Tuesday - books day. The Satanic Mechanic by Sally Andrew

I absolutely loved Sally Andrew's first Tannie Maria book "Recipes for Love and Murder". It was an absolute joy to read and apart from the great plot it was the people, food and places that really sparked the joy in me. I have a huge love for the Karoo, it's people and it's food. I immediately had the urge to read another Tannie Maria book - which I only managed in December but was it a worth the wait? Totally!

In the second Tannie Maria mystery Sally Andrews brings us back all our favorites from the previous book. Some just get a mention but others are once again the main or supporting characters. Oh the joy of finding the familiar in another page turner! The stunning recipes also return and once again I constantly felt hungry while reading the book. I am planning to bake her Venus cake this weekend.

This book however delves a bit deeper into Tannie Maria's past and the reasons why she handled some issues as she did in the first book - and once again in this book. The theme of the abuse of woman on many levels are highlighted even stronger and a lot of the story line touch base on abuse in all forms and how it affects the abused and those around them. However the tone stays in the light hearted off handed manner in which Andrews writes and Tannie Maria speaks and thinks.

To add to it all the plot in this book is interwoven with many stories and characters and the guilty party was a total surprise for me. Sally Andrew was my new English writer discovery of 2016 and I literally am keeping an eye on her website every day to find out when the next Tannie Maria book will be available.

By now most of you know I do have a bit of a thing about covers - I do feel it adds so much to a book if a cover is well designed and I have been know to buy books simply because the design appeals. I also for instance put off reading "I am Pilgrim" because I found the cover so uninspiring. I adore the Tannie Maria covers though - well designed, strong graphics and with a bit of a retro feel which is totally how I picture Tannie Maria in my mind.

A truly unique voice in South African English fiction this is one of my best reads for 2016. 10/10 and a must read. (Have a look here on her website for an extract from the first book and yo may get an idea of the way she tells a story)

Tuesday Booksday

I have been thinking about reading and writing - the more I think about it the more I am leaning towards thinking that writers, even if just bloggers, are in general readers too - it seems to go hand in hand. Or what do you think?

I have read 3 great books over the last few weeks apart from the rather large batch of Afrikaans books I reviewed 2 weeks ago. Not all of them are everyone's taste but I do think there is something for all in this batch.

The Husbands Secret - Liane Moriarty

 Cecilia Fitzpatrick has her life sorted - a successful Tupperware business, a household that runs like clockwork, 3 adorable daughters and top school mom. Then she discovers an envelope with the words "For my wife - to be opened only in the event of my death".

Tess lives a seemingly very happy life with her husband, son and cousin and business partner. Her life falls apart in a few sentences and she decides to move to Sydney and her mom with her son.

Rachel's life is centered around her grandson after her daughter passed away as a teen. Then her life gets turned upside down when her son and daughter in law informs her that they are moving to New York.

At first one is unclear as to how these 3 very different woman's lives interact with each other apart from sharing a school and geographical location. As the story progress the connecting points and interwoven fabric becomes more clear.

The characters are beautifully depicted and the development in the book is very clear and defined. Moriarty writes with such understanding and sympathy that  makes the great story line even more enjoyable.

I absolutely loved this book and found it an outstanding read. I will without a doubt find Liane Moriarty's other books and read them too. A must read for all. 9/10 

Broken Monsters - Lauren Beukes

This crime -noir (by lack of other genre description) novel by South African author Lauren Beukes takes place in Detroit - a city marked by dread,  darkness and depopulation - and mostly despair. The whole atmosphere of the book is marked by it's setting.

Detective Gabi Versado is tasked with capturing the quickly named "Detroit Monster" after the discovery of a half boy half fawn body. Her teenage daughter Layla is on the verge of danger while playing a dark game with an online predator and dealing with her best friend's impulsive behaviour. There are plenty other characters and subplots exploring everything from homelessness to online journalism and bullying.

Broken Monsters is a very dark crime thriller bordering in places on the unexplained and unknown world. It is a very unsettling book that is without a doubt not for all. But it is a very well written book and if this is your type of read I will surely recommend it. Not for sensitive readers. 8/10

Recipes for Love and Murder - A Tannie Maria Mystery by Sally Andrew

Now and again one reads a book that totally absorbs you into it. You can smell, see and even taste it while reading the book. You wish that you can step into the world of the book that is so well portrayed. You can even hear the characters and the tone of their voices.

Recipes for Love and Murder is exactly this type of book. I fell in love with the story and characters right from the first page. Wonderful characters populate it each with their own motives and thinking. Typical small Karoo town it takes all kinds of folks to make it as colourful as it is.

Tannie Maria is the local paper's agony aunt (and recipe dispenser, cook of note and amateur detective). She makes a great if hard headed team with Jessie her fellow Karoo Gazette journalist. She is also cast from the same formidable African woman mold as Mma Ramotswe - not only in stature but also in good rational and clear thinking.  I can picture the two of them sharing a cup of Rooibos tea and some cake on Tannie Maria's stoep or under Mma Ramotswe's big tree . In fact I would love to be Tannie Maria's best friend.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will asap buy the second Tannie Maria Mystery. A book that provides you with the wonderful recipes cooked in it is in any event a winner. And a book that had me buying vetkoek and making mince on a Saturday afternoon because I have been craving it since I read a chapter in it 3 days ago is a winner for sure. A 10/10 for a fabulous easy and hugely entertaining read. My must read recommendation of the moment.

So what are you reading? Are you going to read any of these?