In between working and travelling, I have been catching up with my reading and there are some great reads out there - so many books and so little time! One thing you realise as you get older that if a book doesn't 'grab' you - no matter how great the reviews and how much you love the author - don't waste precious reading time on it. So it was for me - I was so looking forward to reading The Barkskins by Annie Proulx. From the author of The Shipping News, it seemed perfect for me to read while travelling in Canada and North America as it is a novel about the First Nation peoples and how the Europeans settled in their lands - the very land I was treading on. However, I gave up a quarter way through as it was a laborious read and was just was not giving me any joy! I found it hard to feel anything for any of the characters and decided it would be less time consuming to watch a documentary on the topic ......and probably more lively!In contrast I whizzed through the new Lucinda Riley book - all 750 pages in five days. The Moon Sister is her latest in the Seven Sisters series and this time takes you to the Scottish Highlands and across the ocean to Spain and into the lives and ways of the gypsies who used live above the city of Socromote in caves. Tiggy is the sister who begins the search for her birth parents and, as she explores her roots, you learn about the horrors of Spanish Civil war and the excitement of Flamenco dancing. Her current life in Scotland is on a remote Highlands estate which has been inherited on the verge of bankruptcy by the handsome young Laird. Of course there has to be a love story and although its predictable and cheesy at times - its still really enjoyable. It ends with an introduction to the last sister Electra which leaves you with a tantalizing glimpse into what the next book is to be about. I cant wait!
Two of my favourite authors had new books out recently so I feasted on both of them. The war years seems to be where Kate Atkinson is right now and her latest offering, Transcription, offers excitement and surprises with a stunning twist in the tale at the end. Juliet Armstrong is surprised when she is recruited at the start of WW2, not as a spy but as a typist. Her job is to listen in to the conversations of a group of German sympathisers in a flat in London and then type them up for the War Office. The work is both tedious and then terrifying and results in a series of murders She is young, naive and charming but she is also a bright young woman drawn into a web of espionage and danger. Ten years later and working at the BBC, her past catches up with her. Kate Atkinson is an exceptional writer with a real gift for language and Transcription is beautifully crafted and a pleasure to read - her writing never disappoints - I loved her last novel, A God in Ruins and I loved Transcription too.Maggie O'Farrel is another author who never disappoints - I have read and enjoyed everything she has written over the years. Her latest book is autobiographical rather than a novel but if you need evidence that truth can be as dramatic as fiction then look no further. The title's tag line is 'Seventeen brushes with death', and it details the times in O'Farrel's life when she had a brush with danger and death. Its absolutely absorbing and the last chapter left me breathless as she witnesses what it is like to be a mother of a daughter who has a rare autoimmune disorder that results in severe reactions to a variety of allergens. The depth of her vigilance just to protect and keep her child alive is mind boggling! Each chapter is a self contained story and every word is devoured.
Waiting on my Kindle - I have Sapiens by Yuval Noah Hurari which three people have recommended to me - I am waiting for the right time to dig into this. I also have The Paris Secret by Lily Graham; The Trick to Time by Kit de Waal which cam recommended by my niece and I thought I would give Marion Keys a whirl as I haven't read anything of hers in a long while and having been in Ireland - I thought I may enjoy!
Make sure to enjoy your reading too and remember life really is to short to persevere with something that doesn't bring you joy!
