Tara ’s Comments (group member since Jul 12, 2017)

Tara ’s comments from the Reading the Detectives group.

Like others, I've read books here and there as available from the library, listened to some audiobooks, and watched the Derek Jacobi TV series (I am so sad that it doesn't seem to be available for purchase as an entire series on DVD at a reasonable price, but I will keep searching).
Inspired by the Poirot, Miss Marple, and Ngaio Marsh challenges, I have acquired all of the paperbacks from eBay (but only the covers with the stained glass pictures, those have always been what drew me in to the series). I am reading one book a month in order, and I am currently on book 3, Monk's Hood . I can't say that I know much about either monasteries or 12th century England, but the books have always read as being knowledgeable and authentic, which is part of why I keep coming back to them. Glad to hear there are other fans out there!

Another "surprise" ending, which I think Christie pulled off very well. In some parts it seems like Nick is too cavalier with her own safety, but I suppose there are people who are really that frivolous. I think the TV adaptation does a better job of portraying the tragic cousin (she seems totally unappealing in the book), but otherwise I enjoyed it.

Having already seen the TV adaptation with the incomparable David Suchet, I already knew the "surprise" ending, but I still enjoyed this quite a bit. An interesting cast of characters (as usual), and once again a touch of the supernatural, which is always fun.

Sue wrote: "Carolien wrote: "A Surfeit of Guns. This is a wonderful series based on a real character of Elizabethan times, Robert Carey. Set in Carlisle on the Scottish Border, it is such a good series. If you..."

Me too Sue! I am on Book 2 of the Cadfael series (One Corpse Too Many) and am reading in sequence. I would be interested in a buddy read on this new series too!

Oedipuss wrote: "Hello. I'm new here. Thanks for having me. I've got a lit degree so I've read much of "the canon" (at least American and British Lit) and I grew up loving science fiction so I can speak intelligent..."

I've watched the Bosch series on Amazon and really enjoyed it. Have you seen it? I wonder how close it is to the books, and if its worth delving into the book series.

The Woman in White is also very good. I haven't read Moonstone in years, but I have it on my shelves somewhere.

Carol ꧁꧂ wrote: "Tara wrote: "Continuing my traipse through the alphabet, I just started L is for Lawless. I really appreciate Kinsey Milhone's brash, independent st..."

Sometimes the stories overlap in my mind, but this one has element of humor that stands out to me.

Sandy wrote: "I'm reading Pacific: Silicon Chips and Surfboards, Coral Reefs and Atom Bombs, Brutal Dictators, Fading Empires, and the Coming Collision of the World's Superpowers by Simon..."</i>

I read [book:The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary by him and enjoyed it. I recently picked up Pacific for $2 from eBay and I hope to read it soon!

Continuing my traipse through the alphabet, I just started L is for Lawless . I really appreciate Kinsey Milhone's brash, independent streak, and I can see a little bit of myself in her.

Jessica wrote: "I looked in my reading companion for Poirot to see if I could find anything interesting there... but nope. Guess, there really isn't that much to say here. Except that apparently, this is the first..."

Its a shame we don't get more of a backstory about Hastings Jessica. He is used pretty effectively as a foil for Poirot, but there really are only tidbits here and there. Also, what companion book do you have?

I just finished the Audible version of CS Lewis's Till We Have Faces , which is a beautiful re-telling of the Psyche and Cupid myth. Very thought-provoking and interesting.

Jessica wrote: "Poirot's reminiscences also first threw me off. Thinking that I was just faithfully following the timeline by adding this adaption and then finding it appeared in the wrong place still... but indee..."

That also annoyed me about Hastings Jessica! I know that he was a sucker for girls with auburn hair, but that seemed like a ridiculous thing for him to do. You would think after all of the investigations he has participated in, that he would be less susceptible to ladies with shady motives.

Like fine wine, these books get better and better over time. I am about 3/4 done with this one already, and I should finish up soon. In some of the earlier books I had a hard time separating out the characters, but the nice, slow build of the mystery helped to sort everyone out.

My favorite line thus far (and one I may try to squeeze into conversation): "Don't let the sun rise on your parentheses."

Judy wrote: "Tara, you’ve reminded me that I’ve been meaning to read Cadfael ever since this group started - I must get round to it soon! I remember enjoying the series,"

Always too many books, too little time Judy! I have found that the challenges with one book in the series per month is a great way to go, so I am trying to incorporate that style in my own personal reading. I don't think it would make for a bad buddy read though.

I am on my second book in Ellis Peters' Brother Cadfael series, One Corpse Too Many . I really enjoyed the first one, and I am looking forward to reading them all in sequence. Despite having a monk as the detective and main character, he is world weary and wise, and almost provides an outsider's approachable view to the monastery than a type a general audience couldn't connect with.
I also remember really liking the TV series with Derek Jacobi. I should look into whether or not those are available for streaming somewhere.

Its hard to say whether knowing this wasn't truly a Christie story impacted my view on it, but I was not a fan. I suppose it goes to show, that even with the same raw materials as Christie, the same magic doesn't necessarily result.

I listened to this on audiobook (once again the incomparable Hugh Fraser), and it was probably my least favorite of the series thus far. It just didn't click somehow. I enjoyed Poirot playing matchmaker, but that was the only bit I connected with.

As the huge Tolkien fan that I am, of course I had to preorder Tolkien: Maker of Middle-earth , which I received a little bit ago. Despite not really having the bandwidth to start another book (how many is too many to read at once?), I decided to start it as a pick-me-up and a treat to myself (I've been working really long hours, and I feel I deserve it!)
I've read a lot of background books on Tolkien (his bio, his letters, &c.), so one could feel like there is nothing else to learn about him. But what makes this book so awesome are the interesting chapters (each written by a different Tolkien scholar), and beautiful drawings and photographs, some of which have never been published before. It is a treat indeed, and I am so happy to have this as part of my collection.

Carolien wrote: "Tara wrote: "I started 2 new books yesterday, both from series that I am making my way through in chronological order: K is for Killer by Sue Grafton and [book:A Morbid ..."

I particularly like the pacing of the Milhone series--it moves forward in time, but generally only a few weeks or months between the books so that you feel like you are in the same time throughout. She avoids having the create a backstory of her entire lifetime which I think is a problem for some other writers, especially when the characters are old to begin with.

Balaji wrote: "Tara wrote: "How are you enjoying the Marchmont series? I read the first one and liked it, but I haven't read any of the subsequent ones. "

Loving it!!
You should definitely try the other ones to..."

Awesome, thank you for the recommendation. I will keep my eye out for kindle sales on these. As if my TBR list isn't already too long....