crime

Book Review – Butter by Asako Yuzuki

books, reviews

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I don’t want to suggest that I’ve become a lazy reader but I definitely have become accustomed to reading books that with under 300 pages. It happened in lockdown and wasn’t help by the book club I joined. We only chose books with about 250 pages, so I totally embraced it. Nowadays, books with over 300 pages just seem so long to me. I know that they aren’t but it’s just that mental block I have to get over. I was definitely excited to read Butter but it just seemed to big. In reality, it’s only about 450 pages long but I didn’t think I’d ever get through it. So, I went down the audiobook route. I thought it would be the easiest way to do it. Thankfully, it was a really easy book to listen to and it wasn’t difficult to finish in time.

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Book Review – The Only One Left by Riley Sager

books, reviews

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Another book that I finished listening to when I had Covid. Or while I was working from home because of Covid. I picked this up cheap for my Kindle but then took advantage of the cheaper audiobook to help me through. I’ve got another of Riley Sager’s books that I’ve been meaning to read but never got round to. I figured that if I enjoyed this one then it might encourage me to pick up the earlier book. Of course, it would also mean that if I didn’t like it then I’d have a book on my TBR that I probably wouldn’t ever pick up. It’s a risky business.

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Book Review – Death of a Bookseller by Alice Slater

books, reviews

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

I had always intended to read this book but, after catching Covid, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to concentrate on the page. So, I also bought a copy of the audiobook to make it easier for me. I listened to this book as I was in my sick bed at the start of last week. I might have slept through a couple of the chapters in the middle but I don’t think I missed anything important. If I did nap through some of it, it was just a few filler chapters where very little happened. I’m glad that I got round to this because I’ve been eyeing it up for a while. It combines my love of bookshops and crime novels. Although, I don’t really love all crime novels. As I’ve said before, the majority of contemporary crime fiction does little to thrill me. Would this be any better?

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Book Review – The Last Devil To Die by Richard Osman

books, reviews

Rating: 4 out of 5.

There are plenty of celebrity novels being published these days and, most of the time, they end up being disappointed. I pick up a book written by someone that I’m a fan of and I instantly regret it. That’s not the case with Richard Osman. He genuinely seems to care about writing good books and spending time on developing characters. His novels are one of the few examples of good cosy crime these days. I suspect that a lot of people think that cosy crime novels are easy but there’s a big difference between good and bad cosy crime. His novels might not be the most difficult to figure out but they’re super enjoyable. So, of course, I was looking forward to reading his fourth novel.

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Book Review – Poirot Investigates by Agatha Christie

books, reviews

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I have to admit I’ve sort of abandoned my plan to reread every Agatha Christie book. I started it ages ago and knew that it would take me ages. Not because her books take that long to read but because I didn’t want to suffer from burnout. Still, I haven’t really been keeping up with it this year. I think the last Christie book I read was back in December. Although, it’s not as if I read a great deal in 2022. I only picked up 4 of her books. Absolutely abysmal when compared to the 16 I got through in 2021. So, I’m going to try and improve this year. I’ve still got over 30 to get through so I need to get cracking. To get me started, I finally listened to an audiobook I’ve had in my library for too long. I normally like Hugh Fraser’s narration but surely David Suchet would be even better, right? At least Poriot would sound familiar.

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Book Review – The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett

books, reviews

Rating: 3 out of 5.

While I was away, I didn’t get quite as much reading done as I expected. I took 4 hardbacks and my Kindle just to be safe. In the end, I finished 2 and got halfway through a third. Not bad but not what I was hoping for. It gave me time to finish this one, and I’m glad I finally read it. I’ve been putting it off for a while because I was worried about how I’d feel about it. I mean, how long can Janice Hallett keep going with her gimmick before it gets old? I love the DIY approach to crime fiction but it doesn’t really leave room for the depth I’m looking for. Then there’s the fact that I was disappointed with her second book. I’d told myself that this book would be the decider. If I didn’t like it then I would probably avoid any future books. At least ones with the same conceit. So, there was a little extra pressure on this one than normal. Would I enjoy it?

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Book Review – Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch

books, reviews

Rating: 3 out of 5.

One of the biggest problems with buying so many books in a year is that I tend to forget about them. I put them on my shelf with every intention of reading them later but, inevitably, they get lost amongst the rest. In some cases, I end up buying the book again but, thankfully, that’s a rarity. Mostly they just sit there gathering dust. In order to get my every increasing TBR down, I’ve taken to buying or borrowing the audiobook version as well. I’ve grown to really enjoy listening to an audiobook at work, so it means I can cross a few off in a particularly good week. In the case of this book, I ended up listening to it by accident. I knew that I’d bought a book a few years ago that had “of London” in the title. Turns out, that book was The Ashes of London instead. Ah well, I borrowed this one and might as well give it a listen. It’s one of those books that I see everywhere but didn’t know much about. Maybe it would be a new series for me?

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Book Review – The Accident on the A35 by Graeme Macrae Burnet

books, reviews

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Between the publication of Graeme Macrae Burnet’s first Georges Gorski novel and the second, he had become a Booker-shortlisted author. The Disappearance of Adèle Bedeau didn’t get a great deal of attention when it was published. I’m not saying that the second book got loads but it certainly benefited from being the writer’s follow-up to His Bloody Project. I first read Adèle Bedeau last year and enjoyed it. When I stumbled across the audiobook of the sequel at the library, I decided it was time to get through book 2. There’s a third one on the way at some point, so at least it would leave me in a position to read that at some point.

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Film Review – See How They Run (2022)

films, reviews

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Sometimes I feel as though I’m the only person on Earth who didn’t think that Knives Out was the revolutionary and original murder mystery that everyone else believes. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed it but the way some people go on, you’d think Rian Johnson had invented the drama. Although, I’m generally underwhelmed by whodunnits in general. It might be because of my love of Agatha Christie or because I’m just too cynical. Either way, I just think they’re too obvious. It’s such an oversaturated market that we’ve seen it all before. I just think it’s difficult to shock, so you need to do something special to keep me on board. I was keen to find out if See How They Run would do that.

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Book Review – The Bullet That Miss by Richard Osman

books, reviews

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Every time I browse the Waterstones website I stumble across another celebrity who has written a book. I blame Richard Osman. I understand that it’s not actually down to him but his success as a writer hasn’t helped. It’s as if publishers have finally realised that star power is a thing. Part of me is excited that people I like are writing books for me to read. The rest of me is slightly sad that these people are handed massive deals when other writers aren’t given a chance. After all, it doesn’t always work out. I’ve read plenty of celebrity novels that just fell flat.

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