Quaran-Sunday....

Hard at it, as always! (An oldie but applicable)

Busy, busy, busy... what can I say? OK, not so busy. This morning I caught up on 3 books and dozed and had a few cups of coffee. Jo and I caught up on a couple of shows, last night's SNL @ Home. We're currently enjoying Top Chef. I'm definitely going to do some ironing after I finish this.

So busy, so tired!

Not much else to report, except I've decided that my next theme will be the Spy / Thriller genres. I'm just going through my booklists to finalize my lists. There will be some favorites and quite a few new authors.

Just as an update for you, these are the five books I'm currently enjoying.

a. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness (Fantasy). I'm enjoying but it's been a slow burn. Similar to the TV series so far. It does need to pick it up a bit.

b. The Winter Thief by Jenny White (Historical Mystery). I haven't opened it up yet but will today. This is the 3rd and final book in an excellent mystery series, featuring Turkish police inspector, Kamil Pasha.

"January 1888. Vera Arti carries The Communist Manifesto in Armenian through Istanbul's streets, unaware of the men following her. The police discover a shipload of guns, and the Imperial Ottoman Bank is blown up. Suspicion falls on a socialist commune that Arti's friends organized in the eastern mountains. Investigating, Special Prosecutor Kamil Pasha encounters a ruthless adversary in the secret police who has convinced the Sultan that the commune is leading an Armenian secessionist movement and should be destroyed, along with the surrounding villages. Kamil must stop the massacre, but he finds himself on the wrong side of the law, framed for murder and accused of treason, his family and the woman he loves threatened."

c. Killing the Shadows by Val McDermid (Mystery). I enjoy McDermid's mysteries. She writes excellent series and also standalones. I'm well on the way with this one. Enjoying very much.

"A killer is on the loose, blurring the line between fact and fiction. His prey - the writers of crime novels who have turned psychological profilers into the heroes of the nineties. But this killer is like no other. His blood-lust shatters all the conventional wisdom surrounding the motives and mechanics of how serial killers operate. And for one woman, the desperate hunt to uncover his identity becomes a matter of life and death.

Professor Fiona Cameron is an academic psychologist who uses computer technology to help police forces track serial offenders. She used to help the Met, but vowed never to work for them again when they went against her advice and subsequently botched an investigation. Still smarting from the experience, she's working a case in Toledo when her lover, thriller writer Kit Martin, tells her a fellow crime novelist has been murdered. It's not her case, but Fiona can't help taking an interest. When the killer strikes again Fiona finds herself caught in a race against time - not only to save a life but also to find redemption, both personal and professional."

d. Death at Victoria Dock by Kerry Greenwood (Phryne Fisher #4). I'm well on the way with this, my first audio book, and enjoying both the story and experience very much.

"The devastating Phryne Fisher is under fire again in her fourth mystery. A very young man with muddied hair, a pierced ear and a blue tattoo lies cradled in Phryne's arms. But sadly it's not another scene of glorious seduction - this time it's death. The Honourable Miss Phryne Fisher, beautifully dressed in loose trousers, a cream silk shirt and a red-fox fur has just had her windscreen shot out inches in front of her divine nose. But worse is the fate of the pale young man lying on the road, his body hit by bullets, who draws his final blood-filled breath with Phryne at his side. Outraged by this brutal slaughter, Phryne promises to find out who is responsible. But Phryne doesn't yet know how deeply into the mire she'll have to go - bank robbery, tattoo parlours, pubs, spiritualist halls and the Anarchists. Along this path, Phryne meets Peter, a battle-scarred, sexy Slav, who offers much more to her than just information. But all thoughts of these delights flee from Phryne's mind when her beloved maid, Dot, disappears. There's nothing Phryne won't do to get her back safely." 

e. The Echo by Minette Walters (Mystery). Just started and, as always, Walters has drawn me in quickly. 

"In this hypnotic novel of psychological suspense, a homeless man is found starved to death in the garage of a ritzy London home. The police chalk it up to an unfortunate accident, but a journalist, Michael Deacon, is intrigued. Amanda Powell, a socialite whose wealthy husband vanished five years ago after being accused of embezzlement, is just as interested as Michael in finding out who died in her garage. They have no idea that this simple story will unveil a web of deceit that is an appalling as the people behind it."

So there you go. That's all for today. Have a great week!