Pomegranate Soup

I very much enjoyed Pomegranate Soup by Marsha Mehran. It is set in a "quaint" Irish village in the mid-1980s, where three Iranian sisters who have escaped the turmoil of their country, start a cafe. They encounter some resistance and suspicion from some of the villagers. One man who sees himself as the "leader" of the village particularly resents their presence as he had his own plans for the shop they occupy. There are a number of "quirky" characters in the village, but the sisters settle in. At the same time we learn of their troubled past in Iran. A lovely book, which includes recipes. Many chapters are introduced with a recipe which then becomes part of that chapter. 4/5

Cold Relations

I've read Cold Relations by Gerald Hammond and liked it. Det Sgt Honey Laird investigates the disappearance of two dogs following a hunt and then a man who attended the hunt also disappears. Is there a connection? Honey pursues the investigation which later leads to find another connection, this time with an armed robbery. As she unravels all of these crimes to find where the connections are, the reader is treated to a story with good characterisation and tight dialogue. 4/5

Two For The Road

I very much enjoyed Two for the Road by Amanda Hampson. Cassie Munro returns to her home town, Bilkara, to see her ill father. She has lived in London for 10 years after "running away" with the man who was to become her husband, as she sought to escape from the terrible consequences of a tragic accident. Cassie's father has a towing business and she soon learns that this is a very competitive business. Cassie is forced to confront the truth about her husband as well as the effects of the accident that happened in her teens, as she establishes a new life for herself. There are some wonderful characters in this book, incuding Kingi, Cassie's Maori mentor and friend; Avril, the long-suffering daughter of a hypochondriac mother; and Josie, Cassie's mother. 4/5

August Book Club

We met at Liz's place for our book club this month. As I'd missed the last two meetings because I was overseas, it was good to catch up with everyone. Sandy, Leonie and Kathy were absent this time. Ulla had also recently returned from overseas as well. We talked about the joys of travel and the deflated feeling when returning home. It is such a terrific "high" to be exploring all those wonderful places. Liz is looking forward to travelling next month. Bev told us about the grim situation in Zimbabwe where her mother lives. Liz is doing some work, despite her retirement but she seems to be enjoying it much more now. She made us a delicious supper, including some brownies which were to die for!! It's my turn next month so I've now got the books - like a kid in a lolly shop.

Conflict of Interest

I quickly read Conflict of Interest by Nancy Taylor Rosenberg for our Crime Club meeting today. DA Joanne Kuhlmann becomes personally involved in a robbery case she is prosecuting when doubts emerge about the mental fitness of one of the defendants. She is also dealing with problems with her children who had been abducted by her husband and she hadn't seen them for 2 years. Now she is trying to rebuild the relationship with them. Meanwhile, the robbers turn on each other and two of them mysteriously disappear - have they been murdered? There are many "different" characters in this book, some of them entirely unconvincing, for example, Kuhlmann's 12 year old son. Most of the ladies at our meeting agreed that the book had the potential for a good story but the poor writing let it down. It certainly promoted some lively discussion.

Paula

My mother gave me a copy of Paula by Isabel Allende to read on my recent holiday to Europe. I was reluctant to read it as I had been to a talk by the author a few years ago when, among other things. she told us about the writing of Paula. It sounded much too sad a book to be reading. However, as I was given it, I felt compelled to read it and I did like it very much. It is a sad story of the slow dying of Paula following being in a coma, the consequences of porphyria. The book was a memoir dedicated to Paula (written after her death) telling her about Isabel's life and those of her other relatives and the military coup in Chile. It is a heart-wrending story for any mother to read, and it is told well so that the reader becomes quite fond of Isabel's family. The insight into the terrible coup was interesting to learn to more about as well. This is a story I'm now glad to have read. 4/5

Firewall

I've just returned from nine weeks overseas and only finished one book, Firewall by Henning Mankel, which I very much enjoyed.  There are mysterious people dying suddenly or being murdered and Inspector Wallender must find the connection as he battles with his colleagues and superiors.  Throughout the story, Wallender "consults" his former mentor, Rydberg (now dead) - "What would Rydberg do?"  When he finally learns the truth, he must act quickly to avert disaster.  The story makes you think about the world's vulnerability and dependency on computers.