1 00:00:07,133 --> 00:00:10,453 Speaker 1: You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack team podcast 2 00:00:10,573 --> 00:00:12,533 Speaker 1: from newstalks'b. 3 00:00:13,453 --> 00:00:15,213 Speaker 2: Just come up to twenty to twelve one news Storks, 4 00:00:15,213 --> 00:00:18,693 Speaker 2: they'd be Katherine Rains book reviewer has her picks for 5 00:00:18,733 --> 00:00:21,613 Speaker 2: this weekend. Get a Catherine, Hello, Jack. Could be a 6 00:00:21,693 --> 00:00:23,933 Speaker 2: very good weekend. I reckon for just parking up on 7 00:00:23,973 --> 00:00:25,733 Speaker 2: the couch with a couple of good reads. And so 8 00:00:25,773 --> 00:00:29,093 Speaker 2: our first for this weekend is The Keeper by Tana French. 9 00:00:30,213 --> 00:00:32,213 Speaker 3: So this is part of a trilogy, and it's actually 10 00:00:32,293 --> 00:00:35,413 Speaker 3: the third part and it follows the trilogy has followed 11 00:00:35,413 --> 00:00:38,213 Speaker 3: this guy, Carl Hooper, who was a retired cargo cop 12 00:00:38,253 --> 00:00:40,653 Speaker 3: and he moved to this very small town at an 13 00:00:40,693 --> 00:00:43,493 Speaker 3: Arkley in Ireland. And you know, he's there because it's 14 00:00:43,533 --> 00:00:46,093 Speaker 3: simple and beautiful and he just wants some peace. And 15 00:00:46,133 --> 00:00:48,213 Speaker 3: of course he's not found a lot of that, apart 16 00:00:48,213 --> 00:00:51,453 Speaker 3: from how beautiful the place is. Instead, he's found himself 17 00:00:51,653 --> 00:00:54,693 Speaker 3: involved in you know the webs of how people work 18 00:00:54,773 --> 00:00:59,813 Speaker 3: in you know, centuries of people thinking and what other 19 00:00:59,853 --> 00:01:03,253 Speaker 3: people think and binding them together in their past. And 20 00:01:03,333 --> 00:01:05,893 Speaker 3: so after the sort of four years he's been there, 21 00:01:05,933 --> 00:01:09,773 Speaker 3: he's built this place for him amongst the townspeople there, 22 00:01:09,813 --> 00:01:12,053 Speaker 3: and he's fixed up his cottage and he's got a dog, 23 00:01:12,173 --> 00:01:15,213 Speaker 3: and he makes craft furniture, and he's engaged to this 24 00:01:15,253 --> 00:01:18,253 Speaker 3: woman called Lena, and he's been mentoring this team called Trey, 25 00:01:18,773 --> 00:01:21,133 Speaker 3: and he's quite well liked in the town. And then 26 00:01:21,213 --> 00:01:25,413 Speaker 3: this young woman, Rachel Hulahan goes missing and she's found 27 00:01:25,413 --> 00:01:28,653 Speaker 3: dead at the river, and the whole town is entangled 28 00:01:28,693 --> 00:01:31,173 Speaker 3: in this, and of course there's more to her death 29 00:01:31,173 --> 00:01:33,973 Speaker 3: than meets the eye. Was it suicide, was it murder? 30 00:01:34,173 --> 00:01:36,813 Speaker 3: Was it an accident? And she herself was about to 31 00:01:36,813 --> 00:01:39,213 Speaker 3: become engaged to this guy, Eugene, who's the son of 32 00:01:39,253 --> 00:01:43,053 Speaker 3: the wealthiest and most influential man in the town, Tommy Mornihan. 33 00:01:43,533 --> 00:01:46,613 Speaker 3: And people in the town are split over their opinions 34 00:01:46,613 --> 00:01:50,533 Speaker 3: and theories and rumors and gossip fly around the town, 35 00:01:50,653 --> 00:01:54,413 Speaker 3: and characters change and opinions change, and there's questionable motives, 36 00:01:54,853 --> 00:01:57,773 Speaker 3: and you get this very authentic environment of the small 37 00:01:57,853 --> 00:02:00,133 Speaker 3: town and you feel the humidity of the fog, and 38 00:02:00,173 --> 00:02:02,573 Speaker 3: you feel like you're in the local pub chatting with 39 00:02:02,613 --> 00:02:05,773 Speaker 3: the locals around the issues. They're never saying exactly what 40 00:02:05,773 --> 00:02:08,413 Speaker 3: they mean, directly saying what's on their mind, and you 41 00:02:08,453 --> 00:02:11,773 Speaker 3: get immersed in this story and wonderful characters, and the 42 00:02:11,853 --> 00:02:14,333 Speaker 3: rumors and the gossip and the friction and the suspicion 43 00:02:14,333 --> 00:02:17,653 Speaker 3: of the locals just adds to this intense part of 44 00:02:17,773 --> 00:02:19,533 Speaker 3: the mystery of what's going on. 45 00:02:19,693 --> 00:02:23,013 Speaker 2: Oh superb Okay, that's The Keeper by Tana French. I've 46 00:02:23,013 --> 00:02:25,373 Speaker 2: got to say I am delighted by the sound of 47 00:02:25,373 --> 00:02:28,013 Speaker 2: your next book for us this morning. The Infinite Sadness 48 00:02:28,053 --> 00:02:30,133 Speaker 2: of Small Appliance is by Glenn Dixon. 49 00:02:31,413 --> 00:02:35,253 Speaker 3: So this is quite a dystopian story, a little bit 50 00:02:35,293 --> 00:02:38,133 Speaker 3: on the cozy side actually, and it's about a bunch 51 00:02:38,173 --> 00:02:42,653 Speaker 3: of household appliances, in particular this very naive and curious 52 00:02:43,133 --> 00:02:47,613 Speaker 3: romba called Scout, and she lives in this comfortable home 53 00:02:47,693 --> 00:02:50,693 Speaker 3: with Harold and Edie, and it's been perfect for raising 54 00:02:50,693 --> 00:02:53,453 Speaker 3: their family, which they've now done and Kate's an adult. 55 00:02:53,853 --> 00:02:57,093 Speaker 3: They're both retired and they're really enjoying their years together. 56 00:02:57,533 --> 00:03:00,853 Speaker 3: But then Edie becomes ill and the small appliances around 57 00:03:00,853 --> 00:03:03,333 Speaker 3: the house start to notice, and they start to try 58 00:03:03,333 --> 00:03:06,773 Speaker 3: and help out more. And despite the circumstance of her 59 00:03:06,813 --> 00:03:09,053 Speaker 3: declining house sort of the first half of the book 60 00:03:09,093 --> 00:03:12,293 Speaker 3: has a very relaxed feel and you kind of the 61 00:03:12,453 --> 00:03:15,773 Speaker 3: appliances are engaging, but you know, apart from Harold struggling 62 00:03:15,773 --> 00:03:18,093 Speaker 3: to come to terms with what's happening with his wife. 63 00:03:18,613 --> 00:03:19,053 Speaker 2: And then the. 64 00:03:18,973 --> 00:03:21,933 Speaker 3: Story progresses a little more and Kate returns home to 65 00:03:22,053 --> 00:03:26,413 Speaker 3: help her dad and through what's going on with Edie, 66 00:03:26,573 --> 00:03:30,213 Speaker 3: and this story actually becomes far more dystopian. And you 67 00:03:30,293 --> 00:03:33,773 Speaker 3: get this into this character, this overseeing entity called the Grid, 68 00:03:33,813 --> 00:03:36,373 Speaker 3: and it's monitoring the home and the inhabitants and these 69 00:03:36,453 --> 00:03:40,413 Speaker 3: human feelings, and the appliances quickly figure out that the 70 00:03:40,493 --> 00:03:43,093 Speaker 3: overage and Grid won't let Harol and his appliance has 71 00:03:43,093 --> 00:03:45,653 Speaker 3: stayed together in this house, and they're trying to keep 72 00:03:45,693 --> 00:03:48,613 Speaker 3: their humans happy and cared for. And you get multiple 73 00:03:48,613 --> 00:03:50,653 Speaker 3: points of view that include lots of humans and a 74 00:03:50,733 --> 00:03:53,853 Speaker 3: very spark vacuum cleaner of course, which is Scout, And 75 00:03:53,893 --> 00:03:57,013 Speaker 3: there's quirky and it's a very touching read and it 76 00:03:57,093 --> 00:04:00,813 Speaker 3: makes you think about things, particularly things like II And 77 00:04:00,853 --> 00:04:03,333 Speaker 3: then every time you call for Alexa or Google to 78 00:04:03,333 --> 00:04:05,733 Speaker 3: do something that's very personalized for you, it certainly make 79 00:04:05,733 --> 00:04:07,293 Speaker 3: you think about it. After you've read this book. 80 00:04:07,333 --> 00:04:10,373 Speaker 2: Oh very good. Okay, this sounds fun The Infinite Sadness 81 00:04:10,373 --> 00:04:13,333 Speaker 2: of Small Appliances by Glenn Dixon. Catherine's first book is 82 00:04:13,373 --> 00:04:16,093 Speaker 2: The Keeper by Tana French. All the deats are, of course, 83 00:04:16,133 --> 00:04:18,053 Speaker 2: at newstorksb dot co dot nz. 84 00:04:18,893 --> 00:04:22,013 Speaker 1: For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame, listen live 85 00:04:22,093 --> 00:04:25,373 Speaker 1: to Newstalks EDB from nine am Saturday, or follow the 86 00:04:25,413 --> 00:04:26,813 Speaker 1: podcast on iHeartRadio