I thought I was going to have a bad week on the library front. The main part of the public library is closed for redecoration and there are very small numbers of books available in the lobby. Fortunately though a couple of reservations turned up and I picked up another from the shelf.

Here’s this week’s loot:

The Pyramid by Henning Mankell

“When Kurt Wallander first appeared in Faceless Killers back in 1990, he was a senior police officer, just turned forty, with his life in a mess. His wife had left him, his father barely acknowledged him; he ate badly and drank alone at night. The Pyramid chronicles the events that led him to such a place. We see him in the early years, doing hours on the beat whilst trying to solve a murder off-duty; witness the beginnings of his fragile relationship with Mona, the woman he has his heart set on marrying; and learn the reason behind his difficulties with his father. These thrilling tales provide a fascinating insight into Wallander’s character, and demand to be read in one sitting. From the stabbing of a neighbour in 1969 to a light aircraft accident in 1989, every story is a vital piece of the Wallander series, showing Mankell at the top of his game. Featuring an introduction from the author, The Pyramid is an essential read for all fans of Kurt Wallander.”

I have been meaning to try Mankell for sometime but I wasn’t sure where to start. But then I picked this one up and it seemed like a good place to begin.

Yellow by Janni Visman

“Stella lives with her cat in a top floor flat, where she waits for her clients to arrive for their massages, and her life is as perfectly ordered as the phials in her treatment room. As strictly inventoried are the contents of her rucksack, always ready by the door in case she needs to make a quick getaway. But she never goes out; she can’t. When Ivan moved in he was told: no stories from the past, no unnecessary anecdotes, no questions. But can Stella keep her own rules? Yellow is the colour of gas, of fear, of jealousy. And Stella has smelt something in the air that she cannot control. Janni Visman’s second novel is a twisted love story that takes place in a few bare rooms, a superbly taut thriller that confirms the arrival of a fantastic new talent.”

I read about this book here and I liked the look of it, so I put in an order.

Drood by Dan Simmons

“Sealed for 125 years, a secret manuscript by Charles Dickens’ friend and some-time collaborator Wilkie Collins, reveals the dark secret that obsessed both men – a secret that not only ended their long friendship, but also brought each writer to the very brink of murder. On June 9, 1865, while traveling by train to London with his secret mistress, 53-year-old Charles Dickens – at the height of his powers and popularity – hurtled into a disaster that changed his life forever. His train jumped the rail and plummeted into the marsh below. Dickens assisted the maimed and dying but the experience shook him to the core.His personality visibly darkened, his famous public readings began to focus on the most violent scenes he’d ever written, especially the terrible murder of Nancy by Bill Sykes in Oliver Twist. The author acted out the murder, adding dialogue and gesture, screaming, begging, strangling and cutting. By night Dickens and Collins began stalking the underbelly of London, obsessed with corpses, catacombs, murders, lime pits, opium dens, disguises and serial killers. Research – or something darker? Or perhaps Wilkie Collins – a laudanum addict with a seething, Salieri-esque jealousy of Dickens’ success – had another agenda?”

At last! I have read about this book on so many blogs and it feels like I’ve been waiting forever, first for the UK release, then for the library to add it to stock and then for my reservation to turn up. Tonight it arrived!

Have you read any of these? What did you think of them?

And what did you find in the library this week?

See more Library Loot here.