About Me

My photo
Melfort, Saskatchewan, Canada
I am a lawyer in Melfort, Saskatchewan, Canada who enjoys reading, especially mysteries. Since 2000 I have been writing personal book reviews. This blog includes my reviews, information on and interviews with authors and descriptions of mystery bookstores I have visited. I strive to review all Saskatchewan mysteries. Other Canadian mysteries are listed under the Rest of Canada. As a lawyer I am always interested in legal mysteries. I have a separate page for legal mysteries. Occasionally my reviews of legal mysteries comment on the legal reality of the mystery. You can follow the progression of my favourite authors with up to 15 reviews. Each year I select my favourites in "Bill's Best of ----". As well as current reviews I am posting reviews from 2000 to 2011. Below my most recent couple of posts are the posts of Saskatchewan mysteries I have reviewed alphabetically by author. If you only want a sentence or two description of the book and my recommendation when deciding whether to read the book look at the bold portion of the review. If you would like to email me the link to my email is on the profile page.

Sunday, July 12, 2015

8th Canadian Book Challenge Roundup (Part I)

July 1 is best known as Canada Day when our nation celebrates our land becoming a country in 1867. In the mystery blogging world it marks the start of a new Canadian Book Challenge which is hosted each year by John Mutford at his blog, the Book Mine Set. On June 30 I completed the 8th Canadian Book Challenge.

I read the following books for the Challenge during the year from July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015:

     1.) The Devil's Making by Seán Haldane;

     2.) The Wild Beasts of Wuhan by Ian Hamilton;

     3.) The Glass House by David Rotenberg;

     4.) The Long Way Home by Louise Penny;

     5.) Red Pole of Macau by Ian Hamilton;

     6.) Night Game by Alison Gordon;

     7.) A Door in the River by Inger Ash Wolfe;

     8.) Bones to Pick by Suzanne North;

     9.) Silver Totem of Shame by R.J. Harlick;

     10.) Cool Water by Dianne Warren;

     11.) By Book or By Crook by Eva Gates;

     12.) Last of the Independents by Sam Wiebe;

     13.) Tough Crimes edited by C.D. Evans and Lorene Shyba;

     14.) 12 Rose Street by Gail Bowen;

     15.) Cold Mourning by Brenda Chapman;

     16.) None So Blind by Barbara Fradkin;

     17.) Swedes' Ferry by Alan Safarik;

     18.) Killing Pilgrim by Alen Mattich; and,

     19.) Sing a Worried Song by William Deverell.

During the 7th Canadian Book Challenge I read 18 books and thought I had reached my maximum Canadian content. I manage to add another for the 8th Challenge. I have read 2 books for the 9th Challenge.

For the 2nd year in a row my reading included the full shortlist for the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Canadian Crime Novel. I will be putting up one or more posts on the shortlist shortly.

My next post will discuss my reading for the 8th Canadian Book Challenge.

10 comments:

  1. I like your list very much, Bill. Among many other things, it shows the rich variety there is in Canadian crime fiction. I look forward to your discussion of your reading.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Margot: Thanks for the comment. I think the whole spectrum of crime fiction is broader than ever.

      Delete
  2. I look forward to reading some of these books, Bill. I have a few of them, but some of them are farther along in series and it will be awhile before I catch up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TracyK: Thanks for the comment. I am doing my best to stay current on Canadian series. If I get behind I do not seem to ever catch up.

      Delete
  3. You're doing Canada proud Bill. Several of the authors are familiar to me, and I am taking notes for books to add to my list....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Moira: Thanks for the kind words. There is lots of good reading on the list.

      Delete
  4. Thank you, that's a list to treasure for extending my range of Canadian authors.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Marina: Thanks for the comment. I had a very good year of reading Canadian authors.

      Delete
  5. Bill, I have read very little Canadian fiction and your impressive list of Canadian authors and their novels gives me a good lead.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Prashant: Thanks for the comment. I really hope you get to read Swedes' Ferry. As I said in my review the combination of Western and mystery makes it a book I think you would enjoy a lot.

      Delete