Sometimes, books pop up just when you’re ready for them: in this case, an ARC of Megan Abbott’s The Fever
that I’d forgotten I had and had never quite gotten around to reading. Think The Crucible
set in a modern high school, rumors and hysteria and teenagers foaming at the mouth. It’s beautifully done, alternating between the viewpoints of three family members– father, daughter, and son– as the mystery of just what’s going on gradually unfolds. And it isn’t at all what you think it might be.
October snuck up on me this year, so I’ve sadly neglected my usual Halloween reading. To make up for it, I indulged in a quick re-read of Simone St. James’s Silence for the Dead
, set at an isolated asylum for shell-shocked soldiers just after World War I. But are the orderlies and nurses the only ones who walk the halls at night?
What have you been reading this week?
I’m reading Kate Morton’s latest, The Lake House. I wish there were 100 more of her books that I hadn’t read yet. Her style is so engrossing. And I love the time-hopping plus mystery plus dark family secret plus mysterious old house elements.
Just finished Uprooted by Naomi Novik and can’t say enough good things about this book! Some Beauty & the Beast elements, some magic, some folklore, a first person narrative, all within the same book. Deeply engrossing and eminently satisfying! Also read The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern this month, highly recommend that one too. For Halloween, a re-read of Twilight took place, and also Teresa Medeiros’ Breath of Magic (an old favorite).
Just finished Red Rising by Pierce Brown. A scifi book that can be compared to a more violent Hunger Games set on Mars. I enjoyed it while finding certain aspects problematic. I am currently waiting for Book 2 which I hear is much, much better than the first.
Also, I second DJL’s assement of both Uprooted and The Night Circus. If you haven’t read them you should!
Halloween books! It’s been And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie (which blew me away), Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury, and I’m about to start the Welcome to Night Vale novel, which just came out.
I loved The Fever. I want to read more Megan Abbott.
Silence for the Dead – Simone’s always great!
Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie. My first Rushdie. The writing was fabulous but I didn’t really care for the story.
Vicious Circle and Hallowed Circle by Linda Robertson – First two books in the Persephone Aclmedi series. Paranormal mystery w/ romance subplot. Fun, fast reads.
Nothing special for Halloween, but I loved Homer Hickam’s novel/memoir Carrying Albert home. It’s love, crime , alligator, and odyssey, great stuff.
I read Twilight by Stephenie Meyer which was much better than I expected.
I also read Lie by Moonlight by Amanda Quick, which was excellent.
I recently got back from a trip to India. First time I’ve been there and first time I’ve taken an organized tour. So I’ve been rereading Barbara Cleverly’s Joe Sandilands books. The first four take place in 1922 in India when he’s been sent there by Scotland Yard to teach investigation techniques to the Bengal police. I just got ZigZag Girl by Elly Griffiths from the library to read. It is a stand alone. Obsession Falls by Christina Dodd and Death Wears a Mask by Ashley Weaver. All good!
Since the last time I posted I’ve read Andrew Lang’s Pink Fairy book, Simone St. James’ The Other Side of Midnight (great), and The Nature of Monsters by Clare Clark – this one was not what I expected – very intense subject matter: 1718 London and an apothecary is conducting experiments on pregnant women to prove a medical premise he hopes to be famous for.
Now reading Susan Hill’s The Mist in the Mirror and awaiting Tracy Grant’s novella, Incident in Berkeley Square that releases Monday.
Actually just started Silence for the Dead (it’s been on my list since last Halloween) and I’m loving it so far! Very atmospheric and a natural read.
I’m sad to see all the books I read this past week or so behind me. I tore through the Robert Galbraith mysteries and can’t wait for the next installment. I also finished Beatriz Williams’s Along the Infinite Sea, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I am eagerly awaiting her next books as well!