In a cold Monday afternoon plenty of laughs and discussion took place over books read in June.
Three mysteries were enjoyed Shadow Kill by Chris Ryan, Conspiracy of Bones by Kathy Reichs and Maximum Security by James Morton the toughest classification in the Australian Prison System. Memorial Days by Geraldine Brooks - after the sudden death of her husband, Geraldine took herself to Flinders Island to grieve her loss. We compared her story to that of Meg Bignell, author of After the Rain, who lost her husband to suicide and her mother to cancer. The House of Now and Then by Jo Dixon, set in Tasmania, is a twisty story of the consequences of telling the truth. David Baldacci has a new novel for 2025 that is different to the usual - an historical drama in War time London, Strangers in Time, received a big tick of approval. Before We Forget Kindness by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, the fifth book in the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series. Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy is set on the storm ravaged island of Shearwater and a family’s struggle to protect a seed bank against nature and climate change. A good read. Our reader described A Prisoner of Birth by Jeffrey Archer as a brilliant story of twists and turns. Two Di Morrissey books - Following The Morning Star and Kimberley Sun which is a sequel to Tears of the Moon - as usual meticulously researched and well written. Our history buff enjoyed The Dark History of the Kings and Queens of Europe, The Queen’s Fool by Phillipa Gregory as well as The Lady in the Tower by Alison Weir. The most powerful and elusive woman in Europe, the biography of Angela Merkel by Kati Marton, was very interesting with a different look at the political games played among world leaders - big tick of approval. Another biography that caused much discussion was Joan Lindsay: The Hidden Life of the woman who wrote Picnic at Hanging Rock by Brenda Niall, a very talented woman in her own right. The Lost Child by Kathleen McGurl is a dual timeline novel on the Titanic disaster, the mother of twins gave one of her children to a deckhand while she got in a lifeboat with the other, only to never see the other child again. The Windsor Diaries 1940-1945 by Isabella Leyland are the diaries of Alathea Fitzalan Howard who lived in Cumberland House during WW11, giving a glimpse into the lives of the two young princesses. The Whisperer’s War by Jackie French is the tale of a wealthy upper class young woman in the UK and the conflict between love and duty. Lastly The Whitest Flower by Brendan Graham is written in the era of the Potato Famine in Ireland.
Happy reading during the cold weather - see you all on Monday 4th August.
Geraldine
Three mysteries were enjoyed Shadow Kill by Chris Ryan, Conspiracy of Bones by Kathy Reichs and Maximum Security by James Morton the toughest classification in the Australian Prison System. Memorial Days by Geraldine Brooks - after the sudden death of her husband, Geraldine took herself to Flinders Island to grieve her loss. We compared her story to that of Meg Bignell, author of After the Rain, who lost her husband to suicide and her mother to cancer. The House of Now and Then by Jo Dixon, set in Tasmania, is a twisty story of the consequences of telling the truth. David Baldacci has a new novel for 2025 that is different to the usual - an historical drama in War time London, Strangers in Time, received a big tick of approval. Before We Forget Kindness by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, the fifth book in the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series. Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy is set on the storm ravaged island of Shearwater and a family’s struggle to protect a seed bank against nature and climate change. A good read. Our reader described A Prisoner of Birth by Jeffrey Archer as a brilliant story of twists and turns. Two Di Morrissey books - Following The Morning Star and Kimberley Sun which is a sequel to Tears of the Moon - as usual meticulously researched and well written. Our history buff enjoyed The Dark History of the Kings and Queens of Europe, The Queen’s Fool by Phillipa Gregory as well as The Lady in the Tower by Alison Weir. The most powerful and elusive woman in Europe, the biography of Angela Merkel by Kati Marton, was very interesting with a different look at the political games played among world leaders - big tick of approval. Another biography that caused much discussion was Joan Lindsay: The Hidden Life of the woman who wrote Picnic at Hanging Rock by Brenda Niall, a very talented woman in her own right. The Lost Child by Kathleen McGurl is a dual timeline novel on the Titanic disaster, the mother of twins gave one of her children to a deckhand while she got in a lifeboat with the other, only to never see the other child again. The Windsor Diaries 1940-1945 by Isabella Leyland are the diaries of Alathea Fitzalan Howard who lived in Cumberland House during WW11, giving a glimpse into the lives of the two young princesses. The Whisperer’s War by Jackie French is the tale of a wealthy upper class young woman in the UK and the conflict between love and duty. Lastly The Whitest Flower by Brendan Graham is written in the era of the Potato Famine in Ireland.
Happy reading during the cold weather - see you all on Monday 4th August.
Geraldine
