2003 updated companion to the Discworld series (28 of 41 this time) up to Night Watch. Very thorough and in alphabetical order, making it supremely ea2003 updated companion to the Discworld series (28 of 41 this time) up to Night Watch. Very thorough and in alphabetical order, making it supremely easy to find whatever Discworld shenanigans you may want to look up.
There are a few little illustrations to accompany the entries and a rather primitive but useful map of the city of Ankh-Morpork.
The entries range from minor characters to big, roaring protagonists through to little villages we only ever hear as a passing joke, with each entry having a decent amount written about them.
It's a lovely little reference book that can be used to refresh your mind about Discworld if you're not in the mood to re-read them in their entirety. Any updated, more recently published versions should be acquired however, just to make sure you get the best enjoyment. ...more
If it were merely the words, it would still be wonderful. Features photos from the adaptation, from being the scenes on set and also has illustrationsIf it were merely the words, it would still be wonderful. Features photos from the adaptation, from being the scenes on set and also has illustrations of the characters, props and settings. Full review to follow....more
I got 62 out of the 348 questions I answered. Part of the problem is this book was compiled in the late 90s when there were fewer Discworld novels andI got 62 out of the 348 questions I answered. Part of the problem is this book was compiled in the late 90s when there were fewer Discworld novels and I was guessing answers to questions for books that didn't exist...
Incredibly in-depth and so Fanboy it's almost vomit-inducing. In the end I guessed Windle Poons for every question and got at least one correct.
Fun for any fans, but be advised on which books the questions are about and do a bit of revision on those....more
The second installment in the Her Majesty the Queen Investigates, A Three Dog Problem is a unique take on the mystery and crime genre. The title is a The second installment in the Her Majesty the Queen Investigates, A Three Dog Problem is a unique take on the mystery and crime genre. The title is a play on the three pipe problem that Sherlock Holmes often encountered in Conan Doyle's stories.
Having never read the first, I was intrigued to find out more on this royal crime caper. The cover mis-lead me slightly: the drawing looks like Queen Victoria and I was expecting a mysterious romp through the streets of Victorian London.
The book has several narrative threads running through it which, at first, is a little off-putting and confusing. There are missing paintings, murdered bodies and every-day occurances like stolen Palace items which make it a little difficult to really follow the true crime of the murder.
After a while, however, the flow of the book does settle in to a steady rhythm and the Queen seems to rise above it all, as one would expect. I am no Royalist but the Queen is a sterling example, and I have read only one other book that features her as the protagonist (Alan Bennett's 'The Uncommon Reader') and I didn't feel the same kind of warmth and joy toward the Queen as I did there.
The mystery plods along and I didn't find it all too consuming, but I found it to be gentle but intriguing. From reading other reviews it seems the first book had a better depth of wit and humour about it, which I found to be lacking in this one.
It seems a fun little caper that is cosy, warm and not at all like the usual grim and dark realistic crime thrillers I tend to read. I wouldn't say the Queen is particularly fleshed out here, but it's a decent and quick read full of joy albeit coupled with murder. ...more
Like a lot of people, I have read this book (and the following books in the series) after watching the BBC adaptation Dublin Murders. It never appeareLike a lot of people, I have read this book (and the following books in the series) after watching the BBC adaptation Dublin Murders. It never appeared on my radar before and I doubt it did for a lot of casual crime thriller mystery fans either. I decided to pick it up as I felt it would be one of those supremely easy-to-read crime books that I can get through in a single sitting, and that is true.
It's a very enjoyable read (as far as fictional murder can be enjoyable to read) and I never felt like putting it down, but it did annoy me several times over. I put it down to being the first book of the series: finding its feet and testing the water. It reads quick except when it doesn't: Rob's inner monologues are tedious, his personality understandable but still jarring. The plot not special, but I did not find it wholly unsatisfying either, nor indeed absurd.
The intertwining of Rob's past being told alongside the murder of a young Irish teen is nicely done, but still somewhat tedious at times. I often found myself wanting to only read about Rob's past as opposed to what happened to this young girl, and maybe vice-versa: it seemed a little tangled at times, which might have been the point but could have been better done. Throwing in Irish life, the background activity of the residents and a really well-told location was nice, but didn't hugely elevate it for me. Often the characters were flat and rather childish, but often the plot was riveting and interesting. It kept me reading and, for a crime thriller, made me wonder all sorts of things about every character.
I immediately picked up the rest of the series, simply for how readable this was. Things were done in this for reasons I found pointless, but maybe we'll soon find out....more
Not my usual thing, but I managed to finally get around to watching the ITV comedy-drama The Durrells and wanted to explore Corfu in particular and thNot my usual thing, but I managed to finally get around to watching the ITV comedy-drama The Durrells and wanted to explore Corfu in particular and thought this book was a very good way to start.
Sadly not. Penny is mourning the loss of her father and her recent break-up and decides a holiday to Corfu is the best thing, particularly since Gerald Durrell's books about his family's time on the island were her and her father's most beloved reads. This seemed the perfect little escapism I was looking for in relation to my latest television binge, but it turned out to be quite self-indulgent, badly disguised romance.
I had hoped for self-fulfilment, a woman discovering herself through travel, maybe even just a tiny bit of female empowerment but sadly it lacked all three and ended up being a woman looking for love. which is fine, if that's what you want. It wasn't what I was hoping to be reading, however.
It's an incredibly quick read, though it does drag throughout, and there are quite a few info-dumps that could have so easily made in to beautiful conversations or wistful daydreams in Corfu. There were quite a few mistakes as well, grammatical and plot, which detracted from what is quite a nice idealised portrayal of a woman trying to heal....more
There was an American TV programme called Ringer starring ya gurl from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sarah Michelle Gellar played twins, one of whom jThere was an American TV programme called Ringer starring ya gurl from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sarah Michelle Gellar played twins, one of whom jumps in to the ocean and is assumed dead. Her ex-stripper sister takes her place, has fun with her husband and leads a very nice life...
The Girl on the Train in the Mirror is about twin sisters, one of whom dies in the ocean and the other assumes her identity to steal her perfect husband. Ah twins, so much fun...
I found the whole thing pretty absurd. As you can tell, I obviously don't think it's a unique or even particularly good plot and I'm sure many before Ringer have done it as well. The similarities were really striking though and I could not shake the whole thing off as I read more and more absurdity piled on top of absurdity.
The writing wasn't terrible: it was actually a decently grammatically correct thriller, but it was slow and boring and yes, absurd. All of the characters were unlikeable without even an iota of a redeemable feature buried anywhere. It is an incredibly melo-dramatic plot with incredibly far-fetched happenings. It just doesn't read well as a whole....more
Not going to lie, I read this purely for the cover. I'm a graphic designer and I've been trying to look at book covers in a different kind of way, andNot going to lie, I read this purely for the cover. I'm a graphic designer and I've been trying to look at book covers in a different kind of way, and this one pulled me in completely and I can only apologise.
The book itself is nothing completely new or stunning, but I found it routinely enjoyable for the most part. It's a very quick read and keeps you engrossed until the very end: the plot summary actually made me make a rather excited "oooh" noise which I rarely get. Along with the cover, I was pretty much sucked in completely.
Sadly, I thought the execution was rather poor. The writing was fine, but it was only fine. I have a hard time caring about posh, suburban Americans and this was no different, but the mystery of the plot kept me there. And whilst I appreciate murder mysteries generally have unlikeable characters, not a one had any redeemable features even remotely.
I also was truly disappointed by the ending. No spoilers here, but it left me not wanting more, not really caring and not feeling particularly fulfilled. It felt rather shoddily put together and, honestly, very unbelievable. Even Science Fiction is rooted deeply in Science Fact. This was fantasy without any imagination. It felt a little childish....more
The cover instantly drew me in along with the blurb: a mysterious phone call with a shattering message and an intriguing cover to match it. The scene The cover instantly drew me in along with the blurb: a mysterious phone call with a shattering message and an intriguing cover to match it. The scene is set from there and we are placed right into what one would assume is a normal, loving family until the fateful phone call...
The story unfolds quite slowly, which at first feels intense and gripping. As the book progresses, however, I found this approach incredibly dull. The whole plot could have been told in a much quicker, shorter book which I think would have matched the plot much better. There was mystery, intrigue and all those lovely thrilling things you'd want from something about the Cold War, but-whilst it was there-it felt quite frozen and scattered rather than building up to anything particularly exciting.
I never really found myself enjoying the Detective Sarah. I found she mostly stumbled in to things rather than using any kind of detecting nous, which is usually my main bug-bear in detection fiction. I didn't find her that likeable either, but I don't think there are any particular stand out reasons for this: she just seemed a little meh, a little flat, a little 2D.
I do thoroughly enjoy crime thrillers and prefer ones I can read in one sitting, but I found this quite the chore to get through, even though I did enjoy the plotline: the Cold War is something I've not delved in to that much and have been meaning to for so long, but to be honest aside from the codeword, I never really felt it was particular to the Cold War.
It seemed a decent start but I found it just dragged a little, though if you're looking for a nice bit of crime I think you should give it a go....more
I'm not the biggest fan of political thrillers, but I made 2021 the year of trying new things, and that also extended to genres of books I had either I'm not the biggest fan of political thrillers, but I made 2021 the year of trying new things, and that also extended to genres of books I had either dismissed a few years ago or never really go in to in the first place.
I'm sure everyone is at least somewhat vaguely aware of Robert Peston and I found it surprising that he'd written a book: unsurprised was I about the topic. But as the old adage goes, "write what you know about" and there is no doubt that Peston knows about Politics and all of the seedy little ins and outs within.
It is very readable: a fast-paced political thriller with a likeable protagonist in Gilbert Peck. Some of the other characters may well be a little more familiar than I would have liked, but they all seemed nicely fleshed out and obviously written by someone who has been engrossed in British politics for many decades.
I never truly got on with the plot as honestly politics bores the living flesh off my bones, but I was very much involved throughout the entire read. It had slow moments and boring moments, but isn't that politics anyway? I found it to be a pretty nice debut in a genre I don't really enjoy, but it has allowed me to rethink what I'll read next....more
At first glance, you don't realise completely that this is a memoir. One picks it up and almost expects perhaps a cute murder mystery, or in the very At first glance, you don't realise completely that this is a memoir. One picks it up and almost expects perhaps a cute murder mystery, or in the very least a guide-book on how to love and appreciate dogs the way they deserve.
So I picked this up not really knowing what I was getting in to. I admit I'm not the biggest memoir fan, and I certainly don't trip head-over-heels over anything to do with London. Dogs on the other hand... A dog on the cover is worth more than any amount of 5-star reviews.
“After all, the decisions that feel the most impulsive and whimsical, the ones that just seem to fall out of the sky, often have roots so long that they are wrapped around your bones.”
It is a heart-warming, joyful read that brings laughter, tears and a warm glow with every page turn. After getting over the initial shock of it being a memoir (but a very well-told and witty one at that), you settle in to something that reads like a wonderfully smooth story that just so happens to be true.
If you're not a dog owner it can be quite the stark introduction to what is a world of pampered pooches and delightfully uptight dog-owners, which is probably as close to the truth as you will ever find. It's a lovely read, tinged with occasional sadness as any real-life is, and there are plenty of dogs to meet and greet along the way....more
An utterly beguiling read about one of the most controversial and complicated matters in human nature: murder.
Kate Morgan-a lawyer-has researched murdAn utterly beguiling read about one of the most controversial and complicated matters in human nature: murder.
Kate Morgan-a lawyer-has researched murder and the laws around murder in British history to within an inch of its life. It is so well-written as to feel slightly novelesque in that each case that Morgan shares with us-cases that have shaped the very letter of the law in Great Britain-is dealt with so well as to share only the facts of each and not turn it in to what in fiction can often just be a plot device.
Non-Fiction is difficult to rate as one uses these books to gain knowledge from another: another whom should have a greater understanding of the topic and yet do not always. Kate Morgan's credentials speak for themselves, and her manner of writing conveys this even more.
All of the examples cases felt relevant, whether they were particularly gruesome, vile, morbid or perhaps understandable and none of them ever felt like they'd be specifically chosen by Morgan to create any kind of shock or brutality within the piece....more
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