Nicola here, introducing the Wenchly reading recommendations in the month of February. As ever we have a big mix of books for you and look forward to hearing what you've been reading too! the picture on the left is the rather gorgeous old bookshop in Marlborough, a town just down the road from me, where I love to browse. Sometimes you might even meet the resident bookshop ghost, which seems appropriate for Pat's first recommendation today!
Pat writes:
SEANCES ARE FOR SUCKERS by Tamara Berry
Ellie Wilde is a cynic, for good reason. As the youngest of triplets, she’s paying to keep her comatose sister in the best nursing home available by using her limited skill set—tricking people. To be fair, she also gives them comfort—by ridding their homes of ghosts she doesn’t believe in. People might call her a psychic medium, but in reality, she’s a great problem-solver and people reader. She has to be, or her sister will be out on the street. Her brother is a gym teacher and can’t possibly afford the cost of nursing care, so it’s up to Ellie. When she’s offered a small fortune and the opportunity to fly to England and live in a mansion while she rids the house of its resident ghost, she happily takes the job.
Only this job turns out to be more than rooting out rats in the attic. As bodies, quite literally, stack up, she has a real murder mystery on her hands and no convenient ghost to help her out. And then there’s sexy Nicholas, who doesn’t really believe in ghosts either but hires her anyway. Why?
This is first in a series, and I’m already eagerly awaiting the next one. Ellie is almost as clever as Sherlock Holmes, but not quite experienced enough to stay out of trouble.
Andrea says: Though I’m not usually drawn to paranormal stories involving vampires and witches, I really enjoyed Deborah Harkness’s All Souls Trilogy for its rich history and terrific writing. (Harkness is a university history professor who teaches courses on the history of science) So I was very happy to snatch up her latest release, Time’s Convert, which tells the story of one of the secondary characters from the original trilogy. The story starts in today’s world, where Matthew’s ”son” Marcus and his girlfriend Phoebe have decided that Phoebe is going to become a vampire. It’s a fascinating description of changing from one being to another, and as the process is happening you switch back and forth to colonial America to learn Matthew’s story of becoming a vampire. We see the American Revolution through the eyes of a teenage boy who runs away from home after killing his abusive father to protect his mother and little sister, and finds himself drawn to learning medicine. The history is really wonderfully drawn, and Harkness does a fabulous job with the modern times as she slyly describes a vampire clan trying to figure out how to blend all the new pieces of their family together (Matthew’s wife is a witch, and their young twins are exhibiting odd skills that have their parents fretting that the kids are not normal!) and she has them deal with all the same issues we warmbloods do!
I also was lucky enough to get an ARC of Anne Perry’s upcoming Triple Jeopardy, the second book in her Daniel Pitt series, which features, Thomas and Charlotte Pitt’s son, now all grown up to be a barrister in Edwardian England. Perry always writes great, twisty mystery plots, and this series is particularly interesting as Daniel is attracted to an older “spinster"—the brilliant daughter of the head of his law office, who has a degree in medicine and is a forensic expert, but can’t get a job because she’s a woman. She, of course, teams up with him informally to help prove his clients innocent, and it's fun to watch the growing attraction.
Nicola: I've been reading a real mixture of books this month. Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall looks at how the decisions that our political leaders make are dictated by the geography of their countries. It gives the historical context to explain how the different parts of the world are in the situation they are in - how mountains, rivers and seas can create borders and can fundamentally affect the policies that drive politicians. It's rather like viewing the passing world from the air than the ground - a completely different perspective on why the countries of the world have developed as they have.
On the fiction side, I'm in the middle of The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton. it's been a runaway bestseller in the UK. It's described as a metaphysical murder mystery, Agatha Christie with supernatural elements and it's one of the most weird and twisty books I've read in a long time. If this doesn't sound like a totally ringing endorsement that's because I didn't quite know what to make of it to start with. It felt a bit too mannered in style and so clever it was in danger of tripping itself up. However I stuck with it and now that I'm in the middle of it I'm gripped. I only hope he pulls of an ending that answers all the questions he's raised!
I also read Mr One-Night Stand by Rachael Stewart from Mills & Boon Dare. I really enjoyed this; the sexy scenes were perfectly balanced by the emotional character development. Marcus was one hot hero and Jennifer was a great heroine. Together they were explosive and their dialogue was as sparky as their attraction. Their relationship felt very real and I was rooting for them to sort themselves out and get together. What I particularly loved was that the relationship development felt totally realistic and convincing. I I read the book in one sitting when I was supposed to be working but I just didn't want to put it down!
Susan writes:
Currently I'm deep in a stretch of writing, editing, and research (history of whisky, anyone?), while the fiction stack gently teeters until I find time to get back to the books I've set aside for next reads. I've started many good books and finished few, and hope to change that soon. I did set everything aside for one book--the new Flavia de Luce mystery. This one couldn't wait--it's one of my favorite series. Alan Bradley's Golden Tresses of the Dead is the tenth outing for young Miss Flavia, now twelve, and as canny, quirky, brilliant, and touching as ever. Even more so, now that she's teamed up with the De Luce family retainer, the enigmatic and reliable Mr. Dogger, to open their own detective agency.
Dogger's vast body of knowledge, particularly scientific and medical (what was he in his past? he never quite lets on) provides Flavia not only a solid co-detective, but a wise mentor in for her growth as chemist, Sherlockian sleuth, and as a person. When Flavia's older sister gets married, someone's withered severed finger pops up in the wedding cake, belonging to none of the guests ...tracing what they can discover about the odd finger, Flavia and Dogger uncover a web of snake oil medicine that leads to a surprising death, and the possible involvement of some rather upstanding locals. Bradley's brilliant mystery series is among the smartest, most enjoyable I have ever read -- never a dull moment, always full of surprises, smiles, erudite facts, and poignant wisdom too. After ten books, I hope the author intends to keep going with the very delightful Flavia!
Anne: I've just finished reading Elly Griffiths' STONE CIRCLE, a crime novel starring the forensic anthropologist Dr Ruth Galloway and police detective, DCI Nelson. The discovery of the bodies of two young girls in a stone circle, one ancient and one relatively recent, stirs up an old unsolved murder case.
I enjoy these books so much. The murder mysteries are intriguing, the characterizations excellent and I do enjoy the ongoing relationship between Ruth Galloway and the dour DCI Nelson. If you haven't read them before, I recommend starting with the first in the series, THE CROSSING PLACES, as the characters and their relationships develop and change over time, and for me this is a big part of the enjoyment.
I'm just back from the Australian Romance Readers Awards, and the book that won the "Favourite 2018 romance with laugh-out-loud moment" and "Favourite Contemporary Romance" is Kylie Scott's CHASER. I'm a fan of Kylie Scott's books and had read this one back in April 2018 and so, on the plane home, pulled out my kindle for a refresher, and ending up reading and enjoying it all over again.
It's a contemporary romance about a young man who at the start, plays the field and is pretty irresponsible. We watch as, all unknowing and in the most charming fashion, he grows into a responsible adult as he cares for his young pregnant neighbor as she gives birth and raises her baby. He falls in love with the baby, as well as the girl, and watching him fall is both funny and delightful. It's part of a series, but can be read alone.
Jo writes: There’s a whole raft of Fantasy authors — George MacDonald, Lord Dunsany, Thomas Burnett Swann, Alan Garner, Poul Anderson, JRR Tolkien, TH White, Peter S Beagle, William Hope Hodgson, Manly Wade Wellman — who are foundational in the genre and beautifully lyrical.
I read these guys when I was growing up and the language stays with me.
Seems I missed one of the classics in the field: The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia McKillip. A friend recommended it recently and I downloaded an e-copy. It's a good read and useful from a writing standpoint. I find Fantasy sometimes gives a different slant on "voice". There’s enough storytelling distance to make the unselfconsciously rich and beautiful language sound natural.
Forgotten Beasts is a love story set among powerful magics and conflicting loyalties. Warms the heart on a cold grey day.
So there you have our Word Wench reading for the month, full of variety and surprise as ever! What are you reading at the moment? Share your recommendations with us and add to the TBR pile!