The Girl of his Dreams - Donna Leon

I am a huge fan of Donna Leon. This book again does not disappoint. Over the years her books have become darker and I think they are better for it. I find it a fascinating incite into Italian society with the thorny and often contentious issues that she tackles.
In this novel she looks at the position of the Rom. It makes very uncomfortable reading, but the varying reactions of all the protagonists make it a very honest and "real" plot. I certainly found it believable and very sad.

Luckily we still have the travalogue aspects and the food and wine. I positively salivated at the meal Paola produced, fusilli with spinach and mozzarella followed by calamari.......yum!

Donna has an excellent website, with an indepth plot summary so I will not repeat it here, but it is a must for all those Venetianophiles like me!

http://www.donnaleon.co.uk/

Where Three Roads Meet - Sally Vickers

I am a big fan of Sally Vickers and this book is no exception. Clever, erudite and deep as you would expect from this former psychoanalyst. This is the story of the end of the life of Freud and his conversations with Teiresias and their exploration of the Oedipus 'myth' that so influenced Freud's own analytical thinking.

This is a small book, 200 pages at most but take your time and enjoy!

The Glassblower of Murano - Marina Fiorato

This is a fabulous book. A true romantic, historical novel. This is THE book to take away with you on holiday, or for an indulgent read. It has a dual time story and all the atmosphere of wonderful Venice. Having been to Venice and to Murano, it was fascinating to be given an insight into this ancient craft.

The characters are well drawn, and there is plenty of pace to keep you wanting to read more. I finished this in just 3 days! Oh and I cried , old romantic that I am!

This book comes out in May. Thank you to Beautiful Books for allowing me to read this excellent book in advance. No wonder it has been a best seller in Europe!

The Testament of Gideon Mack - James Robertson

We had a great discussion last night at Westbourne Library about this book. The Sunday Telegraph called it "Fascinating, Extraordinary, strange and rich". We all concurred. This book is beautifully written, a pleasure to read his literary style. Book Group members were enthused into reading passages from the book that spoke to them out loud. The book is strange, it is challenging, it is dark. Do we believe that Gideon met the Devil? The jury was still out an hour later last night. Oh and apparently the Devil loves Scotland!

Duma King - Stephen King

This book is really up to the standard set by Stephen King's earlier books. It has suspense, the supernatural and horror. The book builds up the tension gradually until, if you are like me, you had to put it down for a while just to take a breather. I can honestly say there were several times when I was seriously spooked.

The book is about Edgar, who after a devastating accident in which he looses an arm, decides to complete his recuperation in the Florida keys.When he is not taking long walks on the beach, he takes up painting as a gentle pastime, that is when things start to slide into the realms of the sinister. It all happens in such a subtle manner that you are caught up in the life of this man and his recovery and then before you know it you are bang into a Dali-esque nightmare!

Carol Rivers

We have had a great author visit again from Carol Rivers at Kinson Library. Carol was very generous with her advice and tips on a variety of subjects in the question and answer session! Carol writes East End Sagas set in the Isle of Dogs, and I can highly recommend them!

Homesick - Eshkol Nevo

We were very lucky, as part of Jewish Book week to have a meet the author event with this author. a fascinating, honest and erudite speaker.

This is an interesting book, not the least for giving us an honest window into modern Israeli life. The book deals with the homesickness of it's main characters and the effects this has on their lives. It is a novel that is written from the viewpoint of several different characters, polyphonic, and each character comes off the page as a complete and individual voice. It is a lyrical book that keeps you engaged to the final page.

It will make an excellent reading group book.

I was especially interested in his portrayal of the Palastinian character and his interaction with the Jewish characters. This for non Israeli readers gave the book balance.

When questioned Eshkol revealed that he interviewed many Palestinians to find the voice of Saddiq. He also revealed that it was this character that has made this book so controversial in Israel, and a bestseller. It deserves to be one here too.