I finally used one of the little neighbourhood ‘libraries’ that have cropped up all over the place. I’ve walked passed dozens of them (one on my way home from the bus stop) and each time I think I ought to stop, but don’t, because another part of me assumes that these must be ‘garbage’ books – the sort that someone read and don’t want to keep and can’t be bothered to give away. But there’s one of these little libraries on my neighbour’s front yard, so I hardly had to detour and it felt impolite to not at least flip through, so I dropped off Nick Mason and picked up Emma Healey’s Elizabeth is Missing: a fantastic choice to finish my summer of reading literary thrillers. Continue reading
Category Archives: Mystery
Elizabeth is Missing: The best literary thriller yet
Filed under Bestseller, Fiction, Mystery, New York Times Notable
The Second Life of Nick Mason:
The hunt for the great literary thriller of my summer 2017 continues. This one was gifted to me by K. (thanks, K.) and held great promise: well reviewed by all the right people, and delivered. I had more substantive things to say about it when I was reading it, but I read it at the cottage and now things are a bit of a blur of campfires, wine and games of hearts. (It’s a sign of my changing life that I read this one at the cottage and 419 and that was it. Such is the life of an auntie with four nephews under three. I don’t suppose any of you will hold it against me. Continue reading
Filed under Bestseller, Fiction, Mystery, Uncategorized
Death Comes to Pemberley: The silly and exploitative adaptation of Pride and Prejudice
Trapped in a hotel room for a week while at a work function, I couldn’t bring myself to read anything requiring focus or thought (I’ll admit I was also distracted by the availability of cable news: an opportune time to have access to CNN as the world collectively watches the meltdown of American political life). Instead I picked up a copy of P.D. James’ Death Comes to Pemberley from the local used bookstore. Continue reading
One Good Turn: Why Does My Cat Lick Off All Her Leg Fur, And Other Pressing Mysteries
Without knowing it I stumbled into a mystery series. Typical Sunday library book browsing: I was looking for Kate Atkinson’s God in Ruins for book club (and to follow-up on my enjoyment of Life After Life) and it wasn’t where it should be on the shelf. Instead I found One Good Turn with the handy (thanks, library staff) “mystery” sticker on the spine. And I thought, yeah, okay, I’m in for a mystery. Continue reading
Filed under British literature, Fiction, Mystery
Literary Vice 