A Good Spy novel

Finding this novel on the shelf was a serendipitous moment. Since I like to read Alan Furst, the modern novelist who writes about World War II Europe, I checked into Eric Ambler, one of the best novelist of World War II who wrote during the war. A prolific writer from England, he was well traveled. He wrote this book, Journey Into Fear in the winter of 1939 at the age of thirty. In Jouney into Fear, an engineer gets caught up in espionage, but is not a professional. His experience as a screenwriter helped with this novel, as I could see the story being a good one for a film. And it was made into a film in 1943 with Joseph Cotton.

Ghost Story

I read Spirit Lost by Nancy Thayer, a ghost story that takes place on Nantucket. Nantucket is Nancy Thayer's hometown and she places many of her novels here in familiar territory. This ghost story isn't based on fact, but I would guess that Nantucket would have its share of ghost stories and haunted houses. The story was fast-paced, with suspense. Characters are interesting and very believable. I especially liked to read about a couple who were committed to their marriage and to the growth of each partner. This is their story of how they take a risk, putting everything out there, for the sake of a dream life, choosing art above material wealth, testing their love and their courage.