What’s on your bookshelf: November

Thistles and Kiwis

So it is time again for a review of the month’s reading, a post to contribute to the what’s on your bookshelf challenge is hosted by fellow bloggers  Deb, Sue, Donna and Jo. The idea is to share what you’re reading, what you’ve enjoyed lately and share – why they resonated with you, how they made you feel, who are your favourite authors and what you recommend.

Stressful days (this time of year is always busy at work, and there seems to be a lot going on too) means I turn to detective novels and light and fun reading. So first up, perhaps the queen of modern detective fiction, Ann Cleeves’ latest Vera Stanhope novel, The Dark Wives. I loved this, and the twist in the tale at the end made it an excellent read.

Browsing in the library, I found one of the Rhona MacLeod novels by Lin Anderson The Innocent Dead. There is a whole series of these ‘tartan noir’ books featuring forensic scientist Rhona MacLeod, but the first one I had read. This plot focuses on the case of a young girl who went missing forty-five years ago. I enjoyed it, but found some repetition in places (which calls for better editing) and was unsure about Glasgow policemen investigating a case in Stirling. A good read and if I see another one in the series I might pick it up

Staying in Scotland, Lynne McEwan’s In Dark Water could be seen as The Bridge staged on the Scottish-English border, in that a body is picked up in the Galway Firth by a Scottish lifeboat crew but taken to England. I actually preferred this to the other Scotland set book, and will definitely look for more in the series.

I also read another Rebecca Trope, Guilt in the Cotswolds. I think I prefer the Lake District ones…but honestly really enjoy them all. Great fun and ideal for switching off. My final detective novel of the month was a really exciting book by Camilla Lackberg The Cuckoo. A great story with a dramatic end, I was so glad I had borrowed it from a friend.

Fans of Kevin Kwang will not be disappointed with his latest book Lies and Weddings. His usual cast of characters are here – the young, professional woman with an interesting family history, the rich young man who is in love with her, the funny friend, the snobbish parents and so on. I find his books funny and enjoyable, and think they make perfect holiday reading (even though I was not on holiday).

There seems to be a lot of books around about bookshops at the moment. I just loved Satoshi Yagisawa’s Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, and look forward to the second book in the series which I have sitting on my TBR pile. It is a book about self-discovery, family and of course, a bookshop.

I also loved Ann Tyler’s Vinegar Girl which I picked up at the library when browsing for something that was not a detective novel. It tells the tale of Kate Battista is a reluctant pre-school teacher in Baltimore who lives at home with her aging academic father. On the verge of a scientific breakthrough, he is about to lose his brilliant young lab assistant, Pyotr, whose visa is about to expire. The solution? Pyotr marries Kate. A delightfully fun read.

In the non-fiction corner this month was Megan Dunn’s The Mermaid Chronicles. I mentioned on Monday I had been to see her at an author event on Sunday. Part memoir, part account of mermaids, this is a book full of fun, and many a poignant moment.

So that is my most recent reading – what have you read recently? Here are my ratings using the scheme we use in the book club I am part of, items related to the book out of 5.

  • Kevin Kwang Lies and Weddings 5 wedding dresses
  • Lynne McEwan In Dark Water 4 life boats
  • Ann Cleeves The Dark Wives 5 witches
  • Satoshi Yagisawa Days at the Morisaki Bookshop 5 bookshops
  • Rebecca Tope Guilt in the Cotswolds 4 country cottages
  • Megan Dunn The Mermaid Chronicles 4 mermaids
  • Lin Anderson The Innocent Dead 3 pathologists
  • Camilla Lackberg Cuckoo 4 Swedish policemen
  • Anne Tyler Vinegar Girl 5 weddings

Thistles and Kiwis is a Wellington, New Zealand based blog written by Barbara, who likes cats, summer, good food and pretends to garden.

You can find Thistles and Kiwis on Facebook, and also on Instagram @thistlesandkiwis.

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Published by Thistles and Kiwis

Loves summer, sunshine and cats. Beginner gardener, likes eating, cooking and reading about food

22 Comments

  1. Hi Barbara! Our bookclub just finished Anna Karenina which I loved but it was a heavy read. After reading a hefty book, I like to go back to my favourite genres of detective/crime and more light hearted books. I love Anne Cleeves but haven’t read the book you have mentioned. Will look out for it. Enjoy your December reading and thanks so much for sharing and linking up at #WOYBS? for November. Sue L xx

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  2. Hi, Barbara – Thank you for being a regular at WOYBS. Megan Dunn’s Mermaid Chronicles sounds fun. How lucky you were to see the author in person. I’m truly impressed with all of the great reading and cooking you do while still working. Your energy is inspiring!

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  3. A lot of good reads. I recognize a few of them but I will have to look into some of the others. I am deep into the Elizabeth Strout books. I finished the second book about Olive Kitteridge and have started the Lucy Barton series. I am on number three. There are five in this series. Some are better than others.

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  4. Ooooh some interesting sounding ones here. While I’ve read Rebecca Tope’s Cotswold books, I haven’t read her Lake District ones so might keep an eye out. As for a new Vera – I’m there!

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  6. I recently bought the Ann Cleeves you mention and am looking forward to reading it. Crime / detective novels are my go-to when I need to ‘switch off’ . Elizabeth Strout has been a favourite too. You have inspired me to look for new authors when next I visit our bookshop.

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  7. I’ll have to look for the Ann Cleeves novel, I’d not seen that one. Just read Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. secured from the library. I enjoyed it a lot, and apparently there is a miniseries based on it, which I will probably avoid since I liked the book. Also just finished Elizabeth Stout’s latest Tell Me Everything, which did not disappoint.

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  10. The Vinegar Girl i noticed on my librarian friend’s Instagram post. She always has interesting reads. Now that I’ve seen it twice, I will be on the lookout for it.

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  11. Hi Barbara, I’ve just started the first in the Cotswold mystery series from your recommendation in a recent post, it’s going well so far. And I always enjoy Ann Cleeves too. Thanks for joining us for our #WOYBS linkup, I always enjoy your posts.

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