Reading: Returning to Favorite Fiction Series

Plus, a brief chance to run in warm weather

This newsletter has been mostly about running so I thought I would focus a bit on the reading half for a change.

I spend a good chunk of my free time reading (and running hence the title of this Substack) but I get in a funk sometimes when nothing seems to click or grab my attention. When this happens I frequently wander around the living room look at my fiction book collection trying to see if a book will jump out at me as something that might break through the funk. Or I will see something at the library and grab it just to change things up.

Recently, I decided that one way that might break this spell was returning to some of my favorite series. The idea of following a character or setting over the course of multiple books appealed to me. Plus, I needed fiction that would hold my attention but not require serious concentration (I have lots of non-fiction for that).

Bernard Samson and a Return to the Cold War

The most successful or these choices was the Bernard Samson series of novel from Len Deighton. Wikipedia:

Samson is a middle-aged and somewhat jaded intelligence officer working for the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) – usually referred to as "the Department" in the novels. He is a central character in three trilogies written by Deighton, set in the years 1983–1988, with a large gap between 1984 and 1987. The first trilogy comprises the books Berlin Game, Mexico Set and London Match, the second comprises Spy Hook, Spy Line and Spy Sinker, and the third and final trilogy comprises Faith, Hope and Charity.

I was a huge fan of Deighton in college and just after graduation (the late eighties and nineties). I had a job as a security guard at a museum and so had lots of time to read. I would fly through espionage novels.

In October of last year I started with Berlin Game. I had a challenge finding these in eBook format so I could read them on my Kindle which is my preferred format before bed. I listened to Mexico Set on audiobook. For the rest of the series I either checked out the hardback from the library or read an eBook vie Libby (Kindle) or Hoopla (iPad).

I very much enjoyed returning to the world of Bernard Samson and Len Deighton's espionage thrillers. Deighton was a master of the form and Samson is a great character. The Cold War itself, as well as cities like Berlin, London, Mexico City, and Warsaw, are characters as well. It feels like time travel in some sense not only revisiting the series but the Cold War and my earlier enjoyment of them.

A series like this allows you to get to know the characters and their relationships and see how they play out across time. They aren't action thrillers but the tension get ratcheted up and you find yourself reading furtively to get to the end, only to want to pick up the next book and dive in again. It was just what I needed.

Poke Rafferty and the Underside of Thailand

The other series I returned to was the Poke Rafferty novels by Timothy Hallinan.

In this critically acclaimed thriller series set in Thailand, American writer Poke Rafferty lives in Bangkok with his unlikely family—his Thai wife, Rose, who is a former Patpong bar girl; and their adoptive daughter, Miaow, who was only recently rescued from streetlife. The happy family is rocked by their three separate (and often dangerous) histories.

I first started reading this series in 2007 and really liked it. This reread, however, didn’t go quite as well to start.

Here is what I posted on Goodreads about A Nail Through the Heart:

Decided to reread the Poke Rafferty Series because I am behind by like three books but haven't read the series in years. I enjoyed the re-read but it didn't feel quite the same. Not sure if it is my mood, my age, or something else but they didn't click in quite the same way. Not sure if it is the darkness and ugliness of Bangkok or what but I didn't get sucked into the story like I did in 2007. But perhaps that is understandable having already read a great many books in the series.

Like the Samson novels, Poke Rafferty is a great character and so is the setting. Hallinan keeps the story moving even as he develops the characters and gives you a glimpse into the complex world of Thailand and its people.

I think the issue with my rereading of first two or three books was the darkness of the sex trade and lives of its victims in Thailand. When I first decided to revisit the series I just wasn’t in the mood for the trauma and ugliness of this world and the knowledge of its reality even today.

Now, its not like the Cold War is a cheery beach read, but the tone and style were different. Deighton and Samson are more cynical and sarcastic, as befits noir, and that seemed to work for me. I finished the Samson novels but have four of the nine Poke Rafferty books to go. But, I have not read these four books. So these will be a first time read not a re-read. I am getting to a rhythm with Poke and his family and am interested in how the series progresses from here.

I recommend both series and really anything by either author. Great series with great characters. Good for reads on dark cold nights as we head toward Spring.

Contrasting Runs

The marathon training has not stopped and things are ramping up. I now have seven or eight miles midweek to go with my long runs on Saturday. I am building up to a 22K (13.67 miles) on Sunday, February 16 and then it get serious from there (15, 15, 18, 20!) …

On Monday it reached 60 degrees! As I noted in my last email, I ran with a group and was able to demo some Brooks shoes. But as I was running I was marveling at the feeling of running without gloves or bulky clothes and ear coverings, etc. It was fun. It has been so cold lately that I had forgotten the joy of running in weather that was neither cold nor hot but just comfortable.

On Wednesday reality returned with temps in the 30s and “feels like” in the 20s. My hands were cold at first but I wore some SmartWool socks I got for Christmas that kept my feet warm which was nice. After the first three or four miles of a seven mile run I finally started to warm up and felt good the last few miles even as it began to rain and soon turning to sleet.

I expect similar weather for my long run on Saturday. I am just hoping it isn’t icy. This morning my driveway was a skating rink.

Nest time I think I might talk more about shoes. One of my favorite subjects.