What I read in January 2015

[[deleted user]]

I had a very productive reading month in January! I managed to get eleven books devoured.

Crescendo
4/5
Second in the "Hush, Hush" quartet, good read, intrigue lent by the Black Hand.

The Exile: An Outlander Graphic Novel
2/5
Nice illustrations, but didn't even cover a third of the original "Outlander" book. Rather disappointing.

The Surgeon
3/5
Good action, likable characters, intricate plot, first in the "Rizzoli & Isles" series.

The 9th Judgment
5/5
Fast-paced action, crazy villain, quick read, ninth in the "Women's Murder Club" series.

Winterdance: The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod
4/5
Wonderfully written, great details, exciting story.

Gossip Girl
2/5
Easy read, shallow plot, guilty indulgence, first in "Gossip Girl" series.

You Know You Love Me
2/5
Easy read, characters at least showed some growth in this one, second in "Gossip Girl" series.

The Dangers of Deceiving a Viscount
2/5
Third and last in the "Desperate Debutantes" trilogy, interesting characters, frolicking plot.

The Five Love Languages: How to Express Heartfelt Commitment to Your Mate
4/5
Useful anecdotes, how-to guide, interesting information presented, different perspective.

Patience, Princess Catherine: A Young Royals Book
3/5
A little lacking in detail, altering perspectives are good for larger grasp of the story.

Inferno
4/5
Fast-paced, good plot, unique concept that will inspire a lot of controversy, rich with details.

[Amy]

Nice month, Maggie! Sorry to see you had some clunkers.

[Alias Reader]

11 books ! Well done, Maggie.

[Danielle]

I read following books in January:

1:The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

‘The grass is singing’ opens with a newspaper cutting about the death of a white farmer’s wife, called Mary Turner. The news of Mary’s murder doesn’t come as a surprise for her neighbours, on the contrary. From the second chapter onwards we get the story of Mary Turner’s life up to her murder.

Before meeting her husband Mary led a happy and independent life in a city. After overhearing an insulting remark at a party about her spinsterhood, she decides to marry. She ends up marrying a farmer called Dick Turner, a man she hardly knows. The move to Dick’s farm is far from easy for the city dweller Mary. Instead of socializing with the neighbours Mary doesn’t want to attend any social events and as Dick doesn’t care for social events, the couple live a very isolated life on their farm. Much to Dick’s despair, Mary is unable to keep a black houseboy for more than a month. When a house boy called Moses enters the scene things only seem to go further downhill for Mary.

Despite knowing the ending of the novel in the opening lines, ‘The grass is singing’ knew to keep my attention. I found the novel fascinating and intriguing. There is first of all the very descriptive prose. You can almost feel the African heat. Secondly there is the character of Mary. This is also the sort of novel were a lot of things are touched upon but not entirely spoken out. I like it that in a novel. What I also liked is the complexity of the whole situation and setting.

2:The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde ★ ★ ★ ★

'The Picture of Dorian Gray' made me think about Faust, the scientist who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for all the wealth, knowledge, and pleasures of life. The approach for this story is different and adapted to its time.

I found some pieces hard to read and others easy. But even in the harder parts I enjoyed the language. I liked the way in which this story was told; it is a fine example of a gothic novel, a genre that I appreciate enormously.

3:Death in Holy Orders by P.D. James - audio book version ★ ★

Death by accident is the conclusion of the investigation into the tragic death of Ronald Treeves, theology student at Saint Anselms. His father, business tycoon and arms manufacturer Sir Alfred Treeves however asks Scotland Yard to re-investigate. Commander Adam Dalgliesh is therefore sent to Saint Anselms. The day after Dalgliesh’s arrival one of the other guests at the college is murdered. As the murder victim, Archdeacon Crampton, wanted to close the college, there are many suspects. Moreover some people seem to have personal reasons for hating Crampton.

It is typical for P.D. James to take time for the development of a story and the setting. However, I wasn’t really interested in some details she dwelled upon. In fact, I was glad when the Archdeacon was murdered, hoping the story would pick up from there. And it did. Unfortunately though, the unravelling of some of the treads was too far-fetched for me, and I felt no desire to go ahead with the story. As I was listening to the audio version and wanted to know who killed the Archdeacon, I persevered. Frankly I understood little of the motives of the killer.

Not a book I would recommend.


I finished two books I started in December:

1:You by Nuala Ní Chonchúir ★ ★ ★ ★

This story is entirely written in second person. As it was the first time for me I read a story in second person, it took me some time to get used to it. By then, I realized I really liked the characters depicted in this little gem.

It is about a ten year old girl, living in Dublin and what happened with her and her family during one particular summer. It has both drama and humour.

2:Call of the Jungle by Sabine Kuegler ★ ★ ★

This is actually the second or third book by Sabine Kuegler. Sabine and her family lived among the Fayu in West Papua. So Sabine and her siblings grew up as jungle children. When Sabine had to go to Switserland for her education at 17, she had a very hard time adapting to western culture.

In this book she returns to the Fayu. At the same time she also tells another story she learnt during a second visit: the story of the political situation of the region.

I found it interesting and hope to read her other books as well.

[Alias Reader]

Danielle wrote: "I read following books in January:

1:The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

You can almost feel the African heat..."

I said the same thing ! The heat almost is another character. I read this book twice and loved it !

[Danielle]

I think what you said Alias, just got stuck in my head.

[Madrano]

Good reading month, folks. It's a pleasure to see more raves than rants.