Troubled Blood / The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith

 

 

These are books five, six and seven in the Cormoran Strike series by Robert Galbraith.*  These books just keep getting better.  And longer!

I won't get into the plots here, but I will say if you are looking for a series that is set in London, has a curmudgeonly protagonist who is brilliant and troubled, and who runs a Private Investigator firm to help people solve problems/murders/brainwashing/online bullying/infidelity etc, and whose staff includes a smoke stack secretary who tells it like it is, a Scottish jokester who keeps everyone in stitches (not literally), a partner who is switched on, brave and unlucky in love, and clients who are decidedly, well, weird, this series is for you.  So well written, complex, yet full of heart.  Cormoran is a vet, a former police officer, and the illegitimate son of a famous rock star who never claimed him (until Corm got famous too).  Family dynamics here are dysfunctional at best, but that only adds to Strike's charm.  His partner Robin literally blows in on the wind, and they become best friends.  Read what you will into that relationship.  Slow burn indeed.  

The series starts with The Cuckoo's Calling.  I do think it is best to read them in order.  The Ink Black Heart was definitely the hardest to follow; I started reading and listening to the audiobook in tandem to help me get through it.  I love the audio versions here, the actor is SO good that the new TV show hired him to be in the show (called Strike, on streaming services like Prime and Hulu).  I love this series and anxiously await the next time I can jump into Corm and Robin's lives!!

* If you don't know, Galbraith is a pseudonym for another famous writer, JK Rowling.  No magic in these books, except the magic of reading a great story with great characters.  Magic does exist in these pages!!  :-)

     

Hostage by Clare Macintosh

 

I loved the first of Mackintosh's books I read - or, actually, listened to - I Let You Go.  The dual  narration on that one was divine.  And the twists!!  

Enter Hostage.  I read the physical book this time.  I had picked it up a few months ago but put it back down;  I didn't want to read about a potential hijacking situation right before Christmas.  But, I picked it up again a few weeks ago and could not put it down!  Timing is everything.  Which is exactly what Mina learns.

A flight attendant who apparently had a panic attack in pilot school, she and her husband adopted a daughter who they struggle with.  Her husband is keeping secrets, and when Mina discovers this, she secretly arranges to be assigned to a 20 hour flight to Australia to have time away.  Then, she gets a note on board.  

Do what we say and your daughter will live.

What she does next, and next and next, and what Adam does in reaction to his own situation with their troubled daughter back home will leave you on the edge of your seat.  There is a lot rolled into this novel that I won't mention here.  The slow reveal is part of the delight.  Mackintosh is a great writer; she will lead you down one mental path only to throw light on a situation that you didn't even know you were in the dark about.  Literally, what a ride!!!  Do NOT, I repeat, do NOT read the last page (Anne, I am looking at you).  I promise, it will be worth it.

The Women by Kristin Hannah

 

Here it is.  My favorite book of the year, so far.

I gave it five stars.  Was it a perfect book?  No.  The ending wasn't what I wanted it to be, but it was a good ending for Frankie.  She goes through SO MUCH in this book that it almost becomes distracting.

But, let me back up.  What is it about this book that was good?  

It is rare.

First, it is about Veterans.  Vietnam Veterans.  So it is set in the late sixties/early seventies.

Second, it is brutal.  Scenes of the horrors of war are not softened, but they are viewed through the eyes of Frankie, a combat nurse who sees what comes into the makeshift hospitals.  No battle scenes, but still.

Third, it hits head on the prejudice of America during those years.  Against Veterans, against women, against the War.  

My dad was in Vietnam when I was born.  He missed the birth of his first child serving his country in the Air Force.  He doesn't talk about Vietnam, though.  Ever.  Is that because I haven't asked??  Maybe.

This book asks.  Tells.  Reports.  On one woman's experience through war, discrimination, loss, hatred, PTSD....and also love, deep friendship, and survival.  There are times of despair, but Frankie clings to hope, and does that Oh So Hard Thing - asks for help.  Her best friends Barb and Ethel are amazing supports - if you have a friend like that, call them today.  Her conflicted family wavers between confusion and hurt that she goes to war and concern for her wellbeing. 

My book club will be discussing this book in April.  I can't wait.  We read a lot of historical fiction, but never about THIS war.  I was fascinated, and as usual, Kristin Hannah did a lot of research.   It shows.

   

PS - I have not written any reviews in the last 9 months, we have been giving birth if you will to a new restaurant 30 minutes from our house.  So while I have been reading, and mostly listening to, books,  I have neglected this blog.  I can't promise I will again become regular - that worked for what, two weeks?  HAHA!  But, this book I had to put out in the universe.  It is worth the time and effort.  

The Veil Between Worlds by Hope Carolle

 

Time Travel!!

Did I scare you away already?  

I picked this little gem up at my Local - Park Road Books.  The author is a Local too, and the store was hosting an author event that I planned to go to but ended up missing, dangit.  I was really looking forward to meeting her!  And I love to support local writers.

Plus, this was a good read!!

A newly single Professor of Middle English visits her college roommate in England with her two small daughters while trying to avoid her friend's brother, her old college boyfriend.  Of course, that all goes awry when he shows up, in manacles, and says "Follow me, I can explain why I left you with no word all those years ago!!"

Cue the Labyrinth that takes them and a friend back to 1344, and the founding of the Order of the Garter, and Edward III.

There is a bit of romance here, but not too much.  The focus is on our heroine, Ellie, trying to get back to her time and her children left behind, while also being fascinated by what she is hearing, seeing and eating!  The detail here is stellar (although the book had some editorial/spelling errors that drove me crazy - what WAS Ellie's husband's name? He is Alex on page 13 but Tom on pages 146/198) right down to the clothes, the castles, and the lavish meals and servant life.   The story was very engaging and gave me a very satisfying if not completely tied up ending, which is ok.  

A pretty quick but not too light read.  The author has started a series with this book, but I was surprised to learn that the Ladies of the Labyrinth are each different stories, with travel back to different times; the books are not otherwise connected.  Interesting!  HOPEfully I will get another chance to meet Hope Carolle one day! 

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

 

This book made me crazy.  And not in a good way.  It definitely has its redeeming points, and there is a nice ending.  But it jumps all over the place timewise and I had a hard time keeping up with all the characters.  For one character, we never even get a name.  I had one "twist" if you can call it that figured out pretty soon.  (Granted, there is another part of the book that I did not see coming that is subtle and I actually didn't like it, but there ya go.  Other readers thought it was brilliant; I was annoyed.  Haha!)

Basically, a bank robber fails to rob the bank and panics and runs into an apartment building and ends up in the middle of an open house for an apartment that is for sale and takes all the people in attendance hostage.

Accidentally.  

So then the rest of the novel takes us down several tangents as we get to know all the hostages' back stories and it did not make for fun reading for me.  There were so many connections and subplots it was like the author couldn't really figure out what the story was about.  It was about too many people.  At the end I can see where Backman was trying to go, but this is definitely not my favorite of his novels.  He seems to like to write about unhappy people, and yes, most of them end up happier by the end, but I was not one of them.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris

Historical fiction lovers, here's one for you!

This is a relatively short book, and an important story.  Based on a real person and his experiences in Auschwitz, it is a story of survival, and how you can take a horrible situation and try to do some good anyway.  There is a love story at its heart, but this is a perspective that has been missing.  I do agree with some other reviewers on Goodreads that the novel itself is a bit dry, as the author takes a factual rather than emotional approach to recounting Lale's experiences.  But I am not sure I could have handled the subject matter as well if there was too much more emotion added. Terrible things happen in front of Lale's eyes, and I actually think that approach helped this story BE approachable.  It is educational, important to remember, and leaves you feeling some hope for the world.  This is not at the level of Unbroken, but this was a good book to read and be reminded that the human spirit can prevail in the face of evil and tragedy.  I don't think I will go on to read the spin off about a side character, I think this was enough for me.  I am glad I read it, but don't feel the need to read the next one too.  

The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise by Colleen Oakley

 

I love going to author events and meeting the people behind the stories.

A few weeks ago, I met Colleen Oakley at my local bookstore.  She was in conversation with my fav local author, Kimmery Martin, whom I now call friend.  Lucky me!!  Colleen practically met us at the door and I felt like I'd bumped into a friend.  She had her mom and her sister with her, and told us how the Louise of this novel was inspired by her own grandmother.

And there, the sweetness ends.

What a ride!  This was just a delightful read, with twists and turns and assumptions and banter - and another story of a found family.  I love that kind of story!!  Tanner is an angry and uncertain and unlucky 21 year old college dropout (not her fault, she had straight A's and a scholarship!!) who is forced to move home and get a job.  Louise is a highly independent octogenarian who slips on a rug - once - and her daughter insists she find a "nanny."

So Tanner goes to live with Louise.  While their relationship is quite frosty at first, something happens that forces them to trust and depend on each other as they embark on the adventure of a lifetime.

Oakley's descriptions of the anger and confusion of a young adult are spot on, as well as that youngster's own realization that she is angry for no reason and cannot help it. Great insight.  But even better was the mother daughter scene at the end - totally slayed me!!!! I loved the chapter titles, very helpful and quirky, when she used them.

This story did not go in the direction I thought it would.  But it does ask a very pointed question about women's lives these days.  Some great quotes throughout this novel, and winks to women.  This is super fun reading, with depth and some great commentary on the Lives of Women, Then and Now, and how maybe they aren't so different after all.  I loved how it ended (again, not what I thought) and now I want to go back and read more Colleen Oakley (The Invisible Husband of Frick Island was another good one of hers that I have read).  This is a great book for summer vacation reading, or when you need a fast paced semi-light read.  Plus, what a fun cover!!!