Danger Calling (1931) by Patricia Wentworth: Benbow Smith Mystery #2

👨‍🦰 This is the second book in the Benbow Smith mystery, a combination of spy, adventure, and charming romance mysteries. After reading the first: Fool Errant last year, I can't wait to dig into this one. I found it almost as entertaining as its predecessor, though with a bit less of exciting and dangerous actions. It's a pity too that the main characters are different from the first one (I loved them more). But we get more appearances of Benbow Smith and his beloved parrot Ananias in this one, so...it's not that bad after all.

👨‍🦰 Lindsay Trevor, a junior partner in a publishing firm and is engaged to be married in two weeks time, met a stranger on board a train, and was asked if he's willing to die for his country. Yes, the stranger is none other than Mr. Benbow Smith, a prominent figure in British intelligent service. Trevor was in the secret service himself during war, but it's twelve years ago. Now he can't be bothered any longer by that kind of activity - or can he?

👨‍🦰 When Lindsay's betrothed called off the wedding only a few days before without reason, the broken-hearted young man didn't think twice when Benbow Smith renewed his offer. Lindsay Trevor is announced dead of accident, and after dyeing his hair red and changed his voice, he impersonates the former agent, secretary to a prominent man who was suspected as the mastermind behind some worldwide unrest (strikes, incendiary newspaper articles, and so on).

👨‍🦰 Lindsay soon plunged into this sinister world, full with blackmail, kidnap, poisonous snakes, and dubious character. But in the center of it, there are some romances going on, and of course, some witty hilarious scenes too. All in all, it made an entertaining read, though the plot is rather farfetched compared to its predecessor.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Sunbirds (2024) by Penelope Slocombe #NetGalley

Thanks to John Murray Press and NetGalley for providing me review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

🐦 This is not a book about birds, but about people. People who long for freedom that seems to be possessed only by birds. People who, just like birds, fly high, leaving the present place to another, whenever it likes to, without responsibility, without reserve. The question is, is it possible for human being to take the same way of life as of birds?

🐦 Torran was 18 when he left home in Taigh na Criege, Scotland, to go for a spiritual journey to India in 1997. One day he walked out of his hotel in Himalayan town of Manali, and disappeared. For months his parents had searched everywhere without avail. They didn't even know whether their only son was dead or still alive.

🐦 Seven years later, someone gave them a tip that Torran is alive, living happily in a secluded community away in Himalaya, a place called Sunshine House. Once again Anne went to Himalaya to find her son. Could she find him at last? Or more precisely, did he want to be found?

🐦 This is Penelope Slocombe's debut book, and she's inspired by real life phenomenon. Nearly two dozen Western travelers had disappeared in Northern India’s Kullu Valley between the mid 1990s and the early 2000s. I never get the idea of these hippies, my question along the story was reflected in Esther's (Torran's cousin) comment: "How could one person hold their own needs and desires so high above everyone else's?" I mean... the boy could have let the parents know that he's not coming back, that he'd found his way of living, and please leave me alone. The parents would be devastating, of course, but at least they'll get closure. Disappearing like that is just mean and selfish.

🐦 On the whole, this is quite a poignant story of helplessness, of coping with daily struggles. Anne, the mother, felt that she's not a good mom no matter how hard she tries. And through the story we meet others who feel trapped in the world he or she is at present, and the long to break free, which in my opinion, is simply irresponsibility. I loved the Himalayan, back-to-the-nature themes; loved the birds appearances - a purple sunbird, a blue-throated barber, and a whistling thrush - but found the ending is rather inconclusive. I have a feeling the author purposely made it like that to emphasize the tone of the book, but I just dislike stories that aren't rounded up nicely at the end.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐1/2

**Sunbirds will be published on August 1st, 2024**

#MurderEveryMonday: Cover with the 'Secret' on the Title

Murder Every Monday was created by Kate @ Crossexamining Crime and @ArmchairSleuth. Put simply, the plan is for readers to take a photo of a crime fiction book (novel or short story collection) which meets a given week’s theme criteria and to then share it online, using the hashtag #MurderEveryMonday.

This week's theme is:

Cover with the 'secret' on the title

Have your read any of them? Which cover(s) do you like most?

If you want to participate, here's the list of the weekly theme.

Six Degree of Separation, from The Anniversary to Away with the Penguins

Six Degrees of Separation is a monthly meme, now hosted by Kate @ books are my favorite and best.

On the first Saturday of every month, a book is chosen as a starting point and linked to six other books to form a chain. Readers and bloggers are invited to join in by creating their own ‘chain’ leading from the selected book.

This month we start from yet another book I haven't read:

0. The Anniversary by Stephanie Bishop

The Anniversary is a simmering page-turner about an ascendant writer, the unresolved death of her husband, and what it takes to emerge on her own. It’s a novel that asks: how legible, in the mind of the writer, is the line between reality and plot? How do we refuse the people we desire? And what is the cost, to ourselves, to others and to our art, if we don’t? [Goodreads]

For my first link on the chain, I pick a murder mystery that centers on the anniversary of a wife's death:

1. The Crooked Wreath by Christianna Brand

Excerpt from my review:
"Sir Richard Marsh is a wealthy man; the owner of Swanswater estate, but he's turned a bitter man. When his wife, Serafita, was still alive, he had cheated on her. After her death, Sir Richard married Bella, his mistress. But, perhaps out of guilt, he made in his house a shrine for Serafita, complete with her portrait, and a wreath. Her ballet shoes were also kept around the house (she was a ballerina). Every anniversary of her death, he made his family gather around this shrine to do a kind of memorial ceremony." Here's the complete review.

The word "crooked" from the title forms the link to the next book. Also, both book have a character who loves ballet.

2. Crooked House by Agatha Christie

"The Leonides are one big happy family living in a sprawling, ramshackle mansion. That is until the head of the household, Aristide, is murdered with a fatal barbiturate injection." [Goodreads]

The most memorable character in this book is Josephine, the victim's granddaughter who loves ballet. Another book with another memorable Josephine is...

3. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Excerpt from my review:
"From the four sisters, I think Amy is the most natural one, for her age. Beth is too good to be true; she is more like an angel than a little child! Megan and Jo are typical contradiction in books’ characters; they even reminded me of Anne and George in Enid Blyton’s The Famous Five. It seems that girls are mostly divided into two categories. The feminine ones love pretty dresses, play with dolls, like to cook, and always think about getting a husband. While the tomboy ones like to be called with boy’s names, dislike dresses." Here's the complete review.

The four sisters remind me instantly of the other four sisters, who I like better:

4. The Penderwicks on Gardam Street by Jeanne Birdsall

Excerpt from my review: 
"It's four years after their mother's death, the Penderwick sisters live on Gardam Street, still with their father, and the dog. Rosalind, the elder, has grown up to be the little housewife of the family. She's responsible, much matured for her age, and little Batty - the youngest - depends on her much like a child to a mother (she can't sleep before Rosalind tells her a story - nobody can tell stories like Rosalind!). The second sister Skye is the tomboy (like Jo in Little Women?) and the most intelligent one. She's obsessed with math, logics, and scientific stuffs. Jane, on the contrary, is the most imaginative and romantic one in the family. She's the poet and writer. Last but not least, is little Batty, the imaginative kid who loves animals." Check also my complete review.

The next link would be another middle grade novel with a widower father and his daughter in the center:

5. The Cryptid Files: Loch Ness by Jean Flitcroft

Excerpt from my review:
"It's been four years since Vanessa's mother died, and unlike her twin brothers Luke and Ronan, who's getting on with life nicely, Vanessa's heart is still gripped with anger and grief she's unable to cope with. Her father's growing intimacy with his girlfriend Lee doesn't make it any easier. Now her father's proposing a family holiday in Scotland, which Vanessa would've accepted gratefully, if his father hadn't mentioned that Lee is coming too. Not only coming along, she realized later on that they are staying at her house!" And here's the complete version.

One of the most interesting parts of this book is the unexpected bond with an animal that is live changing. Another book with the same trope which is equally heartwarming is...

6. Away with the Penguins by Hazel Prior

Excerpt from my review:
"Three scientists do research on how to save Penguins in a colony in Antarctica, but they are in financial difficulty. Veronica is eager to leave her money for this research, and despite the scientist team's warning that their quarter is by no means adequate to accommodate an elderly, Veronica stubbornly comes to Antarctica to see the penguins. What'll happen next? Will Veronica change the penguins? Or is it her life that will be changed by the penguins?". You can read the complete review here.


Have you read those books? If you do #sixdegree, how it worked out for you this time?

Agatha Christie Short Stories 2024: MAY #AgathaChristieSS24

May is finally here, and I am looking forward to a milder weather here where I live, and a calmer month in general. Let's see what kind of stories we are going to read!

THE SIGN IN THE SKY

It's another Harley Quin's story, in which Mr. Satterthwaite attends the trial of a young man accused of murder. Shortly after the guilty verdict is returned, Satterthwaite runs into Harley Quin. Can they prove the man innocent? Or is he actually a murderer?

The story was first published in book form in the collection The Mysterious Mr Quin, published by Collins in 1930, which altered the title slightly from the original magazine publication's A Sign in the Sky. The collection was dedicated to its eponymous hero and is the only book of Agatha Christie's to be dedicated to a fictional character!

THE CRACKLER

Tommy and Tuppence are sleuthing again after a clever counterfeiter who has been flooding both sides of the Channel with phoney bank notes. This story sees the Beresfords as the Busies, in an Edgar Wallace-type adventure, which parodies Wallace’s slapdash, action-laden thrillers. "We need several hundreds of yards of extra book shelf if Edgar Wallace is to be properly represented" Tuppence says at one point, referring to Wallace’s vast output.

This story was published by Collins in the collection Partners in Crime, 1929, and the title was changed from The Affair of the Forged Notes to The Crackler. It was adapted for radio in 1953, starring Richard Attenborough and Sheila Sim. It also featured in the 1983 TV series Agatha Christie’s Partners in Crime, with Francesca Annis and James Warwick.

Both stories seem quite fun, don't they? Happy reading, and enjoy!

Zoladdiction 2024 Wrap-Up

May is here, and it means that Zoladdiction 2024 is coming to the end. I don’t know how the others had managed – April has been so crazily hectic for me, I couldn’t even check your blogs, let alone read all your Zola posts – so sorry! On my part, I have read and reviewed two short stories, and barely managed to finish the audiobook review of Germinal (a 3rd re-read) in time. All in all, I’m pretty relieved that I completed what I had planned to read, but it got me re-thinking about the future of Zoladdiction. I have hosted this event for eleven years now, but it begins to feel like a burden. My responsibility at work is increasing, following the company’s growth, and April happens to be the busiest month of the year with the annual tax report, and what not. That being said, I don’t know whether I’m going to host Zoladdiction next year or not. Let’s just see then!

I would like to thank all of you who had participated in Zoladdiction 2024, and wish you had a good time! Especially Brona, whose chronological read of Rougon-Macquart brings her to A Love Story (Une Page d'Amour); Nancy, who had read the same book (Une Page d'Amour); and Mallika, who had read the same short story I've reviewed earlier: Captain Burle - thanks to all your reviews! If you have reviewed or posted anything Zola but not mentioned here, please leave link to your post on the comment below, I’ll add them to this post, and will try to make time to read them!

The Mystery of the Burnt Cottage (1943) by Enid Blyton: The Five Find-Outers #1

🔥 Every now and then I always allow myself to a nostalgic reading. Enid Blyton's The Five Find-Outers is one of my earlier introduction to novels. Her Famous Five is probably the more well-known series, but I think I like The Five Find-Outers (and a Dog) a little better, as this series involves more mystery than adventure.

🔥 This one is the first in the series, where we are first introduced to Larry and Daisy, Pip and Bets - four teenager (age around eleven and thirteen, Bets is the younger - ten, perhaps?) live in Peterswood village. One night as they are watching their neighbor's cottage burnt down, they meet a rather smug boy who has just moved to the neighborhood with his parents. His name is Frederick Algernon Trotteville, but they nickname him Fatty - not body shaming the rotund boy, but it is derived from his initial (F-A-T). They don't really like the boy who's too much into himself, but they like his little dog Buster. So, they welcome Fatty into the group.

🔥 The burnt cottage belongs to a Mr. Hick, a kind of scientist, who claims that he lost his most precious papers during the fire. People begin to talk that someone burned that cottage on purpose. Fatty happened to notice a tramp hanging around Mr. Hick's garden the night of the fire. Was he the perpetrator? The children decide to play detective and investigate. They call their club the Five Find-Outers and Dog.

🔥 It's delightful to follow the five children's enviable lives; with freedom to spend their days outside school, doing chores, and meals. They usually gather at Pip and Bets' place to discuss any progress on the investigation and to decide their next steps. It's ranging from finding clues to interviewing suspects. But they must solve the mystery quickly before the local police (whom they nickname Clear Orf - his favorite phrase when seeing children around) beats them.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐