Book Beginnings: The Vicious Vet

The Vicious Vet (Agatha Raisin series, Book 2), by M.C. Beaton (first published 1993). These are the book's opening lines:

Agatha Raisin arrived at London's Heathrow Airport with a tan outside and a blush of shame inside. She felt an utter fool as she pushed her load of luggage towards the exit.

About the Book:

Feisty Agatha Raisin, former London PR exec, has retired to a quiet Cotswold village. After handsome vet Paul Bladen accidentally kills himself while attending Lord Pendlebury's horse, Agatha and her attractive neighbor James Lacey investigate the curious lack of sorrow shown by Bladen's divorced wife. Meanwhile, a killer plans another "accident."

Initial Thoughts:

Well, that first paragraph seems perfectly plausible — Agatha Raisin generally spends a lot of time feeling foolish.

I read the first Agatha Raisin book (The Quiche of Death) earlier this year and loved it, so I thought I'd get on with another in the series. It's unusual for me to read cozies in the proper order — for some reason, I usually start with the most recent and then work my way back. But I think the Agatha series would be fun in any order you choose.

Hope you're enjoying all your current reading. Happy Friday, everyone! And have a lovely weekend.

Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Friday.  As she says, the idea is to post the first sentence (or so) of the book you're currently reading, along with any first impressions or thoughts you have about the book, the author, etc.  It's a wonderful way of adding new books to your must-read list, and a chance to connect with other readers and bloggers.

Book Beginnings: Light from Other Stars

Light from Other Stars, by Erika Swyler (Bloomsbury Publishing, May 2019). Here's how it starts:

Aboard Chawla 

Nedda Papas rose to birdsong, the sharp, rasping call of a dusky seaside sparrow against a backdrop of waves — a reminder of home and things she'd never see again.

About the Book:

Swyler's new novel is "at once a wistfully nostalgic coming-of-age tale and a profound work of horror-tinged science fiction." (Kirkus Review)

Initial Thoughts:

I don't read as much sci-fi as I once did, but the sound of this one appealed to me. I read Swyler's earlier novel, The Book of Speculation, and didn't like it as much as most other readers seemed to. But so far, this one is definitely holding my attention.

Hope you're enjoying all your current reading. Happy Friday, everyone! And have a lovely weekend.

Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Friday.  As she says, the idea is to post the first sentence (or so) of the book you're currently reading, along with any first impressions or thoughts you have about the book, the author, etc.  It's a wonderful way of adding new books to your must-read list, and a chance to connect with other readers and bloggers.

Book Beginnings: The Invited

The Invited, by Jennifer McMahon (Doubleday, April 2019). This is the book's first sentence:

It had started when Hattie was a little girl.

About the Book:

The Invited is the story of a husband and wife who don't simply move into a haunted house, they start building one from scratch, without knowing it, until it's too late . . . (from GoodReads)

Initial Thoughts:

Well, of course I'm wondering who Hattie is, and WHAT started when Hattie was a little girl. And since this story is all about a haunted house, I'm thinking whatever it was is going to be nice and spooky.

Also thinking it's a little weird that I just got finished with a book called The Uninvited. Which was also a ghost story. Something of a pattern going on here, hmmm?

This is one of the books I was planning to read in April, so I'm a little late getting started. So far, I seem to be running late on just about everything this year. Just like last year!

Hope you're enjoying all your current reading. Happy Friday, everyone! And have a lovely weekend.

Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Friday.  As she says, the idea is to post the first sentence (or so) of the book you're currently reading, along with any first impressions or thoughts you have about the book, the author, etc.  It's a wonderful way of adding new books to your must-read list, and a chance to connect with other readers and bloggers.