Books Set in Europe: France

The Women of Chateau Lafayette, by Stephanie Dray (2021)

Read: January 10, 2023

3 Stars

Books Set in Europe: England: Bletchley Park

The Rose Code, by Kate Quinn (2021)

3 Stars

Read: December 28, 2022

Books Set in Europe: Paris France

City of Light, City of Poison: Murder Magic, and the First Police Chief of Paris, by Holly Tucker (2017)

 

This book is a fascinating look of life in Paris the reign of Louis XIV, King of France.  The book opens in in 1665 with the murder of the city’s criminal lieutenant.  He had been stabbed to death in his home by burglars. Shortly thereafter, one of his colleagues was poisoned.  Nicholas de La Reynie was then appointed to clean up the streets of Paris – quite literally.  Paris, during this period, was quite filthy.  Streets were littered with garbage and the contents of chamber pots.  The dark streets were a haven for thieves.  La Reynie installed gaslights to illuminate the streets at night.  Homeowner were mandated to keep the lights burning at night. That was just one of the reforms brought about by La Reynie.

 

As La Reynie continued to stop criminal activities, he uncovered a series of crimes that involved members of France’s nobility.  No one was safe from these mysterious criminal activities and black magic, not even the King himself.  La Reynie uncovered nobles employing witches to cast spells and create poisons to destroy their enemies.  Priests were in the clutches of dark rituals.  Some of the practices and crimes La Reynie found had direct ties to the King.

 

This is a fascinating window into the history of France and the city of Paris in the late 1600s

 

Read:  December 2022

 

4 Stars

 

Books Set in North America: United States

Dava Shastri’s Last Day, by Kirthana Ramisetti (2021)

Dava Shastri is 70 years old and has a terminal illness.  She is an extremely wealthy businesswoman who had created a foundation to help kickstart careers for people less fortunate.  All her adult life, she has been very controlling, especially of her own children who are involved with her businesses.

The novel begins in 2044.  She has controlled every aspect of her life, including a doctor-assisted death.  Shortly before Christmas, she summoned her four children, their significant others, and her grandchildren to her estate on a private island.  They arrived just as a news leak reports Dava’s death.  Dava had assumed that reports of her death would also focus on her good works.  Instead, secrets of her past are brought forth.  Secrets that she must now confront, both to herself and her family.

Although the events surrounding Dava’s death take place in the future, much of the story recounts Dava’s life and her relationships with her family and friends.  Dribs and drabs of Dava’s past life are revealed, as well as the turbulent relationship of her family.

Sadly, for me, none of the characters were particularly likable.  Families squabble.  Sibling fight.

I was on a nine-hour plane flight, so this book was a distraction.

Read: November 27, 2022

3 Stars

Books Set in North and South America: United States and Galapagos Islands

Wish You Were Here, by Jodi Picoult (2021)

 

This novel focuses on the Covid-19 pandemic.  Diana O’Toole is a young art specialist on the verge of her 30^thbirthday.  She and her surgical resident boyfriend have plans to vacation on the Galápagos islands to celebrate her milestone birthday.  Days before they are to leave, Covid-19 shuts down the United States and her boyfriend must remain at the hospital to help with the influx of Covid patients.  He convinces Diana to still take the vacation as it is already paid for.

 

Diana arrives at the Galápagos, only to find that the island will be shut down for two weeks.  The hotel where she was to stay is closed down and the spotty internet connection is spotty.  Diana is isolated from the rest of the world and is unable to contact her boyfriend.  An old woman befriends her and provides her with food and a small apartment, the had formerly belonged to her adult son.

 

Being away from all this is familiar to her, Diana begins to re-evaluate her life and her relationship with her boyfriend.  Why doesn’t he try to contact her?  Why did he convince her to go on their trip alone?

 

The author also researched Covid-19, and the second half of the book explores how people who contracted the virus and survived coped.  [Spoiler Alert: Many patients who contracted Covid experienced hallucinations.  In this novel, Diana’s trip and lengthy stay in the Galápagos islands was a hallucination.  What seemed like a lengthy stay on the islands, was just a few days.  Days she spent in the hospital with a very serious case of Covid.  The author interviewed many patients who experienced such hallucinations while suffering from Covid and Diana’s story is based on these interviews.]

 

This was an easy and fun book.

 

Read:  November 8, 2022

 

4 Stars

Books Set in Europe: England

The Appeal, by Janice Hallett (2021)

 

This little mystery novel is written entirely in emails, letters, and messages.  It’s a clever gimmick.  We know from the beginning that someone was murdered and the accused is awaiting an appeal.  The title, The Appeal, has two meanings: (a) two young lawyers are tasked with reviewing the documents for the appeal; and (b) the family of a young child suffering from a rare form of cancer, is making an appeal for money for treatment.

 

As the reader goes through the documents the characters come to life.  The novel focuses on a small-town family-owned amateur theater group known as The Fairway Players.  They decide to put on Arthur Miller’s play All My Sons to raise money for Poppy, the 2-year-old with cancer.  Poppy is the granddaughter of Martin and Helen Hayward, the wealthy family and owner of the theater.  Helen is always the star of all the stage productions.  Since this is an amateur theater, the actors all have other jobs.  Most of the actors are in the medical field and work at one of the two near-by hospitals.

 

All is not as it seem, however, and each character has a secret.  As the young lawyers sift through the documentation, they come up with their own theories of who the killer or killers may be.

 

This was a fun and very quick read.  I had been in a reading dry-spell and this is just what I needed to get back into reading again.

 

Read:  November 7, 2022

 

4 Stars

 

 

Books Set in Asia: Bangkok, Thailand

Bangkok Wakes to Rain, by Pitchaya Sudbanthad (2019)

 

Bangkok Wakes to Rain is a series of interconnected vignettes that take place mostly in Bangkok, Thailand.  The stories go back and forth in time from the late 1800s to the present day.  One story line follows Phineas Stevens, an American missionary doctor who initially feels lost in a culture he does not understand.  Then there is Sammy, son of a Thai mother and British father.  When his parents divorce, he goes to live with his father and new wife in England.  His mother retains the family estate in Bangkok.  When the house becomes too much for her to manage, she contemplates converting it into condos.

 

On one of his visits to see his mother in Bangkok, Sammy begins a relationship with Nee.  As a university student in the 1970s, she participated in the government protests.  She was traumatized by the military’s shooting of the student demonstrators.  Her sister, Nok, had left Thailand and became a restauranteur.  She served authentic Thai food.  One of her patrons was a Thai military officer who was actively behind some of the protests of the 1970s.  This puts her at odds with her sister.

 

There are many other quirky characters, each with his or her own views and experiences of living in Thailand’s bustling city of Bangkok.  The stories slowly weave together a picture of Thailand and Bangkok throughout the last century.

 

Read:  September 20, 2022

 

3.5 Stars