THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB discussion

I've archived the old thread since it was getting so long.

Tell us about books you've finished.

From a Far and Lovely Country by Alexander McCall Smith

The investigators at the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency are concerned with a shady nightclub, family connections, and a new dress.

Always nice to visit with these favorite characters. 3 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Doomsday Book by Connie Willis (Oxford Time Travel #1 / 1992) a carry over from 2023. 4.5 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Elysium Fire by Alastair Reynolds

In this sci-fi detective novel, people are dying from a mysterious cause in outer space habitats, and the prefects (police) have to stop the carnage (amongst other things).

Very good story. 4 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Rocannon's World by Ursula K. Le Guin (Hainish Saga #1) 3.5 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Big Four by Agatha Christie

My Name is Barbra by Barbra Streisand

In this memoir, Barbra shares most everything you'd want to know about her life....and especially her work.

The book is almost 1000 pages but I liked it all. 4.5 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Murdered Molls by Graham Brack

In this addition to the humorous 'Josef Slonský' series, the Czech detective has to deal with a severely injured knee while the police investigate several crimes.

Bizarre and brutal crimes in this book, but the humor is great as usual. 3.5 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Leader of the Pack by David Rosenfelt

In this addition to the humorous 'Andy Carpenter' series, the New Jersey defense attorney gets a new trial for a man he thinks was wrongly convicted.

I enjoyed the book but some parts were too dark for a cozy. 3 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Lone Wolf by Gregg Andrew Hurwitz

In this addition to the 'Orphan X' series, Evan Smoak's search for a lost dog leads him to clash with a skilled female assassin.

Exciting story as usual. 3.5 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect by Benjamin Stevenson

In this clever series, struggling writer Ernest Cunningham seems to encounter murder wherever he goes....then writes a book about it. This time he's on a luxury train.

Fun mystery. 3.5 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Tehanu by Ursula K. Le Guin (Earthsea #4) (4.5 stars)

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Murder and the First Lady by Elliott Roosevelt (Eleanor Roosevelt #1) 4.0 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Where Are the Children Now? by Mary Higgins Clark

This book is a sequel to Mary Higgins Clark's 1975 novel 'Where Are the Children?'. In this suspenseful story, a little girl goes missing.

Lots of twists. 3.5 stars.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Zero Days by Ruth Ware

A cyber-security expert is suspected of murdering her husband, and goes on the run to find the real killer....with the cops right on her tail.

Chase novels are not my favorites, but it's well written. 3 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth

An apparent suicide slowly reveals a connection between married couples of different generations.

This is suspenseful mystery/domestic drama. 3.5 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

They Do It With Mirrors by Agatha Christie 4.0 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Midnight Climax by Peter Kageyama

This thriller (with the provocative title) is inspired by a real CIA experiment in which men were lured into brothels by prostitutes, then dosed with psychedelic drugs to study their effects.

The book is a well-written page turner. 4 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Flying Troutmans by Miriam Toews

This book, about a family struggling to keep things together in difficult circumstances, is a sort of domestic drama/ coming-of-age story/ comic travelogue novel.

Good story. 3.5 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Tell-Tale Bones by Carolyn Haines

I usually like the books in this series, but this one went off the rails for me.

Disappointing. 2.5 stars (for the author's efforts)

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Luftwaffe Aces: German Combat Pilots of WWII by Franz Kurowski (translated from the German)



My rating: 2 stars.

KOMET wrote: "Luftwaffe Aces: German Combat Pilots of WWII by Franz Kurowski (translated from the German)



My rati..."

Wow. 2 stars. You usually like these kinds of books.

By the Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie (Tommy & Tuppence #4) (4.0 stars)

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Motion Picture Teller by Colin Cotterill.

In this humorous suspense novel two Bangkok movie buffs discover a fabulous Thai film that's never been released....and they want to find out why.

I enjoyed the book. 4 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution by Cat Bohannon (2023) (4.0 stars)

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

DeKok and the Geese of Death by A.C. Baantjer (Dekok #20) 3.0 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Lore Olympus: Volume Five by Rachel Smythe (4.0 stars)

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Yesterday, I finished reading the wartime memoir "Bomber Pilot" by Leonard Cheshire, which was originally published in 1943. Rating: 5 stars.

The Fall Of The Sparrow by Nigel Balchin This is a Did Not Finish (DNF) book, so no rating (NR)

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Field Guide by Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black, the first book in the Spiderwick Chronicles. An excellent introduction (4.0 stars)

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Gathering by C.J. Tudor

In this vampyr (aka vampire) novel, set in modern times, vampyrs and humans co-exist unless vampyrs prove dangerous to humans....and the gov't steps in.

Another good supernatural suspense tale from C.J. Tudor. 4 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Just finished reading "Lost Black Sheep: The Search for WWII Ace Chris Magee" by Robert T. Reed.



Sheds light on the enigmatic life of Chris Magee, who besides being a Marine Corps fighter ace in Gregory 'Pappy' Boyington's Black Sheep Squadron in the South Pacific during World War II, lived a life that was at times, off the track, veiled in mystery.

Rating: 3 stars

Speaking of planes, some folks think they may have located Amelia Earhart's lost aircraft. I wonder if it's the real thing.

"A deep-sea exploration company has captured a sonar image of an anomaly on the ocean floor that resembles an aircraft. The team believes the object could be Amelia Earhart's Lockheed 10-E Electra that went missing nearly 87 years ago."

A Fistful of Collars by Spencer Quinn

In this additon to the 'Chet and Bernie' mystery series, the detective team keeps an eye on a Hollywood star during a movie shoot.

Chet the dog narrates these stories, which are always fun. 3 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Finished reading today "The Blue Max Airmen - German Airmen Awarded the Pour le Mérite: Volume 20: Jacobs & Sachsenberg" by Lance J. Bronnenkant PhD



This book tells the stories of two of Germany's top fighter aces of World War I who were awarded the Pour le Mérite (aka the Blue Max), the Imperial German Empire's highest award for bravery in battle. It also contains photos - many of which hadn't been published before that were culled from private collections of the airmen themselves - and a variety of illustrations showing the various aircraft flown by both pilots during their wartime service.

Rating: 5 stars (One of the best books in the series I've yet read.)

Barbara wrote: "Speaking of planes, some folks think they may have located Amelia Earhart's lost aircraft. I wonder if it's the real thing.

"A deep-sea exploration company has captured a sonar image of an anomal..."

I heard that.

The Beginning Place by Ursula K. Le Guin 4.0 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Very Far Away from Anywhere Else by Ursula K. Le Guin 5.0 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Witchcraft: A History in Thirteen Trials by Marion Gibson

Gibson writes extensively about witches and witch-craft and in this book discusses 13 witch trials that have spanned the ages, putting them in the context of their time and place.

Interesting book. 3.5 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished up Mansfield Park

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Planet of Exile by Ursula K. Le Guin (Hainish Cycle #2) 4.0 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Extinction by Douglas Preston

Erebus Resort - an exclusive retreat for rich people - features 'de-extincted' animals (sort of like Jurassic Park). After a honeymoon couple is abducted from the grounds, an investigation reveals secrets.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Earlier today, I finished reading the wartime memoir "Luftwaffe Fighter Pilot: Defending the Reich Against the RAF and the USAAF" by Wolfgang Fischer.



This is the author's account of his wartime experiences with the Luftwaffe through almost 6 years of war from Germany, to France, to Italy, and back to France again.

I liked this book a lot because it gave me, as a reader, a glimpse into the wartime experiences of a Luftwaffe fighter pilot who - though he didn't become an ace and earn medals for bravery - nevertheless achieved a great deal in realizing his long cherished dream to fly.

Rating: 5 stars

American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin

I like the first half or so of the book, about Oppenheimer's early years and through his time at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. This was interesting and enlightening about the scientist's family, education, social life, interest in left wing causes, brilliance in physics, being the director of Los Alamos, and so on. (As a side note, one thing that particularly struck me about the story was that - right out in the open - schools, universities. government organizations, etc. restricted the number of Jews allowed in. They'd come right out and say 'we have too many Jews' or something similar.)

The second part of the story about Lewis Strasse and his minions doing their best to destroy Oppenheimer is good from a factual and historical POV, but it made me depressed. I felt the venality of these people and the non-stop surveillance, bugging of phones, following people, harassing people, and more was off the charts. And much of it, done by the FBI, was illegal.

In any case the book is well researched and well-written. I'm not going to write a more extensive review, but I give it 5 stars.

That's all I have to say about this book....except that the movie 'Oppenheimer' (2023) seems to skew the story a little bit. Films usually do that though.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Paw and Order by Spencer Quinn

In this addition to the humorous Chet and Bernie series, the detective team investigates a murder in scandal-ridden Washington DC.

Formulaic but fun as usual. 3 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Lunar New Year Love Story by Gene Luen Yang & LeUyen Pham (2024) 4.5 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Private Life of Spies and The Exquisite Art of Getting Even: Stories of Espionage and Revenge by Alexander McCall Smith

In this humorous two-part book, 'The Private Life of Spies' contains tales about espionage, and 'The Exquisite Art of Getting Even' contains anecdotes about revenge.

I always enjoy Smith's books. 3.5 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Look To The Lady by Margery Allingham (Albert Campion #3) 3.0 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Easter Basket Murder by Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis and Barbara Ross

Three cozy mystery novellas that feature Easter themes. Written by Leslie Meier; Lee Hollis; and Barbara Ross.

Pleasant stories. 3 stars

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Monstress, Vol. 2: The Blood by Marjorie M. Liu 3.5 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...