Love and Other Impossible Pursuits by Ayelet Waldman 340 pages

Love and Other Impossible Pursuits is not a book with a surprise ending or very many surprises at all, for that matter.  I enjoyed reading it because I enjoyed the point of view of the main character, Emilia Greenleaf.  She is the second wife of Jack, who has a preschool age son named William, and bitter ex-wife named Carolyn.  The story is set in New York City and descriptions of Central Park are scattered throughout the narrative.

I would not call this a great read, but sometimes I will finish a well written book just because it is well written.  

Rage Against The Dying by Becky Masterman 307 pages

Brigid Quinn is a retired FBI agent, recently married and living the life of her dreams in the Arizona desert.  And then a man confesses to a series of crimes, an old case that Brigid worked but never solved and where she lost her rookie partner whose body has yet to be found. The killer has agreed to disclose the location of the body in exchange for life imprisonment rather than the death penalty. When the current FBI agent on the case tells Brigid she believes the confession is fake, Brigid is drawn back to the life in a big and not entirely sanctioned way.

Did I mention she is fifty-nine, white haired and married to an ex Catholic priest?

Brigid Quinn is one of the most engaging, and believable, tough and determined, needy and self- sufficient and just plain plucky protagonists that I’ve come across in a long, long time. She doesn’t give up, she does what has to be done and worries about the consequences later. I cannot wait until the next installment, it was that good.

Human Remains by Elizabeth Haynes 438 pages

 Annabel doesn’t have much of a life. She is a police analyst, she lives alone but for her cat, she has no friends and she takes care of her aging mother. When she discovers her neighbors decomposing body in the house next door and realizes that nobody even missed her she begins an investigation to determine how many people actually die alone and forgotten. She is appalled at the inordinate amount she discovers in her town. Using her skills as an analyst she discovers a pattern and realizes that something is not quite right.

Human Remains alternates between Annabel’s narration and the actual killer’s although I’m not quite sure you can call him a killer since the victim’s all commit suicide. But he does play a part.

This is another case of choosing a book based on an author’s previous work and while it had an unusual and original premise it didn’t quite measure up to her earlier work. Too many bodies probably.

Whatever You Love by Louise Doughty 369 pages

Louise’s nine year old daughter is killed by a hit and run driver and when he’s let off with a small fine and points on his license, Louise decides to hunt him down and exact revenge. She will take away what he loves most. At the time of the accident Louise was separated from her husband David who had abandoned his family for another woman.

Most of Whatever You Love focuses on Louise’s relationship with David—how they met, where it all went wrong and the other woman. We are fully three quarters of the way through before we get to the hit and run driver where the author devotes a small and unsatisfying portion to his story and then we are back to David who is apparently the love of her life.

I read this book because I was absolutely hooked by Apple Tree Road. Had I read this book first I might have had a different reaction. But as it was I felt let down. Even so I would still recommend this book. There is no denying that this author has serious skills as a writer. 

Good People by Ewart Hutton 326 pages

DS Glyn Capaldi is banished to the backwoods of rural Wales after he messes up a big case and a man dies. Determined to work his way back he decides to investigate what he deems a suspicious occurrence although he seems to be the only one who thinks so. Six men and a female hitchhiker disappear in the woods after a night of gaming and drinking and only five come back. And while everyone else—including the police is satisfied with the ridiculous explanation they give, Capaldi isn’t. As he delves deeper into the mystery he finds he is very much the outsider and neither the townspeople nor the police want anything to do with him.

While this book is well written and Capaldi is an extremely likeable character the story itself leaves a lot to be desired. It’s hard to believe the police would overlook the heinous nature of the crimes that were committed simply because they’ve known the suspects all their lives. Even his superiors forego their support and every battle is an uphill climb for Capaldi. Despite this I was engaged throughout the story until I reached the end and then it just fell off.

Good People is the first in a series starring DS Capaldi. I’m pretty sure I’ll read the second installment but I’m hoping the author will iron out the wrinkles before then.

Apple Tree Yard by Louise Doughty 317 pages

Louise is a perfectly ordinary, bright and capable, middle-aged wife and mother who begins an affair with a complete stranger an affair that takes her to the heights of passion and leaves her and her lover in a courtroom on trial for murder.

Apple Tree Yard is a psychological exploration of the dark side of passion and the consequences of burying your head in the sand when rationalizing the choices you make. And even if you don’t like Louise or think her actions are pure madness, the author’s excellent writing skills and the effort she takes in setting up the story allows you to suspend belief long enough to envision the kind of thought processes necessary to act as Louise did.

I can’t say enough about this book. It was everything I look for in a book and more.

The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman 345 pages

Tom Sherbourne is a lighthouse keeper on Janus Rock about a half day away from the coast of Australia. It is a solitary and isolated existence until he meets and marries Isobel. At first they are joyously happy but after two miscarriages and a stillbirth their grief overshadows everything. And then one day a boat washes ashore carrying a baby and a dead man. Although Tom is a moral and law abiding sort he cannot turn away from Isobel's pleas to keep the baby. So despite his gut instincts he agrees, buries the man without recording the incident, and together they raise baby Lucy. When his tenure on Janus Rock ends they move back to Partageuse and civilization which in the end is their undoing. 

The Light Between Oceans is an emotionally charged book about love and loss--perhaps too much loss--and making decisions that have all consuming consequences, decisions that are both right and wrong and understandable as both. This was a book club selection that was loved by all the members. A great debut novel. 

Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter, 368 pages

The library book clubs are reading "Beautiful Ruins" this year.  My preferred method of "reading" books is actually listening to them but I read this one the old fashioned way.  As I have a problem finding the time to do extended reading that was a problem.  "Beautiful Ruins" involves several stories, characters, story types and fluctuates between 1962, the present and the recent present.

Just because I had a problem keeping all of it straight, that doesn't mean I am not recommending this book.  I am.  It is extremely well written, funny and smart.  Just do yourself a favor and take the time to savor it in big chunks.

Under Your Skin by Sabine Durrant 295 pages

Gaby Mortimer has the perfect life. She’s a talk show host of a popular morning show, owns a beautiful home, has a maid and a nanny too, a handsome husband, and a beautiful child.  And then one early predawn morning while out for her daily jog she discovers the body of a young woman left in a wooded copse and everything goes downhill from there. Fast. Gaby is eventually arrested for the crime, she loses her job, is hounded by the media. At first you don’t really care. She’s not the most likeable character with her self-deprecation, her middle class snobbishness, the passive way she seems to go through life. But there are more obvious suspects and when Gaby teams up with a journalist to investigate what really happened you find yourself rooting for her.

Under Your Skin is a fast paced, beautifully written thriller that has lots of twists and turns and a heck of a surprise ending. Excellent read!

How to be a Good Wife by Emma Chapman 272 pages

You know within the first few pages there’s something not quite right about Marta. She smokes but didn’t know she was a smoker, she’s on medication for some sort of mental issue or at least she’s supposed to be but she won’t take her pills, she remembers very little about her early life, and she sees things that other people don’t see. You could put it down to her controlling husband Hector or her meddling mother-in-law—she gives Marta a book for a wedding present on how to be a good wife, or the fact that she suffers terribly when her only child moves out and in with another woman. But that’s not it either. The problem is that you can’t figure out if Marta’s crazy or if the people around her are. And the author doesn’t say; she leaves it up to the reader to figure out on their own.

If you are the type of reader who likes things tidied up at the end and an explanation for what you just read then you probably don’t want to read this book. But if you like to put your own spin on things then How to be a Good Wife is just the book for you.