Reading Challenge 2024

[threespires]

Excuse my ignorance, but who’s the short-arsed one? Perot? Follett? Somebody else? and what’s the story?

Sorry, I was referring to Ross Perot. I think of myself as a short-arse but he was about 3-4 inches shorter than me! Story not particular exciting, he'd come to rally the troops at a project that wasn't going that well but was really important to them. He was going round glad handing their management team and warmly shook my hand and asked me how it was going. Before I had the chance to answer one of his managers explained that I wasn't a PS guy I was one of the people brought in to undertake an independent review of some of the challenged areas. For the briefest of moments he looked like he wanted to punch me but then became smilely again and moved on to the next person.

 

[SWP's back]

I'm a bit late to the party this year, but here goes with my completed books so far this year.

1. Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch. 7/10.

I enjoyed the book. The characters were engaging, and the mystery quite ingenious, but for me, the story was quite convoluted and I lost the plot near to the end of the book. That might have been my fault though, due to other distractions.

Not my favourite genre though, and I don't think I'll be following the series.

2. The Racketeer - John Grisham. 5/10.

I've read a lot of Grisham and enjoyed his early stuff like The Firm, The Pelican Brief, A Time to Kill etc. But this was just a little too predictable and the outcome very convenient, with everyone living happily ever after, except for the double-crossing FBI. I can't imagine picking up another Grisham for some time.

3. Orphan X - Gregg Hurwitz. 9/10.

The best book I've read for a while (well, audiobook listened to). The dedication of this book says "To all the bad boys and girls, rulebreakers and vigilantes", and lists a whole host of them. Evan Smoak is in the mould of Jason Bourne.

Smoak is required to protect a succession of clients, whilst at the same time he is aware of a serious threat to his own life. His adversary is an assassin, and the winner becomes the world's best assassin.

The duality of man.

I enjoyed The Racketeer but thought Orphan X was one of the worst books I’ve read in the last few years. As an example, I found the descriptions of the various fighting blocks and attacks to be so OTT as to be laughable along with the description of the vodka etc etc.

It just rang, to me, as being a book written by someone with an over reliance on google in place of a talent for narrative. I usually read books in a few days and this one took me a couple of weeks as I found it hard to persevere with more than one chapter at a time.

But some people loved Act of Oblivion which I thought was very “meh” and I’m sure I’ve enjoyed more than a few books that some on here found terrible, so I’m certainly not criticising you or your taste.

Re Grisham, I do enjoy his books and have read virtually all of them but he does sometimes seem to end his books very quickly as if he’s in a hurry and they don’t always leave a warm fuzzy feeling.

 

[RobMCFC]

1. Cunning Folk – Adam L.G. Nevill - 8/10
2. Bad Apples – Will Dean – 7/10
3. The Winter Road – Adrian Selby – 6/10
4. The Dark Place – Damian Vargas – 9/10
5. Act of Oblivion – Robert Harris – 7/10
6. The Tyranny of Faith – Richard Swan – 7/10
7. The Game – Micah Richards – 8/10
8. The Ticket Collector from Belarus – Mike Anderson and Neil Hanson – 8/10
9. The Satsuma Complex – Bob Mortimer – 6/10
10. Notes on an Execution – Danya Kukafka – 9/10
11. And Away … – Bob Mortimer – 7/10
12. Dead Man's Blues - Ray Celestin – 8/10

I had to check on my Kindle purchases for the date, but it was way back in 2015 when I read The Axeman’s Jazz by Ray Celestin. Inspired by a true story, it’s set in 1919 New Orleans where jazz is on the rise and the mob rules the city. The Axeman in question promises to spare from murder anybody who plays jazz when he’s on a spree.

I remember it being a great read, and whilst I am usually pretty good at keeping an eye out for series that I enjoy, I thought this was a standalone. Imagine my surprise when I saw an advert for the final book in the “City Blues Quartet”!

Dead Man’s Blues moves the action to Chicago in the late 1920s prohibition era, and once again, Pinkerton detectives Ida Davis and Michael Talbot are on the trail of a killer. Rum-runner Dante Sanfelippo has been called back to Chicago to help Al Capone uncover a traitor and once again, Louis Armstrong makes a few appearances.

Louis Armstrong – in the book, a friend of Ida – can feel a bit shoe-horned in at times, but Ray Celestin has explained that he wanted to write stories that charted the rise of the mob and the birth of jazz. I don’t know anything about jazz, but it’s clear the author loves it and on the whole, he’s successful in weaving real-life and fictional events into a compelling tale. It’s a bit like Boardwalk Empire except on the page, and apparently Louis Armstrong and Al Capone did cross paths several times.

The writing is excellent throughout and the characters are nicely fleshed out and feel realistic. In this book, Dante has a great backstory and it’s interesting to see how his character develops as the book progresses.

Highly recommended, and I’ll be picking up books 3 and 4 in due course.

 

[threespires]

1. Cunning Folk – Adam L.G. Nevill - 8/10
2. Bad Apples – Will Dean – 7/10
3. The Winter Road – Adrian Selby – 6/10
4. The Dark Place – Damian Vargas – 9/10
5. Act of Oblivion – Robert Harris – 7/10
6. The Tyranny of Faith – Richard Swan – 7/10
7. The Game – Micah Richards – 8/10
8. The Ticket Collector from Belarus – Mike Anderson and Neil Hanson – 8/10
9. The Satsuma Complex – Bob Mortimer – 6/10
10. Notes on an Execution – Danya Kukafka – 9/10
11. And Away … – Bob Mortimer – 7/10
12. Dead Man's Blues - Ray Celestin – 8/10

View attachment 87902

I had to check on my Kindle purchases for the date, but it was way back in 2015 when I read The Axeman’s Jazz by Ray Celestin. Inspired by a true story, it’s set in 1919 New Orleans where jazz is on the rise and the mob rules the city. The Axeman in question promises to spare from murder anybody who plays jazz when he’s on a spree.

I remember it being a great read, and whilst I am usually pretty good at keeping an eye out for series that I enjoy, I thought this was a standalone. Imagine my surprise when I saw an advert for the final book in the “City Blues Quartet”!

Dead Man’s Blues moves the action to Chicago in the late 1920s prohibition era, and once again, Pinkerton detectives Ida Davis and Michael Talbot are on the trail of a killer. Rum-runner Dante Sanfelippo has been called back to Chicago to help Al Capone uncover a traitor and once again, Louis Armstrong makes a few appearances.

Louis Armstrong – in the book, a friend of Ida – can feel a bit shoe-horned in at times, but Ray Celestin has explained that he wanted to write stories that charted the rise of the mob and the birth of jazz. I don’t know anything about jazz, but it’s clear the author loves it and on the whole, he’s successful in weaving real-life and fictional events into a compelling tale. It’s a bit like Boardwalk Empire except on the page, and apparently Louis Armstrong and Al Capone did cross paths several times.

The writing is excellent throughout and the characters are nicely fleshed out and feel realistic. In this book, Dante has a great backstory and it’s interesting to see how his character develops as the book progresses.

Highly recommended, and I’ll be picking up books 3 and 4 in due course.

They look really interesting, have just bought the first one!

 

[RobMCFC]

They look really interesting, have just bought the first one!

Yeah, I thought you might like it :)

 

[richardtheref]

The 6th Wicked Child - J D Barker 4/5

For fans of Chris Carter, Jeffery Deaver. 3rd in the 4MK series. All 3 have been absolutely brilliant

 

[RobMCFC]

As I nominated On Wings of Eagles by Ken Follett, two people were interested and there were no other suggestions, I've made it the Q3 group read.

 

[Paladin]

1. Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch. 7/10.
2. The Racketeer - John Grisham. 5/10.
3. Orphan X - Gregg Hurwitz. 9/10.
4. The Longest Kill - Craig Harrison. 8/10.
5. Notes on an Execution - Danya Kukafka. 8/10.
6. The Satsuma Complex - Bob Mortimer. 7/10.
7. The Garderobe of Death - Howard of Warwick - 6/10.
8. A Village in the Third Reich - Julia Boyd, Angelina Patel - 9/10.
9. Three Days in June - James O'Connell - 9/10.

I remember a guy came into the office in 1982 and casually announced that the country was at war. Nobody had even heard of the Falkland Islands at the time. That changed overnight.

This is a brilliant reconstruction of one of the decisive battles towards the end of the war, and was in effect Argentina's last stand. Both sides fought bravely, and this tells the tale from the perspective of British soldiers of 3 Para, with some contributions from Argentinian soldiers.

As the book plays out, you get caught up in the bravery, courage, fear, anxiety, sadness, helplessness - so many emotions - of the participants in the war. You are left with a huge sense of admiration and respect for them all. Many people contribute to this account, including civilian guides, doctors and medics, chaplains, soldiers from seventeen year old privates through to majors and battle commanders. The book also evokes a very real sense of sadness, as we follow the life-changing injuries and deaths of some who made the ultimate sacrifice for their friends, Queen and country.

The book is in eight chapters, each telling the story from start to finish (surrender, through to advance into Port Stanley) of different platoons within 3 Para, including supporting units and medical and evacuation units.

There is real sadness when popular soldiers are injured, anxious as their colleagues try desperately to treat them and keep them alive, then deliver them to medical units. Later the same soldiers are brought to the medics, treated, sometimes evacuated to hospital ships, other times lost. Then you hear from another soldier how he learns of the death of his close mate, and he manages to spend a few minutes with the body, paying respects, praying for his soul.

The author fought in this war, and decided to put together a comprehensive record, having read many incomplete or inaccurate accounts. This is truly as comprehensive an account as you will get of a hard-fought, bloody battle. If there is a criticism, it is that some of the acronyms used aren't always explained, but that is an insignificant gripe, and it doesn't detract from the enjoyment of the book in any way.

I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in military history.

 

[Paladin]

1. Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch. 7/10.
2. The Racketeer - John Grisham. 5/10.
3. Orphan X - Gregg Hurwitz. 9/10.
4. The Longest Kill - Craig Harrison. 8/10.
5. Notes on an Execution - Danya Kukafka. 8/10.
6. The Satsuma Complex - Bob Mortimer. 7/10.
7. The Garderobe of Death - Howard of Warwick - 6/10.
8. A Village in the Third Reich - Julia Boyd, Angelina Patel - 9/10.
9. Three Days in June - James O'Connell - 9/10.
10. The Guv'nor - Lenny McLean - 10/10.

Superb book (audiobook version) finished in about five days. I kept finding more and more gardening jobs, and errands to run, so that I could continue to listen to Lenny's life story. Or stories. He seemed to have endless anecdotes and tales from an adventurous life. An excellent autobiography - never a dull moment.

Lenny's is a life and lifestyle totally alien to me. Brought up by a physically abusive step-father, who married his mother when his father died young, Lenny learned at a very early age to absorb physical pain such that it never bothered him. The system was never really for the likes of Lenny, so in adult life, he pretty much entered the underworld of protecting, avenging, street fighting, bare knuckle fighting and unlicensed boxing. He became the undisputed Guv'nor of his manor (in London), then London, then probably the UK. He even went to New York to fight and beat the Mafia's own champion.

What makes Lenny endearing though is that he wasn't a bully. He was never abusive or violent towards his family. He claims he didn't pick on innocents or "straights". He did dispense his own violent form of justice though, towards those who didn't recognise the authority of the Old Bill. He hated the police, but he tells how he rescued a young police woman who was being unfairly bullied by a gang of yobs.

His violence sometimes went too far, and he would end up in trouble with the law. He was no stranger to the inside of a prison cell or a hospital ward.

A lovable rogue. He died before his 50th birthday from cancer.

A rare 10/10 from me. Not a book of epic ambition, but a really absorbing life story, and a genuine page turner (or audio equivalent).

 

[stoneblue]

Way behind with my updates......

17/23 The Enigma of Room 622 - Joel Dicker



I bought this book on a whim as it was 99p for the Kindle and I enjoyed one of the author’s other books "The Truth about the Harry Quebert Affair" sometime ago.

It all starts with an innocuous curiosity: at the Hotel de Verbier, a luxury hotel in the Swiss Alps, there is no room 622. This anomaly piques the interest of Joël Dicker, Switzerland's most famous literary star, who flees to the Verbier to recover from a bad breakup, mourn the death of his publisher, and begin his next novel.
He and a companion discover that there is no longer a Room 622 because of an unsolved murder that occurred in the room over a Gala Weekend of a Swiss Bank some years before.

Not only does the author tell the underlying story but also the story of how he wrote it. There’s a lot of toing and froing between timelines, which can be confusing especially as the book runs to over 570 pages!

I’d rate this as a decent holiday read, no more. Quirky

18/23 Bitter Wash Road - Garry Disher



Decent Aussie thriller from a well respected author. First (of 4 to date) in the Paul Hirschausen series. Constable Paul Hirschausen is a recently demoted detective sent from Adelaide to Tiverton a one-road town 3 hours north. He is still dealing with the fallout from his demotion, following an internal affairs investigation, when the body of a 16 year old girl is found by the roadside.

An enjoyable read, will definitely continue with the series and look for other books by this author.

Aka “Hell to Pay”

19/23 Red Dirt Road - S R White



More Aussie noir....this is the 3rd book by this writer.

In a small one pub town deep in the outback, two men are murdered one month apart. Detective Dana Russo is flown in from hundreds of miles away to investigate. There are no witnesses, no obvious motives and no apparent connection between the killings. The whole town of 50 persons are suspects and Dana has been set up to fail.

Another good read, for me not quite at the level of Jane Harper or Chris Hammer but definitely a writer to look out for.