alcohol-free wine

18 December 2021

Alco-free bubbles: boozing minus hangovers

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BOUGHT a couple of bottles of alcohol-free wine. One a bubbly, the other labelled as a Merlot. Friends and dearly beloveds familiar with my past indiscretions might be worried about my sanity on hearing this news. Wondering if this statement is another piece of  fiction. Or whether years of running have finally taken their toll…. Continue Reading

18 December 2021

Alco-free bubbles: boozing minus hangovers

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alcohol-free wine

BOUGHT a couple of bottles of alcohol-free wine. One a bubbly, the other labelled as a Merlot. Friends and dearly beloveds familiar with my past indiscretions might be worried about my sanity on hearing this news. Wondering if this statement is another piece of  fiction. Or whether years of running have finally taken their toll…. Continue Reading

6 December 2021

Shock to find you’re not who you think you are

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Family history

SHOCKS galore can await those delving into their family history; a fact frequently demonstrated by the fascinating TV series Who Do You Think You Are? The constant theme is that of surprise. The program has a well established record in shattering strongly held beliefs in one’s lineage. Much that was firmly thought to have happened… Continue Reading

2 December 2021

Snowbound Siberia, oligarchs and shamans

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IT has been a while – far too long, in fact – since I was last in the moody company of Arkady Renko, the rebellious investigator who is a perennial thorn in the side of Moscow prosecutor, the devious Zurin. Back then, in 1981, Arkady’s creator, Martin Cruz Smith, was announcing his arrival on the… Continue Reading

30 November 2021

Trigger-happy woke brigade way off target

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WHO would have thought it?  Who in their wildest imaginings would have been prepared for such a sudden assault on their mental processes? Thank goodness, therefore, for those ever-alert guardians of our sensibilities  and weak spots.  The do-gooders who see harm where none exists; and attach needless warnings of  possible injury to the most innocent… Continue Reading

24 November 2021

Lets eat Grandma and to hell with punctuation

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WAR has been declared.  It has long been simmering with spasmodic outbreaks of invective hurled across the Great Grammatical Divide separating the two sides. But now it is out in the open. Apostrophe or no apostrophe, that is the question (as the greatest source of precise English would likely have defined it). It is no… Continue Reading

31 October 2021

So easy to be spooked in these scary times

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BE prepared to be afraid. Very afraid, for these are scary times. There are frighteners everywhere; and that’s not counting the heavy brigade and their standover mates. Those black-clad steroids on legs, eyes permanently hidden behind Ray Bans. The grunters and mumblers  who feature so large not only in real life but also in the bloodier… Continue Reading

28 October 2021

Teen waif a heart-breaker hero of gripping crime tale

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THE joys of reading are many and varied. Too many delights exist to be contained within a strictly defined list. And always they are dependent on time, place, purpose and  numerous further variables. It’s a statement clearly not made to broadcast some newly discovered truth. But uttered in the hope of spreading light into dark… Continue Reading

15 October 2021

Chilling mystery among Sweden’s forest-dwellers

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A BOOK with a cover claiming the contents are “eerie, unnerving and buckets of fun” presents a puzzle before a single page is turned. Unnerving and fun? Such an odd mix. Especially for what is also billed as “a thriller”, and involves “one kidnapping, one liar, one chance”. Where are “the buckets of fun” going … Continue Reading

5 October 2021

Sportswear marketing feasts on a run in the park

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THERE is this bee buzzing around in my bonnet. Very annoying. It’s been there quite some while and is becoming increasingly irritating. Just won’t go away and is so difficult to ignore. It’s called Parkrun. You’ve probably heard of it; a weekly mass display of micro managed outdoor masochism willingly endured by thousands worldwide. Like… Continue Reading

29 September 2021

Bad night’s good for thrill-seeking readers

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IT is one of those titles that says it all. Well, almost. The cover picture of menacing clouds hanging low over the French capital leaves little room for doubt about the content within. Everything is explained in five short words: A Long Night in Paris. And not one of gaiety and revelry such as those… Continue Reading

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