The St. Zita Society by Ruth Rendell

Hardcover, 272 pages

Scribner, August 14, 2012

ISBN: 1451666683 (ISBN13: 9781451666687)

A highly enjoyable novel. To my mind, this one’s at least equal in quality to Portobello and No Man’s Nightingale (by Rendell) and The Cuckoo’s Calling (by Galbraith/Rowling). 

This is a crime novel in name only. The crime element is only the framework for Rendell's shrewd observations about the characters’ interior lives. Her graceful style highlights just how mediocre James Patterson, Michael Robotham and certain other popular thriller writers really are. For me personally, the London setting is another attraction.

Readers with incipient senility may be put off by the bewildering array of characters. But I say: no problem. Simply make a list of the ten most frequently mentioned characters, with a key fact about each to jog your memory. That’s what I always do. If you have a Kindle, it’s easy to search by character name for Dex, Dr. Jefferson, Mrs. Neville-Smith, Jimmy, June, Henry, Huguette, Montserrat, Rad Sothern, Thea, Miss Grieves...and that's not even all of them. I’m sure I’ll read more by The Right Honourable The Baroness Rendell, CBE. 

Link: New York Times Book Review, August 31, 2012

Bricked-Up Passageway to Hotel

The Knickerbocker Hotel in New York has been closed since 1920. Now, it's being restored. While cleaning out the basement, workers uncovered a bricked-up door, the entrance to a forgotten passageway between the hotel and the Times Square subway station. 

This resolves the mystery surrounding a long-disused door on the subway platform.  It retained its old "Knickerbocker" sign for all those years. Now we know why. 

Subway side view

Hotel side view

This story is a potent link to certain childhood fantasies. As a boy I longed to discover secret passageways, bricked-up doors, hidden staircases and the like. And why not? Adventurous young fellows were always stumbling across such things in Hardy Boys adventures such as The Secret of the Lost Tunnel, The Tower Treasure and The House on the Cliff. Sadly, our house in New Jersey contained none of these hidden mysteries. However, my searches did uncover mysteries of a different sort in my father's sock drawer, including racy James Bond novels, a 1952 Georgia Tech college yearbook and -- most shocking of all -- a marriage manual. 
Links:

• Sneak peek at new Knickerbocker Hotel - New York Post, July 14, 2014
• Behind Subway’s Phantom Hotel Entrance, Neither Arias Nor Opulence - New York Times, July 17, 2014

Coin Hoard in Old House

Someone cleaning out an old house in England found a "junk box" containing coins.

Most were worthless, but one turned out to be a 1793 cent worth over $41,000.

Link:  

Cent Found in Junk Box Becomes Auction Bonanza

Coin World, July 4, 2014