I'm so disappointed this is unfinished, it was great. Basically detailing what looks like a massive scam on a prince run by a set of con artists with I'm so disappointed this is unfinished, it was great. Basically detailing what looks like a massive scam on a prince run by a set of con artists with occult trappings. I wish we'd had the whole story so I could see if my theories were correct. ...more
A frothy and entirely ahistorical histrom. Present tense, and dialogue is extremely modern American English. You mind this or you don't.
Chacun a son A frothy and entirely ahistorical histrom. Present tense, and dialogue is extremely modern American English. You mind this or you don't.
Chacun a son gout. If these things don't bother you, it's got lots of froth and romp and a parent-trap plotline that looked fun; I just didn't get on with it as I was hoping to, which I regret. Hey ho, not everything is for me.
I do need to comment on the absolutely bewildering names: Mrs Demeroven? Lord Psoris? Lord Frightan? Mrs Stelm? Lord Bletchle? I suppose it's in the Victorian authorial tradition of filling books with weird-ass names as per Trollope and Thackeray; I found it distracting, but there you go. ...more
Robert Graves style overview of British mythology (tell the myth then explore what if anything we know of the real story) covering the foundation legeRobert Graves style overview of British mythology (tell the myth then explore what if anything we know of the real story) covering the foundation legends for all four nations and going up to, roughly, Beowulf. Majors on Arthur, obv. Interesting and comprehensive if a little dry, though satisfyingly sarcastic about ley lines....more
Friends to lovers romance with a very slow burn, set part in New York and part in Ruritania.
I love a good Ruritania book, and this hits the beats of Friends to lovers romance with a very slow burn, set part in New York and part in Ruritania.
I love a good Ruritania book, and this hits the beats of squabbling royal family, gorgeous scenery etc very nicely. It is definitely Ruritania in the American Hallmark tradition which I totally don't understand and have only a sort of refracted view of through romance novels. (My tentative conclusion is you are meant to accept everything unlikely as part of the fun, and roll around in it, which sounds fair. HOWEVER I am still compelled to observe there hasn't been an Austrian archduke in a century, due to some events in the vicinity of 1914-18. Also it is no more likely that the newspapers would nickname a duke's son the Debauched Duke than that they'd nickname the US President's son the Pervy President: it's literally *not his title*. But Hallmark. Let it go, woman.)
This is a bouncily enjoyable romance with a fun heroine getting through a divorce, and a satisfying very rich hero who is bearing a few very real problems as well as some rich-people ones, but doesn't dump them on the heroine. They're both thoroughly likeable and I really enjoyed the exceedingly slow burn: they're both in situations that have ground them down and the pleasure is in seeing how they help each other build themselves back up. I liked Sebastian a lot; I wish we'd had more of him and his love interest, which is not something I'd often say of a minor character.
I was just a touch uncomfortable with one element: heroine is mixed race, hero is to be duke of a mitteleuropean duchy. She expresses her fears about being notably non white there, the paparazzi, Meghan Markle's treatment etc., which is entirely legit but then we don't really hear about that again. I really don't know if it would be best to tackle this in more depth or handwave it because Hallmark, but I found just the mention left me a bit betwixt and between. YMMV here, I genuinely don't know.
It's really fluently written, which is such a joy, and nicely paced. I read this in every opportunity I had with huge pleasure. ...more
Very good indeed. A history of the runn up to WW1 themed around the monarchs of Britain, Russia and Germany, culminating in the cousin King, Tsar, andVery good indeed. A history of the runn up to WW1 themed around the monarchs of Britain, Russia and Germany, culminating in the cousin King, Tsar, and Kaiser who presided over the mess. This is the opposite of a Great Men of History book: it's more a demolition of the concept of monarchy by demonstrating how these untalented, unimaginative, self-centred charisma voids didn't even make the best of their limited capacities.
Wilhelm is probably the worst, being not entirely sane, uttterly unreliable, ego-crazed, profoundly damaged by terrible parenting, and an absolute shocker at administration. Nicholas would probably have been harmless if he hadn't been born into a position to do an incredible amount of harm by a combination of insane self regard and horrendous inaction. George comes out relatively sympathetic if only because he did occasionally get over himself long enough to try to do a decent job.
It's terrifically written with deadpan humour and some actual laugh out loud moments, and it conveys the complex family structures and wildly shifting politics extremely well. Highly recommended. ...more
Irritatingly, there is a fascinating story to be told here. The bloody history of Romania, for so long standing between the Ottoman Empire and the HolIrritatingly, there is a fascinating story to be told here. The bloody history of Romania, for so long standing between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy Roman one. Medieval infighting and politics and side-switching and Crusades and crucial battles that don't usually get covered because British historians are banging on about Agincourt again. Plus, the whole Dracula (book) thing, plus Romania's recent history. What I read of all that was really interesting.
Unfortunately, someone decided to let some sort of aspiring horror novelist write fictional interludes of extreme brutality, depicting people being impaled, blinded etc in loving detail and at length, which are then included between chapters, presumably in order to help anyone sitting on the fence about whether being horribly mutilated was fun. I mean: no, and also: what.
Also unfortunate is the outstandingly uncomfortable and lengthy discussion on the supposed Turkish/Ottoman habit of penetrative male/male sex (TE Lawrence makes it in, you may be amazed to hear) with much concentration on rape, and speculation on who may have been raped, and frankly fairly squinky attitudes.
I felt I was learning something in the actual history bits but it's feeling distinctly sticky, with an awful lot more close-up dwelling on traumatic violence than I expected in a history of Vlad the Impaler. I am off-put....more
A romance novel about Richard the Lionheart and Philip II of France, which asks us upfront to accept that the characters "Richard of Aquitaine" and "PA romance novel about Richard the Lionheart and Philip II of France, which asks us upfront to accept that the characters "Richard of Aquitaine" and "Philip II" are not the actual Richard and Philip (who, it says upfront, sucked), but other people with the same names and positions and lives.
This means that "Philip" in the book presumably didn't recently rob, forcibly convert, and expel the Jews from France, and "Richard" wasn't loathed for his notoriously cruel and savage rule. ("Richard" also doesn't seem to be betrothed to "Philip"'s sister). I don't know if the book addresses Richard and Philip joining the Third Crusade (unprovoked fanatical religious war) together because I DNF'd; I doubt it mentions that Philip went on to preside over the Albigensian Crusade, a campaign of staggering brutality against some spectacularly harmless people who only wanted to be left alone. What I'm saying is, Richard was a violent psychopath and Philip was a calculating psychopath and they each had the blood of thousands on their hands and I...do not want to read a romance novel about them.
It's not about them. The foreword makes it clear that it's about these two other people of the same name who are all pining and yearning and Captive Princing for one another. But, this invites the question, why are they called Richard of Aquitaine and Philip of France? Why not do the Game of Thrones thing, use the history, rename the country and characters, and avoid all the above?
IMO, the answer is because this book's hook is Richard the Lionheart's gay love affair. (It's a great hook. Absolute props. I bought the book because of it.) Without that, this would be a romance novel about a couple of fictional princes, and there's a fair few of those. With it, it's a historical reimagining with heft.
But I don't think you can have it both ways. Either this is Richard and Philip or it's not. If it is, I hope they both step on medieval Lego for the pair of murderous bastards they were. If you can accept it's not, if you don't know anything about the Angevins (fair), if you're happy with historical fanfic, then it's a slow-burn prince romance with a lot of yearning, and I can well imagine people absolutely loving it on its own terms.
I don't know. It's a thousand years ago. Everyone would be dead anyway. Most people didn't spend a year of lockdown inexplicably and obsessively reading Angevin and Crusade history. /shifty look/ But I got two thirds in with increasing discomfort about all the things we were pretending didn't happen, and the unacknowledged human toll of this game of thrones, and I just couldn't buy into it.
1870s historical fiction set in the world of seances and mediums. Sapphic.
This book should have been so far up my street--ladies investigate a dodgy 1870s historical fiction set in the world of seances and mediums. Sapphic.
This book should have been so far up my street--ladies investigate a dodgy society of mediums!--but oof. The depiction of spiritualism and seances in 1870s London--the way the seances are conducted, the way the club works--just doesn't ring true (it's a bit of a specialist subject of mine hence I was looking forward to this). The dialogue is tooth-grindingly American, with no effort at sounding British. Why not set it in New York or whatever if you're not going to use British English, or have it be plausibly Britain? Then again the women are consistently addressed as Ms, *in the 1870s*. Wow.
I got to about 66% with increasing annoyance, then came across the single most blatant piece of plot manipulation via ludicrously improbable character behavior I've seen in years, spent several minutes ranting about it to my husband, and binned out in a huff. DNF....more
A murder mystery starring a fake psychic solving fake hauntings to unearth real crimes seemed exactly what I needed. It's a brilliant idea and the wriA murder mystery starring a fake psychic solving fake hauntings to unearth real crimes seemed exactly what I needed. It's a brilliant idea and the writing is fluent and assured with some good jokes, so I was poised to enjoy this.
Sadly, I was foiled by a few issues. It's partly the setting in a 'Sussex' that conflates Poldarkshire, Midsomer, and America. (We don't have a 'school board' here, nor do random people come round with plates of food for obscure social reasons at times of death, nor do we have non-locking doors, etc etc ad nauseam.) This narked me, and I can't see why it couldn't have been set in the US, tbh.
And it's partly the plot, which hinges on both an authorial misunderstanding of primogeniture and an apparent belief that (view spoiler)[you can make a literal fortune digging up old corpses from cemeteries and selling them as loose bones to medical schools because apparently England is so backward we still have and need resurrection men what the fuck was that about (hide spoiler)].
I'm going to guess this may be a genre thing (like, you don't need a plausible setting or plot for a cosy mystery and everyone goes along with that?? IDK, not my genre) and if you don't care about those things there's much to enjoy, but for me this didn't live up to the promise of its wonderful concept. Non Brits may not care. ...more
Not my fave Manning Coles. There's a complicated multi part plot set in post war Berlin, with missing jewels and stolen plans. It has quite a strong eNot my fave Manning Coles. There's a complicated multi part plot set in post war Berlin, with missing jewels and stolen plans. It has quite a strong espionage vibe and a great sense of place but lacks the charm of the best books. ...more
Tremendous. A hugely comprehensive history of the Burgundian duchy, which wasn't just the French wine bit, but covered a lot of the Netherlands/BelgiuTremendous. A hugely comprehensive history of the Burgundian duchy, which wasn't just the French wine bit, but covered a lot of the Netherlands/Belgium. Brilliant structure, giving a quick run over the first thousand years, focusing in on the most important hundred years, then closer and closer in--a decade, a year, a day--to take us the the end of Burgundy as a named political structure. This means the author can really go in hard on the interesting bits, and does.
It's bursting with great stuff. Good stories, many interesting characters with deep dives into the dukes with their extravagance, cruelty, and appetites, loads on art and literature and emergent technology (I am desperate to go see some of the surviving buildings and paintings now), lots on the state of the common people, not just the nobles. Really good with the historical context, which let me slot it into place with what I know of England/France/Holy Roman Empire. Written in an enthusiastic, informal style (and terrifically translated) so it's a bit like a history lesson from a really good teacher. It's a big book about an area of which I knew virtually nothing and I've been glued to it for a week.
Really excellent. Don't miss, even (especially) if you're like "who tf are the Burgundians anyway". You'll learn....more
Quite interesting look at the patchwork of countries and states that made up what is now the bit where France meets Germany. Written in a self-conscioQuite interesting look at the patchwork of countries and states that made up what is now the bit where France meets Germany. Written in a self-consciously quirky way with personal bits and fun facts and amusing remarks etc, which readers may find fun or annoying. Mostly a useful reminder of how Europe was entirely and continually at brutal war with itself more or less non-stop till the latter half of the 20th century. but sure, what did the EU ever do for us. ...more
A reasonably interesting read if you're after 20s background but my God Cartland is a snob and a racist. Her efforts at, you know, acknowledging womenA reasonably interesting read if you're after 20s background but my God Cartland is a snob and a racist. Her efforts at, you know, acknowledging women suck as well. Plus, since I am on a deep dive into 20s memoirs, I can't help noticing that a number of her anecdotes are lifted without attribution from both Kate Meyrick and Beverley Nichols, either of whom I would recommend before this. Tsk....more
The Prisoner of Zenda is one of the big (in stature, it's very short) Victorian pulp novels, the rip-roaring swashbuckling tale of an Englishman posinThe Prisoner of Zenda is one of the big (in stature, it's very short) Victorian pulp novels, the rip-roaring swashbuckling tale of an Englishman posing as a king in a nonexistent medievalist European country. It has beautiful princesses, dastardly skulduggery, a hot-as-fire villain, endless swordfights, a lot of highly dubious Victorian attitudes with a lot of misogyny and whiffs of racism, and a remarkably high body count. There is a Douglas Fairbanks Jr movie. It's that sort of book.
I love Zenda but I have always felt that the first-person narrator was a jerk, and once I was given the opportunity to screw about with it rewrite the story, it became apparent that he was a liar as well. This version is what (imo) really happened, as narrated by one of the Evil Duke's Evil Henchmen. It is substantially queerer than the original is (on page at least, Victorian novels are subtext-tastic), and has significantly more sex.
Let me add, the cover is by Simone and is absolutely stellar. I adore it.
FAQs
Do I need to read the original first? You definitely don't have to--we had it read by people who didn't know the original, to be sure. I think readers who know it will have more fun, myself, and the original is free on the internet and very short. But your call.
Is this a romance, with a HEA? I'd probably go for 'pulp adventure with strong romantic elements'. (view spoiler)[ Call it a non-heteronormative HFN. If you want a monogamous HEA, this may not be the book for you. (hide spoiler)]...more
I really enjoyed this. Which is odd because it's got a number of aspects that usually send me running screaming. (Historical romance with English settI really enjoyed this. Which is odd because it's got a number of aspects that usually send me running screaming. (Historical romance with English setting but the characters talk like modern Americans; a nominally late Victorian setting but the social interaction appears to be Jane Austen via Avon romance; also a misunderstanding trope.)
However, what we *also* have is magic, demon-summoning, and a kickass heroine sent back from the future to kill an evil wizard, but who has to learn to pose as a proper lady (did you say "proper for 1815 or 1885?" Sssh.). Terminator meets My Fair Lady with magic, basically, with blood powered guns hidden under floofy dresses. It's enormous fun, exuberant, with some tremendously good ideas and tons of heart, and also a great relationship between the MCs themselves and with the hero's younger sister. Very silly, but sometimes silly is exactly what you need, and frankly if the future would like to send back more kickass assassins to murder world-destroying idiots, I think we'd all be grateful. ...more
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