"Cotillion" by Georgette Heyer was my attempt to read something light and fluffy. A lot of people compare her to Jane Austen. While I see the resemblance, I actually liked Heyer's book more. At first I couldn't get into it, but by the end I was enjoying it and it made me laugh. Kitty, a young orphan girl, has been promised her guardian's large fortune if she marries one of his grand-nephews. Turns out none of the grand-nephews really want her or the fortune (?), but Kitty is desperate to get out from under her guardian's tightwad thumb for a bit, so she convinces Freddy to pretend to be engaged to her so she can go spend some time with his folks in London. Freddy goes along with it because he feels sorry for her, and takes Kitty to London, where she has a wonderful time, making new friends, getting new clothes, and playing matchmaker. It was full of old time British slang that was a bit hard to decipher at first, but eventually I think I understood it enough so I wasn't totally lost.
"Black River Falls" by Ed Gorman takes place in a sleepy little town. It was supposed to be horror-ish, but it didn't really disturb me. Lynn Tyler is raising her two sons in a town where her father was known as a murderer. Michael is charming and athletic and well liked, Ben is shy and gentle and loves animals. He and his girlfriend, Alison, are expecting a baby. I'll give away the ending here, because Gorman does very quickly in the book: Michael is a killer. He killed Alison's friend Dana, then the private investigator Alison hired, and then Alison once she found out the truth. Ben, for some bizarre reason, almost instantly assumes his brother killed his fiancee (ah...brotherly love) and when he threatens Michael, he almost gets killed as well. I didn't really like it. It kind of reminded me of some of Bentley Little's books (the bad ones), and I'm not sure why.
"The Grin of the Dark" by Ramsey Campbell was even worse. I've tried to like Ramsey; as a horror fan he's one of the big ones. I read "The Overnight" and didn't care for it, and I didn't like this one, either. I don't know why, they just don't seem to make a lot of sense. I know some critics think that all horror is silly and doesn't make sense, but I don't think this is true at all. Stephen King makes sense (most of the time). Dean Koontz makes sense (most of the time). Anyway, this book was about a film critic named Simon who is researching a long lost silent film star named Tubby. Tubby's works have largely been forgotten, and for good reason: they have been known to incite riots. People have died laughing, watching them. Campbell's sentences and chapters somehow seem incomplete. Of course, the deeper Simon digs stranger things start happening to him. I don't even know what happens to him in the end, I couldn't puzzle it out.
1 comment:
I read many, many of Georgette Heyer's books when I was young. I loved the language, the history, and yes, the romance. It's been a long time, though, since I've picked up one of her books. Perhaps I'll read one again and see if I still like them as much. Thanks for the reminder!
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