50 Books Challenge 2023 Part Nine

[Southeastdweller]

Welcome to the ninth thread of the 50 Books Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2023, 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 here, the fourth one here, the fifth one here, the sixth one here, the seventh one here and the eighth one here.

What are you reading?

So my trip to Alnwick bookstore is off due to the weather, now going on the first May holiday Monday instead. Gives me time to forage for more paperbacks to use for my barter I guess

That’s wise @InTheCludgie. The weather’s bloody awful up here and the wind hasn’t even picked up yet.

Over My Dead Body by Maz Evans

Dr Miriam Price is dead. She knows she was murdered but she doesn’t know who did it, but unless she can get the coroner to change her cause of death to murder she’s going to be stuck in limbo for the next 50 years. She has to rely for help on the only person who can see her - her neighbour Winnie, who hated her. This is all very silly, and the ending is a bit too saccharine, but it’s good fun and I really liked the characters of Miriam and Winnie. Recommended if you just want something light and funny.

Just bought Mist Over Pendle by Robert Neil from a charity shop. Someone on here recommended it (I think/hope). It would be very me to ger the name slightly wrong or buy the book that someone hated. Keeping fingers crossed!

No, it's definitely been recommended on here Mothership as I have it on TBR

The Running Grave - Robert Galbraith. Seventh in the crime series in which Strike and Robin investigate a religious community and its practices. I felt that the story was a little less convoluted than the one in The Ink Black Heart the story here was still unnecessarily complicated and just didn't justify the 945 pages. Even she isn't talented enough to sustain the pace of a book of this length. The middle section nearly got me DNFing as it went on forever (Robin in a certain environment). And as with the previous two books, the reveal was silly, and there were way, way too many characters. But I'm still invested in the two lead characters, and I loved the final sentence. Will I read the next book? Probably.

Thanks @CluelessMama I will definitely give that one a go at some point.

I think that was me! In the discussion about The Familiars and books about the Pendle Witches. I hope you like it, but I won’t be offended if you don’t

I haven’t read much of anything this week as I’ve been away for work and not much downtime. Skipped to the end of the Haunted Arctic book, what a load of twaddle that was. I’ve started The Green Man Of Eshwood Hall and it’s not what I expected. Very childishly written, rather irritating, yet there are sections that make me want to keep reading. As it’s a short book I’ll probably persevere.

93. Woman, Eating - Claire Kohda. A young woman artist who is half demon (vampire) and half human moves away from her mother to start life on her own. I think this has been much loved on here, but it didn't really do it for me. Interesting concept and descriptions of food and art, but the plot was too thin and introspective for my tastes.

Finished Bournville by Jonathan Coe. I am not sure enjoyed is the correct word but the book was interesting. You can spot a good writer when the ending echoes and earlier passage and you know that that is what is happening.

Like a lot of books, Coe's author's note at the end was more moving than the book.

Slight spoiler ahead :

TW: don't read this if you lost a relative to Covid, or at least be warned.

I have Bournville on my Kindle so might read that after I finish the four different books I currently have on the go. The blurb talks about the faint smell of chocolate in the air which reminded me of living near the Mcvities factory in Stockport. You always knew when they were making Chocolate Hobnobs!

I've stuck with Fingersmith and now know what the big twist is that everyone talks about. I didn't see that coming and still don't quite understand it - hopefully all will be revealed as I read on or else someone else may need to PM an explanation!

I too have Bournville but it will be a while before I get to it.

122 Broken Homes- Ben Aaronovitch
Another entertaining audio listen. These are great for keeping me speeding through the housework. This one had a great twist.

123 The Brothers Karamazov- Fyodor Dostoevsky
This was my first attempt to read one of the ‘big’ Russians and I’ve been reading it with a group over September and October. The three Karamazov brothers- Dmitri (the sensualist) Ivan (the intellectual) and Alyosha (the spiritual one) all have very difficult relationships with each other and their father Fyodor. Competition over a woman Grushenka, brings tensions to a peak. This is about religion vs atheism, a murder mystery, a court case, and how to be good. I enjoyed it but it was difficult. I don’t think reading over a couple of months works for me. I’m better to dive in.

I also DNFed Hex by Jenni Fagan, based on the burning of Geillis Duncan as a witch in the 1500s. The writing in this was far too poetic and whimsical for my tastes. The theme of the evil men do to women is one that should speak to me but it was too heavy-handed and said nothing new. I DNFed at about 30%.

Just starting Woman, Eating now so was interested to read the review above. I’m going to do a few short horrors to take me to Halloween. Also listening to Prophet Song which truly is horrifying. I suspect it may be my book of the year from the first three chapters.

Feel like I have been AWOL but have been reading everyone's posts.
Have finished Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell and I loved it.
I felt just like I did when I slipped through the wardrobe into Narnia 40 years ago. Loved the gothic historical style of telling, the humour, the footnotes, the whimsy. Pure joy.
On another note it was my birthday this week and after months of a hardly buying any books I have a fistful of book tokens to spend.
And it's half term!
Happy Splother!

139. In Memoriam by Alice Winn

The fictional Preshute, a minor public school used as.a stand in for Eton or Harrow begins to lose its graduates not to Oxbridge or Sandhurst but to horrific deaths at The Front, and the book follows as year after year more upper class boys are sent to certain fates. Within this group are Ellwood and Gaunt, two young men hiding their true feelings.

Initially I found this misery after misery and for miseries sake and I really struggled. Then just under 50% the tide turned and I found it more and more compelling and was invested enough to have tears at the end. It will be a bold but it is still quite flawed.

@BaruFisher I'm impressed you got through The Brothers Karamazov. I must admit it defeated me, and I don't mind a big heavy book; War and Peace was fine for example.

I couldn't seem to differentiate between the characters (and had the same trouble with A Place of Greater Safety) although I wrote out a chart and tried to keep track. I'm beginning to think it's me ..

@TattiePants although I enjoyed Fingersmith I got a bit tied in knots towards the end.

56. Making Thorpe Park - Chris Atkinson

The second 'local' book, but this one was much cheerier, in fact a great big hug of nostalgia; growing up Thorpe Park was a place we visited most holidays and reading the book brings back happy memories.

The book takes a chronological view from the Park's conception year by year through to 2022, detailing the business itself, the events, publicity and new attractions for each year, from classic rides such as the Magic Mill, Phantom Fantasia and Thunder River to the modern coasters of The Swarm and Derren Brown's Ghost Train.

An interesting aspect which I remember well was the early 'edutainment' vision of the Park, with Model World, Our Heritage, Treasure Island and Thorpe Farm, eventual casualties of the Park's shift from a family friendly day out to an experience primarily aimed at thrill seekers. Also to find out what happened to some of the rides in their afterlife, with a particularly bizarre end to the Thorpe Park Rangers statues. The only niggle was the black and white photos, which were of varying quality, with some taken from YouTube video stills, but overall this was a fun read and recommended to theme park fans.

Happy Birthday splothers

32 The Appeal by Janice Hallett
I did a self-indulgent order from Fox Lane Books including this, having seen it several times on here. Quite a tense read but I gulped it down. I hope I'm not the only one who doesn't try that hard to guess a whodunnit, I just let it wash over me as a story.

Have you read Action Park? @RomanMum

Happy birthday @splothersdog , nothing better than birthday books!!

Lean, Fall, Stand by John McGregor

This is an unusual book - I didn't really start enjoying it until the final 3rd, and the main character I suppose, Robert, is impossible to get to know really. I can't stop thinking about it though!

I'm halfway through Educated by Tara Westholver and finding it heavy weather.....

Happy birthday and happy book buying @splothersdog.

@EineReiseDurchDieZeit it's on my wish list after the reviews here from earlier this year/last year. It's not in our county library system so I'll have to seek it out.

Dancing on Eggshells by John Whaite

I was disappointed that this didn’t have much backstage gossip from Bake Off and Strictly, as that’s the main reason I read it. It’s also quite short - quite a bit if the book is taken up with recipes. I also found it oddly disjointed - he’d suddenly mention something out of nowhere that happened years ago that he’d never mentioned before and never mentioned again.

Happy birthday @splothersdog ! Glad you liked Jonathan Strange; enjoy spending your book tokens!

Happy birthday @splothersdog