Oxford Double

Finished September 30
Oxford Double by Veronica Stallwood

I've read these completely out of order, but that is mostly okay. This is #9 in the series featuring writer Kate Ivory, and begins as Kate has come back to live in her own house after a short period of cohabitation with a man named George. Her mother Roz had lived in her house for the duration, but has now moved into her own home. Kate is on the plane returning from a short vacation in France and as she waits to get off, notices the man in front of her is wearing a wig and gloves. She is after all a person who notices things, part of her vocation as a writer.
No sooner has she arrived home than the new (to her) neighbours next door, the Fosters, invite her over for drinks later that evening. They are kind, but effusive, gossipy and bossy and Kate likes them but know she must set some limitations to keep her privacy. They also invite the neighbour on the other side of Kate, Jeremy Wells, a lecturer at an Oxford college. He seems nice enough, but a bit shy and Kate makes her escape as early as she can manage.
As she begins work on her new novel, she finds the Fosters noise somewhat distracting and resorts to earplugs and music on headphones during her work stints. As she comes out of her office one day, she is horrified and surprised to discover that the Fosters have been shot in what appears to be a contract killing. Kate's admittedly small knowledge of them doesn't see what such a thing should be, and when Jeremy comes to her looking for help in lying low, she isn't sure what to think.
Kate's natural curiosity drives her to find answers to her questions and it doesn't occur to her that she may be putting her own life in danger through her delving.
Not one of my favourites in this series, but a good story still.

The Interestings

Finished September 28
The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer, read by Jen Tullock

I started this as an audiobook, but had technical issues, and finished it with the hardcover. In the summer of 1974, six young people, three girls and three boys meet at summer camp. They come from different backgrounds, but their camp experience bonds them together for years to come. Julie (newly christened Jules at camp) Jacobson feels the outsider, at camp on scholarship, the only one from Long Island rather than New York City. Jules father died the previous spring and she has been caught up in her and her family's grief until her arrival at camp. Goodman and Ash Wolf are from a wealthy family and go to private school. Ash has become Jules best friend and is the pride of her parents, while Goodman messes up constantly and yet his good looks and charm seem to get him out of most of the situations he finds himself in.
Ethan Figman is also at camp on scholarship but he is already showing signs of becoming a gifted animator and will go on to an immensely successful career in animation. He also takes Jules under his wing and gives her confidence.
Jonah Bay is the only child of a successful folksinger, Susannah Bay who travels a lot and provides love but not a lot of structure in his life. Jonah has a secret already at his young age that will influence the rest of his life.
Cathy Kiplinger is a gifted dancer, but her voluptuous body is already showing signs of preventing her making a career of dance, and drawing boys like wasps. Cathy is showing signs as well of becoming a girl with large emotional needs.
With the backdrop of this summer the Nixon resignation, it almost seems like a world apart from reality, but all to soon everyone must go back to their everyday lives. But the friendships continue and the camp recurs until the end of high school. A few months before the last summer at camp, Goodman finds himself in a situation that he can't charm himself out of, and the group of six is stressed and diminished.
But the connections continue and Jules finds herself a career as a therapist, marrying a young man with his own issues to overcome. Ethan and Ash connect unexpectedly and have their successes and their sorrows. Goodman and Cathy's lives are changed irrevocably and Jonah is a lost soul, forever affected by his childhood secret.
Back in summer camp, these six coined the name the Interestings for themselves, and they are interesting characters, but this book also highlights the fact that being interesting is more common than one might think.
This is a story of lifelong friendships, and of lives lived. It is indeed interesting.

Band of Angels

Finished September 28
Band of Angels by Julia Gregson

This novel begins in Wales in the mid-1850s where Catherine Carreg was allowed to grow up freely, running around with the young son of the local drover Deio, riding horses and spending lots of time outdoors. But now she is growing up and her parents are restricting her to more ladylike activities, something she finds hard to adjust to. When a medical tragedy hits her family and Catherine is the only one on hand, she realizes how helpless she is and determines to overcome this lack of knowledge.
With the help of young Deio, Catherine makes it to London and gets accepted into training with Florence Nightingale. When the opportunity arises to volunteer to nurse in the Crimea, Catherine is eager to test her skills and help in any way she can.
Deio, a master at training horses, is also drawn to the Crimea, but has no idea of the reality of the conditions there and is in over his head.
Both young people can not forget each other despite their drives to prove themselves in the world, and they reconnect under horrific conditions.
Gregson did a lot of research for this book despite little historical material being available. The conditions of the hospitals and the lack of acceptance of the nurses is shown graphically. Gregson gives us a glimpse of the politics behind this first nursing endeavour, and disease, malnutrition, and lack of resources that were the reality.

Bindweed

Finished September 27
Bindweed by Janis Harrison

This mystery is part of a series featuring flower shop owner Bretta Solomon. Set in River City, Missouri this series is billed as gardening mysteries.
A young man with developmental disabilities, and who has lived on his own since his mother died is the first victim. Toby seems harmless, making spending money by working for a number of town merchants that his mother introduced him to before her death. Toby sweeps sidewalks, washes windows and does other small odd jobs. But someone considered him enough of a threat to kill him in a particularly nasty way. As Bretta thinks back on comments Toby made earlier in the day, and other shopkeepers tell her their thoughts, she starts to make connections between the missing plants in his mother's garden and Toby's death. When another victim is also killed in a particularly nasty case of poisoned bubble bath, Bretta worries that a recent unexplained gift of toiletries to her store may also be suspect.
Meanwhile at home, Bretta's father seems inordinately involved in the design of the house's bedrooms and seems to be spending a lot of time with the young woman proposing the work plan. Bretta can't help but wonder what the relationship is between her father and the young woman.
An interesting mystery series that I hadn't dipped into before.

Oxford Knot

Finished September 26
Oxford Knot by Veronica Stallwood

This is the second time I've read this book (the first was quite a few years ago) and I'd forgotten enough of the details to come to it fairly fresh.
This is part of the series featuring writer Kate Ivory, and here Kate is approached at the last minute to be part of an author tour. She is paired with historical bodice-ripper author Devlin Hayle, who provides lots of entertainment and a fair bit of worry. Devlin has many issues, and unrealistic expectations, causing embarrassment and evasive action.
Kate's librarian friend Andrew has been spending a lot of time at her house trying new recipes and assisting in the development of Kate's young neighbour Harley. Also assisting with Harley's education is Kate's friend Paul. The two men agree to look after her house, the animals and Harley while she is off on tour. But something terrible happens and Kate is forced to return home to deal with the unexpected tragedy and try to figure out why it happened.
With lots of intrigue, uncertainty and a fair bit of humour, Kate steps up to the challenges and faces her fans with equilibrium.

Front and Center

Finished September 25
Front and Center by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

This is the third book in the series featuring Wisconsin farm girl and athlete DJ Schwenk. Basketball season has begun and DJ knows she will be expected to take a leadership role on the team, but doesn't feel comfortable speaking up when others are watching. She also knows that a scholarship for basketball is the only way she will get to go to college given her family's financial circumstances.
Her old brother Win has taken an interest in her basketball and college issues after she helped him move forward in his life. But she doesn't like the pressure on her and isn't sure she is cut out for a top basketball school.
This novel is about self confidence, knowing who you are and being able to tell others, and being a role model. DJ likes flying under the radar, but that isn't possible for her right now, and she has to learn how to deal with attention and being the leader her skills naturally take her to. This is about friendship and growing up, about standing up for yourself and about not selling yourself short.

The Off Season

Finished September 24
The Off Season by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

This is the second novel in the series that began with Dairy Queen. This begins with the fall semester of DJ's junior year at school. She has made the football team, and after a brief interruption resumed her friendship with Amber. Brian Nelson seems interested in her for more than just her coaching skills, and things are going incredibly well.
And then they aren't. With injuries to both her and others in her family, relationship issues, and attention that she hadn't expected, DJ's world changes drastically. She has to deal with things she never thought of, and be an anchor to her family in their time of need.
DJ really grows here, realizing that she has qualities she hadn't thought she did, and her family and friends see a side of her they hadn't expected.
A great addition to the series.

Others of My Kind

Finished August 21
Others of My Kind by James Sallis

This short novel is enthralling, hard to put down. Jenny Rowan has led an unusual life. Kidnapped at the age of eight, held (often in a wooden box under her captor's bed) for two years, she then escaped and lived for months in a mall. Found and put into foster care, she made a new life for herself, as a successful news editor and now works at a small television station in Washington, D.C.
As the book starts, she is approached by a detective and asked to help if she can a young woman who has just been found, captive for some time, by a kidnapper.
As Jenny is drawn out of her hidden past by this young woman, and other people in need, she participates, but also observes. She can relate to this others and offer meaningful understanding and comfort, but she still stands apart. Jenny is an interesting character and the story is like no other I have read. Sallis has done it again.

Rose Under Fire

Finished September 18
Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wien

Rose Justice is a young American woman flying with the ATA during the later years of World War II. Her father ran a flight school in the US, and she had been flying from a young age. In the ATA she works with Maddie, a young woman we met in the book Code Name Verity. Rose is independent and enthusiastic and with an uncle high up in the War Ministry, she gets some opportunities others don't.
When she gets the chance to fly her uncle to Paris after the city was liberated, she jumps at it, and agrees to ferry a plane back to Britain afterward. But on her trip back, something goes wrong and she ends up captured and taken to Ravensbruck, one of the German's concentration camps.
While Rose is a fictional person, the story of Ravensbruck is not, and the author uses many historical sources to ensure that the story told her is accurate in its fact. This part of the story is difficult and one of the things that helps the reader through it is the knowledge that Rose does survive her experience. The author deliberately limits Rose's knowledge to that which a woman in her situation would be aware of, not giving the full experience of the atrocities of the camp. One other thing that helps the reader through this story is the amazing attitude of the camp victims, the fight they exhibit, the ways of working around the limitations and the cruelties and the risks they take to survive. The small daily rituals, and ways they have of buoying each other up and the small delights they find in their very limited lives.
Rose also writes poetry and the poems written during her time in Ravensbruck and shared with her fellow prisoners there evoke more than the text descriptions, putting the emotion into the experience.
A wonderful book that brings history alive.

Quantum of Tweed

Finished September 16
Quantum of Tweed: the man with the Nissan Micra by Conn Iggulden

This short novel is wonderfully humorous. Albert Rossi owns a menswear store in Eastcote, suburban London. Driving home one evening a man runs out in front of his car and Albert hits and kills him, a terrible accident. While out of his car checking on the victim, Albert is approached by someone else, unseen by him, who warns him off. And the farce begins.
Later that night when Albert receives a phone call from a mysterious caller who sounds like Stephen Hawking, he takes a step in a new career direction, that of hitman.
As Albert clumsily fumbles his way through his next couple of jobs, which he took to pull himself out of a bad financial situation, he discovers he may be in over his head. He knows his menswear, easily able to identify quality goods, but is unfamiliar with dealing with the tools of the assassin.
This is a lovely little novel of an ordinary man in an extraordinary situation.