A novella in the 'Rivers of London' series, this is intriguing and playful and loads of fun. I do love these books! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

A mystery set in wartime London, with further action set 60 years later, when the events of the case catch up with the investigators. This is the first of a series featuring Arthur Bryant and John May of the Peculiar Crimes Unit. It centres on a series of murders in a theatre, and while it has some hints of supernatural elements the resolution is firmly human, which is a good combination. It's atmospheric and funny with likable characters ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Gosh I've been reading a lot of Golden Age crime novels recently! It's nice to have one from a different cultural background, and this has some fun Japanese quirks, despite its deliberate use of Western crime novel tropes. I loved the detective Kosuke Kindaichi, and the villain, and crime, are suitably chilling. The resolution is ingenuous, and there are nice digs at the injustice of feudal attitudes and traditional class arrogance too ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Ah, this book is so much fun! It has everything you could want from a Gothic melodrama murder mystery: a sinister magician, a burning corpse, a tempestuous storm, cocktails, candlelit mansions, illicit affairs, secret passages, 2 detectives vying to solve the crime, a castle overlooking the Rhein that's SHAPED LIKE A SKULL!! 😃 It's ridiculous, but marvellous, and I loved every word of it! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Another fun mystery for Lord Peter Wimsey, but not my favourite. I was quite eager to read this as I've not previously read any of the books featuring Harriet Vane. However, I was a little disappointed that I didn't really get any sense of her character from this book, and that made it all the more unbelievable that Wimsey was so smitten, especially as he declared his undying love despite never having spoken to her before! ⭐⭐⭐

Just finished reading this thoughtful, powerful little book for the second time. It's a philosophical and practical exploration of the hunt for silence in everyday life, and how the discomfort of being alone and quiet can lead to deeper understanding of yourself and the way you think and react to things. It's comforting and calming to read, and a lovely edition to hold! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

As a librarian in a historic library, I'm basically a curator of books; this is a really accessible intro to why I do what I do! It reveals the stories books can tell when they're viewed as historic artefacts, rather than just repositories of text, & suggests that where the texts are increasingly available digitally it's these individual, personal & social histories of books which prove their importance & continuing relevance. Brilliant! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The second D.C. Connie Childs detective novel, set in the Derbyshire peak district. This is a fast-paced murder investigation with an intriguing premise, excellent plot twists, a good sense of danger and a smattering of personal relationship issues to spice things up. Lots of fun! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book is astonishing! It brings together the stories of 9 people, & millions of trees, through the eco rights protests of the '80s, the ecological scientific discoveries of the late 20th century, & the computer tech advances of the early 21st. It's about trees & people & networks of connection. It's epic & intense, surprising, sometimes bleak, but ultimately optimistic (albeit in a rather nihilistic way!) It's left me a little dazed! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

E.V. Lucas seems to have made his living from writing essays and 'comment pieces' in the many society journals of the 1920s & '30s. I've read a few of the collected publications of these; the style is easy and fun, and there are always interesting little insights into life in the inter-war period. There are also often areas of twee nostalgia and class privilege, though, and unfortunately the balance in this book is much more towards the latter ⭐⭐

I would have sworn that I'd read Brave New World at school but, although I knew the premise and basic storyline, the actual text was entirely unfamiliar! This has therefore definitely filled an important gap in my reading! It's a brilliant satire, written in 1932 but still horribly relevant, examining the politics of mass control through distraction, conditioning, and denigration of non-conformity. A chilling, but excellent, read ⭐⭐⭐⭐

A top tier example of golden age classic crime! This is a murder mystery but it's also a romantic adventure, and a Gothic fantasy, with elements of noir and even human philosophy. The plot is ridiculous, but it sweeps you up and carries you along because the characters are so well realised and the atmosphere is so pervasive. There's a real sense of unease and threat, which lingers even after it's all been resolved. Brilliant fun! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Mourning is not forgetting', he said gently [...] 'It is an undoing. Every minute tie has to be untied and something permanent and valuable recovered and assimilated from the knot. The end is gain, of course. Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be made strong, in fact. But the process is like all other human births, painful and long and dangerous.'

This rings very true.

I love Tove Jansson's writing, both for adults and children, and it's always a joy to read a Moomin story. This rather lovely book, produced by Oxfam, has two little stories, both of which are rather sweet, with Jansson's usual delightful accompanying illustrations. A nice way to spend a lazy hour! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is an investigation into the legend of Pope Joan, purportedly an intelligent 9th century woman who disguised herself as a man to get an education, and rose through the ranks of the church to become pope. The book looks at the potential historical reality behind the myth, and also at why the story has persisted for so long, and how it has been used and interpreted. Utterly fascinating, really readable, and incredibly enjoyable! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I really enjoyed this book! It's the second of Crispin's 'Gervase Fen' mysteries that I've read and they've both had me laughing out loud as well as enjoying the intriguing, if rather far-fetched, plots. This is a tale of jealousy and murder in an opera company, with a lot of examination of human absurdity, as well as self-referential asides, brilliant characters, and rather joyful silliness ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is the first Ann Cleeves I've read, although I have watched the TV adaptation of the Shetland books. This is the 7th in the series but it's careful to recap the characters' backstories as it goes along. It's not outstanding, but is a good murder mystery, with likable characters ⭐⭐⭐

Final entry for #7Days7Books #7Tage7Buecher

Joanne Harris is another of my absolute favourite authors. I love the unsettling & unexpected creepiness in her writing, as well as the joyfulness, and the appreciation of the everyday magic of food! All her books are amazing, but this one stuck in my mind for weeks after I finished reading.

Day 6 of #7Days7Books #7Tage7Buecher

I first read the Sandman comics when I was at uni, and they were my introduction to Neil Gaiman, who is now one of my favourite writers. I still go back and read these often; I love the mythos of The Endless, and the things their stories illuminate about the human condition.

Day 5 of #7Days7Books #7Tage7Buecher

I love the world which Tolkien created. Despite all the problems of misogyny and racism in his writing I still find it really comforting to return to Middle Earth. When I'm stressed and anxious I read The Lord of the Rings; when I'm *really* stressed and anxious I escape into The Silmarillion!

Day 4 of #7Days7Books #7Tage7Buecher

My sister lent this to me a few years ago and it absolutely blew me away; I actually couldn't put it down. It seems vaguely inappropriate to be extolling a book about the aftermath of a global pandemic at the moment, but it's definitely one of the most affecting books I've read. (My actual copy of this is currently on loan to someone else, so I've had to do a bit of a Photoshop collage for this pic!)

This book evokes an atmosphere and a place about which I know very little, but does it in such a way that it's comprehensible and familiar and feels comfortable. It's set in India in the late 1980s, but it's explorations of love, and identity, and politics, and finding your way, are pretty universal. It's easy and relaxing and melancholy and beautiful, and I absolutely loved reading it ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Day three of #7Days7Books #7Tage7Buecher was a key element of my late teens and twenties. I'm sure it's no surprise to anyone either!

I read this, and its sequels, repeatedly, revelling in the dark aesthetic, the angst, and the romanticism. Ah, Anne Rice, you knew the teenage Anja so well! 😉🧛🏻‍♂️

Day 2 of #7Tage7Buecher #7Days7Books

Daphne Du Maurier is one of my favourite authors. I love many of her books, but have a particular fondness for Jamaica Inn, which I first read as a teenager. As I've got older I've come to appreciate the eeriness and unsettling undertones to much of Du Maurier's work, but I often come back to this more straightforward tale of romance, adventure and dangers overcome!

I've been tagged by @Buechersuechtling to join in the #7Tage7Buecher challenge!

So here's day 1 of 7 books which have moved me & stuck with me. The 'rules' say that I'm not supposed to include any explanation, but I find that frustrating; I want to know why the books are meaningful! So, in one sentence, this is my favourite Moomin book & almost certainly the book I've read more often than any other!

I tag @PuddleJumper to join in!
#7Days7Books

Sat in the sun, in the garden, for a couple of hours yesterday, watching the bees and reading. It was lovely! And this atmospheric, thoughtful, evocative novel was perfect for that mood. I think it's gonna get a 'pick' review when I finish it! 😊

This is a catalogue printed to accompany a British Museum exhibition (and then reduced to £2 in the bookshop!) As with all BM publications it's beautifully produced with gorgeous images of artefacts and fascinating interpretation. A really interesting quick introduction to the period. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I spotted this on the shelf at work when we were rehousing some of the books. I've enjoyed a couple of Farjeon's classic era murder mysteries so couldn't resist his book about smugglers! It purports to be nonfiction but it's joyously loose with referencing or corroboration and instead launches into the legends and stories of smuggling with glee! Aside from a bit of annoying but predictable 1930s misogyny and racism, it's a lot of fun! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I really recommend this book! It's a series of short chapters exploring 'material intelligence', or how we understand, experience, and engage with physical objects. It looks at how things are made, and what properties they have, but also what meanings we give them. It's thoughtful and insightful, and really interesting. It would be great for museum curators and people studying material culture, but I think anyone would find it fascinating! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Oh I should've learnt that I don't get on with YA fiction! I liked the Gothic premise of this book but it was so predictable and full of teen angst; a plain-looking girl meets a dark, serious, troubled boy, while she's being guided by supernatural forces to discover her family secrets and the power within herself, yadda yadda... I'm afraid I got frustrated and lost interest after about 80 pages! ⭐

I didn't get on with this little handbag book at all! The main character is horrible: misogynistic, arrogant, and utterly disrespectful of the people and culture when he gets to Japan. I only kept reading in the hope that he'd get his comeuppance! The prose is annoying too, littered with cringe-worthy "lol"s and "rowr"s and italics for emphasis. Rubbish! At least it's short... ⭐

I enjoyed this! It's a stand-alone crime thriller (not part of one of Elly Griffiths' series), and has a nice spooky, gothic undercurrent behind the murder mystery. There are multiple narrators, giving differing opinions of events, and of each other, which works really well. Much of the action centres around a school and that, together with the focus on the characters' relationships, reminded me a bit of Joanne Harris' 'St. Oswald's' books ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Note: this is actually a review of Karen's book "Swallows and Armenians" but since Litsy still haven't added it, I've had to tag her other book instead!
These short stories follow the lives of the Anglo-Armenian Altounyan family, who were the inspiration for Arthur Ransome's 'Swallows and Amazons'. The fictionalised tales are based on archival research. They're fun and engaging, while also exploring deeper issues of identity and belonging ⭐⭐⭐⭐

"'I've just spoken to Daisy Lewis,' he said. 'She's devastated. They're childless, you know. All they had was each other.'
He said it in the way that parents often describe the child-free, pity matched with slight disapproval."

Well this really resonates! As someone who's in her forties, and in a long-term, loving relationship, I often find that society just can't get its head round the concept that I've chosen not to have children ?

This 1939 crime novel was written rather like a B-movie: lots of peril and exciting car chases but nothing in the way of complex plotting or character development! It was quite fun but very superficial, and didn't really engage my attention ⭐⭐

I got the pre-publication copy of this book at a proof party last year. It presents the eruption of Mount Tambora in 1815 & its devastating effects on world climate in the following year, through the stories of 6 individuals, some entirely fictitious, & some based on real people. All the stories are engaging & sympathetic, and the book shows how just a small change in climate can have huge & terrible effects. A really good, & pertinent, read! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I did enjoy this dark fantasy novella, but was a little disappointed by it. It's one of Zafon's early works, which was originally marketed as Young Adult but which the author says he intended to be readable for any age. I found it rather too YA-ish for my tastes, although the premise is intriguing and it's quite fun to read. Just a so-so for this then ⭐⭐⭐

This little 'handbag book' from Penguin's £1 range includes 5 short stories (detailed in the comments below). Each of them is intriguing and otherworldly, and they examine deep philosophical questions about the nature of reality, fate and causality, time, and the horror of the infinite. I loved them! They're stuck in my head, and I will definitely have to read them all again after more consideration. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This hefty classic is a little daunting, but I quickly fell into the rhythm of the complex language and convoluted plot. The characters are fun, and there's some great satire, as well as an intriguing story and a satisfying resolution. Setting aside my anachronistic rage that the stone was stolen from India in the first place (Why didn't they just give it back?! That would've solved all the problems!), I thoroughly enjoyed this book! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Craft, at its best, provides material evidence of the limits of human capability, often showing that we can accomplish much more than we might have thought. It is, in this respect, deeply optimistic. It serves as a constant reminder of what humans can achieve when we put our mind to something and follow through."

As a museum curator, interested in the impact and meaning of physical objects, this fab book on materiality is really making me happy!

Still working my way through The Moonstone for February's Classic Crime Club (and really enjoying it!) but already looking ahead to the next couple of choices. These are our March and April picks, and I'm looking forward to both of them! They're both considerably shorter than the Wilkie Collins too 😉

"Then I reflected that everything happens to a man precisely, precisely now. Centuries of centuries and only in the present do things happen..."

This realisation is something which I've found really useful when I'm feeling anxious; fixating on the past and worrying about the future are equally futile as the only experience of reality we can ever have is the present. It's nice to be reminded of that, unexpectedly, in my reading on the train home!

I've been wanting to read this anthology of comics about forgotten Nottinghamshire writers for a while, so when I spotted it at work I had to borrow it! As ever with collections by various creators, some of the stories are better than others, but all are interesting, and it's added lots of extra authors to my To Be Read list! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I really loved this beautiful, terrifying little book! It's an amazing description of the landscape and wildlife of Svalbard, as well as a superbly creepy tale of the effects of the Arctic winter on the human psyche. It's also, as the subtitle says, an excellent ghost story! The atmosphere and growing sense of unease linger in your mind as you read, and long afterwards. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Overall I rather enjoyed these short stories, although not without reservation. The character of Father Brown can be really frustrating, making smug statements without explaining them, and the casual racial stereotyping of a book written in 1911 is grating. The plots are ridiculous, but good fun, though, and the descriptive passages are amazing! I like the verbose, rather Victorian style of prose too. ⭐⭐⭐

This is my library! Bromley House Library in Nottingham, where I have the immense pleasure to work. I also (of course) frequently borrow books. Today I returned 'Grief is the Thing with Feathers' and borrowed a 1930s book about smuggling, just because it caught my eye on the shelf! I've read some of Jefferson Farjeon's murder mysteries but not anything factual, or at least purporting to be factual! I'm interested to see what it's like...

I didn't read this as a child, but it was recommended in Lucy Mangan's brilliant 'Bookworm'. My sister sought it out, and found it absolutely charming so bought it for me too. She's right; it's delightful! Full of gleeful wordplay and endearing characters and am exciting, absurd, funny plot. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

My copies of the books for January and February's Classic Crime Club at Bromley House Library have arrived! I'd better get reading...

A strange, poetic tale about loss and grieving. Crow (a spirit, or symbol, or personification of the bird) comes into the lives of a father and sons mourning the sudden death of their wife & mother. Crow is crude, mischievous, caring, awful, and wild but through his voice, as well as the voices of the father and the boys, the experience of grief is exposed and considered. It's raw and accurate and funny and tender and heartbreaking. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

"How many people [...] are ignorant of what they themselves contribute to beauty in their daily lives!"

I love the notion that just by being ourselves and living our lives we're adding to the beauty of the world.