Sunday, June 1, 2014

Mysteries in May and Pick of the Month

In April I read six mysteries, one book in the fantasy genre, and finished three non-fiction books.

When I read non-fiction, I usually spread it over several months. The non-fiction books I read were The Rough Guide to Cult Fiction, Infographic Guide to the Movies, and Wartime: Britain 1939-1945.

The fantasy novel that I read was Among Others by Jo Walton, and I have not reviewed it yet. Jo Walton is primarily an author of fantasy fiction, but she also wrote a trilogy of mystery novels set within an alternate England where Germany and England reached a peace agreement in 1941. I loved books 1 and 3 of that series, book 2 was one of those mid-trilogy novels which fell short of the other two. The books in the trilogy are Farthing, Ha'penny, and Half a Crown. Among Others is the first fantasy book by her that I have read, and I liked it too.

These are the mysteries I read this month. Two of them are cross-genre, fantasy blended with mystery. I am still behind on reviews, maybe I will catch up by next month.


The Malcontenta by Barry Maitland
In the Shadow of the Glacier by Vicki Delany
Whispers Under Ground by Ben Aaronovitch
Skeleton in Search of a Cupboard by Elizabeth Farrars
9tail Fox by Jon Courtenay Grimwood
Sleep While I Sing by L. R. Wright

I liked all of the mystery novels I read. My favorite for the month is an easy pick, although it did edge out one of the others by a slim margin. 9tail Fox is my Pick of the Month for May. That novel is fantasy blended with mystery, and the mystery elements were stronger in this novel than in many cross-genre novels (at least I see it that way). The other book that came close was Whispers Under Ground, which is also cross-genre, but the fantasy elements in that books are much stronger. This is the third book in the Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch and all of the books in that series are a lot of fun.

The Crime Fiction Pick of the Month meme is hosted at Mysteries in Paradise. Bloggers link to a summary post for the month, and identify a crime fiction best read of the month


15 comments:

Puzzle Doctor said...

9tail Fox sounds intriguing, Tracy. It's going on the list...

TracyK said...

Great, Puzzle Doctor. I hope you find a copy and enjoy it.

Cath said...

I really like the Rivers of London books too. Whispers Underground is my favourite I think.

I have Jo Walton's Farthing on my Kindle tbr pile. Glad to hear it's a decent trilogy.

You had a good reading month!

TracyK said...

Cath, I hope you like Farthing. I like the way Jo Walton writes. I am reading through What Makes This Book So Great, but it will take me a while.

Prashant C. Trikannad said...

Tracy, I liked all the books you read in May though if I were to pick any one I'd go for "Wartime: Britain 1939-1945" which I do want to read; as for the rest I'd probably have to toss a coin.

Cath said...

Yes, I took a while to read What Makes This Book so Great as well. It's worth lingering over. I ended up liking it so much I bought my own copy to reread at leisure.

Anonymous said...

Tracy - I'm always impressed by the diversity of books that you read and review. I need to make sure I don't always read crime fiction...

TracyK said...

Prashant, I am sure you would like Wartime and its 692 pages would not even phase you. I may read her book about the Blitz (or at least try to) since it is much shorter.

TracyK said...

Thanks, Margot. I am definitely more comfortable reading mystery fiction.

col2910 said...

A great month Tracy. I'll have to try the Maitland series soon (next year or so), Grimwood I'm considering and I'm pretty sure I have the Wright book somewhere. I also want to read some non-fiction and spreading them over several months does help.

Clothes In Books said...

Having said I wished I had time to read your Pick of the Month, you're now making me think I need to find the time!

TracyK said...

All of those are good authors, Col. L.R. Wright's books are quiet but not cozy.

TracyK said...

Someday, Moira, I hope you do find the time and I hope you like it. Even if you ignore the supernatural parts, it has a lot of strange elements.

gautami tripathy said...

Such diverse reading. I will check out the pick of the month!

Here is my Crime Fiction Pick of May 2014.

TracyK said...

Gautami, thanks for pointing to your list. The book by Jane Isaac sounds right up my alley... and you have read 6 crime fiction books I have not even heard of. I will follow up on them.