Sad that she died at only 58 years of age.
Finished Ken Bruen's The Dramatist. Another masterpiece of a crime drama set in Galway that really just has it all. Cannot praise it too highly.
I believe they're both being made into TV shows at the moment.
Reading John Higgs' "William Blake vs the World". I love all of his stuff but this is seriously a book of big ideas. Neurophysics, quantum mechanics, 18th century revolutionary politics, reflections on the subjective nature of reality, all wrapped up in the poetry and art of Blake. (and that's only the first four chapters). He stretches some points a bit too far, but never a dull moment....
Finished Octavia Butler's Adulthood Rites book 2 in this sci fi series. The book starting a few years after the end of book 1 and again it is a really interesting and compelling read.
Last night, I finished When All Is Said by Anne Griffin and also That Place We Call Home by John Creedon. I'd give both a 4 out of 5 rating.
Finished Lars Brownworth's The Normans an interesting and concise account of how the Vikings who settled and created the Dutchy of Normandy in Northern France emerged to become such important players in the wider history of Europe.
Finished Octavia Butler's Imago the third and final instalment in her sci fi trilogy set in a post nuclear war earth after an alien race has arrived and saved what was left of humanity but want something in return. The whole series had a really interesting premise although I felt this third book was not as good as the first 2.
Harlem Shuffle, Colson Whitehead.
Creedon was a lovely warm read, bit like listening to his radio show, and served as a primer for ancient Irish history I'd learned at school but long forgotten. Plus, i never knew he'd spent time in a seminary, studying for the priesthood. That came as a bit of a surprise.
Took a more recent happy trip down memory lane reading the Celtic FC book Treble Treble for a change of pace.
That trilogy is very much on my list for next year.
I finished Woman on the Edge of Time by Marge Piercy, which is a superb piece of sci-fi writing.
Overall I thought the trilogy was decent. The first book I liked the second was the best of the 3 IMHO, the third one I felt was not quite at the level of the first 2. But overall a good read.
Halfhead by Stuart MacBride,
Thriller set in a Future overcrowded Glasgow where criminals are mutilated ,lobotomised and put to work cleaning,
His ordinary crime novels are funnier and better plotted
Finished Ken Bruen's Priest. Another brilliant entry in the Galway authors Jack Taylor crime series. At times witty, at times funny and at times noir but always a real page turner. Loved it.
Absolutely loved this. Was slow to start but that was me rather than the book. There was a real Walter Mosley vibe off this for me - coincidentally, I also love him....
Going to look up Whitehead's non-fiction shortly. I like everything else he's written so it's worth a look
Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell.
Picked this up on the basis of its blurb. Its about the short but eventful career of a rock band in the late 60s. Its an interesting story, especially if you're into music and counter-culture from that time.
There are a quite a few cameos from entertainers of the time. Some are interesting and help the story along, others are cringey and seem to be there just for the sake of it.
Death is a big theme in the book and one that touches each character in a different way. It's quite intriguing in that respect. It also has an interesting approach to mental health.
Some of the writing is quite good though, at times, the plot can feel predictable. There are also some parts that are a bit too fantastic for me.
I got really into it and was flying through it by the end. I'd recommend it as a satisfying read, though I have my problems with it.
Finished Tana French's crime drama The Secret Place. Really enjoyed this one and a bit different as while it is a who done it murder mystery with all the action taking place over the course of one day it is also a coming of age story too in many ways.
Read a few recently:
-The Noble Hustle, Colson Whitehead - non-fiction about the writer's stab at the World Series of Poker a few years ago. I love this guy's fiction and love poker but this is middling at best
-Nobody Walks, Mick Herron. A quick thriller related to his Slough House spy series. A fine read but not up to his other stuff.
-Bog Bodies, Declan Shalvey (graphic novel) - a short tale about gangland hits and the disposal of bodies in the Dublin mountains. Atmospheric but slight.
After a run of OK books, I'm really looking to get my teeth into something good next.
Reading Dracula at the moment. Very different from what I expected. Opening section was great, very atmospheric. It's slowed down a bit but I get the feeling it's one of those books you have to view after finishing, if that makes sense?
My main recollection of reading Dracula - and it is not recent! - is of expecting it to be a rather different book to the one I encountered, probably because my view had been shaped through the prism of all the various film adaptation. So while very psychological, it seemed a lot less "horrific" than I anticipated. Not sure if I'm misremembering, I think i might put both this and Frankinstein on the re-read list for xmas.
Yeah, that's pretty much my experience so far. I think I'm about half way through and the man himself has barely appeared in person after the initial section set at his castle. I'm interested to see once I'm finished if there's any of the many adaptations that actually stick to the book. I can already say that most of the ones I'm aware of don't appear to.
I think thats fair it is much more psychological rather then straight up scary horror. Personally I loved it. Have read 3-4 times over the years.
Finished Ken Bruen's The Cross. Another brilliant and enjoyable Irish noir crime drama from Bruen.
Reading Circe, Madeline Miller. Really enjoying it so far.
Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan.
Very short, probably technically a novella. It's set in the 80s in New Ross (I think?) It's a smallish Irish town anyway, and it's the run up to Christmas and the local coal man is doing his rounds, has an unsettling experience at the local convent/laundry and it leads him to reflect on his own childhood and question the reality of what's going on around him.
I really liked it. It is basically the shame of Catholic Ireland explored through this one man and this one town, but its really well written and it doesn't go into too much detail so it's never difficult to read, but unless you've been living under a rock you'll know what's going on anyway.
Just finished the Miracle of Castel di Sangro by Joe McGinnnis. Authors an American who becomes obsessed with football during the USA world cup in 94 and moves to Italy a few years later to live in a small town in the Abruzzo region where the local football team have gotten promotion to to Serie B but theres all sorts of dodgyness going on around the club, the manager and the owners with rumours of back handers to throw the last game of the season.
Funny, I read that last year/early this year and then passed it on to a friend, originally I had picked it up in a charity shop. 🙂
Finished Jack Whyte's The Burning Stone a prequel to his Arturian series. I have always been a big historical fiction fan and was looking forward to my first book with this author. The story is set in the early 4th century in Roman Britain and overall I liked it although the middle part of the book went on a bit.
Just saw today that one of my favourite authors Anne Rice died over the weekend at the age of 80. She comes actually from a strong Irish-American background with her maiden name being O'Brien. RIP to a truly gifted writer.
