Caroline's 2024 Reading Log

Hello Friends! Here we go again! I read 26 books last year and that it my goal for this year.

1. The God of Endings by Jacqueline Holland (Finished 1/14/2024)
2. The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey by Candice Millard (Finished 1/29/2024)
3. Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett (Finished 2/6/2024)
4. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (Finished 3/12/2024)
5. The Venus Hunters by J G Ballard (Finished 3/20/2024)
6. The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V. E. Schwab (Finished 4/15/2024)
7. The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett (Finished 5/2/2024)
8. Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse (Finished 5/19/2024)
9. Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank (Finished 6/9/2024)
10. The Time It Never Rain by Elmer Kelton (Finished 6/25/2024)
11. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (Finished 7/9/2024)
12. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson (Finished 8/1/2024)
13. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (Finished 8/13/2024)
14. The Wind from Hastings by Morgan Llywelyn (Finished 8/19/2024)
15. Gilgamesh. A New Rendering in English Verse by David Ferry (Finished 8/24/2024)
16. A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers (Finished 8/29/2024)
17. Classic Tales of Detection and Adventure by Edgar Allan Poe (Finished 9/3/2024)
18. Concrete Island by J G Ballard (Finished 9/9/2024)
19. Record of a Space Born Few by Becky Chambers (Finished 9/21/24)
20. The Black Seal and Other Stories by Arthur Machen (Finished 9/22/24)
21. The Girl From Rawblood by Catriona Ward (Finished 10/10/2024)
22. The Galaxy and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers (Finished 10/14/24)
23. It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis (Finished 10/26/24)
24. The British Horror Film: From the Silent to the Multiplex by Ian Fryer (Finished 11/5/24)
25. A Choice of Gods by Clifford D Simak (Finished 11/22/24)
26. The Wildes: A Novel in Five Acts by Louis Bayard (Finished 12/13/24)
27. Sherlock Holmes and the Telegram from Hell by Nicholas Meyer (Finished 12/24/2024)
28. The Wood at Midwinter by Susanna Clarke (Finished 12/25/2024)

And much success in achieving it, Caroline!

Good Luck with your goal, Caroline, and Happy Reading in 2024! ☺️

>2 threadnsong:,>3 Sergeirocks: Thank you!

The God of Endings by Jacqueline Holland 4 Stars

The author uses vampires and immortality to tell the story of the cycle of endings and new beginnings that life brings. Colette/Anna/Anya has lived her long life taking care of the weak and the innocent. Her grandfather gives her the "gift" of immortality, which she considers to be a curse. She only sees the horrors of the world. She looses her family and friends as the years go by. Then Colette meets Leo, a 5 year old artistic genius, and she realizes the love she has always deserved will be found after the life she is living ends.

This is a vampire novel, but that is not the real theme of the novel, it's just used to explain the main character's long life. If you enjoy books about immortals, vampires, or the many changes that come with life, you will enjoy this novel.

River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey by Candice Millard 4 1/2 Stars

Theodore Roosevelt's ill-fated journey down an Amazonian river is told by Candice Millard in a easy to read, yet detailed book. The author covers everything from Roosevelt's personal life to the ecology of the rainforest. We learn about the people on the exploration team, who they were and what motivated them to survey a rain soaked, insect infested, unknown river with dangerous natives living on it's banks. If you enjoy reading easily accessible history books or adventurous stories of exploration, you will enjoy reading this book.

>6 craso: I enjoyed that book and I really like Candice Millard's books!

>7 JulieLill: This is my first Candice Millard book. My husband reads a lot of history books and recommended it to me.

Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett 4 Stars

This was an unusual book for me to read. I read The Glass Key as an audiobook and enjoyed it very much. This novel was much more violent. The reason I decided to read it is because it was the inspiration for the Coen brother's movie Blood Simple, Kurosawa's Yojimbo, and Leone's A Fist full of Dollars. It's considered a classic detective novel.

An unnamed detective from the Continental Ops Agency goes to meet Donald Willsson about a job. Willisson is found dead before they can meet, so the detective decides it's his job to find his killer. What he finds is a town full of rival mobs, a corrupt police force, and an sick elderly patriarch who hires him to clean up the town.

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell 4 Stars

David Mitchell is an impressive author. He has the ability to write six separate stories in completely different styles that link together through themes and plot devices. The main theme is how humans pray on one another through tribes. These tribes can be literal tribes or may take the form of, races, or corporations, or unions. They pray on people who are different because of age or economics or skin color. Another theme is reincarnation. Each of the main characters are reincarnations of the other and they all have the same birth mark.

Starting this novel was not easy. I had to get used to the style of writing in each section. Each story is set in a different time period and written in the style of that time. The stories set in the future are written in unique styles and the last story has a unique dialect. After the middle story it becomes easier.

I wasn't sure about this novel until I read the middle story, then it all came together and I understood where it was going. If you enjoy novels with separate intertwining stories and social themes, then you will like this novel.

The Venus Hunters by J G Ballard 4 Stars

I'm so glad I found this short story collection at my local used bookstore. I want to read more Ballard, but I have only found this author's works as e-books and I prefer to read paper books. I have read two of his novels as e-books, High-rise and Drowned World.

The stories in this book are a bit dated, but I thought they were very clever and entertaining. Some reviews characterize them as bizarre. They are all either set on another planet or in the future or in a reality slightly different from ours. The stories explore themes of time, reality, lust, jealousy, envy, and insanity. If you like unusual short stories you will like this book.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab 3.5 Stars

This is a Faustian tale. Addie Larue sells her soul for total freedom and immortality. As everyone knows, when you bargain with your soul, there are usually caveats. Addie's limitation is that no one ever remembers her once she is out of sight. This makes her seem invisible.

I wanted to like this novel more than I did. The concept is great. A woman who lives her life without ever being remembered. It was interesting to see how she acquired her basics needs; food, shelter, clothing, etc. I also liked how she found her way around the curse and was able to leave her mark on the world.

What turned me off about the book was it sometimes reads like a young adult novel. When Addie is finally able to be in a long term romantic relationship without it starting over new every morning, her love interest Henry and his friends read like a teen romance novel.

I read a novel earlier this year The God of Endings which was also about an immortal woman and I enjoyed it more than this novel.

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett 4.5 Stars

The novel opens with Dinios Kol investigating a dead body at the mansion of one of the most powerful families in the Empire of Khanum. The servant girls are hysterical over the state of the dead man. When Din gets to the room where the body lies, he is stunned by the sight. It looks as though a tree has burst out of the man. Such contagion has only been seen one of other time in the empire. Din is the assistant to Ana Dolabra, a reclusive investigator for Iudex, a branch of the military that investigates crimes. Din is an engraver, someone who can imprint a scene or conversation and remember it down to the most minute detail. Ana relies on him to be her eyes and ears while she lives as far away from stimulus as possible, including wearing a blindfold at most times. This is just the first of many murders that relate to a conspiracy that will rock the foundations of the empire.

Robert Jackson Bennett has done an excellent job of world building. The new world is easy to follow with a map at the front of the book along and a list of military ranks. In the acknowledgements, Bennett mentions Nero Wolfe novels. This book is compared to Holmes and Watson style mysteries, but it is more like a Nero Wolfe novel. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed reading this book. I have read and enjoyed many of Bennett's books before, but I couldn't get into his last fantasy/science fiction series. This novel was great and I look forward to reading more in the series.

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse 4.5 Stars

This is a classic retelling of Buddha's life. The introduction mentions how Hesse took from different traditional India sources as well as his time of psychoanalysis with C G Jung to write this novel. It is a simple story of a spiritual seeker looking for oneness and God within himself. Siddhartha comes from a wealthy family and gives everything up to become an ascetic. He then seeks a sensual life with a lover and becomes a wealthy businessman. He finds his sensual life meaningless and in despair and loss learns enlightenment from a river and gathers meaning from a ferryman guru and those he ferries across it.

Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank 4 Stars

This novel is a classic in post-apocalyptic literature. It was written in 1959, a time when the cold war was heating up and many feared a nuclear war with Russia was inevitable. This is not the first book to touch on the aftermath of an atom war. On the Beach by Nevil Shute was published in 1957. Alas, Babylon reminded be of On the Beach, which I consider to be a better novel.

The story revolves around Fort Repose, a small close knit community in Florida. Randy Bragg receives forewarning that Russia is about to attack the United States with nuclear weapons. Randy gathers he family and close friends together and they prepare for the worst. We see how Fort Repose changes once the electricity goes off and all essentials become scarce.

Be for warned, this novel was written in 1959 and the author shows his bias. He tries to be progressive in his depiction of Blacks, but he still stereotypes them. He also mentions that women belong at home and in the kitchen. I tried to block this out because it is just the prejudice of the time.

Over all, this was a good look at how our society would collapse without modern conveniences and contact with the world outside of our community.

The Time It Never Rained by Elmer Kelton 4 Stars

A friend at work gave me this book. Normally, I would not read a western novel. It's not that I don't like them, I have read a few very good western novels before, it's just not my favorite genre.

This novel it about a town called Rio Seco in West Texas during a long drought. The main character is an old rancher named Charlie Flagg. He is a self made man whose life is tied to the land. He is stubborn and won't take help from anyone especially the government. His life and the lives of the people go from bad to worse as they wait out the drought.

I wanted to give this novel 4.5 or 5 stars, but it dragged in places and I was hoping for a more uplifting ending. I guess the ending was inevitable, but a downer. If you enjoy western fiction or have a fascination for ranch life in Texas, I recommend this novel.

Either I am reading slower this year or the books I am reading are longer. I need to pick up the pace to reach 26.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern 5 Stars

I don't know why it took me so long to read this novel. It could be I thought it was a Ray Bradbury rip off. It turns out it is a novel that ranks with many of my favorite novels; Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell and The Prestige.

The circus in this novel is unlike any circus ever seen or imagined. It is only open at night and the magic is real. The people who visit the circus don't realize that it is the venue for an extraordinary contest. Two magicians, bound together as children, compete until only one is left standing.

If you are a fan of novels where magic and magicians are real then, you will enjoy this book.

>18 craso: I read this a few years ago and loved it. Glad it was a good one for you.

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson 3 Stars

This novel was a bit disappointing. I read it because of the reincarnation theme. Ursula lives a certain amount of years, dies, and starts over again. Unfortunately, I started looking ahead to see when she would die and come back. I also had to skip some of her life during WWII because if was just so awful. She was an air raid warden who saw so much death. One of her lives is in Germany and it was possibly worse than being in England. At least in England during the Blitz, everyone was pulling together.

If you like extremely realistic scenes of war and enjoy historically accurate novels set in WWII, then read this book. If that sort of thing depresses you, I suggest you stay away from reading this book.

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers 4.5 Stars

I read this as an audio-book while driving to and from work using the Hoopla app. It was an engaging and fun read.

This novel is about the crew of the Wayfarer, a patched together star ship that is used to punch wormholes between galaxies to promote shipping and trading between worlds. It is crewed by many different species, yet they are a family.

The author is very good at characterization and world building. The best part of this book is the descriptions of the different species and explanations of their cultures and societies. This is done by bringing a new crew member, a human named Rosemary, aboard the ship as an assistant to the captain. She has never been around different species before.

If you enjoy reading books that have many different aliens, and characters coming together to form a family, then you will enjoy reading this novel.

The Wind from Hastings by Morgan Llywelyn (3.5 Stars)

I originally read this book over 20 years ago. Wow! I found a book club copy in at a Goodwill store for $1.00 without a dust jacket. I gave it away a few years later, but continued to think about it. I recently found a copy at Half Price Books, another book club, but this time with a dust jacket.

This novel is a pretty straight forward retelling of the battle of Hastings. The story is told through the eyes of Edyth the Saxon, the wife of Welsh Prince Griffith and King Harold Godwine. She is a strong character even though she gets passed around as a political pawn. Griffith is the love of her life. When Harold's men kill him she is given by her brothers to Harold to marry. Edyth's children are the most important thing in her life and she will do whatever it takes to protect them.

The book is historically accurate. Sometimes the author is too concerned in the history behind the novel and the narrative slows down.

If you like stories retold from a female point of view or British historical fiction, I recommend this book.

Gilgamesh. A New Rendering in English Verse by David Ferry 4 Stars

Now I understand why it's important to read this work. Other mythologies have taken from Gilgamesh. There is even a story of the flood that sounds a lot like the story of Noah's arc.

I didn't know anything about this epic poem until I watched the Star Trek: TNG episode Darmock. It is much as Captain Picard describes it to his new alien friend.

Gilgamesh is a Hercules character. He is part god and stronger, better looking, and braver than other men. He has adventures with his friend Enkidu until Enkidu blasphemes Ishtar and she makes him gravely ill. The second half of the story has Gilgamesh mourning his friend and searching for immortality.

If you are interested in mythologies from different cultures, you should read this poem.

A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers 4 Stars

This is another book in The Wayfarers series. It follows two characters from the first novel, Pepper and the AI Lovelace now named Sidra. Sidra has moved from her home in The Wayfarer to a "body kit." The "body kit" looks and acts human and helps her to interact in society.

Each characters story is told in alternating chapters. Pepper's story takes place in the past and is about growing up with an AI as a kind, loving parent. In the present, Sidra is trying to figure out who she is and how she wants to live her life. Both stories are about growing and maturing.

Like the first novel, I listened to it on Hoopla on the way to and from work. I enjoyed it very much and look forward listening the the next Novel in the series. If you enjoy science fiction and/or coming of age stories, you will enjoy this book.

Classic Tales of Detection and Adventure by Edgar Allan Poe 3 Stars

I bought this book when I went through an Edgar Allan Poe phase last year. I have already read some of his classic horror short stories and poetry so I wanted to delve into his mysteries and science fiction.

The best stories in this anthology are, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, Thou Art the Man!, and The Purloined Letter. I already knew who the killer the was in The Murders in the Rue Morgue so I thought it would be a disappointing read. Turns out I really liked the story. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle must have taken from Poe to write Sherlock Holmes. D. Auguste Dupin is very much like Holmes. I didn't know anything about Thou Art the Man! It had a touch of the macabre, which you expect with Poe. I did know about The Purloined Letter but had never read it. The best place to hide anything is in plain sight.

I was very disappointed with The Mystery of Marie Roget. It is based on the real life case of the death of Mary Rogers. The story is basically Poe trying to show that he is smarter than everyone else. He takes all of the facts about the case from all of the newspaper accounts at the time and uses his powers of detection to solve the case. It is a boring slog. I skipped most of it.

The last story The Unparalleled Adventure of One Hans Pfaall is considered the first science fiction story. It precedes Jules Verne's From the Earth to the Moon. It would be a fun story if he just told it, but he had to add a bunch of pseudoscience. He was trying to write a hoax, but it was obviously a silly story about a man using a balloon to go to the moon.

Concrete Island by J. G. Ballard 4 Stars

Robert Maitland is driving home on the freeway when he looses control of his Jaguar and crashes over a concrete parapet and onto the island below. When he tries to flag down help, he is hit and thrown back down onto the island. His injures are too severe for him to climb the dirt embankment to get help. This starts an intense story of isolation not unlike Robinson Crusoe until he discovers derelict buildings that may be inhabited.

This novel is the second novel in Ballard's "Urban Trilogy." The first novel is Crash and the third is High-Rise. Ballard uses the freeway as the guide or track for Maitland's life in the modern world. Once he is off the freeway he has to come to terms with life on the island. He goes through a lot both physically and mentally and at times, doesn't seem to want to get of the island.

I like J. G. Ballard's writing. He always gives me a lot to think about. He isn't for everyone. If you like social satire, you will like this novel.

Record of a Space Born Few by Beck Chambers 4 Stars

This is the third novel in the Wayfarers series. The story is set in the Exodus Fleet, a fleet of interstellar space ships. People who live on these ships left Earth and live out in space. The story follows five characters and through their lives we learn about the culture and history of the Exodans.

It took me awhile to get into listening to this audiobook. Eventually, I became so engrossed in these character's lives that when something sad happened to one of them I really felt it.

Other books in this series have many different alien races. This one has only the human's and one very lovely and kind non-human.

If you enjoy science fiction that is a character study full of worldbuilding, then this is the book for you.

The Black Seal and Other Stories by Arthur Machen 3.5 Stars

Arthur Machen has inspired H.P. Lovecraft and Stephen King. His style of writing reminded me of Arthur Conan Doyle. Imagine H.P. Lovecraft being able to write without purple prose and overly long sentences.

I bought this book to read the story The Great God Pan because it has been an inspiration for other horror authors as well as science fiction authors. It is the best story in the anthology. I also enjoyed reading The Black Seal, The Shining Pyramid, The Red Hand, and The White Powder. The White People is considered a classic, but I just couldn't finish it. It went on and on. I understand it is the ramblings of an innocent young girl, but it didn't seem to go anywhere. Out of the Earth was okay.

Machen's stories all have an ancient evil that exists in the Welsh countryside. The author was interested in mythology and folklore, especially the folklore of Wales. Fairies and "the little people" aren't cute or funny or helpful. Instead they are dreadful abominations.

Two of the stories The Shining Pyramid and The Red Hand feature Dyson and Phillips who are his version of Holmes and Watson. These stories could have been good mystery stories without the occult explanations.

If you like classic horror stories from Victorian authors you may want to read Arthur Machin.

The Girl From Rawblood by Catriona Ward 4 Stars

Rawblood is a family mansion in Dartmoor. Iris Villarca lives in Rawblood with her father. No one goes near the mansion because they think it's cursed. She falls in love with Tom who lives on a farm near her home. Her father keeps telling her stories about a disease that has been passed down through their family. This disease can only be prevented if she never falls in love and marries. The disease turns out to be a haunting, not a physical ailment. Everyone in Iris's family sees "her" before they die.

The author tells us the sad and horrifying story of each of Iris' family members, and it is always horrifying. No one in this book is ever happy. People marry out of obligation, they can't be with who they truly love, and they destroy each other in brutal ways. There is drug addiction and insanity.

I knew I was in trouble when after Iris accidentally kills her father she awakens in a mental hospital. There is no hero to ride in and save her. She defies everyone on the staff, constantly biting the nurses. You finally think the the doctor who runs the sanitorium is going to help her, but instead he mutilates her body. I found it very shocking and disturbing.

I am giving this book 4 stars because it is a well written novel that kept me reading, even when I wanted to stop. I'm not sure I will keep the book. I know I will never read it again.

The Galaxy, and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers 4 Stars

This is the fourth novel in the Wayfarer Series. The third novel is all about humans. This book is all about alien species. A group of space travelers are forced to stay at a waystation by a catastrophic satellite failure. All the species are physically different and have different cultures. They all learn about each other and themselves.

There is one character I really like, Tupo, a child that everyone bonds with. This character and their mother run the waystation.

I enjoyed listening to this book. It was fun learning about all the different species, how they live and their background stories. If you enjoy science fiction novels with a lot of world building and character development you will like this book.

It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis 4 Stars

I decided to read this book because I like dystopian novels and it's election season. The novel was written in 1935 when Hitler and the Nazi Party were on the rise in Germany. It shows how a fascist dictator could come into power in America.

I can see how a fascist could easily be elected. I don't believe that he could easily sweep out our governments checks and balances and reconstruct America by doing away with separate states. The Minute Men, an SS like military group, is unfortunately something I can see happening along with book burning and imprisoning people opposed to the government.

The beginning of this book was rough to read. Lewis is big on description. He describes a room by listing every single thing in the room. That stopped after a few chapters.

I enjoyed reading this book. After awhile I forgot it was written in 1935. If you enjoy dystopian novels or political novels then you will like this book.

The British Horror Film: From the Silent to the Multiplex by Ian Fryer 4 Stars

This book starts with the classic film Dead of Night and ends with zombie movies 28 Days Later and Shawn of the Dead. In between we learn about the rise of Hammer and the film studios that followed.

I have seen the majority of Hammer's productions and a few Amicus films. Some of the studios and films mentioned were new to me, but most I have seen or read about.

The book was well researched and fun to read. If you enjoy British horror films or British films in general, you will enjoy reading this book.

A Choice of Gods by Clifford D. Simak 4 Stars

Thousands of years ago the majority of Earth's population disappeared. The ones who remained created a life for themselves without technology. They learned to live with nature, developed psychic abilities, and now live for thousands of years. Robots that were built to serve man found purpose. Some robots found God and become monks at a monastery. Other robots built The Project, a more powerful robot they use as a leader. The Earth has become a utopia, but what will happen if the people come back?

Simak uses this novel to explain his personal ideology. He isn't big on materialism and technology. He believes that people should live a simple life away from cities and technology. This is a theme in most of Simak's books.

I liked how people lived with nature and developed physically, psychically, and spiritually. I recommend this book to people who like to read science fiction novels with social and spiritual themes.

The Wildes: A Novel in Five Acts by Louis Bayard 4 Stars

This novel is a based on Oscar Wilde's family life just before and after his court cases, scandal, and the prison internment that left his family broken. It is organized into five sections; the start of Wilde's relationship with Lord Alfred Douglas, his wife Constance's life in exile in Italy, his son Cyril's time in the trenches during World War I, his son Vyvyan meeting Douglas years after the scandal, and a fantasy about how life could have been.

Oscar Wilde is one of my favorite authors. I enjoy his wit and love how quotable he is. How he was treated by Victorian society is a shame. I had no idea that his wife and children changed their last name and went into exile.

I enjoy reading Bayard's historical novels. Last year I read his mystery novel The Pale Blue Eye, which features a young Edgar Allan Poe. I really enjoyed that novel. Bayard has a way of illuminating the life of my favorite authors and putting them in engaging fictional situations. He brings to light aspects of their life I knew nothing about. Under the acknowledgments, Bayard mentions contacting Vyvyan's son Merlin Holland and others. I appreciate when author's of historical novels acknowledge the research that they have done.

Sherlock Holmes and the Telegram from Hell by Nicholas Meyer 4 Stars

This is the third book in the second series of Sherlock Holmes books by Nicholas Meyer. Meyer is most famous as the author of The Seven-Per-Cent Solution as well as directing Star Trek movies and the film Time After Time. Of all of the authors who write Sherlock Holmes pastiches, I enjoy his books the best.

This novel brings Sherlock and Watson into the middle of World War I. As they journey from Washington, DC to Mexico they meet many historical figures. The main focus of the novel is bringing America into the war on the side of the Allied Powers. As I read the novel. I Googled all the characters to see if they were real. All I needed to do was read the Afterword where Meyer explains who these people were.

If you enjoy Sherlock Holmes pastiches or historical fiction, you will enjoy reading this book.

The Wood at Midwinter by Susanna Clarke 4 Stars

This is a lovely little Christmas short story about a young woman and her love of nature and midwinter. I wish Susanna Clarke could write more books and short stories.

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This is the last book for the year. I'll start another one tomorrow, but I won't have it read until 2025. I have started a new log here.