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 Raised to a rigorous Norman standard, Judith, niece to the new Norman king of England, William the Conquerer, is alarmed at her unexpected attraction to an English lord, Waltheof of Huntingdon. The attraction is more than mutual, and Waltheof immediately petitions for her hand in marriage. Witnessing their peculiar attraction is young Simon de Senlis, son of the king’s chamberlain, who is injured by Judith’s boldness in choosing a horse she can’t handle. While Judith and Waltheof are undeniably attracted to one another, setting aside their differences for the sake of their marriage is perhaps more than this couple can bear.
I love Elizabeth Chadwick’s books. Her medieval settings are rich with color and life, while her characters could stroll off the page remarkably easily. Even with this detail, however, which I know she meticulously researches, all of her novels are driven by their characters and their complex relationships with one another. I thought this book was a simple romance, but it turns out to be a multi-generational story of forgiveness for all of the characters. They are for the most part historical characters and Chadwick fleshes out the bare bones of their recorded lives to give us a living, breathing story that is a pleasure to read.
It’s hard to pick out what I appreciate the most here. Despite its five hundred pages, the story simply flew by, and a great deal happens over the course of the narrative. The book is never boring or slow despite the length and I was in fact eager to see what happened next, because things did not go at all as I’d predicted. I wondered how she was going to fill 500 pages with one romance, but of course there is more than that; two romances and even a crusade. Chadwick slips in little historical details over the course of the book, like the way the Normans cut their hair as opposed to the English, or the metal bands that Waltheof wears around his wrists from his Viking ancestors.
The characters are real and as frustrating sometimes as they are lovable. I wanted to shake both Judith and Waltheof as they struggled so much over their differences, but they truly came from different cultures. Simple attraction couldn’t overcome the vast difference in what they wanted from their lives and what they thought was appropriate, and this could be as true of any twenty-first century couple as it is of this eleventh century one. Their descendants are very charismatic and in fact more appealing than Judith and Waltheof, which brought the story to a very enjoyable conclusion.
I’ve really enjoyed all of Elizabeth Chadwick’s books so far, and The Winter Mantle is no exception. I highly recommend any of her books for engrossing historical fiction.
I am an Amazon Associate. I purchased this book.
 Valentine Roncalli loves her work with her grandmother, making handmade bridal shoes. The Angelini shoe company has been in business since Valentine’s great-grandfather came over from Italy, but now it’s in trouble. Valentine’s family is putting pressure on her Gram to retire, and Valentine realizes at her sister’s wedding that without the shoe company, her life is at a stalemate. She has ambitions to design shoes, not just use her great-grandfather’s patterns, but without a company, she would have nowhere to go, and she is alone. Valentine meets handsome restaurant owner Roman Falconi in an embarrassing, accidental way, but soon their romance takes off. The only trouble is, how is she to maintain a relationship with a busy man while trying to save her family’s shoe company at the same time?
I will admit that I initially found this book a challenge to get into. The lush descriptions of the wedding, of Valentine’s work, and her laments about her state in life were all well-written, but to be honest isn’t really what I look for when I read. And her descriptions of her huge Italian family reminded me all too much of mine, who started nagging me about boyfriends when I was in my teens, and didn’t stop until I actually had a man to show them, despite my relative youth. Then Valentine met Roman, things perked up, and I got involved in the story and became a champion of her cause.
What I appreciated most about this book was that Valentine is a very independent woman. She starts off worrying about her situation and unsure of how to fix it, but as the book goes on, she grows and learns from her experiences. She figures out what she has to do and relies on her strengths, not those of anyone else, to accomplish everything she needs to do. Her worldview is totally changed, and she emerges an even more interesting person than before. She is definitely a woman to emulate. While I didn’t always like where the story went, I loved Valentine’s approach to her life as well as her determination and her passion.
The romance is a fairly decent portion of the book and, I felt, was appropriate to Valentine’s situation. She has to make choices in regard to Roman and her working life and I felt that it was very appropriate to what a woman so absorbed in her job would struggle with. I wouldn’t really describe this book as a love story, but the romance is a fairly nice and real complement to Valentine’s struggle with the shoe company.
While I liked this book, it still didn’t really feel like my type of book. I enjoyed it, but the constant focus on shoes and designers wore on me by the end. Yes, I am aware that this is the premise, but I was far more interested in the characters. I almost wanted pictures so I could at least envision what the heck she was doing in her workshop. The many descriptions were nicely written, but bogged the book down for me. I didn’t ever really feel compelled to go back to it after I’d put it down. I think, perhaps, that this genre is just not for me, and while I can see the appeal for others in the reality, sweetness, and laughter contained in Very Valentine, it didn’t tick all the boxes for me.
I am an Amazon Associate. I borrowed this book from the library.
 Well, after all my worrying, my visa application process was almost ridiculously simple. My new passport arrived two days before the appointment (nothing like the last minute!) and the officials didn’t even look at most of the paperwork they’d requested on the application. I’m halfway between annoyed at all the unnecessary stress and worrying I went through and relieved that it was so easy! Anyway, that’s all done now, and all I have to do is wait for a card in the mail that contains my actual visa.
I have been meaning to launch my Medieval Challenge this month, but I haven’t done it yet. I do have a list of book recommendations and I’m working on a button, so hopefully I’ll have that up this week. I hope no one is challenged out for 2010 yet!
I’m not participating in Bethany’s Read.Read.Readathon, which I believe has now ended, but I did manage to finish The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone this morning. At 758 pages in my edition, this was no small undertaking. I read it in four days, which is great considering I barely read at all on Friday, too busy spending four and a half hours at the UKBA office and then wandering around in a daze. What a book it was, too, so full of art and life that I’m still reeling a little bit. I found it slow in parts, given that it covers virtually all of Michelangelo’s life and the writing was not the greatest, but now I have this need to go visit his sculptures and paintings. I’ll save the rest of my reaction for my review.
As for the remainder of today, I’m planning on continuing The First Crusade by Thomas Asbridge. This was sent to me by Simon & Schuster UK and so far I’m really enjoying it. The crusades are fascinating and I’m always eager to read a new historian’s viewpoint. I’m not sure if I’ll finish it before I start the next fiction book on my massive TBR stack, which is Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. I’m not sure what else I’m going to read the rest of this week either; my hubby is off from work and while we have nothing planned right now, we will probably end up occupying ourselves somehow.
Did you do the Read.Read.Readathon yesterday and today? How did you do? Anything exciting coming up soon on your TBR pile?
All product links are through my Amazon Associates accounts. I will earn a small percentage of profit if you buy through them.
 Sookie’s cousin Hadley has died and Sookie needs to go to New Orleans and sort out her apartment. First, however, Sookie begins to date were-tiger Quinn and learns that someone doesn’t want her investigating Hadley’s apartment. Her life is threatened more than once, and once again Sookie has to wonder who is out to get her this time.
I feel like my every review for a book in this series is the same. Again, I really enjoyed Definitely Dead. I haven’t noticed any real dip in quality, although I’m assuming it will happen eventually. Sookie’s suitors are diminishing in number. She gets rid of two of them permanently and she makes a discovery about a third in this book that really had me hurting for her. After six books, it’s so easy to care about Sookie, and it makes her struggles harder but more engaging reading.
I did enjoy the character of Quinn, though, and I was glad Sookie chose someone to actually date. The way he treats her in this book is so sweet and a nice contrast to the men’s previous treatment of her.
I didn’t like that there was a short story between this book and the last one. It wasn’t really necessary to read it, but I did feel lost as Sookie mentioned various things that had happened and I’d missed. I thought at first that I was on the wrong book before I realized it was a novella that I can’t get over here unless I buy the collection of them in hardcover. I understand why they do that sort of thing, but I prefer to be able to go from book to book without getting confused.
I’m eagerly awaiting the acquisition of book seven from my library now. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens to Sookie next. I am really enjoying this series and I anticipate this challenge will be one I am actually capable of completing.
I am an Amazon Associate. I borrowed this book from the library.
 When her dear family friend Greg is killed in mysterious circumstances, Kate Daniels goes on the hunt for his killer. She is a mercenary, if a poorly-paid one, with impressive magic skills and a tough attitude. Kate doesn’t expect to be drawn into a dangerous rivalry between vampires and shapeshifters, but she might just be up to the challenge as she searches for the enemy who is intent on turning these two powerful groups of society against one another.
This was markedly and interestingly different from the urban fantasy I’ve been reading lately. Yes, it has the traditional kick-butt heroine, as well as a large contingent of typical supernatural creatures, like vampires. But this world is not a familiar one, even if the book is set in Atlanta. For one thing, the magic is only up sometimes, and while it is average human technology often fails to work, until everything returns to normal before the next wave of magic. For another, these creatures are not sexy. Vampires are properly disgusting, their bodies morphing into hideous wall-crawling creatures as their minds completely vanish. They’re controlled by external people, who can even speak through them. Shapeshifters are similarly disgusting, their most powerful form lying between human and beast, and when they change they end up sweaty, naked, and shaking in human form.
I’ll admit that when I started this book, that world was not what I expected. I expected the magical creatures to be as sexy as they are in the rest of the books I’ve read. As I got accustomed to the world, however, I began to like this darker version of an urban fantasy world. It felt like something different, and while I obviously still love Sookie Stackhouse and Mercy Thompson, it was nice to be in a world where blood sucking is disgusting as I always thought it should be.
The beginning of the book was a little too consumed with info dumping to my taste, and Kate is snarky to the point of pushing people away, but somewhere around halfway through I really started to enjoy it. The plot picked up, I had a suspect for the bad guy, and there are some entertaining diversions. This is a good story, and I’m looking forward to more in this world when I don’t have to be informed all about it before I can begin to be engaged.
Magic Bites is a different, but still very engaging, version of urban fantasy. It appeals to my gritty fantasy side but would probably still appeal to fans of books with tough heroines and engaging storylines. Recommended.
I am an Amazon Associate. I purchased this book.
 Francis Evelyn “Daisy” Maynard was left an extremely wealthy heiress when, as a toddler, her father died without having any sons, and her grandfather took a liking to her and gave her his fortune. As a result, Daisy was bound to be in demand in society, and her beauty and vivacious personality merely sealed the deal. Despite an offer from Queen Victoria’s youngest son, Daisy married Lord Greville, heir to the Earl of Warwick, and began a high profile life, sensational not only for the many and passionate affairs she had with some of the most prominent men of the day, but also for her political and social involvement.
I knew I wanted to learn more about Daisy when I visited Warwick Castle and saw the exhibit given over to her. The rooms are as they would have been when she gave a house party in the 1890’s. There are wax statues, eerily realistic, of Daisy, her husband, and many guests, among them the Prince of Wales at the time, later Edward VII. The little blurbs gave out some information, but not enough for me, and this book very satisfactorily filled the gap. With very effective use of original letters, newpapers, and other primary sources, Anand writes knowledgeably and compassionately about Daisy Warwick without judging her for her many infidelities.
The book is split into roughly two sections, as Daisy’s life probably was. The first half is mainly devoted to her childhood, marriage, affairs, and children, with some detail of her many humanitarian activities shared throughout. Daisy’s letters to her lovers as excerpted here are fascinating and there is enough period detail given for us to realize that while she seems promiscuous to us, she wasn’t remarked on as that spectacular in her class. It seems that everyone was having affair after affair, and she must have thought that this was normal, although I was a little sad that what seemed like a budding love story with her husband quickly fizzled on their marriage. This part is very interesting for its picture of the aristocracy during Daisy’s younger life and for her relationships with the men, one of whom in particular it seems she genuinely loved.
With the first World War, everything changed, and Daisy changed with the times. She became a socialist and an activist for both the socialist party in Britain and the Labour party, which was emerging as a force at the time. She had a curious juxtaposition between her life as an aristocrat and her campaigns for worker’s rights, her work to build schools and encourage education, and so on. She even campaigned to be an MP. This is a fascinating picture of a Britain that was changing hugely. Not only were heirs to great families dying off, leading to more land for more people, but ideology itself was changing. Daisy got married in a church in a huge ceremony, whereas her youngest daughter was married in a registry office, which had become perfectly appropriate for a countess’s daughter over the years.
I found this book to be a fascinating picture of both a woman who, while firmly living in her own social class, strove to do more for the world and of a changing Britain at the turn of the century and beyond. Very highly recommended. And Daisy would be a fantastic choice for the Women Unbound challenge, which I’m counting it for.
I am an Amazon Associate. I borrowed this book from my local library.
 Percy hasn’t even made it through his eighth grade year before he’s embroiled in another difficult magical situation. He and his friends Annabeth and Thalia attempt to save their friend Grover from a boarding school in Maine. In the process, they discover two new half-bloods, essential for the failing camp, but they also realize that a new enemy is after them. Following a prophecy, Percy goes on an adventure to save the world – and their friends – once again.
This is my favorite of all of these books so far. I’ve actually become fond of these characters and I enjoy the fact that the books are getting somewhat more serious. They’re still clearly written for children, but now I feel that I can more fully appreciate them, too. There are new tensions arising as the kids are starting to grow up, most particularly in my mind a romance situation between Percy and Annabeth, although neither of them seem to realize it just yet.
Besides that, I can more clearly remember eighth grade than sixth grade, and I think the books will continue to improve as the characters grow. Or maybe Riordan is just getting better at broader appeal. It’s hard to say.
This book is as full of action as the first two. Right from the first page, Percy and his friends are tossed into a suspenseful adventure, with some new characters added to balance out the absence of a couple of the older ones. We learn a little more backstory as well about the gods and a few of the characters, which was all very interesting and never slows the story down.
The Titan’s Curse was an enjoyable, very speedy read with some unexpected turns. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.
I am an Amazon Associate. I purchased this book.
 Thomas Cromwell’s star is ascending. From the docks of Putney, where his father beats him, to the grandest palaces in England, Cromwell’s rise is nothing short of amazing. A clever politician, hardened by years abroad, Cromwell knows when to leave Wolsey’s sinking ship and head to the king’s side, where he is the one who most helps him divorce his wife so that he can marry Anne Boleyn. Through both personal tragedy and public glory, Cromwell is an enigmatic character, and Hilary Mantel has given him the story he deserves.
I’m not sure how I feel about this Booker Prize winner. It has both its good and its bad points. I do think it was written well. I was forewarned about the excessive use of “he” and whenever I couldn’t track the direct reference, I assumed that the author was talking about Cromwell, so that didn’t bother me. I didn’t like that it was written in present tense, though, because it kept jumping out at me and reminding me how much I dislike present tense. Moreover, the book was often boring, and dragged on excessively, especially for someone who knows the Tudor period far too well. It follows the history, but that doesn’t always make for a particularly exciting story.
On the other hand, this is possibly the best picture of Tudor England I have ever read. For some reason, Mantel could transport me there better than anyone has before. I loved that she focused on Cromwell, someone who is often in the background or villainized, and made him into a genuine person. He had such a varied background that Mantel could write about the poor as well as the rich. She could write about the middle class, which Cromwell occupies for a while. She gives us a picture of all levels of society, and we can greater see the contrast of the elegant man in the king’s glittering court to the poor boy with his beaten face pressed into the mud. The detail in this book is astounding, and admittedly is part of the reason it dragged, but creates a whole picture of a world that could easily be foreign.
I also really liked Cromwell, surprisingly. His character was well-rounded and I felt like he was a person I could relate to in a world that I couldn’t. He’s a very clever man, but he also experiences grief and joy just like the rest of us. I think many people could see themselves in his character because he feels like a human being, not a character on the page. Cromwell’s character is, in my opinion, what makes this book great, despite the fact that the plot is so very meandering.
So I’m unsure as to whether or not I can recommend Wolf Hall. If you’re in the mood for a fast read, stay away. I suggest instead taking it slowly and appreciating the world that Mantel creates. I hear Mantel is writing a sequel and I know I still want to read it.
I am an Amazon Associate. I received this book from the publisher for review.
I’ve had very little on my plate in November, aside from NaNoWriMo. So I managed to read quite a few books, which has been nice. I suspect December will be equally as empty; I still don’t have any job leads despite a huge number of applications. Here’s the breakdown of what I read by genre:
Fantasy/Science Fiction
- Heart’s Blood by Juliet Marillier
- Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews
- Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris
- Smoke and Mirrors by Neil Gaiman
- A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick
- Touch the Dark by Karen Chance
- All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris
- From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris
Literary Fiction
- Nocturnes by Kazuo Ishiguro
- Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (also historical fiction)
- Angels of Destruction by Keith Donohue
Non-fiction
YA/MG
Historical Fiction
Humor
Women’s Fiction
- Very Valentine by Adriana Trigiani
That makes 24 books this month, not bad at all! I’m actually up to 272 for the entire year. Part of me is curious as to whether I can read almost a book a day in December and hit 300, but most of me is not really planning to do that. My hubby will end up taking off work for something like two weeks this month between the days off we were saving to visit my parents for Christmas (which now sadly we cannot do) and regular Christmas holiday. Overall I think I’d rather spend time with him while I can than try and read fiendishly! In terms of quality, this month was decent. I read a lot of good reads, but had a few that I struggled through, like Wolf Hall and A Scanner Darkly.
How was your reading in November?
After a few phone calls on Tuesday evening, I managed to get my internet back up and running. I can’t say I appreciated it until it was gone! But now I am very glad to be back and able to see what’s happening. I have to say that I still haven’t managed to comment much, just because I had so many posts to read. It was overwhelming. I managed to clear out the Google Reader, though, so I should be appearing a bit more around the blogosphere now that I feel like I can take time to comment and work through every day.
On Friday, I finally received the results for my MA, and I have very proudly passed, and done quite well considering how the year began. I received what was possibly the worst grade of my life on my first essay, due to a combination of one professor somewhat misleading me about the quality of my essay and my own misunderstandings, and my confidence took a hit. But I received a Distinction on my dissertation, which is the equivalent of an A, and I’m thrilled that all my hard work paid off and I can once again feel like the possibilities of academia are open to me should I choose to pursue them.
This Friday is meant to be my visa appointment, but I’m not sure we’re going to make it, and I might have to mail my documents in instead. You see, I wanted to change my name on my passport after I got married, but before I got my visa, to avoid the extra hassle of carrying a marriage license every time I travel for the next two years. This turns out to have been a mistake. Rather than returning my new passport in the promised 15 working days, it’s now been over 20, and I’m worried. I know they received it and charged me for the renewal, so I’ll be calling the US Embassy if it doesn’t get here tomorrow, and I hope they know what’s happened to it.
Finally, amusingly similar to my last Salon post, I am reading Sookie Stackhouse again. I was excited to find the last three books in the series at the library yesterday and I’ve read two since then (I’ll have more library loot later this week!). I’m still really enjoying these books and they are definitely taking my mind off my worries. I had to leave book 9 at the library because I was at my limit, but I’ll be picking it up next week I hope. I’m also reading Wild Swans by Jung Chang, which I’m absolutely loving. This is a memoir I’m reading for the Women Unbound challenge about three generations of women in China. It’s a wonderful combination of history and family relationships, which I particularly enjoy. My last read is Angels of Destruction by Keith Donoghue. I’m not really enjoying this as much as I thought I was going to, which is a disappointment at 100 pages in, but it’s a review copy I was supposed to review a long time ago, so I’ve got to get on with it.
What are you reading this Sunday?
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