Thursday 20 October 2022

I have been reading...

And I have. Been reading that is, but slowly. Here we are, well past the middle of the month, and I've read four books, am in the middle of two more but not that close to finishing either. And nor have I been particularly busy this month. So what this is all about I don't know. I suppose some months the mad enthusiasm is just not there. I've also done several jigsaw puzzles and that really does eat up your spare time. I suppose what I ought to do is look into audio books then I could listen while I puzzle. 

Anyhooo, a quick update. The first book I finished but have not reviewed is Persuasion by Jane Austen. I read this partly because I fancied a reread after eons and eons but also for the Back to the Classics challenge which is being hosted by Books and Chocolate. 

I balk at the idea of trying to write a long, intelligent review of such an iconic book so this will not be that! The heroine of Persuasion is stoical, sensible Anne Elliot. The gist of the story is that she broke off her engagement to Captain Wentworth eight years ago after pressure from her family and very close friend, Lady Russell. He wasn't, in their opinion, a suitable match for a girl born into high society despite the fact that the couple were very much in love. But now he's back and has made his fortune on the high seas and of course is much more acceptable. The problem is, he's harbouring a grudge against the family and who could blame him. Anne, of course, still loves him but sees no way of getting him back and has to watch while he courts the two daughters of a family related to her by marriage, apparently determined to take one of them for his wife. You have that thing sometimes when you finish a book that you have loved and felt like you were holding your breath as you gobbled it up, and then a week later you feel like picking the book up again and reading it at a much slower pace. It was a beautiful book and I feel like I devoured it too quickly. It's so long since I read Persuasion that I'd forgotten all but the accident in Lyme Regis and a little scene at the beginning where Anne is being physically overwhelmed by her sister's two small children and Wentworth rescues her by snatching them away. Loads of characters I'd forgotten such as Anne's two awful sisters and the vain father who judges everyone on how beautiful or handsome they are. I adored the Musgroves who took Anne to their hearts and treated her as a human being worthy of their time. And I loved the west country setting, rural Somerset, Bath, Lyme Regis, all beautifully depicted. I will read this again but next year I think, let the dust settle for a few months and then 'try' to read it slowly over a couple of weeks rather than three or four days. The trouble is, like a lot of people, I find Austen's writing so very compelling.

Next up, a complete change of scenery, The Black Seraphim by Michael Gilbert. 

Actually... 'not', I lied. The setting for this is Melchester, a fictional cathedral city within reach of Bath, Winchester and Salisbury and definitely, like Persuasion, a West Country novel. But then Michael Gilbert was educated in the town where I live so hardly surprising he sets novels down here. I digress. (Sorry, I love these little details.) James Scotland, a twenty five year old pathologist, is suffering from overwork and has been told by his doctor to take a rest. He returns to Melchester to the cathedral close and choir school where he taught briefly some six years ago. But goodness me, it's a quagmire of hostilities and polarisation based on various issues and James is in it up to his neck immediately. The murder amd mayhem in this book is quite subtle, the Archdeacon dies in a nasty manner but it takes them a while to realise he was done away with as they all want to think well of The Cathedral Close inhabitants. The book is quite character based and people like The Dean, The Archdeacon, The Dean's daughter, and James, the main protagonist, are well fleshed out. There's humour too, as with all of Gilbert's books. I didn't think it was quite as good as his other cathedral close book, Close Quarters, and the reason for that is that there were so many people in this that I struggled to keep track of who was doing what to whom and why. There was a decent twist at the very end and I liked that. All in all, not one of Gilbert's best but nevertheless, excellent. 

So I've just started this:


In a Glass Darkly by Sheridan Le Fanu is a book of supernatural stories that I've had hanging around for years and not read. I've just started it and already think it's very good and M.R. James was a fan of the author apparently so that must mean something.

I hope you're all enjoying autumn and finding some good books to read. 


22 comments:

Lark said...

I haven't read as many books this month either. I've started several only to DNF them. I love Persuasion, too. It's one of my favorite of Jane Austen's. Of course, I say that but then I would probably call all but two of them my favorites. ;D And it's funny that you started a book of short stories by Sheridan Le Fanu; I just started reading Uncle Silas by him yesterday. It's going to be my Wild Card Classic this month; it's a long one, but so far it's been pretty good.

Yvonne @ Fiction Books Reviews said...

I have read a few books this month, however most of them are reviews for Blog Tours which roll out over the next few weeks, so I have quite a backlog to drip through into my various posting sites. There are never really enough to group together into an interesting post like this one though, as I try not to give too much away before the reviews go live.


I am definitely going to try and get my hands on some of the Michael Gilbert books, as his name is another new one on me. I too enjoy reading novels set down in this part of the country - ie. the south/southwest, as those are the locations I can most readily relate to and engage with, so I shall probably aim to begin my journey with 'The Black Seraphim'


We do seem to have quite a few cathedral cities down here too, so I could think of a couple of potential real-life locations for Michael's fictional place setting, which makes the story even more interesting and intriguing.

Thanks for sharing :)

Sue in Suffolk said...

I'm only on 3 or 4 for this month - been watching too much TV . New heap from library van today, so must do better

Margot Kinberg said...

There are just some months like that, aren't there, Cath? There's no particular, pressing reason, but you just don't read as much. Still, you have some interesting reads here. Sorry to hear the Gilbert didn't work better for you; if I'm being honest, I like his work, but not all of it. I don't know if he's inconstant or I am? At any rate, Austen is always worth a re-read in my opinion.

Cath said...

Lark: Yes, I've DNFed a couple this month too. And yes, I also feel that four JA books are my favourites. I probably won't be reading Northanger Abbey again and have never read Sense and Sensibility... I must do that at some stage. Oh, how interesting, Uncle Silas is on my list to read too so I'll be very interested in what you make of it!

Cath said...

Yvonne: I'm full of awe at your organisational skills with your blog tours. I would fall behind and end up in a real mess.

It's great fun to read books set in the west country and the south west. I love being able to picture places very clearly because I've been there or lived there. I think Melchester is probably a mix of Winchester and Bath... or even Taunton perhaps although that's a town not a city. In favour of Taunton is the fact that he went to school at Blundells here in Tiverton and doubtless knew Taunton.

Cath said...

Sue: It seems a lot of people have run out of steam this month. Very odd. With me it's jigsaw puzzles.

Cath said...

Margot: Yes, there definitely are some months where books almost take a back seat. I can't think of a definite reason, a mixture of things I think. I've read four, maybe five, Gilberts now and liked them all but some better than others. Realistically you can't really love all of an author's output. That would be unlikely to happen I suppose.

Mary said...

Persuasion is one of my Austen favorites. Have to say that even though I read it long before seeing the excellent 1995 movie with Ciarán Hinds and Amanda Root, whenever I have reread it since then (any number of times), I can't help but visualize that cast. Wouldn't bother seeing any other adaptations. That one was just too good. I have a slim, yellowing paperback copy of Persuasion that I take on long flights. Good to take an 'old friend' on a journey. :)

TracyK said...

I have been working on a review for Sense and Sensibility and finding it very hard going because I don't like just summarizing such a well-known book. But it is hard for me to say much about it without giving some background. It would be easier if I had liked the book, but I did not like it much. If I did not need to do a post for the Classics Club I would not review it at all. Although it is good to assess why I found it bland. Many, many readers like it a lot.

I liked The Black Seraphim better than most people who reviewed it. I need to read more by Michael Gilbert but almost every book I have of his is tiny tiny print. I am going to have to break down and pay for relatively expensive reprints, because his books are worth it. Unfortunately I don't find many in ebook format.

The first half of the month I felt like my reading was sluggish but now it has picked up a bit.

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea said...

Hey Cath, such very different books this month. Persuasion, is one that I need to read - so many have enjoyed that one. keep saying I want to read more classics but have only read (1) IN 2022 - it was by Edith Wharton (The Custom of the Country). My reading has been much slower is September and October and have only read (6) books so far. I have a 900 page book going for the last few weeks - The Last Chairlift, John Irving. I like it but need to read other books in between. Also reading my book group book for nest week. We still have 11 days to add another book or two to our completed lists.

Cath said...

Mary: Yes, Persuasion is one of my favourite Austen's too, although as Lark pointed out, I have four favourites and one slightly less so and one I haven't read, Sense and Sensibility. I thought the 1995 film version of the book was very good but my problem was that I've never been much of a fan of Ciarán Hinds. I find him rather wooden - just my opinion - lots of people would disagree vehemently. I will definitely be rereading this next year, in fact I plan to reread her books on a regular basis now.

Cath said...

Tracy: I just saw that you've posted your review of S&S so will go and read that in a minute. I'm planning to read that next year as the only Austen (apart from her shorter works) I haven't read.

I think even an average Michael Gilbert is better than a lot of offerings by other authors. This was good and I don't understand why he isn't more well known. Small print is such a problem these days. I haven't checked for them on Kindle, my problem with that is that I expect Kindle versions to be cheaper than print but they're not always and that annoys me. LOL

Cath said...

Diane: My reading of classics is quite sluggish most years which is why I opted for the Back to the Classics challenge. And I haven't been very good at that, only filling four categories out of twelve so far. I thought next year I would try to read more and also give Victorian literature a good go. Possibly read one a month but not as part of a challenge as having to read books doesn't always work for me. I shall try 'self-motivation' and see how that goes.

FictionFan said...

So long as you're enjoying what you read then quantity doesn't matter - better three or four good books than a dozen not so good! I love Sheridan Le Fanu - he's one of my favourite horror writers, so I really hope you continue to enjoy In a Glass Darkly.

TracyK said...

Cath, I did check for Michael Gilbert books on Kindle, and I did not find many of them. And most of the ones that are on Kindle are ones I have already read. That is a shame. I do believe that a good number are available in reprint editions, but they are fairly expensive. Still, I will persevere and will eventually find copies here and there.

Cath said...

FictionFan: And I definitely am enjoying what I read so it's all good. So far, I'm very impressed with Sheridan Le Fanu and will read a lot more after I've finished this one.

Cath said...

Tracy: It's a real shame that Gilbert's books are so hard to find. Hopefully the British Library will bring a few more out.

CLM said...

How are you doing with The Seven Dials Mystery?

Cath said...

Constance: Just finished it this afternoon. I seem to be in a slow reading period at the moment so am guessing this is the only book I'll read for the 1929 club but we'll see. I might manage to fit something else in, something short maybe.

Judith said...

Hi Cath,
There's nothing like getting lost in the depths of a Jane Austen novel, even those read before. I find when decades have gone by since the last reading, that lots of the wonderful details and events I've completely forgotten. I loved Persuasion and read that the most recently of all her novels, though it was probably in 2018 or so.

Cath said...

Hi Judith. Oh, I'd completely forgotten most of Persuasion so it was almost like reading a new to me book. I want to read some of her less well known books now, Sanditon and Lady Susan, and hopefully some of her letters.