49) Black Out by Ragnar Jonasson. This is the third I've read by Jonasson (see previous reviews) and it's fairly easy, disposable stuff. I quite enjoyed this one, as it factored a bit of social commentary about Iceland (re. construction, industry vs the natural landscape) into the who / why dunnit plot. I think the main… Continue reading Book 49: Black Out
Author: nicktemple1
Book 48: The Poison Artist
48) The Poison Artist by Jonathan Moore This was recommended by Laura Wilson on the Guardian's thriller pages (well worth a look for new ideas / authors), and it's a strange and intriguing read. A guy in a bar, after a row with his partner, meets a mysterious woman with a penchant for absinthe and whispering… Continue reading Book 48: The Poison Artist
Book 47: Betrayal
47) Betrayal by the Spotlight team of the Boston Globe. So this is a bit of a change from other books I've read. If you haven't seen the film Spotlight, then it's a powerful telling of how the Boston Globe investigative team (known as the Spotlight team) uncovered systematic abuse of children by Catholic priests, and… Continue reading Book 47: Betrayal
Book 46: Without Trace
46) Without Trace by Simon Booker This shouldn't delay us all too long. It's quite an intriguing tale to start with, about a 'bad boy' coming out of prison and the woman who's a touch obsessed / in love with him. But it soon spirals into fairly cliched territory: the out-of-control teenage daughter, the creepy house… Continue reading Book 46: Without Trace
Books 42-45: Slow Horses, Dead Lions, The Distant Echo, Rubbernecker
42) Slow Horses and 43) Dead Lions by Mick Herron Coming in at a bargain £3 for both on Amazon Kindle, I thought I'd give these a whirl and was not disappointed. They are spy novels about a ragtag of discards at Slough House, a kind of repository of people who've buggered up something or other for MI5/6… Continue reading Books 42-45: Slow Horses, Dead Lions, The Distant Echo, Rubbernecker
Books 40 & 41: Quiet & The Big Short
Quiet by Susan Cain & The Big Short by Michael Lewis It wasn't the plan to read these back to back, but they made for an interesting double. Quiet is a fascinating, research-based look at introversion and what the implications are for today's society and work. Ostensibly, if you believe that around half of the population… Continue reading Books 40 & 41: Quiet & The Big Short
Books 38 & 39: Thirteen Hours // 7 Days by Deon Meyer
It's a busy time at work, so I've retrenched somewhat to a diet of thrillers and police procedurals as my ageing brain can't cope with much else at the end of the day. These are a couple of the best I've read this year, though. 38) & 39) Thirteen Hours and 7 Days by Deon Meyer. Meyer's main… Continue reading Books 38 & 39: Thirteen Hours // 7 Days by Deon Meyer
Book 37: Havana Gold by Leonardo Padura
37) Havana Gold by Leonardo Padura. An obvious choice for me, really: we've just been to Cuba and I love a detective novel. So I had high hopes or this - and, as often seems the case, high hopes are followed by lower excitement... In glimpses, this was great: sultry jazz, sexy characters, and smoky… Continue reading Book 37: Havana Gold by Leonardo Padura
Books 30-36 (& spares) / 2016
So it's been a while. Last update was start of July when I was on book number 29). So I think I missed 6 weeks. Fortunately, packed in quite a few hours of reading while on hols, so here goes. I've picked my summer faves (and one to avoid). Excuse epic post. 30) The White… Continue reading Books 30-36 (& spares) / 2016
Books 27-29 / 2016
27) The Children Act by Ian McEwan. I've read most of McEwan's stuff, and they are really novellas these days, so this was quite quick to pile through. It's eminently readable, and all seems fairly effortless as it wades through religion, medicine, law, marriage and much more. The main character is a female judge deciding whether… Continue reading Books 27-29 / 2016
Dog-eared Man: a book a week 