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The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz

Published on September 4, 2017 by Margaret3 Comments

Publication date: 24 August 2017, Century

Source: Review copy via NetGalley

My rating: 5*

Blurb:

A wealthy woman strangled six hours after she’s arranged her own funeral.
A very private detective uncovering secrets but hiding his own.
A reluctant author drawn into a story he can’t control.
What do they have in common?

Unexpected death, an unsolved mystery and a trail of bloody clues lie at the heart of Anthony Horowitz’s page-turning new thriller.

SPREAD THE WORD. THE WORD IS MURDER.

My thoughts:

The Word is Murder is a very clever and different type of murder mystery. I don’t think I’ve read anything like it before, one in which the author himself plays a major role.

Diana Cowper was killed later the same day after making the arrangements for her funeral. She was strangled in her own home. The police at first thought she’d been killed during a burglary, but there were no fingerprints or indeed any other clues to help find her killer.

The novel goes into a different realm with the introduction of ex-policeman, Daniel Hawthorne, who had been an adviser for Horowitz’s Foyle’s War series. The police call on Hawthorne as a consultant on out-of-the ordinary cases and he is working on the Diana Cowper murder. He proposes that Horowitz writes a book about him and his investigations into the case. However, they disagree about what Horowitz should write, which highlights the difference between writing crime fiction and true life crime books – and Horowitz gets dragged into the investigations.

At first I was slightly confused – were the details about Horowitz fact or fiction (a lot of it is true), was Hawthorne a real person or a fictional character, what was fact and what was fiction? It really is one of the most complicated and bemusing books I’ve read, full of realistic characters acting in a mystery full of red herrings and multiple twists and turns. I was soon totally immersed in this fascinating novel. I loved Magpie Murders, and I think Horowitz The Word is Murder is equally as amazing and maybe even better! I was totally unable to solve the mystery, the clues were all there, but I was so involved in sorting out what was real and what wasn’t and enjoying the puzzle that I completely missed them.

I am so delighted that I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

The Break by Marian Keyes

Published on September 4, 2017September 4, 2017 by Margaret3 Comments

The Break

Publication date 7 September 2017, Michael Joseph

Source: review copy via NetGalley

Blurb:

Amy’s husband Hugh isn’t really leaving her.

At least, that’s what he promises. He is just taking a break – from their marriage, their children and, most of all, from their life together. For six-months Hugh will lose himself in south-east Asia, and there is nothing Amy can say or do about it.

Yes, it’s a mid-life crisis, but let’s be clear: a break isn’t a break up – yet

It’s been a long time since Amy held a briefcase in one hand and a baby in the other. She never believed she’d have to go it alone again. She just has to hold the family together until Hugh comes back.

But a lot can happen in six-months. When Hugh returns, if he returns, will he be the same man she married? And will Amy be the same woman?

Because falling in love is easy. The hard part – the painful, joyous, maddening, beautiful part – is staying in love.

My view:

I think it was a mistake requesting this book from NetGalley! Years ago I read Under the Duvet, which I remember as amusing and entertaining, and I enjoy seeing Marian Keyes when she’s on programmes such as It Takes Two talking about Strictly Come Dancing – she’s very funny. The Break is not the sort of book I usually read, but I’d thought it would be a change from my usual fiction.

But, I’m sorry to say I didn’t enjoy it. There are many characters, but I didn’t warm to any of them, particularly the main ones, Amy and Hugh. There’s lots of dialogue, which is OK but also lots of description of clothes – too much description of clothes.

It’s written in a chatty, gossipy style that gets very wearing after a while and although it’s easy reading it didn’t grip me and I struggled to finish it. So much so that each time I put it down I didn’t really want to carry on with it. I think my problem with it is that is very slow-paced and I thought it was over-long and drawn out. I did want to know what happened to Amy and Hugh, but it was all too predictable – not my cup of tea!

There are many 5* and 4* ratings on Goodreads, so I expect that if you’re a fan of her books you’ll love it.

Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 1049 KB
Print Length: 570 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0718179730
Publisher: Penguin (7 Sept. 2017)
My rating: 2*

10 Books of Summer: Challenge Over

Published on September 3, 2017 by Margaret8 Comments

Cathy at Cathy 746 Books has an annual challenge, 20 Books of Summer, which ends today, 3 September 2017. I included e-books as well as paper books.

As I’m very good at listing the books I want to read and very bad at sticking to the list I went for the 10 book option, but even so I didn’t read all 10! I read 8 of the 10 books.

I read:

Here are my thoughts on the books I read. I enjoyed some more than others.

They’re all novels except for Long Road From Jarrow by Stuart Maconie, in which he describes how he retraced the route the Jarrow marchers took in 1936 and compared what Britain was like then compared to the Britain of today. It’s a mix of travel writing, social and cultural history and political commentary, with the main emphasis on the current social, cultural and political scene. I thought it was fascinating, thought-provoking and most entertaining.

The novels in A-Z order by author:

Beneath a Burning Sky by Jenny Ashcroft -a story of love, secrets and betrayal. I had mixed feelings about this book. I liked the historical setting – Alexandria at the end of the 19th century when Egypt was under British rule. Basically it’s romance and I’d hoped for more historical content. So, not a great success.

Miraculous Mysteries edited by Martin Edward – Locked-Room Murders And Impossible Crimes. There are sixteen stories in the collection. Martin Edwards has prefaced each one with a brief biographical note, which I found useful as some of the authors were new to me. I’m not a big fan of short stories, often finding them disappointing. So I’m glad to say that I enjoyed this anthology.

How to Stop Time by Matt Haig – a story of love and loss and living in the moment. This book caught my imagination right from the start and I read it quite quickly, enjoying the trips through time. Tom Hazard’s condition means that he ages much slower than other people and he’s been alive for centuries. He tells his life story in flashbacks, switching back and forth in time between the present day and the past. I really enjoyed it.

Did You See Melody? by Sophie Hannah – a suspense novel, but not one I found particularly gripping. Melody was seven when she disappeared and although her body had not been discovered her parents were tried and found guilty of murdering her. Then people report seeing her and as the details of what happened to her are gradually revealed the book picked up and I was keen to find out the truth. But I thought it was far-fetched, contrived and over complicated. And then in the last few pages I found something that really did send a little shiver down my spine – and left me wondering just what had really happened to Melody, and what would happen next.

Present Tense by W H S McIntyre – crime fiction with an edge of dark humour. Criminal lawyer Robbie Munro is based in Linlithgow and deals mainly with Scottish Legal Aid cases. He gets caught up in the mystery of what was in the box Billy Paris, ex-military had left with him. It’s a legal drama, a tense and complicated mystery, combined with details of Robbie’s personal life and another book that I thoroughly enjoyed reading.

The One that Got Away by Annabel Kantaria, a story of loss and betrayal – I finished this a few days ago and haven’t reviewed it yet. It’s about Stella and George who meet at a school reunion. They last saw each other fifteen years – and they discover that there is still a spark between them. I’m still thinking about the book and will write about soon.

The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy – at once a love story and a provocation-a novel as inventive as it is emotionally engaging. Overall I found this a difficult book to read, good in parts only. In the middle section I was mainly bewildered. It is a heart breaking book about love and loss – and it doesn’t spare the details

The books I didn’t get round to reading are:

The King in the North by Max Adams – the life and times of Oswald of Northumbria in the 7th century
Mister Pip by Ernest Jones – a story within a story and a fable

Six Degrees of Separation: Wild Swans to A Dark-Adapted Eye

Published on September 2, 2017 by Margaret13 Comments

Six Degrees of Separation is a monthly link-up hosted by Kate at Books Are My Favourite and Best. Each month a book is chosen as a starting point and linked to six other books to form a chain. A book doesn’t need to be connected to all the other books on the list, only to the one next to it in the chain.

This month the chain begins with Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang,

Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China

a family memoir – the story of three generations of woman in Jung Chang’s family – her grandmother, mother and herself, telling of their lives in China up to and during the years of the violent Cultural Revolution. Her family suffered atrociously, her father and grandmother both dying painful deaths and both her mother and father were imprisoned and tortured.

Falling Leaves Return To Their Roots The first book in my chain is also about a Chinese daughter. It’s Falling Leaves: The True Story of an Unwanted Chinese Daughter by Adeline Yen Mah. She grew up during the Communist Revolution, was blamed for her mother’s death, ignored by her millionaire father and unwanted by her Eurasian step mother. A moving story set during extraordinary political events in China and Hong Kong.

The Buttonmaker's Daughter by [Allingham, Merryn]

My next book is about a fictional daughter: The Buttonmaker’s Daughter by Merryn Allingham, historical fiction set in Sussex in the summer of 1914 just before the start of the First World War. It covers just a few months, but those few months contain so much tension and heartbreak as the feud in the Summers family comes to a climax over the question of who Elizabeth Summer should marry and war on the continent becomes inevitable.

The Tiger in the Smoke (Albert Campion Mystery #14)

This leads on to a book by another author named Allingham. It’s The Tiger in the Smoke by Margery Allingham in which Jack Havoc is on the loose in post-war London, resulting in murder, mystery and mayhem. Meg’s marriage to self-made millionaire Geoffrey Levett should have been happy, until she began receiving photos of her late husband Martin, presumed dead in WWII. She calls on old friend Albert Campion to get to the bottom of things. For Campion, the case was cut and dry – until a brutal triple murder. I was immediately struck by the imagery – the fog pervades everything.

Our Mutual Friend

And the next book is also set in foggy London – Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens,

… the fog was heavy and dark. Animate London, with smarting eyes and irritated lungs, was blinking, wheezing, and choking: inanimate London was a sooty spectre … (page 242)

This book has multiple plots, centred on John Harmon who returns to England as his father’s heir. It begins as a boatman, Gaffer Hexham and his daughter, Lizzie, find a corpse in the Thames.

A Dark and Twisted Tide (Lacey Flint #4)

A body found in the Thames provides the next link in my chain to a modern crime fiction novel, A Dark and Twisted Tide by Sharon Bolton. This is such a terrifying novel, particularly if like me, you have a fear of drowning. Police Constable Lacey Flint thinks she’s safe. Living on the river, she’s never been happier. Until she finds a body floating on the surface, as she wild-swims in the Thames.

This leads to the last book in my chain, another book with the word ‘dark‘ in the title:

A Dark-Adapted Eye

A Dark-Adapted Eye by Barbara Vine. This is psychological crime fiction, you know right from the beginning who the murderer is, but not why or how the murder was committed.

The narrator Faith has spent her life avoiding thinking, talking or reading about the events that led up to her aunt’s hanging for murder. She only develops a “dark-adapted eye” very slowly when asked by a crime writer for her memories.

For once I have read all the books in my chain and they are all books I thoroughly enjoyed, a variety of genres – autobiography, historical fiction, classics and crime fiction. It begins in China and travels to Sussex to London through time from the nineteenth century to the present day.

When I begin a chain I never know where it will end. What about you, where does yours go and where does it end?

Next month (October 7, 2017), the chain begins with a book that I haven’t read (or heard about) – Laura Esquivel’s Like Water for Chocolate.

The Man Who Climbs Trees by James Aldred

Published on August 29, 2017September 6, 2017 by Margaret7 Comments

Publication date: 24 August 2017, Ebury Publishing

Source: e-book for review from the publishers

My rating: 5*

It was a delight to read The Man Who Climbs Trees by James Aldred. It is not only full of information but also beautifully written and absolutely fascinating. If you have ever wondered how wildlife/nature documentaries are filmed this book has the answers.

James Aldred, a professional tree climber, wildlife cameraman, and adventurer, explains how he discovered that trees are places of refuge as well as providing unique vantage points to view the world. Trees enthral him, right from the time he first climbed into the canopy of an oak tree in the New Forest. Climbing trees gives him peace within himself and with the world around him. Since he first began climbing trees he has travelled the world climbing many of the world’s tallest trees, filming for the BBC and National Geographic magazine.

It’s incredibly dangerous work. It’s not only the difficulties of climbing some of the world’s tallest trees, but also dealing with extreme weather, attacks from animals, birds and a variety of insects. Perhaps the most horrifying was a sinister rash that appeared all over his body when he was in the Congo. This rash developed into ninety red angry boils, several of them on his head. Then he was woken by something moving beneath the skin of his scalp, squirming and wriggling around; the pain was unbearable. Each boil was home to spine-covered maggots that bot-flies, large black flies with bulbous red eyes, had laid under his skin! He ended up in hospital with cerebral malaria.

I have always loved trees but I’ll never look at them again with the same eyes after reading this book – such strange and wonderful stories of the nature and significance of trees.

The Man Who Climbs Trees is a wonderful book, full of James Aldred’s adventures and his views on life and spirituality. I loved it. His travels brought him into contact with dozens of different religions and philosophies all containing ‘profound elements of truth’ that he respects very much, concluding that ‘spirituality is where you find it’ and he finds it ‘most easily when up in the trees’.

Added on 6 September 2017

There are no photos in this book but there are some in this article and an amazing video James took of the incredible Korowai tribe in Papua building a tree house. It’s well worth watching.

Did You See Melody? by Sophie Hannah

Published on August 29, 2017 by Margaret2 Comments

Publication date: 24 August 2017, Hodder & Stoughton

Source: review copy via NetGalley

I was attracted to read Did You See Melody? by Sophie Hannah by this description on NetGalley:

She’s the most famous murder victim in the country.

What if she’s not dead?

Did You See Melody? is a different kind of Sophie Hannah novel.

It is a stand alone.

It is pure psychological suspense, with a chilling hook and a killer central mystery.

It combines Sophie’s critically acclaimed writing with a pacy and twisty plot.

So, I was expecting it to be a gripping, tense and intriguing mystery. But I became increasingly disappointed as I read pages and pages of description of the five-star Swallowtail Resort and Spa in the foothills of Camelback Mountain, Arizona at the beginning of the book. I like description but this was far too much even for me. It’s like reading a promotional article for the resort. It picked up pace a bit when the subject of Melody was introduced. She was seven when she disappeared and although her body had not been discovered her parents were tried and found guilty of murdering her.

Cara has left her husband and two children at home in Hertford in England without telling them where she was going, but leaving them a note saying she’d be back on 24 October. She’d booked herself into the Swallowtail and arrives, exhausted from her journey only to find that her room is already occupied by a man and a young teenage girl. However, the receptionist is extremely apologetic and settles her into a casita with her own private infinity pool at no extra charge.

The first hint about what had happened to Melody comes the next morning when one of the guests announces that she’s seen Melody and eventually Cara’s curiosity is aroused and she discovers the tragic story of Melody’s murder. Cara wonders if the girl she’d seen the previous night was Melody. At first Cara’s reason for leaving home as she did is not explained and when it was I was less than impressed and I didn’t really warm to her character.

From that point my own interest in the story picked up as the details of what had happened to Melody are gradually revealed as Cara talks to Tarin, a fellow guest, reads accounts on the internet and excerpts from the TV talk show, Justice With Bonnie, hosted by the truly terrible Bonnie Juno. Bonnie is described as a legal commentator and I really disliked her and her interference in the case.

There is quite a lot of hyperbole and contrasting depictions of both the American and British characters, which made me wonder if this is a spoof, as really, most of the story just beggars belief. It’s far-fetched, contrived and over complicated. But once I’d got past the lengthy opening section I did want to know what happened next and it is in the last few pages of the book that I found something that really did send a little shiver down my spine – and left me wondering just what had really happened to Melody, and what would happen next.

My thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton, the publishers for a review copy.