Six Degrees of Separation - from Rapture to My Life in France

It’s time for #6degrees, inspired by Kate at Books Are My Favourite and Best. We all start at the same place as other readers, add six books, and see where it ends up. This month’s starting point is Rapture by Emily Maguire.

My December 2024 Reading

Somehow in a busy December, I read 12 adult books and four children’s or YA books (two of which were rereads), plus listened to three audio books (all crime fiction) driving back and forth to various places.  A few of these were intended as Christmas presents so I was trying to vet them first!  Overall, it was an outstanding reading year (see my Best of 2024 list).

Mastering the Art of French Murder by Colleen Cambridge

It is quite trendy to write mysteries around famous, real-life characters and I tend to stay far away from these undertakings, as I usually find them unconvincing, anachronistic, or both. However, my friends at Publishers Weekly raved about this new series which features Midwesterner Tabitha Knight, who is making a protracted visit to her grandfather in Paris after WWII and meets aspiring chef Julia Child at the local market. 

What to Read - Fall 2024

I started thinking about Fall 2024 books today and there are quite a few that sound appealing:

Mystery/Suspense

Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson (September). I am a big fan of Yorkshire-based PI Brodie. In this sixth book, Jackson is pursuing some mysterious art thefts when he gets stranded in a snowstorm with a vicar, a soldier, and a dowager at a hotel hosting Murder Mystery weekends.  You know such weekends are an invitation to commit actual murder!

The Secret Stealers by Jane Healey - Review

In this historical novel set during World War II in the United States, England, and France, a lovely young widow from Boston is determined to show she can contribute meaningfully to war effort, using her language skills and experience living in Paris.

Since Anna’s doctor husband died near Pearl Harbor, she has taught French in Washington, DC and resisted her family’s efforts to get her back to Boston.