Review of MURDER TAKES A VACATION by Laura Lippman

 2 Stars

This audiobook accompanied me on my morning walks, but it was not the most entertaining of companions.

Murial Blossom is going on vacation to Europe after winning a lottery. Allan Turner, a charismatic, handsome stranger, befriends her at the airport and even spends a day in London with her before she leaves for Paris where she is taking a cruise on the Seine. In Paris she meets another man, Danny Johnson, who is equally attentive. Murial is surprised when Danny ends up on her cruise and shocked when she learns that Allan died from a fall from his hotel balcony. Strange things begin to happen: Muriel suspects she is being followed, her room is searched, and a man attempts to steal her purse. What is going on?

My problem with the book is the protagonist. Murial is 68 years old and she had done surveillance for a private detective, yet she is incredibly gullible, trusting, and even helpless. She is such a poor judge of character; she accepts whatever people tell her. She takes a sleep aid from a stranger? She lets a stranger watch her while she falls asleep? She never questions suspicious behaviour? And when it comes to men, she behaves like a teenager. Men (Allan, Danny, Paul) seem to flock to her and then she turns into a giddy ninny. She mocks her friend Elinor’s flirtations, yet she herself seems to need male attention, wondering whether each man she meets could possibly be interested in her romantically.

In the Author’s Note at the end, Lippman mentions that Mrs. Blossom is a minor character introduced in the Tess Monaghan series. Readers accused the author of being anti-fat in her depiction so she decided to have Mrs. Blossom as her plus-sized protagonist. I think we are supposed to believe that Mrs. Blossom is comfortable with her size, but that does not seem to be the case. She refers to her size over and over and over again. She even lets a guide intimidate her into not going on a tour because she is self-conscious. This is not what I would call a body-positive portrayal.

There is an attempt to show that Mrs. Blossom attains some self-knowledge: she experienced great love with her husband and has other kinds of love in her life, so she doesn’t need a romance with a man to make her complete. She decides to focus on finding a purpose for her life and doing the things that give her happiness. However, this change comes unconvincingly quickly.

The mystery, revolving around a stolen statue, is lacklustre. The whole thing just seems trivial. And it’s so obvious who is involved in the caper! The fact that Mrs. Blossom doesn’t see what is so patently obvious just adds to the impression that she is naive, if not stupid.

If this is the first of a new series, I will not be continuing. The protagonist is annoying and does not behave in a credible manner, the pace is slow, tension is lacking, and the plot is predictable.

Review of THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB by Richard Osman

 3.5 Stars

I’m a latecomer to this cozy mystery series which has had many rave reviews.

The novel is set at Coopers Chase, a British retirement village. Four residents (Elizabeth, Ron, Joyce, and Ibrahim) meet to discuss unsolved cases but become involved in investigating an actual murder, that of a property developer. And then there’s a second murder.

It is the characterization of the four septuagenarians that stands out. Each is well-developed and differentiated. They bring diverse skills to the group. Elizabeth Best is the ring leader as befits her past life as some sort of spy; she is clever and cunning, able to slyly manipulate people to her wishes, and she has a large network of useful resources. Ron was a union activist and he tends to be argumentative.  Ibrahim, a retired psychiatrist, is the calming influence; Ron’s foil, Ibrahim is quiet and restrained. Joyce, a former nurse, is a bit of a chatterbox who is always seeking male companionship, but her diary entries show that people underestimate her intelligence.

The club members charm PC Donna De Freitas and her boss, DCI Chris Hudson, into becoming police sources. I liked both characters but had to suspend disbelief with their part of the plot. There’s no way that the police would share their findings as they do. And the group always tends to be one step ahead of the police?!

The book mentions some of the challenges of growing old, such as mortality, grief, isolation, and illness, but never in a heavy-handed manner. There is considerable gentle humour: witty banter among cheeky and eccentric characters abounds. Humour also arises from contrast: sharp, intelligent seniors use their apparent frailty to manipulate, deceive, and gain information, and are able to do so because people tend to underestimate them.

There are a lot of red herrings which are central to the plot’s complexity. More than once, someone becomes a suspect with a convincing motive, but then that person proves to have a backstory with an unrelated secret. Characters and objects are often just distractions, all to keep the quartet and the reader guessing. I must admit to not liking the preponderance of suicides and assisted deaths.

A central theme is that of friendship. The four club members have a deep bond. They care for and unwaveringly support each other. The motive for one killing is in fact revenge for a friend’s death. And one friend helps another escape suspicion. Love is also another theme. The love of parents for children (Joyce and Joanna, and Ron and Jason) is obvious. But there are also several examples of long-time devotion in various relationships/marriages: Elizabeth and Stephen; Penny and John; Bernard and Asima; and Matthew and Margaret. Moments between these partners are often the most tender-hearted.

The book is charming and entertaining; I don’t think it’s intended to be taken too seriously. I will probably continue the series (of which there are currently five books with a sixth due this fall) as an occasional break from heavier, more serious reads. Actually, audio versions will probably become companions on my walks.

Review of TATA by Valérie Perrin (New Release)

 3.5 Stars

I’ve read all of Valérie Perrin’s previous novels so was anxious to read her latest.

In the fall of 2010, thirty-eight-year-old Agnès Dugain, a film director, receives a phone call informing her that her aunt, Colette Septembre, has died. The problem is that Colette died three years earlier and her body is in the cemetery of Gueugnon in eastern France. When Agnès comes to identify the body, she has no doubt that this is her aunt. Questions arise: whose body is in her grave and why did Colette fake her death?

Colette leaves her niece a series of cassettes. As Agnès listens she learns about her aunt’s life: her early life with her parents; her friendship with Blaise; her hopes for her brother Jean, a musical prodigy; her apprenticeship to an Algerian cobbler; her obsession with football; her secret affair; and a friendship which changed her life. Colette was a modest woman who tended to stay in the background but Agnès realizes how little she knew about the woman with whom she spent every summer. Colette’s life was actually extraordinary with many surprises and secrets. The number of connections she had with so many people is unexpected.

At around 600 pages, this is a lengthy book, but I didn’t find it dragged. The opening catches the reader’s attention immediately with its mention of the mystery surrounding Colette’s death. As the novel continues, the complex web of connections among characters keeps propelling the narrative. The one problem is that there are an improbable number of coincidences so the reader must willingly suspend disbelief. The connections between Jean and Hannah and between Jean and Blanche are especially difficult to accept.

The narrative moves back and forth through time. Sometimes the point of view changes suddenly and this approach can be confusing. Everyone is given a backstory so there is a lot of information. Fortunately, these stories tend to be interesting and, of course, explain motivations so behaviour is more understandable. Certainly without being given Blanche’s background, her actions and those of Colette would be unbelievable.

The book is a love story, a mystery, and multiple family sagas. It touches on so many subjects: domestic abuse, the long-term influence of parent-child relationships, family secrets, the impact of friendships, child sexual abuse, secret loves, and even the Holocaust. Certainly, there are a lot of unhappy childhoods with absent, neglectful, or abusive parents. Fortunately, the ending does offer hope.

Tata is not my favourite of Perrin’s novels, but I still recommend it to those who enjoy complex plots with surprise twists and interesting characters.

See my reviews of Perrin’s other books:

Fresh Water for Flowers: https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/2020/11/review-of-fresh-water-for-flowers-by.html

Three: https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/2022/06/review-of-three-by-valerie-perrin-new.html

Forgotten on Sunday: https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/2024/06/review-of-forgotten-on-sunday-by.html

Note: I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

Review of SISTERS OF A HALVED HEART by Nayantara Roy (New Release)

 3.5 Stars

As the title clearly suggests, this novel is about the bond between sisters and how difficult it can be to repair that bond if broken because of a betrayal.

Mira Guhathakurta is a poetry editor for a niche literary magazine. The novel opens with her returning to New York from London where she spent the last five years. The return is difficult because it brings back memories of her breakup with Jack, a man she loved. She avoids her sister Joy until a family situation forces them together. Tensions are high between the siblings; though the exact nature of the betrayal is not immediately revealed, it is obvious that Joy hurt her sister deeply so Mira has difficulty forgiving her. But Mira has a job she loves, is able to spend time with her best friend Lena, and tentatively begins a romantic relationship with a new man, Marlon Hughes.

I do not have a sister so cannot relate to the relationship between Mira and Joy. They were very close when younger though they vied for their father’s affection. Because they know each other well, they know exactly how to hurt each other. For instance, Mira knows that Joy desires, more than anything, a good relationship with her sister. Understanding that “the greatest punishment to Joy would be to deny her my presence in her life,” Mira does exactly that for years. I imagine that the love/hate relationship is realistically portrayed: “The desire to do her harm coupled with the fact that I could not bear her unhappiness – it had always been my undoing.”

I found myself very frustrated with Mira. She seems so immature. She runs from problems and keeps secrets that serve little purpose. And she makes infuriating choices. Mira is over 30; in someone that age I’d expect more self-awareness. Marlon tells her, “’when we’re hurt, we tend to . . . go blind a little,’” but Mira sometimes seems downright delusional. It is understandable that she feels anger and grief because of the painful breakup and her sister’s actions, but she’s had five years to recover. She likes to portray herself as a victim of betrayal but conveniently forgets about how she and Jack betrayed Frankie!

There is a surprise ending which does force the reader to reconsider what s/he has just read. I don’t like such a big reveal that logically would have been discussed earlier; it just feels too manipulative. It does explain more about the reason for Mira’s behaviour regarding Jack, but I found myself disliking her more because of her lack of emotions considering what she did four years earlier. And considering Lena’s role for the last four years, why would she even ask Mira if she’ll ever reveal the truth to Joy?!

In the first half, the pace dragged. It takes so long for the extent of Joy’s betrayal to be revealed, though I think most readers will guess it long beforehand. And there are other parts that are predictable as well. The mystery about the manuscript that is sent to Mira is certainly not a mystery. Of course Mira’s thoughts do emphasize the theme of how we avoid or are unable to see truths obvious to others.

In books focused on female characters, I often find that the male characters are portrayed negatively. In this novel, however, the men seem too earnest so some of the dialogue is just unbelievable. Jack, Marlon, Sebastian, and even Lee are all so enlightened in their treatment of women.

This may seem a trivial complaint, but does it make sense that an American would choose to study law in England if intending to practice in the US? Surely there are differences in law. A cursory Google search suggests a lawyer educated in the UK is not automatically allowed to practice in the US. At least, s/he must sit the bar.

Anyone who has had a tumultuous relationship with a sister will probably find much to like in this novel. Personally, however, I just couldn’t connect to the main characters and so had difficulty caring about what happened to them. Both Mira and Joy exhibit all the traits of an immature person: a lack of emotional control, poor accountability, and an inability to understand another’s perspective. Yet they somehow attract these almost too-perfect men?

Note: I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

Review of THE EMILYS by Heather Abel (New Release)

 2.5 Stars

This novel with its meandering plot touches on a number of issues; unfortunately, it feels unfocused and scattered.

It is set in post-pandemic Northampton, Massachusetts. Forty-four-year-old Eve, having moved back with her two children, meets her childhood friend Demeter. Lonely and bored, Eve is so happy to reconnect. Quickly she becomes dedicated to helping Demeter whose daughter Persephone is suffering from sudden, unexplainable photosensitivity. This condition means she avoids the outdoors and even rooms with lighting. Others in the community are also afflicted. Some label the condition as post-pandemic syndrome while others suspect a tick bite might be the cause.

Eve is joined by others on the hunt for a cure. There’s Ruth, the local librarian; Stephen, whose son suffers with the condition; and Will, a young man hoping to make amends for past mistakes. They learn about a plant that might provide relief so they set out to find it, though the spring ephemeral may very well be extinct. Eve becomes so obsessed that she keeps secrets from her husband, neglects her children, and even quarrels with Demeter.

I found it difficult to determine the purpose of the book. It touches on many topics, including motherhood, friendship, and climate change. It is marketed as a book about love of many kinds and it does indeed show varieties of love: parental love for children; romantic love in heterosexual, homosexual and bisexual relationships; love between friends; and love for nature and the planet. The problem is that each relationship is described in detail. For instance, we learn about Ruth, Stephen and Will’s past loves so we are introduced to many secondary characters like Jeremiah, Quinn, Arielle, Ritu, Jessie, Ramona, and Antonia. Ruth and Stephen were even married to the same woman.

One main message is that we are destroying our planet. One chapter, narrated by a tick, explains how ticks nearly disappeared but came back because of human behaviour. There is repeated reference to the effects of a warming climate; warming winters, wet springs, trees leafing early, and invasive species moving in. Of course, human relationships with nature have changed over time as well: “We largely ignored the plants when we had them, but so much depended upon them. We were living with a flat-out miracle, this green earth a wonderment.” There’s even the suggestion that the photosensitivity is a sickness “as response to a sick world.”

It is difficult to connect with the characters because there are so many of them. Besides the ones already mentioned, there are many others that make an appearance: Lev and Sonya, Eve’s children; Henry James, Eve’s husband; Joan Yalen, Eve’s mother; Kiran, Stephen’s son; Claudine, Jeremiah’s niece; Ellen, Ruth’s friend; as well as other characters named Pax, Ishmael, Aengus, Corin, Indigo, and Lenore and Clement Folkenflick. Then there are the characters given more than one name: Pan/DJ, Orian/Ryan; Ellen/Ellis, and Claude/Claudine. Many of the characters come complete with a back story, though many of those prove to be largely irrelevant.

Eve, a main character, is difficult to like. She lets her husband do as he wants so child care falls solely to her while he commutes from New York only on weekends. She wants to be “crowned queen of mothers” yet virtually abandons her children at times in favour of Demeter and her daughter. She often behaves immaturely; I found myself comparing her flirting with Will to Persephone’s behaviour with DJ.

The book lacks focus because of too many tangents. The pace is slow so there’s little tension and nothing much happens for the longest time. The overly large cast of characters is sometimes just confusing. The novel needs some editing since it is unnecessarily lengthy (over 400 pages). I did not enjoy it but others with more patience might want to give it a try.

Note: I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

Review of THORNBY MANOR by Stephanie Bramwell-Lawes

 4 Stars

This book is perfect for Gothic fiction lovers. If you enjoyed Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier or Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights by the Brontë sisters, this book is definitely for you. (Even the author’s surname – change the m to an n – may make you think of the Brontës.)

Briar Monroe, after the death of her parents, is set to act as a travel companion for her aunt. Because of illness, her aunt arranges for Briar to stay at Thornby Manor, the home of Lady Elizabeth Danville, until she can join her niece before they embark on their travels. When Briar arrives at Thornby Manor, she learns that Lady Danville died recently, but Lord Danville insists Briar stay as a guest. Lord Danville is often away so the manor is left in the charge of Marie Clara, the governess – though the only Danville child is an adult son named Gabriel.

It is immediately obvious that Thornby Manor is home to many secrets. For instance, Lady Danville died under rather mysterious circumstances. Gabriel, troubled by his mother’s death, has a difficult relationship with his father. When Gabriel arrives, he and Briar team up to uncover the truth of Elizabeth’s illness and death.

The novel has all the classic Gothic elements. In terms of setting, there’s the isolated Victorian manor house which always seems shrouded in mist which circles the house like a vulture. Briar thinks of the manor as “a talisman of darkness, an emblem of death.” There are dark passageways and shuttered rooms in the attic. The dining room is described as being “reminiscent of a narrow coffin.” The weather is always extreme with howling winds and rain: gales make “creaking banisters groan like waking ghouls.” Trees resemble “skeletons shedding skins of scarlet, amber, and gold.”

An atmosphere of dread and mystery, with unexplained occurrences, permeates the book. Briar senses she is being watched, and others admit to seeing ethereal figures. Briar hears strange noises and has “ghoulish visions.” Imagery is used to great effect: skeletons; a dead magpie; “snaking trails of mottled mist bled between the trees like weeping wounds”; bars of the iron gates “tipped with a pointed spear like Cerberus’s teeth”; flames “like snakes on a charm, licking at the grate with eager tongues”; piano keys “gleamed like bared teeth”; and eyes that “glittered like a beast’s.”

A common Gothic trope is the damsel in distress. Briar is certainly isolated and in a vulnerable position because of her father’s actions, but in many ways she is a bit of an anachronism. She is not the typical 19th-century woman. She is outspoken and headstrong and more than once is reminded that her behaviour is outside acceptable societal norms. She champions those who are vulnerable or treated unjustly.

Besides being entertaining, the novel does touch on some serious themes. The role of Victorian women and the treatment of mental illness are highlighted. “Hysteria, intemperance, nervousness, excitement, feebleness of intellect, strength of intellect, excessive sexual appetites” were all reasons used to admit women to insane asylums. And “How many locked away for spurious crimes, for disobeying their husbands, or simply for convenience?” (I was reminded of Liberty Street, a recent novel by Heather Marshall, a Canadian writer, that also examines the institutionalization of women for subjective misbehaviour.)

There are times when the high emotion – intense anger and sorrow – grated on my nerves. Of course, melodrama, exaggerated feelings, and over-wrought imaginations are very much characteristics of Gothic fiction. So it is to lovers of Gothic literature that I recommend this novel.

Review of DAUGHTERS OF THE SUN AND MOON by Lisa See (New Release)

3.5 Stars 

Lisa See’s latest historical fiction begins in 1870 and is set primarily in Los Angeles which at the time had a population of about 5,000 of which 179 were Chinese.

The novel focuses on three Chinese women. Two of them arrive on the same ship. Dove is an innocent 17-year-old with bound feet. Her marriage, as second wife, has been arranged to an older merchant. Petal is 18 years old. Her parents sell her to help their impoverished situation; her fate is to be a hundred men’s wife, a woman always holding up her legs. She must work in a brothel for a minimum of four years. Once in L.A. the two meet Moon, a 26-year-old woman who is married to a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine. She is educated and fluent in English; her sorrows are that she walks with a limp because of a failed foot binding and that she has not succeeding in getting pregnant. The three women all face challenges and heartbreak but endure and find comfort in friendship.

As always in See’s novels, there is a great deal of historical information. The reader is made aware of the strong anti-Chinese sentiment at the time. They are considered heathens who live in dirty conditions, bring filth and disease, covet white women, and take jobs from whites. This racism culminates in the Night of Horrors on Oct. 24, 1871, a massacre targeting Chinese immigrants.

What is also interesting is the opinions of the Chinese of Whites. Petal, for instance, refers to them as white ghosts with hair “in the demon colors of yellow, brown, and red . . . [with men having] bushy hair growing out of their faces. Disgusting.” Dove thinks of Whites as barbarians: “The way they eat with knives and forks, letting them clank against each other when even the poorest of our countrymen eat quietly with chopsticks.” The message is that people tend to look askance at what is different.

The three women have distinct personalities which are clearly differentiated though they share traits of bravery, resilience, and determination. The three realize that they have no value: one women states, “’Just as in China, we are the property of men. We can be bought. We can be sold. We can be traded. We can be discarded when we lose our beauty or our abilities to earn a dollar.’” Petal feels the same: “Property. Not a girl. Not a woman. Not even a human. We were property” and wonders “Will I ever have control over my own life?” The Chinese community is dominated by two rival tongs constantly jockeying for power and the women are often pawns: two women are kidnapped, one repeatedly. Though victims of both racism and sexism, the three fight to have their value recognized and succeed in going from “having little choice, little power, and little opportunity” to unearthing “bravery, endurance, and the ability to eat bitterness.”

Each chapter focuses on one of the women. Petal is a first-person narrator who describes events as they happen to her. Dove’s sections are narrated in third-person. Moon is also a first-person narrator, but speaks from the perspective of an old woman living in 1926 and looking back at meeting Dove and Petal and the events before and after the Night of Horrors. Moon offers the most interesting viewpoint because she reflects on what happened but I found her foreshadowing to be heavy-handed: “I didn’t press her either. A regrettable mistake on my part . . . ” and “much would happen between that first shooting and then . . . ”

This book suffers from a slow pace, dialogue that feels stiff and unnatural because it contains too much information, and too many male characters who are flat and lack distinctiveness. It excels in elucidating a history about which many people will have little knowledge. Considering anti-immigration views being expressed these days, the novel is timely.

Note: I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley.