James by Perceival Everett

 

James is a modern retelling of Mark Twain's classic, Huckleberry Finn.  In this one, James, known as Jim in the earlier book, runs away when he hears that his owner is planning to sell him.  Huck also runs away and the two start traveling down the Mississippi.  James is an educated man and in this version, slaves talk as educated individuals do among themselves while using a slave lingo before whites.  He can read and write and his most prized possession is a pencil and some books written by European philosophers that he managed to get away with.

The two have many adventures, several close death encounters on the water with various boats, and encounters with animals and reptiles.  James knows he is being hunted.   The two fall in with some con men who separate the two.  James also sings with a minstrel band that is touring, works in a saw mill, and finally when the two are reunited, shares his biggest secret with Huck.

This book has won many awards, including the Pulitzer.  While interesting, I didn't love it.  Much of the book, especially the second half, felt very rushed to me.  The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead covers the same territory and felt like a more compete experience to me.  Perceival Everett is a professor of English and his work has been awarded much acclaim.  This one will be a major addition to his work and is recommended for readers of literary fiction.

The Wager by David Grann

 

In 1740, Spain and England were once again at war.  An armada was brought together in England and The Wager was one of the warships.  In addition to the war, a side mission was to track down and capture one of the Spanish treasure ships that sent back silver and other treasures to the homeland once or twice a year.  It was believed that the action should take place in the waters off South America and the armada set sail.

One of the ships was The Wager.  It sailed with around 250 men.  Of interest was a midshipman on one of his first voyages, a younger brother of a noble family and one who would become the grandfather of Lord Bryon, the poet.  There were officers and many regular sailors.  It was difficult to man an armada and press gangs were used in addition to recruitment with many of those being sickly.

One of biggest challenges was the voyage around the Cape Horn.  It could take weeks to get around this feature.  The waves are huge having hundreds of miles to build.  The winds are almost always gale force.  The land underneath came up from hundreds of feet deep to only a few hundred.  All of these factors made the Cape an almost unimaginable passage. It could take weeks to get past it with multiple tries.

The Wager ran onto rocks and crashed.  Some of the men were able to make it ashore onto an inhospitable island.  There was no shelter and little food.  The captain was felt by many of the survivors to be making bad decisions and the group split into his supporters and those opposed.  After months, each of these groups managed to put together a vessel and attempt to sail back to civilization.  Of the 250 men who set off, eventually around thirty returned.  There were accusations of murder and of mutiny.  Whose story would be believed?

David Grann is a nonfiction writer and a staff writer at The New Yorker.  His work is known for meticulous research and bringing history to life as his books read as exciting novels do.  In this case, the vanity and social structures of the time resulted in bad decisions that cost many lives.  This book is recommended for nonfiction readers.  

Outside by Ragnar Jonasson

 Four friends set off for a weekend of hunting, hiking and catching up.  There are three men and a woman.  One owns a touring company, one is an actor and one is a lawyer.  They all went to university together where they met and became friends.  

But there are secrets in the group.  One has a history of rumors about past behavior that follows him.  Another member of the group died a year ago and there are still questions about that.  Some are exaggerating their professional success while others are hiding romances.

When they go out for a day long hike and hunt, a blizzard blows up.  They are barely able to make it to a hut provided by the government for traveler shelter.  But inside the hut is a man sitting with a rifle.  He just sits and stares, refusing to speak.  What now?

This is my first book by Ragnar Jonasson.  I listened to this novel and there are multiple narrators, one for each character.  They pull the action along.  The chapters are short, alternating between the four characters and this also increases the tension.  Jonasson is an Icelandic author and is a lawyer himself as well as translating fourteen of Agatha Christie's novel into his native language.  He has written many bestsellers and this one will be included in that number.  This novel is recommended for mystery readers.

Trespasses by Louise Kennedy

 

Cushla and her family live a little ways outside of the armed areas of Belfast in Northern Ireland.  She lives with her mother after her father's death.  The family is Catholic and owns a pub which serves both Catholic and Protestant, soldiers and IRA members and sympathizers.  Cushla is a teacher and wants to live on her own but her mother is drinking way too much these days and needs someone there to watch over her.

One night while helping out her brother at the pub she meets Michael Agnew.  He is nothing that Cusla should want.  He is middle-aged, a married barrister and Protestant.  But there is an immediate flame between the two and soon they are involved in a torrid affair.  Life goes on even in strained circumstances and Cushla meets with Michael by night and teaches by day.

She becomes close with one of her students and then his family.  The young boy is bright and desperate for Cushla's attention and she does what she can to help his family.  He has several siblings, including a brilliant older brother who is dropping out of school to go to work and help the family.  Cushla brings the brother books to read and buys treats for the children and helps with the extras when she can.  The father falls astray of the IRA and is beaten severely which means he can no longer work.  

Can things go on as they are?  Cushla wishes for something to change and then when it does, she wishes it had never changed.  Loving in a war zone isn't for the faint of heart.

Louise Kennedy is recognized as one of bright young voices coming out of Ireland.  I love Irish writers; I think it may be my favorite region for authors.  This book was shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction list and named a best book of the year by several publications.  There are several kinds of trespasses.  There is the trespass of loving a man committed elsewhere.  There is the trespass of loving a Protestant and disturbing the balance between Protestant and Catholic in an area that demands everyone take a stand for one side or the other.  I loved this book and hope more people read it.  This book is recommended for readers of literary fiction.

The Art Of Detection by Laurie R. King

 

Kate Martinelli and her police partner, Al Hawkins, have just been handed a new murder to cover.  The victim is Philip Gilbert who makes his money trading in Holmes memorabilia.  He is also the founder of the local Holmes dining club with nine other members.  But now he lies on the Embankment clad only in pajamas and robe.  How did he get there?  Why would he come without dressing?

Once they view the body, both are convinced that Philip was killed elsewhere and brought to the location.  It turns out that he had been waiting for the perfect time to announce his latest acquisition, a never before seen novel written by Arthur Conan Doyle and set in San Francisco.  Doyle had visited the city so it's not beyond the realm of possibility and Gilbert was in the last stages of getting the novel authenticated.  If real, it could be worth a fortune.  Was he killed for this treasure?

Kate and Al read the book and realize that the murder bears traces of the plot of the book, including the location of the victim's body.  Who could have done it?  There's the lawyer who was one of the few Gilbert had told.  There was the former actor who now works for an auction house and was authenticating the novel.  There were several women in the dining club who could be possibilities as well as the remaining men.  Who killed Philip Gilbert?

This is the fifth Kate Martinelli novel in the series.  The reader gets a book within the book as King has included the novel in question, a novel that has the victim involved with a transgender singer on Bowery Row and being a soldier whose assignment included the Embankment.  If they solve the murder in the book, will it help with the Gilbert murder?  I've loved the Martinelli series and I'm sad that King hasn't written more of them, instead focusing on her Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series.  This one indicates King's own keen interest in Sherlock Holmes as her writing career has demonstrated.  This book is recommended for mystery readers.  

A Mirror Mended by Alix Harrow

 

I guess you think those 'happy endings' happen naturally.  Zinnia Gray is here to tell you that sometimes princesses need a little help in order to live happily ever after.  Zinnia has a degree in folklore and she has helped forty-nine princesses to win their prince and secure their throne.  The fact that living in a fairy tale allows her to ignore her own life and its terminal illness diagnosis has nothing to do with it, or so she would tell you.

But this tale seems different.  Instead of a princess asking for her help, the evil queen has asked Zinnia how to leave the fairy tale.  The queen is evilly gorgeous but she knows that if Snow White becomes queen instead, her future includes dancing in red hot iron shoes until she dies and she'll do anything to survive and avoid that future.  Surely Zinnia can tell her how to escape.

Zinnia is repulsed by the woman but also secretly fascinated by her.  Eva, the name Zinnia gives the queen is fascinating in her quest for survival because that's a topic that is always uppermost in Zinnia's mind as well.  As Eva grudgingly accompanies Zinnia to save the latest Snow White, they encounter friends from some of Zinnia's other rescues and become at least friendly enemies of each other.  Can they learn each others' truths?

I don't think it's possible for Alix Harrow to write a bad book.  She is a Hugo winner and her writing is light yet memorable.  I've loved everything I've read by her and this novel is no different.  She has a lesson to impart but never does so heavy handed.  Zinnia learns that life is to be lived no matter what is coming and love is worth anything.  I listened to this novel and the narrator has exactly the right sarcastic tone to portray Zinnia.  This book is recommended for fantasy readers.  

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

 

On a distant planet, a company is doing exploration for scientific purposes.  There are two locales for this exploration on different sides of the planet.  Along with the contract, the company arranged for security.  Company security is a SecUnit, something more than a mechanical robot and less than a human.  It has human parts but also mechanical ones.  This SecUnit which calls itself MurderBot is less than stellar; its biggest desire is just to hang out and watch social feeds.

But when the other mission site goes dark, there is evidently something wrong.  MurderBot is not about to let the individuals on his watch get killed.  Together with the captain of the mission, a plan is made to check out the other mission.  When they arrive to find everyone dead, something will have to be done to save everyone and that's Murderbot's prime objective.

This is the first MurderBot novel in the series.  Martha Wells is a well known author in the science fiction and fantasy genres.  Her work has won Huge and Nebula awards.  Readers will emphasize with MurderBot although he is not expected to have any emotions.  Wells explores the issues of what is living and what is artificial intelligence, and how does AI impact everyday life.  This book is recommended for science fiction readers.   

Coram House by Bailey Seybolt

 

Alex Kelley has come north to Lake Champlain to try to revive her career.  Her first true crime book was a bestseller as she solved a long ago cold case.  Her next occurred while her husband was battling a fatal illness and perhaps that was the reason that Alex identified the wrong perpetrator.  The young man she identified was convicted and went to prison only to be vindicated and released after time spent there.  

Now Alex has come to town to fulfill a contract by the prosecutor of a cold case.  Coram House was a Catholic orphanage, run by nuns.  But the small children there did not receive the loving care they should have.  Instead they were starved, sexually abused,  punished cruelly for the least offense and some whisper even killed.  The man who prosecuted the case has never been satisfied with the result and now wants Alex to write the story as his vindication.

The stories that haunt Alex are those of several children said to have been killed.  All center around one nun, Sister Cecile.  One girl reports that she saw the nun push a girl out of the windows she was cleaning while another reports that a young boy, Tommy, was drowned during a 'swimming lesson.' Alex is intrigued with these stories and tries to find the truth after all these years.  There are still people in town who lived at Coram House growing up, a local land developer, an alcoholic bully, a woman who lives out in the country miles from anyone and even a local detective.  None will confirm the rumors and Alex is making no progress on identifying the young boy whose story disappeared along with him.  When Alex finds an elderly woman's body in the water near a hiking trail one morning, she wonders if it is related.  As more bodies turn up, it becomes imperative for Alex to find out the long ago truth which is affecting events today.

Bailey Seybolt has worked as a writer for years, both as a travel writer and a tech writer.  Her career has been more on the nonfiction side and this is her debut novel.  Readers will relate to Alex, whose early promise faded with her big mistake in her second book and who wants to both reclaim her career and solve the mystery, giving the abused children of Coram House justice however delayed.  This book is recommended for mystery readers.   

Head Cases by John McMahon

 

Someone is playing vigilante and killing serial killers.  The first one was a man about to be indicted for three murders when his house caught fire and a body assumed to be him was found.  That was seven years ago and he had been free to roam the country and continue his killing spree until the new killer found him.  The second case was a killer who had just been paroled after decades behind bars.  

PAR is the Pattern And Recognition unit of the FBI.  Gardner Camden works in the unit, sharing with the others some miscue in his career that didn't warrant dismissal but made it better if he was forward facing with the public.  In his case, it was turning in his beloved wife when he found she and her boss were defrauding a bank, giving his partner, a respected FBI agent and her father, a heart attack.  In others, it was disrespect, hitting on the wrong woman, or other mistakes.  

Everyone in PAR has a unique talent.  Gardner has an eidetic memory and sees patterns where others do not.  His partner, Cassie, has the same pattern sensing ability but more on the mathematical side.  Another woman is an Olympic level sharpshooter.  Frank runs the unit and focuses on the big picture.  Gardner is on the spectrum and the only person who really understands him is his mother but she is now hospitalized with dementia.  

To his surprise, Gardner is put in charge of the case, going over Frank's head.  Gardner was the person who had identified the first killer seven years ago and the Director feels that he would have an advantage on finding the killer who believes his mission is to kill other killers.  As the case progresses, it becomes evident that the killer knows much about Gardner's life and that his plan is to also kill off prominent FBI members.  Can Gardner find him?

This is the first book in a new series by the author, who works in marketing when not writing thrillers.  He has another series also.  In this one, the pace is fast and furious, perhaps a bit too frantic but quite engaging.  I'm looking forward to seeing where the PAR unit goes and more of Gardner's life.  I listened to this book and the narrator had the perfect voice to move the story along.  This book is recommended for mystery readers.  

A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway

 

This is the story of Ernest Hemingway's life in Paris in the 1920's.  This was a good time for him.  He was married to Hadley who was probably the love of his life and they had just had their child, Jack, called Bamby.  One could live in Paris very inexpensively and they did.  Hemingway had been in the war but that was over and now he would try to support his family by writing.  He was not writing novels at this point but short stories.

He talks about the people he met and spent time with.  One of the first was Gertrude Stein who had a salon for writers she liked.  She knew everyone and it was a great contact but she would drop people immediately if they disagreed with her.  She not only knew literature but had many wonderful paintings in her house and suggested that Hemingway buy paintings from the artists of his generation before they became famous.

A great friend of his was Ezra Pound, the poet.  Both Pound and Hemingway helped other writers whenever they could and spent time trying to help them get published.  He also spent much time with F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda although he tried to avoid her as much as possible.  He felt that Zelda was jealous of Scott's success and that she tried to keep him drinking and partying as a way of preventing him from working.  

I'm so glad I read this book.  The hype about Hemingway is that only men can enjoy his writing, that it is all masculine posturing.  I found a likeable man in the book, a man who loved his wife and his friends and that worried about the truth of his writing.  This makes me ready to tackle all the Hemingway novels I have waiting on my shelves.  This book is recommended for memoir readers.  

The Burning Girl by Mark Billingham

 

A gang war has broken out in the town where Thorne works.  There are the old school English gang and the new Indian gang.  Can the police step in before everything explodes?  Four men have also been murdered, their backs carved with a huge X.   Is this more of the gang rivalry or is a serial killer at work?

Everything seems to lead back to twenty years ago when a twelve year old girl was burned on her school playground.  She survived but the scars and life afterwards was so horrific that she killed herself later.  The ironic part is that the target wasn't even her; it was the English gang's leader's daughter.  Back then everyone assumed it was the second in command who hired it so that he could push out the leader and he did take command after the attack.  

But now the man who has been in prison for twenty years for the crime is saying that he never did it, that he knows who was behind it and will testify and let the police bring down the gang.  Can he be believed?

This is the fourth Tom Thorne book.  It is different as it portrays a police force in what is probably much more common in their work than the capture of serial killers.  Most cities have gangs and the police are in constant battle with them.  Thorne has a romance but like most of his romances, it seems doomed to be short term.  This book is recommended for mystery readers. 

Drunk On All Your Strange New Words by Eddie Robson

 

Lydia is a translator.  The Logi came to Earth a while back but they can't communicate with most humans.  They only talk internally and a specialized trainer is needed to interpret their internal speech into human words.  Lydia translates for the Logi cultural attache Fritz.  That means Lydia gets to go with him to plays, the ballet and other cultural events.  The downside is that translating makes the translator feel drunk although chemically they aren't.  Still, Lydia likes her job and likes Fritz, especially since there are almost no jobs back in her hometown.

One morning Lydia wakes up, goes downstairs to see if Fritz needs her and finds him dead.  It's obvious he has been murdered, shot through the heart.  That's bad.  Even worse is that the house had been locked up so the police assume that Lydia would be their culprit.  

Lydia realizes that if she is to avoid a lifetime behind bars, she will have to find the real culprit.  Who could it be?  Harry who has followed Lydia back to New York after a one night stand?  Someone whose work Fritz declined to support?  Melanie who worked with Fritz but didn't really like him?  Lydia better find the answer before her new residence is a jail cell.

Eddie Robson is known for his work in the science fiction genre.  He has written Dr. Who episodes, podcasts such as Adulting, and books about Fortnite.  In this book, he has created a character in Lydia who is refreshing in her relationship to the world and the reader will sympathize with her and her issues.  I listened to this novel and the narrator did a great job, differentiating each character with a unique voice.  This book is recommended for science fiction fans.

Nona The Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

 

Nona lives with her family, Camilla, Palamedes and Pyrrha.  Of course, Camilla and Palamedes share a body but that's okay.  Both love Nona.  Pyrrha is a woman who shaves everyday.  Nona thinks all this is normal as she is only six months old and the body she lives in wasn't hers until then.  It belonged to someone else before, someone strong.  Nona also has a job.  She is a teacher's assistant and loves the teacher called the Angel as do all the kids.  She has also been allowed to join the student gang and that makes her happy.

But things are not good on the planet.  A blue entity hangs over the planet, foretelling disaster.  Nona is supposed to save the planet somehow but she only wants a birthday party and time to snuggle the Angel's dog.  Caught between two raging military forces, can Nona and her family survive?

This is the third book in the Locked Tomb series and was a finalist for both the Hugo and Locus awards.  Tamsyn Muir is a fantasy author from New Zealand who burst upon the fantasy scene with this series.  Readers could read this as a stand alone but in order to get the full effect and understand the story line, would do best to read the preceding two.  Nona is the most approachable of Muir's heroines, a terrifying force in a little girl's body who only wants to be loved.  This book is recommended for fantasy readers.

Princesses Behaving Badly by Linda Rodriquez McRobbie

 

In this anthology, there are true stories about princesses throughout the ages.  Few of them are recent stories as princesses are not as influential as in the past.  The mini biographies are broken into categories.  They are Warriors, Usurpers, Schemers, Survivors, Partiers, Floozies and Madwomen.  Some women I had heard of, more I had not.  

Linda Rodriquez McRobbie is a journalist and podcaster who specializes in history, health and science topics.  She has also worked in television on shows featuring Sir Issac Newton and another outlining the effects of what are known as 'rubber bullets.'  Her breezy style in this anthology gives the reader the feeling of knowing the various individuals she portrays.  This book is recommended for history readers.  

The Ragpicker King by Cassandra Clare

 

After the massacre that killed Conor's princess fiancé, things have changed.  Conor has become serious, realizing that he will be taking up the crown soon.  His father, the King, has retreated to a tower and hasn't spoken since that night.  It's obvious that he will never rule again.  Conor forms another alliance and soon a princess known for her beauty is about to arrive, although his heart is still with Lin Caster, the physician who is part of the people separated from the mainstream.

Kel is still doing everything he can to protect Conor and the Crown.  He is working with the criminal underground, as they are placed to root out the conspiracy against Conor.  The woman he loves has been promised to a disgusting lord who is known for his cruelty and desire to humiliate all those around him.

Lin has declared herself the Goddess her people have been searching for, waiting for centuries.  She doesn't believe she is the Goddess, but wants access to books forbidden to her to find a cure for her best friend.  While treating the King, she discovers his secret which also affects Conor.  Will things all work out?

This is the second book in The Chronicles Of Castellane series.  Advertising says book two of two, but it is hard to imagine that the ending of this book is the ending of the series as it ends with much in turmoil and unresolved.  Cassandra Clare is known for her epic fantasies and I've really enjoyed reading this one.  This book is recommended for fantasy readers.

Dead Lions by Mick Herron

 

In the second novel of the Slough House series, a man on the periphery of the intelligence network has been found dead on a bus.   Was it old age or something else?  He claimed to have knowledge of Russian intelligence but isn't the Cold War over?  

Jackson Lamb isn't sure and decides to investigate.  Soon he is deep in old files and meeting with people he knew years ago in the game.  One of his Slow Horses operatives is killed in what looks like a road accident but was it?  When he finds out that a small village in rural England is full of what could be a sleeping Soviet network, he sends River to investigate.  Has he sent him to his death?

I really enjoy this series.  What is so interesting is the interplay of characters but above all the conclusions that Lamb is so quick to see and others so slow.  Readers of this series will soon have favorites in the group and it's interesting to follow the Slow Horses lives in addition to whatever mystery Lamb has decided needs his attention.  This book is recommended for mystery readers interested in spy novels.

The Details by Ia Genberg

 

The Details is narrated by a woman who is lying in her bed, sick with a fever.  As she lies there, she idly pages through a book and sees the inscription from the woman who gave her the book.  This leads to her remembering her time with the woman who was her first love and then moving on and remembering others who she spent time with and who had an impact on her life.

The first story is of Johanna, her first love.  They parted and Johanna has gone on to become a famous television presenter.  The next story is of Niki, her college roommate and best friend for several years.  Niki is intense and when she is your friend, she is everything.  But Niki cannot sustain relationships and every one she has ends up badly.  When Niki is done with someone, she is done forever.

The next story is that of Alejandro.  The narrator is living with another man when she goes to a club and sees Alejandro on stage, dancing, which is his background.  She is immediately entranced and goes backstage after the band is through.  She and Alejandro talk for hours and soon are involved in an intense affair.  But they part when Alejandro goes on tour and she knows somehow that they will never be together again.

The last story is of Brigitte, who is the narrator's mother.  Brigitte is consumed by a tragedy in her past and spends her life anxious and unable to enjoy life and what it brings her.  The narrator wonders at the anxiety and finds out its source many years later. 

Ia Genberg was a journalist in Sweden before she became an author.  Her first book was released in 2012 and she has written several others.  This novel was shortlisted for the International Booker in 2024 and her other novels have won acclaim as well.  The narrator's look back at her life will encourage the reader to do the same and examine the friendships and loves that have defined their own lives.  What I found interesting was the stories she left out while including these four.  This book is recommended for literary fiction readers.