50 Book Challenge 2021 Part Seven

[southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2021, 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. Could everyone embolden their titles and/or authors as well, please, as it makes the books talked about easier to track?

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

I was surprised by the lack of books on my wishlist(s) - I have a huge general one and some sublists. I did still buy some things and then thought, I'm sure I have a (Kindle) copy of one, The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula Le Guin. Indeed I do, so I returned that one. I did think August's deals was one of the best selections for some time, this was a lot of offers which have been frequently repeated and Amazon's own publications.

A non fiction book some might be interested in is Jane Robinson, Bluestockings about the history of women struggling for their rights to get a good education, 99p.

Maybe there'll be some good Daily Deals. Or maybe I won't spent quite as much money on books as I did last month.....

I need to prepare now for a complicated library outing today, with several books to return and others to collect.

Are you feeling any better yet, Piggy?

45. The Appeal by Janice Hallett. A whodunnit with a difference, in that it's told in the form of emails between the various protagonists. I found this format meant that I felt a step removed from the characters, which made it harder to care about what happened to them. It's an easy read, good fun and undemanding.

46. Evening in the Palace of Reason by James Gaines. Recommended on this thread a couple of years ago, this is the history of JS Bach and Frederick the Great, culminating in a meeting between the two in Frederick's court, at which he sets Bach a fiendishly difficult musical challenge and Bach rises to the occasion with superb skill (not a spoiler, as this is laid out at the start). I found this fascinating as a comparison between two very different men living in an interesting period of history (the beginning of the Age of Enlightenment). The musical aspect was a little over my head at times, but it was explained well and I learnt a lot!

I feel a bit better today. Small things are exhausting . No nausea today but that comes every third day as a rule! Not as ill as I was ! Thank you for asking

I'm wondering when/ if you decide to stop reading a book. In June I started reading harry potter for the first time in over a decade and ended up joining my friends book club so went to try to read 24 books this year and I'm on 16.

I wanted to read handmaid's tale and my reader tells me I've got about 2.5hrs left to finish it and I'm just struggling. I find myself drifting away from the book and I feel like I should give up but I'm also over 50% done.

A Gentleman in Moscow - Amor Towles
After the Bolshevik Revolution a member of the aristocracy is sentenced to house arrest in a grand hotel opposite the Kremlin. Forced to live in a tiny attic rather than his usual suite, he comes to terms with his reduced circumstances and makes friends and enemies among the staff. For 30 years he does not leave the hotel while events of history unfold around him.

Beautifully written with a charming protagonist, this is an absolute gem. It's a period of history I'm not that familiar with so it was really interesting as well. One that draws you straight in.

The Luminaries - Eleanor Catton
Gold rush New Zealand. Fresh off the boat, a man stumbles into a gathering where locals have met to get to the bottom of a series of unexplained events. Drawn in, a mystery unfolds as all starts to be connected together.

I'm late to the party on this one and any cleverness in the writing/ chapter structure was lost on me as I listened instead of reading. Ultimately satisfying, but my goodness it was long and I'm not entirely convinced the end justified the amount of time it took to get there.

A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving
Follows the lifetime friendship of two men, despite the fact that one accidentally killed the other's mother while they were small children. Owen is convinced he is an instrument of god and has a premonition of his own death which clouds his choices over the years. Set in small town America at a time of political upheaval and an impending Vietnam war.

Again ultimately satisfying but it took a long time to get there and I could have easily put it down several times along the way. I won't forget Owen in a hurry though.

The Bookshop - Penelope Fitzgerald
Recently recommended on the last thread. Widowed woman sets up a bookshop in a small town which turns out to be more problematic than she expected.
Wonderful, but the abrupt ending broke my heart.

I seem to remember quite liking Bluestockings.

I've bought one called Shadowplay and noticed that The Five was there if anybody hasn't got it yet, although I must admit I still haven't got very far with it. Gave up the will to live by about page 13 though.

Quite honestly FrustratedTeddyLamp, I usually just stop if I’m not feeling it. There are so many other books to read.

I’ve noticed that I often go back to an abandoned book weeks or months later, though, and weirdly seem able to get into it second time round. Maybe give it a rest for a while?

Fortuna - I felt exactly the same about The Luminaries. The end was a huge disappointment and made me feel differently about the rest of it, which I'd otherwise largely enjoyed.

Glad you're feeling bit better Piggy. It sounds rotten.

TeddyLamp I loved Handmaid so would generally say carry on, but if you're not feeling the love that far in, then ditch it. You've given it a fair crack.

Remus I got The Luminaries when it first came out, mixed it up with another book, so it wasn't what I was expecting when I started it and put it down in favour of the other book. Everyone on here was a bit 'meh' about it so I didn't rush to pick it back up. Glad I've read it, but don't think it deserved the hype it got at the time. I generally trust the consensus on here, but do like to find out for myself eventually. It could have certainly done with a better editor. I read a brilliant line recently which I now can't find about the length of modern novels being an overindulgence of an author's vanity rather than necessary for the plot.

Remus I hope you love Shadowplay. I thought it was fabulous, reviewed it back on thread 5 with a hearty recommendation.

Love to Piggy, Best and anyone else needing it.

Thank you Southeast for the new thread. Will update on my reading when home from holiday.

Thanks, Viking. I think I must have half remembered your review. I feel as if I might have read a very positive review elsewhere too, maybe The Guardian. It's been on my wishlist for ages.

Fortuna - I read a brilliant line recently which I now can't find about the length of modern novels being an overindulgence of an author's vanity rather than necessary for the plot. See the unedited version of American Gods plus everything written by Dan Simmons as absolute proof of this statement.

Remus, if you haven't read Dracula, it's well worth reading beforeShadowplay - so clever how O'Connor skirts around Stoker's themes.

Viking I'm reasonably close in one of the smaller surrounding towns. I love the Ribble Valley. I hope you enjoy the rest of your trip there.

I'm a bit torn what to pick up next. I've done a few Greek myth novels recently but am very tempted by the new Pat Barker - Women of Troy

I've also got Angela Carter - Nights at the Circus shouting for my attention.

Thanks for the heads-up..Have read and enjoyed Dracula a couple of times.

Just finished another charity shop find This
A British Library Crime novel - very silly, plenty of bodies, a likeable detective, some ridiculous jokes and a bonkers but satisfying ending.

Wow last time I updated my list was a few threads back!

1. Career of Evil - Robert Galbraith
2. What Lies Between Us - John Marrs

3 Who Killed Ruby - Camilla Way

1. The Casual Vacancy JK Rowling
2. In an Instant- Suzanne Redfern
3. Girl A - Abigail Dean
4. Exit - Belinda Bauer
5. Hungry - Grace Dent
6. Stop at Nothing Tammy Cohen

10. The Woman Who Stole My Life - Marian Keyes 11. Witch Week - Diane Wynn Jones 12. Blood Orange - Harriet Tryce 13. The Girl With the Louding Voice - Abi Dáre 14. The Bigamist - Mary Turner Thompson 15. Into Thin Air - John Karakauer 16. One by One - Ruth Ware 17. Last One at the Party - Bethany Clift 18. Greenwich Park- Katherine Faulkner 19. The Last Thing to Burn - Will Dean 20. Watch her Fall - Erin Kelly 21. Secret Diary of an Anti Social Behaviour Officer 22. Small Pleasures - Claire Chambers 23. The Only Plane in the Sky - Garret M Graff 24. The Pact - Sharon Bolton 25. Honeymoon in Paris and Other Stories- Jojo Moyles 26. Promising Young Women - Caroline On Donohue 27. Handstands in the Dark - Jane Godley 28. Fragile Nicki Graeme 29. Hear me Out - Sarah Harding 30. The Serial Killers Wife- Alice Hunter 31. Rachels Holiday- Maran Keyes 32. The Break - Marian Keyes 33. The Hate U Give Angie Thomas 34. The Seven Day Switch* 35. Watermelon- Marian Keyes 36. I Survived - Victoria Cilliers 37. The Glass Castle - Jeanette Walls 38. The Hit List - Holly Seddon 39. The Good Sister - Sally Hepworth 40. Anybidy Out There - Marian Keyes 41. Diary of an Essex Girl 42. Blackout - Sarah Hepola 43. The Second Husband - Louise Candlish 44. Glorious Rock Bottom - Bryant Gordon 45. The Madness of Grief - Richard Coles 46. I See You - Claire Macintosh 47. People Like Her - Ellery Lloyd 48. The First Day of Spring- Nancy Tucker 49. The Heights - Louise Candlish 50. All the Lonely People - Mike Gayle 51. The Authority Gap - Mary Ann Seighart 52. The Good Lie

Honestly I’ve not enjoyed many new books this year but looking at my list I can see why.

I've also got Angela Carter - Nights at the Circus shouting for my attention.

Love Nights at the Circus, it's a glorious romp.

The monthly deals were really quite poor. I was amused by the title of Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well, Thank You, which didn’t even seem to be a parody…

@JaninaDuszejko

I've also got Angela Carter - Nights at the Circus shouting for my attention.

Love Nights at the Circus, it's a glorious romp.

SOLD! Anything described as glorious has to be the winner.

76: The Dreaming Suburb - R. F. Delderfield

Finally finished this good old-fashioned blockbuster of a book. It's set in a South London suburb from the end of WW1 and follows the fortunes of several families living there, taking in events up until the start of WW2. There are no fancy frills but if you like a big chunky saga with a large cast of characters, packed with period detail, à la London Belongs to Me, this one's for you - I heard it being praised on an edition of Backlisted and discovered I already had a copy. I kept thinking it would be perfect for TV then found it was made into a 13-part series in 1978 under the title 'People Like Us'.

There's an equally hefty sequel, The Avenue at War, which I'll get round to at some point.

@JaninaDuszejko

I've also got Angela Carter - Nights at the Circus shouting for my attention.

Love Nights at the Circus, it's a glorious romp.

Nights at the Circus made my DM so cross! Her nan was a chorus girl of about the same era and then became a dresser, & I think it was too realistic to work as magical realism for her, but just off of realistic in slightly too many ways. (I enjoyed it but didn't admit that at all )

Thanks for the new thread southeast

My list so far:

1. Sweet Pea by C J Skuse
2. Dracul by Dacre Stoker and J. D. Barker
3. Cotillion by Georgette Heyer
4. Skitter by Ezekiel Boone
5. Dragonquest by Anne McCaffrey
6. Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey
7. The Pandora Room by Christopher Golden
8. Dragonsinger by Anne McCaffrey
9. Goodbye to Malory Towers by Pamela Cox

10. The Trench by Steve Alten 11. The Foundling by Georgette Heyer 12. Monster by C J Skuse Feb 13. American Gods by Neil Gaiman Mar 14. Birthday Boy by David Baddiel 15. In Bloom by C J Skuse 16. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens 17. The Guest List by Lucy Foley 18. Unwind by Neal Shusterman 19. Bright Young Things by Scarlett Thomas 20. Escape the Diet Trap by Dr John Briffa 21. In The Wake of The Plague by Norman F Cantor 22. Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata 23. The Long War by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter 24. American War by Omar El Akkad 25. My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell 26. Hard Time by Jodi Taylor 27. Survival of the Sickest by Dr Sharon Moalem 28. One Night For Love by Mary Balogh 29. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier 30. The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson 31. Archangel by Sharon Shinn 32. Hater by David Moody 33. She Was The Quiet One by Michele Campbell 34. Meg: Primal Waters by Steve Alten 35. The Fear by C L Taylor 36. Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough 37. A Sudden Wild Magic by Diana Wynne Jones 38. One By One by Ruth Ware May 39. There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins 40. Troy by Stephen Fry 41. The Escape Room by Megan Goldin 42. Hekla’s Children by James Brogden 43. X-Men: Nation X 44. The School at the Chalet by Elinor M Brent-Dyer 45. Plan For The Worst by Jodi Taylor 46. Fast Asleep by Dr Michael Mosley 47. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood 48. Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen 49. The White Dragon by Anne McCaffrey 50. Eating Less by Gillian Riley 51. Dragondrums by Anne McCaffrey 52. Clear My Name by Paula Daly 53. New Model Army by Adam Roberts 54. Playing Nice by J P Delaney June 55. Surprise Me by Sophie Kinsella 56. Dragonsdawn by Anne McCaffrey 57. The Ickabog by J K Rowling 58. The Renegades of Pern by Anne McCaffrey 59. The Orphanage of Gods by Helena Coggan 60. Do Not Disturb by Claire Douglas 61. No One Is Too Small To Make A Difference by Greta Thunberg 62. White Crow by Marcus Sedgwick 63. She-Wolves by Helen Castor 64. Jovah’s Angel by Sharon Shinn 65. Before I Let You In by Jenny Blackhurst 66. The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober by Catherine Gray 67. Friday’s Child by Georgette Heyer 68. Zero Day by Ezekiel Boone 69. Earth Abides by George R Stewart 70. Dead Head by C J Skuse 71. The Pact by Amy Heydenrych 72. Killing Kate by Alex Lake 73. Another Time, Another Place by Jodi Taylor 74. The Two Lost Mountains by Matthew Reilly 75. Millions by Frank Cottrell-Boyce 76. Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett 77. Stuffocation by James Wallman 78. Your Simple Guide to Reversing Type 2 Diabetes by Professor Roy Taylor 79. Just Like The Other Girls by Claire Douglas 80. Life Without Diabetes by Professor Roy Taylor 81. Red Rising by Pierce Brown 82. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J K Rowling 83. Hellfire by John Saul 84. No Time Like The Past by Jodi Taylor 85. A Company Of Swans by Eva Ibbotson 86. Fury by Elizabeth Miles 87. Secret Vampire by L J Smith

Terpsichore spot on review. I love The Dreaming Suburb and The Avenue - maybe time for a reread. I'd like to see "People Like Us." Maybe an old video will pop up on Youtube sometime. I liked The Avenue novels much better than Delderfield's Horse Man Riding By or To Serve Them All My Days

Interesting - I've bought quite a lot of Delderfield's books on Kindle but the only one I've actually read, in paperback (pre Kindle days!) was To Serve Them All My Days - the first part was serialised on a spoken word DAB radio channel. I loved it.

I love love love Delderfield. One of my teenage diaries is for some reason crammed with quotes from To Serve Them All my Days and I read The Avenue, which I must have missed on TV as a teen, a couple of years ago. I do remember watching TSTAMD though. Wonderful TV drama series of the kind we don't get these days.

I picked up a few serial killer nutjob 99ps but that's all.

I am onto The Girl Who Played With Fire having finished Dragon Tattoo on holiday. I'm going to read them all and then review, a decade too late I know. But I'm getting a bizarre cross between Ken Breastman Follett with the gratuitous sex, Mo Hayder with the gratuitous violence, and JK with the "could we not edit this by about 15% and cut out the yawnfest to do with financial shenanigans?"