tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.comments2023-03-29T10:25:18.702-04:00Read Me DeadlySister Mary Murderoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13721665989818474295noreply@blogger.comBlogger1707125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-23549038679636671342016-08-01T08:58:25.018-04:002016-08-01T08:58:25.018-04:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.ludgers reisenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16783537280307275768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-44119228357083524512016-05-04T08:15:53.810-04:002016-05-04T08:15:53.810-04:00Dean Street Press publishers have undertaken to re...Dean Street Press publishers have undertaken to reprint all 33 non-Miss Silver titles before July in the UK - the covers are beautiful!DSPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08820902441907385940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-83326745240971657472016-05-01T09:28:02.100-04:002016-05-01T09:28:02.100-04:00Raymond Chandler was a genius at laying down manus...Raymond Chandler was a genius at laying down manuscripts in the genre of mystery & hard boiled detectives a world that involves deceit,cheats & ladies of the streets along with murderers & all the criminals you can conger up.<br />The Big Sleep has theses & a lot more just in the Sternwood family alone & the screenplay is a jewel written by R.S.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01798805681266620499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-58008322714432834832016-04-28T12:57:26.966-04:002016-04-28T12:57:26.966-04:00TTATHQA might not be absolutely the worst book I h...TTATHQA might not be absolutely the worst book I have ever read, but it is definitely the worst book relative to the degree of hype it generated. On the positive side it has narrative drive, but that is genuinely the only good thing I can say about it. <br />Its faults include:<br />Gruesomely unreal dialogue<br />Unintentionally repellent characters<br />Unbelievable plot-twists<br />Blatant padding<br />Lazy bloated sloppy English. Probably every fifth word could have been cut (out).<br />Dire metaphors<br />Racist and sexist stereotypes<br />Cliches galore<br />Laughable philosophical statements ('books never end')<br />etc, etc<br /><br />The good news is that all of these appalling characteristics have now been condensed into a 200-page spoof entitled "The (Awful) Truth About the Herbert Quarry Affair". It was published for free on my blog. If you want a laugh, google peluxes blogger, and look for a post about Herbert Quarry.<br />Hope you enjoy it<br /> essay den sushinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01915510788641818601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-31351579478556416002016-04-14T10:18:10.419-04:002016-04-14T10:18:10.419-04:00Yes, to the Clara Benson note above. Here is the ...Yes, to the Clara Benson note above. Here is the site where the author explains her motivations: http://clarabenson.com/authors-note/<br />Also, the George Gently series starring Martin Shaw first aired in 2007, not the 1960s.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-59526268097362130162016-04-01T16:04:58.644-04:002016-04-01T16:04:58.644-04:00I concur completely with aliceteepleart on Benedic...I concur completely with aliceteepleart on Benedict Cumberbatch playing Lord Peter Wimsey. The only thing I can see playing against him would be his height! Wimsey I believe is only supposed to be about 5'10" or so, but Cumberbatch could pull off the "wiry strength" to perfection. They'll have to find a match for him as Harriet Vane. I adored Harriet Walter's performances immensely, as well as Edward Petherbridge's, but I'd love to see the stories more fleshed out. Sayers included so much interesting information in her stories of her time, so that they're rather a history lesson with an absorbing detective element and the ones with Harriet include some of the best depictions of love I've ever read! Another long time Sayers devotee!ConnieLouhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16215642552378229944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-57588436834284341922016-02-16T01:22:04.903-05:002016-02-16T01:22:04.903-05:00The picture of Nether Wallop isn't Nether Wall...The picture of Nether Wallop isn't Nether Wallop. It looks suspiciously like Corfe Mullen in Dorset.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-84123611600591140332016-01-24T11:49:54.159-05:002016-01-24T11:49:54.159-05:00JonJ: Interesting comment. An avid fan of the genr...JonJ: Interesting comment. An avid fan of the genre, I too grew more and more suspicious of 'Clara Benson' as a 19th century author. Not only the "many anachronisms" but also the writing techniques, rhythm, structures and even phrasing. As a university writing coach, I often find my enjoyment of lighter reading marred by my innate scanning of the text. Benson's works intrigue me and entertain me but do not fool me with the now-and-then 'awkward segues' so reminiscent of earlier fiction.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16919782853384349195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-2686072944853150702016-01-16T06:37:14.111-05:002016-01-16T06:37:14.111-05:00Who is Clara Benson, then? I enjoyed her books re...Who is Clara Benson, then? I enjoyed her books regardless of her identity. Margaret Stuttshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09038076592260485688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-55759071027118347962015-12-09T13:37:34.997-05:002015-12-09T13:37:34.997-05:00Well, I still haven't thought of that book, bu...Well, I still haven't thought of that book, but the main thing is, I hope you're feeling better.Sister Mary Murderoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13721665989818474295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-29636478333979912802015-12-09T13:35:34.495-05:002015-12-09T13:35:34.495-05:00Never heard of Richard Hull. I'll have to che...Never heard of Richard Hull. I'll have to check this out. I like these mysteries told from the POV of the bad guy, like Francis Iles's Malice Domestic or, much more recently, Phil Hogan's A Pleasure and a Calling.Sister Mary Murderoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13721665989818474295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-16761809260770272992015-12-04T14:18:12.027-05:002015-12-04T14:18:12.027-05:00Well, Sister Mary, I hope you let us know if you d...Well, Sister Mary, I hope you let us know if you do think of that other title. I'd be very interested to know. The contrast between the sensuous thoughts of de Giovanni's falling man and his looming appointment with the ground had me in a cringing swoon. The fall took something like five pages!<br /><br />Another book that opens with a fall is Michael Gruber's Valley of Bones, but the focus of that opening scene is the cop who witnessed it, well, okay, KINDA witnessed it: "The cop happened to look up at just the right instant or he would have missed it, not the actual impalement [onto the fleur-de-lis spearheads of the Trianon Hotel's fence], but the fall itself. It took him a disorienting second to realize what he was seeing, the swelling black mass against the white stone and glass of the hotel facade, and then it was finished, with a sound that he knew he would carry to his grave." I enjoyed this book, too.Georgette Spelvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13853710671433406351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-18304999905504752992015-12-04T12:10:57.515-05:002015-12-04T12:10:57.515-05:00I could swear I was reading a few weeks ago about ...I could swear I was reading a few weeks ago about some OTHER book that starts with a guy's thoughts as he plummets out a window. But now I can't think of the title. Grrr.Sister Mary Murderoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13721665989818474295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-3480643525214880702015-11-28T13:46:59.122-05:002015-11-28T13:46:59.122-05:00Thanks for your compliment, Sister Mary, and now I...Thanks for your compliment, Sister Mary, and now I'm frantically searching my memory for death by ocelot. I could talk about death by lion, bee, gorilla, poisonous fish and some other other-than-human murderers. Of course, we could also discuss murder by outer space alien and Mother Nature....<br /><br />I share your love of vintage traditional mysteries, especially by British writers. I'm glad to see you dedicate H to Reginald Hill. I miss him, but we're lucky to have all the books he wrote. P. G. Wodehouse said the mark of a great mystery is whether it's enjoyable to read it again, and Hill's books pass that test easily.Georgette Spelvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13853710671433406351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-46373762911990695742015-11-28T13:32:49.417-05:002015-11-28T13:32:49.417-05:00Yeah, Steinhauer's All the Old Knives is wonde...Yeah, Steinhauer's All the Old Knives is wonderful: Two spies, former lovers, sit down at a restaurant table and sharpen their knives on each other during dinner to discover the truth of a bungled espionage operation.<br /><br />I've read Finder's The Fixer, Barclay's Broken Promises, and Wortham's Dark Places in addition to Holm's The Killing Kind. They were all fun reads. I'm really looking forward to reading Hallinan's The Hot Countries because I enjoy the wittiness and atmospheric location of the Poke Rafferty books.Georgette Spelvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13853710671433406351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-69681076234833948322015-11-25T17:09:22.780-05:002015-11-25T17:09:22.780-05:00Shoot, I've only read ONE of those top books: ...Shoot, I've only read ONE of those top books: All the Old Knives. But at least I agree it was great.Sister Mary Murderoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13721665989818474295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-12585450457610050352015-11-23T11:58:44.433-05:002015-11-23T11:58:44.433-05:00I'm all for the recipes in Matthews's book...I'm all for the recipes in Matthews's books. While I'm reading, I'm predicting which of the food references will end up as a recipe at the end of the chapter.<br /><br />I made that soubise after your review of Red Sparrow, and it is delicious. Georgette Spelvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13853710671433406351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-91141629421241434212015-11-23T07:46:03.537-05:002015-11-23T07:46:03.537-05:00Some people think the recipes in Jason Matthews...Some people think the recipes in Jason Matthews's book are hokey, but all I know is that the soubise recipe in Red Sparrow is a winner and I'm making it again for a dinner next week.Sister Mary Murderoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13721665989818474295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-29396874839913412362015-10-26T13:41:14.148-04:002015-10-26T13:41:14.148-04:00The photos do clearly refer to different portions ...The photos do clearly refer to different portions of Amory's life and experience. What's puzzling is that she's supposed to be a professional photographer, but the pictures seem pretty amateurish. It didn't lessen my enjoyment of the book, though. It's just something I wonder about.<br /><br />I hope you like the book, but it's a lot like RESTLESS, so I don't think it will be as big a hit with you as it was with me. It's too bad that more people in the US don't know about Boyd. But I think Georgette told me that there was a fairly long waiting list for the book at her library, so maybe he's catching on here.Sister Mary Murderoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13721665989818474295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-23321810976985398002015-10-25T18:36:15.199-04:002015-10-25T18:36:15.199-04:00Betsy, thank you so much. I'm going to get a b...Betsy, thank you so much. I'm going to get a big head!Sister Mary Murderoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13721665989818474295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-9950550641980458532015-10-24T07:42:42.724-04:002015-10-24T07:42:42.724-04:00Really appreciate your thoughtful, articulate revi...Really appreciate your thoughtful, articulate reviews. Real reviews, not annotated shopping lists! Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01070556305226023244noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-78030024316873116042015-10-22T02:53:49.457-04:002015-10-22T02:53:49.457-04:00Well, Sister, I'll soon be delving into the wo...Well, Sister, I'll soon be delving into the world of William Boyd again. Picked up SWEET CARESS at local library yesterday: only three other people wanted it when I put it on hold after I read your Amazon review.<br />We have a bit of history with Boyd novels. I am finally coming around to his style of writing after RESTLESS and ALL THAT REMAINS, especially the spy thriller. <br />Jane<br /> <br />P. S. The dust jacket description sez that "running through the novel, her photographs over the decades allow us to experience this vast story not only with Amory's voice but with her vision." Does that help explain them? I'll keep your questions in mind when I read. janebbookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10949044738065269605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-19023230497743251702015-10-03T15:33:35.020-04:002015-10-03T15:33:35.020-04:00Nancy, I'm impressed you had the gumption to q...Nancy, I'm impressed you had the gumption to quit so close to the end. I still can't believe I read the whole thing. Obviously, I'm a glutton for punishment.<br /><br />From the very first page, I suspected something was wrong. The prose was surprisingly leaden, given the narrator was supposedly a writer so gifted he was mobbed in the street. But there was that bidding war between publishers to win the right to publish, and I thought, "These opening pages must be a parody, and pretty soon, I'll see the 'real' writing." Nope. Georgette Spelvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13853710671433406351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-83702421929924905212015-10-02T18:10:17.536-04:002015-10-02T18:10:17.536-04:00Thanks for the spoilers, the prospect of reading t...Thanks for the spoilers, the prospect of reading the remaining 300 words - well you know... Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10623236490195889593noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3566219501850777383.post-89121920720808652522015-09-25T09:45:00.568-04:002015-09-25T09:45:00.568-04:00Just finished the latest Margaret Maron, Long Upon...Just finished the latest Margaret Maron, Long Upon the Land, and really liked it. Also Martin Walker's latest in the Bruno series, The Patriarch. I've been loving Andrea Camilleri's Montalbano series, too--started at the start and am about to order The Paper Moon (2008). So many books, so little time!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01070556305226023244noreply@blogger.com