Time to read the old favourites and find new ones

I have so much more time to read at the moment that I am trying to stretch out what I haven't read yet and pick a few favourites from way back. It's nice to have a TBR pile next to my bed but I have nearly got to the end of it now and while searching for new stuff, I like to relax with someone that I have enjoyed before and know I will enjoy again. It's like visiting old friends. If I'm feeling particularly vulnerable, I choose Jane Austen. My favourite of hers is Emma followed by Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion. But with the exception of Northanger Abbey, I love all her writing. She was witty and perceptive and her characters are very true to life.

If I'm in the mood for something a bit different, I read Eric Ambler's novels. He is probably forgotten nowadays and yet, in my opinion, he was a great thriller writer. I have just finished A Kind of Anger and I still admire his story-telling and the plot. The next Ambler on my list is The Nightcomers - I have the American version and the title the U.S. publisher used was State of Siege. Either way, it is another Ambler classic - the ordinary not very virtuous guy gets caught up in a situation which he has to find a way to deal with. An interesting thing for writers who like to learn from others is Ambler's use of smell to make a character even more sinister. In one of his thrillers, the bad guy's cologne smells of "attar of roses", those being the days when aftershave was not so much used, although I suppose if it were a modern story, any brand of cologne would be as effective. Somehow, this scent conveys a sense of menace which it is hard to define.

Currently, I have started re-reading The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsythe. Again, this is a masterpiece in suspense. I believe he had some difficulties in getting it published because everyone knows that Charles de Gaulle was not assassinated. However, the sheer skill of his writing and his background knowledge of international police workings interwoven with historical figures, has made this a classic.

If all that has not made me give up and put the quill back in the goose, I shall do some work on my current crime novel in the Sergeant Alan Murray series. I have been struggling with parts and problems of the plot but yesterday when I was out walking, something clicked into place and now I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and get going again.

To writers everywhere, I wish you inspiration and to readers, lots of fun reading those stories.