Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor

There is just too much to chose from in the library so I like to make my life easier by narrowing my selection down to one of two areas. When I first arrive I look at the new publications on the shelves opposite the doors and then, if I don't find anything there, I move onto the Recommends table right in front. There are not many weeks when I can't find anything of interest from those selections and it helps to have a little nudge in the right direction.

I was attracted to this one as there were three big piles of it on the Recommends table and I assume they were expecting a lot of interest. Although it is billed as an International Bestseller, I hadn't heard of it but the theme must have something going for it as this one is the first in a series of eleven.

The theme is history, and you need to bring to mind the styles of Jurassic Park and Indiana Jones where modern day lives crash into ancient history. The series is called The Chronicles of St Mary's and St Mary's is an organisation that has discovered the secret to re-visiting the past in order to clarify some of the finer points of history. The team consists of historians, technicians, medics, security, research and development, and IT and everyone runs around in an atmosphere of uncontrolled mayhem trying to bring the facts to the present day.

Jodi Taylor has a smart and witty writing style, and knows just how much of that a reader can take. There have been many times when I have a read a comedic book and just got plain irritated by the laboured jokes long before I got to the last page. This time the one-liners enhance the characters and the 'leading lady' Dr Madeleine Maxwell is brave, imaginative and subversive enough to have you rooting for her as her team lurches from one near disaster to another.

I very much enjoyed this and would be happy to read more as I can't help but think that Jodi Taylor will keep the books interesting all through the series. There is certainly no shortage of history out there so plenty of material to go on.

Comments

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