House Rules

I've read House Rules by Jodi Picoult which is a very large book (532 pages) when it didn't need to be. It is the story of 18 year old Jacob who has Asperger's Syndrome, has a very high IQ and is fixated on forensics. He is charged with the murder of Jess, his social skills tutor. The story is told with each chapter being narrated by one of the main characters - Jacob, his brother, his mother, his lawyer and the policeman, so we know what each character is thinking (they even get their own fonts). I found the story frustrating, unrealistic and too long. However, it was very interesting to learn about Asperger's as the author always does her research well. Eventually Jacob goes to trial and there is suspense as the reader awaits the jury's verdict. 31/2/5

Luther - The Calling

I quite enjoyed Luther - The Calling by Neil Cross which is a murder thriller set in London. DCI Luther is obsessed with his work to the exclusion of all else, including his wife. A particularly gruesome murder takes place and a baby is stolen. The murderer strikes again and a child is taken. Luther uses "unconventional" means to find the murderer and try to retrieve the child. The author as he says has "done this the wrong way round." He wrote the screenplay for the "Luther" TV series and this book is a "spinoff" of that work. A scary suspenseful story, which makes it a good thriller. 4/5

In the Company of Angels

I quite liked In the Company of Angels by Thomas E. Kennedy which is set in Copenhagen, Denmark about 10 years ago. It is basically a love triangle with some complex and not all likeable characters. Michela aged late 30s has a relationship with a younger man, Voss, who becomes obsessed with her. He actually becomes very irritating. She meets Nardo, a survivor of the Pinochet regime in Chile and then things really become "complicated." Nardo is trying to deal with his traumatic past with the help of a psychologist who tries to draw him out and make him relive that past. How does a psychologist deal with listening to such terrible tales? 4/5

The Auschwitz Violin

This fictional story The Auschwitz Violin by Maria Angels Anglada was beautiful and poignant. It is a small book, well structured and written. Daniel is a young Jewish man in Auschwitz, who has lost most of his family. Daily he deals with the horror around him. He used to make violins and when the camp's commander learns this, he requires him to make one for his collection. Daniel then learns that this task is the subject of a wager, his life for a crate of wine. He has a limited time to make the violin, but as he officially has no knowledge of the bet, he doesn't know how much time he has. This is a little gem of a book. 5/5

Act of Mercy

I enjoyed Act of Mercy by Peter Tremayne which was a "whodunnit" set in 7th Century Ireland. Sister Fidelma is on a sea pilgrimage to a shrine in Iberia to contemplate her commitment to the Church or whether the law is more important to her. She is an advocate of the law courts and tasked with solving legal issues and when her fellow pilgrims start getting murdered, she must use her skills to solve the murders. Her work is complicated by an encounter with a former lover and now pilgrim on board the vessel. It was a good crime story, but what I found even more interesting was the author's Historical Note before the story which explains the history of the Christian Church in Ireland and how progressive the Church and the legal system was in Ireland at that time. Without this information, the story might have been harder to understand. It is then unfortunate for Ireland that the Roman church and eventually the English eventually eroded the Irish independence. Perhaps if the reverse had occurred regarding the Church, we might have a better Christian church today. 31/2/5

November Book Club

We enjoyed our Book Club at Carmen's place last night. She bought some great new books for us to read and she gave us a delicious supper with beautiful crockery. The teapots are just gorgeous. It was great to see Marilyn who had been absent for the last couple of meetings. Vee was back from overseas visiting family and Ulla had enjoyed her husband's birthday party in Bali. Jenny was not able to come this time due to sudden work commitments. Kathy is helping her father with his house and Liz is helping her daughter's family interstate. So our numbers were again a little depleted. A couple of our ladies are looking forward to grandchildren in the near future, one for the first time. The circle of time. I look forward to reading the books I've selected.

The Paris Wife

I enjoyed The Paris Wife by Paula McLain which is a fictional story of Ernest Hemingway's first marriage to Hadley Richardson. The story is well-researched, and is narrated by Hadley. This gives an intimacy to what is a passionate love story with two strong characters. They meet in Chicago in 1920, marry, then move to Paris where Ernest believes he will be able to work better on his writing. They soon become involved with the "beautiful people" of that era who are also living in Paris. It is an exciting time. Ernest's work begins to attract attention and he makes a living from his writing. Things then become "complicated." Very well written as the reader becomes intimately involved in their lives. May have more appeal for women. 41/2/5