Agatha Christie Archives - Page 2 of 2

WWW Wednesday – 20th January 2021

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Taking on a World of Words. Anyone can take part and it is a great way of sharing what you have just finished reading, what you are currently reading and what is next on the TBR.

Links are provided for books already published – thanks for supporting my blog with any purchases (at no extra cost to you!)

What have you recently finished reading?

This week I’ve mainly been reading ‘The Jigsaw Man’ by Nadine Matheson. I won a proof copy of this from the lovely people at HQ Stories and was absolutely gripped by the gruesome tale of a serial killer on the streets of London. Those with a sensitive disposition should steer clear, but I thought this was a pacey and exciting story with a strong female lead, Detective Inspector Anjelica Henley. A review will follow on my blog nearer to publication date in February 2021.

I also finished ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’ by Agatha Christie which I loved. It has been a long time since I read Christie and I have seen a lot of the TV adaptations so it can be tricky finding a ‘fresh’ one! This one was vaguely familiar but I still failed to solve the crime myself and had to rely on Poirot’s ‘little grey cells’ which are in better conditon than mine! I read this with the book group at The Write Reads and it was a joy to discuss with them.

Lastly, I read Margaret Atwood’s new poetry collection, ‘Dearly’, which I have both in hardback (thank you, Waterstones’ sale) and audiobook (thanks, NetGalley). This is a powerful collection of poems that addresses – among so many other things – love, loss, ageing, feminism and the environment. I’ve got a lot of digesting of this book that needs to happen before I can attempt a review, but it will follow on the blog in due course.

What are you reading now?

I’m still reading ‘Maiden Voyages: Women and the Golden Age of Transatlantic Travel’ by Sian Evans although this has taken a backseat this week to all the crime fiction! This is a glorious and engagingly-written account of women at sea in the ‘Golden Age’, approximately between the wars but the narrative begins with the slightly pre-WWI ‘Titanic’ sinking. I love the fact that this covers a range of female experiences, from stewardesses to millionairesses.

What do you think you will read next?

I really need to clear some of the NetGalley shelf. I’ve got my eye on ‘Dark Truths’ by AJ Cross (a forensic mystery) and ‘Bad Habits’ by Flynn Meaney (YA humour) as books that I think will keep me going!

Additionally, I’ve got another looming blog tour for Carol Wyer’s ‘An Eye for An Eye’ which looks to be an interesting police procedural and the first in a series to feature DI Kate Young – this one sounds right up my street!

So that’s me for this week! As always, thanks for reading and please do follow my blog for more updates.

Thank to NetGalley for the books in exchange for an honest review.

WWW Wednesday – 13th January, 2020

Links are provided for books already published – thanks for supporting my blog with any purchases (at no extra cost to you!)

What have you recently finished reading?

Since my last update, I finished ‘Dark Memories’ by Liz Mistry, the third book in the series featuring DS Nikki Parekh and her partner DC Saj Malik. This is a nail-bitingly tense instalment in which the Bradford-based detectives rush to uncover the links between a sequence of brutal murders – and is seems the connection is closer to Nikki than she would like. This is – as the title suggests – incredibly dark, but the lead detectives are a fabulous pair and this is a pacey and lively read.

A full review will follow on my blog later in the month as this is a blog tour book. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Also for a January blog tour, I read ‘Silent Graves’ by Sally Rigby, a crime fiction novel in the Cavendish and Walker series. Although this is the ninth book in the series (but my first), I had no problems with immersing myself in the world of Lanchester Police and their investigation into a double murder that took place in 1980 but only uncovered 40 years later.

The lead characters, DCI Whitney Walker and Dr Georgina Cavendish, are a formidable pair – both prickly and tough – and this is a solid police procedural.

My review will follow later in January – with thanks to Damp Pebbles Blog Tours and the author for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

Rounding off my week of obsessively reading crime fiction, I also finished ‘The Appeal’ by Janice Hallett. This is a hugely inventive murder mystery where the reader is put into the position of investigator! Alongside two legal trainees reviewing the case notes, the reader works their way through emails, voicemails, texts and notes from all the key characters. It’s immersive and mind-boggling and I loved it!

I read this as a buddy read with Locky Loves Books and my review will be on the blog on the book’s publication date (tomorrow!). With thanks to the kind people at Viper Books for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

What are you reading now?

As crime fiction seems to be the thing that is cutting through my brain fog, I’m reading ‘The Jigsaw Man’ by Nadine Matheson. I was lucky to win a proof copy of this book which is due out in February 2021. So far, it’s thrown me in the deep end with a whole load of gruesome discoveries – and I can’t wait to read on!

I’m still reading ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’ by Agatha Christie as a readalong with my blogger friends at The Write Reads. I had to stop halfway through so we could discuss it and that was so hard to do – I need to read the rest!

I’m also still reading ‘Maiden Voyages: Women and the Golden Age of Transatlantic Travel’ by Sian Evans. I absolutely love this book – it is a fascinating insight into the history of women at sea, from those working as stewardesses on the huge ocean liners to those enjoying the luxuries afforded to the first class passengers. The accompanying pictures in my hardback edition are also interesting. This book has already sent me off on several Google trips to find out even more about these amazing women.

What do you think you will read next?

I really need to clear some of the NetGalley shelf, but I’m finding it harder to read electronically at the moment. I’ve got my eye on ‘Dark Truths’ by AJ Cross (a forensic mystery) and ‘Bad Habits’ by Flynn Meaney (YA humour) as books that I think will keep me going!

So that’s me for this week! As always, thanks for reading and please do follow my blog for more updates.

Header photo with thanks to waad samah on Unsplash.

Resolutions – Book Tag

I’ve been tagged by the lovely Emandherbooks to do this tag inspired by New Year’s Resolutions, but with a bookish twist. This tag was created by Mikaela Reads and it is very tricky!

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1. Exercise More – name a book that has made you want to leap up out of your seat (for any reason).

I recently read ‘The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires’ by Grady Hendrix, a book which made me jump in horror but also in frustration! Some of the horror was a lot more horror-y (yes, it’s a word!) than I was really comfortable with – let’s just say rats and insects and unconventional vampire eating methods and leave it there! However, it also made me kind of cross in places as the women of the book club (who I hoped would be lovely but fierce Southern ladies who had each others’ backs) just weren’t very united.

There’s lots in the book to enjoy – if you have a stronger stomach than me!

2. Get Organised – a book with an exceptional plot

I don’t think you can beat Agatha Christie for brilliant plotting. I’m reading ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’ with my book group at the moment and it is absolutely brilliant. It is making me want to read and re-read other Christie novels – I’ve always had a soft spot for a Poirot book.

My favourite Christie book is probably ‘Dead Man’s Folly’ so I’ll choose that for this resolution.

3. Learn A New Skill – a book which taught you something

I read lots of non-fiction books with the vague hope that I’ll learn something – I always do, but unfortunately have a memory like a sieve so don’t actually retain much!

However, a few books I’ve read in the last year have really taught me to look at things differently and challenge my thinking. ‘Difficult Women’ by Helen Lewis made me think about how far the fight for gender equality has come (but how far there is left to go) while ‘How Not to be Wrong’ by James O’Brien got me to identify my own in-built prejudices and the possible reasons for them. On a lighter note, James Felton’s ’52 Times Britain was a Bellend: The History You Didn’t Get Taught at School’ gave me a new perspective on historical ‘truths’ (and made me laugh too!)

4. Live Life To The Fullest – a book which inspired you

I’m really not sure I read that kind of inspirational book!

However, Ruby Wax’s ‘And Now For The Good News’ gave me a shot of positivity that there are good people out there achieving amazing things. In the face of 2020, that was quite inspirational.

5. Save more money / spend less money – the most expensive book you’ve bought and was it worth it?

I once spent £50 on a book at the Hay Festival just so I could meet its author and get it signed. That author was Brian May and it was worth every penny! The book is fabulous too, by the way – ‘Queen in 3D’.

6. Spend More Time With Family and Friends – a character you would want to be best mates with

One of my absolute favourite books is ‘I Capture the Castle’ by Dodie Smith. From the second I first read it as a teenager, I was absolutely captivated by the eccentric and charming Mortmain family (especially Cassandra, our narrator).

7. Travel More – a book with a location you’d love to visit

I tend to read a lot of historical fiction, so it’s usually more about when I’d like to visit rather than where!

However, I remember being fascinated by the descriptions of Mesa Verde, Colorado in ‘The Professor’s House’ by Willa Cather. I read this book at university a long time ago and the setting really interested me because of the old cliff-dwellings. In the pre-Internet days (remember them?!), I couldn’t imagine these amazing houses built into the rock and always kind of hoped I’d get to go one day.

8. Read More – a book you are desperate to read this year

I’m really keen to read the new book by Elizabeth Macneal, ‘Circus of Wonders’. I loved her last book, ‘The Doll Factory’ and this one looks just perfect! The blurb had me at ‘Gothic Victoriana…’

There you have it! Hope you’ve enjoyed my answers and I’d like to tag anyone who fancies giving this a go – it is quite a challenge!

Header photo with thanks to Annie Spratt on Unsplash.

WWW Wednesday: 6th January, 2021

Links are provided for books already published – thanks for supporting my blog with any purchases (at no extra cost to you!)

What have you recently finished reading?

Since my last update, I finished reading ‘The Art of Death’ by David Fennell, a serial killer crime novel with a female detective, DI Grace Archer. It is such a tense thriller, although definitely quite gruesome at times as Archer and her team find victims’ bodies turned into art installations on the streets of London. This is definitely a brilliant book for keeping readers turning pages – my review will follow

I also read ‘The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires’ by Grady Hendrix. Although it was nothing like I expected (I wanted a middle-aged, book club version of ‘True Blood’!), I did find it engaging.

I loved the idea of a group of women, brought together by their love of books, standing together against a vampire in their safe, middle-class neighbourhood. However, I was less prepared for the quite extreme horror elements – a bit beyond what I’d signed up for with its rats, bugs and dead animals.

Still, it kept me reading as I wanted to see the women – not a cohesive or cosy group by any means – triumph.

Then I read ‘How to Solve a Murder’ by Derek and Pauline Tremain, a rather gruesome but interesting book about forensics. The Tremains worked in the forensic department at Guy’s Hospital (where they met) and this book is packed with information about how deaths are investigated. I’d hoped for some insights into specific cases, but this was more about the science and the people doing the work – recommended for crime fiction fans.

My first book of 2021 was James O’Brien’s ‘How Not to be Wrong: The Art of Changing your Mind’. I really liked this non-fiction look at how broadcaster O’Brien has been led to shift his own world views by callers to his radio show or through the process of therapy. It’s an engaging and lively read, packed with O’Brien’s own reflections, transcripts of his radio show and plenty of food for thought.

What are you reading now?

I’m reading the new Liz Mistry book on NetGalley (‘Dark Memories’) – I loved the previous book in this series featuring DS Nikki Parekh and have so far been caught up in this story about Parekh investigating murders that have connections to her own poverty-stricken childhood in Bradford. The friendship between Parekh and her sidekick, Saj, is just lovely in this book and offsets some of the bleak themes.

I’m also reading ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’ by Agatha Christie as a readalong with my blogger friends at The Write Reads. I’m only a few chapters in and remembering all the reasons I loved reading Christie’s books when I was a teenager – the characterisation, the fiendish plotting, the red herrings… I love it all!

‘The Appeal’ by Janice Hallett is also on my current reading pile – I’m reading this as a buddy read with Locky Loves Books. It’s a really unusual crime fiction book in that it is all written as emails, voicemail transcrips, texts and notes between the main protagonists surrounding a murder in a small community (and the lawyers who are trying to piece together the solution at the same time as the reader). Highly original and absolutely brilliant!

And (because three books on the go isn’t enough!) I’m also reading ‘Maiden Voyages: Women and the Golden Age of Transatlantic Travel’ by Sian Evans. This is a very readable non-fiction book about women travellers mainly between the wars. The opening chapters deal with the Titanic and the ‘Unsinkable’ Violet Jessop before moving on to war time and the tragedy of the Lusitania. It’s fascinating stuff so far!

What do you think you will read next?

I have so many books, thanks to Christmas and my Waterstones’ sale spree – I am very lucky to be drowning in books. My husband is less happy about the amount of books in our house right now…

I do have a book to read for a blog tour – ‘Silent Graves’ by Sally Rigby, a crime fiction novel in the Cavendish and Walker series. I haven’t read previous books but I am totally intrigued by the fact this is a female DCI partnered with a female forensic psychologist to solve the historical murders of teenage girls who were killed in 1980.

Aside from this, I’ve got my eye on some more crime fiction – it’s becoming a bit of an obsession! I’m tempted by ‘The Jigsaw Man’ by Nadine Matheson as I won a proof, plus ‘One by One’ by Ruth Ware (who has been described as a modern-day Christie – perfect!)

So that’s me for this week! As always, thanks to NetGalley, publishers, my family and my ever-dwindling bank account for keeping me in great books.

December Wrap Up and January TBR

Well, the eternal 2020 is finally over!

I managed to read 11 books in December, taking me to a total of 120 for the year – a lot for me and more than my Goodreads target of 100.

Affiliate links are provided below – thanks for supporting my blog with any purchases.

December Reading

I started the month with a NetGalley 2021 ARC, ‘The Last House on Needless Street’ by Catriona Ward. This is a really clever book about a serial killer and a missing child – to say more would really ruin the plot! Although I did read this and was pulled along by the narrative, I personally found it to be a bit bleak for my tastes. It will be published in March 2021.

Next I read ‘Lie Beside Me’ by Gytha Lodge, the next book in the DCI Jonah Sheens series that will be published in February 2021 (again, thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review). This starts with a woman waking up next to a dead man she doesn’t recognise…and then keeps you turning the pages until you find out what happened. A review will follow nearer publication.

Then came ‘The Inverts’ by Crystal Jeans, a book set mainly in the 1920s and 1930s about a gay man and woman who decide to marry to present a respectable front to society in order to hide their love affairs. It was a lively read, although felt startlingly modern in places. A review will follow on the blog nearer the April 2021 publication date.

I followed this with ‘Alexa, what is there to know about love?’, the latest poetry book from Brian Bilston (to be published in January 2021). Those who love Bilston’s clever wordplay and witty takes – usually showcased on Twitter – will find lots more to love in this poetry collection – review to follow.

Then I read the *secret book* for the BBNYA judging panel which – I can now reveal – was ‘The Devil’s Apprentice’ by Kenneth B Andersen. Way outside of my usual genres, this is the first book in The Great Devil War series and was a vividly-imagined fantasy novel about a boy who finds himself in a case of mistaken identity…and in Hell. A highly engaging read.

‘The Best Things’ by Mel Giedroyc (to be published in April 2021) was next. I love Mel Giedroyc and this was an entertaining story about a wealthy family who lose everything and have to adapt to survive. There were some lovely comic touches in this fairly cosy, easy read – review to follow.

Far from a cosy read was ‘The Art of Death’ by David Fennell, due for publication in February 2021. This was a gruesome and fast-paced police procedural about a serial killer who displays his victims as art installations on the streets of London. It introduces DI Grace Archer who – I think – has real potential to carry a whole series of books (I hope!) Review to follow in February.

I followed this with another gruesome book, ‘The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires’ by Grady Hendrix. I’d had this on my TBR for ages and was hoping for a story of female solidarity in the face of vampires, packed with Southern charm and a kind of ‘True Blood’ but with books. It didn’t deliver this at all, although I did find it quite readable.

The last book I read this month was ‘How to Solve a Murder’ by Derek and Pauline Tremain. This is a non-fiction book about the workings of a forensic department at Guy’s Hospital in London where both of the Tremains worked. This was insightful and interesting, although a bit gross at times! Review to follow nearer the publication date in January 2021.

All of the above books were provided by NetGalley in exchange for honest reviews except for ‘The Devil’s Apprentice’ which was given to me as part of the BBNYA judging panel.

Finally, I listened to two audiobooks this month – ‘Going Solo’ by Roald Dahl (read by Dan Stevens) and ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens (read by Hugh Grant). Both were fabulous and highly recommended.

January TBR

I’ve got a few blog tours coming up this month, so will be reading ‘Bad Habits’ by Flynn Meaney (YA comedy), ‘Dark Memories’ by Liz Mistry (next in the excellent DS Nikki Parekh crime series) and ‘The Appeal’ by Janice Hallett (a murder mystery with a difference!)

I’ll also be buddy reading (with ‘The Write Reads’ book club that isn’t a book club) ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’ by Agatha Christie. I read lots of Christie as a teenager so I’m hoping I don’t remember the solution halfway through!

Apart from these, I want to work through some of the excellent books I was given for Christmas (and the ones I bought in the Waterstones’ sale – I have no self control in the face of a bargain!).

These include the non-fiction books ‘How Not to be Wrong: The Art of Changing your Mind’ by James O’Brien (politics and current affairs), ‘Maiden Voyages’ by Sian Evans (women’s social history about sea travel between the wars) and ‘Written in Bone’ by Professor Sue Black (forensic anthropology).

Aside from these, I’ll see where January takes me! Wishing you all a very happy new year!

Header photo by Nicole De Khors on Burst.

‘The Killings at Kingfisher Hill’ by Sophie Hannah

The third book in our week-long jaunt through books released on 20th August is the latest Hercule Poirot mystery by Sophie Hannah.

I’m an avid Agatha Christie fan, but this is the first of the ‘new’ Poirot books that I’ve read by Sophie Hannah. The idea in principle is sound – take one of the world’s most famous fictional detectives and drop him into a new mystery that bears all the hallmarks of Christie’s own fiendish plots. What’s not to like?!

In this book, Poirot is accompanied by Inspector Catchpool, a slightly tamer substitute for the charming Hastings in the originals. Catchpool becomes our narrator for the book and – it s fair to say – is several steps behind Poirot and his ‘little grey cells’. As the reader follows Catchpool’s narration, we sometimes stay in the dark and occasionally make connections that he doesn’t.

The duo are travelling via motorcoach to Kingfisher Hill, an exclusive gated development where the Devonport family live. One of the Devonport sons has died, a woman has confessed and faced the gallows, but will the correct killer be brought to justice?

Alongside this plot, a nervy woman on the coach catches the police detective’s eye with her pronouncement that she will die if she chooses a certain seat and he is left trying to piece together the true stories behind the lies.

I wanted to love this and it did draw me along- there are lots of red herrings and shady characters in the spirit of the original books. However, I was slightly disappointed in the denouement and thought it lacked the spark that Christie’s books have.

Overall, I enjoyed this book as a light read even when I wasn’t always convinced by the plot development. It would love to read more in the series as it was lovely to return to Poirot, a firm favourite for me.

I received a free copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If you would like to pre-order this book (out Thursday!) then the link is below. It is an affiliate link, so I may earn commission at no extra cost to you.

Photo by Shopify Partners from Burst