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FA 21 Completed Tasks
20.10 - Musical Mysteries (Elizabeth (Alaska)'s Task)Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley
🍁 Elizabeth (Alaska) suggested this one in the help thread 🍁
+20 task
+15 Combo (10.7 - WWII vet; 20.5 - 1952; 20.6 - Shamus, CWA New Blood Dagger)
Task total: 35
Season total: 100
20.10 Musical MysteryMurder in G Major by Alexia Gordon
20 pts 20.10 Musical Mystery. Gethsemane Brown is a violinist and music teacher
5 pts 10.3 Halloween “Murder”
10 pts Review
I found this mystery by searching “music” and “mystery” but it was a good find. Gethsemane Brown is an African American violinist who finds herself in Ireland without a job. She ends up teaching music at a boys school, becoming involved with a ghost, and the bodies start piling up as a result. The story is fun and Brown as an accidental detective is a delight. Somehow, most tropes about small town life are employed but the story doesn’t seem trite. You like Gethsemane and hope that she succeeds. I am looking foward to reading the next installment.
Total task: 35pts
Total Season: 105 pts.
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10.5 Classics (Ed's Task)Read a book that has been classified as "Classics" by at least 100 readers on GR.
To Sir, with Love. E.R. Braithwaite
4.0 stars - I'm surprised I never read this book before, it was an interesting depiction of life in the east end of London, just after World War II. E.R. Braithwaite led a very storied life, born a British citizen in Georgetown, Guyana, highly educated, a pilot in the R.A.F. during World War II. While he didn't face racism during the war, he was turned down for job after job afterwards, even though he was trained in electronics, a field with many openings. Finally, he turned to teaching in desperation, and was sent to a school where the students lived in poverty and life was a daily struggle for many of them. Despite his lack of experience, he decision to treat the students as adults, demand and give respect, and hold them to a high standard of conduct soon won them over. It was interesting to see this side of life, having read all the Call the Midwife: A True Story of the East End in the 1950s books, which takes place during the same time and location.
+10 - task
+10 - Review
+15 - combo (10.3, 10.7, 20.3)
Total task: 35
Total Season: 70 pts.
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20.5 BoomerEnfances by Marie Desplechin
Born 1959 - https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_D...
+20 Task
+5 Combo (20.3 - 4.46)
+10 Not-a-novel (non-fiction : biographies of children that will become famous)
Task total = 35
Season total = 135
… ; 10.2 ; 10.3 ; … ; … ; … ; … ; 10.8 ; 10.9 ; …
… ; … ; … ; … ; … ; … ; … ; … ; … ; …
… ; … ; 20.3 (x2) ; … ; 20.5 ; … ; … ; … ; … ; …
10.3 Back to SchoolThe Case of the Purple Calf (Anthony Bathurst #16) by Brian Flynn
+10 Task
+5 Combo (20.3 - avg. 4.19)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 575
15.5 COA 13 LettersCultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell
+15 Task
+5 Not a Novel
Task Total: 20 pts
Grand Total: 80 pts
10.7 ServiceBeauty by Kerascoët and Hubert
Several main characters are middle-age kings and knights, fighting in several wars during the whole books.
+10 Task
(no style, graphic novel)
Task total = 10
Season total = 145
… ; 10.2 ; 10.3 ; … ; … ; … ; 10.7 ; 10.8 ; 10.9 ; …
… ; … ; … ; … ; … ; … ; … ; … ; … ; …
… ; … ; 20.3 (x2) ; … ; 20.5 ; … ; … ; … ; … ; …
20.6 - Nebula, Hugo, LocusAll Systems Red by Martha Wells
All Systems Red by Martha Wells – well, that was not what I expected! I’d heard a lot about this series and all of it good so I figured I’d give it a shot and I’m glad I did. The first novella is highly amusing, with the kind of dry, sardonic wit that I relate to. I don’t usually much care for anything written in the first person but I’ll admit it worked for this particular piece. It’s just a very well written piece of Sci-fi in a style you don’t often see. Over all, very much worth reading and I’m going to have to finish the series.
+20 task
+10 review
+10 combo (20.3 - 4.16 stars, 20.5 - born 9/1/1964)
Task total: 40
Season total: 145
..;..;10.3;..;..;..;..;..;..;..
..;15.2;..;..;..;..;..;..;..;..
..;..;..;20.4;..;20.6;..;..;20.9;..
15.1 Counting on AuthorsChip of the Flying U by B.M. Bower
+15 Task (less than 9 letters)
Post total: 15
Season total: 85
10.4 Truth and ReconciliationIslands of Decolonial Love: Stories & Songs by Leanne Betasamosake Simpson
"The story is more factual than confessional and you notice the sparseness of his words. He's speaking in English and you wonder why. If he was speaking in your own language, the story would have been a poem instead of a newsletter."
The author's use of language--especially the use of her native Nishnaabemowin while giving little to no translation for the reader--peels back the layers of what it means to be colonized, what psychological toll it takes, and how to fight against the loss of identity. I switched reading back and forth between this and An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States--the facts and the feelings becoming intertwined--they were perfect companion texts.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+10 Not-a-Novel
+10 Combo: 10.3, 20.3: 4.38 avg rating
Task total: 40
Season total: 280
10.1 TBRThe Tale of the Bamboo Cutter by Anonymous
TBR: I’ve been working on the 1001 list since 2010.
I enjoyed this reading experience more than I expected. This edition (translated to English by Donald Keene, with paper-cut art by Masayuki Miyata) was beautifully done and made for a bit of a magical reading experience.
The story itself is very much a fairy tale - part real, part fantasy. It dates back to around 900, but I found it strikingly timeless.
The main character is Kaguya-hime, a moon princess who ends up on earth. The fairy tale and sexist tropes are there -- she's incredibly beautiful, to the point she stays inside all the time; many men woo her and decide she really should belong to them; her father urges her to marry and she expresses willingness out of devotion to him.
But she also has some unique freedom. She agrees to marry only a suitor who manages to perform a completely impossible task (and, of course, no one succeeds). She is never forced to marry, though much cajoling happens.
Definitely worth a read - it's survived more than 1000 years for good reason.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+10 1001 Books
Post total: 30
Season total: 150
Claimed to date:
10.1 - - - - - - - - -
15.1 - - - - 15.6 - - - -
- - - 20.4 - - - - 20.9 -
20.4 Mr. Splitfoot by Samantha Hunt
Well. A good thing I can say about this book is that the first half was pretty spellbinding. And the second half kept me from losing my goddamn mind in a badly overbooked doctor’s office. It should not take three hours for a well-visit, but I put those hours to use and finished this in a paper gown, wondering like Cora if there was a point to it all.
Now, perhaps some of my irritation rubbed off on my review, but, like the damn office visit, this book was not worth the slog.
This has many glowing reviews, so my takeaway is that you probably get what you put in. I loved the first part, the weaving of the story, especially the past. But once things start to come into focus, they also fall apart. The story just unravels into a plodding, predictable mess. I lost all of my investment in the story.
But it gave me something to do.
+20 task
+10 combo (10.3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samanth..., 20.9 “ Pictures of her drinking from the lip of a champagne bottle”)
+10 review
Task total = 40
Season total = 175
10.8 MediterraneanThe Janissary Tree by Jason Goodwin
+10 Task set in Turkey
+10 Combo 20.5 born 1964, 20.9 p205 Standing by the entrance with a glass of champagne in one hand and a pair of kid gloves in the other was Stanislaw Palewski, the Polish ambassador.
Task Total: 20
Season Total: 270
20.6 AwardedBlindsight by Peter Watts
+20 Task Grand Prix del’Imaginaire for Traduction, Seiun Award for best Translated Long Story
+15 Combo 20.3 rating 4.01, 20.4, 20.5 born 1958
Task Total: 35
Season Total: 305
20.10 - murderer's calling card is a flower and a songSinging in the Shrouds by Ngaio Marsh
Singing in the Shrouds by Ngaio Marsh. Hm. I’ve come to the conclusion that I quite like murder mysteries but this one seems to have fallen rather flat by me. It’s a closed room mystery – eight people on a ship and one of them is the murderer, almost no one knows the inspector is the inspector, and time is ticking. It’s amusing, as murder mysteries go, but it seems almost like she’s trying *too* hard to pull the red herring trick. ‘It’s *obviously* X but no it’s not! It’s Y! But you’re *wrong*! It was Z all along! But no! It was actually X in the first place but it was so obvious you discounted them!’ There’s a reason tropes get old sometimes. This is one of those cases, in my opinion.
+20 task
+10 review
+10 combo (10.2 - shroud, 10.7 - Inspector Alleyn is a WWI veteran)
Task total: 40
Season total: 185
..;..;10.3;..;..;..;..;..;..;..
..;15.2;..;..;..;..;..;..;..;..
..;..;..;20.4;..;20.6;..;..;20.9;20.10
15.5 - 13 lettersFast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal by Eric Schlosser
+15 task
+5 not a novel
Task total: 20
Season total: 205
..;..;10.3;..;..;..;..;..;..;..
..;15.2;..;..;15.5;..;..;..;..;..
..;..;..;20.4;..;20.6;..;..;20.9;20.10
15.7 - Counting on AuthorsEnter the Black Oak by Monique Edenwood
+15 task - 15 letters
Task total: 15
Grand total: 140
20.5 - BoomersMoonlight Road by Robyn Carr
+20 task - 1951
+15 Combo (10.7 - retired navy, 20.3 - 4.21, 20.9 - I was saving for a special moment, like when we drink champagne tonight at dinner in the RV.)
Task total: 35
Grand total: 190
15.1 Counting on AuthorsPromise Canyon by Robyn Carr
15 task - 9 or less letters
Task total: 15
Grand total: 205
10.8 MediterraneanThe Terracotta Dog by Andrea Camilleri
This starts out with the classic "Inspector, I have something to tell you, but I can't tell you on the phone" scenario followed by a death. This eventually leads Inspector Montalbano to a place where he finds two bodies in a cave "guarded" by a lifesize model of a dog in terracotta.
I enjoyed the "cold case" mystery, but the combination of that and the mafia case running alongside, plus all the people in Montalbano's personal and professional life, created a situation where there were just too many names to remember. It worked out in the end, but I was glad I had read the previous book only a few months ago, so at least I could sort out Ingrid, Anna, Livia, and Adelina, the four women in his life.
+10 Task (set 100% in Italy)
+10 Combo (10.3 as claimed by Rebekah in msg 38, 10.6)
+10 Review
Task Total: 30
Season Total: 150
20.3 RatingsSaga, Vol. 2 by Brian K. Vaughan
Graphic novel, no styles
+20 Task
Task Total: 20
Season Total: 170
20.3 RatingsSaga, Vol. 3 by Brian K. Vaughan
Graphic novel, no styles
+20 Task
Task Total: 20
Season Total: 190
20.6 AwardsEnemy Women by Paulette Jiles
"Enemy Women" is another book to add to my favorites list. The story is set against the background of the American Civil War in the Missouri Ozarks. Missouri was considered to be a neutral state with fewer slaveholders than the Confederate states that seceded from the Union. However, conventional Union and Confederate troops plus irregular guerrilla military forces (Union Jayhawkers and Confederate Bushwhackers) looted houses and ambushed individuals in Missouri.
The neutral Colley family had their horses stolen, their barn burned, their house raided, and the father beaten and dragged away by Union forces. A drenching rain saved their house from being destroyed by fire. Eighteen-year-old Adair Colley and her younger sisters took to the road in an attempt to get news of their father's condition. A fellow traveler's false statements resulted in Adair's arrest on charges of "enemy collaboration," and she was sent to a woman's prison in St Louis.
Adair is saucy, sarcastic, and courageous in prison, but it is a hotbed of disease. Her Union interrogator, Major Neumann, is a righteous man who respects Adair's convictions, and tries to help her. Eventually, Adair sets off on a long dangerous journey through the ravaged, lawless state to reach her home in southeastern Missouri. She is strong, resourceful, and quick-thinking in some frightening situations. The book also details Major Neumann's journey after a bloody battle.
Paulette Jiles, who is also a poet, writes beautiful prose. In addition to being a compelling story, the book starts each chapter with excerpts from actual Civil War correspondence, newspaper articles, and both Union and Confederate military records. The story illustrates the brutality of this war where neighbors fought neighbors. This is a story about survival, love, and a journey with a desperate longing to reach home . . . not knowing if home still exists.
+20 task (2 awards)
+ 5 combo 10.7 (Union soldier Major Neumann)
+10 review
Task total: 35
Season total: 275
20.5 BoomerMoon Over Soho (Rivers of London #2) by Ben Aaronovitch
+20 Task
+10 Combo (20.3 - avg. 4.09; 20.10)
Post Total: 30
Season Total: 605
20.3Straight by Chuck Tingle
4.37 rating as of this post
Self-editing strikes again, but in this case it’s not a big deal. There were a few grammatical errors, and a very abrupt scene-change towards the end, but what it lacks in polish it makes up for with entertainment and impact.
This works both as satire, searing commentary, and a damn good little horror story. Aside from the conceit, there’s nothing new in the beats this zombie-type story takes, but it hits those beats solidly. The peril and pacing worked for me.
And the whole IRL pandemic stuff made this scary in a real way… sure, there could be a disaster that initially sparks unity and cooperation, but at a certain point, some people decide not to care. And of course some people never cared…And things go to hell. But at least this book had catharsis!
+20 task
+10 review
Task total = 30
Season total = 205
10.2 HalloweenAnother Death in Venice by Reginald Hill
10 pts 10.2 Halloween “death’”
5 pts 10.3 Back to School
5 pts 10.8 Mediterranean set in Italy
10 pts Review
Three couples meet on a package holiday in Italy and form those holiday friendships caused by proximity in a foreign country. None of them would ever expect to know each other at home in England. When a slick ex pat and his friend join the group, things start to fall apart ending up with a body being discovered and the whole group being drawn into the investigation. Great premise and description of the personalities but the story and plot start to fall apart at the end. The murder doesn’t exactly seem to be solved but the ending is unsatisfactory.
Total task: 30 pts
Total Season: 135 pts.
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10.8 Mediterranean (Coralie's Task)Champagne: A secret history by Robert Walters
100% in France
+10 Task
+5 Combo (20.9 - "After his compulsory year in the army, he completed one year of studies at the Lycée Viticole (Winegrowing College) in Avize but says he didn't learn anything there, as he was skipping classes and drinking Champagne the whole time" p 35)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 620
Task 20.3 RatingsElsewhere (2020) by Dean Koontz
Review:The premise: a single father, Jeffy, and his 11-year-old daughter, Amity, live near the beach in Southern California. Jeffy acquires a device that allows him and his daughter to jump between parallel planes. Travelling between parallel realities is a sub-category of science fiction. I’ve recently read The Space Between Worlds, Dark Matter, Recursion, If, Then and All Our Wrong Todays, all of which involve travel to parallel realities. (There is also a 1990s TV show https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112167/... “Sliders” with the same premise.) What makes this novel different? Elsewhere focusses on action scenes and chase scenes, rather than how each world is different. I prefer novels that speculate how the world could be different if only some historical fact changed, or on novels that examine the nuance of character. Elsewhere is not that; instead, it is action – chase – action – chase, interspersed with the author’s soapbox announcements about modern day life. Jarringly, the text with some regularity examines what characters do in heroic fantasy novels, and uses that as justification/inspiration for Jeffy and/or Amity to be pro-active and courageous in their actions in this novel. Novel also fails the Bechdel Test. Overall, recommended as an action novel rather than as a science fiction novel.
+20 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 10 = 30
Grand Total: 170 + 30 = 200
20.4 no n-linearThe Archive of Alternate Endings by Lindsey Drager
This was a really interesting riff on Hansel and Gretel with many interconnections between stories. The telling was tied into the visits of Halley's comets and at the start of each section was a row of year number with the ones bolded where the section was set. And I do mean that in plural. Some sections alternated between year settings by paragraph, but what was going on was distinct enough that I rarely found it confusing. The writing was lyrical and intirguing with clear info laid next to hidden meanings. The story dipped unexpectedly into the AIDS ravages in the 80s and other reasons why children might be cast out, or depart on their own, that had nothing to do with literal food. I realy enjoyed it.
+20 task
+10 review
+5 combo (20.3)
Task total: 35
Grand total: 255
20.7 - ExophonicWaiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
+20 task
+ 5 combo (10.5 - Classics, 3,183 users)
+10 not a novel (play)
Task total: 35
Season total: 150
From Post 52Tien wrote: "20.3 Ratings
Death Blow (Veranda Cruz #3) by Isabella Maldonado
avg. 4.41
+20 Task
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 150"
+5 Combo 10.2
From Post 71Rebekah wrote: "10.3 Back to School
The Ghost Writer by John Harwood
See his response to the first question interviewer asks - http://www.societynineteenjournal.com......"
While we couldn't score this for combo with 20.6, it does work for 10.2
From Post 73Norma wrote: "20.3 - Rating
Ritual Demise by Sally Rigby
+20 task - 4.61 rating
Task total: 20
Grand total: 80"
+5 Combo 10.2
From Post 75Norma wrote: "20.3 - Rating
Dark is the Grave by T.G. Reid
+20 task - 4.51 rating
Task total: 20
Grand total: 125"
+5 Combo 10.2
15.6 Counting on AuthorsThe Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie
+15 Task (14 letters)
Season total = 100
10.1 TBRWill My Cat Eat My Eyeballs? And other Questions about Dead Bodies by Caitlin Doughty
Oh, I loved this book so much!
Caitlin Doughty is a mortician based out of L.A. and this book answers all of the hilarious death-related questions asked by little kids, questions like: "if someone is trying to sell a house, do they have to tell the buyer someone died there?" and "what would happen to an astronaut body in space?" and, of course, "when I die, will my cat eat my eyeballs?"
Even though the humor might be a little old for kids (because of old-school references, not because it's racy), this book could be enjoyed equally by kids and adults. The science is fascinating, the writing entertaining, and the pictures introducing each chapter absolutely fantastic!
To give you a small taste:
"Did Grandma want a Viking funeral? If so, your grandmother sounds rad and I wish I had known her.
I'm afraid I have some terrible news. Not only is Grandma dead, but 'Viking funerals,' at least the Hollywood version of them, aren't real. You're picturing Grandma, the fallen warrior, her shrouded body laid solemnly upon her wooden boat. Your aunts push the noble craft into the sea. Your mom draws her bow, a flaming arrow arcs through the sky, hits Grandma, and sets her alight. She burns as bright in death as she did in life.
Alas, fake fake fakeity fake." Five huge stars.
+10 Task, been on my TBR since March 2020
+10 Review
+10 Not-a-Novel
+10 Combo: 10.2, "Dead"; 20.3, 4.11 average rating
Task total: 40
Season total: 320
10.3 Service1636: The Ottoman Onslaught by Eric Flint
+10 Task
+10 Combo 20.3 rating 4.21, 20.5 born 1947
+ 5 Jumbo 592 pages
Task Total: 25
Season Total: 330
From Post 105Ann wrote: "10.3
Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor
Linked in the 10.3 thread
I did not really get this. It was interesting and Okorafor’s writing is excellent as always, but it..."
I show a calculation error here. in post 40, we had a matching total of 80 +20 from this post should give us 100.
From Post 126Valerie wrote: "10.8 Mediterranean
The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri
It took me a while to get into this book. I found the episodic nature of the story telling jarring and sligh..."
+10 Combo 10.3, 10.6
From Post 127Deedee wrote: "Task 10.3 Back to School
Read a book written by an author who has a current or previous profession of educator.
Goodreads biography notes that Willa Cather worked as a school teacher for approxima..."
+10 Not a Novel
20.3 RatingsPaperbacks from Hell: The Twisted History of '70s and '80s Horror Fiction by Grady Hendrix
+20 Task (4.33 rating)
+10 Not-a-Novel
Task total=30
Season total=75
20.3 Ratings A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
Well...this is a monumental read...but well worth it. Things did not turn out the way I expected and would have liked...but I suppose that may be the author's point.
This saga focuses on several individuals from primarily 2 different but interrelated quasi-aristocratic Indian families. The spotlight is mostly on Mrs. Rupa Mehra...a widow who is anxious to find "a suitable boy" to marry her daughter Lata. Three men are in the running...although only 2 would ever be considered by Mrs. Mehra. The true-love is with a Muslim boy... unacceptable to the Hindu family. Another is a semi-successful shoemaker. The third is a poet....who might resemble the author.
In the mix we find some Shakespearian tragedies with Maan...a man besotted with a courtesan.... first saving and then in turn endangering the life of his best friend. Politics play a huge role. This is the age of Nehru...just after the partition. Major land reforms are being implemented. Religious strife rears its ugly head. Maan's sister-in-law is a schemer...watch out for her!
I have read some of Vikram Seth's non-fiction which I remember liking. Now...will I tackle the sequel? Probably...eventually. Just to see if my suspicions about the ending here were justified. 5 stars.
Task=20
Review =10
1001=10
jumbo= 25 (1474 p)
Combo= 15 (10.5; 20.5; 20.6)
Task Total= 80
Grand Total=80
Kate S wrote: “I show a calculation error here. in post 40, we had a matching total of 80 +20 from this post should give us 100.."
Updated my posts and corrected my xls. Thanks!
10.2 HalloweenIn honor of Halloween, read a book with a "death" word in the title.
Organize Your Corpses by Mary Jane Maffini.
Adjusted Previous Total: 95
Task Points: 10
Challenge Total: 105
10.2 HalloweenIn honor of Halloween, read a book with a "death" word in the title.
The Cluttered Corpse by Mary Jane Maffini.
Previous Total: 105
Task Points: 10
Challenge Total: 115
10.2 HalloweenIn honor of Halloween, read a book with a "death" word in the title.
Death Loves a Messy Desk by Mary Jane Maffini.
Previous Total: 115
Task Points: 10
Challenge Total: 125
20.2 Anti-heroThe Fall by Albert Camus
+20 Task
+15 Combo: 10.5 Classics / 10.6 Birthday / 20.3 Ratings
Post Total: 35
Season Total: 305
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
Beyond This Point Are Monsters (other topics)Justified Secrets (other topics)
Merciful Secrets (other topics)
Silent Secrets (other topics)
Veiled Secrets (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Margaret Millar (other topics)Shawn McGuire (other topics)
Shawn McGuire (other topics)
Shawn McGuire (other topics)
Shawn McGuire (other topics)
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Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
+20 Task
+10 Combo: 10.6 Birthday / 20.5 Boomer
Post Total: 30
Season Total: 270