The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters and And the Land Lay Still by James Robertson

November 2014

The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

One postwar summer in his home of rural Warwickshire, Dr. Faraday, the son of a maid who has built a life of quiet respectability as a country physician, is called to a patient at lonely Hundreds Hall. Home to the Ayres family for over two centuries, the Georgian house, once impressive and handsome, is now in decline, its masonry crumbling, its gardens choked with weeds, the clock in its stable yard permanently fixed at twenty to nine. Its owners—mother, son, and daughter—are struggling to keep pace with a changing society, as well as with conflicts of their own. But are the Ayreses haunted by something more sinister than a dying way of life? Little does Dr. Faraday know how closely, and how terrifyingly, their story is about to become intimately entwined with his.

And the Land Lay Still by James Robertson

The novel’s narrative is shaped around the portfolio of the late photographer Angus Pendreich. His son Michael is involved in the establishment of a new exhibition of his renowned father’s work.

The book focuses on the characters presented in these photographs, which span post-war Scotland across geographies and social classes from the homeless to senior politicians. Their disparate stories present a collage that highlights the highs and lows of modern Scottish society.

It is a well written book in most parts, but there are some sections which harbour too much on politics for my liking.  I loved the pictures the author paints with his words.  I loved the way all the stories were interlinked.   A good read, but not fast - glad I read it.

Escape from Camp 14 by Blaine Harden and A Place of Execution by Val McDearmid

September 2014

Escape from Camp 14 by Blaine Harden

Twenty-seven years ago, Shin Dong-hyuk was born inside Camp 14, one of five sprawling political prisons in the mountains of North Korea. Located about 55 miles north of Pyongyang, the labor camp is a 'complete control district,' a no-exit prison where the only sentence is life.

No one born in Camp 14 or in any North Korean political prison camp has escaped. No one except Shin. This is his story.

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I watched the film as I didnt get chance to read the book, a couple read the book.  A very harrowing story - frightening to know that this can go on.

A Place of Execution by Val McDearmid

Winter 1963: two children have disappeared off the streets of Manchester; the murderous careers of Myra Hindley and Ian Brady have begun. On a freezing day in December, another child goes missing: thirteen-year-old Alison Carter vanishes from the isolated Derbyshire hamlet of Scardale, a small-inward-looking community which has little contact with the outside world. For the young George Bennett, a newly promoted inspector, it is the beginning of his most difficult and harrowing case: a murder with no body, an investigation with more dead ends and closed faces than he’d have found in the anonymity of the inner city, an outcome which reverberates down the years.

Decades later he finally tells his story to journalist Catherine Heathcote, but just when the book is poised for publication, Bennett unaccountably tries to pull the plug. He has new information which he refuses to divulge, new information that threatens the very foundations of his existence. Catherine is forced to reinvestigate the past, with results that turn the world upside down.

A Greek tragedy in modern England, A Place of Execution is a taut psychological suspense thriller that uniquely explores, exposes and explodes the border between reality and illusion in a multi-layered narrative that turns expectations on their head and reminds us that what we know is what we do not know. A monstrous tale of deception, the technique of the telling is the greatest deception of all.

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Thoroughly enjoyed this book.  It is fast paced and certainly makes you think.

Sea Room by Adam Nicolson, The Shack by William P Young and Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

October 2014

Sea Room by Adam Nicolson

20 years ago it happened to Adam Nicolson he inherited the Shiants, 3 lonely islands set in a dangerous sea 5 miles off Lewis; only a stone bothy for accommodation – and one of the most beautiful places on the planet.

A world of hermits and stories, of birds and boats, of fisherman and sheep, 'Sea Room' is these islands' story, written with passion and poetry – a celebration for us all of island life.

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What a beautifully written book.  Adam has given a great insight into life in the islands - worth doing before memories are forgotten.  He obviously loves the islands with a passion.

The Shack by William P Young

Mackenzie Allen Philips' youngest daughter, Missy, has been abducted during a family vacation and evidence that she may have been brutally murdered is found in an abandoned shack deep in the Oregon wilderness. Four years later, still trapped in his great sadness, Mack receives a suspicious note, apparently from God, inviting him back to that shack.

Against his better judgement he arrives at the shack on a wintery afternoon and faces up to his darkest nightmare. What he finds there will change Mack's world forever.

In a world where religion seems to grow increasingly irrelevant, THE SHACK wrestles with the timeless question, 'Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain?' The answers Mack gets will astound you and perhaps transform you as much as it did him. You'll want everyone you know to read this book!

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WOW what an amazing read.  Very well written, inventive concept.  Did it happen or was it in Mack's dreams?  I would certainly like to think that it was true.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Who are you?

What have we done to each other?

These are the questions Nick Dunne finds himself asking on the morning of his fifth wedding anniversary, when his wife Amy suddenly disappears. The police suspect Nick. Amy's friends reveal that she was afraid of him, that she kept secrets from him. He swears it isn't true. A police examination of his computer shows strange searches. He says they weren't made by him. And then there are the persistent calls on his mobile phone.

So what did happen to Nick's beautiful wife?

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Great book.  I couldn't put it down.  Not sure about the ending though - I leave that up to you.

The Ice Cream Girls by Dorothy Koomson and The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriaty

June 2014

The Ice Cream Girls by Dorothy Koomson

At only eighteen years of age, Poppy and Serena were the only witnesses to a tragic event. Amid heated public debate and scrutiny, the two glamorous teens were dubbed ‘The Ice Cream Girls’ by the press and forced to go their separate ways and to lead very different lives.

Twenty years later, Poppy is keen to set the record straight about what really happened, while married mother-of-two Serena wants no one in her present to find out about her past. But some secrets will not stay buried - and if theirs is revealed, their lives will start to unravel all over again . . .

Gripping, thought-provoking and heart-warming, The Ice Cream Girls will make you wonder if you can ever truly know the people you love.

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I bought this book and could not put it down - which is why I recommended it to the group.  The book shows how easily our teenage crushes can go seriously wrong and what people will put up with for what they think is love.  A surprising twist at the end!

The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriaty

At the heart of The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty is a letter that's not meant to be read . . .

Mother of three and wife of John-Paul, Cecilia discovers an old envelope in the attic. Written in her husband's hand, it says: to be opened only in the event of my death.

Curious, she opens it - and time stops.

John-Paul's letter confesses to a terrible mistake which, if revealed, would wreck their family as well as the lives of others.

Cecilia - betrayed, angry and distraught - wants to do the right thing, but right for who? If she protects her family by staying silent, the truth will worm through her heart. But if she reveals her husband's secret, she will hurt those she loves most . . .

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I found this to be a real page turner.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Very well written.

Mortimer's Deep by Simon Taylor & The Collini Case by Ferdinand von Schirach

August 2014

Mortimer's Deep by Simon Taylor

To the medieval island priory of Inchcolm, in the early middle ages, comes Martin, seeking the truth about the magnetic, dangerous Simon de Quincy. His machiavellian story is unfolded to Martin by Simon's former lover, Brother Michael, now blind and disfigured.

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most people enjoyed it, amazing when you think of the distances travelled by the monks from Scotland to Rome.  Interesting story obviously based on true events  It got complicated trying to work out who everyone was, which did make reading a bit slower.

The Collini Case by Ferdinand von Schirach

From one of Europe's bestselling writers comes a spellbinding and utterly compelling court room drama, which will stay with you for a long time. Ferdinand von Schirach's The Collini Case has been at the top of the German charts since publication and will be loved by all fans of Bernhard Schlink and John le Carré.

A murder. A murderer. No motif.

For thirty-four years Fabrizio Collini has worked diligently for Mercedes Benz. He is a quiet and respectable person until the day he visits one of Berlin's most luxurious hotels and kills an innocent man.

Young attorney Caspar Leinen takes the case. Getting Collini a not-guilty verdict would make his name. But too late he discovers that Collini's victim - an industrialist of some renown - is known to him.

Now Leinen is caught in a professional and personal dilemma. Collini admits the murder but won't say why he did it, forcing Leinen to defend a man who won't put up a defence. And worse, a close friend and relation of the victim insists that he give up the case. His reputation, his career and this friendship are all at risk.

Then he makes a discovery that goes way beyond his own petty concerns and exposes a terrible and deadly truth at the heart of German justice . . .

The Collini Case is a masterful court room drama that will have readers on the edge of their seats from start to finish.

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A quick read.  Some said the ending was predictable, but I disagree.  Certainly worth reading.

Police by Jo Nesbo and Waiting for Snow in Havana by Carlos Eire

May 2014

Police by Jo Nesbo

The police urgently need Harry Hole

A killer is stalking Oslo's streets. Police officers are being slain at the scenes of crimes they once investigated, but failed to solve. The murders are brutal, the media reaction hysterical.

But this time, Harry can't help anyone

For years, detective Harry Hole has been at the centre of every major criminal investigation in Oslo. His dedication to his job and his brilliant insights have saved the lives of countless people. But now, with those he loves most facing terrible danger, Harry can't protect anyone.

Least of all himself.

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I personally felt the ending was disturbing.  Those in the group who had read Jo Nesbo before said it wasn't his best book.  Some members of the group said that they would probably not read another Jo Nesbo book, but there again some would.

Waiting for Snow in Havana by Carlos Eire

A childhood in a privileged household in 1950s Havana was joyous and cruel, like any other - but with certain differences. The neighbour's monkey was liable to escape and run across your roof. Surfing was conducted by driving cars across the breakwater. Lizards and firecrackers made frequent contact. Carlos Eire's childhood was a little different from most. His father was convinced he had been Louis XVI in a past life. At school, classmates with fathers in the Batista government were attended by chauffeurs and bodyguards. At a home crammed with artifacts and paintings, portraits of Jesus spoke to him in dreams and nightmares. Then, in January 1959, the world changes: Batista is suddenly gone, a cigar-smoking guerrilla has taken his place, and Christmas is cancelled. The echo of firing squads is everywhere. And, one by one, the author's schoolmates begin to disappear - spirited away to the United States. Carlos will end up there himself, without his parents, never to see his father again. Narrated with the urgency of a confession, WAITING FOR SNOW IN HAVANA is both an ode to a paradise lost and an exorcism. More than that, it captures the terrible beauty of those times in our lives when we are certain we have died - and then are somehow, miraculously, reborn.

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I enjoyed the book, it is well written from the naive views of a child growing into a young adult. 

Stoner by John Williams and And The Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

April 2014

Stoner by John Williams

William Stoner enters the University of Missouri at nineteen to study agriculture. A seminar on English literature changes his life, and he never returns to work on his father's farm. Stoner becomes a teacher. He marries the wrong woman. His life is quiet, and after his death his colleagues remember him rarely.

Yet with truthfulness, compassion and intense power, this novel uncovers a story of universal value. Stoner tells of the conflicts, defeats and victories of the human race that pass unrecorded by history, and reclaims the significance of an individual life. A reading experience like no other, itself a paean to the power of literature, it is a novel to be savoured.

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Whilst reading this book I had a love-hate relationship with it.  I had to finish it, but it didnt really excite me.  It was moving in how he refused to leave his wife for the sake of his daughter, even though his wife did not treat him well.  I felt that there was some reason for her treatment of him, especially after the death of her father when she destroyed everything that he had given her - was there a dark meaning behind that?
Those of us at the March meeting had all read this and so did discuss it then.  It seemed that we all had mixed feelings about it.   We discussed it further at the April meeting - the majority liked the book.

And The Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

So, then. You want a story and I will tell you one...

Afghanistan, 1952. Abdullah and his sister Pari live with their father and stepmother in the small village of Shadbagh. Their father, Saboor, is constantly in search of work and they struggle together through poverty and brutal winters. To Abdullah, Pari - as beautiful and sweet-natured as the fairy for which she was named - is everything. More like a parent than a brother, Abdullah will do anything for her, even trading his only pair of shoes for a feather for her treasured collection. Each night they sleep together in their cot, their heads touching, their limbs tangled.

One day the siblings journey across the desert to Kabul with their father. Pari and Abdullah have no sense of the fate that awaits them there, for the event which unfolds will tear their lives apart; sometimes a finger must be cut to save the hand.

Crossing generations and continents, moving from Kabul, to Paris, to San Francisco, to the Greek island of Tinos, with profound wisdom, depth, insight and compassion, Khaled Hosseini writes about the bonds that define us and shape our lives, the ways in which we help our loved ones in need, how the choices we make resonate through history and how we are often surprised by the people closest to us.

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I personally loved the book. Some of the group who had read it did enjoy it and some didnt. So mixed opinions. 

Entry Island by Peter May and Wake by Anna Hope

March 2014

Entry Island by Peter May

When Detective Sime Mackenzie boards a light aircraft at Montreal's St. Hubert airfield, he does so without looking back. For Sime, the 850-mile journey ahead represents an opportunity to escape the bitter blend of loneliness and regret that has come to characterise his life in the city.

Travelling as part of an eight-officer investigation team, Sime's destination lies in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Only two kilometres wide and three long, Entry Island is home to a population of around 130 inhabitants – the wealthiest of which has just been discovered murdered in his home.

The investigation itself appears little more than a formality. The evidence points to a crime of passion: the victim's wife the vengeful culprit. But for Sime the investigation is turned on its head when he comes face to face with the prime suspect, and is convinced that he knows her – even though they have never met.

Haunted by this certainty his insomnia becomes punctuated by dreams of a distant past on a Scottish island 3,000 miles away. Dreams in which the widow plays a leading role. Sime's conviction becomes an obsession. And in spite of mounting evidence of her guilt he finds himself convinced of her innocence, leading to a conflict between the professonal duty he must fulfil, and the personal destiny that awaits him.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, although in a way you could guess part of the outcome.
Generally most people enjoyed the book but felt that it was not as good as the Blackhouse series.

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Wake by Anna Hope

Five Days in November, 1920:

As the body of the Unknown Soldier makes its way home from the fields of Northern France, three women are dealing with loss in their own way: Hettie, who dances for sixpence a waltz at the Hammersmith Palais; Evelyn, who toils at a job in the pensions office, and Ada, a housewife who is beset by visions of her dead son. One day a young man comes to her door. He carries with him a wartime mystery that will bind these women together and will both mend and tear their hearts.

A portrait of three intertwining lives caught at the faultline between empire and modernity, Wake captures the beginnings of a new era, and the day the mood of the nation changed for ever.

WOW - wonderful book, read it within a day - just could not put it down.
Not everyone had managed to get hold of the book to read or finished it.  Those of us that had encouraged the others to start and finish the book.

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Love from Both Sides by Nick Spalding and The Lost Girls of Rome by Donato Carrissi

February 2014

Love from Both Sides by Nick Spalding

Sometimes, the hardest part of finding love is keeping a straight face...

For Jamie Newman, being a single guy isn't proving to be much fun, especially when confronted with a sexually belligerent divorcee and a goddess so far out of his league she might as well be a different species.

Mind you, being a girl in search of love isn't a bowl of cherries either. Just ask Laura McIntyre, who's recently contended with a horny estate agent on a quest for light relief and a rabid mountain bike enthusiast with a penchant for lycra that leaves little to the imagination.

When Jamie and Laura bump into one another (quite literally) it looks like their luck may have changed - but sometimes finding the right person is only the start of your problems...

Those of the group who had read this found it both hilarious in parts and illuminating! 

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The Lost Girls of Rome by Donato Carrissi

A young girl has mysteriously disappeared in Rome. As rain lashes the ancient streets, two men, Clemente and Marcus, sit in a café near the Piazza Navona and pore over the details of the case. They are members of the ancient Penitenzeri - a unique Italian team, linked to the Vatican, and trained in the detection of true evil.

But they are not alone. Sandra - a brilliant forensics expert with a tragic past - is also working on the case. When her path crosses theirs, not only do they make headway in the case of the missing girl, but they also uncover a terrible secret world, hidden in the dark recesses of Rome. A world that is as perfect as it is evil...

A spellbinding literary thriller from the author of The Whisperer, this novel offers a window onto the hidden secrets of Rome. Beautifully capturing the atmosphere of the city, it blends a page-turning plot with fascinating historical fact.

Great book, but sometimes difficult to keep track of.
General opinion from the group was that it was a most intriguing and riveting book.

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One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson

One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson

January 2014

It is the Edinburgh Festival. People queuing for a lunchtime show witness a road-rage incident - an incident which changes the lives of everyone involved. Jackson Brodie, ex-army, ex-police, ex-private detective, is also an innocent bystander - until he becomes a suspect.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  Right from the start I was drawn into the storyline.  A couple of confusing bits where Martin is going back in time, but only minor.  A surprising twist at the end too!
I would definitely recommend reading this book.

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