"Flight Of The Sparrow" by Amy Belding Brown

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• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: NAL Trade (July 1, 2014)
• ISBN-13: 978-0451466693
• Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches

I was offered the opportunity to review this book by a wonderful publisher's representative. She had not been sure that I would like "Flight Of The Sparrow" since she had read (and how cool is that she actually looked and read!) my preferences, and had noticed that I tend to 'specialize' in European historical fiction from the 10th through 19th centuries. I am SO glad that she contacted me since is a true gem of a book! I would have been unfortunate had I missed this chance to read it!

"Flight of the Sparrow" recounts the story of Mary Rowlandson, nee White. Mary was was born in Somersetshire, England. Her family left England around 1650 and settled in Salem in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. After another move to the frontier village of Lancaster, she met and married the puritan Reverand Joseph Rowlandson in 1656. During the time of King Philips war (sometimes called the first Indian War) there had been a dramatic increase in hostilities. On February 10, 1675 the town of Lancaster came under attack by several tribes. The loss of life was large, the settlement was burned and many women and children were taken as hostages. Mary Rowlandson was one of those women. She and her daughter Srah were both seriously wounded during the raid. Despite Mary's attempts to heal her daughter along the way, Sarah died from her injuries some days later. Mary survived her wounds and became the slave of one of the ruling women in the tribe. In May 1676 Anne was ransomed back to English for the tidy sum of 20 pounds.

Once I picked this book I could not stop reading it. 

"Flight Of The Sparrow" begins with Mary's life slightly before her capture. It then recounts her captivity, her 'redemption' and her life after her captivity. Amy Belding Brown narrates Mary's struggles; both to survive and prosper during her captivity, as well as the pain and frustrations that she contends with after her return to English life. 

Mary discovers that she experienced more freedom as a captive than she had even been able to achieve as a 'good wife' in her own, Puritan English, community. She appreciated the relative freedoms that women were allowed within the Indian communities. Mary was even allowed to become a bit of an entrepreneur; sewing clothes in exchange for food, shelter and other small comforts that made her captivity more easily managed. She also meets a "Praying Indian named James Printer. James becomes Mary's protector within the Indian community and, over time, Mary develops a deep, but forbidden, respect and love for this intriguing man.

When Mary is 'redeemed'  by the English her husband does not come to meet her. He had raised the money for her redemption but shows no happiness when Mary returns to the family home. He treats her as if she is 'tainted'. Mary's confusion leads her to feel as though she has no place in English society any longer nor is she able to return to the Indians whose way of life is fast fading. Mary feels adrift, alone and lonely.

After I read the book I did a bit of research to see how well the story followed the actual events. I have to say that I have seldom read too many other historical fiction books that follow the reality as faithfully as this book does!

This is a riveting read, with seamlessly intertwined plotlines and characters that are beautifully portrayed and exceptionally well developed. The realities of everyday life in the colonial period are exceptionally well portrayed. The  grinding routines; the daily tasks of hearth and home, garden and house keeping. You can 'feel' the pain of loss through starvation and ill health; you can relate to the constraints that were put upon the people by their strict faith, and the physical constraints that the women of the community, especially, experienced. They endured the actual constraints of their clothing as well as  the societal constraints of being a good, puritan wife and, upstanding member of the community. The community left no room for any personality variations. It must have been a suffocating existence for many.

Amy Belding Brown knows this history and portrays it will all of its good and bad points. She does not flinch from the realities of the time

I was so pleased with this book that I ordered Ms. Belding Brown's first book, Mr. Emerson's Wife

"The Dreaming; Walks Through The Mist" by Kim Murphy

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Paperback: 330 pages Publisher: Coachlight Press, LLC (January 1, 2011) ISBN-13: 978-0971679092 or as a  Kindle e-book File Size: 573 KB

This book was an unexpected treat, and I am grateful to the author, Kim Murphy, for reaching out to me to suggest that I might like it. I am a pushover for anything 'time travel', and when it combined with historical fiction I am totally  hooked! 

This book, "The Dreaming; Walks Through Mist"" follows the story of Phobe Wynn, aka "Walks Through Mist" and her startling journey from the early 17th century to 21st century Virginia. She is found by the roadside with whip marks across her back and injuries from being hit by a car. She claims to be from the 17th century. She acts the part, and she speaks a native dialect that had been considered 'dead' for some 200 years. Can she be believed?

Phobe / Walks Through Mist, is befriended by the detective who was assigned to case. He himself feels like a stranger in a strange land because he had been adopted by a couple after he was discovered in the woods as a toddler. No one could ever find out where he had come from or who had left as a vulnerable child alone in the woods.

Walks Through The Mist was a cunning woman in her time, and, in an effort to explain how she arrived in the 21st century, and how and why Lee had been deserted in the woods, they venture into "the Dreaming" (a scrying tool used by cunning women). They are aided in their search by Lee's ex-wife, Shae, a psychologist who specializes in regressions and her fiancé Russ.

Will they come to accept that Phobe/ Walks Through Mist really is who she says she is? Can a person from the 17th century simply 'appear' in the 21st? Is this some hoax or is it reality? What is the true story and true identity of the man who was abandoned in the woods at a young age? Can two people from another time and place really find each other again? These questions are all answered in a most unique way. This book is a page turner!

This is an absorbing story. I did not want to put it down. The plot is well organized, the characters are very well developed, and the intertwined stories all flow flawlessly.

This book will have a wide appeal for anyone who loves well turned historical fiction, fiction that highlights early Virginian history, or just excellent fiction in general! Now I am off to find the next Kim Murphy book to read!

FROM THE AMAZON PAGE

"...Witch trials in Virginia? Salem wasn't the first...

Psychologist Shae Howard treats a patient who claims to recall nothing of the current century. Under hypnosis, Phoebe Wynne tells an astonishing tale of an ocean crossing to Colonial Jamestown, followed by near starvation and a daring escape to a nearby Indian tribe.

Although Shae's ex-husband, seasoned police detective Lee Crowley, is intrigued by Phoebe's story, he remains skeptical regarding her claim that she's from the seventeenth century. A Native American himself, he does, however, admit to feeling a kinship with Phoebe. How is it that she seems to understand his pain and anger at being caught between two cultures?

Phoebe shows Lee "the dreaming," which reveals a misty world where the Powhatan people and Colonial Jamestown come to life... and connects him to his own past. Is Phoebe delusional? A witch? Or has she indeed traveled through time? ..."

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• Series: Lucy Campion Mysteries (Book 2)
• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books (April 22, 2014)
• ISBN-13: 978-1250007889

I saw this book at the library and decided to give it a try. I'm very glad that I did! It's a fascinating, mostly historically correct, tale of a murder that occurred just after the great London fire of 1666, they year that many resident's considered the year of the devil. This devastating fire occurred on the heels of the great plague. A corpse is discovered in a barrel outside of a burned tavern. The tale follows the investigation of the murder by one Emma Campion; maidservant, love to the master's son, printer's apprentice and bookseller as she works with constable Duncan. Ms. Calkins spins a solid plot with deftly managed twists and turns. I discounted one star for some of what I consider a bit stilted dialogue.Ms. Calkins states in the afterward that she 'modernized' old English. That was a good decision but I felt that some of the dialogue felt strained. That being said I found this to be a very enjoyable read, and I will now be looking forward to reading her fist book and waiting for the third! ps: I thoroughly enjoyed the afterward to this book which should not be missed. It defines what parts of this novel are straight from the history books and what parts of the history have been fictionally 'massaged' to make the story flow.

"A Triple Knot" by Emma Campion aka Candace Robb

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• Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Broadway Books (July 8, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-13: 978-0307589293

Oh my! It's been way too long since I have posted ! Sincere apologies. Life just took me away, and the days pass so quickly. I have been reading a lot though and some more reviews t do soon. On to the review of this most excellent read....

I had a hunch that I would like this book when I received it, but one never knows does one! Emma Campion is a pen name for Candace Robb who has a host of earlier historical novels to her credit. As Emma Campion she also penned the excellent, to my mind, noteworthy, novel "The King's Mistress" which is a novel based on the story of Alice Perrers, mistress to King Edward III.

This is the story of Joan of Kent who was the niece of King Edward III. Joan, who was considered quite a beauty in the middle ages, fell in love for all the right reasons with Sir Thomas Holland. He was, unfortunately, much older than she , and he was also below her in rank. This match was challenged and she was forced into a second, loveless marriage to another nobleman who was chosen by the men in her life who used her as a political tool. Her second husband and her cousin, The Black Prince, all refused to allow her to return to Sir Thomas, who was, in reality, her legal husband.

This book covers the prolonged, political battle that is waged in order to support her claim that her marriage to Sir Thomas should be legally upheld. The struggles that Joan and Sir Thomas had in maintaining their love throughout their struggle is well depicted and the characters in this book are well developed. The dialogue flows smoothly between characters and scenes.The political forces of the time are highlighted and the daily life in medieval times is well presented and is quite historically correct.

I thoroughly enjoyed this read, and had to read it straight through. I look forward to more books under this pen name, and I can recommend this book to all lovers of historical fiction - or fiction in general!

" A Kings Ransom" by Sharon Kay Penman

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• Hardcover: 704 pages
• Publisher: A Marian Wood Book/Putnam (March 4, 2014)
• ISBN-13: 978-0399159220

I have to admit to having a particular penchant for large books. The thicker the better as far as I am concerned! Often, when I am looking for something new to read, if I have an option between a book with fewer pages and one with more, I will choose the thicker of the two.

Sharon Kay Penman's "A King's Ransom" does not disappoint in any way . I loved this book!

It's an unstoppable novel that pulls you in and keeps you right smack dab in the middle of the action. I could almost believe that I 'knew' Richard, Eleanor, Joanne and Berngaria, Mariam, Morgan and all of the other 'major players' of Ms. Penman's other novels as I read this amazing account of "Richard, the man". 

(The author likens her previous book, "Lionheart" as the story of Richard, the legend, while this book recounts the story  of Richard, the man")

There are not too many authors who can bring me into the time period of which they write. I can count the ones that do on less than two hands. I sharpened my love for  'historical fiction" when I began to read Ms. Penman's earlier works, and I still feel, that to some degree, I judge other authors by her work - as well as by about three other superior historical fiction authors who I think are  write exemplary, historically accurate, fiction. My devotion to history (non-fiction) sprang largely from my love of historical fiction. I read non-fiction now with as much relish and excitement as I read historical fiction - all thanks to authors such as Ms. Penman. That's an inspiring debt to have!

This is the tale of the last seven years of Richard's life. These years were filled with torment for Richard, his family and the Kingdom. Held as a prisoner of Henrich, The Holy Roman Emperor, Richard was kept in a torturous dungeon that almost sapped his spirit as well as his life. Richard and his mother, Queen Eleanor, overcame every obstacle that was put in their way -  regaining both Kingship and Kingdom through paying a huge, punitive ransom that was followed by years of subterfuge and political rankling. Ricahrd was always at war with France, and the many other dutchies and kingdoms that made up the royal world of the time.

This is also the story of his faithful, but beleaguered Queen Berengaria of Spain; of her loneliness and self-recriminations for not providing Richard with an heir. It is the story of Lady Miriam (a Saracen woman from the Holy Land) and her Welsh love. A love that Miriam came close to losing because of surprisingly modern concerns - those of mixed race children and peer discrimination. 

Richard's sister Queen Joanna features heavily in this book as does her love for the 'heretic' Raimond of Toulouse, a man known more for his tolerance than for his prowess on the battlefield. It is also of course,  the story of the strength, courage and remarkable intellect of Richard's mother, Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine. A woman who would have been considered remarkable in our own time, but was truly unique and unexpected in her own time. I would give a lot to have more historical background available about this amazing woman!

I could probably write a short book about all of the reasons why I loved this book, and why I am so sad that I have finished reading it. I hate it when a superb books ends, because then nothing that comes after, for a while at least, quite seems to measure up! This book became a place  for me to get lost in, a place where my imagination could spin clothing and colors, odors and fear.

Richard's death came as almost an after thought. It was happenstance . It came from a wound not acquired in the heat of battle or from a disease contracted in the mire of an infested camp ground, but it came as a 'bolt from the blue'  as he was inspecting his sappers. A wound that he almost missed!  How history might have different but for a few inches! I was especially pleased at the finesse that Ms. Penman used in NOT finishing the book with this wound, for the pages continue to flow for a time after, and follows the lives of the main characters just a bit further down the paths of heir lives. Perfectly done!

One of the things I like the best about Sharon Kay Penman's work is the historical basis upon which she creates her novels. I love reading her "Afterwords" and her  "Author's Note's", although it has been said that the Authors Note is  not one of the aspects of writing that she looks forward to. Ms. Penman's background in the history about which she writes is formidable, as well grounded as any historian can be. I can read with a good amount of certainty that most of the salient facts of the book are truth-based, and every time I read her Author's Notes I learn something more about the historical novelist's burden of accuracy, for a burden it must surely be to so skillfully weave the facts into the thin veil of fiction.

Had Richard lived today he would be hailed as the worlds foremost commander and political strategist. Had Eleanor lived today she would be running for President or Prime Minister. 

This book has been one of my favorite reads in some time. It  offers something to please everyone, and, I believe, will become one your favorite new read too!

I was thrilled to be able to read and review an ARC of this amazing book.

My opinion and review are true to my personal feelings about this amazing book! 

Hild by Nicola Griffith

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• Hardcover: 560 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (November 12, 2013)
• ISBN-13: 978-0374280871

I don't know where to start. I read a lot, generally at least two books a week. I love large, thick books that can take awhile to read. When I love a book, the longer it lasts the better it is! I read with enjoyment. I don't spend my reading time with anything that I don't enjoy, which is why I seldom give books less than 3 stars here or on any other site on which I post my reviews. Actually, most of my reviews are 4-5 stars. This one should have at last 7 stars by that reckoning. Some books, very few actually, are finished but stay with me, like the after taste of a particularly fine something .. wine, chocolate, a favorite dessert or meal. This book is staying with me, and I am wishing that the sequel was already available so that I could continue to savor the reading.

Ms. Griffith is a master at prose. This book, in places, reads more like poetry, each word so finely tuned that they sing like a finely tuned violin or as the voices in a perfectly pitched acapella.

I have to admit to having a few issues with the uniqueness of names and places in this  seventh century world that we enter when we open this book, but it did not take long for me to fall into the book and become one with the pages and the story. 

We step into the story of St. Hilda, but this story gives so very much more. We walk in the life of the seventh century. We go to the dairy house and help make butter, we smell the torches, hearth lights and the blood of war. We feel the tensions of King and thegns, the stress as the old, polytheistic, religions give way to the new, Christ, religion. As a female I weigh the place of women in this ancient society;  the withering work of simply 'being' in this cold, calculating, somewhat viscious time, the offering of wine and mead - and sometimes of something more.

This book is lyrically written, each moment poignant. Hild, the daughter of a would-have-been king is a person who is patient, who sees and hears things and uses knowledge to uphold her position as the King's trusted seer. Her mother, a women, the widow of the 'would-have-been-king' has not standing, no property. She who is a healer and she uses nothing more than her wits to preserve the life of her children.

This is a book that takes hold of you and transports you. I simply could not put this book down! Well done Nicola Griffth! Let there be more ! I can't wait!

This book should appeal to everyone because of how well it is written, but it will hold special interest for those of us who have an affinity for historical fiction and, more than that, anyone who appreciates perfectly wrought fiction.

"The Spanish Queen" by Carolly Erickson

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• Also available as an e-book
• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; 1 edition (October 22, 2013)
• ISBN-13: 978-1250000125

I have been so negligent in posting reviews lately! I just keep reading it seems and forgetting to review! Bad on me! I considered dropping my book blog, but will continue and see how it goes. I love the books that I read and enjoy sharing my reactions with those of you who read these few reviews. I also add craft book review to my 'other' blog sometimes.

I digress again. SO onto this excellent book ....

• I thoroughly enjoyed this captivating story of Catherine. Told in the first person it brings a much more personal feel to the life of this much abused Princess and Queen. I couldn't put it down and ended up reading it in two late evenings!
  
  
  As always with Ms. Erickson's work, I found the details to be quite exacting (if you compare the events in the book with recorded history that is) and the human spirits of the people involved is well reflected in the pages.
  
  
  My hallmark of a great read is if it pulls you in enough to feel as though you are "in" the story yourself, and this book did that for me. I was sorry when I reached the end! I felt as though I had just read about a much more approachable, less rigid, person, who circumstances set the tone for her life - and her death. Their is a lot 'human-ess" in these pages, and I was quite riveted. Well done! Anyone who loves historical fiction, British history, Tudor history or just an interesting fictional read will , no doubt, enjoy this book

"Wolfsangel" by Liza Perrat

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World War II and the French Resistance is not an area which I generally choose to read about, but when I heard that one of my favorite authors had published a new book that concerned just those areas I had to read it!

I read, and reviewed Liza Perrat's first book "The Spirit of Lost Angels" last year and it was at that time that I became hooked on Ms. Perrat's writing. In my opinion her work should be far more well known than it is. While I do not know Ms. Perrat,  I am a fan of her work!

"Wolfsangel' is a sequel of sorts, but not really. It is a perfect stand alone book. The story line revolves around a small French town during the German occupation of France during World War II. Celeste (Celestine) Roussel is the main character. Her mother runs the centuries old family farm. Aside from running the farm, her work involves assisting women who find themselves inconveniently pregnant, often due to being raped by members of the occupying German forces.  Celeste's father had volunteered to go and work in Germany, where the purported pay was good. They had received no word from him though in many months and they had no way of knowing if he was even still alive. 

Celeste's sister is nun based in a convent that takes in families at risk from the Germans, and her brothers are part of the Resistance movement, but do not allow Celeste to join them because they fear that she may not be able to withstand the rigors of questioning were she to be found out. The town itself is acknowledged to be a 'hotspot' for Resistance activity. The Germans 'requisition' the best food stuffs from the town has, they take what they want and blackmail those who they suspect may be Jews hiding under the pretext of false papers and new, more French sounding, names. Women are raped, people go hungry, and the German's loot at will.

After one Resistance expedition, Celeste's brothers and friends are arrested and imprisoned. The prison is a place from which most never return. The firing squads make short work of the inmates after they are questioned and severely tortured. We follow Celeste as she matures, becoming involved with the Resistance in her own way as she formulates a plan with other Resistance workers to free her brothers from prison. The brothers are provided with just enough of an infectious serum to make them ill enough to be transferred to a hospital where Celeste has been placed. In a gripping series of chapters their escape is effected and Celeste and her long time friends become well known as good Resistance operatives.

Meanwhile, Celeste becomes involved in a romantic diversion with an unlikely man. A German officer named Martin Diehl. Martin does not relish being in the Army and provides Celeste with a few small luxuries and the security of his protection. They fall in love and talk of a future after the war. This dalliance causes a lot of conflict for our heroine since any sort of relationships with the hated "Boche" is decried by all town members, other than the few who are profiting by the largesse that the Germans can provide.

In a moving chapter, after Celeste is raped by two German officers while Martin is away and cannot provide any protection,  her mother shares her own dark secret that had never been spoken of. She too was raped in her youth, perhaps explaining her seemingly cold and aloof manner. Celeste forms a plan as she quietly plans her revenge.

The last part of this book reveals Celeste's plan for revenge, but does her successful plan manage to backfire on the entire town? I just cannot say more without revealing too much of this intricate plot that would spoil it for your reading!

This book is simply wonderful, and I could not stop reading it. I finished it in a day because I could not put it down! The plotline is well constructed, they story is taut and gripping, and the characters are more than well fleshed out. I felt as though I too was a member of the Resistance. The only problem is that the book had an end, and I wanted to read more!

The book is factually based on a real village, true resistance heroes, and a massacre that remains a reminder of the brutality that war can bring. Ms. Perrat provides an excellent epilogue that was also spine chilling reading for me in which she presents the facts from which her story is based.

I learned a lot from this book, one thing is that perhaps I should read more about this brutal period of history. It's really quite amazing to me what the human spirit can survive.  

"Wolfsangel" is currently available as an e-book, but the paperback edition is soon to follow. 

This book will appeal, I think, to all readers of excellent general fiction as well as those who enjoy historical fiction, and fiction that revolves around World War II. I cannot imagine that reading this book will not move you, and perhaps, as it did for me, teach you a thing or two about what people can, and do, endure in the name of freedom. 

The WInter Mantle by Elizabeth Chadwick

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• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Time Warner Paperbacks (October 3, 2002)
• ISBN-13: 978-0751529586

I'm not sure what it is about Elizabeth Chadwick's work, but it never fails to mesmerize me, and transport me back in time. When I purchased this book I was not aware that it was one that I had obviously had missed somewhere along the path of reading Ms. Chadwick's work. It was originally published in 2002. I can't imagine that I would have forgotten reading it when it was new!

This book follows the path of William of Normandy and begins with the year 1067 following the great Battle of Hastings. William the Conqueror is establishing his rule over Britain, and in doing so retains custody of many captured nobles, Earl Waltheof Siwardsson of Huntingdon being one of them. Although he did not fight in the war, Earl Waltheof retains his title but fights to regain his pride of place and his lands from William. Waltheof falls in love with one of  Willaim's daughters, Judith. 

Reluctantly, after the threat of an uprising against him, William restores Waltheof's lands and grants him marriage to his daughter,Judith. In the years that follow, Judith  feels that Waltheof is engaged in some activities that are contrary to his fealty to William, and, through familial treachery, Waltheof is executed. His eldest daughter falls in love with the man who is sent by William to take control of Waltheof's earldom, one by the name of Simon de Senlis, who had been a long time friend, and former squire to, Waltheof. He is also a person for Judith, Matilda's mother, holds no love.  

Simon follows the Crusade, leaving Matilda behind to question his fate.  Simon;s first love had followed her husband on the Crusdae trail until he is drowns.A dire injury almost takes his life, and Simon is tended  to  by his first love, who he had taken under his wing. During his convalescence they have a one time resolution to the desire that was founded in their younger years.

After his return from the Crusade, his first love becomes a nun, and Simon returns to his lands and his family. Simon and Matilda long for peace, a commodity that is difficult to come by during this turbulent time. Tension builds in their marriage, but the truth of Simon's "one-night-stand" comes out due to the birth of his bastard child; a child that Matilda must accept and raise in their home after she meets with, and grudgingly accepts, the confession of Simon's early love. 

The epilogues for Ms. Chadwick's books are always one of my favorite parts. There she provides the history behind her stories. Much of what she writes is structured on solid historical facts, and I find it utterly fascinating the she "fills in the blanks" so convincingly. Elizabeth Chadwick is one of my favorite historical fiction writers and this book is a credit to her!

Anyone who loves historical fiction, British historical fiction, the history of William the Conqueror, or just a great read, will undoubtedly enjoy this excellent book!

My Most Recent Historial Reading List

These four books represent my most recent reading list. I just finished "England After Elizabeth" by Leandra D'Lisle this morning. I have learned a lot from these books, especially about politics after the death of Gloriana, Elizabeth I. I have not read much about Jacobean England, for some reason King James and his reign have left me quite cool. I was interested, however, in how the rise of King James affected the politics and the people of his day, and how the citizens of England felt upon his arrival.

I had not understood, as I began this reading series, how thoroughly Bess of Hardwick would figure throughout all of these books. What an amazing woman she was - in so many ways. Bess really was a woman who was centuries ahead of her time. I can see her in the present day as the CEO of a Fortune 500 company!

My first read of the series was "Arbella: England's Lost Queen" by Sarah Gristwood, followed by the new work of historical fiction by Gillian Bagwell, "Venus In Winter" which is a most excellent, riveting book that I highly recommend.

I was pleased and amazed, when I read "Bess of Hardwick" by Mary Lovell, how closely "Venus In Winter" (reviewed here on August 17, 2013) follows the true facts of the life of the redoubtable Bess of Hardwick. I highly recommend reading both of these extraordinary books. You will derive a lot of pleasure and a lot of learning. The non-fiction "Bess of Hardwick" makes for pleasurable reading - this is not dull history at all and the biography reads as readily as fiction.

I had "After Elizabeth" by Leandra D'Lisle on my shelf for some time and decided, after finishing "Bess of Hardwick" that it was time to learn a bit about the court of King James and what really did happen after Gloriana's death in March of 1603. Although this book was a bit drier (though not that much so) than "Bess of Hardwick" I found that I learned a lot from the book and looked forward to reading more of it every day. What I had not anticipated was that Bess and the Shrewsbury family also figured prominently in the time of James accession to the throne. This book brought together a lot of loose historical threads for me, and provided me with a much more complete idea of just how important this family, and it's matriarch, were enmeshed in the political landscapes of their time. Remarkable!

This was a wonderful series of books, each one of them is highly readable and very informative. History really is amazing. What is the saying that the more things change the more they stay the same? Read these books and see why I think this is so true! You will also find a much enjoyment and much learning. I highly recommend any, or all, of these fascinating reads if you are a history fan - especially if you, like me, like nothing more than learning more about British history!

"Venus In Winter" by Gillian Bagwell

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• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Berkley Trade (July 2, 2013)
• ISBN-13: 978-0425258026
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book! This is a novel about the formidable Bess of Hardwick, a woman who forged her way through some of them the most perilous times in British history. She and her husbands built an enviable life and Bess came close to losing it all several times in her life, but somehow always managed to hang on to her property and her dignity. Bess was born of lower, though by no means low, means, and through advantageous marriages she built a personal worth that was enviable. This is a riveting read that closely follows the historical facts.

I worked a bit backwards. I had just finished reading "Arbella: England's Lost Queen" by Sarah Gristwood and, after reading about Bess by reading "Venus In Winter" I am currently reading "Bess Of Hardwick" by Mary Lovell.

Ms. Bagwell weaves a delightful, highly believable, tale around the historical facts.  Bess of Hardwick was a truly amazing woman who was quite ahead of her time. Intelligent and canny - she made a good life for herself and he family despite the tenuous times in which she lived. She came close to losing everything that she and her husbands had worked so hard for, but came back from the brink and prospered.

This is one of those books that I found difficult to put down. It made me interested enough to read her biography by Mary Lovell. If you love  historical fiction, Tudor fiction, British historical fiction or just great fiction in general I think that this book will appeal!

I always look forward to Ms. Bagwell's books - they have never failed to please. I hope that there another in the works !

"The Confessions of Marie Antoinette" by Juliet Grey

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AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER NOW

• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (September 24, 2013)
• ISBN-13: 978-0345523907

I was thrilled to have been provided with an Advance Reader copy of this book to read and review!

Not too many books are powerful enough to bring a tear to my eye, but this book certainly did do just that!

I have always been dumbstruck at the savage brutality of the French Revolution. In my eyes it seems to have been bloodier, more disorganized and more devastating than America's own Revolution. I've read many non-fiction histories about the French Revolution and biographies of Marie Antoinette. I believe that it can be difficult to portray a historically tragic figure well, without overdoing either empathy or villainy, but Juliet Grey breathes life into this book. The characters grab you into their lives and keep you riveted to the pages. I began by reading this book in the morning as I had coffee and quickly began to just sit and read, and read through to the end in a day and a half (I had to do some regular life things inbetween the pages!).

The characters are brilliantly portrayed. The French Revolution and the devastation that it brought, not only to the nobility, but to the revolutionaries themselves, are portrayed so well that you feel as though you are a part of it all. It is as if you are a part of the destruction of so many priceless artifacts, you are standing by the scaffold as men and women are swiftly dispatched by the new nation's "razor" (the infamous guillotine) . The perils and fear that the royal family endured is palpable in the pages of this book, it no wonder that Marie Antoinette's hair turned white almost overnight. It is impossible to comprehend the terror that existed during these riotous times.

Juliet Grey paints her word images artfully, and I was pleased to find so much historically correct information. I suppose that it was the historical veracity that caused this book bring a tear to my eye now and then, knowing that the reality of those dire times was so close to the story the book presents. I have no doubt that Marie Antoinette arrived in France as a royal ingenue. I have no doubt that she did spend far too many gold Louis' on her wardrobe and her homes. That was, however, the life to which she had been born, the fetes and baubles were de rigueur for the time period, and she was so very young. I doubt that any one could have imagined the maelstrom that was about to descend upon France and the Royal Family. Marie's perceived extravagance became an easy scapegoat for the masses who were starving and had no right to expect anything better for their lives. Ms. Grey's portrait of Marie Antoinette is wonderfully complex. The Queen; both defiant and powerful and the mother and wife whose purpose was to protect and stand by her family. In this book she is portrayed as coming to love her royal husband late in their relationship, as the struggles of the French Revolution played out on the international stage. Loius comes across with passivity, and bewilderment but also as a King who finally understood the issues of his troubled Kingdom. He is noble and true to his honor and his word.

This book made me consider the two Revolutions - France's and America's - governments were overthrown for similar reasons, but one just seemed so much more blood thirsty, and so much more erratic. Liberté, égalité, and fraternité were altruistic and ambitious aims, but in France it seems that even the revolutionaries experienced a revolution within their own ranks as the power changed hands so often. With each change in the power struggle the fates of Marie Antoinette and her family hung in the balance. Mercy and exile seemed like an option for some time, until, in the end, all was lost.

At the end of the book there is an excellent section that provides short biographies of the characters as well as some facts about the times. An excellent bibliography is included as are 'questions for discussion' perhaps for a book club setting. i think that these were excellent additions.

In my opinion, this is a worthy rendering of the French Revolution and the family that was at the center of rebellion and hate. This book should have a wide appeal. Obviously, for those of us who love historical fiction, but it will also appeal to readers of very well written general fiction and also for those who are history buffs as well. There are also parts of this book that are history lessons, rendered in excellent, compelling prose.

"The Sisterhood" by Helen Bryan

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• File Size: 681 KB
• Print Length: 420 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1611099285
• Publisher: Amazon Publishing (April 30, 2013)

This book is one of those thoroughly unexpected treats that should not be ignored! It was suggested, and provided to me, by the publicist who thought it might be a book that I would enjoy. I have to admit to being skeptical. How could someone that I don't know at all possibly know what I might like or not? What a shock! She nailed me and my interests perfectly, and I am so happy that she did!

This is a book that deserves a lot more attention that it has, perhaps, received. The author, Helen Bryan, is a barrister, and she is the author of another best selling book, "The War Brides". Perhaps it is her background in the law that facilitates her ability to blend time and space flawlessly and logically. The prose is so well done, and the flow of the book is perfectly paced. It's engrossing! 

It's a book that will stay with you. Once I finally opened it I could scarcely put it down. I looked forward to getting up in the morning to read a bit more, and then more at night. Yes, it really is that good.

I suppose one of the things that I really like about this book is that the story straddles two different times in history; the modern day and 16th century Spain during the throes of the Inquisition. Sometimes when authors write books like this, that span different time periods, there seems to be a slight catch or hitch as the book flows from from time period to time period. There is none of that little hesitance in this book, however. The chapters, and time periods, flow seamlessly from one to another and back again, and it all makes perfect sense as you read it too.

The story begins with the modern day and South American orphan girl who is adopted from a South American Convent. The only memories of her birth family are a curious medal and an ancient chronical (written in both Latin and vernacular Spanish). These artifacts are given to  the American Southern Baptist adoptive parent with the understanding that, upon her sixteenth birthday, the girl, Menina, would be presented with these mementos of her beginnings in life.

From the present you are sped to Spain in the 16th century. To a convent and to the lives of five orphans who were secreted to the sanctuary of a convent where all women and orphans were accepted regardless of past sins or religious upbringing. The names of these hapless orphan girls are Esperanza, who is 16 years old and whose parents are Muslims. Luz, a dwarf, who is also an heiress, but is not able to speak. Marisol, 14, incorrectly believed to be the misbegotten daughter of a Courtesan and the mad royal prince. Pia, a child of Scandinavian descent whose hair glows like the moon and whose beauty is difficult to ignore, but her mother is a courtesan. Last there is Sanchia, the daughter of Jews who barely escapes the burning that claimed the lives of her parents.

Eventually, as the Inquisition spreads, these children are sent on a journey to the new world in South America. They are sent away in order to protect them because the Inquisitor's are expected at the convent gates at any time, and the sisters do not want their various histories to be discovered lest the be taken by the Inquisitor's and tortured. They are sent with both the chronicle and the medal in the hopes that they will found a new convent dedicated to the healing arts and acceptance of all women no matter their religious beliefs or color. It is also hoped that they may find men to marry and will be able to carry on the mission of the convent.

Swallows, which are so plentiful in Spain, are the symbol that is used to mark both the old convent and the new; they also mark the cover of the chronicle and the medal. The journey takes so many unexpected turns. No one at the main convent knows what became of the orphans nor do the orphans know what happened when the Inquisition came knocking.

Back in the present time, after braking off her engagement to a local political maven's son, Menina ,  decides to travels to Spain; both to heal her broken heart as well as to do research for a thesis on the artist Tristan Mendoza. Menina now suspects that her ex-finacee wanted to marry her only for the Hispanic voters that she might bring to the political relationship. She wants to escape also from the forced, premarital rape that left her bereft of her future and split her exceedingly 'safe' life apart at the seams. 

After an unexpected, severe, storm leaves Menina stranded in a mountainous village just after her arrival in Spain, does her life begin to find renewed meaning, albeit not willingly at first. Due to the storm's effects the phones in the village are not functioning and preclude her trying to contact her parents or the tour director who she was supposed to meet up with in Madrid. The local police officer at first thinks that Menina is a prostitute that has come to the town to join in a yearly celebration. Menina is taken to the mountainous convent where she will find safety and a place to stay until needed repairs are made to the telephone system and allow Menina to leave the village.

At this point the story, along with Menina, blossom with kismet, and the telling of the tale is beautifully done! The separation between past and present becomes a thin veil as Menina uncovers some long lost paintings by the artist, Tristan Mendoza, who she is studying and whose only known works were thought to be found in the Prado Museum in Madrid.

This is how these two diverse stories begin, but the telling is what is entrancing and is what will hold your attention from the first page to the last. I was sorry to have this book end, and I don't too often feel that way no matter how good a book may be.

Some of the publication that was sent to me with the book was particularly interesting and contained some comments by the author about her work.

One of the questions concerned what lasting impression she hoped that the book would leave readers with. Part of her reply included ".. the book is set in two periods of tension, hostility and mistrust between Jews, Christians and Muslims, four hundred years apart but with many parallels..." This is a really relevant comment, but you will simply have to read this gem of a book for yourself to understand what the parallels are! 

Read this book! I cannot help but think that you will not regret it. The book should have wide appeal for historical history fans as well as for readers of wonderfully written general fiction.

"Seduction" by M.J. Rose

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• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Atria Books (May 7, 2013)
• ISBN-13: 978-1451621501

Historical fiction is “my thing”, and I have  been a huge fan of M.J. Rose since I first read her book “The Reincarnationist”. I am also a fan of books that deal with the paranormal, time travel, memory travel, ESP etc. No one does this particular genre better than M.J. Rose.

I was thrilled to read her latest book, Seduction”. It did not fail to delight me, and as usual when I read her books, I could not put it down. Last year when I read “ The Book of Lost Fragrances” I did not think that M.J. Rose’s writing could get any better, but she has proven that she has with this, her latest book.

Jac L’Etoile is the main character in this book. She is a mythologist, and she is skeptic who tries to stay grounded in the world of science and reality. Her character will utterly captivate you! Jac has ‘gifts’; she has visions that are often precipitated by scent, visions that speak of memories, and ESP . As a skeptic, Jac has struggled to live with her gifts and she tries to deny her talents, and does not want to acknowledge them. Her family was well know perfumers in times past and scent is the main sensory tool for Jac (more on that in “Fragrances”).  You might consider reading “The Book Of Lost Fragrances”. Reading ‘Fragrances’ might help you to ‘flesh out’ Jac’s character which in turn might make reading “Seduction” even more enjoyable for you. That being said these are truly stand-alone books as well and you will enjoy reading them in what ever sequence you choose.

The plot of “Seduction” moves between the present (on Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands) and the 1840’s during the life of Victor Hugo. Hugo has moved from Paris to Jersey after the death of his beloved daughter, Leopoldine. She had drowned in the Seine River when she was 19. Unable to recover or find any consolation Hugo is introduced to the world of mediums and séances. He spends many years trying to contact Leopoldine through the use of séances, mediums and trances; with Hugo carefully transcribing his ‘conversations’ with the in a series of long lost journals. One of Hugo’s communicants is, perhaps, the most troubling, as well as the darkest. An evil entity who calls himself the “Shadow of The Sepulcher”. He fears he may have gone too far and eschews the mystic world for a time.

Jac, who in the present, is struggling to deal with some of her own personal demons is invited to Jersey by her one time love Theo Gaspard who asks for her assistance as he investigates Jersey’s long lost secrets of an ancient Celtic culture. Additionally, Theo’s grandfather believed that Hugo had been entangled with the dark spirit of  the Shadow of the Sepulcher (aka the devil?). Theo knows of some neolithic monuments and some hidden water side caves that he  believes are important to his research about the Celtic societies and his grandfather’s belief in the dark evil of the ‘the shadow” that, he feels, may have somehow cast a long tinge of shadow over the spirit of  islands.

I think that it is difficult to blend two, nearly separate, stories, as well as expertly blend fact and fiction, and yet Ms. Rose manages it with great aplomb. There were just a few moments in the book when I felt that the stories were a bit too separate, but in mere sentences I felt the continuity once again. Rose has such a talent for superlative story telling! I love how historical facts are expertly interwoven with her fiction. You have to go and review the real history behind her work to understand how factual some of her work really is !

I look forward to each of her books with great anticipation, and her writing seems to just keep on getting better! Her characters are well developed and captivating, her plots are well constructed and beautifully connected. Yes, I really AM a fan and I do believe that this book will appeal to readers who love great fiction in general, historical fiction, paranormal fiction, time travel, and romance.