Some Terrific Books Recommended by Hastings Library Book Chat

The gang at Hastings Book Chat read some terrific books and know what’s what when it comes to literary fiction as well as genre fiction. Here’s what the team talked about at their May get-together.

Our first reader happened to be at a writer’s festival when she found out about Michael Bennett’s brand spanking new book in the Hana Westerman series. Following on from Better the Blood, the new book is called Return to Blood. Former detective, Hana Westerman, has left Auckland for a quiet coastal town, wanting a fresh start. But when she finds a skeleton in sand dunes, she can’t help but investigate. This was another excellent story in a must-read series.

Another recommended crime novel is The Politician by Tim Sullivan. This is the fourth book in the DS George Cross crime series, following the cases of a smart and successful but socially awkward detective. Here he investigates the murder of a former mayor, a death that has all the hallmarks of a robbery gone wrong. Cross, of course, thinks otherwise. The book is peppered with terrific dialogue as every throw-away line has our Aspergers police detective engaging with it literally and to comic effect.

More than your usual number of spec. fic. turned up in the discussion this time around. First up was Turncoat by Tihema Baker, a science fiction novel in which aliens have come to Earth and interbred with humans. Daniel is a young idealistic human determined to make a difference and push the government to honour the infamous Covenant of Wellington. A book about discrimination and racism from an original new angle and which is much recommended.

The Absolute Book by Elizabeth Knox is a hefty fantasy novel, an epic read that involves a revenge killing, a mysterious scroll box that has survived centuries of fires and the book that changed everything. A well-imagined world you just get lost in, and the pages just whizz by, says our reader.

Faebound by Saara El-Arifi is an enjoyable fantasy that sweeps you off to the fae court. Two elven sisters, warrior Yeeran and her sister Lettle who has the gift of prophecy, find their way to this seductive new world. An epic story with romance and plot twists to keep you on your toes.

Nora Roberts has published a huge backlist of fiction, across all sorts of genres, and is one of the most successful novelists alive today. Her new novel Inheritance is a paranormal romance and our reader thought it  surprisingly good. The first of a trilogy, the story concerns the death of a bride on her wedding night two centuries ago, along with present-day Sonya who delves into some family secrets. Magic.

Among the contemporary fiction reads we heard about were Water and Earth by John Boyne, which are the first two books in a connected series. Water has a disturbing topic, but it stays with you and is still enjoyable – set on an island where it’s like stepping back in time. A woman arrives here to escape from the discovery that her husband is a pedophile. She examines her own role in his behaviour. Earth follows the story of the footballer she meets on the boat back – also a disturbing theme with a character defending a sexual assault charge and considering the man he has become.

Between a Wolf and a Dog by Georgia Blain is set in Sydney and follows the lives of several family members through events described during a single day. Ester is a family therapist who knows only too well the anxieties of the middle class, spending her working day helping others find happiness while her own family relationships are problematic. A book about the gift of being alive.

Our only non-fiction offering was The Elephant to Hollywood, the funny, warm and honest autobiography of the actor we know as Michael Caine. He recalls his childhood in London’s impoverished East End through to his glittering career in Hollywood, and his life in England, in a book full of fascinating anecdotes and charm. Our reader was quite taken with the man, calling him an absolute treasure.

That leaves several novels in the popular historical fiction genre. Under the Java Moon by Heather B Moore follows the story of a Dutch family in Indonesia during WWII. Young Rita and her family are forced into a POW camp, where Rita helps her pregnant mother care for her young brother - their father at sea with the Dutch Navy. A survival story showing the resilience and hope of one family against the odds. Also based on a true story.

Pachinko by Min Lee begins with a Korean family in the 1940s. Sunja is a girl who falls for a Japanese trader, then becomes pregnant. Accepting marriage to a minister passing through, the couple make their way to Osaka. This was a terrific story told over several generations which shows the difficulties of being Korean in Japan.

Popping across to China, we heard about an earlier novel by Kazuo Ishiguro. When We Were Orphans follows the story of Christopher Banks who, as a boy, lives with his parents in the International Settlement of Old Shanghai. Years later in England Christopher has become a celebrated detective – it is the 1930s, the Golden Age of the detective novel. But one mystery he has yet to solve is the disappearance of his parents when he was a boy. An intriguing and beautifully written book that throws a spotlight on Britain’s shady involvement in the opium trade.

We’re back in the dark days following World War I with The Good Liars by Anita Frank. Sarah arrives at Darkacre Hall to nurse Leonard Stilwell, an amputee confined to a wheelchair. It is an unhappy house full of secrets and possibly also ghosts, when a police detective arrives to investigate the case of a boy who went missing on the eve of war. A brilliantly gothic and original psychological thriller.

Finishing on a high, we heard about Rules of Civility by Amor Towles, the first novel by the writer that brought us the best-seller, A Gentleman in Moscow. The earlier book has the same beautiful, polished storytelling too. It’s a rags-to-riches story following two ambitious young women who have made their way to New York. It’s New Year’s Eve, 1937, when they meet the apparently wealthy Tinker Grey – a meeting that will change their lives. Another stunning read.

Hastings Library Book Chat meet on the third Wednesday of the month at 10:30 am. New members are always cheerfully welcomed.

31 May 2024

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