Thursday 27 June 2013

The Blackhouse

The first in a trilogy of crime novels, The Blackhouse takes the reader to the remote Scottish island of Lewis, where a grisly murder has been committed. Forensics show the case is similar to one in Edinburgh so Detective Inspector Fin McLeod is flown in to compare notes.

It’s Fin’s first case back on the job after the accidental death of his little boy, his marriage is falling apart and there’s nothing to keep him in Edinburgh. But Lewis is home to a different set of memories, as this is Fin’s boyhood home, and he hasn’t been back since his teens.

The Blackhouse describes on the one hand a murder investigation, but it also tells the story of Fin’s childhood, and in particular his relationships with his best friend, Artair and his first true-love, Marsaili. The murder victim is the old school bully, a seriously nasty piece of work, so there is no shortage of motives and suspects.  The plot builds to a thrilling climax on the atmospheric setting of An Sgeir, a rocky outcrop home to hundreds of gannets.

Fin is an engaging character – he has been through the mill himself, which makes him interesting, and his maverick inclination to ignore his superiors means you know he will get at the heart of the crime. There is certainly a lot more to be milled here, and it is great to know there are two more novels in the Lewis series.

Posted by JAM

Catalogue Link: The Blackhouse

About the Author

Wednesday 26 June 2013

So Much For That by Lionel Shriver


As we’ve come to expect from New York Times bestselling author Lionel Shriver this is a topical hard-hitting novel in which real life events are scrutinised, lived and revealed. 

In this case set amid the world of retirement funds, life after work and medical insurance in America. Also about life and death and dreams and what becomes of them – living up to its title time and time again. 

Called by some critics a 'rant' at the American health system, government and other things that annoy the author I nevertheless enjoyed it. I thought it was an excellent read and would recommend it.

Posted by Catherine

Catalogue Link: So Much For That

See more about So Much For That on Youtube  www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrLhTpoxwE0

The Hour (Series 1 & 2 on DVD)

Winter is the perfect time to indulge in a spot of quality BBC period drama and the smouldering tensions of The Hour will keep you stuck to the couch, hot drink in hand.

Series One begins in 1956, when journalist Bel Rowley and colleagues assemble to form an innovative current affairs show at the BBC called The Hour. Conflicts arise as journalistic freedom and the desire to deal with topics of intrigue and politics clash with the interests of the government funded broadcaster. While the smooth and charming host, Hector, is in with the Board, Freddie frequently takes the bit between his teeth and tenaciously follows a lead wherever it goes and no matter what danger.

But, of course, it’s not all work. The gorgeous fifties clothing, cinched in waistlines, and traditional social mores emphasise that men and women are different and when thrown together there will always be a little mischief. As a woman of the era, Bel knows that you can’t have it all. She seems content for now to sacrifice her feelings for Freddie for the excitement and fulfilment of her career – and, there are always married men to provide some distraction. The men are, as always, one step ahead in this department.

The Hour is intelligent, entertaining, and great fun to watch and the post-war/Cold War setting provides a plot rich backdrop for the likeable, complex characters. It’s a shame the BBC is not commissioning a third series. Let’s hope they change their minds, as The Hour has been the high point in my TV-watching year!

Posted by Spot


Catalogue link:  The Hour

Thursday 20 June 2013

Sacrilege by S J Parris

Sacrilege is S J Parris’s third Elizabethan novel following the exploits of Italian philosopher Giordano Bruno, taking the reader to cathedral city of Canterbury in 1584. It is midsummer and with the fear of plague in London, many are fleeing for the countryside.

While still in London, Bruno is approached for help by a beautiful woman accused of murder. She is Sophie, whom we met in the first Bruno book, Heresy - a young woman Bruno still carries a torch for. Her much older husband, Edward Kingsley, has been found among Canterbury Cathedral’s cloisters with his head beaten in. If Sophie is caught she will surely be put to death.

Bruno agrees to travel with her to Canterbury to try to clear her name, and at the same time to do a little snooping for Sir Francis Walsingham, spymaster for Elizabeth I. With the threat of plots against the Queen, there is a fear that anti-Protestant factions will start a Catholic rebellion using the cult of Thomas Beckett, murdered in the cathedral four hundred years before. Kingsley’s murder looks disturbingly similar.

Parris brings Elizabethan England to life – the hectic market place, the superstitious townsfolk and the conniving cathedral clerics. As the body count starts to climb, Bruno is kept busy, stealing secret documents, counterfeiting keys and hiding out in the crypt. With the law in the pay of the chillingly suspicious Canon Langworth, it is not surprising that Bruno is arrested and finds himself struggling to save himself from the gallows as well as uncovering the real perpetrator. A ripping good yarn with an ending full of surprises just as one would expect.

Posted by JAM

Catalogue Link: Sacrilege

About the Author

S. J. Parris is the pseudonym of author and journalist Stephanie Merritt.
S J Parris' official website

S J Parris - Sacrilege

Thursday 13 June 2013

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson

Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand is a novel about the trials along the path to true love - in this case between a retired army major of sixty-eight and the Pakistani widow who runs the local shop. It is set in the English village of Edgecombe St Mary, where everybody knows each other and social gatherings centre on the golf club and village church, making it a bit like a modern day version of a Jane Austen novel.

It all begins with the sudden death of the major’s brother, an event that throws Pettigrew into such disarray that he answers the door dressed for dusting in his late wife’s flowery overall. He finds Mrs Ali from the shop on his doorstep, come to collect his newspaper money, and all but collapses on her shoulder with grief. She makes him tea and so begins a wonderful friendship.

Their relationship comes under threat by a number of events, including a plan to build an elitist housing estate; the upcoming golf club ball with its British Raj theme; and Mrs Ali’s difficulties with her nephew, Abdul Wahid, who is helping her with the shop. The major also has problematic relationships with his son and sister-in-law who have high hopes from the sale of the major’s treasured hunting rifles.

The novel is told with delightfully dry humour from the point of view of Major Pettigrew, capturing his old-fashioned, stiff-upper-lip army character but leaving him vulnerable enough to engage the reader’s sympathy. This is a delightful novel, loaded with charm, with a story that twists and turns towards a wonderfully dramatic ending.

Posted by JAM

Catalogue Link: Major Pettigrew's Last Stand

The Shallows by Nicholas Carr

Is Google making us stupid? Carr asked the question in a piece for the Atlantic, causing a flurry of responses as he tapped into anxiety about whether new technology is changing us for the better or worse. In The Shallows, he explores this concern in more depth.

He's obviously been reading up on neuroscience and explains that the brain is like a muscle, which changes depending upon how we use it. This plasticity gives us the edge when it comes to adapting to our environment, but it also involves the pruning of neural connections that aren’t used much. So what is happening to our brains as we surf the net, get distracted by pop-ups, and simultaneously keep an eye on twitter, facebook, and email? Are we getting smarter or are we losing something valuable in the process?

Carr argues that all this endless clicking on hyperlinks is putting us at risk of becoming too easily distracted. The internet is a whole lot of mental noise that encourages us to engage in activities that are shallow with instant pay-offs. The price - a reduced ability to pay sustained attention to tasks needing deep thought or contemplation.

To support this claim, he discusses what has been discovered about the general functioning of the brain. What is lacking, though, is data from research studies that is specific to the use of the internet. This is where the book falters. The research coming out of the neuroscience field does not support Carr’s claim that extensive use of the internet dulls intelligence: if anything, it suggests a possible increase of activity in those areas.

What this book is great at, however, is its exploration of how technology changes human behaviour and culture. Throughout history new technology has spooked many. Jonah Lehrer reports that Socrates bemoaned the invention of the book, while one late nineteenth century physician blamed the “pelting of telegrams” for an outbreak of mental illness. It’s easy to scaremonger.

The Shallows also explores the idea that technology has driven the changes in world view over the centuries and Carr provides eloquent descriptions. How did maps change human thinking? How are the invention of the mechanical clock and the proliferation of the scientific method related? And, is Google the 21st century offspring of the Industrial Age?

This is a stimulating read about the pros and cons of our new techno savvy society. The usefulness of the internet speaks for itself, but Carr does a noble job of reminding us of what may be lost if we don’t guard our cultural heritage. Our brains should be fine; but think twice about handing over reading the 3-year-olds bedtime story to your I-Pad.

Posted by Spot

Catalogue Link:  The Shallows

Wednesday 5 June 2013

Jackdaws by Ken Follett

Did you know that Britain sent fifty women agents into France and Occupied Europe during the second world war? In Jackdaws, Follet honours the memory of these women by writing a fictional story of an all women mission to destroy a target vital to German defences.

Flick is one such agent, surviving against the odds as a British operative in Northern France. The Germans know a Allied attack is inevitable and the Resistance is given the mission to disable a strategic communications facility.

The attack goes drastically wrong and Flick loses both her team and her Resistance fighter husband. Will she be able to regroup, put aside her fears and pull off this vital mission entrusted to her?

With the odds and time against her she assembles a new, untried all-woman team called the Jackdaws; together they will attempt to complete the mission or die trying.

An action packed story with strong woman characters and genuine suspense. 

Posted by Cookie Fan

About the Author
http://ken-follett.com/bibliography/