A BOUNDARY OF STONES by Millie Thom @MillieThom

 5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: On X (Twitter) - I believe via via @Zeamee or @vallypee or both!

In a Nutshell: The story of Eyam, the Derbyshire village that famously isolated itself during the 17th Century bubonic plague, stopping it from spreading to neighbouring villages.

This is such a good book and stays so true to the history of this village; I've read more about it online since finishing the book.  We can't imagine how it must have been to have lost one's whole family but still carry on, as so many did back then.  The novel centres around Reverend William Mompesson who, with his predecessor Reverend Stanley, proposed the quarantine idea.  He was having a hard enough time as the new Church of England priest in a staunchly Puritan village, but gradually some of his congregation were softening towards him, just as the plague reached Eyam, via cloth delivered from London to a local tailor.

I liked very much how the author gives us just enough scene-setting before the plague takes hold, to show us the Reverend's trials, and to let us get to know the village.  Aside from Rev Mompesson's story, Millie Thom introduces us to the villagers themselves, in chapters that tell their own stories when the plague enters their houses.  I so much appreciated the writing style; these stories are incredibly emotive but never 'over-written'.

I highly recommend this book - and it made me want to visit Eyam again.  I did so in 1978, and can vaguely remember looking at the records of all the people who died, that was still kept in the church; I don't know if it still is, but then that was 46 years ago, and I imagine it's not so open now.  We just passed it one winter afternoon and had a look around; there was no evidence of any tourism trade back then.

I shall have to look at more photos and work out where I was standing!

THE SWAN MAIDEN by Gemma Lawrence @TudorTweep

 5 GOLD stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: a favourite author

In a Nutshell: Book 2 of The Surface and the Deep, the story of Anne of Cleves.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, which starts with Anne's journey to England to meet Henry, and ends shortly after the annulment of the marriage.  The main body of it shows Gemma Lawrence at her best, when she writes solely about her character's own life and experiences, from inside her {the character's} head.  She has a truly exceptional talent for this, and I was completely engrossed, reading the book in the early hours when I needed to go to sleep!

Anne is portrayed exactly as I've always imagined her, as a dignified, kind and clever woman.  Her wise choice of accepting the annulment without complaint was aided, of course, by the fact that she was no more enamoured of Henry than he was of her, but there are some marvellous passages when she talks about her survival being far more important than any notions of foolish pride.

'...these things we create and take inside ourselves, these things we cling to and call pride and honour, they are meaningless... these things, they have meaning only if we think they do.  They are baubles, shining so bright we think they are the sun but the are shimmering surface reflecting only candlelight.  They are shadows.  Their light is a lie created by man, reflected back at us to dazzle our eyes and confuse our minds.'

Also, when she saw how the monasteries had been destroyed mainly to serve the greed of those already in possession of great riches, her take on another of the Seven Deadly Sins: avarice (or greed).

'...Yet these men did not know the truth, that this sickness for gold could never be cured by adding more gold to their purses or hands ... once within the veins of a man it did not feed him, it sucked the essence of his soul, the sickness of greed leeching all from that man until greed was all that possessed his mind.  It was a demon which crept into the skin of a person...'

I loved her impressions of the English culture and customs, as opposed to those of her own country, her observations about what was really behind the deterioration of the King's character, and his dislike of her.  I very much appreciated how Ms Lawrence has placed the spirit of Anne Boleyn in the shadows, too; a warning from history.

I expected the series to end with this book so was surprised when it didn't, but I researched a little and discovered that the story of Anne the Survivor has more strings to its bow than I realised, so I very much look forward to reading about her take on the marriage and reign of Mary, in particular.

High recommendation!

THE TWILIGHTS by Harald Johnson @AuthorHarald #RBRT

 4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon
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: 80 years post-asteroid falling on Earth.  Post-apocalyptic

My favourite genre, so I was all over this when I saw it on Rosie's book blog review list, and I very much enjoyed Harald Johnson's Neander series.

All writers of post-apocalyptic books provide a different take on how society will rebuild and develop once it has fallen apart, and this was an interesting one.  The asteroid fell 80 years ago, which was initially followed by a period of cold, but then it started warming up.  The first part of the book is set in Texas, which I believe is quite warm anyway!

Mr Johnson has come up with an unusual stance on the customs of survivors - most are 'Duskers' who celebrate the evening twilight (the 'Dawners' prefer the 'twilight' of the morning) by generally engaging n drunken debauchery, amongst other activities.  David, the protagonist, is one who prefers the quiet and solitude of the morning.  He shares his cave with Trish; soon, they are joined by Paul, and Porthos (canine).  The focus of the plot is their journey north to find colder weather and a better way of living, and, as with all the best post-apocalyptic journeys, they are beset with danger and problems along the way, though they do meet up with some who help them.

An aspect I liked very much about this book was the explanations about various survival techniques (especially the transport), and I had the feeling the author had thought of every possible pitfall - even how to surmount the problem of perished bicycle tyres.

Now and again I felt the story needed a bit more detail and atmosphere, but it's good, and I enjoyed reading it.

NEST OF THE GYRFALCON by Gemma Lawrence @TudorTweep

 4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: I've read earlier books in the series

In a Nutshell: The middle part of Eleanor of Aquitaine's life

THE KISS OF THE CONCUBINE by Judith Arnopp @JudithArnopp

 4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: One of my favourite authors, so more a matter of choosing which one I felt like reading!

In a Nutshell: The story of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII

I was embarking on a long, lone train journey, so wanted a good, easy read book by an author I already knew and loved - this fitted the bill perfectly.  I know the story of Anne and Henry VIII like the back of my hand, so it was just a matter of settling in!

This view of Anne and Henry mirrors my own, and made me think, more than any other book I've read about Anne, that the periods of joy seemed so few and far between, even when Henry loved her - there was always doubt, insecurity, worry about what might lie ahead if she couldn't fulfil her promise to produce a male heir.  That her life was completely and utterly dependent on his whims.  Also, that out of the three siblings it was Mary, who had no aspirations or ambition other than to love and be loved, whose life ended the most happily.  

(Interesting: The 'Moost Happi' medal - the true face of Anne Boleyn?)

I liked very much how this is the story simply told; Ms Arnopp has resisted the need to weave in commentary about other aspects of the international or political situation, and, as in her marvellous trilogy about Henry, has written only from Anne's perspective.  It's so clever - for instance, I've always felt so sorry for Jane, George Boleyn's wife, who got such a raw deal out of life.  In this book we see her only from Anne's point of view, Anne who held a far more special place in George's heart than Jane did.  This is what I love about Judith Arnopp's writing - she never, ever falls into the trap of showing her own point of view, and is able to write solely from her character's head, even when she must surely know that the reader is screaming at the character that they've got it wrong.  To think again, to see a bigger picture, or the other person's point of view.

I especially loved the ending, which was beautifully executed, no pun intended.  From Anne's thoughts just before she died, to afterwards...

'I have seen you change from a prince into a monster.  I've witnessed every cruelty, every sin, seen each small betrayal, each moment of you, watched every discarded wife falter and fall.'

SIDESTEPS TO THE SOMME by Valerie Poore @vallypee

 5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: I've read lots of this author's books, so, with my own interest in WW1, this was an obvious choice!

In a Nutshell: Travels by barge along the Western Front, with Val and her other half, Koos.

Sometimes I wish Val Poore's books had photos, though more than anyone else, the way in which she writes makes one able to 'see' the places, and certainly feel the atmosphere.  As ever, this book made me long to travel down those little side canals (I'm sure I'd be 'sidestepping' all the time, too!), off the beaten track, as it were.  A perfect way to live.

There were so many lovely tales in this book, one of my favourites being Koos and Val's impromptu musical session in a disused factory.  Koos is fascinated by derelict industrial sites and is a fine photographer - I too have a strange attraction to the derelict and abandoned, so I looked up some of his photos on YouTube via his unused TwitteX profile; they're HERE, if you would like to see.

Best of all, though, when browsing his YouTube profile I happened across this gem - I thought, hang on, I just read about this!  It's a lovely piece of music - oddly mournful, made me think of peasants dancing in a Polish village, decades ago (for some reason).  

Back to the book ... another passage that stood out for me was Val's visiting of some of the WWI graves.  She remarked on how the German dead were commemorated there too - because, of course, those poor boys and men weren't the enemy at all.  That label belongs to the generals, bankers and industry moguls whose own greed and megalomania caused the deaths of so many, for ... nothing much at all, really.  Talking of which, I loved Val's comment about Napoleon's aptitude and foresight when it came to building the canals of France - that he should have been an engineer, not a megalomaniac.

At the end of this piece in the book, Val was joined by a grey mare, who stood there and silently contemplated the graves, with her.

It's a beautiful book about a beautiful two months.  Informative, wistful, entertaining - a delight.

 

PSITTACIDE by @ZebHaradon

 5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: a favourite author, have read Book #1 of the series.

In a Nutshell: The crazy world of 2172

Psittacide is set 150 years in the future, when former stand-up comedian Jim Liu navigates the world of American politics in which authenticity and any real values or integrity are forgotten relics of the past.  And if you think that sounds pretty much like 2024, with all potential leaders resorting to blatant lying and any desperate tricks they can to discredit the opposition, you wait until you meet Silas Blackwolf and Oliver O'Shea.

The shifting of political stances means that the Democrats have become conservatives and the Republicans the liberals, which made me think of the main UK parties, whose lines have blurring for many years now; who knows what their agenda(s) will be in 2172?

In the future world between these pages, most of the bad stuff predicted by the cynics/realists of the current day has happened - drug dependency and sex clubs are the norms (Jim and his girlfriend keep a sex robot under the bed), the attention span of the masses has shortened to the extent that a writer of Blankpage books can win a prize for literature - Karl's process is to think up a concept, brief outline and title, let his terminal design a cover, and publish.  That's it.  'Other than the summary of the plot on the back cover and by Karl on the front, all pages would be blank'.  Fake has become real: actors don't need to be present to act in films, politicians don't have to attend vote-winning activities, whole civilisations can be artificially created for the screen - anything can be rendered to look as if it actually happened.  Populations live in virtual reality without knowing it.

Sometimes it seems as though this novel is a comment on/lampoon of events and people in the present world, other times just the product of Mr Haradon's entertaining thought processes.  The title refers to the strange diseases affecting parrots everywhere.  Those genetically modified parrots, that is, who play such an important part in the new world.  I loved the observations of one character who predicts the worrying rise of the parrots, now that racism is a thing of the past (as everyone is, in 2172, a mixture of ethnicities).

I liked it more than the first book in the series, which I found a bit scattered.  I look forward to Book 3, Bubblequake - which refers to the bigger inside than outside residences (like the Tardis): the bubbles.

It's great - and may make you glad you were born in the 20th century.