#BookReview ‘The Armour of Light’ by @KMFollett #historical #Kingsbridge

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It is 1792 and a weaving revolution is taking place in Kingsbridge while across the Channel, the deadly French Revolution is well underway. The Armour of Light by Ken Follett, fifth in the Kingsbridge historical series (starting with prequel The Evening and The Morning), begins with a horrific accident. When Sal Clitheroe’s husband dies, she and her small son Kit move to Kingsbridge and so set in motion a chain of events leading to the Battle of Waterloo. Ken Follett
As the 18th century turns into the 19th, this is a story of great change as Britain industrialises and hovers on the brink of war, and both workers and ruling classes of Kingsbridge are affected. Kingsbridge, now a city so much more than simply a cathedral, is still recognisable from the earlier novels. Sal and her fellow workers at the spinning and weaving mills become embroiled in a power struggle with the mill owners, as first the spinning jenny and then other machines are introduced. Jobs are lost, hours are reduced, dissenters are flogged and strike-busting labourers are hired from Ireland.
The Armour of Light is a compelling story of the political times in England from 1792 to 1824 told through the eyes of Sal and Kit; yarn supplier’s son Amos Barrowfield; weaver David Shoveller or ‘Spade’; and alderman and mill owner Joseph Hornbeam. Adding to the tensions between the powerful and the downtrodden, war taxes raised to fund the battle against Napolean mean shortages and rocketing prices. What’s more, young men are being grabbed off the street by press gangs. Kit is a key figure, growing from a child to an inventive engineer whose talents lead him on to the battlefield, bringing a youthful vigour and freshness to the age-old battles between the city cabal of powerful men and the new friendly society which stands up for the workers.
What an epic story this is, 745 pages long but I read it in five days. Not one to over-write, Follett’s prose is never flowery but always clear and dramatic. I always wanted to read just another chapter. A great continuation of the un-matched Kingsbridge series.

Click the titles to read my reviews of other Follett novels:-
THE EVENING AND THE MORNING #prequel Kingsbridge
THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH #1Kingsbridge
WORLD WITHOUT END #2Kingsbridge
A COLUMN OF FIRE #3Kingsbridge
NEVER

If you like this, try:-
‘The Lady of the Ravens’ by Joanna Hickson #1QueensoftheTower
‘The Drowned City’ by KJ Maitland #1 Daniel Pursglove
‘The Warlow Experiment’ by Alix Nathan

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COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:- Verity Bright

#BookReview ‘The King’s Mother’ by @anniegarthwaite #historical

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I couldn’t put down The King’s Mother. It’s the partner to Cecily by Annie Garthwaite, her re-telling of Cecily Neville, matriarch of the House of York during the Wars of the Roses. In the sequel she is now a widow, mother of King Edward IV and the dukes of Clarence and Gloucester, and still a powerhouse in a world of men. Annie GarthwaiteCecily Neville’s husband and eldest son are dead in battle, a battle won by her second son Edward who becomes king. This is the story of the mother of two kings, a woman unafraid to use her power, at the heart she is driven by family. She will do anything to protect her children, even when they are weak and wrong, even if it means waging war. The King’s Mother takes place as the War of the Roses transitions to the age of the Tudors. Edward becomes king at the age of 18, golden, feted, lusty and arrogant. No matter his mother’s plans for a geo-political marriage to benefit the country, the king falls for Elizabeth Woodville, a beautiful blonde from a lesser family. The relationship between the young queen and her mother-in-law is the spine of the novel.
The moral at the end is to never underestimate the power of maternal love and family loyalty. Garthwaite brings a new perspective to the telling of Richard III’s story, which is to be welcomed, and a bitter, grudgingly respectful, hateful battle between four mothers; Cecily, Elizabeth Woodville, Margaret Beaufort and Marguerite of Anjou. It is a time of war, civil and European, and Garthwaite shows the role of the women behind the thrones and most powerful men in the lands. Never ignore the soft power of the wife’s voice and the strategic knowledge learned by playing chess.
So good. It’s a timeless story, totally gripping despite the fact we all know the ending.
And another beautiful cover design.

Here’s my review of CECILY, also by Annie Garthwaite

If you like this, try:-
‘The Other Gwyn Girl’ by Nicola Cornick 
‘Winter Pilgrims’ by Toby Clements #1Kingmaker
‘A Rustle of Silk’ by Alys Clare #1GabrielTaverner

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COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:- Ken Follett

#BookReview ‘The Book of Secrets’ by Anna Mazzola #historical #mystery

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The Book of Secrets by Anna Mazzola is a dark tale of abuse, poison and the moral rights and wrongs of self-defensive murder in a male-dominated society. Anna MazzolaIt is Rome 1659 and there are rumours of funerals for men whose corpses have not decayed as expected. Young prosecutor Stefano Bracchi is commissioned by the Papal authorities to head an investigation. He has been recommended for the job by his father, who thinks Stefano is a weakling, and is egged on by his brothers who are bullies. Only his sister Lucia is a cautious, supportive voice. The journey made by Stefano in the course of his investigation is fascinating.
The story is told in two alternating strands; Stefano’s investigation, and the community of women headed by apothecary and midwife Girolama Spana whose band of women tell fortunes, sell face treatments, deliver babies, offer medical advice. And when occasionally confronted with a woman being abused, they sell bottles of ‘Aqua.’ Made from an ancient recipe passed through Girolama’s female relations, Aqua offers an escape for women trapped in a violent marriage, where they and their children are at risk, but for whom there is no protection under Roman law. Perhaps, though, Girolama has been selling rather more bottles than she used to.
It is a compelling cat-and-mouse story where I found myself rooting for one side and then the other, as Stefano edges closer to the truth I was willing Girolama on as she tied him in knots. The violence against women is shocking, especially in the extraction of confessions at the notorious Tor di Nona prison. But the law of murder in 17th century Rome makes no allowances in support of possible justification of the abused; it is a legal and philosophical argument that powers the story. Can murder every be right? Isn’t murder always murder? And of course because the suspected villains are women, the corpses look unnatural, and poison is suspected, they are also rumoured to be witches.
I would like to have read more from Marcello, the doctor attached to the inquisition who clearly is uncomfortable with the torture of witnesses, and also from some of the other women involved.
It’s a thought-provoking, dark and powerful novel. I was still thinking about it days after finishing it. A fictional telling of the true poisoning inquisition in Rome in 1656.

If you like this, try:-
‘Disobedient’ by Elizabeth Fremantle
‘Glorious Exploits’ by Ferdia Lennon
‘Shadows in the Ashes’ by Christina Courtenay

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COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:- Annie Garthwaite

#BookReview ‘The Saracen’s Mark’ by SW Perry @swperry_history #historical #crime

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It’s a treat to read The Saracen’s Mark by SW Perry and follow the ongoing story of Bankside doctor Nicholas Shelton and apothecary Bianca Merton. This is the third of the Jackdaw Mysteries and the action moves to Morocco in a complicated tale of politics, slavery, money and medicine. It is a dramatic and daring adventure. SW Perry London 1593. Dr Shelton is requested, or rather ordered, by Queen Elizabeth’s spymaster Robert Cecil to go to Marrakesh and strengthen the diplomatic ties between the two nations. His primary, secret task however is find a missing informer. But Nicholas leaves Bianca behind at the Jackdaw tavern after exchanging harsh words, not knowing that the plague will soon reach the south bank of the city. The story races along, alternating between Nicholas sailing south and Bianca dealing with the plague and the disappearance of the Jackdaw’s cook, Farzad. Both storylines are fast-moving and seem totally unlinked. Nicholas didn’t tell Bianca the real reason for his journey; Cecil threated to revoke Bianca’s licence as an apothecary if he refused. She knows there is more to it than he is telling her. They part on bad terms and when both face danger – Bianca from the plague, Nicholas from pirates and slavers – they regret their angry words. Determined to find the real reason for his voyage, Bianca investigates in London and discovers more than is safe for her to know. Both expecting to die, they imagine what they will say if they should ever meet again.
The medical strand is fascinating. Cecil agrees that while in Morocco Shelton should study Moorish medicine. Amazed by the Bimaristan-al-Mansur hospital he visits in Marrakesh, Nicholas witnesses a tracheotomy performed by a female surgeon. However he is less successful at spying, struggling with the language and the customs. He doesn’t trust Cathal Connell, captain of the ship on which he sailed south; an efficient man aboard ship, a brutal one on shore. When Nicholas discovers that Adolfo Sykes, the English informer he has been sent to find, is dead, he doesn’t know who to trust. What secrets did Sykes discover, was his death really an accident, and what happened to the letters he is thought to have sent to England but which never arrived.
The characters of Nicholas and Bianca are so engaging, the plotting is complicated and curious, the danger and double-dealing is on every page. How will Nicholas and Bianca know who to trust, should they believe their instincts or investigate for themselves. Of course they choose the latter, leading to dangerous adventures. The Morocco setting is inspired; very different from other Elizabethan fiction, at once fragrant and scented with blood.
I’m loving this series. Next is The Heretic’s Mark.

Here are my reviews of the first two books in the series:-
THE ANGEL’S MARK #1JACKDAWMYSTERIES
THE SERPENT’S MARK #2JACKDAWMYSTERIES

If you like this, try:-
‘Revelation’ by SJ Sansom #4Shardlake
‘The Drowned City’ by KJ Maitland #1DanielPursglove
‘The Vanished Bride’ by Bella Ellis #1BronteMysteries

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#BookReview THE SERPENT’S MARK by SW Perry @swperry_history https://wp.me/p2ZHJe-87C via @SandraDanby

COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:- Anna Mazzola

#BookReview ‘Murder at Elm House’ by Helena Dixon @NellDixon #cosymystery #crime

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A convalescent home seems an unlikely setting for illegal goings-on but that’s exactly the location of Murder at Elm House by Helena Dixon. This, the sixth of the 1930s Miss Underhay cosy mysteries, starts immediately where the previous book, Murder in the Belltower, ended. Helena Dixon Kitty Underhay and her beau, private detective Captain Matthew Bryant, are reluctant visitors to the nursing home in Torquay, sent there by Kitty’s grandmother to visit her friend Mrs Craven. This indomitable lady, who has been involved in some of Kitty’s previous detectoring, is recovering at Elm House after an operation. But she insists something is ‘not quite right.’ Strange noises in the night, people appearing and disappearing, and deaths. Not the usual sort of deaths expected in a convalescent home. After the death of another patient, one of the nurses asks Kitty to meet her the next day at a tea room in Torquay to discuss the happenings, but that night Nurse Hibbert falls from the roof and dies.
Long-running story threads are picked up again in Murder at Elm House. Kitty and Matt’s romance advances slowly and satisfactorily and she is now having driving lessons in her small red Morris Tourer. But all is not happy. The man she suspects of murdering her mother Elowed in 1916 has been seen in Dartmouth, and she has received an anonymous threatening note.
The threat level in this book is the highest yet, with fights and also guns making an appearance. Despite being banned by her grandmother from visiting Elm House, Kitty is not one to sit quietly by while others solve crime. Murder at Elm House combines two crime stories; the deaths and strange events at the nursing home, and the longer-running story of Ezekiel Hammett and his attempts to silence Kitty once and for all.
I raced through this book, finishing it in 24 hours. The stakes are higher, the risks are riskier. What’s going to happen in the next instalment of the Miss Underhay mysteries? This book has more of danger and a darker tone. The cast of characters is satisfyingly familiar with the addition of two younger members who get involved in the action. Dolly Miller – younger sister of Alice, housemaid at the Dolphin – has just started a new job at Elm House, and taxi driver and Kitty’s driving instructor Robert Potter. Both prove themselves worthy of surveillance, lock-breaking and being in the right place at the right time.
An easy-to-read series. Opening a new book feels like slipping on a comfortable pair of slippers and settling down with a mug of cocoa. Excellent.

Here are my reviews of other books in the series:-
MURDER AT THE DOLPHIN HOTEL #1MISSUNDERHAY
MURDER AT ENDERLEY HALL #2MISSUNDERHAY
MURDER AT THE PLAYHOUSE #3MISSUNDERHAY
MURDER ON THE DANCE FLOOR #4MISSUNDERHAY
MURDER IN THE BELLTOWER #5MISSUNDERHAY
MURDER AT THE WEDDING #7MISSUNDERHAY
MURDER IN FIRST CLASS #8MISSUNDERHAY

And my reviews of the first in a new series by Helena Dixon:-
THE SECRET DETECTIVE AGENCY #1SECRETDETECTIVEAGENCY
THE SEASIDE MURDERS #2SECRETDETECTIVEAGENCY

If you like this, try:-
‘The Art of the Imperfect’ by Kate Evans #1ScarboroughMysteries
‘The Various Haunts of Men’ by Susan Hill #1SimonSerrailler
‘The Silent Twin’ by Caroline Mitchell #3JenniferKnight

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COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:- SW Perry

#BookReview ‘The Traitor’ by Ava Glass #thriller

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I loved The Chase, the first Alias Emma book by Ava Glass, and wondered if she could match it. The Traitor is just as good and I read it just as quickly. Ava GlassFast-moving on every page, the action is this second novel featuring spy Emma Makepeace moves from London to a superyacht on the Mediterranean. The story begins as a British spy is found dead in a suitcase in his London apartment. He has been poisoned with a nerve agent. No fingerprints. No DNA. Stephen Garrick’s latest case was shadowing two oligarchs who are illegal arms dealers. He knew of a third man but not the identity. Before he died, Garrick was following someone in Pimlico. Did he get too close? Did the Russians kill him? And is there a traitor in the British government? Who will Emma’s boss Ripley trust with information about this case and will it be kept secret even from government ministers and civil servants?
Emma goes undercover on the superyacht ‘The Eden’ joining a small crew where there is nowhere to hide. The boat is owned by Andrei Volkov, code name Gold Dust I. Emma and Ripley hope Volkov will invite Gold Dust II, Oleg Federov, onto his yacht. Emma has three objectives – to find a smoking gun linking Volkov to illegal arms sales, to prove his link to Federov, and to identify Gold Dust III, the mysterious third man in the Russian weapons smuggling ring. There is no place to hide and, off shore most of the time, there is no mobile signal. Emma is on her own as they set sail from St Tropez for Barcelona.
As the story progresses, it’s difficult to know if Emma is safer at sea or on land. As Jessica Marshall, housemaid, her access to certain areas on board is restricted and Volkov’s bodyguard is tough and suspicious. Perhaps she can get closer to Volkov’s American girlfriend, Madison.
Great continuation characters – Ripley, Martha, Zach – add to the context of the shadowy ‘Agency’ which sits independently between MI5 and MI6. Ripley worked for MI6 in Russia at the end of the Cold War. Zach is a tech wizard; Martha provides the clothing and disguises. They are a tightknit team.
I didn’t want to put it down. Next in the series is The Trap.

Here’s my review of the first Alias Emma book:-
THE CHASE

If you like this, try:-
‘Waiting for Sunrise’ by William Boyd
‘Before the Fall’ by Noah Hawley
‘Never’ by Ken Follett

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COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:- Helena Dixon

#BookReview ‘A Cornish Recipe for Murder’ by Fiona Leitch #crime #cosycrime

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A Cornish Recipe for Murder is another reliable instalment from the Nosey Parker series of cosy crime novels by Fiona Leitch. Former Metropolitan Police officer now caterer, Jodie Parker, has been secretly entered by her daughter, mum and boyfriend into a television baking contest. Fiona Leitch The Best of Britain Baking Roadshow has arrived in Cornwall at Boskern House, a stately home near Penstowan. The winning baker will compete in the national televised final. So, no pressure. Although cakes are not Jodie’s strong point, she throws herself into the competition against four other amateur bakers to become the Cornish regional baking champion.
The on-screen and off-screen team includes a complex mixture of personalities which provides lots of possibilities for disputes, injured pride, romance, reprisals, cheating and… murder. When a body is found in the grounds of the house, the local police arrive headed by DCI Nathan Withers, Jodie’s boyfriend. With the distraction of a murder to solve, Jodie finds it difficult to concentrate on her cakes. Each day has a different baking challenge and the contestants are filmed as they bake, followed by drag queen host Barbara Strident/Russell Lang, and two professional bakers Pete Banks and Esme Davies as judges. Every suspect is a stranger to Jodie, so red herring follows red herring. Suffice to say, not everyone is who they say they are. When Jodie’s chocolate custard filling is tampered with, her ingredients didn’t include salt, she realises she must be getting close to the perpetrator.
I really enjoyed this story, a quick read after a more serious historical novel. It’s a nice balance of murder mystery, satire of television baking shows, and more about Jodie’s home life and relationship with daughter Daisy and mum Shirley. And things are getting much closer with Nathan, which raises a different set of questions.
All in all, a fun read. An antidote to everyday life.

Here are my reviews of the first books in the Nosey Parker series:-
THE CORNISH WEDDING MURDER #1NOSEYPARKER
THE CORNISH VILLAGE MURDER #2NOSEYPARKER
THE PERFECT CORNISH MURDER #3NOSEYPARKER
A CORNISH CHRISTMAS MURDER #4NOSEYPARKER

If you like this, try:-
‘Death at the Dance’ by Verity Bright #2Lady Eleanor Swift
‘The Diabolical Bones’ by Bella Ellis #2BronteMysteries
‘Magpie Murders’ by Anthony Horowitz #1SusanRyeland

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COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:- Ava Glass

#BookReview ‘Nero’ by Conn Iggulden #historicalfiction #RomanEmpire

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Nero, first in the eponymous trilogy, is the first Conn Iggulden novel I have read. Why did I wait so long? I thoroughly enjoyed it and am now awaiting Tyrant to continue the story. Conn IgguldenNero is the title of the book but Nero the person is not named until the end. It turns out that Nero is a Roman nickname. As this is the first of the trilogy there is a lot of background – family, historical, political, emotional – to establish. Nero features three Roman emperors; Tiberius, Caligula and Claudius. The emperor we know as Nero is a child, Julius, throughout this book until he is re-named. The spine of the story belongs to Agrippina, great-granddaughter of Emperor Augustus I, sister of three brothers including Emperor Caligula, and niece of Emperor Claudius. Their line goes back to Julius Caesar. Step by step, through two husbands, threat, fear, poverty and extreme wealth, Agrippina protects Julius, son of her first husband, guarding his right to become emperor.
I am no expert on Roman history, my knowledge of Claudius is limited to the 1970s television series I, Claudius, which I enjoyed when young and am now tempted to re-visit.
AD 37, Nero begins as Agrippina’s husband Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus, Barbo the celebrity charioteer and grandson of Mark Anthony, rides into Rome to face punishment possibly death. He is accused of adultery with a senator’s wife. It is the first glimpse of Agrippina’s influence, courage and ambition; if Barbo runs for the hills she and her son will be killed in revenge, if he rides to Rome to face judgement then likely he will die but she and her son may survive. Tension is on every page. Women are key characters; the wives, sisters, daughters and mothers of the Roman male elite, are victims, seducers, allies, murderers and heroes.
Agrippina is formidable, admirable in her protection of her child and of their rights, intimidating in the methods she will use to achieve security, Machiavellian in her tactical flexibility. This is a wonderful character-driven drama with a woman at the core, set within the unpredictable, lethal, cut-throat male world of Roman politics. Being unaccustomed to Roman names, I found some confusing and complicated; a family tree would be helpful. It would also be good to see the viewpoints of other female characters – particularly Agrippina’s aunt Domitia Lepida, and Messalina the wife of Claudius – to deepen the plot and add tension.
Rome at the time of Nero can be summed up in three words: treachery, ambition, danger. And it all happens at the speed of light. I loved it.
Bring on Tyrant.

If you like this, try:-
‘Sparrow’ by James Hynes
‘Glorious Exploits’ by Ferdia Lennon
‘The Wolf Den’ by Elodie Harper #1WolfDen

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COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:- Fiona Leitch

Great Opening Paragraph 139… ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ #amreading #FirstPara

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“Mr and Mrs Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you’d expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn’t hold with such nonsense.”
JK RowlingFrom ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ by JK Rowling

Try one of these #FirstParas & discover a new author:-
‘The Secret History’ by Donna Tartt 
‘Lucky You’ by Carl Hiassen 
‘The Hobbit’ by JRR Tolkein

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#FirstPara HARRY POTTER AND THE PHILOSOPHER’S STONE by JK Rowling #books #amreading https://wp.me/p2ZHJe-7gsvia @SandraDanby

#BookReview ‘Death on a Winter’s Day’ by @BrightVerity #cosymystery #crime

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Death on a Winter’s Day is the eighth instalment in the Lady Eleanor Swift between-the-wars cosy mystery series by Verity Bright. Oh what an emotional ending! Verity BrightWhen a Christmas house party with friends on a remote Scottish island turns out to be less than hospitable, Ellie is a long way away from help. Except of course from butler-cum-personal assistant Clifford and her entire domestic staff, who have travelled with her north of the border to assist in the Christmas festivities. They didn’t expect to be confined to the island when a guest dies, stabbed in the back.
Novice lady of the manor Ellie has to use all her conversational and diplomatic skills at Castle Ranburgh to negotiate the tensions amongst her fellow guests. Already beset by staff problems – hence Ellie’s offer of arriving with her own domestic staff in tow – Baron and Baroness Ashley are struggling to be hospitable hosts. Ellie overhears talk of a business deal in danger of not happening, the usually romantic hosts seem to be at odds with each other, an American guest is rather too fond of the whisky and the Ashley’s begrudging cook is sabotaging the food. Clifford and his team of ladies from Henley Hall try to save the day with Stilton straws and other gorgeous canapes. Then a harmless game of ‘wink murder’ turns into the real thing and the local Inspector removes all boats from the island. The Ashleys, their guests and staff are effectively imprisoned together and squabbles turn into arguments. And there is an armoury, well-stocked with antique but deadly weapons.
At the request of her friend Wilhelmina Ashley, Ellie starts detecting. She and Clifford have already made a few observations of strange behaviour and gossip. An envelope passed to the local inspector. A man with a limp in a corridor he should not be visiting. This is a closed room mystery. The murderer must be one of the people on the island, but though their identities are known their real reasons for being at Castle Ranburgh are not. Why are Lord and Lady Fortescue, cousins of Lord Ashley, attending the Christmas house party when they seem to dislike their relatives so much. Why are Robert Campbell, the local Laird of Dunburgh, and his son Gordon, at loggerheads and is the Laird really the charming genial man he appears to be.
Death on a Winter’s Day includes another discovery for Ellie about her mother, tied in neatly with the sheer beauty and harsh conditions of this part of the Scottish coast. The island sits in a sea loch and can be reached only by boat, rowed over by a local man who appears to wear dead animals strung around his neck. A winter snow storm, a dangerous sea passage and the appearance of a selkie – a mythical creature that can shift form from seal to woman – add to the Scottish atmosphere in an isolated but beautiful corner of the world.
Another fun read, this time with a deadly chase that threatens the lives of all involved. The most touching book so far in this wonderful series.

Read my review of other books in the Lady Eleanor Swift series:-
A VERY ENGLISH MURDER #1LADYELEANORSWIFT
DEATH AT THE DANCE #2LADYELEANORSWIFT
A WITNESS TO MURDER #3LADYELEANORSWIFT
MURDER IN THE SNOW #4LADYELEANORSWIFT
MYSTERY BY THE SEA #5LADYELEANORSWIFT
MURDER AT THE FAIR #6LADYELEANORSWIFT
A LESSON IN MURDER #7LADYELEANORSWIFT 

If you like this, try:-
‘A Snapshot of Murder’ by Frances Brody #10KateShackleton
‘The Ninth Child’ by Sally Magnusson
‘Murder at Enderley Hall’ by Helena Dixon #2MissUnderhay

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#BookReview DEATH ON A WINTER’S DAY by @BrightVerity https://wp.me/p2ZHJe-7E7 via @SandraDanby

COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:- Conn Iggulden