Where, or where, has the month of August gone? Well, here's where it went reading-wise for me.
Rating: 3/5 (Fiction Scale)
Source: Library
Format: Hardcover
A much anticipated book that fell far too short of my expectations. Book blurbs talked of Irish literature and mythology, and they were all represented--Yeats, Tir Na Nog, Oisin, the cattle raid of Cooley, Queen Maeve, and more. But this was Thayer Wentworth's story, and unfortunately for me, the story got away, lost in the dark side of the call to come "Dance with me in Ireland."
First line: We heard it first on an early morning in June.
Rating: 4.5/5 (Fiction Scale)
Source: Library
Format: Hardcover
I laughed and cried with the Kelleher family as the story of their Cape Neddick, Maine, summer home unfolded through the characters of Alice, the matriarch; Kathleen, her daughter; Maggie, her granddaughter; and Anne-Marie, her daughter-in-law. Ms. Sullivan was spot on in her portrayal of growing up Irish Catholic in Massachusetts in the 50s & 60s. Anyone who's been there will see themselves on these pages. Iconic Boston personalities and events are seamlessly and importantly woven into the story. I sat quietly sobbing for an hour after this story faded to an end on the last page.
First line: Alice decided to take a break from packing.
Rating: 3.5/5 (Fiction Scale)
Source: Library
Format: Hardcover
Heartfelt, difficult decisions reveal themselves through interwoven flashbacks telling the story of Roger Dykmans, a wealthy financier and brother of a Holocaust hero, accused of World War II-era crimes.
First line: "You know, don't you, that you're looking at twenty-five to life?"
Rating: 4/5 (Mystery Scale)
Source: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Another wonderful expose of character by Louise Penny. Armand and his wife Reine-Marie are celebrating their wedding anniversary at remote Manoir Bellechasse and share the beautiful auberge with an eccentric family's reunion. More is revealed about Chief Inspector Gamache's history as he becomes the target of scorn by the Finney family. A Rule Against Murder is not set in Three Pines, but we do learn more about one of that village's well known couples.
First line: More than a century ago the Robber Barons discovered Lac Massawippi.
Rating: 3/5 (Fiction Scale)
Source: Library
Format: Hardcover
Two things about this book. Thing 1: Writing was exquisite. Thing 2: Story was disturbing and bordered on the discomfort side of my comfort zone. Perhaps, though, reading this modern gothic tale of love and secrets set in Provence should not have been undertaken under the specter of Hurricane Irene's arrival in New England.
First line: Some scents sparkle and then quickly disappear, like the effervescence of citrus zest or a bright note of mint.
Rating: 3.5/5 (Fiction Scale)
Source: Library
Format: Hardcover
Yet another, but very readable, group of friends novel. I liked these women and would love to have a copy of their martini cookbook. The book's epigraph summed it up perfectly: "Friendship improves happiness and abates misery, by the doubling of our joy and the dividing of our grief." --Cicero
First line: Lynne Flannery took it as an encouraging sign that the day of her last martini would be the anniversary of her first.
The library books due tomorrow are all in the bag, read and ready to be returned. I've just noticed that the leaves on the walnut tree outside my window have changed from bright green to a subtle yellow, signaling the imminent arrival of September. I am going to pull something that has been languishing in my TBR to start off my September reading. Decisions, decisions....
1 comment:
I read Nan's comment to you about Maine and wasn't sure I'd want to read the book, but after reading your synopsis (and noting your rating), I think I'll give it a try. You and I seem to agree on these sort of books.
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