Reading with Style discussion
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FA 21 Completed Tasks
15.1 Counting on AuthorsThe Stranger Beside Me: Ted Bundy: The Shocking Inside Story by Ann Rule
+15 Task (less than 9 letters)
+5 Not a Novel
+5 Over 500 pages (548 pages)
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 235*
*assumes mid-season with a previous total of 210
15.8 CoAChildren of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky
17 letters
Started 8/30, less than 50% 9/1
Highly recommended, I could not put this down. It’s jumbo, but a very fast read.
+15 task
+5 jumbo
Task total = 20
Season total = 20
20.9 - AnniversaryThree, Two, One 321 by J.A. Huss
+20 task - Ark brings home special champagne and we toast to our new arrangement.
+5 Combo (20.3 - 4.13)
Task total: 25
Grand total: 25
15.4 Counting on AuthorsGardener's Nightcap by Muriel Stuart
+15 Task (12 letters)
+ 5 Not a Novel (non-fiction)
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 20
10.2 HalloweenSlaughter Park (The Belltree Trilogy #3) by Barry Maitland
+10 Task
+10 Combo (10.9 - PARK; 20.3 - avg 4.04)
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 20
20.3 RatingsBlood's Echo (Veranda Cruz #1) by Isabella Maldonado
avg. 4.14
+20 Task
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 40
15.9 Counting on Authors (18-19 letters)The House in the Mist by Anna Katharine Green
Task total: 15 (18 letters)
Season total: 15
15.8Working Daughter: A Guide to Caring for Your Aging Parents While Making a Living by Elizabeth O'Donnell
17 letters
+15 task
+5 not a novel
Task total: 20
Grand total: 20
10.8 MediterraneanHortense by Malika Ferdjoukh
Set in France
No style points, graphic novel
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Season total = 10
10.2 - Hallow'eenChristmas Cupcake Murder by Joanne Fluke
+10 task
+5 Combo (20.9 - Doc called ahead to order champagne for you Delores.
Sally reached over to refill their champagne glasses...
Hannah agreed, finished her glass of champagne and standing up)
Task total: 15
Grand total: 60
10.3 Back to SchoolHotel du Lac by Anita Brookner
Edith Hope was spending a few weeks at the Hotel du Lac since her friends had suggested a short break after a socially shocking event. Her closest friend "was prepared to forgive her only on condition that she disappeared for a decent length of time and came back older, wiser, and properly apologetic." The hotel was located in Switzerland by the misty grey shores of a lake, and the grey tones reflect Edith's somber mood at this time. It's the off-season, and most of the residents of the hotel are lonely women.
Edith is an unmarried thirty-nine-year-old writer of old-fashioned romance novels. Like the heroines in her books, she is quiet and looking for love. She is introspective, intelligent, and an observer of life, although her opinion of the other women changes as she gets to know them better. There is a contrast between Edith and the widow, Mrs Pusey, who is vibrant in a superficial way.
The story has flashbacks to her life in London where we find out the reasons for her banishment to Switzerland, her childhood relationship with her mother, and more. Parts of the book are written as letters. The novel contains quite a bit of quiet humor as Edith observes the other people at the hotel and reflects back on her own life. Anita Brookner's writing is lovely, and "Hotel du Lac" was a winner of the Booker Prize.
+10 task (author is an art history professor)
+10 review
+10 combo 20.4 Non-linear; 20.9 Anniversary pg 107 "Glasses of champagne were delivered to Monica and Mme de Bonneuil and myself, and then we all had to drink her health. . . "
Task total: 30
Season total: 45
10.7The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
I had very high hopes for this one. This won multiple awards, the series is up for a Hugo, as is the most recent book. Must be GREAT! And, alas, it is merely good. I’ve been tearing through the current Hugo noms and they leave this in the dust.
The premise is interesting enough - an alternate history where a massive meteorite strikes Earth at the dawn of the space race. And a few years ago, this would have hit very differently. But in September 2021, I DID NOT WANT. The main character has to deal with he double-whammy of climate catastrophe and misogyny. There were too many parts where Elma (a WWII pilot vet with 2 PhDs) is talked-down to, ignored, called hysterical, etc. I’m trying not to stroke out with rage right now, and thus I want escapism not more bullshit.
Presumably the tide turns a bit in the following books. I will read on, hoping that it becomes less grounded in a recognizable U.S.
+10 task
+10 review
+10 combo (20.6, 20.9 “Nicole Wargin perched on the arm of the sofa in her living room, her glass filled with pre-Meteor champagne”)
Task total = 30
Season total = 50
10.3 Back to SchoolThe Children of Ash and Elm: A History of the Vikings by Neil Price (carry over book...read 49% in summer season)
This is the most comprehensive history of the Vikings I have ever read...religion, daily life, raiding and conquering, farming and village life, their influence over three hundred years and a staggering amount of the world--from North America to the Asian steppe and everywhere in between--featuring all of the big names I first encountered watching History Channel's Vikings...I feel like I just audited an archaeology course, but by a really relatable and young prof who *wanted* his students to understand and connect with the material.
+10 Task (He is currently a professor in the Department of Archaeology and Ancient History at Uppsala University, Sweden)
+10 Review
+10 Combo (10.6--Sept 13; 20.3--4.21 avg rating)
+10 Not-a-Novel
+5 Jumbo (656 pages)
Task total: 45
Season total: 60
20.3 RatingsThe Empire of Gold by S.A. Chakraborty
+20 Task (rating 4.51)
+10 Jumbo (766 pages)
Task Total: 30
Season Total: 30
20.10 Musical Mysteries (Elizabeth (Alaska)'s Task)The Cold Cold Ground (Detective Sean Duffy #1) by Adrian McKinty
connection explained
+20 Task
+5 (10.3 - as per author's GR bio)
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 65
10.2 HalloweenA Killing in the Sun by Dilman Dila
I enjoyed this collection of short stories. And they are definitely African in setting and flavor and, in many stories, in the attitude and expectations related to previously being a colonized region. The author has a good range from the more Eastern ambiguousness to the more Western full closure. One of the stories was Gothic creepy, with an undead bride, and altered states of mind and kind of reminded me of some of Poe's first person narratives, but the way the traditions played out was definitely from a different culture. I would be interested in reading a full novel in the setting of two stories, an Africa where an (alien?) Emperor conquered and did the totalitarian dystopian "back to our roots" thing.
+10 task
+10 not a novel
+10 review
Task total: 30
Season total: 50
20.5 BoomerTrouble Is What I Do by Walter Mosley
Leonid McGill is a New York P.I. who has a history of working both sides of the law in the name of justice. The black former boxer is approached by Catfish, an old Mississippi blues singer. Catfish wants Leonid to deliver a letter to his granddaughter, a wealthy heiress who has never been told of her black racial heritage. But there are corrupt people who will go to any length to make sure this letter never gets delivered. The lives of Catfish, Leonid, and others that know the family secret are in danger.
"Trouble is What I Do" is a fast-paced book with snappy urban dialogue. It's a short, suspenseful read that kept me turning the pages.
+20 task (Author born 1952)
+ 5 combo 20.3 Ratings 4.02
+10 review
Task total: 35
Season total: 80
20.3 RatingsThe Night Hawks by Elly Griffiths
This series has moved from strength to strength, which I think is pretty incredible considering this is the 13th in the series. I seem to recall reading that Griffiths had intended to end the series a couple of installments ago, and maybe you could sense that when Ruth was in Cambridge (the previous instalment). Now Griffiths has Ruth back in Norfolk and she (Griffiths) seems to have a fresh ‘second wind’. There were new and old interesting characters, an interesting mystery and a really (!) interesting ending which, in my mind, hints at future instalments – yay! Apparently, Covid lockdown allowed this novel (and the next release) to progress, so that’s a positive out of all of this! 4.5*
20 task
10 review
5 combo 20.5
______
35
Running total: 35
15.6Morning in the Burned House by Margaret Atwood
+15 task
+5 not a novel
Task total: 20
Grand total: 70
15.8 Counting on AuthorsPhoenix Burning (Veranda Cruz #2) by Isabella Maldonado
+15 Task (15-16 letters)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 80
15.3 Counting on AuthorsEyes Like Mine (Nora Watts #1) by Sheena Kamal
+15 Task (11 letters)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 95
20.5 BoomerBoo by Neil Smith
20 pts 20.5 Boomer https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Sm...
10 pts Review
Very innovative premise! Thirteen year old Oliver Dalrymple wakes up to find himself in heaven. This heaven only includes 13 year olds and has an organizational structure that becomes more and more like the island in Lord of the Flies as Oliver learns more about his death. Partly a story about maturing (not growing up as no one ages), and partly about friendships, this is a unique book. Neil Smith creates a world with a social structure that captures the essence of being 13 as while not ignoring the pack like aspects of junior high. Readers will enjoy the references to YA literature. Highly recommended.
Total task: 30 pts
Total Season: 30 pts.
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10.1 TBRThe Scavenger's Guide to Haute Cuisine by Steven Rinella
Hopefully the implied drinking for champagne is enough here:
"Once everyone was seated, I gave Jen the nod to pour out fourteen flutes of bubbly."
This was a delightful read with a few laugh out loud moments. Rinella recounts his year of hunting and gathering after he discovers Escoffier’s Le Guide Culinaire and decides to cook a Thanksgiving feast from its pages. He writes wonderful descriptions of fishing for Pacific Ling Cod off San Juan Island in a canoe fighting waves and tides, visiting an eel weir, visiting an Alaskan couple who live off the land and ocean, and hunting for elk in Montana. He catches the frantic kitchen preparations with two friends as the three day feast for 14 progresses recounting the successes and failures along the way.
This is not for everyone. If the idea of reading a description of field dressing an animal turns your stomach, skip this book.
+10 task
+10 combo (20.3, currently 4.33; 20.9)
+10 review
+10 NAN
Task total: 40
Season total: 40
15.4 Counting on AuthorsUnsettled Ground by Claire Fuller
+15 Task (12 letters)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 15
20.5 BoomerThe Serpent Sea by Martha Wells
+20 Task (born 1964)
+ 5 Combo 20.3 (rating 4.08)
Task Total: 25
Season Total: 55
15.4 Counting on AuthorsThe Wattle Island Book Club by Sandie Docker
+15 Task (10 letters)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 110
20.3 RatingsBettina by Cati Baur
4,41 rating
+20 Task
Task total = 20
Season total = 30
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20.3 RatingsGeneviève by Cati Baur
4,35 rating
+20 Task
Task total = 20
Season total = 50
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10.4 Truth and Reconciliation (Valerie's Task)The Seed Keeper. Diane Wilson
5.0 stars - I loved this book. It was thoughtfully written, told a sad but hopeful story, through a non-linear timeline which covered 1862 to early 2000s, and touched on many issues, from the wrenching of native children from their families to the rise of agri-business and the death knoll of the small family farm. The title refers to practice of the indigenous women to save the best seeds every year, and to pass those on to the next generation. It is a beautiful story and one I would not hesitate to recommend to others.
+10 - task
+10 - Review
+10 - combo (20.3 - 4.41, 20.4) *(Edit per M:51) 20.5
Total task: 30 pts +5*
Total Season: 30 pts. +5*
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20.1 SeriallyWashington Square by Henry James
Task Points: 20
Combo 10.5 Classics: 5
Previous Points: 20
Total Post Points: 25
Total Points So Far: 45
20.7 ExophonicWhereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri
"Whereabouts" is a slender novel composed of a series of vignettes about an unnamed, introverted, female narrator. Jhumpa Lahiri wrote the book when she was living in Rome, and the chapter titles such as "At the Trattoria" and "In the Piazza" indicate an Italian setting.
Each chapter is a moment in time with a middle-aged college professor who lives alone. The book is written in first person so we only read the narrator's point of view concerning her life. She is very introspective, and examines the joys and sadness of solitude. She enjoys walking in her neighborhood and associating with others for a short time, but then needs to go back to her routine, quiet life. The narrator is highly observant, and there seems to be a promise of some small changes in her life as the book ends. The novel is character-driven with very little plot.
The book was first published in 2018 before the pandemic, but the author was very skilled in writing about social isolation. Jhumpa Lahiri wrote the book first in Italian, then self-translated it to English. Her prose is spare and sometimes heartbreaking, and the forty-six vignettes give the reader a melancholy portrait of an introspective woman. "Whereabouts" is not for everyone, but will be enjoyed by readers who like literary fiction.
+20 task
+10 combo 10.8 Mediterranean (Italy); 10.3 Back to School (Author is a Creative Writing Prof at Princeton)
+10 review
Task total: 40
Season total: 120
Task 20.4 Non-linearRead a novel told in a non-linear style.
For 10.9 Oxford University colleges and halls
St Stephen's House
For #20.9 “champagne”:
p. 125: “Gracie had been drinking champagne since six, and Miriam had made sure to refill her glass every time it was even halfway empty.”
The Hundred-Year House (2014) by Rebecca Makkai (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover, 338 pages)
Review: The novel is broken up into parts that take place in 1999, 1955, 1929, and 1900, in that order. It never revisits any of the later time frames - it just keeps taking you back in time. The first section, set in 1999, was the entire first half of the book. I found that section to be quite interesting, focusing on residents of a manor house in small town Illinois. The characters divide into (1) artists; (2) English literature professors; and (3) bored super-wealthy. The author throws in enough topical passages to set this section firmly in 1999 (a fund-raiser for Al Gore! Y2K means the end of the world is at hand!) Next comes the twist, and then the narrative moves to Part Two, set in 1955, to explain how the twist came to be. I was more interested in what happened to the characters AFTER the twist than I was in how the twist came to be, so Part Two was merely mildly interesting. Parts Three and Four were, so? I already know that happened, from the events of Part One, these sections had a “re-inventing the wheel” feel to them. I can see what the author’s intent was – telling the story in reverse – but it took away most narrative tension from Parts Two through Four in the second half of the novel. Overall, the first half of the novel was pretty good, the rest of the novel was merely adequate.
+20 Task
+10 Combo (#10.9 Oxford University colleges and halls, #20.9 Champagne)
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 10 + 10 = 40
Grand Total: 00 + 40 = 40
20.10 Musical MysteriesVoice of the Violin by Andrea Camilleri
+20 pts - Task
+20 pts - Combo (10.3 - “In 1977 he returned to the [Silvio D'Amico] Academy of Dramatic Arts, holding the chair of Movie Direction, and occupying it for 20 years.”in GR bio, 10.6- his birthday is actually today, Sept 6, 10.8- entire book set in Sicily, 20.3 - 4.04 stars)
Task total - 40 pts
Task 10.7 Service (Anika's Task)Read a book in which one of the main characters is a soldier, active duty or veteran of a war or conflict, any branch of the military (medics/nurses count!).
Two brothers, included amongst the main suspects in this mystery, were British soldiers during World War I. One brother suffers from “shell-shock”; the other was called “a good soldier” who was known for shooting the rats that fed on the corpses after a battle.
Additionally, Lord Peter Wimsey is a World War I veteran. In this novel, Lord Wimsey’s principle man-servants were his comrades in arms during the “Great War”. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Pe... for more detail about Lord Wimsey as a ‘Great War’ veteran.
For #20.9 “champagne”:
p. 119: Wimsey speaks:
“’Bunter, as you know, I seldom drink champagne. But I am inclined to do so now. Bring a glass for yourself as well.’ The cork popped merrily, and Lord Peter rose to his feet. ‘Bunter,’ said he, ‘I give you a toast. The triumph of Instinct over Reason!’”
The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club (Lord Peter Wimsey #4) (1928) by Dorothy L. Sayers (Paperback, 243 pages)
Review: This is one of the Inter-war (1918-1940) very British detective mystery novels. The “detective” is Lord Peter Wimsey. He’s a wealthy, well-connected aristocrat, who solves mysteries for amusement. The latest mystery: an elderly man dies from an apparent heart attack while sitting in his usual chair at the male-only upper crust Bellona Club. The man’s sister died the same day. The terms of her will: her brother inherits if she pre-deceases him; her longtime companion, a 20ish woman, inherits if he pre-deceases her. Lord Wimsey is asked to determine who died first. Lord Wimsey takes full advantage of his position as an aristocrat to gain information and, later in the novel, to make events happen. The solution was … well …. Not really believable, but then, you don’t read Interwar mysteries for believability. There is plenty of contemporary upper-crust slang, (I say! Good fellow, come here! … What? … just not done … etc.), and plenty of deference is given to those upwards the social scale from where you are. This novel had many references to men coping with their experiences in ‘The Great War’ – most are doing OK, a couple still suffer from ‘shell shock’. I was surprised by the quantity of War references but I guess I shouldn’t have been, given this was written in the 1920s. Recommended for period atmosphere, with a caveat that the mystery solution(s) are, well, preposterous don’t-cha-know.
+10 Task
+10 Combo (#20.3 rating > 4.0; #20.9 Champagne)
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 + 10 = 30
Grand Total: 40 + 30 = 70
10.4The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones
Hmm. This book. It was medium-effective for me, so I’ll give it a medium review. On the plus side, it managed to be very creepy, though in a choppy manner. I was 100% avoiding going to the bathroom at night, just in case a shadow moved. And that is not a thing in the book!. The traditional-type scares don’t really show up until the 3rd act, but there is dread.
However, I did not really connect to the characters, so their danger did not really feel like my own. Every time I started to get a feel for one of them the book turned away from that - everyone was at arm’s length. There was a excellent bit of psychological horror that was gripping and terrifying, but it’s over nearly as soon as it begins.
Overall an interesting, menacing read, with some viscerally upsetting moments (which is a good thing in the horror genre).
+10 task
+10 combo (10.3, link in the 10.3 thread; 20.6)
+10 review
Task total = 30
Season total = 80
10.3 Back to SchoolThe Good Pilot, Peter Woodhouse by Alexander McCall Smith
If it there is one thing McCall Smith does well, it is write nice stories. This novel takes place in the latter part of the WW2. It is mainly set in England, with a smaller (but important) part in Germany. It is a book about people just trying to live their lives the best they can in very trying times. He has chosen to tell the stories of completely ordinary people, and it is filled with charm and good sense. It isn’t a spoiler to tell you that Peter Woodhouse is a dog. Having the thread of the dog’s story to tie the other stories together worked well and added even more charm for me. 4.5*
10 task
10 review
5 combo 20.5
_____
25
Running total: 60
20.6 AwardedExit West by Mohsin Hamid
Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Fiction (2017)
Aspen Words Literary Prize (2018)
+20 Task
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 130
10.3 Back to SchoolThe Art of Critical Pedagogy; Possibilities for Moving from Theory to Practice in Urban Schools by Jeffrey M.R. Duncan-Andrade
+10 Task (teacher)
+ 5 Combo: 20.3 Ratings
+10 Not a Novel
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 40
20.1 SeriallyAt the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft
+20 Task
+10 Combo: 10.5 Classics / 20.8 Gothic
+10 1001
Post Total: 40
Season Total: 80
20.6 Awarded Read 24% in August
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi
Winner of Hugo Best Novel 2010 ; Nebula Awards 2009; Locus Award for Best First Novel 2010
Post : 20
Season total: 20
10.3 Back to School God Help the Child by Toni Morrison
Toni Morrison was once a college professor
Task: 10
Combo: 5 - 20.4 non-linear style
Post total: 15
Season total: 35
Jayme(the ghost reader) wrote: "20.5 BoomerTen Big Onesby Janet Evanovich
Born April 22, 1943 from Wikipedia
Task +20
Grand total: 20"
That won't work for Boomer, Jayme. She needs to have been born after 1945 and before 1965.
15.8 CoA, 16-17 lettersMurder at Wedgefield Manor by Erica Ruth Neubauer
+15 Task
Task total: 15
Season total: 75
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
Beyond This Point Are Monsters (other topics)Justified Secrets (other topics)
Merciful Secrets (other topics)
Silent Secrets (other topics)
Veiled Secrets (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Margaret Millar (other topics)Shawn McGuire (other topics)
Shawn McGuire (other topics)
Shawn McGuire (other topics)
Shawn McGuire (other topics)
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Please use the add book/author link for the book titles. When claiming combo points, tell how the book qualifies, and provide a link if requested in the task description.
If using an outside source to qualify a book for points or combo, please be sure to post in the appropriate task thread prior to posting in this thread.
Sample Post
20.5 Boomer
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang
[100+ word review]
+20 Task (born 1952)
+10 Combo (20.3 - 4.23; 20.6 - 2 awards)
+ 5 Review
+10 1001
+ 5 Jumbo (562 pages)
Task Total: 50
Season Total: 210 (assumes mid-season with a previous total of 160)