goals – Page 15 – What Cathy Read Next…

New arrivals

A few review copies received and I (almost) managed to keep to my self-imposed rule of not purchasing books unless they’re titles already on my Goodreads wishlist.

Court of Lions by Jane Johnson (hardback, ARC courtesy of Head of Zeus)

Kate Fordham, escaping terrible trauma, has fled to the beautiful sunlit city of Granada, the ancient capital of the Moors in Spain, where she is scraping by with an unfulfilling job in a busy bar. One day in the glorious gardens of the Alhambra, once home to Sultan Abu Abdullah Mohammed, also known as Boabdil, Kate finds a scrap of paper hidden in one of the ancient walls. Upon it, in strange symbols, has been inscribed a message from another age. It has lain undiscovered since before the Fall of Granada in 1492, when the city was surrendered to Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand. Born of love, in a time of danger and desperation, the fragment will be the catalyst that changes Kate’s life forever.

The Thirteenth Gate by Kat Ross (ebook, review copy courtesy of the author)

Winter 1888. At a private asylum in the English countryside, a man suspected of being Jack the Ripper kills an orderly and flees into the rain-soaked night. His distraught keepers summon the Lady Vivienne Cumberland—who’s interviewed their patient and isn’t sure he’s a man at all. An enigmatic woman who guards her own secrets closely, Lady Vivienne knows a creature from the underworld when she sees one. And he’s the most dangerous she’s ever encountered. As Jack rampages through London, this time targeting rare book collectors, Lady Vivienne begins to suspect what he’s looking for. And if he finds it, the doors to purgatory will be thrown wide open…

Across the Atlantic, an archaeologist is brutally murdered after a Christmas Eve gala at the American Museum of Natural History. Certain peculiar aspects of the crime attract the interest of the Society for Psychical Research and its newest investigator, Harrison Fearing Pell. Is Dr. Julius Sabelline’s death related to his recent dig in Alexandria? Or is the motive something darker? As Harry uncovers troubling connections to a serial murder case she’d believed was definitively solved, two mysteries converge amid the grit and glamour of Gilded Age New York. Harry and Lady Vivienne must join forces to stop an ancient evil. The key is something called the Thirteenth Gate. But where is it? And more importantly, who will find it first?

Arminius: The Limits of Empire by Robert Fabbri (ebook, 99p)

AD9: In the depths of the Teutoburg Wald, in a landscape riven by ravines, darkened by ancient oak and bisected by fast-flowing streams, Arminius of the Cherusci led a confederation of six Germanic tribes in the annihilation of three Roman legions. Deep in the forest almost twenty thousand men were massacred without mercy; fewer than two hundred of them ever made it back across the Rhine. To Rome’s shame, three sacred Eagles were lost that day. But Arminius wasn’t brought up in Germania Magna – he had been raised as a Roman. This is the story of how Arminius came to turn his back on the people who raised him and went on to commit a betrayal so great and so deep, it echoed through the ages.

The Watch House by Bernie McGill (eARC, courtesy of NetGalley & Tinder Press)

As the twentieth century dawns on the island of Rathlin, a place ravaged by storms and haunted by past tragedies, Nuala Byrne is faced with a difficult decision. Abandoned by her family for the new world, she receives a proposal from the island’s aging tailor. For the price of a roof over her head, she accepts. Meanwhile the island is alive with gossip about the strangers who have arrived from the mainland, armed with mysterious equipment which can reportedly steal a person’s words and transmit them through thin air. When Nuala is sent to cook for these men – engineers, who have been sent to Rathlin by Marconi to conduct experiments in the use of wireless telegraphy – she encounters an Italian named Gabriel, who offers her the chance to equip herself with new skills and knowledge. As her friendship with Gabriel opens up horizons beyond the rocky and treacherous cliffs of her island home, Nuala begins to realise that her deal with the tailor was a bargain she should never have struck.

On What Cathy Read Next last week

Book Reviews

On Thursday, I published my review of Broken Branches by M. Jonathan Lee and on Friday the next comparison post in my From Page to Screen challenge. This time the film adaptation under the spotlight was The Sense of an Ending from the novel of the same name by Julian Barnes.

Other posts

On Monday, I hosted a guest post from Lucy Appadoo as part of the blog tour for her book, Dancing in the Rain. The following day I took part in the book blitz for Shades of the Gods by Erin Hayes. Wednesday is WWW Wednesday, where I and other book bloggers share what we’ve been reading, are currently reading and plan to read next. I find it fascinating to see what other book bloggers have been up to and it’s a great way to find amazing new blogs to follow. Also on my blog that day was a Q&A with first time author, Ed Duncan, about his thriller, Pigeon-Blood Red. Finally, on Saturday the spotlight was on Master of Alaska by Roger Seiler, a historical fiction novel based on the life of the first governor of Alaska.

Challenge updates

Goodreads 2017 Reading Challenge – 75 out of 78 books read (3 more than last week)
Classics Club Challenge– 2 out of 50 books reviewed (same as last week)
NetGalley/Edelweiss Reading Challenge 2017 (Gold) – 38 ARCs reviewed out of 50 (2 more than last week)
From Page to Screen 2017– 7 book/film comparisons out of 12 completed (1 more than last week)
The Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction Shortlist 2017 – completed

On What Cathy Read Next this week

Currently reading

Planned posts

Book Review: City of Masks by S D Sykes
Blog Tour/Review: Dark Dawn over Steep House by M R C Kasasian
Blog Tour/Review: Exquisite by Sarah Stovell
Blog Tour/Review: Wolves in the Dark by Gunnar Staalesen
Blog Tour/Review: Did You Whisper Back? by Kate Rigby
Meme: WWW Wednesday
Book Review: House of Names by Colm Toibin

Reviews to be added to NetGalley

House of Names by Colm Toibin

New arrivals

Quite a few review copies received this week but I’ve managed to keep to my self-imposed rule of not purchasing books (particularly those tempting Kindle deals) unless they’re titles already on my Goodreads wishlist.

Dan Knew by F J Curlew (eARC courtesy of the author)

A Ukrainian street dog is rescued from certain death by an expat family. As he travels to new countries with them a darkness grows and he finds himself narrating more than just his story. More than a dog story. Ultimately it’s a story of escape and survival but maybe not his. The world through Wee Dan’s eyes in a voice that will stay with you long after you turn that last page.

Citizen Kill by Stephen Clark (eARC courtesy of the author)

When a devastating explosion kills the new President’s young son, her administration seeks to finally end the war on terror. CIA black-ops agent Justin Raines is among the recruits in a new program that targets for assassination U.S. citizens suspected of radicalizing Muslims. Haunted by a botched assignment overseas, Justin is determined to redeem himself through the program. But when he is assigned to kill a mysterious Muslim educator that he believes is innocent, he grows disillusioned. Now he must find a way to prove her innocence and derail the program before they both are assassinated. This explosive political thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat as Washington stops at nothing to protect the nation from terrorists, while Justin Raines risks everything to protect the nation from Washington.

1066: What Fates Impose by G K Holloway (ebook, review copy courtesy of the author)

England is in crisis. King Edward has no heir and promises never to produce one. There are no obvious successors available to replace him, but quite a few claimants are eager to take the crown. While power struggles break out between the various factions at court, enemies abroad plot to make England their own. There are raids across the borders with Wales and Scotland. Harold Godwinson, Earl of Wessex, is seen by many as the one man who can bring stability to the kingdom. He has powerful friends and two women who love him, but he has enemies who will stop at nothing to gain power. As 1066 begins, England heads for an uncertain future. It seems even the heavens are against Harold. Intelligent and courageous, can Harold forge his own destiny – or does he have to bow to what fates impose?

The Indigo Girl by Natasha Boyd (eARC, NetGalley)

The year is 1739. Eliza Lucas is sixteen years old when her father leaves her in charge of their family’s three plantations in rural South Carolina and then proceeds to bleed the estates dry in pursuit of his military ambitions. Tensions with the British, and with the Spanish in Florida, just a short way down the coast, are rising, and slaves are starting to become restless. Her mother wants nothing more than for their South Carolina endeavour to fail so they can go back to England. Soon her family is in danger of losing everything. Upon hearing how much the French pay for indigo dye, Eliza believes it’s the key to their salvation. But everyone tells her it’s impossible, and no one will share the secret to making it. Thwarted at nearly every turn, even by her own family, Eliza finds that her only allies are an aging horticulturalist, an older and married gentleman lawyer, and a slave with whom she strikes a dangerous deal: teach her the intricate thousand-year-old secret process of making indigo dye and in return — against the laws of the day — she will teach the slaves to read. So begins an incredible story of love, dangerous and hidden friendships, ambition, betrayal, and sacrifice.

The House of Birds by Morgan McCarthy (paperback, review copy courtesy of Tinder Press)

Oliver has spent years trying to convince himself that he’s suited to a life of money making in the city, and that he doesn’t miss a childhood spent in pursuit of mystery, when he cycled around the cobbled lanes of Oxford, exploring its most intriguing corners. When his girlfriend Kate inherits a derelict house – and a fierce family feud – she’s determined to strip it, sell it and move on. For Oliver though, the house has an allure, and amongst the shelves of discarded, leather bound and gilded volumes, he discovers one that conceals a hidden diary from the 1920s. So begins a quest: to discover the identity of the author, Sophia Louis. It is a portrait of war and marriage, isolation and longing and a story that will shape the future of the abandoned house – and of Oliver – forever.

The Daemoniac by Kat Ross (ebook, review copy courtesy of the author)

It’s August of 1888, just three weeks before Jack the Ripper will begin his grisly spree in the London slum of Whitechapel, and another serial murderer is stalking the gas-lit streets of New York. With taunting messages in backwards Latin left at the crime scenes and even more inexplicable clues like the fingerprints that appear to have been burned into one victim’s throat, his handiwork bears all the hallmarks of a demonic possession. But consulting detective Harrison Fearing Pell is convinced her quarry is a man of flesh and blood. Encouraged by her uncle, Arthur Conan Doyle, Harry hopes to make her reputation by solving the bizarre case before the man the press has dubbed Mr. Hyde strikes again. From the squalor of the Five Points to the high-class gambling dens of the Tenderloin and the glittering mansions of Fifth Avenue, Harry and her best friend, John Weston, follow the trail of a remorseless killer, uncovering a few embarrassing secrets of New York’s richest High Society families along the way. Are the murders a case of black magic—or simple blackmail? And will the trail lead them closer to home than they ever imagined?

The Secret Wound by Deirdre Quiery (ebook, review copy courtesy of Urbane)

Deirdre Quiery’s follow up to the critical success of Eden Burning, The Secret Wound draws the reader into a complex web of relationships within the ex-pat community in Mallorca, discovering their dangerous secrets…and a potential murderer in their midst. One of their number carries a dark and deadly secret from their past, and has murderous plans for a fellow ex-pat. Can any of the close- knit community discover the brutal plans before they are all put in mortal danger? Deirdre Quiery’s gripping thriller is not just an addictive page turner, but provides a compelling exploration of human emotion and desires, and the terrible costs of jealousy and ambition.

Dark Dawn over Steep House by M R C Kasasian (review copy courtesy of Head of Zeus)

London, 1884: 125 Gower Street, the residence of Sidney Grice, London’s foremost personal detective, and his ward March Middleton, is at peace. Midnight discussions between the great man and his charge have led to a harmony unseen in these hallowed halls since the great frog disaster of 1878. But harmony cannot last for long. A knock on the door brings mystery and murder once more to their home. A mystery that involves a Prussian Count, two damsels in distress, a Chinaman from Wales, a gangster looking for love and the shadowy ruin of a once-loved family home, Steep House.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (ebook, 99p)

Greece in the age of Heroes. Patroclus, an awkward young prince, has been exiled to the kingdom of Phthia. Here he is nobody, just another unwanted boy living in the shadow of King Peleus and his golden son, Achilles. Achilles, ‘best of all the Greeks’, is everything Patroclus is not — strong, beautiful, the child of a goddess — and by all rights their paths should never cross. Yet one day, Achilles takes the shamed prince under his wing and soon their tentative companionship gives way to a steadfast friendship. As they grow into young men skilled in the arts of war and medicine, their bond blossoms into something far deeper — despite the displeasure of Achilles’s mother Thetis, a cruel and deathly pale sea goddess with a hatred of mortals. Fate is never far from the heels of Achilles. When word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, the men of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause, Torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows Achilles into war, little knowing that the years that follow will test everything they have learned, everything they hold dear. And that, before he is ready, he will be forced to surrender his friend to the hands of Fate.

On What Cathy Read Next last week

Book Reviews

On Sunday I published my review of The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes, part of my From Page to Screen Challenge. I managed to finish the book just a few days before seeing the film and I’ll be posting my comparison shortly. Tuesday saw my review of Golden Hill by Francis Spufford, one of the books shortlisted for The Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction. The following day, I reviewed Days Without End by Sebastian Barry, another novel from the shortlist. As you can see, I had to do a last minute rush of reading to finish all the shortlisted novels and write my reviews before the prize announcement on Saturday 17^th June (more of that below). On Thursday, I took part in the blog tour for Karen Aldous’ latest book, Under A Tuscan Sky – the perfect summer read for romance lovers. On Friday, I shared my reviews of the thriller Final Girls by Riley Sager and the last book on The Walter Scott Prize shortlist, The Vanishing Futurist by Charlotte Hobson.

Other posts

On Monday, I was delighted to feature a Q&A from husband and wife writing team, Anne Rothman-Hicks and Ken Hicks about their latest mystery, Weave A Murderous Web. Tuesday saw another Q&A, this time with Elyse Douglas (coincidentally the pen name for another husband and wife writing team) about The Summer Letters. I haven’t participated in many memes up until now but I liked the sound of Waiting on Wednesdays and really enjoyed finding out what other book bloggers have been reading, are reading currently and plan to read next. On Friday, I hosted a stop on the blog tour for Eileen Ramsay’s latest novel, The Farm Girl’s Dream and featured an extract from the book. My final post that day was my choice of novel to win The Walter Scott Prize and my prediction – they were one and the same, Days Without End. I’m pleased to report that I was correct in my prediction because Sebastian Barry’s book did indeed win, adding to the Costa Book Award won earlier in the year. Finally, on Saturday, I started a new series of posts with the title Book Geekery. The idea is to highlight lesser known facts about books and the book production process. My first post was about ISBNs.

Challenge updates

Goodreads 2017 Reading Challenge – 72 out of 78 books read (3 more than last week)
Classics Club – 2 out of 50 books reviewed (same as last week)
NetGalley and Edelweiss Reading Challenge 2017 (Gold) – 36 ARCs reviewed out of 50 (same as last week)
From Page to Screen – 6 book/film comparisons completed (same as last week)
The Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction Shortlist 2017 – completed