February 2025 Reading

Although February is a short month, there were some outstanding reads, especially The King’s Messenger, Slow Bomb at Dimperley, and The Spy Coast - links to those reviews are below.

Historical Fiction

Slow Bomb at Dimperley by Lissa Evans (2024). A soldier returning to his ancestral home after WWII finds new responsibilities and little in the way of practical help from his family as he copes with death duties and ennui in this amusing story. My review.

The King's Messenger by Susanna Kearsley (2024). Andrew Logan is James I’s official King’s Messenger, tasked with confidential communications and occasional courier service. When he is sent to Scotland with a scribe, the man’s lovely daughter insists on coming to assist her father, with predictable but enjoyable results. My review.

Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall (2022); narrator, Sarah Borges (audio). When Angela Creighton finds an unopened letter at the antique store where she works, she learns about the history of unplanned pregnancy and abortion in 20th century Canada as it affected generations of women. This is not what I was expecting when I began the book but it was interesting, although very sad.

Absolution by Alice McDermott (2023). A young Catholic woman who accompanied her engineer husband to Vietnam in the early 60s looks back at her friendship with the charismatic Charlene, who has a variety of charitable activities to benefit the Vietnamese and enlists Tricia Kelly in them. I enjoyed this as a contrast to The Women, set just a few years later, but my book group found Tricia too passive (which I think was the author’s point about many Americans in Vietnam) and the story somewhat disjointed.

Hardacre's Luck by C.L. Skelton (1984). Sam Hardacre, named for his great-grandfather, the fish guttie who made his fortune, has struggled to find his place in the world after serving in WWII. By chance, he finds his niche, building a marine salvage business which is dangerous but fulfils a need for danger. I liked Sam but preferred the first book, Hardacre.

A Lady's Guide to London by Faye Delacour (2025). A lady of gentle birth is - improbably - a partner in a casino for women in this improbable historical romance. When she asks Lord Ashton to include her gaming hell in his London guide, he refuses, so she decides to write her own book, just for ladies, but enlists his assistance with predictable, if not very interesting, results.

Fiction

Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson (1934)(reread). Barbara Buncle wrote a novel under a pseudonym based on her quiet village and neighbors, not expecting it to become a bestseller. But once everyone in Silverstream starts recognizing themselves, they are furious and decide to discover and expose the author. Can Barbara preserve her comfort and reputation? My review.

Mystery/Suspense

An Evil Heart by Linda Castillo (2023); narrator, Kathleen McInerney (audio). We are up to book 15 in this series about Chief of Police, Kate Burkholder, in the small town of Painters Mill. She is finally getting married to her long-term boyfriend, John Tomasetti, who works for the Ohio Bureau of Investigation but, of course, her plans are interrupted by the discovery of an Amish man who has been violently killed with a crossbow and abandoned on a dirt road. I like this series but two things really bothered me about this book: 1) Kate wanders into a situation with the killer without backup - not for the first time; 2) the wedding takes place in a location with bad memories for Kate, so I am skeptical she would be on board with this. I don’t have time to go back to reread the first book but it annoyed me.

I Dreamed of Falling by Julia Dahl (2024). When Ashley dies unexpectedly, everyone assumes it was some kind of overdose. Her son, Mason, and boyfriend, Roman Grady, are devastated but when Roman, a newspaper reporter, starts asking questions, he learns that Ashley had many secrets, including one that led to her murder. This was a very depressing book about drug use, infidelity, and blackmail, and the crude language made it even less appealing.

The Comforts of Home by Susan Hill (2018). In this ninth book about Inspector Simon Serrailler and his family, set in the fictional cathedral town of Lafferton, he is recovering from physical and mental injuries from an undercover op gone wrong. His sister Kat has married Simon’s boss (who was a comfort to her when Simon was injured) and has been invited to join a concierge medical practice. Simon has two mysteries to solve - one on the island in the Outer Hebrides where he was recuperating and a cold case at home. I’m afraid there are only two books left in this series!

The Art of Murder by Fiona Walker (2024); narrator, Christine Mackie (audio) Juno Mulligan is returning to the small village of Inkbury in England after years of living in Brooklyn, partly to be near her adult son and partly to protect her elderly mother from marrying a man whose three wives have died mysteriously. Her old friend Phoebe Fredericks is down on her luck, living in the kitchen of a nearby estate, writing crime fiction. When Juno and Phoebe come across the dead body of a local antique dealer, they have a real mystery to investigate. I think this is Walker’s first mystery but I have read a lot of her fiction. Her style is breezy and amusing, if not as humorous as she intends.

Not a Creature Was Stirring by Jane Haddam (1993) (reread). Retired FBI agent Gregor Demarkian has not been himself since his wife died. When he is summoned to the Christmas Eve feast of a millionaire and his squabbling children, it turns out to be an invitation to a murder scene. I read this book when it first came out but somehow it did not appeal to me then or now.

The Spy Coast by Tess Gerritsen (2023); narrators, Hillary Huber, Brittany Pressley (audio).  Former spy Maggie Bird retired to Maine to forget the painful past. But when a stranger is murdered and left in her driveway, she knows the death is related to a mission that went wrong and ruined her life. I really enjoyed this book and am eager to read the sequel, coming later this month. My review.

The Mirror by Nora Roberts (2024). Second in the Lost Bride trilogy, this follows Sonya MacTavish, who inherited a huge Victorian mansion on the coast of Maine and is coping with its generations of ghosts, one of which is malevolent. I liked the concept but I don’t think she should have stretched it out over three books as the ghosts’ antics are a bit too slapstick to be appealing. My favorite part of this book was Sonya going up against her evil ex for an advertising campaign.

Children's

The Denehurst Secret Service by Gwendoline Courtney (1940). When Elaine and Moira are sent to boarding school in Cornwall to be safe from WWII London, their cousin suggests they can help him by looking for a German spy who might be signaling from Denehurst.  My review.

Authors Read for the First Time

Julia Dahl, Faye Delacour, Heather Marshall - no great discoveries this month.