Last in, first out

It hardly warrants complaining about but sometimes the sight of my TBR shelves sends me into a tailspin. Which one of the 150-odd books will I read next? I literally dither about in indecision some days (and no we won’t discuss the fact I now have a new eReader on which to cleverly hide TBR books).

When I saw a package from Book Depository on my doorstep as I arrived home tonight I decided I’d read its contents and not force myself to decide which book to select from the shelves. I rarely do this (it normally doesn’t feel ‘right’ to read a book that hasn’t done a fair stint on the sidelines) but it’s only my silly rule not a national law (yet).

I am chuffed the package contained Nigel McCrery’s Tooth and Claw. I can still remember in vivid detail the opening to Still Waters, the first book of McCrery’s that I read nearly two years ago. It created an image that has stayed with me to this day (and made me look askance at every little old lady with gardening shears I have since encountered) (which makes the fact I have taken on the role of creating a local community garden something of a psychological torture let me tell you). The rest of the book was darned good too, offering a great story with a quite powerful commentary about how we treat the people who live differently to ‘the norm’ or on the fringes of society. I rated it 4.5 out of 5 and still recommend it to friends.

I have no clue what this follow-up novel is about. I pre-ordered it as soon as I saw it was by McCrery and featured the same protagonist as the other book (a detective with a neurological condition that means most noises he hears triggers a taste in his mouth which might be bearable when the noise is the telephone and the taste is ice-cream but would undoubtedly be madness-inducing if the sound of your child’s laughter induced the taste of vomit).

Will this one give me nightmares too?