Pam B's 2016 Challenge

[Pam]

Read the fourth in the Flavia de Luce cosy mystery series, I am Half-Sick of Shadows.

[Pam]

Read a weighty tome on the Salem witchcraft persecutions - The Witches: Salem 1692.

I'm also reading another big book on the subject which seems a lot more well researched so will be posting a review of that one eventually.

[Guy]

Pam wrote: "Read a weighty tome on the Salem witchcraft persecutions - The Witches: Salem 1692.

I'm also reading another big book on the subject which seems a lot more well researched so will be posting a rev..."

Look forward to, hopefully, a better read on the subject. Let us know!

[Pam]

I've just read the massive reference tome on the Salem witchcraft persecutions - The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-day Chronicle of a Community under Seige.

Literally what it says on the tin. Not the most easy read because of the sheer weight of facts, but the style itself isn't dry or heavy going, just the number of people arrested/questioned etc. A good background reference book against which to assess others.

[Guy]

Pam wrote: "I've just read the massive reference tome on the Salem witchcraft persecutions - The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-day Chronicle of a Community under Seige.

Literally what it says on the tin. Not t..."

Thanks - This is more to my style of enjoyment. Great review. Adding to TBR

[Pam]

Cheers Guy, glad it was useful.

[Pam]

Re-read a book I loved as a teen: not so keen now - Jack of Shadows by Roger Zelazny.

[Pam]

Oh dear, another Zelazny which I loved even more - has some good points but not so great for me now - Nine Princes in Amber.

[Leslie]

It is always a bit of a risk to reread favorites from childhood & adolescence. Too bad these were disappointing Pam!

[Pam]

Well, I've read the second Amber book Leslie and I liked that one a lot more - The Guns of Avalon.

[Pam]

Finished two that have taken me a while - Riddle of the Sands, the 1903 novel of espionage and the German threat pre WWI, and the third volume of Jenny Nimmo's children's fantasy trilogy - The Chestnut Soldier.

[Pam]

Finished a Diana Wynne Jones fantasy - The Dark Lord of Derkholm.

[Pam]

Finished book 3 of Roger Zelazny's Amber series: Sign of the Unicorn.

[Pam]

Read the sequel to The Dark Lord of Derkhom, Year of the Griffin which had some weaknesses unfortunately, much as I usually enjoy Diana Wynne Jones' work.

[Pam]

Read another DWJ book, The Homeward Bounders.

[Pam]

And a children's historical by Ruth Arthur, The Saracen Lamp

[Pam]

Finished Diana Wynne Jones' first children's book, Wilkins' Tooth which was published in the States as "Witch's Business". Interesting read as I discovered her with "Dogsbody", her third I think, and hadn't read this one before.

[Pam]

A catch-up of two of the books I've read lately (haven't reviewed them all yet):

The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
Exile by Martin Owton

[Pam]

Final catchup - the second Dalemark book by Diana Wynne Jones - Drowned Ammet.

[Pam]

Read the first of two Agatha Christie's - 4.50 From Paddington . I didn't love it as much as the Joan Hickson TV adaptation, chiefly because there isn't enough Miss Marple in it, but it was quite an enjoyable read.

[Pam]

Read Deception in the Cotswolds by Rebecca Tope.

[Leslie]

Pam wrote: "Read the first of two Agatha Christie's - 4:50 from Paddington. I didn't love it as much as the Joan Hickson TV adaptation, chiefly because there isn't enoug..."

For some reason, I always think about this using in my mind the alternate title (American title?) What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw. In any case, I agree that for this one, the Hickson adaptation was superior!

[Pam]

Yes I saw it had that other title, not sure if it was for the US though '4.50 from Paddington' probably wouldn't make a lot of sense for a US audience.

I'm now reading the other facsimile Christie I picked up, And Then There Were None.

I just read a police procedural by an author new to me, Peter Lovesey, but I wasn't that taken with it - Cop to Corpse.

[Pam]

I did enjoy this one though - And Then There Were None by the Queen of crime, Agatha Christie.

[Pam]

Read The Inquisition: The Reign of Fear by Toby Green.

[Pam]

Finally got back to Robin Hobb's LiveShip Traders trilogy and read book 3 - Ship of Destiny .

[Pam]

Just read Death in the Cotswolds by Rebecca Tope. One of the better ones in this series.

Now started book 1 of the Tawny Man trilogy by Robin Hobb, which is next in the chronology after LiveShip Traders. May take me some time!

[Pam]

Half way through 'Fool's Errand', at least this one is only a bit over 600 pages, not the 900 pages of the last LiveShip Traders volume!

[Pam]

Finished Fool's Errand. Enjoyed it though it was very sad towards the end.

[Pam]

Read book 2 of the trilogy, The Golden Fool, which suffered from book 2 syndrome and was losing my interest in places.

[Pam]

Finally finished volume 4 of the Amber series by Roger Zelazny - The Hand of Oberon.

[Pam]

Finished book 3 in Robin Hobb's Tawny Man trilogy, Fool's Fate and book 5 of the five book first Amber series, The Courts of Chaos.

Now reading an earlier volume in Rebecca Tope's Cotswolds cosy crime series, Fear in the Cotswolds.

[Pam]

Finished Fear in the Cotswolds.

[Pam]

And read number 5 in the Flavia de Luce series by Alan Bradley, Speaking from Among the Bones, a four star read. One of my favourite cosy crime series.

Now on the latest Cotswolds volume by Rebecca Tope, Guilt in the Cotswolds

[Pam]

Finished Guilt in the Cotswolds and a book for family history research in the UK My Ancestor was in the British Army.

[Pam]

Finished book 6 in the Flavia de Luce series. The resolution of the murder let it down so not quite 5 stars - The Dead in their Vaulted Arches.

[Pam]

Just in case it wasn't clear as it's been pointed out to me in the general thread that no one knew the links were reviews, all the book links here are to my reviews of them.

So here's the latest review - Mr Mercedes by Stephen King.

[Pam]

Finished Finders Keepers and reviewed https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1820752270

[Pam]

Read The Company of Glory by Edgar Pangborn and reviewed it https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1308688030

[Pam]

Just read Trumps of Doom and reviewed it https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1805823638

[Pam]

Read and reviewed Enigma by Robert Harris - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1396998907

[Pam]

Read a comic short piece A Christmas Outing by Jonathan Hill and reviewed https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1835393669

[Pam]

Read the second in the second set of five books by Roger Zelazny, about Amber - Blood of Amber and it was a massive disappointment so I won't be bothering with the last three - as I've explained in my review.

[Pam]

Oh dear, another disappointing read - Gillian Bradshaw's Hawk of May, first in an Arthurian trilogy. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1390905407

[Pam]

Well at least book 2 of the trilogy was quite a bit better - Kingdom of Summer - here's my review - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1390905922.

[Pam]

Read a collection of short stories Strange Monsters of the Recent Past and found it disappointing as I've explained here - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1851060669