What are you reading the week of November 24, 2018?

I managed to remember this week. I'm about halfway through The Amarna Letters which is interesting in a strange sort of way. I'm in the middle of a sequence of letters from two kings in the area of modern day Lebanon and Syria. They are both vassals of the Egyptian King, but they are at war with each other. Both sides write to the Pharaoh to explain how the other king is a lying, treasonous scoundrel. Given the contents of the messages, the Pharaoh clearly favors one king over the other.

Thanks for starting us out, Fred. Happy Booksgiving!

I got some books from my Young Gentleman Caller as he left for his annual winter-sports vacation. I've started Captain Alatriste.

I'm finishing up The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.

I'm also reading a few dinosaurs a day from The World of Dinosaurs: And Other Prehistoric Life by Dougal Dixon for an alphabet challenge.

I just finished listening to the moving, poignant novel, The Winter Soldier.

Next up for listening is The Book of Essie by Meghan MacLean Weir.

Still reading Thief of Time, The Dying Detective, and The Reality Dysfunction.

Continuing to enjoy this OverDrive audiobook ~

Lies She Told by Cate Holahan

(psych thriller/reality vs. fiction/Liza is an author/Beth is the main character in the novel Liza is writing)

Happy belated Thanksgiving, everybody, and happy weekend.

Yesterday I finally started a baseball autobiography I've been wanted to read for a long time: Hank Greenberg: the Story of My Life by Hank Greenberg with Ira Berkow.

Really enjoying Mason's Retreat by Christopher Tilghman.

The Ruins – Scott B Smith
3***

From the book jacket: The Ruins follows two American couples, just out of college, enjoying a pleasant, lazy beach holiday together in Mexico as, on an impulse, they go off with newfound friends in search of one of their group – the young German, who , in pursuit of a girl, has headed for the remote Mayan ruins, site of a fabled archeological dig.

My reactions:
I read Smith’s earlier novel A Simple Plan, which was a great novel full of psychological nuance, family drama and several twists and turns. I didn’t see the same level of writing with this book.

On the plus side, the action moves fairly quickly, though it does start off slowly. Smith provides some chilling scenes that simply made my skin crawl (even as I’m typing this review, I get chills thinking about some of the episodes).

On the other hand, this group of young “adults” is uniformly unlikeable. Well, maybe Jeff and Mathias are okay; they at least try to better their situation, to plan for survival and eventual rescue. Eric, on the other hand, is an idiot who would rather drink himself into a stupor. And both girls are whiny and selfish. Why Smith chose to include Pablo (who is actually Greek, but no one understood his name when he introduced himself so they call him Pablo) in the mix is beyond me. Unless it was to give the “horror” another victim … and what happens to Pablo IS horrific.

There were a few things that made no sense to me. I won’t go into detail here, so as not to spoil anything for other readers. I was definitely surprised by which character survives the longest.

>5 seitherin: I loved The Dying Detective! A fine book! Are you enjoying it?

This week I have read The Clockmaker's Daughter by Kate Morton, and A Fatal Inversion by Barbara Vine (aka Ruth Rendell. Neither of them packed the punch that they usually do, but I don't know, honestly, if it''s the books or my dour mood this week.

I think I'm going to make a start on Dune. I've not read it before, and as I am trying to read all of the classics of science fiction, this must be read. I'm rather daunted by the size of the book.

>10 ahef1963: I'm only about a third done with The Dying Detective, but I'm liking it so far.

Eliza Hamilton: the Extraordinary Life and Times of the Wife of Alexander Hamilton byTilar Mazzeo
New biography about Elizabeth (Eliza) Schuyler Hamilton. So far, so good!

Reading The Irregulars : Roald Dahl and the British Spy Ring in Wartime Washington by Jennet Conant. Very interesting.

Finally, after many years of it sitting on the shelf, reading Cloud Atlas. Can't wait to get totally lost in this.

Just finished The Wife: A Novel of Psychological Suspense by Alafair Burke

Starting another thriller set in Iceland
The darkness by Ragnar Jonasson

Just started a new Christmas book in one of my favorite cozy mystery series: The Darling Dahlias and the Poinsettia Puzzle by Susan Wittig Albert.

Starting this library audiobook ~

Raspberry Danish Murder by Joanne Fluke

(a Hannah Swensen cozy mystery/Thanksgiving/Hannah's husband disappears)

Reading Emma Watson by Joan Aiken. She took Jane Austen's unfinished novel The Watsons and expanded it. Pretty gooid, and pretty daring, although it's bound to suffer by comparison to Austen.

>18 NarratorLady: How can it not, Anne?

I read a kids' book. Took 45 minutes and was perfectly charming. Letters to Anyone and Everyone by Dutch poet/author Toon Tellegen. I even gave it a 5-star review, if you can imagine such a thing.

Reading Shakespeare’s Kitchen and enjoying this collection of short stories by Lore Segal written years ago, but fitting for today. The story Reverse Bug is truly amazing. Just finished Everyone Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave and feel haunted by the characters.

I hadn’t heard about this, and glad you posted! This will be a perfect holiday gift for my daughter.

Finished The Dying Detective by Leif GW Persson. Enjoyed it.

Next up is Kingdom of the Blind by Louise Penny.

Just finished listening to the excellent novel, The Book of Essie.

Next up for listening is The Kingdom of The Blind by Louise Penny.

Well, three in a row...I’ve also started The Kingdom of the Blind!

The Irregulars: Roald Dahl and the British Spy Ring in Wartime Washington
Jennet Conant
4/5 stars
Conant discusses the life and times of Roald Dahl who served as a pilot in WWII for England. After his plane is shot down in Africa during a battle, Dahl is injured but is later is sent to Washington D.C. to work for the BSC (British Security Coordination). This was quite an interesting look at D.C. during wartime and all the machinations that were going on. Recommended!

I finished A Portrait of the Artist of a Young Man. The rhythm and detail of Joyce is here as he captures the passion, extremism, and narcissism of the adolescent mind.

Finished Kingdom of the Blind by Louise Penny. Loved it.

Next up is The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz.

I finished a beautiful novelette by one of the modern era's great Cthulhu Mythos-repurposers, Ruthanna Emrys. It's a Tor.com freebie, The Word of Flesh and Soul, an almost-5-star short evocation of the best of Lovecraft's Mythos's potentials.

>28 richardderus: Sounds like fun.

>29 rocketjk: It is, and the title is a link to the text should you care to spend 20-30 minutes absorbing Emrys's nice prose.

>28 richardderus: Ooh, that does sound interesting.

The new thread is up over here.