Nightwoods

I enjoyed Nightwoods by Charles Frazier which is set in the USA, a mountain and forest area.  Luce becomes the carer for her niece and nephew, twins who witnessed their mother's murder and live in terror of the man who did that.  Luce and the twins live as caretakers in a mountain lodge which has seen better times.  Their lives change when someone moves in to the area in an effort to have the twins divulge a secret.  There is some suspense as events unfold but that's all I'm saying. 4/5

To Be Sung Underwater

I very much enjoyed To Be Sung Underwater by Tom McNeal which is mainly set in Nebraska and California, USA.  It is a love story which takes a while to appreciate and understand who the people are that have loved.  Judith a middle-aged film editor in California seems restless with her life and has vague suspicions about her husband, Malcolm's conduct.  She begins to hark back to her teenage years living with her father in Nebraska and the people she knew there, one in particular, Willy Blunt.  The second part of the book takes the reader back to her romance with Willy Blunt and the reader learns about Judith's life at that time.  Then we return to the present when Judith learns what happened to her former friends.  She then makes a decision which will have ramifications for all.  This story is well-constructed with some beautiful writing.  Highly recommended. 5/5

The Island House

I read The Island House by Posie Graeme-Evans which is about a young Australian woman, Freya, who inherits a small island off Scotland from her father.  The story is told in two time periods - the present and 800 AD when Christianity has come to the island and also Viking raids.  At that time a young girl, Signy, survives a Viking raid.  So the stories are in tandem with chapters being in the two time periods.  Freya sees visions which help her learn the mystery of who lived on the island hundreds of years ago.  There are romantic stories in both time periods.  Signy is an important character and she is exposed to the extremes of the Christians at that time and she is conflicted as to what she decides to believe.  Tedious. 21/2/5

The Collected Works of A.J. Fikry

I enjoyed this lovely book The Collected Works of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin.  A widowed book store owner, A.J. Fikry, makes most of his money during the summer tourist season on his island. He has become lonely and at times cantankerous but his life changes when a baby girl is left in his bookshop.  He adopts the girl and she grows up to be an intelligent and avid reader.  Each chapter of the book begins with a note to his daughter about a book and its merits.  To say any more would spoil the story for readers.  This is a really good read, especially for book lovers and lovers of real book shops. 5/5

Orphan Train

I thoroughly enjoyed Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline which mainly tells the story of the trains carrying orphans from New York to the west between 1854 and 1929 leaving these children along the way to an uncertain future.  This is a fictional story built around this history.  The story is told by 91-year-old Vivian to a teenage girl, Molly, as together they go through the boxes in Vivian's attic with a view to tidying them up, throwing things out.  However, there is a story in every box.  Vivian tells Molly about coming to New York as a child with her family from Ireland and the events in her life that found her travelling on an orphan train.  Notices were put up in towns on the train's route showing that children would be available to live with a family.  Some were lucky and found good homes, some did not.  Molly is interested to hear about Vivian's past which has some parallels with her own life.  Molly was convicted of theft and rather than going to juvenile detention she is doing "community service" helping Vivian organise her attic.  The author has researched her story well.  It is similar to the "forgotten children" in England who were shipped out for a "better" life in the Dominions.  This book was a pleasure to read. 5/5

The Boy in the Suit Case

I very much enjoyed The Boy in the Suit Case by Lene Kaaberbøl and Agnete Friis which is set in Denmark and Lithuania.  I did find it a bit confusing at first with the different characters as each chapter focused on one or two of the characters, but stick with it as it all becomes clear.  A three year-old boy is kidnapped and found by a woman asked to collect a suitcase from a train station - no spoiler there, it's in the title anyway.  Then the reader is set for a ride to find out what happens to the boy and the reason he was kidnapped.  The chapter usually ends with a "cliff hanger" until that same character appears in future chapter.  As the tension builds the reader learns more about each character wonders how it will all end. 41/2/5

July Book Club

We ventured out on a cold night to our Book Club meeting.  Fortunately, I didn't have far to go and then we were in a lovely warm room for our meeting.  A couple were missing, one holidaying overseas and one hosting overseas guests.  Our thanks to our host who provided a nice warm venue for us to enjoy our evening.  She also bought some great books this month

for us to read into the future.  Our host had been very busy providing a delicious supper for our eating pleasure.  We all enjoyed great conversation, and listened with interest to the "reviews" of the books everyone had read in the last month.  It's always a pleasure to get together with these lovely ladies.

The Girl Who Fell From the Sky

I enjoyed this story The Girl Who Fell From The Sky by Heidi Durrow which begins with a family tragedy.  A mother takes her children to the roof of the apartment block where they live and jumps off.  A boy in one of the apartments sees the older girl "fly" past his window.  The girl, Rachel, survives the fall and the story then moves to what happens to her later.  She goes to live with her grandmother and aunt where she discovers she is "coloured".  Her mother was Danish with blonde hair and blue eyes, her father was "black".  Rachel finds new attitudes towards her skin colour and her beautiful blue eyes.  The boy who saw her fall goes in search of her.  Each chapter looks at a different character, including Rachel's mother, a recovering alcoholic.  Rachel is determined to become her own person.  Well written, poignant. 41/2/5

The Bookseller

I very much enjoyed The Bookseller by Mark Pryor which is set in Paris.  Hugo Marston is head of security at the American embassy and he's very keen on old books.  He regularly visits a book stall owner - a bouquiniste, named Max till he witnesses an incident near the book stall which sets Hugo on a dangerous path involving crime gangs in Paris.  Hugo then notices that these prized book stalls are being taken over by new people.  Max had sold Hugo a couple of rare books and they become very significant to the story.  Hugo meets a beautiful young journalist and she helps him investigate what is going on.  Then a former friend from the CIA comes to visit and he also becomes involved.  There are twists and turns and violent confrontations before the investigation is completed. 41/2/5