January 2005 Archives
Borrowed from Abby for holiday reading, this proved a suitable Kay Scarpetta blockbuster to occupy some of the quieter moments - such as there were - during the trip from Delhi to Kathmandu.
The focus of the plot is more concerned with Kay's niece, Lucy, and her life and relationships than the usual, older characters, but interestingly, the novel lets you see what each of those think of Lucy and her adult-relationship with Kay. Not having read the earlier novels, I didn't really get as much out of Kay's return to Virginia and her emotional response to the changes since her departure as others might do.
Amazon.co.uk link: Trace - Patricia Cornwell
Amazon.co.uk list: Kay Scarpetta Collection (in order)
Set in London the early 18th century, in the era when financial institutions and paper-based monetary systems were emerging in concept and in fact, this book is part murder-mystery, part-historical novel, with lots of detail on the jewish and financial communities in London, as well as its underworld of fist-fighters, gin joints, pick pockets and prostitutes.
It took me a while to get into it - in addition to the breadth of information provided by way of general backgrounds and settings, the main character is a bit of a mish-mash, and I found it hard to get a feel for him. At times it felt like David Liss was just desparate to fit in everything he'd discovered in doing his research.
That said, in the end, I wanted to know what happened enough to take the novel with me on my trip to India and Nepal! I still couldn't articulate a snappy description of the book when asked by the Gulf Air stewardess though....
Buy it: Amazon link
Another book about a "westerner"'s (albeit that Richard Loseby hails from New Zealand) travels in and impressions of Afghanistan, but Blue Is the Colour of Heaven is a million miles away from Asne Seierstad's The Bookseller of Kabul.
Following a childhood dream, Richard Loseby's travels took him to Iran and Iraq before managing to meet up with one of the many Mujahedeen and persuading them to take him across the border and into the west of Afghanistan. From then on, he found himself passed from group to group and village to village travelling by jeep, horse and on foot, and finally making an illegal crossing over the border into Pakistan. A far cry from Kabul, and a fascinating account, with good photos of people and places that news reports make and made sound altogether different and less likeable.
Buy it: Amazon link
And looking at Amazon, I see Richard Loseby went back in 2002 to try to trace some of the Afghans who made such a deep impression on him. Looking for the Afghan is now on my Amazon wishlist!
Easy chick lit reading, and a complete contrast from Kinsey Millhone, P.I., although the later chapters of the book are set in the USA (NYC and Connecticut rather than California mind you).
The gist of the story is: Plain Jane gets swept of her feet by long lusted after (from afar) friend of her brother and now wealthy City slicker, who transforms her into a sophisticated and doting wife who turns a blind eye on his philandering ways until their move to the US changes their world and their lives.....
Not at all a strenuous brain work out and I didn't find it emotionally evocative as Bookends, for example, but that's probably because I have no links at all to the fabulously wealthy world in which the story is set. Although the pace is a bit slow compared to most chicklit, Spellbound it a fatter book than many.
Buy it: Amazon link
More satisfying than C for me, largely because of the action in Kinsey's personal life, and the fact that for the first time she has a client who is a crim/ex-crim, who is subsequently murdered. The main gripe I had with this plot is that the Whodunnit factor rests on there being 5 suspects and the fact that all are slim blondes, and I failed to pick up on these significant features in the initial descriptions of most of them, with the end result that it was hard to follow the twists and turns in the later chapters.
Buy it: Amazon link