Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss

A haunting tale from the heart of Northumberland

Having read several of her previous novels, we hoped that this latest offering would be the pinnacle of Sarah Moss's work so far. In "Night Waking' the author succeeded in bringing the wild beauty of a remote Scottish Island to life, would she be able to evoke the essence of Northumberland in her latest novel?  

The novel opens with the sacrificial murder of a young girl, bound and naked, dragged out to a bog  to face a long and lingering death. An echo from the ancient past, her pain buried in the peat of the moors for over two thousand years. Interest piqued, the main story takes place in modern day, All the ingredients were there for a hauntingly good history lesson on the Iron Age. The main character is Sylvie a young girl from  a patriarchal northern  family whose spare time is spent taking part in historical re -enactments. The family have been asked to help with a university field study, chiefly because Sylvie's overbearing father is renowned for his survival skills. They travel to the far North, yes it does sound  like 'A Game of Thrones ' to The Wall, where they live as Iron Age people in a reconstructed round house. It was at this point that flaws in the plot began to emerge, why didn't the students and professor live in the round house with the family? If they truly wanted to experience life in those times surely they should all have lived together under one thatched roof rather than each enjoying the luxury of their own private, neon tent. A clear theme in the book is misogyny, the author compares the treatment of women and girls in the Iron Age to that of women today, Sylvie's father is a violent wife beater who turns his rage on his daughter as she develops into a young, independent woman. A worthy topic to tackle but a bit lazy to make the perpetrator an uneducated thug, domestic violence knows no social class and a slightly less monochrome abuser would have added depth to the  narrative. Again there were plot holes, horrendous beatings in plain sight, a conspiracy of silence amongst a group of people renowned for their stance on equality and non violence. This just didn't ring true, a university professor would not suddenly abandon his moral code on a short summer holiday. Clearly the reader was supposed to believe that isolation and the mystic draw of the landscape turned reasonable well balanced people into monsters but the narrative failed to build to this crescendo. The characters were not well developed, the reader was not led to see the flaws in each that would lead them to perpetrate such a crime against Sylvie. We needed to feel the gradual decent into madness brought on by the attempt to live as Iron Age people, isolation and the rationing of food would have gone along way to explain this but the students had so many trips to 'Spar' that it was hard to imagine any kind of mind bending taking place.

Night Waking evoked  the raw beauty of a Scottish Isle, the landscape almost became a character in the narrative. Northumberland is without doubt one of the most beautiful and diverse landscapes in the world, vast expanses of moorland, deep, dark forests, acres of sand dunes and secluded seaside bays. Perhaps it was the speed at which the author wrote this novel that robbed it of it's alure, the true essence of Northumberland sacrificed to Moss's  haste to push out her latest work. The group were left wondering which part of Northumberland the story was set in.

The plot was interesting the setting should have been unequalled and the characters had the potential to make you feel pity and revulsion in equal measure.  The reader was left feeling that they would like to know more about everyday life in an Iron Age round house. A very interesting example of one can be visited at .....

The Scottish Crannog Centre  info@crannog.co.uk

The Hadrian at Wall provided the backdrop for our discussions of the book. Having been told the place was on the up and in line for an award we had high hopes. Unfortunately they were not to be realised as the food was over cooked and the coffee was cold. The waitress fulfilled our requests with a grudging hostility a mutual lack of respect flourished between served and server.

Our next book takes us to the opposite end of the country for an epic walk.

The Salt Path by Raynor Winn

The Lady in the Van by Alan Bennett

Never mind disagreeing with the crowd - we also disagree with each other!!


                                           

This book was chosen by one of the Incognito members after viewing the film. Whether certain windows from the film resonated with windows in our lives or whether Alan Bennett’s writing shone through, whatever it was, the film hit a chord with the chooser, so to speak, and as books are often better than the film, then this seemed a sure bet,  POSSIBLY!

True to form, this was not the case for the chooser. The film was carefully scripted to cover the life of the lady in the Van as well as that of Alan Bennett, but the book was just a diary version of  The Lady in the Van, so for some, the comparisons between their lives wasn’t apparent which made the film far more interesting.  We later found out that the film version was available in book form and may have been more enjoyable with all the added dialogue keeping a very sad story light-hearted. POSSIBLY!
The other readers did rate the book from enjoyable, to less being more, to just ok.

The Lady in the Van is a true story of a lady who came to park her van in Alan Bennett’s drive for 3 months yet stayed for 15 years. Over that time, due to his own character weaknesses and admitted laziness and timidness, he found out very little about the fact she had been a music student in Paris, played at the Proms, spoke fluent French, was a nun twice, was sectioned by her brother, escaped  and later was found to be outside of the law due to an unfortunate accident which blighted her life and possibly sent her over the edge.  That and the nuns refusing her access to her music which was surely her only release.  All of these things he only found out after her death.

Alan Bennett knew he would write about her after her death which is perhaps why he allowed her to stay for so long. Something that would never be allowed or accepted today. POSSIBLY!

There is a poignant quote in the book which perhaps summed the writer up and I quote ....

          Good nature, or what is often considered as such, is the most selfish of all
          virtues: it is nine times out of ten mere indolence of disposition.
          (William Hazlitt ‘On the Knowledge of Character’ 1822.


All in all a ‘not too bad’ book which touched some more than others, as did the writing style.

As dining in a caravan would have been poo pooed by some, we dined at The Rat Inn. Choosing wisely was the order of the night. Lots of usual things on the menu but unfortunately the chosen duck was a bit dry and lacking a good jus to rescue the situation. The cod was very good but again lacking a bit of sauce. We all need a bit of sauce in our lives POSSIBLY!

Next months book is another short read which will, hopefully, pack a punch. POSSIBLY!


                                               GHOST WALL  BY  SARAH MOSS.

12 October 2019.

PS I love you by Cecilia Ahern

PS We did not love you!!

“PS I love you” tells the story of a young widow who finds a way through her grief with the help of friends, family and letters from her late husband.    

It was published in 2004, and quickly became a global bestseller, reaching No1 in the Sunday Times bestseller list.  In 2007, it was adapted as a movie starring Hilary Swank. 

The book was a debut novel for author, Cecilia Ahern, whose father is former Irish prime minster, Bertie Ahern.  Ahern was only 21 and had recently completed her degree in Journalism and Media Communications,  when she published "PS I love you" .  Since then, she has published a new novel every year and has now sold 25 million books worldwide, in over 40 countries. 

On Goodreads it currently has an average rating of 4.02 stars based on 316,665 reviews. This excerpt portrays a typically positive review. 

Beautiful. Wonderful. Lovely. A Masterpiece. Heart-warming. Fantastic. Sensational. Emotionally evoking. 

The same level of acclaim is evident on  Amazon with average ratings of 4.4 stars based on 650 customer reviews. 

Despite this fountain of praise, we found it hard to say anything positive about this book.  Clearly we are in a minority ( only 2% of reviews on Goodreads rated this book as low as 1 star) but our honest impression is that this was a painful and tedious read. The plot was OK but poorly developed, the characters were flat and lifeless, the setting immediately forgettable. 

However, these issues were irrelevant in comparison to the writing.  Cliched, clumsy, dull and repetitive, Ahern’s prose seemed to break every writer’s rule and was so consistently bad that it distracted from the story.  

In a quest to understand its charm, we also watched the film. Although the plot, characters and dialogue were much improved, it still missed the mark.   Even Hilary Swank was disappointing. 

As a group, we are often divided in our views about books. On this occasion we were unanimous and so we can at least thank Ahern for achieving an unusual degree of accord!

Fortunately, our culinary experience was more enjoyable. We did not pursue an Irish Bar as featured in the book, instead choosing a traditional Northumberland Inn, the Duke of Wellington

  The service and the food were good, and the cheese souffle was delicious:

But the house salad was rather lacklustre: 

And so to our next read. ..........

Another popular and successful author, but will it be a winner for us?  As we have learned this week, our group doesn’t always agree with the crowd!! 

Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome

A blast from the past.

This book was a real delight, funny, thought provoking and as relevant today as it was when it was written in 1889. The story follows the highs and lows of three friends, J, the narrator, Harris,  George and a dog called Montmorency. After spending an evening obsessing about their imagined ill health the men decide to go on a   two week boating holiday on the Thames. Having spent time in Kingston upon Thames it was fascinating to read an account of a trip made 130 years ago. In many ways little had changed, but it is poignant to remember the dreadful events that have occurred in the intervening years.

The story serves as a travel guide peppered with interesting historical facts and re-enactments of  events that unfolded on the river centuries ago, Henry VIII 's Hampton Court, Queen Elizabeth's frequent visits to local hostelries and  the signing of  Magna Carter on Magna Charter Island. The author refers to the need to escape the hustle and bustle of late nineteenth century life, the nostalgia for past times is clearly not a new phenomenon. 

The reader is treated to a string of anecdotes that still hold true today, the over reliance on weather forecasts that turn out to be inaccurate, stop checking the weather, just get out there and do it! The overwhelming desire for something you're not really keen on but the lack of it makes you crave it, many a true word in this book. There were some laugh out loud moments such as the tale of the enormous fish, a mystery only resolved when the fish turns out to be made of plaster of paris. The farce in the shared bed was the stuff of Laurel and Hardy, perhaps an inspiration to them!. No spoilers in this blog, read the book. Definitely a novel to lift the spirits and to remind us that our ancestors were living breathing individuals with whom we can still relate. 

We all thoroughly enjoyed this book, well written, funny, informative, a timeless classic. 

In keeping with our newly created tradition The Boatside Inn at Warden seemed an appropriately named venue for our meeting and we were not disappointed. The menu offered good old fashioned pub grub which was very tasty and reasonably priced. Unfortunately there were no chops on offer so we contented ourselves with a good old gammon steak, some mince and dumplings and a fish pie. 

Our new read is an altogether different proposition... p.s I love by Cecelia Ahern

Our House by Louise Candlish

Our House - A Bit More Than The Holiday Read We Envisaged  .

..

Masterly Plotted - Guardian. Terrifically Twisty - Sunday Times. Ah, but this time The Critical Readers actually agreed. Not just a holiday read after all. A carefully constructed plot with lots of twists and turns told in an interesting way through husband and wife.

Fiona returns from a few days away to her rapidly increasing in value suburban London home Only to find it sold from under her. And so the story unfolds.  The deceit, blackmail, fraud, affair, naivety, stupidity, all shine through to make this a bit if a page-turner. All the elements individually are quite believable and wouldn’t look out of place on Watchdog or Crime Watch, however, when lumped together, like with any soap, it does feel a little stretched, but this did not detract from the enjoyment. The writing style was witty and easy to read and we were all pleasantly surprised how much we enjoyed the reluctant read.

Because Bram (weak, pathetic, no balls, cheating husband) spent much of his time in the Two Brewers, the Critical Readers met at Twice Brewed (nearest connotation) and what a pleasant surprise that was too. Good Old Fashioned Pub with Good Old Fashioned Pub Grub. Good value.  Old Pub with a contemporary extension to cater for all the Hadrian Wall Walkers and exceptional views on a light summer evening.

All in all a successful evening to discuss an enjoyable book ....

Catch up with us next month, mid August, where we will be discussing a humorous classic.

Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K Jerome.     🛥

Happy Reading.

The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng

Not as good as we had expected !

We had high hopes for this novel having fallen in love with “The gift of rain” by the same author . It has also won numerous awards and was listed for the Booker Prize and so we opened the pages confident that we were in the hands of a master.

The writing was the hero in this novel. Masterful, sensory, and powerful, it transported us to the Cameron Highlands, so effectively that the damp mountain air was almost palpable.

The pace was gentle and slow and felt like an intentional attempt to reflect the meditative themes covered throughout the story. These include gardening, archery and body art.

All of the characters were well developed with admirable qualities offset by fundamental flaws and complex backstories which emerged as the plot developed.

The plot, which included plenty of twists and turns dotting around over time, covered an array of events relating to family relationships, war crimes, hidden treasure, mysterious disappearances, and kamikaze pilots, all set in Malaysia during the period around and after the 2^nd world war.

The narrative provided some fascinating insights into zen practices, tattoo preservation, and colonialism and multiculturalism in Malaysia.

And so, with all of these strengths, we can recommend this novel. But the recommendation comes with a caveat - it was not as good as we had expected. The pacing was, perhaps, too slow? The climax somewhat attenuated? The overall read, rather - well – misty?

We drew our conclusions about the book over dinner at Artisam (link here http://artisam-corbridge.co.uk) . This was the closest thing to Malaysian or Japanese cuisine which we could find in the Tyne Valley. Having dined there previously we - again – had high expectations. Sadly, the ownership has since changed and the new management clearly have a different culinary offer. We did go for the early bird option and it seemed that all of our fellow diners did the same. Perhaps later diners (although we saw none that evening) can enjoy some better fare. However, on the basis of our own experience we agreed that, as with The Garden of Mists, it was not as good as we had expected!

Our next read is a more modern thriller, Our House by Louise Candlish.

The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley

More Scooby Do than Agatha Christie

For ever in search of the next great crime novel, this book seemed to have all the right ingredients. Set in the wilderness of the Scottish Highlands, a disparate group of revellers trapped in a rural idyll  by the worst snow storm for years. The scene was set for a real thriller.

The initial chapters revealed a simplistic writing style outlining the now cliched  group of friends who trace their history back to university days at Oxford. This is the third contemporary who dunnit to choose Oxford as the common factor in the characters back story.
There were strong echoes of other modern thrillers which also offer the same mix of stereotypical characters; the disadvantaged underdog who battles against all the odds to come out on top; the over privileged beauty who treats those close to her with disdain, ultimately getting her just deserts; a dark and brooding mystery man, in this case a game keeper, one step away from doffing his proverbial cap at the London elites.
The first half of the book seemed moribund with naval gazing reminiscence, each character examining their past lives, feelings and motivations in minute detail. We learnt their back story in a frustrating and overly detailed narrative, by the half way point the plot was still in its infancy. Despite so much time being devoted to character development Lucy Foley failed to make us care about any of the people in the story, all two dimensional and inauthentic, all slightly irritating.
The cast list offered a  modern day smorgasbord any diversity trainer would be proud of! but the essence of what makes people individuals was missing, preventing the reader from feeling any kind of empathy for the characters, thus not really caring what happened to them or why.
Full of contradictions and anomalies the reader often wondered how carefully this book had been edited. The train station that seemed to move its proximity to the Lodge depending on the plot line.
The concerned parents who wouldn't eat with the group because they wanted to eat with their baby, very laudable until  they left the  baby asleep and joined in the drug fuelled after party, Really?
The gay friend who everyone had a crush on. The glamorous  one who was bright enough to get a degree from Oxford but then decided to be a stay at home house wife, is that even a thing?
The mousy side kick who outperformed her friend on every level , cliche.
Scarcely hidden secrets lurking beneath the surface of an outwardly perfect life. If the characters had been developed more skilfully the plot when it eventually got going would have had carried more meaning and held the readers attention.
Unfortunately because we didn't empathise with the guests we just didn't care who went missing or why, our interest was almost lost when suddenly the plot picked up. There were finally moments of high drama, twists and turns, red herrings so out of left field as to be almost farcical. On several occasions the reader was ready for the immortal lines....'and I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for you pesky kids!'
Apparently this novel is set to be made into a TV drama, it should work brilliantly on screen as there is an interesting plot lost in there somewhere.
We look forward to the TV version but until then I'm afraid 'The Hunting Party' failed to bag its readers!

Join us next month as we discuss

The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng

The Sixteen Trees of the Somme by Lars Mytting

This was an unusual choice given Lars Mytting’s earlier work was a non-fiction book about all things wood which received excellent reviews from critics interested in the chopping, drying, storing and stacking of wood. The theme continued through this fictional book which was highly recommended by a friend’s book group.


The Critical Readers didn’t not like the book, but, didn't or couldn’t like it as much as they thought they would having read the synopsis.  There was a feeling that some of the story may have been lost in translation. We were certainly lost in a world of over describing. Every place, smell, experience and emotion was given a full and comprehensive... whatever the word is!

This book is a cleverly plotted story about Edvard growing up on a remote Norwegian farm. Upon
the death of his grandfather he succumbs to his need to find out about the death of his parents. This journey takes him from Norway to the Shetlands and on to France uncovering the loves and losses of his family and the hidden truth behind another feuding family. We did find ourselves immersed in the
story wondering whether the eponymous  trees were  actually a real thing.  We also enjoyed the mystery and the twists and turns but at the same time it felt too long and laborious. Edvards romance with his two girlfriends becomes tedious and cringeworthy. This could almost be forgiven due to his age and lack of social skills with the opposite sex.

All in all a good read but not a holiday read ....

No Norwegian restaurants in Northumberland so the next best thing was to book a pub in the middle of nowhere! The Feathers at Hedley on the Hill. Warm cozy atmosphere sitting by the fire being attended to by their friendly staff. Opened the menu and, bang, very disappointed by the choices on offer. Not up to their usual ethos of slow, hearty home cooking. Not sure what went wrong because
we have been before and remembered how good it was. Maybe it was the chefs night off!







Our next choice to discuss very soon is The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley. Comments such as
‘Gripping’,’Chilling’ & ‘Riveting’ appear on the front cover. Can’t wait  ......

April 2019.

Relish; my life on a plate by Prue Leith

More of a light Lunch than Dinner !

This is the first time that our group have selected an autobiography but it may be the last.  An interest in food, the Great British Bake Off, and other readers’ recommendations led to this particular choice in that genre but our review was lukewarm.

Prue Leith surely has plenty to say and wisdom to share– her experience of breaking the glass ceiling to achieve business success despite being a woman?   The highs and lows of a life built on catering for others?   The joys of bringing food to the taste buds?  Sadly, none of this came through in her book. 

Instead, readers are taken on a chronological marathon which focuses more on her love life and her preference for affairs with married men - one of which led to a divorce allowing her to marry an older family friend.

Her writing style was easy to follow, and it was interesting to learn that she has written some fiction books, that she was born into a wealthy family, and is extremely well connected.  Her “can do” attitude shone throughout her life history and has enabled her to overcome most challenges in life.

Nevertheless, despite being a lengthy read (over 500 page) the book lacked weight and substance and left us feeling rather frustrated and dissatisfied about the time spent we had spent with Prue.

Indeed, the lack of depth, combined with Prue’s penchant for other people’s husbands, left  a rather unpleasant taste in our mouths.

We reviewed “Relish” at a local restaurant, Bouchons (http://www.bouchonbistrot.co.uk) with an enduring reputation for good food (link to
https://www.gourmetguide.co.uk/city/northumberland/restaurants/bouchon-bistrot).  Fortunately, we were not disappointed and can highly recommend the whole dining experience.  Both the food and the service were excellent and untainted by our insights into Leiths. 

Why Mummy Drinks by Gill Sims

A good blog does Not a novel make!

Note to self; when selecting a book for the next 'Incognito Book Blog' avoid novels written by bloggers. I'm afraid Gill Sims that definitely includes you! It seems to be a growing trend among publishers to approach bloggers with offers of book deals. Whilst every day situations reported in a short form blog can be entertaining, and Gill Sims blog is definitely entertaining, it requires a completely different skill set to produce a well crafted novel.

Unfortunately this months choice offered non of the requisite ingredients for a good read, no plot, no strong characterisation, no twists, no turns. This book was a formulaic attempt to cover all the bases. From the 'badly behaved' children, who in reality never put a foot wrong, to the obligatory dysfunctional relatives. The divorced friend, the gorgeous gay friend, the vacuous school mothers and the long suffering yet boring husband.

"What's the plot?" I heard myself scream ! The author didn't even offer an answer to her own question....'Why does mummy drink?' FML if I know. Mummy wasn't driven to drink by her unruly self centred children, she chose to drink on each of her many nights out. How can the reader be expected to develop any feelings of sympathy for such a hedonist. 'Mummy' seems to have decided that the usual responsibilities that come with raising children were not for her, choosing instead to continue a social life most singletons would be proud of.

It is really not clear who the target audience for this book is. It failed to deliver the warm humour of 'Bridget Jones' Diary' as shallow characters left the reader ambivalent as to the fate of 'mummy'. Perhaps the author attempted to explore too many themes, resulting in a lack of depth and clarity. Were we supposed to despise the coven of mothers at the school gate, again the BBC T.V. series 'Motherland' did this brilliantly. Perhaps we were to consider the strengths and weaknesses of different 'middle class' parenting techniques. The portrayal of 'mummies' extended family was so extreme it lost its plausibility becoming instead a predictable parody of the bohemian family on the paternal side and the helicopter pushy parents on 'mummies' side. 

No depth, no substance, no plot. I wish we had enjoyed this book but unfortunately it left us feeling rather irritated but at least we are all now well versed in the language of abbreviation...FML we said with one accord. We may be non the wiser as to 'mummies' motivation for drinking but we all felt after that book we deserved a stiff whisky!

Join us next time when we review "Relish " by Prue Leith, will she have us reaching out for the chardonnay?

The Hearts Invisible Furies by John Boyne

This book was a 'top pick' from the Richard and Judy Book Club. Pushing that stigma gently to one side, it was chosen because of rave reviews from other local book groups and the generic marketing hype printed on the back of the book. Expectations were extremely high!

In a nutshell, no one was disappointed. It was an overwhelming success for the newly formed and mysterious, Incognito Book Bloggers. Read from cover to cover, no shirking or dipping out half way through. It was unanimously agreed that this was a stand out read.
The book represents a ....Who am I?, What am I? coming of age, hero worshipping, coming out novel. Its set against the back drop of an Ireland still trapped under the chains of the Catholic Church, an unfortunate time to be homosexual or unmarried and pregnant. The story is well written with lots of mini tragedies, peppered with sadness and humour in equal measure. A life's lesson showing the prejudices of the time paired with an educational theme of Irish history from the post war period up to the present day.

Cyril Avery will not be forgotten for quite a while. We loved the story, the characters were well drawn and true to their era and the excellent use of show don't tell brought out the dry humour of the book. Poor Cyril was a weak character being carried along by stronger personalities around him. He desperately tries to discover his identity in an Ireland steeped in Catholic guilt. As with all good novels the story comes full circle.

Our next selection has a lot to live up to!
Can Gill Sims keep us entertained over the Christmas period with her best seller....
'Why Mummy Drinks'