The Innocent by Harlan Coben (2005). One night in college, Matt Hunter innocently tried to break up a fight and ended up in prison for murder. Now he has rebuilt his life and married; he and Olivia are expecting a child when a phone call threatens to destroy his life again. I picked this up from my actual TBR pile and enjoyed it – could not guess where it was going but was rooting for Matt. I just learned there is a new Netflix miniseries based on the book.
Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie (1934)(reread). When an American is murdered on the famous Orient Express, which is cut off by snow from law enforcement, it is up to Hercule Poirot to investigate all the passengers and find the killer. My review.
The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth (2023)(audio). After Pippa and Gabe bought their dream house in an Australia beach town, they learned the nearby cliff was a popular place for suicides. Now Pippa is worried that Gabe knew the most recent victim but failed to mention it to the police. My review.
If She Only Knew by Lisa Jackson (2000). This was a dreadful impersonation story involving amnesia, infidelity, psychotic spouses, and murder. Marla wakes up in the hospital with amnesia after a terrible car crash. She apparently has a husband and a daughter. And if it wasn’t an accident, why would someone target her? It would be a waste of your time to wonder. I brought this to read on a recent plane trip and couldn’t even give it away to anyone at my conference.
An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena (2023)(audio). A luxurious inn in upstate NY is the perfect place for a special weekend – until an ice storm cuts them off from civilization and the guests start dying. This was my second book by Lapena and it made my commute go quickly. Query: if most of the characters are unlikable, does one mind if they get murdered?
Just Another Missing Person by Gillian McAllister (2023)(audio). DCI Julia Day is investigating another missing person case when a stranger carjacks her and threatens Julia’s daughter. I really enjoyed Julia and her family as well as the twists and turns of this book. My review.
Fiction and Historical Fiction
Tea is So Intoxicating by Mary Essex (1950). Seeking an occupation after WWII, David decides to open a tea room without experience or capital, infuriating wife, friends, and everyone else around him in this amusing reprint from the British Library Women Writers series. My review.
Bel Lamington (1961)(reread) and Fletchers End (1962) by D.E. Stevenson. Bel was lonely in London but loved her job as a secretary in an import/export firm. Unfairly fired, she retreats to Scotland to ponder her next move and finds she has more friends than she realized. In the second book, she is married and seeking her dream home. My reviews.
Romance
Hello Stranger by Katherine Center (2023). When Sadie loses her ability to discern faces, she fears her artistic career is over. She also has financial, housing, and family crises to deal with, as well as an unexpected romance. I didn’t like this as much as some of Center’s earlier books and Sadie’s horrible family made me sad.
Love Hacked by Penny Reid (2014). This is the fourth and most peculiar of the books I have read by this author. The heroine is a psychotherapist who gets involved with the waiter always observing her first dates at the restaurant she frequents. He is a youthful computer hacker being investigated by the NSA – the reasons were hard to grasp but their romance progresses anyway. An editor might have helped.
Juvenile and YA
Hearts Made for Breaking by Jen Klein (2019). High school senior Lark is attractive but wants no complications in her life so breaks up with any guy before she gets attached. When her friends dare her to stay in a relationship long enough for Lark — or the boy — to fall in love, she accepts but fails to realize someone is bound to get hurt. I liked this but preferred her earlier book, Shuffle, Repeat.
Blackthorn Winter by Kathryn Reiss (2006). In this YA mystery, Juliana has moved to northern England with her mother and twin siblings. When the friend who arranged their visit is murdered, Juliana starts asking questions, uncovering clues that relate to her own mysterious past.
The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass (2023). When a mysterious little free library (guarded by a large orange cat) appears overnight, eleven-year-old Evan plucks two weathered books from its shelves, never suspecting that his life is about to change. My review.
5 comments:
You made me laugh with not being able to give away the Lisa Jackson book.
Did your book group like Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow? I remember you liking it a lot, so must pop that into my 2024 Kindle folder.
I'm doing a few WW2 reads this month. Just finished Murder While You Work by Susan Scarlett, my first by her, 'loved' it. Now starting on a Maisie Dobbs, Journey to Munich... expecting to like that too to be honest but we'll see.
The two books by D. E. Stevenson sound good. I don't think I have read anything by her but I do have copies in ebook format of some of the Mrs. Tim books.
I want to read more books in Martin Edwards DCI Hannah Scarlett series. I also want to read books in his other two series. I don't know where I am going to fit them in, though. Too many books.
I definitely want to start reading that Martin Edwards series. I also wanted to reread The Moonspinners for the 1962 Club but can't find my copy. I might have to buy another one. I feel I should read Witch of the Glens
Cath, we liked Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow but it was so long that some didn't finish. It didn't elicit as much discussion as I expected, given it was set at the university most of us attended and had extremely riveting characters; however, those who had finished really seemed to have enjoyed it. For this month, I chose Our Town by Thornton Wilder, a play that is part of the plot of Tom Lake by Ann Patchett. I figured we would read Tom Lake sooner or later so we should know the play first.
Tracy, I think you would enjoy Mrs. Tim but I know how easy it is to forget ebooks that are "hidden away" on an ereader. When I get one from the library, it occasionally expires before I remember I have it, which makes me feel bad because the library often has a limited number of borrows.
Tracy and Katrina, the Martin Edwards' Lake District series is very atmospheric and I am really enjoying it. I tried his more current series but had a hard time getting into Gallows Court. I will try it again later because I own two of the later books in the series. He is certainly prolific!
I really like The Moonspinners but the other reason I did not review it during the 1962 Club is that the woman who did (whose reviews I like) did not care for it. Her concerns were valid (sexism, too much scenery) but do not stop me from enjoying it. Still, I decided to think about it before I wrote.
I think I probably should get to the Tomorrow Tomorrow book -- but I still havent yet. You had a great reading month. Lots of books and you have me a bit interested in the Sally Hepworth novel set in Australia. Sounds good on audio. I have read one of her novels called The Mother In Law .... which was also pretty good on audio. Cheers.
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