The Ship Who Sang

Fiction by Anne McCaffrey.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

I have read several of Anne McCaffery's books; apparently I read them prior to 2011 since they are not listed in this blog. She is most known for the "Dragonriders" series, which I liked, but I think the ones of hers I enjoyed most were "Catteni Freedom" series. (Freedom's Landing is the first of those.) I may have to revisit them.

The Ship Who Sang, which I had not read before, was pretty good, but it read more like a set of short stories along one theme than a cohesive novel. Looking at the publishing date, I see that this is some of her earliest writings, and the parts were indeed released separately somehow, so that probably accounts for the disconnectedness. So this book had a cool idea, but it didn't form itself into a cool novel somehow.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

Fiction by Gail Honeyman.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

I enjoyed this book a lot. At first I thought the main character Eleanor was going to annoy me with her smug superiority and rigid behavior, but I discovered quickly that her prickly exterior hid a lonely and wounded heart.

It was a good story.

Fade Away

Fiction by Harlan Coben.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

This book is number three in the Myron Bolitar series, and it's pretty good. (The previous books are Drop Shot and Deal Breaker).

In general, the later Bolitar books (See Home) and Coben's stand-alone novels (see No Second Chance) are better, however.


I also read recently by this author: Tell No One

The Man in the Brown Suit

Fiction by Agatha Christie.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

I am continuing my review of Agatha Christie's novels in order. If you are interested, here is the list I'm using to find out which book is next: https://www.bookseriesinorder.com/agatha-christie/

The Man in the Brown Suit is one of her "Intrepid Girl Adventurer" stories, which may be my favorite type of hers. In this one, a girl called Anne sails off to South Africa to catch a murderer and finds true love. Very exciting!



I recently read by this author: Murder on the Links

Before the Fall

Fiction by Noah Hawley


https://www.barnesandnoble.com/

In this book, eleven people go on a private plan ride from Martha's Vineyard, and it crashes into the ocean. But that's just the beginning of the story. Who are these people and why did they crash?

The novel blends a survival saga, a suspense story, and a social commentary with a bunch of compelling characters. It's very good.

Murder on the Links

Fiction by Agatha Christie.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

I'm re-reading Agatha Christie's novels in sequential order; this was her second book. It was excellent, of course, although generally I prefer her non-Hercule-Poirot books. (He just irritates me after a while. I think this is another indication of the author's genius, though; it's like he's a real person who walks in and everyone rolls their eyes.)

It is amazing to me that this was written almost a hundred years ago and is still compelling.


I also read recently by this author: The Mysterious Affair at Styles

The Teacher's Funeral

Youth fiction by Richard Peck.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Set at the turn of the century (that's the twentieth, not the twenty-first, by the way), this was a cute story about a one-room schoolhouse in the country.