Author: Jo Nesbo

I’ve read a few books by this author and liked them all. This one, not so much. To start with the story is interrupted with date changes that, in the beginning, had to be taken note of. After the characters and the direction of the story were more familiar the dates didn’t seem so important. There were a lot of characters to keep track of and it didn’t help when Multiple Personality Disorder was identified in one of them.

Harry Hole is back but he’s moved from the Crime Squad to another department after a shooting incident that the police and FBI are reluctant to share with the public. But Harry can’t help himself and he’s following up on several clues that relate back to Norway during the Second World War.

I would still recommend the author but I’d suggest you pick another title.

Goodreads Rating: * * *

Author: Patrick Taylor

Pat picked this book out for me at the Texada Library Book Sale. I was surprised to see that the author, originally from County Down in Northern Ireland, now lives on Saltspring Island.

The story revolves around two GP’s working out of the same clinic in a small village in Ireland. Their love lives are complicated and one ends well and the other not so well. The best part of the book, for me, were the stories of their patients. I could hear the accents from the beginning of the book and the author includes a glossary of translations for the lesser known phrases and words. From reading the author’s notes I think this is one in a series of books focussing on these two doctors but I’m not tempted to read another.

Goodreads Rating: * * *

Author: K J Dell’Antonia

I saw a post for this book on Facebook and since Stacia, Deloise and I are working on that Here a Chick, There a Chick project I thought I should read it.

Three generations ago two sisters, Mimi and Frankie, opened chicken restaurants in the same small town – one serving the railroad travellers and employees and the other serving the coal miners. Over the next two generations a rivalry existed between the two restaurants. It wasn’t until Food Wars, a reality TV show, arrived that the questions of which one was best would be answered.

An easy and fun read with a predictable ending.

Goodreads Rating: * * *

Author: Elsie Paul

I’ve know about this book for a long time and I’ve had it on my bookshelf for several months. I think I was putting off reading it because I thought it would be difficult.

Much of it was difficult to read and, at times, it made me very angry. The colonial treatment of our First Nations was horrible. It takes a very special group of indigenous people to forgive us for what was done but none of us should ever forget.

Elsie is in no way judgemental in the book. Her mother was a residential school survivor but from a young age Elsie was raised by her grandparents. Elsie is named after an aunt who was taken to residential school but when she became ill she was sent home and died only a few days later. Elsie spent two years in residential school but her grandparents moved to the bush whenever the scoops were taking place. They only returned to their village after the “quota” of children had been filled.

There is no way to rate this book. I’m going to leave it on my shelf with my other important books.