The Night at the Crossroads by Georges Simenon (Review)

The Night at the Crossroads by Georges Simenon

Blurb

Maigret has been interrogating Carl Andersen for seventeen hours without a confession. He’s either innocent or a very good liar. So why was the body of a diamond merchant found at his isolated mansion? Why is his sister always shut away in her room? And why does everyone at Three Widows Crossroads have something to hide?

Review

I have watched the episode of this where Maigret is played by Rowan Atkinson so I found it quite a shock to see just how much extra had been added into the TV adaptation which was not in the book. Even though the storyline is more complicated in the TV adaptation I found myself much preferring the book due to the simplicity of the storyline.

The story begins with a frustrated Maigret trying to get the answers he needs from Carl Andersen. In typical Maigret fashion this involves a lot of pipe smoking and a lot of beer drinking when he isn’t interrogating. Carl Andersen does not give Maigret the answers he requires so is left back at square one in trying to solve the murder and with more questions than answers. Maigret ends up going to the scene of the crime at the Three Widows Crossroads and this reveals even more mysteries for him to find answers to and more crimes.

The novel moves at a break neck speed with Maigret performing his usual excellent detective work but at times it did feel rushed and I just wanted a bit more detail. I will be honest I found Andersen’s sister quite annoying in the book but I only felt pity for Carl himself. The fact that everyone at the Three Widows Crossroads seems to hold a secret made me want to keep reading which meant that I read the book in one sitting.

This was a good book with a solid storyline but it did feel rushed at times and not to the standard of some of my favourite Maigret books. Overall, I give this book 3 out of 5 Dragons.

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About the author

Georges Simenon (1903-1989) was a Belgian writer who published nearly 500 novels and many short stories. Simenon is best known as the creator of the Maigret stories.

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Goodreads Monday: 11/04/2022

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club. All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Hello!

I hope everyone has had a good start to the week.

The book I have chosen for this week is one that has been sat on my TBR for a very long time.

A compelling depiction of a man imprisoned by his own pride, Dombey and Son explores the devastating effects of emotional deprivation on a dysfunctional family. Paul Dombey runs his household as he runs his business: coldly, calculatingly and commercially. The only person he cares for is his little son, while his motherless daughter Florence is merely a ‘base coin that couldn’t be invested’. As Dombey’s callousness extends to others, he sows the seeds of his own destruction.

Purchase Links

Book Depository | Foyles | Waterstones | Wordery

Please drop me a comment if you have taken part in Goodreads Monday and I will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading

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The Weekly Brief

Hello!

April is going really well so far as I have got back into my blogging and reading.

Posts this Week

Currently Reading

30 pages in and so far so good.

Happy Reading

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Big Panda and Tiny Dragon by James Norbury (Review)

Big Panda and Tiny Dragon by James Norbury

Blurb

Friends Big Panda and Tiny Dragon journey through the seasons of the year together, day and night, in rain and in sun. Travelling through nature, they find hope and inspiration in the world around them, realising that even in the darkest of days, Spring will always return.

Feel the calming influence of Big Panda, who reminds us of the bigger picture while appreciating the simplicity of small moments.

Explore your surroundings with the inquisitive eye of Tiny Dragon, our friend who is big in heart if not in stature.

And on their journey through the ever-changing seasons, join these two friends as they learn how to live in the moment, be at peace with uncertainty, and find the strength to overcome life’s obstacles, together.

Review

I saw this little gem when I popped into the local WH Smith to get some stamps. Yes, I can’t resist a book when I see one.

This book is adorable and one that I will return to again and again. This little book is full of gorgeous illustrations and perfect little words of wisdom. The book tells the story of a panda and a little dragon. These two unlikely friends go on adventures together and help each other through any problems they are having. They also get lost at times but this never bothers them as they just see it as a blessing.

The book has five chapters that are Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter and Spring again. Each chapter covers the trials and tribulations that can come with the different seasons and always looks for the positives that can come out of each season.

This little book has so many pearls of wisdom about seeing the good things in everything, even when things seem really bad. The illustrations are amazing and help get the messages across. My particular little favourite illustrations are the uses for leaves that Tiny Dragon comes up with. I also like that a nice cup of tea can help with most problems which is something I can completely agree with.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I will be returning to it when I need a pearl of wisdom to help me see the positives in a bad situation. I give this book 5 out of 5 Dragons.

🐲🐲🐲🐲🐲

Purchase Links

Book Depository | Foyles | Waterstones | Wordery

About the author

James Norbury is a self-taught artist and writer, who lives in Wales.

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First Lines Friday: 8/04/2022

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!

Hello and Happy Friday!

I hope everyone has some good reading plans for the weekend.

As usual the answer is below the cat pictures.

When Detective Chief Inspector M… arrived in Delfzijl, one afternoon in May, he had only the sketchiest notions about the case taking him to this small town located in the northernmost corner of Holland.

and the answer is…

‘Just take a look,’ Duclos said in an undertone, pointing to the scene all round them, the picture-book town, with everything in its place, like ornaments on the mantlepiece of a careful housewife . . . ‘Everyone here earns his living. Everyone’s more or less content. And above all, everyone keeps his instincts under control, because that’s the rule here, and a necessity if people want to live in society’

When a French professor visiting the quiet, Dutch coastal town of Delfzijl is accused of murder, Maigret is sent to investigate. The community seem happy to blame an unknown outsider, but there are people much closer to home who seem to know much more than they’re letting on: Beetje, the dissatisfied daughter of a local farmer, Any van Elst, sister-in-law of the deceased, and, of course, a notorious local crook.

So how did everyone do?

Please drop me a comment with your First Lines Friday and I will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading

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Friday Poetry: Lewis Carroll

Happy Friday!

I hope everyone has had a good week so far.

My chosen poem this week is by Lewis Carroll and I chose it because it made me laugh.

You Are Old, Father William

'You are old, Father William,' the young man said,
'And your hair has become very white;
And yet you incessantly stand on your head - 
Do you think, at your age, it is right?'

'In my youth,' Father William replied to his son, 
'I feared it might injure the brain;
But, now that I'm perfectly sure I have none,
Why, I do it again and again.'

'You are old,' said the youth, 'as I mentioned before,
And have grown most uncommonly fat;
Yet you turned a back-somersault in at the door -
Pray, what is the reason of that?'

'In my youth,' said the sage, as he shook his grey locks,
'I kept all my limbs very supple
By the use of this ointment-one shilling the box - 
Allow me to sell you a couple?'

'You are old,' said the youth, 'and your jaws are too weak
For anything tougher than suet;
Yet you finished the goose, with the bones and the beak - 
Pray, how did you manage to do it?'

'In my youth,' said his father, 'I took to the law,
And argued each case with my wife;
And the muscular strength, which it gave to my jaw,
Has lasted the rest of my life.'

'You are old,' said the youth, 'one would hardly suppose
That your eye was as steady as ever;
Yet you balanced an eel on the end of your nose - 
What made you so awfully clever?'

'I have answered three questions, and that is enough,'
Said his father. 'Don't give yourself airs!
Do you think I can listen all day to such stuff?
Be off, or I'll kick you downstairs!'

Lewis Carroll

Happy Reading

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Mid Week Quote: Pablo Picasso

Hello!

I hope everyone is having a good week so far.

My chosen quote this week is by the Spanish artist, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and theatre designer Pablo Picasso (1881-1973).

“Everything you can imagine is real.”
Pablo Picasso

Happy Reading

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WWW Wednesday: 6/04/2022

WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words.

The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you will read next?

Hello!

It has been a while since I have done a WWW Wednesday because I haven’t been reading much but I seem to be getting back into it again.

What I am Currently Reading

I am thoroughly enjoying the Wilkie Collins so far. I can already see how the story is going but I am enjoying it none the less. The James Norbury is just beautiful.

What I have Recently Finished Reading

I thoroughly enjoyed both these books. Reviews will follow soon.

What I Think I will Read Next

There are so many good books I want to read and I just don’t know what to decide. I am loving The Wheel of Time and The Expanse series but I am finding it hard to decide which series to carry on with next.

Please drop me a comment with your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading

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The Great Hunt by Robert Jordan (Review)

The Great Hunt by Robert Jordan

Blurb

The Forsaken are loose, the Horn of Valere has been found and the Dead are rising from their dreamless sleep. The Prophecies are being fulfilled – but Rand al’ Thor, the shepherd the Aes Sedai have proclaimed as the Dragon Reborn, desperately seeks to escape his destiny.

Rand cannot run forever. With every passing day the Dark One grows in strength and strives to shatter his ancient prison, to break the Wheel, to bring an end to Time and sunder the weave of the Pattern.

And the Pattern demands the Dragon.

Review

I will be honest the first time I read this book in 2015 I did not find it as enjoyable as the the first book in the series but this time round that has changed and I enjoyed it a lot more maybe even more than the first book.

I found this book a lot faster paced than the first which I enjoyed more and found myself more likely to pick up the book and not put it down for ages.

This book introduces us to new enemies such as the Seanchan, who I really did not like but I’m not entirely sure they are the bad guys entirely. We also learn more about The White Cloaks, Padan Fain and The Forsaken. We also learn more about The Age of Legends which I really hope we learn more about in future books as I find it fascinating.

The characters from the previous book are further developed in this book. Rand gets more depth but I do still find him slightly annoying at times but not as much as Mat. I always feel frustrated with Mat. I know it is not entirely his fault but it is clear he does not have the goodness inside him like Perrin and Rand. Perrin is still my favourite character. He is loyal to his friends, caring and you can tell he is someone who is dependable and will always try to do the right thing.

We also get to know Min and Elayne more in this book which is good even though Elayne is another one of those annoying characters for me but I suspect she is being portrayed to be annoying in comparison to the other female characters such as Min and Egwene.

This book has so much going on it, it really is packed. Moiraine and Lan are dealing with their own adventures as well as trying to help Rand, Perrin and Mat. Egwene, Elayne, Min and Nynaeve have their own storyline but in the end they all converge together again.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and could not put it down and I look forward to reading the next book in the series because although I have read it before I can’t really remember much. I give this book 5 out of 5 Dragons.

Purchase Links

Book Depository | Foyles | Waterstones | Wordery

About the author

James Oliver Rigney Jr. (1948-2007) was an American author of epic fantasy who wrote under the pen name Robert Jordan. Jordan also wrote historical fiction under the name of Reagan O’Neal, a western as Jackson O’Reilly, and dance criticism as Chang Lung.

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Goodreads Monday: 4/04/2022

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club. All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Hello!

Happy Monday! I hope everyone has a had a good start to the week so far. This week I am featuring another book off my Classics Club List for Goodreads Monday.

With her final novel, Villette, Charlotte Brontë reached the height of her artistic power. First published in 1853, Villette is Brontë’s most accomplished and deeply felt work, eclipsing even Jane Eyre in critical acclaim. Her narrator, the autobiographical Lucy Snowe, flees England and a tragic past to become an instructor in a French boarding school in the town of Villette. There she unexpectedly confronts her feelings of love and longing as she witnesses the fitful romance between Dr. John, a handsome young Englishman, and Ginerva Fanshawe, a beautiful coquette. The first pain brings others, and with them comes the heartache Lucy has tried so long to escape. Yet in spite of adversity and disappointment, Lucy Snowe survives to recount the unstinting vision of a turbulent life’s journey – a journey that is one of the most insightful fictional studies of a woman’s consciousness in English literature.

Purchase Links

Book Depository | Foyles | Waterstones | Wordery

I remember attempting to read this a few years ago but for one reason or another I did not finish it so fingers crossed I do when I read it this time around.

Please drop me a comment if you have taken part in Goodreads Monday and I will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading

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