January 2021 Roundup – Reading, Writing and Blogging… #BrainfluffJanuary2021Roundup

January has slipped by quietly without very much going on, given that we are now back in full lockdown, again, while the Government grapples with this new, highly infectious variant. Meanwhile the vaccination programme is proceeding apace. Both sets of parents have had their first vaccination and my sister, who works in a pharmacy has had both her jabs. I’m hoping Himself will be getting his sooner, rather than later as he is a key worker who has to go out every day and regularly travels to London.

We have had the grandchildren staying over several times – including little Eliza, again. It was another successful visit where she seemed very happy to be with us. Right now, we are still coping with some hefty family issues, not improved by COVID and the lockdown. Thank goodness we are part of my daughter’s support bubble, so we can be there to help out when needed.

Reading
I read fifteen books in January, and again, I can’t fault the quality of the books. I did DNF The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell, but that was because it was too dark for me to cope with – the writing was excellent. My Outstanding Book of the Month was The Night Parade of 100 Demons – A Legend of the Five Rings World novel by Marie Brennan, and my Outstanding Audiobook of the Month was Tombland – Book 7 of the Matthew Shardlake series by C.J. Sansom.

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My reads during January were:

Spirited by Julie Cohen – review to follow.

AUDIOBOOK I Shall Wear Midnight – Book 4 of the Tiffany Aching series by Terry Pratchett – review to follow.

Black Sun – Book 1 of Between Earth and Sky series by Rebecca Roanhorse – see my review.

Nikoles – Book 2 of the Tuyo series by Rachel Neumeier – review to follow.

Cruel as the Grave – Book 22 of the Bill Slider mysteries by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles – see my review.

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Haunted House Ghost – Book 5 of the Braxton Campus mysteries by James J. Cudney – review to follow.

By the Pact – Book 1 of the Pacts Arcane and Otherwise series by Joanna Maciejewska – see my review.

OUTSTANDING BOOK OF THE MONTH – The Night Parade of 100 Demons – a novel in A Legend of the Five Rings World by Marie Brennan – see my review.

Murder at the Ritz by Jim Eldridge – see my review.

Defending the Galaxy – Book 3 of the Sentinels of the Galaxy by Maria V. Synder – review to follow.

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OUTSTANDING AUDIOBOOK OF THE MONTH – Tombland – Book 7 of the Matthew Shardlake series – review to follow.

Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell – see my review.

The Monster MASH – Book 1 of the Monster M*A*S*H series by Angie Fox – see my review.

The Expert System’s Champion – Book 2 of The Expert System series by Adrian Tchaikovsky – see my review.

The Lord of Stariel – Book 1 of the Stariel series by A.J. Lancaster – review to follow.

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Writing and Editing

I’ve made steady progress with Trouble with Dwarves, which is the second book in my Picky Eaters series, featuring grumpy old dragon, Castellan. I’ve now written the opening adventure featuring the ice giants and am now working on the closing chapters of the book, which I hope to have completed by the middle of February. I’ve also completed several editing projects and am continuing to work with my father-in-law on his memoirs.

Overall, I wrote just under 44,000 words in January, with just under 26,000 on the blog, just over 1,200 on lesson reports for Tim, and just over 16,000 on my writing projects.

Blogging
January was a better month for the blog, as I wasn’t going anywhere and managed to get back into the rhythm. I’m still not doing very well at visiting other bloggers – and I will try to do better! In the meantime, I very much hope you are all able to continue to stay safe, while waiting for your vaccination. Take care.x

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of NETGALLEY arc Cruel as the Grave – Book 22 of the Bill Slider Mysteries by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles #BrainfluffNETGALLEYbookreview #CruelastheGravebookreview

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the books I read of this series – see my reviews of Old Bones, Shadow Play and Headlong – so when this one popped up, I had no hesitation in requesting it.

BLURB: Fitness trainer Erik Lingoss is found dead in his west London flat, his head smashed by one of his own dumbbells. His heartlessly-dumped girlfriend, blood on her clothes and hands, is the prime suspect. She had means, opportunity, and motive. But is the case as clear-cut as it seems? Handsome Erik Lingoss had clients in high places; and he seemed to engender powerful emotions. If it was a crime of passion, there was plenty of that to go round: love strong as death, jealousy cruel as the grave.

Who did he let in to his flat that evening? Where is his missing mobile phone? Why is seven hundred pounds in cash stuffed under his pillow? The deeper Slider and his team dig, the clearer it becomes there’s far more to this case than meets the eye.

REVIEW: Harrod-Eagles is no slouch when it comes to concocting a well-crafted, murder mystery – I always enjoy reading her books for that reason, alone. But this time around, I think she has outdone herself. The plotting in this entertaining police procedural whodunit is masterful. It doesn’t hurt that I now know and like DCI Bill Slider and members of his team. We have all read or watched the moody, workaholic policeman whose dedication to the job takes the place of his family. His team are wary around him, but nonetheless respect his remarkable ability to get the job done. Well, Bill Slider is nothing like that. He’s happily married to a professional musician, who is about to have their second child in this instalment. And his father and stepmother live close-by and provide support in the form of meals and occasional childcare when work commitments become too pressing. It was refreshing to see a career policeman with a happy home life.

While everyone treats the victim and witnesses with professional respect, there were times when I grinned at the humour between Slider and Atherton as they questioned suspects, combed through CCTV footage, and checked out alibis. Indeed, I was interested to see just how crucial that CCTV footage became to the solving of the case. The denouement worked really well, with a sense of sadness over the waste of a young man’s life – by the end of the investigation, I felt that I knew him quite well. Highly personable and incredibly good looking, Erik with a ‘k’ had a gift for making people fall in love with him – not just inexperienced, pretty young girls – but clever, successful people, too.

Along with the strong characterisation, clever plotting and effective scene setting, and a nicely apt title – the full quote is Jealousy is cruel as the grave – I found myself thinking about this story after I finished the book, which is always a bonus. Highly recommended for fans of British police procedural whodunits – and yes… I know it’s the 22nd book in a long-running series and no, I haven’t read all of them. But I still thoroughly enjoyed this one, anyway. While I obtained an arc of Cruel as the Grave from the publisher via Netgalley, the opinions I have expressed are unbiased and my own.
10/10

Sunday Post – 17th January, 2021 #Brainfluffbookblog #SundayPost

This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written.

It’s been a very quiet week. Himself has been going off to work as usual, though he says the trains are nearly empty. And I’ve gone nowhere, other than shopping in town last Tuesday, while Himself whisked around the supermarket. It was cold earlier in the week and the pictures are of frost-covered plants from the garden taken one brisk morning.

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I was a bit surprised when WordPress told me this week that I’d just reached my twelve-year blogging anniversary – where does the time go? Other than that, I’ve been working at home, catching up on the blog, working with my father-in-law on his memoirs and writing the opening act of Trouble With Dwarves. And reeling at the numbers of people falling sick…

Last week I read:

Haunted House Ghost – Book 5 of the Braxton Campus mysteries by James J. Cudney

It’s Halloween, and excitement is brewing in Braxton to carve jack-o’-lanterns, go on haunted hayrides, and race through the spooky corn maze at the Fall Festival.
Despite the former occupant’s warnings, Kellan renovates and moves into a mysterious old house. When a ruthless ghost promises retribution, our fearless professor turns to the eccentric town historian and an eerie psychic to communicate with the apparition. Meanwhile, construction workers discover a fifty-year-old skeleton after breaking ground on the new Memorial Library wing.
While Kellan and April dance around the chemistry sparking between them, a suspicious accident occurs at the Fall Festival. Soon, Kellan discovers the true history and dastardly connections of the Grey family. But can he capture the elusive killer – and placate the revenge-seeking ghost.
This was great fun, with lots of Halloween goodness – and goodies – in amongst the twisting plot that dear Kellan finds himself confronted with. We also have a ringside seat to his rather tangled personal life, which I keep hoping will get a bit happier and more settled… Review to follow.

Cruel as the Grave – Book 22 of the Bill Slider mysteries by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
Fitness trainer Erik Lingoss is found dead in his west London flat, his head smashed by one of his own dumbbells. His heartlessly-dumped girlfriend, blood on her clothes and hands, is the prime suspect. She had means, opportunity, and motive.

But is the case as clear-cut as it seems? Handsome Erik Lingoss had clients in high places; and he seemed to engender powerful emotions. If it was a crime of passion, there was plenty of that to go round: love strong as death, jealousy cruel as the grave. Who did he let in to his flat that evening? Where is his missing mobile phone? Why is seven hundred pounds in cash stuffed under his pillow? The deeper Slider and his team dig, the clearer it becomes there’s far more to this case than meets the eye.
I loved this gloriously plotted police procedural – Harrod-Eagles absolutely nails it in this classy whodunit, which was difficult to put down. I thoroughly enjoyed this one, as I particularly appreciated the lighter touches that meant it wasn’t too gloomy, yet still being mindful that someone had died. Nicely done! Review to follow.

My posts last week:

Castellan the Black and His Wise Draconic Sayings

AUDIOBOOK Review of Finding the Fox – Book 1 of The Shape-Shifter series by Ali Sparkes

Friday Face-off featuring Earthlight by Arthur C. Clarke

Review of INDIE Ebook A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher

My 2020 Reading Year – the Statistics

Can’t-Wait Wednesday featuring Cruel as the Grave – Book 22 of DCI Bill Slider mysteries by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of Doors of Sleep – Journals of Zaxony Delatree by Tim Pratt

Tuesday Treasures – 22

My Outstanding Reads of 2020

Sunday Post – 10th January 2021

Interesting/outstanding blogs and articles that have caught my attention during the last week, in no particular order:

SPFBO Finalist Super Sale https://mlwangbooks.com/spfbo-finalist-super-sale/ For Fantasy fans of all types – this is a fantastic opportunity to pick up some marvellous reads for only $0.99 each. It lasts until 20th January, so nip across and take a look…

Reptile Dysfunction https://blogging807.wordpress.com/2021/01/14/reptile-dysfunction-2/ My lovely blogging pal Rae reblogged this series of funnies – check them out if you’d like a good laugh…

A year like none other before https://earthianhivemind.net/2021/01/03/a-year-like-none-other-before/ And yes… I know that I discovered this one a couple of weeks after it was posted – but I really like Steph’s message. And I thought her comparison with what her grandmother had endured in her life was both timely and a comfort…

Italy to Australia https://imageearthtravel.com/2020/08/16/italy-to-australia/ For those of you still stranded in Lockdown limbo, like me, you might also find this enjoyable…

EOS 10 – SF Podcast – Season 1 https://spaceandsorcery.wordpress.com/2021/01/12/eos-10-sf-podcast-season-1/ Maddalena has reviewed this podcast and provided a link for those who might like to try it out…

Thank you for visiting, reading, liking and/or commenting on my blog. I hope you had a peaceful, healthy week – and do take care. x

Can’t-Wait Wednesday – 13th January, 2021 #Brainfluffbookblog #CWC #WOW

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released. It’s based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine.

This week’s Can’t-Wait offering – Cruel as the Grave – Book 22 of DCI Bill Slider mysteries by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles – release date 2nd February

#crime #police procedural murder mystery

BLURB: Fitness trainer Erik Lingoss is found dead in his west London flat, his head smashed by one of his own dumbbells. His heartlessly-dumped girlfriend, blood on her clothes and hands, is the prime suspect. She had means, opportunity, and motive.

But is the case as clear-cut as it seems? Handsome Erik Lingoss had clients in high places; and he seemed to engender powerful emotions. If it was a crime of passion, there was plenty of that to go round: love strong as death, jealousy cruel as the grave.

Who did he let in to his flat that evening? Where is his missing mobile phone? Why is seven hundred pounds in cash stuffed under his pillow? The deeper Slider and his team dig, the clearer it becomes there’s far more to this case than meets the eye.

No… I haven’t read the previous 21 books, and probably won’t get around to doing so, either. But I have read Old Bones, Shadow Play and Headlong, the last three books, and enjoyed the experience sufficiently so it was a no-brainer to request this arc the minute I saw it was available. Harrod-Eagles is a mistress of the twisty plot and I’ve grown to really like dear Bill, who has an unexpectedly happy family life and a good solid team around him. Anyone else about to tuck into this offering?