50 Book Challenge 2020 Part Two

[southeastdweller]

Welcome to the second thread of the 50 Book Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2020, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

The first thread of the year is here.

What are you reading?

It was the first Tana French I read too, and like you I was tempted not to bother with any more. I did try another one though - name escapes me but it was set in a boarding school and there was something supernatural/superstitious going on. However, I found it very dull so gave up about a third of the way in and that definitely has put me off trying any more of her books!

8. Romantic Outlaws The Extraordinary Lives of Mary Wollstonecraft and Her Daughter Mary Shelley by Charlotte Gordon As usual, a recommendation from these threads. I have read Vindications, and Frankenstein, and I listened to a very interesting RI podcast about the latter, so I was delighted to read this, it really made both women come alive (even if at times both sounded like they could be a PITA!). Thank you to those who reviewed it and inspired me to pick it up!

Finally feel that my list is worthy of putting together!

1.	Idiot by Laura Clery
2.	Three Wishes by Liane Moriarty
3.	Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs? by Caitlin Doughty
4.	She Said by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey
5.	The Hypnotist’s Love Story by Liane Moriarty
6.	The Holiday by T M Logan
7.	Force of Nature by Jane Harper
8.	The Secretary by Renée Knight

I finished The Secretary last night and was still in two minds about it. Having given it the overnight test, I think the negatives outweigh the positives.The main protagonists are intensely dislikeable: Christine is weak, clingy and needy; Mina is power-hungry, greedy and sociopathic. There were numerous times where I struggled to believe that the personal assistant to such a powerful woman could be so pathetically spineless and, as it turns out, downright stupid. She simply would not be able to function in that role in the real world without a lot more gumption.

I also found it very dated. It's set roughly between 1995 and 2005 but feels as if it belongs earlier in the twentieth century in terms of character and setting. Mina is a modern high-powered executive and yet inhabits this peculiarly Downton-esque country pile that would be more suited to an Agatha Christie novel. It's as if the idea was conceived for a much earlier period in time and then dragged into this century.

The plot itself is wildly predictable. You can see what's coming a mile off. It's fair to say that this isn't as true of the ending, as it could have gone one of two distinct ways. However, I did struggle with the characterisation of Christine in the closing chapters as it simply didn't ring true in comparison to the person we had come to know during the rest of the narrative.

I think my overall feeling is that the whole thing was a missed opportunity. There's an idea in here struggling to get out.

I love Tana French; one of my favourite discoveries of the past few years. I can see why the ending of Into the Woods gave people the rage, but I liked it. It initially annoyed me but the more I thought about it, it felt in keeping with the whole tone of the book (and with how things often pan out in real life). The first one I read of hers was actually The Secret Place (5th in the Dublin Murder Squad series) and I did like that, although there are supernatural elements which may mean it's not for everyone. I absolutely loved Faithful Place and Broken Harbour, the 3rd and 4th in the series, although I think it's best to read them in order as a minor/secondary character from the previous book tends to crop as the main protagonist in the next.

Anyway. I know she's divisive on this thread but just wanted to put in a word for her because someone else with similar reading preferences to mine might love her too!

Re Tana French, I couldn’t put the Wych Elm down and, as it’s the first TF book I’ve read, was going to look out for more!
Interesting to hear different views on her previous books.

I really like Tana French, the only book of hers that I didn't really enjoy was The Wych Elm.

I was infuriated by the lack of resolution in Into the Woods. I really liked Broken Harbour - I've seen some of the ghost estates she describes, and for me, it's an evocative picture of the aftermath of the financial crash.

Mind you, the main thing that struck me about Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl was how it portrayed the collapse of the magazine publishing sector. I often find myself more interested in what's going on in the background of a crime fiction novel than the crime itself. Like a Brueghel picture, the juxtaposition between the everyday and the extraordinary adds another dimension.

Interesting to hear everyone’s perspectives on in the woods will finish if only to see this divisive ending everyone’s talking about.

I have the Wych Elm but won’t rush to it for the moment.

I ended up picking up Conviction which I think @noodlezoodle reviewed up thread by Denise Mina. This is (so far) much more my speed of ‘light’ crime novel and I devoured 50% last night.

1. Sweet Sorrow by David Nichols. I was lent this in hardback last summer but decided against lugging it on holiday and back again in favour of the back log of books on my infinitely more practical Kindle. This was probably a mistake as the story of 16 year old Charlie Lewis and the eventful summer he met and fell in love with posh girl Fran would have been perfect beach reading.

Having missed the ideal opportunity I was in no hurry to crack the spine once I returned home, so when Sweet Sorrow came up as the £1.99 Audible deal of the day recently I decided it would be nice to have this lightweight, lighthearted story read aloud to me by Rory Kinnear. And indeed it was, although Mr Kinnear had a rather irritating habit of over emphasising, or over egging, the words. Too much sounded like it was punctuated with an exclamation mark to my ears, but that not withstanding that the story zipped along and I got used to the slightly hammy delivery. It was sweet and funny, more on a par with Us than One Day - but then Nichols has said himself that he's not going to write anything that will capture the chick lit market imagination like One Day did. This latest book obviously isn't going to win any literary awards but it reminded me of my misspent youth and I definitely enjoyed it more than other reviewers on these threads, right up until the end that is, which was curiously flat, not sure where he could have gone with the ending given the subject matter but it did leave me a bit meh 🤷‍♀️

1. Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Stroud. Loosely linked short stories (well except the last one, not sure where that fitted in) Didn't really float my boat but some stories were better than others. I did enjoy the episode where the eponymous Olive went to visit her son and his second wife. I might pick up the follow up Olive Again if I saw it in the library or on BorrowBox but I don't think I'd pay to read her continued 'adventures'.

I also enjoyed The Wych Elm but it could have withstood some serious editing, especially in the early part.

I find Tana French and Elly Griffiths fairly interchangeable, they write similar genres and styles. I wouldn't call either literary, but they are usually good for a mindless escape. If you like one you'll probably like the other, equally if you don't like one...

FortunaMajor I have one Elly Griffiths on my TBR pile - looks as though I should shift it up!

15 The Epigenetics Revolution by Nessa Carey

I bought this back in I think 2016 when it was recommended by Cote on these threads. At the time I started it & didn't click. I think I'd not been paying enough attention, and had expected more about the effect of epigenetic changes, rather than the mechanisms - so more twin studies, and fewer diagrams of molecules. I'm trying to work through my shelves and either read or get rid of things, and coming back to this fresh I really enjoyed it. I was particularly interested in the chapter on the brain / memory and the one on plants, but all of it was well worth a read.

It's obviously an enormously fast moving field, and I imagine things have moved on substantially even since 2016, but I felt the author did a really good job of explaining recent discoveries without giving a false impression of certainty.

16 The Red Scrolls of Magic by Cassandra Clare & Wesley Chu

Light relief in between reading about epigenetics (& George Orwell in audio). This is one for fans of Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunter books only - it's set in between two of the Mortal Instruments books, & follows Magnus and Alec on their first vacation. Predictably, they don't have a peaceful holiday on the beach, and instead have to spend their time battling evil whilst remaining effortlessly stylish and cool. Harmless fun.

16. The Ministry of Truth : A Biography of George Orwell's 1984 by Dorian Lynskey The first section of this book traces the origins of 1984 looking at previous dystopian literature, Orwell's earlier writings and his experiences in Spain, following on to a partial biography of the writer during the period of writing the book. The second half then works its from publication through to the present day examining the responses to and influence of the novel decade by decade.
    Overall I really enjoyed this, and it was helpful to be reminded that 1984 has felt so very prescient at many points in history, rather than being uniquely topical today. The only downside was that I listened to it on Audible, and wasn't at all keen on the reading. I turned it up to 1.2x which made it more bearable, but the voices the reader gave to the women mentioned in particular were just dreadful.

Oops, Ministry of Truth was no. 17 on my list. I've just been listening to it for a long time & didn't expect to finish another book in between!

Oh thank you Sadik! Just got the Epigentics book on Kindle Unlimited - I am not really allowed to spend real money on books or wool for now, so I am delighted!

Hope you enjoy it!

1. Pet Semetary by Stephen King (2/5)
2. The Outsider by Albert Camus (5/5)
3. Somebody's Mother, Somebody's Daughter by Carol Ann Lee (3/5)
4. Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor. (4/5)
5. Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton. (5/5)
6. 4321 by Paul Auster. (4/5)
7. Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann. (3/5)

8. The Devil's Teardrop by Jeffrey Deaver. I read this years ago and really enjoyed it but absolutely hated it this time round. The main character, Parker Kincaid, is an ex-FBI man with expertise in document analysis who is brought in to consult on a blackmail note from a criminal who has committed one mass shooting and is threatening more. The story itself was mediocre but what really made me dislike this book was the insufferable smugness of the main character and the fact that elements of the descriptions of women were just plain creepy, especially in the post #metoo world. There was lots of unnecessary wondering about the underwear of women and comments on their looks. These are professional women who are trying to catch a mass murderer, maybe the fact you can tell her bra is black, or you think she has well defined thighs (!) isn't what you should be focusing on right now. Urghhh. (1/5)

I just realised I've got The Epigenetics Revolution on my kindle, that said I'm not sure when I'll get round to reading it as I've got lots of academic reading to do at the moment so lighter stuff is needed for relaxation. I'm still going on Nicholas Parsons autobiography at the moment.

I just picked up the most wonderful book from a box of 'help yourself' books, it's only short and I was going to put it back when I'd finished it, it didn't take long to read. It's by Fredrik Backman (A man called Ove) and is called The Deal of a Lifetime. It reminded me of Jostein Gaarder's writing. It does deal with death but not in a way that my phobia was triggered by it, it's a lovely little book with beautiful illustrations so is thoroughly recommended.

Finally, in today's no book buying update, Kate Fox's Watching the English has been on my wish list for ages and is down from >£12 to 99p. Employing the cost per word method means it is a cost effective purchase.

I have the Epigenetics book on my TBR pile too. I might have to move it up the order as it seems to have gone down well on here. Plus I remember watching a programme on epigenetics years ago (maybe Horizon) and being absolutely fascinated - I was telling people about it for weeks.

My unread copy of Epigenetics Revolution went in the charity shop bag literally days ago.

It's been dropped off now.

#regret

6. The Penelopiad by Margaret Attwood
Yowser! I'm even more enthusiastic about this because it's very short and I gulped it down during a single bath. I'm sure it's all over previous threads. What a terrific, strong, funny read, full of horrors but not a single nightmare for me. I'm afraid to say it made The Silence of the Girls which I read last year pretty dull in comparison. But Oh God Attwood writes so well. I've got Circe waiting and it's made me more enthusiastic about that too. But I've got another short novel on the go so am aiming for that first...

Book 13
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

Artist, Alicia Berenson, is institutionalised and doesn’t speak. After shooting her husband six years ago, she has been mute. An ambitious new therapist tries to find out why and the psychological thriller unfolds. Entertaining if a little contrived, the book combines the therapists reports along with Alicias own diary entries. The plot kept me guessing to the end, but oddly left me a little bit unsatisfied despite a clever conclusion.

Book 6 - The Other Half of Augusta Hope - I'm working my way through a kindle backlog and I have a feeling this was from a previous 50 books challenge so may have been discussed previously...a 3.5/5 from me...enjoyed it and liked learning about Burundi and also the language facts...but I somehow felt it could have been more something?? Not sure what but it all slotted together too easily...

1. The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers - Roger Lewis

'Exhaustive' doesn't even begin to describe this 1,000-page epic. Don't come expecting a standard biography - Lewis is wilfully, gloriously subjective and the narrative twists and turns as it takes in Sellers' music-hall upbringing, films (good and bad), relationships (mostly bad), and lots of gossip and digression along the way. It's a big read but hugely entertaining.

9. The Last Painting of Sara De Vos by Dominic Smith

Absolutely loved this book linking the lives of the titular (fictional) 17th century Dutch artist; Marty de Groot, who owns one of her paintings in 50s New York and Ellie Shipley, art student and restorer (and later professor). Set in three periods - the 1630s - 40s, the 1950s and 2000, it's a sort of art crime mystery, but really a story about the human lives touched by de Vos's painting. I was completely invested in all three main protagonists; it is beautifully written and the detail about art forgery is fascinating. The ending didn't quite live up to the rest, but that was perhaps partly because I didn't really want it to end, having grown to love the characters and their beautifully described worlds.