Looking in on Tea With Tales

On a cold windy autumn morning while eating cheese scones we started with a chat on the bombing of Iran that had occurred the previous weekend.

In keeping with our political discussion our short reading was the latest collaboration between former president Bill Clinton and James Patterson. The First Gentleman is the story of Cole Wright, the husband of President Madeline Wright, who is on trial for murder. On the case are two investigative journalists.

Our non-fiction readers read a mixed bag last month.

The autobiography of Waiheke Islander Kara Nelson kept our reader up till 2 in the morning.  And the Piano Came Too! My life and times follows the author from England to New Zealand through her peace activism and travels.

Our reader certainly agrees with the title of our next book John Grogan’s Marley and Me: life and love with the world’s worst dog. She even said she would have given up on the dog if it was her dog. Well-written and a tear-jerker.

Enlightening was the verdict after reading the at times harrowing story of being a foster child in mid-century New Zealand. Stolen Lives by Netta England tells a very personal story.

Another New Zealand biography, this time from the field of medicine. On Call by surgeon Ineke Meredith has you beside the operating table as Dr Meredith talks the reader through the strange and messy world of surgery.

In his 2013 published book Laurens Van Der Post takes us behind the iron curtain of Soviet officialdom in a quest to discover the real Russia. Although discredited after his death our reader found Van der Post’s Journey into Russia a fascinating read.

Our last nonfiction book is Diddly Squat by former Top gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson. Clarkson takes the reader along for the ride as he attempts to farm his Cotswold land. Our reader describes Clarkson as a hopeless individual that had her laughing out loud.

David Baldacci’s Strangers in Time is more historical fiction than his usual thrillers and was absolutely captivating said our reader. Told through the voices of three young people we share their experiences of World War Two.

Jack of Spies is the first in the Jack McColl series by David Downing. Set on the eve of the First World war Jack, a Scottish car salesman, is travelling around the world collecting intelligence for His Majesty’s Secret Service.

The Irish Witch is a Dennis Wheatley novel set in the times of the Napoleonic Wars and featuring the English adventurer Roger Brook. This occult horror story held some fascination for our reader.

The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet, Colleen McCullough’s sequel to Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, was recommended as a good read by one of our readers. The story follows the adventures of the unwed Mary as she tries to get her book published on the plight of the poor.

Skipping forward to the 1920s was the second in Dorothy Sayers mystery series featuring Lord Peter Wimsey, Clouds of Witness. This old school detective novel was a good read.

Another recommendation of a good story was Fiona McIntosh’s The Champagne War. Set in war-torn France during the First World War, Sophie’s husband is reported missing. At the underground hospital she established in the champagne cellars of Reims she develops feelings for a British soldier she is nursing.

Freida McFadden’s The Surrogate Mother is like many of her psychological thrillers with its twists and turns. One of our readers guessed the ending while another didn’t.

Posted by Miss Moneypenny

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