Nine Perfect Strangers … perfect in every way. ‘You never changed your appearance for men, you changed it for other women, because they were the ones carefully tracking each other’s weight and skin tone, along with their own, they were the ones trapped with you on the ridiculous appearance obsession merry-go-round that they couldn’t or … Read more
Nicci French – gripping, dark and twisty … ‘No one is like anyone else. No one can be replaced. Every death is the end of a world. And they’re gone, and yet they remain.’ Day of the Dead, Nicci French
Anne Tyler (again) – an extraordinary writer … ‘She had always assumed that when she was old, she would have total confidence, finally. But look at her; still uncertain. In many ways she was more uncertain now than she had been as a girl.’ A Spool of Blue Thread, Anne Tyler
Lines that leap off the page … ‘All of us, in some private room of our minds, still hope for more: for real fame, for a sudden visit from the muse of first-rate. But we have more or less (according to our age and character) given up expecting it.’ Real People, Alison Lurie
When a moment jumps off the page … ‘Heaven knows we need never be ashamed of our tears, for they are rain upon the blinding dust of earth, overlaying our hard hearts.’ Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
The bits of the book that jump off the page … ‘It is a miracle. I remind myself that I am on a tiny planet that is moving at an insane speed through a boundless universe, never tiring of its flight around the sun, and I think to myself: it’s crazy. That we exist at … Read more
When a line or two from a book you love stays with you … ‘She remembered things he did not; he remembered things she did not. Their past was a bolt of fabric they had scissored up and divided between them.’ Back When We Were Grownups, Anne Tyler
“Once I have it in my head what I want to write about I tend to plough on doggedly until I reach the end.” Chris Hill, author of The Pick-Up Artist I’m delighted to welcome award-winning author Chris Hill to the blog, just as his new novel, The Pick-Up Artist, launches. “Hi Maria and thanks … Read more
The documentary series, Royal Marines Commando School, on Channel 4, ranks as some of the best TV I’ve seen in years. Watching the recruits tackle the world’s longest, toughest military training in their quest to become the best of the best has been a real eye-opener – terrific drama. The regime at Lympstone, in Devon, is … Read more
I cannot remember when I first read a Robert B. Parker novel. All I know is that, once I found him, he was all I read for a while. One book after another. Now, I have a couple by my bed and if I’m ever stuck for reading matter I pick one up. Doesn’t matter … Read more