All the Latest Book News from Flaxmere Book Chat

The libraries' Turn Up the Heat winter reading challenge has encouraged some of the group to try some different kinds of books – among them The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry. Our reader said the novel was the best book they’d read in a long while. The story begins in wartime London when Hazel and Flora are evacuated to the countryside. To help her little sister settle, Hazel makes up stories for her. When Flora disappears near a river, everyone assumes she has drowned. Years later a mysterious package is delivered to Hazel at the bookshop where she works assessing antiquarian volumes. The contents suggest that Flora might be alive after all.

There were several more historical novels at the session, including The Foundling by Stacey Halls. The story starts off in London, 1754, when Bess leaves her baby daughter at the Foundling Hospital, planning to save the money needed to retrieve her when she is able to care for her. But when she returns, Bess discovers they have not got the child; she had been already reclaimed, the bogus parent showing the required proof. Her search for her daughter will take her to a gloomy house on the edge of London and a job as a nursemaid. Another really good author whose historical fiction never disappoints.

It was surprising to learn that the maiden of the title of Kate Foster’s novel (The Maiden) was in fact a precursor to the guillotine, and used in Scotland for the nobility given the death penalty by the courts. This story follows the case of Christian Nimmo who is arrested for the murder of her uncle. Based on fact, Foster teases out the background to the story and the guilt or otherwise of various parties. It’s an interesting read and a real whodunit.

The Moon Gate by Amanda Geard, takes you from the 1930s to the 2000s across three generations. There’s Grace a young English heiress who rediscovers life in the Tasmanian wilderness; a devastating secret left behind when Daniel goes off to war; an anonymous benefactor leaving artist Willow a house on the Tasmanian coast; and the search Libby makes to complete the story of her family. The story jumped around too much for one reader but was immensely enjoyed by another.

One reader picked up two novels by Averil Kenny without realising it. The Girls of Lake Evelyn is set in the Atherton Tablelands in a fictional town where a director puts on entertainment for servicemen during WWII. When several women die of supposed suicide at the nearby lake, the area and its lodge are shut up. No one visits the lodge until runaway bride, Vivienne George, escapes there to lie low. She soon makes friends with neighbour, Josie Monash, a playwright, and the two explore the story of the girls of Lake Evelyn. An immersive read with an unusual ending.

The Mistress of Dara Island, also by Averil Kenny, takes you to an island off the coast of Brisbane and the years following WWII. Here Thalia grows up under the shadow of her bullying father. A free spirit, she is aware she will inherit a small island but dark secrets and a disappearance affecting her family throw doubt on everything. Another terrific read from a new author to look out for.

The Painter’s Daughter by Emily Holmes takes us back to the world of Thomas Gainsborough, the famous portrait and landscape painter from the 1700s, with this novel about the artist’s daughters. Another TUTH challenge, our reader chose the book entirely for its cover, but enjoyed the story nonetheless. You’re swept into the lives of Peggy and Mary, who enjoy an unfettered childhood before the family move to town and must fit into polite society. But there’s a problem with young Peggy, who doesn’t seem quite right – luckily, she has a devoted older sister to look out for her. There’s a parallel story in that of an innkeeper’s daughter who catches the eye of a prince. How it all ties up in the end is fascinating.

Beneath the Kauri Tree by Sarah Lark is a work translated from its original German, but is about New Zealand historical events. One reader said they had learned a lot about New Zealand history from one of Lark’s books, and it seems to be the same for this one which takes you back to the time of the Women’s Suffrage movement as well as Te Whiti’s passive resistance movement at Parihaka. Told from the point of view of two women from very different backgrounds, this is a an engrossing story.

There wasn’t a lot of crime fiction discussed at this session, but one author that is becoming popular with the group is Jim Kelly and his mysteries featuring Phillip Dryden, an Ely reporter. The Coldest Blood, the fourth in the series is set over Christmas and New Year. It begins when a frozen body is found in a high-rise flat as the cathedral city is gripped by Arctic temperatures. Another page-turning read.

The Shifting Landscape by Katherine Kovacic is part of a mystery series about art dealer Alex Clayton. In this story Alex's work takes her to Victoria, to value the art collection of the McMillans, a wealthy landowning family. There are some truly valuable pieces, but the knives are out when the family patriarch dies in suspicious circumstances. Disappearances and an inheritance under dispute add to this cracking crime story.

Among the contemporary novels we heard about was Fiona McCallum’s Looking Out. Set in the Adelaide Hills, the novel follows Natasha and Mitchell who seem to have the perfect marriage – Natasha busy with her daughters and decorating business, while Mitchell plays the stock market. A bad financial loss undermines Mitchell’s confidence, while a stalker becomes obsessed with Natasha. An interesting portrayal of a marriage with an unexpected ending. Our reader said every married person should read this.

The Museum of Lost Quilts by Jennifer Chiaverini is the twenty-second novel in the Elm Creek Quilts series set in Waterford Pennsylvania - which are stories about life’s problems, friendship, and quilting. In the new book we catch up with some old characters from previous books, including Summer, who has been studying for a master’s degree in history at a university in Chicago. When she returns home, she finds herself helping to put on a quilting exhibition but her research uncovers the troubled history of the town. We have a few quilters in the group, so this novel was an interesting addition to the series, although it doesn’t cover any new ground.

Flaxmere Library Book Chat meets every second Tuesday at 10:30am. New members are always welcome to come along to see what it's all about.

11 July 2024

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