Book 5

The Chilbury Ladies' Choir by Jennifer Ryan

As England becomes enmeshed in the early days of World War II and the men are away fighting, the women of Chilbury village forge an uncommon bond.  They defy the vicar's stuffy edict to close the choir and instead "carry on singing," resurrecting themselves as the Chilbury Ladies' Choir.  This story tells the home-front struggles of five unforgettable choir members: a timid widow devastated when her only son goes to fight; the older daughter of a local scion drawn to a mysterious artist; her younger sister pining over an impossible crush; a Jewish refugee from Czechoslovakia hiding a family secret; and a conniving midwife plotting to outrun her seedy past.

I enjoyed this book although a lot of it was very predictable.  It is written as a series of letters and diary entries by different characters in the story.  Through these letters and diary entries we see how the women in the village change and grow.  They seem to draw strength from one another.  For the most part the men are away at war and so it is left to the women to step up and take charge.  Easy reading.
Edit: Somehow this post ended up in my drafts and it should be dated sometime in March.

Books 6-7

The Little Old Lady who Broke All the Rules 
by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg

Martha Anderson may be seventy-nine years old and live in a retirement home, but that doesn't mean she's ready to stop enjoying life.  When the new management starts cutting corners to save money, it's the final straw in a life of early bedtimes and lost independence.  Martha and her four closest friends-Brains, Rake, Christina and Anna-Greta (a.k.a. the League of Pensioners)-decide to take a stand for seniors everywhere.  Their solution?  White-collar crime.  What begins as a relatively straightforward robbery of a nearby luxury hotel quickly escalates.  With police baffled and the mafia hot on their trail, the delinquent League of Pensioners has to stay one walker's length ahead if it's going to succeed.

The Little Old Lady Strikes Again 

by Catharina Ingleman-Sundberg

Martha Anderson may be seventy-nine years old, but she and her friends aren't afraid to break the rules.  Six months after making it onto Sweden's Most Wanted list, they're ready to continue their life of crime somewhere new.

In Vegas. they hatch a plot to outwit the security system at one of the city's biggest casinos.  However they aren't the only ones planning to steal bucket loads of cash.

They soon find themselves pitted against a gang of younger robbers with their own criminal plans.  Will the League of Pensioners be able to outsmart them and get away with its biggest heist yet?

These two books are both on the same lines.  Several robberies, different place, different items.  They are quite funny and extremely far fetched.  Maybe the League of Pensioners are every OAP's dream.  They get up to all kinds of silly antics and, of course, always come out on top but maybe not with the intended outcomes every time.  Very light reads.  Apparently there is a third book coming out-The Little old Lady Behaving Badly which I will probably read to find out what else they get up to!!