I, RICHARD PLANTAGENET by J P Reedman @stonehenge2500 #TuesdayBookBlog

5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: Recommendation - can't remember who from, alas; Amazon tells me I downloaded it in 2021.  I was looking down my Kindle Unlimited library to decide what to return; when I saw it, I wondered why I had not read it before!

In a Nutshell: Part 1 of a trilogy about Richard Plantagenet, later to become King Richard III

This book covers Richard's childhood, from little more than infancy to the age of fourteen.  It is told in the first person, which I always like best for historical fiction based on fact.

I loved this book, so much that I downloaded the next two before I'd finished it (and am already reading #2).  J P Reedman has written Richard as I imagined him: a loyal, intelligent, studious and serious boy, wise beyond his years in many respects.  The other Yorks and those close to them were also portrayed exactly as I see them - Edward IV the golden, kingly warrior, whose over-confidence and appetites could sometimes be his undoing; the gluttonous, garrulous George, Duke of Clarence; dashing, intense Richard, Earl of Warwick.  Quiet, reserved Anne Neville, flirtatious Isabella, and the ambitious Elizabeth Woodville.

I know the story of this period of history well, so I was most interested to see how various events would be depicted through Richard's eyes.  J P Reedman has artfully executed developments that occurred outside Richard's orbit; there are no clumsy monologues from other characters to let the reader know what is happening, few unrealistically overheard conversations.  This is the history as Richard would have seen it; some events of importance are hardly mentioned, because they would not have meant much to a child.

It is clear that much research about the time has gone into this book, though it is never intrusive.  Instead, it immersed me in the period.  I loved reading about the journeys from one place to another, what the country was like at the time, and about the halcyon days Richard spent at Middleham castle under the tutelage of Warwick.

Incidentally, I have often wondered what Edward IV would have made of his grandson and great-granddaugher: Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.

Highly recommended - now, to resume my reading of Book 2!

.... and here's one of the articles about his remains being found under a Leicester car park around 10 years ago: Skeleton of Richard III Found in England.

GLASS HALF BROKEN by Rachel Richards #RBRT

4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
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: fast-paced drama around the theme of a serious psychological disorder.

A strange novel, this one, about law student Annie Bell who suffers from a form of schizophrenic disorder involving delusions and hallucinations, as well as self-harming.  Billed as a 'thrilling psychological suspense novel', the writing style made it feel more like dark, disturbing chick lit, oxymoronic though that observation is.  This is not a complaint - I liked the style very much, as a witty approach to dark subject matter totally works for me if executed well, and this is.  

The story takes the reader through traumatic events in Annie's childhood and up to her early twenties, as she finishes studying to become a lawyer.  Throughout, she is often unable to separate reality from imagination, inventing relationships with individuals that don't exist, to the extent that she believes herself to be living a life contrary to actual events.  I know nothing about this sort of illness, but I did wonder why her mother and her best friend didn't realise that there was something seriously, dangerously wrong with her early on, and that she needed intensive psychiatric care.  I also wondered how she was able to maintain her studies, given that half the time she was literally living in a fantasy world.

Throughout the book we read about the people with whom Annie comes into contact; usually it was clear who was real and who was a product of her illness, though now and again I wasn't sure!  I admit to being disappointed by the ending, which seemed to wrap it all up too nicely, but on the whole I enjoyed reading this book very much.

WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING by Delia Owens

4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: Many book blogs!

In a Nutshell: Girl grows up alone in the marshland of North Carolina, in the 1950s and 60s.

I'm several years late to the party with this novel, but it finally got plucked from my TBR list (Amazon tells me I actually bought it three years ago!).  For anyone who hasn't read it, it's about a girl called Kya who grows up alone in the marshland of North Carolina, in the 1950s and 1960s.  When she is six her mother leaves, soon to be followed by her brothers and sisters and finally her drunken, abusive father.  The story is about how she survives and how these years affect the events of her early adulthood; it paints a vivid picture of life in this forgotten backwater in the mid 20th Century, and shows how the changing attitudes of elsewhere in the country had yet to touch it.  Kya's love of and connection with the marshland shines through; she is part of it.

Running through her story are chapters from 1969, when a body is discovered.  Was Chase Andrews murdered?  If so, by whom?  Eventually, the two timelines meet up.

This is not a book to be read from today's viewpoint; the world was much larger in those days and it was easy for people to simply disappear, to evade authority, to lose touch with someone completely.  Neither should Kya's survival be judged by the way in which today's children behave; she was taught how to live off the land from a young age, to do basic chores and be resilient.  Then there is the fact that she was left alone with her abusive father by the brother who supposedly loved her; I don't think one can ever say that a character would or wouldn't behave a certain way.  Human beings do all sorts of inexplicable stuff.

There were a couple of aspects that seemed a little far-fetched (such as her learning to read in about two days, the ease with which her shack on the marshes was connected to mains water and electricity supplies), and there were some loose ends that I expected to be tied up, but on the whole I enjoyed the book very much.  It's one of those that depends on how much you are willing to suspend your disbelief, I think. 

HUSH, DELILAH by Angie Gallion #RBRT @AngieGallion

 4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
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: Suspenseful domestic violence-themed family drama

Wife and mother Delilah wonders if she will ever be brave enough to escape years of domestic violence - and whether she can discover the truth about the crimes she fears her husband may have committed.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it's so well-written and a real page-turner.  The portrayal of Chase Reddick's character is so typical of the misogynist violent male, and anyone who has ever been in a relationship with this sort of man (or those with addiction problems) will be so familiar with that 'waiting for the other shoe to drop' situation that Delilah finds herself in, every minute of every day.  The side-plot is interesting and convincing, and added another dimension to the story.

As with any tale about a person stuck in similar circumstances, Delilah's tale will make you want to scream at her to be brave, to take friend Carmen's offer of a way out.  The intricate way in which the author details her constant strategies to hide what she's doing from Chase is artful indeed, and also the confusion she feels when she discovers that Chase is sleeping with another woman.  She knows she shouldn't care, but an atom of jealousy creeps in, and meetings with the woman concerned only increase her feeling of inadequacy.

The reasons why the glamorous Chase chose Delilah are all totally feasible - aside from the immediate, practical reason, men like him often make a point, either consciously or subconsciously, of choosing women who will accept the treatment they are likely to dish out.  Why Delilah wanted Chase is also clear - the infatuation, obsession, lack of self-esteem.  The only question for me is why she had such rock bottom self-esteem in the first place - that she stayed with a man who made it clear to her that he didn't find her attractive (and worse).  Just a few lines to say something about why she was such a doormat would have rounded her character out nicely; I kept wondering, all through, if we were going to find out, maybe in flashbacks, about the relationship she had with Chase when she was younger.

That said, this is an extremely good book and one I most definitely recommend!  Only downside is that it's priced at £8, which may put some ebook buyers off.

A MATTER OF FAITH by Judith Arnopp @JudithArnopp #TuesdayBookBlog

 5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: have been looking forward to it since reading the previous episode!

In a Nutshell: Henry VIII - the Anne Boleyn and Jane Seymour years

I zipped through this in two days.  Judith Arnopp's writing flows with such ease; when starting one of her books, I inevitably look up and wonder how come it's 2 in the morning and I'm already a third of the way through!

In this episode of Henry VIII's life, he has just married Anne Boleyn and is still, after 5 years, obsessively in love with her.  His version of love, at least; when she fails to produce a son and heir, and forgets to be her beautiful, charming best after giving birth/experiencing a devastating miscarriage, he begins to inch away.  Into the arms of Jane Seymour he falls - this time his 'love' only lasts a year or so, when he begins to see her as dull, frigid and uninteresting, rather than delightfully quiet and biddable.  Though she does produce the required prince, so after she dies (a fortnight after the birth), he fancies that he did love her, after all.

The way in which Ms Arnopp has written Henry in this phase of his life is so very clever.  The boy who lost his mother at such a young age, always aware that in his father's eyes he would always be the spare, rather than the heir.  As can so often happen, childhood insecurity becomes self-absorption in maturity; he searches constantly for confirmation of his popularity, his talents, his virility, his strength and, of course, his desirability.  Rarely if ever does he consider the feelings or needs of others; they are of no consequence.

The book is written in the first person, and Henry comes across as childlike at almost all times.  When his health and looks are ruined by his own self-indulgence, a ghastly leg injury and the ageing process, when his appeal to his subjects is greatly hampered by his brutal decisions, when those who loved him are no more (at least half of them by his own hand), he kicks out and hurts those around him.  The way in which he scarcely mentions some key events was, I thought, so artfully executed; if a circumstance does not affect him directly, so it remains on the shadowy periphery of his orbit.  Even the deaths of Robert Aske and his cohorts gain little mention; always Henry can justify his own actions.

This is not a long book and now and again I would have liked a little more detail like, for instance, how he was affected by the death of Thomas More, but, then again, one cannot fail to notice that the most devastating events (such as the murder of Anne and his men) are skimmed over the most quickly of all.  As though he cannot even bear to think about them, so pushes them out.  Now and again there is insight into his own pain - it was not just Katharine and Anne who lost all those children.  Each time, was he sent straight back to the pain of losing his little sister, Elizabeth, as well as his mother?  Were the murders of Anne, George, Norris, Brereton, Weston and Smeaton more than he could bear?  

This is not just another account of the Boleyn/Seymour years, but a rare insight into the mind of the man who made it all happen. A round of applause, and I can't wait to read the next instalment!

THE NEW ABNORMAL by Aaron Kheriaty #TuesdayBookBlog

 4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: recommendation

In a Nutshell: 'Dr. Kheriaty documents how technocrats abused power they never should have been granted and terrified people into surrendering their freedoms. The results of this malfeasance are ongoing. Fortunately, Kheriaty provides indispensable guidance for stopping an emerging biomedical security state from doing even more damage in the future.'

Aaron Kheriaty was a practitioner in California when he first began to suspect that something didn't quite ring true about the version of the pandemic that was being broadcast to the population.  The work is highly detailed, and every paper or source to which he refers is listed in the last 30% of the book.  He uncovers the way in which certain language was used to ramp up the fear, how citizens were encouraged to inform on each other for so-called misdemeanours, how those who wished to exercise their right to informed consent before considering taking the injections were demonised, and, most worrying of all, how anyone in the medical profession who was brave enough to say 'something isn't right' paid dearly for doing so.

He also uncovers the true extent and severity of the virus itself, the efficacy of the injections, how the extent of vaccine injury is being kept under wraps, including the truth about ADE (antibody dependent enhancement) that I read so much about when the shots were first rolled out.  He gives information about who does most of the funding for the WHO (no surprises there) and how the tools used to promote the new religion of 'Scientism' are the same deployed by totalitarian systems.  Kheriaty talks about what's to come and how it can be resisted.  The second half of the book goes too much into philosophy generally, I thought, and was a tad idealistic, but that was the only aspect I was not so sure about.

This is worth buying for the epilogue alone - a story written in the second person about 'you' in the year 2030 - a high level Microsoft employee who loves his biometric sensors that give his 'Social Responsibility Score' to anyone who needs to know it, that monitor his mood, physical exertion, every movement, suggest medication, dietary improvements, etc etc.  At first life seems all fine and dandy, but gradually the cracks start to show ... it's not without humour and is a real gem!

I highlighted loads of passages and could have written pages about this book, but I decided a basic overview would probably be more effective.  If you have any interested in the subjects outlined, I highly recommend this.

THE DEVIL HIMSELF by Steven Duggan

 4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: Amazon browse

In a Nutshell: Man unjustly accused of murder seeks to clear his name.  Set in Ireland.

Jack Finch was accused of a murder he didn't commit, and sent to prison for eight years after taking a plea deal.  While he's away, his wife divorces him and marries his elder brother.  Jack knows that going back to the small town where the murder took place is not the wisest move, but he cares more about clearing his name than about the reception he will have to endure.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, loved the writing style, and I liked Jack very much, which always helps.  There is much description about life in prison, a stark portrayal of the desperation and fear that an inmate can go through, the total despair.  

I'd seen in reviews that the ending is particularly good, and I echo this, wholeheartedly - I thought I'd guessed the twist early on, but I was so, so wrong - especially as it's a double twist.  It's (they're) so well done; a round of applause well earned.  Made me want to flick back to see if I could spot any clues.  I liked how the second one hinted at what happened without actually giving all the details; this worked so well.  

I've taken a half star off because of one issue - the proofreading.  I spotted the odd wrong word and incorrect punctuation mark, but mostly it was the excessive use of exclamation marks in dialogue that kept making me wince; the vast majority were not needed and should have been removed.  Aside from that, though, it was great.  Excellent plot, a great main character, and the sort of writing style that keeps the pages turning.