Books 2019 - The Dry by Jane Harper

Mount TBR so far = 8/24
Lj Book Bingo Masterpost

"Australia is in the grip of its worst drought in a century, and it hasn't rained in the small country town of Kiewarra for two years. Tensions in the community become unbearable when three members of the Hadler family are brutally murdered. Everyone thinks Luke Hadler, who committed suicide after slaughtering his wife and six-year-old-son, is guilty.

Policeman Aaron Falk returns to his hometown for the funeral of his childhood best friend, and is unwillingly drawn into the investigation. As questions mount and suspicion spreads through the town, Falk is forced to confront the community that rejected him twenty years earlier. Because Falk and Luke Hadler shared a secret, one which Luke's death threatens to unearth. And as Falk probes deeper into the killings, secrets from his past bubble to the surface as he questions the truth of his friend's crime."

This is our bookgroup read this month, but it's also a book that I've had waiting to be read on my shelf for almost a year, and of course it's a crime novel - so my reading challenges are well and truly catered for with this book.

And I loved it! It's been a while since I read a crime novel, but this one is eminently readable and unputdownable. I ended up leaving work until very late in the day to finish this, because I just wanted to see what was going to happen - and not just with the crime itself. The place and the characters were all real and interesting, and the story's "hero", Aaron Falk, was also someone I could relate to. Bonus points from me, for being set in Australia - and actually in the kind of rural small town setting that I grew up in too, so lots of resonances! There's alot of excellent films and novels that come out of Australia, and we don't get to see all of them over here, so I'm always pleased when one deservedly does well. This time, all the cover hype is absolutely accurate! *g*

Books 2019 - A Fashionable Indulgence

Sorry - catching up on posts... *g*


Mount TBR so far = 8/24
Lj Book Bingo Masterpost

"When he learns that he could be the heir to an unexpected fortune, Harry Vane rejects his past as a Radical fighting for government reform and sets about wooing his lovely cousin. But his heart is captured instead by the most beautiful, chic man he’s ever met: the dandy tasked with instructing him in the manners and style of the ton. Harry’s new station demands conformity - and yet the one thing he desires is a taste of the wrong pair of lips.

After witnessing firsthand the horrors of Waterloo, Julius Norreys sought refuge behind the luxurious facade of the upper crust. Now he concerns himself exclusively with the cut of his coat and the quality of his boots. And yet his protégé is so unblemished by cynicism that he inspires the first flare of genuine desire Julius has felt in years. He cannot protect Harry from the worst excesses of society. But together they can withstand the high price of passion."

This was a reread a few weeks ago, and I've belatedly realised that I can use it to fill in another lj-bingo square (and I don't buy enough e-books to make it worth waiting for the next one, so... *g*)

This is the first book in my second favourite K.J. Charles series - The Society of Gentlemen trilogy (and my favourite book in the series, too). As I expect from Charles, the characters are real, the world is real, and its all made more interesting than just forbidden-love-in-the-past, because she makes that past a real place too. If you haven't already, these are definitely worth reading! *g*

Oh and also - Bingo again! Hurrah!