Black Ajax by George MacDonald Fraser

The Hounds of the Morrigan by Pat O'Shea

It's always fascinating to reread a book you enjoyed as a Child. Over Sea, Under Stone whetted my appetite for some of my childhood favourites.

The Hounds of the Morrigan has stood up well to the passing years. It's setting is somehow timeless. While not as tightly plotted as The Weirdstone of Brisingamen (the best as far as I'm concerned) it still carries the reader away to a very familiar and yet very magical Ireland. The middle section could have done with some editing but it does setup the final exhausting chase scenes.

Overall a joy to read with clever characterisation, a real feel for the Irish myths and legends and above all else a sense of fun.

Devil May Care by Sebastian Faulks

Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper

Here Lies Arthur by Philip Reeve (Author)

An interesting retelling of the Arthurian Myth. Reeves writes well. Some passages are especially evocative of a distant pass. Characters are well developed and story nicely paced.

Like a number of modern reinvention of myths the removals of the truly mythic elements can leave the reader cold. Arthur is a bully and Merlin a charlatan. Camelot becomes a crumbling round hall.

Live and Let Die by Ian Fleming.

The Mortdecai Trilogy by Kyril Bonfiglioli

The Year of Our War by Steph Swainston

Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Gavin Bell

The Prefect by Alastair Reynolds

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell

Traversa: A Solo Walk Across Africa, from the Skeleton Coast to the Indian Ocean by Fran Sandham

The Druid of Shannara by Terry Brooks

Why oh why do I do this to myself. Terry brooks recycles the cliches from his previous Shannara outing. I rarely abandon a book. I should have made an exception in this case.

The Ladies of Grace Adieu: And Other Stories by Susanna Clarke

The King's English by Kingsley Amis

The Mission Song by John Le Carre

The Court of the Air by Stephen Hunt

This novel has a little of everything, steampunk, voodoo, Aztec like cultures, cthulhu style gods, robots, bizarre species, Dickensian pastiche. It's long on world building and exposition but a little sort on character development or plot.

I enjoyed the first half but then felt the author had become too enamoured of his own creation and wished to show us every nook and cranny of his fertile imagination.

Tighter editing (a number of scenes are entirely unnecessary) and a more focused plot would have made for a more enjoyable read. The final part feel interminable. I hope his next novel The Kingdom Beyond the Waves addresses some of these issues. I'll certainly give it a read but won't be rushing out to buy it.

Matter by Iain M. Banks

Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R Tolkein

I watched the three LOTR films over the last few weeks and they prompted me to dig out my old copy (23 years old and more that a little the worse for wear) of the book. So far I have only reread the Fellowship of the Ring but I was reminded of how much I loved the novel when I first read it over a Christmas holiday.

I really enjoy the leisurely pace of the storytelling which is so distinct from the kinetic, overly dramatic nature of the motion picture.

The fellowship has always been my favourite part of the trilogy and it's still a joy to read.

Quicksilver: The Baroque Cycle by Neal Stephenson

Hawkwood: Diabolical Englishman by Frances Stonor Saunders

The Religion by Tim Willocks

Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie

Ascent by Jed Mercurio

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon

I Predict a Riot by Colin Bateman

The Theory and Practice of Gamesmanship, or the Art of Winning Games Without Actually Cheating by Stephen Potter

The Blade Itself: Book One Of The First Law by Joe Abercrombie

The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark by Carl Sagan.

Soldier of Arete by Gene Wolfe

Xenophon's Retreat: Greece, Persia and the End of the Golden Age by Robin Waterfield

I don't normally read popular history. Xenophon's Retreat was a pleasant surprise. Initially the book seemed a little dry However the actual story becomes very engaging. The research was obviously lovingly and meticulously carried out. the book also made an excellent companion to Soldier of Arete which Wolfe had dedicated to Xenophon.