William Deverell. KILL ALL THE LAWYERS. Ballantine, 1994.
Firstly, I ask myself: Why do I spend time reading about characters I do not like and do now care about? It is well-written. Amusing. Complicated plot. Literary allusions. Characters with quirks (twitchers and witches). A frustrated writer. Irony. Complicated relationships. But really, I don't want to know about wealth, blackmail, and collusion between judges, lawyers, police, FBI, and gangsters.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex. SPARE. Random House, 2023.
Loved this book, especially the "boy's" voice and the details. I'm writing him a letter.
Kristin Hannah. COMFORT & JOY. Ballantine, 2020/2005.
A second book club selection. The title alludes to a Christmas carol but the protagonist's name is Joy and one of the locations is called the Comfort Lodge, a derelict fishing lodge/B&B somewhere in Washington State.
The book hooked me instantly when Joy hops on to the last seat available in a charter flight to Hope, BC. But the plane crashes and Joy takes the opportunity to "walk away" from her depressing life of betrayal by husband and sister. We are never quite sure what happens next. Mystery. Tension. What will happen? What has happened?
Mairuth Sarsfield. NO CRYSTAL STAIR. Moulin, 1997.
A gift from my cousin who knows I like to read CanLit and that I love Montreal. Old Montreal. Didn't realize that this had been a Canada Reads pick about 20 years ago. Ratings on Goodreads range from 2 to 5 out of 5 stars. I enjoyed the story of one woman's hard life. Marion Willow is a widow in her 30s trying to support her children and raise them well during 1940s Montreal. There are many provincial and world war references and many quotations from Black poetry, as well as references to liberty in pre-WWII Europe and pleasures of booze and jazz which brought American tourists to Canada. The subtleties of racism and the challenges of parenting in an openly anti Black and anti female society are made clear as are learning to recognize and to cope with ones own prejudices.
Val McDermid. BROKEN GROUND. Grove, 2018.
Karen Pirie, still grieving the death of her partner and under new attack from a supervisor, is called in to investigate a cold case, a body in a bog, estimated to have been there for about 25 years. A plant in her office causes problems. The urgency of moving before being ordered not to works while confirming Karen's problems with authority, grandstanding, and favouritism. Another great weekend spent with Val.
Louise Penny. The GREY WOLF. Minotaur, 2024 Borrowed from a friend who had borrowed it from the library. No due date, making reading it so...
