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svgurlI'm trying to be better about both reading and posting about what I've read recently.
What I've Read:
Strong Poison by Dorothy L Sayers (historical mystery)- Harriet Vane is introduced as a woman on trial for her boyfriend's murder and Wimsey is determined to prove she's innocent (and marry her). I was excited to read her intro and I was prewarned for how awkward their interactions could be, so it wasn't as bad. I thought it was interesting to see Wimsey take more of a background role with other characters having to do the investigating. A solid mystery.
The House on Vesper Sands by Paraic O'Donnell (historical mystery)- a woman commits suicide with a mysterious message stitched on her arm and it seems to be connected to the string of missing women. Three people, a detective, a man whose uncle and woman that he cared for is missing, and a reporter, are on the case. I thought the story was intriguing but I wasn't expecting the supernatural elements and I was surprised at how things didn't really amp up until the last fifty pages. I was also expecting the main villain to be more present and he didn't leave much of an impact.
The Colours of Death by Patricia Marques (sci fi/mystery) - In a world where a minority of people are gifted (either telepathic or telekinetic) and people in Portugal are overall prejudiced against them, a gifted detective has to investigate a murder seemingly done by another gifted individual. I was really taken in and couldn't stop reading it. I could've done without some of the interpersonal drama but overall, I really liked it and am looking forward to reading the next two books in the series, though one has yet to be released.
The Five Red Herrings by Dorothy L Sayers (historical mystery) - an artist is murdered and Wimsey has to figure out who in the village committed the crime. There were a lot of layers and I had fun trying to figure it out, but didn't quite get there.
The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett (mystery) - a tale of a cult where two teenagers were taken in and escaped with a baby. The remaining members seemingly killed themselves and no one knows what happened to the baby or the teens. Now the baby is turning 18 and two different reporters want to write a book. It's the first completely epistolary book I've read and it made faster to read. Both characters were annoying at times, appropriately so, but one way more irritating. I definitely didn't see the ending coming, though it crossed my mind at times, and it ended up just leaving me weirdly uncomfortable.
The Last Letter From Your Lover by Jojo Moyes (contemporary) - Set in two time periods. In 1960, Jennifer Stirling wakes up from an accident with no memory and even though she's married, she finds a letter from a man she's clearly having an affair with. That letter is also found in 2003 by a journalist and wonders what happened to the couple. I was taken in by the story but I did find the Ellie (the journalist in the present) pretty insufferable and while I knew going in she was either having an affair or the other person in one, it was very hard to sympathize with her. I think her story could've used some development.
What I'm Reading:
The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter (contemporary) - a woman wakes up with amnesia with people after her and finds out that she's the twin sister of a spy that is on the run. The spy's former partner ends up teaming up with her to save them both. I checked this out a while ago and got overwhelmed with the amount of books I had so I ended up returning it, but I got it again and so far, it's fun. Definitely an easy read and has kept me hooked.
Snuffed Out by Valona Jones - Twin sisters co-own a candle shop and when one of their customers is murdered, they end up investigating to clear the name of their clerk, who is the number one suspect. I struggle a little with first person POV but I'm curious to see what happened. It's definitely one of those books where I don't think I'm going to be all that sympathetic to the victim, from the intro I got.
What I'm Going to Read:
Head-Long by Michael Frayn (contemporary)- a local landowner/philosopher and art historian wife are asked to assess three sooty paintings.
The Strangler Vine by M.J. Carter (historical mystery)- set in mid 1800s British ruled India, a young soldier (William Avery) and a secret political agent (Jeremiah Blake) end up teaming up to track down a missing writer.
The Unraveling of Cassidy Holmes by Elissa R. Sloan (contemporary) - a former pop singer who was part of a famous girl band commits suicide. It goes into the rise and fall of her as well as the group itself.
The Idea of You by Robinne Lee - a woman meets and connects with a member of a famous boy band who is much younger than her. I saw the trailers of the upcoming movie with Anne Hathaway and got curious about the book. I think I put a hold on it right on time (thought there was already a long waiting list for the ebook).
What about you all? Any recs?
What I've Read:
Strong Poison by Dorothy L Sayers (historical mystery)- Harriet Vane is introduced as a woman on trial for her boyfriend's murder and Wimsey is determined to prove she's innocent (and marry her). I was excited to read her intro and I was prewarned for how awkward their interactions could be, so it wasn't as bad. I thought it was interesting to see Wimsey take more of a background role with other characters having to do the investigating. A solid mystery.
The House on Vesper Sands by Paraic O'Donnell (historical mystery)- a woman commits suicide with a mysterious message stitched on her arm and it seems to be connected to the string of missing women. Three people, a detective, a man whose uncle and woman that he cared for is missing, and a reporter, are on the case. I thought the story was intriguing but I wasn't expecting the supernatural elements and I was surprised at how things didn't really amp up until the last fifty pages. I was also expecting the main villain to be more present and he didn't leave much of an impact.
The Colours of Death by Patricia Marques (sci fi/mystery) - In a world where a minority of people are gifted (either telepathic or telekinetic) and people in Portugal are overall prejudiced against them, a gifted detective has to investigate a murder seemingly done by another gifted individual. I was really taken in and couldn't stop reading it. I could've done without some of the interpersonal drama but overall, I really liked it and am looking forward to reading the next two books in the series, though one has yet to be released.
The Five Red Herrings by Dorothy L Sayers (historical mystery) - an artist is murdered and Wimsey has to figure out who in the village committed the crime. There were a lot of layers and I had fun trying to figure it out, but didn't quite get there.
The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett (mystery) - a tale of a cult where two teenagers were taken in and escaped with a baby. The remaining members seemingly killed themselves and no one knows what happened to the baby or the teens. Now the baby is turning 18 and two different reporters want to write a book. It's the first completely epistolary book I've read and it made faster to read. Both characters were annoying at times, appropriately so, but one way more irritating. I definitely didn't see the ending coming, though it crossed my mind at times, and it ended up just leaving me weirdly uncomfortable.
The Last Letter From Your Lover by Jojo Moyes (contemporary) - Set in two time periods. In 1960, Jennifer Stirling wakes up from an accident with no memory and even though she's married, she finds a letter from a man she's clearly having an affair with. That letter is also found in 2003 by a journalist and wonders what happened to the couple. I was taken in by the story but I did find the Ellie (the journalist in the present) pretty insufferable and while I knew going in she was either having an affair or the other person in one, it was very hard to sympathize with her. I think her story could've used some development.
What I'm Reading:
The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter (contemporary) - a woman wakes up with amnesia with people after her and finds out that she's the twin sister of a spy that is on the run. The spy's former partner ends up teaming up with her to save them both. I checked this out a while ago and got overwhelmed with the amount of books I had so I ended up returning it, but I got it again and so far, it's fun. Definitely an easy read and has kept me hooked.
Snuffed Out by Valona Jones - Twin sisters co-own a candle shop and when one of their customers is murdered, they end up investigating to clear the name of their clerk, who is the number one suspect. I struggle a little with first person POV but I'm curious to see what happened. It's definitely one of those books where I don't think I'm going to be all that sympathetic to the victim, from the intro I got.
What I'm Going to Read:
Head-Long by Michael Frayn (contemporary)- a local landowner/philosopher and art historian wife are asked to assess three sooty paintings.
The Strangler Vine by M.J. Carter (historical mystery)- set in mid 1800s British ruled India, a young soldier (William Avery) and a secret political agent (Jeremiah Blake) end up teaming up to track down a missing writer.
The Unraveling of Cassidy Holmes by Elissa R. Sloan (contemporary) - a former pop singer who was part of a famous girl band commits suicide. It goes into the rise and fall of her as well as the group itself.
The Idea of You by Robinne Lee - a woman meets and connects with a member of a famous boy band who is much younger than her. I saw the trailers of the upcoming movie with Anne Hathaway and got curious about the book. I think I put a hold on it right on time (thought there was already a long waiting list for the ebook).
What about you all? Any recs?
no subject
Date: 2024-03-18 11:25 pm (UTC)Lots of mysteries! I've been reading scifi lately while waiting for a couple of holds on fantasy books. Just started the Terraformers after it was warmly recommended to me, so far so good!
no subject
Date: 2024-03-18 11:48 pm (UTC)There are! As much as I tell myself I'd like to branch out, I always end up coming back to mysteries and there are so many on my TBR list lol Oh cool! It is nice when a recommended book does in fact live up. I hope you enjoy the rest of it too. :D
no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 08:13 am (UTC)I think it's fine to mostly stick to beloved genres haha. I'm looking forward to adding a few mysteries to my SFF-heavy TBR based on your posts :D
no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 06:45 pm (UTC)My 'for later' list on my library account just keeps growing lol But I hope you find something you like when you get the time! :D
no subject
Date: 2024-03-19 12:13 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-03-19 04:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-03-19 04:36 pm (UTC)I'm currently still working my way through my consecutive rereads of two of my favourite historical mystery series — Benjamin January (set in 1830s New Orleans; the title character is a free Black man, and a lot of the mysteries hinge on real historical figures/events, the racism of the society in which he lives, or both), and Roma sub Rosa (the end of the Roman Republic and the start of the Roman Empire, most of the mysteries here deal with real political events in ancient Rome).
There are a lot of books in both series, so I've still got a lot of rereading to go!
no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 06:48 pm (UTC)Both of those sound really interesting! It's nice that you have so much available to reread. :D
no subject
Date: 2024-03-19 05:35 pm (UTC)The Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. Steph's a bounty hunter who's more lucky than competent, has a quirky cast of characters, and the mysteries are often humorous. Set in New Jersey, the books are clever and fun. 📘📗📙
no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 06:49 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-03-19 07:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 06:52 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 12:49 am (UTC)I'm just starting Northranger by Rey Terciero and Bre Indigo, a modern gothic/horror romance graphic novel inspired by Northanger Abbey with queer teens on a rural Texas ranch!
no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 07:01 pm (UTC)Interesting! Jane Austen inspired novels can be fun. I hope you're enjoying it!