Literature What are you currently reading?

I just finished the second Thursday Murder Club mystery, The Man Who Died Twice . I read it on my Kindle
very nice. my only quibble was that there was a lot of exposition at the end tying up loose ends. I'm under the impression that is not desirable in a murder mystery. However many of the great classic murder mystery writers did that too. Anyway a good Cristie - like murder mystery. Lots of red herrings and lots of suspects. and lots of clues.

I am in line for the 3rd TMCM

How do you guys feel about long expositions at the end of mysteries? I've read that some people think it is bad. Either lazy writing. or that the author doesn't trust the reader to fill in the blanks.

I also finished the latest Dresden files, Twelve Months . I liked it better than the previous novel. But not as much as the early novels. More action thriller and less mystery. I read the hardcover. it's a 500 page book and I find those hard to get comfortable with. Too heavy. Still, I suppose if another Dresden files comes out I'll read it too.

I am also almost done with the audio book, Remarkably Bright Creatures. It's pretty good and I want to see how it ends. but I'm not so sure I'm going to like the ending. Well, we'll see.

next up is another 500 page book, The Q. Paper back this time. It's by Beth Bower and I loved her Unselected Jornals of Emma M. Lion audio books. She has written a lot of books but so far they aren't in my library.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Emma JC and Daxx
I just finished the second Thursday Murder Club mystery, The Man Who Died Twice . I read it on my Kindle
very nice. my only quibble was that there was a lot of exposition at the end tying up loose ends.
Yep same here. I'm not averse to some nuts and bolts writing to get the reader from A to B, but this felt especially clumsy and rushed to me. Not only was it tying up loose ends, it was blatantly setting up for the next one in the £ranchise. I loved the first book, but couldn't read beyond this one.
 
  • Informative
  • Like
Reactions: Emma JC and Lou
I read "Wild Dark Shore" by Charlotte McConaghy. This is a really good book! It is about the effects of climate change on a small remote island between Australia and Antarctica where a seed bank must be saved from the rising ocean. But the main theme is about family and love and loss. There is also mystery and a little romance and a lot of emotion. Another book that made my cry. Great writing and I will look for more of this author's books.
 
  • Informative
Reactions: Emma JC
I read "Wild Dark Shore" by Charlotte McConaghy. This is a really good book! It is about the effects of climate change on a small remote island between Australia and Antarctica where a seed bank must be saved from the rising ocean. But the main theme is about family and love and loss. There is also mystery and a little romance and a lot of emotion. Another book that made my cry. Great writing and I will look for more of this author's books.
I had to read that for my book group. I can see it being made into a film or Netflix series.
 
I read "Wild Dark Shore" by Charlotte McConaghy. This is a really good book! It is about the effects of climate change on a small remote island between Australia and Antarctica where a seed bank must be saved from the rising ocean. But the main theme is about family and love and loss. There is also mystery and a little romance and a lot of emotion. Another book that made my cry. Great writing and I will look for more of this author's books.
I have this in my wish list in audible. I read the reviews and now I'm not sure I will like it based on how it ends. 🤐
 
I have this in my wish list in audible. I read the reviews and now I'm not sure I will like it based on how it ends. 🤐
You know the end before reading/listening to it? I was devastated. The writing is wonderful though. I have another of hers on my hold list at the library now.
 
You know the end before reading/listening to it? I was devastated. The writing is wonderful though. I have another of hers on my hold list at the library now.
Not the specifics... but some of the reviews gave enough information to know that it doesn't have a hallmark ending lol. I don't wanna say more in case someone else wants to read it.

That said… I love spoilers and I need to know how some books end before I will invest time in it. I do not like unhappy endings in general.
 
How do you guys feel about long expositions at the end of mysteries? I've read that some people think it is bad. Either lazy writing. or that the author doesn't trust the reader to fill in the blanks.

I prefer to have blanks filled in, especially if I hadn't been able to fill them in myself, along the way.

Emma JC
Find your vegan soulmate or just a friend. www.spiritualmatchmaking.com
 
You Are Here by David Nicholls.

It's marketed as an opposites attract will they won't they?, but to me it's seemed like a when will they? from the start. I'm not complaining—anything with a sense of humour set in a dreich English uplands walking holiday is right up my street, and there may be some twists and turns along the way.

I'd recommend this to any jaded reader struggling to get into a book. Easy to get into but has depth.