Right - where we were - ahh yes, Mark Billingham and Good as Dead. Needless to say it didn’t take me long to rattle through this one. I LOVE Billingham’s writing - in spite of the fact that the first book of his I read was “Sleepyhead” which should be the the stuff of nightmares for a claustrophobic- I was hooked. Thorne, Hendricks et al are great characters - not permanently likeable, and I think that is key - they become more real because there are times you find yourself thinking they’re behaving badly and wanting to call them out for it! Overall though the characters are so well written you truly crave a good outcome for them. Good as Dead doesn’t let the side down, and has already slotted into it’s appropriate place on the shelf.
Next up then - and another one I tore through - L J Ross - The Cove. Holy Island from the same author was one of my very occasional kindle fiction reads and I thoroughly enjoyed that, so I was expecting good things, and I wasn’t disappointed. Murder mystery cross standard chick-lit girl meets boy tale, but set down on the Lizard in Cornwall - a part of the country I’m very fond of as you know. Nice characters, a great storyline that takes us from London all the way down to Cornwall, and it rattles along picking up pace towards a pretty unexpected ending. This one will be heading on to my Mum - it’s right up her street I reckon - and I will be keeping an eye for more from the same author.
An Ian Rankin Rebus series novel followed - The Falls. I love that Rankin tends to write an introduction to his books giving an outline of his inspiration for the story - it adds context before you even turn to the first chapter. This book involves Siobhan Clarke as a main rather than supporting character which adds another dimension, and we know I like a strong leading female character in a book. Classic Rankin, and a great read as ever.
JD Kirk’s City of Scars was up next - the second of Kirk’s Jack Logan series I’ve read in the last few months. Once again I enjoyed the humorous way the characters are written, and it being set in and around Inverness added some interest. The storyline itself was basic murder mystery stuff, but well enough written that it made an enjoyable read. Probably not one to keep long term, but I will certainly keep an eye out for more from the series.
At this stage the question of "books to take on holiday" came up - we've adopted a principle of taking just a few with us - usually one for MrEH and two for me - with at least one of those being interchangeable between us. This then keeps us both in reading material for the first few days even if a wet ferry crossing keeps us inside and reading, and we can then make use of the handful of book exchanges we know of on the islands to top up the levels from that. We never take anything with us that we want to bring home either - same with jigsaws, they go across, get completed, then get left behind, a policy which has worked really well for us for a good few years now. A bit like camping trips, holidays are a time when I tend to make my way through a lot of books, so you'll be seeing what I chose this time pretty soon!
An author I enjoy but hadn't read much from for a good while now - Marion Keyes, very much a favourite of the Chick-lit genre. The Other Side of the Story features her usual slightly far fetched but down to earth enough to make them believable characters - and a clever storyline that intertwines their lives via the world of publishing. The usual mix of love, hate, high drama and sufficient happy-ever-after to let you end the book with a satisfied sigh!
The first of the holiday books was Elly Griffiths with A Room Full of Bones - from her Dr Ruth Galloway series, and so of course set in Norfolk once again ticking the box for a book being all the more enjoyable when it is set somewhere you know. This one carries across into September.
Robyn.
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