The Flight Attendant By Chris Bohjalian

I have been a fan of this author for quite a while. While this ended up being a pretty good book, I will say, in my opinion, it wasn’t my favorite of his books.

The flight attendant in question, Cassandra Bowden, just wasn’t a very likable person. I understand about addiction and it shapes the way a person behaves, but you really couldn’t have very much sympathy for this woman.

Cassie Bowden wakes up in a Dubai hotel room next to a dead man.  He’s the man she met on the flight, a passenger whom she flirted with, had dinner and sex and too much to drink. What is your first instinct here?  Mine would be to call the police but Cassie decides to flee the hotel room, after wiping the room of her fingerprints.  Did she kill him?  She doesn’t know.

It kept my interest yet seemed to drag a bit.  I was hoping it would pick up and refrain from the detail about how Cassie liked to drink and have sex with strangers and her blackouts and self-loathing.    Around the 50% mark it really started picking up so I was invested by then. Russian operatives, secrets, police investigations and more lying.

I thought the end wrapped it up but not as strongly, or believably as I had hoped.  Would I read more by Bohjalian?  Absolutely.  This just wasn’t my favorite book by the author.

This one was finished up last year but I am just getting around to posting about it so it doesn’t count towards my 2019 reading goals and challenges.

 

 

 

 

 

ROUNDUP of the 2018 Monthly Motif reading challenge

This year went by fast, don’t you think? It was fun participating in the motif challenge, I met new book bloggers and learned about new authors. Always a pleasure. Here is the roundup of the books I read. Please note that I forgot to actually linkup at Girlxoxo for all the months I participated! Duh!  I’ll do better next year.

Here are the links to books I read for the 2018 Monthly Motif.

JANUARY – Diversify Your Reading – White Teeth by Zadie Smith
Kick the reading year off right and shake things up. Read a book with a character (or written by an author) of a race, religion, or sexual orientation other than your own.

FEBRUARY – One Word – Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Read a book with a one word title.

MARCH – Travel the World – The Dry by Jane Harper
Read a book set in a different country than your own, written by an author from another country than your own, or a book in which the characters travel.

APRIL – Read Locally
Read a book set in your country, state, town, village (or has a main character from your home town, country, etc)  I planned to read House on the Forgotten Coast by Ruth Coe Chambers.  Didn’t happen.

MAY- Book to Screen
Read a book that’s been made into a movie or a TV show.

JUNE- Crack the Case – The French Girl by Lexie Elliott
Mysteries, True Crime, Who Dunnit’s.

JULY – Vacation Reads – Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl
Read a book you think is a perfect vacation read and tell us why.

AUGUST- Award Winners – Wine Reads by Jay McInerney
Read a book that has won a literary award or a book written by an author who has been recognized in the bookish community.

SEPTEMBER- Don’t Turn Out The Light 
Cozy mystery ghost stories, paranormal creeptastic, horror novels.

OCTOBER- New or Old – Lethal White by Robert Galbraith
Choose a new release from 2018 or a book known as a classic.

NOVEMBER- Family – The Au Pair by Emma Rous
Books where family dynamics play a big role in the story

DECEMBER- Wrapping It Up – Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
Winter or holiday themed books or books with snow, ice, etc in the title or books set in winter OR read a book with a theme from any of the months in this challenge (could be a theme you didn’t do, or one you want to do again).

I managed nine books/months out of the twelve so, not too shabby 🙂

This upcoming year I plan to participate but I will be sure to link up in the proper time frame. 🙂

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

I had been meaning to get to this book for months after a recommendation by JoAnne of Lakeside Musing. It was a page turner for me, not a thriller or mystery as I usually read, it’s a portrait of a young woman who had evidently been through something horrific in her past.

She has no social skills or experience with everyday situations such as ordering a pizza or going to a concert.  Little clues about her looks and an unconventional and possibly violent past are hinted at early on. Her facial scars, mentions of looking at magazines in hospital waiting rooms and institutions….what happened to this woman?!

Well, it’s all revealed through bits in pieces and final crashing amount of information that makes you want to grab Eleanor and hug her.  Make her life whole, let her see there is good in the world.

Eleanor goes to work 5 days a week and the routine seems to be enough, until the weekend where she eats frozen pizza and drinks copious amounts of vodka. One day after work she is annoyed that a coworker named Raymond is walking with her.  She doesn’t socialize, she is uncomfortable. They see an older man collapsed in the street and go to assist. Very slowly her life changes from that point onward. This is a lady who never socializes, who lives from office to home to her corner market in London.  Now she is visiting someone, she even goes with Raymond to see his mother.

“Everything felt safe, everything felt normal, How different Raymond’s life had been from mine – a proper family, a mother and a father and a sister, nestled among other proper families.”

There was a bit of food mentioned in this one as well as the British soap opera The Archers.

Eating her meal deal while listening to The Archers. (I tried listening to that before and for some reason stopped. I think I needed more background.)

Pesto with pasta, scallops, cod, poached duck egg and hazelnut oil. Bouillabaisse with homemade rouille. Honey glazed poussin with celeriac fondants. Fresh truffles in season, shaved over crepes and buttered linguine. Sourdough toast with Manchego cheese and quince paste.

“Mummy old me the way to a man’s heart is a homemade sausage roll.”

Pizza and wine. A woman after my own heart. We love a bottle of Beaujolais and pizza for movie night, In this instance Eleanor wasn’t able to procure her frozen pizza and had one delivered. Something she had never done before.
Cheese and pickle sandwiches, tomato soup in a mug

“Raymond pushed open the back door without knocking, shouting hello as he walked into the little kitchen. It smelled deliciously of soup, salty and warm, probably emanating from the large pot on the hob.” The soup was made with pork knuckle and full of fresh vegetables from the garden. There was bread and butter and cheese.

I like this quote:  This is what I felt: the warm weight of his hands on me; the gentleness in his smile; the gentle heat of something opening, the way some flowers spread out in the morning at the sight of the sun. I knew what was happening. It was the unscarred piece of my heart. It was just big enough to let in a bit of affection. 

I’m glad I made time this year for Eleanor Oliphant.  It was a good story.

Linking up with:

Girlxoxo for the December Monthly Motif
Joy for British Isles Friday.
Heather for the December Foodies Read

Au Pair by Emma Rous

There were so many things I liked about this book.  We have an old English country estate called Summerbourne, a seemingly neurotic young woman named Seraphine Mayes who is obsessed with finding out about her early life, a mystery about Ruth (Seraphine and her twin brother Danny’s mother), Ruth’s suicide and an ending that will blow you away.

The Au Pair is Laura Silverira, hired to take care of young Edwin Mayes. The other players are Edwin’s parents, Ruth and Dominic Mayes, their friend Alex and Ruth’s mother Vera. In Laura’s chapters we see the interactions between these people. Ruth appears to vacillate between depression and paranoia 80% of the time. Her mother Vera is domineering and controlling, but perhaps she is trying to take care of Ruth. The time period is 1992, the year Seraphine and Danny were born.

Seraphine’s chapters are in present day. Her father Dominic recently died in an accident. As Seraphine goes through her father’s belongings she finds a photo of her parents and Edwin, her mother holding a newborn. Her mother is smiling yet hours later she throws herself off a cliff. Why is there only one baby in the photo when Ruth had twins and – which baby is it? Is it Seraphine or Danny? This is the catalyst setting Seraphine off in search of the au pair Laura, hoping to find out what happened all those years ago.

Her brothers urge her to leave it alone and of course she doesn’t. The consequences of her secret investigation into their past will have devastating consequences. As you get to know the characters you’ll wonder if Seraphine isn’t a fragile sort of person, perhaps suffering from mild depression or anxiety. Are some of her assumptions and theories valid or is she over the edge? This is all revealed as you read on and to mention some outcomes would certainly spoil your reading experience.

This story is like a fireworks display. It starts as a slow simmer, builds up steam and then blows up around the 85% mark with dynamic revelations. I am awaiting this author’s next book and hope it’s as engaging and mysterious as this book.

Food makes an appearance here and there:

“Edwin and I unpack the grocery bags together on Saturday morning. As ever, the effect the fresh ingredients have on him is powerful: he smiles as he rubs his thumbs over the onions, flexes the celery, sniffs at the Parmesan and inspects the prawns. He’s in his element, relaxed and happy.”

Chocolate tiffin, cinnamon pastries, slices of carrot cake with thick lemon frosting, an apple plum crumble, pots of homemade applesauce, flapjacks, chocolate sponge cake, speared pineapple and chunks of cheese.

“Dominic was pressing sprigs of rosemary into a joint of lamb, a mound of unwashed potatoes sat by the sink.”

Roasted turkey and potatoes and chipolatas.

I didn’t have the chipolatas but I do have turkey and roasted potatoes 🙂

Much thanks to NetGalley for this advanced copy. Opinions are mine and I was not compensated for the review. Publication date is January 8, 2019.

Linking up with:
Joy’s Book Blog for British Isles Friday
Heather for the November Foodie’s Read
Girlxoxo for the Monthly Motif (the theme is family)
Beth Fish Reads for the Weekend Cooking Series

The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton

 

“My real name, no one remembers. The truth about that summer, no one else knows.” –  from our narrator.

This book spans over 150 years, each time period, as it switches back and forth, are pieces of  a puzzle.

Present day: We start with Elodie Winslow, a young woman with an old soul.  She’s a London archivist, engaged to be married to someone who doesn’t truly suit her.

Looking through an old satchel she discovers a sketchbook which belonged to artist Edward Radcliffe as well as a framed photograph of a striking young woman.  Edward’s story is on the book jacket.  He buys the impressive Birchwood Manor and invites a group of friends, fellow artists and their models, to spend a month of creativity and enjoyment.

“But by the time their stay is over, one woman has been shot dead while another has disappeared; a priceless heirloom is missing; and Edward Radcliffe’s life is in ruins.”

That was 150 years ago.  We switch to Edward’s time period and learn some of what went on, fractured relationships, love and mystery.  Now and then the narrator has her chapters, explaining what she thinks, what she observes.  She is the clockmaker’s daughter.

A quote I liked:

“Human beings are curators. Each polishes his or her own favored memories, arranging them in order to create a narrative that pleases. Some events are repaired and polished for display; others are deemed unworthy and cast aside, shelved below ground in the overflowing storeroom of the mind. There, with any luck, they are promptly forgotten. The process is not dishonest: it is the only way that people can live with themselves and the weight of their experiences.” 

Besides present day and Edward’s time period, we have characters from the 1940’s right after the war.  They all play an intricate part in the story and how it all weaves together in the end.  One character is in this time frame is a little boy named Tip.  His part here and in the present day are linked as he is Elodie’s great uncle. He has a small part but it’s important.

It’s eluded that the narrator isn’t named, that we never know her name as early on her father refers to her as Birdie. He says she was named for her grandfather. Well, I won’t tell you here even though it doesn’t raise a spoiler, but it’s something revealed on pages 460 – 462 so you won’t want to miss it.  By then you are almost finished and I will say, what a story – historically rich with the lines of all eras woven together in a satisfying ending.

Kate Morton never disappoints me.  Great story as always.

Linking up with Joy’s Book Blog for British Isles Friday as the setting is London and near rural Lechlade. Birchwood Manor is fictional but befitting many old manor houses in England.

Lethal White by Robert Galbraith

Lethal White is book four in the Cormoran Strike series and what a fat, engaging mystery it is. (I finished this a few weeks ago but it’s been insane here, I did not jot down notes, and so it isn’t fresh in my mind.) What I do remember is loving the dialogue between Comoran and Robin, the multiple investigations going on, the glimpse into upper class politicians’ lives and how it all dovetails in the end.

Barclay is a new addition to the team and I very much like the Scottish accents, his personality and the way he works with Strike and Robin. The author is expert at writing the speech inflections so when I read it I “heard” Jimmy speak in his working classing class London accent. Same with Jasper Chiswell and his family with their very upper crust diction.

This was a long book and doubtless it could have had some scenarios shortened. There was a bit too much of Robin’s internal dialogue about whether she had romantic feelings for Strike. In my opinion that could have been pared down. Do I think they will eventually get together? Yes, I do, but I hope it’s not until the end of the series. I like how they work together now.

The multiple cases and how they were juggled kept my interest, I don’t know how Galbraith/Rowling keeps all that straight and weaves it all together. Loved the exchanges between Lorelei and Cormoran, also the Matthew-Robin-Sarah story line. Quite pleased about some of that but I can’t hash it out because of big spoilers.

I think it’s good J.K. Rowling went with a pseudonym for this series as it makes a distinction between the Harry Potter series, which was more appropriate for a younger audience, and this adult themed series.

Aja, a sweet old Shiba Inu and prolific reader.

Food and drink:
Rib-eye steak and chips, quinoa salads and soup. Burgers with blue cheese, chili, Singapore noodles, sweet and sour pork, Pad Thai, takeaway curry, treacle tart, “thick slices of cold roast beef and boiled potatoes. It was English nursery food, plain and unfussy, and none the worse for it.” A cornetto.

Let’s have some Pad Thai.

Lovely carby rice noodles and shrimp. Recipe may be found at Squirrel Head Manor.

Sharing with:

Beth Fish Reads for Weekend Cooking Series 
Joy’s Book Blog for British Isles Friday
Heather’s October Foodie Reads
Girlxoxo Monthly Motif

    

Agatha Raisin – The Dead Ringer (book 29)

The Agatha Raisin series has been around for some time. The Dead Ringer is about the death/murder of a bell ringer and a few other characters (I don’t want to give a spoiler) in the quiet little town of Thirk Magnay England. This is book #29 in the series.

It’s been a while since I read an Agatha Raisin mystery and by getting this publication, I realized I missed a few things going on in her life. The first book in the series depicts her as a cranky, middle-aged publicist, supposedly 53 years of age. I’m guessing she doesn’t age in real time as years later, she’s still a middle-aged lady and described as attractive if not abrasive. My bookish friend Angry Grey Cat renewed my interest in the series.

Agatha has her own detective agency set up now, a change from books in the past where she was more like a Jessica Fletcher character in Murder, She Wrote. What I liked about this book was the familiarity of the little town in the Cotswolds. The picturesque setting and scenery are inviting. Thirk Magna has an ancient church called St. Ethelred and it’s the pride and joy of the community.

There are adult twin sisters who are part of the bell ringers group and very involved in the church. Apparently bell ringing is like no other type of music and isn’t written on a standard score. The six bell ringers change their order and each time they strike it’s done from memory. Quite an art of memory and dedication. It most certainly wouldn’t be for me.

The twins are swooning on about the visit of a bishop who is reputed to be very handsome and they are determined to take charge of the visit, arranging which “song” they will play on bells and generally being pains in the butt. This bishop has some scandal following him as his rich ex-fiancé has disappeared. That’s what interests Agatha very much. Now the bodies start piling up, as you would expect from one of her novels.

The mention of Detective Sargent Bill Wong was a familiar character as I remember him from all the previous books. I wondered why he hasn’t been promoted to a higher rank than D.S. in all the years (29 years!) of being on the police force. But I have to remind myself that this isn’t written in real time as DCI Alan Banks novels. Also, it has been well established that Bill is half Chinese and half British so when I read that again I thought – yeah, yeah…we all know Bill if half Chinese and Brit. That could have been left out.

Food:  There are mentions of Greek food, pub meals, gin and tonics, tea and cakes. I am on board with any of those things!

Overall, this isn’t the edgy sort of mystery I love but a milder mystery, not quite a cozy. Clear as mud? It’s fun to follow a character through a long series so if you are looking for a light mystery series, you may want to give Agatha Raisin a chance.

Much thanks to NetGalley for this advanced copy. Opinions are mine and I was not compensated for the review.    Linking up with  Joy’s Book Blog for British Isles Friday and Heather for the October Foodies Read.

  

Dear Mrs. Bird and My Twenty-Five Years in Provence

Dear Mrs. Bird: I abandoned Mrs. Bird.  The blurb that grabbed me states it’s for fans of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.  I liked that book very much so I was happy when my copy of Dear Mrs. Bird came in at the library.  It’s set in London during  World War II, a favorite era and topic for me, and the star of the book is a young lady named Emmeline Lake who wants to be a war correspondent.

Emmy sees a job advertisement for the London Evening Chronicle and sees that as a path to her dream.  Alas, the job available is a typist position for an old bat named Henrietta Bird.   Mrs. Bird is an advice columnist and she’s a tightly wound prude who tosses out letters she deems inappropriate.

The first part sounded promising to me but I couldn’t connect.  It was slow and boring for me. That’s against the grain to what others are saying about this book so I am in the minority.

My Twenty-Five Years in Provence: Reflections on Now and Then.    It’s Peter Mayle’s last book.  This was in the works for publishing before he died in January.  If you have read any of this Englishman’s Ex-Pat literature about his life in Provence and enjoyed it, you will like this book as well.

He reflects on past excursions, how they came to live in France, language lessons, French culture and culinary wonders.  I have read most of his other books, the fiction and the memoirs, and enjoyed them.

While I will say this wasn’t the best of his Provence memoirs it was still lovely to read.  Lost and good photos in this book which will take the armchair traveler to rural parts of France.

Linking up with  Joy’s Book Blog for British Isles Friday

Raven Black by Ann Cleeves

I decided to “visit” the Shetland Islands through Anne Cleeves descriptive prose for my armchair traveling.

Raven Black is the first book in the Shetland series.  This book starts with the introduction of Inspector Jimmy Perez and the murder of a beautiful teen aged girl, Catherine Ross. Seems just about everyone in the small town believes eccentric Magnus Tait is responsible for the murder of Catherine. She was strangled and left in a snowy field near Magnus’ house.
Magnus is clearly a mentally deficient person although capable enough to live on his own. But is he capable of murder?

A young girl named Catriona had disappeared some 10 years earlier and Magnus was their prime suspect. No body was found and he couldn’t be charged. But did he do it? This girl’s disappearance is introduced early in the novel to establish the mistrust of old Magnus as well as give the reader one of many suspects to consider for Catherine’s murder.

In addition to Jimmy Perez we have multiple perspectives. Each chapter gives us a different point of view. Fran Hunter and her ex-husband Duncan who have a young daughter named Cassie. Fran is the one to discover Catherine’s body.
Sally Henry is a teenager, Catherine’s friend and the daughter of a school teacher. It’s very difficult to attend school when your parent is a teacher. Hard to fit in and be trusted. There is Robert, a tall handsome student who Sally is interested in. Robert’s father is a big figure with the upcoming festival Up Helly Aa. We don’t meet Robert’s father but you can tell how important and prestigious it is that Robert is involved in his father’s business and the festival.

There are preparations for Up Helly Aa, something I had to look up because I had no idea what it is. To read about the festival, make travel arrangements to visit and get involved, click HERE.  I added an interesting video at the end of the post explaining Up Helly Aa.

When I grabbed the book at the library and read the flap I wondered how a name such as Jimmy Perez came up on a remote Scottish island. It is explained early on about his ancestor, probably from Spain, shipwrecked near Shetland. I pictured Antonio Banderas so was shocked to see a reddish-brown haired man playing this part on the TV series. I haven’t picked up the series yet, just watched a preview in IMDB.

Anyway, he settled on Fair Isle and generations of Perez families prospered. Jimmy is a good detective and an empathic man and longs for a family life. I like this guy.

The weather is almost a character in its own right. It comes up so much and it’s so very descriptive about the wind, the ice, the snowdrifts, the cold. If you like mysteries and police procedurals this may be a book for you. This one has potential for sure and I already like a few of the characters so I will continue with book 2 next.

Foodie stuff: Stopping at the coffee shop for a mug of milky coffee and a pastry with apricots and vanilla or a slice of chocolate cake. Tea and coffee, lots of it. Drams of whiskey, bottles of wine, toast and jam.

And now for a treat, click below for Learning with Rowan to see what Up Helly Aa is all about. Looks like a fun festival but oh so cold!

Learning with Rowan about Up Helly Aa

Linking up with:
Joy’s Book Blog for British Isles Friday
Heather for her August Foodie Reads

The Dream Daughter by Diane Chamberlain

I’m a sucker for a time travel story and this one grabbed me straight away.  Evidently the author, Diane Chamberlain, doesn’t typically write this style book.  I give her an A+ for this delivery.

Carly Sears has had a lot of heartache in a short period of time.  Her parents were killed in an accident when she was a teenager and so her only family is her sister Patti.  That is established early on so you know what a tight relationship they have.

The book starts off in the 1970’s in North Carolina.  Carly  had recently been told her husband Joe was killed in Vietnam.  Unbeknownst to Joe and Carly, she had conceived and was pregnant when he shipped out.  Now Carly is a pregnant young widow and to top off that pain she learns her baby has a heart condition that is fatal to the newborn, at least it is in 1970.

We start out with Carly as a young physical therapist doing an internship of sorts.  She is the only therapist to connect with a depressed patient named Hunter Poole and this is where her life takes a dramatic turn.  Hunter is from the future but no one knows this yet.  He never wanted anyone to know. Hunter marries Carly’s sister Patti and establishes his life there in North Carolina.  It’s before the cell phones, computers, microwaves and all the modern conveniences we have today.  It’s also a lot less stressful for him.

Once it’s determined through the early development of ultrasound that Carly’s baby will die, he makes the decision to tell her about himself.  He knows if he can get his sister-in-law to the future an operation can be performed on the fetus, thus saving her baby.  Carly would do a time jump from 1970 into New York City in 2001, get the advanced medical help she needs for her unborn child Joanna, then slide on back to her home in 1970 North Carolina.  Easy peasy, right?

Obviously she thinks he has a screw loose as this is an unbelievable story. To convince Carly he isn’t crazy he tells her about the Kent State shooting which will happen in a few days. Everything falls into place for Carly such as the reason he knows the lyrics to Beatles’ songs on the day they are released or how he could know about events before they happened.

A quote from Hunter:  “There were days I missed the comforts of 2018.  I missed my laptop computer and cell phone and the Internet more than anything.  I missed being able to easily communicate with my friends, I missed being able to look up information in seconds.  But 1970 came with a sort of peace I’d never known before………I traded my laptop and cell phone for a hammock and a book.”

Foodie references are not frequent. Fried chicken , ham hocks and butter beans and homemade biscuits. Homemade food, all the time!  But Carly in 2001 will experience Taco Bell for the first time.  Takeaway food, Google searches, iPads, cell phones and more.  Wouldn’t that just blow you away?  It would for me but I can say, there are times I would trade all this for a Norman Rockwell lifestyle that I had growing up in the 50’s and 60’s.

The characters are all likable and that’s a refreshing change from some of the books I have abandoned lately.  There is so much more to the story but I can’t give away any spoilers because this was a fun read.  I hope if you like the time travel element you will check this out.  It’s not all smooth and problem-solved, there are a couple of twists I wasn’t expecting.

My only negative comment is that I think the resolution with Hunter’s mother wasn’t necessary.  Too neatly tied up and frankly didn’t suit her personality.  Yes, you’d have to read it to get a grip on Myra Poole’s character and why I feel this way.

Thanks very much to NetGalley for providing me with this pre-lease copy of the Dream Daughter.  I very much enjoyed it.  Opinions are mine and I was not compensated for this review.

Linking up with Heather’s September Foodie Reads.