English Passengers | Matthew Kneale

I  have mixed feelings about this book. There is no doubt that is well written and that there  was a lot of research prior to writing the story, but...
The basic outline is that of a group of English passengers who charter a ship to sail from England to Tasmania in the 1800's determined to prove that the Garden of Eden was actually in Tasmania not the Middle East. The captain of the ship is involved in smuggling goods in his tailor made ship with secret compartments. And the third group in the story are the Aboriginal people who are invaded and subjugated by the colonials throughout Australia.
The story is told chapter by chapter by characters in the various groups and others (like the Governor's wife) who has a few chapters when the Governor is involved in the narrative.  The pace and voice of each chapter reflects the narrator and this got a bit tedious after 200-300 pages. It was like going over speed bumps when you just wanted to know what was going to happen next.
Although I think it's a good novel to have read, I don't think it will appeal to a lot of readers who would find it hard to keep going, especially through the mid section which is very slow. Could have been a shorter novel, and still told a very intriguing story.

A beautiful place to die | Malla Nunn

The first of the Emmanuel Cooper series, I was eager to see if I was onto another good crime series. Set in South Africa it encompasses many complex issues: apartheid, land ownership, white vs white conflicts  forbidden love, corruption...A bit of everything.

I have travelled in Africa and recognised the landscapes beautifully described by Nunn. The story has pace and kept me interested. I haven't read any more in the series but will try and get to it sometime soon. Not sure it has the stamina to reinvent itself sustainably as so many issues were touched upon in this novel. Will give it a try, the writing is great.

The Redbreast | Jo Nesbo

Nesbo is a crime writer of renown, no need to introduce him and his 10 or so crime novels. A few years ago I started reading crime novels as a break from 'real' reading. Even though I read them quickly and don't expect a lot from them, I try and find authors who can actually write well and tell a story.
I find Nesbo to be inventive and spinner of a good yarn. This one took about a third of the book to really get into the story but then it was easy to get hooked. This one and The Snowman are my two pick of his novels.
Set in Oslo, with Harry Hole as flawed main detective, we have two stories threaded through the book. One is set in WW2 where Norwegian soldiers defect and fight for the Germans. And in modern day a security assignment goes horribly wrong and implicates Hole.
A very specific kind of sniper amo is found in a forest and the rifle traced to an old man...There is a Neo-Nazi element in Oslo underworld who seem to be involved as well. The novel is written as a clever puzzle and kept my attention to the end.

The Snowman is another Nesbo worth reading. It involves, among other things, a snowman. You will never innocently look at a snowman again.