The mysterious key and what it opened (by Louisa M Alcott)

(Amazon UK link)

I have long enjoyed Louisa M Alcott's novels, the best-known of which is 'Little women'. I was aware that a few of her works were long out of print, but had not realised until recently that they are available free as e-books.

'The mysterious key and what it opened' is the first book I read on the Kindle which I was given for Christmas. It's not a full-length novel; I was easily able to read it in a couple of sittings. So it made a good starter for e-reading as I got used to my new toy.

The story begins with the mysterious death of Lillian's father, after he receives an unexpected visitor. Lillian, who is young at the time, grows up rather spoiled. When she's about twelve she befriends Paul, who works as a servant but is evidently from her class - and, equally evidently to the reader, has some connection with her past.

It's written in an almost gothic style, with a rather melodramatic ending.Were it not for the author's fame through the 'Little Women' series and others, it would probably have been lost to the world by now. But for the genre, it's nicely done; I quite like the style, and there are plot twists that I wasn't expecting.

All in all, I enjoyed it, and (since it was free) would recommend it to anyone who likes this kind of historical fiction. I look forward to reading more books that have been long out of print on my new Kindle.

Note that this book has been re-published in paperback, and the Amazon link above is to one of these editions. You can find Kindle editions at the Amazon site too, or download it free from Project Gutenberg.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 28th December 2010

Jesus wants to save Christians (by Rob Bell and Don Golden)

(Amazon UK link)

I haven't read anything by Rob Bell, but have seen him on a few 'Nooma' DVDs - short anecdotes leading to discussion starters at a basic level for Christians and seekers. I've never before heard of Don Golden. I'd heard of this book but had not got around to looking for it, so was pleased when we were able to borrow it from a friend.

'Jesus wants to save Christians' has a sound starting point: the huge gap between the practices of most of the church in the 21st century and the principles Jesus espoused. Money is spent on building projects rather than feeding the poor, with hierarchies of organisation that make the business world look chaotic, at times.

The trouble is, the writing style just doesn't work. It's not the informality - I don't mind that at all. It's not even that it's written like somebody speaking rather than a book to read to oneself. But the layout (in my opinion) makes the book almost impossible to read. On nearly every page it suddenly breaks into single phrase paragraphs. Not just once or twice, but, often, ten or more one after the other. It's so very annoying that I couldn't manage to read more than two or three pages at a time, at first.

By the time I was about half way through I realised that these single-word or phrase paragraphs didn't actually add to what was said at all. They just repeated themselves, and I can only assume were there to fill up space which would have been better used by employing a somewhat larger, serifed font. So any time I came to a block of tiny paragraphs, I skimmed or missed it out entirely, and (as far as I know) didn't miss anything as a result.

The content is perhaps worth reading, although it doesn't say anything particularly radical to those of us who have never been involved in US mega-churches. There are some anecdotes here and there which are interesting, and some of the writing is thought-provoking. 

But I can't really recommend it because of all those infuriating tiny paragraphs.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 27th December 2010

It's the little things (by Erica James)

(Amazon UK link)

I have slightly mixed feelings about Erica James' novels. Her early ones were a little fluffy, but I enjoyed the style and the characters. Then there were some she wrote which rank amongst my favourite novels.. and one that I didn't like at all, although perhaps I should re-read it. On the whole I do enjoy her books, so was pleased to get hold of another, although it's taken me nearly a year to get around to reading it.

'It's the little things' is basically about three people who survived the Boxing Day 2004 tsunami in Thailand. Apparently that was the trigger for the book being written, although as a reader it feels almost irrelevant to the story-line. It's mentioned from time to time, and was instrumental in various parts of the plot... but every time it was mentioned it felt to me slightly jarring.

The story itself focuses on Chloe and Sally, who have been best friends for some years. Sally is a high-flying lawyer who loves to take risks, and Chloe is a perfectionist doctor with a lot of insight. Sally is married to Dan, a delightful, caring guy who has given up his job to take care of their small son Marcus (conceived right after the tsunami).

Chloe was in a fairly serious relationship with someone at the time of the tsunami, but he then broke up with her in a painful way, leaving her scarred in more ways than one. So she's a bit wary of men... and then she meets Seth at the gym. He's good-looking, friendly without being pushy, polite without being awkward... and they have a great deal in common. It seems like he's the ideal man... but Seth has a secret, something he hasn't told Chloe. When she discovers what it is, it's a shock to her - and it was a great surprise to me, too!

I very much liked both Seth and Dan. I liked Chloe too, although her reactions to discovering Seth's secret seemed bizarrely unrealistic. But she herself is carrying quite a burden, and part of the book sees that slowly being resolved.

Sally, on the other hand, is decidedly annoying. She has no maternal instinct at all, and starts behaving worse and worse as the novel progresses. I simply couldn't warm to her, or find any sympathy for her. She was apparently given her unpleasant, hard character because of ghastly parents and an impoverished childhood, but I'm not sure that anyone with the intelligence to be a lawyer (a very good one, too) could be as manipulative and stupid as Sally.

I also found the minor characters a little overwhelming, in particular Dan's and Chloe's parents who appear at various meals, and whom I could never tell apart. And there are a few unrealistic caricatures, such as the dictatorial woman who tries to boss Dan around.

But still, the story is good, with suspense that starts to build in several different subplots from early in the book. I found the first few chapters a bit slow-going as the main characters were established; but once it got going, it was difficult to put down. It's not a short book (a little over 400 pages) but I finished it in two days at a busy time of year.

It's women's fiction, of course; character-based, and with a satisfactory conclusion. Recommended to anyone who likes this kind of novel; not one of my top favourites by Erica James, but still one to read again in a few years.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 20th December 2010

The Chalet School in Exile (by Elinor M Brent-Dyer)

(Amazon UK link)

I'm very pleased that I now have on my shelves the entire Chalet School series by Elinor M Brent-Dyer, which I first started reading in my childhood. I read the later books in the series during my teenage years, and - when opportunity strikes - have re-read most of them during adulthood.

The last time I read 'The Chalet School in Exile' was in 2003. It was always one of my favourite books, and I'm particularly glad to have a hardback edition since the paperback version was significantly abridged.

This is a significant book in the lengthy Chalet School series. Set in the 1940s, Naziism arrives in Austria, forcing the school and sanatorium to re-locate. There's much discussion about the difficulties of running a foreign school in a war situation, and some realism as we see the plight of the Austrian and German nationals in the school.

High drama surrounds the escape of a small group from the school after a nasty incident involving an elderly Jewish watchmaker. Joey Bettany, still a schoolgirl at heart at the start of the book, finally grows up - in more ways than one. There are warm friendships and believable characters, with very little going on in the classroom. Joey manages to surprise her family and friends, and there's an extremely moving ending to the book.

Definitely recommended to anyone who enjoys Chalet School books, since this is an important bridging story, besides being so moving in places. Perhaps a little long-winded at times - a few editorial cuts wouldn't be a bad thing - but the Armada paperback removed large chunks of the story.

The 'The Chalet School in Exile' was re-published by 'Girls Gone By' in 2009 although it's no longer in print. It's fairly widely available second-hand, at least in the abridged Armada edition.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews 15th December 2010

Since I don't have you (by Louise Candlish)

(Amazon UK link)

I am very much enjoying the novels by Louise Candlish. I had not heard of her until about 18 months ago, when I was offered her book 'Before we say goodbye' to review for The Bookbag. I liked it so much that I put some of her books on my wishlist, and was delighted to receive three for my last birthday.

It took me several months to start reading 'Since I don't have you' - my to-be-read shelf is packed with books, and sometimes I've wanted to read quick, light books rather than one like this which was longer, and (I guessed) quite thought-provoking and emotionally deep.

And, indeed, it's a moving book. Narrated by Rachel, it tells of her deep and long-standing friendship with the impulsive Jenny and the diplomatic Mariel. Each of them has one daughter, born within months of each other. By the age of six the girls - Emma, Daisy and Catherine - are becoming as close friends as their mothers are.

Tragedy is foreshadowed in the opening section of the book when Rachel, Mariel and Jenny promise to look after each other's daughters, if anything should happen to one of them. Sure enough, the unthinkable happens, although not quite in the way I would have expected ... and then life changes dramatically for all of them. To say any more would be too much of a spoiler. I started reading another review of this book after a couple of chapters and was most disappointed that the review mentioned what happened.

Much of the book is set in the Greek island of Santorini, amongst people whom I almost recognised since I have lived for many years in Cyprus. But it's the main characters who drive the book. The names and personalities are realistic, and clear enough that I had no trouble at all remembering who was whom. I felt almost as if I knew them; finding out what would happen next kept me reading often past the time when I wanted to be asleep at night.

The writing is very good, without too much description. There are some moving moments when I had tears in my eyes, but mostly the emotional impact was inward. Overall it's a gradual story of healing and new love, and while the ending is a tad more abrupt than would have liked, it wrapped the story up nicely.

Highly recommended to anyone who enjoys character-driven women's fiction with a depth of insight.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 14th December 2010

Shopaholic abroad (by Sophie Kinsella)

(Amazon UK link)

I admit that I was unfairly biased against 'chick-lit'. Partly, perhaps, because of such a dreadful name for the genre. Partly because my negative stereotyped idea was of superficial books filled with shopping, swearing and sex. Partly because I read a 'chick-lit' novel some years ago which was trite and had a rather disturbing ending. And since Sophie Kinsella appeared to be the name most associated with the chick-lit genre, it took me a long time to start reading any of her books.

I'm so glad I overcame my prejudice. Sophie Kinsella is an intelligent writer with a great sense of humour. And while her books - particularly the Shopaholic series - are undoubtedly concerned with shopping, there's nothing explicit about any of her bedroom scenes (which are few and far between anyway) and the bad language is only in conversation, in extreme situations.

'Shopaholic Abroad' (published in the USA as 'Shopaholic takes Manhattan') is second in the 'shopaholic' series which started with 'The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic'. Becky Bloomwood, heroine and narrator, is a wonderful creation. Despite being appalling with money and constantly in debt, she is friendly, kind and extremely generous. It's just a tad ironic that she's the financial advisor on a TV show.

Becky is in love with Luke, a wealthy businessman. In this book, Luke has the opportunity to go to New York, and (as one might gather from the title) Becky goes too. Unaware at first of the worth of US dollars, she goes rather crazy in some of the shops when she's supposed to be at the gym or visiting art galleries.

The pace is terrific, the style very enjoyable, and - unusually for me - there were two or three places where I almost laughed out loud. I love the letters that appear, from time to time, in these books - usually from increasingly annoyed bank managers.

Definitely recommended to anyone who likes light women's fiction. 'Shopaholic Abroad' stands alone so there's no need to have read anything else in the series.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 8th December 2010

Venetia (by Georgette Heyer)

(Amazon UK link)

I have a large collection of novels by Georgette Heyer, who is unquestionably my favourite historical fiction author. I enjoy all her books, and re-read them regularly.

Despite a consistently high standard and excellent characterisation, some of Heyer's books still stand out as my absolute favourites. One of those is 'Venetia', which I have just re-read for the sixth time in the past twenty-five years. Most recently I read it in 2004, and before that in 2000. I wondered if the story would pale somewhat reading it yet again, and am happy to report that it didn't.

Venetia is one of my favourite of Heyer's heroines. She's twenty-five, almost on the shelf by the customs of the time. She's quite independent, pretty secure despite having grown up motherless, and with a reclusive father whom she doesn't like. She isn't a great fan of her brother Conway, either, who has been working abroad; but she's very fond of her younger brother Aubrey, who is a classical scholar and walks with a limp due to a diseased hip.

Venetia is very beautiful, and has two 'suitors'. One who is not much older than Aubrey and is determined to be romantic, dreaming of rescuing his love from dragons, but decidedly moody. She doesn't take him too seriously. The other, Edward, is - as she puts it - worthy. Stolid, sensible, and with little understanding of who Venetia is, or how she thinks. She has sometimes considered accepting his offer of marriage because life in those days was so difficult for a single woman; but she can't bring herself to do so, fearing intense boredom.

Into Venetia's life springs Damerel, known as the 'wicked baron' in her childhood. He as a reputation for behaving badly, and being dangerous, although as she learns he does have a sense of honour despite having been a rather promiscuous young man a few years previously.

Naturally they fall for each other, and equally naturally there are all kinds of snares in their way; not least Damerel's own reluctance to inflict his stained, swarthy person on the young, beautiful and fairly innocent Venetia.

The writing is excellent, the characters come to life, the plot is fast-paced and cleverly written with plenty of surprises - even though, on the sixth re-reading, I did remember most of them before they happened.

Very enjoyable, and highly recommended. First published in 1958 and almost continually in print on both sides of the Atlantic. It's also widely available second-hand.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 6th December 2010.

From Here to Heaven (by Tom Walker)

(Amazon UK link)

I'm not entirely sure how this book ended up on my shelves, but I probably bought it second-hand. The author, Tom Walker, used to be the vicar (or rector, as the book says) of a church fairly near where we lived, and we knew some people who attended. Perhaps it was his name that attracted me to the book in the first place, but I don't think I'd ever read it.

'From here to heaven' describes the author's journey to faith. He had something of a 'religious' childhood, with music and hymns being very important to him. As a young adult he decided that atheism made more sense, but God kept on believing in him, and so eventually he came to faith in Christ, and followed a call to the Anglican ministry.

The writing is good, although there were rather too many digressions (for my taste) into Scriptural verses and explanations, which rather interrupted the flow. I was interested in the autobiographical elements of the story, and would like to have read more about the author's wife and family; instead there were chapters about spiritual warfare, healing, and other such subjects, with a few anecdotes and a great deal of teaching. It felt almost as if two possible books had been merged into one, and it didn't quite work.

I was a little disappointed that I didn't really feel as if I knew the author any better by the end, although I certainly knew more about him than I did. The 'teaching' sections didn't say anything new, and by the end I was rather skimming them.

Not a bad read, but I doubt if it would be of much interest to the general public. Written in 1987, and long out of print.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 5th December 2010

Home to Witchend (by Malcolm Saville)

(Amazon UK link)

I started reading Malcolm Saville's adventure stories when I was around ten or eleven, I suppose. I found the writing good, the stories exciting without being terrifying, and the characterisation excellent. I particularly enjoyed his 'Lone Pine Adventure' series, and during my teens I gradually collected them all.

I re-read them at least once in my twenties; my sons enjoyed them, and I've lent them to friends - both teens and adults. Two and a half years ago, I picked up 'Mystery at Witchend', first in the series, and very much enjoyed it. However, I didn't want to read the entire series in a couple of weeks, so I interspersed the books with others... and then stopped for a while. Last month I decided to skip some of the books that didn't interest me so much, and re-read some of the later ones.

Finally, I've just finished 'Home to Witchend', which is 20th in the series. I didn't buy it until I was nineteen; it was only published a year earlier, at least thirty years after the first books in the series. It was evidently written to draw together several threads and finish the series, and to some extent feels a little contrived.

Still, there's an exciting adventure involving some old enemies and the printing of forged banknotes. The twins, Dickie and Mary, recognise one of their former adversaries, and are determined to continue the Lone Pine club, in particular its aim of tracking suspicious strangers. They are nearly involved in a nasty accident as a result of ignoring wise advice from two different adults on a stormy day.

David, the original founder of the club, is rather distracted by arranging a party packed with surprises for Peter (Petronella)'s 18th birthday. Tom and Jenny, another young couple, don't feature much in this book, while Jon and Penny, from Rye, barely get a mention despite appearing for the grand finale.

Characterisation is as good as ever with Saville's books, and the forgery plot is nicely done, even if it seems rather unrealistic. The ending brings together just about everyone involved in any of the Lone Pine adventures, and promises a new emphasis for the club, now that the six older Lone Piners have rather outgrown it (although they certainly intend to keep their promises to be true to each other). However, any future adventures will have to be written by someone else, or imagined, since Malcolm Saville didn't write any more.

Recommended as the end of the series, but probably wouldn't be of great interest to anyone who hasn't read any of the other Lone Pine books.

A hardback edition was re-published in 2009 although it's now out of print and very expensive second-hand. Occasionally the Armada paperback version can be found in charity shops.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 2nd December 2010