Scan barcode
thereadingmum's reviews
815 reviews
Death of a Ghost by Margery Allingham
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
The fact that I am still thinking about this book a few weeks after finishing it is a good sign. The thing is, it aggravated me, but in a good way.
Allingham writes well and in the style that I enjoy. Her characterisation is good and I could picture them all in detail. The set up for the crime was perfect. Now here is where I got aggravated. I was convinced that I had the true culprit almost right after the murder. There were several hints, which I thought very subtle and so must be true. Then there was what I thought was glaringly a red herring. However, in the end it wasn't! Colour me flummoxed and annoyed but willing to admit being bested.
My only critique was that the resolution was slightly too off kilter and I generally hate the insanity plea. It's too pat in books (not real life).
Allingham writes well and in the style that I enjoy. Her characterisation is good and I could picture them all in detail. The set up for the crime was perfect. Now here is where I got aggravated. I was convinced that I had the true culprit almost right after the murder. There were several hints, which I thought very subtle and so must be true. Then there was what I thought was glaringly a red herring. However, in the end it wasn't! Colour me flummoxed and annoyed but willing to admit being bested.
My only critique was that the resolution was slightly too off kilter and I generally hate the insanity plea. It's too pat in books (not real life).
The Thirteen Problems by Agatha Christie
4.75
All thirteen stories were good my only niggle was too much "twinkling" and Miss Marple got a bit waffly.
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls by Anissa Gray
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was not what I expected when I picked it up but I got totally sucked in to the Butlers' stories.
Four children, one an infant, are left without a mother when theirs gets sick and dies. Their father, an evangelical pastor, leaves the eldest, Althea, to care for her siblings though she is only 12 herself.
Everything comes to a head years later when Althea and her husband are jailed for fraud, leaving their twin teenage daughters in the care of Althea's siblings.
This is human drama done well. There's little sentimentality or wallowing. The reader is allowed to come to their own conclusions about each character's actions.
Four children, one an infant, are left without a mother when theirs gets sick and dies. Their father, an evangelical pastor, leaves the eldest, Althea, to care for her siblings though she is only 12 herself.
Everything comes to a head years later when Althea and her husband are jailed for fraud, leaving their twin teenage daughters in the care of Althea's siblings.
This is human drama done well. There's little sentimentality or wallowing. The reader is allowed to come to their own conclusions about each character's actions.
When the Whales Leave by Yuri Rytkheu
3.75
I am a total sucker for the design of a book. Just looking at this book, feeling the pages and the beautiful font and the generous margins, I was prepared to be blown away with a beautifully written novelette. The introduction was also very encouraging.
Buuuuttt...it didn't quite live up to my expectations. It's based on Siberian folklore about a woman, Nau, possibly "the first human" who comes into existence, no back story there, and wanders the coast. She developes a relationship with whale, Reu, who falls in love with her and becomes human to live with her. They birth the peoples of the coast. Reu dies of old age, but Nau, continues living as long as the people still revere the whales. Eventually they stop believing their origin story that Nau continues to recite and there comes a time when they stop respecting the whales or any of the natural resources they have been blessed with.
I always felt that Russian writing was one of the languages that translated into English much better than other languages. It is why I love many of the Russian authors and their work. While the writing here was good, it wasn't quite lyrical enough IMO for this length of book and the subject matter.
Buuuuttt...it didn't quite live up to my expectations. It's based on Siberian folklore about a woman, Nau, possibly "the first human" who comes into existence, no back story there, and wanders the coast. She developes a relationship with whale, Reu, who falls in love with her and becomes human to live with her. They birth the peoples of the coast. Reu dies of old age, but Nau, continues living as long as the people still revere the whales. Eventually they stop believing their origin story that Nau continues to recite and there comes a time when they stop respecting the whales or any of the natural resources they have been blessed with.
I always felt that Russian writing was one of the languages that translated into English much better than other languages. It is why I love many of the Russian authors and their work. While the writing here was good, it wasn't quite lyrical enough IMO for this length of book and the subject matter.
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
3.75
I think my mistake was coming into this with the Netflix series in mind. I was very confused and didn't pay enough attention at the beginning so I had to restart once.
The characters were pretty much spot on with the series. However, I found Jasper the actor funnier than Jasper on the page. I was also confused about where this sat in the main storyline and had to look that up. However, even knowing it is just after the revolution, it doesn't seem to fit as well. I don't recall any mention of the Shadow Fold, though of course, I may very well have missed it, I just thought it was a big enough thing just recently that it should have had more prominence? Or perhaps the point is that the land is a lot bigger than it seemed in the Shadow and Bone trilogy.
It's also a lot more YA in tone than S&B. Not necessarily a bad thing, but I was a bit disappointed. Perhaps it reads better on the page. I enjoyed all the voices, but was also disconcerted that some narrators gave some characters an accent, while others didn't. Matthias for example was read with a Russian accent in by at least one narrator but not his own narrator.
I am currently on to the second book though so it is good, just not as good as the trilogy IMO.
The characters were pretty much spot on with the series. However, I found Jasper the actor funnier than Jasper on the page. I was also confused about where this sat in the main storyline and had to look that up. However, even knowing it is just after the revolution, it doesn't seem to fit as well. I don't recall any mention of the Shadow Fold, though of course, I may very well have missed it, I just thought it was a big enough thing just recently that it should have had more prominence? Or perhaps the point is that the land is a lot bigger than it seemed in the Shadow and Bone trilogy.
It's also a lot more YA in tone than S&B. Not necessarily a bad thing, but I was a bit disappointed. Perhaps it reads better on the page. I enjoyed all the voices, but was also disconcerted that some narrators gave some characters an accent, while others didn't. Matthias for example was read with a Russian accent in by at least one narrator but not his own narrator.
I am currently on to the second book though so it is good, just not as good as the trilogy IMO.
The Last Bongo Sunset by Les Plesko
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is not a book to read when you have a lot going on. It's a bit like those artworks where you have to adjust your vision to see the image through the haze of graphics.
The prose for one is fluid and lyrical but not standard in format so can be jarring and might require more attention than other writing.
The subject matter isn't easy to digest either.
I may be biased but the author was my teacher and I always felt his writing was so beautiful but misunderstood. I really want to reread this but am scared both because I know it will need to be savoured slowly and because of the sadness of knowing he has passed.
The prose for one is fluid and lyrical but not standard in format so can be jarring and might require more attention than other writing.
The subject matter isn't easy to digest either.
I may be biased but the author was my teacher and I always felt his writing was so beautiful but misunderstood. I really want to reread this but am scared both because I know it will need to be savoured slowly and because of the sadness of knowing he has passed.