Why Do I Love Serial Fiction?
First, let’s extend a warm welcome to all the new readers who subscribed in the past week. I’m glad you’re here, and I hope you’ll enjoy reading A Good Yarn.
The past few weeks have been heavy with talk of yarn and knitting, but light on books. We’ll shift the balance this week, because I have read some terrific books recently.
Reading for Pleasure
I just finished The Collector, the 23rd novel in Daniel Silva’s series starring the Israeli spy, Gabriel Allon.
I was introduced to Silva and Allon back in 2012 when I picked up a copy of The Rembrandt Affair at an airport newsstand. (This was in the time before. Now I never board a plane without a couple of audiobooks loaded on my phone and my noise-cancelling earbuds fully charged.) The promo copy on the back cover promised murder, intrigue, and old master art.
I enjoyed The Rembrandt Affair so much that I set out to read the nine novels that preceded it. And I’ve eagerly anticipated each new installment in the series since.
I have a bit of a ritual around these books. Despite my love of audiobooks, I only read these in the mass market paperback editions. I tried an audiobook version once. It was read by Edoardo Ballerini, who has a very seductive voice and whose narration I usually enjoy. But it didn’t work for me with the Gabriel Allon book. I have spent enough time with these characters that I can hear their voices clearly in my head. Not surprisingly, Ballerini’s Gabriel sounded nothing like my Gabriel. So, it’s paper for me. These days that means when a new book is published, I pre-order the paperback and wait. Number 24 in the series, A Death in Cornwall, was published last month. The paperback will arrive in my mailbox in February 2025.
Why do I love this series so much? First, the novels are beautifully written. Silva manages to balance a deep knowledge of international politics and global events with thoroughly engaging plots that keep me glued to the page. The writing is clear and straightforward, without excessive exposition. The dialog is crisp and believable.
Second, the books are full of interesting people. Silva’s characters are complex, driven, and deeply human. For example, Gabriel Allon is the child of Holocaust survivors, a renowned art restorer, and an assassin in the employ of Israel’s equivalent of the CIA.
Finally, the relationships between the characters are beautiful. Allon gathers an international team of colleagues and collaborators. As the series progresses, you see the relationships deepen. You feel the loyalty and love between these people who are often engaged in unlovely acts. You share the inside jokes.
Each new book in the series is like a periodic reunion with old friends. I begin each book eager to find out what these folks have been up to. But the stories never become predictable.
A Cozier Series
I have a more recent infatuation with Louise Penny’s Three Pines series, featuring Armand Gamache, a homicide inspector with the Sûreté du Québec. Set mostly in the village of Three Pines, south of Montreal, these books are character studies hidden within a police procedural format. The series begins with Still Life. The 19th novel in the series, The Grey Wolf, is scheduled to be published at the end of October.
Unlike Silva’s series, I enjoy Penny’s novels in audio. The first 10 books were read by Ralph Cosham, and his is still the voice of Gamache I hear in my head. At Cosham’s death, the narration was passed to Robert Bathurst. I speak no French, but I’m told by those who do that Bathurst’s pronunciation is not as accurate as was Cosham’s. For The Grey Wolf, we’ll have a new reader, Jean Brassard, who seems to specialize in books with a French focus. I’m looking forward to hearing this new Gamache.
Beyond the fact that Armand Gamache is just about the perfect man, the chief appeal of this series is the group of idiosyncratic characters who populate Three Pines. From bistro owners Gabri and Olivier, to bookstore proprietor Myrna, to foul-mouthed poet Ruth, the residents of the village are a tight-knit community full of humor and secrets.
Is there a series of novels you love? I want to hear about it! Leave a comment with your recommendation.
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The Seedhead Vest
Cascade Yarns recently released a pattern I designed for them last winter: The Seedhead Vest.
This vest will be a useful layer during Fall and Winter. It features an interesting pattern of twisted stitches that remind me of a ripe stalk of wheat. The Seedhead Vest is a relatively quick knit that is suitable for both men and women. I like to wear mine over a classic white button-down shirt and navy trousers, or over a black-with-white-polka-dots shirtdress.
The sample was knit in Cascade Yarns Merino DK, a lovely non-superwash merino wool yarn with a subtle tweedy texture. Cascade is offering this pattern for free, so jump on over to their website and download a copy.
Things That Caught My Eye
This touching video showcases a Basque family in Nevada finding a way to carry on their family legacy of sheepherding. Thanks to
and The Wool Channel for the link.As always, thank you for granting me this space in your brain. And don’t forget to leave a comment—I’m looking forward to seeing your recommendations, and hopefully discovering a new series to love!
I originally read this series, probably 30 years ago. I Listened to it on cassette tapes! During the summer when I take my long bike rides and love to listen to audiobooks all day long, I’ve pulled out Mrs Pollifax again by Dorothy Gilman. I love the way she writes the characters, the language that she uses, the actual conversations that people have without all the abbreviations or inferred text. The tenacity of Mrs. Pollifax and all the crazy situation she gets herself into. They have stood the test of time over the last 30 years in our world that hasn’t changed that much. Mrs Pollifax does not have a cell phone, there is no social media, and the world is a little more of a secret then what it is today. Maybe I’m showing my age but I like that.
Dorothy Gilman has written some standalone novels. My favorites are Caravan and her memoir A New Kind of Country.
I too am a fan of Three Pines and the Silva books. I’m looking forward to the new book. It’s hard when we get a new reader, but the stories are so great it’s not too hard to get past that.
Aren’t we lucky to be book lovers?! Books are my constant companion and especially audiobooks. They keep me company through the day. Thanks for sharing your love of books too!
Gosh, Sandi, I wrote a long comment yesterday and must have inadvertently deleted it 🙄 I had wrote that I was enjoying the comments here as much as your post and now I have new authors on my audiobooks wish list. Thank you for that! I tend to burn through audiobooks since I enjoy listening while walking, knitting or weaving, housecleaning, and cooking. I recommend Sulari Gentill. She has a series set in 1930s Australia starting with A Few Right Thinking Men, and she also has a few standalone novels (The Woman in the Library for one). I also enjoy Louise Penny’s series. I was devastated when Ralph Cosham died. For me, he was Gamache and I could not imagine any other narrator. I haven’t been happy with Robert Bathurst at all. I forget which novel it was but he was (to my ears) so caricaturist in his narration that I thought I’d have to switch to reading the print books. Bathurst’s accent didn’t bother me; rather, I didn’t hear any sympathy in his voice for the characters. So I’m looking forward to a new narrator with The Grey Wolf. By the way, Cosham is the narrator for Timothy Snyder’s book Blood Lines. That was a difficult book to get through (all the horrors of Russia and Germany’s quest for land and power), but Cosham’s calm, soft voice made it possible. And lovely vest!