Into the Water – by Paula Hawkins

Paula Hawkins also wrote “The Girl on the Train” which I read some time ago and enjoyed.

This was another audio book – and I wonder if that had an impact on my enjoyment of it. There were a lot of characters and it felt confusing at times. In a paper book you have the option of flicking back to check on something – this is much more difficult to do with an audio book.

The story takes place in Northumberland, in a small town near a river. Historically the river was the location witches were drowned, and more recently were women have committed suicide.

Jules returns to her childhood home when her sister dies from a suspected suicide in the river. She has to look after her sister’s 15 year old daughter. Jules doesn’t believe her sister committed suicide and tells the police about an answerphone message Nell (her sister) left before she died in which she sounded frightened by something.

Gerald’s Game – by Stephen King

Jessie and her husband Gerald take some time off and go to a secluded lakeside holiday cabin. Gerald likes to play a game where he ties his wife to the bed with handcuffs. This spicing up of their sex life has been going on for some time but the thrill has gone for Jessie. Unfortunately for her, Gerald has a heart attack and dies, leaving Jessie tied to the bed.

I enjoyed this book – only Stephen King could write a full length novel where the main character is for the most part handcuffed to a bed. Some of it is fairly brutal and gruesome – there’s a ghost and a hungry, stray dog to keep her company – as well as some unwelcome childhood memories.

How she eventually escapes made me think of “Between a Rock and a Hard Place” by Aron Ralston. It made me wonder what lengths I would go to ensure my own survival in extreme circumstances.

The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd

I was given this book by the Reading Agency; registered Reading Groups can apply for free pre-published copies in exchange for reviews.

The Book of Longings is the story of Ana, the fictional wife of Jesus. I was very interested by the premise. As the author explains, at that time it was the norm for men to be married, and for Jesus to not be married would have been extremely unusual.

Ana and Jesus are very much in love, and she misses him desperately whenever he leaves. Ana is also the sister of Judas, who later becomes a disciple of Jesus.

Ana is different to most women of the time because she can write, and she has an overwhelming desire to tell her story.

What happens to Ana, Jesus and Judas is balanced between biblical and political influences. Most people will be familiar with the story of Jesus, so the outcome of the story will not come as a surprise, but it’s the story of Ana that is unfamiliar and interesting.

I liked learning about how people lived their lives at that time and I like the character of Ana, however I felt the plot slowed a little in the middle – though not enough to stop me reading.

Thicker than Water by JD Kirk

This is the second book in JD Kirk’s series featuring DI Jack Logan. The books are set in Scotland, around Inverness. Logan is nothing like the majestic Scottish landscape – he’s bad tempered and grumpy. He might be considered a bit of a bully and sexist boss, but he’s good natured at heart and his one liners and come backs are laugh-out-loud funny.

In this case, Logan is investigating the death of Mairi who was found in Loch Ness, with horrible extensive injuries. Logan and his team investigate – but are not prepared for who actually killed her. Thoroughly entertaining.

Chocolat by Joanne Harris

This is the perfect book to read at this time of the year – Easter weekend. It is beautifully written, full of rich descriptions of tastes and smells. The descriptions of chocolate are so good you can almost taste them (I have never been so disappointed in a bar of Dairy Milk!)

The story is about Vianne and her daughter Anouck, and begins when they arrive in a small village in France on Carnival Day. Its the start of Lent and to the horror of the local Priest, Vianne opens a chocolatier. Vianne stirs up the local people in other ways too, causing many to make life changing decisions.

There’s an element of magic in this book – Vianne just knows what her customers will like best. Its definitely worth a read.

Time and How to Spend It – by James Wallman

I started reading this book before the Coronavirus forced the UK and many other countries around the world into lockdown. Time, argues James Wallman, is the most precious thing we possess. In the busy, modern world we all feel like we don’t have enough time to do the things we want to do – and yet we are all guilty of wasting time – scrolling aimlessly through Facebook or Instagram, or flicking through the options on Netflix that somehow take as long as watching a film itself.

James Wallman takes you through a 7 point checklist for how you can get the most out of experiences. There are real life examples, as well as psychological and social studies to back up his suggestions. Each chapter ends with a checklist and a series of questions you can refer back to, ensuring you can get the most from life.

Two of the aspects of Wallman’s key to having an extraordinary life are “Relationships” and “Outside and Offline”. Unfortunately, due to the lockdown conditions opportunities for relationships and getting outside are severely limited. However, there are two important lessons that I’ve taken away from reading this book at this time – the first one is to make the ordinary extraordinary and the second (though to be honest I already knew this) reading is better than TV!

The Book of Dust – by Philip Pullman

I still remember the absolute joy I felt when I read Philip Pullman’s trilogy, “His Dark Materials”. My regret is that I didn’t have an opportunity to read it as a child. It would have fed my imagination games for months.

When I found out that Pullman had written another trilogy set 12 years before Lyra’s adventures I was really excited. I wasn’t disappointed. Pullman manages to appeal to adults and young people effortlessly.

In ‘The Book of Dust’ Lyra’s a baby and the hero of the story is Malcolm, a 12 year old boy. Malcolm lives with his parents in a pub by the river. His world is very similar to our world – but in his world humans have a daemon, an animal representation of their soul. Life is ordinary for Malcolm until he spots a spy-drop gone wrong. He finds a little box, which eventually leads him on a thrilling and dangerous adventure to save baby Lyra from her wicked and frightening mother.

The Secret Keeper – Kate Morton

This is the story of Laurel who, when she is 16, witnesses her mother killing a man. She says nothing, but always wonders why her mother did such a thing – and who the man was.

Years later Laurel’s mother is dying and Laurel and her siblings are looking after her. What her mother did is still on Laurel’s mind and she does her best to find out what happened. The story flips between the present and World War 2, following Laurel’s mother’s story.

I really enjoyed this book. I liked the characters and especially the fact that sometimes they weren’t completely reliable. Sometimes the way people view the world isn’t realistic and that’s an important lesson.

My Absolute Darling – Gabriel Tallent

I’m a fan of Stephen King and have been since I was a teenager. I follow him on Facebook, where he often posts about books he’s enjoyed. This is how I discovered this book.

‘My Absolute Darling’ is about Turtle, a 14 year old girl who lives with her father. Turtle is no ordinary girl – she cracks raw eggs into her mouth for breakfast and know a hell of a lot about guns. The book is about the relationship with her father. He’s a big man, highly intelligent and dangerous. He loves her – but its not the pure, unconditional love of a father – he’s obsessed with her, hates her and physically and sexually abuses her in horrific ways. The sexual abuse in particular is difficult to read because its like they are in a passionate love affair – the way she thinks about him just feels wrong.

In places the book is well written, but sometimes it just feels over done, and there are scenes, words and phrases that are repeated.

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner – Alan Stillitoe

This collection of short stories was published in the mid 1950’s. They were set around the time of the second world war or shortly after. This was a book club choice for February, and chosen because the person was attracted to the title. The stories follow the lives of young working class men from the North of England, all of them ‘bad lads’, petty criminals.

The first story in the collection was my favourite. Smith is in Borstal and he’s getting through his detention by long distance running. As he runs he recalls his life and what happened that led to his imprisonment.

I found the language and the attitude around race and women very dated, but in a way it was a good way to get a feel for that time period.

Pixie Places for Reading

Foxes Café on Abbey Street, Carlisle is a lovely little cafe. Its quite quirky, with tables set on two different layers. Its opposite the Castle and close enough to shopping centre to walk, but far enough out of the way to have a bit of peace and quiet. I chose a little table on the upper level and enjoyed coffee and cake, while reading. Perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty

The story is set in Australia and follows 9 people who decide to spend 10 days in an expensive rural health spa run by an ex-corporate executive called Masha.

Their past lives and reasons they are at retreat are gradually revealed, as they take part in increasingly bazaar activities. I found some of it slightly unrealistic, but it was overall an entertaining – and some times amusing – read. One of the things the residents have to do is give up their mobile phones. It was interesting to see how terrifying people found it – to be without their phones.

The book made me think about how important it is to slow down and do nothing; something without our phones.

The Invisible Guardian – Dolores Redondo

I was given this book by a fellow book club member. She is a crime fiction fan and highly recommended this book and can see why. It follows Inspector Amaia Salazar as she investigates the brutal murder of a young girl. The way the body is laid out makes her suspect the work of a serial killer and when more girls are found murdered her suspicions prove correct.

The investigation leads Amaia to her home town and close to her own family. It forces her to deal with a terrible incident from her childhood and the impact it had on her life.

The crime element of the story feels, at times, to be a sub plot, but its definitely there and keeps you reading.

There’s also a supernatural element that I found very interesting and gave this book an edge – something different to other crime thriller books.

Pixie Places for Reading

I had the opportunity of getting out in the Lake District last week and of course took by book with me. This photo was taken at a little café near the car park by Aira Force, Ullswater. There’s a sheltered place outside so that you can enjoy a coffee and read a book, even if its raining. And then there’s the view for when you want to take a break from reading….

The Outsider by Stephen King

When Detective Ralph Anderson decides to arrest Terry Maitland, the town’s popular baseball coach, he’s convinced he’s doing the right thing. There is strong evidence – DNA, fingerprints and several eye witness testimonies – that Terry assaulted and murdered an eleven year old boy. The only problem is that Terry Maitland was somewhere else at the time of the murder and his alibi checks out.

This is Stephen King, so you know that the explanation to this mystery is going to be something supernatural. Stephen King creates real and believable characters and has very unreal things happen to them. You can’t help but to keep reading and be carried along with the adventure.

There’s usually an element of good versus evil to King’s books – real people versus unreal events and this is what I really like about them. I’ve been a fan of Stephen King since I was a teenager, and its very rare that he disappoints me.

It was difficult to pin down a time period for the story. There were few references to mobile phones and the internet, but in a way that was nice. A world away from the intensity of social media and the internet.

Dare to Tri – Louise Minchin

This is Louise Minchin’s memoir about learning to be a triathlete. In the book she talks about training, race days, coping with self doubt and even locking herself in a portaloo.

I don’t usually enjoy memoirs and biographies, but I found this extremely readable. Louise attended the Borderlines Book Festival in Carlisle last year and I went along to listen to her. she was wonderful and the her book has the same friendly and open conversational style.

I found this book inspirational. Louise copes with fears and self doubt, but never gives up – giving examples of world famous athletes who experience the same feelings. Most importantly, its not about winning, or being the best, its about being the best you can be.

I loved the fact that her best, most loyal and dedicated training partner is her dog, Waffle!

Some quotes that I’ve taken away:-

“Winning isn’t everything, and losing shouldn’t stop you trying.”

“Volunted” – Spanish word – sort of meaning willpower, doing anything you set your mind to.

This is a great message for this time of year, with everyone trying to keep their New Year’s Resolutions.