I read seven books in June … and one
journal, and am halfway through two, quite different, very long books of which more anon.
The Year After You by Nina de Pass
Read on Kindle.
A Young Adult novel mostly set in a Swiss
boarding school for girls and boys. For a lifelong Chalet School fan that was a
good place to start … However, this was published in 2019 and the characters
are thoroughly contemporary.
Cara is English-born but following her
mother’s second marriage she’s been living in Californa. After a fatal accident
one New Year’s Eve, Cara, consumed by grief and a guilty secret, is sent to
school in the Swiss Alps. Can she put the past behind her with the help of her
new friends Ren and, especially, Hector?
I found it well written, very moving, with
a great sense of place, and characters to root for. I’ll be interested to see
what this young debut author does next.
Eliza for Common by O. Douglas
Umpteenth comfort read. Never more needed
than now.
Castle McNab: Richard Hannay Returns by Robert J. Harris
The Thirty Nine Steps is one of my favourite books (yet
to be given a really satisfactory rendition in film, in my opinion) and this is
a spin-off.
Set post WWI, Hannay and his comrades come
together to rescue a man who is on a secret visit to Scotland – a man who has recently
been their greatest enemy, none other than Kaiser Wilhelm. Chases up hill and
across moorland ensue and there’s an amusing take on the scene in TTNS when
Hannay had to pretend to be a political candidate.
Great escapism.
Noir from the Bar: 30 Crime and Mystery Shorts by Simon
Bewick et al
These specially written stories have been
donated by the authors (from all over the world, some previously published,
others new) to help raise funds for NHS charities.
Inevitably, some are better than others –
two read more like précis of novels than short stories. I particularly enjoyed The Flight by Olga Wojtas, channeling
the widow of an East End villain in Malaga, and the atmospheric Tiger’s Eye View by Roz Watkins set in
the Himalayas. My favourite was the first one, Night Butterflies by Zoe Sharp, an author I hadn’t heard of before
but who I see has a great-sounding series I must add to my wish-list reading …
Remember
– all profits from the book, available on Kindle and as a paperback, go to NHS
charities.
Death on Coffin Lane by Jo Allen
The third in the very enjoyable DCI
Satterthwaite Mystery Series.
Cody Wilder, a controversial American
academic with a dark past, is in the Lake District to present her latest
findings on William Wordsworth and his sister Dorothy. When the body count
around her mounts up, Jude Satterthwaite and his team, including his lover DS Ashleigh
O’Halloran, try to find out more about Cody whose greatest talent, it seems, is
making enemies. There’s a great juxtaposition between the beauty of the
Lakeland scenery and the dark and twisted minds of those who bring blood and
mayhem to the area. Looking forward to number 4!
In Extremis: The Life of War Correspondent Marie Colvin by Lindsey Hilsum
Read for my book group who were all gripped
by the story of Marie Colvin – this biography reads like a thriller, with a
glamorous, hard-partying main character whose personal life echoes the drama of
her career. Seemingly fearless, Colvin entered the lairs of such figures as
Yasser Arafat and Colonel Gaddafi, able to connect with them in a way her male
colleagues couldn’t. Among other incredible stories, there’s an arduous and
dangerous snowy journey to escape from Chechnya and a less successful escape
attempt in Sri Lanka which ended with her becoming blind in one eye.
Written by a fellow war correspondent, the
book draws on Marie’s own diary and on conversations with her friends and
family who were devastated but perhaps not surprised when she lost her life in
Homs, Syria in 2012.
In the last few years, with leaps in
technology and with social media, there’s been a tendency for news editors not
to send reporters into war zones. Safer for them, of course, and no doubt a
relief for their nearest and dearest but, on the evidence of this book, a big loss
for the rest of us.
Death Comes to Cornwall by Kate Johnson
I do seem to have taken to crime this
month. This is the first in a new series – cosy crime with more than a dash of
romance.
Molly Higgins takes full advantage of the
annual shooting of a TV drama, Dr Wenn
Investigates, in her village to acquire several temporary jobs, as she’s
the breadwinner for her alcoholic mother and her little sister.
The previous year she had a relationship
with the programme’s dashing villain Conor Blackstone that ended amid
misunderstandings. After a fraught start this year, together they try to find out
who’s behind the bludgeoning to death of a member of the film crew.
The second in the series will be on my
Kindle ere long.
The journal I read was the latest edition
of the wonderful Slightly Foxed. As
to the two very long books – I’ll let you know about one when I’ve finished; as
to the other, here’s a clue.