Reading Heart Liberals

[Pippedydeadeye]

I finished the Cazalets #4 last night. It took a while to get into, and I’m not that interested in “The Outsiders” apart from Archie. I’m going to try to finish them off this year, but I don’t feel compelled to launch into #5 just yet.

I skimmed through a dreadful book about the Dinner Ldy Detectives at Christmas this morning just so I can give back to someone at work and pretend I enjoyed it just enough to satisfy her but not encourage her to give me more.

Now I’m reading my signed copy of I’m A Joke And So Are You by Robin Ince. It’s really good so far and lots of interesting stuff has come up already.

[Lily]

The Cazalet chronicles are currently running on BBC Sounds if you feel they're more digestible as an audio book.

[Pippedydeadeye]

It would be in addition to rather than instead of. I need to complete the set now I’m 4/5s in. I remember hearing some of it before on R4, usually at 7:45 after Front Row (they’ve extended FR, so when do they do the book adaptations in the schedule now?). I’ve just looked and it’s only The Light Years that’s available at the moment. The final one is All Change, I think.

[Lily]

To be honest I get Radio 4 Extra and then catch up on Sounds, so that's about 0700

[wendy james]

I just finished Wake by Shelley Burr, which wasn’t Jane Harper but was still enjoyable. I’ve now finally started Carrie Soto is Back (only 99p on Kindle currently) and am loving it already.

I missed you also mentioned the 99p offer, sorry!

The background of her tennis career was a bit dull but I powered through and enjoyed it overall.

[Ruby]

Recently I have read Mr Norris Changes Trains by Christopher Isherwood,

This is one of my favourite books. Have you read the other Berlin books?

[Turtle Bean]

No but I will. I enjoyed it a lot.

[wendy james]

So I read a couple more TJR books - Daisy Jones & The Six and Malibu Rising. They’re good for quick reads. I think I preferred the latter, if I had to choose.

I might as well go for Evelyn Hugo next!

[Duophonic]

Recent reads to get me back on track

Robert Louis Stevenson - Kidnapped, proper boys own adventure. I'm still trying to get more classics in this year.

The Ferryman - Justin Cronin. Dystopian fiction about a hidden island utopia. This wasn't what I expected it to be which is probably the point. I can't really say too much about it as I'll spoiler it but there's tons going on and some great concepts.

[Cosmopolitan]

I loved the Passage Duo, and was eyeing up The Ferryman, but was waiting for the price to drop :cheap: so intrigued as to your thoughts

[rosy]

Amazon recommended a new (to me) Gold Age detective author, Moray Dalton. I read the recommended book The Strange Case of Harriet Hall and it was really good - tightly plotted and well drawn characters, with a double twist at the end. It's part of the Inspector Hugh Collier series so I bought the first one, and it was terrible.

[Bat Macdui]

The Maureen fry book is 99p atm Bats if you think you might read it at some point.

Oh, thank you. I shall scoop that up and leave it in reserve. Or promptly forgot I've bought it, that's also highly possible. :)) I have also just bought a Christopher Isherwood for 99p, on the strength of Bean and Ruby's chat above. I'm baffled by choice at the moment, I have set up my tablet so I have two libraries and three buying options now. And £30 of Waterstones vouchers to spend. And I still don't really know what I want to read.

Oh, and I raced through Denise Mina's new novella, Three Fires, which was, as expected, well written and enormously engaging. It's a brief life of Savonarola and is Renaissance Italy and it made me wonder (again) why I have never been to Florence. Also, I really should read A Room with a View, instead of just occasionally getting a pang to re-watch the film.

[wendy james]

I might as well go for Evelyn Hugo next!

Which I did, and thoroughly enjoyed. I think that’s the four most talked about TJR books? Are any of her others worth a look?

I’m now onto An Impossible Return, an historical novel based around the expulsion of the community living on The Chagos Islands so a military base could be built.

[sally maclennane]

I wouldn't bother with any of her other books, Wendy. I read one of her earlier ones and thought it was very average.

I finished Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and I really enjoyed it. Has anyone else read it?

[wendy james]

Thanks sally!

I have that on a book club list for November so haven’t got round to it yet.

[Pippedydeadeye]

A friend gave me One True Loves to try by TJR so I’m going to give that a bash.

And my colleague (not the cosy crime one) forced a book called Gut on me and it’s all about digestion and poo. I read the first few chapters and it’s really quite fun so I’ll definitely finish it.

[Duophonic]

Is that the Mary Roach one? If so she's great.

[Pippedydeadeye]

No, Giulia Enders. But this might mark the beginning of a specialist interest. :)

[Dutchie]

I've just started the 10th DI Grace book by MJ Arlidge, Truth or Dare, and it has already reeled me in. Can't wait to read on!

[Flora Poste]

I've got Cazalets No4 to start at some point Pip - I'm not raring to go as I've got less into them as the series has gone on.

I've read Tomorrow, Tomorrow etc Sal! I really enjoyed it and was fascinated by the creative and story/ world building parts of computer gaming which I'd never really appreciated before - I did think it had one plot twist too many though.

I read a few books on holiday:

Minor Disturbances at Grand Life Apartments - lovely, gentle read about a group of people living in an apartment block in Chennai.

Soldier, Sailor - this was brilliantly written but incredibly stressful to read about new motherhood - my friend likened it to a horror!!

The House with the Golden Door - follow up to The Wolf Den which I've only just got round to reading. The third one in the trilogy is out in November apparently so I've pre-ordered it.

When We Were Sisters - about 3 orphaned sisters raising one another under the watch of their Uncle - beautifully written.