The Chilbury Ladies' Choir by Jennifer Ryan

 

Let me start by saying I loved this book. Couldn’t put it down and now I am aching for more from this author.

We start with a notice pinned to Village Hall noticeboard:

As all our male voices have gone to war, the village choir is to close following Cmdr. Edmund Winthrop’s funeral next Tuesday.

The Vicar

This is an era where women didn’t usually speak up for themselves but there were a few strong female voices in this village. Why not continue and have a ladies choir? It would be a morale booster in such dismal times. Scandalous!   These  stories focus on the resourcefulness of women during very difficult times. It’s not solely about the choir so if that sounds like a snooze – think again.

There is quite a cast of characters in this book. The stories are told through diary entries from several points of view as well as letters penned to friends and loved ones.  As you read bits and pieces the story lines dovetail into a fairly satisfying conclusion – tales of affairs, deception, blackmail, love, bravery and great sadness. If your reading tastes include stories set in the WW II era in England and you like a journal and letter writing format – you will LOVE this book.

You’ll get to know so many personalities from the village in the early days of WW II.

There are the Winthrops, a high society family with an overbearing father called the Brigadier. He bullies everyone and has secrets which could land him in jail. His daughters, Kitty and Venetia, tell the stories of the village, the war effort, and the forming of the Ladies Choir.

From Kitty Winthrop’s Diary
“ They announced on the wireless that keeping a diary in these difficult times is excellent for stamina, so I’ve decided to write down all my thoughts and dreams in my old school notebook…..”

Besides Kitty’s diary entries you have the point of view of Mrs. Tilling, a nurse, and 10 year old Czech evacutee Silvie. Between the diary entries and the interspersed letters from Venetia Winthrop to her friend Angela Quail living in London and letters from Miss Paltry to her sister, you will enjoy several interwoven stories and slowly piece it all together.

I became a fan of Mrs. Tilling and loathed Miss Paltry.  Now I am wondering when the author will produce another novel because I am anxious to read more.

As I like maps, a bonus was the legend and map in the beginning so you can follow the characters around.

More about the author:   Jennifer Ryan was born in Kent, England and now lives in Washington, D.C., with her husband and children.

The House We Grew Up In by Lisa Jewell

  

This is the fourth novel by Lisa Jewell I have read and obviously I am now a true fan.  I love the way she weaves a story and makes you care about characters.  They come to life and I found myself invested in the outcomes, good or bad.  Didn’t matter if there were a few unlikable characters, I needed to see what would happen.  Let’s face it, you have to have a few villainous  characters or there wouldn’t be tension.

The house in question here is a lovely place in the Cotswolds, home of the Bird family.  Colin and Lorelei Bird have four children.  Megan, Bethann, Rory and Rhys.  We journey through their lives and the drama unfolds over the years.  We meet the children when they are small and by the end of the book they are middle aged.

This book addresses the mental illness of a hoarder and what it does to a family.  It was distressing to watch Lorelei at times; I felt such empathy for Megan and Bethann and developed a dislike of Megan’s partner Bill after a bit.  Rory was a product of his environment and Rhys….I won’t spoil that part because it’s integral to the way everyone’s lives play out.

Hidden Depths and Silent Voices by Ann Cleeves

 

I have been hooked on this series since the start.  I did manage to start with the first book in the series this time.  Seems my nontraditional way of moving through a series is starting with book three or so.

What I like about this series is the main character isn’t a polished, slender buxom know-it-all. You know the type, the super hero femme fatale detectives.   No, Vera Stanhope is very bright but also damaged.  Once you get into the books you’ll know her father Hector did a number on her.  Her mother died when Vera was a child and Hector was an awful father figure.  Dragging her off to the wilds for illegal harvesting of rare bird eggs, drinking to excess and leaving her to fend for herself,  putting her down in regard to her looks and clumsiness.  It’s a wonder she shaped up to be a such an outwardly strong character.

Beneath that hard shell she has her unguarded vulnerable emotions. They rarely make an appearance but you’ll glimpse that repressed soft side.  She looks wistfully at families, at a mother pulling her daughter tightly to her in a loving embrace.  And then she shakes it off and has a drink, doesn’t allow herself to wallow in what may have been.  But I didn’t mean to start with a  disection of Vera’s psychological baggage.

Book 3 – Hidden Depths.  Julie Armstrong comes home from a well deserved night out with friends and finds her teen son Luke dead in the bathtub.  He’s been murdered,  placed him in the bath with floral bath oils and delicate flowers. Obviously Vera and her team arrive to investigate.  Then another body is found in the same stylized manner.  A beautiful young teacher is discovered in a rock pool, floating in the water with flowers surrounding her body.  Serial killer or a copy cat killer? Enough twists in this one that I would have bet money on one particlar person as the killer but – I was completely off mark.  That’s fun for me as a reader.

Book 4 – Silent Voices. If you didn’t love Vera’s right hand man Sgt. Joe Ashworth before,  this story will cinch it.   I hope Joe remains in all the upcoming books.  Vera keeps it a secret that she has joined a health club as she doesn’t want to be ribbed at work.  She is a large clumsy woman and after a warning from her doctor about her weight, she takes to swimming.

As she enters the sauna room one morning she sees a woman slumped over.  Jenny Lister, social worker and model citizen, was strangled.  Of course we get another murder case in this book and Vera’s team works feverishly to find the links in the two cases.  We meet some interesting characters in this book and I couldn’t put it down.

Taking a Vera Stanhope break just now as book #5 (The Glass Room) has a wait list at the library.  I won’t be able to finish it before the due date so I will give other patrons their chance.  That will teach me to check out too many at once. Maybe.

I still have a few good books given to me via NetGalley so while I won’t be in lovely Northumbria England, I will be visiting Cornwall and Wales next.  Via books of course 

The Girl in the Castle by Santa Montefiore

 

This is the third book I have read by Santa Montefiore and I can flat out state it won’t be the last. I very much enjoyed The Beekeeper’s Daughter as well as Secrets of the Lighthouse.

Now this book, The Girl in the Castle, captured me immediately. If you like stories set in Ireland, reading a bit of the historical fiction interspersed about the Irish War for Independence and a bit of ghost appearances to boot – you will love this book.

I’m not big on paranormal stories  but the ghost part wasn’t a primary feature.  They did figure in but as a supporting role, and a very light supporting role at that.  Early on I was invested in the progressing life story lines of the Deverill family, Jack O’Leary and the Doyles.

The story starts with Kitty Deverill and Bridie Doyle as 9 year old girls.  Kitty lives a privileged life in the castle and Bridie is the daughter of one of the cooks.  This doesn’t stop them from forming a deep friendship and feeling like they are sisters.  Two different worlds these girls inhabit but Kitty is as Irish as any Doyle or O’Leary.  Kitty’s mother Maude is English and so the family is called Anglo Irish – this sets them apart during the Irish uprising.   There is enough action, a bit of romance and lovely descriptions of West Cork, Ireland to get lost in.

Be warned, this is the exact same book as The Songs of Love in War so don’t purchase both!  The Girl in the Castle is the title released in the USA and Songs of Love and War is the British title.  It’s the same book.

The second book is called The Daughters of Castle Deverill.  I am certainly getting that one on Kindle.  There is a bit of food mentioned in the book and I admit to grabbing a recipe from the cookbook London to pair with this novel. The recipe may be found HERE. I spent some time reading and eating.  That’s a nice thing to do.

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton

 

In this epic book by Australian author Kate Morton we are transported back and forth from present day (2011) to WW II London as two stories merge. Laurel Nicholson is a very successful English actress and she is our main narrator.

We open with Laurel in the year 1961. She is a teenager, daydreaming about escaping her life in the English countryside. She sits in a tree house thinking about her boyfriend while the festivities for a birthday party are starting to get underway. Laurel is the oldest with three younger sisters and one little brother, Gerry. Their mother Dorothy is a wonderful woman., a loving mother and creative storyteller. It’s Gerry’s second birthday party and the family tradition is to cut the cake with a very special knife, red ribbon attached.

From her tree house perch Laurel sees her mother walk toward the house, little Gerry balanced on her hip, as she retrieves the special birthday cake knife. She also notices a man walking up to their rural home, an unusual thing as they don’t get many visitors. As he approaches Dorothy she witnesses her mother look fearful, place the baby behind her in the gravel path, as the man greets her by name. “Hello Dorothy….” Her mother then lifts the knife and plunges it into the man’s chest without any hesitation.

Gerry remains on the ground wailing. Laurel is naturally shocked. No one else sees what happened. The police are called and it’s determined the man was a tramp who had been bothering picnickers recently, clearly a dangerous fellow. But Laurel knows there is more to it as the man addressed her mother by name.

2011: All the siblings, now grown and middle aged plus, gather at their childhood home for their mother’s 90th birthday. It will clearly be the last one as Dorothy is dying. Laurel knows this will be the only opportunity to discover what happened with her mother and the man she killed so many years ago. Dorothy had asked for an old book to be retrieved so she could look at it and within is an old photograph tucked away. The photo depicts two beautiful young women with the inscription Dorothy and Vivian, something that clearly agitates elderly Dorothy. No one has ever heard her speak of a woman named Vivian so there is another mystery. As she gets her mother talking Laurel is given bits of information to research and discover who her mother was and what her life was like before. She’s in for a surprise.

Dorothy’s story is told from multiple perspectives during the WW II era in London. We are introduced to Jimmy Metcalfe and Vivian Jenkins, key characters in this vividly painted story.

The last 20 or so pages bring all the mysteries into play and it’s a very cool ending ( In my opinion). I love Kate Morton books and have read The House at Riverton, The Lake House and The Forgotten Garden. All wonderful stories with mystery throughout and a twisty endings. I love being transported to other countries as it’s armchair traveling for me at this time.

Lethal White by Robert Galbraith

 

Lethal White is book four in the Cormoran Strike series and what a fat, engaging mystery it is. (I finished this a few weeks ago but it’s been insane here, I did not jot down notes, and so it isn’t fresh in my mind.) What I do remember is loving the dialogue between Comoran and Robin, the multiple investigations going on, the glimpse into upper class politicians’ lives and how it all dovetails in the end.

Barclay is a new addition to the team and I very much like the Scottish accents, his personality and the way he works with Strike and Robin. The author is expert at writing the speech inflections so when I read it I “heard” Jimmy speak in his working classing class London accent. Same with Jasper Chiswell and his family with their very upper crust diction.

This was a long book and doubtless it could have had some scenarios shortened. There was a bit too much of Robin’s internal dialogue about whether she had romantic feelings for Strike. In my opinion that could have been pared down. Do I think they will eventually get together? Yes, I do, but I hope it’s not until the end of the series. I like how they work together now.

The multiple cases and how they were juggled kept my interest, I don’t know how Galbraith/Rowling keeps all that straight and weaves it all together. Loved the exchanges between Lorelei and Cormoran, also the Matthew-Robin-Sarah story line. Quite pleased about some of that but I can’t hash it out because of big spoilers.

I think it’s good J.K. Rowling went with a pseudonym for this series as it makes a distinction between the Harry Potter series, which was more appropriate for a younger audience, and this adult themed series.

Aja, a sweet old Shiba Inu and prolific reader.

Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith

 

This is the third installment in the Cormoran Strike detective stories. I am becoming quite fond of Cormoran and his assistant/partner Robin Allacot.

This one is darker and has grisly images when a serial killer is featured, stalking Robin. As bodies are discovered across London, many with body parts cut off, the police and Strike combine forces to investigate these gruesome crimes. During the course of the surveillance the joint venture ends with Strike being warned off the investigation, threatened with jail.  I will note that if you are a fan of the cozy mystery type books, this is definitely not one of them so be forewarned!

In the meantime, you have chapters from the killer’s point of view which are quite chilling. He intends to kidnap Robin and hack her up, all in a way to get even with Strike for a long nursed grudge. Robin shines in this book and I found myself liking her even more, happy that Galbraith (J.K. Rowling) has such a strong female character. Robin is very feminine as well as able bodied, intelligent and savvy in the investigative process.

Without giving spoilers I will say I was concerned for the outcome of one of my favored characters and mentally prepared to give the series up if that character was killed off. The ending was not at all as I expected but it certainly set it up for another book. Hopefully that fourth book will pick up where this one left off. I expect fireworks in that book!

I read this one on my iPad, never had read on that device before but I enjoyed it. Using the Kindle app it was great as the pages are backlit.

The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith

 

Here comes another Cormoran Strike mystery by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K. Rowling) and it’s a page turner. I enjoyed the first book (The Cuckoo’s Calling) so there was no hesitation on my part to grab the next one in the series.

This case focuses on the murder of novelist Owen Quine. Strike takes on the case after a weird visit from Quine’s widow Lenora. But I am getting ahead of myself as it’s not known Quine was murdered in the beginning. Lenora wants Strike to find her husband who has been missing for over a week.

While it wasn’t unusual for Quine to be gone for long periods of time, Lenora is sure something desperate has happened. When Strike does find Quine’s remains it’s an all-out murder investigation with Strike and the police both involved and neither parties sharing much information.

Turns out Quine was basically butchered in a fashion described in his last unpublished book, “Bombyx Mori,” whish is Latin for “The Silkworm.”

Obviously Leonora comes under suspicion and is eventually arrested. That’s nowhere near the end of this story as Strike is convinced she is innocent and sets about to find the killer.

This investigation features more of Strike’s assistant Robin Ellacot. I was glad to see her get a bigger role than the secretarial duties she usually handles. Robin is smitten with the detective and investigative work much to her fiancée’s chagrin. Her fiancé objects to her work in the detective field and seems to have a great dislike of Cormoran. The dialogue between them is very realistic. There will be some surprises from Robin in this book – such as her ability to handle a car and high speed maneuvers. She will prove to be a big asset in Strike’s future business.

If you’ve read the first book in the series you’ll know Strike is a former military policeman who worked in the army’s Special Investigation Branch. He lost the lower half of one leg in an explosion in Afghanistan so a prosthetic limb (and sometimes a crutch) play a minor part in the book. Not as a handicap that keeps him down but as something he has to work around. Strike keeps to himself as he never wanted the notoriety of being the bastard son of an old rock star. His father is Jonny Rokeby, a man he has met once in his life, and Strike doesn’t relish being associated with the man or his famous name. He’s out to make a business and a life for himself and earn it all on his own.

Overall, I am loving the Cormoron Strike mysteries and hope Galbraith (Rowling) turns out many more. Let’s see more of Robin and her growing abilities in the detective field.

Let’s get a gin and tonic with Cormoron and Robin at one of the local London pubs. This is a new gin for me – I had not tried Hendrix label before and I must say, I am falling in love!

The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

 

The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith had me hooked after a few chapters. The characters are engaging and I was pleased to have the story line remain a mystery until the end.

Don’t you hate it when you’ve got it all figured out by the middle of the book? I know I do. The detective and star of this book is Cormoron Strike. He is an Afghan war vet, missing a leg from an explosion while serving in the military. He’s also the son of a famous singer but never uses that for gain. As a matter of fact, his father never acknowledges him as Cormoron is the bastard offspring from a groupie. No matter, Strike has zero interest in his famous father.

Strike is hired by John Bristow, the adopted brother of famous supermodel Lula Landry. The investigation is started on Bristow’s claims his sister was murdered and she did not commit suicide. It’s sad that Lula’s character wasn’t given a part other than the corpse because she sounded like an interesting character as described by others. The title of the book, The Cuckoo’s Calling, was explained in part as Lula was nicknamed The Cuckoo. But the author didn’t explain why she was called Cuckoo.

Another interesting character was Robin, a temporary secretary who appeared at Strike’s office, ready for work before Strike could call the temp agency to cancel. He’s flat broke and can’t afford to pay her – that is until Bristow’s job fell in his lap and he was offered double the fee to take on this cold case. Robin turns out to be a competent researcher and helps immensely in the investigation. Her back story is explained; she is newly engaged to Matthew and her fiance doesn’t seem to like her working for Strike at all.

In case you didn’t know – Robert Galbraith is actually a pen name for J.K. Rowling. I am pleased to hear there is another Cormoron Strike mystery to be published. In an interview, Rowling said she hoped to write six books in this series. I am on board for all of them.

Clapton: The Autobiography

 

This is a book I bought for my birthday and am just now getting around to reading it. I am enjoying it very much.  We like listening to music in the evenings and frequently the Clapton CDs are among our favorites.  His blues albums are among our favorites.

When I went to pick the book up from a local second hand store it wasn't the copy they had before and I was slightly disappointed.  Turned out to be a winning situation as the other book was a Clapton biography and this is an autobiography, his own thoughts on events.

The book starts with Clapton's recollection of his early childhood and discovering his position in the family.  At age seven he  discovered his mum and dad, Jack and Rose, were in fact his grandparents.  The way his birth mother treated him was appalling to me and the maternal side of me wanted to hug this confused and rejected child.

As we get into the musical introduction  of the book I found I couldn't put it down. He discusses the first guitar he owned, school and the introduction into playing for the public. Those chapters cover the Yardbirds, John Mayall, Cream, Blind Faith and Derek and the Dominos.  You also read first hand accounts of his friendships and musical collaborations with the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and his friendship with George Harrison, Ginger Baker, Steve Winwood among others.

I knew the song Layla was written to woo George Harrison's wife Patti as he was completely besotted with her but I did not know the inspiration for the song name. Layla and Majnun is  narrative poem composed by Persian poet Niẓāmi Ganjavi.  Layla is the equivalent of Juliet, forbidden love. Huh. 

 I'm about to finish the part where he talks about the substance abuse and his son Conor.  That's a heart breaker.  The parts where Clapton talks about his love for George Harrison's wife Patti was a turn off.  He describes his behavior, and other musicians in that era, as having loose morals and that was accepted. Drug addiction, deaths, strong musical ethics, recovery and family.

As it turns out he was extremely unsure of himself and music was an outlet.  The rejection of his mother affected him forever and while it seems a rock icon such as Clapton thrived on attention, it was just the opposite.  Note the cover of the album below.  He refused to look up and read the comic Beano while the photos were being taken. (this was discussed in the book).  Also, with Derek and the Dominos no one knew that Derek was actually Clapton.  He wanted to play anonymously  and reveled in the fact that the band played for small groups of 50 or in festivals and no one knew it was Clapton guitar. Until that news leaked out so......they broke up.

 

My favorite parts are reading about the fabulous musical talents of that era and how they collaborated.  If you are a Clapton fan you may like this book.  He makes no apologies for his behavior, he reminisces abut the good, the bad and inspirations. Overall I like this book. 

White Nights by Ann Cleeves{Book 2 in the Shetland series}

 

White Nights is book two in the Shetland series by Ann Cleeves. I am late getting acquainted with this series; this second book was published in 2010. The good news there is I can jump into the next story without the laboriously long wait for the author to release the latest book. Sometimes it’s nice to discover a series that’s been out a while. White Nights refers to the long period of daylight in the Shetland islands.

Our main detective character Jimmy Perez has a starring role again. Book one left it in the air whether he was staying on the island or returning to his childhood home. I haven’t seen the television series but have seen the comparisons about the books vs TV. Seems, as always, they are different. There are quite a few characters to keep up with in the book but it isn’t confusing, unless you stop reading for a bit and then go try and pick it up again. Having been ill recently, that’s what I did and had to reread the previous two chapters.

The characters are likable but I’d push Perez to be more animated. He does an awful lot of ruminating over what he should have done in regard to Fran, his love interest. As for the investigative role he’s spot on.

The book starts with a person in clown mask, handing out flyers to locals and tourists from a cruise ship.  I don't like clowns but that didn't put me off.  Then we move to an evening at artist Bella Sinclair’s manse featuring a famous musician (Bella’s nephew) and artist Fran Hunter. They are displaying their work and hoping for sales and recognition.

 It’s not a great turnout, being as clown boy sabotaged the evening by handing out flyers stating the show was canceled. Mystery number one there. During the exhibition, an Englishman staring at a portrait suddenly drops to his knees and starts crying. Perez is at the exhibition with Fran, uncomfortably mingling as a guest and not there in his professional capacity as a police officer. Now he feels the need to get the crying man and see if he needs medical attention.

What a drag for Perez, he just wants to enjoy the evening. The Englishman has no identification and claims amnesia. That’s mystery number two. While Perez is checking with other guests to see who he may have arrived with or if anyone knows him, the memory- loss Englishman disappears. Flip another chapter and he’s found hanging, an apparent suicide.

Or is it?!

We have another death then some old bones discovered in a cave near the cliffs (mysteries three and four!) The bodies are certainly piling up in this small island setting. Sometimes the story moved too slowly, my opinion, yet I wasn’t tempted to toss the book aside. It’s the flavor of the setting, a slower lifestyle and thoughtful conversations. There are only seven books in the series so I aim to finish the Shetland series this year. Maybe I will then check out the DVDs.

This book is categorized as a mystery and thriller.

More mystery, not so much a thriller.