What mysteries are you reading at the moment? Old thread Showing 751-800 of 4,457

[Jan C]

Carol ♛ Type, Oh Queen! ♛ wrote: "Jan C wrote: "I've started Far Pavilions, not sure how far in I am. I am guessing at not very.

Jan I'm in Part 6, but if you want a buddy to read with, I am using this group.

https://www.goodrea..."

Thanks. I think it is kind of an a back burner right now. I was going to say because I don't know where it is when I found it.

[Christmas Carol ꧁꧂]

Jan C wrote: " Thanks. I think it is kind of an a back burner right now.

It's on a slight back burner for me just because I had 2 group reads for the start of the month.But I'll be back to it in a few days.

[Susan]

For those of us in the UK, there is a new series about books - beginning with, "Sleuth, Spies and Sorcerer's." http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p040pvpp
It starts on 17th October at 9pm on BBC4 - Andrew Marr's Paperback Heroes.

[Susan]

Currently reading two good contemporary mysteries - Lovemurder and The Book of Mirrors. The Book of Mirrors is an academic mystery and I know a few of us like those.

[Judy]

Thanks for the info about that series, Susan - sounds great.

[Jan C]

The Book of Murders won't be out here until February 2017, either in hardcover or kindle.

[Susan]

The Book of Mirrors is currently on NetGalley, Jan. I know quite a few of us are NetGalley users - I must admit that I get most of my books from them now.

[Susan]

I just finished Lovemurder (2nd Valerie Hart), which was a very good, fast paced crime novel. Just started Blood Lines (5th Kim Stone) and am halfway through Gaudy Night, which I have never read before.

[Jill]

Just Started The River of Fire by Patrick Easter. I read the first book some time ago and enjoyed it The Watermen The books are set in the 1790's at Wapping London and are about the river police of that time. This second book deals with a couple of Napoleon's agents so hoping for a good story

[Sandi]

"Blood Harvest"by SJBolton. My second of her books.bi have another one I'll be reading next, "Dead Scared". She has great twists and turns, keeping you guessing until the very end. I highly recommend her.

[LovesMysteries]

Right now I'm reading Agatha Christie's Witness For the Prosecution and Other Stories which are obviously a collection of short stories. This will be my first time plowing through this collection though I am familiar with the first story 'Witness For The Prosecution' which I definitely recommend -- it's a story you will never forget!

[Abigail]

I recently finished a mystery set in the Regency, the first in a new series: A Useful Woman by Darcie Wilde. Don’t be put off by the claim that it’s “inspired by Jane Austen”—there’s nothing Austenesque about it. Very well done, especially well constructed, I thought.

[LovesMysteries]

Abigail wrote: "I recently finished a mystery set in the Regency, the first in a new series: A Useful Woman by Darcie Wilde. Don’t be put off by the claim that it’s “inspired by Jane Austen”—there’..."

Speaking of "Austenesque" have you read P.D. James Death Comes To Pemberley? She uses some of the characters from Jane Austin's Pride & Prejudice and incorporate them into a murder mystery.

[Sandi]

Is anybody having a problem with Goodreads. They send me an e-mail and when I open it I have to sign in. Happens every time.

[Christmas Carol ꧁꧂]

Brian wrote: "Abigail wrote: "I recently finished a mystery set in the Regency, the first in a new series: A Useful Woman by Darcie Wilde. Don’t be put off by the claim that it’s “inspired by Jan..."

Like Abigail I've also just read A Useful Woman. I thought it sagged a bit in the middle & had a few anachronisms, but still enjoyed it enough to give it 4★

Brian I own Death Comes to Pemberley but an unlikely to read before next year. I still haven't read The Murder Room by PD James which is supposed to be a far better book.

[Abigail]

Hi, Brian, yes, I’ve read Death Comes to Pemberley, and as a Jane Austen adherent I hated it! If James had not used the names of characters from Pride and Prejudice, it might have been an okay mystery (I’ve always found James’s mysteries a bit flat and drab)—but she took the names of the characters and then completely changed their personalities! Her Elizabeth Darcy was timid, self-doubting, and dull, no witty repartee in sight; her Mr. Darcy pretty much reverted to Elizabeth’s first impression of him, arrogant and distant (where a central point of P&P is that first impressions are generally erroneous). The TV version was pretty to look at but didn’t resolve any of the book’s problems.

[Michelle]

I agree about Death Comes to Pemberley, it isn't any good for Austen fans who wer sold it as a sequel. It could have been any old mystery really that just used P&P as a backdrop. Didn't like what she had done to the characters either.

[Judy]

Welcome, Brian! I don't remember the book Death Comes to Pemberley very well now, although I think I possibly liked it a bit more than Abigail and Michelle did... looks as if it is one I forgot to rate on GR! But I do remember enjoying the TV adaptation, which had a great cast.

[Susan]

I liked Death Comes to Pemberley. I am willing to forgive P D James almost anything though, just because I adore her books so much...

[Leslie]

I recently finished the latest Inspector Gamache book, A Great Reckoning. Very good for those who have read the whole series though the mystery itself was second fiddle to the ongoing endeavors of Gamache to clean up the Quebec police force so I don't know how well it would be for a reader unfamiliar with Penny's books.

Regarding Death Comes to Pemberley, I agree with Abigail. But I am not in general very tolerant of "fanfiction" -- I have liked a few but mostly I feel that authors should create their own characters rather than 'borrowing' someone else's.

[Susan]

I think P D James had always wanted to write Pemberley - but knew the reaction it would get. Having reached a good age, she was probably just at the point where she thought that if she didn't write it then, she never would. I do agree though, that the current trend for resurrecting another author's work is fraught with problems - at best - and really best avoided.

[Abigail]

I’ll push back a little on the notion that fan fiction has to be either borrowing or resurrecting another’s work. Often it is that, I grant you, or it’s used as merely a hook to get readers (“if you like Jane Austen, you’ll love this!”) or an excuse to wallow in a particular emotion.

But it can also be approached as (a) a way of revisiting important themes in a modern context, (b) an homage to a master, or (c) a re-envisioning of a classic story or myth—among other possibilities. Was James Joyce borrowing or resurrecting The Odyssey by writing Ulysses? (Or take a look at The Decameron, or many other works of literature from the past that are based on Greek and Roman lit.) I’m currently reading Jeanette Winterson’s book The Gap of Time, which she describes as “a cover version of William Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale.” Such authors are writing novels of literary ambition that are dialogues with classic works of the past, that explore their meaning and reinterpret that meaning for their own era’s readers. There exist writers of such ambition even in Jane Austen fan fiction. (Not many, I admit; but it’s too sweeping to dismiss the entire genre.)

[Amy]

Just read A Nun in the Closet. Completely silly. Completely delightful. A cozy with hippies and nuns and an over-the-top ending.

[Judy]

Abigail, I agree that fan fiction and sequels by other authors do vary hugely in quality. I must say I'm quite often tempted to try them, and am often disappointed but sometimes excited, and the best ones can shed light on the originals and send me back to them yet again.

I also think it's understandable that publishers are keen to bring out sequels/prequels etc as there is a guaranteed market for them, but it's a shame if authors find it hard to get a deal to publish books with their own original characters too.

[Abigail]

Hi, Amy, Dorothy Gilman is just delicious, isn’t she? And I feel her stories hold up quite well, even though they have dated elements. The Mrs. Pollifax series is fabulous.

[Leslie]

Amy wrote: "Just read A Nun in the Closet. Completely silly. Completely delightful. A cozy with hippies and nuns and an over-the-top ending."

My favorite of Dorothy Gilman's non-Mrs. Pollifax books -- I have read and reread it. Glad to hear that despite some dated elements it continues to charm some new readers :)

[Susan]

I have never read Dorothy Gilman before, but that looks fun. I must investigate her.

[Michelle]

Not started yet but just picked up from the library Magpie Murders By Anthony Horowitz which is his go at a Golden Age murder. Looking forward to it, it seems to be his own characters rather than taking on someone else's.

[Judy]

Michelle, I ordered Magpie Murders from the library the other day after peeking in it in a bookshop - it looks really good.

[Susan]

I loved Magpie Murders, it was a really unusual read. I am currently reading The Owl Always Hunts At Night and Murder at the Brightwell and just finished Gaudy Night, which I read for the first time.

[Michelle]

Maybe I will read it this weekend, good to have a great book at the weekend. I get disappointed if I have a day set aside for reading and the book isn't very good!

[Jay-me (Janet)]

I've just started reading The Frozen Lake which counts as a book set in Westmorland for my Round Britain Challenge. I've read other books by this author and have enjoyed them so I have high hopes for this one.

[Carolien]

Amy wrote: "Just read A Nun in the Closet. Completely silly. Completely delightful. A cozy with hippies and nuns and an over-the-top ending."

I love this one! I've reread it quite a few times when in need of light reading.

[Michelle]

I've just finished Murder in the Museum one of the British library classics set in the British Museum. An easy read but quite a stupid/ridiculous solution to the mystery.

Also finished The Big Four a Poirot mystery. Another stupid one, seemed a bit like vignettes rather than a complete mystery and rather ridiculous.

I bought The Big Four as its Poirot number five so I thought a good one before she got all sixties silly, but she was clearly laying the ground work for that here!

Either I was in a grump this weekend or the books were pretty silly. Anyone else read either of them?

[Susan]

I read The Big Four a number of years ago, but it doesn't stick in my mind and I don't think I have re-read it, so presumably did not enjoy it either! I think Christie was often under immense pressure to write more - she had financial issues for much of her life - and her work did suffer. At her best she was brilliant, but the sheer output of books meant that her work suffered.

[Judy]

I'm currently reading Escort to Adventure by Angus MacVicar, one of the many recent Kindle freebies. Enjoying it so far - it is set in Scotland, so good for my challenge, and is romantic, like both our group reads for next month!

[Michelle]

Susan wrote: "I read The Big Four a number of years ago, but it doesn't stick in my mind and I don't think I have re-read it, so presumably did not enjoy it either! I think Christie was often under immense press..."

It certainly didn't feel like her usual stuff!

I imagine lots of authors felt financial pressures and it affected their work. Dickens was a bit like that, drag things out to serialise them. The Old Curiosity Shop is terrible, endless scenes of Little Nell and Grandfather wandering England, on their last legs, about to give up and die (oh how I wish they had) when random stranger enters, discovers a connection and gives them food and shelter for the evening. Repeat ad infinitum.

[Judy]

Michelle, I love Dickens (my favourite author since childhood) - I know the plots in the early novels are rambling, but I'm happy for them to ramble on forever. The Old Curiosity Shop isn't one of my favourites, but I do love Dick Swiveller and the Marchioness.

[Michelle]

Judy wrote: "Michelle, I love Dickens (my favourite author since childhood) - I know the plots in the early novels are rambling, but I'm happy for them to ramble on forever. The Old Curiosity Shop isn't one of ..."

Oh I love Dickens, have read many and my work book club is reading Our Mutual Friend in 6 chunks (as well as a standard book each month). Old Curiosity Shop though I couldn't stand as it was the same ramble again and again, had little point and wasn't about a shop old or curious. I would have liked to hear about the shop, feels like there should be a story there. I agree there are some great characters there though albeit somewhat unfortunately named!

I have thoroughly enjoyed all the others I've read of his though so I will forgive him The old Curiosity Shop. I also particularly enjoyed Charles Dickens and the Great Theatre of the World by Simon Callow. I like the theatre a lot so really interesting to see the links and influences of this on Dickens. and Simon Callow knows his stuff, I saw a one man show he did of Dickens and it was fabulous.

[Leslie]

I have just started the first Dr. Siri mystery, The Coroner's Lunch. Has anyone else read these?

[Sandy]

Leslie wrote: "I have just started the first Dr. Siri mystery, The Coroner's Lunch. Has anyone else read these?"

No, but it has been on my TBR for a very long time, so I am interested in your reaction.

[Susan]

Yes, I have read The Coroner's Lunch, Leslie, and recall enjoying it very much.

Dickens obviously wrote for magazines, so you do have these - will they or won't they cliffhangers all the time. Reading the whole thing as a novel obviously suffers just a little compared to reading in instalments. I do love Dickens though and, as a Londoner, I feel he really wrote about the city like no other author ever has.

In the summer I took my children to the Dickens museum, which was where he wrote many of his most famous novels. My children love the breakfast bowls I brought there, with, "Please Sir, I want some more!" on them :)

[Lady Clementina]

Judy wrote: "Michelle, I love Dickens (my favourite author since childhood) - I know the plots in the early novels are rambling, but I'm happy for them to ramble on forever. The Old Curiosity Shop isn't one of ..."

I love Swiveller and the marchioness too and also Kit taking his mother out to dinner- that is so sweet. And in David Copperfield, Aunt Betsey-

[Christmas Carol ꧁꧂]

I'm reading The Murder of Roger Ackroyd with another group. My kindle edition doesn't have some of the diagrams. Doesn't matter for me as I have read the book at least 3 times before, but might be frustrating for other readers.

Really enjoying knowingly watching Christie lay her clues.

[Lynne]

I am a Newbie here! I have 5 or 6 books going ranging from "Big History" to "Barnaby Rudge". The current mystery/mysteries is Christie's "Complete Hercule Poirot Short Stories". It will take me a while, I think! I am also reading "Middlemarch" for the first time with the Victorians group here on Goodreads.

[Leslie]

Sandy wrote: "Leslie wrote: "I have just started the first Dr. Siri mystery, The Coroner's Lunch. Has anyone else read these?"

No, but it has been on my TBR for a very long time, so I am interes..."

I have finished it now -- I liked the setting and the mystery was decent but Dr. Siri has paranormal ability (view spoiler)[he can commune with the dead in his dreams (hide spoiler)] which I wasn't crazy about. Especially as the author used that as a way for Dr. Siri to get 'clues' which he wouldn't have been able to get otherwise!

[Sandy]

Leslie wrote: "Sandy wrote: "Leslie wrote: "I have just started the first Dr. Siri mystery, The Coroner's Lunch. Has anyone else read these?"

No, but it has been on my TBR for a very long time, s..."

Oh no, I'm not crazy about paranormal!

[Amy]

From Doon to Death. It will be my first Ruth Rendell mystery.

[Susan]

I am reading the new Belinda Bauer, The Beautiful Dead and the second Poppy Denby mystery (1st book The Jazz Files) The Kill Fee.

[Judy]

I'm in the middle of Murder in Stained Glass by the Margaret Armstrong, which I recently got free on Kindle - a fun read so far. It's one with an older woman sleuth in 1930s America.