50 Books Challenge 2025 Part Three

[Southeastdweller]

Welcome to the third thread of the 50 Book Challenge for this year.
The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2025, 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, especially when the threads move quickly at this time of the year.

The first thread of the year is here and the second thread here.

'Old Filth'! I love that book. Have you read the two sequels?
Here is my list
2025
The Stranger Diaries, Elly Griffith
The Trawlerman, William Shaw
The Wild Swimmers, William Shaw
Gabriel's Moon, William Boyd
The Mirror Cracked, Chris Brookmyre
Our Evenings, Alan Hollinghurst
Breaking Point, Edel Coffey
The Day of the Roaring, Nina Bhadreshwar
Plainsong, Kent Haruf
Close to Death, Anthony Horowitz
The Dark Hours, Amy Jordan
The Cut, Chris Brookmyre

Loved Plainsong and Our Evenings but enjoying revisiting Chris Brookmyre's hilarious crime novels, years after reading his earlier books.

I didn't love Six either. It was fun but did feel quite slight and a bit hen night. I think there's one song with all of them - reprised at the end - and then each wife has one song, and there's one more. But at least it meant it was an early night.

I'm not a huge musical fan though so maybe I wasn't the right audience. My kids enjoyed it.

Yes! @Stowickthevast the entire soundtrack is just 42 mins long! I don't know why I had higher expectations but I did!

I love Six! but I think describing it as a musical is a bit misleading - better to think of it as a concert that tells a story.

26 Life without Children by Roddy Doyle
A book of short stories set around the pandemic. I usually really enjoy Doyle but I struggled to relate to this one- probably because my lockdown experience was very different living in outback Queensland at the time. All the protagonists were men and there was some repetition between stories. Almost every story was from a man with children which made the title a strange choice. However, 3 of the last four stories were excellent- especially ‘Worms’ and ‘The Charger’ which made reading this short book worthwhile.

@AllyinBerlin I don't realise that there were sequels! Thanks I will check those out.

10. The Estate by Denzil Meyrick This is the first book by Meyrick I've read. It follows DI Cara Salt who heads up a small division of police Scotland in Glasgow dealing with crimes relating to wills and probate. When billionaire financier Sebastian Pallander dies on live television his family are disappointed to discover they've been close to disinherited. Then a series of strange occurrences lead the family to believe someone may be hunting them down. Enter DI Salt to try and protect them whilst also uncovering the truth.

I think this was probably supposed to be the first in a new series following Salt but sadly Meyrick passed away recently so this will be the only one. To be honest, I wasn't hugely enamored with this one. I suspected the twist incredibly early on and wasn't in anyway surprised by the ending. It does get quite technical in the areas dealing with the financial affairs of the Pallanders and this section was quite difficult to follow but the rest of it was just incredibly obvious

I signed up for a year of NT@Home but didn't make good use of it. My fault, I wasn't organised - there was nothing wrong with the plays. Next time I will sign up for a month, probably in the winter, and make sure to do better. I would really like to see Prima Facie in particular, which I believe is brilliant.

I've hesitated about going to Six. I've read all of Alison Weir's series plus other books dealing with the period and I thought it might be too flippant about the tragedy of so many of their lives iykwim. Not having seen the show though, I could have that totally wrong.. willing to be corrected!

@highlandcoo Prima Facie is excellent. I saw the filmed version at the cinema. Jodie Comer is brilliant and heartbreaking.

32 The Lincoln Lawyer - Michael Connolly

First book for March. This is the first book jn a legal series set in LA and I have recently finished the third season on Netflix, so I thought the books were worth a try. Though the first season on Netflix is actually based on book 2!

Anyway, on its own merits… Mickey Haller is a criminal defence lawyer. His first ex wife, Maggie, is the mother of his only child, Hayley, and his second ex wife, Lorna, is his office manager. Mickey hardly knew his dad, but Haller Sr was also a lawyer, who wrote the book on skating close to the law. Mickey is smart, charismatic and a rule-bender.

The main crime is the assault of a woman who Haller’s client, Roulet, met in a bar. Roulet comes from money and Haller is short of cash, so he’s pleased to have a new ticket client and sometimes spins out the investigation to earn more fees. But as time goes on, he learns that Roulet has connections to another case close to his
heart and he has a dilemma to solve

This is an easy read, I will read the rest in future!

DH gave me NT@home as a 50th birthday present during the pandemic. I agree that just getting a month at a time is probably best. It's great but I used it far less than I thought I would because devoting 3 hours to watching a play at homehome is surprisingly hard (or at least it is when you're WFH and trying to home educate 3DC).

@highlandcoo Prima Facie is incredible - if you can see it in the cinema, I absolutely would. Or maybe you have a better TV set up than me!

I'd recommend the DCI Daley books. Much better.

@highlandcoo I agree with @SheilaFentiman Prima Facie was excellent. I sobbed and sobbed towards the end. I would have rather done that in my own house. I dont know if Jodie Comer got any awards for it, but she should have got everything going. Excellent performance.

Primie Facie just finished a long run on NtT@Home, so peeved I missed it.

I was thinking of designating Friday nights to it. Any of my work social engagements happen M-T and I am
normally around Fridays. DH watches TV all the time but I have a comfy chair and big work screens so I could at least be in the same room, I currently tend to just read in the kitchen until I fall asleep. Kids also 14-17 at home so not really bothering me. But, perhaps it’s sensible to opt for monthly and see how I go.

14 Yellowface - Rebecca Kuang Having absolutely hated Babel, I thought I should give Kuang the benefit of doubt and read this. Well, I was right first time - this author is not for me. Yellowface is supposedly a clever satire about racism in the publishing industry, but it was transparently Kuang’s own experiences turned into a reverse AIBU (to use Mumsnet terminology) - everyone except the young Asian star writer is just so nasty about her, and it’s all because they’re jealous of her fame, talent and amazingness, with added racism from all the white characters. This tiresome preachy tone is exactly why Babel was so awful, and I was fully expecting Yellowface to be more subtle and funnier - unfortunately, despite a few clever, witty passages that do work as satire, the overall impression is of being hit over the head with a sledgehammer. All the characters are irredeemable shits with no personality; the ending isn’t an ending; Kuang’s hatred of white women is boring; and frankly I just found the book incredibly dull and a chore to read.

@AgualusasLover Prima Facie still on there til 5 March and drat and blast everyone for telling me as I've gone and subscribed because I desperately wanted some exposure to Shakespeare after reading the Dench book. This thread will ruin me I tell you!

@highlandcoo I thought the actresses did a good job of conveying moments real anger and sadness despite an overall jokiness.

House of Dreams is on KU so I borrowed it, thanks.

I hope you enjoy it. Last time someone read a book based on my review they didn't, so I'm nervous.

@bibliomania thanks; I will probably give Six a go at some point.

And thanks all for the Prima Facie opinions and especially @EineReiseDurchDieZeit for pointing out it's still available until Wednesday! I've just signed up for a month and I think £9.99 for PF alone will be well worth it. I've heard nothing but good things. And I'll make a real effort to watch some other productions too. I'm looking forward to Michael Sheen in Nye and there's lots more to go at.

"I hope you enjoy it. Last time someone read a book based on my review they didn't, so I'm nervous. "

I'm about DNF an awful book so I'll read it next and it's bound to be better

I'm looking forward to Michael Sheen in Nye and there's lots more to go at.

Nye is fabulous, that and The Lehman Trilogy are the best NTLive plays I've seen. Clearly I like plays based on reallife!

It's interesting that so many enjoy NT at home, I have really resisted that kind of thing because, for me, being in a live audience is part of the experience.

I can see that for people who are unable to get to the theatre it is really worthwhile.

It's a me thing, I'm probably missing out for being so set in my ways!

@lifeturnsonadime I go to live theatre once a month usually, for me this is like the Kindle vs Real Book. For me, they are complimentary - I still read hard copy as well as Kindle. I could never afford or find the time for everything so this will enable me to see more. They do feel different though, I agree.

@lifeturnsonadime I would go live if I could. Very few of the decent productions come to my local city and getting to London to see them would require a weekend away including flights and a hotel so not something I can do all the time.