Death in Paradise and Beyond Paradise

Having watched every single episode of Death in Paradise (most of them twice), there's a lot to discuss. So first, let's review Beyond Paradise which features DI Humphrey Goodman who finished his stint on the fictional Caribbean island of Sainte Marie.

Humphrey (Kris Marshall) and Martha (Sally Bretton) live in Cornwall where there seem to be as many deaths to solve as there were on Sainte Marie. It's not as compelling as a weekly trip to the sun in January but the cast members hold their own, reflecting the setup of their Caribbean counterparts. There's a female DS, the young naive constable with potential, the efficient wordly-wise office administrator, and the annoying off-site boss (a women, which is par for the course in terms of British TV police hierarchy). But where is the bar owner, I hear you ask... this is most likely the Sally Bretton role, as she owns and runs a nearby catering establishment.

It's a cosy watch but I would love Dwayne Myers (Danny John-Jules) to pop by, when he's visiting his relatives in London!

Caribbean or Cornwall

Death in Paradise has seen five British detectives heading up the office on the French island, overseen by the same commissioner (played by Don Warrington, who I first remember from Rising Damp, many years ago) and who now seems to be retiring. The other character to appear frequently in every series is Catherine Bordey (Elizabeth Bourgine) who owns the local hostelry, is Mayor of the island, long-time friend to Selwyn (Commissioner) and mother of Camille, once a DS at Sainte Marie whose career moved her to France, where she has now settled.

DI #1 Richard Poole played by Ben Miller (series 1-3) 

DI #2 Humphrey Goodman played by Kris Marshall (series 3-6) 

DI #3 Jack Mooney played by Ardal O'Hanlon (series 6-9)

DI #4 Neville Parker played by Ralph Little (series 9-13) 

DI #5 Mervin Wilson played by Don Gilet (current) 

One of the great things about Death in Paradise is that the storylines occasionally include visits from some of the gone-but-not-forgotten characters. Long may it continue.

Reacher - Serialisation on Amazon Prime

There have been three TV series to date and they don't follow the books precisely but this is quite normal. Series one was based on the first book, Killing Floor, series three was based on book seven (probably my least favourite of the Reacher books I've read so far - too much action for me but others may prefer it).

Whereas the books seem to be in chronological order, the series are random. I'm not even sure which book the second series is based on, as I haven't read it yet.

Did I enjoy the series? Yes, mostly. I like the character's strengths, even if does take things to the extreme and has to have a bed-mate everywhere he travels. I say extreme because the character is very physical whereas I'm weedy and also a pacifist - why fight with fists or weapons when you can keep your distance and try to work out what to do? Reacher is not quite a vigilante but he will, very effectively, sort things out his way, rather than hand matters to an over-stretched, bound-by-rules police force.

However, those would be different stories, such as Ludwig or Patience, who like solving puzzles.

Julia Stewart books

• The Last Pearl Fisher of Scotland 
• The Pigeon Pie Mystery 
• The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise 
• The Matchmaker of Périgord 

I've enjoyed reading all these books by Julia Stewart. Each one is entirely different, in terms of genre,  story and writing style, with barely a grammatical error.

The first one I read (over ten years ago) was The Matchmaker of Périgord, a quirky love story set in a small village in France - and which elicited numerous grins! I've recommended it to several people (many of whom are Francophiles, as I knew that they would appreciate the humour). 

The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise is also quirky and a little sad, with lots of interesting snippets (which I assume to be true?) relating to the Tower of London since Victorian times, as a tourist attraction rather than a place of incarceration and executions! 

A historically based novel centred around life in Hampton Court Palace, The Pigeon Pie Mystery is a cross between a Victorian murder-mystery and The Importance of Being Ernest. Subtly humorous, the 'upper classes' are not all awful...  

Another complete change of genre for The Last Pearl Fisher of Scotland. An intriguing story about the demise of pearl fishing but a satisfying outcome to the pearl fisherman's quest. 

If any of these books appeal to you, I hope you will enjoy your choice(s). Let us know in the comments. 

Coping with January

If you're lucky, you'll be at a ski resort. However, this is a 'comfort post' for the rest of us. 

Outside, it's currently cold, wet, windy and grey in the UK. One way of dealing with this is retail therapy but, even with the sales prices, this can be very expensive - as can be eating at a restaurant. Cheaper indoor alternatives include: ten-pin bowling, roller- or ice-skating, going to a café or pub or watching a film at the cinema. 

... But instead of spending money to see one film, maybe take advantage of all the streaming services you have at home on your massive new TV that you bought yourself in the after-Christmas sale? Even if you only have a medium TV and no additional streaming services (such as Netflix, Prime or Disney+), most people have access to BBC i-player - and this is critical in January - to binge-watch all the "Death in Paradise" series from Ben Miller onwards. Each episode in an hour-long visit to the Caribbean. It's perfect for me to lose myself in the aesthetic, never mind the stories, which are so predictable that we guessed 'whodunnit' as soon as we see the characters (or possibly, the actors playing those parts). 

There are almost 100 episodes so that should see you through the worst of January and possibly February.

Meanwhile, here are some Caribbean images for you to sigh over...

 

 

At sunset in the warm Caribbean, you can stroll along the coast and find a number of restaurants and bars overlooking the sea. At home, where the temperatures are cooler, you could chill with some cocktails or rum punch - or hug a mug of hot chocolate as you dream of being alive in paradise!

Debut Novel by Richard Armitage

Actor Richard Armitage has written his first novel, a thriller, titled Geneva. According to the 'blurb' it's not a particularly happy book, with the main character showing signs of early onset Alzheimer's. It is, however, described as "Outstanding" by popular writer Harlan Coben, whose televised books often had major roles for Armitage. And, to be fair, he was good in them, as befitting an award winning star of screen and TV. He seems to portray the complexities of characters, mixing darkness and vulnerability. Personally, my favourite of his roles was the TV series of Robin Hood where his portrayal of Guy of Gisborne moved from unlikeable to hero. He was also in the sit-com, The Vicar of Dibley, which was fun.

Anyway, back to the book. 

It centres around Sarah, a not-so-average woman, the winner of a Nobel award for a medical science breakthrough who has retired to be a mother to her daughter. Her husband is also in the medical profession and her father is in a care facility, suffering from Alzheimer's disease, a form of dementia. Sarah fears that she is exhibiting signs of early-onset Alzheimer's and is persuaded to endorse a new, revolutionary technology from a Swiss pharmaceutical research institute. (Don't worry, the story is aimed at ordinary people who need have no knowledge of the technical details of the plot.)

Geneva is the setting throughout virtually the whole book, which grows more intense with every chapter. Perhaps too intense for some but it's an easy read and the 'baddies' get their come-uppance.

I read the whole book with Richard Armitage cast as Sarah's husband.

Thoughts from the Dentist's Chair

Call me weird but I always have fun at my dental appointments. The dentist and his assistant are friendly and chatty - plus I giggle at the ridiculous sounds that reach my ears when they use the sucky-hose-thingy to clear the saliva (yuk!) when the drilling and filling is under way. 

Today, while the dentist was applying anaesthetic in advance of a filling, a George Ezra song was playing and we began chatting about the music we grew up with - his mum force-fed him Harry Belafonte (think calypso: Island in the Sun, Banana Boat Song, etc.). 

I'd just been prepared with numbing gum-jabs when the lights went off! Not too much of a problem for me as the dental equipment still worked and the dentist always wears directional lights on his head. Other parts of the surgery were affected, though, as a couple of machines were on the dead circuit. 

There wasn't much for me to do for the next half-hour or so as the dentist helped with the electrical situation, so I closed my eyes and relaxed - well, it was difficult to talk with a mouth hanging open and full of various pieces of equipment. Random thoughts ran through my head, such as why my tongue is so ill-disciplined. Unless I concentrated 100% in an attempt to keep it out of the way, the tip of my tongue kept wandering off to see what the dentist was up to. And the flavours of dental aids could be better - the metal mould, for instance, and one of the washes they sprayed in my mouth was not to my taste. 

Soon it was over and we chatted for a couple of minutes about how he bought a quirky object from an odds-and-ends shop when he left a conference on hypnotism (hmm... ?) then came the really painful process of paying for the treatment!! 

Coincidentally, the day before the dentist, I had a GP appointment - the first for about ten years. The person I saw was new to the practice (as was I) and she was very interesting. Her mother was from Sri Lanka but moved the family to Norway where the GP and her siblings grew up and educated. It was also she was married and where her children were born. Her English was impeccable and she also speaks three Scandinavian languages plus Tamil. It's such a shame that many Brits don't even have a second language - maybe this topic will fill a separate 'rant-post'. 

White Collar (TV series)

Following rumours, earlier this year, of a return or reboot, I've started watching White Collar, a TV series from more than ten years ago, which is currently being shown on the Disney+ channel.

I'm currently at the point where Neal Caffrey, master forger and con artist, is at a crossroads for his future. He likes his new life as a reformed con on a four-year probation seconded to the FBI in New York; he has friendships with his old buddy Mozz, his landlady June, his love interest Sara and the FBI team, including his 'boss' Peter Burke and Peter's wife Elizabeth. 

Although he is trying to be a good guy, his past keeps catching up with him. In this part of the series, Neal is covering for Mozz, who has taken possession of a billion dollars of  artefacts that were stolen from the Russians by Nazis during WWII. Mozz is planning to retire to an island, using the treasure as his pension, and wants Neal to join him. Neal has just said no so Mozz and the artefacts have disappeared. 

Unfortunately, a clever and greedy killer, Matthew Keller, will stop at nothing to steal this 'treasure'. However, Neal, Mozz and Peter are also clever so the battle is on. They 'goodies' win, of course, which leads to something good...

There may be a follow up post when I finish watching the series.

NOTE: the island was supposedly Cape Verde but was actually filmed in Costa Rica.