Six Books Saturday #1: New-to-Me Crime Writers

#SixBooksSaturday is my new personal monthly bookish meme, inspired by Six Word Saturday, which I've stumbled upon @ Travel with Intent.

I thought it would be fun to list six books of random category/theme, which I'd decide on the spot. It might be six favorite books from my favorite author, or six books I've just added to my TBR. Or, if I find a gorgeous pinkish cover, I might list six pink book covers. Anything is possible according to my whim.

I will post Six Books Saturday on the last Saturday of each month. If you're interested, you are, of course, welcomed to join me. There's no rule, really. You can post six anything about books with your own theme, and leave your link in the comment, so I can read you posts. Or you can share the posts in Twitter (I still call it that) with hashtag #SixBooksSaturday, and don't forget to tag me!

This month I pick a theme which is correlated with this month's British Classics Crime Challenge theme, which is Authors New to Me.

Here is my first Six Books Saturday:

NEW-TO-ME CRIME WRITERS I've read so far this year, whose books I'm excited to read more

(in no particular order)

Christianna Brand

(my first read: Heads You Lose)

Dolores Hitchens

(my first read: The Cat Saw Murder)

Stuart Palmer

(my first read: The Penguin Pool Murder)

E.C.R. Lorac

(my first read: The Murder in the Mill-Race – review yet to come)

Merryn Allingham

(my first read: The Bookshop Murder)

Robin Forsythe

(my first read: The Pleasure Cruise Mystery)

Have you read these writers? Which one is your favorite?

 

The Pleasure Cruise Mystery (1933) by Robin Forsythe

⛴ Algernon Vereker is lucky to have Manuel Ricardo as his best friend. When Vereker's feeling down after bad criticism of his latest painting, Ricardo suggested a pleasure cruise holiday. Well, his suggestion is not fully unselfish, because he hoped Vereker would pay for his ticket as well!

⛴ Just when Vereker begins to feel bored on board the cruise, mysterious things happen. A woman called Beryl Mesado, his cabin neighbor, seems to avoid being seen in public. She makes an appearance at dinner, but it's quite a distance from Vereker's table, that he can't see her face. She wears a pale blue dress and a diamond necklace with butterfly clap. On board with this elusive woman is a maid/companion and the Colvins (sister and brother-in-law).

⛴ At his cabin Vereker hears conversation between Beryl and Colvin. Beryl insists that Colvin must do "the job" quickly despite of the "risks". At this Vereker's boredom vanishes, and his sleuthing mode is on!

⛴ On the fatal night, Vereker hears Beryl's exclaimation that Maureen's necklace is gone. Who's Maureen? Then a rattle sounds inside Vereker's cabin, which he can't find the source. At midnight, Ricardo wakes him up as he'd found a woman's body on the deck, wearing pale blue evening dress, but without the diamond necklace. Her knuckles were bruised inside her chamois gloves (which doesn't match her evening outfit), and Vereker notices that her shoes are of bigger sizes. The Colvins admit that Beryl had had bad heart condition, and that must have been the cause of her death. But was it?

⛴ Later on Vereker found the diamond necklace with butterfly clasp on his cabin! So, that's where the rattle sound came from! But Colvin said the missing necklace is of white and cinnamon diamonds. Are there two missing necklaces, then? And was it burglary and murder?

⛴ This is a very complex and complicated murder mystery. Besides the Colvins, the other suspects consist of Dias, an acquaintance of the family, and a wealthy young girl, a Miss Penteado, Ricardo's crush. The murder method is the most unusual I've ever known. It's like when Forsythe saw the device, he thought, "Ha! That can cause death if one isn't careful!", and used it for his next novel.

⛴ All in all, it's a fun read. I loved the holiday vibes onboard the cruiser. I also loved the witty banters between Vereker and Ricardo; and the mystery itself is really puzzling. The only setback is the redundancy whenever Vereker told Inspector Heather or Ricardo of how the case has been progressing, or their discussing over the solution. Other than that, it's a witty, highly entertaining mystery with unusual but ingenious plot. Many thanks to Dean Street Press for re-printing this Golden Age Mystery!

Rating: 4 / 5

This book counts for British Crime Classics Challenge 2023

For Bingo Card: Mystery Set on Boat/Ship
For Monthly Theme: Authors New to Me

Shelf Control #4: A Fete Worse Than Death by Lesley J. Taaffe

Shelf Control is a weekly feature created by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies, and celebrates the books waiting to be read on your TBR piles/mountains. Since early January 2023, Shelf Control has moved base to Literary Potpourri.

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you must have noticed that lately my readings are mostly of e-books and audiobooks, which I get from either Scribd or Google Playbook. In this episode of Shelf Control I am featuring an e-book from my "Saved" shelf at Scribd:

A Fete Worse Than Death (and other small church matters) by Lesley J. Taaffe

Summary from Amazon:
"Pastor Michael of Ainsworth Baptist Church has taken several months away from his duties to enjoy a well-earned Sabbatical and so Sister Marjory Steeple, stalwart of the church, upholder of traditional values and all that is seemly and decent, has taken it upon herself to write regular letters to Pastor Michael to keep him up to date regarding what is going on during his absence. Sister Marjory also takes the opportunity in her correspondence to make helpful suggestions as to how the good pastor might best improve the running of the church upon his return, and finds it unexpectedly therapeutic to off-load some of her own personal problems at the same time. These problems mainly revolve around her non-church going husband, George, and his unnerving obsession with his own funeral arrangements, their wayward son Christopher, and a bluff old cousin called Murgatroyd Thrip who is diligently (and against all the odds) following his calling to be a maverick missionary in far flung corners of the world.
Strangely enough Pastor Michael does not seem to appreciate Sister Marjory's selfless sacrifices and insightful suggestions quite as he should."


I think this would be a charming, humorous read that I'd need to cheer me up after some rough time, or a gory murder mystery. I like the tone of it, and the epistolary style of this lite book. But I'm surprised that it doesn't get reviewed in Amazon, and I couldn't find it in Goodreads either, thought it has been published since 2012. I hope it means that I've found a gem, instead of a junk!

What do you think of this book? Have you heard about it?

The Lonely Hearts Book Club by Lucy Gilmore: An Audiobook Review

💗 Sloane Parker is a librarian who loves her job in a small town. One of the patrons is an old curmudgeon called Arthur McLachlan, whose rudeness is not new to the staffs. Sloane had had her share of rough dealing with him too, but she also enjoys their literary banters.

💗 One day Sloane realized Arthur hasn't visited the library for some time. Worried that something's happened, she visited his house where he lives alone - against the library's rule - and found him really ill. From then on Sloane takes care of Arthur, in disguise of working with Arthur's personal library. In doing that, Sloane sacrifices a lot: her job (she got sacked) and facing the grudge of her fiancé. But she is happy.

💗 Besides Sloane, there is also Maisie, Arthur's nosy but kindhearted neighbor who also cares about him; Greg, Arthur's estranged grandson; Matteo, Sloane's ex-colleague who's hired to be Arthur's health nurse. The four of them gather regularly at Arthur's house to form a book club.

💗 Each member of the book club alternately narrates their story from their own point of views. And through these chapters, we slowly get to know each one of these characters - strength and weaknesses, problems and struggles, hopes and dreams, rejection and loneliness.

💗 I love the premise of this story, which is books. It is books that unite these strangers from various backgrounds. Through books that they discuss, they get to learn about themselves and their mistakes. Through books, they find courage to accept themselves and their loved ones, and to build their own future. Through books also, they cement their loves and friendship, and learn more about human's nature.

💗 Among various book titles mentioned throughout the book, Kazuo Ishiguro's Remains of the Day and L.M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables become two most important ones. Remains because it's their first book for the club, and Anne because they use it (by highlighting its passages with different colors - each represented certain person) to express their feelings to one of them. It would certainly be the most valuable gift a bookish person could ever receive, isn't it? Especially if the book happens to be his/her favorite. 

💗 All in all, it is a book about love, friendship, family, forgiveness, and redemption; sweet and heartwarming. And it makes me wanting to re-read Anne of Green Gables! I have listened and enjoyed this story from an audiobook, very well-narrated by Angie Kane. Given that this book is narrated alternately between the characters, audiobook is a perfect way of reading it, and I'm glad I've done that.

Rating: 5 / 5

 

Book Tag: I'll Get Around to It Later

I saw this book tag @ Golden Age of Detective Fiction the other day, and decided to do it for fun. The creator has posted this in 2022, but it's still relevant any time, so, why not?

The rules

• Link back to the original post–this one right here!–so the creator can read your answers and support you.
• Link back to the post of the person who tagged you and thank them.
• You may use the included graphic anywhere in your post, but you don’t have to.
• Fill all seven categories.
• You can either leave this tag open so anyone can do it or tag up to seven people.

 
The categories

📚 A classic book that you have been meaning to read forever but haven’t yet
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley - There's many of these, actually, all is waiting for me to take on. Be patient dear books, I'm just waiting a good reason to pick you next. Maybe next Classics Spin will do?

📚 A book on your shelf that you haven’t read yet
Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt - I almost forgot I own this. Must get to it sometime next year! And I need to sort my TBR out, who knows what gems I might find there!

📚 A book that you got recently that you haven’t read
The Blue Sky by Galsan Tschinag - I featured this book in Blogger-Inspired Wishlist Ep. 6, and have actually bought a copy instantly, but then a sad thing came my way, and I didn't think I'd have the energy to read a sad book, no matter how inspiring or hopeful it is. So, for now, I really need to keep it back on the TBR pile.

📚 A book that you’ve had forever but haven’t read
Casino Royale by Ian Fleming - I think I might have saved this one for too long, and now I'm just not interested anymore. Shame on me, I know! 

📚 A book a friend recommended that you haven’t read
Middlemarch by George Eliot - more than one friend recommended this actually, but it's just not the right time (is there ever a right time? I don't know.. I just don't think I'd be able to tackle that mammoth task of reading it at present).

📚 A book you’re procrastinating on
The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman - I have bought the book, and I've been excited to read this second book of the series after enjoying the first so much, so why do I keep procrastinating? Can I use that excuse of "not the right time" once more?...

📚 The next book on your TBR
Mrs. Harris Goes to Moscow by Paul Galico - I've just "found" this book among my e-book shelf the other day, thanks to Shelf Control meme, and this time I MUST get to read it!


Want to play along? Just consider yourself tagged!
 

The Girl, the Dog, and the Writer in Lucerne by Katrina Nannestad

🍫 This is the third and final installment of The Girl, the Dog, and the Writer series. Freja Peachtree is ten years old when the series began in Rome. She was brought up mostly within Arctic region by her researcher mom, and grew up as a shy but intelligent girl. When her mom is sick, Freya had to live with Tobias Appleby, an absent-minded bestselling crime writer, and his huge silly puppy Finnegan.

🍫 In book one, The Girl, the Dog, and the Writer in Rome, the unlikely trio stumbled upon exciting adventure, and got acquainted with Vivi, a sweet girl who was apprenticed as a chef. Tobias was instantly smitten by her, that when Vivi moved to Provence to be apprenticed to a famous chef, Tobias followed her step. Once again the girl, the dog, and the writer were embroiled in another adventurous mystery.

🍫 Now Vivi moved to work at a chocolatier in Lucerne, and at the same time Tobias and Freja are heading there too, where Clementine, Freja's mother whom she hadn't met for months, is hospitalized. This is also Clementine's first "appearance", and I've been wondering what illness had took her away from her daughter for months? It's not clearly stated in this book, but judging by her condition.. mightn't it be cancer?

🍫 Switzerland is famous for chocolate, and we get chocolate in almost every page of this book! The mystery this time is a string of chocolate thefts. The mysterious thief only steals particular chocolate dishes which was made of Margrit's chocolate - a premium quality chocolate from a premium factory. Why? And the thief seems not to enjoy the chocolates and throw them like trash - Freja & co. finds chocolate-coated log in the forest behind their hotel. Again,  why?

🍫 There's also the mystery of Lady P - a patient next to Clementine's bed - who's just had an accident- or has she been pushed by her maid? But the biggest mystery for Freja is: who is Tobias Appleby? Freja shares Tobias' curly hair and his habit of pulling his ear while pondering; does it mean he is...?

🍫 In Lucerne is the best of the series - it has similar quality to the previous two, but twice intensified. The mystery/adventure is more puzzling, the romance is sweeter, and the family and friendship theme is deeper. It has all the quality of a great book. All lose end is tied satisfactorily, and the whole story has a bitter and sweet taste; full of love and humour. I might love it more for personal reasons. Freja, Clementine, and Tobias' relationship is the kind that is tightly bound with love - love that shape them into one solid unity. That's the kind of love we used to have - me, my mama and late papa - and that has shaped me into what I am now. I might often be fragile, but that love protects me and gives me strength. And I believe Freja would grow up a wonderful woman. No matter what happens in our journey, that love would always live inside us.

Rating: 5 / 5

#MurderEveryMonday: London Scene Covers

Murder Every Monday was created by Kate @ Crossexamining Crime and @ArmchairSleuth. Put simply, the plan is for readers to take a photo of a crime fiction book (novel or short story collection) which meets a given week’s theme criteria and to then share it online, using the hashtag #MurderEveryMonday.

This week's theme is:

Cover with a London scene or landmark

For this specific theme, I know I can rely solely on British Library Crime Classics, whose collections are always with beautiful artistic cover arts. I have not read any of these seven books, but aren't they just lovely to behold (and collect)?!

Have your read any of them? Which cover(s) do you like most?

If you want to participate, here's the list of the weekly theme: