strange and random happenstance

Go Tell The Bees That I Am Gone by Diana Gabaldon
Published by: Delacorte Press
Publication Date: November 23rd, 2021
Format: Hardcover, 928 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"#1 New York Times bestselling author Diana Gabaldon returns with the newest novel in the epic Outlander series.

The past may seem the safest place to be...but it is the most dangerous time to be alive....

Jamie Fraser and Claire Randall were torn apart by the Jacobite Rising in 1746, and it took them twenty years to find each other again. Now the American Revolution threatens to do the same.

It is 1779 and Claire and Jamie are at last reunited with their daughter, Brianna, her husband, Roger, and their children on Fraser’s Ridge. Having the family together is a dream the Frasers had thought impossible.

Yet even in the North Carolina backcountry, the effects of war are being felt. Tensions in the Colonies are great and local feelings run hot enough to boil Hell’s teakettle. Jamie knows loyalties among his tenants are split and it won’t be long until the war is on his doorstep.

Brianna and Roger have their own worry: that the dangers that provoked their escape from the twentieth century might catch up to them. Sometimes they question whether risking the perils of the 1700s - among them disease, starvation, and an impending war - was indeed the safer choice for their family.

Not so far away, young William Ransom is still coming to terms with the discovery of his true father’s identity - and thus his own - and Lord John Grey has reconciliations to make, and dangers to meet...on his son’s behalf, and his own.

Meanwhile, the Revolutionary War creeps ever closer to Fraser’s Ridge. And with the family finally together, Jamie and Claire have more at stake than ever before."

It's a good time to be an Outlander fan with the new book AND the new series arriving in short order. I only wish my friend Nancy were still alive to enjoy this.

City of Time And Magic by Paula Brackston
Published by: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: November 23rd, 2021
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"City of Time and Magic sees Xanthe face her greatest challenges yet. She must choose from three treasures that sing to her; a beautiful writing slope, a mourning brooch of heartbreaking detail, and a gorgeous gem-set hat pin. All call her, but the wrong one could take her on a mission other than that which she must address first, and the stakes could not be higher. While her earlier mission to Regency England had been a success, the journey home resulted in Liam being taken from her, spirited away to another time and place. Xanthe must follow the treasure that will take her to him if he is not to be lost forever.

Xanthe is certain that Mistress Flyte has Liam and determined to find them both. But when she discovers Lydia Flyte has been tracking the actions of the Visionary Society, a group of ruthless and unscrupulous Spinners who have been selling their talents to a club of wealthy clients, Xanthe realizes her work as a Spinner must come before her personal wishes. The Visionary Society is highly dangerous and directly opposed to the creed of the Spinners. Their actions could have disastrous consequences as they alter the authentic order of things and change the future. Xanthe knows she must take on the Society. It will require the skills of all her friends, old and new, to attempt such a thing, and not all of them will survive the confrontation that follows."

Time for some more magic!

A Glove Shop In Vienna And Other Stories by Eva Ibbotson
Published by: Macmillan Collector's Library
Publication Date: November 23rd, 2021
Format: Hardcover, 256 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Curl up with a collection of romantic short stories taking you from nineteenth-century Vienna, over the wild moors of Northumberland to the snowy streets of pre-revolutionary St Petersberg.

Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition features an introduction by author and journalist Amanda Craig.

Join Great Uncle Max, torn between his secret love for Susie, the enchanting glove-shop assistant, and the devotion of his opera-singing wife. Meet Nina, the beautiful chanteuse, who always wears a white rose for Paul, the lover who years ago disappeared to allow her success. And agonize with Kira, a dancer in Russia’s Imperial Ballet School, thrown out onto the streets of St Petersburg and found by Edwin, a lonely dreamer. Complex, witty and peopled with characters who surprise themselves as well as us, Eva Ibbotson’s short stories uncover the great passions of everyday life."

If you haven't experienced the wonder that is Eva Ibbotson, this is a wonderful place to start!

A Man Of Honor by Barbara Taylor Bradford
Published by: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: November 23rd, 2021
Format: Hardcover, 464 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The prequel to Barbara Taylor Bradford's New York Times bestselling and dazzling saga A Woman of Substance.

Opening five years before the start of A Woman of Substance, A Man of Honor begins with 13-year-old Blackie O’Neill facing an uncertain future in rural County Kerry. Orphaned and alone, he has just buried his sister, Bronagh, and must leave his home to set sail for England, in search of a better life with his mother’s brother in Leeds. There, he learns his trade as a navvy, amid the grand buildings and engineering triumphs of one of England’s most prosperous cities, and starts to dream of greater things... And then, high on the Yorkshire moors, in the mists of a winter morning he meets a kitchen maid called Emma Harte.

In A Man of Honor, the true Blackie O'Neill is revealed. For the first time, readers discover his story: his tumultuous life, the obstacles facing him, the desire he has to throw off the impotence of poverty and move up in the world. Like his friend Emma, he is ambitious, driven, disciplined, and determined to make it to the top. And like Emma Harte, he is an unforgettable character for the millions who loved the book"

A Woman of Substance prequel, woot woot!

A Secret Never Told by Shelley Noble
Published by: Forge Books
Publication Date: November 23rd, 2021
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Miss Fisher meets Downton Abbey in A Secret Never Told, the fourth installment in the critically acclaimed mystery series from New York Times bestselling author Shelley Noble.

Philomena Amesbury, expatriate Countess of Dunbridge, is bored. Coney Island in the sweltering summer of 1908 offers no shortage of diversions for a young woman of means, but sea bathing, horse racing, and even amusement parks can’t hold a candle to uncovering dastardly plots and chasing villains. Lady Dunbridge hadn’t had a big challenge in months.

Fate obliges when Phil is called upon to host a dinner party in honor of a visiting Austrian psychologist whose revolutionary theories may be of interest to the War Department, not to mention various foreign powers, and who may have already survived one attempt on his life. The guest list includes a wealthy industrialist, various rival scientists and academics, a party hypnotist, a flamboyant party-crasher, and a damaged beauty whose cloudy psyche is lost in a world of its own. Before the night is out, one of the guests is dead with a bullet between the eyes and Phil finds herself with another mystery on her hands, even if it’s unclear who exactly the intended victim was meant to be.

Worse yet, the police’s prime suspect is a mystery man who Phil happens to be rather intimately acquainted with. Now it’s up to Lady Dunbridge, with the invaluable assistance of her intrepid butler and lady’s maid, to find the real culprit before the police nab the wrong one..."

Please, pick this book up, you won't be disappointed! 

The Mirror Dance by Catriona McPherson
Published by: Mobius
Publication Date: November 23rd, 2021
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Something sinister is afoot in the streets of Dundee, when a puppeteer is found murdered behind his striped Punch and Judy stand, as children sit cross-legged drinking ginger beer. At once, Dandy Gilver's seemingly-innocuous investigation into plagiarism takes a darker turn. The gruesome death seems to be inextricably bound to the gloomy offices of Doig's Publishers, its secrets hidden in the real stories behind their girls' magazines The Rosie Cheek and The Freckle.

On meeting a mysterious professor from St Andrews, Dandy and her faithful colleague Alex Osbourne are flung into the worlds of academia, the theatre and publishing. Nothing is quite as it seems, and behind the cheerful facades of puppets and comic books, is a troubled history has begun to repeat itself."

Because sometimes you just need Dandy Gilver in your life.

The City of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Published by: Harper
Publication Date: November 23rd, 2021
Format: Hardcover, 176 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Return to the mythical Barcelona library known as the Cemetery of Forgotten Books in this posthumous collection of stories from the New York Times bestselling author of The Shadow of the Wind and The Labyrinth of the Spirits.

Bestselling author Carlos Ruiz Zafón conceived of this collection of stories as an appreciation to the countless readers who joined him on the extraordinary journey that began with The Shadow of the Wind. Comprising eleven stories, most of them never before published in English, The City of Mist offers the reader compelling characters, unique situations, and a gothic atmosphere reminiscent of his beloved Cemetery of Forgotten Books quartet.

The stories are mysterious, imbued with a sense of menace, and told with the warmth, wit, and humor of Zafón's inimitable voice. A boy decides to become a writer when he discovers that his creative gifts capture the attentions of an aloof young beauty who has stolen his heart. A labyrinth maker flees Constantinople to a plague-ridden Barcelona, with plans for building a library impervious to the destruction of time. A strange gentleman tempts Cervantes to write a book like no other, each page of which could prolong the life of the woman he loves. And a brilliant Catalan architect named Antoni Gaudí reluctantly agrees to cross the ocean to New York, a voyage that will determine the fate of an unfinished masterpiece.

Imaginative and beguiling, these and other stories in The City of Mist summon up the mesmerizing magic of their brilliant creator and invite us to come dream along with him."

Since Zafon's death we must take every new book as a gift.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Woman of Substance, Barbara Taylor Bradford, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Catriona McPherson, Cemetery of Forgotten Books, Dandy Gilver, Diana Gabaldon, Eva Ibbotson, Outlander, Paula Brackston, Shelley Noble

Buried in the Country by Carola Dunn
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: December 13th, 2016
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"An isolated spot in the Cornish countryside is no safe haven when a determined foe is out for blood...

Having worked for an international charity in her days before retiring to Cornwall, Eleanor Trewynn is asked by the Commonwealth Relations Office to assist in secret negotiations about to take place in a hotel just outside Tintagel.

Meanwhile her niece DS Megan Pencarrow, as well as investigating the disappearance of Port Mabyn solicitor Alan Freeth, is sent to help provide security for the conference. So is her bete noire, DS Ken Faraday of the Yard. They have to escort to Tintagel two African students, refugees from Ian Smith's Southern Rhodesia.

Everyone arrives at the hotel in a raging storm, as do two sinister Londoners who have followed Megan from Launceston. Who are they and why have they turned up in the depths of rural Cornwall? Are they spying for Smith? And what is their connection with the missing solicitor? The answers set the scene for murder, and take Eleanor and Megan on a chase across fog-bound Bodmin Moor in a desperate attempt to prevent further deaths."

I HAVE to get my Cornish fix somewhere, and Carola Dunn is as wonderful a place as any!

The Reek of Red Herrings by Catriona McPherson
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: December 13th, 2016
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"On the rain-drenched, wind-battered Banffshire coast dilapidated mansions cling to cliff tops, and tiny fishing villages perch on ledges that would make a seagull think twice. It’s nowhere for Dandy Gilver, a child of gentle Northamptonshire, to spend Christmas.

But when odd things start to turn up in barrels of fish―with a strong whiff of murder most foul―that’s exactly where she finds herself. Enlisted to investigate, Dandy and her trusty cohort, Alec Osborne, are soon swept up in the fisherfolks’ wedding season as well as the mystery. Between age-old traditions and brand-new horrors, Dandy must think the unthinkable to solve her most baffling case yet."

They're really doubling down on making these look like the Maisie Dobbs books aren't they?

Bryant and May: Strange Tide by Christopher Fowler
Published by: Bantam
Publication Date: December 13th, 2016
Format: Hardcover, 448 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"London’s most brilliant but unconventional detectives, Arthur Bryant and John May, must plumb the depths of a particularly murky mystery.

The Peculiar Crimes Unit faces its most baffling case yet—and if Bryant and May can’t rise to the challenge, the entire unit may go under. Near the Tower of London, along the River Thames, the body of a woman has been discovered chained to a stone post and left to drown. Curiously, only one set of footprints leads to the tragic spot. “The Bride in the Tide,” as the London press gleefully dubs her, has the PCU stumped. Why wouldn’t the killer simply dump her body in the river—as so many do?

Arthur Bryant wonders if the answer lies in the mythology of the Thames itself. Unfortunately, the normally wobbly funhouse corridors of Bryant’s mind have become, of late, even more labyrinthine. The venerable detective seems to be losing his grip on reality. May fears the worst, as Bryant rapidly descends from merely muddled to one stop short of Barking, hallucinating that he’s traveled back in time to solve the case. There had better be a method to Bryant’s madness—because, as more bodies are pulled from the river’s depths, his partner and the rest of the PCU find themselves in over their heads.

Fiendishly fun and rich in London lore, Bryant and May: Strange Tide is Christopher Fowler at his best, delivering more twists and turns than the Thames itself."

Loveland by Graham Norton
Published by: Hodder and Stoughton
Publication Date: December 13th, 2016
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A secret's been unearthed in the small Irish town of Duneen and with it a discovery made that illuminates stories from the town's dark past and that has implications for the cast of brilliantly, beautifully drawn characters.

The castdown policeman who lives a uneventful, lonely life punctuated only by the next meal - until now; a mysterious family of three beautiful spinster sisters each with their secrets and sorrows; the town's gossip who thinks she knows the answers.. And when a discovery is made on the building site of a new development up behind the old school, this once innocent, slow-seeming town is revealed to have a much darker undertow."

LOVE Graham and love that he's written a non-autobiographical book, but what does the cover say Holding yet the book is called Loveland?

Ayoade on Ayoade: A Cinematic Odyssey by Richard Ayoade
Published by: Faber and Faber
Publication Date: December 13th, 2016
Format: Paperback, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In this book Richard Ayoade -- actor, writer, director, and amateur dentist -- reflects on his cinematic legacy as only he can: in conversation with himself. Over ten brilliantly insightful and often erotic interviews, Ayoade examines Ayoade fully and without mercy, leading a breathless investigation into this once-in-a-generation visionary. They have called their book Ayoade on Ayoade: A Cinematic Odyssey. Take the journey, and your life will never be the same again.

Only Ayoade can appreciate Ayoade's unique methodology. Only Ayoade can recognize Ayoade's talent. Only Ayoade can withstand Ayoade's peculiar scent. Only Ayoade can truly get inside Ayoade.

Ayoade on Ayoade captures the director in his own words: pompous, vain, angry, and very, very funny."

I felt this was oddly appropriate to follow Graham's book because I first heard about it on his show and now know how to properly say Moss's last name. 

Nice Work (If You Can Get It) by Celia Imrie
Published by: Bloomsbury USA
Publication Date: December 13th, 2016
Format: Kindle, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Somewhere on the French Riviera, tucked between glitzy Monte Carlo and Cannes' red-carpets, lies the sleepy town of Bellevue-Sur-Mer. Sheltered from the glittering melee, it is home to many an expat although it hasn't proved as peaceful as expected. Now an enterprising band of retirees has resolved to show it's never too late to start afresh, and open a restaurant.

Snapping up a local property and throwing themselves into preparations, Theresa, Carol, William and Benjamin's plans are proceeding unnervingly well. But when Theresa encounters a mysterious intruder, she begins to wonder what secrets the building is concealing.

Meanwhile Sally, an actress who fled the stage to live in quiet anonymity, has decided not to be involved. She's far too busy anyway, shepherding around a gaggle of A-listers including a suave Russian with a super-yacht and a penchant for her company.

As the razzmatazz of Cannes Film Festival penetrates Bellevue-Sur-Mer, its inhabitants become entangled in a complex pattern of love triangles and conflicting business interests, and something starts to feel distinctly oeuf. Finding themselves knee-deep in suspicion and skulduggery, the restaurateurs realise they can no longer tell who's nasty and who's nice."

Another actor turned writer, this time it's Una Alconbury!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Bridget Jones's Diary, Bryant and May, Carola Dunn, Catriona McPherson, Celia Imrie, Christopher Fowler, Cornwall, Dandy Gilver, Graham Norton, Loveland, Maisie Dobbs, Nice Work If You Can Get It, Richard Ayoade

A Deadly Measure of Brimstone by Catriona McPherson
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: November 18th, 2014
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In A Deadly Measure of Brimstone, Dandy and the whole Gilver clan travel to a spa town for a weekend of relaxation which is quickly interrupted by a slew of mysterious— and deadly—events.

The men of the Gilver family have come down, between them, with influenza, bronchitis, pneumonia and pleurisy. The family repairs to the town of Moffat, there to submit to the galvanic wraps and cold salt rubs of the splendid Laidlaw Hydropathic Hotel.

But all is not well at the Hydro, and the secret of the lady who arrived but never left cannot be kept for long. And what of those drifting shapes in the Turkish bath? Just steam shifting in the air? Probably. But in this town the dead can be as much trouble as the living."

I am very excited for a new Dandy Gilver book but I am heartbroken that it doesn't have a cover by Jessica Hische, aka the reason I picked the series up in the first place because of the striking covers!

The Paris Winter by Imogen Robertson
Published by: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: November 18th, 2014
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"There is but one Paris. -Vincent Van Gogh

Maud Heighton came to Lafond's famous Academie to paint, and to flee the constraints of her small English town. It took all her courage to escape, but Paris, she quickly realizes, is no place for a light purse. While her fellow students enjoy the dazzling decadence of the Belle Epoque, Maud slips into poverty. Quietly starving, and dreading another cold Paris winter, she stumbles upon an opportunity when Christian Morel engages her as a live-in companion to his beautiful young sister, Sylvie.

Maud is overjoyed by her good fortune. With a clean room, hot meals, and an umbrella to keep her dry, she is able to hold her head high as she strolls the streets of Montmartre. No longer hostage to poverty and hunger, Maud can at last devote herself to her art.

But all is not as it seems. Christian and Sylvie, Maud soon discovers, are not quite the darlings they pretend to be. Sylvie has a secret addiction to opium and Christian has an ominous air of intrigue. As this dark and powerful tale progresses, Maud is drawn further into the Morels' world of elegant deception. Their secrets become hers, and soon she is caught in a scheme of betrayal and revenge that will plunge her into the darkness that waits beneath this glittering city of light."

This looks very intriguing!

Serenity: Leaves on the Wind by Zack Whedon
Published by: Dark Horse Books
Publication Date: November 18th, 2014
Format: Hardcover, 152 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In the film Serenity, outlaw Malcolm Reynolds and his crew revealed to the entire 'verse the crimes against humanity undertaken by the sinister government--the Alliance. Here, in the official follow-up to the film, the crew has been in hiding since becoming everyone's most wanted, and now they are forced to come out. River uncovers more secrets, leading these former Browncoats on a dangerous mission against the Alliance that, with hope, will bring them together again..."

Ah, who am I kidding. Sure I hated the movie but I adore Firefly so much I'll probably read this too.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Deadly Measure of Brimstone, Catriona McPherson, Dandy Gilver, Firefly, Imogen Robertson, Jessica Hische, Joss Whedon, Leaves on the Wind, Serenity, The Paris Winter, Vincent Van Gogh

Soulless Volume 3 by Gail Carriger
Published by: Yen Press
Publication Date: November 19th, 2013
Format: Paperback, 207 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Condemned by society and her werewolf husband due to a pregnancy she cannot explain, Alexia Maccon-preternatural, tea aficionado-seeks an explanation for this "infant inconvenience" so as to cleanse her sullied reputation and prove her fool of a husband wrong. Preternaturals are a rare breed and the only history of their kind lies in Italy with the Templars, a group that once partnered with preternaturals to hunt down werewolves and vampires. Will Alexia find an explanation for her impossible offspring? Or do the Templars have other plans for the curious "Soulless One"?"

I love this manga series! Seriously, I adore the art and clothing, and I mean, it's just a great refresher to remember how good the books are. Plus the ladybirds on the cover! Too perfect!

Dandy Gilver and a Bothersome Number of Corpses by Catriona McPherson
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: November 19th, 2013
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A mystery writer perfect for fans of Upstairs Downstairs, Downton Abbey, and Gosford Park, Catriona McPherson has charmed readers everywhere with her fun and clever series set in 1920s Scotland. In this new adventure, witty, aristocratic sleuth Dandy Gilver travels to an all-girls school in the small seaside town of Portpatrick to investigate the disappearance of a childhood friend who taught there. Soon, Dandy discovers that her missing chum is not the only thing that's off in Portpatrick. Other teachers have been disappearing at an alarming rate. The BBC has optioned the Dandy Gilver series for television, and mystery fans will love Dandy Gilver and a Bothersome Number of Corpses, the newest excursion with Scotland's most charming sleuth."

This might be my favorite cover in the Dandy Gilver series... well Jessica Hische plus a menacing apple, what's not to love?

The Venom Business by Michael Crichton
Published by: Hard Case Crime
Publication Date: November 19th, 2013
Format: Paperback, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"As an expert handler of venomous snakes - and a smuggler of rare artifacts - Charles Raynaud is accustomed to danger. So the job bodyguarding an old acquaintance about to come into a fortune shouldn't make him break a sweat.

But when the attempts on the man's life nearly get Raynaud killed, he's left wondering: is he the killers' real target...? "

OMG! They are FINALLY releasing the full back catalog of Michael Crichton books he wrote as John Lange. "New" Crichton! Be still me teenage heart (yes, as a teenager, I adored all his books and devoured every single one!)

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Blameless, Catriona McPherson, Dandy Gilver, Gail Carriger, John Lange, Manga, Michael Crichton, Soulless, The Parasol Protectorate, The Venom Business

The Burry Man's Day (Dandy Gilver Book 2) by Catriona McPherson
Published by: Robinson
Publication Date: 2006
Format: Kindle, 372 Pages
Rating: ★★
To Buy

Dandy and her dear friend Daisy are off to Queensferry to reconnect with an old classmate and to go to the Ferry Fair. Freddy, nicknamed Buttercup, has finally returned from her sojourn in America with her new husband Cad in tow. Cad has lived his entire life in America and upon inheriting Cassilis he has decided to come to Scotland to play lord of the manor. Because in Dandy's eyes that's what the newlyweds are doing. They don't quite understand their duties to their people. You don't just get to live in a castle and while away the day lounging about. Take the fair for example. Freddy has agreed to open the fair and judge various competitions, like "The Bonniest Baby," when anyone who knows Freddy sees that this is the worst idea possible. Indeed Dandy gets a bit of a sinking feeling that perhaps the invitation extended to her and Daisy had ulterior motives...

Dandy is quickly thrown right into the middle of everything as Freddy does indeed expect Dandy's help. Not only is the fair a big to-do, there are factions within the small community that are at war. The local folk tradition of the Burry Man is the focal point of this struggle. A local man is covered from head to toe in Burdock burrs and he parades about the town being given sips of whiskey and coins. The three local churches view this as paganism and superstitious nonsense. On top of that, the temperance league led by the local schoolmaster, doesn't approve of the alcoholic aspect of the Burry Man, which is a bit ironic because bottling whiskey is the main source of income for the villagers. Yet for a short while, it looks like there might not even be a Burry Man this year. Mr Robert Dudgeon has declared the night before the fair that he will not be able to do his Burry Man duties, though he has successfully done it for 24 years. Dandy carefully talks him around but has deep regrets when the next day, after the fair has opened and the Burry Man's procession is done, Robert Dudgeon dies while participating in the greasy pole competition. The coroner quickly passes it off as a heart attack brought on by too much drink and exertion, but can that really be true? Cad and Freddy, hearing from Daisy about Dandy's previous sleuthing success, beg her to look into the case, because they think it might just be murder.

With The Burry Man's Day, which for some reason whenever I try to say it comes out as "The Burry Man's Dray," as if a man covered in burrs could ride a dray horse... is certainly a far more cohesive and satisfying book then After the Armistice Ball. There was a satisfying beginning, middle, and end, that didn't leave me floundering for pages upon pages wondering who everyone was or where the book was taking place. From the outset we are given a distinct place and time, the second week in August after the bank holiday in Queensferry, Scotland. As Dandy journeys there, she reminisces on her past, so we get some nice exposition. Ah, if only the first book had been so well structured, much of my issues would have been washed away down the Forth as we stand on the impressive bridge that inadvertently led to Dandy marrying Hugh and becoming a Gilver.

Though, now that structure has finally been imposed, Dandy's character flaws come a bit more to the forefront. At times I was wanting to just smack dumb dumb Dandy for not noticing obvious things. I'm not saying that I would have solved it faster if I where in her shoes, I'm just saying, dear lord, that took a long time. Cut out about a hundred pages and Bob's your uncle. Her stupidity was too much to be born, and it didn't help that Alec seemed more then a little useless this time around. Yet, I will say, that at least it didn't take them months, the murder happened on a Friday and by, what, Wednesday, Thursday it was solved. So, good job there. Yet Dandy wasn't the only one with flaws... there was a pervasive flaw in all the lower caste of characters. I don't remember a single character in the first book talking in dialect, but here we have dialect up the wazoo. And not consistent dialect either. It's all over the place. The thing that really got me was that the Widow Dudgeon at one point totally drops out of dialect and is speaking just like Dandy. That made it seem a little fake and forced... which applies to all those speaking as such. If you can't do dialect right, don't do it.

The thing I loved about this book was the Burry Man. I mean, I cannot say how much I loved this. The fact that this is a real tradition that McPherson was able to weave into her book and hang her mystery off of made it just fascinating to me. If I had the time and money I would quite literally be getting on a plane to Scotland to celebrate this interesting event which is happening so soon! I mean I could not have read this book at a better time. I have also now started to troll the net reading more about the Burry Man. There is nothing more magical then when a book inspires you to search out more knowledge and more information. Of course, I now might have nightmares because Dandy doesn't understate the kind of horrific aspect of the Man himself.

If you look closely you can see the eyes! There is a person in there! As Dandy said:

"I do not know what I had been expecting, and I felt foolish for being surprised. After all, I had known that the Burry Man was a man covered in burrs and here was a man covered in burrs, but the effect was staggering... Mouldy, encrusted, vegetative and obscene, when he walked it was the stuff of nightmares... I saw with a shudder that his hands were bare and somehow this evidence that there really was a man in there was the chillingest of all."

Yes, I can see nightmares in my future... also, as a side note, because my bookclub just read The Shining... topiary coming alive, not that scary... if King had used this, absolutely terrifying!

Going beyond just the Burry Man, I love how the local folklore and scary stories the village children told each other was incorporated into the truths and therefore lent itself to the solving of the crime. Most people will just push away fairy tales and folklore as the stuff of children, but those gifted few know that the simple truths, distorted through tall tales, are real. These stories were written originally to teach morals and give warnings. But what it all boils down to is that Fairy Tales are real. Terry Pratchett comes back to this again and again in his writing, and I think that's why The Burry Man's Day reminded me of his Tiffany Aching series. While we have fetes and fairs and stories around the fire, it all comes down to truths that can not be overlooked. Listen to the stories, they might just solve a mystery for you.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: After the Armistice Ball, Burry Man, Catriona McPherson, Dandy Gilver, Golden Age of Detection, Golden Summer, Queensferry, Terry Pratchett, The Burry Man's Day, Tiffany Aching

After the Armistice Ball (Dandy Gilver Book 1) by Catriona McPherson
Published by: Robinson
Publication Date: 2006
Format: Kindle, 308 Pages
Rating: ★★
To Buy

Dandy Gilver has never thought that she might be a detective. Yet that's exactly what her friend Daisy is begging of her. Their mutual "friend" Lena Duffy claims that her very expensive diamonds were stolen at Daisy's estate after Daisy's grand Armistice Ball. It has taken awhile for the "crime" to come to light because they were replaced with paste and it wasn't until a jeweller pointed this out to Lena's daughter Cara a few months later that the "crime" was discovered. Now Lena, whose husband is shockingly in trade, and insurance at that, is demanding that they pay for the diamonds, despite the fact that it can't be proven if the theft occurred when Lena says it did, and the more obvious fact that the insurance had lapsed on the jewels.

Daisy has invited the Duffy's back to her house and has begged Dandy to come along too. Daisy admires that Dandy is able to bluntly cut to the gist of a matter without overly offending anyone by just being herself. Daisy wants Dandy to wrinkle Lena out, find out what is really going on and why Lena is trying to extort them! After the house party, Dandy is still hot on the trail of the truth when she is invited to a small cabin by the sea that Lena and her two daughters have taken. Dandy is able to enlist the help of Cara's fiance after he receives an abrupt letter from Cara ending their engagement with the wedding only a few days away. When they arrive in the small hamlet, the delightful cottage has burned to the ground with Cara inside. They must all stay for the inquest, and in that time Dandy has time to mull things over. There is no way the death and the diamonds are not connected. Dandy's first full fledged case will take her where she never thought she'd go, and will risk more then just her own life.

When I was at my local bookstore one day I picked up a book by Catriona McPherson. The book was titled, Dandy Gilver and the Proper Treatment of Bloodstains. The title and the lovely cover designed by Jessica Hische made it a no-brainer buy. Of course, as is often my luck, whenever I find a great book at a store it invariably ends up being not the first or even the second in a series... in this case it is the fifth. I cannot read a book out of order, but, you know what, I think that this series my be an exception to my hard and fast rule. After the Armistice Ball has some issues right from the first chapter, mainly, you feel as if you've been dumped unceremoniously into the middle of a story with people who you should remember at an event you know you've been invited to, but you have no idea who they are or where it is. This lack of introductions and place meant that I could have easily picked up any book in the series and still had the feeling that I was missing something. The first book should neatly establish place and characters, with subsequent volumes doing only a short recap. A good editor could have quickly fixed this by just having Catriona write a nice intro paragraph or two setting up where the action of the book takes place, it's Scotland by the way, so as you won't be confused for a quarter of the book, and have Dandy fleshed out a little more then her friends just dropping veiled hints as to her personality. Something can't be "so Dandy" unless we know what she is so like! Luckily the readers ignorance wanes as the book progresses.

Dandy Gilver has got to be one of the most unique creations in twenties historical fiction today, that is once we get to know her properly. She doesn't fit into any well defined sleuth category and this makes her a breath of fresh air. She is not male. She is not a young single woman who has been disowned or at the very least frowned upon by her family as being "eccentric" and "beyond the pale." She isn't widowed and therefore at leisure to travel hither and yon without the gimlet eye of society fast upon her. Instead she is married, one could argue for, not happily, but at least contentedly, with a slightly oblivious spouse. She has no intentions of leaving her husband either, he just bumbles around talking about drainage ditches while she does as she pleases. She has children! Not fully grown, so that they put Dandy into the spinster category, she is still young enough to be of child bearing years, hear that? Young! Also handily the children are usually off at boarding school, which is a blessing, because children can get underfoot when one is sleuthing. So that means Dandy can move about society without impunity and she can closet herself away and solve crimes with male friends without eyebrows (or at least too many eyebrows) being raised. A respectable crime solver, how about that?

Yet Dandy is by no means perfect. While it takes awhile to get the gist as to why she would be the perfect crime solver, it basically comes down to the fact that she is overly blunt and has a tendency to stick her foot in her mouth by saying something that no one else would dare say. "Discussing loud and plain what everyone else is thinking about but dare not mention." But this habit of hers makes her come across as a little callow, though she is far from it, and therefore leads people to confide in her, the ideal trait for someone who wants to root around in your life to have. She may be a little dense, a little artless, sometimes easily confused or led astray, with it being hard for her to know where her facts end and her fancies begin. Yet all this together does make a good-ish detective. Like most of the best detectives, she tends to take awhile to get to the point and gets the wrong end of the stick, but this is what makes a book have a compelling narrative. You don't want it over and done with five pages in. Though there is one random trait of Dandy's that I just can't wrap my head around. She really puts down men. Now I'm not saying she's a man-hater (which her overly protective maid obviously is), but she does tend to put down the opposite sex quite a lot, and while Dandy might be befuddled by clues most of the time, this odd character trait has me a little befuddled.

As for the plot itself... once I came to gripes with what was going on, ie, Scotland, Dandy, the rest of the characters all fell into place. While the diamond theft and the murder are relatively simple plot devices, Catriona does a good job of layering the mysteries and doling out the clues so that the book clips along. Yet there was the nagging feeling I had, quite early on, about a third of the way through the book, that I was on the right track, unlike Dandy. It turned out that I was indeed right, but the little wrinkle thrown in helped to make the ending still satisfying. Though with all the tiring to and fro across the countryside, I really do realize that the lure of the Golden Age of Detection was the actually leg work, but this was a bit much, it was the small details that made this book have memorable moments, excluding the vagueness of the ending. The most striking of these moments is the photographs of the dead Cara. They way they are discussed and how they play into the plot make a book that would have just been average reach new heights.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: After the Armistice Ball, British Country House, Catriona McPherson, Dandy Gilver, Dandy Gilver and the Proper Treatment of Bloodstains, Fire, Golden Age of Detection, Golden Summer, Jewel Thief, Scotland

"My writing about the 1920s and 30s was born from a love of the contemporary literature, especially the mysteries. My Dorothy L Sayers are dog-eared from re-reading. Margery Allingham, Ngaio Marsh, Michael Innes and Agatha Christie's Miss Marple too. 

I do have a passion, as well, for some aspects of the actual 1920s and 30s. Unlike many enthusiasts, though, it's not the clothes. I adore the vintage clothes of the 40s, 50s and 60s (Doris Day in a pair of gingham capris is my style icon) but, oh my grated floor soap, I love 20s houses. Especially the kitchens, laundries and sculleries; the products and recipes; the vegetable gardens and garages; the sewing baskets and washing lines. 

There's quite a bit of tramping round stately homes, castles and mansions in the course of researching Dandy Gilver and the drawing-rooms and dining-rooms are all very well. But show me an attic floor of servants' bedrooms and a back stairway to the basement and I'm (a) in heaven and (b) wondering who set the trip wire at the top and sent who tumbling to the bottom and why and how Dandy's going to catch them."- Catriona McPherson

Catriona McPherson was born in Scotland, Edinburgh to be precise, unlike her famous sleuth Dandy Gilver, who just moved to Scotland upon marrying her husband Hugh Gilver. She lived in Ayrshire, Dumfriesshire, and Galloway before emigrating to the United States and settling in in California three years ago, though she's still coming to grips with how big our country is, though she might just beat me for number of states visited... nope, just checked, I'm at 29, she's at 22, let's see who's the first to 50! Married to another artistic soul, she is a little peeved that despite being a writer she isn't the most artistic member of her household. She loves reading, gardening, cooking, baking, and practising an extreme form of Scotch thrift, from eating home-grown food to dumpster-diving for major appliances. Catriona should really stop by Wisconsin in a few weeks when it's college moving time... great deals to be found in the gutters.

But more importantly is that not only has she just released the eighth book in the Dandy Gilver series in the UK, but she's winning some seriously awesome and well deserved awards, such as being the recipient of this past year's Agatha for Best Historical Novel! How awesome is that? And then in just random coolness, she's totally awesome to follow on facebook, so you should go do that. I am beyond jealous that she has the amazing Jessica Hische doing her cover art for her. She likes Doctor Who and Jane Austen to name just a few! Oh, and finally, her new book, As She Left It, is published by my bestie Amy's company Llewellyn Worldwide under their Midnight Ink imprint.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 3 comments  

Labels: Agatha, Agatha Christie, As She Left It, Catriona McPherson, Dandy Gilver, Doctor Who, Dorothy L. Sayers, Golden Summer, Jane Austen, Jessica Hische, Margery Allingham, Miss Marple