This is my review of The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford.

"This is the saddest story I have ever heard" is a somewhat off-putting opening sentence. It is hard to feel very sorry for snobbish, convention-bound people who feel hard up even when holding large estates, employing servants and swanning round foreign hotels, with the lack of any occupation to give them a sense of proportion.

At first, I was even more deterred by the style, the mannered, at times almost querulous tone which I would have expected from a Victorian spinster aunt, rather than from a character I could never quite believe was an American male. Just when I was wishing I did not need to read this for a book group, I was struck by the description of the "good soldier" Ashburnham's luggage: "the profusion of his cases, all of pigskin and stamped with his initials…It must have needed a whole herd of Gaderene swine to make up his outfit". Even if this novel is not intended to be a farce (which would have saved it for me), it surely includes some sharp notes of mocking parody.

First published in 1915, this tale of two "perfect" couples whose friendship over more than a decade masks a web of deception, hypocrisy and guilt, since they are unable to keep to the moral and religious conventions to which they feel bound, has been described as "the finest French novel in the English language" and is highly regarded by some as "stylistically perfect". I accept that it is an early example of "stream of consciousness" – of the well-punctuated variety – and what has been called "literary impressionism", as the author plays games with us through his distinctly unreliable first person narrator. In the midst of his self-confessed ramblings, the American provides us with some original, often vicious insights, belying his claimed lack of observation bordering on stupidity over what is really going on under his nose – although is he really as passive in the affair as he makes out? He shifts back and forth in time, revisiting scenes to peel off yet more layers to reveal that each incident was not quite as he implied or stated earlier, or to show how it might appear differently to the various characters concerned. Although he does this quite skilfully, providing a few unexpected shocks on the way, there is a good deal of repetition of details. A fairly thin story seems overlong, and the heavy emphasis on telling the reader at great length what to think – even if this gets contradicted at times – is less satisfying than the style we have come to prefer – showing events for us to draw differing conclusions.

Perhaps this is worth reading as an early twentieth century classic, but I cannot say I really enjoyed it. Arnold Bennet, who lived at the same time as Ford Madox Ford, creates for me a much more real past peopled with more convincing complex characters over whom it is easier to feel moved.

⭐⭐⭐ 3 Stars

This is my review of Collins English to French (One Way) Dictionary & Grammar (Collins Dictionary and Grammar) by HarperCollins Publishers.

Although I accept the need for a two way version, I found this extremely inexpensive English to French dictionary very useful in kindle format during a recent trip to France. It proved a convenient and very compact way of checking out words I wished to use or to cope with unfamiliar terms in newspaper and magazine articles. I liked the way it goes beyond individual words to include idioms. This is useful for occasions when you do not have online access or the opportunity to use a mammoth bound dictionary.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

This is my review of A House of Knives: Breen & Tozer 2 (Breen and Tozer) by William Shaw.

This picks up the plot straight from end of "A Song from Dead Lips" (also titled "She's leaving home") with a limited recap to help those who have not previously read the first book in the trilogy featuring DS Breen, which I would recommend to get the most out of this story.

The discovery of a corpse following a domestic gas explosion reminds Breen of an unresolved case which haunted him in the previous novel. As before, this is tightly plotted, alternating fast-paced action with a sense of the frustration, even tedium, of criminal investigations. Breen is developing as a character, moving beyond being stereotypically dysfunctional to proving himself a methodical and tenacious operator, a decent, thoughtful even sensitive man – so that it is hard to understand how he tolerates the corruption and crassness of his work colleagues.

What marks this series out is the portrayal of the late sixties. It is fascinating to be reminded of or perhaps discover for the first time what this period was like – the now jaw-dropping lack of any awareness of equality, the smoke-ridden offices, the gulf between the old and young, as free love, hippiedom and drugs took hold, the embrace of modern art by a wealthy few, perhaps only to prove themselves followers of fashion, the brew of idealism, brutalism and corruption in the form of concrete flyovers and tower blocks, heralded as solutions for congestion and slum clearance without anyone fully considering the adverse effects. William Shaw makes some interesting points, such as that the legal change preventing drug addicts from obtaining drugs like heroin from their GPs merely pushed them into the hands of dealers, often selling far less pure and so more deadly substances.

Shaw's style is deceptively simple and direct. I like his often funny Pinterish dialogues in which several conversations are being carried on at once. He is good at poignancy, wry humour and unexpected twists, but some of the potentially most dramatic moments lack a certain tension and are not quite convincing, like the final denouement which serves mainly as an opportunity to provide the reader with details which should mostly have been grasped already. This comment sets the bar high for an otherwise very talented writer. I accept that some very dangerous situations may feel oddly banal at times, which may be what he wishes to convey. Very occasionally there seems to be a small glitch suggesting a lack of thorough editing, and the title is clearly aimed at ghoulish attraction of readers rather than relevance to the story. Although these books lend themselves to film adaptations, one of the strongest aspects will be lost in the process, namely Breen's chains of thought, his reactions and sensitive introspection.

Overall, I recommend this series and will make a point of reading the last of the trilogy – which may not be the end of Breen and his unconventional sidekick Tozer.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

This is my review of The Woman in the Picture by Katharine McMahon.

In this sequel to "The Crimson Rooms", we encounter again Evelyn, the determined young woman who flouted convention after the First World War to train as a solicitor in London. Set against the background of the 1926 General Strike, a damp squib of an event which may account for its somewhat wooden treatment here, the book's compelling quality comes from the author's ability to create a sense of period and place and develop the main characters as Evelyn is caught up in a couple of cases which illustrate the abuse of two women at very different levels in society. In particular, we understand Evelyn's changing moods, the poignancy of the continual reminders of the brother killed in the war, to whom she was deeply attached, and her dilemma as to whether, learning from her grandmother's experience, she should be ruled by her passionate heart or her pragmatic head, by physical attraction or a sense of trust and respect when it comes to choosing a partner. It seems too much of a coincidence that Evelyn's former lover Nicholas appears on the scene only to become involved in the two main cases on which Evelyn is working, but this is of course necessary for the plot.

This story treads a fine line between romantic and literary fiction, which may leave dissatisfied both categories of mostly likely female reader. It is well-written with a sound structure, but I have a few reservations. Although the exchanges in court are gripping, I was surprised by the conversational way prosecution and defence are allowed to interrupt each other. Even more so, whether in a paternity case held in camera or during interviews with Evelyn, the main parties seem remarkably willing to speak frankly about intimate matters without the kind of embarrassed prevarication one would expect. Regardless of social position, gender or personality, the characters tend to speak with the same voice. The way so many strangers seem to know about Evelyn's aborted love affair with Nicholas and feel free to comment on it also seems unlikely. Evelyn's nervous and demanding mother undergoes a rather rapid personality change.

I may have missed something but realise that I do not understand the choice of title. The current front cover of a 1920s vamp with come-hither blue eyes, whose cigarette should surely be in a holder, also gives a false and trivialising impression of the book.

Despite these points, I recommend this as a "good read" with an ending sufficiently open to pave the way for yet another novel on Evelyn, part blue-stocking, part unconscious femme fatale.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

This is my review of Anna of the Five Towns by Arnold Bennett.

At first, this seemed wooden and dated, a pale imitation of Trollope or Eliot, who had been writing in a similar vein two generations earlier. Initially, I found the main source of interest in the detailed descriptions of the industrial landscape of "The Five Towns", a kind of verbal Lowry, if the latter had painted the Potteries rather than Manchester.

Then, I became hooked by Bennett's portrayal of the main characters, which in time seemed to me more realistic and telling than his more celebrated Victorian forerunners. We know that Anna's relationship with the suave and capable Mynors will not follow a simple and happy path, since the author begins to hint at future tragedy, but will this be dramatic or subtly understated?

Competent, self-contained but inexperienced, Anna has been understandably dominated by her miserly tyrant of a father who has been punctilious in growing the fortune left her by her deceased mother, but cannot bring himself to give her free access to the money, only arbitrary duties such as his brutal insistence that she pursues rent arrears on one of her properties. Denied a normal, loving upbringing, it is hardly surprising that Anna find it difficult to establish a spontaneous romantic relationship with Mynors. She admires him, even imagines him in her bed, but it is only a matter of time before she comprehends that life with him means exchanging one tyrant for another, admittedly more benevolent than her father. It is easier for her to extend the maternal love she feels for her young sister to a weak, inept man who needs her support.

Bennett also proves clear-eyed over the materialism and hyprocrisy of some of the pillars of the local Methodist community, which exerts as great a domination on poor Anna as does her father. He describes with wry insight how the community deals with the suicide of a leading church member , "an abject yet heroic surrender of all those pretences by which society contrives to tolerate itself. Here was a man whom no one respected, but everyone pretended to respect – who knew he was respected by none, but pretended that he was respected by all….. If any man could have been trusted to continue the decent sham to the end and so preserve the general self-esteem, surely it was this man. But no! Suddenly abandoning all imposture, he transgresses openly….snatching a piece of hemp cries, `Behold me; this is real human nature. This is the truth; the rest was lies. I lied;you lied. I confess it, and you shall confess it.'"

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

This is my review of Anna of the Five Towns by Arnold Bennett.

At first, this seemed wooden and dated, a pale imitation of Trollope or Eliot, who had been writing in a similar vein two generations earlier. Initially, I found the main source of interest in the detailed descriptions of the industrial landscape of "The Five Towns", a kind of verbal Lowry, if the latter had painted the Potteries rather than Manchester.

Then, I became hooked by Bennett's portrayal of the main characters, which in time seemed to me more realistic and telling than his more celebrated Victorian forerunners. We know that Anna's relationship with the suave and capable Mynors will not follow a simple and happy path, since the author begins to hint at future tragedy, but will this be dramatic or subtly understated?

Competent, self-contained but inexperienced, Anna has been understandably dominated by her miserly tyrant of a father who has been punctilious in growing the fortune left her by her deceased mother, but cannot bring himself to give her free access to the money, only arbitrary duties such as his brutal insistence that she pursues rent arrears on one of her properties. Denied a normal, loving upbringing, it is hardly surprising that Anna find it difficult to establish a spontaneous romantic relationship with Mynors. She admires him, even imagines him in her bed, but it is only a matter of time before she comprehends that life with him means exchanging one tyrant for another, admittedly more benevolent than her father. It is easier for her to extend the maternal love she feels for her young sister to a weak, inept man who needs her support.

Bennett also proves clear-eyed over the materialism and hyprocrisy of some of the pillars of the local Methodist community, which exerts as great a domination on poor Anna as does her father. He describes with wry insight how the community deals with the suicide of a leading church member , "an abject yet heroic surrender of all those pretences by which society contrives to tolerate itself. Here was a man whom no one respected, but everyone pretended to respect – who knew he was respected by none, but pretended that he was respected by all….. If any man could have been trusted to continue the decent sham to the end and so preserve the general self-esteem, surely it was this man. But no! Suddenly abandoning all imposture, he transgresses openly….snatching a piece of hemp cries, `Behold me; this is real human nature. This is the truth; the rest was lies. I lied;you lied. I confess it, and you shall confess it.'"

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

This is my review of A Song from Dead Lips: Breen & Tozer 1 (Breen and Tozer) by William Shaw.

One of the latest in the seemingly inexhaustible series of dysfunctional detectives, Breen has more reason to be so than most – he is recovering from the recent death of his father for whom he has cared during a long decline. Is this sufficient excuse for running from the scene of a robbery on seeing his work colleague Prosser held at knife-point? Breen understandably has to face a good deal of flack from the rest of the team for this, but perhaps less convincingly no formal disciplining. Yet we can see he is an above-average officer from the painstaking attempt to interpret evidence on the murder case of a young woman and his tolerant attitude towards Tozer, the often out-of-line female officer foisted on him in an otherwise solidly male team.

Set in 1968 around Abbey Road at the time of Beatlemania, this story will strike several chords with those who can remember the period. Others may find it hard to credit the sexism, casual racism, ubiquitous chain-smoking, unchallenged bullying at work – in short, general political incorrectness, and it is unsettling to realise how unthinkingly one accepted it at the time.

Beneath a fairly conventional police detective drama there lie some serious issues such as police corruption in the 1960s and the cynical British reaction to the Biafran war, of which I was to my present shame then completely unaware. There is also some quite strong character development behind the stereotyped attitudes of the police officers, and the crude workplace humour and rivalries. After building up to a dramatic climax, the author clearly leaves the ending open for a sequel or two. Apart from a feeling that the subplot relating to Prosser is handled in a rather rushed way, and the quality of the writing, generally good, occasionally slips, I recommend this novel and intend to read the sequel, "A House of Knives".

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars