Discovered today that OverDrive is doing “Australia’s biggest digital book club event” called “Together We Read”, and this is their fifth year already. Although I already have a bunch of books to read, I couldn’t help but downloaded Australian author Michael Brissenden’s Murder-mystery novel Smoke [2024], because “for the two week period (12-26 August), there will be no wait times or holds required to download the ebook or audiobook [via @LibbyApp]”.
Quoting the news story “Unite, read, discuss in biggest online book club” by Mikayla van Loon via The Star Mail: “Smoke is regarded as one of the most talked about crime thrillers of recent years, because of its complex characters, atmospheric settings and a page-turning plot.”
So far, Brissenden appears to have published one non-fiction and four fiction books. I read his second novel Dead Letters (2021) and found it “hard to swallow”: “It is one of the most difficult books this reviewer has ever read, perhaps because those who try so hard to suspend their disbelief often end up missing out on all the fun of reading the story.”
I went on to write (back in 2021): “This reviewer would recommend that readers enjoy the story without trying to explore how the author’s profession [as a former political reporter and foreign correspondent] could have influenced his portrayal of politicians, the media and the police. The Australia described in Dead Letters is very similar to ours, but ultimately it is not. Instead, why not enjoy this page-turner and go down the rabbit hole of crime solving? The thrill is in the chase and there are plenty of twists and turns ahead.”
This time, I will try very hard to adhere to my own advice.
(Day 78 #WarmWinterRead #WWR25 via @librarieschangelives)
Voices under the Sun 陽光下的聲音 