50 Book Challenge 2020 Part Six

[southeastdweller]

Welcome to the sixth 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, it's not too late to join, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

The first thread of the year is here, the second one here, the third one here, the fourth one here and the fifth one here.

So, we're now almost half way through the year - how's the first half of the year gone for you, reading-wise?

45. Northanger Abbey - Jane Austen

I had never read this before but thoroughly enjoyed it, even though it is clearly not Austen's most accomplished work. Innocent young gentlewoman Catherine Morland spends her first season in Bath, falls in love with Henry Tilney, then has various misadventures in his father's home, the eponymous Abbey, inspired by her overindulgence in Gothic novels. The pacing was a little off, with the first half taken up with buggering about at balls, and an awful lot of plot happening in the last 10%. However, Austen's arch writing style and acute observation of human nature more than made up for it. This was my favourite passage:

"Woman is fine for her own satisfaction alone. No man will admire her the more, no woman will like her the better for it. Neatness and fashion are enough for the former, and a something of shabbiness or impropriety will be most endearing to the latter."

126. The Other Wife by Claire McGowan

Psychological thriller about a woman who has done something bad in the past, who moves to an isolated cottage and strange things start to happen. Are these things down to her new neighbour, another mysterious woman? Nothing original but an OK read.

36. Fierce Bad Rabbits by Clare Pollard. Inspired by you lot, I did enjoy this memoir of picture books and early motherhood. I am too old to have had many of the books mentioned while I was a child, but have read many to my own children. I would have liked more of the older ones, and more pictures! I did enjoy how she mixed it up with her own life, thoughts about pregnancy, and motherhood, although I think that was quite a risky thing to do, as a straight exploration of the history of picture books might have had more mass appeal. I ended up wanting to know more about said history; and also to read the ones I hadn't come across.

Thank you for the new thread @southeastdweller!

My list carried over:

1. Dianne Freeman - A Lady's Guide to Etiquette and Murder
2. Ali Sparkes - Frozen in Time
3. A Treacherous Curse - Deanna Raybourn
4. Christmas Calamity at the Vicarage - Emily Organ
5. Michelle Paver - Wakenhyrst
6. Darklight - Bella Forrest
7. Darkthirst - Bella Forrest
8. Darkworld - Bella Forrest
9. A Lady's Guide to Gossip & Murder - Dianne Freeman

10. Made in India, cooked in Britain - Meera Sodha 11. A Dangerous Collaboration - Deanna Raybourn 12. Raven's Gate - Anthony Horowitz 13. Where the Crawdads Sing - Delia Owens 14. The Inspector & Mrs Jeffries - Emily Brightwell 15. Mrs Jeffries and the one who got away - Emily Brightwell 16. Ghost Wall - Sarah Moss 17. Finale - Stephanie Garber 18. Five on a treasure island - Enid Blyton 19. Rewild - Simon Barnes 20. Queen of Hearts - Rhys Bowen 21. The Crocodile on the Sandbank - Elizabeth Peters 22. Black Arts - Prentice & Weil 23. One of Us is Lying - Karen McManus 24. State of Wonder - Ann Patchett 25. Two can keep a secret - Karen McManus 26. Enid Blyton - The Mystery of the Burnt Cottage 27. Terry Pratchett - Witches Abroad 28. Maskerade - Terry Pratchett 29. Carpe Jugulum - Terry Pratchett 30. Love and Death among the Cheetahs - Rhys Bowen 31. Best Dad, the Beginning: 1 family, 3 children, 800 stories - Mark Richards 32. Father, Son & the Pennine Way - Mark Richards 33. A Lovely Way to Burn - Louise Welsh 34. Death on a Shetland Isle - Marsali Taylor 35. A Murder to Die For - Stevyn Colgan 36. Wildcard - Ken McClure 37. The Secret - Ken McClure 38. PD James - Cover Her Face 39. Elizabeth Peters - The Curse of the Pharaohs 40. Clare Chase - Mystery on Hidden Lane 41. Rhys Bowen - Heirs & Graces 42. Emily Brightwell - Mrs Jeffries and the Missing Alibi 43. Clare Chase - Mystery at Apple Tree Cottage 44. Helena Dixon - Murder at the Dolphin Hotel 45. Helena Dixon - Murder at Enderley Hall 46. Ken McClure - White Death 47. Frances Lloyd - The Greek Island Killer 48. Frances Lloyd - The Bluebell Killer 49. Frances Lloyd - The Shetland Killer 50. Neil Forsyth - Delete This at Your Peril: The Bob Servant Emails 51. Lucie Whitehouse - Before We Met 52. Frances Lloyd - The Gallows Green Killer 53. Frances Lloyd - The Moon Killer 54. Bizarre England - David Long 55. JM Worgan - Life on the Spectrum. The Preschool Years. Getting the Help and Support You Need 56. Mark Richards - Father, Son & Return to the Pennine Way 57. Mark Richards - Father, Son & the Kerry Way 58. Alice Boardman - TOAST: Autism in the Early Years 59. Emily Organ - The Gang of St Bride's (Penny Green Series Book 9) 60. Laura Purcell - Bone China 61. Elizabeth Edmondson - A Man of Some Repute 62. Elizabeth Edmondson - A Question of Inheritance 63. Elizabeth Edmondson - A Matter of Loyalty 64. Maureen Johnson - The Hand on the Wall 65. Hazel Holt - A Time To Die 66. Hazel Holt - No Cure For Death 67. Erin Morgenstern - The Night Circus 68. Emily Suvada - This Mortal Coil 69. Edward Marston - The Railway Detective 70. Bill Bryson - At Home 71. Edward Marston - The Excursion Train 72. Edward Marston - The Railway Viaduct 73. Terry Pratchett - Jingo 74. Edward Marston - Inspector Colbeck's Casebook 75. Edward Marston - The Iron Horse 76. Juno Dawson - Margot & Me

And to add:

77. Jodi Taylor - Just one damned thing after another
78. Jodi Taylor - Doing Time

I was trying to get into Doing Time (another of the St Mary's chronicles but set in the Time Police), couldn't, re-read the first fab St Mary's book and finally managed to finish DT, which massively improved in the last third

79. Edward Marston - Murder on the Brighton Express
80. Edward Marston - The Silver Locomotive Mystery

The next two in the Victorian Railway Detective series, which keep me entertained during the immense tedium of DC's bedtime.

81. Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen - The Wife Between Us

Twisty turny psychological thriller. Entertaining but frankly I was a bit fed up the constant twists by the end!

82. Carole Lawrence - Edinburgh Twilight

Detective Ian Hamilton story set in the late 1800s. Interesting concepts but just seemed a bit sloppy. Dispensed of a fairly important character and then never mentioned them again?! I'd read the next in the series if it was free but otherwise...

83. Michael Siemsen - The Dig

A young man has the ability to learn all about an object's past just by touching it; the story is partly in the present day and partly flashbacks to the object's story. More interesting than in sounds except for the flashback bits, which I found immensely boring and skipped. Quite a quick read

84. Kayte Nunn - The Forgotten Letters of Esther Durrant

Another flashbacks one, between the immediate post war years and present days. Set in the Scilly Isles (which I'd love to visit) and entertaining enough, although my Kindle copy could desperately have done with some proof reading.

Great reviews Keith

Like you I was very disappointed with Dracula, but loved Frankenstein. I also read Frankissstein last year and I really didn't know what to make of it, it was bonkers! It's one I would like to go back to at some point as as you say there is a lot going on in there.

65 Mansfield Revisited by Joan Aiken
Re-read following on from The Other Bennet Sister. Four years after the end of MP, Fanny and Edmund have been packed off to Antigua, and Susan is well installed in Fanny's place in the family. Short but fun, it's actually got more of a Heyer feel than Austen, but none the worse for that. I'm tempted to pick up some of Aiken's other adult novels as they all seem to be pretty cheap on Kindle, though IIRC Mansfield Revisited is very much the best of her Austen sequels.

I can't remember if I read about the Tor free e-book of the month club here, but if not, this month's book is The Calculating Stars (which helpfully was already on my TBR list)

Thanks Spieluhr - the Gary Younge was on my wish list so I've nabbed it while cheap.

I've also nabbed the Gary Younge - not heard of it before but cant sniff at 83 pence

Keith, I don't know if I will read Frankisstein but thank you for the fabulous review!

Excited that Polly Samson, A Theatre for Dreamers is on the Kindle daily deal. Surprised as it's such a recent release. Lightly fictionalized version of life on Hydra at the time Leonard Cohen and other artistic types lived there.

I am resisting A Theatre For Dreamers as they have the ebook on our library system if I'm prepared to wait. It does sound good though.

I found Frankisstein is a book that almost reviewed itself, I had so much to say about it and wanted to share SO many quotations! If I was still in a book group I would totally make them all read it, I think you could discuss and argue well into the small hours.

The Windrush Betrayal by Amelia Gentleman is also 83p at the moment. And I also like the look of Ladies Can’t Climb Ladders: The Pioneering Adventures of the First Professional Women by Jane Robinson which is 99p.

Apologies to anyone trying to stick to a kindle spending ban!

One more! Sorry. The Street by Ann Perry, been in my TBR for ages and currently 99p. It's a Virago Modern Classic, the first bestseller by a black female author, set in 1940s Harlem.

Good reviews Keith. Re: Rodham it’s definitely worth a read but I’d wait until the price comes down.

I was considering buying Theatre for Dreamers with some birthday money, but hate buying in hardback so thought not. Real jolt of excitement when I saw it come down been on my list for a while.

"Pale Rider - Laura Spinney's excellent history of the Spanish flu pandemic - is in the Kindle Daily Deal today."

I hope many of you got Pale Rider. It's fantastic.

"Yes cote hates On the Beach because they keep planning their next Ocado shop and forgetting it’s supposed to be the end of the world or something like that"

Yes, something like that One could also say that it was a nonsensical, risible farce acted out by a group of the dullest, dumbest people on Earth.

"Oh do you think they will get married and have a baby by next year?"

"We shall not fish until fishing season comes 6 months from now"

Etc etc while anyone with two brain cells to rub together would know that they will all die in a couple of weeks

Even insects try to save their lives. Even single-celled organisms will swim towards food and away from danger. Not these morons, oh no! They drink sherry and chat about a future that won't come.

I hated that useless book about useless people, if that wasn't clear. They couldn't die fast enough

There are indeed clear parallels between On The Beach and *Never Let Me Go". Both books feature a group of doomed idiots who can't be bothered to fight for survival

I tried finding my book review for On The Beach but could only go back to this rant from January 2013. Then I realized that our first ever 50-Book thread had started just a few days before! Who remembers those days?

cote they couldn’t die fast enough

Shute does have a habit of making his characters do weird, emotionally numb things. In one of his a woman just sort of gives up on living because she had to walk a long way and passes her baby onto someone else like it’s her handbag. “Oh he’ll be better off with you” she says to a complete stranger.

I did still enjoy it though

Cote I knew it!

My personal favorite is when they are talking about a couple and this woman says "I hope they get married and have children". When told how unlikely that is with, you know, certain death in September , she replies:

" Oh dear, I keep forgetting ."

REALLY?!?

Satsuki - I imagine that the relentless exhaustion, fear, hunger and illness probably had something to do with that not very 'British stuff upper lip' action!

Is it the famed British stiff upper lip due to hunger & exhaustion, though? Or is it just a stupid character in an implausible book?

How many mothers in the history of the world have abandoned their babies to strangers with a shrug due to exhaustion?

remus I mean yes, but it does still stand out as odd, and having read a few of his there is definitely a carelessness generally when it comes to the passing around of children that always seems jarring to me (and often convenient to the plot!) In the Pied Piper a mum chooses to stay with her husband rather than her children and sends them off through soon-to-be-occupied France with an elderly man they’ve just met! And in Trustee they go sailing for 6 months leaving their 9 year old with a “Ta Ta, have a great Christmas!”. It may just be reflective of the less child-centred approach of the time but

I say all this as quite a fan!