Book recommendation: Remarkably Bright Creatures.

I have seen this book come up over and over again on Goodreads, in blogs I follow, and online. You know the old saying, “You can’t judge a book by its cover?” Well, that holds true here.

This was a book that I just wouldn’t have read by looking at it or even after reading the brief descriptions of it. It just didn’t seem like something I would enjoy.

My wife, you may recall, recently joined Goodreads and has been listening to audio books now. It’s been fun to see many of the books I have read pop up on her “want to read” list.

She read this book and loved it. She said she thought I would like it. A few of my friends had recently read it as well and said it was one of the best books they read this year. So I checked it out and was not disappointed.

It was a great story! Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

Remarkably Bright Creatures, an exploration of friendship, reckoning, and hope, tracing a widow’s unlikely connection with a giant Pacific octopus.

After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she’s been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago.

Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors–until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.

Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova’s son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it’s too late.

Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel is a gentle reminder that sometimes taking a hard look at the past can help uncover a future that once felt impossible.

The characters were very real and they dealt with real life issues (death, addiction, grief, gossip, depression, love, etc). At first you wonder how everything fits together, but as the story moves along the puzzle comes together nicely.

It is a heartwarming story that I am so glad I read. I highly recommend it.

Book Recommendation: Death Comes to Marlow

You may recall that a couple weeks ago I wrote about the Marlow Murder Club. It is very similar to the Thursday Night Murder Club books. I loved it. You can read about that here:

Book Recommendation: The Marlow Murder Club

I was glad to see that the second book in the series was also available in audiobook form and I checked it out immediately. It did not disappoint, even though I had an idea of how the murder was accomplished without knowing who the murderer was.

Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

It’s been an enjoyable and murder-free time for Judith, Suzie and Becks – AKA the Marlow Murder Club – since the events of last year. The most exciting thing on the horizon is the upcoming wedding of Marlow grandee, Sir Peter Bailey, to his nurse, Jenny Page. Sir Peter is having a party at his grand mansion on the river Thames the day before the wedding, and Judith and Co. are looking forward to a bit of free champagne.

But during the soiree, there’s a crash from inside the house, and when the Marlow Murder Club rush to investigate, they are shocked to find the groom-to-be crushed to death in his study.

The study was locked from the inside, so the police don’t consider the death suspicious. But Judith disagrees. As far as she’s concerned, Peter was murdered! And it’s up to the Marlow Murder Club to find the killer before he or she strikes again…

For a long time, I tried to steer away from some of the books that featured the same main character(s). Many years ago I read the Ben Kincaid series from William Bernhardt. I enjoyed the first couple, but then I felt like each book after consisted of recaps from the books before. It got old and I stopped reading them.

Lately, however, the series I have read with returning characters have been fantastic. Much like watching Columbo, Perry Mason, or Murder She Wrote, it is a joy to revisit these main characters.

There was a point in the middle of the book where a piece of evidence is presented and I began to realize just how the murder was committed (in a sense). Despite that knowledge, I didn’t know who the killer/killers was/were. It was a satisfying ending and another great mystery.

The third book of this series was just released to bookstores and it is called “The Queen of Poisons.” I will be looking for that one soon!

Book Recommendation: The Marlow Murder Club

One of the things I love about Goodreads is how they will take books that you have read and offer suggestions based on them. You may recall that I have read all of the available books in the Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman. This book was suggested based on those. I admit there are similarities, but this one was just as good.

This is the first book in the series. It was very well written and there were plenty of twists and turns throughout it. There were likable characters and characters that you like to hate. I was left guessing right up to the end, and there were some surprises that wrapped everything up nicely.

Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

To solve an impossible murder, you need an impossible hero…

Judith Potts is seventy-seven years old and blissfully happy. She lives on her own in a faded mansion just outside Marlow, there’s no man in her life to tell her what to do or how much whisky to drink, and to keep herself busy she sets crosswords for The Times newspaper.

One evening, while out swimming in the Thames, Judith witnesses a brutal murder. The local police don’t believe her story, so she decides to investigate for herself, and is soon joined in her quest by Suzie, a salt-of-the-earth dog-walker, and Becks, the prim and proper wife of the local Vicar.

Together, they are the Marlow Murder Club.

When another body turns up, they realize they have a real-life serial killer on their hands. And the puzzle they set out to solve has become a trap from which they might never escape…

The author, Robert Thorogood, is an English screenwriter. He is best known as the creator of the BBC 1 Murder Mystery Series, Death in Paradise. I was excited to learn that the PBS show Masterpiece is adapting this book into a 4-part miniseries that will air on PBS soon.

It’s no secret that I love a good mystery, and I enjoyed this one a lot!

Book Recommendation: A Man Called Ove

With each book I read by Fredrik Backman, the more I like him. I just finished A Man Called Ove, and it was so good.

I kind of held off on reading this one because I heard people say how sad it was. Were there some sad parts, yes, but life is not always happy. We all go through sad times. This book was that way. Much like the other Backman books I read, I found myself laughing out loud at times. Other times, I was anxious to find out what happened next.

Backman has a way of presenting his characters in such a way that you connect to them. They are real people with real emotions and experience real life situations. I think we all know someone like Ove, and all of the people in his neighborhood. To me, this could take place in almost any city anywhere.

Here is the Goodreads Synopsis:

A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door.

Meet Ove. He’s a curmudgeon, the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him the bitter neighbor from hell, but must Ove be bitter just because he doesn’t walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time?

Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove’s mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents’ association to their very foundations.

I compare Ove to Ebenezer Scrooge of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Not because he has this miraculous change and becomes a happy, cheery guy, but because of that grumpiness that IS Ove. That doesn’t mean you can’t like him, because you can. He has quite a story.

This book was made into the movie A Man Called Otto starring Tom Hanks. I like Hanks, but I’m not sure I want to see an American movie take on such a wonderful book. I started this blog by saying that I held off reading this book because of things I had heard about it. After finishing it, my only regret is that I didn’t read it sooner.

Book Recommendation – Britt-Marie Was Here

Frederik Backman is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. His books are full of characters that you connect with. They are “real.” His books make me “feel,” if that makes sense. I find myself belly laughing out loud at times and holding back tears at other times.

Just this week I posted about the novella I read by Backman. You can read that here:

Book Recommendation – And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer

I believe the first book I read by him was Anxious People, which I simply loved.

Book Recommendation: Anxious People

When I read My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, I was first introduced to the main character of today’s recommendation – Britt-Marie. You can read about that one here:

Book Recommendation: My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She’s Sorry

In the above story, Britt-Marie leaves her husband and drives off. Her story picks up in Backman’s follow up, Britt-Marie Was Here. I was intrigued to know what her story would be and I found this to be a delightful read. Again, there was laughter and moving moments. There was a whole lot more to Britt-Marie than I could have imagined.

Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

Britt-Marie can’t stand mess. A disorganized cutlery drawer ranks high on her list of unforgivable sins. She is not one to judge others—no matter how ill-mannered, unkempt, or morally suspect they might be. It’s just that sometimes people interpret her helpful suggestions as criticisms, which is certainly not her intention. But hidden inside the socially awkward, fussy busybody is a woman who has more imagination, bigger dreams, and a warmer heart that anyone around her realizes.

When Britt-Marie walks out on her cheating husband and has to fend for herself in the miserable backwater town of Borg—of which the kindest thing one can say is that it has a road going through it—she finds work as the caretaker of a soon-to-be demolished recreation center. The fastidious Britt-Marie soon finds herself being drawn into the daily doings of her fellow citizens, an odd assortment of miscreants, drunkards, layabouts. Most alarming of all, she’s given the impossible task of leading the supremely untalented children’s soccer team to victory. In this small town of misfits, can Britt-Marie find a place where she truly belongs?

The one thing that really stood out in this story was that you have Britt-Marie, fresh from leaving her husband in a rundown and dying community and they both really need each other. Despite the obstacles that are thrown in the paths of each of them, they both learn to persevere and compliment each other. Both experience change as the novel progresses and it will leave you wanting more.

In 2019, there was a movie made based on the book. I think you can see it on Amazon Prime, but I’m not sure I want to as the overall rating was 5 out of 10 stars. Probably proof again that the book is almost always better than the film adaptation.

Book Recommendation – Everyone On this Train is a Suspect

You may remember that I stumbled on Benjamin Stevenson’s Everyone in my Family Has Killed Someone last year and I just loved it! You can find my review of it here:

Book Recommendation: Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone

I have been waiting a long time for the follow up sequel – Everyone on This Train is a Suspect. Thanks to the good folks at NetGalley and Mariner Books, I was able to read an advance copy of it. It did not disappoint.

The main character of the book is again Ernest Cunningham. In this sequel, he has had great success with his first book (Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone) and comes face to face with some authors who are, well, much better known than he is. Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

Ernest Cunningham returns in a deliciously witty locked room (train) mystery.

When the Australian Mystery Writers’ Society invited me to their crime-writing festival aboard the Ghan, the famous train between Darwin and Adelaide, I was hoping for some inspiration for my second book. Fiction, this time: I needed a break from real people killing each other. Obviously, that didn’t pan out.

The program is a who’s who of crime writing royalty: the debut writer (me!), the forensic science writer, the blockbuster writer, the legal thriller writer, the literary writer, and the psychological suspense writer.

But when one of us is murdered, the remaining authors quickly turn into five detectives. Together, we should know how to solve a crime. Of course, we should also know how to commit one.

How can you find a killer when all the suspects know how to get away with murder?

It is just as entertaining as the first book. Ernest will, as he did in the first book, keep you abreast of things that you need to know. He offers up hints as to what is coming, etc. That was one of the things that I loved about the first book.

We see a bit of insecurity in Ernest this time around. He is the newly successful writer who is now among all of these other writers and he feels that he really doesn’t belong. He feels that way because he really didn’t come up with the story he wrote, he just wrote down what he experienced. He didn’t actually come up with the plot. He feels these other authors are way above his level of writing.

Now, his publisher wants another book from him. We learn fairly quickly that he has – nothing. No idea, no story, no nothing! Well, that is until one of the authors is murdered. The events that unfold on the trip come together and wind up being this story.

Once again, I was guessing right up to the end. Benjamin Stevenson does such a wonderful job in keeping you guessing. I love that we get the thoughts of Ernest and how he speaks directly to the reader at times. How it all plays out and how it all comes together is like wrapping a Christmas present – everything falls into place and it is tied up with a nice ribbon on top.

I loved it just as much or more than his first book. I truly hope that there might be another book in the future. I enjoyed this so much!

Thanks again to Net Galley and Mariner books for allowing me to read such a wonderful mystery!

Book Recommendation: The Keeper of Hidden Books

This was a book that I added to my list because of its title and because it is based on a true story. I have never read anything by Madeline Martin, but I think I will visit some of her other stories after this one.

Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

All her life, Zofia has found comfort in two things during times of hardship: books and her best friend, Janina. But no one could have imagined the horrors of the Nazi occupation in Warsaw. As the bombs rain down and Hitler’s forces loot and destroy the city, Zofia finds that now books are also in need of saving.

With the death count rising and persecution intensifying, Zofia jumps to action to save her friend and salvage whatever books she can from the wreckage, hiding them away, and even starting a clandestine book club. She and her dearest friend never surrender their love of reading, even when Janina is forced into the newly formed ghetto.

But the closer Warsaw creeps toward liberation, the more dangerous life becomes for the women and their families—and escape may not be possible for everyone. As the destruction rages around them, Zofia must fight to save her friend and preserve her culture and community using the only weapon they have left—literature.

I know I had read about Hitler destroying books and replacing them with “approved” books instead, but I hadn’t realized there were so many people who worked to save the ones the Nazis were trying to get rid of. These librarians played such an important role in saving great literature.

I was also aware of the destruction of Warsaw, but had no idea of the group of people who fought back against the Nazis. This fictional story that is woven into real historical events includes real people and those who were created based on real people. It is a story that serves as a reminder of just how terrible things were and how badly people were treated. I found myself engulfed in these characters and felt their emotions, too, as I read.

The author really makes you feel the cost of the occupation and it makes The Keeper of Hidden Books a tough story to “enjoy”. As another reader put it “I would recommend it to everyone, but I would also recommend choosing a moment when you’re ready to experience some angst and heartache.” When you finish this book, you cannot help but feel grateful for the freedom and peace that we enjoy as you are reminded what that freedom cost.

Book Recommendation: The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

I mentioned this book a few days ago, and I finally finished it. I really enjoyed this one. It was such a unique mystery. I may have posted the Goodreads synopsis, but here it is again:

Evelyn Hardcastle will be murdered at 11:00 p.m. There are eight days, and eight witnesses for you to inhabit. We will only let you escape once you tell us the name of the killer.

Understood? Then let’s begin . . .

Evelyn Hardcastle will die. Every day until Aiden Bishop can identify her killer and break the cycle. But every time the day begins again, Aiden wakes up in the body of a different guest. And some of his hosts are more helpful than others . . .

The most inventive debut of the year twists together a mystery of such unexpected creativity it will leave listeners guessing until the very last second.

The Amazon synopsis has a dead on description:

“Pop your favorite Agatha Christie whodunnit into a blender with a scoop of Downton Abbey, a dash of Quantum Leap, and a liberal sprinkling of Groundhog Day and you’ll get this unique murder mystery.” ―Harper’s Bazaar

The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a breathlessly addictive mystery that follows one man’s race to find a killer, with an astonishing time-turning twist that means nothing and no one are quite what they seem.

Aiden Bishop knows the rules. Evelyn Hardcastle will die every day until he can identify her killer and break the cycle. But every time the day begins again, Aiden wakes up in the body of a different guest at Blackheath Manor. And some of his hosts are more helpful than others. With a locked-room mystery that Agatha Christie would envy, Stuart Turton unfurls a breakneck novel of intrigue and suspense.

International bestselling author Stuart Turton delivers inventive twists in a thriller of such unexpected creativity it will leave readers guessing until the very last page.

I’ll cheat a bit and give you the Wikipedia plot, because it’s better than what I could write:

At the start of the book, the novel’s protagonist awakes in a forest, suffering from memory loss, and calling for someone named Anna. He doesn’t remember his own name. He finds his way to a manor, where his friends tell him that he is a doctor called Sebastian Bell who is attending a party thrown by the Hardcastles, the family of Blackheath Manor. After he falls asleep that night, however, he awakes to find himself in the body of the butler, and it is the morning of the previous day.

He learns that he has eight days, and eight different incarnations, to solve the murder of Evelyn Hardcastle, which will take place at 11pm at the party that evening. He will only be allowed to leave Blackheath once he finds the killer. If he is unable to solve the mystery in the eight allocated days, the process will start again and he will awake again in the body of Sebastian Bell with his memory wiped. He also learns that there are two other people competing to find out the murderer, and that only one person will be permitted to leave Blackheath.

The book really does remind me of an Agatha Christie mystery. There are plenty of twists and turns throughout the story and with each character you learn something new. You see the story from each of the “hosts” eyes and things aren’t always what they seem. The ending was something that took me by surprise and it had everything that a good mystery should have.

Kudos to Stuart Turton! I highly recommend this one.

Book Recommendation: The Five Wishes of Mr. Murray McBride

I have just finished this wonderful book and there are many words I could use to describe it: warm, funny, sad, thought provoking, emotional, happy, and … magical. This was such an easy read and such a great story. It is a fictional story, but I found myself wanting to meet the characters in real life.

This was a book that was a suggestion on Goodreads. I don’t recall if one of my friends had read it or not, but I was intrigued by the story. It was one that I had my local library order for me. When the email arrived saying the book was on hold, I had totally forgotten about it. Once I started it, I couldn’t put it down. I finished it within 48 hours.

I was unfamiliar with the author, Joe Siple. According to the publisher (Black Rose Writing) “Joe Siple is the USA Today bestselling author of The Five Wishes of Mr. Murray McBride, winner of The National Indie Excellence Award, The PenCraft Award, and named 2018 Book of the Year by the Maxy Awards. The story topped Amazon bestseller lists in the US, Canada, and Australia.”

Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

With all his family and friends gone, one-hundred-year-old Murray McBride is looking for a reason to live. He finds it in Jason Cashman, a ten-year-old boy with a terminal heart defect and a list of five things he wants to do before he dies.

Those wishes aren’t easy ones.

He wants to kiss a girl.
He wants to hit a home run in a major league baseball stadium.
He wants to be a superhero.
He wants to find a boyfriend for his mom.
He wants to perform real magic.

Together, they race against the limited time each has left, ticking off wishes one by one. Along the way, Murray remembers what it’s like to be young, and Jason fights for the opportunity to grow old. But when tragedy strikes, their worlds are turned upside-down, and an unexpected gift is the only thing that can make Jason’s final wish come true.

To a degree, the story reminded me a bit of the Pixar movie Up! Both focus on the relationship between an old man and young boy. That relationship starts a bit rocky, but grows into something very special. Let me be clear, though, they are two very different stories. It will warm your heart and maybe even make you shed a tear. Please be sure to let me know if you read it. I would love your thoughts.

I found out from the publisher that there is a sequel. It has a bit of a similar plot line and I may have to add it to my list of books to read. It is called The Final Wish of Mr. Murray McBride.

Book Recommendation: The 9th Man by Steve Berry

I’ve been fascinated by the JFK assassination since I was a kid. My grandmother had a book on her shelf that was called 4 Days. It had many pictures from November 22, 1963. There were plenty of photos that I had never seen before.

I spent countless hours looking at that book. When we had to write a report on a historical event for school, I naturally wrote about the assassination. My grandmother also had saved many of the local newpapers from the days that followed the assassination. I remember borrowing them for my research.

In the years following I have read many accounts on the events of that day. Most of those accounts were based on theories of who really shot the President or new “evidence” and stuff like that. But there have also been some fantastic fiction novels with the events of that day playing a major role (Stephen King’s 11/22/63 is a favorite).

I have read many of Steve Berry’s books and enjoyed most of them. This is the first book I have read where he wrote with someone else – Grant Blackwood. The books premise is based on another book (based on a theory that the shot that killed JFK may have come from a secret service agent) called Mortal Error.

Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

From New York Times bestselling author of the Cotton Malone series comes a thrilling, action-packed historical adventure that sends Luke Daniels on an international manhunt for the truth about the assassination of President John Kennedy.

Luke Daniels is in London, between assignments with the Magellan Billet, when he receives a frantic call from an old friend. Jillian Stein is in trouble. She made a mistake and now her life may be in danger. She needs Luke’s help. Immediately. Racing to Belgium Luke quickly finds that she was right. A shadow team of highly-trained operatives are there on the hunt. Intervening, he finds himself embroiled in a war between two determined sides — one seeking the truth, the other trying to escape the past — a war that has already claimed one life and is about to claim more.

Thomas Rowland is a Washington insider, a kingmaker, problem-solver, but also a man with a past. For him everything turns with what happened on November 22, 1963 in Dallas, Texas. What history has recorded is wrong. There is more to the story, much more, and Thomas Rowland is at the center of that terrible reality. But forces are working against him, and Rowland will do anything to keep the world from learning what actually happened on that fateful day, including killing Luke, Jillian and anyone else who might be a threat.

In a race from Belgium, to Luxembourg, to the bayous of Louisiana and the Wyoming wilderness, to a final confrontation in the Bahamas, Luke Daniels confronts a series of shocking truths which not only rewrite history but will forever change his own life — as he comes face to face with the ninth man.

All in all, I enjoyed this one. Steve Berry rarely has disappointed me. He is so good at incorporating historical events into his stories.