General Chat

Dee........I wish I'd known a couple of months ago you were into James Herbert. I cleared my book shelf out and got rid of virtually every book he's ever written, including the Rats trilogy! I never used to like reading when I was younger, but my sister said I should really try reading a fantastic book that she'd just read....The Fog by James Herbert. That was over 20 years ago and of course I love reading now!

Have just finished The Third Secret by Steve Berry this is very much on the same lines as the Da Vinci but I think much much better once started I found it hard to put down and really enjoyed it. Its the usual theme Vatican secret which results in deceit, murder, forbidden passion and much more however it could well be controversial and shocking to some depending on ones outlook to religion, but if your want a good thriller then I highly recommend it Norah

I have managed to read all three books in less than a week, Rats, The Lair and Domain. I must admit Domain was quite worrying, as it describes ‘life’ after nuclear conflict. The added terror being the presence of the mutant rats. I found it far harder to read than the first two; possibly because the thought of ‘life’ after a nuclear fall out is something I don’t even want to think about. I must confess I have just not been able to put the books down. They have been gripping, but terrifying, especially the last one. This is my last review for a couple of weeks as I am off on holiday on Sunday. I have a huge pile of books to take with me, if you are very unlucky I will review them all when I get back Hope you enjoy your holiday Ann, guess you have a pile of books to take with you as well Dee ;-))

Well I have got hold of The Rats by James Herbert, it seems it is the first part of a trilogy, with The Lair and Domain The synopsis says ‘It was only when the bones of the first devoured victims were discovered that the true nature and power of these swarming black creatures with their razor sharp teeth and taste for human blood began to be realized by a panic-stricken city. For millions of years man and rats had been natural enemies. For the first time – suddenly, shockingly, horribly – the balance of power had shifted. I have never read anything quite like it – riveting. I can’t wait to get my hands on the other two in the series. Seems I have been missing out on a whole genre of books. I owe a big debt to the guy who introduced me to James Herbert and next stop it seems is Clive Barker or Graham Masterton. Anyone any recommendations?? Dee

Ali thank you for your input, both comments very interesting and I agree with youa bout memoirs of a Geisha, I read it two years ago. Dee, welcome back and thank you. Ann Glos

Sold Into Marriage – Sean Boyne The true story of a sixteen-year-old Irish girl sold by her father as a bride to an elderly farmer for money, a Morris Mini car – and the promise of land Gut wrenching stuff, hard to believe that the events took place in the 1970’s, not that well written, but it tells a harrowing story. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fluke – James Herbert A friend recommended this book to me, and I loved it. It says on the cover ‘He was a stringy mongrel, wandering the streets of the city, driven by a ravenous hunger and hunting a quarry he could not define. But he was something more. Somewhere in the depths of his consciousness was a memory clawing its way to the surface, tormenting him, refusing to let him rest. The memory of what he had once been. A man….’ It is brilliant, such an insight to the workings of a dog’s mind I shall now look out for more books by James Herbert. Dee x

Hi i hope you don't mind but i would just like to sayh that this sreies of threads intrigued me. Has an avid bookworm i felt the need to reply.l Sorely lacking in variety i hol;d my hands up to the fact i havent read any of the books mentioned. This i hope to rectify. However i have recently read the book Memories of a Geisha. What a book. I bought i on the friday and by saturday night i had read it all. It captivated my imagination. The charming nuances of the narration kept me wanting more. Although it wasnt paced like a steam train heading for a tunnel at full speed i was unable to put this book down. Wanting to no what happened in the world of the geisha kept me wanting more. I recommend it to anyone. A favourite author of mine has got to be Rosiland Laker. To Dance with Kings is one of her better books. It tells the story of the palace of Versailles through the world of four woman whose lives are influenced by this monument. It starts with the birth of Marguerite and ends with the flight of the aristocracy in the revolution. The strong female characters are a characteristic of all of Rosiland Lakers books. But what does it for me is the overall depth and insight into the past. It brings the whole era to life. I can read these books time and time again and love them more each time. Anyway thats all from me. Ali.xx

Annie Murray Poppy Days. Jessica harts happy childhood is changed for ever by the seath of her Mother. her manipulative new stepmother tries to force her to marry an older man who she doesn't love so she escaped to Birmingham to her Aunt Olive, her Mum's sister. It soon becomes apparent that in Olive's family there are haunting secrets of which no-one will speak. Jess's security is threatened when she falls in love because handsome Ned Green is not only married but about to become a father. This book was a really enjoyable read with vibrant characters. it is set in 1914 - 1921 and brings alive the suffering gone through both by those at the front and those left at home. We know about the rationing during the second WW but tend not to think about the deprivations during the first. Well worth a read, would make good holiday reading too. Ann Glos

I have just read a gripping book. Jodi Picoult My sister's keeper. Anna is not sick but she might as well be. By age 13 she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions and injections to help her sister Kate fight leukaemia. Anna was born for this purpose her parents tell her which is why they love her even more. The story centres on the two girls plus their brother Jesse, their parents Sara and Brian, and finally the lawyers as Anna decides she wants to stop being used and she takes her parents to court for the right to make her own decisions. It is a great book, full of suspense and passion (in the fullest meaning of the word), I found it difficult to put down, I also found it disturbing as well as it raised the ethics of having a child to save an existing one. Ann Glos

Moll Flanders – Daniel Defoe A brilliant account of life in 17century London, this book is thought to be one of the first social novels published in England It is a book that has no chapters, which I found very difficult at first, but I also had great problems putting it down, it had my sitting on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next.!! Moll certainly led a very interesting life. Crime and social history both fascinate me and I would certainly recommend this book to anyone who wants an insight into the conditions people lived in during the 17th Century

I actually read 18 books during my 3 weeks holiday, mostly light reading but some good ones. Don't worry i wont review them all here!!! One i read was Acid Row by Minette Walters. Briefly it is about what can happen when a paedophile is placed in the community anonymously but 'found out'. Very well written but quite disturbing in places espcially when you get the aspects of wrong identity etc. another fairly light but interesting read was New Dawn by Elizabeth James set in London at the turn of the century and covering aspects of the Sufragettes. Ann glos

I have also read another Lesley Pearse book, Lesser Evil; it is an excellent book by an author who does the most detailed research into the life and times of the period she writes about. This one is set in 1962, with most of the story set in Kennington in London, where Fifi and Dan live in a seedy flat. The Muckles family who live in terrible squalor ghoulishly fascinates Fifi. She listens to their violent quarrels, watches their ill treated and wretchedly unhappy children, and is appalled by all she sees. When she tries to help the youngest child, who has been physically abused by her father, she unwittingly unleashes a chain of events which will not only bring heartache to her and Dan, but terrible danger to all the inhabitants of Dale Street….. A cliffhanger, but quite distressing in parts. Child abuse is not an easy subject to tackle but she has accurately portrayed events that sadly happen far too often, as I know from experience. Lesley Pearse deals with some very sensitive subjects very well. Other books by her that I have read have covered illegitimate children, life in an asylum and a young woman who was sent to Australia on the Floating Brothel. As I mentioned earlier, her research seems very accurate and for anyone who is interested in social history and how people have over the years coped with problems I strongly recommend her books

David Owen recommended Kathleen Dayus to me and I was able to get hold of an omnibus edition of her work Born in the industrial slums of Birmingham in 1903, Kathleen Dayus has become a legend in her own time. Her four highly acclaimed volumes of autobiography are a testament to the indomitable spirit, humour and verve that characterise her life In Her People Kathleen Dayus vividly recalls the story of her Edwardian childhood. Where There’s Life and All My Days follow her through adolescence, then as a young munitions worker during the war, marriage and life below the poverty line in the 1920’s. Early widowhood and the Depression forced her to relinquish her children to Dr Barnado’s homes until, eight long years later, she could afford to provide a home for them again. In The Best of Rimes she once more brings to life the people and the places her readers have come to know so well. Her extraordinary memory and her spirited refusal to do anything but live life to the full, deservedly make her one of the most compelling story tellers of the time Well, what can I say? I have, as yet, read just the first book, Her People, and it is excellent. The family go hop picking, something I have read about quite a lot as my late father’s family used to go ‘oppin’ in Kent. I hadn’t realised that the people from the Birmingham slums also went hopping, and enjoyed her descriptions of the conditions on the farm I can’t wait to read the other books in the series, but have taken time out to read Labyrinth as it was one of the March books and I don’t want to get too behind

glad you enjoyed it Dee, i had not read any of his books before and usually find that men authors can't 'get into the skin' of female leading characters but he did, great book! Ann Glos

A Special Relationship – Douglas Kennedy Well what a powerfully written book. It deals with a very sensitive subject very thoroughly, and I must admit reduced me to tears on more than one occasion. Without giving too much away, the book deals with a traumatic birth and the mother’s slide into severe postnatal depression. Not for everyone, but it certainly was an interesting and thought provoking book and I would like to thank Ann for bringing it to my attention Dee x

Hi Dee, yep finished that one and Final Departures - just waiting for the 4th one - can't remember what its called now! This flippin' Val McDermid one ..... she has traced someone's address from THE 2001 CENSUS !!!!!! oh dear oh dear oh dear!! Maz. XX

I am sure that you will enjoy it Dee, if enjoy is the right word. Quite gripping. Ann glos

Eleanor and Abel – Annette Sanford When a storm tears a hole in Miss Eleanor Bannister’s roof, the itinerant carpenter, Abel Brown, who volunteers to repair it is so capable and charming that he manages to remodel Miss Bannister’s life. A retired schoolteacher in the town where she has always lived, Eleanor finds the sudden presence of Abel in her life unnerving and unsettling – and, after a time, irresistible. Abel shakes up Eleanor’s fixed ideas of who she is and starts her thinking of, and wanting, something she never imagined for herself. While other complications ensue, they proceed, not without trepidation, on the course of their courtship A rather poignant little story, as it says on the front cover ‘It’s never too late to fall in love ------------------------------------------------------------------------ btw Ann I have got hold of a copy of A Special Relationship, I popped in the library and managed to get that and Northnager Abbey ----------------------------------------------------------- Maz, I wasn't so keen on Bury me in Bermondsey, to be honest it repeated some of the stuff that was in Don't Drop the Coffin. Have you read it yet? Dee ;-))

Ann It does look good, I shall keep an eye open for it Dee x

Maz, I would, no good writing a book unless you thoroughly research it is there? Dee, it would probably be a 'lighter' read for you but I am sure that you would enjoy A Special relationship. Ann Glos