Difference between revisions of "Newest Historical Fiction Reviews"
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| + | |author= William Sutton | ||
| + | |title= Lawless and the Flowers of Sin | ||
| + | |rating= 4 | ||
| + | |genre= Crime (Historical) | ||
| + | |summary= Much of this book centres on, as we are accustomed to in tales of Victorian London, dastardly deeds done on a foggy night. Indeed the fog runs thick through this novel, draping the seedy events in a soupy broth of vice. Our hero, Lawless, rather ironically, is that most rare of birds, an honest detective, although as we learn he, himself, is not without his vices. What becomes clear however is that he is something of a social crusader when his eyes are opened to the misery and degradation faced by 'fallen' women. At its heart, the Flowers of Sin is a detective story, with Lawless given an impossible task to complete alongside solving a seemingly impossible crime. Along the way he meets a rag tag bunch of misfits who help, hurt and hinder our hero. There is romance and intrigue along the way as well as a sensational public trial, murder and episodes of mayhem. | ||
| + | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>1785650114</amazonuk> | ||
| + | }} | ||
{{newreview | {{newreview | ||
|author=Toby Clements | |author=Toby Clements | ||
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|summary=As the 200th anniversary of Charlotte Brontë's birth approaches, it is a perfect time for reading about her. Philip Dent's second novel chooses a lesser known period of her life to dramatize. All her siblings are now dead; during a hard winter when she is unable to visit her best friend, Ellen Nussey, Charlotte spends her time finishing ''Villette'', her final novel. The family servant, Tabby, ribs Charlotte about her romantic prospects – including Patrick Brontë's curate, Arthur Bell Nicholls. Charlotte responds with indignation: 'I could no more kiss the lips of a man with a beard as big as rooks' nests than I could yours, Tabby.' | |summary=As the 200th anniversary of Charlotte Brontë's birth approaches, it is a perfect time for reading about her. Philip Dent's second novel chooses a lesser known period of her life to dramatize. All her siblings are now dead; during a hard winter when she is unable to visit her best friend, Ellen Nussey, Charlotte spends her time finishing ''Villette'', her final novel. The family servant, Tabby, ribs Charlotte about her romantic prospects – including Patrick Brontë's curate, Arthur Bell Nicholls. Charlotte responds with indignation: 'I could no more kiss the lips of a man with a beard as big as rooks' nests than I could yours, Tabby.' | ||
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>178589093X</amazonuk> | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>178589093X</amazonuk> | ||
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Revision as of 09:38, 13 July 2016
Lawless and the Flowers of Sin by William Sutton
Much of this book centres on, as we are accustomed to in tales of Victorian London, dastardly deeds done on a foggy night. Indeed the fog runs thick through this novel, draping the seedy events in a soupy broth of vice. Our hero, Lawless, rather ironically, is that most rare of birds, an honest detective, although as we learn he, himself, is not without his vices. What becomes clear however is that he is something of a social crusader when his eyes are opened to the misery and degradation faced by 'fallen' women. At its heart, the Flowers of Sin is a detective story, with Lawless given an impossible task to complete alongside solving a seemingly impossible crime. Along the way he meets a rag tag bunch of misfits who help, hurt and hinder our hero. There is romance and intrigue along the way as well as a sensational public trial, murder and episodes of mayhem. Full review...
Kingmaker: Divided Souls by Toby Clements
Thomas and Katherine Everingham and their son Rufus are enjoying a time of contentment working on Sir John Fakenham's Marton Hall estate. However, this peace is just the eye of the storm. Tragedy strikes the Fakenhams almost at the same time that the Plantagenet Wars of the Roses hots up again. Richard Earl of Warwick is challenging King Edward IV, leaving the Everinghams with a serious dilemma… or two. Full review...
Pengelly's Daughter by Nicola Pryce
Rose Pengelly is only too aware that she is living in a man's world. Independent, strong and well-educated, she has dreams of running the family boatyard, but she knows that her dreams can never come true. A woman's job is to bear children and run the home; it is the way things have always been and the way that they always will be. Now, according to Rose's mother, it is particularly important that Rose secures a good marriage, as her father's poor business decisions have left the family bankrupt and on the verge of destitution. Wealthy timber merchant Mr Tregellas is only too happy to help the family out, in exchange for Rose's hand in marriage, but Rose despises him and suspects that he is responsible for the family's bad fortune. If only she can find evidence to implicate him, there may be a chance to escape from this seemingly hopeless situation. Full review...
Gallows Wedding: A dark novel of witchcraft and forbidden love set against the backdrop of religious upheaval in Henry VIII's times by Rhona Martin
Hazel, an orphaned peasant during the 16th century has had a tough time to say the least. Therefore when she comes across Black John, an outlaw about to be hanged she sees her chance. By proposing to him she'll save his life and, marrying him, her own. At least that's Hazel's theory but the fates will make it a bit more of a struggle. Full review...
King of the Wood by Valerie Anand
A young William Rufus is brought back to England from clergy training in France by his father William the Conqueror. England has changed and needs a soldier more than a priest or monk, especially as Rufus' brother Richard has died, leaving William to fill the void. Eventually King William I decides to split his inheritance between Rufus and eldest son Robert, something that doesn't go down well with an heir who expected to get it all. The brothers were never friends but this brings a new dimension to their hatred and, when royal brothers fight, nations become involved. Full review...
Cleopatra's Shadows by Emily Holleman
Egypt. 58 BC. Arsinoe has been abandoned by her father, Ptolemy XII, who has fled Alexandria and taken her beloved sister Cleopatra with him. It is now Arsinoe's half-sister Berenice who has seized the throne, leaving the young princess to fight for survival in the bloodthirsty and treacherous royal court. Berenice too has her own demons to face – having taken the throne from her weak-willed father she now has to prove herself worthy of being queen, as the possibility of her father and Cleopatra's return forever threaten to crush her new found power. Full review...
Versailles by Elizabeth Massie
1667 – The civil wars are over. King Louis XIV crushed the nobility's rebellion against his father, leaving the throne his. But the aristocracy hounds his every step – and realises that if they will not be loyal, they will at least obey. So the King plants a trap to ensnare them – building Versailles, a prison of opulence where his power is absolute. Trapped by the palace, they have no choice but to play the King's game and to obey his rule. And so the court becomes a place of tactical liaisons and salacious passions. The Queen fights to keep the King's attention from his mistress, and the King's brother struggles to keep his relationship alive. Versailes is not the paradise it appears to be; instead, it is a labyrinth of treason and hushed secrets, of political schemes and deadly conspiracies. It is a place of passion and death, love and vengeance. The King will take what is rightfully his. Full review...
The King's Assassin by Angus Donald
AD 1215: The year of Magna Carta - and Robin Hood's greatest battle. King John is scheming to reclaim his ancestral lands in Europe, raising the money for new armies by bleeding dry peasants and nobles alike, not least the Earl of Locksley - the former outlaw Robin Hood - and his loyal man Sir Alan Dale. As rebellion brews across the country and Robin Hood and his men are dragged into the war against the French in Flanders, a plan is hatched that will bring the former outlaws and their families to the brink of catastrophe - a plan to kill the King. England explodes into bloody civil war and Alan and Robin must decide who to trust - and who to slaughter. And while Magna Carta might be the answer to their prayers for peace, first they will have to force the King to submit to the will of his people. Full review...
Ravenspur: Rise of the Tudors (The Wars of the Roses) by Conn Iggulden
Edward IV and his brother Richard of Gloucester aren't exactly accepting of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick deserting them to stand with the ailing Henry VI again. The sons of York are gathering support in Burgundy while Edward's wife Elizabeth (nee Woodville) gives birth to his son in the sanctuary of Westminster Abbey. Meanwhile Henry's wife Margaret of Anjou is also in France, drumming up resources for the return of their son, Edward, Prince of Wales. Elsewhere a 14 year old Henry Tudor is waiting at one of history's most important cross roads. Full review...
Fire by CC Humphreys
Puritan/former Roundhead Pitman and former highwayman/Cavalier Captain William Coke have formed a deep respect for each other. Their first mission was to track down the Fifth Monarchists, an organisation out to avenge those who were found guilty and hanged for signing Charles I's death warrant. That was then, during the Great Plague. A mere year later, the Plague has lessened but the Fifth Monarchists are back, taking Pitman's and Coke's interventions personally. We therefore find our heroes defending themselves, their families, the monarch, and, on top of that, a new disaster is about to hit the capital. Full review...
The Grove of Eagles: A novel of Elizabethan England by Winston Graham
Maugan Killigrew grows up in material comfort as the acknowledged illegitimate son of Sir John, the Governor of Cornwall's Pendennis Castle. Yet, despite the comparative comfort and because of other's austere attitudes, Maugan never feels quite as accepted as his many half-brothers and sisters but there's little time to consider that. Times are changing. Queen Elizabeth I is getting older and the English are still at war with the Spanish, a nation that will have quite an effect on Maugan's life. Romance, conflict and imprisonment, Maugan will experience it all and, hopefully survive it all but we shall see.. Full review...
Three-Martini Lunch by Suzanne Rindell
In 2013 we loved The Other Typist for its gripping plot, terrific characters and effortless recreation of the Jazz Age. Well, Rindell has done it again, though this time her chosen time period is the late 1950s. She brings the bustling, cutthroat New York City publishing world to life through the connections between three main characters whose first-person voices fit together like a dream: Cliff Nelson, a Columbia dropout who plans to be the next Hemingway and also happens to be the son of a premier editor at Bonwright; Eden Katz, who moved from Indiana to be a secretary at a publishing house but has ambitions of becoming an editor; and Miles Tillman, a black man who works as a bicycle messenger for Eden's publisher but has literary hopes of his own. Full review...
These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly
Jennifer Donnelly wrote one of my all-time favourite books, A Gathering Light, so I was very excited to read her latest novel and see how it compared. Like A Gathering Light, These Shallow Graves is a historical novel with a murder mystery at its heart and a feisty heroine who challenges the standards of the day. Full review...
Daughter of the Wolf by Victoria Whitworth
We're in the Dark Ages in an England ruled by rival Kings served by Lords. One of the lords is Radmer of Donmouth, the King's Wolf, guardian of the estuary gateway to Northumbria. When the king sends Radmer on a mission to Rome, Donmouth is left in the safekeeping of his only daughter, Elfrun, whose formidable grandmother wants her to take the veil, while treacherous Tilmon of Illingham covets her for his son. This is the story of daughters in a man's world: Wynn, determined to take over from her father, the smith, Saethryth, wilful daughter of the village steward, whose longing for passion will set off a tragic sequence of events and Auli, whose merchant venturer father plies his trade up and down the coast, spying for the Danes. Above all, it is the story of Elfrun of Donmouth, uncertain of her father's fate and not knowing whom she can trust, or love… Full review...
Six Tudor Queens: Katherine of Aragon, The True Queen: Six Tudor Queens 1 by Alison Weir
1501: A ship comes into port on the English coast with an important passenger. The Spanish Infanta Catalina steps ashore to become the wife of King Henry VII's heir, Prince Arthur and produce future heirs for the English crown. That's the plan but that's not how the story actually goes, on any level. For Catalina will be more famous as Katherine of Aragon, wife of Arthur's brother, Henry VIII. As for producing heirs… Full review...
The Detective and the Devil (Charles Horton 4) by Lloyd Shepherd
1855: Only a few years after the notorious Highways Murderer left his mark on London's docks, Constable Charles Horton is called back to the area. The disturbing murder of a clerk and his family bears the trademark of the serial killer but Horton's sure he's already dead; Horton saw him die. At this point the hunt for a devil incarnate begins, taking Horton and his wife Abigail to the other side of the world and the darker side of an untouchable Victorian institution: The East India Company. Full review...
The Arrival of Missives by Aliya Whiteley
In the aftermath of the Great War, Shirley Fearn dreams of challenging the conventions of rural England, where life is as unchanging as the seasons. The scarred veteran Mr Tiller, left disfigured by an impossible accident on the battlefields of France, brings with him a message: part prophecy, part warning. As Shirley's village prepares for the annual May Day celebrations, where a new queen will be crowned and the future reborn, she must choose between change and renewal – will the missives Mr Tiller brings prevent her mastering her identity? Full review...
The Lost Soldier by Diney Costeloe
Rachel is a journalist covering a local conflict between a land developer and the small village community of Charlton Ambrose. The developer wants to level Ashgrove, a group of nine trees planted to commemorate those in the village who died serving in World War I. As she investigates, Rachel realises that only eight of the trees have corresponding names of the fallen. The ninth is for a mysterious unknown soldier. Why unknown? Rachel is determined to discover his story and, in so doing, she also discovers part of her own. Full review...
The Leopards of Normandy: Duke: Leopards of Normandy 2 by David Churchill
Normandy 1037: Duke William at 9 years old is surrounded by guardians and advisors but not all of them have his interests at heart. In fact whether he lives or dies will have more to do with William's resilience than the custodial duty of those around him. Meanwhile the fight for the English throne across the channel seems remote and none of his business as the sons of Queen Emma jostle for Canute's old crown. It's getting closer though; one day William Duke of Normandy will be William the Conqueror. Full review...
The Girl With No Name by Diney Costeloe
Thirteen year old Lisa escapes from Nazi Germany on the Kindertransport and arrives in England in August 1939. She can't speak a word of English and her only belongings are crammed into a small suitcase. Among them is one precious photograph of the family she has left behind in Germany. Lonely and homesick, not knowing if she will ever see her family again, Lisa is adopted by a childless couple, and then bullied at school for being German. But worse is to come when the Blitz blows her new home apart, and she wakes up in hospital with no memory of who she is, or where she came from. The authorities give her a new name and despatch her to a children's home. With the war in full swing, what will become of Lisa now? Full review...
Everyone Brave Is Forgiven by Chris Cleave
War was declared at 11:15. Mary North signed up at noon. When war is declared, Mary North leaves her finishing school, travels back to London, and immediately signs up. Expecting to be given a position of high importance or excitement, she is instead placed as a school teacher. Tom Shaw decides to give war a miss – happy in his role organising education. It's only when his flatmate Alistair enlists, that Tom and Mary are drawn into the war in ways they never could have imagined. As Mary grows to protect and defend her small band of pupils, Tom struggles to decide whether he should join the war effort. And Alistair? Many, many miles away, Alistair battles both the enemy, and his own feelings for one out of his reach. Full review...
The Midnight Watch by David Dyer
In the early hours of April 15th 1912, the RMS Titanic sank causing the death of over 1,500 people. The Californian, commanded by Captain Stanley Lord was the nearest ship to it, near enough for anyone on deck that night to see the Titanic's distress rockets. This means it was near enough to go to its aid but it remained inactive while witnessing the unfolding events. Why? Within a day or two of the disaster American journalist John Steadman is sent to cover the Titanic's sinking but the story of the Californian's inaction intrigues him even more. Full review...
All Their Minds In Tandem by David Sanger
October 1879: A stranger walks into New Georgetown, West Virginia to keep an appointment. He calls himself 'The Maker' and has a gift that gives him access to people's minds. Gradually he'll become deeply acquainted with the townsfolk but it mustn't sway him from what he's here to accomplish. One man, one mission and no guarantee how it will end. Full review...
The Sun King Conspiracy by Yves Jego, Denis Lepee, and Sue Dyson (translator)
Who can I trust in this nest of vipers? The year is 1661 and Cardinal Mazarin, the Chief Minister to King Louis XIV of France, lies dying. As the health of the man who once governed France deteriorates, the ambitions of those beneath him strive for power in order to succeed him. Secret papers have been stolen from the Cardinal, papers that could change the course of France forever, and have fallen in to the hands of Gabriel de Pontibrand, a young actor who has become unwillingly involved in this strange conspiracy. Surrounded by scheming politicians and a secret brotherhood, the contents of these coded papers will change Gabriel's life and have the power to change the future of France. Full review...
The Woolworths Girls by Elaine Everest
It is Christmas, 1938, and three young ladies are excited about starting their new jobs at Woolworths in Erith. For each one of them, the job is a means of escape: Sarah wants to escape her snobbish and controlling mother; newlywed Maisie can't abide her bullying mother in law; and shy Freda is running away from her abusive stepfather and searching for her brother, who has escaped from prison. The Woolworths Girls soon become close friends, but with the threat of war looming large, and tragedy just around the corner, they are going to need to rely on each other more than ever before. Full review...
Mutable Passions: Charlotte Bronte: A Disquieting Affair by Philip Dent
As the 200th anniversary of Charlotte Brontë's birth approaches, it is a perfect time for reading about her. Philip Dent's second novel chooses a lesser known period of her life to dramatize. All her siblings are now dead; during a hard winter when she is unable to visit her best friend, Ellen Nussey, Charlotte spends her time finishing Villette, her final novel. The family servant, Tabby, ribs Charlotte about her romantic prospects – including Patrick Brontë's curate, Arthur Bell Nicholls. Charlotte responds with indignation: 'I could no more kiss the lips of a man with a beard as big as rooks' nests than I could yours, Tabby.' Full review...
