The Lost Plot

The Lost Plot by Genevieve Cogman, 367 pages

In this fourth Invisible Library book, we find Librarian extraordinaire Irene getting reluctantly pulled into dragon politics, via a world that's permanently stuck in Jazz Age America. If that sentence made no sense, that's sad, because it means you haven't read the first three books in this awesome series where Librarians (yes, capitalized) are secret agents that travel between worlds, acquiring books that help keep the universe together. There are the high chaos worlds ruled by the Fae and strictly ordered worlds ruled by dragons, but Irene and her fellow Librarians maintain a strict neutrality between the warring factions and generally stay in those worlds that are somewhere in the middle. OK, it still probably doesn't make much sense, but that's OK — Cogman makes it work, and does it with grace, humor, and a healthy dose of adventure. I can't wait for the next book in this series.

Get Well Soon

Get Well Soon: History's Worst Plagues and the Heroes Who Fought Them by Jennifer Wright, 320 pages

I've been listening to the audiobook of Get Well Soon for the last few weeks, using my short commute to learn about everything from cholera to the bubonic plague to leprosy. This may not sound like a great way to start your day at work, but then, you probably haven't listened to this fascinating, and surprisingly funny, book. Each chapter takes on a different plague, discussing causes, reasons that it spread, and how society responded, scattered with plenty of witty comments that serve to punctuate her points as much as add levity. Maybe there are some that feel these topics should be treated with only solemnity, but I positively loved Wright's storytelling style. And props to audiobook narrator Gabra Zackman, who beautifully captures that style. Christa called this one of her favorites of 2017, and I can totally see why. Great book.

The Lady Travelers Guide to scoundrels and other gentlemen

The Lady Travelers Guide to scoundrels and other gentlemen / Victoria Alexander read by Marian Hussey, 538 pgs.

A departure for me, this is a historical romance that features witty banter, travel adventures and a woman who changes her mind about love. India Prendergast was raised to be a VERY practical woman by her cousin who took her in after her parents died. Now her dear cousin Lady Heloise is missing! She embarked on a trip arranged by the Lady Travelers club and after a few descriptive letters, has disappeared. India, who has read MANY detective stories, is investigating and convinced that the club is a scam and stealing money from its members. She has pinned this on Derek Saunders, the great nephew of one of the founders of the club. Derek, at the same time, has discovered the possibly fraudulent setup and is concerned for his great aunt. India and Derek decide to work together to find Lady Heloise despite their obvious animosity for each other. They travel to Paris, the location of the last letter from Heloise. While together, they notice a lot of things to like about each other and proceed to fall in love. Will they end up together or will Inida's prim employer break them apart? I don't think it is much of a cliffhanger so don't hold your breath. The audio version is very well done.

Women & Power

Women & Power: a Manifesto / Mary Beard, 115 p.

The text of two lectures from 2014 and 2017 by the classicist and author of SPQR, with accompanying pictures.  Generally I don't enjoy reading speech-to-print volumes like this one, but I appreciated this.  Of course, picking apart the mechanisms which keep women out of power is an easy hit for me, and Beard is concise and energetic in her argument.  What's lacking, naturally, is the course of action. 

Manhattan Beach

Manhattan Beach: a Novel / Jennifer Egan, 438 p.

In 1943 New York, Anna Kerrigan longs to leave her tedious job on the waterfront measuring shipbuilding parts with a micrometer for greater excitement.  She finds it by becoming a diver, a highly trained position involving danger and lots of pushing of gender boundaries.  Meanwhile, she is consumed with the search for her absent father, mysteriously disappeared during her teenage years.  What was her father's connection to the charismatic nightclub owner Dexter Styles?   Is he still alive?  Can she trust Dexter?

A very solid and suspenseful piece of historical fiction, strenuously researched.  I enjoyed the strong sense of place, and was hugely amused by the many underworld conversations which all amounted to the same thing: who's better, an Irish criminal or an Italian one?  The most notable element of the plot was for me the nuanced treatment of Lydia, Anna's developmentally disabled sister.  Nostalgia, suspense, and danger on the high seas add up to an engaging read.

The Search For My Great-Uncle's Head

The Search For My Great-Uncle's Head, by Jonathan Latimer 297 pages

Peter Coffin is a young, staid college professor visiting the large estate of his great-uncle Tobias Coffin. Even though his death doesn't appear imminent, Tobias has summoned several other family members there as well, wanting to see them before he dies. However, during the houseguests' first night in the mansion, Tobias is found headless at his desk in his study. With a madman at loose in the area, it's unclear whether the gruesome murder is a random act by the madman or a deliberate act by a relative wanting to get a greater cut in the considerable estate left behind. There's said to be a new will, but if so, it has disappeared along with Tobias's head. Peter and the others search for clues, not quite trusting each other, while waiting for the detective from Tobias's life insurance company to come onto the scene.

This somewhat old-fashioned book (written in 1937, after all) is set in a time when wealthy people routinely "dressed for dinner," and were attended to by butlers and maids.  In spite of the story being a bit predictable, it was still an enjoyable read for a winter day.

The Lonely Hearts Hotel

The Lonely Hearts Hotel by Heather O'Neill, 389 pages

Orphans Pierrot and Rose are brought together as children by their odd dispositions and innate talents for performing, dreaming of one day creating a traveling show of their own. But as things for orphans in the 1920s often go, they are torn apart, with little chance of meeting again. By the time they do, more than a decade later, Pierrot has gone from living in the lap of luxury to being a heroin addict, while Rose went from being the mistress of a mafia boss to performing in pornographic films.

O'Neill tells the story in such a romantic, melancholy way that it comes across less like a novel and more like an antique music box that's been bewitched to create a seedy story of crime. It's haunting and sad and somehow beautiful, all at once. While it was perhaps a bit more risque than I was anticipating — particularly for a book that features so many forlorn clowns and an invisible bear — I loved it.

Sherlock Holmes (Unabridged) Part 4 The Hound of the Baskervilles

Sherlock Holmes (Unabridged) Part 4: The Hound of the Baskervilles read by Stephen Fry  128 pp.

I had never read this classic Holmes story although I have seen a number of different film/television versions including the classic Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce from 1939. The heirs of Baskerville hall are cursed by a generations old story of a supernatural hound of enormous proportions that kills each Lord of the Manor. The newest Baskerville heir, Sir Henry, arrives from America to claim his inheritance after the brutal death of Sir Charles Baskerville. Holmes and Watson have been asked by the local doctor to protect him and ensure he does not become yet another victim. Holmes believes there is nothing supernatural about the killings and sets out to prove it. The screen versions I have seen for the most part stick to the book. However, I just discovered there is a spoof version made by Peter Cook and Dudley Moore that I need to get my hands on.

Pirates of Pensacola

Pirates of Pensacola / Keith Thomson, 309 pgs.

Morgan's dad Isaac disappeared when he was a kid, off to prison.  This was bad timing because his mom had just died.  Morgan is taken under the wing of  Herb Flick, he grows up to become a middling accountant.  He is basically an office drone at the Vail Company when his dad shows up unexpectedly and drinks the last beer from his fridge.  There are some unresolved issues between father and son, to say the least.  Soon, however, they are on an adventure, looking for lost treasure that Isaac hid before his time behind bars.  Seems like Isaac has lots of people who remember him from the old days.  Although this starts out as a kidnapping, Morgan eventually goes all in on the adventure and he learns to admire and trust his dad.  Swashbuckling fun.

How the light gets in, by Louise Penny

One way to get through a spell of dark zero degree days is to curl up with a cup of tea, or something stronger, and the next in the Inspector Gamache mystery series.  It’s even colder in the small Quebec village of Three Pines in this book, which returns to the Inspector to this hidden-away refuge, but the warmth of the characters makes the snowy scene comforting rather than depressing.   The genius of this author is both that you don’t tire of her cast of characters – cranky poet Ruth and her pet duck, the odd couple of Oliver and Gabri, Myrna the bookstore owner, or of Gamache himself – and that her plots continue to be intriguing and unusual.  Often you learn a lot too – about Gregorian chant, or computer hacking, or curling.  I found this ninth book to be her best yet and wonder at its end how she will continue the series.  I will be “désolé’ when I’m finished with the last book.  404 pp.