The Year of the Flood, Nocturnes and Case Histories

It's a long time since I last read a Margaret Attwood novel. I really enjoyed "The Handmaid's Tale", "Cat's Eye", the Booker prizewinning "The Blind Assassin" and "Oryx and Crake". There are overtones of the last of these in her new novel "The Year of the Flood". Again set in the future in a post apocalyptic (the waterless flood of the title) north America, this is a story of survival. The author describes various groups who now eke out an existence from what is left, particularly "God's Gardeners" where at some time our two heroines have joined. But now they are on their own. This is a story with Attwood's normal flair for writing combined with the pace and twists of a thriller. An exceptional read.

"Nocturnes" is the first book from Kazuo Ishiguro since "Never Let Me Go" published in 2005. And this time only a very small book of five short stories. But what stories they are. Each on a theme of music and night time, they are dazzling pieces of writing. From Venice to London, to the Malvern Hills, a Hollywood hotel and an Italian piazza. The penultimate story, which is the title of the book, is just perfect.

I have started to catch up on everything written by Kate Atkinson, because all three of her novels that I have read so far are some of the most enjoyable books I have ever read. And her "Case Histories" is no exception. Her writing is always sharp, witty and vivid combined with intricate plots and flowing narrative. This book is part mystery, part family drama and part crime investigation. Jackson Brodie is the former police inspector turned private detective who is swept up by the characters whose three cases land on his plate. A moving, sad, funny and enthralling story.
P S There are seven American country/folk singers whose songs Jackson plays during the story. All female. And guess what? Yes, they are all in my collection. Allison Moorer, Trisha Yearwood, Emmy Lou Harris, Lucinda Williams, Gillian Welch, Lee Ann Womack and at the end, The Dixie Chicks. As Jackson says "why is my taste getting more and more depressive?"