It seems like there is a glut of books now where two parallel narratives in two times link up to solve the mysteries of the other, one being in the past and the other being in the present. It feels like it’s own genre, perhaps. One of the finest examples of this is Sebastian Barry’s…
Opening on her childhood, this book tells the story of Anne, the niece of the King of England in the 1600’s, up til she takes the throne herself in the line of succession. She’s a woman aware of her place, who loves her older, bossy sister Mary and who has been raised a protestant, in…
I haven’t done a post about London in while, and I love sharing my adventures in the city with you, and places that I love. This time, I went to St Paul’s Cathedral, which is a beautiful, peaceful place. Oddly enough, even though I’ve been in London for 8 years, I hadn’t actually gone inside…
The Pope has been kidnapped. Is it the work of terrorists? Or does the rabbit hole go a lot deeper than that? Enter the League Of Invisible Knights, a secret order of highly trained professionals sworn to fight the forces of evil. Ayden Tanner, an ex-SAS commando, with two colleagues, descends on the scene, and…
Prague Nights is a historical crime novel from Man Booker Prize winning author John Banville, whose pen name is Benjamin Black, and who is well known for the Quirke crime series. This book was sent to me by Penguin books for a review. Although this book starts with a murder, it’s really about intrigue at…
This book was sent to me by the author for honest review. It was nominated for the Man Asian Literary Prize, and interstingly is the only book that has been that was written by a non-Asian writer. It’s the twin stories of Jacquie and Paaku, one a woman in the 20’s following her explorer Grandfathers…
I was sent this book by the author for honest review, and all opinions here are my own. And I’m very glad that Cory Barclay did send it to me, because I really enjoyed it. Some of you who know your history or werewolf lore will have heard of the story of the Werewolf of…
Shardlake, that kind-hearted, hunch backed lawyer in Henry VIII’s England is at it again, this time involved in a plot to incriminate the Queen Catherine Parr. This series of books is so evocative and immersive, I love sinking into them and being in the dark streets of London or whatever town Shardlake finds himself sent…
I was sent this book for review by the author, and I was curious about it because he’s a local London writer. It’s always nice to read the words of someone who lives in your city. The book is a slim volume, and explores some interesting themes about right and wrong, Hadron colliders and religion.…
Set in the last four years of the Jewish occupation of the Masada fortress in ancient Israel in the time of the Roman occupation, this book tells the events of the lives of four women there who work together in the Dovecotes. I suppose most of you who have an interest in the history of…
