Our group aims to read one book a month. One member in turn chooses a book and author, often from a series of books with the same detective. We aim to choose not only English books but foreign ones or books set in foreign settings and a mixture of older and more recent authors. After a short presentation about the chosen book, we discuss its plotline, writing style, detective/lead characters and what appeals or not about the book. If the book is dramatised on stage or screen, we also talk about how this affects our appreciation of the characters and enjoyment of the story. We may discuss related crime fiction subjects or biographies of authors later in the meeting. This year, we have selected two volumes of short stories to discuss later in the meetings. These bring a different approach by compressing the crime process into a limited length. Currently, these are Music of the Night and Miraculous Mysteries, both edited by Martin Edwards to give a choice between crimes associated with music and locked room type crimes.
Our forward programme is:',
2026
September 3 - 'Sculptress' by Minack Walters
October 1 - 'Good Husband of Zebra Drive' by Alexander McCall Smith
November 5 - 'Opal Country' by Chris Hammer
December 3 - 'A B C Murders' by Agatha Christie
2027
January 7 - Favourite books of 2026 at Boot and Slipper