Tag: books

book round-ups, Recommendsday

Recommendsday: August Quick Reviews

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Another mixed bag of quick reviews this month – but fairly on brand for my August – something Girls Own, some modern crime and some classic crime!

The Swish of the Curtain by Pamela Brown

This is the story of seven children from three different families who band together to start a theatre company in an abandoned chapel in their home town. Across the course of the book they grow in confidence and reputation to the point where they enter an acting competition against other amateur groups in their town. Children’s books featuring the theatre world are among some of my favourites (the Drina series, Sadlers Wells series and of course Ballet Shoes) so I was excited to read this. And although it’s a bit slow to get going, and may be a bit too long (although it does cover a two year period so maybe the length is understandable) but actually once it got to the final phase of the children trying to prove to their parents that they should be allowed to pursue careers on the stage it was much better. Probably not one that I’ll read again, but I’m glad I read it.

Cracked Mirror by Chris Brookmire*

What happens when a hard-bitten LA cop and a little old lady who solves murders in her small village collide? Well, a completely brain fuddling murder mystery that’s what – and I mean that in a good way. The Cracked Mirror of the title is a screenplay, which seems to have lead to several deaths, which the authorities think are suicides, but Johnny Hawke and Penny Coyne are not convinced and end up investigating their separate cases – which soon collide. And lots of other things are colliding in this too – it’s really hard to explain without giving too much away, but I did enjoy it, once I had time and brain space to concentrate on it so that I could follow what was going on. But it is definitely not a straight-down-the-line crime or mystery novel and I know the blurb says that, but I really cannot emphasise that enough.

Death and the Maiden by Gladys Mitchell

Given how much I enjoy the other Queens of Crime, every now and again I acquire some more Mrs Bradley books and try again in the hope that I just haven’t found the right one to unlock the series for me yet, and every time it’s the same problem. They’re just so hard going compared to the others. The TV version clearly seduced me!

Happy Humpday!

Book of the Week

Book of the Week: Going Infinite

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Long-time readers will remember that I love a book or a podcast about a business disaster, and this week’s BotW pick is indeed a business disaster, but also a very quick turnaround on one of the big financial collapses of recent times.

Michael Lewis is the author of among other things The Big Short and Moneyball, and was working on a book about Sam Bankman Fried as the whole FTX collapse unfolded. And Going Infinite is the result – the story of the rise and fall of the world’s youngest billionaire and the crypto empire he founded. I should probably explain SBF as he’s known shouldn’t I? For a couple of years he was the bright young thing of the financial world – the wunderkid who had left the trading firm he worked for to found a crypto trading firm and then a crypto exchange. All of this made him the poster boy of Crypto and his friendly nerd persona – wild hair, constantly multitasking and playing computer games while doing TV interviews – right up until the point where it all came crashing down and he ended up on trial for fraud.

On the one hand, this has the fact that Lewis was on the scene when the collapse happened and so this is informed by first hand observations and interviews with the players involved. On the other hand, Lewis went into this endeavour expecting to write one thing and ended up with a breaking news story on his hands and clearly got the book out as quickly as possible after it all happened – this came out in the US just as the trial was starting. On the other hand, I’m not sure the whole thing was quite resolved enough that the point it was being written for it to have a strong enough central thesis.

I read this in less than 36 hours – but I have also read a lot of long reads and listened to at least three different podcast series about SBF and FTX so part of the interest for me is seeing how they all compare to each other and how the story is changing and evolving. So i don’t know how this is going to hold up in a year’s time – this paperback has already been added to with an epilogue about the court case – but for now, it’s the most in-depth look at it all that I’ve found.

You can buy Going Infinite on Kindle, Kobo or in paperback – and it should be fairly easy to get hold of as it’s a high profile author on a big, well known scandal/court case.

Happy reading!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: August 26 – September 1

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Well. It’s been a bit of a week. For reasons that will become apparent in the near future, this week was somewhat frantic, even before I added in an extra trip to the theatre for fun and games. Five nights away from home, several early mornings – one of them a *very* early morning and so the list isn’t that great. But I’m much further on in the Anne de Courcy than I was (just not finished it!) and the same with the Alan Bradley. Hopefully September will go a little better than August did!

Read:

Raising the Steaks by Patti Benning

Murder by Candlelight by Faith Martin*

Steaking a Claim by Patti Benning

Fundraising the Dead by Sheila Connolly

Regency Buck by Georgette Heyer

Going Infinite by Michael Lewis

Started:

Daughter of Time by Joesephine Tey

Still reading:

What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley*

Five Love Affairs and a Friendship by Anne de Courcy

Rather a lot of books bought. Three in Waterstones Gower Street before I went to Kiss Me, Kate (again), another ebook and then two more actual books.

Bonus picture: a dog book rest…

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

books, stats

August Stats

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Books read this month: 29*

New books: 29

Re-reads: 2 (all audiobooks)

Books from the to-read pile: 9

NetGalley books read: 3

Kindle Unlimited read: 15

Ebooks: 0

Audiobooks: 2

Non-fiction books: 0

Favourite book this month: probably Let’s Play Dead by Sheila Connelly, given that I went and bought the first book and third book in the series straight after I finished it and have read the first one already!

Most read author: Patti Benning

Books bought: not counting…

Books read in 2024: 269

Books on the Goodreads to-read shelf (I don’t have copies of all of these!): 742

A very bookish month because of Book Con, even if the stats would seem to belie that. Onwards to September and the rush of new books for the autumn!

Bonus picture: I said I went to Kiss Me Kate again… it’s definitely my favourite show of the summer so have another picture!

*includes some short stories/novellas/comics/graphic novels – including this month!

Book of the Week, books, Forgotten books

Book of the Week: Guard Your Daughters

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Today’s pick is part of the bounty from that Persephone trip I mentioned on Saturday. And I’m quite pleased with my choice!

Guard Your Daughters is the story of a family of five sisters – four of whom are still living at home, whilst the oldest has recently married. It’s the early 1950s and their mother stops the girls from going to school, or making friends – and if she can from leaving the house at all. Their father is a mystery writer and devoted to his wife and to keeping her from being made ill by goings on around d her. Told by Morgan, the middle sister, in some ways it’s a light and fluffy book as you follow the day to day lives of the girls. But under that there is a darker secret.

I remember my mum saying to me once that as a parent it is your job to bring your children up so that they can go out into the world and live independently without you. On that front, Morgan’s parents appear to have failed big style. The elder girls had a governess, but she left some time before the start of the novel and the youngest sister, Theresa, is going without a proper education and is busy trying to make sure no one forces her out of the world that she’s made for herself. And the elder girls seem to being kept in the sort of splendid isolation that a strict Victorian father might have come up with – encouraged to work on accomplishments – despite the fact that the world has changed. How did eldest sister Pandora manage to escape in marriage? Well read it and you’ll find out.

Interestingly Persephone have included a selection of reader reactions to the end of the book – because this is a bit of a polarising one. I can’t say that I liked many of the characters but I was fascinated to see what was actually going on in the household. I’ve seen some people compare it to I Capture the Castle and I don’t think that’s necessarily wrong, although this is darker than I remember that being. Anyway, I read it in less than a day and it gave me lots of thoughts, so I recommend it!

My copy came from Persephone in Bath – you can order direct from them or you may be able to find it (or order it) in larger bookstores

Happy Reading!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: August 19 – August 25

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A good week in reading – not least because the long running list is finally nearly under control! I’m really quite pleased with myself. Anyway, finished one series, cleared another few books off the to read pile, which is good because before I went to Book Con I was feeling quite pleased with myself that we were down to just the bookshelf and not a pile in front of the shelves as well – and then i realised that’s because I have a couple of secondary piles near my spot on the sofa. So a fresh push at the physical to-read pile is underway!

Read:

Shamrocks and Murder by Patti Benning

Dimsie Moves Up Again by Dorita Fairlie Bruce

Let’s Play Dead by Sheila Connolly

Sugar Coated Murder by Patti Benning

Murder, My Darling by Patti Benning

The Cracked Mirror by Chris Brookmire*

Death and the Maiden by Gladys Mitchell

The Swish of the Curtain by Pamela Brown

Guard Your Daughters by Diana Tutton

Started:

What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley*

Still reading:

Five Love Affairs and a Friendship by Anne de Courcy

Two books bought. Trying to restrain myself

Bonus picture: A slight change to my office décor with some lovely Discworld prints.

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

Book of the Week, new releases

Book of the Week: The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club

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A historical fiction pick today, and one that has taken me a while to read on account of my brain’s refusal to concentrate on long books when I’m tired and my uncertainty on how things were going to turn out and my current need for closure and happy endings!

It’s 1919, the war is over and the world is starting to return to normal. Except that normal seems to mean that all the gains that women have made during the war are being rolled back and having had a taste of independence the world is now trying to relegate them back to domesticity. Helen Simonson’s new novel focuses on three characters trying to figure out what their place is in the post-war world. Constance had taken over the management of an estate, but is now losing her job and her home to make way for returning men. After nursing the mother of her employer through influenza, she is sent with her to the seaside, where she meets Poppy and her group of lady motorcycle riders, and Poppy’s brother Harris, an injured wartime pilot who is still coming to terms with his new reality. And then there is Klaus, German by birth but a naturalised British citizen, who has got a job as a waiter again, but is finding that he has to keep a low profile on account of his name and accent.

This is a smart and thought-provoking novel set at an interesting time that is ripe for fiction. It’s also a coming of age story, but there is a deal of darkness to balance the tea dances and parties. The interwar period is one that I love reading about – but I haven’t read a lot of fiction set exclusively at the start of that period, and it gave me plenty to think about as well.

My copy came from NetGalley, but it’s out now and available on Kindle, Kobo and in hardback.

Happy Reading!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: August 12 – August 18

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A super busy week – I started it in Lincolnshire, had a couple of nights in London, went to Paris and then finished it at home – so with all that excitement I’m surprised the list is as long as it is. But hey, it’s slightly better list than last week anyway.

Read:

Ravioli Soup Murder by Patti Benning

Thanksgiving Deli Murder by Patti Benning

A Season of Murder by Patti Benning

The Hazelbourne Ladies’ Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonson*

Valentines and Murder by Patti Benning

Hitting the Books by Jenn McKinlay

Started:

Dimsie Moves Up Again by Dorita Fairlie Bruce

Still reading:

Five Love Affairs and a Friendship by Anne de Courcy

The Swish of the Curtain by Pamela Brown

The Cracked Mirror by Chris Brookmire*

Two ebooks bought while I was finishing off the Kindle Offers post and then two books in actual bookshops too.

Bonus picture: breakfast in Paris!

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.

Book of the Week, books, Children's books, Forgotten books

Book of the Week: Film Stars at Riverlea

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It’s only right that the week after Book Conference, my book of the Week pick is a bonkers Girls Own boarding school story. So buckle up, this has got a lot of plot to get though…

I was going to say that I don’t know where to start on the plot, but I do: the start, because this opens on a twin arriving at Riverlea having run away from the boarding school she was attending after the parents decided they would be better apart from each other. And it only gets wilder from there. It’s got (not in order and not exhaustive) film stars, vindictive PE teachers, hidden talents, missing treasure, salvation through cricket, missing heirs, near drowning and a shipwreck. And those last are not at the same time. And it’s only just over 200 pages long.

Now I normally like my school stories a little saner – if by saner we mean the realistic (in comparison) boarding school in the Alps where you might get lost up a mountain that Elinor M Brent Dyer offers. But sometimes you just need something crazy. This was a great way to spend an evening and I thank my friend for letting me read it first.

I can’t even tell you where to get this – it’s long out of print and I’ve never seen it before – but I’m also not expecting many of you to want to read it because it’s niche. So niche. But also hilarious.

Happy Reading!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: August 5 – August 11

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A somewhat bitty week where my brain has struggled to concentrate. Hey ho. Onwards we go.

Read:

Sergeant Cluff Stands Firm by Gil North

Mountains, Marriage and Murder by Patti Benning

Shrimply Murder by Patti Benning

Gazpacho Murder by Patti Benning

Peppered with Murder by Patti Benning

Sprig Muslin by Georgette Heyer

Film Stars at Riverlea by Constance M White

Started:

Five Love Affairs and a Friendship by Anne de Courcy

Still reading:

The Swish of the Curtain by Pamela Brown

The Hazelbourne Ladies’ Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonson*

The Cracked Mirror by Chris Brookmire*

I’m not telling you, but it involved charity shops and the new August Kindle deals…

Bonus picture: lovely Bath and the Assembly rooms.

*next to a book book title indicates that it came from NetGalley. ** indicates it was an advance copy from a source other than NetGalley.