In Parenthesis by David Jones

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This is writing totally other from almost everything else we are fed. Complex, rich, demanding total attention.

What stands out for me is the balance between the waiting and the action. This is something that I feel is being lost – yes the moments of action were horrific but it was the moments of inaction that really ate away at people’s souls.

Lovechild by Herbert Williams

I was engaged with this book, but somehow it failed to come to a resolution.

Steve, the central character, is not particularly likeable – maybe it is an honesty about the narrative that he is not offered redemption, nevertheless people move on with their lives.

Maybe I didn’t believe anyone, but in particular I struggled to believe the women – their reactions didn’t fit with the likely reactions of the women I know.

Addlands by Tom Bullough

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It is a novel full of pathos about the struggles of Welsh hill farms – and however powerful I found this story I could not stake off the feeling that, essentially, I had been here before.

It is a very well executed example of a pretty standard narrative – rugged landscape, fractured masculinity, authenticity born out of economic marginality – it ticks all the boxes ...

Nothing Has Changed by Adrian Masters

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I put this along side The Greasy Poll by Mike Parker on the bookshelf – both being detailed reflections of election campaigns in Wales. The interface between Welsh and UK politics being a key part of the dynamic.

It is, for a political geek, an interesting account – but the most significant thing it reveals is the number of campaign events that are attended by the party faithful and the press. The “public” even in the midst of a hotly contested election are generally getting on with their lives elsewhere – better things to do than worry about who is running the country.

The Lifers’ Club by Francis Pryor

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This is a pretty solid whodunit in which Francis Pryor does bring the essence of the Fens to the page.

However it often felt in need of a stronger editorial hand, description of details irrelevant to the plot were far too common. I don’t know if this is related to the crowdfunding model of the publishing house but I feel you could probably have cut the text by at least a third without significantly impairing the narrative.

SS-GB by Len Deighton

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Having watched the recent BBC adaptation I was interested to read the book and see if the flaws in the TV version were there in the original.

Please note there will be some spoilers …

The book, like the TV, begins with an interesting exploration of the relationship between Detective Inspector Archer and the Nazi authorities now in charge. As part of the murder squad Archer separates his work from any agenda of the Nazis. His position is that murder is still murder, his job is to find the truth, and the truth doesn’t change depending on who is in power… however as the story unfolds this certainty begins to fall away – truth starts to look a lot more fluid.

But then somewhere along the way the novel, like the TV, seems to get completely lost – there is a plot to liberate the King from the tower of London, Archer ends up the driver of an ambulance that bundles the King into the back and drives out the open gates – only to break down and leave them in the midsts of a French farce pushing the King up the Strand in a wheelchair before ending up somewhere in the South West having a shoot out on the beach.

All the flaws of the TV adaptation are there in black and white…

Invasion by Luke Rhinehart

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One of the books read on the plane home from Australia.

Sci-fi often provides an effective medium for satire on current affairs, but this is best achieved with a subtle touch that allows the reader to join the dots. In this instance Rhinehart is using a big fat marker pen and while there is some charm and humour to the “FF” especially Louie overall it is a pretty thin work.