MissBrangwen's New Chapter - II

Hi,

my name is Mirjam! I celebrated my tenth Thingaversary in March 2022, but this is only my second year in the category challenge.

I'm a teacher living in the north of Germany with my husband. We have just moved to a new apartment that we absolutely love and I hope that in 2022 we will spend many hours reading there.
I took a hiatus from the online world and reading for roughly four months because so many dark things were happening, but also because when I felt better, reading was not my top priority. Instead, I was so glad for all the opportunities of life that emerged after Covid ebbed down somewhat, and I indulged in concerts, walks and travel as if for the first time!
I feel good now and am happy to start reading again and to post about it here, of course!

Just as last year, I started my challenge on Christmas Eve. I had a really good reading flow until mid-February, when I stopped reading until mid-June.

I am opening a new thread with adapted categories now because I know that in the months to come, while I will read, I will not read as much as I once did and I do not want to pressure myself with too many CATs and KITs. Thus, I will focus on my personal categories because I want to make progress with those.
But of course I'll be doing BingoDOG!

Books are eligible to count for multiple challenges.

I decided not to list my books read each month and not to do monthly recaps because that puts too much stress on me. Instead, there is one chronological list of all books read.

~~~

Pictures:

1. Leakey's Bookshop, Inverness
2. Oxford University Press Bookshop, Oxford
3. English Fine Books, Palma de Mallorca

~~~

Currently Reading

Chronological Reading List 2022 - First Half

1. Nußknacker und Mausekönig by E.T.A. Hoffmann
2. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
3. Death of a Dancer by Jill McGown
4. Kartoffeln mit Stippe by Ilse Gräfin von Bredow
5. Abendglanz by Hanna Caspian
6. Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
7. Der Ritter mit der Web-Adresse - Walisische Panoramen by Michael Bengel
8. Lesereise Kanarische Inseln - Archipel der Glückseligkeiten by Claudia Diemar
9. Tracks by Louise Erdrich
10. Black and Blue by Ian Rankin
11. A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen
12. The Distant Echo by Val McDermid
13. Auf der Datumsgrenze durch die Südsee by Klaus Scherer
14. A Darker Domain by Val McDermid
15. Aquis Submersus by Theodor Storm
16. Nachtfeuer by Hanna Caspian
17. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
18. The Lake District Murder by John Bude
19. The Garden Party and Other Stories by Katherine Mansfield
20. Still Life by Louise Penny

Chronological Reading List - Second Half

21. Das glühende Grab by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
22. Morgenröte by Hanna Caspian
23. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
24. The Murders of Mrs Austin and Mrs Beale by Jill McGown
25. Inselstolz - Zwischen Strandkorb und Sturmflut ed. by Gerhard Waldherr & Uwe Bahn
26. The Lying Game by Ruth Ware
27. Malaysia - The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture by Victor King
28. The Magician's Guild by Trudi Canavan
29. The Matrimonial Advertisement by Mimi Matthews
30. A Line To Kill by Anthony Horowitz
31. The Maid by Nita Prose
32. The Dark by Emma Houghton
33. The Novice by Trudi Canavan
34. The Dig by John Preston
35. Treasures from Sutton Hoo by Gareth Williams
36. The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis
37. Das kleine Friesencafé by Janne Mommsen
38. A Modest Independence by Mimi Matthews
39. Eine Halligfahrt by Theodor Storm
40. Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale
41. Das letzte Ritual by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
42. Tauben fliegen auf by Melinda Nadj Abonji
43. Das gefrorene Licht by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
44. The Welsh National Anthem - Its Story, Its Meaning by Siôn T. Jobbins
45. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
46. The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan
47. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling
48. A Star Called Henry by Roddy Doyle
49. The Lifted Veil (Penguin Little Black Classics) by George Eliot
50. Tanz mit dem Engel by Åke Edwardson
51. Aunt Bessie Considers by Diana Xarissa
52. The Great Fire of London (Penguin Little Black Classics) by Samuel Pepys
53. Dame Traveler by Nastasia Yakoub
54. The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
55. Frisch hapeziert - Die Kolumnen by Hape Kerkeling
56. Buddha - Leben, Lehre, Legende by Axel Michaels
57. The Trespasser by D.H. Lawrence
58. Bilbos Reise zum Erebor by Stefan Servos
59. His Christmas Wish by Melissa McClone
60. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
61. The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
62. When Harry Met Harry by Sydney Smyth
63. Unterm Birnbaum by Theodor Fontane
64. Once Upon A Christmas Eve by Elizabeth Hoyt
65. A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks
66. Die eisblaue Spur by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
67. A Jane Austen Christmas - Regency Christmas Traditions by Maria Grace

BingoDOG

1. An Award Winning book: Black and Blue by Ian Rankin
2. Published in a year ending in 2: The Garden Party and Other Stories by Katherine Mansfield
3. A modern retelling of an older story: Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale
4. A book you'd love to see as a movie: Death of a Dancer by Jill McGown
5. A book that features a dog: Kartoffeln mit Stippe by Ilse Gräfin von Bredow
6. The title contains the letter Z: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
7. Published the year you joined LT: A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen
8. A book by a favourite author: The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
9. A long book (long for you): Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
10. A book you received as a gift:
11. The title contains a month: A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks
12. A weather word in the title: Morgenröte by Hanna Caspian
13. Read a CAT: Nußknacker und Mausekönig by E.T.A. Hoffmann
14. Contains travel or a journey: Auf der Datumsgrenze durch die Südsee by Klaus Scherer
15. A book about sisters or brothers: Abendglanz by Hanna Caspian
16. A book club read (real or online): The Lying Game by Ruth Ware
17. A book with flowers on the cover: Lesereise Kanarische Inseln - Archipel der Glückseligkeiten by Claudia Diemar
18. A book in translation: Das glühende Grab by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
19. A work of non-fiction: Inselstolz - Zwischen Strandkorb und Sturmflut ed. by Gerhard Waldherr & Uwe Bahn
20. A book where a character shares a name of a friend: Nachtfeuer by Hanna Caspian
21. A book set in a capital city: Das letzte Ritual by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
22. A children's or YA book: The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis
23. A book set in a country other than the one you live: Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
24. A book by an LGBTQ+ author: The Distant Echo by Val McDermid
25. A book with silver or gold on the cover: Der Ritter mit der Web-Adresse - Walisische Panoramen by Michael Bengel

Rereading fiction

There are some wonderful novels that I haven't read in a decade or more and always mean to read again.
This category is reserved for fiction! Non-fiction rereads don't go in here.

1. "The Lord of the Rings" by J.R.R. Tolkien
2. "A Darker Domain" by Val McDermid
3. "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen
4. "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" by J.K. Rowling
5. "The Magician's Nephew" by C.S. Lewis
6. "A Star Called Henry" by Roddy Doyle

Doorstoppers

All books that have more than 600 pages, or more than 500 if the print is tiny.

1. "The Lord of the Rings" by J.R.R. Tolkien (1112pp.)
2. "Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire" by J.K. Rowling (617pp.)
3. "Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix" by J.K. Rowling (800pp.)

Finally Finished
All books started before Christmas 2021 and finished in 2022!

1. "The Lord of the Rings" by J.R.R. Tolkien
2. "Abendglanz" by Hanna Caspian
3. "Auf der Datumsgrenze durch die Südsee" by Klaus Scherer
4. "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen
5. "The Garden Party and Other Stories" by Katherine Mansfield
6. "Still Life" by Louise Penny
7. "A Week in December" by Sebastian Faulks

Series

Ongoing series

Inspector Rebus by Ian Rankin (reading in order)
- Black and Blue (8/23)

Lloyd & Hill by Jill McGown (reading in order)
- Death of a Dancer (3/14)
- The Murders of Mrs Austin and Mrs Beale (4/14)

Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling (reading in order)
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (3/8)
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (4/8)
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (5/8)

Hawthorne & Horowitz by Anthony Horowitz (reading in order)
- A Line To Kill (3/4)

Isle of Man Cozy Mystery by Diana Xarissa (reading in order)
- Aunt Bessie Considers (3/26)

New series

Gut Greifenau by Hanna Caspian (reading in order)
- Abendglanz (1/6)
- Nachtfeuer (2/6)
- Morgenröte (3/6)

Karen Pirie by Val McDermid (reading in order)
- The Distant Echo (1/6)
- A Darker Domain (2/6)

A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen (reading in order)
- A Street Cat Named Bob (1/3)

Armand Gamache by Louise Penny (reading in order)
- Still Life (1/18)

Dóra Guðmundsdóttir by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir (reading somewhat in order)
- Das letzte Ritual (1/6)
- Das gefrorene Licht (2/6)
- Das glühende Grab (3/6)
- Die eisblaue Spur (4/6)

Kyralia - The Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan (reading in order)
- The Magician's Guild (1/6) - (1/3)
- The Novice (2/6) - (2/3)

Parish Orphans of Devon by Mimi Matthews (reading in order)
- The Matrimonial Advertisement (1/4)
- A Modest Independence (2/4)

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis (reading in order - reread)
- The Magician's Nephew (1/7)

Cormac Reilly by Dervla McTiernan (reading in order)
- The Ruin (1/3)

The Last Roundup by Roddy Doyle (reading in order)
- A Star Called Henry (1/3)

Erik Winter by Åke Edwardson (reading in order)
- Tanz mit dem Engel (1/13)

Mountain Rescue Romance by Melissa McClone
- His Christmas Wish (1/5)

Finished and up-to-date series

Austenland by Shannon Hale
- Midnight in Austenland (2/2)

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Welcome to my second thread! I hope to meet you again and I'm happy to be back. LibraryThing always feels like home, it's as simple as that :-)

Welcome back!! :)

Welcome home!

Welcome back and happy reading!

I've starred this new thread, Mirjam, and I am ready to follow along.

I'll be following too.

>20 MissBrangwen: Such a fascinating collection of objects!

Thank you all!

>25 charl08: Isn't it? I bought two books there that were utterly overpriced, but it was worth it just to explore the shop and discover all the nooks and crannies.

I haven't finished any book so far, but I bought some, haha! I ordered them from my favourite online secondhand bookseller, so they were all very affordable. A few more are on the way!
I haven't bought any books for ages, so this felt very good!

Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde
Georgian House Style Handbook by Ingrid Cranfield
Nibelungengold by Kai Meyer
Der Mann, der die Tiere liebte: Bernhard Grzimek by Claudia Sewig

We spent the weekend in Cologne visiting family and shopping at the very large travel/outdoor shop there. Of course I also bought a book!

The Travel Episodes ed. by Johannes Klaus

And there are a few more arrivals from my secondhand online haul:

Die Mittagsfrau by Julia Franck
In Zeiten des abnehmenden Lichts by Eugen Ruge
Surprised by Joy by C.S. Lewis

I have finally finished my first read after my long slump! Unfortunately, it was not a good one. I bought The Lake District Murder by John Bude last year, but I had already set my eyes on it in 2016 on a trip to the Lake District, when I saw it in every bookshop I visited. I was very much looking forward to finally reading it now, but it was so different from what I expected.



Book No 18

"The Lake District Murder" by John Bude
Series: Inspector William Meredith (1)
First published in 1935
British Library
Paperback, 286pp.
Rating: 2 stars - **

Review contains mild spoilers

To be honest, this book felt like one very long math problem in words. Which is sad, because I was intrigued by the first few chapters and by the case: One of the two managers of a garage (service station) is found dead in his car, an apparent suicide. However, things do not seem right: The kettle was on, the table laid out, and more and more aspects come to light that make it seem improbable that this young man had wanted to end his life.
Reading these first chapters, I was excited to find out what happened and I enjoyed the small cosmos of the garage and its two managers, namely the dynamic between them.
Unfortunately, all of this is completely abandoned when Inspector Meredith discovers a side plot which may or may not be connected to the crime and tries to uncover a sort of smuggling ring using garages as drop off points. The following two hundred pages mainly consist of numbers: miles, gallons, orders, advance orders, surpluses, minutes (of gallons flowing through a hose),... In short, I wanted to scream and throw the book against the wall. I was so bored and the case went nowhere. When nothing changed after page 170 or thereabouts, I skimmed the remaining chapters until FINALLY the smuggling case was solved and the murder case resurfaced again: "'You're forgetting that a man named Clayton was found murdered in his garage on the night of March twenty-third." (p. 245). Well, I didn't forget, and I'm happy the author remembered now, too!
I kind of enjoyed the remaining 40 pages until the case was solved, but on the other hand I just wanted it to end by now, which is a shame because as I said, the initial premise was good and the beautiful cover and the blurb seemed more than promising.
Unfortunately, the Lake District itself plays only a minor role and apart from a few very short descriptions of the landscape, the story could have been set everywhere.

I have another book by this author, Death on the Riviera, which I will read, but I have no intention of following the whole series, so I will not add this series to my series post in this thread.

The author Katherine Mansfield was completely unknown to me until I read a few posts about her on instagram about six or seven years ago. When I spotted The Garden Party and Other Stories at Armchair Books in Edinburgh in 2019, it was an instant buy! I read the first two stories in 2020 and liked them very much, but somehow did not continue. I read a few more stories at one point and had another break until I picked the book up again a few weeks ago. I am glad I did because I simply loved most of the stories!



Book No 19

"The Garden Party and Other Stories" by Katherine Mansfield
First published in 1922
Penguin Modern Classics
Paperback, 255 pp.
Rating: 5 stars - *****

Categories: BingoDOG - Published in a year ending in 2, Finally Finished

I am so happy that I discovered Katherine Mansfield as a writer because I adore the stories in this volume. They have so much real feeling, they are so true to life and character, and I was drawn into most of them with such force. The majority are somewhat sad and deal with insecurities, loss, hope and flawed dynamics between family members or couples - but always with such subtlety and from a cautious and nuanced point of view.
Another aspect I liked is that it is evident that Mansfield experimented with different structures and forms, so the writing is more varied. This is most striking in the last story in the collection, "The Lady's Maid", which is told from the point of view of a maid who talks to a visitor - it is a dialogue, but the questions and answers of the visitor are left blank, so that the text reads almost like an inner monologue.
Of course there are a few stories that I liked less than others, but most of them are short masterpieces, and I felt like discovering one gem after the other, admiring Mansfield's observation, her ability to characterize so unobtrusively, yet so on point.
The stories that are most remarkable to me are: "Marriage à la Mode", "The Voyage", "Her First Ball", "The Stranger" and "An Ideal Family".

>30 MissBrangwen: I am not a great fan of short stories, but I loved this, even when I had to read it in school for English class. Fifty years ago, admittedly. So she's no longer on the curriculum?

>31 MissWatson: I don't think so, as I never came across her. Although I only worked as a teacher in NRW and Bremen, so I cannot vouch for other states. It is a shame because I think that these stories might be more accessible and relatable than many other works. Glad to hear you loved them, too!

>32 MissBrangwen: That is indeed a pity. For some strange reason, she's one of the few authors I remember reading in those classes.

>29 MissBrangwen: That does sound like a frustrating read! I believe I have The Lake District Murder on my shelves, but you've convinced me not to pick it up anytime soon. :) I remember mildly liking The Cornish Coast Murder, if you ever want to try another by Bude.

>34 christina_reads: Frustrating is truly the best word to describe it! The Cornish Coast Murder seems to be better indeed, I might give it a try one day!

I finally finished Still Life by Louise Penny! I was looking forward to reading this a lot because it was a book my husband recommended to me. I then discovered that many LT members love it, too, so that was another incentive! I eventually bought the book in October at Hugendubel in Wernigerode when we did a short trip to the Harz Mountains. I started right away and liked the first chapters immediately. Unfortunately, I did not continue reading when we returned because we started our move to the new apartment and I was too occupied. I finally picked up the book again this past weekend and read almost without a break until I had finished! Hurray!



Book No 20

"Still Life" by Louise Penny
Series: Armand Gamache (1)
First published in 2005
Hodder
Paperback, 377pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

Categories: Finally Finished, Series

This is one of the rare cases when you start reading a book with immensely high hopes - and everything you were told or have expected is true! I usually am a bit wary when I read a novel that was praised by everyone, but in this case, there was no need to be. I was not disappointed at all!
The case was intriguing right from the beginning: A local teacher - an utterly kind person and beloved by everyone in the village - is killed in the woods, and the weapon was a hunting bow. Who could have done such a gruesome thing to an elderly lady? Soon we meet not only Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, but also a circle of lively villagers. And yes, of course there are secrets to discover, things from the past that seem long buried, friendships and enemies. But what makes this more noteworthy than your usual mystery is the unique atmosphere. After I had finished I felt as if I had really been there, and I had a very strong book hangover, just wanting to return to Three Pines to hang out with the characters. How lucky that there are many more books in this series to discover!
The only reason I'm taking off half a star is the depiction, or rather lack of depiction, of Agent Nichol. Whenever she appears it seems like she is a main character, but then she has not enough chapters to really develop, which means that her character is left in the dark. This does not seem fair and I hope that she will either get another chance in the next installment or will be left out completely, as like this, it is neither one thing nor the other.

>29 MissBrangwen: That sounds awful! Reminds me of the timetable-dependent mysteries that I also don't like. You know the type? Lots of railway timetables, with people hopping off at intermediate stations and riding bicycles hell for leather to commit a murder. Or keeping track of who has been in which room when, in sight of whom.

>37 pamelad: I know what you mean! I think I'm fine with it if it's not too much and not overwhelming, but this one was just terrible!

When I finally started reading again after my long slump, I just ordered several batches of secondhand books from Booklooker (a German website similar to Amazon marketplace, but better). Das glühende Grab by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir was among them. I had never heard of this series, but it looked good to me.
I bought the first three books of the series and intended to start with the first, but somehow I confused them and read this one, the third book. It did not matter, though, because the story did not lack any necessary info and it was possible to understand the plot easily without previous knowledge.

The English title of this book is Ashes to Dust and the main character is called Thóra, but it is Dóra in the German version, so I am sticking to that one because I don't want to confuse myself.



Book No 21

"Das glühende Grab" by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
Series: Thóra Guðmundsdóttir
Original Title: Aska
First published in 2007
S. Fischer Verlag
Hardcover, 365pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Categories: BingoDOG - A book in translation, Series

Strong trigger warning for eating disorder (not for this review, but for the book - a supporting character has an eating disorder and it is described in detail).

This is the first Icelandic novel that I have read, and I enjoyed many things about it. It mainly takes place on the island of Heimaey in the Westman Islands. Large areas of the island were buried by lava and ashes when a volcano erupted in 1973. Now some of the houses are excavated as part of an archaeological project. A local man tries to prevent the excavation of his old family home. Dóra, the main character of the series, is his lawyer. However, things do not look good at all when the house is excavated after all and three bodies are found there, plus another severed head in a box...
As you can see, the case is quite gory and I could have done with less details and less blood. However, the story was exciting and I enjoyed the twists and turns, and trying to solve the riddle with Dóra. She goes deep into the history of the island and its families, uncovering secrets and old stories, feuds and alliances. The historic events surrounding the eruption of the Eldfell are real and it seems to me that the research was well done. This gave the novel an authentic feeling and an interesting backdrop going further than just the crime story.
The reason that I cannot give it four stars is that some characters felt very flat and sometimes I was annoyed because the police, and Dóra, seemed a little blind to the obvious. There is also a lot of focus on appearances, especially women's bodies, and while the novel might simply show its age, it still felt unnecessary.
All in all, while it is not a masterpiece, it was a quick and easy read that kept me turning page after page, and I am looking forward to reading the first book of the series when I need a read like that again.

>39 MissBrangwen: I started that series with the third book as well!

>40 rabbitprincess: Ha, great coincidence! :-) Have you read any others so far?

>41 MissBrangwen: Yes, I've finished the series. My favourite might be the last one, because it involves boats.

>42 rabbitprincess: Oh, that is something to look forward to!

Today I finished the third book of the Gut Greifenau series by Hanna Caspian, Morgenröte. I finished the first two volumes earlier this year and couldn't wait to see how the story continued, so after my hiatus I listened straight on.



Book No 22

"Morgenröte" by Hanna Caspian
Series: Gut Greifenau (3)
First published in 2019
Audible
Digital audiobook, 17h 19min
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Categories: BingoDOG - A book with a weather word in the title, Series

The Gut Greifenau series has six volumes, but it is clear that these are rather like two trilogies, because volume three brings most of the plot lines to a conclusion. This made me very happy, because there are so many elements to the story that already started in book 1, so it felt like a relief to finally see them be played out and finished. But of course, before the grand finale, there are more twists and turns, more tragedies, more secrets and political upheaval.
The novel starts on an estate in Pomerania in 1917 and ends in the summer of 1919. The aristocratic family owning the estate, as well as their servants, are swept away by the historical events, each person trying to find their own way to deal with what is happening. I must admit that the parallels to today's world were rather eerie at times, both because of the war and because of the Spanish Flu - sometimes it felt like listening to a story about covid, which is even more extreme considering that the book was written in 2019.
Like in the first two volumes, I loved the characters. I even cried a few times while listening, for example when the women of the estate finally travel to town to vote for the first time in their lives, wearing their best clothes for the occasion. There were a few plot elements that I did not like that much because they were a bit too cheesy or too alike to a soap opera, but apart from that, I simply loved it again and felt like coming home each time I opened the audible app and started listening.
Still, after spending so many hours visiting Gut Greifenau, I am rather content that this book doesn't end with another cliffhanger. I think I will listen to some other audiobooks now and resume this series in the beginning of 2023.

In 2019 - which seems way back now - my cousin, my husband and I bought tickets for the Harry Potter play (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) which was due to be produced in Hamburg the following year. But we all know what happened then!
Well, finally it is on stage again, we received the link to select a new date and reserve seats, and chose to see the play in February 2023 which was the time most convenient to all of us.
So far I have only read the first three Harry Potter books and loved them, and what makes me very happy now is that the new date - being in February - gives me the chance and also a new incentive to read the remaining books until then! Although I was told that it was possible to see the play without having read the books - and I know about the most important points anyway because I just wasn't able to avoid the spoilers - I am sure it will be a better experience if I have read them.
So this is sort of a new project now!
To kick it off, I started with a reread of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, which was still quite fresh in my mind because I only read it last year, but it still felt right to do it this way.



Book No 23

"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" by J.K. Rowling
Series: Harry Potter (3)
First published in 1999
Bloomsbury
Paperback, 470pp.
Rating: 5 stars - *****

Virtual Shelf ticked off: Wizarding World
Categories: BingoDOG - Title contains the letter Z, Series

My second reading was not as good as the first one. One reason was that the surprises did not have the effect they had when I first read the novel, which is natural of course. Another reason was that I was quite stressed and tired, so the emotions did not grab me that much this time. The third reason is that somehow, Harry Potter is autumn/winter reading to me and thus, my mood was not 100% in the right frame, although I absolutely wanted to read it and kick off the project after we had booked our new tickets.
But I do not see any reason to amend my rating because all of this is not the book's fault.
I plan to read book 4 in September!

A belated welcome back, Mirjam! I lost your thread and was delighted to find you again.

>29 MissBrangwen: Your opinion matches mine for The Lake District Murder. What a disappointment. I have more by the author but hesitate to open them.

>30 MissBrangwen: My favourite story by Mansfield is The Garden Party, a quiet story with enormous appeal. While I have enjoyed other story collections by the author, this one remains at the top of the list.

>45 MissBrangwen: I'm so glad the Harry Potter play has been rescheduled and that you will have an opportunity to see it.

Just popping in to say glad to see you back in your new thread.

>46 VivienneR: Thank you!
I am glad you agree about The Lake District Murder and I feel similar about the other books by the author. I liked The Garden Party a lot, too.

>47 Helenliz: Thank you so much!

Last week was very busy for me for various reasons (wrapping up the school year, family visits, preparing for an upcoming trip), so I needed another quick and easy read. I did not particularly feel inspired, so I just chose The Murders of Mrs Austin and Mrs Beale by Jill McGown in order to make some more progress with my series reading. The third book in the series had utterly disappointed me, so I figured that it would be good to read the next one now to see if it was any better and to prevent falling into a complete reading slump concerning this series. Alas, this did not work!



Book No 24

"The Murders of Mrs Austin and Mrs Beale" by Jill McGown
Series: Lloyd & Hill (4)
First published in 1991
Pan Macmillan/Bello
Paperback, 236pp.
Rating: 2 stars - **

Categories: Series

Contains a spoiler for book 3

In book 3 of this series, "Death of a Dancer", police persons D. Lloyd and Judy Hill finally become a couple and move in together. In "The Murders of Mrs Austin and Mrs Beale", Judy has been transferred to another unit because now they are not allowed to be team partners anymore. Nevertheless, they need to work on their next case together because a double murder has taken place. One of Judy's friends, the wife of an aspiring politician, is killed in her home while telephoning another woman, the wife of a dodgy businessman. This woman is found dead shortly after, too.
Unfortunately, this case did not interest me at all. Apart from Lloyd and Hill and another policeman, there is not one single character in this novel that I found interesting or worth reading about, the investigation is meandering and incredibly slow, and it feels jumbled and repetitive. Even Lloyd and Hill got on my nerves after some time because instead of working on their relationship and enjoying that they are finally together, they quarrel about irrelevant things and appear childish and petty.
I was surprised by the final twists and did not see them coming at all, so this merits the second star, but apart from that it is hard to describe anything that I liked about this novel. It is a pity, because I really enjoyed the first two novels of this series. I have book 5 on my shelf and will read it because I already own it, but if it is like this one, I will abandon the series. However, I do hope that it will be better because initially I liked Lloyd and Hill so much and, if written reasonably well, I would love to see where their work and their relationship takes them.

After listening to books 1 to 3 of the Gut Greifenau series, I felt like something completely different and chose Inselstolz - Zwischen Strandkorb und Sturmflut as my next audiobook. It is a collection of nonfictional texts about life on the German islands of the North Sea.



Book No 25

"Inselstolz - zwischen Strandkorb und Sturmflut" ed. by Gerhard Waldherr and Uwe Bahn
First published in 2013
Ankerherz/Audible
Digital audiobook, 3h 42min
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Categories: BingoDOG - non-fiction

This book collects short nonfictional texts, each told be someone living on one of islands of the German North Sea. It is divided into three parts: The North-Frisian Islands, Helgoland, and the East-Frisian Islands.
The chapters from Helgoland were the most interesting to me, especially the ones about the police officer, the lighthouse keeper, a biologist researching climate change, and a man caring for the local population of seals.
The other parts were a bit of a hit and miss. Some things were interesting or conveyed the atmosphere of the islands: Beach scavenging to survive harsh times, storms and maritime rescues, the vast nature of the Wadden Sea. Others were a bit dry and contained a lot of information about specific family history or the occupational development of the persons, which frankly was not that interesting to me.
The audiobook is narrated by Katharina Thalbach and Axel Prahl and both are excellent readers who possess distinct voices. This is another plus and made me add half a star to my rating. While the paper version of this book may be a little more satisfying because it contains pictures and illustrations, the narration of the two actors brings the texts to life. In addition, there are musical interludes between the parts and in the end, which creates the feeling of being a guest in a harbour pub.

The audiobook ends with a song about sailing the ocean. I actually found a live version of this on YouTube, performed by Alex Prahl: Übers Meer.

Hi all,

I haven't gone into another hiatus, but I have been traveling during the last month. While I stopped by to snoop around from time to time, I think reading the forums on the phone is not too much fun, and I really don't like posting from my phone, so I did not write anything.
My husband and I traveled to Malaysia for four and a half weeks and it has been a fascinating trip! And I read seven books, so I have some reviews to post now. I am also looking forward to catching up thoroughly here, and, as I still have a few days off before work starts again, to some more reading.

I hope you are all well and I'm happy to be back!

hope you had a fabulous time!
Welcome back.

Wow, that sounds like a great trip!

>52 Helenliz: >53 christina_reads: Thank you both! It was a very interesting trip to a beautiful country!

On our very first day in Kuala Lumpur we went to Kinokuniya (the largest bookshop in Malaysia). It was the perfect way to settle into the trip.
When traveling, I do not like to read very serious or "heavy" books but rather stick to easy reads I am sure I will like. There are so many new things every day and being out exploring all day can be rather strenuous and challenging for me, too, so I want my reading to just be relaxing and fun and not to provide too many further challenges. Thus, my first pick was The Lying Game by Ruth Ware.
I loved The Woman in Cabin 10 which was one of the first thrillers I ever read. I also read The Turn of the Key, which was not as good, but I just like Ware's style and (usually!) how she writes her characters, so I was pretty sure that this novel would be a good choice to read on this trip.



Book No 26

"The Lying Game" by Ruth Ware
First published in 2017
Vintage
Paperback, 448pp.
Rating: 2 stars - **

Categories: Bingo DOG - A Book Club Read

Unfortunately, this novel was a disappointment to me. The premise sounds interesting: Four women, who were best friends at boarding school, gather years later because one of them sends a particular text message. Apparently they were an unpopular and even feared group back then, because they were lying and spinning elaborate stories, trying to convince other people that they were true and doing harm in the process. Of course, there is a very dark secret that is about to come out now and putting them in danger.
What I liked about this story was the setting. It is similar to the setting of the Ruth Galloway novels: A lonely, wooden house on a wide, tidal beach. I loved the descriptions of this. I also enjoyed the writing style, and yes, I did find it gripping and kept guessing until the end.
Apart from that, though, there was not much that I liked. I only warmed to one of the four main characters - Fatima, a Muslim doctor who has become more religious in recent years and constantly receives comments regarding her hijab and her choice not to drink alcohol. To me, she is the only character in the novel who sees clearly and who suggests sensible and constructive ideas on how to deal with the situation.
The worst character to me is the narrator, who is unsufferable, because of her stupid actions, her inconsistencies, and how terrible she treats her boyfriend. The addition of her baby to the novel is not a win and just made it more repetitive (because of course the baby cries, needs attention and is another stake in dangerous situations - every time).
While I liked the plot in the beginning, I did not enjoy how it developed. Maybe I am also getting a little tired of thrillers about dark secrets and events from someone's childhood.
I will still seek out other novels by Ruth Ware because as said above, I like her style, but this one is not her best.

I usually like to read some books about the country I am visiting before the trip. However, I wasn't able to find a readable history of Malaysia. Those I found were too academic and detailed, not fit for my purpose to get a comprehensive overview, written for someone who is rather new to the topic. But I stumbled upon Malaysia - The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture by Victor King. It is part of the Culture Smart! publisher series that I had never heard about before but from now on might seek out more often.
I started this book before the trip but wasn't able to finish because I had to do a lot of unexpected work in the last week (a colleague had caught covid), so I finished it on the trip which was just as well.



Book No 27

"Malaysia - The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture" by Victor King
Publisher Series: Culture Smart!
First published in 2021 (?)
Kuperard
Paperback, 200pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Virtual Shelf ticked off: Asia
Categories: Travel

Victor King is a professor with a long professional history concerning South East-Asian Studies. His book about Malaysia covers a lot ob subjects, divided into nine chapters: Land and people - Values and attitudes - Religion and festivals - Meeting the Malaysians - The Malaysians at home - Time out - Travel, health and safety - Business briefing - Communicating. While most of the chapters were very interesting, there were some that were a little too detailed, which made it hard to grasp the essential aspects. It is also aimed a little more at expats and business travelers rather than tourists, which made some parts of the content not that interesting to me, but I skipped some of those (for example, how to behave at a business lunch).
All in all, though, the book was very interesting and made me understand some of things I experienced during the trip a little better: For example, seeing the foodcourts packed with people who gathered there with the whole family, everyone respectfully calling my husband "Sir" all the time, the stylish and chic clothing of most people in the cities. The chapter on Malay English was also very helpful - while most people spoke "normal" English to us, there were a few phrases I didn't know and because I had read this book I wasn't surprised and understood them at once.
Still, although this book is interesting and helpful, I cannot help but cringe a little because it was written by a British professor, explaining the culture of the Malaysian people to other (presumably) inhabitants of the global north. He comes across as a bit patronizing from time to time. And although I do read books like this I am wondering if it wouldn't be possible to find a Malaysian or someone of Malaysian heritage to write this, and to make these books "own voices books" in general.
The author also seems to be a bit absolute sometimes, making very clear statements that leave little doubt or room for questioning (all Malaysians are like this... if you do this, then that and that will happen...) - I am criticizing this style of writing because I think that culture is not that absolute, and it is a bit daring to write like that especially if you are not writing about your own culture. It would have been better to add an In my experience... from time to time.
To conclude, despite these flaws this book was helpful and I do not regret reading it.

I agree, I don't really like posting on the forums on mobile, although the interface has been optimized more for mobile than it used to be. Glad you had a great trip and that you have some time off between your trip and returning to work -- it's nice to have a bit of time for yourself :)

Glad your trip was a success and you have a few days before returning to work. I'm teaching one class this semester (Western Civ I) and we begin Monday.

>57 rabbitprincess: Yes, I am really enjoying some days at home now! I suppose one could get used to posting from a phone after a while and I think others are doing it...

>58 Tess_W: Have a good start on Monday!

I came across The Matrimonial Advertisement by Mimi Matthews in christina_reads' thread and decided at once that it would be one of my next audiobooks. I still had a bookish hangover from listening to the first three books of the Gut Greifenau series and I was looking for something different, preferably in English. Romance is not my typical genre, but I just felt like listening to this story, and I was not disappointed.
Thank you, Christina, for this great BB!



Book No 29

"The Matrimonial Advertisement" by Mimi Matthews
Series: Parish Orphans of Devon (1)
First published in 2018
Audible
Digital audiobook, 10h 49min
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Categories: Series

Justin Thornhill is a broody ex-soldier returned from India, who lives in an old abbey located on steep cliffs in Devon with only a handful of staff, seeking isolation. His administrator persuades him that he needs a wife, so he places an advertisement in the newspapers.
Helena Reynolds was once one of the most popular women in London, but now she just wants to leave the city and find a husband to protect her, so she answers an advertisement that is well below her station.
Both Justin and Helena have not had it easy in life and agree that this is to be a marriage without feelings, but as the shadows from their pasts start hunting them, the arrangement is increasingly stirred up and they have to decide what is truly important to them.
Of course this plot is somewhat foreseeable, but I was engrossed by it. I liked the characters immediately, and I appreciated the thorough research that the author has done, as well as the many historical details that make the story more authentic and credible. Of course there is a lot of drama, but the focus is always on the feeling and development of the characters, and I enjoyed this slower pace and inner focus of the story-telling for a change.
Justine Eyre is a great narrator and I love her voice. Unfortunately, she does not narrate the second installment of the series, but I am still looking forward to it very much because I cannot wait to see what happens to Finchley and Jenny, Justin's solicitor and Helena's former companion, who will be the main characters of book 2. While book 1 can firmly stand alone, I like the idea that some plot lines will be carried over into a second book, but with a different focus.

Wow, that must have been an amazing trip!

>61 MissWatson: It was, very interesting and eye-opening in many aspects.

>60 MissBrangwen: So glad you enjoyed this book, and I hope you like the rest of the series as well!

>63 christina_reads: So far I really do (I'm about two hours in)! And I am getting used to the new narrators as well.

The Magicians' Guild by Trudi Canavan has been on my wishlist for more than a decade... It was brought to my immediate attention again because my husband read it earlier this year (on his kindle) and loved it. So when I was book shopping at Kinokuniya and saw it on the shelves, it was an instant buy, especially because I was looking for a fantasy novel. Fantasy was my favourite genre as a teenager and until about 2010, but nowadays I read almost none of it and I wish to get into it again.



Book No 28

"The Magicians' Guild" by Trudi Canavan
Series: Kyralia (1), The Black Magician Trilogy (1)
First published in 2001
Orbit
Paperback, 469pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Virtual Shelf ticked off: Fantasy
Categories: Series

First of all I must say that although I only rate this novel three and a half stars, I enjoyed this book a lot and I am about to start the second installment of the series today.
"The Magicians' Guild" starts with a very poignant scene that draws you in immediately. After that, the world of Kyralia is established within a few chapters: The rich and poor citizens, the thieves who live in an underground system of tunnels, and the magicians, who are supposedly there for the safety of the city but are hated by the poor. Sonea, the protagonist, is one of those poor townspeople and her family has just been evicted from their home. She fiercely hates the magicians, so it is a shock when she discovers that she can perform magic, too - and it is an even bigger shock to the magician's guild because no one of lower rank is expected or desired to be a magician and it would upend the social design of Kyralia if it became known that there are common people who are capable of working magic... Thus, Sonea has to flee.
What I liked about this book is the style that is flowing and easy to read. It is also a book with many shades of grey and not a strict good/bad characterization, which I always appreciate. Sonea is a great character and the world building is plausible and thorough, including the sociological aspects that really stand out.
Unfortunately, though, I found the first two thirds of the novel dragging a lot sometimes. I just wanted the story to proceed and Sonea's situation to change. There were also too many characters in the beginning, and it was a bit confusing. I would have wished for a more distinctive description of characteristics in the beginning.
However, I loved the last third of the novel and there are all the positive points I mentioned before, so I will definitely continue the series. In addition, this book ends with a really exciting revelation, so I cannot wait to see what happens next and to learn how Sonea develops and, hopefully, grows more confident.

A Line To Kill is the third installment of the Hawthorne & Horowitz series by Anthony Horowitz. I read the first book shortly after it was published in 2017, and the second book last year. This was the only novel that I brought on the trip to Malaysia from home.
After reading this, I thought that I was finally up to date with at least one of my many series, but well, the fourth book was published yesterday, haha! I'm looking forward to reading it, though.



Book No 30

"A Line To Kill" by Anthony Horowitz
Series: Hawthorne & Horowitz
First published in 2021
Penguin Books
Paperback, 375pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Categories: Series

"A Line To Kill" is my favourite installment of this series so far! This crime novel takes us to Alderney, a small Channel Island that is part of the bailiwick of Guernsey. The descriptions create a high sense of place and the history of the island is an important aspect in the plot, too.
Hawthorne and Horowitz travel there because they are guests of a local literary festival, but soon Horowitz suspects that Hawthorne may have his very own secret reasons for this journey. Then a murder happens, and nobody is allowed to leave the island...
The setting and plot feel very classic (of course it reminds the reader of Agatha Christie), and on the other hand, because of the characters and how they are portrayed, reading this felt like watching one of the earlier Midsomer Murders episodes (which is not a surprise considering Horowitz wrote many of those). Another aspect I liked was that this novel provides a lot of insight into the publishing world and the work of an author, into literary festivals and the process of getting a book out there. While it must of course be kept in mind that this is a novel and Horowitz writes about himself as a fictional character, it was nonetheless very interesting to me.
I enjoyed this novel very much and hope to read the fourth book of the series soon!

Your trip sounds amazing!

>66 MissBrangwen: I know that feeling of finally thinking you are caught up in a series only to find another book has been/or is about to be released!

>51 MissBrangwen: I've been to Penang, the Cameron Highlands and Kuala Lumpur and my favourite place was Georgetown. One interesting thing was the contrast between the Malay women and the Chinese women in KL, with the Malaysian women covered head to toe and young Chinese women in short shorts.

It's really hot there!

>67 DeltaQueen50: Haha, yes, it's simultaneously good and bad, isn't it?

>68 pamelad: Georgetown was fascinating indeed! And I agree about the contrasts. To see this cultural mix was something that made me reflect on so many things.
We had some very hot days when we barely went outside, but others were rather fine, especially if it had rained. We usually tried to stay in the hotel after lunch until 4pm or so, but it did't always work out depending on what we did.

Because traveling with just one book felt incredibly inadequate, I bought another right at the airport before we started our trip. However, I only got around to reading it towards the very end of the trip.
The Maid by Nita Prose was basically a cover buy, I had never heard about this novel before.



Book No 31

"The Maid" by Nita Prose
First published in 2022
Harper Collins
Paperback, 343pp.
Rating: 3 stars - ***

The title of the novel refers to Molly - "Molly the Maid" as she calls herself - who works at the Regency Grand Hotel, a large and luxurious establishment. She loves her work, probably too much, as it seems to be the only aspect of her life that gives it meaning after her grandma, with whom she used to live, has passed away. One day, a wealthy guest of the hotel dies, and Molly is swept away by the events and becomes entangled in a web of lies and deceit.
While the blurb on the back of the book made it sound like a typical cosy whodunnit with a quirky heroine, a Miss Marple in a maid's uniform, I found it to be rather different. The whodunnit is not the real centre of the novel, but it is Molly and her special character. Although it is never named as such, she is apparently on the autism spectrum. As a consequence, she lands herself in many complicated situations and is an easy target for characters who not always mean well. Fortunately, she also encounters several friends, and manages to find her way.
I read this novel in just a few sittings and utterly enjoyed it because I liked Molly very much, I felt for her and I couldn't help but root for her. However, later I thought about it again and the story started to feel a bit shallow. I think that this is not a fair representation of neurodivergent people, and the story is also quite unrealistic, because I'd like to think that nowadays, someone of her condition would not be treated like she is throughout the novel (for example, by the police or by her superiors at work). I wonder why she apparently does not know about her state at all, and why she has never seen a professional. The way how many of her thoughts and actions are presented in a comical way feels patronizing to me now.
Of course, all ends well in the novel - but after second thoughts, this ending feels too sugarcoated to me, because it creates a feel-good moment for the mostly neurotypical readers of this novel at the expense of a neurodivergent character.

I bought The Dark by Emma Houghton at the airport to read on the flight home. Again, I had never heard about this book, but the choice was not too large and the setting of this thriller sounded fascinating. It was a page-turner indeed and when we arrived back home, I had finished reading!



Book No 32

"The Dark" by Emma Houghton
First published in 2021
Hodder
Paperback, 375pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Virtual Shelf ticked off: Polar Regions

This novel has many flaws, but I loved it, and that is why I am rating it four stars!
The premise is classic, but with a twist: There are thirteen people working on a research station in Antarctica. The narrator, Dr Kate North, is the newest member and arrives to replace the former station doctor, who died in an accident. After some time, she starts having doubts about this accident and tries to find out what happened. Of course there is another murder, and in the 24 hour darkness of the Antarctic winter, suddenly nothing is safe at all.
The twist? Even if you escape this locked room, you will die because you cannot survive in the conditions outside!
I loved the setting and premise of this novel. I have watched a few documentaries about research in Antarctica (Bremerhaven, where I live, is the homeport of the Polarstern research vessel). Of course I am no expert, but it seemed to me that the author did her research well and the descriptions are mostly authentic. The story drew me in at once and I couldn't stop reading. The depiction of Antarctica is beautiful and I was simply there while reading.
There were a few aspects that I did not like, though: Kate is addicted to painkillers and other pills and takes them frequently throughout the day. She starts having symptoms fast if she does not take them, and even apart from that, she is very jittery and unstable. So the fact that she was chosen to be the replacement doctor, undergoing many physical and psychological tests in the process, is completely unbelievable. On the other hand, some of the characters are very stereotypical - Of course the German is stiff and serious! Of course all the men are pining after the pretty lesbian, and would you have thought she is a lesbian, with her not even wearing dungarees?
There are some other inconsistencies and actions that are not credible.
But despite of them, I enjoyed this novel very much and it completely captivated me.

I have finally finished all my reviews from the trip! Phew!

In other news, I have caught Covid now, too. Well, I knew that I would get it eventually (working as a teacher, it was surprising that I didn't get it so far, as I only worked from home for a few weeks and was back in the classroom from May 2020 - most of my colleagues have had it by now). Because work has not yet started I at least did not infect any of my colleagues (I always wear a FFP2 mask in the classroom, but take it off in the staffroom sometimes for eating or if I need a short break from it on a long workday).

I felt like having a light cold for two days, but tested negative. I took another test when I felt considerably worse yesterday afternoon, and it was positive. My night was bad, but I'm feeling better now and the fever has already gone down, fingers crossed that it stays like that!

>72 MissBrangwen: Hope you're feeling better soon!

Hope you are feeling better, soon! I've taken a few BB's.

>73 rabbitprincess: >74 Tess_W: Thank you!

>72 MissBrangwen: Best wishes from a fellow sufferer!

>76 MissWatson: Thank you, Birgit! And best wishes for you, too.

Take care of yourself and I hope you are back on your feet in no time!

Wishing you a quick and uncomplicated recovery.

>78 DeltaQueen50: >79 pamelad: Thank you so much!

Again, I am feeling a little better today. My husband has caught it now, too, but well, it's not really surprising... We kept our distance, but it was not without obstacles living in a flat, and I think we didn't start early enough.

I have a few new reading resolutions/developments that I wish to share with you!

-

The first is that I got my very first kindle! I truly never ever wanted one, but on the trip to Malaysia I really started envying my husband who was able to download whatever book he felt like and start reading straight away. Before the pandemic, I bought many, many books on my trips and dragged them around like a badge of honor, but now, while I still enjoyed the shopping, the additional weight in our luggage got on my nerves, as well as the worry if everything would fit etc. So now my husband bought a new kindle for himself because he wanted a better one, anyway, and I am getting his old one, which is a bit smaller. I think it will be primarily for traveling, but who knows where this will lead. I still think I will never like it as much as paper books, but I see some of the advantages now.

-

The second one is that I am abandoning my reading goal of completing my university reading list. This was a hard one because I had this goal for fifteen years, but I realized that I just don't like that list as a total anymore. There are still many titles that I wish to get to, but there are others that I would only read to complete the list, some of them very long, and no - I just won't do that. I will just pick those titles that really interest me.

I managed to find the current reading list of the University of Cologne (German Studies) online (here, you have to scroll to p. 44) - it is CONSIDERABLY shorter compared to the one from 2007, when I started my studies. On the other hand, while our list was longer (and impossible to complete during the time of studies), it didn't have a direct connection to the exams, whereas this one has, as is explained above it.

Although it is shorter, I like the new list a lot more because it includes more female writers (23 women compared to 9, and that although the new list is hundreds of titles shorter)! The lack of female writers was one reason why I started to dislike the old list, so I am happy to see that this has changed, at least a little bit. I still think that there are not enough female writers of the last ten to tweny years, and not enough writers of different cultural backgrounds, but there are two, so that's a start.

I contemplated if I should abandon my old list and use the new list from now on, but again, I don't feel like reading any other baroque texts at all, or any novel by, let’s say, Christoph Martin Wieland, so nope. But from now on I will use both lists as inspiration without any definite goal. I think that the goal of completing the list just hampered my appetite for these books, which is reflected by the fact that I didn't read anything from the list for several years, and I hope that now I will have a fresh look at German literature and just discover what I like.

-

Third: I realized that I am starting so many new series, but decided that I don't care! After the slog of the last few years and all that has been happening, I just feel like new starts and new books, so why not?

-

Kudos if you've made it this far, but I wanted to write this off my chest and to document it in my threads! These are milestones for me because I was always adamant against using a kindle, because I am a completist and that list meant so much to me during my studies and guided my reading for several years back then, and because I always wanted to finish series before starting new ones. But I am so proud of my progress towards reading what I want and going with the flow instead of doing what I feel I "should" do.
And sorry if my writing was a bit rambling and my syntax is a bit weird. My brain is a bit fogged by covid and I noticed that my word order has been more “German” than it usually is, which is kind of an interesting effect.

>81 MissBrangwen: Congrats! It's very freeing, isn't it?

Hope that you're both feeling chipper again very shortly.

>81 MissBrangwen: I think your approach to lists is similar to mine and the 1001 list. It's a jumping off point, not something to tick every item off of. It's got to work for you, so good on you changing it up.

>81 MissBrangwen: All of this is awesome! I 100% support using lists as inspiration rather than decrees.

>81 MissBrangwen: That's a big step, and I'm sure it will enhance the joy of reading! I peeked at the list, of course, and find much the names I expected. But at least they let you choose which book to read.

>82 Tess_W: Oh yes, it is!

>83 Helenliz: >84 rabbitprincess: Thank you! It is great to see that both of you use this approach, too.

>85 MissWatson: Yes, most of it is not really surprising, is it? Especially the classics.

I thought I had been here recently, but instead find I've missed an epic journey to Malaysia and an encounter with covid.
Hope you're feeling better soon. Doing what you want re reading given everything else that has happened in the last few years sounds more than sensible.
A bit of a sidenote: I am impressed that you are able to find a reading list for a course you did for your degree. I am not sure I would even be able to get access to the courses currently running where I studied, it's all locked away in the student/staff area. I'm curious now though!

>87 charl08: I didn't expect to find it either, but just tried a google search and found it on the faculty's homepage. I have saved it as a pdf now in case it vanishes!

The Novice by Trudi Canavan was my very first book read on my kindle! I read book 1 of this series in July and couldn't wait to get to the next one.
Cover comment: Unless I didn't miss anything, there isn't any winged horse anywhere in the story, so this cover doesn't make sense at all!



Book No 33

"The Novice" by Trudi Canavan
Series: Kyralia (2), The Magician's Guild (2)
First published in 2002
HarperCollins e-books
Kindle e-book, 578pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Categories: Series

In "The Novice", Sonea, a girl from the slums, starts her studies at the university to become a proper magician. She is the only student who is not a member of a genteel family, and the other students as well as some of the teachers are giving her a hard time. So much of this novel feels like a high school novel, mainly revolving around bullying, pranks and exams. I must say that I did not enjoy these aspects very much, mainly because it was too repetitive, because it is not what I look for in a fantasy novel, and because it was just too frustrating. The other storylines - Dannyl becoming ambassador and traveling to other countries, and of course, the dramatic plot line about the High Lord - held my attention, though, and I enjoyed these chapters very much. There are a few new characters that bring new aspects to the novel, as well, and I just felt at home in this world and rooted for my favorites.
All in all, what I wrote about book 1 goes for the second installment of this series as well: There were several things I didn't like so much, but still this is a great read and I am looking forward to continuing this series!

>89 MissBrangwen: I've read a couple of books lately where either the cover or the title doesn't seem to "fit."

>89 MissBrangwen: How did you get on with the Kindle?
Yup, I'm sure that many cover artists haven't actually read the book!

>90 Tess_W: I think it's quite annoying!

>91 Helenliz: I did get on with it quite well! There are a few aspects I need to get used to, and some things I need to figure out, but all in all it was good. I still prefer the experience of reading a paper book, but the kindle has its advantages for sure.

Last year I repeatedly watched the teaser of the Netflix adaptation of The Dig by John Preston, simply because we were watching a lot of Netflix at the time and the teaser just came up frequently. I was enthralled at once but decided that I wanted to read the novel first. This weekend, I finally did!



Book No 34

"The Dig" by John Preston
First published in 2007
Penguin Books
Paperback, 231pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Virtual Shelf ticked off: Contemporary Literature - English

"The Dig" depicts the events of the excavation of Sutton Hoo in Suffolk: The tentative, hopeful beginnings, the spectacular finds, and the fight over the treasure and where it should go. However, while it includes the important persons associated with the archeological dig, it is not a faithful account, but a novel, and it is foremost about the characters. The story is narrated by alternating voices, who narrate long parts of it before the narrator changes. Like this, it is possible to experience the events from various perspectives, each with different focus.
It is also a rather quiet and slow novel, and the atmosphere is very serious. There is always the impression of impending doom: On a large scale, because it is 1939 and war is coming, which is never dwelt on too much, but which is visible in small details and observations. Mirroring that is the small scale of the personal relations of the characters, the way some of them treat each other, their personal disappointments and failures.
All this made for a fascinating read, although I must admit that in the end, I felt that I had wanted more - a deeper insight, more of a real conclusion, or even more of an open conflict. Because of this, it left me a little unsatisfied, although that may just be what it intended.

Reading The Dig by John Preston provided the perfect opportunity to finally dig out (haha!) a book I bought ten years ago on a trip to London. On that trip, I visited the British Museum for the very first time and headed straight to the exhibition of the Sutton Hoo finds. I had first seen the famous helmet on the cover of an edition of Beowulf that I read as a teenager and was fascinated by it. When I became aware that I would be able to see that very helmet in London I was overjoyed.
The exhibition totally blew me away and I spent ages gazing at the beautiful golden objects, the intricate patterns, the strange decorations. I had never seen anything like it before.
So of course, I bought a souvenir book about this treasure and browsed it later to commemorate my visit, but today was the first time that I actually read it from beginning to finish.



Book No 35

"Treasures from Sutton Hoo" by Gareth Williams
First published in 2011
The British Museum Press
Paperback, 48pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Virtual Shelf ticked off: History
Categories: Travel

Gareth Williams, the author of this book, is a curator of the British Museum. The book has 48 pages, so it is really only a short introduction to the Sutton Hoo finds, gathering the most important information. You could find all of this info by yourself online, but here it is neatly presented and for me it serves as a nice memento of my memorable first visit to the British Museum.
The book starts with a chapter on the discovery and excavation of Sutton Hoo and then gives a short introduction to the kingdom of the East Angles and the historical background. The next chapter presents the most important artifacts, such as the famous helmet, a large shield, and beautiful buckles. The descriptions lead to the question of who was buried there, which apparently cannot really be answered, although the most probable assumption is that it is the burial place of Rædwald, who was over-king of large parts of England and died around 625AD. The book concludes with an overview of similar excavations in England and a small description of the site as it is today.
As said above, this is a short introduction for readers who have not heard about Sutton Hoo before or who have little knowledge of the Anglo-Saxons. I liked this concise read to refresh my memory and I enjoyed the beautiful pictures of the objects, but I still wished for more. Even this short book could have included some more depth. Some of the pictures are very large and I would have preferred it if these would have been smaller to allow more pictures to be printed. The pictures could also have been explained a little more to add more detail.

>94 MissBrangwen: Yay! I love that room of the BM as well. I came home on one occasion with a long line waistcoat patterned like the garnet shoulder clasps. A book might have made more sense.

Visiting Sutton Hoo is an interesting experience, it's high above the river and feels rather bleak and exposed, even in nice weather.

>95 Helenliz: I hope to visit Sutton Hoo one day! I haven't been to that part of England yet. The pictures of the site look rather bleak, indeed.
That must have been a colorful waistcoat!

>93 MissBrangwen: I'm seriously jealous of your being able to see the exhibit, it sounds great. I saw the movie first too and loved the bittersweetness of the story. I spent some time following up on the son and was sorry that as an adult he didn't live in the house, though he seemed to have built a good life for himself.

>97 clue: Like you, I felt a bit sad for the son. I am looking forward to watching the film!

I loved "The Chronicles of Narnia" as a child and read most of those books many times. They were my introduction to fantasy and my very favourite books before I discovered Tolkien and somewhat grew out of the Narnia stories. I think that I last read them when I was about 12 years old and I have wanted to reread them for many years. Two weeks ago, I decided on a whim to just start my reread. I still have all my old German Narnia books in a box somewhere up on the shelves, but I bought a beautiful complete collection in English four years ago and I read from that one. I started with the first book in chronological order, The Magician's Nephew.



Book No 36

"The Magician's Nephew" by C.S. Lewis
Series: The Chronicles of Narnia
First published in 1955
HarperCollins
Hardcover, 71pp. (Complete collection: 524pp.)
Rating: 2 1/2 stars - **°

Virtual Shelf ticked off: Children's Lit
Categories: BingoDOG - Children's or Young Adult, Rereading Fiction, Series

This complete collection is a beautiful, big hardcover book, but it was a bit hard to read. It is very heavy and there is a lot of text on each page. However, it includes the wonderful illustrations of Pauline Baynes, which I haven't seen before because they were not included in the German Narnia books of my childhood. Knowing that Pauline Baynes was J.R.R. Tolkien's favourite illustrator of his own books made them even more interesting to me.

"The Magician's Nephew" is a kind of prequel to the other Narnia stories and takes place several decades before the events of the more famous "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe", which was the first one to be written and published. Apparently, many scholars think that the books should be read in publication order and not in chronological order and I agree with them. This prequel tells the story of Narnia's creation and how the first humans came to arrive there, and I think it takes away some of the wonder that you would usually experience when reading "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe". So I agree that it works better to read the prequel later, to be able to fully enjoy "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe", discovering Narnia for the first time with the Pevensie children in that one.

I clearly remember that "The Magician's Nephew" was not my favourite when I read it as a child and that I was a bit bewildered by it. It did not feel as authentic and natural as the other books. More than twenty years later, I still agree with that.
The main characters are Digory and Polly, two children living next to each other, who one day stumble into the secret room of Digory's uncle and are transported to another world by his magic rings. They ultimately end up in Narnia and witness the lion Aslan creating a new world.
The novel includes a lot of Christian elements and draws heavily from the book of Genesis and I must admit that it is all too much for me. I feel like Lewis drums those Christian messages into it with too much force. The character of Digory's uncle feels too comical to me, and altogether, many elements are rather too silly for my liking. The story feels quite fragmented sometimes because the silly elements seem to clash with the heavy topics of sin, temptation and guilt. The plot also drags a bit, which might be a consequence of the fact that Lewis took several years to write it with long breaks in-between.
Apart from that, I rather like the London setting of parts of the story, and the nostalgic feeling. It is told in retrospect, looking back to a time that is gone, and although that is sugar-coated of course, I enjoyed reading about it. The ending also makes up for a lot of aspects I didn't like, because the following Narnia stories are foreshadowed and I became all excited to read those, too.

I chose to listen to Das kleine Friesencafé (The little Frisian café) by Janne Mommsen because of its setting on the island of Föhr. While I live close to the North Sea, Föhr is still about 200km further to the north.
I moved to this region eight years ago, but I still get so excited about the sea, the wind, the salt in the air... So I had the idea of listening to some audiobooks set in this special area of Germany. Föhr is an island that I would love to visit, so this audiobook looked particularly appealing. While shallow, contemporary "chick lit" of this kind is usually not my kind of thing, I decided to give it a go because it has so many good reviews and because the author comes across as friendly and somewhat sophisticated.



Book No 37

"Das kleine Friesencafé" by Janne Mommsen
Series: Das kleine Friesencafé (1)
First published in 2022
argon hörbuch/audible
Digital audiobook, 6h 57min
Rating: 1 1/2 stars - *°

Virtual Shelf ticked off: General fiction

As I have stated here before, my audiobooks usually are for mere escapism. I only listen while doing household chores or getting ready for bed in the evening, and I do not mind simple or predictable stories or formulaic plots, as long as I like the characters and the audiobook keeps me entertained. However, "Das kleine Friesencafé" was too much to bear. This story got on my nerves from the first chapter. Why did I keep listening? Because I wanted to believe that there was a chance that it would get better.
The main character is Julia, a young women going on thirty, who works in her grandmother's flower shop and lives in an apartment provided by her grandmother. Her mother died when she was a baby, so when her grandmother finds a folder of paintings her mother did on the island of Föhr, Julia decides to travel there in order to visit all the places her mother painted.
Of course it is not a problem that Julia just leaves the flower shop for 8+ weeks, and of course she secures an affordable room on busy Föhr in high season at once!
Julia starts painting, hires an old barn where she exhibits her works, then she also bakes and serves drinks there, and of course love is on the horizon, too.
While the story would have been ok, I could simply not stand it because Julia is such a terrible character - entitled and spoiled, but at the same time naive and acting like a thirteen year-old, not like a woman. She expects everyone and everything to act in her favor all of the time, while patting herself on the back for doing what? Nothing! Her grandma helps her with all the things she wants to achieve time and time again, just for Julia to believe that she herself has moved mountains and that she has grown beyond herself.
On top of that, while I have never been to Föhr, I can safely say that Julia's hometown of Gelsenkirchen is painted in quite a wrong light. The cultural differences between the people from the Ruhr area and the north are exaggerated beyond measure. In the beginning, Julia acts as if she was on a dangerous mission to an "exotic" country, meeting "natives" from the "bush" that have just learned to speak German - excuse the colonial imagery, but that is exactly how she behaves. I cannot believe it, because I am quite sure that any German of her age has been to northern Germany at least once, with family or on a school trip, and if not, they would at least have seen a film or documentary and would not be surprised that the landscape is flat and that there are tides. How can she seriously be angry to find mud when there is low tide???

I wanted to give this book half a star, the lowest possible rating, but I decided to give half a star more for some nice descriptions of the island's landscape, and another half for a love story that happens in the second part of the book and that is rather sweet.

Needless to say, I will not continue with this series. I have another audiobook of this author (first book of another series) because it came for free, but I will need a long time before I will be brave enough to give it a try.

>99 MissBrangwen: I read Narnia probably 30 years ago when my sons were teens. I've always "meant" to read the others. Perhaps now is the time. Thank you for reminding me!

>99 MissBrangwen: I've had the complete set on my shelves since I cleared my parents house and brought my childhood editions home with me. I feel a re-read coming on. Been a very long time since I read them last.

>100 MissBrangwen: Good grief! I have always steered clear of these "cute" books and I can now safely say it was the right thing to do.

>101 Tess_W: You're welcome! I hope you enjoy if you decide to really read them now, and I'll be interested in your opinion.

>102 Helenliz: I have kept my childhood editions, too, although I wouldn't read them now because now I can read the original English ones. But still, there is something so special about keeping them, right?

>103 MissWatson: You have been wise to do so! I thought I would just try such a book for once, but after this failed experiment, no others will follow I guess.

I started a new series, "The Parish Orphans of Devon", this summer. It was a BB from christina_reads. I listened to the first book, The Matrimonial Advertisement, narrated by Justine Eyre, and enjoyed it so much that I started the second book, A Modest Independence, right away.



Book No 38

"A Modest Independence" by Mimi Matthews
Series: Parish Orphans of Devon (2)
First published in 2019
Perfectly Proper Press ; Audible
ebook, 460pp. ; Digital audiobook, 12h 22min
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***° ; 2 stars - **

Categories: Series

I was looking forward to listening to this very much, but unfortunately, the narrator had changed and the second book was narrated by Alex Wyndham. Although I tried, I couldn't warm up to his narration. His reading is so monotonous and he makes the characters sound as if they were fearful and anxious all the time. This angered me because from the first book I knew that they were not like that at all, so the narration characterized them in a different way than the actual words present them. The whole story seemed depressing now. Because of that, I switched to the ebook after listening for about two hours in total. I was much happier with that, although I must add that it was harder for me to tolerate the cheesier bits of the story when reading the written word. I was also more critical of the language, probably because I was actually concentrating on it now as opposed to just listening while doing housework.

I like the concept of this series, which is one of the reasons that made me want to continue. The orphans are four men who grew up in an orphanage in Devon as a tight knit group of friends. Each book of the series concentrates on a different man, while the others make appearances as well and there is a storyline running through all of the books (as far as I can judge after finishing half of the series).
The main characters of "A Modest Independence" are Tom Finchley, a London solicitor, and Jenny Holloway. Jenny appears in the first book because she was Lady Helena's companion. After Lady Helena married Justin Thornhill, she bequeathed a considerable sum to Jenny so that she does not have to work as a companion anymore. Although she is not terribly rich, she can afford to lead a better and independent life now. She decides to travel to India, both to have an adventure and find her own footing, and also to search for Lady Helena's brother who was pronounced dead after a gruesome battle. Because Tom was appointed to manage Jenny's financial affairs, she has to seek his council first.
I did enjoy this story because I loved the characters and Jenny is a character I can really identify with in her fight for emotional and financial independence. Like the first book of the series, this one was painstakingly researched. You can notice it throughout the book and there is an appendix vouching for it as well. I think the author succeeded in finding a balance between portraying colonial India without surrendering to racist terms and inappropriate imagery on the one hand and drawing a world that is too modern and too unrealistic on the other hand.
Unfortunately, the back and forth between Tom and Jenny became a bit too prolonged and was a little boring after some time. The story rambled on a bit because of that. I think the search for Helena's brother could have been developed in a more interesting way, too. The language appeared too modern in some instances, especially when it came to the dialogues.
Nevertheless, I still enjoyed it and look forward to continuing with the series and reading other works of this author, too.

>105 MissBrangwen: I'm sorry the narrator diminished the experience for you! But I agree that this book isn't as strong as The Matrimonial Advertisement. I also found the conflict between Tom and Jenny repetitive and frustrating. But I liked book #3 a lot, so hopefully you will too!

>106 christina_reads: It is good to know you felt the same about this conflict!
And yes, I am looking forward to reading book 3 very much, and to learning more about the mysterious Alex Archer! I think book 2 ended in a very clever way with giving a little more information about Alex and the trip to France on the horizon! In fact I cried in the end because Jenny was so happy and she now has the next journey to look forward to.

>105 MissBrangwen: I made the mistake of reading three of the series in a row, which is probably why I liked the first two books best. The modern language is a problem in lots of historical romances, but Mimi Matthews has a good try and, as you say, puts some effort into research. Of her other books, I quite liked The Lost Letter and The Work of Art.

>108 pamelad: I‘ll keep those two in mind! I imagine that reading those three in a row would take away some if the excitement after some time.

After the disaster that was Das kleine Friesencafé, I decided to listen to the real thing when it comes to North Sea settings and chose Eine Halligfahrt by Theodor Storm, which I had added to my Audible wish list a few months earlier. This novella did not disappoint at all!
Storm is one of my favourite authors, although I have only made a dent into his numerous novellas and poems so far. There is still a lot to discover for me.



Book No 39

"Eine Halligfahrt" by Theodor Storm
First published in 1871
Naxos/Audible
Digital Audiobook, 1h 9min
Rating: 5 stars - *****

Review contains spoilers

As most of Storms novellas, "Eine Halligfahrt" is framed by a background story and told by a narrator looking back to events that have long gone.
The narrator, an advocate, recalls visiting his much older cousin who was living on a Hallig. The Halligs (Halligen) are tiny islands in the North Sea. While some have a population of a few dozen people, others are only inhabited by a handful or less. In the story, the cousin lives on an unnamed Hallig on his own and leads a lifestyle similar to that of a hermit.
The narrator travels to the Hallig together with a privy councillor's wife and her daughter, Susanne. The Hallig is presented like a dreamlike place and the trip feels like traveling to a fairytale island. Storm also refers to the legend of Rungholt, a settlement that sank due to a storm tide in the 14th century. While Rungholt most probably existed in reality, there is also a legend tied to it, namely that it was a prosperous city that sank because of the inhabitants' sins. It is said that Rungholt's church bells can still be heard below the waves.

The advocate, Susanne and her mother spend a little time in the cousin's house and it is obvious that the advocate feels drawn to Susanne. They even share an embrace on the beach, although nothing comes of it - maybe because Susanne just sought shelter from the attack of a sea bird, maybe because the narrator does not feel up to marrying a councillor's daughter.
The cousin fled from the numbing pressures of everyday life in the efficient Prussian state, he prefers the harsh beauty of the Hallig and the solace that his books and violin can provide to the companionship of his mundane contemporaries. Mirroring that, the advocate relates that he was advised to change his moustache and his clothing style in order to achieve a career, but he denies to do that.
Thus, this novella does not only show Storm's love of the North Sea, but it also criticizes the Prussian state in a subtle way.
The advocate finally leaves the Hallig and does not see Susanne again.

When his cousin dies, he inherits the violin as well as some written notes in which the cousin remembers a concert he once played, coerced by a woman called Evelin. He left her - presumably because society did not approve of the connection and because he chose to live on the Hallig - but it becomes clear that he always missed her. In the end, the reader learns that living on the Hallig - rejecting society and creating your own world - is not the solution, and it is not what Storm did, as much as he might have desired it.

This novella captivated me with its dreamlike scenes, with beautiful words and phrases to remember. The audiobook was narrated by prolific actor and voice actor Peter Groeger, who died in 2018. I have seldom listened to a text read aloud so well. I will certainly listen to this again.

After listening to Eine Halligfahrt, I became intrigued by the Rungholt story, so here are two maps from wikipedia:

The area as it was in the beginning of the 14th century:


The area as it is today (the map shows a smaller area, though):

Pellworm is a proper island, while Nordstrand is a peninsula. Hooge, Norderoog, Süderoog, Südfall and Nordstrandischmoor (connected to the mainland by a dam) are Halligs. Föhr, from my previous audiobook, is in the north.

This is supposed to be one of the remains of Rungholt, visible during low tide:

>110 MissBrangwen: So glad you enjoyed this book. I have Storm's The Dykemaster on my shelf that I hope to get to this year.

>112 Tess_W: The Dykemaster (Der Schimmelreiter) was the first Storm book I read and I read it several times since. I am looking forward to reading your thoughts about it!

I read Austenland by Shannon Hale more than ten years ago because I wanted to read it before watching the film. Well, I thought the film was quite terrible, and the book was not my absolute favourite either, but I had already bought the second book of the series and kept it to read it one day. Now I have finally read it!
I still remember most of the first book, but the second one can be read as a standalone anyway.



Book No 40

"Midnight in Austenland" by Shannon Hale
Series: Austenland (2)
First published in 2012
Bloomsbury
Paperback, 273pp.
Rating: 2 1/2 stars - **°

Categories: BingoDOG - Modern Retelling, Series

Charlotte is a mother in her late thirties who is the founder of several successful online businesses. Her self-esteem, which has never been great, has suffered even more because her husband left her for another woman. When she learns about Austenland, she decides to travel there in order to forget her worries and maybe, to experience a little bit of romance. So she travels from the US to Pembrook Park in England to wear Regency attire, meet handsome actors in costumes, take part in excursions to Gothic abbeys and drive around in carriages. Then a game of "Bloody Murder" turns rather serious and suddenly she might be in grave danger... Or is she just falling prey to her fantasies, like Catherine Morland?

My chief problem with this novel was that it tries to be all at once: Jane Austen Pastiche, mystery, modern love story and humorous chick-lit. I liked certain parts of it (especially some parts of the mystery and the chapters that rather seemed like a historical novel), but the change of style and tone did not work for me. It seemed like a puzzle but with mismatching parts. To me, the author tried too much in this novel and accomplished very little.
Another problem I have is that the Jane Austen setting is just a prop and it reinforces the stereotype of her novels as historical romance novels written to sell lavender soap and pink tea pots on their backs. This kind of book just doesn't do them justice. Moreover, everything feels just so fabricated - the surnames and place names sound so fake and not British or Regency at all, like someone imagining a historical Disneyland without respect for the real thing. Maybe it is supposed to be funny, but to me it is just annoying. Miss Gardenside? Mrs Cordial and Miss Charming? Grey Cloaks Abbey? No thank you.

I do not think that there will be a third Austenland novel because it has been ten years since the last one and the film apparently was quite a flop. If there is ever a third one, I will have a good look at the plot before deciding to read it or not.

>114 MissBrangwen: I'll admit to enjoying the Austenland film; it is completely ridiculous, but in an amusing (to me) way. But you're right that it bears no resemblance to an actual Austen novel -- it's much more about the Austen fandom, in my view.

>115 christina_reads: It probably just isn't my kind of humor, but I rather liked JJ Feild!

>116 MissBrangwen: Me too! :)

I started this series by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir earlier this year, but accidentally read book 3 first. Now I followed up with book 1, Das letzte Ritual. The title of the English translation is "Last Rituals". The main character is called Thóra in the English version, but it is Dóra in the German version, so I am sticking to that one because otherwise I will be confused.



Book No 41

"Das letzte Ritual" by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
Series: Thóra Guðmundsdóttir (1)
Original Title: Þriðja táknið
First published in 2005
S. Fischer Verlag
Paperback, 384pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Categories: BingoDOG - Set in a capital city, Series

This crime novel is set in Reykjavik where a German student is found dead in the university. The body is in a gruesome state, but the murderer is arrested shortly after. However, the wealthy parents of the victim believe that the wrong man has been arrested. Dóra, a divorced lawyer and mom of two children, is asked by them to investigate and find the real murderer. She teams up with their handsome German employee Matthias and dives deep into the history of the Icelandic witch trials. The victim was fascinated by this topic and was researching it for a thesis, and it seems like his death might be connected to this dark topic.

"Das letzte Ritual" was an easy and quick read that kept me interested. I like Dóra as a main character and I enjoyed the mystery and the various twists. The parts involving her private life did not divert from the plot of the book, but enhanced the characterization.
What I did not like (once again - it was the same in book 3) was the constant body shaming and comments on people's looks and figures. Some of the other characters were also rather flat and stereotypical. I cannot comment on the background of the witch trials, but it seemed a little too "Dan Brown" to me and I wonder which parts of it were historical facts and which were fabricated for the sake of the novel. But then, this topic is altogether too dreadful and I am not inclined to dive further, so I will probably not find out.

Tauben fliegen auf by Melinda Nadj Abonji (available in English as Fly Away, Pigeon) had been on my wish list for a long time. When I had to choose two books from a list of four for a new course that I will be teaching this term, and saw that this novel was on the list, I naturally chose it. It took me a long time to read it, because I took so many notes, but also because it raised many emotions and sometimes I did not feel up to it. But it was definitely not the novel's fault - now that I have finally finished I can say that it is a great novel and I am so glad that I finally got to it. I am looking forward to teaching it and to hearing the perspectives of my students!



Book No 42

"Tauben fliegen auf" by Melinda Nadj Abonji
First published in 2010
dtv
Paperback, 315pp.
Rating: 5 stars - *****

Categories: AlphaKIT - N

The author, Melinda Nadj Abonji, was born in Vojvodina when it was still a part of Yugoslavia. Today it is a part of Serbia. The family belonged to the Hungarian minority of the region and moved to Switzerland in the 1970s. Ildíko, the narrator of the novel, has a similar life story - although it is not an autobiography, there are definitely some parallels. And this small list of places might already show the reader that the question of belonging, of identity, is central to this novel and that it might not be easy to find an answer.

Ildíko tells her story in a stream of consciousness: Her old home in Vojvodina, and her wish that nothing will ever change there, and that her grandmother will always be there in her old house, a safe haven and anchor. There are those long-awaited visits home, full of bliss, but also of new disappointments when Ildíko and her sister learn that indeed they have changed, their perspective has changed, and they are seen in a different light now.
The parents' hopes when they come to Switzerland, disappointment and sorrow, feelings of guilt, fears because of the war. Above everything, there is the pressure to conform, to fit in, not to stand out - because it is the only way Ildíko's parents can see in order not to lose the only chance they have, the chance to build a life in this new country. But Ildíko and her sister slowly realize that it is not their way and that, like pigeons, they have to fly, to find their new identity in the in-between.

Chapter after chapter the reader gets more glimpses into Ildíko's everyday life, from one time of her life or the other: Parties and political discussions back in Vojvodina, the casual racism of the customers in the family's restaurant, conservations with her parents trying to make them understand her point of view, new freedoms, but also new conflicts. The stream of consciousness and many flash backs and time warps made it a bit hard to get into the narration at first, but after some time, I settled into it and appreciated the way the author tells this story: Directly, raw and emotional.

I feel like I cannot do this novel justice in my review, but I want to end with the statement that it will stay with me for a very long time.

>119 MissBrangwen: definitely goes on my WL

>120 Tess_W: I will be curious to read your thoughts once you get to it!

>119 MissBrangwen: And on my WL too. Sounds fascinating. Was it originally published in German? (I wondered about the author's first language).

>122 charl08: Yes, it was originally published in German. I presume that the author's first language is Hungarian, but she moved to Switzerland when she was very young.

I finished another installment of the Thóra Guðmundsdóttir series by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir: Das gefrorene Licht. After reading the first and third book earlier this year, I now read the second one, so I am finally caught up and will be able to continue the series in order.
This novel is available in English as "My Soul To Take". The main character is called Thóra in the English translation, but it is Dóra in the German one, so as before, I am sticking to Dóra.



Book No 43

"Das gefrorene Licht" by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
Series: Thóra Guðmundsdóttir (2)
Original Title: Sér grefur gröf
First published in 2006
btb
e-book, 414pp.
Rating: 3 stars - ***

Categories: CATWoman - Women and Crime, AuthorCAT - Authors in Translation, Series

This crime novel sees Dóra, a divorced lawyer, traveling to the Icelandic coast where she stays in a hotel offering all kinds of esoteric services. The hotel's owner wants her to investigate a possible breach of contract concerning the sale of the land. He believes that the place is haunted. Dóra does not believe in ghosts, but she agrees to have a look at the problems because she could do with a little holiday... Her holiday turns out a bit more stressful than expected when the hotel's architect is found dead on the beach. Is the murder connected to a wartime story that Dóra finds some hints to? Is all this about land and money? Or is there really a ghost, returning from the dead each night?

It is hard for me to rate this novel because while I loved the setting and the case, Dóra got on my nerves in this one, as did her private life. In my view, her relationship to Matthias, a German banker whom she meets in book 1, is strange in this novel, and he adds nothing to the story. To my mind, Dóra acts weird about him, and the added plot line of her children just seems like a distraction and is over the top. This caused my enjoyment of the novel to dwindle, although I am not sure if some of it is down to the translation (the jokes, for example, might come across differently in Icelandic or English).
In contrast, I adored the bleak seaside setting, the rocky beach, the old farms with their desolate buildings and dark secrets. Although I am not an experienced reader of the genre, I believe that this setting is nordic noir at its best. The background stories of revenants and superstitions add to the eerie atmosphere.
The characters seemed very real to me and I enjoyed uncovering the secrets and different layers of this place's history with Dóra. However, I do think that the plot could have played out a little better and the investigation could have been more interesting. I was hoping for a little more excitement.

I will definitely continue with this series, although maybe not too soon because I need a break now after reading the first three books in a relatively short time frame.

On my first trip to Wales (in 2012) I spent St David's Day in Cardiff. I walked around the city enjoying the festive atmosphere, when I arrived on a square full of people who started to sing the Welsh anthem. I have never really been one for national anthems, and nationalism of any kind is not something that is close to me - but experiencing the singing of Hen Wlad fy Nhadau that day in Cardiff was one of my best travel moments. The memory still gives me goosebumps. It was simply beautiful. This anthem has been my favourite anthem ever since.
Four years later I traveled to Wales again and spotted a small book about the anthem in the souvenir shop of Pembroke Castle which of course I had to buy: The Welsh National Anthem - Its Story, Its Meaning by Siôn T. Jobbins. Today I finally read it because Reading Through Time's monthly topic is music and all the other books I could read for this topic are far too long for me to commit to them right now. So I traveled back to Wales in my mind and spent the evening with this interesting book.



Book No 44

"The Welsh National Anthem - Its Story, Its Meaning" by Siôn T. Jobbins
First published in 2013
Y Lolfa
Paperback, 62pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

This is a very short book and a quick read, but it still manages to pack quite a lot of content. After a short introduction, the author starts by the creation of the original song, its development and how it gained the form it has today. He then traces its history through concerts, rugby and football matches and other events until it was established as the official national anthem of Wales. There is a short chapter on the composers, Evan and James James (yes, that is his name!), and another one on versions of this anthem in other countries and nations. The last chapter is a line by line explanation and interpretation of the anthem, followed by a sheet of music, the Welsh text, an English translation and a phonetic version.

I read this book with interest and while I have some basic knowledge of Welsh history, I learned some interesting facts that I did not know about and refreshed my memory of other aspects. The book is entertaining but not sloppy. The author is one of the co-founders of YesCymru, so of course he has a strong viewpoint of Welsh independence and especially the Welsh language. He does not hide that he is not an admirer of the British Royal Family. I found it interesting to learn about his points of view in the light of the discussions following Prince William becoming the new Prince of Wales.

>125 MissBrangwen: That does sound good. Wales is lovely, and has such a rich musical heritage and identity! Living somewhere else in the UK that you could say the same thing about (Scotland), and having a lot of friends who live in Wales (particularly around Swansea, but elsewhere in Wales as well), I think I'd find this book really interesting.

>125 MissBrangwen: I was wondering how I'd missed the Welsh national anthem only to find that I did recognise it (but just in English) after all. I wouldn't say that I'm particularly fond of national anthems but I wish there was more collective singing of the kind sport supporters get to do.

>125 MissBrangwen: that does sound interesting.
I often think that the Scottish & Welsh anthems are a lot more interesting than our dirge. The one I really like is the Irish Rugby anthem. As they play as a united Ireland team, they don't use either the Irish or British anthem, so for years didn't have an anthem. Then they had one written and it is a really good one, gives me goosebumps.

>127 charl08: I wish there was more collective singing of the kind sport supporters get to do. agreed. Apart from church and a national sporting event, we don't do a lot of community singing.

>126 Jackie_K: I agree, I enjoyed my two trips to Wales immensely. I think that it is such an underrated country!

>127 charl08: I'm not a fan of anthems in general, either, but I do think that this one is beautiful. I have never heard it in English and didn't know that such a version exists.

>128 Helenliz: I had to google this rugby anthem and had never heard it before! Thanks for pointing it out. It sent me to a rabbit hole of googling the different Irish anthems and their histories, but I consider it research because I will travel to Ireland a week from now!

Hi everyone,

I just returned from two weeks in Ireland, which is why I haven't posted during the last couple of weeks. We had a wonderful time and I enjoyed every day, and also read quite a lot, so now I have some reviews to write!

When it comes to books, we also visited the Museum of Literature Ireland, which was fantastic, and the Old Library of Trinity College, which was as beautiful as ever, although very crowded and hectic, and with a few small renovation works going on that made a lot of noise. I did not mind that much because I had been there twice already, but I was a bit sad for my husband, although he says he still enjoyed it a lot.

I am looking forward to catching up here now!

>130 MissBrangwen: sounds live a wonderful trip!

>130 MissBrangwen: Sounds like an excellent trip. Look forward to seeing what you read and bought. Welcome home.

>131 Tess_W: >132 Helenliz: Thank you both!

I have one review still to write from before the trip: I read Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. As I have explained earlier, it is my goal to read through all the Harry Potter novels before February because then I will go and watch the play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in Hamburg with my husband and my younger cousin. We bought the tickets way back in 2019 and now we can finally go and watch it.
This was the first time that I read this book.



Book No 45

"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" by J.K. Rowling
Series: Harry Potter (4)
First published in 2000
Bloomsbury
Paperback, 617pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Categories: RandomKIT - What's in a name, BingoDOG - A Long Book (For You), Doorstoppers, Series

I thoroughly enjoyed "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", although not as much as the previous books of the series. There were several reasons for this.
First, the story revolves around the triwizard tournament so much, and a lot of the plot has just to do with school and teenage worries, and that simply is not my cup of tea, at least when it is told excessively as it is here. For long parts, it felt like any high school novel, and I am not interested in reading about that (probably because it is pretty much part of my everyday fare as a teacher, depending on which classes I teach in a given year).
Second, in this book there is a lot of conflict between the members of the golden trio, and while I understand that this is all a part of growing up, I simply did not enjoy reading about it and found it to be frustrating. I also felt that because of this, other emotions were lacking that I enjoyed reading about in the previous books.
Third, there is the body shaming that has been in all of the books, but in this one it is even more prominent and disturbing. I also honestly do not like stupid people being compared to pigs because pigs are highly intelligent animals and I also think that they are very cute.
Apart from these aspects that I did not enjoy, it was a good read, which makes me still rate it four stars - Hogwarts is still a place to come home to, it is a feel good novel providing cosy vibes and there are some interesting new characters, too. The story darkens considerably now as the threats grow more serious.
I read this within two days although it has more than 600 pages - the pages just flew!

This was the first trip where, apart from one "emergency book", I only took my new kindle to save on luggage space and weight and to be able to instantly read what I wanted. When we had arrived, I wished to read a crime novel set in Ireland and found a blogpost listing several options. The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan appealed to me at once and it did not disappoint at all.



Book No 46

"The Ruin" by Dervla McTiernan
Series: Cormac Reilly (1)
First published in 2018
Sphere
ebook, 380pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

Categories: Series

Cormac Reilly has recently relocated to Galway from Dublin, where he was a member of a highly specialized unit. Now he has to get used to working in a rather usual station again and needs to adapt to a new team. So far, he has only been assigned cold cases, which is rather boring, until one pops up that was his own case many years ago... One chilly night, he was sent to a disrepaired house where the mother of two neglected children had died, apparently from a drug overdose. Reilly traveled to the hospital with the two pitiful children, only for one of them to disappear and never to be found again.

The other main character is Aisling Conroy, a young doctor hoping for a glittering career, when her boyfriend is found dead in the Corrib river. His death is quickly ruled a suicide. Aisling cannot really believe that, but does not see any other way. She throws herself into her work again and tries to come to terms with what happened, but then things take a turn...

This novel totally gripped me and the characters and events haunted me whenever I was not reading. I liked how the author combined two genres - it is one part police procedural and one part thriller, and the cold case part as well as the recent mystery are equally compelling. The only aspect that I found wanting was the ending because it felt a bit too rushed, as if the author suddenly had the need to finish. It could have been a bit longer and more detailed.

The Galway/Ireland setting is something out of the ordinary, at least for me. The author also succeeds in introducing social topics and aspects of Irish history into the novel without overdoing it or overshadowing the plot or the characters.

I am happy that I discovered this series and hope to read the second installment soon!

Next, I continued with my Harry Potter project. This was a spontaneous decision because the mood just felt right for the long read of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. As I had not brought it with me, my husband shared his kindle version with me via our 'Kindle family library' (don't ask me, he set it all up!).



Book No 47

"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" by J.K. Rowling
Series: Harry Potter (5)
First published in 2003
Pottermore Publishing
ebook, 800pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

Categories: RandomKIT - What's in a name, Doorstoppers, Series

I don't really like the cover of the kindle edition, so here is the cover of my Bloomsbury paperback edition as well (it is from a beautiful boxed set that I bought in 2015). I think that the depiction of the ghostly horses is rather well done in this one.



I was surprised when I started "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" because for the first time, the story starts rather differently to the others and Harry only travels to Hogwarts after nine chapters and more than 150 pages. I really enjoyed the beginning, though, and could hardly stop reading once I had started.

Continuing, Dolores Umbridge is a powerful new character and apart from what she adds to the plot, I think the interesting aspect that she adds is the question of what the real job and function of a teacher is. (I could say so much on this from my everyday experience and many conflicts with some of my colleagues who, like her, relish the power that our occupation gives us, but I refrain from it because it truly makes my blood boil.)

Of course this book is the fifth installment and by now there are several plot lines, many characters and numerous important aspects, and I feel like sometimes the author has a few problems holding it all together, so the reading experience feels a bit hectic from time to time, like you need to jump from this to that, back and forth between so many things. There are a few aspects that I would have liked to read more about and that seem to be forgotten. For example, Harry does not even seem to miss Quidditch that much - I would have liked to see more of his feelings after he is not allowed to play it anymore. It must hurt him a lot, especially when he visits a game for the first time, but this is not really mentioned.

What stood out most to me is that in this novel, Harry learns that the grownups he has come to love and admire are not able to fix every problem that arises. In the first books, whenever Dumbledore or McGonagall appear, Harry (and the reader) knows: Everything will be alright now.
That is not the case anymore in this book. The adults struggle just as much as the young people do, they fail and make mistakes and sometimes they are not sure what the right way is. To realize this is a part of growing up.

Well, I feel that this is not a concise review but rather just my rambling thoughts, but there you go.

I first read A Star Called Henry by Roddy Doyle when the German translation was published in 2000. I was fourteen or fifteen at the time and was a bit disappointed. My mom worked in a bookshop and had given it to me because I loved the Maeve Binchy novels and devoured all books set in Celtic places, but I must admit that A Star Called Henry went right over my head at the time, even though I had a basic knowledge of Irish history.
Looking for more novels set in Ireland but not wanting to read another crime novel, I came across this one and figured that it was time for the reread I had long envisioned, so I downloaded the original version to my kindle.



Book No 48

"A Star Called Henry" by Roddy Doyle
Series: The Last Roundup (1)
First published in 1999
Vintage
ebook, 341pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Categories: RandomKIT - What's in a name, Rereading fiction, Series

"A Star Called Henry" starts brilliantly. In the first part Henry remembers his childhood as a poor boy living in the slums of Dublin in the early 1900s. He narrates it tongue in cheek, unreliable, not sparing any details, but still full of heart and funny. The text is the saddest I have read for some time, but still I laughed out loud quite often.
In the next part, Henry is older and is caught up in the Easter Rising, and the subsequent parts deal with how the Irish revolution plays out and Henry's role in it. I am not writing in more detail to avoid spoilers.
In these parts, Henry is still the cheeky, courageous and overly self-assured person he once was, but I became a bit tired of this after a while and would have liked to see more development. There are a lot of sex scenes and also a lot of violence, and while I understand that this is a part of the story and the characterization, it was a bit too much for me.
The historical details play a big role as well and help paint a vivid picture of the time, although sometimes I got tired of some of the military (or rather paramilitary) aspects.
Still, Henry is one of the most memorable characters I have read about so far. Doyle's usage of language is dazzling, and the dialogues are witty and poignant. I hope to read much more of this writer in the future and am glad that I decided to give him another chance after my teenage self could not appreciate his writing.

I bought The Lifted Veil by George Eliot (the Penguin Little Black Classics edition) in 2016 on a trip to London, at least I gather that from the date I added it to my LibraryThing library - in those days I still dutifully entered every single book as soon as I bought it!
I brought it with me to Ireland because it is so small and because it was one of the few books with a "V" for this month's AlphaKIT (I have started doing some challenges again to help me decide which books of Mount TBR to read next). I also thought that a gothic read was perfect for October!



Book No 49

"The Lifted Veil" by George Eliot
Publisher Series: Penguin Little Black Classics
First published in 1856 (essay) and 1859 (novella)
Penguin
Paperback, 110pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Categories: AlphaKIT - V

This short volume includes two texts: The essay "Silly Novels by Lady Novelists", which was published in the Westminster Review, and the novella "The Lifted Veil". I read the essay first although in the book it comes second.

In her essay, George Eliot cleverly analyzes the different kinds of 'silly novels' written by contemporary female writers. She criticizes them for various reasons, her main points being the following:
- These writers only write about the upper classes and either completely ignore ordinary people, or if they do include them, they depict them badly or falsely because they do not know anything about their lives.
- They do a disservice to 'serious writers' (Eliot names Charlotte Brontë and Elizabeth Gaskell as examples) because on the one hand they take up much of the spotlight that the others also need, and on the other hand, because they provide more fodder to those men who are of the opinion that women are not able to write.
There are many more aspects in the essay, but these were the ones that stood out most to me. I am not going to write more because then I will just repeat the whole essay.

The novella "The Lifted Veil" is fundamentally gothic. I have not a lot of experience with gothic texts - I have read a few, but without realizing what they really were, and have not read any for a long time - but I did like it.
The narrator, Latimer, a sickly young man and younger son of a wealthy banker and land owner, falls in love with a beautiful woman when he discovers that he has the gift of foresight. It turns out, though, that it is not a gift at all, but it troubles him with no end.
Again, I will not write more because otherwise all the surprises would be gone. It is a very short novella, but it has a few turning points and different parts to it. The underlying suspense and unease is strong and makes for a chilling and depressing read. I was intrigued but of course it is unusual for George Eliot.

>135 MissBrangwen: I'd not come across this series, so will add it to the wishlist.

Sorry to hear about the noisy building works at Trinity College during your visit.

>138 MissBrangwen: one of my top 5 fav authors! Have not read either of these, but will track down the novella!

Ireland's always terrific for a holiday! And such a rich literary history (and present) too!

>139 charl08: I hope you like it once you get to it!
It seems like the library is doing a longterm project of updating the building and the collection, also in terms of keeping it safe regarding climate change. I even expected more of a disturbance from what I read on the website. I am happy that they are already making plans on how to make it survive, of course, but still I wished for a more peaceful experience!

>140 Tess_W: She is definitely one of my favorite authors, too, although I have only read a few of her works so far.

>141 Jackie_K: Oh yes, I plan to read more Irish literature because after delving into this topic a little bit I feel like I am missing so much.

My husband owns several books of the Erik Winter series written by Åke Edwardson. I have wanted to try this series since I saw them on his shelves when I first perused those. When I was looking for the next book to read on the trip, the series came to my mind. My husband does not own the first one anyway, so I downloaded it.
The original title is Dans med en ängel and the English version is Death Angels. The English version is probably cheaper because of the fixed book prices in Germany, but for some reason I prefer reading Nordic Noir in German.



Book No 50

"Tanz mit dem Engel" by Åke Edwardson
Series: Erik Winter (1)
Original Title: Dans med en ängel
First published in 1997
List Verlag
ebook, 480pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Categories: AuthorCAT - Authors in Translation, Series

There were many excellent aspects in this novel, and others that were not so good, but altogether it was a fantastic reading experience.

To begin with, I really like the investigator in this novel. Erik Winter is in his late thirties, he has affairs with several women, and his parents are so wealthy that he does not have to work for a living, but only does so because he likes it. His lifestyle is very luxurious. All of this would usually make me loath the character, but somehow it is not so with Winter - because he has a lot of empathy, I like his work ethics, and he treats his fellow policemen rather well.

The story takes place in Göteborg where a young man from London is murdered in a hotel room. Shortly after, it is discovered that the same also happened reversed - a Swedish young man was killed in a hotel room in London. The murders are very gruesome and the police are at a loss.

Well, the plot is interesting, but what is even more striking is the language. In the beginning the author includes many metaphors and similes, the language is sometimes almost lyrical. It seems a bit too forced, though, and hems the reading flow. After a few chapters, this is toned down, and from then on I loved the language and the atmosphere it creates, creating pictures in my mind and slowing down the reading to make room for emotions like fear and uncertainty.
I became totally engrossed in this story and did not want to put it down. The language remains a bit uneven from time to time, but I am quite sure that it is due to the translation. Other reviewers have commented on that as well and I am happy to see that the translator (Wolfdietrich Müller) changes after the second book.

The only thing that could be improved is the ending because there are several investigation lines left hanging:
Why did the murderer wear a wig?
Why did he dance, or what else did the footprints signify?
What about the aspect of homosexuality? Was it a coincidence or does the murderer hate gay men?
What happened to the burglar who found the clothes?
Why did the murderer choose to kill in two cities, and why London and Göteborg? Was it just to confuse Winter? I thought there might be a deeper meaning.

I also think that the motive is too weak and could have been made stronger by giving more of a background story, by explaining more about the childhood/teenage stories of Winter and Bolger.

I have not read as much Nordic Noir as many others, but I do think that this is very good novel apart from the few points I mentioned above. I am looking forward to continuing with this series very much.

I started reading the Aunt Bessie books by Diana Xarissa (The Isle of Man Cozy Mysteries) last year after getting a BB from LittleTaiko. They are very cosy indeed and perfect for when I just want to relax and need a comfort read. I started the third book of the series, Aunt Bessie Considers, before the trip to Ireland, but only read the first 40 pages or so because that week got very stressful and I did not have the time.
In the end of the trip I felt the wish to continue with this and once again the kindle came in handy - I just downloaded it for a small price and was able to read it.



Book No 51

"Aunt Bessie Considers" by Diana Xarissa
Series: Isle of Man Cozy Mystery
First published in 2014
self-published
Paperback/ebook, 217pp.
Rating: 3 stars - ***

Categories: CATWoman - Women and Crime, MysteryKIT - Mysteries featuring food, AlphaKIT - X-Z, RandomKIT - What's in a name, Series

Aunt Bessie is an elderly lady who resides in a cottage on the beach on the Isle of Man. She reads crime books, drinks tea and eats cookies, she is always there for her numerous friends (many of them younger, hence the honorary title of 'aunt') - and from time to time she solves a murder.

Apparently Bessie has another hobby and does some research on the history of the Isle of Man. In this book she intends to give a talk as part of a conference taking place in a historical museum, but of course, things do not go as planned when a scholar who is about to present a very important discovery is found dead.

The setting of the museum is a very good one - on the one hand because I simply love museums and enjoyed reading a story taking place in one, on the other hand because it provides for a locked-room mystery, which is always good.
Just like in the first two books, I loved the characters of Bessie and her friends. The case itself was rather weak this time, even for such a very cosy mystery, and I would have liked things to gather a bit more speed. It seems like the characters talk and talk and talk about the same details, and suddenly Bessie knows who did it - I would have wanted to see how she got there and to see an actual solving of the case.
Apart from these flaws, I think that the writing has improved in this third installment, and anyway, I read these for the atmosphere and the vibes and not foremost for the plot. This novel provided that again: It was like sitting down with a few very good friends, cuddling a hot water bottle, eating chocolate and drinking my favourite tea.

It sounds like you had a lovely trip and were accompanied by some great reads!

>145 DeltaQueen50: Yes and yes! I think I have never read so much within two weeks, at least not since I was a student. I hope the spirit continues.

>135 MissBrangwen: Dervla McTiernan won a Ned Kelly Award for The Ruin, which was really puzzling since her name is so Irish and she's writing about Ireland, but it turns out that she lives in Western Australia now. I've read The Scholar, which was well-written but too bleak for my current frame of mind, and have The Murder Rule, courtesy of BookBub or perhaps a Kindle Daily Deal.

I'm also on an Irish kick and have read two novellas by Claire Keegan, Small Things Like These and Foster, both highly recommended especially Small Things. I'm currently reading The Colony by Audrey Magee, which was long-listed for this year's Booker and on the tbr pile is Strumpet City by James Plunkett, which is described on the cover as "one of the best Irish novels of the century and an enduring and popular classic." To clarify, it's twentieth century.

>147 pamelad: Guess what, I have already ordered The Colony and Small Things Like These! :-) I have not heard of Strumpet City but will check it out. Thank you!

The Ruin is very bleak, too - I did not mind but I couldn't have read the second one straight away, I felt like I needed a change. I read that she lives in Western Australia in the author information of the book. I wonder if she will write anything taking place there one day - I would read it for sure!

>147 pamelad: Small things like these was excellent.

>144 MissBrangwen: I've been to that museum. I'm not a cosy mystery fan, so may not be partaking of that series.

>143 MissBrangwen: I find this sentence but for some reason I prefer reading Nordic Noir in German fascinating.

>135 MissBrangwen: This looks so good! I'm surprised to see my library has it along with two others of hers. I put it on my to read list there where there are 37 others!

I'm glad you enjoyed your trip and seemingly returned home fine. My friend went to Switerand and Italy recently for a couple of weeks and came home with pneumonia, flu and strep throat!

>149 Helenliz: If you are not into cosy mysteries, the Aunt Bessie books are probably not for you! They are definitely very cosy.

>150 clue: Oh no, I feel sorry for your friend. What a nasty "souvenir". I hope the person feels better soon.

It was a lot of fun to read The Lifted Veil in October, and it reminded me of the Little Black Classics and how much I have always enjoyed reading them. So I decided to pick up another one of my small collection, bought on that same trip to London six years ago: The Great Fire of London by Samuel Pepys. I enjoyed it even more when I realized that with this little book, I could fulfill three of this month's categories!



Book No 52

"The Great Fire of London" by Samuel Pepys
Publisher Series: Penguin Little Black Classics
Written in 1665/66
Penguin
Paperback, 51pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Categories: AuthorCAT - Authors who have set their books against a backdrop of real events, AlphaKIT - G-U, RandomKIT - City

I have heard so much about the diaries of Samuel Pepys: That they are interesting and funny, but also that they are very heard to read, boring and long. So when I saw this Little Black Classic, I thought that it would be a good way to just dip into this work and have a look.
This book contains excerpts from the diaries focused on two topics. The first contains entries from the period when the plague hit London in 1665 and Pepys was concerned with the Second Anglo-Dutch War, the second part consists of entries about the fire.
Most reviews I read say that the first part is very boring compared to the second part, when the fire provides a more interesting backdrop, but to me both parts are equally interesting. I might even like the first part a bit more, because of all the fascinating small details making up the writer's daily life in 1665, for example, having to look at his pocket watch every few minutes because he is so fascinated by it (and proud to own it, I guess!) or admiring fish living in a glass. It strikes me how many of the writer's worries are similar to our own: He feels sorry because he cannot see his mother more due to duties at work, he is tired in the mornings and kind of wishes for a better work life balance, but is worried about how others might perceive his work ethos, he likes new clothing and discusses the fittings of his new suits with his wife... It all sounds so familiar, and it seems that people do not really change after all.
Of course, the second part is a little more exciting action wise. Pepys eyes the fire from day to day, travels all over London and describes what he sees, endeavors to rescue his belongings and goes through some hardships while being aware that others have it much worse. These entries are much longer, but I read them quicker because more things happen in them.

So do I want to read all of the diaries one day? I am still on the fence. If so, it will be a very long project. I am wondering if audio would be a good idea. I will see...

In ordered Dame Traveler in 2021 when I was missing traveling a lot, but somehow I only read it now. I followed the author, Nastasia Yakoub, on instagram for a long time - from 2017 until I basically stopped using instagram a couple of months ago.



Book No 53

"Dame Traveler" by Nastasia Yakoub
First published in 2020
10 Speed Press
Hardcover, 216pp.
Rating: 3 stars - ***

Categories: CATWoman - Women's Issues

It is not easy to write a review for this book, because there are some aspects I absolutely love about it, and others that I do not like at all. Moreover, as explained above, I followed the author on instagram for several years and even exchanged messages with her. She is a very kind person and it is not easy for me to criticize her work, but I will try because there are a few things I need to point out in my review.
"Dame Traveler" is a beautiful coffee table book that includes two hundred photographs taken by traveling women, most of them solo travelers. This book stems from the Dame Traveler instagram account, which was one of the first female travel accounts on instagram and created a community of female solo travelers.
The book therefore has two components:
1. Beautiful photographs of many destinations around the world, mostly depicting the female traveler as well as a background of wonderful scenery, nature, architecture etc.
2. Tips, quotes and short texts (similar to instagram postings) encouraging women to travel solo, giving information on specific destinations or topics like safety, hotels or transport, relating personal stories of how the different women overcame different obstacles in order to be able to travel, or just cheering other female travelers on.

The photos are of the typical instagram variety: Women wearing white or colorful dresses or hipster outfits posing in front of the beautiful scenery, mostly gazing at it, so the person looking at the picture does not see the woman's face. The photos are beautiful indeed, but well, there are a million pictures of this kind all over instagram. The women only use the scenery as a backdrop to show themselves, and there is nothing really new about these kind of pictures. While they are perfect, to me they are also boring - even more so because it is obvious that they are totally contrived, that the women probably brought the dresses and accessories with them in bags, in many places waited in a queue to get to the famous spot, got changed and then posed until they got the perfect shot...

The texts are a mixed bag. I enjoyed many of these snippets, especially those about the emotions you feel when you travel. I could relate to many of them: The goosebumps when you first see a very new place, the excitement and the energy, but also times of loneliness. I was never really afraid on any trip, but I know the feeling of strength and self-esteem I develop through travel. All this is referenced in many of the texts. The safety tips were good as well (I knew most of them, but they might be handy for new travelers). The destination tips were a bit off to me, because I do not think that a very detailed tip about a hike, a beach or a viewpoint is that helpful if you have not planned the trip at all so far or have not even started doing the basic research about the destination.

My main criticism of the book is that to me, the texts and photos on the one hand and the proposed message of the book on the other hand do not really match. If travel is for everyone, if you want to encourage ordinary women to travel solo, why only show curated, perfect photographs that show dressed up, styled women in the most extraordinary locations? Why feature luxury hotels, destinations that are very hard to reach, and make it look like things have to be perfect in order to enjoy them? It is my main criticism of the travel community on instagram, and of this book as well. Because travel has not to be luxurious and perfect at all.
For most young women who start solo traveling, travel will be cheap hostels, long bus rides, and meals at fast-food restaurants. Maybe some women - and mainly the so-called influencers or those fortunate enough to be sponsored by their parents - will be able to travel like this book shows, but what about the others? Depictions like these might make them wait for better days to come because they might think that if their travels do not look like this, they will be worthless. And I hate the thought of that.

On a more positive note, the book is inclusive in many aspects. It features Black women and women of color, there are accounts of travelers with a disability and pictures of women who have a high weight. Some of the travelers are hijabis, there is a lesbian travel couple and there are women who travel with toddlers. The author herself is Iraqi-American and has overcome prejudice and expectations in order to lead the life she wished for.
However, as much as I like the spirit of "Go for it! You can do it!", I would have liked to see more reality in this book.

I had never really heard about Georgette Heyer until I became a member of the Category Challenge last year and her books appeared in several threads. When I became more interested in the romance genre this autumn (primarily for my audio book listening), I thought that it was finally time to try one of her books. Being overwhelmed with choice, I decided to start chronologically and listen to her first one, The Black Moth.



Book No 54

"The Black Moth" by Georgette Heyer
First published in 1921
Penguin/Audible
Digital audiobook, 10h 40min
Rating: 4 stars - ****

First of all I should say that I listened to the Penguin audiobook narrated by Stewart Clarke. This narrator does an excellent job! He is particularly good at doing different voices and for long stretches I forgot that this was indeed the same person. I was under the impression of listening to a dramatized version because he does it so well - and all without overdoing it and making it all ridiculous.

Now on to the story: Jack Carstares, the Earl of Wyncham, has been living as a highwayman for seven years. Back then, his brother cheated at cards, but Jack took the blame onto himself to save his brother from ruin and despair, and went into hiding.
The Black Moth refers to the Duke of Andover, Jack's enemy and the scoundrel of the story, who wishes to marry Diana Beauleigh and plans to abduct her.
As is to be expected, there are many turns and twists. There are also quite a lot of other characters who have important roles in the story.

I must admit that in the beginning, it was a bit hard for me to settle into Heyer's style. I had trouble keeping up and was confused by all the different names and characters. But after some time, it became easier and I enjoyed the story very much. The characters are so lively and I like how Heyer takes her time to let things develop. The dialogues are not rushed and it all plays out nicely.
I only wish that there was more of Diana herself - she as a character as well as the actual love story come a bit short.

>154 MissBrangwen:. Excellent, another convert. This isn't one of her best, so you're in for a treat as you explore more of them. Her heroines do come to the fore as she found her feet.

I was going to say exactly the same thing as Helen above. Georgette Heyer wrote The Black Moth when she was quite young, she just kept getting better and better!

>152 MissBrangwen: I read Pepys' entire diary and the part about the London fire was my favorite.
>154 MissBrangwen: I have read 5 or 6 Heyers and The Black Moth was my least favorite. As mentioned before, it was her first and the others I read were somewhat better.

>154 MissBrangwen: I always thought that the Duke of Andover was the blueprint for Justin Alastair in These old shades which is my all-time favourite Heyer.

>155 Helenliz: >156 DeltaQueen50: >157 Tess_W: Thank you! I am looking forward to exploring more of her novels - it feels like an exciting new project!

>158 MissWatson: Interesting! I will keep that in mind for when I finally get to These Old Shades. I do think that Andover is a very good villain.

>158 MissWatson: Same. This is what I wrote after reading them both.

These Old Shades is a sort-of-sequel to The Black Moth, with the main characters renamed. The evil duke, Devil Belmanoir, has become Justin Alastair, Duke of Avon, nicknamed Satanas. He has a reputation for vice, but appears benign in this book, even kindly and good-humoured. The character change is necessary because, had the duke remained evil, he would not have deserved to win the heroine.

>160 pamelad: I like the idea of that. I am looking forward to getting to that one.

My week was quite stressful and I couldn't really concentrate on anything, so I was looking for something very, very light for my next audio book. Somehow I thought of Hape Kerkeling, a German comedian who became a bestseller author in 2006 when he published an account about his pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. I loved the audiobook of that one because of his wonderful narration. He has published a few more books since, but I was looking for something short, and settled on a collection of columns that he wrote for Gala, a German celebrity magazine (at least it is one that is a little more classy than others).



Book No 55

"Frisch hapeziert - Die Kolumnen" by Hape Kerkeling
First published in 2018
Osterwold/Audible
Digital audiobook, 3h 38min
Rating: 2 stars - **

Categories: RandomKIT - Authors setting their books against the backdrop of real events

Hape Kerkeling is one of the most popular comedians in Germany, although he has not been very active for several years. It seems like he is making way for the next generation, despite being only in his fifties. He wrote the columns collected in this book from summer 2017 to summer 2018. They deal with many different topics, foremost with celebrities since Gala is that kind of magazine, but also with current events and scenes from everyday life.
I liked those columns best in which the author tells us something about his own life or recalls some interesting memories. For example, he explains what the introduction of same sex marriage in Germany meant to him (finally being able to properly marry his partner instead of just registering a life partnership), he reminisces on the day he was part of the Federal Assembly and voted for the President of Germany, and he tells a funny story about celebrating carnival with fellow comedian Hella von Sinnen.
A lot of the columns deal with royalty, especially Dutch and British royalty. These were a little interesting because his thoughts were relatable to me. However, the columns about celebrities were neither funny nor did they hold any interest. In general, I found that Kerkeling's humor in these columns was not really mine, and I had hoped for more funny thoughts or more witty moments.
I still like Kerkeling's reading voice and his style of narration and the audio book served the purpose of providing a few hours of light entertainment, so I don't have any regrets, but next time I will seek out his proper books instead of something like this.

On my first trip to Thailand in 2015 I was fascinated by the Buddhist temples and decided that I wanted to learn more about the religion of Buddhism. I wished to be able to understand more of what I saw, and I was also interested on a personal level. In the following years I read several books about this topic and became involved more deeply, also traveling to South East Asia twice more. However, from 2019 on a series of very stressful years began and my Buddhist reading (and tentative practices) fell behind and came to a halt.
It is my wish to pick this up again and make room for it in my life, so I figured that I would start by rereading some of the books I read in the beginning, to rekindle my knowledge and find my footing again.
One of the first books I read, and now reread, was Buddha - Leben, Lehre, Legende, written by Axel Michaels, a professor of South East Asian Studies.



Book No 56

"Buddha - Leben, Lehre, Legende" by Axel Michaels
Publisher Series: C.H. Beck Wissen
First published in 2011
C.H. Beck
Paperback, 115pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

This short book provides an overview of many aspects that are connected to Buddhism. First, the author gives a short outline of the main sources and scripts of the Buddhist canon. After that, he gives an account of the historical Buddha's life as well as the Buddha of legends. These first chapters make up roughly the first half of the book and while the style is somewhat dry and very academic, they are still understandable and interesting.
After that, the author tries to pack all of the important aspects of the religion into the remaining pages, so it is very intense and condensed reading, made up of many lists. I appreciate that he supports everything with translated quotes from the canon, but I think that the space devoted to these quotes should rather have been used for explanations since the quotes do not really enhance the understanding but rather make it even harder.
The last part of the book deals with the different schools of Buddhism as well as its arrival in the Western countries, but again, the writing is very concise and it is hard to follow.

I must say that this reading was a bit easier for me because now I knew many of the terms and had read more extensive explanations of the basic teachings, although several years ago. But still, a lot of it went over my head. It is clear that the author is very knowledgeable and there are many important and interesting aspects, but the book should be double length (none of the books in this publisher series are more than 120 pages, so the length is not the author's fault). It serves its purpose as a rather academic overview or introduction, but if the reader wishes to understand more of the teachings, other books are more helpful.

When I was in my twenties, D.H. Lawrence was one of my favourite authors, as you can see from my LT name which I chose at the time. My love for him has faded a bit in recent years, but I still have a number of his novels waiting on my shelf, mainly because I bought a stack of them for a small price at Leakey's Bookshop in Inverness in 2016 (that trip was the only trip ever where I had to pay for additional baggage for the flight home because of all the books I bought!). I chose to read The Trespasser this month because of Reading Through Time's quarterly theme of reading books concerned with the years between 1900 and 1913.



Book No 57

"The Trespasser" by D.H. Lawrence
First published in 1912
Penguin
Paperback, 217pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Siegmund is a professional musician approaching forty, he feels trapped in his marriage and falls in love with his student Helena, feeling torn between her and his four children (he does not consider his wife all that much). Siegmund and Helena spend a week on the Isle of Wight together, which makes up the main part of the novel. Although it is not long, it took me a long time to read it, because the reading is slow - for many chapters, nothing really happens. The couple spend their time swimming, walking and talking, sometimes quarreling, and well - being emotional. The writing is almost cinematic when the landscape, and especially the sea, is described, and it is heavy with metaphors and symbols, requiring a slower reading pace. The feelings of uncertainty, longing, despair, attachment and resentment are reflected by nature - the sea, the vegetation, the wind, the moon. It seems like every day just drags on, without any certain outcome.
This somewhat changes when they return to London and Siegmund has to face the fact that he cannot go on like this, but has to make a decision. The atmosphere in his family home is suffocating and cold, which Lawrence conveys in a poignant way, and in a stark contrast to the openness of the days on the island.

I found reading this rather depressing because I was frustrated with the characters. I missed the determination and stamina some of Lawrence's later characters show. However, I am still glad I read it, because the writing is truly stellar and will leave a lasting impression, and I did like the end with its tentative signs of hope.

>164 MissBrangwen: I'm going to put that one on my WL--I need to read more Lawrence. I think I read Lady Chatterly's Lover, but I can't remember!

>165 Tess_W: I hope you like it when you get to it! My favourite of his is The Rainbow and I also liked Women in Love (which is a sequel to The Rainbow) and Sons and Lovers.

You might know by now that J.R.R. Tolkien has been my favourite author for more than twenty years. I love Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films very much, too, so naturally I was excited when the first Hobbit film came out, and I bought lots of memorabilia, including this magazine: Bilbos Reise zum Erebor (Bilbo's Journey to Erebor), written by Stefan Servos. I only leafed through it back then and finally managed to read it thoroughly, ten years later!
FYI, I liked the Hobbit films a little better than most people did, although there were many aspects that I did not agree with. All in all, I am able to just be happy about what they did get right, and ignore the rest. Oh, and I love the soundtracks almost as much as the LotR ones!



Book No 58

"Bilbos Reise zum Erebor" by Stefan Servos
Space View Fantasy Special
First published in 2012
HEEL Verlag
Paperback, 80pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Stefan Servos is probably the foremost German expert on Peter Jackson's Middle-earth films. He managed the biggest German website about the films for many years until it was one of the casualties of the pandemic, he wrote several books about them, and he even traveled to New Zealand to interview Peter Jackson.
This small book - in fact a magazine, but with a bookish feel because of its chapters and layout - was published in 2012 when the first Hobbit film came to the cinemas.
The first half of the work was the most interesting to me because after a few short chapters on how Tolkien wrote The Hobbit, Servos recalls the long history of how the films came to be. While I had heard all of it some time before, it was entertaining to read about it in a concise version: The first attempts and older film versions, the success of the LotR films and how the Hobbit films were planned, the odyssey of studios and contracts, strikes and obstacles, major changes and revelations, until the first film was finally about to be released.
After that, there are portraits of the major characters and the actors and actresses who play them - this chapter is more like a summary of wikipedia entries.
Next, the major filming locations are presented, as well as the different companies and studios belonging to Peter Jackson's imperium. I enjoyed both chapters because I learned new things and I liked the photos very much. The last chapter goes back to the beginning and explores how by adapting The Hobbit in a new way, Peter Jackson adds to the myth and contributes to it being alive. To be honest, this is a rather euphemistic view of the many changes to the story and some of the terrible new characters, but still, it is an interesting concept.
All in all, Servos is fanboying a bit too much when it comes to Peter Jackson and I would have liked to read a more balanced commentary. The many typos and some grammar mistakes also got on my nerves. Apart from that, I spent an enjoyable couple of hours with this and had a good time journeying down memory lane for a little while.

When TessW shared a link listing kindle books that were for free at the moment, I couldn't resist but have a look and add a few to my collection. I started reading His Christmas Wish by Melissa McClone right away because it was exactly what I was looking for this past weekend.



Book No 59

"His Christmas Wish" by Melissa McClone
Series: Mountain Rescue Romance (1)
First published in 2018
Cardinal press
e-book, 251pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

When I read the blurb of this novel I was not sure if I should read it, because the trope of a young widow finding new love in a new place is one I am a bit weary of. However, the cover of this novel spoke to me and somehow I had a feeling that I would like this book. And I did!
The trope is a bit twisted, because Carly, the protagonist of "His Christmas Wish", does not move to a completely new place, but visits the town where she grew up after she has been away for some time. Six years ago, her brother and her fiancé died in a climbing accident and Carly moved away. Now she returns to help her brother's widow, who remarried and is heavily pregnant. And of course she meets Jake, her dead brother's best friend and once her teenage crush.
It all sounds a bit construed, but it worked for me. I absolutely loved the characters and the story became real to me. Although it is of course a little cheesy, it felt authentic and I felt at home in the town of Hood Hamlet and couldn't wait to read on. Christmas plays a part in many of the chapters, and I couldn't help but consume cookies most of the time I read. My only criticism is that both the beginning and the ending felt rushed. Not really insta love, because the characters of course knew each other from six years ago, but still I think that they would have needed a bit more time to warm up to each other again after all that had happened. And well, I could have done without an instant engagement and a wedding three months after that - but that is just me and maybe I am not the target audience.
Apart from that, I enjoyed this novel very much and I am looking forward to continuing with this series. The topic of mountain rescue adds interest because I have always been fascinated by operations like that. I am eager to learn more about the other members of the rescue team.

>168 MissBrangwen: Yeah! I haven't read the two freebies I d/l!

>169 Tess_W: I just felt like reading it and so I didn't wait :-)

Today I finally read The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson - it had been waiting on my shelf for six years.



Book No 60

"The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde" by Robert Louis Stevenson
First published in 1886
Penguin Popular Classics
Paperback, 88pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Categories: MysteryKIT - Gothic

This novella was very different from what I had expected it to be. I must admit that reading it was a bit laborious to me because well, like most people I already knew the solution to the mystery (although I only knew the barest facts), and the story is a little slow, so I basically waited for something interesting to happen. In spite of that, the actual solution - in its details - did surprise me, and I found the ending to be very chilling. It actually gave me the creeps, and I did not expect that from this story. It was worth the read for the last one or two pages alone.

It's difficult to read that one as if you didn't know the story and the solution. I admit that it wasn't quite the story I thought I knew. Can you imagine how shocking it would have been to the original audience?

Another short read, this time chosen because it fit perfectly for this month's reading prompt from "Reading Through Time". I bought The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes about five years ago but was always a little intimidated by it without knowing why. Now I have finally read it.



Book No 61

"The Sense of an Ending" by Julian Barnes
First published in 2011
Vintage
Paperback, 150pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

It is very hard for me to review this novel because although I absolutely loved reading it, I couldn't say that it is one of my favorite novels now, and I cannot even really put my finger on why that is. So here are just a few thoughts.
The writing is beautiful, stellar, it made me read paragraphs and sometimes pages again and again to make it sink in. The topics of aging and memory, interpreting and reinventing your past are dealt with masterfully. Unlike many other readers - judging from the reviews - I even feel sympathy for the narrator, and quite like him. And yet, I feel a distance to the story and the person telling it.
I think I will ponder this novel for quite some time, and might reread at some point.

>172 Helenliz: I tried to put myself into the frame of mind of a 19th century reader, but it is very hard to do, especially because medicine and psychology have advanced so much, as well as the horror genre.

I discovered When Harry Met Harry by Sydney Smyth because I only had a few audible credits left and wished to use those for Christmas books, so I browsed the audible books that are included in the subscription, and this is one of those, which means that I was able to listen to it for free. The cover and blurb spoke to me for some reason, and so I decided to give it a try.



Book No 62

"When Harry Met Harry" by Sydney Smyth
First published in 2020
Audible Originals
Digital audiobook, 8h 6min
Rating: 4 stars - ****

The story starts at Changi International Airport in Singapore, where two very different men embark on a flight to San Francisco and have to sit next to each other, getting on each other's nerves: Henry, a Singaporean businessman who lives for his job and his status symbols, and Harrison, returning home from a backpacking trip around the world and dreaming of becoming an actor. After many hours crammed into their seats and not getting along, they are just happy to leave. But of course, in San Francisco they keep running into each other and start an unlikely friendship that might become more if they are brave enough to let that happen...
Granted, the story is both predictable and improbable at the same time, but I didn't care because I just loved these characters. After listening about them for eight hours, I am sad to let them go. Somehow I just rooted for them and enjoyed getting to know their lives so much.
My only criticism is that after a few hours, the story lost a little of its pace and seemed to drag a bit. The twists and turns got too much and felt a bit forced. Although I would happily have learned more about these characters, the plot itself could have been more interesting in the second half.

I must admit that I have never watched "When Harry Met Sally", so I don't know how similar the stories are, but judging from other reviews there are only a few nods to that famous film.

Another thing I liked about this book were the references to popular culture, such as Harry Potter, Star Wars and Friends. These gave the story a more realistic feel.

This novel is not available in print or as an ebook, it is an audible original that was only published as an audible audiobook so far. I was not able to find out anything more about Sydney Smyth, other than that they have published two more of such audible originals, both also contemporary romances featuring gay characters.
I will listen to those for sure in the future and hope that the author will publish more and maybe in print as well.

Unterm Birnbaum (published in English as Under the Pear Tree) by Theodor Fontane has been on my shelf for ages. I bought it because I love both Effi Briest and Irrungen Wirrungen by the same author, although Der Stechlin and Frau Jenny Treibel were a bit hard to get through. I plan to reread Frau Jenny Treibel at some point.



Book No 63

"Unterm Birnbaum" by Theodor Fontane
First published in 1885
VMA Verlag
Hardcover, 130pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Categories: AlphaKIT - G-U

"Unterm Birnbaum" is unusual for Fontane because it is a crime novel. It takes place in the (I presume fictional) village of Tschechin, which is located on the banks of the Oder river, back then in Prussia and now on the German-Polish border.
The crime happens in one of the early chapters, and it is not explained in detail, but it is obvious to the reader: Abel Hradscheck, an inn keeper who is highly in debt, accidentally finds a French soldier who was buried under the pear tree in his garden more than two decades ago. This gives him an idea, and he and his wife Ursel decide to kill a company representative who lodges at their inn and to whom they have given all of their money.

As the novella starts with the crime, it is obvious that this is not a whodunit, but that the story deals with the consequences of the murder. Hradscheck and Ursel expected to be happy now that their financial life is so much better, yet, they find it hard to live with the guilt and deal with it in very different ways. This is complicated by their neighbor, a whimsical old lady who observes her surroundings all day and who clearly suspects something. She succeeds in driving Hradscheck nearly mad with her carefully ambigous comments. Soon, the villagers start suspecting the couple, too...

This is a great story with a lot of interesting themes: Greed, guilt, secrets, expectations, values. The psychological aspects are more important than the plot itself and are dealt with in an impressive way. Nevertheless, reading this felt a bit laborious because there are so many other things thrown in as well: Endless ramblings of the local men meeting in the inn, more village characters who write letters and exchange their views, songs and too many dialogues. Parts of these are written in Low German (one of the eastern varieties of course, not the one spoken where I live now). Although many words can be guessed from the context and I also knew a few words from my grandfather who grew up in West Prussia, this was a bit difficult for me. I appreciate the local flavor it gives, but it hindered my reading flow.

To conclude, I think this would have been a better novella if it had been more streamlined, and it is not my favourite Fontane work, but it is worth the read for the psychological aspects. It is was especially interesting to me to compare it to "The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde", written around the same time and also dealing with a character who has to keep a terrible secret.

>176 MissBrangwen: Effie Briest is on my wish list, probably because I came across Theodor Fontane in your thread. This book sounds interesting too, and it's nice and short.

>177 pamelad: It might have been from my or from Birgit‘s thread, as I remember some Fontane discussion happening there!

>177 pamelad:
>178 MissBrangwen:

Yes, I picked up Fontane somewhere! Last month I read Irretrievable and it was very historical (which was good!), but the story of the ailing marriage was just so-so--which I think is what Fontane wished to express. I'm not opposed to reading another Fontane in the future. Making a note of Effi Briest.

>179 Tess_W: Effi Briest is probably his most popular work. I have not read Irretriavable yet, but I think I will slowly work through the list of his novels and novellas.

I came across Once Upon A Christmas Eve by Elizabeth Hoyt when I was browsing audible for historical romance novels featuring Christmas. I had never heard of the author before and well, I won't read anything else by her.



Book No 64

"Once Upon A Christmas Eve" by Elizabeth Hoyt
Series: Maiden Lane (10.7)
First published in 2017
Hachette Audio/Audible
Digital audiobook, 3h
Rating: 2 stars - **

The premise of this novella sounded promising to me: Adam Rutledge, a viscount, and his grandmother are on the way to visit relatives for Christmas, when their carriage breaks down in the countryside and they have to seek shelter at the nearest house. Because of the fierce snow and his grandmother's failing health, they are forced to spend Christmas with the St John family, among them Sarah, the eldest daughter. The problem is that Adam is a known womanizer, while Sarah detests men like him...

Of course the plot is utterly predictable, but I did enjoy the atmosphere of the story: The group of bachelors invited in the hope of finally finding a husband for Sarah, the preparations for Christmas, the countryside setting. I would have wished for more of a Christmas atmosphere, but I enjoyed the descriptions that were included. The characters were very flat, though, and there are many references to sex and some very explicit scenes. While I don't mind those in general, I rather disliked the wording of these and generally thought that they felt off and did not fit the story.

This novella is part of a series, but it can be read as a standalone. While I don't regret listening to this because of the aspects I liked, and because the narrator, Ashford McNab, does a really good job, I will not read other installments of the series or any other works by this author. There are so many historical romances to choose from and it seems that I prefer those that are a little less steamy.

I'm trying to catch up on threads so I'm very behind...

I loved Samuel Pepys diaries. Yes, it was a long read but well worth it. I read it a long time ago but then recently read the abbreviated Selections from the diary of Samuel Pepys, 1660-1669, which would be a good place to start.

D.H. Lawrence was a favourite of mine too when I was in my twenties and thirties. I read everything I could find, which wasn't all of his works, but most.

I have The Sense of an Ending on my re-read list simply because it is worth a second visit, even though I'm at an age where I'm hesitant to read about looking back at the past. I too gave it 4.5 stars the first time.

Glad you enjoyed the trip to Ireland.

>182 VivienneR: Thanks for visiting and for the heads up on Pepys!

A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks is another book that I have owned for nearly seven years. I bought it because I enjoyed Birdsong by this author so much, and I started it, but dropped it after a few pages. Last week I finally made a second attempt and pushed through the first few chapters. After that it became much easier to follow the story and I read the whole novel in just three days.



Book No 65

"A Week in December" by Sebastian Faulks
First published in 2009
Hutchinson
Paperback, 392pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

Categories: AuthorCAT - Favourite Authors, AlphaKIT - W-Y, BingoDOG - Month in the Title, Finally Finished

"A Week in December" offers a view of life in London over the course of one week in December 2007. There are numerous characters and the reader gets to know them all, some more than others. And chapter after chapter, the links between them come to light, some superficial and obscure, others much deeper than you first thought.

There is a financial tycoon who only lives for the next big deal, a teenage boy addicted to drugs and reality TV, a Polish footballer just starting his career in a London team, a young female tube driver who plays an online game in her free time, a poor lawyer trying to find his way, a young muslim ensnared by a radical group, a literary critic who hates contemporary literature, and so on...
In the beginning it was hard for me to keep the characters straight and to get used to the story which was much more about these characters than about a specific plot. But after some time, I just went along with the ride and the characters grew on me. Each of them, in their own way, is looking for a life worth living, dealing with feelings of loneliness and isolation, trying to find something to hold on to. It is so true to life on the small scale. On the big scale, however, Faulks hits on basically every contemporary topic that was big in the late 2000s: The world of finance, terrorism, TV & online media, the publishing world, the health system, integration. His satire is sharp, yet the strength of the book for me is in the characters and the ties between them. I would happily have read a whole novel about each of these characters, with the exception of the hedge fund manager, because well, there was already more about the finance world than I ever wanted to know in this novel.

>184 MissBrangwen: You've almost convinced me to give Faulks another chance. I abhorred Birdsong and have sworn off Faulks.

>185 Tess_W: Hm, I'm not sure if this book is for you then... But of course it depends on the reasons of why you didn't like Birdsong.

I have come down with a nasty cold but wanted to try and read a book, so I chose Die eisblaue Spur by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir because I knew it would be an easy read. The English version is called The Day is Dark.



Book No 66

"Die eisblaue Spur" by Yrsa Sigur∂ardóttir
Series: Dóra Guðmundsdóttir (4)
Original Title: Auðnin
First published in 2009
btb
ebook, 333pp.
Rating: 2 stars - **

Categories: AlphaKIT - W-Y, Series

This novel promised to be interesting because of its setting: A research station in Greenland, in the middle of winter. Unfortunately, I don't think that the author managed to play out the strengths and opportunities of this setting.

Dóra, a lawyer from Reykjavik, and her partner Matthias travel to Greenland in order to investigate the delays in a project of a mining company. All of the workers have left the station and refuse to return, and three people are missing.
While the premise is a great one, I found the execution lacking in plausibility. I was shaking my head at Dóra's actions most of the time. I also felt uncomfortable because of the depiction of the Inuit, who were exoticized throughout, setting "civilized" Iceland and Denmark against "wild" Greenland where everything is mysterious.
The plot itself has many strands, and there were a few that got me excited and made me turn the pages quicker, but the solution was much simpler than what I expected, which left me disappointed.

I will continue with the series because these books are good palate cleansers when I need a quick and easy read, and I have only two remaining in the series, but I do hope these will be better.

I have got that cold too! I hope you feel better soon! Today is my second day off work - I've had it for over a week now, but had to face the fact yesterday that going into work and trying to get through the day was not going to help me get better, however guilty I feel about staying at home.

I hope your next read is better too!

>188 Jackie_K: Oh no! I hope you feel better soon. Giving yourself time to cure at home is probably the best idea.

I hope you recover from your cold soon! I also caught a cold a couple of weeks ago but recovered quickly (unlike my experience with COVID, which was not too serious but lasted for weeks).

>167 MissBrangwen: Your comments made me think that it's time I reread The Hobbit. I've read LOTR several times now, but I'm definitely due for a reread of this one.

>190 mathgirl40: Oh, what a nice idea! I have read The Hobbit multiple times and I think it is such a rewarding book for rereading, especially if you haven't read it for a long time.

Unfortunately, my cold turned out to be a severe flu or something like that (I suspect RS virus). I am slowly on the mend now, but it was terrible, and I felt much worse than when I had covid. Reading wasn't possible at all so far, even more so because I had to use the times when I felt a little better to grade papers. But I hope things will improve from now on and that I will be able to read soon. I miss it!

>191 MissBrangwen: So sorry to hear of your illness. Many at school have had the flu and it has seemed to hang on forever! I hope your recovery goes quickly!

Sorry to hear you have been laid so low. I hope you'll mend soon enough to enjoy the holidays!

>192 Tess_W: >193 MissWatson: Thank you both for your good wishes!

>191 MissBrangwen: Oh no! I hope you’re feeling better soon.

>191 MissBrangwen: Oh dear, hope the flu lets you from its grip soonest.

>195 rabbitprincess: >196 Helenliz: I'm finally on the mend! Thank you both for your kind comments!

Today I finished listening to A Jane Austen Christmas - Regency Christmas Traditions by Maria Grace, which was another short audible book. I assume that this will be my last book of the year, because my new reading year starts on Christmas Eve and it is unlikely that I will finish anything before that.



Book No 67

"A Jane Austen Christmas - Regency Christmas Traditions" by Maria Grace
Series: Jane Austen Regency Life (1)
First published in 2015
White Soup Press
Digital audiobook, 2h 19min
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

Categories: RandomKIT - Christmas Sweets

This is one of those books that merely uses Jane Austen's name to generate more interest. There is nothing at all about Jane Austen in the work, apart from the fact that it is concerned with regency traditions. This did not bother me at all, though, because it is a very interesting book and I enjoyed listening to most of it. It presents a large array of Christmas and New Year traditions in Great Britain, the interesting aspect being that it deals with the festivities as they were before Queen Victoria and the ideas of a more contemplative Christmas gained influenced and changed these traditions forever. I was surprised to hear about the wild parties the gentry had, especially on Twelfth Night, and it was interesting to learn that these often provided a disguise to be able to talk to members of the other sex more freely or even perform small acts that would otherwise be totally scandalous. Another example is the fact that Christmas was foremost not considered a holiday for children, who were often left behind when visiting relatives or acquaintances. There are many fascinating pieces of information like that in the book - of course they might not be as interesting to readers who are more knowledgeable about British Christmas traditions than I am on the whole.

Unfortunately, the last third of the book is solely made up of recipes that are read out aloud. If I had had a paper book, I would have browsed them to see if there was anything interesting, but listening to them for such a long time was simply not something I was prepared to do, so I fast forwarded to the end. Thus, this book might be much better suited to be a paper book than an audiobook, even more so because most of the traditions are listed in short chapters without a lot of context, making it a bit strenuous to listen to it for a longer period of time.

My new reading year starts on Christmas Eve because that is my favourite day of the year, and because my husband and I have made it a tradition to both start a new book that day. So it is nice to start with a clean slate then, and ring in the new reading year a bit earlier.

I will not finish anything else today, so that means that my reading year 2022 is officially done and from tomorrow I will post in my new thread over in the 2023 Category Challenge!

Although it was far from perfect, I am quite happy with how my reading turned out to be in 2022. While, for several reasons, I did not read for a full four months from mid-February to mid-June, I did read quite a lot in the remaining time, and I had a good mix of genres and authors. Because of that, I am more content with my reading than I have been for many years. I also discovered historical romances as a new genre I like (thanks mainly to christina_reads and pamelad!), and I got my first kindle. I am really looking forward to what 2023 will bring in terms of reading!

And I want to say thank you to this wonderful group, to everyone who has commented in my thread, who has inspired me with their great reviews and BBs, who has hosted a monthly challenge or contributed in any other way!
This group truly has become my bookish home and I am so happy about it :-)

Merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates, and I cannot wait to tackle our tbrs and discover new shiny treasures with you in 2023!

>199 MissBrangwen: "I am more content with my reading than I have been for many years." That sounds like an excellent reading year to me! And I'm very glad you've enjoyed some of my historical romance recommendations! :)

>200 christina_reads: I really did! :-)