Alba's Recent ReadsUnpublished

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Fantasy fiction is not my thing, or not any more.  This was a book group read which I picked up reluctantly and found myself being charmed.  It’s sweet and innocent and vaguely reminiscent of the Narnia books that I loved as a child.  Although in the Adult Fiction collection, this would be a good YA crossover. - Alba

Kate Summerscale is great at narrative non-fiction. This one is about John Christie, a serial killer who murdered numerous women in the 1940s and 1950s and may have implicated a neighbour in a murder committed by him. His neighbour, Timothy Evans, was hanged. Her other books include The Suspicions of Mr Whicher which was made into a short series.

While not made from Kate Summerscale’s book, there is another good BBC short series called Rillington Place which has Tim Roth playing the chilling lead role. -Alba

More historical true crime. Dublin, November 1856: George Little, the chief cashier of the Broadstone railway terminus, is found dead, lying in a pool of blood beneath his desk. He has been savagely beaten, his head almost severed; there is no sign of a murder weapon, and the office door is locked, apparently from the inside. Thousands of pounds in gold and silver are left untouched at the scene of the crime. -Alba

A book group read not chosen by me, I was at first daunted by the long chapters (chapter 1 goes up to page 52) and thought it was going to have to be one of those books that I set the timer for 30 minutes for and make myself read before I treat myself with something enjoyable.  But our protagonist, 13 year old Charlie is delightful and I was soon hooked.  The film of the book is great too. - Alba

Fantasy fiction is not my thing, or not any more. This was a book group read which I picked up reluctantly and found myself being charmed. It’s sweet and innocent and vaguely reminiscent of the Narnia books that I loved as a child. Although in the Adult Fiction collection, this would be a good YA crossover. - Alba