Winter and spring are always very busy here in the desert, as we try to enjoy as many outdoor activities as we can before the nearly intolerable summer heat returns. I had borrowed a book from my boss in January, which I've been trying to read so I can return it to her, and that interrupted my planned reading schedule (and it's still not finished yet, much to my dismay). The two books I read for fun had an unsuspected link which gave a theme to the month: war and its affects on the families left behind.
The Belting Inheritance by Julian Symons Originally published in 1965, and recently reissued with a gorgeous new cover from Poisoned Pen Press. The story is told in the first person by Christopher, an eighteen-year-old at the time the events transpire but who is writing at some undisclosed time in his later adulthood and reflecting on how they affected him and his family and reflected societal changes in England brought about by the war. Christopher was orphaned as a child and raised by an eccentric family dominated by a strong-willed matriarch. Everything is placid and boring until someone claiming to be one of Lady Wainwright's sons, missing and presumed killed in World War II, returns to the family fold. Part coming of age story, part mystery, the book is well written and deals with one overlooked part of history--the many thousands of mostly European soldiers who were transferred from German prisons to Russian prisons at the end of WWII, many of whom disappeared into the gulag system for years after the war end, and some of whom never made it out alive. Generally very enjoyable, with a strange and somewhat unsatisfying resolution in Paris (the resolution of the mystery was fine, but why did a significant number of the main characters wind up in Paris on what read as flimsy excuses? That was pushing credulity a little.) Recommedned for mystery fans and cosy mystery lovers in particular. NetGalley
Hitler and the Habsburgs by James M. Longo Extremely well written and researched discussion of Adolf Hitler's personal hatred of the ruling family of the Austrian empire. My own interest in history and my family's personal history of WWII mean this has always been a time period of great interest to me, although really well done treatises leave me emotionally spent and angry. Professor Longo's book left me spent and angry, and frightened. His research into both the background of Hitler and the Austrian emperors is exhaustive, but has been condensed into very readable chapters that illuminate the early twentieth century in middle Europe with ease and much detail that reads very engagingly. The author spent years interviewing many of the historical people who were children and adults in the Austrian royal family, and the intimacy established between them truly enlivens what could have been a dry recitation of historical fact with eyewitness recollections and loving family memories. The first few chapters detailing the rise of Hitler were especially chilling and frightening given the current resurgence of his nationalist agenda in the US and Europe. Hitler and the Habsburgs is both an excellent history and a bellweather warning of how insidious hatred can poison a thriving, multicultural society. Excellent and highly recommended reading for history buffs and political science readers. NetGalley
Beyond the Pale by Clare O'Donohue First book in a new series. Hollis was trained to be a spy, but left that life before it even began to marry Finn and settle into what has now, in her middle age, become a boring and mundane life with her professor husband. The first few chapters detail how unsatisfied with her life Hollis is, setting the stage for her to be easily swayed to help an old friend and current agent help Interpol track down a missing spy to save his life. I wanted to like Hollis more than I did, but found the discrepancies between her overcommunicated supposed expertise as a trainee spy ("you were the tops in our class." "You were the best one in our group.") wth her naive behavior once she gets to Ireland. This non-spy, never-wanted-to-be-a-spy reader knows that sitting in apub and discussing your mission aloud is a guaranteed way to bring danger to you and the spy you're trying to rescue and a really dumb move for the best spy trainee in class. I appreciated the allusions to and quotes from famous Irish writers (Finn and Hollis are professors, and its Finn's expertise that led David, Hollis' agent friend, to appeal for their help), and the description of Ireland, Dublin and other settings was well done. But the story itself, Hollis' alleged great aptitude for spying (although 20 years in the past and clearly her bungling efforts did not match her supposed reputation), and the relationship with Finn didn't convince me. But it's a pretty fast read, so suitable for upcoming summer vacation travel reading. NetGalley
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