#coffeeandabook

When Jeff Berman's on-again off-again boyfriend is killed in a traffic accident, Jeff finds out that almost everything he thought he knew about Pascal was a lie, right down to his name - he was born John Church. At the funeral John's mother admits she is afraid that his death was actually suicide, and asks Jeff to look into it. ⬇

#coffeeandabook

#whereareyoumonday
@Cupcake12

Always helpful when the book has a map.
We are starting on the Isle of Man

Bjarni is sent into exile for 5 years and spends the time working as a mercenary in the Irish Sea and Scotland.

This was the author's last book, left unfinished at the time of her death, but unfinished in the sense of unpolished rather than incomplete. It does show in that I found it didn't hold my interest as much as her Roman novels. The world building and insight into Viking life and customs was good, but the story itself was rather meh.

HALFWAY UP THE Hearth Hall the man and the boy faced each other.

@ShyBookOwl
#FirstLineFridays

#BookedInTime
@Cuilin @Dabbe

I re-read 2 novels from this omnibus edition:

#coffeeandabook

Taken by Col. Pride to be introduced to a neighbour, Appleby finds his would-be host has been murdered.

Classic country-house murder mystery right up to the final drawing-room scene with the assembled suspects when the murderer is revealed. The humour here arises from Appleby's (and the author's) use of language rather than from the characters. Enjoyable but not as laugh-out-loud funny as the previous two books I read.

Priscilla Pringle, the well-known writer of detective stories, is offered 500 pounds by a stranger on a train to collaborate on the plot for a novel. But could the stranger be intending an actual murder rather than a fictional one? Fortunately, Miss Pringle is on her way to a talk for crime writers by Sir John Appleby.

I giggled my way through this one. Priscilla Pringle is the funniest detective writer since Ariadne Oliver.

After his car breaks down at night in the middle of nowhere, Appleby stumbles across a large house with all its lights blazing and doors open, but apparently completely deserted. What is going on?

Peak Innes with dotty but cultured members of the landed gentry making matters more and more confusing. Hilarious, and a good mystery as well.

The sudden immobilizing of his car hadn't much discomposed John Appleby, but the subsequent failure of his electric torch was another matter.

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

Howie is sent a map of his town which gives the true names of various locations. If he knocks on a portal and says the true name aloud he will be instantly transported to the location. Mild shenanigans ensue.

I was a bit surprised because I'd read some of the author's adult fiction and didn't realise he also wrote for children. The book was OK but various plot lines were not followed up and then the book just stopped. A bit of a disappointment.

#coffeeandabook

Before I received the “Secret Guide to North Mellwood“ in the mail and met my unborn little sister, my life was pretty normal.

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

Lots of good stuff in here but it can be repetitive and it does beat you over the head a bit with statistics and lists of names of people and places. And, oh dear, the misprints. When the maps at the beginning of the book are paired with the wrong captions you know you're in trouble. But I'm still glad I read it because when it decides to be interesting and informative it really is.

#sunshinewellness

#WhereAreYouMonday
@Cupcake12

#SeptemberReadingPlans

On a five-year voyage to colonise a planet orbiting Beta Virginis, the Leonora Christine meets with an accident in space and is unable to decelerate.

This was one of my favourite SF novels in my teens and twenties, when I thought I more or less understood the science as presented. This time I consciously just accepted it. Still a great story, though.

#coffeeandabook

A biography of the historian Steven Runciman. I found it rather heavy going during his childhood, only picking up once people I'd heard of before were introduced. But then it became an absolutely fascinating look at intellectual and celeb life from the 1920s onward.

@ShyBookOwl
#FirstLineFridays

#coffeeandabook

A collection of poems which was first published in 1798. Some of the poems were easy to follow, others more difficult, but in either case, I can't see what makes them so well thought of. Narrowly avoiding a Pan.

A translation of an 18th century Chinese novel about a 7th century judge-detective. He was a real person, but as far as we know the cases presented here are fictitious.

Historical mysteries are one of my favourite genres, so I was naturally intrigued by the idea of a historical mystery written 200-odd years ago in China, long before the genre existed in the West. ⬇ ⬇

#coffeeandabook

The vill of Sticklepath holds many dark secrets and when the skeleton of a young girl is found and rumours of cannibalism abound, Sir Baldwin and friends come to investigate.

The author is very good at invoking an atmosphere but be warned, it's a very depressing one.

#coffeeandabook

Angel travels down to London to stay for a week with her online friend Juliet, the climax of the trip being to see their favourite boy band, The Ark, perform.

Told alternatively from the viewpoints of Angel and Jimmy, The Ark's lead singer, this was a quick read exploring the nature of fandoms and fanfics and the pressures on their recipients of such adoration.

@PuddleJumper
#queerBC

#sunshinewellness

#queerbc
@PuddleJumper

Simon Puttock organises a tournament for Lord Hugh, only to find his efforts come to nothing when bodies turn up and he is cast as main suspect.

Not 1 of the author's best. I kept getting some of the potential suspects muddled and realised who the murderer actually was pretty early on. Also 2 of the victims (out of 5) were a gay couple, IIRC the 1st gay characters in this series, but our sympathies were obviously meant to lie with the murderer.

#coffeeandabook

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

Does what it says on the tin, taking us from 1917 to 1928, although the author did sometimes overwhelm me with statistics.

#teaandabook

Classic SF novel about an ice age planet where the inhabitants are neither male nor female except at certain points in their reproductive cycle when they may become either.

I first read this around 1980 and found it enthralling, loving the exploration of the ideas. I then read it again 20-odd years ago when I found the journey across the icecap tedious. This time it was more enjoyable but it didn't have the wow factor from when I first read it.

#coffeeandabook
#ClassicLSFBC
@RamsFan1963

#whereareyoumonday

Hard-boiled story of two cops the chief is trying to get rid of being assigned to a cold-case of gay men being beaten up outside gay clubs in Philadelphia.

It was OK. I got tired of all the unelaborated hints about the “Incident“ which caused one of the cops to become a pariah at the station. The book was very obviously a prequel showing how the two main characters left the police to become PIs. I might continue one day but not immediately.

Morton Farrier is hired to find out what happened to a dying man's great-aunt, who disappeared in 1911 only to reappear briefly at his grandmother's funeral in 1962.

I worked out the basics of what had happened in 1911 quite early on but the details of the present-day coverup were beyond my little grey cells. The side characters I enjoyed in the first story were offstage for this installment. The next in the series is going on my wishlist.

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

A client engages Morton Farrier's services in the morning but is dead by nightfall. The client's ex agrees to continue on behalf of their son. But how did the deceased come up with the enormous fee, way beyond any amount Morton could have reasonably expected?

It didn't really pull me in so it took a while to finish this one. But the premise was interesting enough to want to make me want to read on, more for the side characters than the main duo.

#whereareyoumonday

(Map from author's website)

Modern re-telling of “The Merchant of Venice“ transposed to Cheshire explores antisemitism but I was never really sure whether Shylock was really there or just a mental construct of Simon Strulovitch's.

#AugustReadingPlans

Honourable mention: The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection

Steve Levitan finds problems brewing at work when booty from a museum robbery is found during a demonstration of sniffer dogs' capabilities and at home when the complex's HOA has to deal with encroaching tree roots.

Another enjoyable romp with Steve and Rochester. The murder doesn't happen until almost 3/4 of the way through, so very cozy.

In the lift down to the ground floor a boy intent on revenge for the death of his older brother meets the ghosts of figures from his past and explores the chain of violence that led him to this point.

Bleak.