A Killing Spring: Gail Bowen

A Killing Spring is the 5th book in a mystery series about Joanne Kilbourn, a political analyst and university professor who gets involved in criminal investigations. The setting is Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Family and relationships play a large part in these mysteries. There are now 19 books in the series, published between 1990 and 2020. The twentieth book will come out in September of 2021.

This story begins as the head of the School of Journalism at the university where Joanne Kilbourn teaches is found dead, in embarrassing circumstances. Further misfortunes occur in Joanne's life, including a student who complained of sexual harassment and then stops coming to class. Joanne looks into the student's disappearance.

As in the earlier books in the series, the story is told in first person and Joanne is not really doing any sleuthing. The first death occurs early and appears to be accidental. There are questions about the death throughout the book but there is no evidence to point in the direction of murder.

My thoughts:

All the Joanne Kilbourn mysteries that I have read feature death and intrigue within Joanne's circle of close friends or even family members. It seems that it is dangerous to know Joanne. This is one of the problems I have with amateur sleuths. Yet her close involvement with the victims does lend validity to her decision to strike out on her own to find out more about the victims and the crimes. When Gail determines that her take on the sexual harassment accusation was mistaken, she ventures out into dangerous territory, unknowingly, of course.

The stories are well written, gripping, and keep me turning the page. I like getting to know Joanne's family. She is a widow with four children between the ages of six and twenty five. The youngest was adopted. Setting is very important in Bowen's books. The descriptions and use of the Saskatchewan locations are interesting and important to the story.

Links to my reviews of the Joanne Kilbourn series, so far:

1. Deadly Appearances (1990)
2. Murder at the Mendel (1991)
3. The Wandering Soul Murders (1992)
4. A Colder Kind of Death (1995)

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Publisher:   McClelland & Stewart, 2011 (orig. pub. 1996)
Length:       257 pages
Format:      Trade paperback
Series:       Joanne Kilbourn #5
Setting:      Saskatchewan, Canada
Genre:        Mystery
Source:      I purchased my copy.

Black Robe: Brian Moore

Description on the back of the book:

His name is Father Laforgue, a young Jesuit missionary come from Europe to the New World to bring the word of God to the heathen. He is given minimal aid by the governor of the vast territory that is proudly named New France but is in reality still ruled by the Huron, Iroquois, and Algonkin tribes who have roamed it since the dawn of time and whom the French call Savages. His mission is to reach and bring salvation to an isolated Huron tribe decimated by disease in the far north before incoming winter closes off his path to them. His guides are a group of Savages who mock his faith and their pledges even as they accept muskets as their payment.

Quote from the Author's Note preceding the text of Black Robe... 

In the early part of the seventeenth century the native people of Canada were not known to the French as “Indians,” but by the names of their tribal confederacies, and were referred to collectively as "Les Sauvages" (the Savages). The natives, for their part, spoke of the French as “Normans” and of the Jesuit fathers as “Blackrobes.” As for the obscene language used by the natives at that time it was a form of rough banter and was not intended to give offense.

Throughout the book this terminology is used, and there is much rude language used by the Algonkins and the Iriquois. Brian Moore's source data for this novel was Relations, letters from Jesuits in New France sent back to their superiors in France.

This book is set in the 1600s in what is now Canada. Some members of the Algonkin tribe have contracted (informally) with Champlain, the leader of the settlement, to deliver Father Laforgue and his companion Daniel (a younger man, also from France) to their destination. The guides and the two Frenchmen making this journey travel in two canoes that also contain supplies. The Algonkins travel in family groups, men with their wives and children of all ages.

Along the way they have many problems: bad weather, not enough food, the mutual distrust between the priest and the Algonkins, and much worse along the way. Daniel is in love with the daughter of one of the Algonkin leaders. Algonkin females in their teens are promiscuous, having sex with any males they desire, but when they marry, they are treated by their husbands as slaves. It appears in this group that the men value their wives, but they keep it to themselves.

This was a challenging read for me. Eventually some of the Algonkins and the two French men are captured by members of the Iriquois tribe. The violence and torture (and more) in this book was disturbing. But it is also a compelling story, thrilling and very well-written.

Moore does an amazing job of portraying the points of view and beliefs of the Savages and Father Laforgue without being judgmental of either one. They have different spiritual beliefs and the priest wants the Savages to be baptized to save their souls. I found myself more sympathetic to the beliefs of the Savages, at times. Clearly, religion, the differences in belief systems, and the clash of different cultures is a theme in this book. 

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Publisher:  Plume Books, 1997 (orig. pub. 1985)
Length:      246 pages
Format:     Trade Paperback
Setting:      New France in North America, 1600s
Genre:       Historical Fiction
Source:      Purchased in November 2020.

The Chief Inspector Gamache series, books 8 and 9

The Beautiful Mystery is the eighth book in the Inspector Gamache series. Following that book is How the Light Gets In. The books have a connection, with a cliffhanger ending (of sorts) in The Beautiful Mystery leading to events which are resolved in the next book. Thus I am posting my thoughts on them together.

The Beautiful Mystery

I really can't do justice to a summary of the plot for this book so I will rely on the description at the author's website:

No outsiders are ever admitted to the monastery of Saint-Gilbert-Entre-les-Loups, hidden deep in the wilderness of Québec, where two dozen cloistered monks live in peace and prayer. They grow vegetables, they tend chickens, they make chocolate. And they sing. Ironically, for a community that has taken a vow of silence, the monks have become world-famous for their glorious voices, raised in ancient chants whose effect on both singer and listener is so profound it is known as “the beautiful mystery.”

But when the renowned choir director is murdered, the lock on the monastery’s massive wooden door is drawn back to admit Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and Jean-Guy Beauvoir of the Sûreté du Québec.

As usual this was a beautifully written story. I enjoyed the new setting. The stories set in Three Pines are charming and I love visiting the inhabitants of that small town, but I also enjoy exposure to other parts of Québec. It was interesting to get a look at the workings of a small monastery.

There is a second plot in The Beautiful Mystery. In past books there have been references to differences within the Sûreté du Québec. At the highest levels, there are people who resent Gamache. This situation comes to a head in this novel, but is not resolved.

How the Light Gets In

Had I realized that this book was set at Christmas, I might have tried to read both of these books before the end of the year. As it is, I started this book a couple of days before the end of the year, and it was the first book I finished in 2021. I read the books back to back because I saw that the cliffhanger ending in The Beautiful Mystery was going to bug me until I read the next book.

There is a mysterious death that is determined to be suicide at the beginning of the book. The incident keeps coming up until it is finally tied in to the rest of the plot towards the end of the book. Around the same time, Myrna, the owner of the bookshop in Three Pines, calls Inspector Gamache and asks him to check on a friend who lives in Montréal and was scheduled to visit Myrna for Christmas. When Gamache goes to her home, he finds the friend dead, murdered. He also discovers that she was one of a famous set of quintuplets who were born in Québec in the 1930s. She had used an assumed name to conceal her identity. 

But at the same time that Gamache is investigating that death, he is dealing with changes in his department. Many of his best detectives have transferred out of his department, some voluntarily, some forced to move by Gamache's superior officer. Only Inspector Isabelle Lacoste is still working with him. New officers have been transferred into Gamache's department.

This book was a very good read. It was overly long, but had a faster pace than The Beautiful Mystery, and kept me reading too late at night in order to finish the book. I will admit to having some reservations as to some plot choices in both The Beautiful Mystery and How the Light Gets In, but not enough to deter my enjoyment. 

These two books fit together very well, it was like reading one very, very long novel. And fortunately, I enjoy immersing myself in the Inspector Gamache books. But that only worked for me because I already had a copy on hand. I would have been quite unhappy to read The Beautiful Mystery when it first came out and then find out I had to wait a year to find out what was going on.

-----------------------------


Pub. data for The Beautiful Mystery

Publisher: Minotaur Books, 2013 (orig. publ. 2012)
Length: 373 pages
Format: Trade Paperback
Series: Inspecter Gamache, #8
Setting: Québec, Canada
Genre: Police Procedural
Source: Purchased in 2020.

Pub. data for How the Light Gets In

Publisher: Sphere, 2018 (orig. publ. 2013)
Length: 534 pages
Format: Trade Paperback
Series: Inspecter Gamache, #9
Setting: Québec, Canada (Three Pines, Montréal)
Genre: Police Procedural
Source: Purchased in 2020.

Short Story Wednesday: Stories from Home Schooling by Carol Windley

I honestly don't know how I happened upon this book, except that I always have an eye open for books by Canadian authors. This one seemed especially appealing because the stories are all set in the Pacific Northwest, and many of them are set primarily on Vancouver Island.

The first three stories in the book focus on some upheaval or major change in the characters' lives. These events are seen mainly from one character's point of view, although multiple characters may be affected. At the center of each story is children and their families.

I was rooting for that central point of view character in each story, which was always one of the children, but sometimes there was no real resolution. That is realistic, but I found it somewhat unsatisfactory. Yet, I kept thinking about all three stories after I had finished them. They stuck in my mind. The writing was very good. I would have read the stories just for the author's way with words. 

My favorite of these three stories is "Family in Black." 

It is a familiar story of a family split by divorce and children adapting to two households. The point of view character is Nadia, a teenager as the story begins, out of high school by the time it ends. Her mother leaves her father for a wealthy logging contractor. Everyone in both families has to change and adapt, but this story focuses on Nadia's relationships with her mother's new family, including the new husband's daughter who is about the same age as Nadia. There is also a theme of environmental issues and climate change.

There is a great quote in the story, from a bookstore owner:

He'd always had a fondness for books, he said; the way their spines lined up on a shelf; the prickly sense of expectation and dread in just taking one down and opening it.

I did have one quibble with "Family in Black." The novel, Rebecca, comes up, and the ending is revealed, in detail. I have read the book, years and years ago, and seen the movie, but still that bothered me. 

I also read:

"What Saffi Knows"

A woman remembers events in her childhood related to the disappearance of a child. Very affecting.

"Home Schooling"

A couple runs a private school, but the school is shut down due the accidental drowning of a 10-year-old student. With no students at the school, the school reverts to a farm and the couple continue to home school their teenage daughters. A complex story, and one with a nebulous ending.

I will continue reading the remaining five stories in the next couple of months.

City of the Lost: Kelley Armstrong

I was drawn to this book for several reasons. It is set in a very cold, very isolated area and I like that kind of story. The author is Canadian, and I am always interested in books set in Canada. And it was recommended by Cath at Read-Warbler and Kay at Kay's Reading Life. 

I liked the premise. Casey, a talented policewoman, has a secret in her past and is afraid it will be revealed. She doesn't really want to run away, but her friend Diana has an abusive ex-husband who won't leave her alone, and Diana finds a place that will take them both in. It is a small town in the Yukon wilderness, so isolated that most modern conveniences are lacking. A town council has to approve new inhabitants, and Casey and Diana are accepted.

I loved reading about how the town existed with no internet, cell phones, or email, and with limited access to food. All travel is by horse or all-terrain vehicles. No cars. There is a hierarchy within the town determined by what each person contributes in their job, and how useful it is to the town.

The story was dark, gritty, and violent, but not to an extreme that bothered me. Casey is able to work with the sheriff of the town, as a detective, which gives her some perks that others don't have. The town has had its first murder before she arrived, which is one reason she was allowed in. 

The best aspects of the story are a strong female lead character, a fast-moving plot, and convincing characterizations. The story is told in present tense, but I don't remember that being a problem for me this time. I will be continuing this series, which at this point has four additional books. This is the only book I have read by this author, but she is also well-known for her books in the urban fantasy genre. 

 -----------------------------

Publisher:   Minotaur Books, 2017 (orig. publ. 2016).
Length:      403 pages
Format:      Trade Paper
Series:       Rockton, #1
Setting:      Yukon,  Canada
Genre:        Police Procedural
Source:      Purchased in 2019.

A Trick of the Light: Louise Penny

The books in the Chief Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny often focus on murders and activities in the fictional town of Three Pines in Quebec. Two of the characters in that town are Clara and Peter Morrow, both artists. Penny has focused on their relationship in several of the mysteries prior to this one, and they are the main focus in this one.

In A Trick of the Light, a murder takes place in the Morrow's back yard, while they entertain neighbors and people from the art scene following Clara's show at the Musee d’Art Contemporain in Montreal. In the Morrow family, Peter has always been the prominent artist, well-known and appreciated. Clara has been in his shadow but now she is getting more attention than he is, and he doesn't react well.

The body of a dead woman is found the following day and Inspector Gamache is called in to investigate the death.  He is a friend of the Morrows and many other people in Three Pines, thus working on the murder is a bit awkward for him. Another element of the story, intertwined with the mystery plot, is the increasing strain on Clara's relationship with Peter.  

In previous posts on this series, I have noted that Inspector Gamache is almost too perfect, with no flaws. He is a likable character, a dedicated policeman yet compassionate. As the series progresses we learn more about Gamache; he has had some traumatic experiences to deal with. And he becomes more interesting.

Louise Penny is very good at creating characters we want to read about, and she has some new ones in this book that are very compelling, even if most of them are devious. She also continues to develop the main characters, both in Three Pines and in Inspector Gamache's team. This was a good entry in the series, and I enjoyed returning to Three Pines.

This book is #7 in the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series. There are now 16 books in the series, which means I still have quite a few of them to read. I recommend reading them in order.

See other reviews at Mysteries and More from Saskatchewan and Mysteries in Paradise.

 -----------------------------
Publisher:   Minotaur Books, 2012 (orig. publ. 2011)
Length:      351 pages
Format:      Trade paper
Series:        Inspector Gamache, #7
Setting:      Three Pines, Quebec,  Canada
Genre:        Police Procedural
Source:      I purchased this book.

A Necessary End: Peter Robinson

This is the 3rd book in the Inspector Banks series.  I read the first two books in this series before blogging, thus at least 8 years ago. It was a good book to pick up the series with, giving some background on Banks' family and his reasons for moving to Eastvale. 

From the description at Goodreads:

A peaceful demonstration in the normally quiet town of Eastvale ends with fifty arrests—and the brutal stabbing death of a young constable. But Chief Inspector Alan Banks fears there is worse violence in the offing. For CID Superintendent Richard Burgess has arrived from London to take charge of the investigation, fueled by professional outrage and volatile, long-simmering hatreds.

Richard Burgess is a policeman that Banks had worked with a few times in London, before he transferred to Eastdale. He is sometimes referred to as "Dirty Dick" Burgess, and Banks has found him a hard man to work with. He is a recurring character in this series, showing up in three later books in the series.

Burgess focuses some of his investigation on a group of people living at Maggie's Farm in a commune-like setting. The author provides excellent characterizations of that group of people and their relationships. The reasons behind the death of the constable are gradually revealed. I like the way Peter Robinson tells the story and also how we get some idea of Inspector Banks' personal life without it intruding on the story.

In my opinion, this book can be read as a standalone; you don't need to start at the beginning of the series. And I have read other reviews where the readers had hopped around in this series. I would rather read in order but when a series has been around this long (with a total of  26 books now), it is good to have other options.

I enjoy books set in the 1980s and 1990s, before so much technology in society and detecting. Also, there are several mentions of the music that Banks enjoys throughout. I am not a big music fan but I do think such information can give you a better picture of a character.

The author is Canadian (born in the UK, but emigrated to continue his education in Canada) but the series is set in Yorkshire, England. Five of the novels in the Inspector Banks series have been awarded the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel.

 -----------------------------

Publisher:  Avon Books, 2000. Orig. pub. 1989.
Length:     340 pages
Format:     Paperback
Series:      Inspector Alan Banks, #3
Setting:     UK
Genre:      Police Procedural
Source:    I purchased this book in 2011.

#1956Club: The Keys of My Prison

This book is my second submission for the 1956 Club hosted by Simon at Stuck in a Book and Karen at Kaggsy's Bookish Ramblings. The Keys of My Prison by Frances Shelley Wees is a novel of domestic suspense set in Toronto, Canada, and this was the first book by that author that I have read.

As the story opens, Julie is keeping vigil at her husband's bedside, nearly two weeks after he was in a terrible car accident. Rafe Jonason has been in a coma since the accident, but seems to be getting better. Rafe and Julie have been married 15 years and have an infant son. Julie was born with a disfiguring birthmark on her face, which affected how she was treated by people and her own self-image. The birthmark was removed after her marriage to Rafe, but she still bears the mental scars of its effects.

When Rafe awakens from his coma in the hospital, he doesn't know where he is or who Julie is, and his behavior is rude and vulgar. On his return to their home, he doesn't recognize it and he turns to drink and cigarettes, which are habits that Rafe never indulged in all the time that Julie knew him. He seems to have amnesia, but his personality is completely different. Julie doesn't know where to go from there. 

I liked the characterizations in this book. Not only the main characters but also the secondary characters are well defined and interesting. Julie is supported by both her Aunt Edie and the family doctor who was treating Rafe. Robin, a lawyer and close friend of the family, seeks help from a psychologist associated with the police, Jonathan Merrill. Once Rafe comes home, Henry Lake, a policeman who works with the psychologist, takes an undercover position at Julie's home for both her protection and to observe the situation. Merrill and Lake have been compared to Holmes and Watson, or Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin, in reviews I have read. The Wolfe / Goodwin comparison seems more apt to me, since Henry Lake takes a very active part in the case.

A major theme is identity. Not just Rafe's identity, but Julie's. Rafe is belligerent and swears he would never have married Julie. Julie is tense, scared, wonders what the future holds. Since their marriage, Julie has depended on Rafe's love and emotional support; now he is rejecting her, and showing a side of his personality that she has never seen. Did he every love her? What does her future hold?

Per the introduction by Rosemary Aubert in the Vehicule Press edition, the 1966 reprint edition was billed as "A Gothic novel of suspense." Not my usual type of reading, but I enjoyed it. The author takes a while setting up the situation but at no time did my interest lag. As the story played out I liked it more and more. The final resolution was interesting and handled well, although a lot of my questions were left unanswered.

I first heard about this book when Brian Busby discussed it at his blog, The Dusty Bookcase. He compared Wees's writing in this novel to Margaret Millar's, and I agree with that assessment, as Millar's book mainly focus on the psychology of relationships and behavior. A few years later, Brian was able to bring out this new paperback edition of the book as a part of the Ricochet Books imprint at Vehicule Press. 

The introduction by Rosemary Aubert is an excellent analysis of the book, but it reveals more of the story than I would want to know before reading the book. I saved it until after I finished the book.

 -----------------------------

Publisher:  Vehicule Press, 2017 (orig. pub., 1956)
Length:    187 pages
Format:   Paperback
Setting:   Toronto
Genre:    Domestic suspense
Source:   I purchased this book.

Bookshelf Traveling for Insane Times No. 16

I am participating in the Bookshelf Traveling For Insane Times meme, hosted by Judith at Reader in the Wilderness. This week I have gathered a few of my books by Canadian authors. 

I am planning to join the Canadian Book Challenge at Canadian Bookworm soon and I thought I would share some books I plan to read. One of them I just bought recently; the others have been on the shelves for a while. I have listed the books in order by year of publication.

The Long November (1946)

by James Benson Nablo

Introduction by Brian Busby of The Dusty Bookcase. Reprinted by Vehicule Press as a part of the Ricochet series.

From the description on the back of the 2014 reprint edition:

The Long November is the story [of] Joe Mack, son of the grittier side of Cataract City – Niagara Falls – and his struggles to make something of himself; all for the love of well-to-do blonde beauty Steffie Gibson. It’s about rum running booze, Chicago beer trucks, Bay Street sharpshooters, the mines of Northern Ontario and fighting the Nazis in Italy.  It’s also about the women, the many women – married, unmarried and widowed – who shares Joe’s bed.

The Keys of My Prison (1956) 

by Frances Shelley Wees 

Introduction by Rosemary Aubert

Description from the book cover:

That Rafe Jonason’s life didn’t end when he smashed up his car was something of a miracle; on that everyone agreed. However, the devoted husband and pillar of the community emerges from hospital a very different man. Coarse and intolerant, this new Rafe drinks away his days, showing no interest in returning to work. Worst of all, he doesn’t appear to recognize or so much as remember his loving wife Julie. ... Is it that Julie never truly knew her husband? Or might it be that this man isn’t Rafe Jonason at all?

Originally published in 1956 by Doubleday, The Keys of My Prison is one of several suspense novels Wees set in Toronto. This Ricochet Books edition marks its return to print after fifty years.

The Stone Angel (1964)

by Margaret Laurence

This book was recommended to me by Patricia Abbott of pattinase.

Description from the University of Chicago Press website:

In The Stone Angel, Hagar Shipley, age ninety, tells the story of her life, and in doing so tries to come to terms with how the very qualities which sustained her have deprived her of joy. Mingling past and present, she maintains pride in the face of senility, while recalling the life she led as a rebellious young bride, and later as a grieving mother. Laurence gives us in Hagar a woman who is funny, infuriating, and heartbreakingly poignant.

Set in the fictional town of Manawaka in the Canadian province of Manitoba, based on Laurence's hometown, Neepawa.

A Necessary End (1989)

by Peter Robinson

This is the 3rd book in the Inspector Banks series. The author, Peter Robinson, is Canadian (born in the UK, but emigrated to continue his education in Canada) but the series is set in Yorkshire, England. Five of the novels in the Inspector Banks series have been awarded the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel.

From the description at Goodreads:

A peaceful demonstration in the normally quiet town of Eastvale ends with fifty arrests—and the brutal stabbing death of a young constable. But Chief Inspector Alan Banks fears there is worse violence in the offing. For CID Superintendent Richard Burgess has arrived from London to take charge of the investigation, fueled by professional outrage and volatile, long-simmering hatreds.

A Killing Spring (1996)

by Gail Bowen

This is the 6th book in a mystery series about Joanne Kilbourn, a political analyst and university professor who gets involved in criminal investigations. Set in Saskatchewan. Family and relationships play a large part in these mysteries. There are now 19 books in the series, published between 1990 and 2020.

This story begins as the head of the School of Journalism at the university where Joanne Kilbourn teaches is found dead, in embarrassing circumstances. Further misfortunes occur in Joanne's life, including a student who complained of sexual harrassment and then stops coming to class. Joanne looks into the student's disappearance.

City of the Lost (2016)

by Kelley Armstrong 

I first saw mention of this book at Cath's blog, Read-warbler. I love books set in  cold, isolated areas. Don't know why.

Two women have problems that they need to escape. People are looking for them and threatening them. They escape to a town in the Yukon wilderness. Per the book's description: "You must apply to live in Rockton and if you're accepted, it means walking away entirely from your old life, and living off the grid in the wilds of Canada: no cell phones, no Internet, no mail, no computers, very little electricity, and no way of getting in or out without the town council's approval."

That concept intrigues me, although it is possible the story will be too over-the-top for me or too violent and dark. But definitely worth a try. There are now five books in the series.

In the Dark (2019)

by Loreth Anne White

The premise of this book (eight guests invited to a luxury vacation in an isolated location) sounds very similar to two other books I have read recently: And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie and The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley. In fact, Agatha Christie's book under the name The Ten Little Indians is mentioned in this book. This story is set in northern British Columbia.

See this review at Mysteries and More from Saskatchewan.

Station Eleven: Emily St. John Mandel

This book got a lot of hype when it first came out, but I did not pay much attention. I prefer to wait and see before trying newer books, whether they have been hyped or not. If my husband had not bought a copy, I might still be waiting to read it.

From the synopsis at the author's website:

One snowy night a famous Hollywood actor slumps over and dies onstage during a production of King Lear. Hours later, the world as we know it begins to dissolve. Moving back and forth in time—from the actor's early days as a film star to fifteen years in the future, when a theater troupe known as The Travelling Symphony roams the wasteland of what remains—this suspenseful, elegiac, spellbinding novel charts the strange twists of fate that connect five people: the actor, the man who tried to save him, the actor's first wife, his oldest friend, and a young actress with the Traveling Symphony, caught in the crosshairs of a dangerous self-proclaimed prophet.

The apocalyptic event in this story is the Georgia Flu, so named because it started in the Republic of Georgia. The famous Hollywood actor is Arthur Leander, feeling his age and about to divorce his third wife. Although he dies at about the same time the apocalyptic event starts to affect Canada and the United States, much of the story follows his life and the people who were important to him. Another focus is the Travelling Symphony, how they function, and how they have survived. One character in that group is Kirsten, a young actress who had a small part in the play Arthur was performing in at the time of his death.

Station Eleven is a post-apocalyptic story, and I do like that sub-genre. But the book has many other characteristics I like. The state of the world without the internet, travel by automobile or airplane, electricity, and many other things we take for granted is an important factor in this book. But it is the story of the interconnections of people and how they adapt to changes in their lives that makes it special.

What did I like?

• The story was unified by two strands, Arthur's story and the Travelling Symphony. I loved the way the story moved about in time, how the relationships are interwoven and how the characters connect in the end.
• I liked the author's style; I had a hard time putting this book down. I read it in two days, which was pretty fast for me, especially this month. 
• I liked the contrast between the older people who have memories of life before the flu and the young people who had no memories of the different ways of living.
• This is not a long book (333 pages) and it follows quite a few characters but there are several characters that we get to know quite well. Arthur and Kirsten are pivotal characters. Others are Javeen Chaudhury, an EMT in training; Clark, Arthur's best friend since college; Miranda, Arthur's first wife.

See other reviews ...

at  Beth Fish Reads, Chasing Bawa, Clothes in Books, The Indextrious Reader, Roof Beam Reader.

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Publisher:   Alfred A. Knopf, 2014
Length:       333 pages
Format:      Hardcover
Settings:     Starts out in Toronto, where Arthur is performing in a play. 

                   Some scenes are in Hollywood. 

                   The Travelling Symphony travels along Michigan's northern coast.

Genre:        Post-apocalyptic fiction

Source:       My husband passed this book on to me.

The Wolves of Winter: Tyrell Johnson

The Wolves of Winter is an apocalyptic novel, and the Canadian setting made it the perfect choice for me. The story has a relatively small number of characters. A family group has moved from Alaska further north into the Canadian Yukon to live after nuclear war and a deadly flu have killed a large portion of the population on earth. Other than one other man who settled near them, they haven't encountered any other humans for years, and then they meet a lone male traveler and a small group of traders.

The family consists of Gwendolyn (or Lynn, as she prefers to be called), her mother and brother, her uncle  and a young man whose father died. Lynn was 16 when they left Alaska, but had been taught hunting and wilderness skills by her father when she was younger. The story starts seven years later. The group survives by hunting and planting what crops will survive. It is a very basic existence, and mostly very cold.

None of the main characters are perfect, they all have their flaws. The most well defined character is Lynn, who tells the story, but we get to know most of the family group pretty well, understanding their motivations. By no means is this a crime story, but there are evil, manipulative characters and it has thrillerish elements. Also there is the element of mystery–pieces of Lynn's background that have been kept from her. So the story was just my type of reading.

The pacing of the story kept me interested, and I enjoyed the descriptions of what the people had to do to survive in that environment. The first quarter of the book is more about setting the background of the story, how the wars and the disease started. I loved Lynn's lists of what was different, what she missed, what she did not miss. The remainder of the book is about learning more about the world outside of the family's small settlement, and is full of action.

Some reviewers compared this novel to YA novels. I don't read many YA novels so can't speak to that, but it did not seem to be aimed at a younger audience to me. And if it was, I still enjoyed it. This is Tyrell Johnson's debut novel. I am hoping the author has another book coming out soon.

Part I of the book begins with this Walt Whitman quote.

"I have heard what the talkers were talking,
the talk of the beginning and the end,
But I do not talk of the beginning or the end.

There was never any more inception than there is now,
Nor any more youth or age than there is now,
And will never be any more perfection than there is now,
Nor any more heaven or hell than there is now."

I found this book via Judith's blog, Reader in the Wilderness. Her review is here.


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Publisher:   Scribner, 2018.
Length:      310 pages
Format:      Trade paperback
Setting:      Canadian Yukon
Genre:        Science Fiction, Post-apocalyptic
Source:      I purchased my copy.

The Dusty Bookcase: Brian Busby

The Dusty Bookcase is a literary exploration of Canadian books, especially those that have been forgotten, neglected, or suppressed. As the author, Brian Busby, tells us in his introduction:

We should read the forgotten because previous generations knew them well. My father read the works of Ralph Connor, as did his. Reading Connor myself has brought me a better understanding of the times these men experienced.

We should be curious about the ignored because recognition is so often a crapshoot; too much depends on publisher, press, and good fortune. 

We should read the suppressed for the very reason that there are those who would deny us the right.

Brian Busby blogs on this same topic at The Dusty Bookcase, and the book gathers information from his posts over the years. I read this book straight through, over a few weeks, and I will dip into it again and again.

The books starts with a section on several books by Grant Allen, a Canadian author of both nonfiction books and novels written from the 1970s until his death in 1899. Allen was a friend of Arthur Conan Doyle, who finished his last book, Hilda Wade. A new author to me and one I will try out.

The last book covered in The Dusty Bookcase is I Lost It All in Montreal by Donna Steinburg, my favorite title in the book.

In between, he covers books by the Millars – Kenneth Millar, also known as Ross Macdonald, and Margaret Millar. Also several pulp novels, including some written by Brian Moore, a well-known author I don't know much about. And I will be seeking out books of his to read.

Here are the titles of some of the chapters:

• Dicks & Drugs
• Erotica, Porn, Perversion, & Ribaldry
• Pop & Pulp
• Romance
• True Crime
• War
• The Writing Life

Lots of variety, and a lots of information to ponder.  Outside of the section on the Millars, Pop & Pulp was my favorite group of articles.

Busby discusses these books in a very personal way, and each article is readable and interesting. Some of them are hilarious. I love the premise of this book, and I highly recommend it as an informative and entertaining read.

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Publisher:   Bibioasis, 2017
Length:       364 pages
Format:      Trade Paperback
Genre:        Reference, Books about books
Source:       I purchased this book.

The Iron Gates: Margaret Millar

I especially like Margaret Millar's crime fiction novels because they are different. The focus is on the psychological aspects of crime, and often the characters are strange and quirky (but not in a comical way). Reading her books adds more variety to my reading.

The Iron Gates is the second novel featuring Inspector Sands and one of Millar's earlier novels. Her novels did not feature recurring characters often but the ones I have read appeal to me.

The story starts with Lucille Morrow coming down to breakfast to join her family. She is very pleased and satisfied with her married life. Her second husband, Andrew, a doctor, is devoted to her, but her step-children, Polly and Martin, have never warmed to her, even though they were very young when their first mother died and Andrew and Lucille married. One morning a stranger delivers a package for Lucille, and shortly after that, she disappears. Andrew reports her as missing, and Inspector Sands is assigned to find her. Coincidentally, Inspector Sands also took part in the investigation of the death of Andrew's first wife. We take a circuitous (but rewarding) path to discover why she disappeared.

This is a book of psychological suspense more than a puzzle, but there are mysteries to be solved. What happened to Marian Morrow, Andrew's first wife. Why did the contents of the package drive Lucille to disappear? And more deaths follow. How and why?

Margaret Millar draws very interesting characters. Even small roles are well-defined. Giles, Polly's boyfriend and soon to be husband, extracts himself from the family until he can understand what is going on. He senses unacknowledged emotions buried beneath the surface. Although the police do not have a large role in this story, several of them have interesting back stories, and I really liked the character of Inspector Sands (as I did in Wall of Eyes).

Also of interest is the wartime setting. The book was published in 1945 and is set during the war. Polly's fiancé is in the military, soon to be sent overseas, and, due to the draft, there is a shortage of men available to work on the police force.

Margaret Millar was born, raised, and educated in Canada. Some of her books were set in Canada, and some were set in Southern California, where she lived most of her adult life with her husband Kenneth Millar, also known as Ross Macdonald. This book was set in Toronto, Canada, and uses that setting very well.

From Brian Busby's review in The Dusty Bookcase:

Margaret Millar's sixth novel, The Iron Gates, was the one that really made her. With the proceeds of its sale she bought a house in Santa Barbara, sharing it with her husband Kenneth, far from the cold of Canadian winters past.

See also:

• Patti Abbott's review at The Rap Sheet.
• John Grant's review at Noirish.
• NancyO's review at The Crime Segments.

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Publisher: Dell, 1960 (orig. pub. 1945).
Length:    222 
Format:    Paperback (D-332)
Series:     Inspector Sands #2
Setting:    Toronto, Canada
Genre:     Mystery, Police Procedural
Source:    I purchased this book in 2015.

The Tin Flute: Gabrielle Roy

The Tin Flute is a classic Canadian novel, first published in French as Bonheur d'occasion. The book tells the story of the Lacasse family in the St. Henri area in Montreal, during World War II. They are poor, and only the oldest daughter, Florentine, is working. Eugene, the oldest brother, has joined the military. It took me a while to get into the story, but about halfway into the book it took hold of me and I could not stop reading.

This is how the story begins:

Toward noon, Florentine had taken to watching out for the young man who, yesterday, while seeming to joke around, had let her know he found her pretty.

The fever of the bazaar rose in her blood, a kind of jangled nervousness mingled with the vague feeling that one day in this teeming store things would come to a halt and her life would find its goal. It never occurred to her to think she could meet her destiny anywhere but here, in the overpowering smell of caramel, before the great mirrors hung on the wall with their narrow strips of gummed paper announcing the day’s menu, to the summary clicking of the cash register, the very voice of her impatience. Everything in the place summed up for her the hasty, hectic poverty of her whole life in St. Henri.

The story centers around Rose-Anna, the mother, and Florentine. With eight children in the family, Rose-Anna is again pregnant. Her youngest child, Daniel, is in very ill health. The father, Azarius, is usually unemployed, a dreamer, always leaving one job for a "better" opportunity and spending most of his time away from home talking with a group of men, young and old, about the state of the world.

Florentine is a waitress in a restaurant in the back of a Five and Ten store in her neighborhood. She meets Jean Lévesque, a customer, and falls for him, although he is arrogant and aloof. She is desperate to escape from her life in poverty. Later she meets Emmanuel, a friend of Jean's, who loves her while she is still obsessed with Jean.

The story is beautifully written. In the first portion of the novel I was impatient with the slow pace and the introspection of the characters. As I became more involved in the pain and sadness and frustrations of the family members, I was pulled into the narrative.

This is a story of war and those who are affected, the Canadian home front, and the pain of poverty. There is so much more to this book than I can describe here, but not without revealing the later parts of the story, and I think each reader should discover all of it on their own.

I found the story depressing although I am sure not everyone would feel that way. Yet, I am very glad I read this book and I highly recommend it.

The Tin Flute was Gabrielle Roy's first novel. Nine more novels followed, published between 1950 and 1982.

Brian Busby of The Dusty Bookcase introduced me to this book, suggesting it two years ago for a World War II reading challenge. I did not get to it until this year. I am grateful that he mentioned it.


 -----------------------------

Publisher:   McClellan & Stewart, 2009 (orig. pub. 1945)
Length:      400 pages
Format:      Trade paperback
Translated by:  Alan Brown
Setting:      Montreal, Canada, 1940
Genre:       Fiction, Classic
Source:     I purchased this book.

Free Reign: Rosemary Aubert

The unusual protagonist of this story is a homeless man who was once a judge, high in Toronto society. Ellis Portal was born to a poor family but through education and perseverance has raised his status in life. He was born Angelo Portalese but tried to hide his origins by changing his name. When he graduates from law school a fellow graduate calls together five friends, including Ellis, and gives them rings to commemorate their connection. The rings bind them by allowing each member of the group to extract one favor from each of the others, no question asked. From that point the five lawyers proceed with their lives and ambitions, except  for one who dies in a tragic car accident shortly afterward.

Ellis becomes a judge, marries and has children, but later in his life, the pressures of his job get to him; he has a breakdown and suffers from anger management issues. He ends up in jail, then in a mental institution, then becomes homeless.

At the point that the book begins, Ellis has been homeless for five years and lives in a homemade shelter made from a packing crate in a ravine in Toronto. He finds the severed hand of a black male  in the garden area he has planted, and that hand has one of the five rings on the finger. He begins to investigate but things get very complicated. Being homeless, he is not healthy, not well fed, and can't go into the downtown area without a great effort to clean himself up. He works with a female reporter he knew in his previous life to look for clues, but along the way discovers other mysteries to solve.

I liked this book quite a bit. The first person narrative from Ellis keeps us focused on his story and allows many facts to be hidden from us. He shares little of his history, which is frustrating at times but fits his character. I was engaged in the story throughout.

One element of this book is the interesting look at the life of a homeless man, in this case one who avoids shelters and lives in isolation. The ravine system in Toronto, which spans several parks, is also very intriguing.

The characters were also well done. Ellis feels very real, and is shown with plenty of faults, but still sympathetic. Some of the secondary characters are homeless people. Others are friends or acquaintances that have kept tabs on Ellis over the years even though Ellis has rebuffed them and their overtures.

Some reviews complain of a fairy tale happy ending and the unbelievable revelations and events that resolve the mysteries that Ellis has been investigating. Those accusations are true, to a certain extent, but I enjoyed the whole book and had no problem with any part of the ending.

Aubert writes with sensitivity about several topics: homelessness, prostitution, homosexuality. I enjoyed getting to know the main character and the gradual revelation of what had led to his current status. I will be reading the second book just to see what happens next in Ellis Portal’s life.

See Rick Robinson's excellent review at The Broken Bullhorn.

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Publisher:   Felony & Mayhem, 2009 (orig. pub. 1997)
Length:      306 pages
Format:      Trade paperback
Series:       Ellis Portal #1
Setting:      Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Genre:        Mystery
Source:      I purchased my copy.