Review: Two Steps Forward by Graeme Simsion and Anne Buist

Two Steps Forward

Two Steps Forward by Graeme Simsion and Anne Buist, May 1, 2018, William Morrow
Genre:travel, contemporary novel
Setting: The Chemin, also known as the Camino de Santiago, is a centuries-old pilgrim route that ends in Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain. 

I loved this book, told from the point of view of a woman in her 40s or 50s and a man of the same age, walking from Cluny in France to Santiago in Spain on an old pilgrimage route. Though it's a novel, the book reads as if written by people who have travelled the Camino many times and know of what they speak! And in fact the authors are seasoned walkers of the pilgrim's route in Spain.

In the novel, the fictitious Martin and Zoe meet on the trail, traveling by foot from France and into northern Spain on the famous route. Martin pulls a cart he designed to hold his gear and hopes to sell the design to anyone who would buy it and manufacture it for public use. Zoe, using a backpack, is on the trail to try to escape memories of the very recent death of her husband, Keith. 

They have many setbacks along the Camino, meet interesting people from different countries, sometimes walking together and other times separately, and have varied experiences staying in hostels, hotels, pensions, and bed and breakfasts along the way. The narrators describe the terrain and each little town they enter, in detail. 

This is not only a travel story, about the experiences of walking over 2,000 kilometers, but also a love story of sorts. The book made me want to get into shape and travel along the Camino myself, and I've put the trail on my bucket list!

Objective rating: 5/5. Thanks to William Morrow for the review copy. 

Finished reading:

Sunburn

The flawed main character in Sunburn didn't get my sympathy even though she endured a lot in order to get to her final goals. Interesting plot and character; the book was entertaining even though not memorable. I gave it four stars.

New books include

Once Upon a Spine

A Panicked Premonition

Bought the Farm

A Just Clause

What books are you reading this week?

The Sunday Post  hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer,  It's Monday, What Are You Reading? by Book Date., and Mailbox Monday.

It 's Monday: New Books and New Reviews

New books on my shelf:

Two Steps Forward by Graeme Simsion and Anne Buist, May 1, 2018, William Morrow
Genre: romance, contemporary novel
Setting: The Chemin, also known as the Camino de Santiago, is a centuries-old pilgrim route that ends in Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain. 


Bloody Orbit: Gattis File #1 by K.R. Richardson, May 2018
Genre: science fiction police procedural pairs an idealistic rookie with an officer who uses cybernetic implants to process forensics

This is not normally a genre I read, but since it's the first in a new series, I'm willing to give it a try.

Currently reading:

Whistling in the Dark by Lesley Kagen, May 1, 2007, Berkley
Genre: thriller
Rating: 5/5

After the death of their father, young Sally takes care of her sister Troo while their mother is hospitalized long term for liver failure. There is a murderer on the loose who has targeted young girls in the area and Sally finds herself  alone in having to protect herself and her sister. Family secrets, a predator on the loose in a small community in Milwaukee, these are some of the themes of the book with two highly individualized young girls who must handle it all.

Books read last week:

Love the setting and descriptions of the people and the unusual Glenan islands off the Brittany shore. A complex mystery plot too, with a persistent and astute French detective.

I listened to the audio and loved the intonations in the voice of the narrator, who read the French novel in English.

Murder on Brittany Shores by Jean-Luc Bannalec, 
Published July 2016 by Minotaur
Genre: mystery 
Setting: Brittany, France




Killing Trail: A Timber Creek K-9 Mystery by Margaret Mizushima,
Published December 8, 2015
Genre: K-9 mystery
Setting: Colorado

The first novel in the series, introducing Mattie Cobb and her K-9 police dog Robo. An entertaining, informative mystery. Loved the setting and details on police dog training.

Moo by Sharon Creech, August 30, 2016, HarperCollins

Cute story of city kids who move to Maine and learn, reluctantly at first, about farm animals and farm life from an Italian woman and her cow, Zora. What books are you reading this week? The Sunday Post  hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer,  It's Monday, What Are You Reading? by Book Date., and Mailbox Monday.What books are you reading this week?