Books to Cheer About from Hastings Book Chat

It was obviously a good month for reading with this Book Chat group reporting on a huge number of books, including some meaty reads, with very few duds.

Beginning with a little non-fiction, one reader picked up Kiwi Country: rural New Zealand in 100 objects by Te Radar and Ruth Spencer. It’s a trip down memory lane as well as round the countryside, highlighting special things that are also oddly ordinary, from Red Band gumboots to meat safes and mangles. An interesting book for dipping into during a quiet moment, rather than reading cover to cover.

Carthage by Eve MacDonald is a new history of the ancient kingdom described through iconic figures from Dido to Hannibal. Using new archaeological evidence, MacDonald has built a compelling history that was compelling if you have an interest in ancient times. It’s best if you already have some knowledge in this area before committing, says our reader.

We heard about some novels that took us to other periods and places including The Sandcastle Girls by Chris Bohjalian. This is an earlier, dual timeframe novel from Bohjalian, taking us to Aleppo in 1915 where Armen has lost his wife and daughter to genocide. The novel takes in the WWI conflict in Egypt, as well as flipping to the present where Laura learns about her Armenian heritage and a family secret. This is a gripping and also very personal novel from this author who also has Armenian ancestry.

The Matchbox Girl by Alice Jolly takes us to a different war, where young Adelheid Brunner is an autistic girl in an Austrian institution, who writes and draws but does not speak. She also happens to collect matchboxes. Adelheid meets Dr Asperger who seems to understand her. But things take a darker turn when the Nazis march into Vienna and some of the children begin to disappear. Another great read for historical fiction fans.

Another reader was impressed by Emma Donoghue’s novel Haven, particularly the beauty of the writing and the way it probes uncomfortable realities. It takes the reader back to seventh century Ireland where a scholar and priest, Artt, takes two monks with him to set up a monastery on a barren island. Somehow, they must build an existence out of nothing, find food and shelter, but Artt’s fanaticism makes him at times impossibly cruel.

Closer to the present, Trespasses by Louise Kennedy takes us to Northern Ireland and the Troubles in the 1970s. Cushla is a teacher, whose children are remarkably matter of fact about the terrible violence around them. She meets Michael, an older man who is married in a pub owned by her family. The two embark on an affair as tensions around them escalate. This debut won a slew of awards and award nominations and is a devastatingly good read.

The Weather Woman by Sally Gardner is a lighter read, a bit fluffy, said our reader, and which could be a good chunk shorter. Yet it was still an enjoyable read, following the story of Neva, who lives in London towards the end of the 1700s. She has a gift for being able to predict the weather – a woman ahead of her time. Eccentric clock and automata maker Victor takes her in when she is left alone in the world, then concocts a machine to help her.

Lady Clementine by Marie Benedict reimagines the life of the woman who married Winston Churchill, a clever and ambitious woman who stood firmly beside her husband through some of the darker times of the last century. It all adds up to a compelling read, well researched and bringing to life an interesting character.

A Woman’s Voice by Alli Sinclair is an original story, with its main character, Laura, a violin virtuoso who can see music in colour, a gift which disappears when her priceless instrument is stolen. At her grandmother’s, Laura discovers some sheet music inspired by events of historical significance, including the voices of suffragettes and the doomed maiden voyage of the Titanic. This was another really enjoyable read.

A clever book, says our reader, about the time-travel story Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister. Jen is a mother who witnesses her son stab somebody to death, an unspeakable event that will ruin her son’s life. She goes to bed in despair but wakes up the day before. The story plays with time, allowing Jen to go back into the past, one day at a time, unravelling the events that led to the murder.

Among the crime fiction and thrillers discussed was Bonded by New Zealand author Ian Austin. This is the fourth book in his Dan Calder series about an ex-police officer caught up in the investigation of a bomb scare at Auckland airport. Our reader said it was a bit like a James Bond story, a fun, easy read with lots of action. They plan to read more in the series.

Jack Beaumont's a former fighter pilot. His book Liar’s Game is a spy novel following French spy Alec de Payns. In this, the third in the series, Alec is tasked with bringing to safety a North Korean with details of a massive cyber-attack. Unfortunately, the man dies before he can reveal what he knows. This is just the beginning of a run of bad luck for Alec, leading him out in the cold with no one to trust as he tries to untangle a deadly conspiracy. This was quite a good read, but our reader struggled with the many acronyms that kept popping up.

Blood Symmetry is an earlier book by Kate Rhodes whose Scilly Isles mystery series we’ve all enjoyed so much. This novel is in the Alice Quentin series following a forensic psychologist, and explores what happens when Alice has to help a traumatised child uncover their memories to help the police find his mother’s captors. An excellent read.

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman is the fifth in the popular Thursday Murder Club series. The club has of late been too busy for murder until Nick, a fellow guest at a wedding, asks Elizabeth for help.  Then Nick disappears without a trace. Did he and his cagey business partner have something worth killing for? Another fun read, very complicated and twisty.

We love Tim Sullivan’s D S Cross mysteries which also blend in humour with a good twisty murder investigation. In The Cyclist, George must piece together what led up to the death of an amateur cyclist, his body found at a building site. He’ll need to talk to lots of people, and he’s not good at people, to unpick a mystery involving performance enhancing drugs, a complicated family situation and work with colleagues he sometimes drives up the wall. We can’t wait for the next book in the series, The Tailor, which is out later this year.

We’re always eager for more books by Jane Harper (The Dry; Force of Nature, etc.). Last One Out is her new book and follows what happens when a young man doesn’t return home on the evening of his twenty-first birthday. We’re in a small rural town, where five years later, Ro Crowley returns for the annual memorial of her son’s disappearance, looking for answers. An interesting story that is a slow burn, but worth it.

A new Megan Miranda thriller is always worth picking up for twisty, atmospheric storylines. You Belong Here is the story of Beckett, whose daughter has applied for college in the same Virginia town where Beckett grew up, her parents teachers on the faculty. But a tragedy that ended with two men dead and Beckett’s roommate vanishing had forced Beckett to leave after her second year and she’d done her best to stay away ever since. Beckett cannot be sure it’s safe for her to return as long memories still linger. Sounds a cracker!

Seascraper by Benjamin Wood has been much talked about since it was long-listed for the Booker Prize last year. It follows the story of Thomas who lives at a seaside town where he makes a living gathering shrimp for the fish markets. It’s a small life, until an American film maker arrives wanting to know about Thomas’s work and this opens up a glimpse of the wider world. An excellent read, beautifully written.

A Run in the Park by David Park is another small book that packs a lot in, as it follows the story of a group of strangers that come together to run for fitness over nine weeks. All are dealing with their own problems, but new friendships are forged as they face their fitness challenges together. A delightful read you can finish in an afternoon.

When the Cranes Fly South is a poignant novel by Swedish novelist Lisa Ridzen, the story of Bo, an elderly man living alone with his dog, his wife suffering from dementia in a care facility. He can’t imagine life without his dog, but he is too frail to walk him and the pressure’s on to go into care too. Bo falls out with his son over the dog in this finely drawn story about ageing, memory and family relationships.

Many people have recommended Delirious by New Zealand author and Ockham Award winner Damien Wilkins, and our reader was no exception. The story follows a couple after they have sold their house and settled into a retirement home. Mary and Pete are haunted by sad events of their past, the people they loved and lost. An emotionally powerful story about families and aging.

The Women at Ocean’s End is a contemporary read by Faith Hogan which describes the lives of three women who meet on an island off the Irish Coast. There’s elderly Constance who wants to right the wrongs of the past; Heather meanwhile is burying her mother, as doors close in her life and there is opportunity for others to open; and Ros who seems to have the perfect life until things begin to unravel. Lots to enjoy here.

Our next Hastings Library Book Chat takes place at the library on 19 February at 10:30 am – all welcome.

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