47) A Rising Man by Abir Mukherjee This is the first of the series of Sam Wyndham novels by Mukherjee, and they've been on my list for a while, after they won a few crime prizes way back when. There's another two in the series that have been published since, so I have some catching… Continue reading Year 3 / Book 47: A Rising Man
Category: historical fiction
Year 3 / Book 33: A Quiet Flame
33) A Quiet Flame by Philip Kerr I'm slowly working my way through Philip Kerr's wonderful Bernie Gunther novels, which combine a Chandler-esque wit with the perils and history of 1930s-40s (Nazi) Germany. As I wrote in a previous review, Kerr very sadly died earlier this year, which is all the more reason (as far… Continue reading Year 3 / Book 33: A Quiet Flame
Year 3 / Book 14: The Lady From Zagreb
14) The Lady from Zagreb by Philip Kerr Philip Kerr has become one of my favourite police and crime writers: you cannot go wrong in picking any of his Bernie Gunther stories, and I've been un-chronologically making my way through the whole series. So I was really saddened to learn about his death at the… Continue reading Year 3 / Book 14: The Lady From Zagreb
Year 3 / Book 6: Things Fall Apart
6) Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe This was recommended to me by our good friend Nina, and although it's taken a while for me to get to it, I"m really glad she did, and mea culpa on my part for having not got to a novel that has sold over 20 million copies and… Continue reading Year 3 / Book 6: Things Fall Apart
Year 2 / Book 49: The Long Drop
49) The Long Drop by Denise Mina This has been recommended in lots of places as one of the best crime novels of the year, and I have to say it lives up to that billing. It has a cleverly structured plot that kind of unwinds slowly, gradually encompassing more characters and viewpoints, with the… Continue reading Year 2 / Book 49: The Long Drop
Year 2 / Book 39: Lincoln in the Bardo
39) Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders Fortuitously, I found myself finishing this off as it was announced as this year’s Booker Prize winner. I’m a fan of George Saunders: if you haven’t read any of his short stories, you are in for a treat: they are moving, incisive and extremely funny by turns.… Continue reading Year 2 / Book 39: Lincoln in the Bardo
Year 2 / Book 7: March Violets
7) March Violets by Philip Kerr It seemed like a strangely appropriate moment to read a novel set in mid 1930s Germany - can't imagine why. So I returned to Philip Kerr's great set of Bernie Gunther novels, a detective who is like Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe with a heavy side-dose of British sarcasm and quick-wittedness.… Continue reading Year 2 / Book 7: March Violets
Books 13-19 / 2016
13) The One From the Other - by Philip Kerr. I've been meaning to read a Bernie Gunther crime novel for a while, and this was worth waiting for. Set in pre- and post-war Germany, it covers a really wide range of ground whilst staying (mostly) believable and, in places, quite powerful. Gunther has a… Continue reading Books 13-19 / 2016
Books 1-6 / 2016
1) Spill, Simmer, Falter, Wither by Sara Baume. Attracted a bit of awards attention - a quite involving story of an outcast man and his outcast dog. But a bit overwritten (like someone fresh out of a Creative Writing programme) if affecting. Recommended for dog and adjective lovers only. 5.5/10 2) Jeff in Venice, Death… Continue reading Books 1-6 / 2016
