Christmas book recommendations, 2020 edition…
Time for another end of year books round-up. To be honest, when the pandemic first hit back in March, I barely picked up a book for several weeks, opting instead to doom-scroll through Twitter for hours on end. Not healthy.
Thankfully, books have long since boomeranged back into my daily routine and so here’s a few of those I have most enjoyed this year, and hope you might too.
#Books #Reading #Stocking-fillers
The Gabriel Allon spy novels, by Daniel Silva
I’m a sucker for a good spy yarn and this year I’ve been well and truly hooked by the pen of Daniel Silva, an American writer who has crafted 20-odd books chronicling the globetrotting adventures of Gabriel Allon – part distinguished Art restorer, part Mossad spy chief. Allon is a truly original creation and these stories are exactly what any book series should be; characters to root for, baddies to vanquish and, in this case, a fascinating peek into the behind closed doors world of spy catching and intelligence gathering. Highly recommended – and you don’t have to read them in order either.
The Fifth Risk, by Michael Lewis
Michael Lewis made his name with books like Moneyball and The Big Short. Here, though, he spotlights the Trump Administration’s bungled transition in 2016 to truly shocking effect. Written in advance of their “response” to the pandemic, Lewis examines the risk which develops when people are handed the keys to the machinery of government without possessing the necessary knowledge or acumen about how it works. It’s hard to think of a more topical, timely or terrifying look at the all too real threat of things going wrong from directly *within* the corridors of power.
The Huntress, by Kate Quinn
Looking for an immersive story to escape into as the winter nights draw in? Well, this could be right up your street. In fact, it’s not one story but three –Nina Markova, a member of the “Night Witches,” an all-female WW2 Soviet bomber regiment; Ian Graham, a war correspondent turned Nazi hunter; and 17-year old Jordan McBride, a wannabe photo journalist growing up in post-war Boston. Their connection? A Nazi murderess, known as The Huntress, living in plain sight in America. The author, Kate Quinn, expertly weaves a gripping tale that blends suspense with a richly atmospheric portrayal of the realities of warfare – essential reading for any fans of historical fiction.
American Dirt, by Jeanine Cummins
It’s hard to do justice to this epic page turner in just the one paragraph. Our heroine is Lydia Quixano Pérez. A middle class bookseller by trade, she happily lives in the Mexican city of Acapulco until her husband and wider family are brutally murdered by the drug cartel. Overnight, she and her eight year old son, Luca, are destitute and forced to journey “el norte” towards the apparent safe harbour of the United States – with the cartel in hot pursuit. But even if they outrun their pursuers, will they survive their illegal crossing over the US-Mexico border? You’d best read it to find out…
Rodham, by Curtis Sittenfeld
What if Hillary hadn’t married Bill? That’s the fascinating question underpinning this compelling re-imagining of what would have happened if Hillary Rodham had turned down Bill Clinton’s proposal back in their student days. Curtis Sittenfeld does an incredible job of bringing Hillary’s voice to life, creating a fictional world populated by real-life characters – Trump’s cameo, for example, is to die for. A tantalising and super-clever rendering of what might have been…
The Nickel Boys, by Colson Whitehead
Meet Elwood Curtis, a black boy growing up in 1960s America. Poised to enrol in college and the promise of a better life, an innocent mistake sees him sentenced to a stint at The Nickel Academy, a school for juvenile delinquents which vows to turn its kids into “honourable and honest men”. That’s the claim but the reality is one of physical, emotional and sexual abuse, one where boys disappear “out back” should they try and resist. Based on an infamous real-life reform school in Florida, The Nickel Boys is the latest offering from Colson Whitehead, whose dazzling literary skills are on full display in this gut-wrenching masterpiece. A fully deserved winner of this year’s Pulitzer Prize for fiction.
Brixton Hill, by Lottie Moggach
I picked this one up out of idle curiosity – which turned out to be an excellent spur of the moment decision. It follows a brief encounter in the life of an open prison inmate, out on day release on the streets of south London as he slowly awaits his parole and the possibility of life restarting anew. That one encounter sparks an interwoven tale of romance, duplicity and accelerating tension, including a very believable portrait of life inside a jail, open or otherwise. Proper storytelling and an ending to linger long in the memory.
The Guest List, by Lucy Foley
Weddings are great, right? A chance to catch up with friends old and new, celebrate, kick back and enjoy. Not this time. In this classic twisty murder mystery, Lucy Foley transports her readers to a remote island off the coast of Ireland where one unlucky guest’s gruesome fate awaits. The story is told via the viewpoints of different characters and leaves the reader – well, me anyway – on tenterhooks till the very end. Her previous book, The Hunting Party, has a similar premise and is very good too.
The Thursday Murder Club, by Richard Osman
A last-minute addition to this list, there’s a reason this book – Osman’s first –has stayed firmly rooted to the top of the bestseller charts since its release in September. Actually, several reasons. It’s clever – very clever; it’s funny – often laugh out loud; and it’s incredibly perceptive – an acute and often moving portrait of relationships and the reality of getting older. Osman’s tale introduces four great characters – pensioners at a retirement village in deepest Kent – who meet up once a week to examine unsolved murders. That is until a brutal killing takes place on their very doorstep, one that demands their bespoke skills to investigate. Move over Miss Marple, the Thursday Murder Club is on the case!
