What are you reading at the moment?

I’m just running through the Tom Clancy’s in chronological story order, not the published order. In the first few chapters of Debt of Honour currently.

Spent a lot of last year and the early part of this re-reading the Hornblowers, Patrick ’O Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin series and the Julian Stockwin Kydd novels. Thundering, swashbuckling stuff with the reek of the ages and fabulous, intricate characters and interwoven plots.
 
I'll read "The Man Who would be King" next as I have only seen the film...
Much scholarly study has been devoted to Kipling's inspiration for the story - the author never explicitly said. In my opinion most likely to be either Alexander Gardner or Josiah Harlan, or indeed, a conflation of the two. Kipling working as a journalist in northern India would have put him in the right place to pick up traveller's tales of the extremely eccentric pair. There are excellent biographies on them - well worth a read if you are interested. - I.
 
Much scholarly study has been devoted to Kipling's inspiration for the story - the author never explicitly said. In my opinion most likely to be either Alexander Gardner or Josiah Harlan, or indeed, a conflation of the two. Kipling working as a journalist in northern India would have put him in the right place to pick up traveller's tales of the extremely eccentric pair. There are excellent biographies on them - well worth a read if you are interested. - I.

Thank you...I'll see how "The Man Who Would Be King" goes first...I am not sure I will be able to read it without the mental image of Sean Connery and Michael Caine!

edit - just purchased the Kindle edition!...
 
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I’m just running through the Tom Clancy’s in chronological story order, not the published order. In the first few chapters of Debt of Honour currently.

Spent a lot of last year and the early part of this re-reading the Hornblowers, Patrick ’O Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin series and the Julian Stockwin Kydd novels. Thundering, swashbuckling stuff with the reek of the ages and fabulous, intricate characters and interwoven plots.

I enjoy a good thriller...currently working my way through Kevin Wignal's books and although a tad formalistic, very enjoyable escapism...
 
With the Kaiser being given the boot in Arabia by Peter O'Toole I've two more on the boil. The first is LTC Rolts bucolic jaunt through the Irish canals in the late 1940's. The second is Max Reisch's adventures with the Afrika Corps and escape to Sicily after the German surrender in Tunisia.

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I like Tom Rolt. His ghost stories of Britain’s waterways and similar areas can be very chilling.
 
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Not my usual sort of thing - my prior crime fiction reading was really just limited to Chandler and Conan Doyle but I hugely enjoyed this. It was sent to me by my sister who is a bit of an expert on the genre. Set in 1937 rural Japan and the gruesome events surrounding a high status wedding in a remote house. It is winter and snow is falling. Highly atmospheric, it falls into the category of a 'locked room' murder - doors and windows sealed from the inside, no evidence of anybody entering or exiting but corpses none the less. Local police baffled until an eccentric young private detective arrives...... Charmingly written - the author has an endearing habit of breaking the 'fourth wall' and speaking directly to the reader in places. It isn't that long - I read it in a couple of sittings and found myself caught up in the atmosphere it creates. The solution is brilliantly ingenious but I'm not going to tell you - obviously. You have up until chapter 13 to work it out for yourself - the reveal begins in the next chapter. Highly recommended - one of my books of the year so far. Cheers - I.

@Scotshave @Blademonkey @Missoni
 
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Not my usual sort of thing - my prior crime fiction reading was really just limited to Chandler and Conan Doyle but I hugely enjoyed this. It was sent to me by my sister who is a bit of an expert on the genre. Set in 1937 rural Japan and the gruesome events surrounding a high status wedding in a remote house. It is winter and snow is falling. Highly atmospheric, it falls into the category of a 'locked room' murder - doors and windows sealed from the inside, no evidence of anybody entering or exiting but corpses none the less. Local police baffled until an eccentric young private detective arrives...... Charmingly written - the author has an endearing habit of breaking the 'fourth wall' and speaking directly to the reader in places. It isn't that long - I read it in a couple of sittings and found myself caught up in the atmosphere it creates. The solution is brilliantly ingenious but I'm not going to tell you - obviously. You have up until chapter 13 to work it out for yourself - the reveal begins in the next chapter. Highly recommended - one of my books of the year so far. Cheers - I.

@Scotshave @Blademonkey @Missoni

Sounds great - thank you...
 
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Not my usual sort of thing - my prior crime fiction reading was really just limited to Chandler and Conan Doyle but I hugely enjoyed this. It was sent to me by my sister who is a bit of an expert on the genre. Set in 1937 rural Japan and the gruesome events surrounding a high status wedding in a remote house. It is winter and snow is falling. Highly atmospheric, it falls into the category of a 'locked room' murder - doors and windows sealed from the inside, no evidence of anybody entering or exiting but corpses none the less. Local police baffled until an eccentric young private detective arrives...... Charmingly written - the author has an endearing habit of breaking the 'fourth wall' and speaking directly to the reader in places. It isn't that long - I read it in a couple of sittings and found myself caught up in the atmosphere it creates. The solution is brilliantly ingenious but I'm not going to tell you - obviously. You have up until chapter 13 to work it out for yourself - the reveal begins in the next chapter. Highly recommended - one of my books of the year so far. Cheers - I.

@Scotshave @Blademonkey @Missoni
I do like Japanese literature. Despite his right-wing sympathies in some of his works, Yukio Mishima fascinates me. I also think that the Japanese have a particular art in portraying existential dread; in book and in film.
 
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