(no subject)
September was a good month for reading; here's to many more such months!
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, his wife Reine-Marie and their children and grandchildren are all in Paris, visiting with Gamache’s godfather, billionaire Stephen Horowitz. After a pleasant dinner, Horowitz is struck by a hit-and-run driver and gravely injured. At first this seems like a tragic accident, but as Gamache digs deeper, he finds himself embroiled in a more and more dangerous endeavor, indeed perhaps a deeply evil one at that. His first priority is to protect his family, but each new revelation brings them all closer and closer to death…. This is the 16th novel in this great series, and although we have spent a lot of time with Gamache’s family in previous books, it is this novel in which we really get to know a lot more about his own upbringing, his children and his family history. As usual, there is a complex and engrossing mystery to be solved, and a number of complex and contradictory new characters to learn about, but the primary focus is on the Gamache family and their ties to one another, which is fascinating. I missed the Three Pines setting and the numerous characters who live there, whom we know and love, but Paris is lovely too and I’m willing to be patient for their return home. I generally think one should start this series at the very beginning (“Still Life”), but this might actually serve as a jumping off point for new readers, simply because the family relationships are so beautifully revealed. Highly, highly recommended.
Malcolm Kershaw co-owns and operates a used book store that specializes in mysteries and crime fiction. Some years ago, he wrote a blog post in which he discussed eight books in which he considers “perfect” murders to have occurred: A.A. Milne’s “The Red House Mystery,” Anthony Berkeley Cox’s “Malice Aforethought,” Agatha Christie’s “The A.B.C. Murders,” James M. Cain’s “Double Indemnity,” Patricia Highsmith’s “Strangers On a Train,” John D. MacDonald’s “The Drowner,” Ira Levin’s “Deathtrap,” and Donna Tartt’s “The Secret History.” One day, FBI Special Agent Gwen Mulvey contacts him about this list; it appears to her that someone is using the list to carry out actual murders and, naturally, she needs to talk to him about this. Together, the two try to puzzle out how these murders and linked and, more importantly, who could be committing them…. I really enjoyed “Eight Perfect Murders” - it’s a fast read, and although one doesn’t need to have read all the books on the list to enjoy the novel, it’s more fun if the reader *does* know at least some of them. There are intriguing links between the main characters, and I was surprised by the ending, always a plus in mystery novels! Recommended.
Anyone with a passing knowledge of British history knows about Anne Boleyn, her marriage to Henry VIII and subsequent execution (not to mention her brilliant daughter Elizabeth I), but fewer have heard of her elder sister Mary. And no wonder: Mary Boleyn was less colourful than Anne, but managed to get into a lot of trouble by first, having a brief affair with Francois I of France when she was probably a teenager and then having a longer affair with Henry VIII himself, during his first marriage (to Katherine of Aragon) and before he began courting Anne. These affairs were very discreet and were also covered up, particularly the latter one, especially because Henry’s argument for divorcing Katherine was that she had previously been the wife of his older brother, which in those times meant his marriage to her was incestuous. Well, clearly if that was true, then Henry’s affair with Mary rendered his later marriage to Anne equally incestuous, and that was something he definitely didn’t want to be known publicly. Alison Weir is a first-rate historian, and she uses extensive primary sources to document exactly what happened to Mary, in addition to debunking various incorrect assertions about her (for example, that Mary was the younger daughter rather than the elder). The time of Henry’s reign was a tumultuous and fascinating one, but Weir manages to keep everything lucid and clear. It’s been a while since I’ve read any history, but this book makes me want to return to that subject again and again; recommended.
Forensic archeologist Ruth Galloway is looking at a new dig, one being led by her former mentor’s son. When they uncover not only an ancient body at the site, but a much more recent one too, she once again must work with Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson (who is also the father of her daughter Kate) to first determine the identity of the recent corpse and then to discover who killed her….I somehow managed to miss this 2019 entry in the Ruth Galloway series - I believed that I had read it because I listed it in my Goodreads page (but listed it there as “want to read,” not as “read”); more strangely, I had also missed the follow-up novel, published this past July. So I ordered that book from amazon, but they sent me *this* book instead - how did amazon know I hadn’t actually bought it elsewhere? This is a huge mystery to me, but no matter - the important thing is that Ruth, Nelson and their various spouses, lovers, families, friends and co-workers are all as interesting and complicated as ever. And now I get to read two books in this series back-to-back, a rare treat! Highly recommended - but read the books in order to get the most out of them!
Ruth’s life has changed completely in the two years since her last involvement in a police matter: she is now a lecturer at Cambridge, living with her American lover Frank in that city and preparing to publish her third archeology book. But she misses Norfolk terribly, so when DCI Nelson is told by a convicted serial killer that he will tell the cop where two more bodies are buried but only if Ruth carries out the forensic dig, she is happy to pitch in. But rather than two bodies, she uncovers three, and so begins a cat-and-mouse game in deadly earnest…. I was happy to be able to read two of Elly Griffiths’ Ruth Galloway series back-to-back, although it was a bit jarring to find that two years had passed since the events of “The Stone Circle.” Nevertheless, Ruth, Nelson, their daughter Kate and all and sundry friends, families, lovers and co-workers are all present and in good form, and the mystery itself is fairly clued and plotted. Reading this series is always a treat; the only come-down is that there won’t be a new one out until sometime next year. Recommended - but really, read the books in order, it’s very necessary with this series!
I've got a slew of books already waiting to be read, so bring on October!
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, his wife Reine-Marie and their children and grandchildren are all in Paris, visiting with Gamache’s godfather, billionaire Stephen Horowitz. After a pleasant dinner, Horowitz is struck by a hit-and-run driver and gravely injured. At first this seems like a tragic accident, but as Gamache digs deeper, he finds himself embroiled in a more and more dangerous endeavor, indeed perhaps a deeply evil one at that. His first priority is to protect his family, but each new revelation brings them all closer and closer to death…. This is the 16th novel in this great series, and although we have spent a lot of time with Gamache’s family in previous books, it is this novel in which we really get to know a lot more about his own upbringing, his children and his family history. As usual, there is a complex and engrossing mystery to be solved, and a number of complex and contradictory new characters to learn about, but the primary focus is on the Gamache family and their ties to one another, which is fascinating. I missed the Three Pines setting and the numerous characters who live there, whom we know and love, but Paris is lovely too and I’m willing to be patient for their return home. I generally think one should start this series at the very beginning (“Still Life”), but this might actually serve as a jumping off point for new readers, simply because the family relationships are so beautifully revealed. Highly, highly recommended.
Malcolm Kershaw co-owns and operates a used book store that specializes in mysteries and crime fiction. Some years ago, he wrote a blog post in which he discussed eight books in which he considers “perfect” murders to have occurred: A.A. Milne’s “The Red House Mystery,” Anthony Berkeley Cox’s “Malice Aforethought,” Agatha Christie’s “The A.B.C. Murders,” James M. Cain’s “Double Indemnity,” Patricia Highsmith’s “Strangers On a Train,” John D. MacDonald’s “The Drowner,” Ira Levin’s “Deathtrap,” and Donna Tartt’s “The Secret History.” One day, FBI Special Agent Gwen Mulvey contacts him about this list; it appears to her that someone is using the list to carry out actual murders and, naturally, she needs to talk to him about this. Together, the two try to puzzle out how these murders and linked and, more importantly, who could be committing them…. I really enjoyed “Eight Perfect Murders” - it’s a fast read, and although one doesn’t need to have read all the books on the list to enjoy the novel, it’s more fun if the reader *does* know at least some of them. There are intriguing links between the main characters, and I was surprised by the ending, always a plus in mystery novels! Recommended.
Anyone with a passing knowledge of British history knows about Anne Boleyn, her marriage to Henry VIII and subsequent execution (not to mention her brilliant daughter Elizabeth I), but fewer have heard of her elder sister Mary. And no wonder: Mary Boleyn was less colourful than Anne, but managed to get into a lot of trouble by first, having a brief affair with Francois I of France when she was probably a teenager and then having a longer affair with Henry VIII himself, during his first marriage (to Katherine of Aragon) and before he began courting Anne. These affairs were very discreet and were also covered up, particularly the latter one, especially because Henry’s argument for divorcing Katherine was that she had previously been the wife of his older brother, which in those times meant his marriage to her was incestuous. Well, clearly if that was true, then Henry’s affair with Mary rendered his later marriage to Anne equally incestuous, and that was something he definitely didn’t want to be known publicly. Alison Weir is a first-rate historian, and she uses extensive primary sources to document exactly what happened to Mary, in addition to debunking various incorrect assertions about her (for example, that Mary was the younger daughter rather than the elder). The time of Henry’s reign was a tumultuous and fascinating one, but Weir manages to keep everything lucid and clear. It’s been a while since I’ve read any history, but this book makes me want to return to that subject again and again; recommended.
Forensic archeologist Ruth Galloway is looking at a new dig, one being led by her former mentor’s son. When they uncover not only an ancient body at the site, but a much more recent one too, she once again must work with Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson (who is also the father of her daughter Kate) to first determine the identity of the recent corpse and then to discover who killed her….I somehow managed to miss this 2019 entry in the Ruth Galloway series - I believed that I had read it because I listed it in my Goodreads page (but listed it there as “want to read,” not as “read”); more strangely, I had also missed the follow-up novel, published this past July. So I ordered that book from amazon, but they sent me *this* book instead - how did amazon know I hadn’t actually bought it elsewhere? This is a huge mystery to me, but no matter - the important thing is that Ruth, Nelson and their various spouses, lovers, families, friends and co-workers are all as interesting and complicated as ever. And now I get to read two books in this series back-to-back, a rare treat! Highly recommended - but read the books in order to get the most out of them!
Ruth’s life has changed completely in the two years since her last involvement in a police matter: she is now a lecturer at Cambridge, living with her American lover Frank in that city and preparing to publish her third archeology book. But she misses Norfolk terribly, so when DCI Nelson is told by a convicted serial killer that he will tell the cop where two more bodies are buried but only if Ruth carries out the forensic dig, she is happy to pitch in. But rather than two bodies, she uncovers three, and so begins a cat-and-mouse game in deadly earnest…. I was happy to be able to read two of Elly Griffiths’ Ruth Galloway series back-to-back, although it was a bit jarring to find that two years had passed since the events of “The Stone Circle.” Nevertheless, Ruth, Nelson, their daughter Kate and all and sundry friends, families, lovers and co-workers are all present and in good form, and the mystery itself is fairly clued and plotted. Reading this series is always a treat; the only come-down is that there won’t be a new one out until sometime next year. Recommended - but really, read the books in order, it’s very necessary with this series!
I've got a slew of books already waiting to be read, so bring on October!