2025 Re-Read:

Not really much I can add to my 2019 review below as it pretty much covers everything. Except the fact that I'd have happily dropped Georgia down one of the septic tanks, never to be seen again.

Link to 2019 review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2731718383
Read 17th-19th Feb 2025

The true story of an American woman who married into Prussian aristocracy in the early 20th century & became a lifeline for those fleeing the Nazis. Muriel White Seherr-Thoss used her connections to send her sons away to prevent them being conscripted into the German army, & also to help Jewish families escape. When the Gestapo finally came for her, Muriel made the ultimate sacrifice to protect others.

A look at female killers in the Early Modern period in Britain (16th to 18th centuries CE), where the plethora of ballads & pamphlets would have had us believe that female killers were fairly common. This book examines the evidence & argues that then, as now, most murders were committed by men & that those committed by women were sensationalised. (continued)

Ten years ago, 6 teenagers went hiking & camping in the Australian bush - but only 5 returned alive. Now Hugh, Charlotte, Alex, Laura, & Jack return to the farm of Ed's parents, the starting point of that fateful trip to attend a memorial for Ed. When they get there, Ed's mother Mary, is obviously still struggling with his death & the more recent death of her husband. None of them want to be there & just want to get through the weekend.

This second book in the series see Agricola back in Rome with a growing family, before being sent out to Asia Minor. The province is currently under the control of Otho Titianus who turns out to be venal & corrupt but with the ear of the Emperor via his brother. Agricola has to decide what kind of man he is - will he follow his dead father's lead & stand up to corruption?

The synopsis for this book intrigued me from the start, can houses or buildings where murders or other evils take place be 'infected' by the acts that takes place within? The author looks at several different types of buildings including tower blocks, shacks, dolls houses, & even miniature dioramas of crime scenes, using the medium of popular culture (tv, film, & books).

First time mum, Rachael, is persuaded to leave her husband & their infant daughter to winter in Antarctica. The ice shelf is breaking up & this is Rachael & her old boss Guy's only chance to get the data needed to persuade the government to stop drilling. Now weeks or months later, things did not go to plan & Rachael is alone on the Ross Ice Shelf in -70 degree cold, days from base camp. (continued)

When Gillian Charles lost 'The Contest' as a child for doing the right thing, she decided to reject her love of puzzles & logic games. Now she finds herself back at Miscellany a theme park set around puzzles where she swore she'd never go. When Gillian arrives, she realises that the other 3 former contestants all work there in some capacity or other & then one of them disappears.....

'Queen Katherine & the Howards' no, not a Tudor folk singing group but a look at the true stories behind some of the infamous characters of Henry VIII's reign. Was Katherine Howard a forward minx or a young girl who unfortunately caught the attention of the one man she couldn't refuse? Knowing Henry's temper & vengeful nature, & that very little passed unseen in the Tudor court, why were Katherine, Dereham, & Culpeper so indiscreet?

Forty-something single mother, Casey Singleton, works at Norton Aircraft & when a report comes in of an issue with flight TPA 545, Casey is on the team asked to investigate. An initial contact with the pilot has him blaming turbulence but this isn't backed up by external evidence, & the flight crew are suddenly whisked away before Casey has a chance to conduct interviews. (continued)

Short Review: I had high hopes for this one but I feel it just missed the mark for me. I really enjoyed the Egyptian myths side of things & highlighting the conflict between seeking knowledge versus respect for the dead & ancient cultures is well done. I found Clemmie a bit too 'not like other girls' at times & the pace of the first half of the book was quite slow, although the second half was better. 3⭐

When Maya's ex-girlfriend, Alana, is found dead Maya's life implodes. It won't matter that their relationship was toxic & that Alana had been emotionally abusing Maya for years, all that will matter is that after a verbal fight on a remote trail, Maya walked off & left Alana there alone. So Maya lies to the police initially & finds herself in real trouble & flees to the family lake house.

Last review for Jan 2025!

Grace McGill is a cleaner with a difference- she sanitises & makes safe the rooms where people die alone & lie undiscovered for weeks or months. When an old widower named Thomas Agnew dies in bed & is not found for months, Grace is sad that no-one seemed to notice his absence, not even his closest neighbours. (continued)

This informative & interesting book looks back at around 200 London pubs which closed (& were either mothballed or demolished) within the last 25 years. From pubs reputedly dating back centuries to those rebuilt after World War II, this book gives the reader a snapshot of their history & why/when they eventually closed.

This was & well-researched with some great photographs which makes you wish you had had the chance to visit the pubs. (cont'd)

Almost completed the #WinterCleardown Ebooks card. Again, thanks to @Puddlejumper for hosting.

3/4 completed bingo card for #WinterCosy & thank you to @Puddlejumper for hosting as usual.

Sheila Gleeson confesses to killing her husband but Maeve Kerrigan is not so sure. It's her first solo case (albeit being supervised by Josh Derwent) & things aren't adding up.

This (very) short story is a fast-paced whirlwind through the case but Derwent still manages to get in a line of sexual innuendo towards Maeve whilst she is trying to recreate the murderer's position by kneeling on the Gleesons' bed. 4🌟

Ex-Detective Inspector Jess is on her way home from a night out with a former colleague & boards the train home on the London Underground. It's getting late but there are several people in the carriage so it seems safe enough, but when the train comes to an abrupt stop & the lights go out, it may not be safe after all. Especially when Jess finds the driver dead in his cabin, stabbed through the neck & all communication in the cabin cut off.

This is the one I remember the least from the 1980s TV series, I couldn't even remember the basic plot & was getting it mixed up with The Mirror Crack'd. It was a solid murder mystery that has that Christie 'je ne sais quoi' which elevates it above a 3 star. It's a quick read packed full of untrustworthy & unlikeable characters, but thankfully Miss Marple appears from the start in this one. 3.5🌟

TWs: attitudes towards mental illness, xenophobia.

2nd Nov 1952 in Croydon, Surrey & two teenagers, Derek Bentley (19) & Christopher Craig (16), tried to break into a warehouse from the rooftop. Police were called & in the ensuing minutes, one police officer was wounded & another was tragically killed. It's one of the worst examples of the British 'justice' quirk of joint felonious enterprise (continued)

From the Biblical murder of Abel by his brother Cain, assassination has been a drastic solution carried out by many of the millennia. This book takes a look at some of the pivotal assassinations which were either ordered or committed by the rulers of Greece, Rome, & Egypt, plus the less well-known Hittites & Persians to name a few. Some of them were even victims too.

23-year-old student Tadhg Kelly & his twin brother, Declan, are about to head off for a weekend getaway. Declan will be joined by his girlfriend Katie but Tadhg recently split with his boyfriend when he caught him cheating so he will be third-wheeling & not looking forward to it. As they get near to their destination they stop at a rundown petrol station for supplies & the man there is friendly until they tell him where they are headed.

It's been a while since I read this the first time, probably about 20 years. Since the film I find it really difficult not to picture Denzel Washington as Rhyme so I just went with it. I found it a really good read back then, but since I've read a lot more crime fiction now, this time it wasn't quite as good as I remember. The case & the clues were fine but I found Amelia intensely irritating for the first half of the book. (continued)

February book list for #ReadYourKindle

@CBee

Poirot receives a telephone call from Sir Claude Amory, a rich inventor who feels certain that someone in his household has stolen his new scientific formula & asks Poirot to investigate. Shortly before Poirot arrives Amory gives the thief one chance to return the formula anonymously whilst the lights are out, but when they are switched back on, Amory is dead. Everyone was in the same room & no-one heard anything so how was he killed & by whom?

This is not really a straightforward memoir about being a dancer, but a series of average length chapters which deal with the pressures & pitfalls of both ballet & modern life for women & girls. I think many young girls are enthralled with the world of ballet as children - I certainly was, but any dreams were dampened by being markedly above average height.

Rome 58 AD, & young Gnaeus Julius Agricola's widowed mother arranges for a banquet where she can call on all outstanding favours to obtain her son a commission in the Roman army. Things look bleak but he is finally offered the posting of senior tribune in far-off Britannia, serving under Suetonius Paulinus. (Continued)

2025 Re-Read:

18-year-old Chloe Emery unexpectedly returns home from her father's house. Inside the house is covered in blood & the cat has been confined to one room for several days but is otherwise OK. Chloe's mother meanwhile is nowhere to be seen but no-one can survive losing that much blood. Newly promoted DS Maeve Kerrigan is one of those investigating the case, & soon learns that the missing woman, Kate Emery, had made a lot of enemies.

Ever since Theo Mackey's mother died in a house fire, Theo has been living with the guilt of a secret only he knows - he lit the match that accidentally caused the fire although he can't remember it clearly. Now his father is also dead, & his grandfather is drinking himself into a stupor most nights. Still, Theo is keeping it together: good grades & captain of the school's diving team, (continued)

The village of Chipping Cleghorn is surprised by a very unusual newspaper announcement. This week, amongst the furniture for sale, the local gazette's announcement page contains an advertisement which reads: ‘A murder is announced and will take place on Friday October 29th, at Little Paddocks at 6.30 p.m.‘

Unsure if it is a practical joke or one of those new 'murder mystery games', the neighbours gather at the house on Friday evening (continued)

The offbeat friend group from the first book consisting of reluctant medium Claire, the ghost of her forever-17-year-old murdered friend Sophie, nonbinary Alex, & gay ex-police detective Sebastian (aka Bash) go on a cheap minibreak to Spike Island, off the Irish coast. There they encounter a second group of friends on a yoga retreat who aren't particularly happy that the accommodation has been double-booked. (continued)

30th Sept this year is the 70th anniversary of the tragic death of James Dean at just 24 years old. This book is a look back at his short life & career, a reminiscing & a wondering of what could have been.

Even though Dean died several decades before I was born, one of my favourite films ever is 'Rebel Without a Cause' & I've always been fascinated with him. This book has some fantastic photographs of Dean & reproduced some handwritten (cont'd)

Growing up, one of my weekly TV viewing highlights were the repeats of 'Moonlighting' shown on British tv. The quick wit back-&-forth between David Addison & Maddie Hayes was a treat, until they brought Bert Viola onto the scene. I decided to read Shepherd's autobiography on a whim & it was OK.

'Moonlighting' itself takes up a very small part in the book (a couple of chapters at the most) & the majority of it is about Shepherd's love life.

2025 Re-Read Review:

I've changed my mind about characters 'going through the motions' from my first review. Reading this book again, Maeve is obviously struggling with recent events but one of the situations will be dealt with by the end of this book. Now I'm not blinded by Derwent-hate, I can see that he clearly has feelings for her however much he tries to say he doesn't. (continued)

Short Review: This was an odd Poirot book for me, he doesn't appear for the first few chapters & when he does he seems to be more of a side character to Katherine Grey. The mystery itself was textbook Christie but it just didn't seem to work as well as some of her other books. I think the problem for me is that I just didn't like Katherine Grey. Don't know why, just didn't. 3.5🌟

TWs: racism/xenophobia, internalised misogyny.

Short review: The storyline alternates between the past & the present so we start to see what happened back in 1988 bit by bit, & the narrative also cycles between several of the characters but the reader mainly hears from Andy. The boys were not particularly nice teens, especially to frogs. As the story progresses you get the feeling that there's something not quite right with what you are being told. No spoilers so I won't say more than that.

Short review: This is the third in the series but the first one I've read & for me it worked just as well as a standalone. I think because each one is set in the court of a different wife of Henry VIII, it didn't feel as if I'd missed huge amounts. If you have a rudimentary knowledge of Tudor history, you should be fine. I also adored the character of Somers' dog, Nosewise.

Full Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6920085535

My pick for favourite book of December for #12Booksof2024

A creepy YA horror which was unexpectedly rather good.

@Andrew65

Out of Churchill, Hitler, & Stalin, I know the least about Stalin so decided now would be the perfect time to read this first book in the two part series. How did Joseph Dzhugashvili from Georgia become the megalomaniac ruler of Russia & preside over millions of deaths of his own people?

My pick for favourite book of November for #12Booksof2024

Miss Marple at her absolute best.

@Andrew65

My pick for favourite book of October for #12Booksof2024

A nice mix of local history & spooky goings-on which was a perfect read for Halloween month.

@Andrew65

After an incident nearly derails her career, Eve Wren finds herself working at the Crown Prosecution Service in London. Eve is keeping her head down at her new job, when she is suddenly taken off the case she was working on & moved to the biggest case at present. Cult leader Patrick Nye & his followers, known as 'The Seven', are standing trial after unexpectedly pleading not guilty to detonating a bomb in a London theatre killing 43 people.

My pick for favourite book of September for #12Booksof2024

Two men disappear from inside a locked gatehouse years apart never to be seen or heard from again. Part of the 'Rachel Savernake' series this is a great mystery.

@Andrew65

This made me laugh. My mood map from The StoryGraph showing if you prefer lighter fun reads (high) or darker reads (low) compared to your friends. Its not even close 😂😂

#WinterGames2024 #XmasChaCha #ChristmasChapterChasers @staycurious

My total points haul for this year. Really enjoyed it. Thank you for hosting.

#WinterCosy bingo card so far. @puddlejumper

My #WinterClearDown for ebooks so far. @puddlejumper

Managed to get lines on 5 of @thearomaofbooks bingo cards this time.

Managed one line for #ChristmasAtoZ this time.

@Texreader

Maeve & Derwent are on the team to investigate a spate of attacks on police officers. Maeve is also struggling with her knowledge of Superintendent Godley's corruption & boyfriend Rob's preoccupation with something or someone else.

Re-reading this in a clearer state of mind than being angry at the author throwing Rob 'under the bus', I can see more nuance this time but Derwent's predatory behaviour in this one still rankles.