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 When Owen Archer loses the sight in one of his eyes, his military career under the duke of Lancaster is over. Or so it would seem, until the duke employs him in other ways. Once the old duke dies, Archer is unsure of his future. He’s recruited by the Archbishop of York and Lord Chancellor, Thoresby, to investigate a pair of murders in St. Mary’s Abbey, just outside York’s city walls. One of the victims is Thoresby’s ward and Thoresby isn’t content with the cause of death. He sends Owen to figure out what’s really happened by apprenticing him to the apothecary and giving him an entrance into the world of medieval York.
This may have been the only time in my entire life that I have not needed the map on the first few pages of this book. I’m absurdly familiar with medieval York and given that my classes are held on top of the former grounds of St. Mary’s Abbey, this book had a special thrill for me. I loved the medieval atmosphere. These characters walk through places I go every day and it’s exciting to imagine it as they would have seen it.
I liked those characters, too. I can see a bit of Owen Archer’s legendary appeal, about which I have heard much. (I read this on the recommendation of Nan Hawthorne, by the way!) I enjoyed the ambiguity about many of them, particularly Lucie, and how the truth was eventually revealed. Even the supporting characters like Bess didn’t fall flat. The Archdeacon made me feel very uncomfortable, but I think that was the point.
As far as writing goes, I felt it was a bit plain. I could certainly imagine medieval York, but it’s hard for me personally to say whether I had such an easy time because I’ve tried before and am very familiar with the city or because the author did a brilliant job imagining it. It’s hard to say, but I do think the prose was the weakest point. The story was good enough for it to vanish, as should happen, but I found it hard to immerse myself at the beginning before the plot got rolling.
I would recommend this to other people who like their historical fiction set firmly in the middle ages and probably to those who like medieval mystery as well. As for me, I’m looking forward to the next in the series. Though it is out of print, you can buy The Apothecary Rose used on Amazon.
 On the same day that Anne Peabody is married to a man she could never love in New York City, news arrives that the Stamp Act has been repealed. A young, joyous patriot, Jack Hampton, sweeps her in his arms and kisses her spontaneously, a kiss she never manages to forget. Years later, the Revolutionary War is on, Anne is now the Widow Merrick, and Jack’s joy has hardened. To maintain her livelihood, Anne must continue to print the Loyalist tracts supported by her husband. One night, Jack and several other patriots force their way into her shop and discover what she has been printing; they ruin her press and her books and set Jack to keep watch on her in the new coffeehouse she opens to keep her income. On closer acquaintance with Jack, Anne begins to realize that she must think for herself and assert her own independence just as her country struggles for its own.
I’ve been excited for this book more or less ever since I finished Midwife of the Blue Ridge, the author’s last book. I was even happier when she offered me a review copy of The Tory Widow, which was officially released yesterday. I knew I was in for a good read, and I was even happier when I wasn’t wrong; I do sometimes worry that a second novel won’t match the first, but that thought has no justification here.
This is a historical fiction novel with a strong side of romance. I never mind romance and I really enjoyed the historical part of this book. New York City changes hands several times between Patriots and Loyalists and Anne adapts successfully to each situation. She’s very determined and she improvises ways to keep her business running while remaining faithful to her own beliefs, once she’s established them. Jack is a bit of a scoundrel, but he’s a patriotic scoundrel and I enjoyed watching him warm to Anne and her “supporting cast” of Titus and Sally and vice versa. In particular I enjoyed the variety of supporting characters, like the prostitute Patsy, Anne’s brother David, and Scottish Sally.
I liked the glimpse into historic New York and the book has little maps so we can figure out where Anne’s shop is located and where important scenes occur throughout the book. It’s hard to equate the maps with current New York, but it’s certainly fun trying. I just loved the descriptions of the printing press. I have no idea how an 18th century printing press works and the window into such a profession was fascinating.
Overall, I found this book to be very solid. It’s a good, enjoyable read and I would definitely recommend it, especially if you enjoy historical fiction.
Buy The Tory Widow on Amazon.
 Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy may have tied the knot, but the story doesn’t end there. With characters so full of passion and determination, they are bound to hit a few stumbling blocks now and then. Their move to Pemberley brings back hard memories for Darcy, who suffered a conflicted and confusing childhood there. Lizzy must help him reconcile with the demons of his past so that they may have the happy future that they deserve.
This was my first Pride and Prejudice sequel. I have been tempted over and over again by a variety of Austen sequels but have refrained until now, fearing that it would never live up to the greatness of the original. Finally, I decided to set those fears aside, accept that it would never be as good, and just enjoy the book that I had to read.
With those goals in mind, I really liked Pemberley Manor. I loved the prose style in particular, which was indeed reminiscent of Jane Austen, and the intensity of the characters’ emotions. They did feel like Elizabeth and Darcy, even though Darcy is developing over the course of the novel. By and large I enjoyed the families and characters that the author added into the universe and thought they fit fairly well, although a certain revelation towards the end was taken too lightly for the time period, in my opinion. I tried not to let that bother me. The added backstory about Darcy did not seem out of place, either.
The plot wasn’t quite as smooth and dragged in places, though. It feels as though a series of incidents happened to the couple to prevent them from happiness and sometimes I wanted to kick them even though I knew their stubbornness was established long, long ago. Darcy isn’t so great at communicating, with anyone it seems, which isn’t a surprise but puts up a variety of roadblocks in front of his own contentment. They establish some sort of agreement each time, but since there are pages left, I knew it wasn’t going to last and worried over the lulls. The last 100 pages were well done and established an effective plot climax which still related to what had happened before and managed to wrap up all the problems nicely.
All considered, I don’t at all regret finally indulging in a sequel to one of my favorite classics. If you’ve ever been curious and would prefer something besides your imagination presenting a follow-up to Pride and Prejudice, this is a worthy place to begin.
Buy Pemberley Manor: Darcy and Elizabeth, for better or for worse on Amazon.
 When Will Somers hits puberty and loses his beautiful singing voice, he is at a crossroads in his life, not only a disappointment to himself but also to his father. An accident brings Master Richard Fermor to the farm of Will’s uncle, and an even happier coincidence leads to Will’s employment with the Fermor family. Will becomes good at his clerking, but retains a love for performance, which he can’t resist showing off at the king’s court when he accompanies his master. Henry VIII is diverted by the sight and immediately hires Will as his fool. At court, Will is witness to history.
At first I was a little put off by this book’s slight historical inaccuracies, but quickly realized that the author had died in 1962 and historical understanding was completely different then. Barnes could have easily done all the research available to her and I would still find fault with it, so I threw everything I knew out the window and just tried to enjoy the story, and enjoy it I did. The writing isn’t dated at all and I knew it was a re-release, but I don’t tend to start with the author bio when I go to read a book. I will admit that I was perplexed in other ways by the beginning; though Will moves around a lot, the story wasn’t excessively interesting until he reached court and Henry’s service.
I thought it interesting that though Will is the “fool”, he’s so level-headed and earnest most of the time. We hear only a little about how he entertains the king and court, more about his personal relations with the king and family, and about Will’s own personal issues as well. I think I preferred this varied look. We still get plenty of historical figures, but I became attached to Will in a way that may not have been possible if he was a more ridiculous character. I liked him very much and wanted him to do well. I preferred that the story was centered on him.
Overall, I think this is a nice work of historical fiction that definitely deserves the re-release Sourcebooks is giving it. I enjoyed the time I spent reading it and would certainly recommend it to someone else who liked the genre.
Buy King’s Fool on Amazon.
 When Lady Anne Addison’s friend Lydia writes her, desperately seeking help with a seemingly supernatural phenomenon and with matters of the heart, Anne sets off at once. When she arrives in Yorkshire, no one is there to meet her and she must make her own way to the manor after the postman acts like he is terrified by her presence. On the way to Darkefell Castle, she is nearly witness to a horrible crime and the mystery complicates before her very eyes. Determined to find out the truth, she only has one man in her way, the Marquess of Darkefell, maddening, secretive, and infuriating but somehow so very attractive.
I expected a romance out of this book, but what I got was a romantic mystery! I didn’t mind. I loved that Lady Anne was such a curious, intelligent woman. She’s determined to get to the bottom of things and even though mysteries proliferate around her and everyone wants to keep their mouth shut, she just does not give up. I even liked the Marquess of Darkefell, although to be honest I will probably love any character who knows that Edward of Woodstock was probably never called the Black Prince in his lifetime. In all honesty, though, I liked that he wasn’t nearly so “bad” as he was made out to be by the other characters. I found him quite endearing after we learned what he did and definitely did not do.
As for the plot, I definitely felt it came together towards the end. I figured out who had probably caused the murders and I was pleased when I was correct at least in part; some bits are left unexplained, which is okay since I discovered that this is the first of a series. I certainly never expected the resolution to the werewolf side story. I also found the parts about slavery infuriating, and more so when their truth was confirmed in the author’s note. Such barbarity makes me uncomfortable and I still can’t believe that humans could treat each other so abominably. Certainly made a wonderfully complex character in Osei though and I hope we see more of him.
Overall, I’m looking forward to more from Lady Anne and the Marquess of Darkefell and glad to hear that the next book will be published later this year!
Buy Lady Anne and the Howl in the Dark on Amazon.
 Determined to find out once and for all what is between her and Brisbane, Lady Julia heads to the moors of Yorkshire with two of her siblings despite Brisbane’s admonitions to stay away at all costs. She didn’t expect to find the former owners of Grimsgrave still in residence. Lady Allenby and her daughters Ailith and Hilda are the remains of a proud, old family who claim descent from the Anglo-Saxon kings of England; the kind of family which disdains diluting their blood with lesser mortals. Neither does Julia expect the mysteries she starts to uncover when she begins cataloging the Egyptian artifacts of the late Allenby heir, Redwall. All in all, something suspicious is afoot, and Julia once again must get to the bottom of it.
I gushed about the first two novels in this series. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that I’m about to gush about this one too. Regardless, before you read on please note that you should check out Silent in the Grave and Silent in the Sanctuary before going near this review!
This book is most intriguing because unlike the first two, there is no murder, only attempted poisoning. So the victim lives to tell the tale, but I have to say that the mystery here was fascinating. I was compelled to read on, to figure out what was going on. You can just ask Keith, who was with me while I was in the thrall of this book, to tell you how much I wanted to get back to it. It was a constant draw. The Allenby family is like a car wreck you pass on the highway. You don’t want to keep looking but you can’t turn your eyes away. And I don’t like mysteries.
There is just something I love about this series though. It may be Deanna Raybourn’s exquisite, witty writing. It may be the plots that I can actually follow through to conclusion and find myself wrapped up in, not confused by missing hints or sudden conclusions. It may be the characters who keep developing and growing as each book goes by. It might be the romantic tension between Julia and Brisbane, or the quirky March family, or the intense atmosphere and setting captured in each book. Or it could be all of those things. They combine to make compelling, wonderful reading that I just can’t tear myself away from.
I also really appreciated that this one had something of a resolution at the end. Deanna Raybourn has said that she will be writing more Julia Grey books, but I’m sure there will be quite a wait. I’m glad the characters are temporarily static in my mind, and perhaps even more, that I will have the opportunity for a re-read.
Do I recommend these books? Absolutely. I think they’re fantastic. Possibly not for everyone, but if you’re looking for a mixture of mystery and romance with a side of great prose, look no further. I know that I’ll be buying the next Lady Julia Grey book the instant it hits the shelves.
Buy Silent On The Moor on Amazon.
 Etta Place, notorious lover of the Sundance Kid, is one of history’s mysteries. Both her origins and her fate are completely unknown despite many guesses. Etta is given new life in this novel as a young Philadelphia debutante. Forced from her home at her father’s death, Lorinda Jameson becomes Etta Place and finds a refuge with scandalous criminals. A master horsewoman and sharpshooter with a gentle manner, Etta is perfect for assisting with train robberies and keeping hold of everyone’s money. Her circumstances constantly change, but Etta remains a strong, compassionate character throughout this engaging novel.
In this novel, Etta’s imagined story is given life through fictional letters, diary entries, and newspaper clippings. Since so little is actually known about the real life Etta, I really liked this aspect of the book and felt that I could imagine these events actually happening more than if perhaps Kolpan had kept the story as a diary. The only ones I didn’t like were Harry Longbaugh’s letters to his father. In truth I didn’t really like Harry (the Sundance Kid) much himself. He remained a very shadowy character despite Etta’s love for him. The rest of the outlaws were similar, although I did like the women, Laura Bullion and the little Native American girl.
In fact, I’d say the character of Etta is the best part of this novel. She is strong, compassionate, independent, and stubborn. She deals with each issue with grace and dignity, even when she is required to fight for her life. I think her character is really what holds this novel together. I also particularly enjoyed the inclusion of Eleanor Roosevelt. Although all of this is fictional, I quite liked the glimpse into what her youth may have been like. I also was glad that Etta spent time in the East so that the author could portray more of the country than the initial description seemed to entail.
Overall, this was a pretty good work of historical fiction. The plot didn’t entirely captivate me and some of the characters were weak, but I enjoyed reading it.
Buy Etta: A Novel on Amazon.
 No way I’d ever be able to summarize this chunkster, so off to Amazon we go:
“When two young women in France of 1790 discover the Montglane Chess Service in Montglane Abbey, they recognize its mystic ability to provide anyone playing it with unlimited power and desperately scatter its pieces around the world. But in 1972, computer expert Catherine “Cat” Velis is hired to recover the chess pieces–and is caught up in a nefarious, globe-spanning conspiracy.”
Yeah, sounds good, right? That’s what I hoped. Apparently people do like this book. I was not one of them.
Let me first say that this is a genre that I don’t like. I didn’t like The Da Vinci Code, although I will be honest, I liked it better than this. The book is centered around chess, a game I don’t even understand. The reviews assured me that would be okay. The book also seems full of math and science, my two least favorite subjects, although I certainly recognize their importance. Now, throw in a convoluted plot that I couldn’t keep track of, 64 characters, none of whom I liked and most of whom seemed like coincidental famous people name-dropping, a journey that is supposed to seem threatening and dangerous but never made sense to me, some mediocre writing, and a couple of unbelievable love stories, and you’ve got this book.
I knew I’d had enough when the author suggested that a blue velvet cloth survived for 1000 years. Let me tell you why this bothers me. We have no evidence for velvet even existing before the 14th century and quite simply, fabric hardly ever survives this long unless in special preserved circumstances. Somehow, I’m doubting that this velvet cloth was buried in a water-logged, oxygen free environment for most of its existence, and there’s no way such old fabric could survive in the open air without serious preservation, let alone be passed around from country to country for two hundred years. Nitpicky, maybe, but blatantly wrong details like that just throw me out of a book completely.
This book was just not for me. I finished it because I have the sequel for review. It clearly is meant for someone else, probably someone who likes thrillers, chess, and science and also does not particularly know much about history or archaeology. If that’s you, you should try this book out. It’s certainly not me. I can’t recommend this book.
If you liked The Eight, I want to know, so I can link to you. I hate posting a negative review without counterbalancing it.
 Catherine Howard’s powerful family has contrived to put her in the constant gaze of King Henry VIII, relying on her beauty and youth to advance their own positions. When Henry proposes, their goal is accomplished, but what of Catherine? As queen, she is thrown into a complicated political world, well out of her depth, with a husband she hardly knows and a secret love for a man she can now never have. On top of this, many figures from her dissolute youth begin taking advantage of her new position, starting Catherine’s slow spiral down into fear and uncertainty.
This YA novel is gripping. I knew Catherine’s inexorable end, but I found her very easy to care for. I think that while Libby tries to make her sound mature and composed, as if Catherine believed that of herself, there is still a very young girl under there. Catherine is haunted by her inability to get pregnant, by people from her scandalous past, and by the memory of her cousin Anne Boleyn, just like her only on a grander scale. She never really seems to know Henry and even though she tries, genuinely fails at being a comfort to him. It’s clear she knows little of what is required of her as a wife and she is constantly hounded and ruled by her Howard relatives, all of whom distance themselves from her when the facade they created collapses. Catherine does very little as queen but get herself into trouble as a consequence. The impending doom rears its head with her affair as Catherine indulges her youthful love by telling herself that she needs a baby. She seems to know that this is treason, but like any teenager, cannot quite comprehend the magnitude of her crime until it is brought home to her violently.
I also particularly enjoyed the depiction of the Tudor court. As a girl, Catherine herself is very enamored of it and we see the splendors through her eyes. Pageants, dances, costumes, and dresses are all very exciting for her. It provides a wonderful sense of atmosphere and I felt as though I could see the dancing and the costumes.
This is a compelling work of historical fiction on Henry’s fifth queen. It is marketed to a YA audience but is easily enjoyed by adults as well. I recommend it, especially if you are interested in the Tudor period.
Buy The King’s Rose on Amazon.
You can see the fateful letter from Catherine Howard to Thomas Culpepper here. I was excited to be able to read it having had quite a bit of training in doing just that. For those who find these 16th century characters a jumble, you can find her signature, “Katheryn”, on the right side of the page an inch or so up.
 As you regular readers may have realized, I’m a little overwhelmed by life and school right now, so my mom, Carolyn, volunteered to help me fulfill my commitments by reading and reviewing Galway Bay for the blog tour today. I was happy because she loved it and she’s told me that she now wants to read more historical fiction epics! This from a woman who has previously informed me that if it wasn’t set in the modern day, she wasn’t interested. I think we have found out where my love of history comes from, and I think that says a lot about the quality of Galway Bay !
My mom has written guest posts for me before, but this is her first blog tour, so I hope you’ll give her a warm welcome. I can only hope that I love this book as much as she did!
Galway Bay is the story of Honora Kelly and her family. It starts in Ireland and ends in the United States. You travel with them from 1839 to 1893. It takes you through the hardships and joys in their lives.
I can’t begin to tell you how much I liked this book. I don’t think I can find words that can sufficiently express how wonderful this book is. The way this book is written you feel as if you are right there with this family. You can’t put it down. You think about it when you aren’t even reading. I will never forget this book and the people in it. Their story will stay with me forever, their struggles and their triumphs. The main theme of this book is love of family and love of country. You feel it in every page of this book. I love how much they love each other and how they would do anything for one another.
As I read this book, I wanted to share it with someone. I really wanted to talk about it. I would strongly recommend this book. I also recommend this book for a book club selection. Anyone who reads this book will get a different perspective on life.
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Don’t miss an opportunity to participate in a Blog Talk Radio chat today with Mary Pat Kelly! You can listen in here. Sign up to call in and ask questions in the chat!
Buy Galway Bay on Amazon or check out the publisher’s website. Thanks to Miriam at Hachette Book Group USA for our copy!
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