Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Please Don’t Idolize Me (or Anyone, Really)—Sadly, this post from last August by John Scalzi is freshly relevant this week. And, no, I will not be talking more about it. I hope.
The Russian Roots of American Crime Fiction—and the O.G.—Joesph Finder’s piece is a great push to read some classic Russian lit.
Audiobooks Have Taken Over My Life, and I Love It
8 Thought-Provoking Quotes from To Kill a Mockingbird—Sticking with my tradition (which I haven’t had to invoke in too long), if I see something about TKaM, I share it here. Also, a good reminder about some of these lines.
Jam’s Top Reads of second half of 2024—I hope to read one of these this month–and should probablay look more at some of the others.
The Bard’s Tale Retold: Shakespeare Retellings Done Differently—a fun listicle from Witty & Sarcastic Book Club
A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
Crime Time FM ROB PARKER In Person With Paul—nice to hear Parker as the subject of an interview for a change. I really want to read this book now (compared to my general “oooh, a new Rob Parker, I should read that” response)
Speaking of Mysteries Episode 265: Robert Crais—this was entirely too brief. But good to hear from the man himself about his fantastic new book
To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Low Midnight by Carrie Vaughn
Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch—which is such a good one, that I didn’t fully appreciate at the time (and I really liked it at the time)
I also noted the releases of: Near Enemy by Adam Sternbergh and The Way Into Magic by Harry Connolly. Two works that I should try to find time to re-read.
This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
The Big Empty by Robert Crais—If you take nothing else away from this post, know that this book is out now, and you should be reading it. As I described here.
A Serial Killer’s Guide to Marriage by Asia Mackay—a fun book about a marriage on the rocks as the vigilante couple struggles to not go vigilante-ing. I enjoyed it, you’ll likely enjoy it more.
The Troubled Deep by Rob Parker—I will jump on this book as soon as I find an easy way to get it on this side of the Atlantic. “An ex-marine and ex-SBS officer, Cam Killick’s PTSD has made the return to civilian life a living nightmare. The only place he can find peace is underwater, where the world is muffled to white noise. As a cold case diver it is his job to scour the waterways of the country for the lost, the submerged, the drowned, laying their stories to rest alongside them.
Except when Cam throws open the doors to the Brindley car, all four bodies are missing. “
Karma Doll by Jonathan Ames—Happy Doll is framed for a murder in Mexico and has to sneak across the border to find the real killer.
Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao—”A woman inherits a pawnshop where you can sell your regrets, and then embarks on a magical quest when a charming young physicist wanders into the shop, in this dreamlike fantasy novel.” Sign me up.
I topped it by 1, but Goodreads won’t give me the silly graphic for 2024 for some reason. So you’re going to have to take my word for it.
