The Darkest Evening

This book is the ninth title in the Vera Stanhope series of books by Ann Cleeves who is also the author of the Shetland book series. The story takes place during a cold Northumberland winter, the week before Christmas with Vera Stanhope encountering freezing temperatures and deep snow drifts when driving home at the end of the day. By contrast I began reading The Darkest Evening in Melbourne a month before Christmas on a sunny day with an expected maximum temperature of 34 degrees Celsius. 

After taking a wrong turn Vera comes across a car with the front door open parked on the side of the road. The driver is missing but Vera discovers a toddler in the back of the car. Vera rescues the toddler and takes him to a nearby house to seek asistance. Shortly afterwards the body of a young woman is discovered in the snow outside the house.

Detective Chief Inspector Stanhope and her team encounter many challenges as they attempt to discover the murderer and why the crime was committed. It is soon obvious that obtaining the truth will not be easy as many of the local residents have secrets that they do not want revealed. Vera is also forced to review her feelings regarding estranged family members who become involved as the body was discovered in their garden.

This is the first book that I have read by Ann Cleeves and it will not be the last.

On a Barbarous Coast

On 10 June 1770 the ship Endeavour hit a reef leaving a gaping hole in the hull. The crew managed to reduce the effects of the leak long enough for the ship to reach a safe location where it could be safely repaired, allowing them to continue the journey. The ship arrived at what was later known as Cooktown on 17 June 1770 and remained there for seven weeks while repairs were completed. Artist, Sydney Parkinson, described in his journal the area where this event took place as 'on a barbarous coast'. 

This novel by Craig Cormick and Harold Ludwick provides an alternative account of events after the ship hit the reef:

Panic set in aboard the ship as it was obvious that the vessel would sink. Four men including the midshipman, Matra, managed to escape in a small boat used by Joseph Banks when on expeditions to investigate new flora and wildlife. Once on shore, this group of men needed to discover how to work together in order to survive. They needed shelter and they needed food. The men knew that they were being observed by natives and they were also aware of a crocodile that patrolled the beach and river where they had landed. It all seemed an impossible task even after salvaging a few supplies that had washed up on shore as the ship sank. When more survivors from the ship joined their camp additional challenges occurred.

There are two narrators telling the story. Mantra recounting the situation from the point of view of those shipwrecked and Garrgiil, an aboriginal boy, providing the viewpoint of the natives watching the scene unfolding before them. From Garrgiil we learn about Aboriginal life, traditions and beliefs in that region. From Matra we learn not only about the efforts to survive in a strange land and the mistrust that existed amongst those shipwrecked, but also about incidents that occurred during their two years at sea, particularly encounters with natives in other islands visited. Matra aslo considers the effects of colonisation on countries such as Australia and attempts to warn Garrgiil of impending threats to the natives' lifestyle when Europeans decide to settle in the area.

In this alternative account of the ending of Cook's exploration of the Queensland coast, the authors encourage the reader to think about the effects of colonisation on a land and the people already living there and to consider the belief systems and association with the land that existed for thousands of years before the arrivals of Europeans.

Cook's landing on the Australian coast 

Death in Daylesford

This new Phryne Fisher mystery, number 21 in the series, is set in Daylesford and Hepworth Springs where Phryne and Dot have gone for a week's holiday after receiving a mysterious invitation from a stranger. Captain Herbert Spenser runs a retreat for shell-shocked soldiers who served during World War I and he invites Phryne to visit the premises, possibly in the hope that she will support the work he is doing. Needless to say the visit results in anything but a quiet holiday.

Shortly after arriving in the area, Phryne learns of the mysterious disappearance of a number of women, the death of a young man who fell through a train window some weeks earlier followed by two more  deaths which she witnesses the week she arrives. She is not impressed with the local policeman but fortunately Detective Inspector Brian Kelly arrives to take over the investigation and they work co-operatively to solve the mysteries. Descriptions of Dayleford and surrounding area during the late 1920s form the background to the novel along with an assortment of local residents.

Meanwhile back in Melbourne, Detective Inspector Jack Robinson is away on special assignment leaving Detective Sergeant Hugh Collins working with another officer. Members of Phryne's extended household - Tinker, Ruth and Jane - who remain in Melbourne also discover that they have a mystery to solve when Tinker discovers a body floating in the sea he and a school friend of the girls disappears. Working with Hugh they endeavour to solve the case. Consequently there are lots of mysteries to solve plus stories to tell when Phryne and Dot return home.

The Lost Jewels

When Kate Kirby is offered the assignment of viewing and writing about items in the Cheapside Hoard she readily accepts the assignment. Working with photographer, Marcus Holt, she travels to London, India and Sri Lanka as she endeavours to uncover the story of some of the jewels, their significance and how they were mined.

The novel reveals the history of the jewels via a number of time frames - 1666 and the Great Fire of London which also ravaged Cheapside where many London jewellers worked, the lives of young boys in Sri Lanka scratching a living from the dirt as they hoped to find a precious gemstone, 1912 when a hoard of precious jewellery was uncovered on an excavation sight in London as well as the present day with Kate and Marcus trying to piece together the story.

Kate also believed that there was a family connection to the Cheapside Hoard via her great grandmother, Essie, who grew up in Cheapside before suddenly relocating to Boston, USA, and this is an important thread in the story. Poverty in parts of London in the early twentieth century and the work of the suffragette movement to improve life for women also form a background to the story.

Kirsty Manning has written a fascinating novel incorporating historical fact with an absorbing story. A list of further reading is provided at the end of the book for those interested in reading more about the period covered, especially in London.

The Cheapside Hoard - most of th collection is held by the Museum of London and will be on display from 2024. A general Google search for Cheapside Hoard images is also worth a look.

The Cedar Tree

When Brandon O'Riain, step sister Molly and cousin, Sean flee Ireland in 1864 for a new life in Australia they were unprepared for what the future might bring in this different country. Conflicts between Irish settlers, between  the Irish and the English, between Catholics and Protestants are themes throughout this family saga. 

The story is initially set in the 1860s in Ireland and then in New South Wales where the brothers earn a living cutting cedar in the Richmond Valley. In the 1940s we meet Stella and Joe who try their luck on a sheep property in western New South Wales. When disaster occurs Stella returns to the home of her brother-in-law until she can make new plans. While there she hopes to discover the secret as to the cause of a major rift in family relations.Stubborness is a family trait.

Although a work of fiction a stream of historical facts occur throughout the novel enabling the reader to appreciate another aspect of Australian history and perhaps understand some of the challenges faced by Irish immigrants.

Irish in Australia - https://culturalatlas.sbs.com.au/irish-culture/irish-culture-irish-in-australia

House of Earth and Blood

Sarah J Maas has written a number of series of fantasy books for young adults. This is the first title in a new series for adults.

Bryce Quinlin, part human, part fae, is known as being a party girl with a reputation for trying most things. When her inseparable friend Danika was found murdered in her apartment Bryce's life dramatically changed. When the crimes that occurred at the time of Danika's death start recurring Bryce is commanded to help investigate. Hunt Athalar, an enslaved fallen angel, is ordered to assist and protect her. As they struggle to uncover the truth it soon becomes obvious that their lives and the future of Crescent City is in danger.

We are introduced to a wide variety of citizens of Crecent City. Many have extreme supernatural powers - some good and some evil. It soon becomes obvious that a power struggle is in progress. Determining who can be trusted is a major theme as the story comes to a dramatic conclusion.in this book of 799 pages. 

I found the first section of the book very heavy going, primarily because of the language used to demonstrate the wild life lived by the characters before Danika's death. Fortunately I kept reading, for once the author concentrated on writing about Bryce and Hunter's struggle to locate the truth the book was hard to put down.

Honeybee

When fourteen year old Sam Watson was standing on the bridge of an overpass planning to jump he noticed an elderly man further along the bridge watching him. Sam changed his mind and eventually a friendship formed between Sam and Vic. 

As the story, told by Sam, develops we learn of the lives of Sam and Vic and their struggle to continue living. Sam has escaped from an unhappy home environment while Vic mourns the death of his wife and companion, Edie. Sam also struggles in accepting who he is and how he wants to live his life. Over time he meets Aggie and Peter who also befriend and assist him.

This is a readable and moving account of the journey of a young man learning to trust and understand others and himself.

Mister Monday

Currently my granddaughter and I are reading Mister Monday by Garth Nix, the first book in the Keys to the Kingdom series. Recently I found two summaries that I wrote in 2004 about Mister Monday and the second book in the series, Grim Tuesday. We have also read Drowned Wednesday (book 3)

Mister Monday

Arthur Penhaligon is not supposed to be a hero. He is supposed to die an early death. But then his life is saved by a key shaped like the minute hand of a clock. Arthur is safe – but his world is not. Along with the key comes a plague brought by bizarre creatures from another realm. A stranger named Mister Monday, his avenging messengers with bloodstained wings, and an army of dog-faced Fetchers will stop at nothing to get the key back – even if it means destroying Arthur and everything around him. Desperate, Arthur escapes to the mysterious House that has appeared in town – a house that only he can see. Maybe there he can unravel the secrets of the key – and discover his true fate.

 Grim Tuesday

Arthur is summoned back to the House to retrieve the second key and release the second part of the will. He and Suzy continue their adventure venturing into Grim Tuesday's deep pit, scaling the glass pyramid, sailing to a sun to rescue the second part of the will and finally repairing the breach in the wall to stop Nothing entering the Kingdom. Lots of action and tension in this adventure.

There are seven books in the Keys to the Kingdom series.

 

 Drowned Wednesday

Leaf is visiting Arthur in hospital when a large wave carries them both out to sea and many adventures.

Drowned Wednesday had summoned Arthur to ask for his assistance but in the meantime he encounters the Raised Rats, the crew of the ship (The Moth) including Dr Samandros, Sunscorch and Captain Catapillow and learns of the dreaded pirate, Feverfew, who wants to rule the seas. 

In order to restore order as well as assist Drowned Wednesday who has been turned into an extremely large, very hungry whale, Arthur needs to find the third part of the will and the third key.

The Survivors

Another suspenseful novel from Australian author, Jane Harper. Unlike her previous novels set in outback communities or in mountain ranges, this story is set in Evelyn Bay on the southern coast of Tasmania, a popular seaside location in the summer. However the tourist season is over when Kieran, Mia and their new baby return to the town where they grew up to assist Kieran's mother, Verity, sort through and pack up years of belongings as she and her husband, Brian, need to move to the city. Brian has dementia and needs special care.

Many of their former friends still live in Evelyn Bay but it soon becomes obvious that Kieran's return revives tensions in the town as he was considered to be responsible for an accident that occurred twelve years previously, an accident resulting in the death of his brother, Finn, and Finn's friend, Toby. Kieran has never forgiven himself for what happened that day and the guilt he feels brings back bad memories and fears. 

When a young girl is discovered murdered on the beach shortly after Kieran and Mia arrive the tensions in the town increase, new accusations arise and hidden secrets are exposed. The unsolved disappearance of a fourteen year old girl at the same time of the drowning of the two young men also needs to be solved.

As in her other novels the landscape is a major feature of the novel and in this story the unforgiving nature of the sea, the sinister atmosphere of the caves along with the presence of The Survivors, a memorial to those involved in a ship wreck now guarding the bay, are constantly present. But much of the novel also concetrates on the feelings, memories, rumours and suspicions of the townspeople who remember the events of the past and are concerned that another murder has occurred in their small community. The many layers of past and present events intertwine as the investigation into what really happened proceed.