Reading and Watching

I know I have mentioned being appreciative for having access to such a good library in previous posts.  They keep me in entertainment and I don't spend any money.  If a book or movie isn't for me, I just return it.  This week's bounty has been good.

This week I finished Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors. Review HERE.  My husband wanted the latest Godzilla movie and we watched/read that.  It's all subtitled and the special effects were cool.

Into season 5 now of Madam Secretary and will finish that series before the end of January. Alas, I did not get to Moonflower Murders in time but have returned it and placed a new hold.

Today I watched The Quiet Girl, an Irish film based on the book Foster by Claire Keegan.  As I said in the review of the book, the themes of kindness, hopefulness and love bring this short story to life, both on film as well as the book.

The Irish country setting was beautiful and reminded me of places we'd visited many years ago. 

That's it for the week. Hope your week was good.

Loki‘s in there somewhere!

Sharing with:

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

Joy for British Isles Friday

Vicki for Mailbox Monday

Reading and Watching

 

Reading / I have been inside reading quite a bit and finished several books, all of which I enjoyed.  No DNF books so far 😀.

I've joined in for the Nonfiction Reading Challenge hosted by Shelleyrae at Book'd Out and read two memoirs so far.  This week I finished The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins which took us to a remote setting in Scotland.  It had quite an intriguing plot.

From Goodreads: Welcome to Eris: An island with only one house, one inhabitant, one way out. Unreachable from the Scottish mainland for twelve hours each day.

Once home to Vanessa: A famous artist whose notoriously unfaithful husband disappeared twenty years ago.

Now home to Grace: A solitary creature of the tides, content in her own isolation.

But when a shocking discovery is made in an art gallery far away in London, a visitor comes calling.

So Eris Island is not a true island but it is very isolated. With a dangerously thin road connecting Eris to the mainland only a mile in length. It's possible to go walk or drive from the small village during a six hour window.  Once the tide comes in you are stuck.

The story weaves back-and-forth between present day and the past.  There are three main points of view involving current day perspectives and flashbacks to events in the past.  

Vanessa Chapman was a brillant artist who died of cancer, leaving her entire collection of art to The Fairburn Foundation.  This was a surprise as she'd had a huge falling out with Douglas Fairburn, pulling her show out at the last minute and thus, starting a lengthy legal battle. Besides being famous for her artwork she is also associated with the mysterious disappearance of her ex husband Julian Chapman.  He visited her island one day and afterwards, vanished without a trace.

Grace is a pivital character in the novel.  Grace is a doctor and met Vanessa when she struggled into the practice with a broken wrist.  You could say they became friends or you could also see Grace positioning herself into Vanessa's life as friend/caretaker/medical professional.

As more of the character development is revealed you will come to realize Grace had a very lonely life. In one flashback to her college life I felt very sorry for her when she was put in the hospital and no one came to visit.  Her roommates disappeared. Abandonment. But there is more to Grace than meets the eye.

Becker is the third narrator.  He is a curator for the Fairburn Foundation and obessesed with Vanessa's work. He is in an awkward position at the foundation, a down to earth type who wants to do the right thing.  Then he discovers some sordid secrets.

Without spoilers I will say this is a slow burn and the revelations sometimes contradict each other, depending on perspective of the character narrating. Toward the end you see all the pieces fit together.   I was never tempted to bail but I didn't like how it ended. 3.5 stars

Watching / A series new to us is Madam Secretary and we are enjoying it.  Just finished season four and looking forward to the last two seasons.  Please don't give me spoilers!  We tend to lose interest in series after a while but this one has kept our attention.

No books in the mail but a Kindle purchase at good sale price and of course my wonderful public library providing me with loads of book, magazines and DVDs.

I hope your week was a good one. Thoughts out to all those in California who are experiencing devastating fire damage.  Horrible what is on the news.  I am very worried about Jinjer.

Sharing with:

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

Joy for British Isles Friday

Vicki for Mailbox Monday

Olive, Mabel and me by Andrew Cotter & be Ready When Luck Happens by Ina Garten

My first book of the year was Olive, Mabel and Me by Andrew Cotter.  Reading wise this was the perfect start of the year as I like books about dogs.  The adventures Mr. Cotter described with his two labradors, especially the mountain climbing, was so well written.  

During the pandemic when everyone was on lockdown Mr. Cotter, a sports broadcaster, found himself out of work as all events were cancelled.  So he posted a YouTube video of Olive and Mabel.   The first video had many hits but the second one called Game of Bones was an overwhelming success.  I think I read it is still getting views and is over the 2 million mark on hits now.  

 There are so many observations about his time with Olive and Mabel and the quirks which any dog owner/pet parent can relate.  He delivers with humor and an excellent writing. Very down to earth, relatable narrative.

Mr. Cotter lives in Scotland and often takes the dogs on long hikes much to their mutual enjoyment.  There is quite a bit about the mountain climbing and hiking relayed here which I also found interesting.  It was explained in a way anyone could understand.  

There are loads of photos in the book and I sure hope he writes another one. 4.5 stars

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Be Ready When Luck Happens by Ina Garten

I had been hearing good things about Ina Gartens's memoir and was pleased when the library had my copy available.  

If I'd had that childhood and such awful parents I don't think I would have succeeded  in much of anything.  They were demeaning, cruel and honestly should never have had children.  That said, she rose above the negativity despite the lack of support from her parents, obviously succeeding with most ventures she tackled.

The more negative reviews point out what a privileged upbringing she had with well-to-do parents in a Connecticut suburb. Money never being an issue doesn't mean you have a happy childhood nor does it mean you glide through life without strife.

There were many things I never knew about the famous cookbook author and the narrative moves smoothly through childhood to present day.  The fateful day she impulsively made an offer on the food shop Barefoot Contessa was interesting. 

Ina was in a fairly impressive position working on nuclear energy policy at the White House yet walked away to pursue something which made her happy - cooking.  Who would think someone with that gig would abandon it to work long exhausting hours preparing large quantities of baked goods and casseroles in a little shop?  That isn't saying she didn't burn the candle at both ends working for the government.  High stress there and all nighters for sure.

Ina is a type A personality and had the drive to make all of her endeavours succeed.  Cooking, gardening, business ventures.....I got tired just reading about all the work she put in.  Overall I found this to be an interesting memoir.  The parts about her husband were quite interesting to me as well. 4 stars

These book is shared with:

Shelleyrae at Book'd Out for the 2025 Nonfiction Reader Challenge. Category: Memoirs

Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday

A list of books within Crooked Heart and V for Victory by Lissa Evans

Book titles mentioned within a novel:

I have a couple of books which I classify as comfort reads. Despite the fact that I rarely reread books...there are a few. Lissa Evans' novels Crooked Heart and V for Victory are among those and I finished those this week.  

As I have reviewed them before I won't get into that now, however you can click on the titles to see my Goodreads review if interested. 👆

What I thought I'd write about today were the many book titles mentioned in both novels.

Have you ever been reading a book and one of the characters is reading something, causing you to check out that book on Goodreads? Well there are many titles within these two novels.

If you are a fan of British classics or detective novels then you will find quite a few embedded in the storyline.  Some are books Noel read when he was younger as well as the literature and nonfiction he reads for his educational tutoring in the second book.

The time periods are perfect for those who like WW II historical fiction, older mysteries as well fans of George Eliot books :-)  Here are a few I have noted as I read:

The Road to Wigan Pier by George Orwell

Rogue Male by Geoffrey Household 

Ministry of Fear by Graham Greene

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

Middlemarch by George Eliot

 Silas Marner by George Eliot 

Daniel Deronda by George Eliot

The Complete Saki by Saki, an Edwardian author

The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler 

Noel's love of detective stories in Crooked Heart included Dorothy Sayer's series about Lord Peter Wimsey as well as other detective series such as Edward Wallace, Dashiell Hammett, Albert Campion and Eric Ambler.

Evans also includes a few nonfiction titles which were written by air-raid wardens and published during the war which inspired her for one character's storyline:

Raiders overhead: A Diary of the London Blitz by Barbara Nixon

Post D by John Strachey

The Orwell book is on my classics list but Ministry of Fear ought to be added as well.

On a sad note, I no longer have my copy of Crooked Heart as I loaned it out to a former workmate and she has moved away. Ugh.  I checked the copy out of the library for my reread. Wah-wa 😞

Sharing with Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon. and Joy's Book Blog for Britsh Isles Friday.

The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

The Remains of the Day is a story about a seemingly cold unfeeling butler named Stevens and his reminiscing of days past.  It's more than that as you'll realize his memories are not so much flawed but, for him, a realization of what he missed out in his life. 

I know there is a movie based on this book but I have not seen it.  That said, knowing Anthony Hopkins stars as our main character Stevens, I heard his voice and accent throughout the book.

In 1956 Stevens' current employer, Mr. Farraday, insists he take a holiday, giving persmission to use his car while he is on  a trip to the U.S.  While Stevens drives through the English countryside he thinks back to war time when he was employed by Lord Darlington. The language is very formal and you get a clear image of the character displaying the utmost self control, even as he reminisces.  I enjoyed reading about his working relationship with head housekeeper Miss Kenton as he travels toward her home in south England. It's been decades since he'd worked with her but he has fond memories. He is about to be enlightened by what "could have been" when he finally arrives in her village.

If a person is shaped by their upbringing then Stevens is the ultimate example of controlling his emotions and showing zero empathy. Loyalty to the man he served is of the utmost importance, something he learned from his father who was considered one of the best butlers of his day.  Sadly, this transfers to personal relationships as well.  

When his father's health takes a turn for the worse you won't find any warmth between father and son.  I could feel the cold exchange between Stevens and his elderly father regarding the change of duties and thought it very sad. It’s hard enough to let a parent know their health or memory is failing but I’ve had warmer conversations with strangers.  

Dignity is clearly one of the cornerstones of Stevens' profession and his explanation of what distinguishes a butler from a manservant was interesting. 

"It is sometimes said that butlers only truly exist in England.  Other countries, whatever title is actually used, have only manservants.  I tend to believe this is true. Continentals are unable to be butlers because they are a breed incapable of the emotional restraint which only the English race are capable of."

Regret comes with reflection and sadly for Stevens, he makes this realization so very late in life.

"Looking back so much...I should adopt a more postive outlook and try and make the best of what remains of my day. After all, what can we ever gain in forever looking back and blaming ourselves if our lives have not turned out quite as might have wished?"

This is not a fast paced book but one which captures the memories and considerations of an aged man who gave his life entirely to serving his employer. 

 This is the third book I have read by Ishiguro and my first for the Classics Club.

Sharing Joy's Book Blog for Britsh Isles Friday.

Reading and watching

So far this month has been fairly laid back.  We watched season four of Van Der Valk so we are all caught up on that.  Just picked up Madam Secretary series from the library so we'll see if we like it enough continue with six or so seasons. Christmas movies are in the lineup soon.

This week I joined The Classics Club and added a tab at the top of my blog. 👆 I can link each book as I finish and started with The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. As I have been inside quite a bit I've made good progress with this book.  The setting is wartime England.

I also added a tab for apocalyptic/dystopian books with links for the ones I have read and reviewed.  Other titles will be added as I learn of them from Goodreads or suggestions by others.  Please feel free to share some of your favorites if you like that genre.

That's the weekly excitement around here, haha.

Sharing with Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon. and Joy's Book Blog for Britsh Isles Friday.

I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger and I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh

Two books this week.  Let's start with I Cheerfully Refuse as it was the better of the two I read.

Rainy is a musician living with Lark, a women he loved before he saw her face. He would hear her read aloud to others at a library and this introduced him to reading classics. Lark brought the stories to life for him. They have a good life and while money was tight thay made ends meet - he playing his bass guitar in a band and Lark forming a library and book store for those who still care about reading. Apparently in this dystopian time there are those who protest the shop, thinking reading is an evil thing. Geez....a little close to what some folks think today with the book banning. (Scary)

 

There are numerous passages I bookmarked in this dystopian/apocalyptic novel by Leif Enger.  In spite of society collapsing, there were still very good people, just ordinary people who didn't know wealth or privilege, going that extra mile to help others.

The early part sets the scene with Rainy describing a ruined road.  

Driving down the road that was described as level once it is now full of holes, shoulders of the pavement sagging into a ditch. There’s a spot where two flash floods in a month blew out a culvert. Technically, it’s still a state highway , but the state ignores their compliance saying they were going to “allocate funds“ but they never did repair it. 

Here is an example of people helping others when they didn’t have to:

“After more than a year, a pair of loggers, a basement contractor, and a retired mining engineer showed up with their skidders and chainsaws and cement truck and they rebuilt the missing section with pine logs and concrete.”  

A helping hand for those who didn't have the skills.  A small segment of the society who looked out for each other, helped when needed and knew they could count on their neighbors when they needed something.

In the beginning Rainy and Lark took in a boarder named Kellan.  He had his own secrets as he had escaped a “medicine ship."  People willingly signed on to live on the pharmaceutical ship  to be used for drug/medicine experiments.  They were working on a cure for something obscure, never quite sure what it was exactly.  After so much time they were allowed to leave and return to their families. You did what you had to for survival.  Apparently the trials were so bad that some people escaped and this was Kellan's situation.  That and some drugs he absconded with which meant....some one would come looking.

 Kellan warned Rainey about this mythical bad man named Werryck and true to form, Werryck was definitely one bad guy to be avoided. He warned Rainy, “You think he won’t come but he will. You’re big and strong? Doesn’t matter. Listen to me. When you see him standing in your kitchen, you slip out the back. Be quiet, be quick. Don’t hunt for your wallet. Don’t grab a coat. Go out the window if you have to.” 

Werryck did arrive and brought destruction, crushed Rainy's dreams and life, causing our narrator to flee in a ship he and Lark had once sailed.  The story takes us on a voyage across Lake Superior with Rainy doing what he can to survive, helping others even when it puts him in danger, giving hope to the humanity left when they choose to accept it.

The lake itself seemed like a character on it's own with the vivid descriptions of waves, the storms, the unpredictability of the weather and how a man can challenge it and still survive.

I would read more by this author. 4 stars

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This book - I Let You Go - is a hard one to rate.  I have enjoyed previous books by Clare Mackintosh and while this wasn't boring or dull it did deal with the death of child in the beginning. The settings are Bristol England and coastal Wales.  

Jenna is walking five year old Jacob home from school on a rainy evening.  While they are happily chattering away, despite the rain and cold, it seems like an ideal evening is in store for them.  Then he says, "race you home" and pulls away from her hand, running straight into the path of a car.  Every parents nightmare.  This is not a spoiler as it's stated in the book description straight away.

 

Jenna moves away from Bristol to a place she has never been to start over and leave memories behind.  She arrives in a remote town in Wales with zero possessions and rents a cottage well off the beaten track.  Meanwhile the police in Bristol are frantically searching for her as she was the only witness.  There is quite a bit more to the plot and story but suffice it to say, she is hiding a big secret.  It's sort of like Gone Girl where you read the first part of the story then go over the waterfall with all this information falling into place very quickly.  Themes of domestic abuse could be triggers for some readers.  As I said, I have enjoyed her other books but this wasn't my favorite. Rounded to 3 stars.

Sharing with Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon. and Joy's Book Blog for Britsh Isles Friday for Long Island and The Life Impossible.

November Reading Roundup

I can't believe I am getting my November reading round up posted in November! I read four books this month and made plans for some great challenges next year.   Looking forward to more buddy reads, classics and nonfiction....but for now let's get this short post started.

📚📚   Books read  📚

 

Bullfighting by Roddy Doyle

The Woman Behind the Door by Roddy Doyle

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante

The Wedding People by Alison Espach

November book travel took me to Rhode Island, Ireland and Italy.

📚 Currently Reading 📚

That's it for the November round up.   Looking forward to more good reading in December. I'd love to know what books you favored this month and what reading goals you may have for next year.  Hope life is good for you all :-)

Here’s a snap of Loki soaking up the sunshine.

Sharing with Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon. and Joy's Book Blog for Britsh Isles Friday.

Roddy Doyle and Elena Ferrante {Armchair travel to Ireland and Italy}

When it rains I end up inside reading quite a bit.  No complaints about that!  First up is a trip to Ireland with Roddy Doyle's book of short stories titled Bullfighting.

In this collection of short stories the meandering stream of consciousness of an older man dominates the narrative.  I can see things from the female point of view when he wonders at what point in time did his wife move to another room.  When did certain things occur when he was, apparently, not paying attention.

The stories take you into a middle aged man's life in Ireland.

Getting older wasn’t too bad. The baldness suited Martin. Everyone said it. He’d had to change his trouser size from 34 to 36. It was a bit of a shock, but it was kind of nice wearing loose trousers again, hitching them up when he stood up to go to the jacks, or whatever. He was fooling himself; he knew that. But that was the point—he was fooling himself. He’d put on weight but felt a bit thinner.

The story Bullfighting is about four male friends in Spain and their honest conversations.  They are all middle aged and facing the realities that life is half over for them.  Admitting loneliness and being honest...for once.

Not my favorite book by Doyle by a longshot but a nice respite to read something short between anything else I am currently doing.  Themes of aging and loneliness with some humor and a great deal of Irish culture. 

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Next up we visit Naples Italy in the 1950's with My Brillant Friend by Elena Ferrante.  This was an enjoyable buddy read with Susan at The Cue Card.

This book starts off in Turin Italy, present time with Elena getting a frantic phone call from Rino, her best friend Lila's son.  His mother is missing. Lila and Elena had been friends for over 60 years and more than 30 years ago, Lila had confessed to Elena she wanted to disappear one day.  Leave without a trace. Apparently this is what happened.

The book is about Elena's account of friendship with Lila growing up in 1950's poverty stricken Naples. Lila was from a poor family, her father a shoemaker with little money to spare on a girl's eduaction...or anything else.  She was very intelligent and headstrong, teaching herself to read and educate herself  despite being held back by her family and financial standing.  That said, she never let anything dampen her spirit for life and learning.

Elena and Lila crossed paths in school at a young age but it wasn't an immediate or tender friendship. In the era described, their lives were filled with misogeny and violence, something they didn't find appalling as it was predominent in their culture and upbringing.  It was just life.

I think each girl challenged the other to do better.  Possibly from Elena's point of view she was motivated by Lila's  strong will and refusal to conform to the norms of their society.  Lila was intrigued by Elena's stubbornness and her refusal to capitulate to her bullying.  Not many stood up to Lila's strong personality.  That is my opinion on the ongoing relationship.

If you have read the synopsis this won't be a spoiler - it ends with Lila's wedding.  I was half expecting it to end with her appearance in the story, finding out where the 66 year old went and some resolution to her disappearance.  Book 2 will no doubt continue the story and I am looking forward to that eventually.

This would make a good series of books to read in August for the Women in Translation month/project but I can't wait that long to tackle books 2 and 3.

Currently I am working on a list of bookish goals for next year and hope to post about that next week. Happy reading to you all!

Sharing with Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon. and Joy's Book Blog for Britsh Isles Friday for Long Island and The Life Impossible.

September Reading Roundup

Hello October!  Yesterday we drove to a park where Loki likes to walk and saw the parking was roped off to a small area.  The National Guard was set up, available to give people ready made meals and tarps.  It was astonishing to see the number of vehicles coming through to pick something up. What a horrible path of devastation this storm left. I am hoping, as are we all, the rest of the hurricane season is quieter.

We lost water for a bit and are still using bottled water for cooking, brushing our teeth, etc.  Water is back and we have a boil notice but that's just a minor inconvenience.

September reading was quite varied in location and genres. I  did not have a DNF this time :-)  Thanks to hurricane Helene I finished two books in record time.  This knocks out four books I had listed for my fall reading.

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Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy

The Life Impossible by Matt Haig

The Orchard by Peter Heller

Burn by Peter Heller

Long Island by Colm Toibin

Trust by Hernan Diaz

September book travel took me to Vermont, Maine, New York, Long Island, Ireland, England and Ibiza.

 That's it for the September round up.   Looking forward to more good reading in October. I'd love to know what books you favored this month.  Hope life is good for you all :-)

Sharing with Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon. and Joy's Book Blog for Britsh Isles Friday for Long Island and The Life Impossible.

Working on Trust and Sipsworth from my reading list{and preparing for hurricane Helene}

Earlier this month we had my husband's birthday and some surprisingly nice weather.  He has been able to get out with his solar telescope in the daytime and a few evening sessions with his other scope.  Perfect.  

Now we are prepping for Hurricane Helene.  Getting the Kindle, phones, etc all charged for the loss of electricty. 

My week has been a dermatologist appointment, biopsy, bread making and a slow cooker recipe my son sent. The excitement never ends :-)

While looking at a news story on my phone I saw there was an Instagram post embedded and I couldn't access it.  So I dusted off my old Instagram account to have a look.  Then I tried to follow a few book blogs and authors.  Apparently you have to get permission now even if the accounts are public. 

Currently reading Trust and while very well written it's more narrative than dialogue. Thus I took a short break to read Sipsworth.  I finished this in a day and it's a sweet story.  Helen Cartwright is in her eighties and returned to England to live out her last years quietly and alone.

She had a full life in Australia with her husband and son but they are gone now.  She isn't ill but she knows at her age the end is coming.  Without friends or family she decides to settle in the English neighborhood where she grew up over 60 years ago.  Helen finds that life still has a few surprises for her.

Simon Van Booy is an author new to me. He grew up in rural Wales and currently lives in New York, writing and volunteering as an E.M.T.  I will seek out more of his work.

Once I finish Trust I am starting Long Island by Colm Tóibín.

All three of these books are on my fall reading list.  Has anyone else read books by Simon Van Booy and if so, recommendations?  I hope you have nice weather and good reading.

 Sharing with:

Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday. and Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon.

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Fall reading and list making

First off, a shout out to ShelleyRae at Book'd Out.  I haven't seen you post in a while, you've been in my thoughts and I miss you. 

Let's talk fall reading.  Or Spring reading if you are in the southern hemisphere :-)

I enjoy making lists as it keeps me focused.  Sometimes I deviate but overall, it's helpful. Here's what I have so far but some could get swapped out depending on interest.

Trust by Herman Diaz (currently reading)

Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy (currently reading) #BriFri

Long Island by Colm Toibin  #BriFri

The Life Impossible by Matt Haig #BriFri

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante  (a buddy read with Susan at The Cue Card)

I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger 

The Woman Behind the Door by Roddy Doyle #BriFri

This is a list in progress so I welcome suggestions and comments on any of these you have enjoyed.  Four of my books will be linked with Joy's British Isles Friday.  Love my U.K. authors :-)

 Sharing with:

Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday. and Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon.

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Peter Heller and Nigel Slater

Last week's post inspired me to make a new reading list for fall.  More on that later as I round it out.

Here is my update of Nigel Slater's The Kitchen Diaries.  Funny I started up with this again in the middle of the year. 

I finished reading the diary entries for August and decided to make a white bean soup. Nigel has an entry with photo of a white bean salad sitting on greens with lots of garlic.  No matter that it's quite hot where I am, I have always liked soup so I thought I'd adapt the ingredients.  Today it's rainy so this worked out well.

I used great northern beans, garlic, onion, spinach and oregano. Loved it and everything was in the pantry and fortuitously a bag of baby spinach in the fridge. Now I am reading his September entries.  It's getting cool in his London garden and I'll take some of that weather here please.

Reading: This week I read Burn by Peter Heller.

Jess and Storey grew up together with Jess spending more time at Storey's home than his own.  They are more brothers than friends, going off on hunting and fishing trips several times a year.  The beginning of this plot has them coming off a two week moose hunt in Maine, far out in the wilderness with no knowledge an uprising has taken place.

The first town they come to is burned to the ground, houses smoking, bridges blown up and a few bodies strewn in the streets as they were shot down trying to escape something. Boats in the harbor remained untouched so they cautiously look for supplies in the boats.  As they move on, carefully sticking to the woods and staying off the road, they search for a cell signal and news of what could have happened.  Eventually from their hidden spot in the wood line on a hill, they see a woman in a small boat, obviously rowing as fast as she can when a black helicopter appears and cuts her down.  What is going on?

This is a dystopian novel yet a plot involving a succesionist movement that could have been all too real during the trump presidency. It plays out slowly and in my opinion didn't have an end to give you resolution.  The excellent author that he is, perhaps he left it to us as readers to figure out the many possible outcomes.  I didn't give away the story here and there are some surprises in store.  The flashbacks gave us Jess and Storey's background, lots of ruminating on Jess's part about why his marriage failed and unnecessary memories about a situation involving Storey's mother.  That last part added nothing to the development of the story in my opinion. Rounded up to 4 stars.

Finally, Loki using his stuffed tiger as a makeshift pillow.

Sharing with:

Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday. and Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon.

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The Kitchen Diaries by Nigel Slater

In the past I liked perusing  The Kitchen Diaries by Nigel Slater .  It's been a while since I picked it up to read about a month in his life.  His thoughts on the London weather, his garden, the informal get-togethers he hosts and of course - recipes. One thing I love about this book is the diary format.  

One year I had planned to read through, month by month, and perhaps try a recipe or two.

It didn't pan out for as my proposed annual project. Alas.

So here I am, picking it up again as I am reading Claire Messud's tome This Strange Eventful History.  I needed something completely different to read at the same time, something without plot so I wouldn't be juggling two different stories/character sets.

This book has gorgeous photos and if you like a diary format with a foodie emphasis, you'd enjoy this book.  I’ve started reading July for now :-)

Sharing with Joy for British Isles Friday.

Just another hot Friday....

Loki resting with his stick. His X is quite prominent today.

Comment field update! First off, some comments you've left me have gone to Spam and so now I check spam/junk folder everytime I log on.  Apologies. That's now handled . ✅

Also I found a way to leave comments on WP blogs, much to my delight :-)  I just use my old AOL email address as it's not ever been associated with WP. Problem solved. ✔

Books

Manod Llan lives with her father and young sister on a remote Welsh island. She is a curious young woman and wants more than her sheltered existence provides.  What she wants she does not know, she just knows there has to be more to life.  The dwindling population make a living fishing, living a very simple life until a whale washes up ashore.

 When English ethnographers (I had to look that up) arrive on the island to study the culture and the basic lives of the population, Manod's world is opened up and she is excited.  There is much Welsh language in the narrative but the translation is there as you read.  Manod is hired to make translations from Welsh to English to the reseachers.

Unfortunately the English researchers are scoundrals, in my opinion, and the book took a turn I did not expect.  I suppose if you are looking for imagery the dead whale would represent the dying community on the island. This is a short book and many of the "chapters" are half a page.

Forgotten on Sunday 

I've just started the latest Valérie Perrin book, the third I will have read, also translated by Hildegarde Serle.  That's my book wrap up for the week.  Hope you are reading some good books and having fun :-)

Sharing with:

Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday. and Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon.

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Dear Edward and Major Pettigrew

What's new here is...not much.  Our quest to find a good pizza to bring home for takeaway night is proving fruitless. There is one more place to try and then...guess I will make it here at home. My 68th birthday was good and uneventful - as I like it. The pizza wasn't great but the movie Chef was fabulous.  Great foodie movie.

North Florida heat has me settled in most afternoons so I am getting reading done.   I have read two of the books on my summer reading list.  Off to a good start :-)

I loved Napolitano's book Hello Beautiful and she does not disappoint with this novel. Wonderful writing. It was hard for me to put this down and I liked how she let us get into Edward's thought process while he responded to people about how he was doing.

How does one express their feelings and thoughts to someone who has zero point of reference? While everyone wanted to help Edward there are some things in life that you just can't "fix".

This book was inspired and loosely based on a Afriqiyah Airlines flight which crashed and had one survivor -a nine year old boy. I wonder what that boy is doing now? The fictional boy Edward was the only survivor of a crash taking the lives of 191 people. This is a study of how he tries to handle grief, survivor's guilt and a completely upturned life.

I know it sounds like it would be depressing but it's not. You get some back story on other passengers and crew interspersed in this book. It was interesting.

What a delightful book. Reading this I found Major Pettigrew to be one of my all time favorite characters and I would love to be his friend.  The setting is a small English village where widower Ernest Pettigrew develops a charming friendship with Mrs. Ali, owner of the Pakistani run grocery store.

Prejudices and gossip run deep with some of the characters ( I didn't care for them as much) but the overall interactions are marvelous. There is quite a bit of humor and an edgy situation near the end which shows a clash of cultures. It has a good ending and if a sequel was written I would most certainly read it.

So that's two for two and I haven't had a DNF from my list so far.  Would love to know what you are reading and any challenge plans you may have.

Sharing with:

Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday. and Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon.

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The Rachel Incident by Caroline O'Donoghue

Twenty something Rachel Murray is finishing up college in Cork Ireland, working at a bookstore, trying to make ends meet due to the financial crisis in Ireland.  She meets James Devlin working at the store and after a rocky start they become best friends and end up living together.

This story is written by Rachel in retrospect when she is married, pregnant and settled in London nearly a decade later.  Her life is vastly different from 20 year old Rachel.  As she looks back, you'll read the almost complicated story of how something so simple can spiral out of control.

This could be labeled as a coming-of-age story but it's more than that.  No, Rachel and Devlin do not fall in love. They love each other and always have the others back, are protective, but zero love interest as Rachel is heterosexual and James is gay.

Major characters in this book are Rachel's English professor Fred Byrne and Byrne's wife Deenie, his editor. Another is one of my favorites, James Carey, who is from Derry and drives Rachel crazy.  Every one of the relationships slowly coils and weaves into subplots where, quite deftly, it all comes together in the end.

The title - The Rachel Incident - isn't mentioned until the 98% mark on my Kindle.  Usually a title is woven in earlier in a book.  When I started this I thought it would be about college aged people drinking, getting high, nothing complicated but it develops quickly and I very much enjoyed it.

Some triggers (for some people) might be abortion issues and anti gay sentiment.  I hope the author writes more.

Sharing with  Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday

The Last Girl to Die by Helen Fields

My introduction to Helen Fields' books were through the D.I. Callanach series and I was instantly hooked.  If you like police procedurals and mysteries which are gritty and bold, this is your author.

The Last Girl to Die is a stand alone novel with charcaters you'd not be familar with if you were a fan of the aforementioned series. This one is a page turner. 

The setting is Mull, a small island off the coast of Scotland. Our main character is Sadie Levesque, a Canadian private investigator hired by the Clark family to find their missing daughter. The Clarks are from California and when 17 year old Adriana suddenly disappears, they seek help from outside the community.  The local townspeople are close knit and outsiders aren't welcomed with open arms. The police chief isn't helpful and tells the parents she's probably off partying in Glasgow.

Sadie doggedly pursues her investigation despite the hostile environment and lack of cooperation / info sharing from the police. Secrets are uncovered about the Clark family and a few locals,  violence is threatened and carried out and the ending - just wow. I was so astounded how this ended. I went back a chapter to reread it. If Fields comes out with any new books I will purchase them.  

Publication date September 1, 2022 by Avon Books U.K.  Genre: General Fiction Adult.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced reader's copy of this book.  I was not compensated for the review, all opinions are mine.

Sharing with Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday.

I, Mona Lisa by Natasha Solomons

I wasn't sure what to expect from this novel about Mona Lisa but I liked the description so I bought it on a sale from Amazon. 

The odd parts, for me, was how Lisa spoke of being in love with Leonardo.  A fantasy tale of how the centuries passed and what the painting experiences. She tells how she was brought to life, how she was kidnapped, the lonely existance of sitting in her glassed prison in the Louvre as people wander by and only comment how small the painting is in real life.

 Listen to my history. My adventures are worth hearing. I have lived many lifetimes and been loved by emperors, kings and thieves. I have survived kidnap and assault. Revolution and two world wars. But this is also a love story. And the story of what we will do for those we love. (From Goodreads)

Overall I enjoyed the novel.  If you like historical fiction and reading about the Renaissance era you may well enjoy this book.  Natasha Solomons is a British author and as I liked her style, I will add her other books to my to-read list.  The House at Tyneford is set in England, another historical fiction, and I'd like to read that soon.

Sharing with Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday and Marg at The Intrepid Reader for the Historical Fiction Readng Challenge.