Darkly Dreaming Dexter

I've enjoyed this unusual story Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay. Lindsay's books have been turned into a popular TV series. Dexter is a psychopathic serial killer who is also a police forensic expert. The story is told in the first person so the reader has an insight into how he thinks. He confesses to having no "normal" human feelings. In this book he is fascinated by the work of a serial killer being investigated by the police. He has some gruesome encounters with the killer and his victims. The story finishes with a startling finale which then gives room for the series to continue. 4/5

Trick of the Dark

This thriller Trick of the Dark by Val McDermid was a little disappointing as I normally enjoy her work. Psychiatrist Charlotte (Charlie) Flint is asked to investigate a series of murders by one person. We are kept guessing until nearly the end before we discover the truth about the murders - and that's good. All the main characters are lesbians, but I question whether that was necessary to progress the story or did the author merely want a stage for them. If one or two were lesbians that wouldn't be an issue for me, but for all of the main characters to be gay was overdone. Parts of the story seem contrived to further this aspect and that made the story less credible than it might have been. (I was interested to read an Amazon review by a lesbian who agreed). 31/2/5

How To Paint a Dead Man

I've finished How To Paint A Dead Man by Sarah Hall and wonder what it was all about. There are four threads to the story with each chapter progressing a different thread in turn and covers about 40 years. I found this writing style mystifying at first then frustrating but stuck with it thinking it would all come together at the end, explaining all, but that didn't happen. A family of artists deal with grief. An Italian family has a beautiful daughter going blind, an artist is trapped on a hill, and an elderly artist is dying of cancer. The reader can pick up connections between the threads but not enough is explained. Perhaps author is trying to be too clever and only appeal to the discerning reader. Not for everyone and I would not recommend it. 3/5

And Furthermore

I've read And Furthermore by Judi Dench which is an autobiography mainly covering her career on stage and screen. She is an actress (no I won't use the word "actor") I've admired and it was interesting to learn more about her and the many parts she has played with the cream of British acting talent. The book is not a"tell all" and we learn very little about her private life (which she says is private). It has many photographs through the book which celebrate her acting depth. 31/2/5

Brave New World

This classic book Brave New World by Aldous Huxley was originally published in 1932. The edition I've just read was published in 2007 with interesting introductions and an "update" by Huxley dated 1946. The story is set in a future where babies are "manufactured" in accordance with the work they will do in their society, a caste system. The embryos have additives inserted to determine how advanced their brains and physique will be. The highest caste, the Alphas, will lead a relatively "normal" life with every indulgence to keep them happy. The lowest, the Epsilons, will do the most menial jobs and be happy in that role. Those who question the way the society functions (and it is only the higher castes who have the brain power to do that) can be exiled to maintain the status quo. There are places, reservations, where humans live in a "native" or "savage" state. What happens when one of these "savages" is brought into the "real world"? A culture shock. Very interesting and thought provoking. 41/2/5

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand

I really enjoyed Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson which is set in a lovely little village in England. When his brother dies, widowed Major Pettigrew ponders his own mortality and reassesses what is important. He falls in love with a widow and their romance encounters obstacles along the way - race, class, religion, family. Major Pettigrew is a wonderful character with great integrity and he shows up some of the ridiculous aspects of the English "upper classes". Delightful. 4/5

Lovesong

I've enjoyed reading Lovesong by Alex Miller. It's a poignant tale of love and anguish. A young Australian man, John, meets a Tunisian woman, Sabiha, in Paris and they marry. Many years later they come to Australia and John meets an author and tells him his story over some time. It is a good way of telling the story. Sabiha yearned to have a daughter and she takes desperate measures to ensure that happens. It is a lovely love story. 4/5

The Children's Book

I've read The Children's Book by A. S. Byatt which follows the lives of four families in England from about 1885 to 1919. This was not an "easy" read. At times I found it difficult to follow which children belonged to which families. A little genealogy chart at the start of the book for each family would have been useful. It was also difficult to get into the story, but I persisted. There was a lot of side information about various issues to put the families and their stories into context. Sometimes that was interesting, others not. It is quite a thick paperback with small writing so a big challenge. Parts of it were very good. 31/2/5