The Bookworm's Thread 2016

Hobsons_Choice

Treasurequeen, that sounds like my kind of book! I'll look out for it, thanks.

Treasurequeen

Treasurequeen wrote: »

I am reading a really good book at the moment The colour of death by Michael cordy . Wow i just can't put it down for long. It's about a woman who uncovers a crime scene by sensing what happened. But the thing is she is hurt at one crime scene and when she wakes up she doesn't know who she is. Doctors around her think she's psychotic and needs to be locked up in a psychiatric hospital. But Jane doe can relive scenes of people's violent death, she is a psychic who is trying to prove who she is and stop a ruthless killer as well luckily with the help of her doctor Nathan fox who believes she has a gift.

Well I finished the book at midnight last night and wow I didn't expect half of it to happen, I really recommend this book. I don't do this very often but this book has been added to my bookcase to read again in the future.

dreaming

I have just enjoyed The Good Liar by Nicholas Searle. The book was a present and I have not heard of the author but I have to say it was very well done and although I sort of guessed some of the plot there was enough to keep catch me out as the plot unfolded. The blurb says that "this is a life told back to front" and it did require a bit of concentration as the chapters took you from the present to a past time and back again but it was really well written.

missbiggles1

VfM4meplse wrote: »

Well brace yourself, I read another one cover-to-cover this evening



7/10, an easy read (although by no means an easy subject to write about). Thank heavens times have changed and women are no longer so dependent on men for their survival.

I loathe Lesley Pearce. I think she's a terrible writer and excruciatingly sentimental.:(



ETA I have no idea why I thought this book was by Lesley Pearce - I blame the heat!

[Deleted User]

VfM4meplse wrote: »

Well brace yourself, I read another one cover-to-cover this evening



7/10, an easy read (although by no means an easy subject to write about). Thank heavens times have changed and women are no longer so dependent on men for their survival.

I finally finished the Madame Tussaud biography which was an excellent read after some of the dry-as-dust biographies I've read. The story moved easily along but the constant looking up of historical references (not altogether necessary but that's me:o) slowed things down. Definitely one to re-read as I'll be able to whizz through it next time;).

On a loosely connected subject to the book you mentioned I've just read Complete Surrender by Dave Sharp. This was only 263 pages long and I polished it off during one very long evening. A very rare event for me:o. Quite a harrowing story in places but well written and with a nice humorous touch.


Unlike your book this one tells the true story of a child who was given away soon after birth during WW11 and his search for his birth family. The majority of the story is a chronology of his happy life in rural Oxfordshire. As someone who lived through most of those years myself, the mention of major events and lifestyle changes that happened in Britain and which formed the backdrop to our lives was fascinating.

He didn't start researching his past until he was in his 50s and one of his major discoveries was that the writer Ian McEwan was his brother. Neither was previously aware of this period in their family history or the existence of a long-lost brother. Indeed the author had never even heard of Ian McEwan:eek:.

pollypenny

Whenever I was studying, and exams were approaching, I used to say that can't wait to read some rubbish. However, I found it unsatisfying, of course.

I would not enjoy a book that I could read in an evening and it's a rare one that's well written. There was one Pat Barker like that, but the name escapes me.

[Deleted User]

pollypenny wrote: »

Whenever I was studying, and exams were approaching, I used to say that can't wait to read some rubbish. However, I found it unsatisfying, of course.

I would not enjoy a book that I could read in an evening and it's a rare one that's well written. There was one Pat Barker like that, but the name escapes me.

I find it very patronising of you to describe other people's book choices as 'rubbish':(

I dispute your assertion that quickly-read books are rarely well written. As far as book length goes The Great Gatsby was under 150 pages long and that's considered to be a classic! Off the top of my head there's also Jean Rhys's The Wide Sargasso Sea and Other People by Martin Amis both of which were very short and could easily be read at one sitting. Both received critical acclaim as did numerous others which I haven't the time to list.

If you meant that the subject matter and/or writing style renders some books very easy to read that doesn't detract from their value and interest to many readers. Just the opposite in fact. In my experience there are a multitude of reasons why a certain type of book would suit us at different times.

Hobsons_Choice

My book of the year (so far): "I Know Who Did It" by Steve Mosby.
If you enjoy crime novels, the grittier the better, then this is brilliant.
Told from the perspective of four detectives, the threads come together to make a really good page-turner. I even gasped out loud at the ending of one chapter about two thirds through, that doesn't happen very often!
Highly recommended 10/10. Take a look at the Amazon reviews and see if it's for you (not that I have, but I expect them to be good).

pollypenny

I'm reading the ninth (?) Camilla Lackberg, Buried Angels. It's typically her, detailed and intriguing and I'm going to continue it now!

Bye!

pollypenny

carbootcrazy wrote: »

I find it very patronising of you to describe other people's book choices as 'rubbish':(

I dispute your assertion that quickly-read books are rarely well written. As far as book length goes The Great Gatsby was under 150 pages long and that's considered to be a classic! Off the top of my head there's also Jean Rhys's The Wide Sargasso Sea and Other People by Martin Amis both of which were very short and could easily be read at one sitting. Both received critical acclaim as did numerous others which I haven't the time to list.

If you meant that the subject matter and/or writing style renders some books very easy to read that doesn't detract from their value and interest to many readers. Just the opposite in fact. In my experience there are a multitude of reasons why a certain type of book would suit us at different times.

Well, I find your comment very patronising.

When one is reading detailed History text books and literary criticism as well as the whole gamut of novels, plays and poems, the likes of Leslie Thomas counted as light-hearted 'rubbish' in comparison.

As for Gatsby and Sargasso, I love them both and have taught them a few times. I certainly did not read either in one sitting. I cannot get on with Amis.

The one brilliant book I've read in one sitting was Slaughter House 5, Kurt Vonnegut. However, that sitting was a long haul flight.

Edit: I realise that I should have put my word 'rubbish' in inverted commas,in my first post, it's simply in contrast to the graft of studying. And indeed, your point about different books suiting us at different times is true. But sometimes, too quick equals too easy.