Sunday Salon: Historical Drama; Social Influencers in Novel and Kdrama

 Watching on TV

I watched all 16 episodes of this historical drama and romance set in the Joseon era in Korea.The actor playing the King, Jo Jung Suk, is in contention in Korea for a best actor award this year, and I can see why. 

From The Economic Times, English edition: 

Netflix's latest historical K-drama, "Captivating The King," has gripped audiences with its tale of war, revenge, and love set in the Joseon era. As viewers delve into the intricate political landscape, where a game of baduk (the board game of Go) becomes a strategic tool....

Exploring the Plot:

"Captivating The King" unfolds against the backdrop of the Joseon era, weaving a captivating narrative around Prince Jinhan, portrayed by Jo Jung-suk, and the enigmatic baduk player Kang Hee-soo, played by Shin Se-kyung. 

The strategic game of baduk/Go transforms into a political maneuver as Prince Jinhan employs it to secure the release of hostages. Simultaneously, Hee-soo, disguised as a man, weaves her way into the prince's life, driven by a larger agenda of revenge. (from The Economic Times).

You Will Never Be Me by Jesse Q. Sutanto ( August 2024) put me in mind of Celebrity, (June 2023) the influencer Korean drama on Netflix I just finished. 

                                                Promotional poster (Wikipedia)
In Celebrity, (see trailer) Seo A-ri achieves social media stardom overnight, but deadly consequences await in this glitzy, glamorous world of influencers. (with subtitles and dubbed on Netflix). The influencer plot in both Kdrama and the new book seem similar.

 Now reading

River East, River West  by Aube Rey Lescure

Publication: January 9, 2024; William Morrow, NetGalley.  Genre: literary fiction, historical fiction, China

Description:

Set against the backdrop of developing modern China, this mesmerizing literary debut is part coming-of-age tale, part family and social drama, as it follows two generations searching for belonging and opportunity in a rapidly changing world.

In a stunning reversal of the east-to-west immigrant narrative and set against China’s political history and economic rise, River East, River West is an intimate family drama and a sharp social novel. Alternating between Alva and Lu Fang’s points of view, this is a profoundly moving exploration of race and class, cultural identity and belonging, and the often-false promise of the American Dream. (publisher)

My tv watching has eaten significantly into my book reading! But I'm having fun watching drama series. Don't know when my infatuation with Kdrama will come to a close....Watch this space...

What are you reading/watching this week? 

Memes: The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. Also, It's Monday: What Are You Reading, and Sunday Salon, Stacking the Shelves, Mailbox Monday

Sunday Salon: Argentina Wins the World Cup

 Watched the final World Cup game between France and Argentina. It was called the best game in World Cup history. Both sides fought hard, and it was a bitter defeat for France. 

  Lionel Messi and the Argentina team win the World Cup trophy.                                         

On the reading front, I finished two Icelandic thrillers and started a third.

Outside

by 

Ragnar Jónasson

About: When a deadly snowstorm strikes the Icelandic highlands, four friends seek shelter in a small, abandoned hunting lodge.

Four friends. One night. Not everyone will come out alive . . .

Cold as Hell

(An Áróra Investigation #1)

by 

Lilja Sigurðardóttir,

 

Quentin Bates  (Translator)

About: Icelandic sisters Áróra and Ísafold live in different countries and aren't on speaking terms, but when their mother loses contact with Ísafold, Áróra reluctantly returns to Iceland to find her sister. But she soon realizes that her sister isn't avoiding her … she has disappeared, without a trace.

 

Started: 

The Darkness

(Hidden Iceland #1)

by 

Ragnar Jónasson, 

Victoria Cribb (Translator)

About:  The body of a young Russian woman washes up on an Icelandic shore. The death is declared a suicide and the case is quietly closed.

Over a year later Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir of the Reykjavík police is forced into early retirement at 64. But before she leaves she is given two weeks to solve a single cold case of her choice - the mystery of the Russian woman.

 

Comments: These two Icelandic authors write straight forward thrillers, with not too many side stories or side characters, and are refreshing to read, from that point of view. 

They also leave room for a follow up to the novels, by leaving something or someone in the novels with unfinished business. 

Did you watch the world cup game today? 

What are you reading/listening to this week? 

Memes: The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. Also,  It's Monday: What Are You Reading, and Sunday Salon, Stacking the Shelves, Mailbox Monday

Audio Book: In Bad Company by Viveca Sten

 I'm spending the snow-in this week listening to audio books now, and have started with this one, which has a narrator that is easy to listen to and also very expressive in reading the dialogues. 

In Bad Company by Viveca Sten is the 9th in the Sandhamn Murder mysteries set in the Swedish archipelago and the island of Sandhamn.

I'm in the middle of listening to this domestic violence drama and police procedural, in which a brutal husband is also under investigation for drug trading and financial crimes. Prosecutor Nora Linde has to build a case against him, trying to persuade the wife, Mina, who has been moved to a safe home, to testify, to strengthen the case against him. 

I think I have about two or three others in this series to go, and I'm going to try to listen to the books instead of read them. I haven't listened much to books before, only a few while walking in the gym, but I find I'm enjoying the audio while snowed in and social distancing during this pandemic! One positive thing to come out of this situation! 

What books are keeping you company these days? Do you listen to audio books?

Sunday Salon: Scandinavian Thrillers

 We're snowed in for the next few days. Good time to catch up on reading. 

What I've finished:

I am enjoying all of the books in this series by Viveca Sten. The setting, islands in the Swedish archipelago, is unique, as are the characters in this police procedural set of thrillers.

In this sixth book, In Harm's Way Detective Thomas Andreasson visits the island of Sandhamn to investigate why the body of a world renowned journalist has been found covered in snow at a resort hotel. He decides it might be murder and not an accident as it first seems.

I found this thriller easy to read, with relatable characters and interesting description of place and setting. Another 4-5 stars.

What I'm reading: 

The Corpse Flower by Anne Mette Hancock will be published in October 2021. I got it from Netgalley and am in the middle of reading it. 

The thriller involves another journalist, Heloise, the main character, who must discover why a suspected murderess, Anna, is trying to contact her, possibly to have her story written. Set in Copenhagen, with a realistic cast of characters, this murder mystery is enjoyable so far, especially with the literary clues involving Heloise's name. 

What are you reading this week? 

Memes: The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. Also,  It's Monday: What Are You Reading, and Sunday Salon

Sunday Salon: Two 2018 Thrillers

The last of the snow for the year? One can only hope. 

It's been too cold to go out much except for chores. I miss walking in the parks, and the indoor gyms are too risky for getting or spreading the flu. Happy near end of winter! I hope the hedgehog was right and spring is just around the corner.

Finished reading The Day of the Dead by Nicci French, the last book in the Frieda Klein suspense, thriller series. It was such a perfect ending, I am reluctant to go back and read the previous two books in the series that I missed.  Characterization and plot plus build up of suspense are key elements in the novels. 

I'm currently reading The Perfect Mother by Aimee Malloy, a book I read in 2018 but whose plot I have forgotten. I wonder what I will think now about the book, a suspense and psychological thriller about a single mother, her missing boy, and her mommy group.

 

I'm in the middle of The Perfect Mother and find the idea of mommy groups interesting, how helpful or how unhelpful they could be to new mothers looking for support. In this book, the craziness of a new mother leads to the kidnapping of another mother's child.

What are you reading this week?

Memes: The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. Also,  It's Monday: What Are You Reading, and Sunday Salon

Sunday Salon: Two Thrillers reviewed

The Reunion

The Reunion by Guillaume Musso, Kindle edition, July 9, 2019, Little, Brown and Company

Source: Netgalley

A novel of suspense about high school students in the south of France, the Cote d'Azur, and the secrets two of them have kept for 25 years. Their school reunion forces them to confront what happened years ago, when their popular classmate Vinca disappeared, believed to have run off with her philosopher teacher, Alexis. Another murder soon puts everything into question, and the former students must discover what really happened to Vinca and what role others around them may have played in her story.

I read this in one day and part of the night, intrigued by the story and the characters and the unfolding of the unusual plot. The setting of the south of France - the cliffs and the sea - add to the interest of the novel. Recommended. 

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides,  published February 5, 2019, Celadon Books

Source: library book

Theo, a psychotherapist gets a job with a secure private medical unit in order to try to reach a patient, Alicia, who is said to have murdered her husband and then gone silent for years.  Theo is obsessed with her case and feels he can get her to open up and even talk again about what happened years ago. 

The case of Alicia is interesting to Theo as Alicia was a successful painter in what seemed like a healthy marriage.  But things are not what they seem, as I found out as I read along. And everyone becomes suspect!

The twist at the end caught me by surprise and totally turned everything around. Four stars.  

I must finish other books I started before reading the above psychological thrillers. Now reading three good books:  The Satapur Moonstone by Sujata Massey, 

Tahoe Deep by Todd Borg, and The Dragonfly Sea by Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor

What are your favorite book genres this summer? 

Memes: 

The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. Also,  It's Monday: What Are You Reading, and the Sunday Salon,  Mailbox Monday.

Sunday Salon: The Girl on the Train, and As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust

Welcome to the Sunday Salon where bloggers share their reading each week. Visit The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. Also visit It's Monday: What Are You Reading hosted by Book Journey, and Mailbox Monday.

The snow is just about all melted outside, but spring flowers will take some time to pop up. Sparrows and doves are showing up in the backyard again, and we have put out, optimistically, food for the hummingbirds.

A cookbook and two ARCs came in last week for review/feature:

The Cozy Cookbook
Recipes and book excerpts by five cozy mystery writers.

Too Bad to DieAn historical thriller in which British Naval Intelligence officer Ian Fleming attempts to foil a Nazi plot to assassinate FDR, Churchill, and Stalin. 

Capital Dames

Cokie Roberts marks the sesquicentennial of the Civil War by offering a riveting look at Washington, D.C. and the experiences, influence, and contributions of its women during this momentous period of American history

Book bought:

I couldn't wait for The Girl on the Train to be available at the library (long waiting list) so I bought the book. I finished it this morning after reading yesterday and well into the night. I think it's a terrific women's fiction story complicated or complimented by murder and psychological intrigue. Two married women are haunted - one by the inability to have a child and by the resultant break up of her marriage, and the other by a secret she keeps close to her chest. Their lives intersect through a third married woman and all the men in their lives. I don't want to give the plot away, but let me say it was an almost perfect book. I rated it 4.75/5, having just a very few minor reservations. I am not sure Anna was in character at the very end. 

From the library:  

I finished the seventh Flavia de Luce Mystery, As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust by Alan Bradley. I love this series and see that Bradley has set the stage for Flavia's future career as a spy master in this book. 

I am now reading a couple books for book tours, one of which is I Regret Everything, a love story by Seth Greenland

What's on your reading plate this week?