The Devil Wears Prada - Lauren Weisberger

Another of my necessary mindless light reads. It's been sitting on the shelf for many many months, so it was time. Seeing as the movie has also come & gone. Quite painful to read about the protagonist's trials with a dragon/devil of a boss in a job "a million girls would die for". Interesting peek into the fashion publishing world.

The Stranger House - Reginald Hill

Hugely satisfying. I've only read one other of his books -- Singing the Sadness, starring Joe Sixsmith. I've never read any of his famous Dalziel and Pascoe ones. This doesn't feature any of his usual characters, so has a novel-like flavour. Very mysterious, gothic, atmospheric - the past and present intertwining in complex twists and turns. To paraphrase an Amazon review "Aussie math whiz Samantha Flood has fiery red hair and a fierce determination to learn the truth about her paternal grandmother, an orphan shipped from her native England to Australia under suspicious circumstances. Sober Spaniard Miguel Madero, an ex-priest who experiences ghostly visions is researching English Catholics during the Reformation.. Samantha and Mig, an unlikely duo, are drawn to one another as each discovers secrets simmering beneath the surface of Illthwaite's deceptively serene facade."

In A Sunburned Country - Bill Bryson

Read this months ago, but forgot to record it. I've been listening to a lot of audiobooks by Bill Bryson recently, but this is the only one I read in print. It's one his best - well researched, interesting and quirky bits of history and trivia, and very funny! Here's an amazing thing so close to home and I'd never heard of it ".. southwest Gippsland, home of the world's largest earthworms (up to 12 feet in length)." And I loved his description of John Howard..

If You Could See Me Now - Cecelia Ahern

The whimsy was a bit too light and fluffy for me, although I did enjoy A Place Called Here, another whimsical book by this author. At times I couldn't help feeling like I was reading a children's book. The story idea is interesting - Luke's invisible friend becomes visible to his aunt, 35 yr old Elizabeth who doesn't realise that others can't see this person. A romantic interest develops. A few feel good scenarios, but I couldn't get into them.