Berserk #13 - Kentaro Miura

Finally! I waited so long to get this volume! I decided to be patient and put off getting it in November, because I was going to use my Christmas money to purchase it. Then, horror of horrors, it was out of stock (because my Christmas money is an Amazon gift card). I was finally able to get my grubby little hands on it Tuesday night and spent yesterday reading it. 

We have two storylines going on simultaneously. Guts and crew finally make it to Elfhelm, and Rickert finally makes it to Falconia where he confronts Griffith. 

Casca begins her journey to regaining her memories.

I think this is one of my favorite ones. It wasn't nonstop fighting, but it has a lot of character development. It has some flashbacks, especially while they're gathering Casca's memories, but I liked the art style and the way the characters were interacting with each other. Especially the guys. The whole thing just worked for me.

While I was wallowing in my misery of not having volume 13, I snatched up volume 14 for a good price. We're in the middle of healing Casca's mind, and I'm definitely making volume 14 a priority. Good Book!

A Holiday for Murder - Agatha Christie

My daughter picked up this paperback while thrifting and let me borrow it. Unfortunately, I didn't know she hadn't read it yet, so I might have let out a spoiler or two after I'd finished. Oh well.

Simeon Lee has gathered around his entire family to mend wounds and have a lovely Christmas. Actually, he's brought them together to tell them they're all useless, and he hates them. He isn't a pleasant person, so when he's murdered, no one seems really upset. It's more the manner in which he's murdered that sets everyone on edge. That scream!

I saw Hercule Poirot's Christmas starring David Suchet, so I remembered some of the details, but I didn't remember the ending, so it was still a mystery for me. As usual, the writing is engaging, and the story is top notch. If you've never read an Agatha Christie and you like mysteries, this is a great one to start with. It has very little to do with Christmas, so I wouldn't even say you should wait for the holidays to read it. It might even be depressing to read it around that time. Good Book!

Patrol - Philip MacDonald

I was interested to read this after watching the movie Sahara. That movie was inspired by this book, so I wanted to see how closely it stuck to the source material.

The lieutenant is dead. He kept putting off telling the rest of the patrol know where they were going and what they were supposed to be doing, and now they're adrift in an ocean of sand. The sergeant has to get them to safety and come up with a plan to regroup with friendlies. The problem is, there are Arabs out there, and they're picking off the soldiers one by one.

This book was intense. You can't help but get wrapped up in the hopelessness of the situation. At first, you're wondering how they can get out of the situation. As the book goes on, you start to wonder if anyone will make it away from there alive.

I don't recommend this book if you need something uplifting to read. This isn't one of those inspirational books with a happy ending. It has the kind of ending that I expected, and I appreciated the reality it presented. I think if you're ready to be faced with this kind of book, I highly recommend it. Good Book!

(And the movie barely took any inspiration from this book.)

The Third Spectre - Dan Ross

Another one of my epic Christmas gothic novels. This one had me excited. The summary on the back was really intriguing. "WELCOME TO TERROR..."

Nancy's husband, Ralph, has exonerated a woman accused of murder. Jean is a beautiful woman who told Nancy she was in love with Ralph, and now Nancy has to deal with Jean living in the same house. And since Jean's being a caregiver to her hateful mother-in-law, Nancy has a double beam of hate headed her way. When a ghost starts popping up, and Nancy starts becoming the target of a poisoner, it's clear that someone wants her dead.

When I think about old school gothics, this is the kind of thing I'm talking about. You know what's going on. I even had an idea in my head what was happening. I felt so smug and smart. Well, guess what? I was wrong. And I love that! This book was short, sweet, and even though Ralph was super irritating with his rose color glasses, and they killed Rex, I'm giving this one a Good Book! review.

I still don't think it was necessary to kill the dog...

Misty of Chincoteague - Marguerite Henry

You'd think for someone who loves horses as much as I do, I'd have read this book, but as far as I know, I'd never read this before. When I saw it in a bookstore, I decided to put it on my list and keep an eye on the price. Once the price dropped, I snatched it up.

On the island of Assateague, wild ponies have sought refuge after the Spanish galleon they were sailing on wrecked. Now, they are wild, and once a year, men journey to Assateague to keep the herds to a manageable number by swimming some of them over to Chincoteague and sell them. This year, Paul and Maureen Beebe have determined to claim Phantom and Misty for their own.

I really liked this book, but it did make me sad at times. When they would talk about taking the colts away from their mothers, yes, I was sad. I'm a sucker for stuff like that. Also, the end was a bit emotional.

I knew the swimming of the horses was based on a true story. I've always wanted to see that, honestly. What I didn't know was that the Beebes were real people, and Misty herself was real as well. There were a few liberties taken here and there, but this book had a lot more truth in it than I realized. By far, my favorite thing was the drawings. They are so cute, and I could look at them all day long.

I'm a bit ashamed I haven't read this before, but I've remedied it now. The book is short, and with all the pictures, it didn't take long to read. I recommend it to anyone who loves horses and a good story! Good Book!

Rescue in the Pacific - Tony Farrington

This book came into my possession from my daughter. Her boyfriend won it during trivia night, and they thought I might like to read it. I was honored they thought of me!

Back in 1994, multiple yachts were hammered by an unexpected storm in the Pacific Ocean. These ships were manned by crews of various levels of experienced skippers, and they dealt with different challenges throughout the storm. They were eventually rescued, but some of them had to wait longer than others. 

This book was fascinating. It was so tense, it was better than a lot of the contemporary fiction I've read. I had to keep reading to find out what happened to the crews of the various ships. I got to know the different people, and it was heartbreaking as well. There are pictures in the middle, and the author provided an update for the crews of the vessels at the end.

I can't recommend this book enough. I have ZERO sailing experience, so a ton of the language went over my head, but I got the gist of what was being referred to most of the time. The sad thing is that this book hasn't been digitized. It came out in 1995, but someone needs to preserve it. It was expertly written, and should be available for future generations to read without trying to scour the used market or accidentally stumble across it on a trivia reward table.

Sometimes truth is more interesting than fiction...

Good Book!

RIP to the Quartermaster crew

The Mystery of the Blue Train - Agatha Christie

This particular title is an Agatha Christie novel that entered the public domain. I was able to get it from gutenberg.org. It's also one of the many mysteries taken on by the esteemed detective Hercule Poirot.

A train ride is supposed to be taking Ruth Kettering to her lover. On the way, however, she's murdered, and her valuable rubies are stolen. Her lover seems to be the obvious suspect, since the jewels are missing. But since Poirot is involved, you just know it's not a simple murder. There's all sorts of people to consider, and a young woman who's recently come into some money might be able to help solve the mystery.

It's Agatha Christie. Do I need to say anything else? It's written well. She drags you along and makes you care about certain people. You're not solving it until Poirot does it for you, because he has information you don't. I had suspicions on who it was, but I didn't know why or any of the details.

It's in public domain. If you like Agatha Christie, you can get a hold of it easily. Good Book!