Ameise1 (Barbara)'s sixth ROOT

I'm looking forward to another wonderful reading year. Due to lots of library books I set my target again for ten from my TBR pile and everything which is more will go as an addition for the group.




# 1 The Emperor's Tomb by Steve Berry on the shelf since 2017 (4½ stars)
# 2 Our Kind of Traitor by John le Carré on the shelf since 2010 (4 stars)
# 3 Still Life by Louise Penny on the shelf since 2017 (4 stars)
# 4 Turnstone by Graham Hurley on the shelf since 2017 (4½ stars)
# 5 Glasgow Kiss (DCI Lorimer) by Alex Gray on the shelf since 2016 (4½ stars)
# 6 Waiting for Sunrise by William Boyd on the shelf since 2015 (4½ stars)
# 7 Cat And Mouse by James Patterson on the shelf since 2017 (4 stars)
# 8 The Keepers of the Library by Glenn Cooper on the shelf since 2016 (4 stars)
# 9 The Danger by Dick Francis on the shelf since 2012 (4½ stars)
#10 Fingersmith by Sarah Waters on the shelf since 2017 (4½ stars)
#11 The Crow Trap by Anne Cleeves on the shelf since 2017 (4½ stars)
#12 Das Päckchen by Franz Hohler on the shelf since 2017 (4½ stars)
#13 The Seventh Sacrament by David Hewson on the shelf since 2017 (4 stars)
#14 Dissolution by C. J. Sansom on the shelf since 2013 (4 stars)
#15 Town Haunts by Cathy Spencer on the shelf since 2014 (4 stars)
#16 Treasure of Saint-Lazare by John Pearce on the shelf since 2012 (4 stars)
#17 Mind Demons by Mike Jastrzebski on the shelf since 2012 (3½ stars)
#18 Dark Tides by Elizabeth L. Jones on the shelf since 2014 (3½ stars)
#19 Lenin Lives Next Door by Jennifer Eremeeva on the shelf since 2015 (4½ stars)
#20 The Girl On the Train by Paula Hawkins on the shelf since 2016 (4 stars)

Good luck with your rooting!

>2 Tess_W: Thanks so much, Tess.

Hi Barb! I noticed you became a member of the ROOTers just in time to wish you and your family a very Happy Christmas and all good things in the new year!

Good luck with ROOTing in 2018!

Welcome back and have a great reading year!

I hope you have a wonderful year of ROOTing!

>4 connie53: >5 Jackie_K: >6 rabbitprincess: >7 Familyhistorian: Thanks so much ladies for the well wishes. I wish you all the same: Happy ROOTing! :-)

Good to see you here again. Happy New Year of reading.

>9 majkia: thanks so much, Jane. Wishing you a happy ROOTing 2018, too.

glad you're with us again!

>11 cyderry: Thanks so much, Chèli for keeping this group gping.

Happy New Year, Barbara! I hope for all things good for your Family.

>13 connie53: Thanks so much, Connie. Wishing you a year filled with fabulouse.

book 1 Read in German

 The Emperor's Tomb

Again, this was a great book from the Cotton Malone series. Cotton has to free his friend Cassiopeia Vitt, who was kidnapped for stealing an old Chinese lamp. But this was just the hanger that tells the story of China. Berry managed to bring the Chinese high culture and all its inventions closer to the reader in this thriller. It not only teaches you what the Chinese invented thousands of years ago, but also about a hot topic that has to do with oil resources. Likewise, you learn a lot about the political machinations of the past and today.
The thriller is written grippingly. I highly recommend this series.

Happy to see you over here, Barbara, happy reading!
And already one down, way to go!

>16 FAMeulstee: Thanks so much, Anita. I've to read my ROOTs otherwise I can't buy new books. LOL

>17 Ameise1: It is the same for me, Barbara, the shelves are overflowing!

>18 FAMeulstee: LOL

>15 Ameise1: Oh, a BB already!

>20 Tess_W: Tess, have you read other books of that series? It's so gorgeous I can strongly recommend it.

>21 Ameise1: No I have never read any in the series, but I'm really interested in China. Would you advise reading them in order?

One ROOT down already. You're doing good, Barbara.

>22 Tess_W: No it isn't necessary. There are some hints to characteres from earlier books but you can enjoy and follow the plot without knowing them.

>23 Familyhistorian: Thanks so much, Meg.

Found and starred! :)

Congrats on finishing your first ROOT, Barbara. Happy ROOTing in 2018!

>26 MissWatson: Thanks so much, Birgit. I hope you're off to a good ROOTing year too.

book 2

 Our Kind of Traitor

It took me a while to immerse myself in the story. It was probably because I've been no longer Le Carré read more and therefore have to get used to his writing style again.
A young couple spends his holidays in Antigua. There they meet Dima a Russian money launderer on a large scale, with his whole family and entourage. Dima wants to know his family protected because he can not expect much support from the Russian money mafia anymore. It's a race with time as Dima soon signs the papers that cut him off. The British secret service, on the other hand, is taking the time to acknowledge him as a defector, as senior members of the government are involved in this money laundering.
It was an exciting quick read.

book 3,

 Still Life

Since I started this series last year in the middle and I liked it so much, I start to read it in turn. In the first volume of the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series, you will learn all the protagonists who are also in the later books occur again. The small town of Three Pines outside of Montreal seems to be a dreamy, lovely little place where everyone knows each other and appreciates where to help and be there for each other. It is precisely this place where a murder happens and no one can imagine who could have something against Jane Neal.
It's a great introduction to a series that I'm sure I'll read.

book 4

 Turnstone

This is the first book of the thrilling DI Joe Faraday series in Portsmouth. DI Faraday is a bird lover and in every free minute he devotes himself to bird watching, which also distracts him from his cases. He does not always have it easy with his investigative tactics, on the one hand he listens strongly to his gut feeling on the other hand he also has colleagues who conspire partly with the bad guys and thereby earn a separate salary. In this book, you get to know many protagonists, who appear in the other books over and over again. This time he wants to clarify the disappearance of a man and comes here not only the drug bosses in the way but also the rich, who have many relationships up to the top. His superiors try to believe him, but also tie him back in his investigations again and again. In addition, he has problems with his deaf son, which also need to be clarified.
It was an exciting amusing reading and I highly recommend this series.

book 5

 Glasgow Kiss (DCI Lorimer)

I love the DCI Lorimer series. I've read books four to six and should start reading the first three books in the series next.
DCI Lorimer has to find a serial killer. But he only realizes this over time that the murder of a student of his wife was only the last of a series. Of course, people are first suspected by the school. Only when he receives only a few hours to investigate, before he has to hand over the case, he finds the culprit. In addition to finding the murderer, he also has to enlighten the disappearance of a little girl.
Alex Gray writes exciting thrillers with a lot of psychological background. That is also the reason that DCI Lorimer's friend is a psychologist and whose life partner is Lorimer's pathologist. The team is successful in solving cases.

Glad to see you like Alex Gray's books! My first one of hers will be the 15th in the series: Keep the Midnight Out. It looks really good!

>32 rabbitprincess: Her books are gripping. I hope you'll enjoy it.

book 6

 Waiting for Sunrise

A fantastic spy novel that kept me tied up to the end.
Lysander Rief, a young English actor, spends some time in Vienna, to be cured by psychiatric help. He gets to know Hettie and joins in an adventure with her. Hettie is a restless person. She becomes pregnant and accuses Lysander. He has to flee Vienna, but he succeeds only with the help of the British secret service. He is now in their clutches and must, in order to pay off his 'debts', fulfill various missions for them. Not only does he put himself at risk, but he also has to discover that his mother plays no inglorious role in the network of espionage.
The story is very varied and exciting. It leads you through the turmoil of WWI.

>34 Ameise1: I enjoyed that one too. I recently acquired Sweet Caress and am looking forward to squeezing it in between ROOTs. :)

>35 floremolla: thanks so much, Donna. I haven't read your one. I'll take a look at my local library if they have got a copy of it.

book 7

 Cat and Mouse

This is a fast-paced thriller from the Alex Cross series. Cross family lives in dangerous circumstances, as a murderer from the past seeks their lives. Cross has his hands full, so that his loved ones are not in mortal danger. While he is on the heels of Gary Soneji, a person from the FBI's environment is threatening a much more deadly threat to him and many innocent people.
From a more positive side, Cross finally finds the love of his life.

book 8

 The Keepers of the Library

This is the third part of the Will Piper trilogy. I really liked this trilogy. Also the last band was told exciting. Sometimes it was a bit too abstract, with all the Secret Services and their goal to win the books for their country, but the basic idea of what has been going on over the centuries has been Cooper's and left the end open.

book 9

 The Danger

This was a very exciting read. It's about kidnapping in the horse scene, where these kidnappings take place in different countries and yet all are interconnected. Andrew Douglas has his hands full to reduce the ransom demands, but also to liberate the victims.
The story is fast-paced, you can hardly catch your breath.

book 10

 Fingersmith

This is a great historical mystery. Lant Street, in the Borough, was home to Mrs. Sucksby, who was taking in babies, and Mr. Ibbs, who was a locksmith, but rather stewed stolen goods. The main characters were Susan and Maud, both of them the same age, but their childhood fate could not be further apart, could it?
While Susan helped Mrs Sucksby raise her babies, Maud helped her uncle catalog, copy, and read pornographic books. Until one day 'gentleman' the whole arrangement started to turn upside down.
The story is spellbinding, sometimes it made me mad, but I could not stop reading it.

>40 Ameise1: I loved that one too, Barb. In fact I love all her books!

book 1

 The Crow Trap

Exciting entry into a new series. I've seen some of this on TV. While conservationists are investigating an area, as a quarry is about to be built there, people close to the conservationist die. Every death is suspicious and it is uncertain whether it is murder, suicide or natural death. Relatives of the dead are as suspicious as members of the management of the quarry. DI Vera Stnhope investigates in an unorthodox way. It also counts on the amateur detectives that can be found among the conservationists.

>41 connie53: Hi Connie, I've only read one other by her The Little Stranger but have another waiting on the shelf.

book 12 Read in German

 Das Päckchen

What a wonderful story. A librarian picks up the phone in a telephone booth because it has rung. On the phone was an unknown woman who asked him for help. He visited her and she handed him a packet of an ancient 8th-century manuscript. During the story you will learn the history of the old manuscript. On the one hand it is told how the unknown woman received it and on the other hand it is the story of the writer Haimo, who wrote the book as a monk in a monastery. But he was in love with Mary, who accompanied him on his journey through the south of Europe.
This story is written with much love for all the protagonists and also the love for old manuscripts.

book 13

 The Seventh Sacrament

This is the 5th volume of the Nic Costa series. It was an interesting read but did not convince me as much as the other volumes.
A seven-year-old boy disappears after being taken to an underground Mithras temple by his father, the archeologist. In these underground passages students of the father are on a discovery tour.
Over the years, one student after another dies, not a natural death, but they are brutally murdered. Nic Costa and his team are challenged. On the one hand they have to stop these murders and on the other hand they want to find the missing boy after fourteen years. In doing so they, especially Leo Falcone, are in grave danger.

book 14

 Dissolution

This is a great start to the Matthew Shardlake series. The story takes place at the time of Henry VIII when the monasteries were closed and the lands and fortunes were handed over to the royalists. Matthew Shardlake is due to travel from Thomas Cromwell to Scarnsea. He takes his roommate Mark with him. In Scarnsea a monastery must be closed. A colleague of Shardlake was brutally murdered, so Shardlake's job is not only to close the monastery, but also to solve the murder of his colleague. It remains not only with this victim.
The story is told exciting and I will definitely read the continuations too.

book 15

 Town Haunts

This is the second volume of the Anna Nolan Mystery Series. Also this time Anna is with her two friends in an amateurish way a case of solving. The story is about Halloween. The cemetery gardener hears in the middle of the night from the cemetery call his dead wife. He also sees light around her grave. Scared to death, he explains himself to his friends. They decide to help him. They bring themselves in very great danger. The police not only have to solve a case, but also protect amateur detectives from themselves and other dangers.
A very amusing thriller that is easy to read.

book 16

 Treasure of Saint-Lazare

Great entry into a new series. It plays in Paris and Sarasota, Florida. The point is that Eddie's father, together with a friend after the WWII, sometimes hijacked Nazi-theft art, but also returned it to the public. When the friend was murdered, Eddie received a letter that was very puzzling. But Eddie realized that he was not the only one who tried to solve the puzzle. After all these years, a descendant of a Nazi wants to bring into his possession a certain lost painting and gold bullions. He is not afraid to kill for it. The story is gripping and fast-paced. I will definitely read the sequels as well.

Hi Barb, just trying to catch up with threads and waving at you. And congrats on reaching your goal.

>49 connie53: Thanks so much, Connie.

book 17

 Mind Demons

Partly I had trouble with this book. Two women disappear and Linda Morgan tries to find them. She investigates a so-called psychologist, who has no diplomas, but always makes women dependent and brings them to their fortune. Linda puts herself in danger during the investigation.

book 18

 Dark Tides

In this story I would have liked more depth, because the basic idea of the story is great and could possibly occur at any time.
The point is that a magnetic accident in the atmosphere stops all power supplies. This also means that everything that runs IT moderately, as well as all artificial intelligence no longer work. Cars can no longer drive, refrigerators no longer work, as well as the water pumps, etc. Only the inhabitants of a small island have taken precautions. They still have some water sources, plant food and can still catch fish. This fuels the envy of others and 'warfare' is inevitable.

book 19

 Lenin Lives Next Door

This book is great. I often had to laugh aloud while reading. Jennifer Eremeeva has the talent to describe her everyday life in Moscow in such a way that one feels in the middle of it and yet is grateful not to have to experience it one by one. She talks about marriages, life on dachas, the sheer madness on Moscow's streets, the sheer endless flow of alcohol and its effects, how to get a decent place to live, how to get in, how to get into better social circles and how the festivals are celebrated, etc. She bluntly writes what she experiences with her friends. It is written witty and you want it to never stop.

book 20

 The Girl On The Train

It was an exciting read, though from time to time I got angry about 'How alcoholism can destroy whole families and lives'. The story is told from the point of view of three women. Rachel, extremely alcoholic, who has some 'film cracks', what had happened, Anna,who Rachel's ex-husband has fallen asleep, as the two other women and as a way out only the handle to the bottle and Megan, the victim, the one sex addicted and on the other hand carries a dark past. Rachel tries to expose the murder of Megan, puts herself in danger and no longer knows who she can trust.

>54 Ameise1: I think something went wrong in the text you wrote, Barb!

>55 connie53: Hi Connie, could you tell me please wht you're thinking went wrong?

Rachel, extremely alcoholic, who has some 'film cracks', what had happened, Anna,who Rachel's ex-husband has fallen asleep, as the two other women and as a way out only the handle to the bottle

I don't know if it's my English or the punctuation but I don't understand. And I read the book!

Oh, I see. I'll correct it when I'm next time at the computer. Thanks so much, Connie.

>58 Ameise1: your welcome.