The Woman Who Died a Lot by Jasper Fforde

Jasper Fforde writes hilarious fantasies.  They are very involved, complicated, and unique.  They are also intelligent and literature-oriented.  This is the latest book in the Thursday Next series.  It isn't my favorite Thursday Next book (That honor would probably go to Lost in a Good Book or The Well of Lost Plots.), but it is very good.

Thursday was a member of SpecOps in Swindon as a literary detective.  In the last book, she was seriously injured.  She has been forced to retire and in this book becomes involved with the Wessex Library Services.  She continues to fight against the Goliath Corporation and it's power-hungry executives.  One of the criminals she caught in the past (Aornis) has escaped and can't be found.  There is a smiting due soon in Swindon, and her daughter Tuesday continues to work on an Anti-Smite Defense Shield.  Her son Friday has lost his purpose, since the ChronoGuard has been disbanded.  The whole family is in transition and struggling.

This is a clean book, although the series does have a repeated joke that involves a questionable word choice (a Goliath executive called Jack Schitt) that continues in this book.  There is also some violence.

This book is a pretty easy read, but it is a bit long.  Fforde is one of very few authors who writes books that can me laugh right out loud, usually I just smile.  This book is definitely worth the time! 

Midnight at Marble Arch by Anne Perry

Anne Perry is one of my very favorite authors.  I always love her books.  She is a great writer and incorporates historical events and facts from the Victorian era with social issues that still feel relevant today.  This is the latest Charlotte and Thomas Pitt mystery.  It isn't the very best of these, but it is still excellent.

Midnight at Marble Arch continues Pitt's career as the head of Special Branch, although the case they are investigating isn't a typical Special Branch case.  The Portugese ambassador's teenage daughter is distressed and accidentally goes through a second floor window when a young man is taunting her at a social event.  The ambassador asks Pitt for his assistance with it.  Another woman is found dead after a brutal rape.  Victor Narraway, the former head of Special Branch, is asked by her husband to look into it.  Another young girl is assaulted as well.  The crimes don't seem to be connected, and a seemingly innocent man is being tried.  The crimes are taking place at the same time as the Jameson trial and controversy when an Englishman attempted a raid in South Africa and failed.

Due to the nature of the crimes, this book is probably not appropriate for young readers.  There is some detail discussed (although not too terribly graphic) as they try to connect the different crimes to each other and one perpetrator.

This book is definitely worth the time as are all of Perry's books.

Three men in a boat (to say nothing of the dog) by Jerome K. Jerome

This book was a bit of a surprise to me, mostly because of my own ignorance.  I didn't realize it had been published before 1900, and most of the time it feels like a more modern book.  Then every now and then there's an old-fashioned comment or somewhat jarring note because my mind wants to think it was more recent.  Like I said, that's my own fault due to preconceived notions and not the result of the book itself.

Three men in a boat is the humorous story of three men (and a dog of course) who decide to take a holiday up and down the Thames.  It has some really funny moments; it also has some poetic descriptions.  It is a very quick easy read as it is a super short book.

It is easily worth the time, but don't expect a life-changing experience.

The Hit by David Baldacci

I really loved Baldacci's early books.  They were so creative in their premises and really felt like something different.  His more recent books just don't have the originality or the pizzazz.  This book is another one that reads just like the ones before.  It is still entertaining, though, just don't expect anything special.

The Hit is another book about Will Robie, the larger-than-life government assassin who seeems indestructible and unbeatable.  In this installment, Robie is sent after a co-worker in the assassin program who has gone rogue and is killing members of the CIA.  It is his biggest challenge as Jessica Reel is also larger-than-life and extremely capable and has received the same training as Robie.  It is complicated by the fact that he knows Reel and begins to wonder about her motivations.  Of course, everything ends well.

For the adventure/action type with no intellectual undertones, this book is decent.  It's an easy read and goes pretty quickly, although I was kind of ready for it to end earlier than it did.

Blind Justice by Anne Perry

I absolutely love Anne Perry and her William and Hester Monk books, like this one, are my favorites.  Blind Justice is mostly about Oliver Rathbone, their good friend who has recently become a judge.  The Monks and Rathbone get involved in a fraud case.  A minister has been embezzling funds that have been entrusted to him for the care of the poor.  Since Perry writes murder mysteries, there is eventually a murder connected to the case.

Perry is a great writer.  Her stories are interesting and suspenseful.  I enjoy reading about the Victorian era and Perry is great at including accurated historical details.  The issues in her books, though, are timeless and applicable to today's readers.

This book is very definitely worth the time as are all of Anne Perry's books.  I highly recommend all of them.

Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

I probably shouldn't admit it, but I actually hadn't ever read anything by Kafka before.  I of course knew a bit what to expect, since I've heard of him and know the definition of Kafkaesque.  I was still a little surprised at how dark the story ended, though.  (I won't ruin it by telling you.)  A young travelling salesman who supports his family wakes one morning feeling very strange.  He soon discovers he has turned into a bug.  (I believe he's a cockroach.)  He is amazingly unfazed by this turn of events.  His family gradually loses their hope that he will change back and treat him accordingly.

This is a short easy read and worth the time, but don't read it if you're looking for a pick-me-up!

The Lost Art of Gratitude by Alexander McCall Smith

This is another book in the Isabel Dalhousie series, which I absolutely adore.  Dalhousie's son Charlie is a young toddler now, and her boyfriend continues to live with the two of them.  Isabel is once again asked to help someone in a tricky situation, although this time the person asking for help (Minty from an earlier book.) appears to have an ulterior motive.  Isabel continues to face moral conundrums. 

I love the intelligent humor in the Dalhousie books, and this one continues that tradition.  Where else can you read about funambulism and escapeology?

McCall Smith is a clean writer, which I always appreciate, in spite of the fact that Isabel and Michael are "living in sin" as Grace the housekeeper says.

This book is definitely worth the time.  McCall Smith always delivers an enjoyable read!

Waterland by Graham Swift

This book is narrated by a history teacher who seems to be explaining the stories of his family history to his class before his forced retirement.  The family has a great deal of drama and intrigue in its past and it continues to do so in the present time of the book.  They live in the reclaimed lands of the fenlands, hence the title.  Swift is a good writer and draws you in, although sometimes this book seemed a bit long to me, especially the bits of the book that are stream of consciousness type writing rather than a straight narrative.  (There is a particularly long passage about the mating habits of European eels that is also quite dull.)

The story openly discusses sex and sexual situations, including a rather graphic description of an abortion.

I read this because it was on one of my lists, otherwise I don't think I would bother.  It isn't worth the fairly large amount of time it takes.

Small Gods by Terry Pratchett

This is a novel about Discworld, a fictional world Pratchett created and writes about in all his books.  I haven't read any of his books before, so it was all new to me!  Small Gods is about a young novice in the temple of Om who believes in the god with all his heart.  As the only true believer in the god, Brutha the novice has a personal encounter with Om.  This book tells about their experiences together.

I enjoyed this book.  I found it interesting to read about a whole new world, even if I felt a little lost, since I hadn't read any of the previous books.  Brutha is a sympathetic character who you'll cheer for as the book goes on.  Pratchett is a good writer and his characters seem real in their unreal world.

This book is appropriate, although it has references to a great deal of torture in the name of religion.

It is worth the time it takes to read this book.

Anne of the Island by L. M. Montgomery

Anne continues to grow up in this book.  Anne of the Island tells the story of Anne's college years in Redmond when she leaves the island to earn her degree.  I liked this one because Anne's romantic life is resolved at the end of the book, and we've been waiting for many books to know what happens to her.

This book is completely clean and uplifting.

It is worth the time, but only if you're invested in the story.  Anne of Green Gables is still by far much better.

The Story of Tracy Beaker by Jacqueline Wilson

Wilson has many books that appear on the Big Read and this is another one.  It is a preteen book and reads very quickly and easily.  It tells the story of Tracy Beaker (surprise!), who has been in and out of foster care all her life.  Tracy is a sympathetic lovable girl with definite behavior problems stemming from her experiences.  The entire story is told from her point of view and is even supposed to have been written by her.

The issues in this book are a bit grown up (foster care, death of parents, etc), but it is age appropriate otherwise.

It is so short that it is certainly worth the time.