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Post by theravenking on Aug 8, 2022 11:56:47 GMT
Quick reread of a longtime favorite, Helen McCloy’s Through a Glass, Darkly (1950). McCloy is one of my favorite writers—lyrical and graceful, with a talent for the subtly sinister. Through a Glass is, for me, genuinely haunting; rereading it made me realize just why. McCloy achieves her terror almost entirely through M.R. James-ian understatement, allowing the mind to complete the picture. I love the characters, particularly Gisela. (And Faustina is unforgettable.) McCloy characterizes with such seeming ease, in such clear but fine strokes. The mystery puzzle is clever (some nice cluing), but that’s not really the point: The writing, mood, and ending are what make the book. Examples of McCloy’s writing:
Oh, would it make a fine film, though I’d be curious at (and a bit worried by) how filmmakers would handle the ending. That ending makes me wonder exactly what McCloy was going for, what she thought of what she wrote. I simply don’t know. Just so good. I’ve always had trouble finding McCloy’s books; I hope some publisher reprints her work soon. Actually Agora Books has recently started reprinting the Basil Willing series in chronological order.
The last McCloy I read was The Long Body which I found very disappointing. There was nothing surprising about the mystery plot and the entire thing seemed so lacklustre, that it almost felt like reading an unfinished manuscript discarded by the author herself knowing it wasn't very good.
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Post by Nalkarj on Aug 8, 2022 12:55:21 GMT
Actually Agora Books has recently started reprinting the Basil Willing series in chronological order.
The last McCloy I read was The Long Body which I found very disappointing. There was nothing surprising about the mystery plot and the entire thing seemed so lacklustre, that it almost felt like reading an unfinished manuscript discarded by the author herself knowing it wasn't very good. Unfortunately I’m not seeing the Agora Books reprints through interlibrary loan, and the bookshop near me that used to stock some McCloys has closed. By the way, have you read Through a Glass, Darkly?
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Post by Ass_E9 on Aug 8, 2022 17:02:19 GMT
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Post by Ass_E9 on Aug 8, 2022 17:03:10 GMT
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Post by theravenking on Aug 8, 2022 20:12:08 GMT
Actually Agora Books has recently started reprinting the Basil Willing series in chronological order.
The last McCloy I read was The Long Body which I found very disappointing. There was nothing surprising about the mystery plot and the entire thing seemed so lacklustre, that it almost felt like reading an unfinished manuscript discarded by the author herself knowing it wasn't very good. Unfortunately I’m not seeing the Agora Books reprints through interlibrary loan, and the bookshop near me that used to stock some McCloys has closed. By the way, have you read Through a Glass, Darkly? Not yet, but I do own a copy of the Arcturus Crime Classics release.
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Post by Ass_E9 on Aug 9, 2022 0:58:15 GMT
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Post by Horselover Fat on Aug 9, 2022 14:34:59 GMT
Too Many Clients - Rex Stout
One of the later Nero Wolfe books.
Finally finished Noble House by James Clavell. A summer book.
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Post by Ass_E9 on Aug 9, 2022 17:00:11 GMT
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Post by Ass_E9 on Aug 12, 2022 4:23:44 GMT
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 13, 2022 16:53:59 GMT
I picked it up during one of the lockdowns, finally opened it. One of the strongest ideas is that it's not how we consume fossil fuels which is the problem, it's that we continue fossil fuel growth at all. If all cars & vehicles ceased, that'd still only make about a 7-9% dent in CO2 emissions. The only way to avoid global catastrophe is get at the root of climate change, not just patchworks. Venture capitalists want to get in, yet options thus far haven't proved worthwhile enough. Like it or not, money & influence walks.
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Post by Captain Spencer on Aug 13, 2022 18:54:36 GMT
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Post by CrepedCrusader on Aug 15, 2022 3:37:14 GMT
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
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Post by Nalkarj on Aug 15, 2022 22:06:44 GMT
More Helen McCloy: The Impostor, 1977. Unfortunately, this reads like late, tired McCloy (she was 73 when she wrote it). It’s short, novella rather than novel, and clipped, as if McCloy’s heart isn’t into it. The prose lacks McCloy’s typical lyricism, instead having the short sentences of the kind of thriller you pick up in an airport. McCloy’s writing is still better than many airport-thriller writers’, but it’s shockingly bland for someone who could write as she could. The plot setup seems cliché as well: Woman has an accident, wakes up in private hospital where doctors tell her she has amnesia. Man comes to pick her up, claiming to be her husband—she swears that he’s not. I like this plot, I should note—but McCloy does nothing original or interesting with it. The whole thing turns into this frankly unbelievable spy plot in which the villains would have been better off if they hadn’t done anything to the protagonist. And the ending just sorta peters out. Again, I really feel like McCloy’s heart wasn’t in this book. Too bad. If only my interlibrary loan had more of her books from her ’40s-’50s heyday and fewer from the ’70s…
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Post by politicidal on Aug 15, 2022 22:18:41 GMT
Just finished "Killers of the Flower Moon". Wow, what a horrible story. Great book though. Agreed. It's quite good. I'm excited about the movie adaptation.
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Post by nutsberryfarm 🏜 on Aug 16, 2022 10:33:38 GMT
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Post by DanaShelbyChancey on Aug 16, 2022 17:54:47 GMT
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Post by mikef6 on Aug 17, 2022 14:59:46 GMT
Today will finish a western-ish mystery set in 1913 in a remote northwest Montana town, "The Peaceful Valley Crime Wave" by Bill Pronzini. Then I will begin "The Best American Mystery Stories, 2020" edited by crime writer C.J. Box.
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Post by gspdude on Aug 19, 2022 12:25:28 GMT
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Post by theravenking on Aug 19, 2022 22:17:57 GMT
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Post by nutsberryfarm 🏜 on Aug 20, 2022 23:54:05 GMT
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