Four more books to be enjoyed at bedtime

As the year kicks off, there’s nothing like a book review to give it a head start. Before publishing this on, I took a look back at previous reviews and was surprised to see I have published six, so far, since starting the ball rolling back in August 2020. You may recall we were still in the grip of the COVID pandemic back then, and despite a brief respite over that summer, the insidious corona virus was getting ready to launch a new wave of infection, and associated restrictions across the country. Now, having set the scene, and possibly whetted your appetites for some further literary reviews, here we go with Book Review No. 7.

After finishing off “The Secret Commonwealth”, Volume 2 in Philip Pullman's trilogy, “The Book of Dust”, I was waiting for the final novel in this series to be published. With a publication date of 23^rd October, and Mrs PBT’s and I away cruising the high seas, I postponed the purchase of this book until we returned from our autumn cruise. When it arrived, I handed the book over to Mrs PBT’s, saying it could be one of my Christmas presents.

Whilst on that subject, in common with many people of a similar age, there isn't really a lot that us too oldies desire as gifts for the festive season. It might sound a bit of a cliché, but fitness, health and happiness, rather than worldly riches, go towards creating, content and fulfilled individuals. That 3rd book of this series, entitled “The Rose Field”, arrived in the post once we were back from our voyage, but in the meantime, I was looking for a suitable publication to become engrossed in and to while away the hours on our lengthy sea voyage.

It was probably the three-day journey down to the Azores, which was our first port of call, when I was looking for something to occupy my mind and get me away from the incessant Sky News on continuous repeat, that Mrs PBT's insisted on having on in the cabin. This was despite me saying that I am not in the least bit interested in what is happening in the world, whilst I'm away.  Her reply was she liked to keep abreast of things but, as I explained there’s a major difference between what is going on in the background and receiving saturation news coverage.

Fair enough, one news bulletin in the morning and possibly another in the evening is more than sufficient, particularly when it's the same old shit, Putin, Trump, Gaza, Farage and now several other rogue countries on the brink of chaos. I told her that knowing this information wouldn't enrich her life in any shape or form, which led to my dismissal as a “grumpy old git”. All the better then to have a book in which to lose oneself but having finished Volume 2 of the latest (and probably final) Philip Pullman series, and Volume 3 not then available, I splashed out on a four-book series by the same author.

Set in Victorian London, and in a world, readers can easily relate to, rather than the parallel universe of the “His Dark Materials” series, the Sally Lockhart Mysteries, follow the fortunes of Miss Sally Lockhart who, after abandoning her rather overbearing guardian at the tender age of 16, sets up shop with an unorthodox and slightly Bohemian brother and sister, who run a photographic business. This is whilst Sally is attempting to unravel the mystery surrounding the death of her father, a former sea captain, responsible for trading goods back and forth between London and the Far East (China mainly).

As well as being commanding his own ship, Sally’s father was a partner in a shipping firm, when he went missing, and assumed lost at sea. Given the date and the Chinese location, the sinister trade in opium played a part in Captain Lockhart’s disappearance. Fortunately for Sally, as she later discovers, her father left her some money, plus his share in the shipping line, wealth that she would inherit, when she came of age.

The other three books follow Sally’s fortunes as she sets herself up as a successful private investigator, gives birth to an illegitimate child, has her identify stolen, by a cunning and devious individual who purports to be her husband and the father of that child, before exposing the fraudster and marrying a radical Jewish immigrant, who goes on to become a successful politician. I’ve just finished the fourth and final book in the series, which is more about Sally’s protégé, Jim, who becomes involved in the political machinations involving a tiny, imaginary kingdom, sandwiched between Austria-Hungary and the German Empire.

All rather “boy’s own” you might think, but escapism, as well and with a series of convoluted plots, just the thing before hitting the sack, and drifting off into restful sleep. Before saying goodbye toSally Lockhart, it's worth noting that whilst the four books are stand-alone novels, it still makes sense to read them in the order that Philip Pullman intended, in order to get the best out of them, because there is a connective thread, running through them all. I’ve passed the books on to a work colleague and will be embarking on “The Rose Field” soon, that’s if I don’t save it for our forthcoming Norwegian cruise.

Speaking of cruises, you will probably remember that due to adverse weather conditions, our ship was unable to dock at two of its scheduled ports of call. These happened to be the first and the last destinations on the cruise, Praia de Vitoria in the Azores, plus Vigo in Spain. The cruise line issued us all with an explanation letter, detailing what had happened, with the suggestion of using this document for any claim against our travel insurance. Like all such forms, the insurance claim took a bit of filling out, but I pressed on ahead and posted it off (I could have scanned it and sent it by email, but I used old-fashioned “snail mail” instead.

A couple of weeks later, after receiving an official acknowledgement, I was notified, by email, that our claim was being upheld, and we would both receive £400 compensation – working out at £200 per person, per missed port. Proof, if it were needed, that it’s always worth pursuing such claims, even if the process is rather time consuming. Contrast this to the rather paltry £12.50, “Delay- Repay”, I received from Great Western Railway, after a broken-down train, led to me and fellow passengers, being dumped off and abandoned at Taunton station, on the journey home from Exeter. Still, as my wife would say, “every little helps”, before claiming these were the alleged words of "the lady who "p*ssed in the sea!"