British – Page 4 – Cannonball Read 17

What’s in a name?

Spear by Nicola Griffith

October 21, 2022 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

The last few years I try to read at least one or two things that I would not normally read. I have done horror graphic novels, manga, and adult novels. I did not do great (but not horrible) this year (that horror manga comic alone would have been enough), but I figured Spear by Nicola Griffith might work. It was adult, and science-fiction/fantasy (heavier on the fantasy). And it was short. I find that if you are tackling a subject/genre you do not normally, short […]

“He played the part of the devil too successfully. But he was not the devil. Au fond, he was a stupid man. And so – he died.”

Cards on the Table (Hercule Poirot, #14) by Agatha Christie

September 26, 2022 by narfna 5 Comments

I just love the atmosphere of a good Agatha Christie book. There’s not really anything like it. I was bit of a dum-dum and started listening to this one (with classic Christie narrator, Hugh Fraser) while doing stuff at work and didn’t pay it sufficient attention at first, and so was feeling a bit lost. Which is a shame! Because once I started paying attention, I had a really good time with this one. It’s a bit different than Christie’s other mysteries, in that we […]

Strangers on a Train with no murder involved!

Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting by Clare Pooley

June 29, 2022 by jomidi 2 Comments

It took almost a full six months, but I think I have what might become my favorite book of 2022. Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting by Clare Pooley was a wonderful surprise. I grabbed this book from a library display (to complete a summer bingo card entry “read a book from a library display”). I had enjoyed Pooley’s previous book, The Authenticity Project, so I decided to take a chance on her latest. Iona Iverson was somebody back in her day. She and her girlfriend […]

“Perhaps the compulsion to fill every inch of space was because it made him feel less alone.”

The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley

May 13, 2022 by narfna Leave a Comment

This was a perfectly fine book. I do not regret reading it. Ringing endorsement! It also isn’t really to my tastes anymore (though I think the me of ten plus years ago would have loved it). It feels too pat and constructed, not ‘optimistic,’ that’s not the right word . . . I don’t know how to explain it. Just saying it’s not to my taste really anymore seems easier than trying to figure it out. The premise is pretty high concept. A former artist […]

Delilah and Mr. Selim have some adventures

Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant (V01) by Tony Cliff

Delilah Dirk and the King’s Shilling (V02) by Tony Cliff

April 25, 2022 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

I have wanted to read Delilah Dirk books for some time. A few weeks ago, I went to the library to pick up a book I had on hold and came out with three others. Two were the first two in the series by Tony Cliff, Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant (V01) and Delilah Dirk and the King’s Shilling (V02). I have since learned there is a third book, and I’m contemplating finding a copy. First, this is basically a “Sherlock Holmes meets Indiana […]

The One Where I Don’t Like What I Think I Will Like

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

Perfect Prey by Helen Fields

April 23, 2022 by Zirza Leave a Comment

The Thursday Murder Club (Richard Osman) ** Perfect Prey (Helen Fields) ***½ Somewhere, in a very British and very sedate retirement village, a group of seniors get together in the jigsaw room where they solve unsolved crimes. They’re pushing eighty, they have opinions on which type of cake is better (walnut). They are Ron (former commie rabblerouser, scourge of the Thatcher era), Elizabeth (former detective with a fantabulous past full of the sort of intrigue James Bond could only have dreamed of), Ibrahim (former psychiatrist […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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