Yes, I know it’s already October, but this is written in-between bouts of work and travel. The list below shows that I spent far too much time in airports, on planes and in hotel rooms this past month, as I got a lot of reading done but far less reviewing.
16 books, of which 5 ‘imposed’ for reviews. 8 crime fiction or psychological thrillers. The ones marked with an asterisk are ‘review still to come (hopefully, at some point, in the fullness of time)’.
- Linda Huber: The Attic Room
- Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None
- Tessa Hadley: Everything Will Be All Right*
- Christos Tsiolkas: Barracuda*
- Sophie Divry: Quand le diable sortit de la salle de bain
- Michelle Bailat-Jones: Fog Island Mountains
- Martha Grimes: The Old Silent
- Martha Grimes: Foul Matter
- Martha Grimes: The Case Has Altered
- Martha Grimes: Belle Ruin (the four above were read/reread for a feature on Martha Grimes for Crime Fiction Lover’s Classics in September)
- Fran Pickering: The Cherry Blossom Murder
- David Young: Stasi Child
- Shirley Hazzard: People in Glass Houses*
- Richard Yates: Disturbing the Peace
- Matt Haig: Reasons to Live
- Nicholas Grey: The Wastelanders*
Although I said I would switch to more male writers this month, to make up for an all-female author list during the summer holidays, I ended up with 11 books written by women (albeit 4 of them by the same woman) and only 5 by men. I have a little more testosterone planned for October, as well as more books from Netgalley (where my reviewing percentage has plummeted).
My crime fiction pick of the month is And Then There Were None (still one to beat, and one of my favourite Christies – not just mine, but also one of the world’s favourite Christies), closely followed by Stasi Child. I had some great contenders for literary favourite of the month, with Tessa Hadley, Shirley Hazzard and Tsiolkas all in impressive form, while Richard Yates is one of my old stalwarts. However, Fog Island Mountains beat them all – it really hooked into my heart and dug itself a quiet little place there.
Quite an impressive list of books read, Marina Sofia. And I must say I like it that you had some Grimes and Christie in there 🙂 – I’ve soft spots for both authors. And Then There Were None is one of my top Christies, too!
It’s certainly the one that people seem to remember most – and Murder on the Orient Express. I really had to admire the economy of her style and switching from one voice to another without sounding too similar and yet generic enough that we don’t guess who the killer is.
And Then There Were None is one of my favourite Agatha Christie books of all time. You managed some pretty fine reading in September by the looks of things.
Nothing like lots of time waiting for planes or on planes to speed up your reading…
I’m due to pick up my first Tessa Hadley, ‘The Past’, from the library later in the week. I’ve heard great things about her so am looking forward to what I think is her latest book.
Yes, it is her latest book – she read an extract from it during our lake cruise and it sounds rather intriguing. Let me know what you think of it when you get a chance to read it.
I’m always amazed by the number of books you manage to read…
I’ll check out these books.
Oh, I can recommend Cork O’Connor Mystery series by William Kent Freuger if you like crime/detective fiction. 🙂
I had never heard of Hadley, till another Amazon reviewer, one who regularly comments on my reviews and sometimes picks up on my reccs – as I do on his – reviewed The Past, so I snagged it from Vine, and am slowly and savouringly reading it now. What fine, observant writing. It’s deeply satisfying.