Early Morning Riser is a novel of place and character. The setting is small town Michigan which is brought to life with its homes, school, stores and more. The main people that readers follow are Jane and Duncan. Jane is a second grade teacher. She meets Duncan when she gets locked out of her house. They very quickly become involved only for Jane to learn that Duncan has many exes. Their evolving relationship and those around them form the basis for the novel.
This book got excellent reviews. There is much humor here and also some heart. I definitely liked this one but I hoped for a little more. It may just be that some of the humor fell a bit flat for me.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.
Have you watched the Grantchester mysteries on PBS? I have and I have very much enjoyed them. Would you like to go back to the origin of the stories? I decided that I wanted to. I had read this book, Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death a number of years ago. I was curious to reread it now that I have watched the TV show.
First off, the books and the TV show differ at times. I have found this to be true of other TV adaptations as well. One that comes to mind is the series of novels by Peter Robinson about Detective Banks. Knowing this means that the read is different but not one bit worse for that.
For those who don’t know Sidney is a Canon who is assigned to the village of Grantchester. He runs a parish church and also teaches classes at nearby Cambridge University. Oh, and he begins to solve mysteries.
This book contains six stories. All are set in the 1950s. In the first story, Sidney investigates the death of a lawyer. In the next, he tries to find out how and why an engagement ring was stolen. And so it goes through a series of long, short stories. (I know that is a funny juxtaposition of words).
Every story shows Sidney to be a good man. He is able to question, is not in any way stuffy, and is someone with whom readers will enjoy spending time.
For those who watched the shows, in this book be introduced to series favorites like Sidney’s housekeeper and Amanda. I was especially delighted to meet Leonard for the first time here.
I highly recommend all of the books in the series. There are six. They take place across decades in Sidney’s life.
Below find my review of The Road to Granchester. This was published AFTER the six other books but it tells Sidney’s origin story.
As soon as I saw this title on NetGalley, I desperately wanted to read it. Many thanks to Bloomsbury and NetGalley for granting my request. The opinions below are my own.
I read the first Sidney Chambers novel, Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death, when it was first published. I was captivated by the character of Sidney and wanted to know more about him. I have continued to read the stories and have adored the Grantchester series on TV. For me, James Norton has personified Sidney in a most satisfactory way.
The Road to Grantchester tells the story of Sidney before he was the TV character or the man in SC and the Shadow of Death. I was so pleased at the prospect of learning how he became himself.
The beginning of the book was not easy. After a brief prelude, Sidney is immersed in the horrors (and I mean horrors) of WWII in Italy where he serves with Robert Kendall. Robert is the brother of Amanda, a key character in the series.
What Sidney and his fellow soldiers witness and participate in is truly unspeakable. James Runcie has written about war in a way that will make the reader long for peace. Survival in his circumstances is kind of a miracle for Sidney. However, not everyone important to him makes it home safely.
As a reader, because of how awful it was, I was relieved to move to the part of the novel that was post war. Sidney comes home to a world that has changed and yet he has changed even more. He tries to understand what he is meant to do with the gift of his life. After much reflection, he decides to join the church. The reader follows Sidney on his on-going faith journey.
This book is about those important to Sidney. There is Robert his best friend and war compatriot…no spoilers here so I will not say more. As in the TV series, there is prickly Amanda whose relationship with Chambers (as she calls him) is complex but important.
I left this book wanting to reread all of James Runcie’s books. This is an excellent read if you are a fan of Sidney, want to remember why war is a mess or if you want to understand a protagonist’s wish to live a meaningful life.
This novel may not be for everyone but for me it was a five star read.
Twenty-one Days is an offshoot of Anne Perry’s Charlotte and Thomas Pitt series. I read the first book, The Cater Street Hangman, in 1979. I can still remember not wanting to arrive at my destination on the subway because I wanted to keep reading. So, it was with much anticipation that I began this novel in which Charlotte and Thomas’s son, Daniel, is the protagonist. He is all grown up, has attended Cambridge and is a newly qualified lawyer. Daniel is assigned several cases in this story, the 21 days has to do with the number of days it will be until a man convicted of murder will be hanged…or will he? Is he guilty? Read the story for a somewhat complex and engrossing solution. It was lovely to see Thomas and Charlotte as peripheral characters and to read about Jemima, Thomas’s sister, who is now in New York. Victor Narraway and Aunt Vespasia also are mentioned. There are also new and very likeable characters as well. If you like Anne Perry, read this! If you don’t know Anne Perry, read this and then work your way through the series starting with the book mentioned above. Highly recommended by me.
Ink and Shadows is the fourth entry in Ellery Adams’s Secret, Book, and Scone Society series. I have enjoyed all of the books and recommend them. They are, perhaps, best read in order although the author gives enough back story for a new reader to quickly catch up.
Two things that I love about the series:
The main characters. Each of them has struggled in life and moved forward. Each has a particular love or talent that is given its due in the books. My favorite is Nora. She owns the bookstore of my fantasies; there are amazing themed displays, a full array of titles, good coffee and knowledgeable staff. There are nooks to sit in and children’s story hours. Plus, Nora is a bibliotherapist. This means that the novel is filled with good reading suggestions. Nora has her past struggles and guilts; she has a new relationship which is in trouble in this title.
Nora’s friends are all women with their own stories and talents. They include a baker, a woman skilled in massage and comfort and two other close friends. Each has a gift for friendship.
The setting. The small town is lovingly portrayed. It is cozy with farmer’s markets, festivals, artisan shops, good foods and the outdoors close by.
There are murders sullying the town. Both a daughter and her mother are dead. Is the cause their interest in a grimoire or is there another reason? Are their deaths tied to the commune that they lived on prior to coming to Miracle Springs?
The author takes on some social issues as well. There is a group of women who believe in censorship and want Nora’s Halloween store windows taken down. There are also comments on CBD.
Readers who want a slightly less than cozy, cozy take a look at this series. I am already looking forward to the next book!
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
Many know Amy Tan because of her novels including the wonderful The Joy Luck Club. Here readers get to spend time with a Tan who wants to feel closer to the natural world. It is an incredible treat!
This title is in the form of a journal. I found it to have many insights and observations. To add to the gorgeousness of this title, the illustrations are by the author herself.
Those who already know Tan’s novels, as well as those who love birds and/or nature and spending time with a wise woman, need to pick up this title when it is released.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor as well as NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my own.
Close to Death is a take on an AgathaChristie style mystery with the additional spin of this author”s cleverness. It is the latest in the series that features Detective Hawthorne and, yes, the character Anthony Horowitz.
This time the structure of the book is a bit different. Hawthorne, who gives Horowitz case material for his novels, is revealing a past puzzler. Some of the novel is a take on those events and other parts involve the perspectives of the two protagonists.
A close is a kind of dead end street. In this upscale one, a number of neighbors detest the newest family. The annoying, inconsiderate and very wealthy Kenworthy is murdered. The suspects include a GP, a retired barrister, two elderly former nuns, a chess grandmaster, a dentist and those around them. Whodunnit? Why? The pages turn as readers wait to fond out.
Last year I heard the author speak. He was very entertaining, just as he is in his writing. i think that he was enjoying himself here. The book offers a good read.
Note that, although this is part of a series, it can be read on its own.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper for this title. All opinions are my own.
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 