I'm nearly finished reading Laurie King's The Beekeeper's Apprentice and Rosalind Belben's Our Horses in Egypt. I hope to finish them both this weekend. I'm so glad I stuck with the King book. After a lull in the action I was ready to set it aside, but I decided to keep going and things picked up quickly and now I can't seem to put it down. I'm really enjoying the Belben book as well. I admit I found it hard going in the beginning, but somewhere along the way something clicked and now I think it's a excellent yet slightly disturbing (war scenes) book. I'll save my thoughts about both for later. By the way, it looks like the Belben book is due to be published here in the US in May (go take a look at the many kudos it has garnered and all well deserved).
I've already decided that next up will be Michelle Moran's Nefertiti and Tom Rob Smith's Child 44--not the least because both are reader's copies. I'm drawn to the exotic setting of Egypt in Nefertiti (both the King and Belben books are set wholly or partly in either Egypt or Palestine and they have given me a taste for a setting other than Europe. I've read rave things about Child 44 from both Dovegreyreader and Cornflower (both bloggers whom I admire and find myself constantly writing down their reading suggestions). I had already queued for it, but when I was offered a review copy I snapped it up (much nicer than waiting for a library copy, which I won't get until May no doubt!), and am now daily watching the mail for it to arrive.
I'm still loving Sarah Bower's Needle in the Blood. It's funny as the story is different than I expected,not that I actually had any expectations of what would happen (other than what I read generally in the book description) but I'm finding that the story is surprising me. I always like it when characters do the unexpected. I especially love the descriptions of the needlework:
"Margaret twists round to reach the wooden stand behind her, from which skeins hang from dowel pegs set in the cross pieces, and unwinds a length of the blue grey wool Gytha is using. A similar stand is beside each frame, each with eight pegs to carry skeins of each of the eight colours the embroiderers are using: terracotta red, blue woad, a deep blue-black derived from indigo, sea-green and sage-green, ochre yellow, yellow weld and a dark, yew green produced by over-dying. Gytha finds it curious, remembering the procession of Bishop Odo's soldiers stripping Edith's hall of treasures, that the materials for the hanging should be so plain. No silk thread or baudekyn, no gold or silver wires to cut and roughen the fingertips, just simple running stitch, wool on white linen, like making tablecloths."
Needless to say I'll be looking for a book on the Bayuex Tapestry. Whenever I read a book about an artist or that has to do with a painting I like having a corresponding book for the visuals.
I finished listening to Neil Gaiman's Coraline. What a wonderful story and a great story to listen to. I had no idea (thanks to Tara, who also just read the book, for pointing it out) that it has been made into a movie. Check out the trailer here! Unfortunately I am going to have to give Olen Steinhauer' s The Bridge of Sighs the heave ho. I am just not getting on well with the reader's voice. It's nothing personal, but this is supposed to be a relaxing activity--listening to books--and I find myself cringing at times when he does the various voices. I might have to look for the book and just read it, but I'll be searching for something else to listen to that's easier on my ears. I'm contemplating listening to Kate Chopin's The Awakening, a book I loved when I read it a few years back. I think there is the option of listening to an excerpt before downloading, so I'll give it a try. I thought of buying a book from Audible.com (my player came with a freebie coupon, so I can try a book for free), but I have a fear of buying an audio book only to discover I don't like the reader's voice. At least library audio books are free!