The Long Song

I enjoyed The Long Song by Andrea Levy which is a fictional account of the life of a female slave in Jamaica in the 19th century. July as an old woman has been asked by her son to write an account of her life which she tells us in the first and third person. She is born into slavery and later in life the slaves are freed. The book is well researched to give a true account of life in those times and it is well told. 4/5

Mortal Remains

I've read Mortal Remains by Kathy Reichs which I didn't like very much. The author writes with authority as a forensic anthropologist. The main character, Tempe Brennan, tells the story in the first person and I find her very irritating. This book centers on the work of JPAC, the Joint Pow/MIA Accounting Command whose job is to locate American POWs and to recover remains of those who died in past conflicts. The reader learns more about this work at the end of the book. It was interesting that 78,000 Americans remain missing from WWII. Reichs should be commended for raising awareness of this work. The story begins with the strange death of a man who is identified as someone already dead (in Vietnam) and buried (back in USA) 40 years before. Brennan investigates this anomaly and discovers more misidentifications that have occurred with the same incident. She and her "friend" Ryan take their respective daughters to Hawaii to continue the investigation and have some down time. It gets more complicated before the truth emerges. JPAC's motto is "Until They Are Home" and their work will probably never be completed. 3/5

Three Seconds

This thrilling suspense story Three Seconds by Roslund and Hellstrom (Swedish authors) was very good. Piet Hoffmann is recruited by the Swedish police to infiltrate a Polish mafia drug ring. His criminal backgrounds is enhanced to make him seem more dangerous and therefore acceptable to the drug ring. He's connected to a murder early in the story which is investigated by Ewert Grens who knows nothing about Hoffmann. Grens is persistent in his pursuit of the murderer and when it seems he may jeopardise the drug ring operation, steps are taken. This is a fast paced thriller (however it has a slow start) which requires concentration and the reader is well rewarded. Highly recommended 41/2/5

Last book club for 2010

Last night we had our final Wine & Giggles Book Club for 2010 - the year has gone by so quickly. We were all there and enjoyed a lovely evening of chatting, sipping champagne, eating delicious goodies, lots of giggles. I've got a lot of great books to read before our next meeting in 2011. Have a terrific Christmas and New Year and hope 2011 with be fantastic!

The Villa Triste

I very much enjoyed The Villa Triste by Lucretia Grindle. For me it was a book to savour, don't read too quickly, stretch out the reading pleasure. It was one of those rare books where I couldn't wait to get to the end, but was sad when it was over. It is set in Florence where former Italian partisans have been murdered. Senior policeman, Pallioti, investigates and finds at the crime scene a WWII journal which was written by a former female partisan, Caterina. As we read the journal while also reading about the investigation, we learn about connections between the two time periods. This is very well written, highly recommended. 5/5

Crime Book Club Christmas Lunch

Myself and the other ladies in our Crime Book Club had lunch at our local shopping centre yesterday. The meals were nice and a little bottle of champagne went down well. Later we had coffee and cake. The weather is still awful. We've had enough rain now, bring back the sunshine! Anyway, we all had a good time.

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