This is Stig Abell’s second title; it follows on Death Under a Little Sky. While it is not necessary to have read the first book to enjoy this one, anyone who likes Death in a Lonely Place will want to read the origin story.
Here are many of the characters from the first book starting with Jake. He is a former detective who has chosen to live largely off the grid in a remote home that he was left by a relative (although he has many go arounds).
Readers should take a look at the map of the estate that is in the front of the book. Jake has charmingly named the various spots for well-known detective fiction people and characters. There are other mysteries and authors mentioned in the text as well.
Jake is in a relationship with a local vet, Livia, who has a young daughter named Diana. He wants this relationship to succeed. He and Livia are in different spots as an old case surfaces and Jake becomes involved while Livia’s main wish is to keep Diana safe.
No Taboo-it is a dark organization that offers people the unthinkable. In investigating it Jake has to think about a very dark place. Readers will wonder how the events unfold. Will Diana’s newest and very wealthy client put her and/or Diana in danger?
This book offers an interesting mix between Jake’s rather cozy domestic life and some very nasty business. Abell manages both of these story aspects well.
I recommend this title to those who enjoy crime stories. I look forward to whatever Abell writes next.
Many thanks to Harper Collins UK and NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 11 April 2024
Praise for Death in a Lonely Place
‘Loved this. Multiple layers of delight for crime fiction fans’ Lee Child, creator of Jack Reacher
‘Abell is a skilled storyteller and it’s easy to fall into the pages of Death in a Lonely Place. Highly recommend’ Karin Slaughter, creator of Will Trent
‘An immersive, intelligent delight with huge atmosphere and heart. My favourite new crime series’ Lucy Foley, author of The Paris Apartment
‘Utterly beautiful descriptive prose that brings Jake Jackson’s world to life’ Jane Casey, author of the Maeve Kerrigan series
‘A darkly elegant, thrilling, escapist slice of countryside crime’ Chris Whitaker, author of We Begin at the End
Narrated by Pauline Chalamet; Jean Brassard; Corey Brill; Marisa Calin; Danny Campbell; James Fouhey; Matt Godfrey; Helen Lloyd; Jackie Sanders; Gary Tiedemann; Elizabeth Wiley; Gabra Zackman
#TheParisianChapter #NetGalley
Anyone who has read books by this author will want to listen to this audio recording (and if readers have not read her earlier novels, I highly recommend them). Some characters and places from the earlier works are in The Parisian Chapter, especially Lily, Odile and the wonderful American Library in Paris.
This recording tells an involving story through many characters. It is voiced by twelve narrators representing the different people. They include , in addition to Odile and Lily, Lily’s close friend Mary Louise, a young man in whom Lily becomes interested, authors, and the many who work at the library, are on the board, or attend events there.
This audio production is of very high quality. I loved hearing the different voices as each character narrated their chapters. I recommend this audio book to anyone who enjoys stories set in Paris with believable characters who have dreams.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Audio Originals for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 27 May 2025
Note that as far as I know, The Parisian Chapter will only be an audio resource. I do not think that there are plans to publish this one in book form.
I had learned about this title long before it was published and knew that I wanted to read it. I was absolutely thrilled to be given an advance e-galley.
I could not wait to sit down and begin this novel. I went on to savor it and find it easy to give an excellent review.
WWI led to devastation and a reorganization of British society. Many men died; many women were unlikely to marry. Social changes came as with the suffrage movement and (finally) the admittance of women to Oxford degrees. (Prior to this, women could attend but would not formally graduate).
This engrossing historical novel follows four women from this time period who were known as “the eights” because of the corridor that they lived on at their Oxford College. Readers meet Beatrice, Marianne, Otto, and Dora. Each has their own history and backstory.
Beatrice is the daughter of a very politically active mother who was an absent parent. Readers learn that it was difficult for Beatrice to confide in her mother. Beatrice s studying PPE (Philosophy, Politics and Economics).
Marianne is a cleric’s daughter. It is clear that she is hiding something. Marianne is also less financially well off than some of her peers.
Otto is part of a family with socialite sisters. Her parents would like her to marry. Otto is studying Mathematics.
Dora has had two major losses from the war relating to both her brother and finace. These men would have been at Oxford had there been no war. Dora feels that she is there in their place. Dora is studying English.
The world of Oxford in this time period is engagingly portrayed through many characters in addition to these four. I came to care very deeply for the eights and did not want the book to end. It is my sincere hope that Miller is penning her next novel even as I write this.
Note that there is a helpful glossary at the back of the book for those who are unfamiliar with British higher education.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 15 April 2025
Historical fiction
382 pages
Note:
Recommended those who have enjoyed the novels by Pip Williams.
A Goodreads Most Anticipated Book of Spring A Book Riot Best Historical Fiction of April A Brit & Co. New April Book to Add to Your Calendar STAT
“The Eights is an entertaining and moving imagining of four smart women dealing with the engrained misogyny of the time. I came to love these four women as though they were my sisters.” —Tracy Chevalier, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Girl with a Pearl Earring and The Glassmaker
“A story about women taking their place in a man’s world, The Eights beautifully captures the power of friendship and love in the wake of extraordinary loss. It was a pleasure to read.” —Pip Williams, New York Times bestselling author of The Dictionary of Lost Words
“Miller’s engrossing debut follows the first women undergraduates eligible to earn degrees at Oxford University. …. They’re unlikely allies, a novelistic trope that Miller transcends through insightful and surprising characterizations…. It’s a memorable tale of a fast-changing world.” —Publishers Weekly
“Miller describes campus life in vivid detail, and her protagonists are complex, with hidden motivations and insecurities that are gradually revealed as their friendships develop. This pairs well with Helen Simonson’s The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club and Kate Quinn’s The Briar Club.” —Booklist
“A heartfelt, thoughtful and engaging book about the first women students to go to Oxford University – their friendships, their secrets, their ambitions and their opponents – in the tremulous, haunted years immediately after the First World War. Joanna Miller brings 1920s Oxford to life with a vivid immediacy and makes us care deeply about four young women who find themselves pioneers in a strange new world, trying to find a way forward in the aftermath of war. A thoroughly lovely debut that will win many hearts, with its celebration of friendship and the persistence of hope.” —Joanna Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Whalebone Theatre
“My book of the year. The writing is wonderful, the subject fascinating and the storylines utterly absorbing. I’m so sad I’ve finished it. I loved everything about this book. I ADORED it.” —Jill Mansell, Sunday Times bestselling author of Rumor Has It
“The past feels astonishingly present in Joanna Miller’s debut…Rigorously researched, The Eights brilliantly synthesizes fact and fiction, and the trials and triumphs of the quartet are deeply relatable. [Surrounding a] debate about whether women have any business being at Oxford … The Eights is a rewarding read for anyone who enjoys emotional, character-driven narratives and for anyone who celebrates impeccable writing. But most of all, it’s for anyone who has ever been told they couldn’t do something but did it anyway.” —BookPage
This book offers a compilation of Christie tales in which many share a common theme of love in some manifestation. Inside are well-known sleuths including favorites Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, Jane Marple, and Hercule Poirot, along with the lesser known Parker Pyne.
Inside this volume, the stories are not new, often having been written in the 20s or 30s but they are combined here for the first time. All are good reads.
Sometimes a short story is just the right read. Maybe a reader is too busy for a long novel or maybe it is a day with a short attention span or possibly a reader’s preferred format is the short story. For all of these readers, here is a treat.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
I always enjoy seeing a new Cozy Case Files. Each time, readers are given ideas of books to read in this popular genre.
Here is info on books by Donna Andrews; Carolyn Haines; Katharine Schellman; Korina Moss; and Elizabeth Penney. I am already a fan of several of these writers so definitely will be looking forward to some new reads.
For each title, take a peek at the cover. Next, read what the book is about and then look at a generous excerpt. Finally, read the author’s biographies.
This is a wonderful way to check out some future reads. It is very easy to recommend this title.
Important note: This resource is free! Also, there is a link should readers want to receive email updates on any of these authors.
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press-Minotaur for this title. All opinions are my own.
Historical fiction appeals to me as it offers an engaging way to become immersed in another world and time. Frequently, through this genre, I “meet” people whom I would not otherwise have known. That is certainly the case in the novel about Jessie Redmon Fauset. While I once saw some artwork from The Crisis and know of WEB DuBois, I was unfamiliar with Fauset. That is no longer the case as she and the Harlem Renaissance come to life in these pages.
Jessie comes to New York to take on a prestigious position at an important publication. She goes on to “discover” many writers that we read today as, for example, Langston Hughes and Nella Larson. What Jessie perhaps did not expect to discover was that she was attracted to the married DuBois.
How does Jessie’s life play out? Find out in this intriguing work of historical fiction by an author who knows how to write in this genre. She has published other novels with Marie Benedict including one about Belle Greene, another important Black woman who was JP Morgan’s personal librarian.
It is easy to recommend this title to those who enjoy historical fiction set in the not so distant past.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 04 February 2025
The book’s subject:
This painting may be found in the National Portrait Gallery
This is a repost from when the book was first reviewed
#TheStolenQueen #NetGalley
Mark you calendar for the pub date for Fiona Davis’s forthcoming new novel. I think that this may just be her best book yet. I thoroughly enjoyed The Stolen Queen.
As is often the case, the story is told in two time lines and in two countries. Interestingly, both time lines have characters in common.
Readers first meet Charlotte Cross when she is a young girl embarking on an adventure of a lifetime. She has left her society family behind to be part of a 1930s dig in Egypt. So much happens to Charlotte there in terms of both her professional and personal life, but readers need to find out all of this for themselves.
The second timeline takes place partly in NYC right around the time of the famous King Tut exhibition. Now Charlotte is working in the Egyptian section of the museum when a necklace becomes part of an exhibit and leads to many events.
In this second time line, readers also meet Annie. She has been an enabler to her mother. Unexpectedly Annie secures a position working for the very well known Diana Vreeland just in time for a major fashion event. As was true for Charlotte, things don’t go according to plan.
It is not long before Charlotte and Annie travel to Egypt together. There is, again, much that happens while they are there.
Davis handles all of the plot elements flawlessly. It is also clear that she did her homework in order to give this book a real sense of its historical authenticity.
Anyone who has enjoyed a novel by this author will want to read this title. My guess is that this one will also bring her many new fans.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group-Dutton for this title. All opinions are my own.
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 