A Work in Progress

Reading Notes: Autumn Inspiration

An (almost) new month (is upon us), a new season and cooler weather.  All good reasons for (another) fresh start.  How long does it take to form (or reform) a new habit?  I make no promises, but I would very much like to post somewhat regularly (more than once a season, maybe?!), so we'll see how it goes.

Since finishing the novel, Three by Valerie Perrin, I have read more than a dozen or so books, many very good, others pretty good (and a few 'discards' along the way), and now I am set to pick up some books with a little seasonal atmosphere.  I think autumn is my favorite time of the year and the weather is finally very comfortable and enjoyable to be outside or inside with windows open.  I hope it lasts and of course I have a stack of books that I pulled out to choose from to match the mood. Possibilities:

A Sleep and a Forgetting, William Dean Howells -- The story centers on a young alienist--a psychologist--who meets a young woman who, at subsequent encounters, has no recollection of him. 

The Quickening, Rhiannon Ward -- For fans of The Silent Companions, The Little Stranger and The Familiars, an exquisitely crafted and compelling mystery that invites the reader in to the crumbling Clewer Hall to help unlock its secrets.

House of Glass, Susan Fletcher -- June 1914 and a young woman - Clara Waterfield - is summoned to a large stone house in Gloucestershire. Her task: to fill a greenhouse with exotic plants from Kew Gardens, to create a private paradise for the owner of Shadowbrook. Yet, on arrival, Clara hears rumours: something is wrong with this quiet, wisteria-covered house. Its gardens are filled with foxgloves, hydrangea and roses; it has lily-ponds, a croquet lawn - and the marvellous new glasshouse awaits her. But the house itself feels unloved. Its rooms are shuttered, or empty. The owner is mostly absent; the housekeeper and maids seem afraid. And soon, Clara understands their fear: for something - or someone - is walking through the house at night. In the height of summer, she finds herself drawn deeper into Shadowbrook's dark interior - and into the secrets that violently haunt this house. Nothing - not even the men who claim they wish to help her - is quite what it seems.

O Caledonia, Elspeth Barker -- Author Elspeth Barker masterfully evokes the harsh climate of Scotland in this atmospheric gothic tale that has been compared to the works of the Brontës, Edgar Allan Poe, and Edward Gorey. Immersed in a world of isolation and loneliness, Barker's ill-fated young heroine Janet turns to literature, nature, and her Aunt Lila, who offers brief flashes of respite in an otherwise foreboding life. People, birds, and beasts move through the background in a tale that is as rich and atmospheric as it is witty and mordant. 

The Uninvited, Dorothy Macardle -- A gothic, bone-chilling Irish ghost story first published in 1941 and now brought back into print. The title benefits from an introduction by well-known academic Professor Luke Gibbons and Martin Scorsese and various critics, including William K. Everson and Leonard Maltin, regard The Uninvited as one of the best ghost stories ever filmed.

You'll Never See Me Again, Lesley Pearse -- Betty is running for her life.  When Betty's husband returns from the war broken and haunted, she knows her marriage is doomed.  Taking a fleeting chance to escape, she goes on the run armed with a new identity. Yet penniless and alone, Betty quickly finds that starting again is much harder than she thought.  And she never imagined it could end in murder . . .  But sometimes you have to keep running if you want to survive.

A Tidy Ending, Joanna Cannon -- ...a delightfully sinister novel about a married woman living a nice, quiet suburban life--but things aren't always what they seem...

The Drowning Kind, Jennifer McMahon -- A woman returns to the old family home after her sister mysteriously drowns in its swimming ​pool...but she's not the pool's only victim.  (Not in the photo--but in my stack).

I am starting with Susan Fletcher's novel as I have read and enjoyed her work, but I am sure I will be reaching for other books in this pile.  Have you read any of these or have any good recommendations of autumn spooky reading?

A Few Summer Reading Notes

It's too hot where I live (and maybe where you live, too) for reading in the garden, but it is a nice idea.  Maybe closer to fall, which I am looking forward to greatly!  My porch chair has sat empty all summer. 

I guess we are officially into the dog days of summer.  And maybe time to catch up a bit on what I have been reading, or trying to read.  As is my current trend, my reading is all over the place with more than a few misses but a number of hits as well and plenty of books in progress.  My reading continues to be motivated mostly by my mood, which seems to change daily.  But I have not given up on the very few reading plans and projects on which I set forth a month or so ago.  

First a mention of a book kindly sent to me from Europa Editions that I thoroughly enjoyed and found pretty captivating last month, Valerie Perrin's Three.  Last year I read and loved her novel Fresh Water for Flowers, and had I shared a 'best of' list (I don't think I ever got around to it) it would have made it high on the list.  I was thrilled to see another book translated and being published this year (and I hope another will be coming next year?).  I have been wary of big, chunky books of late.  Not through their fault, but if there is such a thing as a 'long hauler' 'my reading is still off kilter' mode of being--I am still there.  I was assured, however, that this was a perfect summer read that I would find engrossing and indeed I found that to be the case.

The novel follows the friendship of three young people as they navigate growing up in a small French town.  Nina, Adrien and Etienne are inseparable growing up.  They are as close as siblings and nothing can come between them until one summer tragedy strikes in ways that will mark them all for life.  There is a bit of a mystery to the story and twists that you don't expect, that are more about growing up and becoming an adult and recognizing the person inside rather than unraveling the puzzle always hovering in the background.  It was a story that I became completely involved in.  The characters are not perfect, but they felt so real and I became invested in their lives in a way I have not in a long time in my reading.

Yes, friends, I started this post in the heat of summer and am now revisiting it in the coolness of a fall morning.  Maybe it was the draining humidity of the summer or dealing with family issues, or just a lack of energy, but I am sorry I have been so absent for so long.  (I seem to say that quite often here, don't I).  And I expect I am talking aloud to an empty room (all on me, sadly).  I have been absent so long that I only discovered that Typepad is no longer (since 2020?) accepting new subscribers and next month will be migrating data, which somehow does not seem to bode well.  I need to get my (not really empty) room in order and decided what to do, whether to move on or move elsewhere.  Are blogs a thing of the past now?  Maybe everyone has left me for TikTok?  

I will do some cleaning up while I decide.  I have a little time left on my subscription.  I have read a number of good books, set aside quite a few that were not working for me.  Summer has turned to fall and I am happy with cooler mornings and sunny afternoons.  My (see post below) summer reading plans started okay, but I did not manage as well as I had hoped, which is okay.  It is always nice to have a stack of books that appeal and choose some to see if they click or not.  I have made a pile of autumn books that I will share, too.  I am sorry this sat so long in draft mode.  I wonder where my online bookish friends are hanging out these days?