Before we get going more into October, I thought I'd share with you what I read for the three months leading up to it. As usual, there's some that are better than others, but sometimes you just don't know what to expect from a book until you actually open it up. So in no particular order, here you go.
Whistler, by Ann Patchett. A beautiful book about family, memory, relationships, and love. Told in beautiful language.
Daphne Fuller and her husband Jonathan are walking through part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, when Jonathan notices a older man who seems to be following them around. When he. Goes over to talk to the man, it turns out to be Eddie Triplett, a man who was briefly stepfather to Daphne and her sister Leda more than 50 years before.
Told in a series of flashbacks alternating with the current day, we find out all of the background story, as well as the lives of everyone involved since. It's a beautiful, poignant story about children and parents, and how they can have differing memories of life events.
There's a lot of love in this story, and Ann Patchett tells it absolutely beautifully and perfectly. There are passages that take your breath away. I didn't want the book to ever end.
Death Comes to Marlow, by Robert Thorogood. These are such fun books! In this one, our threesome of amateur detectives try to figure out a locked door mystery. Sir Peter Bailey throws a lovely garden party to celebrate his wedding the next day to Jenny, who started as his nurse before becoming engaged to him. His adult children are less than happy about it, but seem somewhat resigned.
But when the guests hear a loud crash from the house, everyone suspects trouble. What they didn't expect was to find Sir Peter underneath a fallen bookcase full of vintage medical items. The thing is - the door to the room was locked, and the only key was in Sir Peter's pocket!
There are many red herrings here, all of them fairly believable. As usual, Judith, Susie, and Becks put their heads together to help their police officer friend Tanika investigate; but Tanika is sidelined by her new supervisor, who doesn't think a murder happened.
The solution has many moving parts, but as in the first book, getting there is the real fun.
The Book-Lovers' Retreat, by Heidi Swain. This book was fine, I think just not really what I was hoping it would be. Parts were interesting, and the setting - the Lakes District in England - was appealing, but the characters seemed a bit stereotypical, and though it wasn't terrible to read, it wasn't something that will stick with me.
Batter Off Dead, by Maddie Day. This story begins at a 4th of July fireworks display. Robbie Jordan, owner of a local restaurant and vintage kitchen store, is there, along with many of the residents of French Lick, Indiana. As the display ends, they discover one of the residents who lives in the nearby old folks home has been murdered.
It turns out that the victim was one of the founding members of a local crafting clubs named Stitch and Bitch,* and another member of that same group - who was also the current police chief's mother - was murdered years ago.
Robbie is curious about all of it, especially when she hears comments from various people at her restaurant regarding the craft group.
This was a book I borrowed from the library as sort of filler because I couldn't decide on anything else. It actually turned out to be more interesting and complicated than I was expecting.
*I was amused by the number of people in the book who were shocked by this name!
From the Grounds Up, by Sandra Balzo. A fairly good entry in this series. Maggy Thorsen is looking for a new location for her coffee shop, which was destroyed in a storm. Her real estate agent friend Sarah takes her to an old train depot that would be perfect, if she could only afford it - especially since her current partner Caron wants out of their partnership.
When Sarah says that the depot property is hers, inheriting it recently when her elderly aunt died, and that she wants to go into business with Maggy, she thinks her prayers have been answered.
But then strange "accidents" start happening, and Maggy becomes suspicious of their soon-to-be new business neighbors. And Sarah is acting very out of character - what's that about?
I liked this book, and there were a few things that were unexpected for me, that I think could have used fleshing out a bit more. But overall, it was a nice, quick read.
An American in Scotland, by Lucy Connelly. Emilia McRoy is an ER doctor in Seattle who decides to move to a small town in Scotland to become the town doctor. She is burnt out, and hoping to leave behind a painful past involving her husband.
When she arrives, she is happy to see the town, meet some people, and see where she will be living and working, with an up-to-date medical office. Her first day is ruined though when she takes a walk, and gets caught in a downpour. That's bad enough, but when she finds an abandoned cottage for shelter, she also finds a dead body!
This is a fairly entertaining book, with an interesting cast of characters in the town where Emilia will be living. And when she starts receiving threatening notes, her determination to find a murderer increases.
A good start to the series.
Something Whiskered, by Miranda James. Another good outing with Charlie Hartis and his cat Diesel.
This time around, Charlie and his long time love, Helen Loiuse Brady are in Ireland on their honeymoon, and Diesel is with them.* After a few days in Dublin, they arrive in County Clare to visit Helen Louise's family. Baron O'Grady is set to celebrate his 100th birthday.
As they pull up to the manor house, a body fall from the roof. It's the baron, who of course was killed by the fall. The tragedy is also suspicious, because he was known to be incredibly fearful of heights.
Additional things begin to happen, along with another death, and the family asks Charlie for help poking around. He agrees, but becomes worried when he feels that Diesel's safety is threatened.
There were few characters in this story that seemed suspicious, but even once you felt you knew who the killer was, it was all interesting enough to stick around for the end.
*You may think the idea of taking your animal with you to a different country on your honeymoon is preposterous. I did, until I knew two couples who did so.
Modern Lovers, by Emma Straub. Zoe, Elizabeth, and Andrew were close friends, and part of a band in college that was sort of a one-hit wonder, along with Lydia, who has died of an overdose years ago when the book begins.
Zoe is married to Jane and they own a popular restaurant in Brooklyn. Their daughter Ruby graduates from high school at the start of the story, but didn't get in to any colleges where she applied, mostly a result of self-sabotage. Elizabeth and Andrew live next door, with their son Harry, a year behind Ruby in school. Elizabeth is a real estate agent, and Andrew has had several jobs, but is currently unemployed.
The book is the story of what happens with everyone over the course of a summer. Relationships begin, marriages might be falling apart, new opportunities await. But mostly, it's tale of s group of people who just suddenly realize they are adults well into their lives, and their children are the ones starting out.
I enjoyed the book, but didn't really love it. I thought there were parts that dragged, and some things that seemed like they lost the track of the overall story. I liked the characters well enough, but I am also pretty sure I would avoid them if they were real.
Maine, by J. Courtney Sullivan. The family cottage in Maine had been in the Kelleher family for about 60 years, and they gathered there most summers. However, once the children were grown with children of their own, and Daniel Kelleher, the family patriarch died, it just didn't seem to work the same. Alice, Daniel's widow, still spent the summer there. She was a woman haunted by one night in her past, who never really took to motherhood.
The adult children decided to divvy up the summer months, one each for their respective families. Alice, for the most part disappointed in her children anyway, felt this was just another one of their failings.
But one summer, three generations of Kelleher women overlap: Alice; her daughter-in-law Ann Marie, daughter Kathleen, and Kathleen's daughter Maggie, who is thirty-seven, unmarried and pregnant. Though they are all only together for a short time, secrets come out, feelings are hurt, and they seem further apart than ever.
Each chapter is told from one of their individual standpoints, and so you get to know them each apart from the family.
It's an interesting book about a family that is neither really happy, nor close, but feel obliged to act as if they are. It made me happy I wasn't one of them.
Among Friends, by Hal Ebbott. This is the story of two families - each consisting of a father, mother, and daughter. They have been close family friends since school days, and when they gather at one of the homes to celebrate a 52nd birthday, the weekend marks a huge shift in alof the relationships. An incident occurs that changes everything - among the couples, their daughters, and each husband and wife.
The book is meanders somewhat, in the way that well-to-do people often do, and can. In the end it turns into a story of who we believe and why or why not; and what stories we tell ourselves to get through.
The Only One Left, by Riley Sager. I was really disappointed in this book. The premise was appropriately creepy - a woman recently under suspicion for killing her mother goes back to working for an agency that provides caregiving services. She is sent to care for an elderly woman who is notorious for probably having murdered her family years before. Wher she lives is a crumbling estate on a cliff overlooking the ocean.
But for me, the book didn't deliver. I was looking forward to seeing what developed, but it turned out to be kind of a snooze.
The Hunter, by Tana French. I'll admit I was somewhat disappointed when Tana French started this series, because I'd loved the previous Dublin Murder series. But just because she had introduced us to a new place and group of people, it clearly doesn't mean the books are not as good.
Cal Hooper, a retired Chicago detective, is here in the second installment, having become a bit more settled in the small Irish town where he moved. His house is nearly just the way he wants it fixed up, he's making a difference in a teenage girl's life from the previous book, and the townspeople are a bit less suspicious of him.
When Trey's (teenage girl) flighty father suddenly shows up after 4 years in London with a way for the townspeople to make money, people are initially wary. But when he brings an associate whose forebears were from the town with him, claiming his family lore more or less guarantees that there is gold in their land, people begin to get excited. Cal is deeply suspicious and doubtful, but pretty much keeps to himself.
When things come to a head and there's a murder, things start to get out of town, and Cal worries about Trey's involvement with her father.
I liked the way the story unfolded, and how nothing was as clear to the reader (well, at least to me) as it could have been.
Any Given Tuesday: A Political Love Story, by Lis Smith. I was intrigued when I read about this book, because when we lived in DC, I worked for a U.S. senator, and know that so much goes on that we never even think about.
This is one woman's story - but she worked on so many campaigns that are familiar to us at the national and state levels, that it was full of "inside" information. She doesn't pull punches talking about people, and writes in some detail about her own personal mistakes and problems, which makes the book seem more honest, but also kind of cringey in places.
My favorite thing was learning that Pete Buttigieg was pretty much how I thought he was, a normal person. Not perfect, but normal. And that his father was from Malta. Knowing the origin of that last name was oddly satisfying for me.
The Dogwalkers' Detective Agency, by Michael Hogan. I really enjoyed this book.
Charlie Boardman and his dog Ruby have returned to the small seaside town where he grew up. His mother has been getting forgetful, and he wants to be there for her. He does some freelance graphic design, but makes ends meet by walking dogs for people. It's provided him with a group of friends as well, since most people he was in school with have moved away.
On one of his walks, the dogs run into the nearby woods and find a couple of wigs. When Charlie does some investigating, he discovers a dead body. The victim is a popular local pub owner and ex-cop. One bright spot for Charlie is that one of the investigating detedisxa woman he went to school with, which is a nice surprise.
However. As Charlie and his friends investigate, things become more dangerous, and another murder and a beating occur; things become personal for Charlie when he starts receiving anonymous threats.
This book had a lot of characters (human and canine) to keep track of, but it was worth it. Not just for the characters and the dogs, but for a few pretty good laughs and a great mystery. I hope there's another before too long.
The Academy, by Elin Hilderbrand and Shelby Cunningham. Meh. A story of one school year at a private boarding school, with the more or less expected characters and behaviors.
I thought it would be more of a regular Elin Hilderbrand book, but I guess she eas trying something new with her daughter.
Best Offer Wins, by Marisa Kashino. This started out as a funny satire of one woman's obsession with buying a house in the Washington, DC area as part of her life plan
- husband, house, baby. It's also a reminder of the ridiculous costs of housing in America, especially in more desirable neighborhoods.
But I got tired of Margo and her machinations, and her utter disregard for those in her life who got in her way. Then the whole thing took a somewhat preposterous dark turn, except there were absolutely no consequences for Margo and her behavior.
Who knows, maybe in a previous life I would have enjoyed this book more. But living in a world where an entire group of people do whatever they want without consequences has taken away my sense of humor about it.
This Is Not About Us, by Allegra Goodman. I really liked this book. Not because it was an amazing story, or a sweeping saga, or full of crazy adventures. I liked it because it told the story of the members of one family. Starting with a death, and ending with a birth.
The book begins with Jeanne's death. The youngest of three sisters, she is in home hospice care. Her older sisters, Sylvia and Helen, keep vigil, while also keeping everyone informed of Jeanne's condition. The sisters have always been close, but like in any family, they are also individuals.
At the luncheon after Jeanne's celebration of life, one sister's action causes a serious rift between the two remaining sisters. As the book goes on, and different family members deal with their own problems, joys, and adjustments, the reason for the rift gets lost. But the rift itself remains.
The story is just that of a family - each one with different thoughts, experiences and goals, but still part of a family. By the end, you feel like they are people you know. Maybe they are.
I know that growing up, my father's two sisters did not speak to one another. They never reconciled, and no one seemed to remember what the problem was in the first place. All of those lost years between them always made me feel sad.
Someone Else's Husband, by Kimberly McCreight. When the police show up very early one morning at Richard and Gretchen's Upper East Side home, they are barely awake before they see a search warrant and are taken to the police station.
It turns out that a woman who was on a climbing trip with Richard's friend group to Mount Kilimanjaro shortly before has been murdered. Someone told police that Richard was seen near her apartment building at the approximate time.
Gretchen feels her life has been thrown into an unreal universe, and starts to question everything. Told in chapters that cover the various characters - including the murder victim and some of Richard and Gretchen's friends since college - the reader begins to think that maybe Richard or even Gretchen is involved. But then you get the sense of a twist in store, and at least for me, I saw a twist, but didn't figure out just what it was.
It was a good read.
More Than Enough, by Anna Quindlen. Polly Goodman is a member of a book club that has been meeting for 13 years - but they never actually read the book. They know each other so well, and can talk about anything and everything. In Polly's case, her students at a private girls' school, her prickly mother, and the efforts of herself and her husband to get pregnant.
When the other members of the club give her a DNA test as a gag gift, and she finds a first-degree match, her world starts to spin. She and her brother are close, and she feels certain it must be a mistake. But when someone contacts her to meet, everything changes.
This is a book about family - born and chosen. Polly has a small immediate family, but a much larger group of people who fit the description, especially her in-laws and best friend in the book club, Sarah.
It's a quiet, lovely book, that makes you feel a lot of things.
Irish Stewed, by Kylie Logan. This was just the kind of book I needed when I borrowed it from the library - a simple cozy mystery that was actually not easy for me at least to figure out.
Laurel Inwood has left a glamorous life as a personal chef to one of Hollywood's biggest stars to come to Hubbard, Ohio and take over her aunt's restaurant when she goes in for knee replacement surgery. However, upon arrival, she has to face the fact that the restaurant is not the one she'd gotten pictures of - a fancy tablecloth and cloth napkin kind of establishment. Instead, she is faced with what is basically a diner in an old train station. Without another job waiting, she agrees to stay until her aunt can come back to work full-time.
But the night she arrives, while being shown around the place, she finds a dead body - that of Jack Lancer, a local investigative reporter known as "The Lance of Justice." With the local police certain they found the killer in spite of lack of evidence, Laurel takes on both the restaurant and finding a killer.
It's a perfectly good read for exactly what it claims to be. One of the diner's specialties when Laurel arrives is fried bologna sandwiches, and I have to say that it evoked memories for me of the very *best" fried bologna sandwiches made by my dad! 🙂
The Fortnight in September, by R.C. Sherriff. This is a very quiet, very reflective book about an English family and their annual seaside vacation at a place called Bognor.
The Stevens family are a very quiet, close-knit family. They have been going to Bognor for two weeks every year since their parents honeymooned there.
The place where they stay has seen better days; two of the three children are adults now, and may not be joining them for sure in the future; they are not wealthy, and need to keep close track of their budget.
But what you get is a description of a family of a certain class in society, at a specific time and place. A family that enjoys each other's company, and who relish the simple treasures of their vacation.
At the end of the book is a short bio if the author, who fought in the Battle of Somme. He thought of this story based on the life and pleasures of his own existence prior to war.
***
And that's it. I can't believe that we are now in the last quarter of 2026, mainly because so much has already been happening, it seems like there have been about 5 years tucked into this one so far!
Let me know if you have read any of these and what you thought, or if you've read something you just want everyone else to read too because it was so wonderful. I may have way too many books on my to-be-read list, but what's a few more among friends??
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