THE BRAND NEW 2024 50 BOOK CHALLENGE

I have finished #5 An Innocent Baby and #6 Unwanted, both by Cathy Glass. Cathy Glass is a foster mother who has looked after hundreds of children over many years and tells the stories of some of the children. Very thought provoking.

I’d started reading Inheritance too Susie42, but I found The King Must Die by Mary Renault on my bookshelf, so now I’m deep in history instead.

4-The Judges List- John Grisham. Not a courtroom drama like lots of JG's stories. This was one woman's investigation to find who killed her father, then she uncovered similar murders and spent over 20 years collating a list of possible victims of a serial killer. But who would ever believe her when she pointed a finger at a respected judge.
A real page turner this one. Highly recommended.

Finished Book 10 The Murder Box by Olivia Kiernan. I enjoyed this but it's quite a complicated plot so I had to keep checking back.

Det. Chief Superintendent Frankie Sheehan at first believes that the murder mystery game sent to her office is a birthday gift from one of her colleagues. But when she studies the game's contents, she notices a number of links between the "murder victim" in the game and a missing young woman in real life.

No 4 The Whalebone Theatre by Joanna Quinn. A family epic set in Dorset and France between 1919-1945, I really enjoyed this. There is indeed a theatre made of whalebones! The review in The Guardian has it right when it says it’s a good book but a bit more risk-taking in the plot would have made it a better story.

I was going to read Songbirds next but I’m not sure now, given c9mments here.

#4. Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith.
A re-read whilst on holiday.

#5. Shroud For A Nightingale by PD James,

Book 11, A Lesson Learned, by Rosie Goodwin, enjoyed it immensely.
Book 12, A Thimble for Christmas, by Dilly Court. I loved it, but really should have checked my book stocks, as I`ve just discovered another by Dilly Court which I should have read first!

Urmstongran I agree with you about The Satsuma Complex, I love to hear Bob Mortimer talk but his writing irritated me and I gave up on the book early on.
No 5 Broken Light Joanne Harris Really enjoyed this one. A woman approaching 50 and starting the menopause has an ability to look into people's minds and change the way they think. She had the talent as a child but it has been dormant until it is unlocked by a murder in the local park. Fascinating and different with Joanne's way of bringing magic into everyday.

No 6 Watching You Lisa Jewell A psychological thriller about a street where everyone seems to be watching each other.

I read the Whalebone Theatre a while back SueDonim, I certainly enjoyed it, but it didn't quite live up to some of the reviews I read at the time.

4. The Three Graces - Amanda Craig

Set amongst the olive groves of Tuscany, three octogenarian ex- pat women are living out their retirement whilst ruminating about their physical decline that affects them to a greater or lesser extent. . German born Marta a comfortably off concert pianist having sold her Hampstead house for an impossible sum is being visited by her mixed race grandson, where much of their conversations revolve around the difficulties experienced by his generation, saddled by student debt and unaffordable property prices, never to replicate the comfortable lifestyles of those of his grandmother's generation Meanwhile, Ruth a retired doctor, is about to host a wedding for her grandson and his prospective media influencer wife. Completing the trio, is not so well off Diana, Lady Evenlode, who is run ragged, nursing and caring for her irascible, bigot of a husband who is reaching the final stages of his life afflicted by dementia. The book opens with native born Enzo, whose family have lived off the land for generations, believing he is about to be burgled fires into the night to shoot the would be robber, and later fears on finding a blood soaked t shirt that he has actually killed someone. Enzo is a native born Tuscan and exemplifies a parochial regional affiliation, to him his Umbrian born neighbour is a foreigner. To his dismay Italy being in the front line of the migrant crises fears the influx of non native Italians that are bringing increasing crime to his once quiet idyll. The surrounding abandoned farmhouses are being used by traffickers to hide migrants desperately fleeing from harsh regimes. Into this mix, the stunning grand palazzo has been taken over by a paranoid Russian oligarch, and as a critic of Putin fears an assassination attempt possibly by Novichok.

Amanda Craig, imo, is an incredibly underrated writer, whilst I wouldn't say this is her best book it nevertheless tackles themes such as racist attitudes, rural poverty. As with her state of the nation previous books set in rural England, Lie of the Land, The Golden Rule Brexit is often a central theme which she tackles as a multi faceted issue taking into account inequality of opportunity, although always cleverly laced with a certain amount of satirical humour.

5 The New Puritans - Andrew Doyle (non fiction)

Andrew Doyle's illuminating book that draws parallels between the Salem Witch trials of the 17th century and the emergence of identity politics of today. The dogmatic illiberal attitudes espoused by these new puritans and the absurdity of cancel culture relating in particular to written works and more worryingly the ideological capture of institutions. He gives many illustrations of no platforming and the misconstruing of how certain groups perceive periods of history through their own prescribed lens, to give one such example The LGBTQ society of Goldsmiths University in London claimed that the "gulags" of Solzhenitsyn's works were nothing more than rather comfortable camps where people went to be rehabilitated surrounded by books, newspaper articles and performance groups, which I imagine would have come as some surprise to the late Solzhenitsyn and his compatriots who were incarcerated in such places.

Next up Lesson in Chemistry which practically every book loving person has read, except me!

Not me TerriBull, but it’s on my ever growing pile,
My daughter says it’s the best book she read last year.

#5 Winter's Gifts Ben Aaronovitch.
A novella by the author of the wonderful Rivers of London series. It features a minor character from the Rivers books. FBI agent Kimberly Reynolds the Bureau's 'weird going ons' investigator is called to deal with a possible magical incident in snowy Wisconsin. Enjoyable and good to learn more of a minor character but I much prefer the main R of L books.

I would certainly like to join this group, having just revived my GN membership. I recently finished Fiona Currow's Before the Swallows Come Back. I enjoyed it, a relaxing read. I've also read Wintering by Katherine May but wss disappointed. It was much more about the author herself than generally about winter as a time to relax and revive.

I thoroughly enjoyed Book 7, The Crossing Places by Ellie Griffith. Well written, quite gripping and easy to read, with realistic characters and a very atmospheric setting. One thing I wasn't keen on though was the focus on Ruth's weight...

Our next Book Group choice, Book8 , The Songs of Achilles, by Madeleine Miller, is the most 'different' book I've read for a long time. Same sex relationship, dreadful treatment of women, brutality of war, but tremendous storytelling throughout. A very unusual love story. I could hardly put it down. Powerful stuff.

I am now beginning the much lighter and gentler Because you loved me by Beth Moran. Book 9.

To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee: This timeless novel about racial injustice in the American South is a must-read for its poignant characters and powerful message.

"Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen: A witty and insightful rom-com set in 19th-century England, this novel explores themes of class, gender, and marriage.

"One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel García Márquez: This magical realist masterpiece tells the story of the Buendia family over seven generations, weaving together myth, history, and social commentary.

Contemporary Fiction:

"The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood: This dystopian novel about a totalitarian regime that oppresses women is a chilling and thought-provoking read.

"Lincoln in the Bardo" by George Saunders: This experimental novel tells the story of Abraham Lincoln's grief over his son's death, using a unique blend of historical fiction and magical realism.

"Exit West" by Mohsin Hamid: This captivating novel follows two young lovers fleeing their war-torn country, weaving together elements of magical realism and social commentary.

Science Fiction and Fantasy:

"The Lord of the Rings" by J.R.R. Tolkien: This epic fantasy trilogy is a classic for a reason, with its sprawling world-building, unforgettable characters, and timeless themes of good vs. evil.

"Dune" by Frank Herbert: This complex and thought-provoking sci-fi novel explores themes of ecology, politics, and religion in a richly imagined desert world.

#12 The Art of Staying Dead by Joel Hames. A new-to-me author, this features a lapsed human rights lawyer. More thriller than crime fiction, and there are some plot errors/lack of reality that took some work to ignore, but generally moves along nicely. I gather there is a trilogy of books featuring the same lead ,character, but I don’t think they link, as a series, with this one.

#3 One Night, New York by Lara Thompson. Don't be misled - it's not just about one night! This is set in 1932 in New York and the main character is a woman who has run away from Kansas, from poverty and her abusive father. I enjoyed it - a page turner.

Book 12 The Nix by Nathan Hill - I devoured this book, all 620 pages. Set in the US in 2011 but casting back to WW2, and the Chicago riots in 1968, it’s very readable and also very funny at times. It’s a big fat American novel of the kind that doesn’t come along very often. Reminded me of Philip Roth, a great writer, but not a very nice man, according to ex-wife, Claire Bloom.

I loved Songbirds!

Book 13, Snow Bride, by Dilly Court
Book 14, Silver Wishes, by Anna Jacobs.

Just finished my #7 Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. I won’t go into any details as I know others here are currently reading it or planning to.
I really enjoyed it, it’s well written, witty, original and horrifying in turn. The first half of the book in particular I thought was excellent and I was headed to a 9/10, but I ended up giving it 8/10.

#4 A World of Curiosities - Louise Penny, the latest book in the three pines series, a terrific read.
#5 My Last Supper - Jay Rayner. Something different for me, another Christmas present

Nice Share!

Jax I thoroughly enjoyed Jay Rayner’s “My Last Supper”, and also *Chrwing the Fat”. Lots of laugh out loud moments in both books. A superb writer.

Started it last night Greyduster after I’d finished #4, I’ll find out tonight, thanks.

5-Atom Bomb Angel-Peter James-written in 1982 this story reads like an early James Bond film, with terrorists trying to blow up nuclear power stations. Some very good descriptions in it which help you visualise what's going on. In the forward PJ admits it is not one of his best, as only his second novel, but is well worth reading, if only to learn the details of how a power station works.