@NotWavingButReading I read a couple of Jilly Coopers nearer to their publication, but am picking my way through the rest afresh. I absolutely agree that there are aspects, most often around sexual conduct, that have not aged well, but I still like that her books are pretty much focused on the pursuit of pleasure - more on this below!
@Arran2024 I also intensely disliked Sandwich and its lack of any subtlety.
@Terpsichore Glad to see the love for The Noise of Time. I am a huge fan of both Barnes and Shostakovich so this was right up my street. I think it may be due a re-read…
14.Mount! by Jilly Cooper. This instalment of the Rutshire Chronicles focuses on flat racing, and so it’s back to the tried and thrusted Cooper combination of horses, aristocracy and orgies. Our old friend Rupert Campbell-Black returns to take a lead role as a successful breeder, but someone’s out to sabotage him. Who on earth can it be?
As usual there are warnings for outdated attitudes towards sex and race, more so than would be expected for something first published in 2016, and the characters are less engaging than in previous instalments, but I can’t resist the breezy fun.
15.Unravelling Oliver by Liz Nugent. Oliver is a successful children’s author, and also a horribly violent man who has seriously assaulted his wife. His story is told from the perspective of several of the key people in his life, piecing together how he became a very damaged and damaging man.
I’ve enjoyed several of Nugent’s psychological thrillers, but this one was a bit of a damp squib. There were far too many narrative perspectives for such a short book, with the upshot being that I didn’t feel that I knew or cared enough for any of the characters
16.Cuddy by Benjamin Myers. This novel is built around the legacy of St Cuthbert, the seventh century prior of Melrose Abbey, from his death to the present day. Opening with his death on a remote Northumberland island, the story quickly shifts to the Viking era, during which a band of monks are safeguarding Cuddy’s remains awaiting divine guidance as to where his resting place should be. The story jumps forward in steps of hundreds of years to events taking place in and around Durham Cathedral, which was built for Cuddy to be laid to rest.
I think this has been a bit of a Marmite book on these threads, but I loved it. I felt utterly transported to each of the times depicted. The different sections are linked together cleverly by the constant presence of Cuddy’s voice, in dreams, visions and ghostly imaginings, as well as by familiar character types reappearing at every stage. This created a very warm reflection on the commonality of lives throughout history. And now I want to go back to Durham!