Saturday, July 4, 2009

The Crimson Thread by Suzanne Weyn

Bridget O'Malley and her family arrive in New York City in 1880 with little more than the clothes on their backs, hoping for a better life than what they left behind in Ireland. They struggle at first, working in sweatshop conditions and living in a dismal tenement apartment. But when opportunity knocks, in the form of Bridget's position as a seamstress in the home of textile tycoon J.P. Wellington, it seems fortune will smile on them at last.

To Bridget's dismay, her imaginative father boasts she can make dresses so spectacular, they will create a sensation and bring the Wellingtons untold riches. Bridget's skills are not equal to the task, but she has an unexpected ally. Ray Stalls, a kind but enigmatic young man from her neighborhood, practically spins straw into gold, launching Bridget into a brilliant new career and the sort of fairy-tale lifestyle she only dreamed of. Until it all unravels.

Suzanne Weyn's young-adult novel, from the "Once Upon a Time" series, is an imaginative reworking of the Brothers Grimm tale, "Rumpelstiltskin" She embroiders her story with the merest hint of magic as she relates how Bridget finds all she has ever thought she wanted and loses it, only to discover riches much more precious and lasting.

The most intriguing aspect of this fairy-tale retelling was how Weyn turned Ray Stalls into a hero rather than the villain. He is the story's most sympathetic character and Bridget's true prince, although it takes her the length of the novel to realize it. Weyn incorporated elements from the original tale - straw spun into gold thread, a quest to discover Stalls's true name -in surprising ways. Bridget was a resourceful, strong-willed character, especially when Ray Stalls vanished from the narrative for a time, leaving her to her own devices.

Weyn portrayed the prejudice many immigrants had to overcome in order to succeed in the New World. She also explored the working conditions of the Industrial Revolution, showing how tycoons built their wealth on the backs of poorly paid employees, and examined the beginnings of labor movements and unionizing.

The book was not without flaws. Bridget's father was the stereotypical Irishman - hot headed and full of blarney. (At least he didn't drink). The plot relied too much on coincidence, and Weyn crammed so many important occurrences into the last 60 pages that my head spun. But I was willing to overlook these problems. It's a fairy tale, after all, with an appropriately romantic and happy ending.

My grade: A-

Posted by Felicia J. at 7/04/2009 | 0 comments  

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Sunday, June 28, 2009

Caroline, the Queen by Jean Plaidy

Caroline, the Queen, the third book in Jean Plaidy's Georgian Saga, opens with the death of George I, Caroline of Ansbach's tyrannical father-in-law. Finally, Caroline takes the helm of the ship of state. For years, she has honed her ability to manipulate her husband, George II, a conceited, hot-tempered, selfish little man. With the help of the astute politician Sir Robert Walpole, Caroline sets England on the course of peace and prosperity.


However, her life remains far from easy. She must constantly coddle her insecure husband and make him believe that he, not she, is the true ruler of England. Her health begins to fail as she grows older, which she must hide from George, who cannot abide his wife showing signs of illness. And she must always contend with her and Walpole's enemies at court.

Unfortunately, Caroline is not nearly as successful a mother as she is at ruling. She is estranged from her oldest son, Frederick, who remained behind in Hanover when she and George came to England. As a consequence, she has lavished all her affection on her younger boy, William, and wishes he were the eldest son and Prince of Wales. Frederick and his parents grow to despise one another, especially as George II's popularity wanes. George makes the same mistake his father made: He prefers his principality of Hanover, where he is absolute ruler, to England, where he must win the approval of Parliament.

I grew a bit impatient with Plaidy's "just the facts" prose style while reading this book, which probably means I need to take a short break before moving on to the next. She packs a lot of information into fairly compact novels, and while she gives a good overview of each reign, I sometimes wish she would spend more time describing the personalities and politics involved. The novel also seemed a bit repetitive, perhaps because George and Caroline's hatred of their son mirrored George I's hatred of them a generation before.

However, I felt I got to know the formidable Caroline well through the pages of this novel. She was a complicated, fiercely intelligent and steely woman and must certainly have been one of the most influential queens-consort in British history. My grade: B.

Posted by Felicia J. at 6/28/2009 | 0 comments  

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Sunday, June 14, 2009

Queen in Waiting by Jean Plaidy

Queen in Waiting, the second book in Jean Plaidy's Georgian Saga, focuses on a fascinating woman, Caroline of Ansbach: wife of George Augustus of Hanover, the Princess of Wales and future Queen of England.

Caroline was a much more interesting protagonist than Sophia Dorothea, the central figure of Plaidy's previous novel, The Princess of Celle. Unlike Sophia Dorothea, Caroline was fiercely intelligent, crafty and determined not to become a victim. She knew she had only to wait for the death of her loathsome father-in-law to become the power behind the English throne.

Raised as the ward of Sophia Charlotte, sister of George Lewis of Hanover, Caroline agrees to marry George Lewis's son, George Augustus, in order to remain close to her beloved guardian. The first half of the novel shows how Caroline learns to navigate the treacherous court of Hanover, which her vindictive father-in-law rules with an iron fist, and also to make herself indispensable to her conceited, hot-tempered, childish husband (whose tantrums involve him throwing his wig to the floor and kicking it around the room.) Despite her husband's failings, Caroline develops an affection for him, especially when she discovers she can manipulate him to her way of doing things, while making him think it was his idea all along.

The novel offered a fresh perspective on Duchess Sophia of Hanover, who featured prominently in The Princess of Celle. Caroline learns from the formidable, intellectual duchess how to get her way without running afoul of men with power over her. Duchess Sophia also passes along to Caroline her fierce love for England, where the duchess hopes to rule before she dies. The granddaughter of James I, Sophia is next in line in the Protestant succession because of Queen Anne's inability to produce an heir. (The English seem unlikely to allow the Catholic son of James II to take the throne.)

The duchess dies scant weeks before Queen Anne, leaving her son, George Lewis, heir to the English throne, and George Augustus and Caroline the Prince and Princess of Wales. The rest of the book details how the couple strive to ingratiate themselves with the English people while living under George Lewis's thumb. Possibly the most unappealing monarch ever to sit on Britain's throne, George I never bothers to learn English and openly expresses his preference for his principality of Hanover. He keeps his throne with the help of wily ministers and plain dumb luck. He hates his son and daughter-in-law for their popularity with the people and heaps all the indignities he can on them, including taking Caroline's children from her care. But Caroline, a survivor, bides her time positioning herself to eventually take the throne.

I am greatly enjoying Plaidy's portrayal of the grand Georgian soap opera. Her no-frills writing is smooth, easy to read and packed with information, although I can understand why some readers find her dull. Plaidy paid inordinate attention to minor episodes in Caroline's life (intrigues among her ladies) while glossing over larger ones (the Jacobite rebellions). However, she mostly provides an enjoyable trip through the foibles and follies of history. My grade: B+

Posted by Felicia J. at 6/14/2009 | 0 comments  

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Thursday, May 28, 2009

The Princess of Celle by Jean Plaidy

I've managed to learn a great deal about the British monarchy from reading historical fiction, but I still have huge gaps in my knowledge when it comes to the Georgian period. (Just how did a bunch of Germans end up on England's throne, anyway?) I have been wanting to read more of Jean Plaidy's novels, so I decided to start on her Georgian saga. These 11 books begin with the story of Prince George Lewis of Hanover, later George I, and continue through the early life of Queen Victoria.

The Princess of Celle actually takes place almost entirely in Germany, with scant coverage of George I's English reign. No matter. The story of the family of German dukes who eventually produced the English heir was fascinating enough in its own right. The novel is a sprawling, absorbing family saga which chiefly tells the tale of how Sophia Dorothea came to marry her coarse, vindictive cousin George Lewis and eventually was imprisoned by him for 30 years.

The events of the book revolve around four women:

Duchess Sophia of Hanover - Mother of George Lewis and cousin to Charles II of England, she is an intensely practical woman with fixed notions of how nobility should conduct itself. She ignores the affairs of her husband, Duke Ernest Augustus, as long as she reigns supreme at their court. However, she never forgets how Ernest's brother, George William, her original betrothed, spurned her, giving up his birthright and inheritance to Ernest if he married her in George William's place. Because of that rejection, she harbors an irrational dislike of George William's beloved duchess, Eleonore, and of her daughter, Sophia Dorothea.

Eleonore d'Olbreuse - A French noblewoman with whom George William unexpectedly falls in love after committing himself to a life of bachelorhood. She causes George William to regret his rash promise to his brother that he would never marry or have children to claim his lands and titles. She works tirelessly for the interests and happy future of their only child, Sophia Dorothea, the Princess of Celle.

Clara von Platen - Ernest Augustus's scheming mistress who endlessly plots against Sophia Dorothea, first to put the girl's dowry in her lover's hands and then to ruin her utterly because Sophia loves a man Clara desires, Count Konigsmarck of Sweden.

Sophia Dorothea - The beautiful, pampered daughter of George William and Eleonore whose life takes a tragic turn when she is forced to marry her despised cousin George Lewis.

The first half of the book focuses on the brothers George William and Ernest Augustus, who shared adventures in their youth traveling around Europe and bedding beautiful women. When their older brother's wife proves barren, it falls to George William, the second eldest, to produce a heir for their family. Horrified by the idea of marriage, George William begs his younger brother to marry in his stead, promising that Ernest Augustus and his children will eventually inherit everything.

However, the brothers' relationship becomes strained when George William falls in love with Eleonore and endangers their agreement. George William also retains his dukedom of Celle, a richer province than Ernest Augustus's Hanover. Although Eleonore plans a marriage for her daughter to another German prince, Ernest Augustus, his wife Sophia and mistress Clara scheme together to persuade George William to give her to her cousin, the thoroughly disagreeable and ill-mannered George Lewis, so the wealth of Celle will eventually come to their family. George William, a weak and easily manipulated man, agrees, a decision which will have tragic consequences and lose him the love of his wife and daughter.

The book's second half focuses on how Sophia Dorothea tries to make the best of her marriage to the uncouth, philandering George Lewis. She is continually made wretched, however, by George's flaunting of his mistresses and Clara's constant scheming. Clara is a thoroughly evil character and, consequently, one of the most interesting in the book. I wish Plaidy had told more of the story from her point of view and explored her motives in more depth. Clara is like the wicked stepmother in Snow White - she wants everyone to consider her "the fairest one of all." Sophia Dorothea's youth, beauty and charm all threaten her. When Sophia falls in love with Count Konigsmarck, a man Clara desires, the princess's fate is sealed.

Sophia is the weakest of the book's primary female characters because of her impossible position. Her story serves to highlight how miserable life could be for noblewomen in unhappy marriages - their husbands could philander at will, but if they took lovers, they risked losing everything. Her sheltered childhood left her utterly incapable of dealing with the cunning plots of others, and her happiness with Count Konigsmarck could not be anything but short-lived. I felt sorry for her throughout the book as I knew her story would have a tragic ending.

Plaidy's prose became a bit dry at times, and I felt she rushed through the last quarter of the book, but the novel was an absorbing read overall that made me want to continue to the next in the series. My grade: B

Posted by Felicia J. at 5/28/2009 | 1 comments  

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Monday, March 30, 2009

Silent on the Moor by Deanna Raybourn

Sigh. I absolutely loved Silent on the Moor. I think I savored it all the more knowing it will be the last book for awhile in this wonderful Victorian mystery series. Deanna Raybourn is finishing a standalone novel before returning to Lady Julia's adventures. She tied up so many loose ends in Silent on the Moor, it would make a fitting conclusion to a trilogy should she so choose. In particular, the question of whether Julia and Nicholas Brisbane will finally be together - overcoming his secretiveness, her impetuosity and their stubborness - is at last resolved. Don't get me wrong, however. I very much want Raybourn to write more about this fascinating duo!


Determined once and for all to discover Brisbane's intentions toward her, Julia follows him to the Yorkshire moors, where he has recently acquired a crumbling manor house. The former owners of Grimsgrave, the Allenbys, are a fiercely proud family claiming descent from Saxon kings. However, Lady Allenby and her two daughters, Ailith and Hilda, are now virtually peniless. Redwall Allenby, the last male heir, squandered the family's fortune on his collection of Egyptian antiquities before his untimely death.

The visitors - Julia, her sister Portia and brother Valerius - live uneasily alongside the unhappy Allenbys and a brooding Brisbane. When she decides to catalog the pieces in Redwall's collection, Julia discovers the Allenbys have plenty of skeletons (and mummies) stacked in their closets. What's more, Brisbane's fate seems mysteriously entwined with that of the Allenbys. Julia is convinced Brisbane loves her, but he continues to push her away for unfathomable reasons. She cannot control her curiosity, of course, and as she unravels the tangled threads of the Allenbys' secrets, she comes closer and closer to discovering a horror deeper than anything she has faced before.

Silent on the Moor was the perfect book to read on a chilly afternoon with the wind howling outside, perhaps with a steaming cup of tea at hand. Raybourn knows how to keep me turning pages by revealing just enough information at the right times. She built an almost unbearable level of suspense throughout the novel; I could not read fast enough. I longed to discover at last the dark past tormenting Brisbane. I had to know if he and Julia would find happiness together or be consumed by the dark mysteries of Grimsgrave.

Raybourn has a wonderful gift for creating characters. Even minor characters (and even the pets) had their own fully realized personalities. Raybourn skillfully reveals the inner workings of each character through their actions, reactions and dialogue. The Allenbys were everything a reader could want a mysterious family in a Gothic thriller to be. None of them turned out to be what they seemed at first glance.

The novel's ending was quite satisfying, and if everything was resolved just a little too perfectly to be quite believable, I did not care. It was a delight to see things turn out so well for characters who certainly deserved it. When Raybourn returns to Julia and Brisbane's world, I will willingly follow wherever she leads, even to the ends of the earth in a white petticoat.

My grade: A+

Posted by Felicia J. at 3/30/2009 | 1 comments  

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Thursday, March 26, 2009

Silent in the Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn

Silent in the Sanctuary, the second book in Deanna Raybourn's Victorian mystery series, built on the strengths of its predecessor. Raybourn created a vivid, intricate plot populated with well-rounded, believable characters. She allowed her readers to peek at the darkness festering beneath the veneer of Victorian propriety and allowed her appealing heroine, Lady Julia Grey, to develop fully as a headstrong, independent woman.

Recuperating in Italy after nearly losing her life at the end of Silent in the Grave, Julia is summoned home for Christmas along with her brothers, Plum and Lysander, and Lysander's fiery new bride, Violante. Accompanying the siblings is Alessandro, a young, dashing Italian gentleman with an obvious romantic interest in Julia.

Julia, however, still carries a torch for the handsome, enigmatic Nicholas Brisbane, the inquiry agent who helped her unmask her husband's killer. Despite the sparks that ignited between them, she has not heard from Nicholas in months. To her dismay, she finds him among her father's houseguests at the family's ancestral estate, accompanied by his new fiancee, Charlotte King.

Also among the guests are Julia's unconventional sister, Portia; their impoverished cousins, Emma and Lucy; Sir Cedric Eastley, Lucy's much older fiance; Henry Ludlow, Cedric's cousin and secretary; Lucian Snow, a lecherous village curate; and Aunt Dorcas, an opinionated, cantankerous old woman.

As a blizzard buries the estate, intrigues abound among the guests, as Lucian is found bludgeoned to death on the floor of the chapel, and Lucy claims responsibility for the murder. Lucy and Emma are poisoned, Aunt Dorcas vanishes, Julia's priceless pearls are stolen and a ghost wanders the dark hallways. Julia puts her agile mind to the task of unraveling these mysteries before the snow clears and the family is exposed to scandal.

Raybourn once again managed a complicated plot with nary a misstep, drawing me completely into the story and into the larger tale of Julia becoming her own woman, beholden to no one and demanding Brisbane treat her as an equal. I also enjoyed the opportunity to get to know better some of the members of Julia's large, unconventional family.

Silent in the Sanctuary was my third and final read for the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge. My grade: A.

Posted by Felicia J. at 3/26/2009 | 2 comments  

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Tuesday, March 3, 2009

March reading

February was not a good reading month for me ... so bring on March! I have a stack of books set aside in the bedroom that I can't wait to dive into.

A new blog, Royal Intrigue, has just appeared to celebrate the writings of Jean Plaidy. The blog authors are sponsoring a 2009 Plaidy challenge. I put the banner on my sidebar to remind myself to read some more Plaidy in the months ahead.

I'll be back with more reviews as soon as I get some reading done!

Posted by Felicia J. at 3/03/2009 | 0 comments  

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Tuesday, February 3, 2009

A Crowning Mercy by Bernard Cornwell & Susannah Kells


I waited far too long to read another Bernard Cornwell novel after devouring his Arthurian trilogy in the late 90s. A Crowning Mercy (written with his wife, Judy, who used a pseudonym) was a rollicking read, filled with romance, peril and high adventure. It definitely whetted my appetite for more Cornwell!

Campion, the story's heroine, is a young woman raised in a dour family of English Puritans, who have taught her to fear a God of wrath and terrible punishment. Despite their strictures, Campion believes in her heart in a God of love and joy. Her encounter with the handsome Toby Lazender beside a stream gives her a first taste of how divine love can be, but she must face the worst of human cruelty and greed before she finds her own heaven on earth.

Campion's fate is inextricably entwined with the mysterious Covenant, symbolized by four beautiful golden seals that could unlock an inheritance of unimagined riches.

A Crowning Mercy is, at its heart, a very well written and intricately plotted adventure story, filled with despicable villains I wanted to boo and hiss and good-hearted heroes I wanted to cheer. The pages flew by as Campion faced one peril after another: a family plot to wed her to a pathetic man, a kidnapping, a siege, the death of a kind benefactor and the wounding of her true love, and a trial and near execution for witchcraft.

The novel examined deeper themes amid all the derring-do. The Cornwells explored how people sometimes use religion as a justification for fear and hatred, especially of women. The witchcraft trial scenes were harrowing and made me pity the real women and men throughout history who were falsely accused, tortured and executed. Our society may have moved beyond burning witches, but the story reminded me that such unreasoning fear and hatred, cloaked in religion's mantle, still exists today. The Cornwells also wove a thematic struggle throughout the novel between the notion of a God who delights in people's pain and a belief in a more kind, loving Creator.

The Cornwells also skillfully used the backdrop of the English Civil War to give the reader a good sense of the radical politics and religious fanaticism sweeping the country at the time.

A Crowning Mercy was my second read for the Historical Fiction Challenge and the February book of the month for the Historical Fiction forums at Paperback Swap. I thorougly enjoyed this novel and closed it with a sigh of regret that I had to leave its captivating world behind. Bravo, Mr. and Mrs. Cornwell! My grade: A.

Posted by Felicia J. at 2/03/2009 | 0 comments  

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Sunday, January 25, 2009

A Rose for the Crown by Anne Easter Smith

History records Richard of Gloucester (later King Richard III) fathered at least two illegitimate children. We do not know their mother's identity. Anne Easter Smith has imagined her as Kate Haute, Richard's first love, to whom he was faithful until his noble birth forced him to marry another. Smith tells Richard's turbulent story through Kate's eyes in her first novel, A Rose for the Crown.

Kate spends her earliest years on a humble farm until one of her mother's relatives takes her to his manor as a companion for his daughter. She tolerates her first, arranged marriage to a much older man, a prosperous merchant, who soon leaves her a wealthy widow. Kate then marries her dashing cousin George for love - or so she thinks. George wants her only for her money and prefers the company of the stable boy. During a visit to her neighbors, Sir John and Margaret Howard, loyal supporters of the house of York, Kate begins a passionate affair with Richard of Gloucester. Richard truly loves her and his children but makes clear he will eventually have to end their relationship to marry someone of noble birth.

The novel had its flaws but was an enjoyable and intriguing read overall. It kept my attention for all of its 600-plus pages, which is no mean feat, especially for a first-time novelist. Smith's writing was smooth and for the most part well paced, and the pages flew by despite the book's length.

Smith was best at evoking the textures of late medieval England - the clothes, the rich tapestries, the food, the music - as well as less pleasant realities of life - sickness, the stench of towns, the fleas and lice that plagued everyone. Her characters were well drawn and true to the times in which they lived. Kate and Richard's romance was sweet without being cloying, and Kate's domestic life, whether visiting Richard in a palace or playing with her children in her cozy cottage, was lovingly described.

Unfortunately, Kate was something of a "Mary Sue." She was far too perfect to be totally believable. Even her supposed flaws - outspokenness and stubbornness - endeared people to her. Most everyone in the novel just loved her, even when she should have made them angry. (The handful of characters who did not love her were the obvious, one-dimensional villains.) Richard, too, was portrayed as the perfect, chivalrous lord. Smith didn't have to turn him into Shakespeare's hunchbacked murderer, but a realistically flawed Richard would have made her story more believable and interesting.

Also, Smith tried to cram too much history into the novel's last 100 pages, which covered all the events from Edward IV's death to Richard's defeat on Bosworth Field. She skimmed over the juiciest parts of Richard's story and only mentioned in passing important characters such as the Duke of Buckingham, Margaret Beaufort and the Stanleys. Henry Tudor wasn't developed at all and the reader given scant information about why he invaded England to take the crown. I was disappointed Smith hurried through the climactic events of Richard's life. But overall, I enjoyed the story enough to eventually try another by this author.

A Rose for the Crown was my first read for the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge. My grade: B.

Posted by Felicia J. at 1/25/2009 | 2 comments  

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Thursday, January 15, 2009

Sky Coyote by Kage Baker

Sky Coyote, the second novel in The Company series by Kage Baker, was a better read than the first. Baker seemed to find her feet as a writer, spinning a witty, satirical tale of how the operative Joseph saves a Chumash Indian village from encroaching white settlers.

Joseph has worked for The Company for 20,000 years, ever since he was recruited from a prehistoric European tribe. After a brief stay at a Company spa in the Mayan jungle, Joseph is sent to California in 1700, where he must convince the entire population of a seaside village to follow him into a Company enclave. (The Company's agents rescue works of art, rare plants and animals and cultural artifacts from destruction by humankind, so The Company can "rediscover" them in the future for its rich clients.)

Mendoza, the operative Joseph recruited in 16th-Century Spain, joins the California mission. (And yes, she's still bitter about how her last assignment with Joseph, in Tudor England, turned out.) However, the story focuses mainly on Joseph, describing his interactions with the Chumash while revealing his background and the doubts in his mind after centuries of service to The Company.

Joseph describes himself as having "a keen appreciation of the ludicrous." His wry, world-weary sense of humor colors the novel as he describes his efforts to lure the Chumash to the "sky canoes" that will take them to a new paradise. To facilitate his mission, Company technicians use implants, makeup and prosthetics to transform him into Sky Coyote, a Chumash trickster deity.

Baker wrote conversations between Joseph and the Chumash in modern idiom. At first, I thought it sounded odd and wasn't sure I liked it. But Baker soon had me chuckling with the wittiness of her dialogue. Her funny scenes gave me a sense of Chumash culture while reminding me humans have had the same flaws and foibles throughout history.

(For example, one scene had the tribe's holy men arguing heatedly with each other about how to interpret their deity's every word and action. Another had the village's tradesmen asking Coyote whether the gods might be interested in their merchandise.)

The Chumash remind Joseph of his own, long-vanished tribe as he reflects on his life as an operative. He and many of the other immortals are no longer sure their mortal masters are the wise, benevolent architects of a better future, as they were schooled to believe. Why are the mortals who travel back in time so narrow-minded and fearful? Why have some operatives disappeared after apparently outliving their usefulness to The Company? And why does the historical knowledge given to operatives end with the year 2355?

Baker's stories do require much suspension of disbelief, which I found easier with this second novel than I did with the first. Very little is revealed about how time travel works, or how exactly The Company makes certain select humans immortal. The Company's futuristic infrastructure operates alongside less advanced human societies, without humans ever becoming aware of it. (Could they really keep it all hidden for millennia?) What's more, some mortals, like the Chumash, become employees of The Company, somehow adapting to an utterly alien way of life even though they have no cultural or technological context for it.

Sky Coyote occasionally stretched my credulity a little thin. However, I enjoyed the story enough to put my quibbles aside. The novel was good enough to make me want to read further in the series, but not so good that I'm compelled to read the remaining books right away. I plan to take a break for other reading before I pick up the next Company novel.

My grade for Sky Coyote: B+

Posted by Felicia J. at 1/15/2009 | 0 comments  

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