It’s been a while since I did one of these posts, and I’m having a hard time even remembering what I read in the last few months. Blame that on my memory, not the books themselves being bad (or unmemorable). With that being said, let’s give this a try:
– Tana French, The Witch Elm. I was so excited about this one, but it was a disappointment. Like Lethal White, it’s another humongous book, but unlike the former, it was boring as hell. It took more than a third of the book to get to the actual murder mystery, and the thing itself wasn’t nearly as compelling as it needed to be to justify the rest. For me, it all came down to the fact that the protagonist was fundamentally uninteresting. Maybe that was the point; an average, privileged white dude thinking his internal monologue was interesting enough to justify hundreds of pages of blather, but if so, the author could have conveyed that in that some other fashion. It was a slog, and the unreliable narrator bit didn’t add anything to the mix. Also, the last few chapters just … boggled the mind. To say that they came out of left field is an understatement. Maybe I missed the whole point of the book; honestly, I have no idea. I didn’t actively hate this book in the same way as that Ruth Ware one I read last year, but it was close and it was probably my affection for other novels of Tana French that stopped me from chucking The Witch Elm.
– Shirley Jackson, The House on Haunted Hill. I ordered a collection of Jackson’s short stories and novellas, and this was the first one I wanted to read (after watching the Netflix series). I liked it a lot – Jackson’s writing is fantastic – but somehow I never managed to get around to the other stories. It’s on my To Read list.
– Grace Coddington, Grace: A Memoir. Got this after finally watching The September Issue on Netflix. On the page, Grace is the same as on the screen: frank, funny, and not afraid to spill insider gossip. This wasn’t a “meaty” book, but I enjoyed it tremendously.
– Josephine Tey, The Singing Sands. I love Golden Age mystery writers, and am trying to branch out from the usual suspects (no pun intended). I had previously read and enjoyed Tey’s Brat Farrar, so I decided to pick this up. It was fine but not, well, particularly memorable to me. I probably should have chosen Daughter of Time instead.
– Maureen Callahan, Champagne Supernova: Kate Moss, Marc Jacobs, Alexander McQueen, and the ’90s Renegades Who Remade Fashion. I found this at Winners of all places, and it was a super fun, juicy read. And a walk down nostalgia lane, especially for late 90s British celebrity gossip (the Primrose Hill set anyone?).
– Dorothy L. Sayers. In The Teeth of Evidence. I found a new edition of Sayers’ entire collection at Value Village and almost bought all dozen or so volumes. Eventually, I limited myself to only 5 or 6, mostly her short stories collections. I like Sayers, but not as much as some of her fellow Hall of Fame mystery writers, and I prefer Lord Peter in smaller doses. Her short stories are top notch, though, so I really enjoyed this collection (and am looking forward to reading the others).
– Martin Edwards (ed.), Resorting to Murder: Holiday Mysteries. On Amazon, I randomly came across this British Library Crime Classics imprint, which is re-publishing lesser known (British) mysteries from the Golden Age, and was immediately intrigued. I started by ordering a few short story collections, including this one. It features a selection of about 14 or so stories, none of them being ones I’d read before – which is no small feat, because I have already read most of the well known stories that typically get featured in this type of collection. As is usually the case, this was a mixed bag – some stories were better than others – but overall quite entertaining. Mystery novels are my favourite form of literary escapism, so I am thrilled to have found a promising new vein of material to tap with these British Library Crime Classics.
Your turn – tell me what you’ve been reading lately. And thank you to all who left suggestions on my last post; while I might not immediately jump onto those recommendations, they are all filed away for future reference. [Though, I will confess that, when under stress, I tend to read mostly “fluff” as evidenced by the list above.]
Daughter of Time is my favorite Tey. Definitely read it one of these day. The British Library Crime Classics are so fun. I have some on my Kindle but I really love the physical books because the covers are gorgeous. Have you read Ngaio Marsh or Margery Allingham? Both are Golden Age mystery authors. I discovered your blog recently and have been enjoying it because, well, because I love your clothes. Finding out you like books too is just a bonus!
Ngaio Marsh is one of my fave mystery writers!! I have her entire collection and it’s one of my most treasured – I re-read it every few years.
I’ve read a few things my Margery Allingham but they’re harder to find. I really need to keep a list with me when I go thrifting because I always seem to forget names until I’m home again, d’oh!
Love your “What I Read” posts! I use GoodReads to track my reading, and borrow regularly from the library. I often forget where I got the book recommendation when I’m notified its ready for pick up.
Books I loved over the last year or so:
My Salinger Year by Joanna Rakoff – I knew nothing of their relationship, nor much about Salinger, before readying the book. It was very interesting to see her viewpoint.
The Girl with All The Gifts by M.R. Carey – This was one I got without remembering what the subject was. This isn’t my usual genre, but it was fantastic. I recently read the second and it was nearly as great.
My fluff go to’s are anything by Jojo Moyes or Coleen Hoover. They haven’t disappointed me yet.
The Last Kids on Earth series by Max Brallier is great. My son and I have read all four. Good for middle graders to early teens.
That reminds me! I got The Girl With All The Gifts last year and forgot to read it!! So thank you, I will go and dig that up.
I have a vacation coming up and I’m trying to finalize my reading list (very important in my world, lol!) so this is timely.
I always enjoy these posts, too. Recently finished My Ex-Life by Stephen McCauley, which came highly recommended. I liked it, didn’t love it. Currently reading Educated by Tara Westover, which is living up to the hype.
Educated has been recommended to me by so many people, so you know I’m going to pick it up in 6 months and be, like, “why did I wait so long?!” That seems to be my MO 😂
The Witch Elm disappointed me for all the reasons you listed. Then it seemed to trigger a stint of disappointments: back-to-back Kate Morton books (The House at Riverton and The Clockmaker’s Daughter).
Then I abandoned a book of Pablo Neruda’s poetry because the two translators had very different ideas of how to translate and it drove me mad. Then I abandoned Three Sisters, Three Queens by Philippa Gregory because it was trash. I’m probably going to abandon a third, H is for Hawk, even though I recognize it is well written and it seems meaningful but it’s just not the right book for me right now. I never abandon but now I’m about to go 3 for 3.
So now I’m doing a reading challenge and reading Little Women which somehow I never read in full. I blame some confusion over a British edition that ends after a betrothal when all is well.
Philippa Gregory is overrated IMO, and I say that as someone who doesn’t always mind historical inaccuracies in service of a good story. I’m glad I didn’t pick up The Clockmaker’s Daughter – I always have high hopes for Morton’s books based on the description but I’ve never love-loved her books. I almost bought another one at the thrift store today and had to remins myself that it would probably disappoint.
I also read The House on Haunted Hill recently, and have since been seeking out more of Shirley Jackson’s writing. The search led me to Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber. Reading it felt like finding a treasure that has been hidden on my life’s trajectory, waiting for me to reach this particular moment. I guess I’m really into intoxicatingly good sentences, gothic imagery, and ghosts right now. But my most treasured mysteries are the Cadfael books by Ellis Peters. And Agatha Christie always and forever. Peril at End House is an overlooked best, I’ve always thought!
You’ve intrigued me. I’m going to try to track down The Bloody Chamber.
By Denise Mina: Sanctum, published as Deception in the USA
I’m not a huge mystery reader and this isn’t your regular detective novel, but I loved it, no guarantee you will, of course.
I just finished I’m Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid. As the book progresses, you as the reader are trying to figure out how the title fits into the story as it evolves. I enjoyed it- a bit predictable, but still an innovative way to tell a story. I also heard this is being turned into a Netflix production. It’s tough to describe it without spoilers, but the philosophical bits were fascinating. An pretty dark and twisty book. I need to find someone else to discuss this with!
I also read a Baby Sitters Club book just to see if it still held up. Don’t judge- I needed some fluff after the previous book!
Did it hold up? With the re-issue/new covers for the Babysitter’s Club, I’ve been curious.