First, in no particular order, here are my favorites in the fiction category:
Mantel, Hilary: Wolf Hall
Excellent account of the life of Thomas Cromwell, minister to Henry VIII. It made me want to learn much more about the Tudors. The sequel, Bring Up The Bodies, is a must-read for 2013. [Link: Wall Street Journal book review.]
Gregory, Phillippa: The Red Queen
Terrific historical novel about Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII. I've resolved to read everything Gregory has written. An audiobook, I listened to it while driving to and from the EEI conference in Phoenix.
[Discussed elsewhere in this blog. ]
Dermont, Amber: The Starboard Sea
Rich boarding school kids live lives of decadence amidst the pain and confusion of adolescence.
[Link: New York Times book review.] [Discussed elsewhere in this blog]
Among non-fiction, my favorite was Janet Reitman's Inside Scientology, an objective account of the bizarre "religion" and its founder, L. Ron Hubbard. Beware of Thetans and suppressive persons.
[Link: Janet Reitman's web site.]
And here are all the rest (F = fiction, N = non-fiction):
Child, Lee: Killing Floor (F)
Ex-military policeman Jack Reacher dismantles a nest of criminals. Disappointing. I can’t picture Tom Cruise in this role.
Holman, Sheri: Witches on the Road Tonight (F)
Road trip takes a Depression-era couple to Appalachia, where they encounter a backwoods witch. Interesting and well-written.
Harkness, Deborah: A Discovery of Witches (F)
Yes, another witch book. This book features vampires too, but the witches are much more interesting. Sorry, but I'm bored with tales of irresistibly seductive vampires and love-struck vulnerable women. No more, please, you're killing me. Well-written, but I won't bother with the sequel.
Hocking, Amanda: Switched (F)
I like to read a young adult novel every once in a while. The story had its moments. The author got this one noticed first as an e-book distributed via the Internet. That led to publication in conventional form. I give her a lot of credit for that, but this one's better suited to a teen female audience than guys like me.
Martin, George R.R.: A Clash of Kings (F)
A worthy sequel to A Game of Thrones.
Silva, Daniel: Moscow Rules (F)
I can barely remember what it was about. Something to do with an Israeli intelligence agent who is a deadly assassin and a gifted restorer of Old Masters. Give it a pass.
Collins, Suzanne: The Hunger Games (F)
More than a young adult book, the author also has something to say about popular culture and celebrity. Much better than I expected.
Martin, George R.R.: A Storm of Swords (F)
Martin keeps the Game of Thrones wheeze moving along nicely in Book 3.
Martin, George R.R.: A Feast for Crows (F)
Book 4 of the Game of Thrones series. This one introduces a host of new characters while neglecting the most interesting from previous books. I could sense the author losing interest in his own story… or trying to prolong the series as long as he can for financial reasons… or all of the above. Too many promising plot elements are unresolved after four books. What happened to the Others and "winter is coming?" It's not coming fast enough.
Furst, Alan: Mission to Paris (F)
An actor is thrust into intrigue in pre-war Paris in this thriller. A better story than some of his prior books, perhaps because you don't have to wade through all those Balkan surnames.
Matheson, Richard: Steel (F)
Published as a tie-in to the Real Steel movie, this is a collection of Matheson's short stories, including some dating back to the 1950s. The tie-in: it includes Steel, on which the movie was based and easily the best story of the lot. I picked it up in an
airport bookstore.
Gwynne, S.C.: Empire of the Summer Moon (N)
Biography of the half-breed Quanah Parker, son of a Comanche chief and a captured pioneer woman. He chooses to live with the Indians, becoming a Comanche chief himself. Yet another bleak history of the exploitation of native Americans, it left me feeling weary and depressed.
Rendell, Ruth: Portobello (F)
Not really a crime story, this one’s more a character study of contemporary Londoners. Great read. I’ll look for more by Baroness Rendell.
Fraser, George MacDonald: The
Steel Bonnets (N) Remarkably detailed history of the Anglo-Scottish border reivers. By the author of the Flashman novels.
[Discussed elsewhere in this blog.]
Sansome C.J.: Dissolution (F)
In the days of Henry VIII, a hunchbacked lawyer is sent to dissolve a monastery and solve a murder mystery. Right after reading Wolf Hall, I was on a mad tear to find more Tudor material, and that led me to this one.
Guinn, Jeff: The Last Gunfight (N)
"The real story of the gunfight at the OK Corral." Wyatt Earp wasn't a very nice guy; he worked in brothels, probably as a bouncer, and spent time in jail. It seems his brother Virgil was probably a better lawman. Doc Holliday is variously referred to as "the hot-tempered dentist," "the tubercular dentist" (is the author joking?) and "a very dangerous man."
Perry, Ann: The Face of a Stranger (F)
Atmospheric detective story set in Victorian London. A William Monk mystery. Well-written, but the amnesia plot element didn't feel convincing to me.
Ackroyd, Peter: London Under (N)
Hidden secrets beneath the streets of London. I don't suppose I'll ever get this topic out of my system, and in truth, I don't want to.
In total, that's 17 fiction, 5 non-fiction. Not a bad year.
Looking ahead, I have some interesting items on the shelf for 2013. In addition to Mantel's Bring up the Bodies, there's Constantine's Sword by James Carroll (I'm in the early chapters now), The Book of Genesis: A Biography by Ronald Hendel, Iron Curtain by Anne Applebaum, and something or other by A.J. Cronin - perhaps Hatter's Castle.