VivienneR's free and easy winter reading

I've completed my Streets of London category challenge so the rest of the year will be free and easy reading.

Up next:
Person or persons unknown by Bruce Alexander
Virginia Woolf by Nigel Nicolson

Post challenge:
127. Death Cloud by Andrew Lane
128. The Edwardians by Vita Sackville-West
129. The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks
130. Our souls at night by Kent Haruf
131. Whose body? by Dorothy L. Sayers
132. Past reason hated by Peter Robinson
133. Hockey Hero by Zachary Hyman illustrated by Zachary Pullen
134. Mr Churchill's Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal
135. Whiteout by Ken Follett
136. The Greek who stole Christmas by Anthony Horowitz
137. Nigella Christmas : food, family, friends, festivities by Nigella Lawson
138. A Christmas Homecoming by Anne Perry
139. Present Darkness by Malla Nunn
140. The Cinderella Killer by Simon Brett
141. An Irish Country Christmas by Patrick Taylor
142. A Season of Gifts by Richard Peck
143. Sins of the father by Jeffrey Archer
144. The Sin Within Her Smile by Jonathan Gash
145. Christmas at Fairacre by Miss Read
146. Crime at Christmas by C.H.B. Kitchin
147. Best Kept Secret by Jeffrey Archer
148. The Virago book of Christmas edited by Michelle Lovric

Thanks for your tour of London and hope you enjoy the rest of the year.

Happy free reading! Hope to get there soon too myself. :)

Have fun with your free reading! You earned it.

Nice way to end the year! Re your post on Diggers - loved The Agony Column glad to hear you enjoyed it as well.

Hurray, happy free reading! :)

Congrats on completeing your Challenge and enjoy your free reading time.

Happy free reading.

Yay for free reading! Although I will miss seeing the London streets here.

Thanks everyone! I'll miss London too but with all the planning for 2016 I am ready for something different.

The photo header is from a local weather report last year. It looks a lot like that today!

Death Cloud by Andrew Lane
A good YA adventure story, having plenty of frightful and repellent sections, although it was on the far-fetched side. The young Sherlock Holmes develops a friendship with an orphaned street-wise boy who lives on a barge. His American tutor, arranged by Mycroft, has a daughter who provides a mild romantic element. Holmes was captured and knocked out with laudanum, a glaring foreshadowing of future problems. The relationship between this young man and the well-known adult Sherlock Holmes is a tenuous one: I just can't see this boy growing into Conan Doyle's character. Only 3 stars from me but a young reader might enjoy it more.

Love the thread topper image for your free and easy reading thread!

>13 lkernagh: Thanks Lori, I guess that's how it will be for a while.

The Edwardians by Vita Sackville-West

The lush, extravagant lifestyle enjoyed by the upper echelons of society in the Edwardian era was portrayed perfectly in Sackville-West's novel. Hardly surprising that in 1930 it became an overnight success. The setting is Chevron, a parallel for Knole, her family estate presented to Thomas Sackville by Elizabeth I. Sebastian is the character Vita would like to have been: the son who would inherit. Viola, his intelligent, independent sister, more accurately represents Sackville-West, who was desperately disappointed that as a daughter she would not inherit Knole. The Edwardians illustrates the complicated restraints inhibiting choice for Sebastian. His love affairs are thwarted by his status: Sylvia, fun as long as they play by the rules; Mrs Spedding, hampered by middle-class values; and Phil, "the little model he picked up in Chelsea", who was unimpressed by his assets and title. The story ends appropriately at the end of the era, with the intimate details of the pomp and ceremony of King George V's coronation. The story paints a fabulous portrait of the elite society at the beginning of the 20th century, before the Great War, before everything changed forever.

This is an absorbing, entertaining story that provides much insight into the lifestyle restrictions of what seems like a time without limitations. Wonderful, from the opening paragraph to the last, I enjoyed every minute.

>12 VivienneR: I liked that one a bit better than you did, but the audiobook narrator might have given it a boost. I find that I often enjoy an average book better in audio if the narrator is good. I guess their performance is a distraction from some of the minor flaws.

>16 cbl_tn: Maybe I was a bit stingy with my rating. I just couldn't see the young man becoming Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. And in a way I was comparing it with The Beekeeper's Apprentice that I liked a bit better. You are quite right about a good audiobook narrator. They can make or break the experience.

I read an electronic ARC of the second book in the series and I didn't like it as well. That makes me think that the audio format enhanced my perception of the first book.

That's an interesting comparison. I'm not quite sure why, but ebooks are always my last choice. I started a few audiobooks last week, none of which got very far before being abandoned. I was looking forward to the books but the narrators were unbearable. One kept sighing, as if he was really bored.

>19 VivienneR: One kept sighing, as if he was really bored.

Awk! That's terrible.

I find I'm usually happy with audiobook readers, but every once in a while you get one that grates.

>20 Nickelini: It was your positive comments about audiobooks that got me started, Joyce. I've no complaints really, there are so many to choose from and if it's something I really want there is often the print option available.

The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks

This was my first Sparks book. I expected a novel about family relationships, instead it was a romantic story about teenage sweethearts meeting again in later life. There were a few twists in the plot and a hint of the supernatural. The book passed a few hours pleasantly enough.

Another romantic story with a twist:

Our souls at night by Kent Haruf

This story, which was Haruf's last, is heartwarming and moving. It shows our ability to console and be compassionate, even in unexpected situations. In this case an elderly couple come together to enjoy each other's company. It has bittersweet moments, but this story is a perfect jewel.

Whose body? by Dorothy L. Sayers

Unbelievably, this was my third try with Sayers' first Lord Peter Wimsey story. Repeated attempts are only explained because I was curious about how the series started and how the character grew. Although I liked Wimsey and his manservant Bunter, the story was less appealing than I expected - or maybe it was exactly what I expected.

Sorry that one wasn't so great, especially since it's sitting on my shelf. Looks like it can continue to wait.

Others have read and enjoyed it, but you won't miss anything by leaving it on the shelf. Subsequent Lord Peter Wimsey stories are better.

>24 VivienneR: - I tried to read that earlier this year and ended up quitting partway through. I don't think I'll be trying any more anytime soon.

It seems the genre had still to be perfected when Sayers started, but give me Agatha Christie any day.

>24 VivienneR: Sorry you've had such a tough time with that one.

Lori, it wasn't that much of a hardship but I'm glad it wasn't my first Sayers, or I might never have read any others. I still have Gaudy Night on the shelf that I will read sometime. I may have read it years ago, but sufficient time has passed for details to have been forgotten.

Past reason hated by Peter Robinson
Robinson's mysteries are always well-written and this was no exception. He has an excellent character in Banks, and a good supporting crew, although it is debatable if the newest team member, Susan Gay, will survive until the next story. There are many suspects and side stories to add complications and lead the reader astray. Surprisingly, I picked the culprit very early, which is why I downgraded an otherwise 4 star tale to 3.5 stars. If it was obvious to me it should have stood out for Banks too.

And an Early Reviewer book:

Hockey Hero by Zachary Hyman illustrated by Zachary Pullen
Let's face it, we can all use a touch of motivation at some point. In this story Tommy, a shy boy with a stammer, is encouraged by his grandfather to overcome his fear and play on the hockey team. When the team needs him, and with the heroes of the sport in mind, he puts on a brave face and goes out onto the ice. Naturally he is successful. However, after all the accolades I suspect he might go back to his passion of keeping team statistics. No matter, he has proved himself. The illustrations are lively and colourful, just right to accompany the story.

>31 VivienneR: For some reason I got an image of two young men at the end of a line. One introduces himself as a writer and the other states he is an illustrator and thus began a successful collaboration. And all because their names began with Z.

What a great image! All that time spent waiting at the end of the line paid off. Thanks for that, I'll think of it often.

Mr Churchill's Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal

Abandoned! I wanted to like this book. Instead, it was unbearable and promised to continue like that. Many American mystery writers have trouble placing their novels in England. To try for another era, especially one that is well-known, was disastrous.

>31 VivienneR: Hey, I had that same edition of Past Reason Hated! :)

Sorry that Mr Churchill's Secretary didn't work out. I made it to the second book in the series but have not progressed any further, nor do I have any inclination to do so. The protagonist became too weepy and irritating for my tastes.

>35 rabbitprincess: I'm not usually so clever at picking the murderer, who in this case stood out like a sore thumb (to me anyway). Then it became obvious as I kept reading. Still, I'm looking forward to the next one in the series.

I'm surprised you reached the second MacNeal in the series. It seemed obvious how this one was going to play out. I have too many books on the shelf just crying out for my attention - including two more of MacNeal's that will be donated.

Whiteout by Ken Follett

Fast-paced and exciting with some very tense moments brought about by a biological terror threat. The story takes place in Scotland during a Christmas Eve snowstorm. The plot twists held together well even as the unlikely events unfolded. It was lightened in places by some prosaic lines from mother whose first instinct in an emergency is to put the teapot on. A short, fun read.

>36 VivienneR: Unfortunately my American vs. British radar is not as sensitive as I'd like, so a lot of the nuances one would expect to see and/or any inaccuracies perpetrated by the author probably went over my head :(
The solution, I suppose, would be to read (even) more books set in the UK, written by UK writers!

>37 VivienneR: Whiteout is on my to-read list! One of those books I keep seeing but never getting around to. The fact that it's set in Scotland adds to its appeal :)

There are some settings that are always appealing. Scotland tops the list. Somehow it is very fitting for Christmas and New Year stories.

>34 VivienneR: I read an ARC of the second book without reading the first. From what I can tell, I don't think it was much better than the first one. I won't be continuing with the series or going back to read the first book. I've got too many other books I want to read to waste time on a below average series!

>40 cbl_tn: Glad I'm not the only one who feels like that, Carrie. I just wish I'd read some of the reviews here before I acquired the books.

The Greek who stole Christmas by Anthony Horowitz

Tim Diamond is the worst detective. Fortunately he's assisted by his little brother, 13-year-old Nick. Tim has been hired to protect the Greek mega-star Minerva, in London to promote her next album "Like a Virginian" and turn on the Christmas lights on Regent Street. Although some of the jokes are groaners, this is a funny YA tale and I can imagine how much my son at 9 or 10 years old would have chuckled his way through it - in one sitting! I did too.

>42 VivienneR: I put that on my list for when I need a funny Christmas read. Fortunately the public library has a copy.

That's where I got my copy too. Being a short read, I only had it one day so didn't deprive any young person of the fun.

Nigella Christmas : food, family, friends, festivities by Nigella Lawson

A beautiful book that is just right for browsing at this time of year. I've tried a couple of recipes that turned out just as promised. The ingredients for one of the cocktail recipes will be packed as a gift for a friend. This is one Christmas book that will be used all year.

>45 VivienneR: Sounds good! I have a weakness for cookbooks; however, I'm out of space for them. I'm trying to borrow from the library or get the Kindle version when possible and only acquire things that I really will use -- which means I have to peruse them first in a bookstore or via the library. Still -- it's not easy to curb my love for buying them.

I have a weakness for them too. I didn't have a really lovely Christmas cookbook so this one fits the bill.

My choice for December's RandomCAT

A Christmas Homecoming by Anne Perry

In the style of Golden Age mysteries, the setting is a Victorian mansion where family and friends have gathered for Christmas. A young member of the family is presenting a play, an adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula for Christmas entertainment. While a snowstorm rages outside the inevitable happens inside. The story is slowed by much philosophical discussion about vampires and evil. Typical of Perry, a number of the characters are quite unlikeable, but all have resolute Victorian manners. This would have been better as a short story.

Present Darkness by Malla Nunn

It is not possible to say anything negative about this book: it is gripping, credible, well-written, has excellent character portrayal and comes to a resounding conclusion. South Africa of the 1950s is apparent on every page: the people, the dust, the appalling racism, the manners, the language. Reading about something as infuriating as apartheid can be difficult, but I was immediately hooked on the exceptional story.

This was my first Malla Nunn. I hope there are many more. My five star rating is completely warranted.

>49 VivienneR: I've only read the first book in Malla Nunn's series, it's great to know that they are still excellent reads further into the series!

Finally catching up with some of these challenge threads! Congrats on finishing yours, and it looks like you're enjoying your free reading. Just wanted to put in my two cents about the Lord Peter Wimsey series: I wasn't a big fan the first couple times I read Whose Body? either, and I still think it's one of the weakest books. But now that I've gotten a bit further into the series, I'm liking it a lot more! I do totally agree with you about the Maggie Hope series, though -- read the first book and simply didn't care enough to keep going.

>50 DeltaQueen50: I'm going to go back to the first in the series as soon as I clear my current pile of books - that may be a while.

>51 christina_reads: Yes, Sayers had a weak start but she definitely got better. I wasn't put off and am looking forward to more - unlike the Maggie Hope series, which is a write-off for me.

I wonder why none of my covers are showing. Everyone else's seem to be ok.

I have no idea why or when it happened but I've been copying and pasting the wrong code in the URLs for cover images. I've been able to see the images ok - until today. Apologies if they haven't been showing for everyone else. It was easy to fix as it was just the first part of the URL that I needed to change.

That is strange, Vivienne. Up to today I could always see your images, it was just today that they disappeared - but you've fixed whatever the problem was and now they are back again.

I'm glad they were visible, I would have been so embarrassed if they had been absent all year.

I never had a problem seeing your images. On my thread, I've posted pics that will later stop coming up too. I don't know why, other than the original poster may change their coding.
But your pics are showing!

I've had that problem too with images from the internet but not for covers. I've tried to find out where I got the original information, without success. I've just been copying and pasting the same code for a couple of years. I suspect it has something to do with copyright because the correct code I've been advised to use contains "cdn".

I find that the images that disappear most reliably and most often are my own images that I copy from Facebook. They'll stay for a few months and then suddenly they're gone. No copyright issues, no coding changes (that I've done, anyway)

It's all a mystery to me.

I think I've been seeing them ok. They're definitely there now.

I quit Whose Body partway through because I couldn't see why everyone liked Lord Peter Wimsey. But with many of you saying the books get better, I'm thinking I should try again and slog through it so I can go on to others.

>59 Nickelini: Life gets more complicated every day. I can't even find out (here on LT) where I got the original code.

>60 dudes22: I think I discovered and corrected the images quickly enough that most people wouldn't have noticed.

I can understand why you abandoned Whose Body? but don't worry about being a completist, you can safely go on to other Sayers' books that you will enjoy more. The BBC TV series with Edward Petherbridge playing Lord Peter, garnered a lot of fans, including me.

The Cinderella Killer by Simon Brett

Another fun theatrical mystery from Brett, this time with a backdrop of pantomime, the traditional British Christmas entertainment. In this outing an American has the lead thus providing an excuse to explain the unvarying rules of pantomime. I enjoy how Charles Paris throws in excerpts from reviews of his previous performances, rarely positive.

An Irish Country Christmas by Patrick Taylor

Christmas and my country of origin, Northern Ireland - for me a perfect combination of comfort reading. This is a charming retrospective on Northern Ireland in the early 1960s as Dr. Laverty hopes his girlfriend Patricia will be able to come home from Cambridge for Christmas. I particularly enjoyed the times when Taylor mentioned places I know well or used phrases I haven't heard for years - and sometimes fictitious place names that are suspiciously like the real ones. I imagine this is how someone from the Yorkshire dales felt when reading the similarly-themed yarns from veterinarian James Herriot.

>63 VivienneR: I've read several of the Irish Country Doctor series books, but far from all of them. I'm glad to know that someone from there appreciated it.

>62 VivienneR: Going on my list- I have heard about the Christmas pantos, but really don't get it. Plus, Brett is the current head of the Baker Street Irregulars.

>64 thornton37814: It may be a long time before I read another one, it would be like having too much cake.

>65 mstrust: Pantos are different to any other kind of theatre, fun for children as well as adults. I didn't know that fact about Brett. Actually I don't know anything about him but I've always liked the Charles Paris books.

A Season of Gifts by Richard Peck

Set in 1958, a minister and his family moved to a new town presumably in search of a church with a big enough congregation to provide a living. School life is especially tough for "preacher kids". The next door neighbour, an eccentric old woman who is scary at first, turns out to be protector and friend. 'Tweens would enjoy this heartwarming story starting in late summer and winding up at Christmas. My favourite character was little sister Ruth Ann, an old lady in the making.

I enjoy Peck's books. I laughed and cried through A Long Way From Chicago.

I'll look out for that one, mamzel.

Best wishes for a great new challenge in 2016!

>70 mysterymax: Thank you, I wish the same to you.

The Sins of the father by Jeffrey Archer

This is the second episode in the family saga, the Clifton chronicles. It is told in the voices of various characters, thus providing coverage from all angles so that we understand their experiences and opinions. There is no doubt that Archer can write well; he can also deliver a dramatic, suspenseful page-turner.

My copy is an audiobook, a medium well-suited to Archer's novels.

Enjoyed this so much I have already started on the third book in the series, Best Kept Secret.

The Sin Within Her Smile by Jonathan Gash

Bidding is brisk when Lovejoy is on the block at a charity auction as "Slave for a Day". The job entails more than expected and despite argument, he must accompany a group of patients from a psychiatric unit to Wales in horse-drawn caravans. The information about antiques and forgeries is fascinating as usual. What I enjoy less is the style of writing that I find choppy and laden with colloquialisms, making it difficult to comprehend in places. Disappointing.

>72 VivienneR: I used to be o love Jeffrey Archer but I haven't read him in years. I'll have to keep an eye out for that series.

I haven't read any of the Lovejoy books, but I love the TV series!

Carrie, I'm sure you would enjoy Archer. The Clifton Chronicles deal with all the topics Archer is known for: he is a member of the House of Lords, was an elected politician, spent time in prison (perjury) and studied at Oxford. The first in the series is based on his own life story.

I enjoyed the Lovejoy TV series too. That's why I started picking up the books, but they vary so much. I'd say I have enjoyed alternate reads, which doesn't say a lot for Gash.

Finally getting caught up here.

>45 VivienneR: - I do love it when a recipe turns out as expected. Of course, that might happen more frequently if I didn't always adjust the recipes without even knowing if they work or not. ;-) I love cookbooks. Especially when they have a bunch of pictures. Then they are foodie eye candy.

I am another one who has enjoyed watching the Lovejoy TV series, but have never read any of the stories. That seems to be normal for me. Either I watch the shows or read the books.... never both, but I am intrigued by your comment that the books vary a great deal from the shows.

Glad to see you back Lori. I'm sure it will be some time to recover fully. A low-key Christmas is just what you need.

I love cookbooks too and I am like you, I always change ingredients, amounts and so on. My recipes rarely turn out the same twice in a row :)

I imagine the character of Lovejoy to be the actor who played the part in the series. He was well chosen. My gripe with the books - well with this one in particular - is that I had trouble following the story. There was one whole page where I was lost. I asked my husband to read it and he had no idea what the author was talking about either. I quite enjoyed the last Lovejoy I read.

Merry Christmas to all my LT buddies. It's been a great year with you all. Here is a full moon to show the way for Santa!

Merry Christmas, Vivienne!

Stopping by to wish you the very best this holiday season, Vivienne!

Merry Christmas Vivienne!

Haven't finished yet, but of the 145 books read so far, these are the ones that rated or :

Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx
Selections from the Diary of Samuel Pepys by Samuel Pepys
The Nine Tailors : changes rung on an old theme, in two short touches and two full peals by Dorothy L. Sayers
To Fetch a Thief by Spencer Quinn
Stiff : The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach
A Daughter's Tale : the memoir of Winston and Clementine Churchill's youngest child by Mary Soames
Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner
The Story of Lucy Gault by William Trevor
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
The Guards by Ken Bruen
Ex Libris : Confessions of a common reader by Anne Fadiman
Miss Mapp by E.F. Benson
Clara Callan by Richard B. Wright
Eating Dirt by Charlotte Gill
A Month in the Country by J.L Carr
A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson
The Edwardians by Vita Sackville-West
Our souls at night by Kent Haruf
Present Darkness by Malla Nunn

Thank you RP, Lori and Betty. I hope you had as much fun as I did today.

Christmas at Fairacre by Miss Read

Three mild stories with a Christmas setting. It's difficult to comprehend how, in The Christmas Mouse, grandmotherly Mrs Berry sent a nine-year-old boy to walk 3 miles home alone in the middle of the night.

>45 VivienneR:
I love Nigella - I can't remember any of her recipes every having been a failure for me.

Taking bookbullets for Malla Nunn.

Another Nigella fan. Her recipes have a more home-cooking style that I like.

I hope you enjoy Malla Nunn as much as I did.

I need to get back to re-reading the Miss Read books. I got through the 2nd or 3rd one before I got distracted by things I haven't read. I haven't started looking for my top books of the year yet, but I'll do that in a few days.

I enjoyed another Miss Read book previously, but not so much this time. I've come to the conclusion that Christmas books are difficult for a writer to pull off.

I'll watch for your best of the year list and hope for some BBs.

Crime at Christmas by C.H.B. Kitchin

Malcolm Warren, stockbroker, celebrates Christmas at a grand home in Hampstead with a client's family. By morning, the secretary's mother has fallen to her death onto the balcony of his room. Before Christmas is over, Warren discovers another body. Kitchin's story, written in 1934 is a jewel from the Golden Age. In this one the narrator provides all the clues and his opinions, with the police doing all the detecting in the background. Warren is a personable young man surrounded by a suspicious crowd, all of whom I suspected at some point. With the expected surprise ending this was fun to read. The imagined conversation between the narrator and the reader at the end tied up all loose ends and was inventive if unconventional, but better than some of Hercule Poirot's lengthy explanations.

The witty, scholarly Kitchin was a one-time stockbroker until he inherited a fortune allowing him to concentrate on writing. The atmosphere he creates in his stories is credited to his own eccentric personality.

I enjoyed this book, my second by Kitchin, and will look for more by the author.

Best Kept Secret by Jeffrey Archer

This one got off to a slow start with a detailed account of an election. Interesting in a way, but it slowed the story. There was less suspense and then just as excitement built, another cliffhanger ending. Let's hope the library has a copy of the next in the series on the shelf.

>90 VivienneR: Fingers crossed for you!

The Virago book of Christmas edited by Michelle Lovric

This is a treasure, an anthology that I will return to every Christmas for favourites. Lovric has collected excerpts, stories and poetry, all on the topic of Christmas, from women authors of all genres, all eras. There is a brief introduction to each of the more than 50 authors, who include familiar names like Vera Brittain, Agatha Christie, Charlotte Brontē, Emily Dickinson, Sue Townsend, as well as lesser-known names. The seduction was immediate when I read the first piece by Moira Andrew in the form of a letter from Mary to Miriam describing the birth in modern parlance. An excerpt:

    & what about
those Kings, Miriam? Kneeling
there in their rich robes
and all? & me in nothing but
my old blue dress! Joseph
said not to worry, it was
Jesus they'd come to see.
Real gentlemen they were.
But what funny things to
give a baby - gold & myrrh
& frankincense. That's men
all over! It wouldn't cross
their minds to bring a shawl!

>92 VivienneR: I'm glad I'm not the only one finishing up Christmas reads after Christmas. We haven't hit Epiphany yet so I think they still qualify.

I'm off to party now so this is my last post for 2015!

Happy New Year to everyone!

Woo hoo! Party on! See you in 2016!