A Distraction at the Bus Stop

Another 7 books read this month, bringing my yearly total to 74 - up on last year, but it all depends on length of book etc.

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear
The runner up for the Shedunnit book club read of historical novel by modern author.  It looked interesting, and the time period of just after WWI should have been of interest, but the book spent a lot of time showing Maisie Dobbs' background in great detail, which, together with some very clunky explanations, put me off.  The actual mystery was interesting and well solved, but not worth all the pages that needed reading.

The Retired Assassin's Guide to Country Gardening by Naomi Kuttner
I forget who recommended this, but it was excellent.  Great fun, with a well plotted mystery.  There's a retired assassin, ghosts, and a cat, together with several other plot twists.  And it's set in Aotearoa New Zealand.  Not serious but definitely fun!

Brueghel - the Complete Paintings by Jurgen Muller
My review is here

Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett
The wizards need to create a football team, with the usual confusion and creativity.  The Librarian plays in goal.  I've enjoyed reading several Discworld novels this year, and this one was a good way to finish.

N or M? by Agatha Christie
More of a spy thriller than a straight murder mystery.  Tommy and Tuppence are deemed too old to make a useful contribution to the war (the book was written in 1941), but then Tommy is asked to help seek out a spy, and Tuppence gets herself involved.  Christie's prejudices, which are greater than I think the war justified, are very apparent.  And I guessed one of the plot points.

Crime in the City: The 2002 Crime Writers' Association Anthology edited by Martin Edwards
This year I bought a number of anthologies cheap, which I shall be reading over the coming year.  This was the first.  It does make me wonder how many of these writers will still be read in another 20 years.

Life in Secrets: The Story of Vera Atkins and the Lost Agents of SOE by Sarah Helm
The role of the SOE agents in France and the discovery of their fates was interesting, although the unnecessary loss of life was appalling.  Vera Atkins turned out to be an unappealing character and I really wasn't interested in her background, especially given her share in the responsibility for the deaths, which she doesn't appeared to have accepted.

In addition, but not counted in the total, I read (twice):
Always Remember: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, the Horse and the Storm by Charlie Mackesy
I remain the Mole!

I suppose averaging two audio books a month isn't bad, and I've reduced by TBL to 13, so, and I also have 2 pre-orders coming out next year.

Death in Le Jardin by Ian Moore, read by Ian Moore
The fourth Follet Valley mystery.  I continue to enjoy the series - yes, they have some slightly off the wall plots and characters, but the more I read/hear, the more I enjoy them.  The recurring characters, even the more bizarre, are fun and entertaining.

A Gravelly Troubling Discovery by Hannah Hendy, read by Jenny Funnell
Fifth in the Dinner Lady Detectives series.  I do like the dinner ladies, even if Clementine can be trying, but she's Marjorie's wife (Marjorie is the major protagonist) and she's quite aware of Clementine's character traits.  The plot is slightly ridiculous, but the way it's worked out is fun and again, I'm now invested in the characters.  It's a cosy read/listen, so I'm happy to spend time with the dinner ladies.

Black Notice by Joy Ellis, read by Richard Armitage
The next in the Jackman and Evans series, and another compelling plot.  I'm very fond of DI Jackman, but also enjoy the way the story is from the viewpoint of various different characters, and seeing how their lives weave together.  I did guess one of the perpetrators, but the other was a surprise.

Untrue till Death by Graham Brack, read by Alex Wyndham
The second in the Master Mercurius series.  Master Mercurius is based in 17th century Leiden and the story involves him travelling both to Den Haag and Utrecht.  I really enjoy all the period details and the plot was fascinating.  My thanks to therealsnape for introducing me to him.

Quantum of Menace by Vaseem Khan, read by Alexander Armstrong
The first in a new series by Vaseem Khan (one of my favourite authors) which involves Q from MI6 being forced to retire.  He returns to his home town after 30 years to solve the death of a former childhood friend.  I didn't like Alexander Armstrong's narration, and so set the speed to 1.2x which improved it.  The story however, involving quantum computing and much more, including James Bond at one point, was excellent.  And I'm delighted there will be a second in the series.

The Secret Pilgrim by John Le Carre, read by Michael Jayston
The final book in my Smiley list.  I did enjoy this, although there was very little of Smiley in it (I certainly preferred the George Smiley of the earlier novels, rather than the later ones).  I'm glad I've made my way through the series, even if at times it felt like a bit of a slog.