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EMR's book list 2013

Use this section to record the books you read in 2013. One thread per member, please.
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emr
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Joined: January 2009
Location: Castilla

EMR's book list 2013

Post by emr » Sat February 16th, 2013, 1:36 pm

January 2013

1. The Blackhouse (Lewis Trilogy, #1) by Peter May (5/5)
I guess people who are expecting just a mystery novel tend to lose interest half way through because every odd chapter is about Fin's childhood and teens, his friends, the bullies at school, his first love. If you count only the mystery chapters without all the drama you have no more than 100 pages but then they wouldn't make sense. Excellent.

2. Daughter of the Red Deer (Reindeer Hunters, #1) by Joan Wolf (4/5)
Around 14,000 years ago. Mar of the Horse tribe sets to kidnap some women from the Red Deer tribe. Alin, the Chosen One, convinces them to give them a few months before they can choose a husband (yup) delaying it to wait for the rescue party. And they fall in love...
Nice research. I liked the details about treating fur and ivory and the hunting. Their religion of course is invented but credible. Good book.


3. Fated (Alex Verus, #1) by Benedict Jacka (4/5)
Couldnt. Stop. Reading. Uh
It's not a great book. I think there is a big hole in there. Because they are all scrambling to get that box since page 1 but they don't know what it does? But they do. But they dont. **dizzy
It was a page turner anyway. I'm getting the next 2 boks asap.


4. The Cold, Cold Ground (Troubles Trilogy, #1) by Adrian McKinty (5/5)
‘… We know.
I know.
I walked back to the apartment. I put the key in the lock.
Quiet.
The hall.
Quiet.
The bedroom.
Quiet.
“Where have you be—“
“Sssshhh. Sleep.”
“Sleep?”
“Yes. Sleep.”
And I got in beside her and we moved from one dream to another...'


5. Sacrilege by S.J. Parris (3/5)
What good is twice good if brief. Or something like that. This book could have been so much better without the endless paragraphs of "What if... but then... I think... wait no... but who? and then..." zzz

6. The Restorer by Amanda Stevens (4/5)
Well well. While I was reading I was thinking this was an average read full of topics -the ghost child, rats, spiders, tunnels, vaults...- but now I hink this was actually quite good. There are many questions though. And her relationship with Devlin is only starting. The end is open for the next book and I'm hooked. Already ordered book 2.

7. Where the Shadows Lie by Michael Ridpath (4/5)
This was quite a good try from a British author to write Nordic crime. The idea was cool. Because the mystery is centered around a ring. The Ring. Yup. That one. Bilbo's yay! :D I like the character of Magnus, and all those strong women we meet. This has potential.

8. Semper Fidelis (Gaius Petreius Ruso, #5) by Ruth Downie (5/5)
I can't find the quote but there is a moment when Tilla is reading Catullus and makes a comment that would make her a top GR: "...like somebody else's hair floating in your bath".
rotfl
And there is that scene when Ruso is hoping she comes to rescue him on a stolen horse... looool
This was a page turner, intelligent, exciting.
I love this series.


9. Cursed (Alex Verus, #2) by Benedict Jacka (3/5)
I skimmed a little over all the reminders about the first book. If you have read it you don't need them If you haven't you don't want them. Minus that the book gets quite short. Not bad.

10. Orchestrated Death (Bill Slider,#1) by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles (3.5/5)
Not exactly what I was expecting. This book is more about Slider's personal life than about a mystery.. His wife's endless "You are a loser" rant was a little too much. Of course it was necessary to justify why he gets a mistress. In general this was different from the usual mystery novels.
"So many books, so little time."
— Frank Zappa

annis
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Joined: August 2008

Post by annis » Tue February 19th, 2013, 2:26 am

I read Daughter of the Red Deer years ago and liked it, though it was a bit more romance-y than I was expecting -don't know why, seeing Wolf usually does write romantic fiction! I've actually got the other 2 in the trilogy buried somewhere on my bookshelves but never quite got excited enough to dig them out. The posited matriarchal/patriarchal religion divide worked well and reminded me a bit of Rosemary Sutcliff's imagined Celtic religions along similar conflicting lines in novels like Mark of the Horse Lord and Sun Horse, Moon Horse.

Tilla & Ruso are on my list of must-haves. Amazing to think that Tilla was only meant to be a minor character in the first book, but she was such an engaging creation that she's become an indispensable part of the team. The Roman/Celtic combo is an irresistable one and gives some interesting perspectives to the stories. Although I enjoyed Semper Fidelis, it seemed rather more hardcore than usual to me- I sort of missed that comic touch of the other books in the series.

Adrian McKinty- yeah! Thanks for the introduction- I'm hooked! I'm waiting impatiently now for the next Sean Duffy novel and the latest in Michael Ridpath's Magnus series to be published. May's Blackhouse is particularly effective because even the hero doesn't know everything about himself, having suppressed certain significant memories that were too painful to deal with when he was younger.
Last edited by annis on Tue February 19th, 2013, 2:54 am, edited 11 times in total.

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emr
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Location: Castilla

Post by emr » Thu February 21st, 2013, 10:51 am

[quote=""annis""]I read Daughter of the Red Deer years ago and liked it, though it was a bit more romance-y than I was expecting [/quote]
I have Joan Wolf’s other two books. I’ll get to them eventually. I keep hoping to find among her books another with the magic of the Dark Ages trilogy but no joy. Wonder if she got help (Some teacher? Some inspired friend?) with those three books and that’s why they stand out.

Tilla and Ruso I suspect a male author would have kept her in the background. I kinda miss the times when Ruso was absolutely clueless about her. Now they have evolved into a team. I hope they get their baby.

[quote=""annis""]Adrian McKinty- yeah! Thanks for the introduction- I'm hooked! [/quote]

Adrian McKinty. No problem! :D Did you read the preview of book 3?
“’Don’t worry, Mrs Smith, I’ll be back soon,’ I said, trying to sound like Christopher Reeve in Superman II when he reassures Lois that General Zod will be no match for him.”
Lol. 11 months to wait… :/
I have his Dead trilogy but right now I should get myself to start reading book 2 of everything I’ve got started instead of jumping there too. I did get his Falling Glass quite cheap this week in amazon.
"So many books, so little time."
— Frank Zappa

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