sjgoins

Happy New Year everyone.
Once more the challenge.

Welcome back!

>2 drneutron: Thank you. Starting book 1 in just a few minutes.

Happy reading in 2024!

(1). Lost Hours by Paige Shelton. So it took an extra day to start. The book was okay, faint praise, though I did want to understand the background of the characters. Maybe potential with more in the series—or reading one of the author’s other series to compare with this.

(2) The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell by Robert Dugoni. Three societal outcasts find and, for the most part, save each other from their contemporaries' mistreatment. While I rather hoped for the ending the book presented, it was a bit pat in the way it occurred. It still was a good read.

Good luck with your 2024 reading!

Thanks, Tess. Time is iffy for reading, but it IS a priority.
(3) So Pretty a Problem by Francis Duncan. His mysteries are decent; the protagonist is not especially endearing, but is capable; and the series is a bit dated. I probably will, however, read the next two in the series.

(4) Hanging Falls by Margaret Mizushima. While I read this book four years ago, I had forgotten much of it till I was too involved with the plot to quit. I like the characters and see some similarity with William Kent Krueger's books.

(5) Moon Shot by Mike Massimino. Sincere, well thought out guides to making life meaningful.

(6) Striking Range by Margaret Mizushima. The series stays interesting with both new and continuing issues. The K-9 work description is fascinating.

(7) The Girl in the Eagle’s Talons by Karin Smirnoff. A possible successor to the previous authors, but some tightening of the text might help. Emotions weren’t always believable.

(8) The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow. A good fantasy, though a bit heavy-handed with continuous over describing the prejudices January and the others met. It was important but might have been done more subtly.

(9) Standing Dead by Margaret Mizushima. A good mystery series. The characters continue to develop. Part of the ending falls a little flat, but most works out logically.

(10) Murder on Mistletoe Lane by Clara McKenna. A good cozy mystery. Grammatical errors get in the way occasionally, but the characters are becoming more likable.

(11) Murder by Degrees by Ritu Mukerji. Read it last November but did not record here. Perhaps it just did not resonate, but it didn’t seem very familiar for some pages. A decent story the first time around—not so much the second.

(12) Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson. Though Atkinson writes well, I either didn’t like the characters all that well or the plot didn’t advance as I’d hoped. The where-are-they-now ending wrapped it up too partly. I liked the Jackson Brodie books better.

(13) The Ghost Orchid by Jonathan Kellerman. The characters remain constant, and the conversational development of the plot keeps the action foremost. The author’s background gives the book credence.
(14) Murder in Williamstown by Kerry Greenwood. As with the Kellerman book, the consistency of the characters makes only the plot line the focus. The author’s historical notes provide reference to the action. The hint of late 1929 events for future books will switch reference to different “ages.”

(15) The Last One by Will Dean. Not a fan of horror stories, but this one lives up to some of the hype. Continuous action. Mentally exhausting. The last sentence portends a sequel. Read it for me.

(16) The Librarianist by Patrick deWitt. A quick read but stereotyped characters that took it one step past reality.

(17) The Year of the Locust by Terry Hayes. Continuous action. A very believable spy vs spy story till about page 500. Then the last 300 pages require a different focus. The reader has to accept a sci fi approach for 200 pages, then move back to the original plot. If that happens, then the book works.

(18) Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See. Fascinating. I remember why I like her work. Thorough research coupled with an intriguing storyline and believable characters, some of which actually lived.

(19) The Day the World Came to Town by Jim Defede. Told very matter of factly, the book describes the diversion of flights to Gander, Newfoundland, on 9/11. That tone let the extraordinary grace and generosity of the residents of each town who housed, fed, and befriended the passengers shine through more than flowery phrases. A nice tribute to people who exemplified how to live with everyone.

(20) Exiles by Jane Harper. I could duplicate one reviewer: good writing, interesting characters, a couple of twists not totally expected. Worth checking out the author’s other books.

(21) The Kill Artist by Daniel Silva. Not a book with which to celebrate Easter. A slightly balanced spy-vs.-spy story.

(22) Muppets in Moscow by Natasha Lance Rogoff. The work and challenges involved in trying to produce Ulitsa Sezam (Sesame Street) in Russia after the split of the soviets and just before the Putin takeover. A good example of trying to adjust to cultural differences and reach an understanding.

(23) Accidental Medical Discoveries by Robert W. Winters. With all the different treatments we may take for granted, it is amazing how much they depended on chance discoveries and with people who took advantage of what they saw as well as the applications that developed from these discoveries.

(24) The School That Escaped the Nazis by Deborah Cadbury. Well researched.

(25) Speculations in Sin by Jennifer Ashley. A cozier Anne Perry series, which is a good break from meatier books. It is easy to identify with some of the characters and watch their development. The historic background gives the mystery some substance.

(26) Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl. The life of a food critic, how to avoid unwanted attention and favored treatment, and what such disguises and deceptions do to the critic herself.

(27) The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan. A feel-good story about libraries during the blitz in WW II. Even with some grim events described well, there was still a sense of “This, too, shall pass,” about it. It’s good to have an occasional book with a generally positive outlook, but there were a couple of egregious grammatical errors that shouldn’t have escaped the editor’s eye. However, with the topic of libraries, it has to be worth reading.

(28) Code to Zero by Ken Follett. A good spy story with familiar descriptions about Cape Canaveral during the entry of the US into the space race. A plausible enough reason for a couple of postponements of a rocket.

>31 sjgoins: I just finished that. Put books and fiction and WWII together, and I'm there. They sell really well from our historical fiction table at the bookstore, so I'm not the only one.

I learned a few things in the Ryan book that I've never heard about before, but which were obviously from her research.

I also recommend The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin.

Thanks, Renee. Titles with “bookstore” or “library” in them are pretty tempting. It turns out I did read The Last Bookshop in London a few years ago. Any other recommendations will certainly be welcome.

(29) The Dry by Jane Harper. After reading her third book, I decided to start with the first. It didn’t disappoint. She does well with directing attention to red herrings as well as creating an atmosphere of disappointment and defeat. Looking forward to the middle book in this series of apparently only three books.

(30) Long Time Dead by T.M. Payne. A good beginning of a series with too many “alright s” plus a few other grammatical misadventures. The characters have potential for making this a good series. Really short chapters keep it easy to read in spurts, though it doesn’t take long to read the whole book.

(31) Tom Lake by Ann Patchett. Good writing with strong characters who sometimes make decisions that have really complicated repercussions.

>34 sjgoins: A couple about WWII I've enjoyed:

* We Must Be Brave by Frances Liardet (modern historical fiction)
* She Goes To War by Edith Pargeter (fiction written during the war)

Thanks again for the recommendations. I’ll look into them. Hope our library consortium Carrie’s them somewhere.
Latest read is
(32) Force of Nature by Jane Harper. Australia once more. I do like this author for keeping things moving and for interesting characters. Who would have expected federal financial officers had compelling experiences, though more such people should be employed.

(33) The Widowmaker by Hannah Morrisey. I almost didn’t finish the book, even after about 100 pages into it. The characters were so flawed. My husband had the same reaction but did read it through first and convinced me to do so. Once circumstances were more fully explained, I found the story much more intriguing and worth the read. Now we wonder if there will be a sequel.

(34) Lost Birds by Anne Hillerman. Another bit of Navajo culture mixed with mystery.

(35) Christmas Presents by Lisa Unger. A quick read. Editing missed a couple of errors. Story is somewhat predictable, but the action carried the story.