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Archive for July, 2014

Mystery Monday – The Enormous Shadow

Monday, July 14th, 2014

 

The Enormous Shadow by Robert Harling

 

Review by Matt B. (BuffaloSavage)

 

This Cold War story from 1955 is set in London, with many references streets like King’s Road and places such as Chester Square and Tower Bridge. Before WWII, Harling published The London Miscellany, a survey of the design of Victorian London, so he knew the city inside and out.

In fact, this is a newspaper thriller because the narrator is an international correspondent. While his base is in New York City, he is on vacation in London, checking in with his wily editor in chief. Said boss assigns him to interview up and coming MP’s. One of the MP’s, the reporter finds, may be a traitor. Working in tandem with a dodgy mathematician, he may be passing guided missile secrets to the Soviets.

While the action may feel slow to some readers, the pace is steady and incidents unfold with surprises all down the line to a rousing climax. Harling’s prose is clear and civilized. The love story grows naturally out of the action and is believable. To my mind, the appeal is the verisimilitude. Harling worked on Fleet Street before the advent of our information age, so his stories of tough editors, hard-bitten reporters, and their dance with the authorities in government and the police ring true to life. Any reader who likes stories about newspaper trade before Rupert Murdoch and ilk will certainly enjoy Harling’s chronicle of a vanished world, little known outside the memoirs of forgotten journalists.

Don’t confuse this writer with the playwright famous for the 1985 hit Steel Magnolias. Our Harling here was one of those versatile Englishmen who were skilled at both the arts and espionage. He worked in publishing, as a typographer and graphic designer. During WWII, his friend Ian Fleming, later creator of James Bond, got him transferred into Fleming’s Secret Navy, which “was responsible for day-to-day liaison between the naval intelligence division and the British war propaganda teams (see Harling’s obit here).”

 

 

 

Free Book Friday Winner!

Sunday, July 13th, 2014

 

 

The Winner of the brand new copy of the book Tell the Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt is:

 

Angela H.

 

Congratulations! Your prize will be on the way to you shortly!

Thank you to everyone who commented!

Free Book Friday!

Friday, July 11th, 2014

 

This week’s Free Book Friday prize is:

Tell the Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

 

In this striking literary debut, Carol Rifka Brunt unfolds a moving story of love, grief, and renewal as two lonely people become the unlikeliest of friends and find that sometimes you don’t know you’ve lost someone until you’ve found them.   — 1987. There’s only one person who has ever truly understood fourteen-year-old June Elbus, and that’s her uncle, the renowned painter Finn Weiss. Shy at school and distant from her older sister, June can only be herself in Finn’s company; he is her godfather, confidant, and best friend. So when he dies, far too young, of a mysterious illness her mother can barely speak about, June’s world is turned upside down. But Finn’s death brings a surprise acquaintance into June’s life — someone who will help her to heal, and to question what she thinks she knows about Finn, her family, and even her own heart.   At Finn’s funeral, June notices a strange man lingering just beyond the crowd. A few days later, she receives a package in the mail. Inside is a beautiful teapot she recognizes from Finn’s apartment, and a note from Toby, the stranger, asking for an opportunity to meet. As the two begin to spend time together, June realizes she’s not the only one who misses Finn, and if she can bring herself to trust this unexpected friend, he just might be the one she needs the most.   An emotionally charged coming-of-age novel, Tell the Wolves I’m Home is a tender story of love lost and found, an unforgettable portrait of the way compassion can make us whole again.

ISBN 9780812982855, Trade Size Paperback

 

There are currently 221 members wishing for this book. 1 lucky member will win.


To enter, simply leave a comment on this Blog post. You must be a PaperBackSwap member to win.

 

We will choose 1 winner at random from comments we receive here on the Blog from PBS members.

 

You have until Sunday, July, 13 2014 at 12 noon EDT, to leave a comment.

 

 

Good Luck to everyone!

 

 

 

Note: All the books given away on Free Book Friday are available in the PBS Market. We have thousands of new and new overstock titles available right now, with more added hourly. Some of the prices are amazing – and you can use a PBS credit to make the deal even better!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Young Adult Review – The Luxe

Tuesday, July 8th, 2014

The Luxe by Anna Godbersen

 

Review by Mirah W. (mwelday)

 

I couldn’t resist the cover image of The Luxe.  I was drawn to the gorgeous, luxurious fabric of the dress and had to pick it up to see what it was about.  What I got was young adult historical fiction with enough drama that would make most of us feel like we live rather sedated, run-of-the-mill lives.

The Holland sisters, Diana and Elizabeth, seem to have everything young ladies could want: money, beautiful clothing, a home in the right area, friends with connections, and a dazzling future.

In an interesting twist, the novel begins with a death announcement of one of the main characters (I’m not posting a spoiler here, if you turn to page one you get this info).  But the twists and turns to get to where the death becomes part of the plot is an intricate trip through the lives of the privileged elite of the Manhattan social scene in 1899.

Godbersen explores what happens under the surface of this social scene; the backstabbing, lies, secrets and affairs showcase that privilege can sometimes bring more complications than solutions.  The undercurrent of self-doubt in some characters reflects that having everything doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll have self-respect.  Some characters are simultaneously annoying and likable and their scandals and relationships make the plot more interesting.

While the plot becomes rather transparent along the way, it is still an enjoyable escapist read.  I look forward to reading the rest of the series to see how the characters adapt to their new situations.  I think readers who like the Gossip Girl or Pretty Little Liars series will enjoy The Luxe.

 

Mystery Monday – The Case of the Hesitant Hostess

Monday, July 7th, 2014

 

The Case of the Hesitant Hostess by Erle Stanley Gardner

 

Review by Matt B. (BuffaloSavage)

 

Fans and critics agree that the following Perry Mason novels by Erle Stanley Gardner rank the best for courtroom fireworks, convoluted plots, and swift pace:  The Case of the Lazy Lover (1947), The Case of the Lucky Loser (1957), and The Case of the Foot-Loose Doll (1958).

I would argue, however, that The Case of the Hesitant Hostess (1953) should rank among the best because of its setting and atmosphere. Gardner examines the process in which a gang makes pots of money by opening nightclubs and gambling joints. Punished for their good looks by being coerced to become shills, hostesses distract suckers from realizing they are victimized in crooked games.

Unwary squares find themselves in trouble as rubbing elbows with crooks gradually turns into helping said bad guys do their dirty work or paying big costs like death, injury, and disability when not paying up. Given enough venal ruthlessness, Gardner finds, gangs find it relatively easy to gain control of a medium-sized burg, corrupt the police department, and stymie reform with bribes and violence.

The gritty noir setting and tone remind us of Gardner’s other series featured the PI duo of Bertha Cool and Donald Lam. Crime doesn’t not come out of everyday stuff like infidelity or personal indiscretions. Instead, the crime is the outcome of a complex criminal scheme. Gold Comes in Bricks (1940) is about an intricate fraud. Turn on the Heat (1940) examines the corruption of local politics: seedy cops, crooked politicians, co-opted news reporters, mean gangsters, and cowed citizens.  Top of the Heap (1952) is about gambling hells, income tax scams and fraudulent gold mines.  All Grass Isn’t Green (1970) is about the ins and outs of dope smuggling for criminal syndicates. Gardner took endless interest in process, such as how gangs succeed, how detectives ferret out information, how the cops manipulate and prime impressionable  eyewitness to misidentify blameless people as perps.

There are lapses in this Hesitant Hostess. We don’t even get the name of Mason’s client until the fourth chapter. Perry meets one of Drake’s operatives, talks to him at length, and we never get his name either. We are told Perry and Della win in a casino but are not told what they played. Chapters 3 and 16 are so long – unusually long for Gardner – that we wonder if Gardner just lost track of the length of his usual chapters.  The motive for framing Mason’s client rather wilts under scrutiny.

But I quibble. To both Mason fans and newbies, I highly recommend this mystery as one of the more tightly plotted and atmospheric Perry Mason novels from the Fifties.