The Abomination

I enjoyed The Abomination by Jonathan Holt which is a murder mystery set in Venice.  The murder victim is a woman found on the steps of Santa Maria della Salute wearing priest robes.  Captain Kat Tapo investigates with her boss Piola.  However, they discover their investigation takes an interesting turn when more victims are found who seem to be linked to the first murder.  Meanwhile, an American Second Lieutenant Holly Boland has recently arrived at her new post in Italy and is investigating something even bigger - the culpability of the USA in the Balkans war.  Another character, Daniele Barbo, has created a very sophisticated virtual Venice, Carnivia, which someone is trying to have shut down.  All these characters become embroiled in the murky business of espionage, the Mafia, and human trafficking.  A good yarn.  4/5

The Orphan Master's Son

I very much enjoyed The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson.  It is set in North Korea and follows the life of a man who is unsure of his origins as he is an "orphan".  The first part of the book we see his life as Jun Do.  We learn a lot about his character.  In Part 2, he has another identity and lives his life accordingly.  Part 2 is very suspenseful as the story is told in flashbacks and we meet a new character whose job is to "persuade" prisoners to tell their stories.  Throughout the book the reader learns what it is like to live in this harsh regime.  The "elite" of course have different lifestyles to those on the lower rungs where people are sent to harsh prisons or "retirement" villages.  Even the elite are not immune to that harsh treatment if for some reason they get on the wrong side of the "Dear Leader".  Paranoia and fear are used to keep the people "under the thumb."  The author has based his story on his extensive research.  Though it is grim reading at times, this is a haunting masterpiece which deserved its award as the Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2013. 5/5

The Broken Man

I've read The Broken Man by Josephine Cox which is set in England during the 1950s.  The main character, Adam Carter, is 7 years old when his father kills his mother.  Adam is then placed "in care" and attempts are made for him to be fostered.  His one true friend is Phil, the school bus driver who is with him all the way.  Adam's father has a history of violence and he is sent to prison.  Meanwhile the reader is introduced to a couple have been trying for years to have a family.  This is set in the 1950s, yet the author has her characters speak as they would in more recent times.  For example, "seeking closure" - so not 1950s!  All the pieces come together in the end as the reader predicted. 3/5

One Night in Winter

I enjoyed One Night in Winter by Simon Sebag Montefiore which is set in Stalinist Russia.  The reader gets an idea about life and death at the time and the paranoia that fueled it.  The main characters are teenage children, the offspring of the elite class (classes in a communist country? of course.)  who attend an exclusive school.  Their favourite subjects are literature and poetry and they form a club.  When it all goes wrong, there are repercussions for the children which seem really over the top, but the author bases his story on an actual similar case.  The fear that all involved experience is difficult to comprehend where you might be at the top one day and executed as a traitor the next. 31/2/5

Book Club Christmas Dinner

Our Book Club enjoyed an evening out this week.  Not all members could come - one not well, one had another function to attend, one was overseas.  We did have a "visitor", a former member of our Book Club who now lives about an hour's drive away.  It was very nice to catch up with the ladies over a delicious meal.  I look forward to seeing everyone again in the New Year when there will be so many wonderful books waiting to be read.

Gold

I very much enjoyed Gold by Chris Cleave which is set in England from about 2000 to the present.  The main characters Kate and Zoe are elite cyclists competing in the Olympic Games.  They are the best of friends but very competitive with each other.  The story follows their lives as they live from one Olympiad to another.  Their coach does his best to keep their lives "on track" but as with any life there are complications along the way.  The author has researched the story well so we have an understanding of what is involved in training and competing at this level.  4/5

Crime Book Club Christmas Lunch

I had a very enjoyable Christmas lunch with the ladies from the Crime & Mystery Book Club, which I attend every month at our local library.  Now we have to pick the books we will read next year.  We focus on one book each month and have some lively discussions as we are all different people and therefore will have differing views on the merit of the selected book.  I always find the selections interesting whether I like the book or not.  I'll look forward to our meetings in 2015.

The Crucifix Killer

I enjoyed most of The Crucifix Killer by Chris Carter but not the graphic description of the first murder.  It was very confronting and if you don't want to be subjected to this, don't pick up the book.  Having gone past this I continued to read the story. Detective Robert Hunter has a new partner, Detective Garcia.  They are investigating the murder which has the signs of an earlier set of serial murders which had been resolved more than a year ago.  Was this a "copy cat" or had they got the wrong guy?  A good suspenseful story with some clues, writing is okay.  3/5