Book Review by Sylvia D: This is one of the earlier published works of Ethel Lina White (1876-1944). I found it rather strange, albeit intriguing. It was a disturbing rather than enjoyable read. I think this unease arises from the nature of the main character, who is relentlessly horrible. She is Miss Anthea Vina who … Continue reading
Posted by George Simmers …
The Third Eye (1937) by Ethel Lina White
Book Review by George S: The Third Eye is a paranoid novel, a book in which a young woman is caught up in the evil schemes of utterly ruthless enemies, and is put in situations where she does not know what is real and what is imagined. In this respect it is like Ethel Lina … Continue reading
Fear Stalks the Village (1932)- by Ethel Lina White
Book Review by Jane V: I enjoyed reading this book although it is not a genre I would normally pick up for pleasure reading. I feel that authors of this genre are not fair to Jane, they don’t give me enough clues to ‘get there’ before the denouement. However, my pleasure in reading this book … Continue reading
Mrs Miniver (1939) by Jan Struther
Book Review by Sylvia D.: For our comfort reading session, I initially considered one of the books I had loved as a child but then discovered I had parted company with them at some stage, so I looked along my shelves and came across two books I’ve really enjoyed, E M Delafield’s Diary of a … Continue reading
Full Moon (1947) by P.G. Wodehouse
Book Review by George S: November is the Group’s comfort reading month, so instinctively I went for a P.G. Wodehouse. I thought Full Moon might be a Blandings I hadn’t read – but it wasn’t. In fact, it turned out to be one I had read only a few years ago. If anything, though, the … Continue reading
Cold Comfort Farm (1932) by Stella Gibbons
Book Review by Jane V. Stella Gibbons trained as a journalist but thought of herself as a poet. She wrote many other novels but Cold Comfort Farm was her first and by far the most successful. She can in fact ‘do’ any style including the overblown stuff favoured by writers like Ethel M. Dell. Stella … Continue reading
Man and Maid (1922) by Elinor Glyn
Book Review by George S: This is a thoroughly unpleasant book. It takes the form of the journal of Sir Nicholas Thormonde, who has been wounded in the Great War: I am sick of my life—The war has robbed it of all that a young man can find of joy.I look at my mutilated face … Continue reading
The Gate Marked Private (1928) by Ethel M Dell
Book review by Sylvia Dunkley: I listened with fascination to all the tales of rape and violence in most of the books by Ethel M Dell read by the other members of the Monday Reading Group. The Gate Marked Private contains nothing like that; just two kisses, one of which is portrayed as ‘a short … Continue reading
Happy Jack (1936) by Max Brand
Book Review by George S: Happy Jack was published in book form in 1936, but it had first appeared in 1930, as a serial in Western Story Magazine, under one of Max Brand’s many pseudonyms, George Owen Baxter. Max Brand was itself a pseudonym. The author was born Frederick Faust, in 1892; other names he … Continue reading
The Heritage of the Sioux (1916) by BM Bower
Book Review by Kathryn R: Bower was a prolific writer of westerns. She wrote novels short stories and screenplays. She made a good living at it – shown by the fact that she divorced her first husband who called her his little red headed gold mine. He came home in a drunken rage so she … Continue reading
