The Worst
What's it about: sari, Indian food, something about a murder mystery
Thoughts: The writing is clumsy with awkward transitions between scenes, some chapters ending abruptly or they seemed to be cut off for no reason, long run-on sentences that probably could be broken up, small actions/events that are out of order or that they contradict each other, characters recapped events/happenings to other characters instead of readers witnessing it (this was written with a man reading a journal of sorts so readers are reading what the man is reading so it's like readers are getting third-hand accounts) and this didn't seem to have been touched by an editor. And yes, this is the author's debut but that's no excuse. As for the mystery - it was mediocre.
What's it about: family, cheating, romance maybe some bits about murdered girls, small amount of investigation which is being generous since readers don't get to witness any of it
Thoughts: No romance, no investigations, just a lot of family dramas which you'll not care about if you're here for romance or mystery. There is no point of view of the second main character, Thomas Pitt, the detective and that's why there are no investigations and the romance just suddenly happens - one minute they are just hanging about and the next the man (Pitt) seemed to be purposing marriage. And the murder solved itself.
What's it about: psychoanalysts, therapy sessions, kidnappings, random people intruding into the main character's lives, murder
Thoughts: Frustrating main character (psychoanalyst Frieda Klein) who does unexplainable things and have all the skills and resources to investigate and get answers but didn't think of the consequences when she shared when unnecessary or didn't share when necessary resulting in the death of a character but the book had no real closures because you have to read the other books in the series for that.
What's it about: family drama, some mystery, a death, sort of a sequel to Pride and Prejudices
Thoughts: Not a true Pride and Prejudices sequel since the characters are recognizable by name but probably by not how they are written. The murder mystery didn't made me care for answers since the suspect (Wickham) is someone everyone hated and the victim is someone only known by maybe two people which there is a reason for but still not worth the time reading.
What's it about: a bored earl, poor woman & two street urchins, murders, society gossips, endless conversations about alchemy, main characters studying each other constantly
Thoughts: The writing is mostly purple prose or romanticized. The main characters are a bored earl (Wrexford) who didn't want a conscience and a poor woman (Sloane) who is probably smart but still involuntarily get into things that put her and her two urchin charges in danger. This leans more toward romance than mystery and the mystery was barely worth reading.
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The Best
What's it about: murder, mystery, family dramas, investigations, crimes
Thoughts: Something about Clark's books makes you keep reading even though you'll probably forget them after you read them but they are entertaining. Out of 25 Clark books I read, the four books above (Where are you now?/You belong to me/On the streets where you live/Moonlight becomes you) are the best ones according to me.
What's it about: depressing people, crimes, police, kidnapping, torture, revenge, murder
Thoughts: This was gruesome with two opposites, Carl, the detective and Assad, his assistant, who made it amusing and the mystery is enticing.
What's it about: making sweet bean paste, cherry blossoms, leprosy (Hansen's disease), friendship
Thoughts: This was about two and half lives - a man, an old lady and a girl (she is hardly there in the beginning but is more there at the end but we don't much about her). This is a little whimsy, a little joyful but also sad at the end with no conclusion, just like real life. I enjoyed this but not quite sure why since there's no murder, no paranormal elements and it's a bit more depressing than most books I read.
What's it about: murders, slums, high society, corruption, poverty, policemen, midwives
Thoughts: Even though the murders are sometimes gruesome and dark and unpleasant, the main characters, Frank Malloy (the cop) and Sarah Brandt (the midwife) and their sidekicks made this series worth reading. And I enjoyed reading some of the historical events/things about New York. I'm not going to choose a favorite book because I have only read 12 of the 27 books as the rest wasn't at the library but lator on I may purchase the others books so I can read them all. But the first book (Murder on Astor Place) is probably the best one as it introduced the two main characters.
What's it about: jobs, work, work relationships, some paranormal bits
Thoughts: This is the only book I ever laughed out this year (that I can remember) though I don't think it's meant to be humorous but it had a touch of whimsy with bits of paranormal. I enjoyed this very much.
What's your worst or best books of the year?
Good
ReplyDeleteOut of your entire list, I have only read a couple of the Gaslight mysteries-not enough to get invested in the characters. If I am remembering correctly, I didn’t find the resolution to the mystery very satisfying. However, I should probably give them another try because I know they are popular.
ReplyDeleteI like your "what's it about" sections...stuff like "small amount of investigation which is being generous since readers don't get to witness any of it" or "endless conversations about alchemy, main characters studying each other constantly" is really funny and gives you a fair idea of the content.
ReplyDelete"it had a touch of whimsy with bits of paranormal"
Very much like your own stories 😉.