Nanobiotech (CAN) outlined the hardware and software platform that would one day allow robots smaller than human cells to make medical diagnoses, conduct repairs, and even self-propagate. In the same year, the CBS network re-aired a program about the effects of propranolol on sufferers of extreme trauma. A simple pill, it had been discovered, could wipe out the memory of any traumatic event. At almost the same moment in humanity’s broad history, mankind had discovered the means for bringing about its utter downfall. And the ability to forget it ever happened. This is the sequel to the New York Times bestselling WOOL series.

Contains First Shift, Second Shift, and Third Shift."

So there you go, folks. Another month almost past. I'm looking forward to the last quarter of reading! Enjoy your week. 

Reading Update and My Author's A - Z

It's a beautiful, sunny, fresh day and new shows are starting to crop on the TV. Enjoyed seeing Murdoch Mysteries and Frankie Drake Mysteries last night, as well as The Good Doctor, Bull and 9-1-1. It's been a nice break from political bullsh** that I've been hooked on the past few months.

Every day I think Donald Trump has hit a new low but his recent smearing of Prof Christine Blasey Ford and the other potential Kavanaugh accusers just disgusts me. Of course, people like Mitch McConnell and Lindsay Graham have also shown what types of people they are. Talk about pre-judging people. Oh yeah, let's have a 'fair' hearing and then throw the whole thing under the carpet and vote the guy as a Supreme Court Justice. I think what adds to their hypocrisy and misogyny is the results today of the Bill Cosby sentencing. For every hard fought step forward that women make in their fight against assault and abuse from men in power, and men in general, they have to start all over when a new case crops up... Keep fighting!! Hey  Mr. Avenatti! If you've got credible witnesses against Kavanaugh don't waste time, just get them out there.

I also wonder how the 'Donald' is going to respond to being laughed at on the world stage as he praised himself in front of world leaders... I thought that was perfect. 'I'm so great! I'm so great! Oh, they're laughing! I didn't expect that reaction." Maybe he'll get someone besides Stephen Miller to write his speeches from now on.

Anyway, lets get on to books. I received the last book that Jo ordered for me this afternoon. I also finished two more books and started two new books. I'll also get back to my ongoing Author's A - Z.

New Books

1. Hope Never Dies by Andrew Shaffer. Jo and I saw this mentioned on The Daily Show, I think. It looked like a nice fun read. I'm glad she got it for me for our anniversary. Yes, yes.. I admit it, I miss them.. lol










"This mystery thriller reunites Vice President Joe Biden and President Barack Obama for a political mashup full of suspense, intrigue, and laugh out loud bromance.

Vice President Joe Biden is fresh out of the Obama White House and feeling adrift when his favorite railroad conductor dies in a suspicious accident, leaving behind an ailing wife and a trail of clues. To unravel the mystery, “Amtrak Joe” re-teams with the only man he’s ever fully trusted—the 44th president of the United States. Together they’ll plumb the darkest corners of Delaware, traveling from cheap motels to biker bars and beyond, as they uncover the sinister forces advancing America’s opioid epidemic."

Just Finished

1.  The Space Vampires by Colin Wilson. My first exposure to his writing. Different!









"The Space Vampires was my first exposure to British writer Colin Wilson. I have a couple of other books of his on my book shelf; The Schoolgirl Murder Case (1974) and Order of Assassins: The Psychology of Murder (1972). I found The Space Vampires by chance and the plot line sounded interesting.

The space ship Hermes is deep in space and discovers a derelict space ship that appear abandoned and ripped open by a meteor. When some of the crew, led by Captain Carlsen go onboard to explore the ship, the discover 30 humanoid beings in apparently deep sleep. They take three of the bodies, one male and two female on board the Hermes and bring them back to Earth.

In the lab where the bodies are kept, Carlsen brings a reporter in to view them. The young man is killed by one of the females, basically drained of his energy. The female then walks away. Her body is later discovered but it appears she may have taken over another. Thus begins a search for what appear to be space vampires. The other two bodies also die but their spirits also seem to have escaped the laboratory by taking over other humans.

Carlsen and vampire researcher Falladar travel to northern Sweden to discuss the case with another vampire researcher, one with a strange story. While there we discover that Carlsen might also have a secret. Is he connected with the first female vampire?

The story is somewhat scientific (Wilson has written non-fiction books and essays about the occult) but moves along as well at a nice pace. There are definitely sexual elements to the story and about the vampires influence on their subjects. The story picks up speed and tenseness as Carlsen and Falladar and other helpers search for the escaped vampires and discover their threat to mankind. Not a perfect book by any means but different and ultimately interesting and satisfying. (3.5 stars)"

2. Fear: Trump in the White House by Bob Woodward. Another of the books Jo got me for our anniversary.











"In the past couple of weeks, I've read Katie Tur's book about Donald Trump's campaign for Republican nominee and for President. I've also read David Frum's Trumpocracy. So to keep up with the self-punishment I took on Fear: Trump in the White House, the latest in a career of political stories by Bob Woodward.

Dare I say, depressing? I think that's pretty fair. While Frum's look at the Trump White House was more analytical, Woodward sticks more to a chronology of events and the players involved. I think it's fair to say that what you get is a Bizarro West Wing, if you want to compare to that great TV series, The West Wing. It seems that nobody trusts anyone, they are all out for themselves and Trump seems to prefer that friction.

The book doesn't cover a lot of new ground but it packages it up nicely to cover up until lat 2017. You get a look at the US withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accords, the Charlottesville incident and Trump's reactions, his dealings with China, North Korea, the Middle East and Afghanistan. There is a look at Trump lawyer, Dowd's dealings with Mueller and his team and also with Trump. You actually get a nice look at Rob Porter. All that I really knew about him was that he quit (was fired) due to domestic violence incidents in his past. But he plays a considerable role as Trump's scheduling secretary.

We do get a nice look at the machinations behind the scenes, as guys like Cohn, his economics adviser, with his globalist outlook tries to persuade Trump not to get out of trade deals while others like Bannon and Navarro and Ross do the opposite. There are definite cliques within.

What isn't dealt with a great deal is Sessions and his friction with Trump for recusing himself. It is there but not in some of the detail you get from the daily reporting. You don't get much of a look at the perceived corruption, from folks like Tom Price and Scott Pruitt. But then again, if every issue and cabinet member were to be covered, it would be a much much longer book.

All in all it was an interesting summation of many events but somewhat light on many others. Still a depressing view of a fractious White House led by a childish, petulant President. (4 stars)"

Currently Reading

1. Death Without Company by Craig Johnson (Walt Longmire #2). It's been quite a long time since I read the first book. I'm already sorry that it took me so long to get into the 2nd book. I like the style, the folksiness and the wit. Just waiting for the mystery to start.









"When Mari Baroja is found poisoned at the Durant Home for Assisted Living, Sheriff Longmire is drawn into an investigation that reaches fifty years into the mysterious woman’s dramatic Basque past. Aided by his friend Henry Standing Bear, Deputy Victoria Moretti, and newcomer Santiago Saizarbitoria, Sheriff Longmire must connect the specter of the past to the present to find the killer among them."

2. The Hellfire Club by Jake Tapper. I read about this before and it sounded interesting; a historical, political thriller by CNN anchor Jake Tapper.













"Charlie Marder is an unlikely Congressman. Thrust into office by his family ties after his predecessor died mysteriously, Charlie is struggling to navigate the dangerous waters of 1950s Washington, DC, alongside his young wife Margaret, a zoologist with ambitions of her own. Amid the swirl of glamorous and powerful political leaders and deal makers, a mysterious fatal car accident thrusts Charlie and Margaret into an underworld of backroom deals, secret societies, and a plot that could change the course of history. When Charlie discovers a conspiracy that reaches the highest levels of governance, he has to fight not only for his principles and his newfound political career...but for his life" 

Bill's Ongoing Authors A - Z

Charles Dickens

1. Charles Dickens (1812 - 1870). Back in high school I read The Pickwick Papers and I'm pretty sure I enjoyed it. However, I never read another Dickens book, except for maybe some excerpts, a chapter of David Copperfield back in Grade 7ish, parts of the Christmas Story, that sort of thing. However, last year one of my favorite books of the year was Nicholas Nickleby, totally engrossing. I now have two other of his books on my book shelf as well.

a. Nicholas Nickleby (1838 - 1839).












"Back during my high school days, and I shudder to think it was 50 years ago, I read The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens and I recall enjoying it very much. However such is my memory I may be wrong. ;0) Anyway, it took me that long to try another book by Dickens. Over the past couple of years I've been exploring the Classics more and in Jul, decided to try Nicholas Nickleby. I had an old book of this story. Not sure when it was published but the illustrations by W.H.C. Groome lead me to believe it was published in 1907.

Anyway, enough administrative details, what about the story? Simply put, I loved it. Dickens' writing style is so accessible and entertaining. He creates wonderful characters who you find yourself becoming very invested in. The story starts off with Nicholas and his mother and sister, Kate, being placed in dire circumstances. Their father has died recently, leaving the family without income. Uncle Ralph, not a nice man, sends Nicholas off to be a teacher at a boys school in Yorkshire and then provides poor lodgings for Kate and her mother, also getting Kate a job as a dressmaker. In both instances, both Nicholas and Kate are treated horribly. Things look so very grim. Nicholas finds the treatment of the boys at the school to be abominable, especially that of Smike, a boy or more rather a young man, who has been at the school for years and is the special punching bag of Squeers and his wife. Nicholas finally can take it anymore and after thrashing Squeers leaves with Smike to return to London.

This is the barest introduction to Nicholas Nickelby, so much more is to happen. You meet such wonderful characters as Newman Noggs, hard worked clerk for Ralph Nickelby, who does everything in his power to help the family, Vincent Crummles, leader of a roving band of actors, who takes in Nicholas and Smike, the Cheeryble brothers who provide so much generous assistance to the Nickelby family, even Miss La Creevy, the lovely lady who is such a good friend. And then the villains, the Squeers, Ralph Nickelby, Mulberry Hawk, who wants to abuse Kate, etc. 

Getting to know these characters as the story develops makes it such fascinating reading. Wanting to find out how everything will resolve makes you turn page after page. It's a very long story but it doesn't seem so. I won't say how everything turns out. There are so many varied possibilities. Ultimately I was so satisfied. Dickens is a great writer and story teller. I will have to now try another of his books, and I'll ensure it doesn't take me 50 years to try another. (5 stars)"

b. The Pickwick Papers (1836 - 1837). I would like to read this again.












"Few first novels have created as much popular excitement as The Pickwick Papers - a comic masterpiece that catapulted its 24-year-old author to immediate fame. Readers were captivated by the adventures of the poet Snodgrass, the lover Tupman, the sportsman Winkle &, above all, by that quintessentially English Quixote, Mr Pickwick, & his cockney Sancho Panza, Sam Weller. From the hallowed turf of Dingley Dell Cricket Club to the unholy fracas of the Eatanswill election, via the Fleet debtor’s prison, characters & incidents sprang to life from Dickens’s pen, to form an enduringly popular work of ebullient humour & literary invention."

c. Dombey and Son (1846 - 1848).












"Dombey and Son, Charles Dickens’s story of a powerful man whose callous neglect of his family triggers his professional and personal downfall, showcases the author’s gift for vivid characterization and unfailingly realistic description. As Jonathan Lethem contends in his Introduction, Dickens’s “genius . . . is at one with the genius of the form of the novel itself: Dickens willed into existence the most capacious and elastic and versatile kind of novel that could be, one big enough for his vast sentimental yearnings and for every impulse and fear and hesitation in him that countervailed those yearnings too. Never parsimonious and frequently contradictory, he always gives us everything he can, everything he’s planned to give, and then more."

Adam Diment

2. Adam Diment (1943 - ) I discovered British spy novelist Diment last year, one of those authors listed at the back of another book. Diment wrote 4 books featuring unlikely spy Philip McAlpine. He then disappeared from public life and was rumored to have moved Zurich with no plans for future novels. I've managed to find the first three books in this series and have read the first two. I hope to find the fourth some time.

a. The Dolly Dolly Spy (1967).












"The Dolly Dolly Spy is the first of four books by Adam Diment featuring British spy, Philip McAlpine. It was first published in 1967 and it definitely has that '60s vibe about it. McAlpine is a security officer for a big firm and is blackmailed into working for a subset of MI6.

He is sent for pilot and armed combat training in the US and assigned to a job with a company, International Charters that works out of a small island in Greece. He does legal and illegal flying missions and periodically reports back to his boss in England with information on his missions. Ultimately he gets assigned a specific mission, to acquire a target that MI6 wants to interrogate.
 
On its own it's a relatively simple spy story but there is more to it than that. The feel for the time is excellent. It's maybe a James Bond light but the characters are interesting. McAlpine is a neat guy, kind of a coward but still a guy whose quick off the mark and a problem solver. There is enough action, a bit of sex and drugs and rock 'n roll, and an entertaining spy story. Diment disappeared after his fourth book and has retained a cult following (from what I read anyway). If the other books are as entertaining, I'm looking forward to them. (4 stars)"

b. The Great Spy Race (1968).









"The Great Spy Race by Adam Diment is the 2nd of four books that feature Philip McAlpine, reluctant spy for the English. Set in the psychedelic '60s, the book is a bit sexy and filled with action, especially the last chapters.

The book reminds me of the 1967 Casino Royale, which starred David Niven, and was filled with spies in a spyish rolic, and also Mike Myers, Austin Powers. Not that the book is a comedy, but it has a similar tone, providing a picture of the time; drugs, sex, fancy clothes.
 
The premise of the story is that a rich, ex-spy offers intelligence that all countries might want and they have to provide spies to take part in a race, using the old-fashioned spy techniques. McAlpine is black-mailed by his boss to take part and begins a journey from London to St Tropez to Geneva and ending at an island resort in the Indian Ocean called Mali. McAlpine must use tried and true techniques like blackmail, forgery and sex to get information to continue his journey and to beat the other spies to the end. Accompanied for part of the journey with the sexy Josephine, it's a fast paced adventure. Don't expect a classic of the spy genre, rather more of a cult py story which is entertaining and action-packed. (3.5 stars)"

c. The Bang Bang Birds (1968).












"Philip McAlpine's escapes from death and encounters with girls begin in New York and move to Stockholm...espionage and the sale of secrets...glittering palaces of vice...golden girls with sub-machine guns..."

d. Think, Inc. (1971).












"Philip McAlpine, Switched-on, turned-on, pot smoking, pop spy comes in from the cold for a hot number - Chastity, the coal-black sex-kitten."

Gary Disher

3. Gary Disher (Australian). I've highlighted Disher previously in my Australian crime authors post. In case you missed it here he is again. Disher is an Aussie crime writer. I discovered his works listed at the back of one of my Soho Crime books. I took a chance on the first book of his police procedural series featuring Inspector Hal Challis. I was pleasantly surprised by the first book and enjoyed the 2nd just as much. I've got a couple of others waiting my pleasure. I'd also like to try his Wyatt novels. 

a. The Dragon Man (1999).













"I enjoyed The Dragon Man, the first DI Hal Challis mystery, by Garry Disher very much. It's an Australian police procedural that moves along very nicely, is populated with many interesting characters and has many nice little twists and turns as the police team investigate the various cases that make up the story. The basic story is the abduction, rape and murder of local women, but there are also other cases that may or may not be related; the woman from New Zealand who is living in the area under witness protection; a spate of arson attacks, break-ins, etc. 

The police investigation is lead by DI Challis, who also deals with regular calls from his wife who is in prison after trying to murder him; his current girl-friend, the local newspaper reporter; all the while working on rebuilding a damaged airplane. The other members of the police team are all interesting personalities, with their own foibles and issues but are also an effective investigating team. The cases, as well, were very interesting and they were tied together very satisfyingly. An entertaining page turner that I finished in a day once I stated it; excellent introduction to this series. (4 stars)"

b. Kittyhawk Down (2003).













"Kittyhawk Down is the 2nd book in the Inspector Hal Challis Australian police series by Garry Disher. I've enjoyed both immensely. It's a simple premise really, following the investigation of a variety of crimes by the Australian police of the Mornington Peninsula Police Force. The Criminal Investigation Bureau is led by Homicide Squad Inspector Hal Challis, in which he is assisted by Sgts Ellen Destry and Scobie Sutton. In this story we also follow to uniformed cops, John Tankard and Pam Murphy.

There are various crimes being investigated; the disappearance of a two-year old baby, the discovery of a dead body that washed ashore and over the course of the story, various murders. You follow the cops and also various of the suspects and other characters, including Challis' girlfriend, reporter Tessa Klein. Each cop has their own problems which makes them human and likable. The progression of the case, the various suspects and the community in which the story takes place makes it even more interesting. It's not a perfect story by any means, but then again, neither is life.

I just found everything about this story enjoyable and refreshing and I liked how the crimes were eventually worked out. All in all it was as satisfying as the first book, [book:The Dragon Man|815139]. (5 stars)"

c. Snapshot (2005).












"It had taken months for Janine McQuarrie to succumb to her husband’s pressure to have sex with strangers at suburban spouse-swapping parties. But after attending a few such events on the Mornington Peninsula, this Australian social psychologist rebels. And then, driving with her young daughter one day, she gets out of her car to ask directions from another driver, is killed. The little girl escapes when the gunman's pistol misfires.

Inspector Hal Challis, to whose Crime Investigation Unit the case falls, is thwarted in his efforts by his boss. The dead woman was Superintendent McQuarrie’s daughter-in-law. He seems to be more interested in protecting his son than in finding his daughter-in-law’s murderer. Who might have a motive to kill this attractive young wife and mother? One of her clients? One of the swingers she’d gotten together with at a party? Or, the obvious suspect, her husband? The villain turns out to be someone Challis never would have expected."

d. Chain of Evidence (2007).









"Inspector Hal Challis has been summoned to Mawson’s Bluff, his childhood home in the Australian Outback, where his father is dying. Sergeant Ellen Destry is left to head an investigation into a ring of pedophiles that has descended on the peaceful Mornington Peninsula, a resort community near Melbourne. A little girl has been abducted from the fairgrounds at the annual Waterloo Show; it takes her mother twenty-four hours to report her missing. By then, hope is slim that the police will find the child before it is too late.

Challis’ sister’s difficult husband disappeared from the Bluff four years ago; since then Meg has received nuisance mail that she assumes comes from him. While Challis is in town, an extra buried body is discovered when a new grave is dug in the local graveyard. A black plastic bag containing the corpse of Meg’s husband is found on top of a coffin that was interred four years earlier.

With two very different crimes to solve, Challis and Destry have their work cut out for them"

The remaining books in the series are -
- Blood Moon (2009)
- Whispering Death (2012)
- Signal Loss (2016)

There you go, folks. Hope you have a great week. Best wishes Professor Ford. Be strong!