50 Books Challenge 2024 Part Five

[Southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2024, 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.

If possible, please can you embolden your titles and maybe authors as well of books you've read or going to read? It makes it much easier to keep track.

Some of us bring over to the new thread lists of the books we've read so far, but again - this is your choice.

The first thread is here, the second one here , the third one here and the fourth one here

What are you reading?

I’m another who’s been in a complete reading slump and fallen off the thread, I think I’ve only managed one, not particularly long, book this month. It was a big birthday earlier this week and I got a pile of new (used but new to me) books and a Kindle so I need to stop faffing around on the internet and focus on reading.

@Southeastdweller one of my new books is Apple of my Eye about Helene Hanff in New York. I’m definitely overdue a reread of 84 CCR.

I’m currently reading The Book of Negroes which I’m actually looking forward to picking up so maybe this will get me out of the slump.

Thinking of you and your DD @splothersdog. We’ve had MH struggles in our house too. However, DS (SEN & bad anxiety) has gone on a ‘dads & lads’ post A Level celebration this weekend which involved getting on a plane for the first time in 15 years which is a huge accomplishment. Really hoping this will be the start of his world opening up a bit.

💐 to all those struggling with MH. Books can be a solace in stressful times (depending on the book).

Hi Tattie, I too had a birthday this week and consoled myself with a charity bookshop mooch. Came away with The Bookbinder of Jericho and the first in the St Mary's Chronicles. I'm slightly worried about starting another series though: I've started and enjoyed the Rivers of London, Slow Horses and Flavia Albia series but lose track of plot/characters easily between books. It's academic at the moment though as everything is still in storage...

anyway -

38. To the Last Round - Peter Hart

It's not often you open a book to see a photo of a family member inside. My grandfather was in the South Notts Hussars during the Second World War and this book tells the story of the regiment from their mobilisation in 1939 to their near annihilation at the suicidal Battle of Knightsbridge in the Western Desert in 1942. Interviews with the survivors add a powerful viewpoint to the history, which is obviously very harrowing at times, and really brings to life the story of the regiment in North Africa. A bold, but a tough read in places.

39. Things I Learned on the 6.28 - Stig Abell

The author divided his 2019 reading year (much of it during the daily commute), tackling a couple of books on a different theme each month, ranging from crime fiction in January to a lucky dip in December via subjects such as American classics, poetry and comic fiction. His diary entries are readable and when he goes off on literary tangents they are generally short but interesting asides.

My two worries on reading books about books were unfounded: either they might be so highbrow as to be irrelevant, or I'd end up adding several books to my already bulging wish list. Luckily neither was true in this case and I've learned about books and authors outside my comfort zone.

65. Sometimes People Die by Simon Stephenson (Spotify)

An unnamed junior doctor jeopardises his career with drug addiction. He takes a job at the failing St Luke's hoping to get a fresh start. But people are dying at St Luke's, more than they should be, is something more sinister afoot?

This is a low key thriller mostly concerned with medic life as well as pen portraits of various known healthcare professionals who have killed.

I SOLVED IT ON CHAPTER 8

It was still very well done as an audio and a good listen. The final third is a bit overcooked and silly, involving a highly improbable turn.

As a fairly light read, even with the subject matter, would recommend.

@inaptonym I really liked Death Under A Little Sky! I've not read anything else by that author though.

to everyone who's struggling. My MH is totally up and down so I emphasise.

16 Pure - Andrew Miller
On the eve of the French Revolution, a young engineer is tasked with the job of demolishong a church and disinterring the remains of thousands of people from its Graveyard in Central Paris. Jean-Baptiste reluctantly embarks on his grisly mission, making friends and enemies along the way.

I enjoyed this, an unusual tale based on real-life events. I was nonplussed by the elephant at Versailles thread though, not at all sure what this was supposed to signify.

47 A Fistful Of Knuckles - Tom Graham

Am persisting with this Life on Mars tie-in series rather against my better judgement, mainly because I can’t settle down to anything else at the moment and if one considers them as canon then they do add a little to the show’s lore. This is a slight improvement on book 1 in terms of plot, though the writing is still poor and some unforgivable typos (Gene Jeanie ffs).

@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie 👋

so just finished Pachinko by Min Jin lee. A generational saga following migrant Koreans living in Japan. I found this book totally immersive and I was reflecting on the characters and their trials long after I stopped reading. It did loose pace for me in the last third but picked up again towards the end. As these type of stories go it was pretty typical, poor man made rich, a sprinkling of tragic deaths BUT for me what I enjoyed about it was the Japanese culture and the detail about the Japanese/Korean war which I am totally ignorant about.

just picked up to finish *Something to Hide by Elizabeth George”.

💐@splothersdog sending good wishes to you and your daughter. Nobody should worry about falling behind. My puny list will make anyone feel accomplished in comparison. Im only up to number 18.

18 Instructions for a Heatwave Maggie O’Farrell
I had high hopes for this. I read After You’d Gone not long after it came out in paperback. I remember loving it - no idea if my cynical older self would enjoy it as much. Instructions for a heatwave is a domestic drama with a similar structure. It opens with Robert inexplicably walking out on his wife during the summer heatwave of 1976. His three adult children return home to try to discover what has happened and where he has gone. Robert and his wife emigrated from Ireland in the 40s and their children have little knowledge of their past. I didn’t love this, but didn’t hate it either. To be honest it dragged a bit in the middle sections and the heatwave barely features in the story. I enjoyed the strands relating to the older children - Monica’s adult life is impacted by her supportive role as a child (it nicely captures how being the ‘favourite’ isn’t always a blessing) and Micheal Francis has a troubled marriage (Claire his wife was a character I really enjoyed). However, I struggled with the youngest sibling Aoife - she never came to life for me. My favourite scene was an unplanned visit to the beach. I loved swimming in the sea as a child and still do as an adult and the joy and freedom of the beach was exquisitely captured.

Struggling to make progress with anything else. I’ve listened to the start of Pine by Francine Toon on audiobook about three times now, but keep falling asleep and having to restart.

I couldn't get on with Francine Toon's Pine. I thought it had a messy plot and lots of plot holes and unanswered questions. Think the author was aiming for Gothic but ended up with rambling. It's also sooo slow. Lovely cover though.

Oh, gosh yes- I hated that book!

I have rattled through Reykjavik a fairly standard thriller by Ragnar Jonasson and Katrin Jakobsdottir, made more interesting by the fact that the latter is the current PM of Iceland!

The case centres around a girl who vanished without trace on a little island in the bay 30 years before the main events in 1986 when Reykjavik is celebrating its 200 year anniversary. The plot and outcomes are predictable. It's an interesting slice of Icelandic life, though.

Welcome back @Sonnet

Hugs @splothersdog that sounds tough

@inaptonym – Squeaky Clean is on my TBR. I think he won a CWA Debut Dagger? I’m sure he won something?

58 Edinburgh Twilight – Carole Lawrence
59 Edinburgh Dusk - Carole Lawrence
60 Edinburgh Midnight – Carole Lawrence
Trilogy set in 1880s Edinburgh with a gloomy Detective Inspector Hamilton. I found it interesting that the author is from the US and came over to spend time in Edinburgh for research. Very atmospheric and I know that my Irish ancestors lived in a part of Edinburgh that she refers to. I’m a bit disappointed that there aren’t anymore in the series, at the moment, and I cant find further info about whether she plans to write anymore. I do hope so as there are loose ends to tie up.

61 Bleeding Heart Yard – Elly Griffiths
Harbinder Kaur book 3. I didn’t enjoy this one as much as the previous two. Not as much Harbinder for me. Looking forward to the next one which brings back characters from book 2.

62 The House at Sea’s End – Elly Griffiths
Dr Ruth Galloway book 3. Ruth is back to work after mat leave and is struggling to juggle everything. Six bodies are found and Ruth finds out who the bodies are and how they came to be there. Very much enjoying Ruth’s story.

Hurrah for the end of school year! Not a teacher, but my work aligns with the school year, so things will settle down for July.

After 3 weeks doing a trial in Manchester I am super-behind on reviews, life and everything! I've only managed 2 books in that time:

34 Slough House by Mick Herron
35 Bad Actors by Mick Herron

bringing me up to date with the Slough House series. Slough House (book 7) was a bit meh for me - return of an old character which I'd been expecting for a while, a bit of Russian agitation and a "gilets jaunes" storyline which didn't really cut it for me. But Bad Actors (book 8) was a definite return to form with jeopardy for Diana Taverner, plenty of Shirley Dander and (always my favourite) some good Catherine Standish vignettes.

Hoping work will calm down enough to allow me to catch up on reading soon! And then maybe I'll also get to catch up on the thread.

28. You Are Here by David Nicholl

He's good tonight, isn't he? Galloped through this in 3 hours and am feeling plump and satisfied like a chicken on her eggs. So it's a positive review. Except... he writes like choux pastry. Looks fantastic, well structured, expertly applied sauce, but by the end it just deflates. The jokes are very good.

Choux buns are nice.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou Richly evocative of Angelou’s 1930s childhood in the American South. She and her brother were mainly brought up by their grandmother in a loving but often violent home, with the ever-present threat of white supremacist violence overshadowing the whole community. Vivid and brilliant but often brutal. This is the first of 7 volumes - was great to read RazorstormUnicorn’s review of the second volume when I was part way through this. I’d like to read more but perhaps not all 7 so will look out for more reviews!

@Terpsichore thank you - I enjoyed our chat too. Once I emerge from this nasty bout of Covid my concentration should improve and I'll be ready to ditch the easy reads and start Jane's Fame, the book you brought to our lucky dip in London, so very much looking forward to that.
I was going to recommend The Ladies' Paradise for the books-set-in-department-stores genre but see you were already there!

@SheilaFentiman thanks for the Scoops recommendation. I must be the last person in the UK to have seen the PA interview .. having watched the Rufus Sewell dramatisation I went back and looked up the real thing. He really is insufferable while clearly ( and unaccountably ) pleased with himself at the same time.

@Tarragon123 I haven't heard of that Edinburgh trilogy; it sounds right up my street. Have you read the Ambrose Parry Victorian crime novels? Written by Christopher Brookmyre and his wife, Dr Marisa Haetzman. I can recommend them.

@splothersdog I hope things get better soon

I read that a while ago. I found it pretty underwhelming too. After You'd Gone is one of my favourite ever books. Have you read I Am, I Am, I Am, which is about all the ways she has nearly died? Very different, much more of a good read than it sounds!

Is this everyone’s own personal list of 50 books they want to read during 2024? If I want to join in, I will only need to list 25, yes?

@PermanentTemporary The David Nichols book was serialised on R4 maybe early June??? so it might still be on Sounds.

No, it's not about what you want to read. It's lists of what you have already read plus reviews.

You can start anytime but it"s books you've read, so you list what you've read this year not what you want to read.

Sorry if that's garbled I'm tired

Books set in department stores made me think of those great 70s bonkbusters, Barbara Taylor Bradford’s - A Woman of Substance and Judith Krantz - Scruples. Oh how I loved them.

I think I have Scruples somewhere still.

I haven’t read it but the film has been on the tip of my tongue and finally come to me - the film of Carol by Patricia Highsmith - featured a department store.

Welcome @MeAgainAndAgain , you can read whatever books you like and as many as you like. Then you post your reviews here. Don't worry if you don't make it to a particular number by the end of the year. The nominal aim is to get to 50, but lots of us read more or fewer or don't keep count at all!

43. Don't Forget Me by Rea Frey In a quiet, exclusive community, Ruby Winslow discovers a body floating in the community lake during her early morning row. Everyone in the community recognises the body as Ruby's missing husband, Tom, but Ruby can't see the resemblance. Is it a conspiracy or is there something deeper going on with Ruby making her unable to recognise her own husband. Ruby is hiding an absolute ton of secrets. Where is her daughter? Why didn't she report Tom missing when he disappeared? What happened to Ruby's parents? To be honest a lot of Ruby's secrets were very easy to guess but I didn't see who the killer was until the reveal. This was short, less than 300 pages, and was a quick, snappy read. One of the better of these type of books I've read

@CornishLizard I do intend to read all of Maya Angelou* *over time, so maybe that will help decide which ones to dip into!

I've had some success with 1st of the month deals! These were all 99p or 1.99

The Fifth Elephant - Terry Pratchett
Wish You Were Here - Jodi Picoult
Go Set A Watchman - Harper Lee
Someone Elses Shoes - Jojo Moyes
Just For The Summer - Abbey Jimenez

I have so many non fiction books about difficult subjects unread on my kindle or on my watch list and I like to learn but sometimes it too much and what I love reading are page turning stories, preferably ones that make me think a little or laugh. So I am trying to look out for more of them. I don't actually read 5 books in a month, so this is a big splurge! Whoops!

Currently reading
Black House - Stephen King. It's boring. The kids are in danger and I just don't care. It's 800 pages or so and I just can't DNF at this point of the re-read so it's a real slog.
Factfulness - Hans Rosling which I am reading a chapter in the morning with breakfast when I can remember. It's statistics but uplifting and my DH has started reading it too.