2022 50 BOOKS - OR AS MANY AS YOU CAN MANAGE

I forgot -
any book by Isabella Allende .
After The House of Spirits -I was hooked .
Brilliant author .

Am enjoying 21st Birthday

Two books with the same title :
.
The Silent Wife by Karin Slaughter and also by A.S.A. Harrison .

Karin Slaughter is well known and A.S.A .Harrison has unfortunately died before realising her full potential .

Both books are highly recommended ,but have any of you read them ?

I read and enjoyed the Karin Slaughter book, haven`t heard of A.S.A Harrison. I`ve just read False Witness by Karin Slaughter, it was very good.

I think I’ve read all the Karin Slaughter books, but preferred the earlier ones

21#. The Twyford Code by Janice Hallett.

Thank you for the replies from Sara and Hellogirl .

I really enjoyed 21st Birthday, but I`ve liked all the Womens Murder Club books. My next book will be The Last Thing He Told Me, by Laura Dave.

Book 17
Nowhere to Hide - Alex Walters
I can’t remember buying this book, and when I took it off of my TBR pile, I couldn’t imagine why I’d bought it. I guess someone must have recommended it.
Not my kind of thing. Police corruption, contract killers, undercover police, but strangely I enjoyed it. I didn’t see the ending coming, and some of the characters were quite likeable.

Book 18
The Couple at the Table - Sophie Hannah
Not particularly realistic, and with some absolutely vile characters, but it was an interesting read.
Is was a whodunnit and how was it done ?
The answer was rather disappointing, almost as if she couldn’t work it out herself, so just plucked a character out of the bunch, whose reason for murdering the victim, seemed a bit silly.
It was a page turner though, a little bit like an Agatha Christie, but, I thought with a weak ending.

The Last Thing he Told me, book 31, was very good. Now on book 32, The Night She Disappeared, by Lisa Jewel. Enjoying it so far.

#23 A Cormorant On The Lightning Rod . T B Carter.
Very entertaining. It is a mixture of swords, dragons, high tech and interstellar travel.
#24 The Storm Sister Lucinda Riley.
The second book in the Seven Sisters series. I enjoyed the story and the way it moved from an earlier time to modern day. I just wish the editor had taken a firmer hand; it overlong.

I liked The Night She Disappeared, but the ending was a bit in the air. Book 33 will be The Bone Code, by Kathy Reichs, I love the Temp Brennan books.

#22. The Sound Of Laughter by Peter Kay.

#28 was The Stone Chamber by Kate Ellis. This is the latest DI Wesley Peterson book - a series set in Devon that combines history and modern crimes and I enjoyed it as much as the earlier books.
#29 was The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman. I thoroughly enjoyed it and the murder was almost incidental to the humour.
#30 was The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman. Again, I really enjoyed this heartwarming story of a young boy whose best friend has died of an asthma attack but who carries on their mutual dream to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Book 19
Lily - Rose Tremain
Really sad tale about Lily, a founding child.
Found by a young police officer, Sam Trench, she is taken to the London Foundling Hospital.
For the first six years of her life, she is fostered by a family, who love her, but at six she must be returned.
Rose Tremain, writes so tenderly about her relationship with her foster family.
I don’t want to spoil the story, but it’s a sad and cruel life, not much joy for Lily
The final pages had me crying my eyes out.

Enjoyed Salt Lane by William Shaw, a thriller.
Book 3- Barbara Taylor Bradford's The Cavendon Luck. Hadn't read the first two of this trilogy but still enjoyed it. A bit like Downton Abbey!
Book 4 - Paul Beatty: The Sellout. Rubbish, only managed a few chapters.
Book 5- Jane Harper, The Survivors. Just as brilliant as The Dry. Love her books.
Book 6- Adam Kay: This is going to Hurt. Glad that I found this in a charity shop while the TV series was on. Enjoyed it, certainly an eye-opener.
Book 7- Peter James ( a favourite): I Follow You.
Book 8- Lesley Pearse: Liar. Like some of her books but not so much this one. Bit slushy!
Book 9- Abi Dare: Girl with the Louding Voice. Excellent
Book 10- Jodi Picoult : Plain Truth. Set in an Amish Community. Really good story about the discovery of a newborn baby's body.
Book 11-William Broderick: The Sixth Lamentation. Seems good but gave up halfway through. May return to it later.
Book 12-Ruth Jones (Writer and actress from Gavin and Stacey): The Three of Us. Good story following the lives of 3 childhood friends.
Book 13- Fiona Neill: The Betrayals. Excellent story of 2 families and how their lives change over time. One of those books I didn't want to end!

I liked The Bone Code. Now reading book 34, Private Moscow, by James Patterson and Adam Hamdy, not too sure of it just yet.

#23. The Heights by Louise Candlish.

#24 Kent Haruf ‘Eventide’ a follow-on from his ‘Plainsong’ which I loved. Enjoyed this just as much.

Private Moscow was quite good, made me wish I`d read the rest of the series, might do yet! Just started book 35, The Silent Wife, by Karin Slaughter.

Alibee I’m glad you enjoyed The Stoning!

I read Middlesex years ago. It was our book group choice and was well-received.

No 12 (I think) GREAT CIRCLE by Maggie Shipstead. I loved this. It tells the story of a woman aviator in the early days of flight with a parallel story set in modern times. If you like a long book, at almost 600 pages this is one to read.

Book 20
The Living Sea of Waking Dreams
Richard Flanagan
I’m afraid I didn’t like this book at all, I’ve read the reviews, I know I’m in the minority, but I found it a very depressing read.
It’s about Francie, very old and close to death, but her three adult children refuse to let her die. They demand intervention after intervention, they are successful and wealthy, they are also cruel and uncaring.
There’s also the other part of the story where the daughter, Anna notices body parts missing from herself and other people.
I know it’s all tied up with the terrible fires sweeping Australia, and the extinction of so many species , I suppose it’s meant to signify that they can’t save the planet, but they can save Francie, but I’m not really sure.
Tommy, the only decent son, is over ruled, dismissed humiliated, despised. I might very well be missing something deep, but I want to feel a warmth for at least some of the characters, not so in this case.

#24. The Other Passenger by Louise Candlish.

13 O Caledonia by Elspeth Barker.

This is a ‘rediscovered modern classic’ much praised by Maggie O’Farrell. It was first published in 1991 but was then forgotten until recently. It’s beautifully written. Hard to say what genre, it’s partly a coming of age tale, a nature story, a murder book, a family saga. It’s set from the main character’s birth during WW2 and follows her life as she grows to womanhood. Less than 200 pages, too!

Sue
I have this book in my TBR pile, I hadn’t heard of it, but it was featured on radio 4, could have been A Good Read, I can’t remember.
Glad to know you enjoyed it.