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robinwalter's reviews
1774 reviews
Flight of the Serpent by R. R. Irvine, Val Davis
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
An interesting story, but not as engaging as the first
Trusted Like the Fox by Sara Woods
I was very pleased that Trusted Like the Fox provided an emphatic affirmative answer. This excellent story was set almost entirely in the courtroom, and it was a great read for that reason. It was also another testament to Ms Woods' skill as a writer, in that she got me invested in a courtroom drama with an utterly unlikeable protagonist.
The accused in the case Antony defended in this story started off as unsympathetic, and went way downhill from there. As the story progressed I lost any shred of sympathy for him, and by the very end actively disliked him. He was on trial for his life and by the time the story finished I'd have been happy to kill him for the crime of being a selfish, thoughtless, spineless prat. Which is exactly what made the book such a triumph.
As the story progressed, the defendant would do or say something that triggered a rage reflex and I'd think "surely it can't get worse", and then it did - several times. One stunning revelation toward the end of the trial especially had me channelling my inner Red Queen and shouting "Off with his head!" All of which served the purpose of making it very clear that the hero of the story was Antony and not his (anti)pathetic defendant. A sign of how well Ms Woods made the accused unlikeable is that grumpy old grouch Uncle Nicholas came across as the voice of sweet reason throughout this story.
For FINALLY placing her barrister sleuth in silks and in court, and for making me root for Antony even while being repulsed by his defendant (NOT client, I have to remind myself) , I'm giving this one 4.75/5. Had the accused NOT been someone who Groundskeeper Willy would have said needed killin' , I might have given it 5/5
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
In my review here of Malice Domestic, the second Antony Maitland mystery, I asked
"Will Antony EVER strut his stuff in wig and gown to ensure Justice is served?"
I was very pleased that Trusted Like the Fox provided an emphatic affirmative answer. This excellent story was set almost entirely in the courtroom, and it was a great read for that reason. It was also another testament to Ms Woods' skill as a writer, in that she got me invested in a courtroom drama with an utterly unlikeable protagonist.
The accused in the case Antony defended in this story started off as unsympathetic, and went way downhill from there. As the story progressed I lost any shred of sympathy for him, and by the very end actively disliked him. He was on trial for his life and by the time the story finished I'd have been happy to kill him for the crime of being a selfish, thoughtless, spineless prat. Which is exactly what made the book such a triumph.
As the story progressed, the defendant would do or say something that triggered a rage reflex and I'd think "surely it can't get worse", and then it did - several times. One stunning revelation toward the end of the trial especially had me channelling my inner Red Queen and shouting "Off with his head!" All of which served the purpose of making it very clear that the hero of the story was Antony and not his (anti)pathetic defendant. A sign of how well Ms Woods made the accused unlikeable is that grumpy old grouch Uncle Nicholas came across as the voice of sweet reason throughout this story.
For FINALLY placing her barrister sleuth in silks and in court, and for making me root for Antony even while being repulsed by his defendant (NOT client, I have to remind myself) , I'm giving this one 4.75/5. Had the accused NOT been someone who Groundskeeper Willy would have said needed killin' , I might have given it 5/5
What the Widow Knew: A Kali O'Brien mini-mystery by Jonnie Jacobs
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
An action packed novella and a satisfying end to the series
The Next Victim by Jonnie Jacobs
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Another fast paced murder mystery, but the real strength of this story was Kali's own personal growth. A shame it all happened in what turned out to be the penultimate book of the series.
When I Was Old by Georges Simenon
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
An interesting and basically random collection of musings. Here are some of my favourite lines
Only I’m not a writer. I’m a novelist. And the novelist does not know the joy of writing.
I couldn’t have written a hundred-volume work with a hundred characters. But perhaps a work in a hundred volumes with one character.
In Le Fils I took an actuary as a character. These are unquestionably the people who cast the coldest eye on human life,
isn’t silence sometimes the more difficult option?
I wonder if the essential characteristic of crime isn’t its illogic, which would explain why in the Middle Ages it was attributed to demons taking possession of a human being, and why today the psychiatrist is more and more often called in.
Won’t we always end by believing in what suits us best personally? It’s for this reason that I can never convince myself that any man is wholly insincere, even a politician.
Only I’m not a writer. I’m a novelist. And the novelist does not know the joy of writing.
I couldn’t have written a hundred-volume work with a hundred characters. But perhaps a work in a hundred volumes with one character.
In Le Fils I took an actuary as a character. These are unquestionably the people who cast the coldest eye on human life,
isn’t silence sometimes the more difficult option?
I wonder if the essential characteristic of crime isn’t its illogic, which would explain why in the Middle Ages it was attributed to demons taking possession of a human being, and why today the psychiatrist is more and more often called in.
Won’t we always end by believing in what suits us best personally? It’s for this reason that I can never convince myself that any man is wholly insincere, even a politician.
Iceland's 1100 Years: The History of a Marginal Society by Gunnar Karlsson
challenging
informative
medium-paced
4.5
A very informative look at the history of country I knew little about beyond the linguistic heritage it preserves
The Stone of Chastity by Margery Sharp
It is clear that another similarity between Ms Sharp's writing in this book and PGW's work is that like him, Ms Sharp here set out to do nothing more than entertain and amuse. Unlike, for example, Jane Austen.
My two favourite works of Jane Austen are, in order, Persuasion and Mansfield Park. Both feature lots of wryly amusing lines but in both, and especially in Mansfield Park, the witticisms and humour have an acidic edge to them – "it's funny because it's true, and I'm not actually happy that it is". In contrast, in this book it did not feel to me as if Ms Sharp was presenting any subtle social commentary or venting anger through humour. I got the impression she was writing with the sole aim of making her readers laugh. In that, for me, she succeeded admirably. This paragraph from the bottom of the first page set the tone for me, signalling a lighthearted laughfest was incoming
A lengthy passage of more than a page in which a politician's lecture on the superiority of decimal coinage descends into a near riot after his audience thinks he is impugning their chastity had me laughing out loud for the duration of the passage, especially near its end:
While there was much about the humour in this book that reminded me of Wodehouse, Ms Sharp was definitely her own person as a writer. The skewering of social and (especially) religious hypocrisy was more direct and less euphemised than anything PGW wrote, and I'm sure that much of the book's strength comes from its author being female - important when "the male gaze" is very relevant to the story.
She also gifted me a real keeper of a one-liner for conveying the idea of someone being VERY old
In summary you're looking for uncomplicated fun delivered through very clever, droll writing, I strongly recommend Stone of Chastity.
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
In the opening paragraph of her introduction to the Dean Street Press edition of Marjorie Sharp's Harlequin House historian Elizabeth Crawford mentions that the Manchester Guardian described sharp as this "second only to Woodhouse". I really, really enjoyed Harlequin house and found it hugely entertaining, but strong similarities to Woodhouse in tone and style were comparatively few. In this one, the flavour and aroma of Plum was very strong.
Right from the basic premise of the book, a comedy of errors with a self-absorbed academic (tautology?) wreaking havoc in an implausibly bucolic backwater village, this story had a PGW feel. That is of course, not a bad thing as long as the writer is sufficiently talented. In this book it became very clear to me why the Manchester Guardian said what it did. I laughed out loud many, many times throughout this book, often after reading passages reminiscent of Wodehouse. Here are two examples:
Right from the basic premise of the book, a comedy of errors with a self-absorbed academic (tautology?) wreaking havoc in an implausibly bucolic backwater village, this story had a PGW feel. That is of course, not a bad thing as long as the writer is sufficiently talented. In this book it became very clear to me why the Manchester Guardian said what it did. I laughed out loud many, many times throughout this book, often after reading passages reminiscent of Wodehouse. Here are two examples:
He could not bring himself publicly to confess that his most poignant erotic memory was of a broken spring which twanged—oddly enough—on the note of B flat. The observation said much for his ear, but too little for his powers of concentration.
At Vander’s Farm they were teetotal and Nonconformist, within reasonable limits. That is to say, Mr. Pye drank whisky medicinally, and during a prolonged drought sent his wife to pray with the Anglicans. He needed physicking, however, considerably more often than his land needed rain.
It is clear that another similarity between Ms Sharp's writing in this book and PGW's work is that like him, Ms Sharp here set out to do nothing more than entertain and amuse. Unlike, for example, Jane Austen.
My two favourite works of Jane Austen are, in order, Persuasion and Mansfield Park. Both feature lots of wryly amusing lines but in both, and especially in Mansfield Park, the witticisms and humour have an acidic edge to them – "it's funny because it's true, and I'm not actually happy that it is". In contrast, in this book it did not feel to me as if Ms Sharp was presenting any subtle social commentary or venting anger through humour. I got the impression she was writing with the sole aim of making her readers laugh. In that, for me, she succeeded admirably. This paragraph from the bottom of the first page set the tone for me, signalling a lighthearted laughfest was incoming
She had appeared at lunch wearing a very nice necklace of scarabs and enamel, and the Professor, cocking an interested eye, had remarked that it was just such trifles—the sight of an English gentlewoman ornamented with seven phallic symbols—that made life so perennially interesting to the folklorist. Mrs. Pounce did not know what a phallic symbol was, and instinct (or possibly a look in her son’s eye) prevented her asking; but after coffee she quietly sought out a dictionary and took it upstairs. At the moment she was feeling she could never come down again.
A lengthy passage of more than a page in which a politician's lecture on the superiority of decimal coinage descends into a near riot after his audience thinks he is impugning their chastity had me laughing out loud for the duration of the passage, especially near its end:
“He don’t know nothing ’bout chastity,” observed another voice wearily. “He’s from London.”
He had never before abandoned a meeting in mid-speech, not even when the eggs flew, but he had begun to think that his reason was even more important than his principles.
While there was much about the humour in this book that reminded me of Wodehouse, Ms Sharp was definitely her own person as a writer. The skewering of social and (especially) religious hypocrisy was more direct and less euphemised than anything PGW wrote, and I'm sure that much of the book's strength comes from its author being female - important when "the male gaze" is very relevant to the story.
She also gifted me a real keeper of a one-liner for conveying the idea of someone being VERY old
“Such a powerful fine memory has Uncle Thirkettle, there’s naught he’s forgot since s’s were f’s.”
In summary you're looking for uncomplicated fun delivered through very clever, droll writing, I strongly recommend Stone of Chastity.
Intent to Harm by Jonnie Jacobs
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Really fast-moving and with the hidden mastermind very well hidden, at least from me.
Cold Justice by Jonnie Jacobs
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A nice taut story, even if the culprit was made rather too obvious very early on
Death at the Pavilion by Cecilia Peartree
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
This was one of the most fun stories in the series recently. As Amaryllis in particular continues to adjust to aging, the way several younger characters who previously were often in minor supporting roles grew both as people and story participants bodes well for the future of the series. Th overall effect was that it's a great promo for the concept of a long-running series that happens 'in real time' over the duration of the series, with all that means for the characters. It could have got 4.5/5 at least if it had had more Clementine.