Reading Recommendations: Lighthouse, Penhallow, Mice, Fate
Dear listeners,
Summer holidays are coming to an end at Shedunnit HQ and I'm excited about the planning I've been doing for the next few months of podcasting. I think there are some good episodes coming up between now and the end of the year.
Meanwhile, it's time for another book recommendation newsletter, in which I and Shedunnit production assistant Leandra offer you a peek into our personal reading experience while we are working behind the scenes on the show. You can catch up with the last edition here and share your own reading plans in the comments here.
Caroline Has Read: The Lighthouse by P.D. James
This is now the fourth P.D. James book I've read — I think — and I'm still yet to fall under her spell. Which is a shame, because I really want to! A lot of people I trust and admire speak very highly of her work, and she was such a major figure in late twentieth century crime fiction that I've always felt that I must be missing out. I picked up this 2005 mystery in a charity shop and was charmed by its setting on a fictional island off the coast of Cornwall. After being privately owned by the same family for centuries, the island is now operated by a trust as a completely private retreat for high profile politicians and other people for whom security issues mean they can never relax.
The discovery of a body amidst this secretive atmosphere requires Adam Dalgliesh and his team to be choppered in to solve the crime. It's all very dramatic, with lots of crashing waves and high cliffs. A promising premise indeed. But the mystery didn't play fair to my mind, nor were the motives or characters well established. The way the story was told felt very "of its time" in a moderately unpleasant way, as did some of the major plot elements, which is not something I usually find frustrating in a book published only twenty years ago. Unless I find a very compelling reason to do otherwise, I'm not sure I'll be picking up another P.D. James book.
Caroline Will Read: Penhallow by Georgette Heyer
My project of reading all Heyer's detective fiction in order for an episode coming later this year continues. I've now arrived at 1942's Penhallow and I'm excited to get stuck into this one because it appears to be one of her most polarising books. Some people I've discussed this reading project with grimaced when I mentioned it, while at least one other lit up and said that this was quite probably the only one worth rereading. I'm interested to see which side of the divide I end up falling on...
Leandra Has Read: A Case of Mice and Murder by Sally Smith
Back in January, Caroline mentioned in the newsletter that one of her Christmas presents was A Case of Mice and Murder by Sally Smith, and that she had finished the book by 26th December. Colour me intrigued! Unfortunately, the book wouldn't be published in the US until July 2025, so I was forced to have patience, but it was certainly worth the wait.
I thoroughly enjoyed following our sleuth, Gabriel Ward, as he juggled his responsibilities as a barrister with the new task of investigating the murder of the Lord Chief Justice of England. Ward's demeanour and idiosyncrasies made him quite endearing, and I loved the relationship he built with the young, determined Constable Wright. Readers also get two mysteries for the price of one! Not only is Ward investigating a murder, but he finds that one of his own cases involving the authorship of a well-loved children's book, Millie The Temple Mouse, has a mystery of its own.
I didn't read this book within 24 hours like Caroline, but it wasn't for lack of trying!
Leandra Will Read: How to Seal Your Own Fate by Kristen Perrin
In this sequel to How To Solve Your Own Murder, we return to the idyllic English village of Castle Knoll. After solving the murder of her great aunt, Annie Adams finds herself with writer's block and a cryptic message from local fortune-teller Peony Lane. Within hours of her meeting with Annie, Peony is found dead. Now, Annie must uncover the truth behind a car accident back in 1967, hoping it holds the answers to the fortune teller's death in the present.
Last year, I read the first book in the Castle Knoll Files series, and I was not impressed. Dual timelines and village settings in a narrative are usually good signs that I will enjoy a story, but I found the characters to be a bit flat and the mystery more simplistic than I would have liked. Some might now be wondering why I plan to pick up How To Seal Your Own Fate. Well, I've realised that I have a tendency to abandon authors after one lacklustre reading experience, and I am challenging myself to give more second chances. Even though I didn't enjoy How To Solve Your Own Murder as much as I predicted, I also saw potential for the series to get stronger as the author becomes more accustomed to her own characters and the art of writing mysteries.
For fans of How To Solve Your Own Murder, I leave you with the following alternative recommendation: One Puzzling Afternoon by Emily Critchley. As with the former, this mystery has a dual timeline, but our amateur sleuth is eighty-four-year-old Edie who seeks to uncover what happened to her best friend back in 1951.
That's what we've got coming up reading-wise. What are you planning to read this month? Let us know by replying directly or by leaving a comment to join the conversation with other readers. If you'd like to follow our reading adventures in between these posts, I (try to) publish monthly reading updates on my blog/newsletter and Leandra documents what she's reading on her YouTube channel.
Until next time,
Caroline
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