A Ladder to the Sky by John Boyne (LGBTQI+/Literary Fiction)

Maurice Swift meets a gay German author whilst working as a waiter in a Berlin hotel. Erich (the author) is lonely and attracted to the handsome Maurice and employs him as a PA. This gives Maurice the opportunity to meet other influential authors and he uses his looks to advantage. Erich, however, divulges to Maurice the story of his background during the war in Nazi Germany. He was attracted to a young man but the young man was going to marry a Jewish girl. So Erich reports her family to the authorities and they are sent to a concentration camp and her boyfriend gets shot.
Maurice used this story for his first book which was a great success. However he doesn’t have much imagination for follow up books so he uses other people’s ideas, one of which belongs to his wife, whose book he steals from her computer whilst she is out at work. When she finds out what he’s done she falls out with him and he pushed her down the stairs and as a result she dies. He continues to use people to his advantage until he gets his comeuppance. This was a good story and enjoyable.

Where Angels Fear to Tread by E. M. Forster

A group of well-bred English people are confronted by a situation which is outside their experience: their reactions are both unexpected and violent. The catalyst is the marriage of widowed Lilia Herriton, to an Italian twelve years her junior. There are several characters, but nevertheless, to me the story seems to be very much about one specific individual’s journey. Philip Herriton, the only son of Mrs Herriton, who has been the head of the family. She decides everything that matters to keep the family affairs in order. There is Harriet, the older sister who is helping mother and stays single. Lilia, the young widow feels suffocated under Mrs Herriton’s gaze and is encouraged by Phillip to take a holiday in Italy.

What happens during Lilia’s stay in Italy causes indignation among the Herriton clan back in Sawston. Lilia’s chooses to marry a lower-class Italian man who is a son of a local dentist and he appears to be without a job. They all think that it’s obvious that Gino marries Lilia for her money. Sadly, Lilia dies shortly after giving birth to a baby boy and the news of death has given a kind of relief to Mrs Herriton in Sawston. Then, they find out that Geno has sent a letter to little Irma, Lilia’s daughter, who has been looked after by grandmother, Mrs Herriton. They quickly realised that Geno would be after the money in exchange for the baby grandson.

Philip is the one to be asked to secure the baby, which he doesn’t feel is the right thing to. Nevertheless, he always follows what his mother asks for which has been Mrs. Herriton’s rule. Meanwhile, Miss Caroline Abbot, who had accompanied Lilia on her trip to Italy, feels that only she will be able to talk to Geno but, in the end, she changes her mind and tells Philip what she really thinks. Their relationship gradually grows but what happens during their mission in Italy, turns into tragedy…

Bone China by Roma Tearne (Asian/Historical Fiction)

The de Silva family ruptures against the background of Ceylon’s civil war and they lose their tea estate and ultimately each other. The children have their own dreams; Jacob wishes to escape to London and is saving for his passage, Thornton wants to be a poet and Alicia a concert pianist, Christopher gets involved in the conflict and Frieda just wants to care for her parents when life does fall apart. Violence, death, anger and bitterness work their way into each child and Grace, their mother, cannot stop it from happening. Once in England, each sibling discovers that you can never escape home and their homesickness impacts on their lives and relationships. Meeka, the first de Silva not born on Sri Lankan soil, has to navigate her way through two different cultures, life is not easy for immigrant children and it is only through her own heartbreak that she can truly see the impact of history and migration on her family. Bone China is a beautiful story of family and national history and the power of hope and the will to survive.

We Solve Murders Richard Osman (Cosy Murder mystery Fiction)

For a light-hearted and amusing read, try this book. Put aside prejudice - it is funny and well plotted. It will make you smile as you recognize some of your own foibles about modern life and getting old. A welcome piece of light relief.

Pigeon English by Stephen Kerman (Literary/Mystery Fiction)

My book choice was a 21st century prize winner and this was shortlisted for Man Booker Prize 2011. This book is written in the voice of Harri Opoku, an eleven year old Ghanaian boy navigating life on a London estate overshadowed by gangs, poverty and fear. Harri’s voice is full of innocence and humour, even in bleak moments. His “pidgin” English and use of Ghanaian words make understanding difficult in the beginning and it highlights his integration into the community and his battle with his identity. However, as the novel progresses, so does Harri’s ability and he starts to feel he belongs. He jokes about the weather, saying it’s so cold “You have to keep your mouth closed to stop your teeth escaping.” His misunderstandings add comedy, like believing “If you swallow chewing gum your guts get stuck together.”

Kelman uses Harri’s perspective to explore adolescence and growing up, especially when Harri begins noticing girls: “When a girl smiles your belly turns over and you don’t even know why.” These moments show his shift from childhood curiosity to early teenage confusion. The novel also highlights violence and danger, as Harri, and his friend Dean, try to investigate a local murder. Their naïve approach is shown when a policewoman asks if they have any leads and Harri proudly thinks he’s not “a dog catcher.” Kelman blends humour with sadness, especially in family scenes. Harri laughs when his mum, a midwife, says a patient called her “fuzzy wuzzy,” yet these moments show racism and inequality. Through Harri’s hopeful, funny, and vulnerable voice, the novel explores themes of poverty within a community, innocence against a tragic, violent environment and a search for identity, a sense of belonging within a multi cultural society marred by racial prejudice.

I enjoyed the book but have specifically left out any reference to Harri’s “pet pigeon” with whom he occasionally chats and who has his own occasional monologue. Although I’m sure it can be said to represent freedom, a protective presence and probably other things, in my opinion it adds absolutely nothing to the book and was, for me, intrusive and pointless.

Nocturnes by Kazuo Ishiguro (Literary Fiction/Short Stories)

There are five short stories that centre around music and or musicians. Each one is perfectly formed. The characters are realistically, demonstrably, flawed and human. Egos abound and the powers of self deception, usually about ability, are in the spotlight. I found myself wryly smiling as I read and sometimes wanting to throw the book across the room but this is the power of the written word in the hands of a wordsmith.

The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz (Mystery/Thriller Fiction)

Inspired by Steve reading the adventures of Sherlock Holmes, I read this is a Conan Doyle tribute story. I think Horowitz did it well, using an easy to read form similar to Conan Doyle's style. All the usual aspects were covered, the genius, drugs, disguises, Mycroft, Lestrade etc all included. I always liked the Sherlock Holmes stories so really enjoyed this.

The Pothunters by P G Wodehouse (Humour/Classic Fiction)

The book is set in St Austin's college for boys. Two of the college sports trophies, known as pots, are stolen from the cricket pavilion. Although not guilty, Jim feels he will be blamed as he was at the pavilion that night to retrieve his notebook. He also needs £2, cash, to settle a bet and cash was also stolen. Usual Wodehouse over exaggerated drama, absurd, funny storyline.

Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis (LGBTQI+/Literary Fiction)

It is about a woman who has just finished her Masters Degree in Psychology, looking at the deradicalisation of Isis brides. She accepts a job with the UN to start a programme in Iran, in a camp where a lot of these women are held, awaiting repatriation. She has also to convince their home nation to take them back. She is a non-practicing Muslim woman who goes to Iran with all her western values after just having had a breakup with her girlfriend and she feels very raw. There is the ridiculous bureaucracy and clash of values. The pull of strict religious doctrine and tragic stories is stark and some of the characters are great. There is an Iman called sheik Jason who is from the US and who 'reverted' to being a Muslim and studied to be an Iman in California. He tries to get the women to do breath work and get in touch with their inner self. It is priceless.

A heavy subject but it’s written like a chick lit novel. There is the usual sex and drugs but once you get over that, it is a very engaging and at times, funny novel. It is a book that challenges your own beliefs and values. It stays with you. I loved it.

Insomnia by Sarah Pinborough (Mystery/Horror Fiction)

I later found this has been turned into a TV series on Paramount plus, starring Vicky McClure.

It's a psychological thriller about a woman, Emma, approaching her 40th birthday and she's dreading it. This is largely because her mother, who is now old and frail, has spent many years in a secure psychiatric unit after being declared insane. She committed a violent crime on her own 40th birthday, when Emma was five. Mother frequently claimed that Emma had the "bad blood" and was also going to end up mad like her. Thirty five years later, Emma now has a decent family life: a husband, two children, a successful career as a divorce lawyer, a lovely house and good standard of living. But recently she's started to have problems sleeping and is imagining all sorts of awful things while she is awake at night.

Emma's older sister Phoebe has shown up and the two don't get on. Phoebe has been visiting Mother, now in a secure hospital unit, and claims to be concerned about her, but Emma wants nothing to do with Mother. Emma spirals into apparent madness, but it's never clear whether she really is doing crazy things, like her Mother did or is it paranoia, or is someone framing her? The story builds to an exciting climax, but unfortunately, I wasn't satisfied by the rather strange explanation of past events. That aside, it was a
really well-told story. I watched the TV version too, and I think the book was better. There were a few things changed in the screen version, and I couldn't understand why.

This is a well written, short novella. It’s easy to read but emotionally powerful, following Bill Furlong, a coal merchant and family man in 1980s Ireland, as he discovers the cruelty hidden behind the respectable façade of the local convent. The book explores major themes such as moral courage, silence and complicity, and the power of small acts of kindness. Bill’s struggle shows how ordinary people are often pressured to look away, especially in a community shaped by the Church’s authority. Bill discovers a terrified young girl locked in the convent’s coal cellar, shivering, filthy and clearly mistreated. This moment shocks him into realising the full cruelty of the Magdalene Convent system and, shaped by his own past, forces him to confront the community’s silence. Despite its brevity, this novella leaves a deep impression asking how much doing the right thing can cost—and why it matters. It is available to see on Netflix.

Published in 1853, Villette was Charlotte Bronte’s last novel and is often regarded as her most emotionally and aesthetically satisfying work. It is one of the greatest fictional studies in our literature, not of self and society, but of self without society; and of a character who expresses more than any other woman in English fiction the anguish of unrequited love.

When Lucy Snowe is teaching English at Madam Beck’s school for young girls, she feels, for the first time in her life, what it is to be an independent person. She must be strong and deals with her life accordingly. She comes across, Dr John Bretton, son of Mrs Bretton who is Lucy’s godmother. Lucy admires everything about Dr John, he is good looking, kind and a very capable individual. Sadly, he is very much in love with someone else.

Then, there is a professor, M. Paul Emmanuel, with whom she has been a good and willing student. Until the very last chapter, their relationship status seems to be just good friends. Paul has to go away to sort out his family business in Basseterre Island in the Caribbean Sea and would be away for three years. Having found out about his imminent departure, Lucy finally realises that their relationship will become more than just good friends. They both realise that they do love each other. He finds a house where Lucy will be able to live, teach, earn her own living and wait for his safe return. I was hoping for the happy ending for Lucy and Paul.

Harlem After Midnight is Louise Hare’s third novel and is a sequel to Miss Aldridge Regrets. The story begins in New York following Lena’s traumatic journey on the Queen Mary. More incidents occur to test our heroine whilst she attempts to find out more about her father’s back story. Ms Hare creates believable characters who are all flawed in some way but we can’t help but care about them. This book neatly crosses the Ts and dots the Is which is always welcome (in my limited experience reading this type of book that is not always the case) and I’m looking forward to reading the fourth and latest Louise Hare novel.

The Flattery sisters are each remarkable in their own way, in spite of the deaths of their parents in their childhood. The eldest sister leaves and the rest are scattered and do not meet up again until they are in their 30s when one of them goes missing and doesn’t want to be found. They find her in a dilapidated bungalow and begin a journey of introspection, blaming each other for past hurts and looking for ways to create a future void of uncertainties. The novel looks at family dynamics, hurt, loss, betrayal and the desire to survive. It is both thought provoking and funny. An enjoyable read.

This is the 6th book in the Jackson Brodie series and is set in a rundown grand house where the Dowager Lady Milton lives. Many of the house’s paintings have been sold to pay bills and fund her son’s gambling habit. The housekeeper cum carer suddenly leaves and is it a coincidence that it’s at the same time that the last picture of value disappears? Jackson ends up trapped in the house during a snowstorm, along with other guests who are there for a murder mystery weekend. Things go awry when murder becomes real.

I have so enjoyed Atkinson’s series set around a down and out ex-cop, turned gumshoe, but… There are laugh out loud moments, some of the characters are believable and there are plenty of the expected twists and turns. However, I just found that the plot and characters eventually came across as being farcical and I was left feeling disappointed.

This is the 6th book in the Rizzoli and Isles series and they are faced with a bloodied murder victim who is linked to the celebrity psychiatrist Joyce O’Donnell, a member of the secret Mephisto Club and a woman Rizzoli hates. The group research science and obscure dark historical documents with the aim of proving that Satan is alive and well and living among us. A dead body dumped on their doorstep suggests that something is amiss. Has one of them committed murder or have they indeed summoned the devil? The case is the most baffling and terrifying that Rizzoli and Isles have ever encountered.

This is a retelling of A Winters’ Tale, with the suspicion between the two friends very modern and very vicious. It is well written and the plot is not complicated to follow, making it an easy read.

It’s 1940 and a young Juliet Armstrong is recruited into a little known department of MI5. She is expected to follow the comings and goings of British Fascist sympathizers, but she finds the work boring, even if sometimes quite scary. When the war ends, Armstrong thinks she can put the past behind her but 10 years later she is confronted by people from her earlier life and she is under threat again. It seems like the scales need to be balanced and she comes to the realisation that all actions come with consequences.

I started listening to this while I was on a long drive to Surrey …… but I didn't finish it. It's about a teenage girl who disappears. I find it difficult to sustain my concentration long enough to follow an audio story.

A love story set against the backdrop of the 1960 presidential race between Nixon and Kennedy. It's about an alcoholic British diplomat, Charlie, posted in Washington, and his wife, Mary, who has an affair with an American political journalist who's covering the election. I was struck by how much life for the diplomatic and ex-pat society revolved around alcohol. There seemed to be a constant round of liquid lunches, meals and parties so it’s no wonder Charlie became an alcoholic. A lot of the men seemed to be dealing with their own histories and wartime experiences and the women seemed to be there just in a support role to their husbands. Mary is very dutiful and finds herself torn apart, unable to choose between her marriage and her affair. I'm no expert on American politics, and have little interest in it, but this was a well-written, and easy to follow story and I enjoyed it.

Starts with an intense same sex, two month relationship between Erica, a soon to be UEA student, and Laure, a student at the Sorbonne. They part with varying degrees of trauma and life goes on. Years later, and now married, Erica returns to Paris, the relationship resumes for a few months then ends when Erica's husband comes to Paris to join her. There is a third meeting at Laure's Normandy farmhouse when Erica, her husband and two children join Laure for an August holiday. The last meeting is in Norfolk where relationship ends for good.

The book is based on a true story but I have to say that I have no recollection of this appearing in any form of the media. Stephen Jackley, later diagnosed with autism, was a college student around the time of the 2007 crash. He decided to take a stand and become a bank robber because, after all, the wealthy steal from the efforts of the workers and the workers just want to get back the true cost of their labours. Hey presto, a 21st century Robin Hood is born. He uses disguises, plans escape roots and has fake guns to hold up betting shops, banks and building societies. He plans to use the money to found an organisation that will make the world more equal and to prevent globalisation from destroying the planet. The robberies take place in the southwest of England and in Hereford. Two police forces pool information but neither is able to establish the identity of the suspect. Things change when Jackley over stretches himself and is wanted for robbery and firearms offences in the Netherlands, gets away with trying to buy a real gun in Turkey and is finally caught in USA, again attempting to buy a gun. Jackley kept diaries and their contents establish his guilt and the book is written around extracts. It is so hard to believe what he did, what he got away with and, due to his neurodiversity, how he was not able to make connections between his actions and their consequences for others. It is a cracking read!

Zusak’s (The Book Thief) memoir is a funny account of how his family rescued three not so well behaved street dogs and made them a true part of the family. There is Reuben, more wolf than hound; Archer, blond, beautiful, destructive; and the malevolently smiling Frosty, who walks like a rolling thunderstorm. Street fights, fights in the park, hospital visits, vandalism and public shaming all follow but perseverance encourages the dogs to feel safe and loved and to experience the true joy of being a dog. Animals and humans need connections and this book celebrates the close ties people have with their pets.