One of my favourite current authors, I’ve been tearing through his books.
These two are not his best. But I still enjoyed both.
Harry Bosch – The Overlook (2008)
Lincoln Lawyer – The Gods of Guilt (2013)
Category: books
Murial Spark – Loitering with Intent
Muriel Spark’s Loitering with Intent (1981) was published when she was 64.
The novel is written in the first person, framed as a memoir, as Fleur Talbot, the celebrated writer, looks back, “in the fullness of [her] years”, to the weeks and months of winter 1949-50, when she was working on her first novel, living in a bedsit, supporting herself by working in secretarial jobs.
It is an excellent book. With an excellent plot.
If you are a fan of literature over fiction, I recommend it. The themes are still important in 2018.
It was made into a film in 2014. It’s 33% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The Snowman by Jo Nesbø
The Snowman (Norwegian: Snømannen, 2007) is a novel by Norwegian crime-writer Jo Nesbø. It is the seventh entry in his Harry Hole series. …
Looking through cold cases, Hole realises that he is tracking Norway’s first known serial killer. …
I’d heard great things about Nesbø. He is an excellent author.
The book is complex and very suspenseful. I appreciated all the main characters.
One criticism. I’d say the book is about 30% too long. 30% too complicated. It would have been stronger if more succinct.
The Snowman (2017 film) should have been excellent. But critics panned it. I can’t imagine how they bungled adapting this fascinating story.
It’s 8% on Rotten Tomatoes.
BEST Lincoln Lawyer book
Of those I’ve read so far my favourite is The Fifth Witness. (2016)
I learned a lot. It kept me guessing.
Michael Connelly has been my favourite contemporary author of late.
The Storyteller of Marrakesh: A Novel
Hassan, the “storyteller” of Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya’s … novel, is more than just a narrator: he is a guide, a witness, a showman, a chronicler of Moroccan legend and lore.
His stage is the central square of Marrakesh, Djemaa el Fna, where the myriad wonders of this great, red-walled city surround and inspire him. …
On this particular night, however, Hassan is concerned with only one mystery: the story of a foreign couple, a beautiful French-American woman and her Indian partner, who vanished from the square one evening a few years earlier. …
I read the book in Morocco, enjoying the hectic main square each evening.
This is an ambitious book. A modern “Thousand and One Nights”. But I can’t say the mystical style worked for me. It has mixed reviews on GoodReads.
The author is from India. But he did a good job of giving the rest of us foreigners a bit of the flavour of the nation.
Here is one of the last real storytellers. I didn’t see any in the square itself. It’s too noisy in 2018.
The Road to Little Dribbling by Bill Bryson
Twenty years after the publication of Notes From a Small Island Bryson makes another journey around Great Britain to see what has changed. …
The book has received mixed reviews. …
I’m a huge Bill Bryson fan. Loved his 2010 book – At Home: A Short History of Private Life.
Sadly I didn’t get through Dribbling. Bryson comes off as a grumpy old man, not the observant, humorous observer I expected.
Dribbling is not recommended.
my best day hike EVER
I much prefer multi-day hikes, but walking with a light day pack makes it easier to do more thrilling routes.
It turned September while I was above the Arctic Circle in Norway. Winter was coming.
Where to hike next?
Looking at my list of the best hikes in Europe I considered at least a dozen options.
But the hike that most intrigued was a ridge walk out of Interlaken, Switzerland. A climber, Brendan Leonard, claimed the Hardergrat, or Brienzergrat (“grat” = ridge) was the best hike in the world. I’d never even heard of it.
But his photos could not be denied. This looked amazing.
So I flew to Zurich, my first trip back since the World Gymnastics Gymnaestrada 1982. It did not look familiar. My memory is terrible.
Trains in Switzerland are super efficient, super expensive. It’s easy and costly to zip around. After a day in Zurich, I hopped the train to Interlaken East.
I’d hiked the Jungfrau region in 2009 specifically skipping Interlaken as a tourist trap.
Interlaken is a tourist trap filled with rich Arab, Asian and Indian suitcase tourists. But it was worth staying just to enjoy one of the best hostels in Europe – Backpackers Villa Sonnenhof. In fact, I can’t recall any hostel with more amenities.
On arrival at the hostel I asked the girl at the desk about Hardergrat. She cursed Brendan Leonard. Told me he’d single handedly popularized a very dangerous route. AND they’d hiked it in the wrong direction. All locals KNOW you should do it starting in Brienz, finishing Interlaken. She gave me some good advice.
A really long, tough day, I made it. Almost 10 hours with only very short breaks.
I posted my trip report over on my hiking site.
As I did in 2009 while I was here, I reread the Eiger Sanction by Travanian (1972). It holds up pretty well. Lot’s of violence and murder and politically incorrect sex. Clint Eastwood directed and played the starring role in the 1975 film.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey
I liked the TV adaptation of this book series – The Expanse.
So downloaded the first book.
Leviathan Wakes is set in a future in which humanity has colonized much of the Solar System. …
It’s an ambitious series with some very compelling characters:
Ethical James “Jim” Holden, the reluctant ship captain.
Naomi Nagata, a Belter, his much smarter partner.
Gruff, straight talking engineer Amos Burton.
Best of all is washed up Belter detective Josephus “Joe” Miller.
The plot is excellent. But I found the TV series better than the book. The story telling is more compelling. More direct.
I feel the same way about Game of Thrones. The TV shows are better than the books.
Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly
My two favourite authors recently are Lee Child and Michael Connelly.
The Brass Verdict is the 19th novel by American author Michael Connelly and features the second appearance of Los Angeles criminal defense attorney Michael “Mickey” Haller.
Connelly introduced Haller in his bestselling 2005 novel The Lincoln Lawyer …
In fact, this is the book where maverick LAPD detective Harry Bosch and Haller first find out they are half-brothers.
I measure all Crime Thrillers against Connelly. This is yet another great book. I was sorry when it ended.
The Intrusions by Stav Sherez
I’d heard good things. It was winning awards from Lee Childs, one of my favourite authors.
But I really can’t recommend this book.
It’s smart. Complex. Extremely well written. … But — sad to say — it actually didn’t work for me. The intriguing plot simply went on … too … long.
It was 40% too complicated, as well.
My main takeaway was that I’m glad I have the camera on my laptop covered with tape. In this book women are stalked with RAT software. The criminal watches them online and has complete control over their digital lives.
This was the 5th book for British novelist Stav Sherez.
Rick McCharles 