en-US Wed, 04 Jun 2025 07:24:02 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg ReadStatus9507654377 Wed, 04 Jun 2025 07:24:02 -0700 /review/show/7627022901 Philip is currently reading The Four Just Men by Edgar Wallace
]]> Review7570724144 Wed, 04 Jun 2025 07:14:37 -0700 /review/show/7570724144 Philip gave 3 stars to Died in the Wool (Roderick Alleyn, #13) by Ngaio Marsh
After a prologue detailing two intriguing incidents, there follows a protracted session with Alleyn and the four principal suspects, with the intention of baring their souls and telling all about the murder victim and their relationships with her. This rather puts the brakes on the story and it never really gains pace despite some jeopardy before the final reveal. Her weakest book so far. Unlucky 13? ]]> Review7570748987 Tue, 27 May 2025 02:15:27 -0700 /review/show/7570748987 Philip gave 4 stars to Spring Unfurled (Hardcover) by Angela Harding
Superb illustrations ]]> ReadStatus9427158904 Thu, 15 May 2025 03:02:41 -0700 /review/show/7570724144 Philip is currently reading Died in the Wool by Ngaio Marsh
]]> Review7547102440 Thu, 15 May 2025 02:47:04 -0700 /review/show/7547102440 Philip gave 4 stars to The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp (Miss Sharp Investigates, #1) by Leonie Swann
At first I thought this book was just plain weird. It's definitely not warm and cosy as some of the reviewers on the book jacket say. These are not people with an intriguing past, all still mentally sharp living in a retirement community. They are people with an intriguing past, living in a house-share in order to avoid what they regard as the living death of retirement homes. It's extremely dark and sinister. It addresses themes of dementia and assisted dying, of childhood trauma, bitterness and jealousy.
The resolution required some extreme physicality on the part of Agnes which we were assured throughout the book she did not have. But perhaps strength came through desperation. Nevertheless, I liked the twists of the plot and how it was resolved. ]]> Review7531259439 Tue, 06 May 2025 01:30:56 -0700 /review/show/7531259439 Philip gave 4 stars to Coroner's Pidgin (Paperback) by Margery Allingham
Finally Campion is faced with the idea that his sort of people can be villains. And they've got a lot of clout much to Oates's chagrin. A nicely involved story with a touching surprise at the end.
]]> Review7528852998 Wed, 30 Apr 2025 09:25:25 -0700 /review/show/7528852998 Philip gave 3 stars to Spring (Hardcover) by Michael Morpurgo
Just the thing for this time of year! Lovely illustrations. ]]> Review7490050921 Fri, 18 Apr 2025 09:34:34 -0700 /review/show/7490050921 Philip gave 4 stars to Sparkling Cyanide (Colonel Race, #4) by Agatha Christie
An ingenious plot. There is some mention of conjurers in the story. And that's the key to solving the murders. Misdirection Taking people at their word, when the their whole narrative was a fiction. We meet all the characters one by one, apart from the lately deceased Rosemary (except in flashback, in her sister's memory). And then we proceed to the next death. Perhaps this story might have been titled Towards Zero, if that title hadn't already been used! ]]> Review7478105525 Sat, 12 Apr 2025 08:51:36 -0700 /review/show/7478105525 Philip gave 3 stars to The Collectors (Hardcover) by Philip Pullman
This is one of the two prequels, together with "Once Upon A Time In The North", from Lyra's universe. Pulman likes the setting of academia for his stories. In fact this story owes something to another writer who set many of his stories in academia, MR James. It's a grisly tale of two collectors talking late one night of a portrait of a young woman and a statuette of a monkey. As in James the scholars are in peril from unknown forces. Mrs Coulter it would seem has a long reach...! ]]> Review7463983049 Mon, 07 Apr 2025 05:11:06 -0700 /review/show/7463983049 Philip gave 4 stars to The Imagination Chamber (His Dark Materials, #3.7) by Philip Pullman
So what happened? The publishers anxiously contacted Pulman and said "So, how's the new book coming?"
"Oh nearly done" said Pulman.
"But it's been more than three years since Secret Commonwealth, and there were only two years between it and Belle Sauvage" came the anxious publishers' reply.
"Yeah. About that. The new one's going to be a while longer yet, say another two years or so", says Pulman.
"What?! We need to keep up the interest level. Have you got anything we can publish? Another of your spin-offs perhaps"
"Well. I've got some short pieces, sort of background snippets about various characters, not really intended to be part of the novels. But they help flesh out the characters when I'm thinking about how they act in the books."
"Can we put those out? Please?"
"I suppose...."

My first thought when I looked inside The Imagination Chamber was that this was just a bit of a cynical exercise to keep the pot boiling until Book of Dust Vol3. But I have to confess I quite enjoyed these little background snippets, some intriguing, some funny - like when Lyra was sick on the floor after eating too many strawberries and cakes at a Jordan College garden party, but she pulled up the carpet first, and then put it back down, so that no-one would know :). And some are sad. All interesting insights. ]]>