Recent Loans from the Library

Published on by Margaret

Guilty Creatures: A Menagerie of Mysteries edited and introduce by Martin Edwards. I like these anthologies as much, if not more, for Martin Edwards’ introductions than for the actual stories. I often find that they’re too short for my liking, but I’m hoping there will be some that will prove me wrong. This collection includes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, G K Chesterton, Edgar Wallace, Josephine Bell and Christianna Brand, among others.

The Descent of Man by Grayson Perry. During the fist lockdown I loved watching Grayson’s Art Club, Channel 4’s documentary series hosted by him and his wife, psychotherapist Philippa Perry. In this book he is looking at masculinity, particularly examining how men dominate much of our world, how men dress and act, how men resort to crime and violence, and how men feel.

Black Sheep by Susan Hill, a novella about a brother an sister who grew up in a coal mining village and yearn to escape. Neither can break free and their decisions result in brutal consequences. It sounds a bit grim!

Rescue by Anita Shreve. The last few books by Anita Shreve I’ve read haven’t been as good as her earlier ones, so I’m hoping this one won’t be disappointing. It’s about a paramedic who rescues a troubled young woman from a car crash. They start a love affair and have a daughter. Eighteen years later he is raising the girl on his own,

Servant of Death by Sarah Hawkswood, historical murder mystery set in the 12th century, the first in the Bradcote and Catchpole mystery series. The Lord Bishop of Winchester’s clerk – is bludgeoned to death in Pershore Abbey and laid before the altar in the attitude of a penitent. Who hated him enough to murder him?

The Long Way Home by Louise Perry. I thought it looked familiar and when I got home and checked my blog I realised I’d borrowed this book before – in 2018! But I took it back unread, thinking I’d try to get the first one. It’s the 10th Chief Inspector Gamache novel – and I still haven’t read any of the previous books, so maybe I’ll read this one this time.

13 thoughts on “Recent Loans from the Library”

  1. Lots of interesting reads here. I haven’t read any of Martin Edwards anthologies yet but I completely understand that you enjoy his introductions as much as the stories and now I must read one sooner rather than later! The Descent of Man is also on my list, I love his social commentary (and Philippa’s the best!)

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  2. I do hope you get to the Penny, Margaret. I think that’s an excellent series. And Guilty Creatures… looks very good. I like Edwards’ curating and Introductions very much. I’ll be interested to see what you think of it.

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    1. I don’t have high expectations about Guilty Creatures as I usually find such collections are a bit of a mixed bag, but I am hoping I’ll enjoy some of them. I love the cover!

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  3. You’ve reminded me that I wanted to get a copy of Guilty Creatures. I bought the books one and forgot that! How’re you getting on with The Count of Monte Cristo?

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    1. I’m getting along slowly with the Count of Monte Cristo. I was reading a free ebook edition until I discovered the first sentence gives the opening date of 1810 when Napoleon left exile – it was in fact in 1815! So I didn’t have much faith about the rest of the edition and turned back to the paperback Wordsworth Classic edition, which is complete and unabridged. But it is such a small font that I was struggling with it, so now I’m reading the ebook version of the Wordsworth edition.

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  5. Louise Penny’s series is wonderful. I’d suggest starting with an earlier one though because there is a story line which runs through several books and you wouldn’t fully understand it if you come in late on.

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