(immediately adds book to reading list)
Finished Grave Expectations and really liked it. Although I didn’t much care about the mystery they were solving, I loved the characters and am excited to see there will be further adventures, with the next book coming out in May. Yay!
Started today on Death Valley, by Melissa Broder. It’s a novel about a depressed woman having surreal experiences in the desert. Hasn’t really grabbed me, but it’s somewhat amusing and easy to read, so I’ll go on.
@Spice_Weasel, I tried to read The Road also, but couldn’t get past the quotation mark thing. Let me know if there was some point to it!
It makes for difficult reading, but I’m glad these histories of the mistreatment of First Nations and Indigenous peoples are being told.
I discovered early on that Chaos Terminal by Mur Lafferty, which I knew was the second in a series called The Midsolar Murders, should be read after the first book, Station Eternity, which I have on reserve.
While waiting for that one, I’m reading The Order of Odd Fish by James Kennedy.
To Cook a Bear Mikael Niemi
A mystery set in rural Sweden in the 1800s. A young woman is savagely killed and the incompetent authorities blame a bear. But then another woman is attacked and it’s clear that a killer is on the loose. The central characters are a pastor (Lars Lastraedes, a real historical figure) and his troubled adopted son, a runaway.
In addition to the mystery, there are musings on philosophy, the beauty of nature, and the power of the written word.
I quite enjoyed this book. Some of the prose is quite beautiful.
Highly recommended, but see the note below.
This is NOT a cozy mystery. There are intense depictions of cruelty, deprivation, and violence.
Finished Death Valley, and I feel like I got tricked into going to counseling or something. I just wanted a weird story, and it was that, but I think the author was trying for some deep truth about grief. Yuk.
I started Doggone Lies by Ted Clifton. I think it’s his debut novel, it reads like a first time book, but the characters are interesting, if a little too folksy at times. It’s short so I’ll finish it and likely enjoy it overall.
Those who found the Thursday Murder Club series engaging, what did you like about it?
Based on recommendations here and in real life, I borrowed The Last Devil to Die from the library when I saw it displayed in a place of honor on a shelf (I was under the impression it was the first book in the series, which it turns out it isn’t).
I’ve read about 80 pages and I’m thinking about putting it aside. The plot so far isn’t very interesting–that’s okay, not all books have to be plot-driven, and I have the sense that the writer’s focus is on his characters. Trouble is that I don’t find the characters very interesting either.
It’s possible that this is an example of a book where you are supposed to have met the characters in Book One, and the author just didn’t spend any time introducing them for new readers in this novel. So maybe I should get the first book instead?
It’s reasonably well-written and the pacing seems okay if a little on the slow side. There are some funny lines, though I’m not finding it nearly as funny as a friend told me it would be.
If you want to make a case for me continuing, or for restarting at book 1, or for that matter just trying some other book as life is short, I’m all ears. (Eyes?) Thanks.
I’m about 50% through the first book, but I did put it down a couple of months ago and I haven’t picked it up again yet. That might be more of an indictment of my reading style than the book itself - I struggle to finish things. I do like the characters, I do like the humor, I guess the plot isn’t terribly compelling to me. So if you don’t really like the characters you are probably better off moving on.
Misnomer has inspired me. I used to post in these threads more regularly, but I slipped off. I’m currently reading three books, all of which I’m less than halfway done with, and two of which I’m disappointed with so far.
How Emotions are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain by Lisa Feldman Barrett sounded like a fascinating topic. And it probably would be, in the right hands, but I feel like the author takes a long time to make a point and the first three chapters have been tedious. But the points she makes are interesting, so I’ll keep going.
You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott starts out strong. Part 1 is from a mother’s perspective, helping her daughter to train to be a top-level gymnast and hopefully make it all the way to the Olympics. I have a gymnastics background and haven’t read any fiction books centered around gymnastics, so I loved this. But then in part 2, the gymnastics training starts to take the backseat to a murder storyline. In part 2, a guy is killed, but we don’t know who did it, but some of the people close to the main character are acting suspicious. And come on, who hasn’t read a dozen books with that as the basic plot? It feels much less original now, and I’m hoping gymnastics takes more of a center stage in the rest of the book.
The Spare Room by Andrea Bartz is my favorite of the books I’m reading now. This is surprising, since I’m reading the book via audio book and don’t typically like audio books as much, but I’m jumping at any excuse to listen to another chapter. The book takes place during the first summer of the pandemic. The main character and her fiancee are taking a break, and the narrator moves into a mansion to shelter-in-place with a woman and her husband. She ends up being pulled into their marriage sexually, but they behave a little weirdly and keep some secrets and the narrator begins to wonder if she’s in danger.
Started today on the latest Murderbot, Martha Wells’ System Collapse.
Just finished “Pumpkin Flowers” by Matti Friedmann. A tale of a place, persons and events that combines Bill Maudlin earthiness with Friedmann prose and introspection. The place is an outpost in Lebanon during the war with Israel and the events are described from the narrow perspective of the kids, just out of high school, who became soldiers there.
An image I retain is of a Canadian girl who visits the author while hiking from northern Lebanon to Tel Aviv. She walks the countries and crosses the border without concern, while residents on both sides could be shot for doing the same thing.
Thanks - ordered the book
fist pump
It was a little slow to start but once it got going (OR I stopped being distractable) it took OFF!
I’m about 100 pages into The Road now, and I’m pretty into it. Is it gripping? Yes. Is it well-written? Yes.
Does it add anything unique to the post-apocalyptic fiction genre? So far, no. I’ve only dabbled in that genre but it’s evident McCarthey leans on well-worn on tropes to tell the tale. Maybe it’s because I read the inventive and fresh post-apocalyptic take of Station Eleven that leaves me expecting better. That was every bit as literary but it was saying and doing things that hadn’t been said or done before. Would I rather follow this sadsack guy and his son, or follow a traveling theatre troupe on its way to the Museum of Civilization? My money’s on the troupe.
Depend on Murderbot! 
@Spice_Weasel, I haven’t read Station Eleven either. It’s part of Mount TBR.
Lately I’ve been reading at bedtime again…yay!
I did give What The Neighbors Saw two more tries, but opted not to proceed: I got to the end of the free sample and was feeling kind of “eh,” and after re-reading the synopsis in the Kindle store I decided I wasn’t interested enough to buy it. The writing was ok, I just wasn’t grabbed enough by the story/characters/impending murder mystery.
I’m currently reading Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village – which I did buy after reaching the end of the free sample. The humor is predictable at times, but it’s an easy read with fun illustrations and is entertaining enough. I expect to finish it soon.
Next up will be Grave Expectations, which I’m glad to see Dung Beetle enjoyed enough to be looking forward to the next book. 
(FWIW I read Station Eleven a while back, and quite liked it.)
My work here is done.
I gave this one (hard copy) to my wife for Christmas a year ago, and I’ve re-read it several times. My only complaint is the damned tiny print thast doesn’t need to be that small.
I saw the excellent Max series first, but I really liked the book too. They are very different, even dealing with different themes, but both very recommended.
Thanks! I really appreciate your opinion. It’s not so much that I don’t like the characters as that after 80 pages I still don’t KNOW them. Oh well. I think I’ll bring it back to the library–maybe I’ll try the first one at some point, but not now.