Update - What Happened in July?

Apologies for the lack of book updates, July's releases will be up soon. August's will be later in the month.

So, we've had a few rough weeks chez Euro Crime. Just under a month ago, we had to put one of cats to sleep at the very early age of 6 3/4. Leah had been ill for a while as her kidneys were failing. We nearly lost her at Christmas but she responded well to treatment and was on the way to acting normally. Unfortunately it didn't last and she was deteriorating before our eyes. We tried several new treatments but they didn't work. We and she did have a few extra months together but it has left us both heartbroken.

Ten days later my OH tested positive for Covid (on his birthday and the day Leah's ashes were available for collection). He is now back at work but is feeling the after-effects of his infection. I have tested negative throughout, amazingly, but it has been very disruptive as well as the obvious worry.

Here's our beautiful girl. We adopted her five years ago when she was two. She had been rescued by Cramar Cat Sanctuary about a year prior to that and was found to be pregnant with her leg stuck through a collar which left a scar and the fur grew back a bit awkwardly. Initially she was scared and a bit handsy but she settled down into a gentle cat who would pat you when she didn't want you to touch her anymore. She was always showing her belly off for tickles:

Update Week 24

After the wonderful Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz I found myself not sure what to read next. I didn't want to go straight into the second Aristotle and Dante book, so I turned to one of my comfort series. It used to be that I'd turn to M C Beaton's Agatha Raisin series but more recently it's been Emily Brightwell's Mrs Jeffries series. So I've just finished #12, Mrs Jeffries Reveals Her Art. This is currently a 40-book series so I've plenty to go at. They are very short.

I reviewed the first book in the series, The Inspector and Mrs Jeffries, back in 2014. Time flies!

Blurb from Goodreads:

 Meet the inspector and Mrs. Jeffries--in a delightful mystery series set in Victorian England--and featuring the most charming characters ever to crack a case.

An artist's model never shows up at Neville Grant's house, or so he claims. But when one of Mr. Grant's houseguests suddenly dies - the Inspector and Mrs. Jeffries have to work doubletime to find both the missing model and the killer!

TV-wise, it's been Springwatch for both of us and I've been 'checking' out the new Doctor (Who), Ncuti Gatwa, in Netflix's S*x Education. The actors in this are (necessarily?) a lot older than the Heartstopper actors though they are all supposed to be 16ish.

I also watched the Lucy Worsley Investigates: The Princes in the Tower, which you can watch on BBC iPlayer.

Update Weeks 22/23

Since I last wrote, I finished Death of a Green-Eyed Monster, it's a very quick read once you pick it up. I did like it in the end and I will try the next one which presumably is a solo effort by R W Green - Death of a Traitor - out next February and I suspect will see the return of a character introduced in Green-Eyed Monster... 

I've also read the YA novel, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz. It's a beautifully written coming of age story. Set in 1987, first published in 2012 in the US, it was released here in the UK last year. A great read at any time, but especially for Pride month. A sequel has recently been released - Aristotle and Dante Dive Into the Waters of the World - and it's now in my tbr. 

Sadly, we've finished The Nordic Murders and whilst we choose our next subtitled drama we've been catching up with Springwatch - lots of murder in that!

I've also listened to the six-part BBC radio podcast series Fake Psychic which is about Lamar Keene, and it's available here:

If you wanted to speak to the dead in 1960s America, there was one man who was ready to help. A showman with big ambitions. A man who before your very eyes could bring back the dead.

Vicky Baker investigates the story of Lamar Keene, a renowned psychic who confessed to being part of an underground network that he called the "psychic mafia". 

 From the team who brought you Fake Heiress, this is a story about the art of the con, belief, retribution, and possibly atonement.

June's updates are delayed but I hope to have something up soon.

Update Week 21

I'm still reading Death of a Green-Eyed Monster. I should have finished it days ago but I'm not really feeling the love at the moment.

Having rattled off the Becks, we're now on the Nordic Murders, which is a German series set on an island on the German/Polish border. They are on the tv but you can also stream it at My4.

NB. I'm having some RSI-issues with my right arm. I've scheduled two more posts for the May releases but June's posts will unfortunately be a little delayed.

Update Week 19

Reading-wise, I've just finished Alice Oseman's Radio Silence (YA). I'll probably leave Loveless for a bit and get back to some crime!

We finished Picard and watched another episode of The King but I'm not sure if we'll continue with it. Especially as Beck is back and The Nordic Murders start this week as well.

Update Week 18

I haven't got much to write about that's relevant to British/European crime this week. As you may have seen in my earlier update posts, I've been reading the Heartstopper graphic novels by Alice Oseman. 

I've now watched (and loved) the series on Netflix and last week I also read the related novels and novellas: Solitaire, This Winter and Nick and Charlie. I have Radio Silence and Loveless on my tbr. We are doing a display on Teen Self Esteem this month so I'm having a look at these with that in mind, as well as for my own enjoyment.

I forgot to mention last time that I'm watching Only Murders in the Building on Disney+. I have two episodes left. I love Steve Martin who is responsible for some of my favourite films: Roxanne, The Man with two Brains and All of Me.

Update Week 17

Just a brief update for now as I'm away.

We received the final Petrona Award entry last week, photos and a blog post to follow soon.

I've almost finished Jared Cade's Agatha Christie and the Eleven Missing Days. The missing days are explained very matter of factly but I was expecting a little more evidence. I'm on the Max Mallowan years now so whether more will be revealed in the last few chapters, I don't yet know.

We finished Snow Angels - what a tragic set of events - my OH got very caught up in it.

We've just started The King which is on Sky and stars Luca Zingaretti.

Update Week 16

Another Petrona Award entry arrived last week which just leaves 3 more to arrive. They have been ordered but there are delays at the moment.

Do take a look at the books published in April and let me know what you're looking forward to.

I finished the latest E C R Lorac from the British Library Crime Classic releases, Post After Post-Mortem. Though it was an enjoyable read, I wasn't wrong-footed after all in my predictions. I also found it rather sad. More often than not in the books I read, the murder victim is unpleasant, a wrong-un but this story involves the death of a much loved and young close family member who had done nothing wrong.

I also read the graphic novels, Heartstopper volumes 3 and 4 and the related novella, This Winter, all by Alice Oseman.

Back when I was reading The Christie Affair, I reserved from the library Jared Cade's Agatha Christie and the Eleven Missing Days. I managed to get the revised, 2011 edition. As it's been reserved by somebody else, I'm now trying to speed-read it! 

Anybody read it?

Here's the blurb from amazon:

In December 1926 Agatha Christie became front-page news when she vanished in bizarre circumstances from her home in Berkshire, England. The crime writer was found eleven days later in a hotel in Harrogate,Yorkshire, claiming to be the victim of amnesia. Up till now none of her biographers has come up with conclusive evidence as to what Agatha Christie did in the first twenty-four hours after she disappeared or whether her memory loss was genuine. Although the notoriety made Agatha Christie famous, she never recovered from the intense press scrutiny, and the private anguish that surrounded the episode ensured that she made no reference to it in her memoirs. Illustrated with many hitherto unpublished photographs, Jared Cade's riveting book on which a BBC television documentary has been based provides all the answers, including startling accounts by the novelist's surviving relatives, that reveal for the first time why she staged the disappearance with the help of a co-conspiritor and how it all went terribly wrong . . .

TV-wise, we are still watching Snow Angels which feels very true to life. I heard earlier today that series 3 of The Nordic Murders will be on 'Walter Presents' next month which is good news. 

I recently caught up with series 2 of Departure which is a snappy six episodes featuring a (British)  accident investigator. We've had an air crash and a train crash and I believe it's a boat's turn next. I watched it via Sky but series one is available on Channel 5.

And finally I listened to the short series Death by Conspiracy about a Shrewsbury man, a Covid-denier who died of Covid, which is available via the BBC and other podcast providers.

Update Week 15

The weeks are flying by! Week 15 already. So the first stage of the Petrona Award is almost complete. All the expected entry forms have been submitted and there's just 4 books to arrive in the post. I have had some issues with my email address so the entry deadline has been extended.

I'm just over half-way through E C R Lorac's Post After Post-Mortem. I have my suspicions regarding the guilty party however I expect to be thoroughly wrong-footed by the solution.

Blurb and cover from amazon:

“Now tell us about your crime novel. Take my advice and don’t try to be intellectual over it. What the public likes is blood.”

The Surrays and their five children form a prolific writing machine, with scores of treatises, reviews and crime thrillers published under their family name. Following a rare convergence of the whole household at their Oxfordshire home, Ruth – middle sister who writes ‘books which are just books’ – decides to spend some weeks there recovering from the pressures of the writing life while the rest of the brood scatter to the winds again. Their next return is heralded by the tragic news that Ruth has taken her life after an evening at the Surrays’ hosting a set of publishers and writers, one of whom is named as Ruth’s literary executor in the will she left behind.

Despite some suspicions from the family, the verdict at the inquest is suicide – but when Ruth’s brother Richard receives a letter from the deceased which was delayed in the post, he enlists the help of CID Robert Macdonald to investigate what could only be an ingeniously planned murder.

We're back to watching Scandi dramas. OH wanted something "gritty" so we've begun Snow Angels available on My 4.

On a cold Christmas Eve, Jenni wakes up to discover that her baby Lucas is missing. Police detective Alice races against time and the elements to find him.

Update Week 14 (part 2)

Petrona Award news - made a breakthrough last week and more publishers have submitted their forms, so just one publisher with 2 books to be entered and 3 other books should be in the post. Almost over the finish line - for this stage of the process.

Reading-wise, I finished The Christie Affair. I'm not quite sure what to make of it. I found it fairly slow reading. The narrator is Archie Christie's mistress/second wife-to-be, Nan - though she has a different surname and family to the real second Mrs Christie. Nan is able to recount the whole story even when she wasn't present, relying on what the other characters told her later...

Sometimes I struggled to understand a sentence, eg:

"He heard her, and was struck again at the lack of ploy. A beautiful rawness exhibited either her character or what her character had been reduced - or elevated - to, thanks to whatever trauma it was that drove her."

However the final Act does at least reveal why one has to read a whole lot of backstory for Nan and that does raise it to a 3/5 star read for me. The author exhibits some sleight of hand regards the crime in the book though possibly I was not interested enough in the first place to register the appropriate information. Overall I thought the atmosphere was well done.

I'd be interested in what other readers thought about the book.

I've just finished Heartstopper volume 2 by Alice Oseman and have begun E C R Lorac's Post After Post-Mortem.

We've finished watching Star Trek: Discovery so I hope we can get back to some subtitled dramas soon.

Update Week 14 (part 1)

Very sad news on Facebook over the weekend - the untimely death of UK crime fiction fixture Thalia Proctor. Thalia was working at Little, Brown but worked for a long time in specialist crime fiction shops in London - remember them - Murder One and Crime in Store. Always kind and helpful and smiling. And will be much missed.

I will put my other news in a separate update.

Update Week 13

In Petrona Award news, I received two more entry forms last week making it 28 from a max of 31 and books received so far is at 26. Just two publishers left to submit their books, if they wish to. The closing date is 15 April.

As I mentioned yesterday I'm still reading The Christie Affair by Nina de Gremont. I'm about half-way. I've had a slight cold this past week so I had a couple of early nights and I also snuck in Volume 1 of Heartstopper by Alice Oseman which is a graphic novel. 

A few things I'm looking forward to watching which are recently or shortly to be released:

Bridgerton Series 2 (Netflix)

Death on the Nile (Disney+)

Spencer (Amazon Prime)

Update Week 12

In Petrona Award news, I received 5 books last week making it now 26/31 entry forms and 24/31 books arrived so far. Fingers crossed I can get the final publishers to submit their books.

TV-wise, I'm up to date on Star Trek: Picard Series 2 (all 3 episodes!)  and working my way through ST: Discovery. I did sneak in a Mystery 101 film (Dead Talk) at the weekend. I like this series as it's more "book-y" than most of the Hallmark series.

Last night I finished Murder on the Mauretania by Edward Marston. I'm finding this series fine but not remarkable. I think I'll carry on as I can get them as ebooks from the library. The settings are much more interesting than the crimes and our two flawless leads.

I haven't started another book yet but I'm eyeing up The Christie Affair by Nina de Gremont. This is a  library book but it's quite in demand so I need to decide soon.

Here's the blurb from Amazon:

In 1926, Agatha Christie disappeared for 11 days. Only I know the truth of her disappearance.
I’m no Hercule Poirot.
I’m her husband’s mistress.

Agatha Christie’s world is one of glamorous society parties, country house weekends, and growing literary fame.

Nan O’Dea’s world is something very different. Her attempts to escape a tough London upbringing during the Great War led to a life in Ireland marred by a hidden tragedy.

After fighting her way back to England, she’s set her sights on Agatha. Because Agatha Christie has something Nan wants. And it’s not just her husband.

Despite their differences, the two women will become the most unlikely of allies. And during the mysterious eleven days that Agatha goes missing, they will unravel a dark secret that only Nan holds the key to . . .

Nina de Gramont's The Christie Affair is a stunning novel which reimagines the unexplained eleven-day disappearance of Agatha Christie in 1926 that captivated the world.

Update Week 11

Last week I received two more entry forms for the Petrona Award and two more books arrived, making it now 26/31 entry forms and 19/31 books arrived.

I really enjoyed reading Alison Weir's In the Shadow of Queens - Tales from the Tudor Court however I'm back on crime again with the second of Edward Marston's 'Ocean Liner' series, Murder on the Mauretania. I've not long started it but I do enjoy the recent-history angle to this series.

 

I've recently watched a couple of true-crime documentaries on Channel 5 - Gabby Petito: The Murder That Gripped the World, and Caroline: The Murder That Fooled the World. Both of these are quite recent crimes and you do wonder how the culprits thought they would get away with it with today's technology.

Update Week 10

It's not been a very crime-y week. I've now received 17/31 Petrona Award titles and 24/31 entry forms. I've had communications from most publishers. This is why I set quite a long deadline for entries as publishers are so busy.

I'm also continuing with the expanded weekly lists of books released.

I've gone off-piste with my reading this week, as realising I've maxed my renewals, I thought I'd better read Alison Weir's In the Shadow of Queens - Tales from the Tudor Court which is a collection of a baker's dozen of short stories linked to the six wives of Henry VIII. These stories were previously only available as e-shorts plus there's a bonus one which featured in a US edition.

Most stories are around the 25 page mark so nice bed-time reading.

TV-wise, we finished off The Promise. I did enjoy it but I do have a couple of niggles with some of the events of the last episode.

We began the latest series of Shakespeare & Hathaway - excellent cosy viewing -  but OH would rather watch Star Trek: Discovery and Picard so when we've finished the available episodes we'll hopefully return to S & H. My solo viewing has been catching up on the two Spiderman films starring Andrew Garfield, which I'd missed, in preparation for when the latest Spiderman film hits Disney+.

Update Week 9

I'm writing this a little bit earlier this week so, I've almost finished several things but I have scheduled the March releases post (list version) for Tuesday -  which is taken from the Euro Crime website.

Reading-wise I'm just a handful of pages away from finishing The Darkness Knows by Arnaldur Indridason translated by Victoria Cribb. I like it a lot more than the Shadow-series but I've yet to warm to Konrad. I haven't chosen what to read next.

Petrona Award-wise, I've now received 24 entry forms out of a probable maximum of 31.

TV-wise, tantalisingly me and him indoors have watched 5 of the 6 episodes of BBC4's The Promise and it'll be a couple of days (grrh) before we can finish it off . In the main very good, just one bit where we were going - no, no, no, don't do it!

Grappling with the ghosts of the past. Twenty years after detective Pierre Castaing failed to find a missing girl, his daughter takes up the case. French noir from the creators of Spiral.

I'm also watching I, Sniper: the Washington Killers which is on Channel 4. I'm currently on the fifth episode. Despite the graphic and upsetting content I'm finding it compulsive viewing. I'd obviously heard about this terrible series of crimes but it happened at a time when I couldn't glue myself to the Guardian website all day, every day (like now), so I didn't really know much detail and the documentary makers have done an superb job pulling all the information, footage and interviews together. Anyone else seen it?

Update Week 8

I'm currently at my mum's - not quite stranded by all the storms but hopeful I can have a safe journey back home tomorrow.

February's weekly lists seems to be popular - thanks so much for the emails and comments. The final books for February will be detailed in a post on Friday.

In my to do list are the releases for March (list version) and then subdivided into weeks with the blurbs etc. Also to do is the Petrona Eligibles post and chase up the outstanding Petrona entries - we have about half the books already and most publishers have responded to my initial email so it's looking good.

My current read is the Petrona 2022 Eligible, The Darkness Knows by Arnaldur Indridason translated by Victoria Cribb.

I really liked the Erlendur series but didn't get on so well with 'The Shadow' ones. This is the start of a new series featuring retired police detective Konrad (I assume this is the same Konrad who appears in The Shadow District?) and involves a cold case - cold in both senses - where a man who disappeared thirty years ago is discovered frozen in a glacier.

 

 

Update Week 7

Just a brief note. My mum is staying so I haven't done much on the website or Petrona for a few days. I have the next week's releases-in-detail post scheduled for Friday - lots of new books out this week!

I have been posting some photos of the Petrona Award entries received over on Twitter (@eurocrime).

As I thought I would, I decided to read a Nancy Drew novel between adult crime books. I've almost finished my re-read of The Secret of Shadow Ranch. I probably first read this 40 years ago and I remember nothing except that some horseback riding was involved! 

This is the first book to feature Bess and George and there's a brief mention of Ned.

I bought myself this 2015 edition with the "modern" cover. 

Update Week 6

I've received nearly half of the entry forms for this year's Petrona Award - 15/32. I will probably do a bit of chasing soon as I'm never sure if I've contacted the right person as the role of Awards co-ordinator seems to change frequently at publishers!

I'm trialing an expansion of the monthly lists. You will have seen one on Friday. I'm dividing the month into weeks and producing a list with the covers and blurbs included. So far the feedback has been very positive. I'll continue the monthly lists as well as I need something to work from.

I finished Fatal Isles by Maria Adolfsson translated by Agnes Broomé last week and gave it 5 stars on Good Reads. I rarely rank anything 5 stars so that's how much I enjoyed it. It's left me not sure what to read next. I've dabbled with a couple of books and am wondering whether to read a Nancy Drew book as this is another new project of mine - read or in some cases re-read the early (but revised) Nancy Drew books. Then I could go back to an adult crime book.

We finished watching the second Rebecka Martinsson series - blimey it's a bit grim. And for a change we watched an English language drama - The Long Call based on the book by Ann Cleeves. Is it just me but doesn't Ben Aldridge, who plays DI Matthew Venn, look and sound like Jeremy Northam (at a similar age)?

Update Week 5

Last Thursday I opened up the Petrona Award 22 for entries. So far I've received 14 entry forms out of a possible (predicted) 32. 

I need to prepare the February releases post which involves quite a bit of work so the Petrona Eligibles list might slip to next week.

As I thought last week, I'm still reading Fatal Isles by Maria Adolfsson translated by Agnes Broomé. I'm just over half-way and really enjoying it. 

Now Winterwatch has finished we're back watching the Rebecka Martinsson series. With only 3 episodes left though we'll have to find something else soon. I have loads recorded so it shouldn't be too difficult.