5 out of 5 stars
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How I discovered this book: I've read almost all of this author's books and always look forward to a new one.
In A Nutshell: The early life of Empress Matilda, Book #1 of the Heirs of Anarchy series.
The early years of Matilda, granddaughter of William the Conqueror, who, at the age of 8, was sent to marry the Holy Roman Emperor Henry V. Child of Water takes us through Matilda's younger years as she leaves England a child, and, under tuition from her beloved Heinrich and others, becomes the wife, Empress and regent he wants her to be. After his death, she is recalled to England by her father, King Henry I of England.
I loved this book, which taught me a great deal about a period in history of which I know little. I hadn't realised, for instance, that Geoffrey of Anjou was so much younger than her. Matilda's path from precocious child to extraordinarily intelligent and perceptive young woman, beloved by her people and adored by her husband, is beautifully and convincingly written, as is her disorientation when she realises her only option, as a widow, is to return to her father's court, where she is received very differently—and her frustration about the lot of women, even her perceptions of freedom versus the reality.
One aspect of this book that I liked very much was the intricate detail about how the people lived, particularly the descriptions of London on Matilda's return. Although not always part of the story it did not seem out of place, but gave a more three-dimensional background to Matilda's life. I have enjoyed passages like this in this author's previous books, and am glad that she included more domestic and historical detail in this one; that it is a story of England, not just the main characters. The author's notes at the back add extra snippets of information.
The book ends with Matilda's marriage to Geoffrey planta genista....I am so looking forward to reading the rest of the series, and her struggles for the throne against her cousin, Stephen. Well done, Ms Lawrence!
4 out of 5 stars
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On Goodreads
How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie's Book Review Team, of which I am a member.
In A Nutshell: A redundant crime reporter and a news blogger aim to solve the mystery surrounding the suspicious death of a young woman.
I chose this book from the review team list because I'd read another book, Brand New Friend, by this author and was most impressed by her characterisation. Although this is a crime novel - not my usual choice - it concentrates on those involved in the situation (families, friends), and the journalists looking into it, which is why I enjoyed it much more than I might have done had it been a police procedural.
Vikki Smith is a young woman with a learning disability who is found dead from a drug overdose. The police write it off as an accident but online journalist Tilda Green and redundant crime reporter Freddie Stone believe foul play to be afoot; Freddie knows the family and Tilda scours social media on a daily basis, discovering much that makes her suspicious.
The story is very 'real life', warts-and-all, and one aspect that I liked is how current it is, both sociologically and in the way in which Tilda delves into every intricacy of social media, though I did wonder if it would go over the heads of people who don't know exactly how Twitter works, on quite a complicated level. I'm a Twitter addict, though, so I really appreciated how well the author understood its idiosyncrasies.
The characterisation, dialogue and the logistics of the plot deserve a round of applause, though I felt there were one or two many storylines and character points of view. Social media strategies, dysfunctional families, social prejudice, drug dealers and abuse, alcoholism, two-faced politicians, unrequited love, alt-right versus liberal politics; every scenario is written most convincingly, but I'd sometimes get to the beginning of a new chapter from yet another POV and think, 'Hang on a minute, who's Simon?', and have to look back to remind myself. The addition of so many plot threads and characters actually dilutes the evidence of her strengths; Ms Vane is a highly competent and readable writer. Less could be so much more, but this is really the only complaint I have about this book.
Still You Sleep flows along so well, wrapping all storylines together at the end, is entertaining, real, so relevant to today's world, and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who appreciates well-drawn characters by a writer who has a sharp understanding of topical issues - or who simply enjoys working out mysteries.
4 out of 5 stars
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How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie's Book Review Team, of which I am a member.
In a Nutshell: A Bus Ride Into Hell
In this horror novella, Luke is on his third date with Jessica and, finally, is getting to spend the night with her - but first they have to get from their night out in the city centre to her home, in a village miles away. Luke would get a taxi, but it would bankrupt him, so they settle on their only option: the night service.
Also on board are a drunk skinhead, a chatty old man, a woman and a baby, and three members of a rock band. All seems, if not fine, then not too much of a worry, until the bus begins to speed up, and they begin to realise that the silent driver is missing out all the stops...
Born from the author's many travels on the night service in his younger days (it says in the notes at the back), this is a fun horror story that kept me turning the pages in its unravelling of unexpected developments, and well-painted atmosphere. Although horrific, it is not without humour, and it sits well in the novella length, without any padding or excess detail that would slow it down.
The only aspect I was not so keen on was the constant use of the subordinate clause - short, staccato, incomplete sentences - to emphasise urgency, shock, fear. I'm not necessarily a traditionalist when it comes to literary styles, and thought that sometimes, although not 'correct', it worked well, but other times it was used to the extent that it marred my enjoyment of the story.
The ending features another nice little twist; I'd say that if you love this genre and prefer shorter books that will only take you a couple of hours or so to read, you should like this.
Good article about sentences, subordinate and independent clauses HERE
5 out of 5 stars
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On Goodreads
How I discovered this book: I've read quite a few of this author's books, which speaks for itself. Originally discovered her via Twitter.
In a Nutshell: Fictional telling of the life of Mary Tudor
I've been so looking forward to reading this book, and I was not disappointed. It tells the story of Mary Tudor, daughter of Henry VIII and sister of Elizabeth I, in the first person, and alternates between chronological events and instances just before her death; in these, she talks about the events of her life, which are then expanded upon in the main chapters. The format worked very well; I was engrossed throughout.
Mary has always had a bad press, for being a religious fanatic and burning so many at the stake for heresy, but this book made painfully evident how tragic and lonely her life was, right from childhood, when her father all but abandoned her. I've always been Team Boleyn, but one could not help having great sympathy for Mary after reading this. Some think that she was actually insane during the later years of her reign; I am not sure that she wasn't driven to it before that - and, as I read in the author's notes, we can't try to understand her brutal, inhuman actions by relating them to the world we live in now. I daresay she really did think she was doing God's will.
In all other fiction I've read about her, she is shown to have been besotted with her husband, Phillip of Spain, and her infamous phantom pregnancies being, in part, a deranged attempt to bind her to him; in this book, however, Judith Arnopp illustrates her as being as lukewarm about the marriage as he was. That she only knew just a hint of real love, with Phillip of Bavaria for just the odd brief day when she was young, is so, so sad.
This is not a very long book, and is a very 'easy read', which I liked, with scant detail surrounding some aspects, but I thought this was cleverly done, because the book is written from Mary's point of view. Some events would not have been paramount in her thoughts, or she simply might not have known a great deal about them. For instance, when she is placed in a position to overhear a conversation, in order to let the reader know what was going on, Ms Arnopp does not over-egg the pudding, making it unrealistic. Snatches of conversation are all she hears.
Highly recommended if you are as much of a Tudor addict as I am!
