Archive for August, 2007
August 31, 2007 at 5:29 pm · Filed under Book Reviews, Favourite Books, Mystery and Suspense
85. Dearly Devoted Dexter by Jeff Lindsay (Mystery, Suspense) 292 p.
In this sequel to Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Dexter’s life is more complicated than ever, with Sergeant Doakes interfering in his playtime, his girlfriend Rita and her children commanding a certain portion of his attention, and his sister Deborah demanding his help catching the new bad guy in town.
Once again, Jeff Lindsay has done a masterful job with Dexter’s characterization. I continue to marvel at his skill in creating a creature like Dexter, who nonetheless manages to be interesting and even somewhat sympathetic. I especially like the development of Cody’s character, which was not-too-unsubtly telegraphed in the first book. I still think Darkly Dreaming Dexter would have been a more powerful story if it had come later in the series, after we’d already met Dexter; it was a wasted opportunity to reveal so much of Dexter’s past in the first book.
Other than that fairly minor quibble, the Dexter Morgan series is shaping up to be pretty fantastic.
Books read: 85/100 (85%)
Pages read: 25,627/30,000 (85%)
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2007, Dexter Morgan, Jeff Lindsay
August 31, 2007 at 3:22 pm · Filed under Book Reviews, Mystery and Suspense
84. Vanishing Point by Patricia Wentworth (Mystery) 346 p.
Maggie Bell tells her parents she is going out for some air, walks out of their house in Hazel Green, and is never seen again. A year later, the Air Ministry still suspects that her disappearance may be connected to some disturbing leakages at their nearby test centre, and calls on Scotland Yard to do some quiet poking around. Chief Inspector Lamb calls in Miss Silver. When a second woman disappears, it begins to seem as though there is something more sinister and deadly that anyone imagined at work in the village of Hazel Green.
Typical of Patricia Wentworth’s Miss Silver mysteries, with an interesting and well-constructed plot and lots of typically English characters. If you enjoy Agatha Christie’s mystery novels, particularly the social side, you’ll enjoy any of the Miss Silver mysteries.
Books read: 84/100 (84%)
Pages read: 25,335/30,000 (84%)
I haven’t been reading much lately, although I’ve got several books in progress, including The Lies of Locke Lamora, which I’m enjoying very much. I’ve been spending most of my free time watching Joss Whedon’s Firefly, which is an awesome show.
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2007, Miss Silver, Patricia Wentworth
August 21, 2007 at 11:35 pm · Filed under Book Reviews, Mystery and Suspense
83. The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman (Spy Mystery) 192 p.
Emily Pollifax, a widow with children and grandchildren, finds herself dissatisfied with her comfortable, well-organized life. Depressed by her feeling of uselessness, she decides to make one last stab at fulfilling her childhood dream: to become a spy for her country. Applying for a job at the CIA, she meets with unexpected success—and plunges headlong into unexpected danger.
I enjoyed Mrs. Pollifax, Innocent Tourist when I read it a few weeks ago, but this book, the first in the Mrs. Pollifax series, is even more charming, as well as very funny. Mrs. Pollifax is a delightfully ordinary and intelligent heroine, and she meets a wonderful cast of eccentrics during the course of the novel.
Books read: 83/100 (83%)
Pages read: 24,989/25,000 (99.96%) (I think I’m going to up my page goal to 30,000)
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2007, Dorothy Gilman, Mrs. Pollifax
August 21, 2007 at 4:22 pm · Filed under Miscellanea
August 21, 2007 at 1:24 pm · Filed under Book Reviews, Historical Fiction, Mystery and Suspense
82. The Clerk’s Tale by Margaret Frazer (Historical Mystery) 309 p.
When Dame Frevisse accompanies her prioress to St. Mary’s nunnery to visit Domina Elizabeth’s dying relative, neither lady is expecting to find that a man—a man Dame Frevisse knows—has lately been murdered in the infirmary garden. That Master Montford, lately crowner and now subescheator, in charge of ruling on uncertain inheritances, should have died by violence is no surprise to Dame Frevisse or to anyone else. The late Montford, who made so many enemies that practically anyone might have had a motive to kill him, is little mourned even in his own family. Even Dame Frevisse, believer in truth and justice, can summon little enthusiasm for discovering the dead man’s murderer.
I quite enjoyed The Clerk’s Tale, which is set in medieval England, in January of 1446. Dame Frevisse is unexpectedly convincing as a Benedictine nun of the period, without the anachronistic beliefs and behaviours that a lesser author might have given her in order to make her more sympathetic to a modern audience. Which is not to say that she isn’t a sympathetic character, because I liked her a great deal, but she’s very much a product of her period. Too many characters in historical fiction might as well be modern characters in period costumes, but none of the characters in The Clerk’s Tale suffer from that defect.
The mystery is a good one, and the solution is satisfying and makes perfect sense. I don’t know enough about medieval England to say whether the historical setting is accurately represented or not, but the author’s note that follows the story suggests that Frazer knows the period intimately and that she has taken pains to be faithful to 15th-century England. The Clerk’s Tale is well worth reading for any fan of mysteries or historical fiction.
Books read: 82/100 (82%)
Pages read: 24,797/25,000 (99%)
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2007, Dame Frevisse, Margaret Frazer
August 20, 2007 at 7:04 pm · Filed under Book Reviews, Favourite Books, Mystery and Suspense
81. Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay (Mystery, Suspense) 288 p.
Dexter Morgan is a blood spatter analyst for the Miami Police Department. He’s also a serial killer. Raised with a cop for a foster-father, he’s learned to kill only bad people. But a new string of murders in Miami is starting to worry him: the M.O. is just like his own, and he keeps having dreams about the crimes. Surprisingly prophetic ones.
Darkly Dreaming Dexter is a delight. Jeff Lindsay refuses the temptation to water down Dexter’s complete indifference to the human race, and yet somehow manages to create a protagonist who is as likable and compelling as any I’ve ever encountered.
I was a little disappointed with the denouement, which seemed a bit obvious and not as deliciously complex as the rest of the book. I think that’s mostly because it happened in the first book, and felt a little rushed to me. The general plot of this book would have been perfect if it had been the third or fourth, rather than the first, book in the series. Oh, well—it is Lindsay’s first novel, and the rest of the book is so good that it’s not hugely important that the ending isn’t perfect.
Dearly Devoted Dexter and Dexter in the Dark are going on my TBR list.
Books read: 81/100 (81%)
Pages read: 24,488/25,000 (98%)
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2007, Dexter Morgan, Jeff Lindsay
August 20, 2007 at 7:03 pm · Filed under Book Reviews, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror, Young Adult Literature
80. Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett (Young Adult Fantasy) 323 p.
In this third installment in the adventures of Tiffany Aching and the Nac Mac Feegle, Tiffany is now thirteen years old. Living with (and learning witchcraft from) old Miss Treason, she still writes and receives letters from Roland, the Baron’s son. She very soon makes the mistake of dancing with the Wintersmith, a mistake which could have dire consequences. Because now Roland isn’t her only admirer.
I think this is my favourite of the Tiffany Aching books so far. After a slightly slow start, I found it a great deal funnier than A Hat Full of Sky, and I liked Roland’s more prominent role. The Nac Mac Feegle continue to amuse me, while Granny Weatherax is her usual irascible self. Nanny Ogg makes an appearance, which is always a pleasure.
I actually finished this on Saturday, but it took me a while to recover from the trip home and to actually feel like writing a review.
Books read: 80/100 (80%)
Pages read: 24,200/25,000 (97%)
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2007, Discworld, Terry Pratchett, Tiffany Aching
August 20, 2007 at 2:17 pm · Filed under Books Etc, Miscellanea
Okay, so I promised some pictures of my trip to my cousin’s wedding in Bryn Athyn, PA. It was my first visit to the United States.
To my total lack of surprise, Western New York and Pennsylvania turned out to be just like Southern Ontario, except that the people have funny accents and cars can’t turn right on red. And the Mountain Dew has caffeine in it. Despite the many cautionary tales I’ve heard about hassles at the border, in about thirty seconds the guard had asked us about our trip, checked our ID, and waved us through (the Canadian guards are even more absurdly lax—they didn’t even want to see any ID.)
Bryn Athyn is simply gorgeous. We stayed in a big 18th-century house on the grounds of the Lord’s New Church, where the wedding took place.
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August 18, 2007 at 12:03 am · Filed under Miscellanea
I got a splinter yesterday while helping to set up tables after the wedding reception (long story) and dripped some spots of blood on my nice light pink skirt. My aunt gave me the best (and yuckiest) laundry advice I’ve ever heard: your own saliva will dissolve your blood. Spit on a bloodstain (or your finger) and rub it with your finger, and the stain dissolves like magic! I scrutinized the skirt this morning for remnants of blood that I might have missed last night, but there wasn’t the slightest discolouration left behind.
It wouldn’t work that well for a large stain, since you have to get it pretty wet with saliva before it works. Still a great tip, though.
August 17, 2007 at 10:03 pm · Filed under Miscellanea
Excerpt from the CAA TripTik map we’re supposed to use to get home from Bryn Athyn tomorrow:
3. Go STRAIGHT on FITZWATERTOWN ROAD. Drive for 900 meters.
4. Make a U-turn. Drive for 100 meters.
5. Make a U-turn. Drive for 300 meters.
Thanks, TripTik!
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