Fabulous new folk

This Wednesday Rachael and I went to the Lincoln Drill Hall (a great little venue with a nice atmosphere and very friendly staff - exactly the sort of place I like to visit to see live music theses days!) to see the marvellous Jim Moray in concert.

Initially prompted by the fact that a colleague from work's band - No Funk No Soul - was one of the support acts, I was absolutely delighted with the quality of the music and we had a thoroughly entertaining evening. The first performer, Lincolnshire singer-songwriter Abi Moore, played a half-hour set of piano and guitar songs, and her strong, emotive voice was highly impressive. Reminiscent of Sarah McLachlan and Jann Arden, I can certainly see myself adding some of her music to my collection in the future.

No Junk No Soul followed up with a dramatic change of pace and volume. Comprised of drums, bass, and a keyboard-playing vocalist with an impressive voice, they have been gigging throughout Lincolnshire and the rest of the UK for some time now, and are regarded as one of the county's hottest new bands. For my tastes and , I suspect, most of the audience, half of their set - where they were at their more melodic - was impressive and original; whilst the remainder were somewhat chaotic and disjointed. Rach and I both also felt that, as is so often the case with young bands, they fell into the trap of trying to be too loud. Because when they weren't trying too hard to rock, they were very good indeed.

The main event proved to be every bit as good as expeted. Jim Moray has won numerous awards for his innovative, alternative take on traditional English folk music, and it's easy to see why. The music was a captivating blend of guitars, keyboards, fiddle and accordion, the arrangements were at times beautiful and at times interesting and challenging, and Moray's soaring vocals have a way of slicing right through the listener. Add to the musical talent a quiet charisma with which he links his songs, and you have a captivating show that was an absolute steal at only 6 quid a ticket! I'll definitely be investing in a Jim Moray CD in the future, and if you enjoy modern folk or folk-based alternative singer-songwriters, then I think you should too.

Life after...

It's rare these days for me to become so engrossed in a TV series that I make a special effort to see it each week. For me, the golden age of TV was the early to mid nineties, when I wouldn't have dreamt of missing an episode of Friends, Frasier, Buffy or Angel, Star Trek DS9 or Quantum Leap, and was almost as likely to be found watching The X-Files or Hercules the Legendary Journeys! In recent years, few series have managed to hold my attention, and even when they do I find that US series have so many episodes and rely on you following an arc plotline throughout the season in order to make sense of them, that I end up buying the DVD instead so I can watch them in my own time (like the splendid new Battlestar Galactica, or 24, and potentially Lost when I get around to it!).

But ITV1 have just started showing season 2 of their brilliant supernatural drama afterlife on Saturday nights, and it'd take something pretty damn exciting to get me out of the house for the next few weeks (us Brits tend to go for a much shorter run, though, so at least I won't be spending half a year of Saturday nights glued to the TV!).

There is so much to commend in this show, from it's subtle and understated use of effects to it's surprising plot twists and excellent dialogue, but the highest praise must go to the performances of the two leads. Lesley Sharp as troubled medium Alison, and Andrew Lincoln as professionally sceptical psychology lecturer Robert, are both utterly convincing and compelling. Because of them, this is a great drama series that just happens of have a fantastical premise, and to anyone even remotely interested in ghost stories I can't recommend afterlife highly enough.

Recent reads

Tokyo by Mo Hayder

I was intrigued by this book partly because it promised to paint an informative picture of a city that I'd love one day to visit, and also because of it's exploration of a major historic event that I have no real knowledge of. That event was the Japanese invasion of China in 1937, and the circumstances surrounding the massacre of Chinese civillians in the then capital city of Nanking. Aside from reading JG Ballard's brilliant semi-autobiographical account of the occupation of Shanghai whilst at school - Empire of the Sun - I know next to nothing about this area of history.

The book itself runs two stories in parallel - the first-hand account of a Chinese man who witnessed the events in the most personal way possible, and the modern-day adventures of a young woman obsessed with uncovering the truth about what really happened. She manages to make contact with the man, now a Professor in a Japanese university, and sets about persuading him to show her the film which she believes he possesses, and which allegedly shows in shocking detail the behaviour of Japanese officers during the invasion.

It is written in an engaging and highly readable style, and although I found the early section to be rather slow-paced, once I was about a third of the way through I was engrossed. It's an interesting and thought-provoking piece of historical fiction and speculation, and although I didn't come away from it feeling like I knew the city of Tokyo in any meaningful way (the US title The Devil of Nanking would seem more appropriate), I certainly felt that I'd been told a fascinating story, with enough of a twist at the end to make me gasp out loud!

*

Labyrinth by Kate Mosse

Don't be misled into thinking that this "grail gripper" bears any relation whatsoever to Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code. Aside from it's basing it's plot around a theoretical explanation of the grail legend, there are no further similarities between Brown's basically-written cinematic pageturner and this long and complex tale which (much as Tokyo does) runs a modern and a historical plotline in tandem.

In the modern day we follow Alice, an enthusiastic amateur archaeologist who uncovers a hidden cave and is rapidly drawn into an intricate web of treacherous scheming, ancient legends and dangerous people. Simultaneously we hear the tale of Alaïs (the similarity of name is no coincidence!), a strong-willed young woman living in early thirteenth century Carcassonne in southern France.

Once again I found the regular switches between time periods to slow the pace early on, and the novel was difficult to get into. I also found the writing to be trying a little too hard at times, as if the author was determined to distance herself as much as possibly from Brown's ideal-for-the-train-or-the-plane potboiler, whilst at the same time clearly capitalising on it's thematic popularity. But again, having taken the time to get to know the characters and their respective stories, I found it to be an entertaining read, and an interesting spin on the history and legends of the grail, although it was a little lacking in drama and excitement for my tastes.

(for anyone interested in exploring further the history of the novel and the writer's research and process of writing it, the dedicated website is well wirth a look).

Time for a change

I've been accessing my emails to my long-serving Wanadoo address via webmail since moving to Lincoln, and aside from the slightly cumbersome interface it's been fine. But a couple of weeks ago I found that my access had been inexplicably denied. Calling a friendly someone in Asia revealed that Orange don't offer technical help to webmail users, and so I emailed them instead. Having still not received a reply over a week later, I've decided to take the plunge and finally change my email address (after using the same one for pretty much all of my 12 or so years online!).

So, if you've sent me an email in the past 2 weeks I won't have got it. And if you want to you can forward anything you have sent or any new stuff to brentfalconer@yahoo.co.uk until I set up a new one on GMail.

And to everyone who's been spamming me on my old address, I can only raise my thumb to my nose, wiggle my fingers and say nanananana!

el Camino de Santiago

Wulf and Magnus have recently returned from their walk along the pilgrim's trail in Spain, and have published some excellent photos of the trip. I particularly like Wulf's pictures of Magnus' shadow in the dusty track, the view through the spiderweb, and the newborn calf with it's mother, and Magnus' one of sunlight shining through the trees.

I'm looking forward to hearing all about the trip in the near future!

Babywatch update

Last Friday Rachael and I went to the hospital for another scan on baby Arthur (though we have now pencilled in our favourite boy and girl names - Samuel Lucas or Ella Jean - we are still referring to the ever-growing bump as Arthur!).

Everything was absolutely fine, and the sonographer was excellent, explaining in great detail what we were seeing and answering all of our questions. We saw our baby grabbing hold of it's little feet, and even got to hear the heartbeat, strong and fast and one of those moments you know you'll never forget. There have already been so many of those along the road to parentlhood, and we're only on week 25!

We've also been decorating the nursery, and it's now painted white with a lovely white cot and curtains - we decided to go for a simple and elegant white look, with the colour and personality coming from the toys and pictures and things that we're already filling the room with (thanks to the generosity of our friends and family in the UK and the Netherlands!).

Loss of faith

Faithless by Karin Slaughter

This is the fifth of the author's Grant County series of forensic crime novels, set in smalltown Georgia, though it's my first. Each of the books seems to bear a dramatic cover image depicting one or other type of distorted iconography (in this case a burning cross), whichI think is misleading as it gives the impression that what you'll find inside is a much darker and more horrific story than is actually there. The quite from the Daily Mirror - "Brutal and Chilling" - is similarly OTT.

What you will find if you read Faithless is a nicely written crime drama, with a focus more on the complex lives and relationships of the principle characters - the county Coroner, her Chief of Police ex-husband, and a troubled detective - than on the gruesome details of the central crime of the murderby burial of a young girl. It's a very easy read, well-plotted and with a satisfying denouement. And I didn't feel as if I needed to have read the earlier books in the series in order to enjoy it, though I would guess that a better understanding of previous events in their lives would enhance the reading of this book.

The "faithless" element comes from the pivotal role in the developing drama of a farm run by a devout religious group, the depiction of which relies a lot on the sort of fear, mistrust, and negative stereotyping that such institutions tend to be burdened with these days. To me it seemed somewhat of an obvious target.

Overall, I'd recommend Karin Slaughter to anyone who enjoys modern crime fiction but without the forensic detail you might find in Patricia Cornwell or Kathy Reichs. For my tastes, I still prefer the older style of crime fiction, where there is more emphasis on the puzzle element of the mystery.

Quality space adventure

The Warrior's Apprentice by Lois McMaster Bujold

This is the first of the author's Miles Naismith Vorkosigan Saga books to feature her popular hero (though there are others in the series which are set earlier and feature his parents, as well as helping to flesh out the complex political and intergalactic backdrop against which the adventures of the irrepressible Miles are played out).

It's clear early on it this novel that Bujold is a gifted storyteller and accomplished writer. Her characters are quirky and compelling, and their adventures are skillfully told. And no-one is more intriguing than Miles himself. Left stunted and with brittle bones by a terrorist chemical attack on his pregnant mother, Miles has grown up with the sharpest of minds and and ability to wing it in the tightest of spots that at times defies belief. Yet despite us being witness to repeated examples of his outstanding abilities and almost equally outstanding good fortune, it's impossible not to like him.

The writing style is smooth and fluent, the dialogue snappy and at times witty, and the tale manages to encompass action, adventure, comedy, political intrigue, and tragedy, with the result that the book rattles along at a good pace without ever seeming hurried. It was over before I knew it and I found myself looking through my collection for the couple of others in the series that I knew I had but hadn't yet read. And it's not too sciencey, and so would be a suitable read for fans of intelligent adventure stories but who generally avoid sf that is overly technical. Highly recommended.

At the sign of the Cross Keys

Since moving to Lincoln, Rachael and I have been steadily trying out the local restaurants, both in Lincoln itself and in the surrounding villages. Of those that we've sampled, the two that have stood out from the crowd so far are a splendid though daft-named Thai restaurant at the Brayford in Lincoln - called Thai One On! - and the excellent Cross Keys Inn at Stow (just a mile up the road from us in Sturton by Stow).

The Cross Keys menu is rather more than typical pub food, and although the range of goodies on offer is reflected in the prices (main courses will set you back between £12-£18), the quality and size of the portions produced by the friendly and efficient staff make that more than worthwhile. As well as eating there a few times ourselves, we've also taken a few friends there as well and as yet no-one has gone home unhappy (or hungry!). And the desserts are so good that I haven't yet dared sample a starter for fear of running out of room.

They also have some interesting beers on tap, incluing Old Speckled Hen, Theakstons Old Peculiar, and Sunburst.

Aside from it's impressive Saxon church, there really is nothing else in Stow itself. But if you're visiting the Lincoln area and looking for good food in a relaxed pub setting, you could do a lot worse than the Cross Keys Inn.

Historical Lincoln

This weekend Rich came to visit us in Lincoln, and on Saturday we took a walk up Steep Hill and spent some time at the Cathedral and Castle.

We walked around the spectacular Cathedral, which included admiring the statue of Alfred Lord Tennyson and complaining at the 1970s tenement-style Lincoln Hotel which looks so out of place in this most pisturesque part of the city. Inside, we only spent time at the front, not being prepared to fork out the £4 full admission price (but I'll definitely be doing the full tour soon, not because the Cathedral was used in the Da Vinci Code movie but because it houses a school book from 1410 that includes the first recorded rhyme about Robin Hood!). And it was enough time in which to be awed by the beauty and scale of the building, and wonder at the skills of it's medieval construction workers! (most of it was constructed in the 13th century - astonishing!).

On the opposite side of the market square we did, however, pay to enter the Castle. Built by William the Conqueror a couple of years after the Battle of Hastings, it's a wonderful place and looked absolutely stunning in the bright July sun. I've uploaded some photos from the day to my Flickr account, including the one you can see here.

To anyone visiting the city I'd say the Castle is a must-see. It's the home of one of only 4 remaining original Magna Carta documents, which is a beautiful and hugely impressive artefact. And the view from the Observatory Tower has to be the best in the whole of Lincolnshire.

Babywatch update

Arthur is now kicking regularly, and continuing to move around like a wriggly little bugger!

And we've started collecting baby gear, wherever there are special offers! Soon it'll be time to get to work on the spare room, and make it into a nursery.

X3

X-Men - The Last Stand

We were a bit late in getting to see the third X-Men movie, but it was well worth the wait. Feeling very much like the third part of a mini-series rather than a separate movie in it's own right, as it continues to have at it's heart the struggle for mutant rights as fought from different perspectives by Professor Xavier's X-Men and Xavier's old friend Magneto. I have the feeling that, seen on it's own without the benefit of the earlier episodes, some of it might not make much sense.

But then again, I often wonder how much sense superhero movies make to those who don't have at least a passing familiarity with the original comics. But as with any literary adaptation, not being a hardcore fan is usually an advantage. Never having been a massive comic fan myself - though I enjoy graphic novels immensely, and have read comics sporadically for years, much of my knowledge of Marvel's cast of characters comes from owning and playing superhero roleplaying games as a teenager - I'm not particularly precious about the characters or the stories that inspired this story. I gather that if I were, then I'd not be too impressed with the liberties that have been taken with the Phoenix saga, one of the best-loved tales in the X-Men history.

That quibble aside, it's a terrific all-action movie that looks and sounds fantastic. The principle characters behave much more like their comic-book counterparts - Storm is much more formidable, and Wolverine is genuinely ferocious in combat - the new characters add something interesting to the mix (especially Angel and Vinny Jones' turn as Juggernaut) it builds to a massive set-piece finale, and there's even a bit of a twist at the end (two twists, if you stay until after the credits have rolled!) that just about leaves the door open for a fourth movie, should the producers perceive the demand to still be there.

They're not as good as the Spiderman movies, to my mind. But I'd certainly go and see another if they do make it, though I'd like to see them try an entirely different storyline if they do.

Useful advice

As anyone who's been to any of my homes in the past few years will have noticed, I like to keep an interesting book in the "smallest room" - to keep myself and guests amused during any extended stays! (like, err, when having a bath!)

Most recently, the bathroom book has been Guy Browning's Never Hit a Jellyfish With a Spade, which anyone who's been in a bookshop in the run-up to Christmas will have seen amongst the piles of humour titles publishers try to flog us at our most vulnerable time of the year. It's a collection of his "How to..." column from the weekend Guardian (there's also a sequel - Never Push When it Says Pull - which has now taken it's place!), and it's a bounty of absolutely hilarious observations on everything from love and marriage to how to have a shed.

A strong breeze

When the Wind Blows by James Patterson

The second book of his that I've read, although rather than being an Alex Cross story like Roses are Red this one is a stand-alone with somewhat of an sf leaning (thus nudging it right into my territory!).

Written in Patterson's trademark short, sharp chapters and effortlessly pacy style, this is a thoroughly engrossing story that gets it's hooks into you right from the start (again, a typical Patterson characterisitc - if you like an author who gets straight into the nitty gritty of the story and doesn't keep you hanging on for hundreds of pages while they set the scene and build the characters, then look no further).

The story itself concerns a rogue FBI agent and a Colorado vet who find themselves drawn into a conspiracy surrounding secret biological experiements that could mean the next step in human evolution has arrived (which is the sf bit, and Patterson manages to convey the science with great conviction and credibility). The basic premise is an intriguing one (not entirely dissimilar to some of the ideas explored by John Wyndham in The Chrysalids and The Midwich Cuckoos, though the style is very different!), the characters are nicely drawn, and the story moves on at such a cracking page-turning rate that I found myself reluctant to put it down and when I did I looked forward to picking it up again.

If you're looking for a highly readable thriller with a bit of a difference, then this is highly recommended. And in the meantime, I'll be looking out for the sequel - The Lake House.

The Not So Beautiful Game

And so at long last the World Cup is over, and those of us who found ourselves watching far more of it than we originally intended are faced with the thorny question - what did we do with our time before it started?!

All in all it was a very disappointing tournament, characterised by indiferent performances from most of the star players, negative play from pretty much all of the teams (with the surprising exception of the Germans) - the popularity of the one-striker formation and overriding fear of being beaten taking precedence over the primary aim of the game, to score goals! With most games from the Quarter Finals onwards decided by penalties.

And the most disappointing aspect of the tournament by far? The lack of sportsmanship exhibited by highly-paid, supposedly professional footballers, as they writhe in feigned agony having sustained imaginary injuries, or do their best to try and persuade the officials to punish their opponents and brandish phantom red cards. Epitomised by England's nemesis, Portugal, both in their match and in the previous round against the Dutch.

It's an unfortunate situation, and it's getting worse. The solution, however, is deceptively simple. The governing body have the power to penalise these millionnaire players after the games have finished, but they don't do it and so the play-acting and poor sportsmanship continues. And the knock-on effect is that impressionable young players grow up following the example of their idols.....

Almost 25cms!

Today is officially the halfway point in Rachael's pregnancy! We have our 20-week scan on Wednesday, and like most people I know who've had children we don't want to know the sex of the bump we've come to know as Arthur (after the Dudley Moore character in Rach's favourite film!). Actual choices of baby name have yet to be made (or even come close to being made!).

I'm so excited I can't even find the words!!!!!

Book Report - Ghost From the Grand Banks

Ghost From the Grand Banks by Arthur C Clarke

A short, not-too-sciencey novel from the master sf storyteller, a later work (1989) that still has his trademark readability and is bursting with fascinating detail and scientific tidbits, but which is somewhat lacking in it's plotting.

It's the story of a 100th anniversary attempt to raise the Titanic, and the backstories of the principal characters are nicely drawn and engaging. But the disappointing thing about this novel is the way the story just peters out to nothing at the end, leaving a rather empty feeling and a sense of "is that it?"

What makes it a worthwhile book, though is the information on one of Clarke's favourite topics, the Mandelbrot Set. A truly remarkable mathematical phenomenon, it's definitely worth checking out and isn't too difficult to grasp even for those without a great deal of mathematical training.

Costolette di Maiale con Salvia

That's the delicious pork chops with sage recipe that Wulf made when Rachael and I visited him and Jane a couple of weeks ago, and which he kindly posted on his website so that we could have a bash at it ourselves without buying Jamie's Italy!

We used dried rather than fresh sage, and had no prosciutto or pancetta, but the end result was still lovely - in particular the fruitiness of the apricot gives it a really interesting tang which we loved - and the flavour of the potatoes cooked under the meat was fabulous. Definitely a few tips that can be adapted to other dishes in the way this recipe works.

And while I'm on the subject of cooking - how weird is it that saturday morning TV, for so long the province of kids shows (I was more of a Going Live and Saturday Superstore guy, too young for Swap Shop and too sensible for Tiswas!) is now dominated by cookery progs?! Both of the main terrestrial channels now show live cookery magazine shows on Saturday mornings, which means Rachael and I are finding it increasingly difficult to get up at the start of the weekend and do anything other than gather recipe ideas!