What I have been reading -July and August

 

I completely lost track of what I was posting and it wasn’t until last week that I realised I had not posted what I had read in July. This was probably because I was away from home. I did pretty well over the last two months considering it was the school holidays. I am keeping on track with my two books a month minimum but my list of books to read isn’t getting shorter as I keep adding to it. Also I have been reading series so the other books have had to be added.

 

So in July I read

 Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death

BLURB- Revenge is a dish best served warm...High-flying public relations supremo Agatha Raisin has decided to take early retirement. She's off to make a new life in a picture-perfect Cotswold village. To make friends, she enters the local quiche-making competition - and to make quite sure of first prize she secretly pays a visit to a London deli. Alas, the competition judge succumbs after tasting her perfect quiche, and Agatha is revealed as a cheat and potential poisoner. Definitely not the best start. So Agatha must turn amateur sleuth - she's absolutely got to track down the real killer!

I watched the TV series starring Ashley Jensen and really enjoyed it. This was made as a pilot and I haven’t been able to watch it so I bought the book. Agatha is like a modern day Miss Marple. It is an easy read but like most murder mystery investigations by amateurs there is a sudden lightbulb moment about who the killer is. Also you have to ignore the actions of the police and how much information they divulge.

As it worked out cheaper to buy 21 books from The Book People than it is to buy them individually I have 20 other Agatha Raisin books to read. A bit like binge watching a box set. I won’t exclusively read them but they are on my bookcase ready to go.

 

The Viscount who Loved Me

BLURB -1814 promises to be another eventful season, but not, this author believes, for Anthony Bridgerton, London's most elusive bachelor, who has shown no indication that he plans to marry.

And in truth, why should he? When it comes to playing the consummate rake, nobody does it better...
—Lady Whistledown's Society Papers, April 1814

But this time, the gossip columnists have it wrong. Anthony Bridgerton hasn't just decided to marry—he's even chosen a wife! The only obstacle is his intended's older sister, Kate Sheffield—the most meddlesome woman ever to grace a London ballroom. The spirited schemer is driving Anthony mad with her determination to stop the betrothal, but when he closes his eyes at night, Kate is the woman haunting his increasingly erotic dreams...

Contrary to popular belief, Kate is quite sure that reformed rakes do not make the best husbands—and Anthony Bridgerton is the most wicked rogue of them all. Kate is determined to protect her sister—but she fears her own heart is vulnerable. And when Anthony's lips touch hers, she's suddenly afraid she might not be able to resist the reprehensible rake herself...

 

The second of the Bridgerton series, this time concentrating on Anthony. As with the first book, this one focuses on the relationship between Anthony and Kate. The outcome is obvious and this series is beginning to feel a bit like a Mills and Boon book. I miss the other characters playing more significant roles. I have the third book in the series but I am not sure whether I will rush to read the rest. Saying that I am looking forward to the second series when it finally hits our screens. For once, for me, the series is better than the book.

 

The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell

BLURB-Sam Hill always saw the world through different eyes. Born with red pupils, he was called “Devil Boy” or Sam “Hell” by his classmates; “God’s will” is what his mother called his ocular albinism. Her words were of little comfort, but Sam persevered, buoyed by his mother’s devout faith, his father’s practical wisdom, and his two other misfit friends.

Sam believed it was God who sent Ernie Cantwell, the only African American kid in his class, to be the friend he so desperately needed. And that it was God’s idea for Mickie Kennedy to storm into Our Lady of Mercy like a tornado, uprooting every rule Sam had been taught about boys and girls.

Forty years later, Sam, a small-town eye doctor, is no longer certain anything was by design—especially not the tragedy that caused him to turn his back on his friends, his hometown, and the life he’d always known. Running from the pain, eyes closed, served little purpose. Now, as he looks back on his life, Sam embarks on a journey that will take him halfway around the world. This time, his eyes are wide open—bringing into clear view what changed him, defined him, and made him so afraid, until he can finally see what truly matters.

This was the book club choice and I wasn’t too sure about this one when I first started reading it but I persevered through the first few chapters and ending up enjoying it. I wouldn’t say Sam had lived an extraordinary life in the obvious sense but he had put up with a lot of discrimination and bullying and was still a good man. His mother had a great influence on his life giving him the strength to cope with everything and that is clearly shown in how the book ends.

In August I read

The Midnight Library

BLURB-Nora's life has been going from bad to worse. Then at the stroke of midnight on her last day on earth she finds herself transported to a library. There she is given the chance to undo her regrets and try out each of the other lives she might have lived. Which raises the ultimate question: with infinite choices, what is the best way to live?

 This was my choice for book club based on Emma’s recommendation and I have to say it was a very good recommendation. I could not put the book down and it is a book that I read thoroughly rather than with some that I have just skimmed over. It makes you think about your life and what might have happened if you had made a different choice. It was also universally liked by everyone else in the book club (which rarely happens) and lead to some good discussions. This book is my favourite of the year.

 

Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet

Retired PR boss Agatha Raisin is enjoying life in her pretty Cotswold village of Carsely. It even seems likely that the attractive new vet, Paul Bladen, has taken a shine to her. But before romance can blossom, Paul is killed in an accident with Lord Pendlebury's horse. Only the circumstances are rather suspicious.

Agatha decides she must once more play amateur investigator. And this cloud has a silver lining - she can persuade her usually stand-offish neighbour, James Lacey, to become her partner in the quest. As usual, Agatha is quite prepared to rush in, heedless of the lurking menace to both James and herself.

I took this book on holiday with me as it is set in the Cotswolds and it was fun to see some of the places mentioned. It was a perfect holiday read, though I did find it irritating that Agatha is so desperate to have a man in her life. She comes across as being capable, independent and strong willed. I suppose she is a bit fed up of having had to look after herself for most of her life. I think that theme is going to run through the rest of the books if the TV series is anything to go by which spoils it slightly. Miss Marple was never desperate.