Sarah's 2012 BOMBS Clearance

I'm going to raise my target a little this year and go for 30 books off my shelves. Hopefully this won't be too high a goal for me to reach. Like previous years only books bought prior to the beginning of the new year are going to count for this challenge.




1. The Club Dumas by Arturo Perez-Reverte 17/01/12
2. The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz 23/01/12
3. The Egyptologist by Arthur Phillips 07/02/12
4. Last Bus to Woodstock by Colin Dexter 22/02/12
5. Sphinx by T. S. Learner 25/02/12
6. The Vesuvius Club by Mark Gatiss 28/02/12
7. The Devil in Amber by Mark Gatiss 09/03/12
8. Black Butterfly by Mark Gatiss 15/03/12
9. In The Dark by Mark Billingham 24/04/12
10. The Monkey's Raincoat by Robert Crais 28/04/12
11. The Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake 01/06/12
12. Already Dead by Charlie Huston 14/06/12
13. Heresy by S.J. Parris 21/06/12
14. Shifting Skin by Chris Simms 22/06/12
15. Savage Moon by Chris Simms 30/07/12
16. The Bones of Avalon by Phil Rickman 24/08/12
17. Enter a Murderer by Ngaio Marsh 28/08/12
18. Hell's Fire by Chris Simms 12/09/12
19. Death in Ecstasy by Ngaio Marsh 14/09/12
20. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien 25/09/12
21. The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien 22/11/12
22. The Mozart Conspiracy by Scott Mariani 28/11/12
23. The Doomsday Prophecy by Scott Mariani 06/12/12
24. The Heretic's Treasure by Scott Mariani 30/12/12

Did you reach your previous goals?

Finished Book #1 The Club Dumas by Arturo Perez-Reverte.

Another book about books. This particular one was recommended to me by a friend and I'm glad I took her advice. A thriller about rare book collecting, a secret society of Alexandre Dumas fans and the occult (plus quite a bit of action), what could be better?

>2 Meredy: Meredy, I did reach my previous goals, last year I even had a couple of months to spare after reading 25 books from my TBR pile, so I decided to try for a slightly higher target this time. Fingers crossed.

Finished Book #2 The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz.

I was given this book for Christmas and I couldn't wait to read it, a new Sherlock Holmes novel authorised by the Conan Doyle estate and written by Anthony Horowitz, whose television shows I love. I think this is a great book, Holmes and Watson are both wonderfully in character, the language is pretty much spot on and the story is compelling with plot twists aplenty.

Finished Book #3 The Egyptologist by Arthur Phillips.

I'm conflicted about this book. First off, I didn't like any of the characters in the book, none of them come off as likeable and it's hard to feel any sympathy with any of them. That being said, it is also entertaining and very well-plotted, intentionally confusing, both darkly funny and very tragic, and although it took me quite a long time to get through, it was well worth the effort.

I started The Egyptologist when I was in college and dropped it about halfway through. Its back on the TBR shelves, maybe I'll try again sometime soon.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Egyptologist, which I picked off a library shelf because of its cover. Egyptology has always held a considerable fascination for me. It wasn't the predictable curse-and-mystery adventure that I had expected but, rather, a memorable literary experience. This book led me to read another novel by Arthur Phillips (Prague) and to put still another on my TBR list.

What intrigued me about this novel was the way the story's truth was wrapped in layers of misdirection as dense as a mummy's bindings, through the various character's deliberate lies, involuntary errors, prideful and hopeful self-delusion, and the many other things that get in the way of clear perception. I felt sorry for the main character and liked him in spite of his obvious failings and absurdities, almost in the same way that one likes Mr. Micawber. The fact that we already know the outcome of rival Howard Carter's excavations added spice to the narrative. I thought the author's handling of the revelation to the readers of the truth of the murder was spectacular.

>7 Meredy: I totally agree with you about The Egyptologist, I really enjoyed unravelling the 'truth' from all the misinformation we were given by all the various characters and the ending was spectacular and rather heartbreaking.

Finished Book #4 Last Bus to Woodstock by Colin Dexter.

The first in the Inspector Morse series and the introduction of two characters that I grew up watching (and grew to love) on TV. What can I say? Morse is Morse, he's unlucky in love, he drinks too much and he's awful to his soon-to-be long-suffering partner Lewis. Thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Finished Book #5 Sphinx by T. S. Learner.

Another book set in Egypt, this was a good story with an interesting concept and an unexpected twist at the end. I did like this book, although the first few chapters were quite slow and it took a bit of getting into.

Finished Book #6 The Vesuvius Club by Mark Gatiss.

'The first recorded adventure of Lucifer Box Esq - portraitist, dandy, wit, rake...and His Majesty's most dashing secret agent.'

I've been looking forward to reading this since I stole it from my dad's shelves last year and I'm really glad I finally picked it up. A quick, fun read for the end of the month that made me laugh out loud quite a bit.

Finished Book #7 The Devil in Amber by Mark Gatiss.

Another weird and wonderful adventure for 'His Majesty's most daring - and dissolute - secret agent', Lucifer Box. Still laugh out loud funny, if quite a bit darker than the first installment, with plenty of twists and turns to keep you hooked. And who can resist a book with a character named Pandora Box? Brilliant.

Finished Book #8 Black Butterfly by Mark Gatiss.

The final installment in the Lucifer Box trilogy, and our hero is older and wiser and about to retire (not altogether gracefully), but not before one last adventure. A thoroughly enjoyable ending to a thoroughly enjoyable series.

Another fan of The Egyptologist here. I'm not usually one for books with all or mostly unlikeable characters, but this is such a wonderful story it never even occurred to me that I didn't like them.

This discussion has inspired me to try The Egyptologist again and this time around I'm hooked. The first half of the book moved a little slow for me but now I have to force myself not to rush through it because I'm afraid of missing something! I have about 100 pages left, I'll probably have an update on my thread in the next day or two :)

I'm so glad I saw the comments in this thread, if I hadn't I might have missed out!

>15 mrsrochester: I'm happy you decided to give it another shot and that you're enjoying it. I must admit that there were times when I felt like giving up on it too, but it is such a gripping story that I just had to keep on going, and the ending is marvellous.

Finished Book #9 In The Dark by Mark Billingham and Book #10 The Monkey's Raincoat by Robert Crais.

I read these two books while away on holiday and I really liked both of them. In The Dark is Billingham's first standalone novel (although it does feature Tom Thorne in a cameo role) and I didn't think I would enjoy it as much as his others but I couldn't put it down.

I was pretty sure I'd read The Monkey's Raincoat before but it wasn't familiar to me as I was reading it and I'm quite pleased about that. I really liked Elvis Cole the smart, wisecracking and capable private eye but I think I might be a little bit in love with Joe Pike. Can't wait to catch up with more of this series.

Finished Book #11 The Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake.

I spent pretty much the whole of May reading this absolutely amazing trilogy and couldn't quite manage to finish it before the end of the month but I loved every word of it and can't recommend it enough (although the third book, 'Titus Alone' wasn't finished by Peake before his death and isn't as good as the first two).

Hi Sarah, I am a fan of Tom Thorne and I didn't know Mark Billingham had any stand alone mysteries. I will have to see if I can track In the Dark down.

I also started the Elvis Crais series, but so far have only read the first one, I have one more of his currently on my shelves so must remember to include it in my reading plans.

Finished Book #12 Already Dead by Charlie Huston.

Not one for the squeamish or faint of heart this, but I really liked this book and it's protagonist the tough talking, wisecracking vampyre-PI, Joe Pitt. I'm hoping to get to the rest of the series soon.

Finished Book #13 Heresy by S.J. Parris.

A nice blend of historical fact and fiction, with lots of authentic period details and an interesting and believable main character in Giordano Bruno. Also an interesting look at Oxford University as it was in the 16th century.

Finished Book #14 Shifting Skin by Chris Simms.

Couldn't put this one down. It is the second in a series set in the city where I live, which usually puts me off but Chris Simms captures the feel of the place really well and I don't find myself as thrown when recognising places he's writing about. A good crime novel with well drawn characters and an involving plot. Recommended.

Finished Book #15 Savage Moon by Chris Simms.

Enjoyable, very readable third book in the DI Jon Spicer series. Love the characters for the most part but perhaps there was a little too much going on plotwise, it was almost as though there were as many major issues as possible shoehorned into the book at times. Still, well worth a read.

Just in time to count as my only BOMBS for July, a bad reading month for me. But I am halfway through my challenge and I have five weeks off work with almost nothing to do but read, so I should have a better August.

Finished Book #16 The Bones of Avalon by Phil Rickman.

An intriguing, well-researched book with lots of twists and turns and just a hint of the supernatural thrown in. I've read a few books set in the Elizabethan period over the last couple of years and this was one the most enjoyable.

Finished Book #17 Enter a Murderer by Ngaio Marsh.

The second of the Roderick Alleyn mysteries, this was entertaining and intriguing with a great ending that had me kicking myself for not figuring it out way sooner. I have the next two books in this series waiting patiently to be read and I don't think they'll have wait much longer.

Finished Book #18 Hell's Fire by Chris Simms.

Another addition to the Manchester based DI Jon Spicer series. Someone is burning down churches in the city and when a charred corpse and satanic symbols are discovered in the smoking ruins, Spicer and the Major Incident Team are called in.

There is a particularly strong anti-church theme throughout this book which may not be to everyones liking, but the authors local knowledge is excellent and the characters are starting to feel like old friends. Looking forward to the next one.

Finished Book #19 Death in Ecstasy by Ngaio Marsh.

The fourth in the Inspector Alleyn series and, unfortunately, the last one on my shelves. I enjoy the humour in these books, which are very English and very 1930's, and though I sometimes have a little trouble understanding some of the dialogue and references, that's what google is for. Will probably buy more in this series. Sigh.

Finished Book #20 The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien.

One of my all time favourites. Always a pleasure to read, and what with it being the 75th anniversary and the new movie being released at the end of the year, I decided this was the perfect time to get reaquainted with Mr Bilbo Baggins and friends.

That reminds me, I still have to read The Hobbit before the movie comes out! I keep meaning to and then other things jump the queue.

Finished Book #21 The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien.

I have been taking my time and enjoying this re-read of another of my all time favourites. But now I'm a bit behind with my challenge and have just over a month to finish nine books. I may not make it this year :(

Finished Book #22 The Mozart Conspiracy by Scott Mariani.

A fast paced thriller with great action and a good strong main character whom I liked a lot, it could probably have done with a little more Mozart to stop it being accused of false advertising but an enjoyable read for the end of the month.

You can do it, Sarah!

>32 connie53: I hope so, if I do it will be very, very close. That being said,

Finished Book #23 The Doomsday Prophecy by Scott Mariani.

Really enjoyed this one. Fast paced, with a great ending and a Big Damn Hero who can do pretty much anything, but then he is ex-SAS and everyone knows they can walk on water, right? Can't wait to read the next one.

Finished Book #24 The Heretic's Treasure by Scott Mariani.

Well, I doubt I'll be finishing any more books before the New Year so I've failed to complete my challenge this year :( But, on the bright side, I still have more than enough BOMBS - oh, I'm sorry ROOTS - to be going on with in 2013. Can't wait.