Historical Novels Review | Issue 32 (May 2005)

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS Review

Vampires, spies and Miss Bridget lane's encounters with the cooking sherry, plus a bumper crop of reviews

PUBLISHED BY THE HISTORICAL NOVEL SOCIETY© 2005

Founder/ Publisher: Richard Lee, Marine Cottage , The Strand, Starcross, Devon , EX6 8NY, UK (richard@historicalnovelsociety.org)

SOLANDER

CO-ORDINATING EDITOR: Claire Morris , 324-2680 West 4 th Avenue, Vancouver , BC, V6K 4S3 CANADA.(claireemmamorris@ya hoo.ca)

Associate Editor, Fea tur es: Kate Allen, Flat 5 , 11 Avenue Road , St Albans, Hertfordshire ALI 3QG , UK.(kate.all a n@ gmail.com)

Associate Editor, lndusl! y : Cindy Valar , PO Box 425 , Keller , TX , 76244-0425, USA. (cindy@cindyvallar.com)

Associate Editor, Profiles: Lucinda Byatt , 13 Park Road , Edinburgh, EH6 4LE (mail@lucindabyatt.com)

Associate Editor, Fi ction: Richard Lee , Marine Cottage, The Strand , Starcro ss, De vo n , EX6 8NY, UK (richa rd @ hi s toricalnovelso cie ty.org)

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

CO-ORDINATING ED ITOR (UK)

Sarah Bowe r, Tanglewood, Old Forge Close, Long Green, Wortham , Diss , Norfolk IP22 !PU , UK.(sarahbower@clara.co.uk) CO-ORD IN ATING EDITOR (USA)

Sarah Johnson , 6868 Knollcrest , Charleston, IL , 61920, USA (cfsln @ eiu.edu): Random House, Penguin , Five Star, Cumberland House , Tyndale, Be than y Hou se REVIEWS EDITORS (U K)

Sarah Cuthbertson, 7 Ticehurst Close, Worth , Crawley, W Sussex , RH IO 7GN. (sarah76cuthbert @ aol.com): Arcadia, Canongate , Robert Hale , Hodder l l ead l ine (includes Hodder & Stoughton , Sceptre , NEL , Coronet), John Murray

Val Whitmars h , 27 Landcroft Roa d , East Dulwich , London SE22 9LG (vwhitmarsh@fsmail.net)Allison&Busby , Little, Brown & Co, (includes Abacus, Virago, Warner) , Random Hou se UK (includes Arrow, Cape, Century, Chatto&Windus , Harvill, Heinemann , Hutchinson , Pimlico , Secker & Wa rburg, Vint age), Simon & Schuster (includes Scribner)

Ann Ou g hton , 11, Ramsay Garden, Edinburgh, EH I 2NA.(annoughton@tiscali.co.uk). Penguin (includes Hamish Hamilton, Viking, Michael Joseph , Allen La ne), Bloom sbury , Faber & Faber, Constable & Robinson, Transworld (includes Bantam Pre ss, Black Swan, Doubleday , Corgi) , Mac mill a n (includes Pa n , Picador, Sid g wick & Jackson).

Sally Zigmond, I 8 Warwick Crescent, Harrogate , North Yorkshire , HG2 8JA.(szigmond@fsmail.net): HarperCollins UK (includes Flamingo , Voyager, Fourth Estate), Orion Group (includes Gollancz , Phoenix, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Cassell) , Piatku s, Severn Hou se, Solidus, Summersdale , The Women 's Press , House ofLochar Mary M offa t (Chi ldren's Hi s toricals - all UK publi s hers), Sherbrooke , 32, Moffat Road, Dumfries , Scotland, DG I I NY (sherbrooke@marvsmoffat. nd o.co .uk)

REVIEWS ED ITORS (USA)

Ellen Ke ith , Milton S Eise nh ower Library , John Hopkins Univ., 3400 N C harles St , Baltimore , MD 21218-2683 (ekeith@jhu.edu) 1-larperCollins (inc William Morrow , Avon, Regan , Ecco, Zandervan) , Houghton Mifflin (including Mariner), Farrar Strauss&Giroux , kensington, Ca rr o ll&Graf, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill. Trudi Ja co bso n, University Library , University at Albany , 1400 Washington Avenue , Albany, NY, 12222 , USA (tjacobson@uamail.albany.edu) Simon & Schuster, Warner , Little Brown , Arcade, WW Norton , Hyperion, Harcourt, Toby, Akadine, New Directions Il ysa Ma g nu s, 5430 N e therland Ave #C 41 , Bronx , NY, I 0471, USA: (good la w2@opton line.net) St Martin 's Minotaur , Picador USA , Tor/ Forge , Grove / Atlantic, Poisoned Pen Press , Soho Pre ss

THE HISTORICAL NOVEL SOCIETY ON THE INTERNET : WEBSITE: www.historicalnovelsociety.org. WEB SUPPORT: Sarah Johnson (cfsln @e iu.edu) EMA IL NEWSLETTER: Read news and reviews. http: // groups.yahoo.com/ group / HNSNewsletter DIS CUSS ION GROUP: Join in the discussion http: // groups .yahoo.com / group/HistoricalNovelSociety

MEMBERSHIP DETAILS : Membe rs hip of the Hi s toric a l Novel Society is by calendar year (January to December) and entitles members to all the year's publications : two iss ues ofSolander, and four issues of The Historical Novels Review. Back issues of society magazines are a lso available. Writ e for current rates to: Marilyn Sherlock , 38, The Fairway , Newton Ferrers , Devon , PL8 !DP , UK (ray.sherlock@macunlimited.net) or Debra Tas h , 5239 Commerce Ave., Moorpark CA 93021, USA , timarete@earthlink.net or Teresa Eckford, 49 Windcrest Court , Kanata, ON, Canada K2T I BF (eckford@sy mp a tico ca) , or Patrika Salmon , Box I 85, Turangi, New Zealand.(pdrlindsaysalmon@xtra co.nz)

CO FERENCES :

Th e society organises annua l conferences in the UK and biennial conferences in the US. Co ntact (UK): R ichard Lee (richard@ hi storicalnove lsoc iety org) Contact (USA): Sarah John so n (cfsln@eiu edu)

COPYRIGHT remains in all cases with th e authors of th e articles. No part of this publication may be reproduc e d or transmitt ed in any form, w ith o ut th e wr il/ en permission of th e authors concerned.

EDITORIAL POLICY Authors should be aware that reviews, articles and letters m ay be cut, corrected and/or r ea rranged to m eet our space restrictions. We will endeavo ur to co nta c t th e authors for approval of any c hanges

THE HISTORICAL NOVEL SOCIETY IS A NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION All our editors and authors are vo lunt eers and are unpaid. While we always al/empt to act in a professional way, please be aware that all o ur staff ha ve full-time lives elsewhere. If this occasionally leads to errors, please understand and r espec t th e c irc umstanc es in which such errors are made.

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

Issue 3 I February 2005

ISSN 1471-7492

CONTENTS

Editorials

Parish Notices

Forum

Bridget Jane's Diary

Elizabeth Kostova

Gillian Polack

Obsessions 8

David Anthony Durham I I 9

Martin Stephen I I Reviews 13

This edition of the Review has something of an Antipodean feel. Thanks to Loren Teague of the New Zealand Society of Authors and Conor Quinn, editor of the New Zealand Writers' E-zine, we have been able to include selected reviews of books published in New Zealand in the past twelve months , and we also have a feature on research by Australian writer and academic, Dr. Gillian Polack. One of the New Zealand reviewers, commenting on a book set in the early 1950s, which she is old enough to remember, congratulates the author on giving her work a true feel of the period. This is, of course, what all writers of historical fiction aspire to do, and sometimes we get lucky , and our work is done for us by events.

Certain events have the effect of lifting the curtain which separates us from the past a fraction , giving us the chance to look back directly into history without the aid of re-enactments or those ghastly digitised drama documentaries much favoured by "serious" TV channels. Despite the helicopters overhead, the security men scuttling between the pillars of Bernini's colonnade like cockroaches, and the faithful in jeans snapping their digital cameras, the funeral of Pope John Paul 11 was one such experience, the form of the Mass and the Committal, and the vestments of the priests almost unchanged for more than a thousand years. I am currently working on a novel in which the Renaissance

THE HISTORICAL OVELS REVIEW

Papacy looms large, and I felt I learned more about the unique spiritual and temporal authority of the Catholic Church and the way it has shaped our history from those two hours of solemn pageantry than from years of reading about the subject.

Which leads me to comment on the mix of UK and US fiction covered by the Review. Several members have noted that the balance seems to be shifting in favour of the US. In fact, the volume of American fiction remains pretty constant, but new publications of historical fiction in the UK have diminished over the past twelve months or so. I would, however, like to think that our members find it as interesting as I do to read about American fiction. Not only does much of it cover subjects with which we in the UK are unfamiliar, but also, its "take" on European history is different and, therefore, informative . Just as the Pope's funeral shed a new light on the role of the Catholic Church for me , so does American fiction about what I regard as "my" history. On a practical note, in these days of internet shopping, books published in the US are almost as easy to purchase in the UK as those published here, so I hope English readers will keep an open mind about our American reviews, and be glad American publishers are carrying the torch for historical fiction while the climate is harder here

SM4~0

Historical novels can pique our interest about places, times , and events that are new to us. Occasionally, while reading a historical novel , I come across mention of an incident so unusual that I'll question its validity. This was the case with one of my review books this quarter, Kathryn Lasky's young adult novel Blood Secret.

As you'll see from the review , published in the children's/young adult section of this issue, the "blood secret" of the title pertains to the descendants of Jews who fled Spain and Portugal for the New World beginning in the 16th century. Forced to convert to Catholicism in order to survive the purgings of the Inquisition, over the next few

centuries many families forgot their Jewish heritage entirely-at least at a conscious level. In Blood Secret, the protagonist's Aunt Constanza was raised Catholic, attends mass regularly, and tries to encourage her great-great-niece to JOm her in worship. Yet she also swears by many old family customs, such as lighting candles on the Sabbath, always sweeping the floor towards the center, throwing a small piece of dough into the fire before baking, and refusing to eat milk and meat at the same meal. Never did it occur to her that these customs were anything other than long-standing family traditions; that they were, in fact, of Jewish origin.

Wait a minute, I thought. How could she not know? Easy for me to say, of course, not having grown up in such a tradition-bound culture as Constanza's. The author's note explained how this phenomenon was possible, and indeed how common it really was. My personal curiosity about the subject led me to the web site for the Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies (http://www.cryptojews.com), an organization dedicated to research about the "crypto-Jews" of lb eric origin, and the promotion of networking among their descendants . As I read through th e site, I became steadily more fascinated with this little-known (at least to me) area of history. Many people from the American Southwest who have since discovered their family's J ewish origins contributed their personal stories to the website, and what surprised me is how simi lar they were. Historical novelist Kathleen Alcala writes about how she discovered her family's Jewish ancestry while doing research for one of her novels Catholics of Hispanic origin speak of the same experiences as were mentioned in Blood Secret: suddenly discovering , when going off to college, that the foods their family ate at certain times of the year were actually traditional Jewish foods. Other people describe how, after they reached a certain age, their parents let them in on their long-held family secret.

Historical research in this area has proven to be difficult, because so much has been erased over the centuries. As I learned, many families of crypto-Jewish origin are content to

ISSUE 32 MAY 2005

leave things as they are, since they're already well ensconced within their Catholic communities. Some fear that their newfound history could mean possible rejection by their longtime friends. Others have embraced their culture, attempting to trace their ancestry, or their family names if nothing else, all the way back to Spain and Portugal. Some even fom1ally convc1i to Judaism. For these people, their history helps define who they are.

For me , this novel was an eyeopener, and researching its background was an educational experience. This is one of the reasons I enjoy reading historical fiction. I also wonder if the history would have intrigued me so much if it hadn 't already been brought alive for me through Lasky's characters. It goes to show that occasionally truth is stranger than fiction-and that sometimes it takes fiction to point out the truth of history.

SM4J~

PARISH NOTICES

SHORT HISTORJES PRIZE

Please note the closing date for entries has been extended to 31 st August 2005 so still plenty of time to enter. Two of the judges will be Michel Faber and Barbara Erskine. The prizes will be awarded at the Sciety's annual conference in London in October.

UK ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Alas, the plans for this have had to be changed as the Cambridge History Festival is now no longer taking place. We are returning, instead , to the New Cavendish Club, which was a very popular venue last year. The conference will take place on Saturday, 22 nd October and will cost £59 (£49 if booking before the 31s t August.) Julian Stockwin and Tom Harper are confirmed speakers, and there will be the usual mix of talks and workshops as well as a special presentation by Fish Publishing and - we hope -a visit from an agent or publisher's editor

with a particular interest in historical fiction.

THE FORUM

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

A POLO GY

Kim Murphy of Coachlight Press has objected that we distorted the sense and particularly the tone of her letter which we published in truncated form last issue (in reply to Sally Zigmond's article on POD). We apologise for t his. It was ce1iain ly not our intention to misrepresent her, and we very much regret the distress we have caused to Kim In future we will always endeavour to contact authors of letters, articles and reviews before going to press to advise them of any changes we may have made.

From Michael Hunt via email In response to Kim Murphy's letter in the February edition, I would like to add my experiences of POD pub lishing. My first novel , Matabele Gold, published by BeWrite Books, a non-subsidy POD publishing company , was reviewed by Myfanwy Cook for the HNS Review of November 2003, and I used her comments in the forward publicity for my second book, The African Journals of Petros Amm, also published by BeWrite and reviewed for HNS On-Line by Naomi Theye in 2004. Both these reviews were appeared to be as positive as other HNS reviews of mainstream published books, therefore I must assume my books are of comparable standard.

The books were competitively chosen and received appropriate editing. BeWrite never asked me for money so, by definition , they are non-vanity (in fact they are v iru lently anti-vanity). Granted, sales, which have been mainly through Amazon, have been a trickle, but BeWrite never pretended otherwise. Since have no aspirations to become a full-time writer, scrupulous POD publishing has been the ideal way to get my

books published and the arrangement with BeWrite has been well nigh perfect. I'm pleased that Kim has had a similar experience at Coachlight Press.

Finally, on this subject, Sarah Johnson's editorial piece, in referring to the HNS On-Line Review, contains the phrase, ' because of the print-ondemand stigma'. Perhaps she should have prefaced 's tigma' with 'unfair'. Otherwise she is responsible for perpetuating the myth that POD is something other than a very efficient, waste-free, printing and publishing process.

Alexine Crawford, in her letter in the same issue, makes a very good point about authors fictionalising real characters by changing their 'personality'. This can be done inadvertently, perhaps with someone whose personality is not well knownin which case it would be better for a fictional name to be chosen - or del iberate ly, which, I believe, is more reprehensible. In both instances , authors must take full responsibility and, if they have caused distress to present day members of the family concerned, an apology should be forthcoming at the least.

From Sal ly Zigmond via email

Although I have no desire to prolong the Prince Harry fiasco, and although the media went completely OTT as they usually do, I slightly disagree with the view expressed by Sarah Bower in her February editorial. Th e royal fami ly (like 'em or loathe 'em) have a great many privileges so in return we should expect a greater awareness of not stepping on people's toes. If any other readers, like me , saw the programme about music at Auschwitz, then they can see how many people might think that to treat the Nazis as a bit of fancy dress is insensitive at least and downright insulting at most. The point is that we must not forget and for most people, unlike those of us who positively relish history, history is history and gets swept under the carpet.

From Isolde Martyn via email

Just wanted to thank you everyone at HNR and tell you how much I appreciate my novel, Fleur-de-Lis (Pan MacMillan, Austalia) rating such a lovely review by Margaret Barr in the February edition of HNR

ISSUE 32 MAY 2005

Truly, I'm doubly grateful. Unlike my mediaeval novels, because of its French Revolution setting, Fleur-de -Lis hasn't seen the light of day in North America (alas, it was the season of' freedom fries') and I'm told it's a waste of time to submit it to a UK publisher since it is already published in Australia. So this review was a wonderful and most welcome surprise.

SAGA CH I LDR EN'S BO O K WR ITING COMPETI TI ON

In Conjunction with HarperCollins, Saga Magazine is running a competition for a novel aimed at young people between 8 and 14 years of age. Entrants must be over the age of 50 should submit a synopsis and manuscript of between 20,000 and 60,000 words. First prize is an exclusive publishing deal with HarperCollins. Closing date is January 3 Ist 2006. Full details available on Saga's website, www.saga.co.uk

M Ls.s. B> vi e{ g etJ V\,e 's.

JANUARY 5•h

Erotic encounters with earls 7, Flowers arranged 0, Glasses of wine drunk 5

Arrive at Horty Manor. Ask about sweet old lady. 'What sweet old lady?' says the housekeeper. 'She's on holiday. She'll be here later,' says Lord Horty, walking into the room and dismissing housekeeper.

'Allow me to show you to your room,' says earl. Follow earl to room.

'Allow me to show you my rippling muscles,' says earl. Examine earl's rippling muscles. 'Allow me to show you my flowing hair,' says earl.

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Examine earl's flowing hair. 'Allow me to show you my chest,' says earl. Examine earl's chest 'Allow me to show you mine,' 1 say boldly. Earl examines mine.

Feel I am cut out to be career girl.

JANUARY 61h

Erotic encounters with earl 0, Glasses of wine drunk 75, Cheap feelings 36, Bottles of cooking sherry stolen I, Improving books read 1/100

Earl walked straight past me in the hall this morning without saying a word. Should have refused to play hunt the slipper with him last night, or at least said, 'No, my lord, you can't hunt the slipper in there.' Have made myself cheap and have now been cast aside like used rag doll. Returned to bedroom with headache.

Noon

Ate three desserts after lunch. No point in watching figure if earl doesn't want to watch it too.

6pm

Earl sent message I was to join him for dinner. Wished I hadn't eaten three desserts. Told maid to tighten my corset Nearly fainted. Revived myself with cooking sherry and went downstairs. Saw neighbourhood beauty sitting at the table, next to earl. Earl didn't look up when I sat down. Neighbourhood beauty is as thin as a rake. Decide neighbourhood beauty is very boring person who never eats dessert.

Neighbourhood beauty takes three helpings of suet pudding and gives a tinkling laugh 'I don't know why, but I never seem to put on weight.'

Decide that being thin is shallow. Career girls aren't shallow. They are well rounded - in every way. Decide not to waste time on earl. Career girls are not interested m the pleasures of the flesh.

8pm Go to bed with improving book.

Five past 8 3

Am bored with improving book. Sneak down to kitchen and steal bottle of cooking sherry.

Ten past 8

Retire to room and drink bottle of cooking sherry.

THE THINKING WOMAN'S VAMPIRE

A lot of knowledge can be even more dangerous than a little, as Sarah Bowe r found out in conversat i on with Elizabeth Kostova , author of The H i stori an.

I met Elizabeth Kostova at her London hotel during the European promotional tour for her debut novel. due for publication by Little Brown in June. A courteous, softly spoken woman, immaculate in a tailored wool jacket and skirt, sipping iced water among chintz sofas, nothing in her demeanour prepares you for the ghoulish subject matter of her book, in which she pits a symbol of power at its most sadistic - Vlad the Impaler, better known to most of us as Dracula - against human love and honesty.

It's brave to tackle Dracula because an enormous amount has been wrilfen and speculated on. Whal drove you to want to do it?

I've asked myself that more than once! Dracula is pretty old and tired but one of the nice things about him, as we know, is that he really never dies. I don't think our interest in him as a culture will ever really fade away. He's a powerful and complex symbol. I was very much interested in the historical Dracula, the conjunction of the myth and history, and that's an approach that hasn't been taken as much, although there are some good non-fiction books about the historical Dracula and also some serious historical studies.

Most of my understanding of Dracula is from Bram Stoker, Hollywood movies and so forth. where we don't see the Ofloman or eastern European perspectil'e. There are points in this book a-here your Dracula is evil, not so much because of his cruelty, but because he's seen as a threat to

ISSUE 32 MAY 2005

Ottoman culture, so you 're looking at it from a diflerenl perspective.

That's something which interests me very much. For many Romanian scholars and nationalists, Dracula, Vlad Ill of Wallachia, is a national hero because he did hold back the Ottoman Empire longer than almost anyone else in that region was able to, so he's a very complex figure in history and that makes him interesting.

You've obviously speculated to a great extent, and I appreciate from your foreword, in which you thank all your "historical advisers", that you have used your imagination, but I wonder what the factual basis is for the notion of the transformation of Vlad into a vampire. Why should he, of all people, have been picked for this kind of immortality?

I think we can blame that entirely on Bram Stoker because I don't think that legend would have arisen naturally. It was created by an author deliberately, and Bram Stoker really didn't use much more than the Dracula name, and he chose a name that was redolent of the mysterious Ottoman-opposing past. The one coincidence that makes his choice especially good, and maybe one reason it's stayed in our collective imagination, is that that part of the world really is full of vampire lore, and there are still people in Romania who more or le ss believe in the existence of vampires. We don't believe that Vlad Ill was a vampire, that's a western literary invention, but it is an area of Europe that didn't experience the Enlightenment and clung to its beliefs - you could call them superstitions - to explain disturbing occurrences, for a long time. In eastern Europe there were vampire incidents - scientifically explainable but for local people, vampire incidents - as late as the 1960s and 70s, and they still crop up.

From the background material I have read, ii 's obvious you've spent a lot of years researching and \\'Orking in the Balkans. I wonder if \\'e could talk a lillle bit about your research, because I wonder how you assimilate the enormous amount of

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knowledge you've got into a novel. My readers, a lot of whom are also writers. are extremely interested in where r esearch ends and imagination begins.

That is such a fascinating topic. I have to admit, I didn't know when I began this project that it would take ten years. The main reason it took ten years was the research. Research is an addictive pastime as we all know, and as my characters discover to their peril. I discovered along the way that I had to do a lot of kinds of research l had never expected to have to do. For example, although I looked at many traditional library sources, translations of mediaeval documents that somehow pertained to Vlad the Impaler or Sultan Mehmed I!, and a lot of very fine general works of history about those times and places, which helped me a lot, in order to write a novel and to invoke the historical imagination and to do it as accurately as possible, which I was also very committed to, I also had to do kinds of research you really can't do in a library. I listened to folk music, I rented movies that were made during the 1950s and 60s so I could see street scenes, get clothing right. I wasn't able to travel very much during this time because I was very busy with other work, but I had travelled to many of these places earlier and made notes, kept journals and made recordings and I also did go to Istanbul, which was one of the few places I hadn't visited that I wanted to write about. I went there after I had finished and sold the book, but when I still had time to check the details and, you know, it was the best experience to go to a place about which you've done a lot of careful research. It was both extremely familiar to me and it was new and fresh in a way that l hoped to be able to convey. For example, when I went to Istanbul, I realised for the first time that, when you're in that city, you hear the scream of seagulls everywhere. That 's a detail you don't get unless you come across it in a very good travelogue. I also read a lot of travelogues . It was a long and absorbing process. I think I enjoyed the research almost as much as I enjoyed the actual writing.

I think that's a trap the historical novelist can fall into. Did you al any stage find that research was becoming a displacement activity?

It's a great form of procrastination for every historical novelist!

Are you an historian by background?

I'm really not, I'm really an amateur. l did study quite a bit of history in college so l had some experience of examining historical sources and writing about them, but only at undergraduate level. That helped me, but it didn't prepare me for what I had to do. More recentl y I got an MF A in creative writing at the University of Michigan and one of the reasons 1 wanted to go there, besides the excellence of their wntmg programme, is that they have a great history department and a stellar Iibrary and I was able to take both some classes and a tutorial with an eminent Balkan historian who could sit in our meetings and say, well, you need to read these eight sources which it had taken me a year to find, and when you're done with that, you should really look at an article by so-and-so. So near the end of the project I had this opportunity to do an int ensive overhaul and fill in gaps with professional help.

Did you find your hislorian receptive to the idea that you were using all this material in a novel?

I was very lucky. H e was fascinated by it, found it fun, thought of it as a kind of vacation from his colleagues, perhaps, a new way of looking at things. And I think he saw from the beginning that I was serious about getting details right and lookin g at primary sources, and he also has a particular interest in vampire lore , a serious scholarly interest, coincidentally, so he didn't find it terribly eccentric that l was also interested in it.

You've stressed the need lo be accurale, and I'm ve,y impressed with the level of scholarship in the book, but I also wonder to what extent I am being led up the garden path because you've dressed a lot of things up as scholarship in the way that you quote from "authentic" documents, fellers ,

ISSUE 32 MAY 2005

l 'm very pleased that comes through because the great love of a scholar's life is scholarship and I was trying to convey a little bit of the electricity between scholars that can lead to love, the kind of love that has a strong intellectual content, the joy of shared learning, but I think you're right, they're even more in love with the libraries.

When I started reading it, I was thinking, where's the sex, where's the Dracula story without sex, and then I realised that's where it was, in the books, and in the end, even Dracula is more i,~ love with his books, roaming the world looking for archivists and historians rather than beautiful young women.

It could be argued in a way that this is kind of a stodgy version! One of the things I love about books, and I think many people love about books, is that they're both alive and dead. They're dead artefacts and yet, like Dracula, they can survive for centuries. When we're all gone, when we're dust, words still convey something of what they originally conveyed so to me, they're a good parallel metaphor with Dracula. They are crumbling, bone-like dusty artefacts and at the same time they're full of voices that leap to life off the page from history and they're really some of the only artefacts from history that we have and the most important ones. We don't really know what history was for any one person, it vanishes as soon as it occurs, but we do have these voices from the books so to me they are both alive and sensual and sort of entombed.

Do you/eel there is running through this book the suggestion that knowledge is a ve,y dangerous thing? At the end of the book, when our narrator is imagining Dracula at the ve,y end of his life, planning his afterlife as it were, she seems ve,y attracted to his plan, to learning more about it. All the way through this story, knowledge and scholarship is actually getting people into terrible difficulties.

Well, you know, l 've pondered this a lot. What I was trying to convey is that knowledge can be used for great

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good or great evil, or it can pose a danger. We all know that ignorance is more dangerous, usually, but the downfall of these scholars usually comes through excessive curiosity. I certainly didn't mean to imply that we shouldn't be curious, but it was an important part of the book to me to show the sort of obsessive, addictive qualities of the scholarly life, where you perhaps forget the human and delve too far. Whenever the characters remember to do something for one another, or for other people, I hope somehow they are a little redeemed.

Conversely, I love if when you pose the question, what can you do when historians start to use their imaginations. There's a point in the book where Paul is standing outside the monastery at Bachkovo, looking round, /Jying to intuit which direction Brother Kyril has gone in. l found that notion ve,y powerful, the triangle between the historian, the novelist and intuition. Would you like to comment on that?

1'm very touched that you bring up that moment because that was a very important moment to me as a writer. I wanted to show in it the desperation the historian feels when he reaches the limit of what can be known and in Paul's case he's not simply writing a dissertation, he's trying to find his best friend who has perhaps already been killed or suffered something terrible. I was trying to show that kind of running up against the wall that's between us and history and how desperate that would feel if there were some really compelling human reason that you wanted to scale that wall but you find it isn't scaleable no matter how badly you want to do it.

Obviously novelists use their intuition a great deal, it's one of the tools of the trade, but I wonder where you stand on the proposal that some great historical discoveries are made by taking intuitive leaps just as much as working your way ve1y carefully step by step through the sources?

Well I tried to address that a little bit in Rossi's research when he refers to the leap that the historian can make

but he says, 'when it's backed by • weeks of careful work' and I think it's impossible to make a good intuitive leap without a great deal of higher knowledge, just as it's impossible to do that in the sciences, but there is this phenomenon in both science and history of the inexplicability of intuition to make really great discoveries. As novelists we have much more freedom than that.

I get a hint at the end of the book that you 're expecting your narrator to get into deep water again and that there are still vampires around that could threaten her. Am I right?

That's exactly what imagined. There's no way to completely undo the evil of history. And what good would Dracula be if you really could kill him?

It would be disappointing. Moving on to the future, I wondered if you were in a position to talk about what you 're working on now?

I did feel it was important to start another novel and have that completely private endeavour going with all this business, all this happy business to deal with, and I know it's going to involve history again and mix history and a modern story but probably in a very different way. I'm going to tiy an entirely different experiment.

Are you sticking with the mediaeval period?

No, I think it will be a new period and maybe a combination of a couple of different moments in history.

Tell me a little bit about the experience of seeing your first novel in print. The first time you hold your own book in your hand, what does that/eel like?

It really has been a wonderful experience. While I was writing I was deeply absorbed just in the book and I knew it was a serious endeavour and that someday I would send it out but I really didn't dwell on that very much and I think it's important not to. The point of writing is to be writing, although I hope to have readers, as every writer hopes, just to make that

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connection with ot he r people w ho love literature, but it did come as a real shock to me that it sold so suddenly, so fast and so well and that it seems to be getting such a nice respon se. It's a little unreal, it's a totall y different process from the process of writing.

Where are you going next?

I'm going to Amsterdam for two days for more UK publicity and then back home , and then there'll be an author tour that will stretch over a couple of months in the US. That will coincide with when the book actually comes out on June 14 •h _

We wish Elizabeth every success with her original and engrossing tale (reviewed on page 43).

Retired historian offers collection (75) of auction catalogues of letters, documents and early books FREE to HNS members. Sothebys, Christies and others, dating from 1974. Many quotations and illustrations. Wonderful source of information and inspiration.

Contact Patricia Payne, Whitehall, Old Cleeve, Minehead, Somerset TA24 6HU, tel: 01984 640460

DR. GILLIAN

POLACK, Australian fiction writer and academic, discusses different methods of research.

Recently I have been asking myself: If there is one idea that the historian side of me needs to communicate to the writer side of me, what is that idea? The answer turned out not to be an idea at all, but a single word: research Everyone who can think , can research. If you want to know if you need an umbrella, you might stick your head out the door and check for rain. Thi s is research. At the other end of the research

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spectrum is a little baby I hoard to myself, a huge database of medieval historiographical manuscripts and their key features. This is also research.

The fact that research is diverse and has different levels of complexity is not what I want to write about, though. So many writers want me to teach them to research as an historian would. There is a faith that somehow, if they use my research techniques, they will have exactly the sort of background they need for their fiction. For certain novels , this is quite true. One beautiful historical novel produced using historical method is Brian Wainwright's Within the Fefferlock. Its presence is conveyed through the stuff that historians research; this is rare.

Most writers do not need historical method. They need to know the type of research that best fits their minds and their sources and their writing. I can't emphasise this enough: the type of research you do has to be tailored to the type of writer you are and the type of effect you want to produce in a novel.

Let me focus on one aspect of this. In my experience, as someone who teaches the Middle Ages to writers, for every writer who seeks a solid understanding of the period, there are one hundred other writers who are after salient detail only for a particular aspect of their tale. The one writer needs to have a solid understanding of the period, and learning historical method helps with this. The hundred writers need something quite different.

If you are after that detail that brings something to life, you are better off learning how to frame the right question, and finding who to ask that question, rather than reading eighty books. Those eighty books may be tremendou s fun and add to your overall store of knowledge, but at the end of them you have a fair chance that they will not contain the exact answer you want-and you will have to learn to ask particular questions anyhow.

Many writers know that questions are the key, and fire them off like bullets to any academic within reach. Thus experts in Thomism are asked questions about medieval toilet paper, and leading

lights on the northern sagas receive demands about law cases in thirteenthcentury England. This leaves no one happy. The historian can't answer the questions, and the writer gets no useful answer.

Many historians assume that when questions are thrown at them that have nothing to do with their sphere of know ledge, except for the century in which the two answers could be found, the questioner should be treated as a recalcitrant first year university student and sent back to the basic textbooks. I don't agree with this response, but I understand it. They have spent their lives in a university environment, and on ly a very few of them are fiction writers. Most academic specialists have no idea where writers are coming from and why they should be asking these questions.

If you get an apparently condescending response to a question, don't get mad, get educated. First, identify the right person to ask. Find someone who has written a paper or book on a related subject: not a popular digest of earlier research , but the original research itself. This gives you a greater chance that they will be able to delve into stores of hidden knowledge and come up with a useful answer.

Second, don't approach specialists cold. Read those undergraduate textbooks and learn how to frame a question in the right language for the scholar in question. He or she has to understand you have a serious query, and the way you convince most academics of that is to have a sound understanding of the general background. In other words, you ask the right expert the question using something close to their own dialect.

Once you have your answer, you will need to interpret it. That is another tale.

Val Whitmarsh whips up a storm over Seven Tempest by William Vaughan Wilkins, author and journalist, 1890 - 1959

My parents only ever agreed on two things. Firstly, that money was never wasted if it was spent on books - and

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secondly, that there was never enough money, for books or anything else. This state of affairs was of their own making, since they maintained two households and two children on only one income.

My father worked for the Daily Mail, then in Fleet Street, and his third home has to have been the secondhand section of Foyle's Bookshop in the Charing Cross Road. There were bookshelves in every room of his lodgings and our house , and although all the books were secondhand, there were hundreds of them - many of them still with the Boots Booklover Library shield on the covers, crossed through and sold off for a few shillings when the libraries closed. There were many complete sets of books, too: all the Dorothy L Sayers, the Edna Ferbers, the Gene Stratton Porters - and all the Vaughan Wilkins. I read my first historical novel at the age of 8. It was John Halifax, Gentleman, written in 1856, set in the 1790s, and a tear-jerker. I came round from a particularly emotional chapter, sobbing, to find my parents staring at me in astonishment. l 'm not surprised - John H is not at all a suitable book for a child, and 57 years later, I still have it and it rightly remains unfinished. I had discovered Seven Tempest.

It's the story of a man who, in the early years of the 19 th century, has deliberately fathered seven children by different motherschosen for their health, looks and intelligence - all given numbers for their names, to see which will survive in the Victorian industrial age. He himself was an illegitimate child sent to the workhouse when his mother was hung for the theft of 42 shillings, but who, after an unimaginably brutal childhood has become an immensely wealthy man, building up great industries, employing thousands. We follow the fortunes of Seven, who is taken to see his father when he is 12, after a quiet but comfortable childhood in foster care, to be told that for the next six years, he will suffer as his father had suffered. Seven is sent to work in one of his father's coalmines, one of his father's factories and one of his father's steamships.

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Seven does survive and sets off across Europe where he meets a young and beautifu l German princess whose Uncle Leopold (Queen Victoria's scheming and ambitious Uncle Leopold) has decided she will marry blind George of Hanover, like it or not. She runs away, and after meeting Seven, the two of them escape across the world to America and back, trying to avoid their futures. Seven Tempest was the beginning of my passion for Vaughan Wilkins.

You can still find the Vaughan Wilk ins books on Amazon co.uk and on Amazon.com. He was a prolific author with a passion for history. The books are peopled by both real historical people and quirky fictional characters, often Welsh; there is usually a small boy, often ill-treated but always brave; always a charming young woman with ringlets , often American, and the writing is overly sentimental, in the fashion of the time.

But it is the stories that grab, so never mind the style.

Sometimes, just a few words from a historical document were enough to set Vaughan Wilkins off: who really was Prince Albert's father? What plans were made to set Charles I I I - the Young Pretenderon the throne of what is now the United States of America, during his sad and drink-sodden later years? How did Victoria ever get to the throne, when the first attempt on her life came when she was just a baby? What happened to the little Dauphin of France, and why did a French expeditiona,y force land in Wales, under an American commander, intent on burning Bristol? How did the fabulously beautiful Theresia Cabarrus get out of prison during the Terror, and become the Goddess of Reason , the 'girl who displaced God'? Why did George 1 1 and his Queen so hate their eldest son, the unfortunate Fred?

History is all. These are not just tales where a character goes about the world on adventures. The fiction is incidental to the facts, and the facts are very odd indeed.

We now know that the little Dauphin wasn't saved. In A King Reluctant he is brought to England by balloon. This book was made into a film, and it seemed to me far-

fetched, seeing 11 m its garish 1960s Technicolour. But there were balloons in the skies at the time. Just as there were plans to use a submarine to try to rescue Napoleon from his exile. Experiments were taking place in blood transfusions between animals and people. And the House of Hanover was a very odd family indeed

Vaughan Wilkins characters remain, fixed in memory, just as his books, the comp lete set, remain on my shelves, as, after our parents passed on, I bartered them from my brother for the complete set of Dorothy L Sayers. We might be a dysfunctional family, but we agree on the subject of books.

And So. Victoria 193 7

A King Reluctant 1952

Husband for Victoria, 193 8

Crown without Sceptre 1952

Seven Tempest 1942

Fanfare for a Witch 1954

Being Met Together 1944

Valley beyond Time 1955

Once Upon a Time 1949

Lady of Paris 1956

The City of Fro::en Fire 1950

PRIDE OF CARTHAGE

The second part of Sarah Cuthbertson's interview with David Anthony Durham

Did you always want to be a novelist?

Yes. I was saying as much from my early teens I experimented with other art fom1s, but by the time l was a year or two into college I knew without question that I was working toward being a novelist. l 've never wanted any other career.

Did you serve any kind of apprenticeship as a writer?

l 'd say I had two different stages of apprenticeship The first was while studying in the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Program at the University of Maryland. While I was there I was able to focus full time on my writing and I got used to being on the rece iving end of criticism. That sort of criticism isn't always useful: it may be spot on, but often it's given

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with a tinge of malice, or by someone not up to critiquing your work, or by someone who didn't read it very carefully in the first place. The useful part of the workshop experience is that you're forced to sort through it all and learn how you'll deal with it.

The second stage was that in the years immediately after getting my MF A I completed two novels that l never got published. The writing of both these works - especially the act of taking two novel-length narratives from beginning to endgave me the tools I'd need for future works. The back and forth of trying to find an agent and publisher, writing pitch letters and receiving rejections, provided important lessons about the writing life.

What are the major influences on your writing? Which writers have most inspired you and why?

I'm influenced considerably by being categorized as AfricanAmerican, although in truth I'm of mixed race and nationality. It's a confusing reality that has affected the way I view the world - and the way the world views me - from the beginning. I'm glad to say I don't believe this has handicapped my perspective. Just the opposite: because of it l 'm always aware of subtexts and contradictions, aware that truth is not absolute and that even the most obvious of facts varies depending on who's considering it. This has all been helpful in assuring that I'm never at a loss for subjects to explore in my fiction. I feel ve,y fortunate to have been born in the skin I have.

The writers that most influenced me are a varied lot. Their influence was probably a matter of my being fertile ground to receive them at a given moment in my development. As an adolescent, J.R.R. Tolkien, Ursula K. LeGuin and C.S. Lewis were very important to me. In college the writers that most inspired me came from far flung points on the compass, often people who wrote from challenging sociopolitical settings: Mario Vargas Llosa, Ayi Kwei Armah, Ben Okri, Milan Kundera. African-American writers like Toni Morrison, Richard Wright and James Baldwin were

important to my early entry into writing, as were many novelists making serious examinations of history: Russell Banks, Madison Smartt Bell, Charles Frazier, and Margaret Atwood, for example. In recent years I've discovered a renewed interest in books of imaginative scope - Dune, by Frank Herbert, is a prime example of this. I enjoyed reading that book more than I had any novel for quite a long time.

Could you tell us something of your background, family, education?

My father is from Trinidad. My mother's mother was from Barbados, her father from rural Virginia. I'm a partially of African descent, partially Caucasian, a bit East Indian - to name the most obvious. My upbringing wasn't particularly exotic, though. I went to school in suburban Maryland, including undergraduate and graduate work at the University of Maryland. I traveled a lot in my later college years, throughout the Caribbean and Latin America mostly. Eventually l lived and worked in Europe. I met my wife in Scotland and lived about five of the last eight years in the UK. My wife, kids and I have just recently returned to America and are now living in Massachusetts - a great place for books and writers.

Lei's talk a little now about your first two novels. The post-Civil War Gabriel's Story is a classic example of the hero's journey: the tale of a boy's painful coming-of-age in the crucible of the Old West. Gabriel is a black adolescent whose mo/her takes him to Kansas to live with her new husband who is carving out a life in the unforgiving Mid-West. Uneasy with his stepfather and discontented with the unremitting farm toil, Gabriel runs G\vay with a bunch of cowboys heading/or Texas, who turn out to be horse-thieves - and worse. Whal issues did you wan/ lo explore within this framework and selling?

Gabriel's Story grew out of my earlier attempts to write about coming-of-age as a male in a society in which violence is alternately idealized and punished. My first (unpublished) novel, Cicada, and my second (unpublished) novel, August

Fury, are both set in the seventies and early eighties, the time during which I grew up. The main characters are African American boys dealing with split families, death of parents, abuse, and trying to find their identity and a source of strength and acceptance. For both characters, violence ends up being central to how they gain some control over their world.

Neither of those novels found a publisher. I'm content with that now, especially because it pushed me to pack ever more into each book, and it challenged me to weave a historical discussion into these very personal stories. Gabriel replaces an earlier character but faces many of the same struggles. This time around, however, he's shackled with great demands on his labor and strength, with very little that he can look forward to enthusiastically. The Kansas setting upped the tension and exacerbated his angst, and it provided a wild and wonderful landscape - culturally and physically - to set him loose upon.

I'd add that I was stunned in my study of the American West to learn of the presence of African-Americans there. They didn't just go in the token ones or twos that we see in movies, as cooks or sidekicks. There were mass movements of blacks out of the South and into the West, and there were areas in which black cowboys were the norm, not the exception. I wanted to write a Western that did some justice to this largely overlooked truth.

Walk Through Darkness portrays a heroic quest of a different kind. William, a mulatto slave, escapes in search of his pregnant wife, Dover, who has been taken north by her mistress lo Philadelphia and freedom. William's master hires Morrison, an immigrant from the Scollish Highlands, to track him down. But Morrison, whose narrative runs parallel lo William's, has his own memo,y of oppression and is pursued by demons which, it is gradually revealed, he can only lay to rest if he catches up with William. There's much more here than a man's escape Ji'om slavery: At one point, for example, William says he could have endured slavery if Dover hadn't been taken from him. So was his quest really in pursuit of love rather than freedom per se?

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I read him as saying that an awful lot of things are tolerable if one has at least one important, personal relationship/dream/love to infuse meaning into an otherwise meaningless existence. Love is something so deeply personal that he was able to share a small world of it with Dover, something that was all theirs, far from their master's control and unconquered by slavery. But without Dover the slave-life he has before him is something he can't abide. Added to this is the new revelation that she's carrying his child. Not only is she going to live a life out there somewhere - still someone's property - but now William's child will be born far from him, identified as a piece of property instead of as a son or daughter. It 's such complex, overlapping emotions that drew me to this material.

Was it hard to find material in the historical record relating to lives like those of Gabriel and William? Are any of the even ts in the novels based on your researches?

There were three sources that I thought of as most informative to the novel. One was Runaway Slaves, by John Hope Franklin and Loren Schweninger. This book was filled with anecdotes of men and women who risked everything to be free. They did so for some many different reasons, in so many different ways, and with a variety of success. Cumulatively their stories are a testament to how greatly enslaved Africans wanted to regain control of their lives.

The second was A Dance Called America, by James Hunter. This really brought home the horror of the Scottish Highland Clearances and filled me with a new respect for many of the European immigrants to America who suffered through their own sort of Middle Passage. It's certainly not the same as being chained in the bottom of a slave ship, but there are parallels. I believe there are many productive things to learn by looking at the historical realities that link us across racial and cultural boundaries, not just those that separate us.

And the third source was more personal. My mother did research

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into my stepfather's family, a black family with a long history in Annapolis. I say "black", but in truth they obviously had Caucasian blood somewhere back in the ir past. My mother eventually found the original source of this, an Irish immigrant who married a slave woman and fathered her slave children. It was the sort of amazing detail we don't often hear of, but there it was. Love happened across racial divides even in those troubled times. This was surprising enough to me that I had to explore it fictionally.

Were you living in Scotland when yo u wrote these novels? If so, did the "exile" lend you useful perspectives on the aspects of American experience you wanted to explore?

I lived in a variety of places, in the US, Scotland and France, but certainly living at a distance from the US did provide a pe rspective I wouldn't have had otherw ise. Thi s was partially a matter of see in g Amer ica from the eyes of other cultures, but I also came more fu ll y into my identity as an American. Even with all the many crimes and misdemeanors America perpetuates on its citizens and upon the world Well, it's still an amazing place, a cultural conundrum, with such a vibrant history and muc h of true worth to offer the world. I understood this better after living at a distance. I'm not sure how this affected my writing, but it certainly affected me, so my writing must have evolved accordingly.

What do you think is the value of historical fiction, if it's to be more than entertainment?

I 've got nothing against entertainment. People need and deserve to be entertained. That said, I do believe that looking at the past through fiction can have a larger significance. I'm convinced, for example, that if we were more careful students of history we'd force our politicians to make better decisions than they do Unfortunately, we all too often repeat the mistakes made by our predecessors. And I believe historical fiction can be just as inforn,ative as straight historical

writing. I 've never read a history book that wasn't overtly subjective, that didn't want you to believe certain things and strive to s hape your understanding accordingly. I have read fictions, however, that - because of my involvement with characters and a connection to an imaginative time and place - have left me pondering historical events well after the reading was complete. Maybe it 's that the best works of historical fiction Toni Morrison's Beloved, for example - are not so much about providing answers as they are about asking questions. So many positives start with asking questions.

SERIAL SPY

Val Whitmarsh talks to Martin Stephen, author of the Henry Gresham novels

I 've read and enjoyed all the Henry Gresham books. The hero of Martin Stephen's historical thrillers starts out as the neglected, illegitimate son of a wea lthy man who, against all expectations, leaves Henry his fortune and an enormous house on the Strand in London. Henry is by no means a dilettante, though; he is an academic and by the time we meet him, has used his money to found a college in Cambridge, where he is a Fellow. As an independent man of means he can take leave of absence when he like s, and he does so, despite the unpopularity this causes amongst the other Fellows, because he is also a professional spy.

The Desperate Remedy is set in 1605, Th e Conscience of the King in 1612. and the lat est book, Galleons 's Grave, in 1588. Some of what happens in the second and third book is mentioned in the first chapter of th e first book (where Henry recalls being roped to the rack in the Tower of London, for example). This suggests that you µlolled all three books before you began writing! Did you? And why have you wriflen the books in this order?

In fact there are a minimum of four books in the series, with the fourth taking place either in l 60 l or l 603. Were all the books plotted before I started writing? Rather sadly, yessadly because it makes me seem a complete anorak!

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The Despera/e Remedy is sel around the Gunpowder Pio/, and explores !he lheory Iha/ !he Governmenl knew abou/ !he p/01, and lured !he Calholic conspiralors info a position where !hey, and their failh, could be comprehensively crushed. Whal comes firs/ for you - is ii an idea? Or do you see hisfo,y as a great lapestry, lhrough which you can lhread Henry Gresham, felling him parlicipale in events?

The first thing that came to me was a series of historical impossibilities. The only thing we can be ce1iain of is that the accepted historical version of the Gunpowder Plot is almost certainly not what actually happened. The facts just don't add up. Then look at who wrote Shakespeare's plays; why the Am1ada didn't conquer England; why James I became King of England; why Mary Queen of Scots was executed; why the Essex Rebellion against Elizabeth I failed in I 60 I-and you have the most extraordinary set of historical conundrums, concentrated in a period between 1587 and I 6 I 2. These are some of the greatest mysteries in history, and I thought it would be wonderful to invent a character who could not only explain them but be 111 part responsible for them

Hemy is a man of his lime - he can be quile fearsomely violen I, thinking nolhing of breaking the limbs of anyone who crosses him; he is also aware that sudden death from plague and disease could cul him or his family down overnight. Who did you base Hemy on, or did he bring himself lo life?

He's based partly on what Hamlet might have been if he had lived on, partly on a couple of historical figures from the time and partly on someone I know. And, like so many fictional characters who are real to their author, he's taken on a life of his own, and manages to make even me really annoyed with him at times.

Years ago, I read a fascinating account of the spy network which criss-crossed Europe al !his time; the couriers on horseback flying to

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and from Rome, !he ne/work of priests and seminaries, · the secret messages and codes, and !he spies of eve,y nation, all spying on each other, and many double if 1101 treble agents. In The De.1perate Remedy, Hemy's mistress, Jane, asks him: 'Is eve,yone a spy or double agent in !his world? Is !here noone normal?' Does !he world of espionage hold a special fascination for you?

It's not so much the world of espionage. It's more a world of savage contrasts, when from the same seat in old St Paul's Cathedral you could hear a brilliant sermon from John Donne and at the same time see a man hung; where the streets were full of excrement and above them rose some of the most beautiful buildings ever built in England; where the fragile beauty of a Byrd Mass has to be put aside the unbelievable cruelty of hanging, drawing and quartering a man As for espionage, it's an emblem. It's a world where nothing is what it seems to be, and everything can turn round and kill you. Henry Gresham recognizes this world, and puts survival as his religion Unfortunately, he's also inherently a decent man, so his survival ethos clashes at all the wrong times with his instinct to be a decent man.

Your research is supremely lhorough. How do you go about it?

I taught English and Shakespeare for years. My first degree is in English and History. So the research builds on some things I already know. It's also a wonderful challenge to get the history right, not least of all because it validates the fiction. ln all three books there's one historical mistake (my fault!) and one deliberate incident where an event occurs three months before it actually happened.

I 1101 only fell I could find my way around !he slree/s, bu/ Iha/ !he conspira/ors had become lhreedimensional people. I even fell sony for Guy Fawkes.for ins/ance, despite !he awfulness of !he Gunpowder Pio!; !he punishmenl !hey could expecl when cough! was so appalling thal you wonder anyone would dare

conspire. Henry seemed to admire Guy Fawkes -do you?

I don't admire him; I feel immensely sorry for him, feel that we label people all too easily and that the victors in any conflict write its history. Henry Gresham feels sorry for Guy Fawkes firstly because Fawkes is a brave man, and secondly because he's a dupe, used by those with real power.

By !he second book, The Conscience of the King, Hemy is married wilh two small children, so has even more lo lose - and in !he swashbuckling ending, very nearly does so! This story has Christopher Marlowe returning from his supposed death and a complex plot thal includes William Shakespeare and James I's beau/iful but dim favourite, Robert Carr. The Hislorical Notes at !he end of the book suggesl !hat !here could be anolher Hemy Gresham book - The Overbwy Murder: Henry Gresham and /he Scarlet Woman. Can we expect !his book soon?

My contract was initially for two books, and was extended to four by my lovely publishers, Time Warner. If my lovely publishers are even more lovely (and if lovely people buy enough of the books to make it worthwhile for the lovely publishers!) there are lots more Henry Greshams in the pipeline, including books based on the Overbury murder and the death of Mary Queen of Scots.

Without spoiling 1he book for !hose people who haven '1 ye/ read it, a good part of it delves into the con/roversy about just who really wrote William Shakespeare's plays. Poor old William (in this book he is also one of Walsingham's spies) turns up in all sorts of books these days in all saris of guises - just how odd do you think it is /hat so few facts are ac/ually known aboul him?

It's not just odd: it's inexplicable. The 'facts' about Shakespeare that we can be at all certain of would hardly fill one side of A4. There has to be the real story, and without wanting to pretend that The Conscience of the King is anything more than a historical thriller, the book gives what I think is a perfectly credible version

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of how Shakespeare's plays might have come to be written.

Your new book, Ga/lions' Grave, is about the Armada. There is also an intriguing hint that HemJ ' Gresham, this illegitimate child of a wealthy man , might have as his mother the even more intriguing Lady Ma1y Keyes. She was the tiny, almost a dwarf, second sister of Lady Jane Grey, wasn't she, kept closely under Eli:::abeth 's eye because of her royal blood, who even so managed to elope with a Royal servant and who was, as a result, shut up for good, in case she had a child with pretensions to the throne? Can we expect a Gresham book going further into this?

No, but I do believe there is a real issue based around whether or not Lady Maiy Keyes might have had an illegitimate child-just as there is a real issue in history over whether or not Queen Elizabeth might not have borne a child. I am looking at the latter as the possible basis for a Henry Gresham book. At present, I'm actually writing two Henry Gresham novels in parallel, one based on the Earl of Essex's rebellion 111 160 I and one based on the accession of King James I in 1603.

You've managed to blend historical fact + adventure + male + female characters to make an exciting and absorbing read. Did you consider all this when planning your books?

Authors can plan all they like, and sometimes 1,e_x,e n think they're in control of w'i-\at they write. It's not true, actually. If these characters are to be real to readers they have to be real to the author, but then rather unfortunately they behave like real characters and do things you would rather they didn't I am ve1y happily married to someone who has held a parallel career to my own and who can claim to be a woman who has broken through the glass ceiling. It's hardly surprising that as a result I'm fascinated by how in earlier THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

ages women of equal or superior intellect to men used their ability. Poor old Henry Gresham wants to be a chauvinist: who wouldn't? It makes life so much easier for men. Unfortunately, he meets a woman who is every bit as clever as him, and though he tries to ignore it his basic honesty (his most appealing characteristic?) won't let him. I hope one of the mainsprings of the novels is that Henry Gresham's intelligence won't allow him to dismiss Jane, though for much of the time it's a real irritant that he can't. Henry Gresham's real problem is that, t,y as he might, he can't make life as simple as he (and most men?) would like it to be.

In Ga/lions' Grave, your newly published book, much of the action takes place on board the Spanish war ships of the Armada, and we see the attempted invasion - that seven mile wide sweep of war shipsentirely .fi·om the Spanish point of view. Hemy is much younger, of course; he is up to his ears in double-dealing with .1py-master Walsingham, now an elderly and terminally ill man, and he also finds himself the unwilling guardian of a willful, 01phaned, Spanish girl. I felt you were .1ympathetic to11 •ards the Spanish, especially the final commander of the Armada, the Duke of Medina Sidonia - is that so?

Yes. Medina Sidonia was a man of huge integrity who knew the Armada would fail, but still felt obliged to do his duty. He and the English sailors who died in their thousands because Queen Elizabeth wouldn't pay to feed them after the Armada are the real heroes of what is actually a very sorry business in history.

I also felt that you really didn't have a lot of time for Francis Drake, that Great English Hero, who came over as more than a little thick.

Drake was a nightmare. Don't take my word for it: read the books by professional historians.

You are a very busy person. How do you fit your \\'riting into your day?

I'm now High Master of St Paul's School, London. Until September I was High Master of The Manchester Grammar School. Writing is my 'hobby', though it's far more important to me than that word might suggest. Some people play golf; others watch TV: I write books- before Henry Gresham I had written fifteen or so academic or quasi-academic books, including such best-selling titles (this is careful use of irony) as Sea Battles in Close Up and English Literature: A Student Guide. I do the research after 11.00pm at night (l 've never needed much sleep), and write the novels in a frantic, 18-hours-a-day burst-a week at Christmas, a week at Easter and three weeks in the summer. It's my holiday, and the family have got used to me doing what I do while they're on the beach.

Finally - do you have a favourite historical novel?

Do you know, no-one has ever asked me that? I remember as a child being gripped by reading a battered copy of a novel by Harrison Ainsworth, and after that I fell in love with the novels of Sir Walter Scott. Very oddly perhaps, as a male-child of conventional inclination, I devoured and still love the novels of Georgette Heyer and Daphne du Maurier. I keep reading the work of modem historical novelists in the hope that I might learn to do it better. The problem is I keep on reaching the conclusion that they do do it better!

Thanks to Martin Stephen for this interview. His Henry Gresham books are published by Little, Brown:

The Desperate Remedy, 2002

The Conscience of the King, 2003

The Galleons' Grave, March 10, 2005, £10.00, hb, 352pp, ISBN 03/6726699

ISSUE 32 MAY 2005

REVIEWS EDITOR

The Historical Nove ls Review is looking for a new reviews editor to handle Arcadia, Atlantic, Canongate, Robert Hale, Headline and Hodder & Stoughton, organising reviews of 15 to 25 titles per issue.

Although unremunerated, the work is rewarding and satisfying. If you like being around books and if the idea of contact with publishers appeals to you, this could be just what you're looking for.

You need to be familiar with Word and have email access, possess good editing skills, be able to meet deadlines and have ten to twelve hours to spare each quarter.

For more details, contact Sarah Cuthbertson at sarah76cuthbcrt(ti'aol.com

CLASSICAL

PRIDE OF CARTHAGE

David Anthony Durham, Doubleday 2004, £ I 0.99 / $26.95, hb, 563pp/576pp (US), 0385604637/038550603 I (US)

This is the story of Hannibal and his famous elephants who reached the summit of the Alpine pass and came down the valley of the Po to fight the Romans in a feat said to have been perfonned without undue difficulty.

David Anthony Durham in his epic novel Pride of Carthage tells of the Second Punic War between Carthage and a Roman Republic that had to make its mark on the western world; this war shaped the destiny of nations and carved the names of Hannibal and Scipio forever on the foundations of history

It is an impressive book, stylishly written and the author's sense of the period is imaginative - giving voice and insight to the Carthiginians who feared no one and to whom the Romans were just a race of pirates and thieves. The battle scenes are well sourced and shown in all their ferocity as the novel chronicles the struggle for domination of the Mediterranean. However, the introduction of minor characters to identify personal relationships and out of sequence events to illuminate differing aspects of the conflict slows the narrative making the book over long.

It will always be a question of history as to what would have happened if Hannibal, with a larger am1y equipped with siege engines, had marched on Rome immediately after Cannae when the legions were almost destroyed. Durham explores this only

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

briefly. As in the First Punic War, the council in Carthage withheld support, Rome was resistant and the chance lost. For another fifteen years Hannibal devastated Italy. He had defeated the Roman am1ies but could not defeat Rome. It was to be 52 years later, after the peace treaty of 20 I BC when the contestants were unevenly matched and Rome the dominant power, that Carthage was totally destroyed.

Gwen Sly

THE ODYSSEY OF HOMER

R.L. Eickhoff, Ph.D., trans., Forge, $ 15.00/ C$22.95, hb, 432pp, 0312869010 I first read The Odyssey in a child's version that may have been meager, but was certainly sufficient to begin a lifetime fascination with this colorful progenitor of all adventure stories. In Fifth Form, I studied E.V. Rieu's translation. At university, we read the verse of Richmond Lattimore and Robert Fitzgerald. More recently, I've read the Robert Fagles translation and listened, as the sun rose, to his singing language declaimed beside a circle of standing stones.

Dr. Eickhoff declares m his introduction-and do not miss this particular introduction-that every new century requires a new translation of The Odyssey. After Fagles, new century or not, I didn't feel a pressing need for another. However , as I read Eickhoffs muscular version, complete with balls, belches and copious T &A, I have to admit that his prose Odyssey is probably a welcome addition , especially in a world where the windows of once serious bookstores now display "graphic novels." Dr. Eickhoff communicates the look, taste and feel of the ancient world powerfully, yet with a modem novelist's colloquial flair. His translation of another great treasure of the oral tradition-The Ulster Cycle-signals how very much at home he is in the nearly lost, heroic world of the Classical West.

Juliet Waldron

TYRANT

Valerio Massimo Manfredi, (trans. Christine Feddersen-Manfredi) , Macmillan 2005, £14.99,hb,280pp, 1405040912

The young Dionysius, supremely selfconfident, even arrogant, despises the leaders of the army and the populace and manages to depose them and gain absolute power over the armies defending the Greek city states in Sicily from Hannibal and the Carthaginians. There are copious details of battles , sieges, the capturing of cities, sacks and refugees in flight during the years of defeat while Dionysius is corning to pow cities and defeat the enemy there is scanty detail. This seems rather unbalanced. Dionysius becomes an absolute ruler because of the way of democratic debate,

the lengthy arguments in Council lead to a lack of resolve and fim1 leadership. This novel is told very much from an academic overview lightly fictionalised using the authorial viewpoint rather than showing events through the eyes of the characters. This prevents readers from identifying with the rather cardboard characters whose emotions are described rather than felt.

The language is rather pedestrian, stilted, with a good deal of repetitive sentence construction but how much of this is due to translation is difficult to judge What is presumably not so dependent is the occasional lack of convincing detail that would have been introduced by many other writers. For example, 'The blaze spread like wildfire as the incendia,y substances the wood had been soaked in burst into flames.' And 'bringing all sorts of material that could be used to close up the breach.' My italics highlight generalisations that add nothing to the historical background. It would help readers, unfamiliar with the period, if the publishers included maps showing the location of the Sicilian cities and diagrams of at least some of the more important battles. If you want a history lesson and are already familiar with the period and the geography this is a book for you. If you want an interesting novel, maybe not.

Marina Oliver

OWLS TO ATHENS

H.N. Turteltaub, Forge, 2004, $25.95/ C$35.95,hb,382pp,07653000389 Fourth in a series, Owls to Athens advances the adventures of the intrepid Rhodian merchants, Sostratos and Menedemos. In the chaotic post-Alexander world, there are plenty of opportunities and danger; you just don't know which Macedonian captain is going to fall and which will prevail. Sostratos and Menedemos have dealt with this before. Trusting in the neutrality of their native Rhodes, they sail to turbulent Athens to sell their luxury goods. For Sostratos it is not an easy destination. He lived in Athens before as a student, but now he is a tradesman. How will his old teacher receive him? Menedemos, on the other hand, is happy to be away from Baukis, his father's young wife. Now that he knows that Baukis shares his feelings, Menedemos is afraid to be near her. In Athens, however, in spite of his cousin's ominous warnings, Menedemos succumbs to adultery. Only this time, it's different. The affair upsets him and makes him realize the depth of his feelings for Baukis.

Turteltaub, the pseudonym of Harry Turtledove, scholar and bestselling author, encapsulates his vision of the ancient world through the eyes of these two engaging merchants. As the other novels of this series, Owls to Athens can be read

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

separately although this can result in the reiteration of certain facts, such as the traits of some of the characters. Also, sometimes Tui1eltaub is repetitive within the confines of a pa11icular novel - for instance, forgetting that he has already told us that cooks can be opinionated, he states it again and again. Despite that, in Owls to Athens, Sostratos and Menedemos put their past into perspective and act in ways that are bound to haunt them in a future which will likely find itself the subject ofTurteltaub's next book.

Adelaida Lower

BIBLICAL

THREE DAYS: A Mot he r 's S tory

Melody Carlson, Revell, 2005, $14 95, hb, I 73pp, 0800718755 Melody Carlson has taken up the difficult task of telling the story of Jesus through the eyes of h is mother, Mary, during the three days following her son's crucifixion. In this fictionalized tale readers see Mary's love, faith, worry, and despair, and eventually her hope through a series of flashbacks that bring the reader into Mary's world. Carlson begins by painting a picture of Mary as a young teen visited by the angel Gabriel. We see Mary wondering about the possibility of carrying a child, about her future, and her bewilderment at her circumstance. Carlson gives the character of Mary depth when we see how she must face her family with her news. I would have liked Carlson to follow through with more of Mary's emotions in the subsequent pages to further the character's development. She does little to go beyond the stories of the Gospel in her telling, missing the opportunity to bring out the sights, smells, and tastes of this biblica l period. As in the Gospels, Carlson also leaves out the years of Jesus between the ages of twelve and thirty.

Those unfamiliar with the Gospels will find this book a wonderful introduction to the sto1y of Mary and her faith. Three Days is a perfect accompaniment to a Bible study class and can open the door to a great discussion of faith and Christian doctrine. Nancy Castaldo

THE LAST DISCIPLE

Hank Hanegraaff and Sigmund Brouwer, Tyndale House, 2004, S 19.99, hb, 395pp, 0842384375

The time is 65-66 AD during Nero's persecution of the Christians and the beginning of the Jewish revolt that would eventually lead to the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, "not one stone standing on another." These two authors have dozens of publishing credits between them, including Hanegraaff's The Da Vinci Code: Fact or Fiction? This book is a thriller, seemingly an attempt to cross the THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

two w i ldly popula r works, The Da Vinci Code (the color of the cover is the same) and the Left Behind series, under the influence of inspiration. I must express relief to see Revelations viewed as containing cryptic references to the political situation in John the Revelator's day rather than as a blueprint for modem political action. (In my Sunday School days the Beast was sometimes Premier Khrushchev.) And the life of that visionary on Patmos has always intrigued me.

On the other hand, the very thriller-ness is a real problem. There is more to a thriller than the splicing of fast-paced scenes Here they serve to annoy rather than thrill, badly integrated as if the two authors couldn't get their heads together. Did Dan Brown have cardboard characters? These are cut of tissue paper (including the eponymous Sophia-for a Jewess!?) There are too many of them, too poorly drawn, to have any idea what anybody's goals might be, or to care. What sense of place we have is all stock The Robe, and a sense of time is missing along with what seem to me vital scenes to get to know important emotional details. We have a scroll with a secret code here? We lose sight of it for 200 pages. We have a last disciple? Save for the briefest mention in the prologue, we don't really get a fix on John until page 284. It doesn't help that The Last Disciple is envisioned as the first in a series. Undoubtedly many characters' tales will reach conclusions fu1iher on. They don't here, and, alas, I won't be there to read them.

Ann Chamberlin

THE WA RRIOR

Francine Rivers, Tyndale House, 2005, $14.99,pb,232pp,0842382666

"For the first time, the term was spoken without deris ion. Caleb. A new name for a new alliance. So be it." This second novel in the Sons of Encouragement series focuses on Caleb, the man who could have been lost in the Exodus of the Jewish people from Egypt but who learns in stillness to listen to the voice of God. As in The Priest, the first novel in the series, the listening is difficult because Caleb's mind is full of the Jewish people's complaints and reactive advice, which usually lead to disaster. Instead Caleb learns to fear only the loss of faith. Inspiring to those seeking answers to life's turmoil and inequities, as well as those whose faith is strong, The Warrior is a fine addition to understanding and contemplating the history of biblical men. A study guide is added at the end of the novel.

Viviane Crystal

15T C ENTURY

EM PERO R : The Field of Swords

Conn lggulden, HarperCollins, 2005, £ 12.99, hb, 536pp, 0007136935. Pub in US by Delacorte Press, $25,0385336632

This third volume of Conn lggulden's quartet on the life of Julius Caesar, begins in Spain, where he enjoys a comfortable interlude between campaigns, but is soon drawn again into the political life of Rome. He is elected Consul, and reaches an agreement with his backer Crassus, and his 1ival, Pompey about the division of power before taking his beloved Tenth Legion to Gaul.

Between politics and battles , the widowed Julius meets Servilia, the love of his life, an older woman who is also the mother of his friend Brutus. This causes tension between them, and the ties of their long comradeship are put to the test. Julius also receives a warning from his aged mentor concerning the Ides of March, but this is for the future.

lggu lden has written a wonderful , pacy book, which grips the reader from the first page. The descriptions, whether of wars or palaces, are very real and informative. The only drawback is the compression of events, and the battle with the Gauls, led by Vercingetorix, deserved a few more pages. The novel ends with Caesar crossing the Rubicon. The author has much to fit into his last book. I look forward to it.

Ruth Ginarlis

BOUDICA: Dreaming the Hound

Manda Scott, Bantam Press 2005, £ I 2.99, hb,400pp,0593052625

At the beginning of this third novel in Scott's Boudica series it is Autumn AD57. The Romans have now made great inroads into conquering Britain and are stai1ing to move westward toward Mona, (modern day Anglesey), where the Boudica Breaca is based. She is concentrating on stealthily fighting the Romans whilst her traitorous half brother, Ban (called Valerius) is a smith in Ireland. They are both drawn inexorably eastward toward the homeland of their Eceni tribe.

Scott has built her interpretation of the Briton's way of life minutely so that their inner world is vividly portrayed. Most of the characters are extremely solemn, even when the situation is not dire. A little bit of light to go along with the shade would not go amiss and still ring true to life.

The Romans are less carefully drawn. Scott's understanding of their side of the proceedings seems less assured. However , her interpretation of the actions of the Procurator seems most plausible. In general her grasp of material culture, eg:. artefacts, architecture etc, is not entirely convincing. The fruits of closer research

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

into the mundane results of the archaeological discoveries about the era might help enmesh the reader more closely to the physical sett in g.

The best part of the book comes to a powerful climax and triumphantly succeeds in pulling the reader into frame. Here, Scott does not flinch from the violence of war and oppression and the effect is devastating. The scene is now truly set for the final book in the series.

S Garside-Neville

FOOD FOR THE FISHES

David Wishart, Hodder & Stoughton, £18.99,hb,295pp,0340827386

Although it is the ninth in the series, this is the first of the Marcus Corvinus books I have read, and I came to it thinking Falco would prove a hard act to follow. But Corvinus is very different from Falco, and, wisely, David Wishart does not attempt to emulate Lindsay Davies's distinctive style, though there are nice touches of humour, especially in the hero's relations with his mother and stepfather.

Corvinus is staying at the fashionable seaside resort of Baiae, and finds himself investigating the death of Lucius Licinius Murena, a leading citizen of the town, whose body is found floating in an eel tank on his own fish fam1. There are many who wish the victim dead, and the detective is soon under physical threat from those who think he knows too much. Mr Wishart, a Classics graduate, makes discreet use of his specialist knowledge in producing an enjoyable read with insights into the lives of upper- and middle-class Romans in the first century AD.

Ann Lyon

5TH CENTURY

THE SCOURGE OF GOD

William Dietrich, HarperCollins, 2005, $24 95 / $34.95, hb, 334pp, 006073499X

Dietrich, author of the excellent Hadrian's Wall, has once again brought the Roman Empire to life. It is 45 I, and the Empire is just barely holding on. Tribes such as the Vandals and Visigoths hold lands previously controlled by Rome. Young Jonas Alabanda finds himself sent on a diplomatic mission to Attila the Hun. The official reason for the mission is to provide gifts, with an assurance that the agreedupon tribute will be forthcoming However, one member of the diplomatic party has his own goal, which, when discovered, immediately destroys the entire mission. Jonas is enslaved. His nemesis is the young nephew of one of the leaders of a Hun tribe. Jonas and Skilla's lives become entwined, along with that of a young captured Roman woman, Ilana.

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

Dietrich's geographical scope is broad: from Constantinople to Attila the Hun's camp in Hunugaria to today's Austria, Spain and France. Living conditions are vividly described, as are the land scapes through which the characters move and the tribes occupying or moving into Europe The clash of cultures is brought to life through the author's evocative prose: "The Vandals, once disdained as hapless barbarians, now rested their boots on the throat of Rome."

The book concludes with scenes from the ho1Tific Battle of Chalons, where the gifted Roman general Aetius leads a motley army made up of Romans and men from a number of tribes against the Huns and their allies. The story of Jonas, Ski Ila and Ilana is riveting, providing a very human story at the forefront of the wide-sca le events. Dietrich provides a lengthy historical note, which carefully explains what from his book actually happened, what is conjecture, and what he made up. Dietrich posits that the reason Attila is the one barbarian we remember is because of the immense sacrifice that was required to stop him. He will ce rtainl y liv e on vividly in the minds of those who read this powerful novel.

Trudi E. Jacobson

THE SWORD OF ATTILA

Michael Curtis Ford, St. Martin's Press, 2005, $24.95 / C$34.95, hb, 384pp, 0312333609

The Sword of Attila opens in 451 AD, on a battlefield in Gaul where hundreds of thousands of men and horses lay dead or dying. This is the story of two men, once friends, General Aetius and Attila the Hun, and the events that led them to the Battle of Chalons that fateful June day (a battle considered to have saved Western civilization).

Sent as a hostage to live with the Huns as a young man, Aetius fights alongside Attila in their youth. When Aetius returns to Rome and Attila becomes king, Attila begins his conquest of the West; friendship and past loyalties play no pa1t. As Attila and his am,ies ravage all in their path, Aetius amasses his own supporters to defend Rome. Although the title suggests a focus on Attila, the tale which unfolds largely follows Flavius Aetius as he struggles to preserve the ideals of Rome, in spite of its realities.

Ford is known for his attention to military detail in his previous novels (The Ten Thousand, The Last King, and Gods and Legions), and he does not disappoint with this one. Ford's descriptions of the battles are vivid, and sometimes difficult to read in their intensity. My one small criticism would be that the dialogue is occasionally clunky, used as thinly disguised exposition (for example, "You know, of course, that a few months after 15

you left, Rome was sacked"), but this in no way detracts from an exhilarating sto1y. Recommended. L. K. Mason

THE CYBELENE CONSPIRACY

Albert Noyer, The Toby Press (USA), pb, 320pp,£9.99, 1592640338

The Cybelene Conspiracy is set in Ravenna in SC Italy and the title takes its name from a pagan cult which demands castration of its male adherents. The sto 1y opens when the body of one such male is found, holding a golden sickle in his hand, in a Christian sect church by its priestess, a sobbing girl at the youth's side. Surgeon Getorius Asterius and his wife, Arcadia, who is training to be a medic under her husband, are called to the scene. They in tum call the authorities. It seems straightfo1ward enough until the girl, a Vestal Virgin of the Cybelene Cult is discovered to be pregnant and the sickle disappears from the locked church and is replaced by a fishem,an's knife. From then on the plots thicken fast and furious, including smuggling, coded messages and secret passages, and the finale is quite spectacular. This is the second in this Roman mystery series whose sleuth is Surgeon Getorius Asterius, palace physician to Galla Placidia, mother of the Emperor Augustus. The pace is fast and furious, the plots crisscross throughout the narrative but somehow it never really grabbed me, being more redolent of a Boys' Own story than an adult historical novel. There is also a l ittle too much detail in places in which the author deems it necessary to explain in italics. This is the sequel to The Secundus Papyrus but I think I will leave it at that.

Marilyn Sherlock

7TH CENTURY

THE LEPER'S BELL

Peter Tremayne, Headline, £6.99, pb, 0755302265

Sister Fidelma of Cashel is a dalaigh or advocate of the law courts of 7th-century Ireland. During her career she has solved many horrendous crimes, but this time it's personal, for her son has been abducted and the woman who had been caring for him brutally murdered. Has the kidnapper carried out this crime for financial gain or is there a darker motive? Both Fidelma and the child's father, Eadulf, attempt to put aside their own personal feelings and the strain on their personal relationship, as they undertake the dangerous investigation. The characters and the ambience of the period are evoked in a subtle, natural way that reveals the author's extensive knowledge without getting in the way of the narrative. The pronunciation guide at the back of the

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

book is invaluable as the novel is liberally sprinkled with Old Irish, which I found added to, rather than detracted from, the enjoyment of the book.

Mike Ashworth

10 TH CENTURY

THE BOOK OF LOSS

Julith Jedamus, Weidenfeld&Nicolson, 2005, £12.99, hb, 244pp, 0-297-84773-2 In a prologue, one of the narrator's victims warns us that the diary we are about to read is all lies. She describes the spiteful feud between the Narrator and Izumi, two court ladies, rivals for the love of an exiled nobleman. We also learn that the Nan·ator, reduced to madness by jealousy, has either vanished or drowned herself, abandoning this diary to her enemies' mercy.

The "plot" revealed almost in its entirety, the reader turns to the Narrator's own words, "a house of lies". What we find is a near perfect pastiche of a diary written by a lady-in-waiting in the Imperial Court of I 0'h century Japan. Jedamus does not miss a trick: the seasons, fashions, scents, pastimes, the obsessions with taste and rank and gossip are all here. We experience the restricted life in the Palace's crowded women's quarters where modesty is protected by screens and hanging curtains, where, though there is no privacy, erotic encounters are commonplace and lovers easily entertained despite prying courtiers and servants.

Drawing freely on the rich collection of Heian women's diaries, particularly those of Lady Murasaki and the irresistible Sei Shonagon, Jedamus portrays the steamy emotions, jealousies and viciousness of confined women isolated from the world outside. Palace hierarchy and intrigue are more vivid to them (and us) than the politics and famines that wrack the Capital. Only plague, no respecter of rank, is real.

Jedamus has steeped herself in this captivating world. Her characters are elusive, creatures of mood and innuendo as affected by spring blossom or a stormy night as by the death of a young Crown Prince Admittedly, the novel is static and sometimes repetitive but this somehow complements the Japanese atmosphere.

One complaint. Against academic advice, Jedamus allows her lovers to kiss. This is a mistake in tone and a rare false note for this seductive picture ofHeian Japan. Lynn Guest

11 TH CENTURY

MEADOWLAND

Thomas Holt , Abacus 2005, £7.99, pb, 438pp, 034911741 I (pub. in US by Abacus Software, 2005, pb, 03491 1741 I)

According to the cover this is 'A Novel of the Viking discovery of Ame1ica'. Yet one thing this book makes clear is that the Ic ela nders and Green landers, who, in the I I<h centu1y, stumbled upon the mysterious land that lay to their west, were not Vikings but ordinaiy Norse people. Vikings were raiders, pirates, thugs, while they were simple fa1mers and traders. At times, indeed, 'Viking' is used by the Norse as a tem1 of abuse.

This aspect of Holt's portrayal of the Norse discoverers of America is historically accurate and is indeed one of the best features of the book. However, he makes no attempt to enter into their thought world. Their language and therefore their modes of thought are fim1ly placed within the 21 s, century and Americanisms are not infrequent. Thus they 'figure things out' and discover that something 'is not a big deal', and they 'get uptight'.

This technique has been very successfully used by Julian Rathbone, and Holt's book is in many ways entertaining and thought provoking. The final tragedy with which the attempt at settlement ends is well handled and moving. Like Rathbone, Holt is able to set up modern resonances.

It all depends of course upon the readers ' expectations. What is missing is any sense that this was how the people of the period thought and felt. It is impossible to recreate people from the past exactly how they were, and in any case our view of them will inevitably be influenced by our standpoint in the present. Yet certain things can be known from the historical record. If we take, for example, the matter of religion: there are references to Odin and Thor and to the new Christian God, and Holt conectly sees that the influence of one was waning while that of the other was gaining ground. Yet the main characters seem not to believe very much in either. A very modern attitude! It is much more likely that they would have believed in both. Raewald, the 7•h century king of East Anglia, set up altars to both Woden and Christ in his temple to hedge his bets. Having said that, I enjoyed this book and recommend it highly.

Neville Firman

VIKING: Odin's Child

Tim Severn, Macmillan 2005, £ 12.99, hb, 324pp, 1405041129

On the cusp of the new millennium an illegitimate son, Thorgils Leifsson is born to a mysterious Irish noblewoman named Thorgunna. Early in his childhood she sends him to live with his father on Greenland but the boy is filled with wanderlust and soon sets off looking for adventure.

16

During his travels, Thorgils is befriended by a series of mentors who teach him about the Old Gods now under threat from the followers of the White Christ. Already recognising that his own gift of second sight might be a curse as well as a blessing. Thorgils has to keep his thoughts and beliefs a secret.

Viking is the first part of a trilogy and traces Thorgils' life from birth into early adulthood. Although quick-witted and adaptable, Thorgils is a vulnerable young man with few friends living as best he can in a violent feudal age.

Tim Severin has borrowed heavily from the Viking sagas to create a story that spans the globe from Orkney to Greenland, Vinland to Ireland. Thankfully , what could have ended up as a pale imitation is instead an evocative re-imagining, perfect for the modern reader and chock-a-block with extraordina1y characters and attention grabbing action . If parts two and three measure up to this curtain raiser Viking looks set to be a dazzling tour de force.

Sara Wilson

12 TI-I CENTURY

THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS

Sharon Kay Penman, G.P. Putnam's Sons , 2005, $24.95/C$36.00, hb, 327pp, 0399152563

This is the fourth instalment in the engaging, provocative , and downright fun mystery series featuring Justin de Quincy, the Queen's Man. By Queen, of course, there is no other of the time than Eleanor of Aquitaine. Aging and frail as she is, she still manages to make a grand entrance into every novel in which her "man" plays a prominent role.

At the ripe old age of twenty-one, Justin manages in this novel not merely to become the father of an illegitimate daughter whom he adores, but the ally of one of the people who he detests most in the world (and the feeling is mutual): Prince John , the Prince of Darkness. Is Justin not a fish out of the proverbial water?

Well , if he is, he certainly learns how to swim quickly. Naturally, he overcomes all, but not without discovering some universal truths about the folks with whom he is related by employment-and about himself as well.

In her consistently talented way, Penman carries us along at record pace Filled with historical fact, nuance , insinuation and innuendo about John and those around him, this mystery is a sheer delight. Penman succeeds in making the perils of Justin and his coterie a joyful reading experience.

Ilysa Magnus

FIGURE OF HATE

Bernard Knight, Pocket Books 2005, £6.99, 3 74pp, 073492145 (pub. in US by Simon & Schuster, 2005, hb, $29.99, 0743259505)

I need not have feared that the Crowner John books would be irreparably damaged by the dismissal of Richard de Revelle as sheriff at the end of The Witch Hunter, the eight in the series. The ninth book, Figure of Hate, is well up to Bernard Knight's usual high standard, and the former sheriff is certainly not content to retire to his lands and reflect on his 111isdeeds, but instead cannot resist interfering in Sir John de Wolfe's investigation into the murder of Hugo de Peveral, lord of a neighbouring manor. There are many with good cause to wish de Peveral dead; his three brothers, wife and stepmother, not to mention a French knight he recently insulted and every peasant on his lands. And how is his murder linked with that of a silver 111erchant found floating in the Rive Exe a few days earlier? Meanwhile, Thomas de Peyne receives some welcome news, although he is less happy when a new member joins the coroner's team in the fonn of Eustace de Relaga, nephew of John's business partner.

As usual, professor Knight gives his narrative and settings an authentic 'feel', and is not afraid to depict the I 2' 11 century in all its rawness.

Ann Lyon

THE WITCH IN THE WELL

Sharan Newman, Forge, 2004, S,24.95 / C$34.95, hb, 349pp, 0765308810

This is certainly a departure for the wonderful Sharan Newman in this, the tenth Catherine LeVendeur mystery. It is filled not merely with historical fact, but with elements of fantasy and the supernatural. This is not a whodunit in the "normal" sense, but a "what the heck is going on here" sort of mystery.

Each and every one of Catherine's fa111ily members-including Catherine's sister and her family from Germany-are summoned to her grandfather's castle in Blois. Grandpa has remained remarkably young despite his advanced age. Strangely, so has everyone else. But while everyone in Catherine's family appears not to be aging at a pace no1mal in medieval society, nor are there children being born in Blois. What is happening?

The reason, rumor has it, is that the well nourishing Blois is drying up: a well, they say, which is the source of all that is good and young and regenerative of Catherine's family. When the well is dry, every me111ber of Catherine's family, including her three young children, will die.

An intriguing and convoluted plot, almost as convoluted as the pathways under the castle and woods of Blois -and a fun ride.

Ilysa Magnus

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

13 TH CENTURY

CRUSADE OF TEARS

C.D. Baker, RiverOak, 2004, $14.99, pb. 506pp, 1589190092

Based on the so-called "Children's Crusade" of 1212, a historical event long debated by historians, Baker takes us on a medieval pilgrimage with a poor band of roving children accompanied by Pieter, a rebel priest, from North Gem1any to Genoa. The characters experience never-ending hardship, starvation, disease, and death as they trek through feudal villages and the extremes of the Alps, headstrong in their goal to reach the Holy Land. The children's miserable initial circumstances allow them to easily embrace the dubious sermons preached throughout No1them France and Gern1any about a Crusade in which children would march to Jerusalem and free the holy city from "infidels," not by swords but by their innocence.

Baker captures the bleakness of a journey doomed from the start. Hardly a chapter goes by when one of the characters is not killed off due to disease, murder, or starvation, making it very hard to become attached to any of them. Even the Priest who accompanies the children knows the Crusade is little more than a scam but sticks with the children through thick and thin. Why continue? Baker's underlying message throughout this work is that it is not the end result that matters but the journey along the way. The young Crusaders' faith is tested as they ponder why God would allow them to suffer so in his service. The nonstop misery of this band of children, chapter after chapter, eventually becomes quite wearisome and predictable. Baker, however, provides interesting historical details about the period and touches on an interesting topic in the history of the Crusades.

Laurie Chamigo

14 th CENTURY

THE LEGACY

Ellen Ekstrom, Trivium Publishing, 2004, $!6.95,pb,285pp,0972209!23

Francesco de Romena is a knight and count. His father, who died in ignominy and rightfully so, murdered his brothers. His other family members seek to destroy the power and the wealth of the one remaining de Romena. Francesco's life is fraught with danger, filled with battles and lost loves, and marked by distrust and political intrigue.

Ekstrom describes the brutality of this place in unremitting detail. She does not mince words about the back-stabbing, the lack of true loyalty, the stench of death all around these people. For all the power that he wields, or may wield if he succeeds in his quest to restore the de Romenas to their

legacy, Francesco is a young man desperately at odds with himself as well as his family, his peers, and his church.

The research that Ekstrom has done is superb The terror of being one of the powerful in fourteenth-century Florence is palpable. Unforhmately, because this is also a family saga, there are so many branches of the de Romenas- the Porcianos, the Albertis, one Bishop, another abate-that the reader can become overwhelmed. How to keep these folks apart and distinguishable is not a simple task. Also, it isn't clear whether all these people contribute much to the development of character or plot. Add to this genealogical nightmare the myriad romantic and sexual involvements that Francesco has with a number of women in the book. After a while, I had a hard time reme111bering which woman he lo ved and which he used or why it mattered at all.

But for a real taste of what fourteenth century Italian politics was like, I cannot imagine a better place to start than here.

Ilysa Magnus

15 th CENTURY

THE INNOCENT

Posie Graeme-Evans, Hodder & Stoughton, 2005,£5.99,pb,404pp,0340836482

A UK paperback issue to complement publication of the second in Graeme-Evans' trilogy, The Exiled.

In 1465, in the aftermath of the Wars of the Roses, a fifteen-year-old peasant girl comes to London to go into service in the household of a wealthy merchant. Beautiful and possessing a rare skill in healing, Anne soon finds herself at the intriguing heart of the court of King Edward IV.

A romantic adventure in the tradition of Anya Seton's Katherine, Posie GraemcEvans' debut is an enjoyable read, well paced and with an excellent sense of period. Anne's first impressions of London are particularly well drawn. I look forward to the rest of the trilogy.

Sarah Bower

16 th CENTURY

THE RUBY RING

Diane Haeger, Three Rivers, 2005, $ I 2.95 / C$ l 7.95, pb, 364pp, 1400051738

Recently, it was discovered that a ruby ring had been painted over in a nude portrait of Margherita Luti, the mistress of the great artist Raphael. From this premise, Haeger spins her tale of why this might have happened. Luti, a baker's daughter in 1514 Rome, catches the eye of Raphael, who desires her to model for his perfect Madonna. At first Margherita doesn't trust his intent, but then she agrees to pose for one painting only. A love affair develops, ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

thrusting her into the politics that surround a painter overworked with commissions from Pope Leo and other powerful men in Rome. Cardinal Bibbiena, who has betrothed his beloved niece to Raphael, is incensed by this peasant girl's place in his life. Raphael promises eternal love, along with a precious ruby ring, to Margherita, but his benefactors plot to separate them.

This lush, often overwritten novel carries the reader into the world of artists, through the streets of Renaissance Rome and into the Vatican. Though I found it uncomfortable that Margherita's father encourages her to become a courtesan, and characters often "smile" their dialog, I still enjoyed the rich yet fast-paced story.

Diane Scott Lewis

A RARE AND CURIOUS GIFT

Pauline Holdstock, W.W. Norton, 2005, $24.95,hb,355p~0393059685

The life of female painter A11emisia Gentileschi serves as inspiration for one of two central storylines in Pauline Holdstock's richly-textured, multilayered novel set among artists and patrons of the ltalian Renaissance. Sofonisba Fabroni is a beautiful, talented, spirited painter, studying under her father in 1554 Florence. She enjoys a complex relationship of rivalry, friendship, and flirtation with goldsmith and sculptor Matteo Tassi, a gifted but commanding "oneman bluster." The pair is surrounded (and at times engulfed) by a large cast of characters: the superstitious fool who pants after Sofonisba; the brilliant artist/engineer who studies anatomy in secret; a wealthy collector of art and living exotica; the ambitious, decadent archbishop; the wise papal legate with an eye for talent; and well-known historical figures like Cosimo de Medici. Everyone convenes for the festival of San Giovanni, with explosive results.

Holdstock's other strong storyline belongs to a nameless slave girl with mottled skin; eventually, her name will become "Chiara," the fleshly embodiment of chiaroscuro. Chiara's appearance elicits reactions of fear, admiration, fascination, and disgust from the other characters. Many of the scenes written from her viewpoint display Holdstock's writing at its best and most affecting. Chiara 's plight reflects the novel's recurring concern with the transformative power of the beholder: is Chiara's skin a mark of the devil, or an opportunity for knowledge, or an embodiment of beauty? Is Sofonisba's (or Artemisia's) painting of Judith beheading Holofernes an allegory of the Church conquering the State, or is it a personal, intimate expression of violence and revenge?

Holdstock's style seems meditative and almost distant from her subjects at times, but it is nonetheless evocative, and she is clearly

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

comfortable with the historical material. This novel is for savoring, not devouring. Andrea Bell

SHADOW OF THE LORDS

Simon Levack, Simon & Schuster 2005, £9.99,pb,344pp,0743239776

I read a lot of historical whodunits, and find that patterns emerge with favourite periods and writers following a style of writing set by one of the leading names of this sub-genre. This can get tedious, so it is always a treat to find a writer who has broken out of the mould and ploughed their own furrow. One of the stand-out books from last year was Simon Levack's deliciously original whodunit (A Demon of the Air) set during the Aztec's final years. By turns darkly comic, meticulously descriptive and bloodthirsty, Yaotl the slave is back for a second outing.

He is looking for his son, Nimble, who is wanted for murder, while trying to keep ahead of some over-keen soldiers and his disagreeable master Lord Feathered-inBlack, whose greatest joy in life seems to be to see him suffer. I won't go into the plot in any detail, as it would spoil the many surprises, save that it concerns the feather workers and is a tortuous story that will keep readers on their toes. No skimming in these books' Perhaps it is also immaterial what the book is actually about, as reading about the Aztecs is so wholly enthralling. This is not a culture that gets much coverage in fiction, and when it does it is usually about their destruction by the Conquistadors. This is a shame, as it makes the Aztecs appear as though they are not interesting enough on their own, which is not the case.

So, then, this is an exhilarating, fastpaced tale that describes in Yaotl's own words all the minutiae of a very unfamiliar way of life. There is plenty of plot, wellrounded characters and some black humour to make this second book a delight. A word to the author, though - let's have plenty of Aztec before those Conquistadors appear on the horizon. We've all read that tale so many times before.

Rachel A Hyde

CHlLD OF THE MIST

Kathleen Morgan, Revell, 2005, $12.99, pb, 332pp,080075963X

"Clan MacGregor might be nicknamed the 'Children of the Mist,' but one false step in the frequently impenetrable whiteness could still be dangerous, if not actually fatal." This first novel in the "These Highland Hills" series concentrates on the Scottish feud between the MacGregor and Campbell clans in the late 16th century. Aside from Scottish dialect and terms, there is little historical depth here, but that doesn't detract from the fast-paced story. When Niall Campbell is captured by the MacGregor clan, an offer is 18

made that might end the warfare. Anne MacGregor is to be "handfasted" to Niall, that is, she will live with him for a year because he is in mourning and then they will be married. Knowing it is her father's only hope to prevent more killing and robbery, Anne resentfully agrees to the pact. But many in the Campbell tribe believe Anne is a witch, and there are those who wish this bond broken. Indeed there is a traitor in the midst , one who desires the chieftainship of Niall Campbell. Anne and Niall attempt to work through their mutual distrust and their growing feelings of love. Plenty of tense battles and murderous attempts thread the pages toward what is a predictable but pleasing conclusion of victory and passionate union between the protagonists. With its warfare and romance, it's a good yam reminiscent of the George MacDonald series on Scottish clans.

Viviane Crystal

MURDER IN STRATFORD

Audrey Peterson, Five Star, 2005, $25.95, hb, 202pp, 1594142734

Anne Hathaway Shakespeare narrates this tale of the murder of Richard Quiney, a charming but feckless friend of her husband, William Shakespeare. Widely held to be a shrew and a primary reason for Shakespeare's residence in London, this Anne is a down-to-earth realist who had a great love prior to Shakespeare, accepts her husband's absences from Stratford, and contents herself with her friends and making a home for her children. She is also privy to much of the intrigue inspired by and surrounding Queen Elizabeth. Through her husband, she gets the news of the Queen ' s favorites and even aids the romance of one of them, the Earl of Southampton, although that marriage causes both of them to be thrown in jail. She also details the Earl of Essex's rebellion against the Queen, aided by a production of Richard fl.

Quiney's murder comes fairly late in the tale, after Anne has set the scene (with sto,ytelling worthy of her husband) of the victim as more sinner than sinned against. He had ignored the son of his first marriage, married a friend of Anne's and drained her accounts, and dallied with his wife's cousin. There are few who would not wish him dead, but circumstantial evidence makes Shakespeare the prime suspect. Peterson writes in a style that is not anachronistic but does not get mired down in Elizabethan English. It's accessible and engrossing, and I hope that Anne Hathaway Shakespeare continues to sleuth.

Ellen Keith

THE QUEEN'S FENCER

Caitlin Scott-Turner, Five Star, 2005 , $26.95,h~303pp, 1594143021

If you enjoy swashbuckling adventures, get yourself ready for a fun read! This fast-

ISSUE 32 , MAY 2005

moving tale includes the excitement of pirates, the intrigue of the royal court, and the uncertainties of sea. Set in the Elizabethan era, the story revolves around a young protagonist, Ardys, who is quite an unusual female. Her experience as a master fencer of the English court sets her apart from the other women of her time, with perhaps the exception of the strong-willed ruler, Queen Elizabeth.

While this historical novel highlights romance, love, and loyalty, Ardys also faces death, kidnapping, human power struggles, and war. Yet her will, courage and strength get her through even the most difficult of situations. After her father dies at Elizabeth's cou1i, Ardys sets sail to return home, but winds up in a handsome pirate's arms. Though desperate not to fall in love with him, she finds herself head over heels, and so does he. Complications, including a rival who steals Ardys away, will add to the adventure, and Ardys's suitor, Desmond Kirkconnell, will literally travel the seas to get her back into his life.

Carol Anne Gennain

17TH CENTURY

FRENCHMAN'S CREEK

Daphne du Maurier, Virago Press 2005, £6.99, pb, 253pp, 1844080412

Lady Dona St Columb is bored by her life with her husband and two children in the cou1i of Charles II. To humour herself she has taken to flirting with Lord Rockingham, the friend of her husband, Ha1Ty. However, she disgusts herself when a dare the two carry out for their own amusement, results in frightening an elderly lady she knows from the court. Dona decides to escape by leaving her lazy husband, and to take the children and their nurse to Navron, his Cornish estate.

Once there, she discovers the house staff has been dismissed, except one manservant called William. The house is dusty and neglected. However, William proves to be like no other servant she has met before and sets about putting the house in order. He intrigues her. After seeing him meet a shadowy figure in the night, whilst watching from her room window, Dona decides to explore the estate and discovers the creek, where a French pirate has hidden his ship whilst it is undergoing repairs. She is taken aboard and finds that far from being a rough creature as her neighbour, Lord Godolphin described him, he is both clean and charming.

So begins Dona's discovc1y of love and adventure. She escapes from a marriage lacking in passion and stimulus, b1iefly, to a world that is wildly dangerous, daring and exciting. The skill of the author explores every facet of the relationship and yet does not shy from the fact that this is a married mother, who

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

cannot simply run away from her responsibilities and constraints. How-ever, she has managed to sample a man's world for a short time taking the reader on a beautifully descriptive journey of pure escapism.

Valerie Holmes

THE KING'S GENERAL

Daphne du Maurier, Virago Modern Classics, £7.99, pb, 369pp, I 844080897

Sir Richard Grenvile is the King's General of the story, set in the South West during the English Civil War. Cornwall is the last bastion of the Royalist cause. Plymouth is staunchly for Parliament although wider Devon is also Royalist. The narrator is Honor Harris, engaged, at 18, to be married to Richard but she suffers a riding accident on the eve of her wedding and is crippled for life. The wedding is off. As the war progresses she moves to Menabilly, in the parish of Tywardreath in Cornwall (the house used as Mandalay in Rebecca). The story begins when Honor is nearing the end of her life and decides to write everything down even if it goes with her to the grave. The lives and loves of the various families, the Harris', Rashleighs, Grenvile's are all recounted as only du Maurier can, bringing every scene and incident vividly to life.

Although this is an historical novel, there really was a Honor Harris who, with her brother Robin, lived at Tywardreath. There is a tablet to their memory in the local church. J loved this book, more so because although familiar with most of the du Maurier stories I had not read this one before and therefore it came fresh and new. I understand that Virago are reprinting all Daphne du Maurier's books and am delighted that they will be enjoyed by yet another generation.

Marilyn Sherlock

ISLANDS

Dan Sleigh, Harcourt, 2005, $30.00, hb, 768p~0l5101115X

Pub. in the UK by Vintage, 2005, £8.99, pb, 512pp,0099464683

The first Dutch settlement of the area around the Cape makes up a large part of South Africa's founding myth. This W. A. Hofmeyr A ward-winning novel opens with characters like Commander Jan van Riebeeck, remembered as the colony's founder. Islands moves back and forth between Mauritius and continental Africa with sideways glances at Europe and the Batavia colony in the East Indies. The years from 1650 to 1710 are covered in an epic fashion, with the story organized around Pieternella, the daughter a Hottentot woman bore to one of the colony's founders. Major characters include her father, guardian, husband, and the loyal family slave. Alcohol and tobacco become weapons to obtain cattle and, eventually, land and slaves. The worst villain of the piece may 19

be the Dutch East Indies Company, a faraway entity, ruining the indigenous peoples' ways of life and restricting the colonists' efforts at economic development and political freedom, while enforcing bizarre and slanted justice from nine months' voyage away.

Three voices work together to bring Islands alive. Sleigh, a researcher in the South African national archives, shows a grasp of South African history based on an expertise deeper than that which can be obtained by ordinary research. Johannes Guilielmus de Grevenbroek, a clerk writing sixty years after the first events, naITates the events in a fashion that creates the sensation of history being developed. Finally, the noted South African author Andre Brink has delivered a smooth translation from the Afrikaans, retaining enough of the original Dutch and African words to give a flavor of the early stages of the language that emerged. Highly recommended.

James Hawking

1gTH CENTURY

ZORRO

Isabel Allende, I--IarperCollins, 2005, $25.95/C$32.95, hb, 392pp, 0060797355 Pub. in UK by Fourth Estate, 2005, £ I 6.99, hb,0007201966

Though adventure plays a large part, this is as much a tale of how Diego de la Vega evolved into The Fox as it is the story of Zorro's famous exploits. The novel begins with the relationship of Diego's parents, one a distinguished California hidalgo and the other a Shoshone warrior. It follows young Diego and his "milk brother" sidekick Bernardo as they travel to Spain, fall in love, have amazing adventures, and become men.

This is an English version of the Spanish original, and at times the translation can be a bit too literal. For example, a Spanish idiom translated literally in the book as "Tomas ordered Juliana to talk things over with her pillow" would have been better rendered as "sleep on it." These are minor quibbles, however. Full of romance, danger, swordplay, and occasionally humor, Zorro is an Errol Flynn flick in book fonn. The cast of characters includes eve1yone you'd expect in a swashbuckler, from gypsies, pirates, and swooning maidens to the token villain. The women in this novel, as in all of Allende's work, are exceptionally well drawn. The men are also vivid, from the traumatized, silent Bernardo to the honorable, justicedriven Zorro. The Fox Allende has created is slightly conceited, while at the same time chivalrous, entertaining, and likable. The characters are familiar rather than stereotypical, and Allende wisely avoids falling into the cliche trap, primarily

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

through the tongue-in-cheek narration. Set in the chaos of Napoleonic Spain and the Alta California of the hidalgos, the backdrop adds depth and drive to the story with its social mores and shifting political tides. Allende has crafted a swashbuckling tale, with just a hint of the magical realism that will be familiar to readers of her other works. Zorro is delightful fun and a rollicking good read.

Bethany Skaggs

LONGSHOT

Mark Ammerman, RiverOak, 2005, $12.99, p~287p~ 1589190475

The first person narrative begins in 1750 Rhode Island, where Christopher Long and his Narragansett friend Caleb clear out the tribe's ancient council rocks. Called "Longshot" for his marksmanship, Long tries to convert his friend to the Church of England, but Caleb has his own gods. Caleb lets Christopher ride his black horse, a lyrical passage of blue skies and salt air. Their friendly debate heats up as the topic turns to the land where the Indian village stood, now owned by a planter. Caleb's mother works in his household.

They stop by Hazard's Fann and Chris explains his plan to go to Ohio to Joy, Caleb's mother, who is worried her son will exact vengeance on the man responsible for his father's death. The question of Joy's faith is handled in a way that leaves no doubt, Christianity is the only true religion. Chris can be forgiven his parochial attitude, but the Reader's Guide states baldly that Hindu, Buddhism, Islam and earth worship are all false religions.

The texture of the writing lets us experience Narragansett Indian life and traditions. The personality of Caleb resonates, and when Chris tries to convert him, it's a nice con0ict. The friends' grand adventure along the Ohio River is sidetracked by Caleb's blood lust. Clu·is goes on ahead, with lush descriptions of autumn in upstate New York, and characters like Conestoga Joe, an old Susquehannock, whose way of speech is highly individualistic. The theme is revenge, whether by fair fight or stealth , that he who lives by the tomahawk

Longshot's survey of the land turns into a census of remaining Eastern Indians. Basing his novel on given facts, the author does a good job of coloring in. Extensive bibliography, notes and glossary complete the experience.

Marcia K. Matthews

RIDE THE FIRE

Pamela Clare , Leisure , 2005, $6.99/ C$8.99, pb,368pp,0843954876

Nicholas Kenleigh is a broken, guilt-ridden man. When he arrives at Bethie Stewart's cabin with a serious injury, she is eight months pregnant, a widow living alone. Together, after her baby's birth, they set out

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

on a desperate mission to warn settlers further east of an uprising by the native population.

While the pacing is good and the writing engaging, Bethie is less than convincing, an abuse survivor who protests Nicholas's help delivering her baby but openly bares her breasts to nurse her child. Nor did I understand why, instead of asking for Bethie's help with his injury, Nicholas chooses to threaten her. These inconsistencies seriously detracted from the novel's strengths. Also, the last fifty pages appeared designed only to showcase historical characters and add another forced element of conflict.

It's clear the author did a lot of research for this romance, and she incorporates it into a vibrant setting, the Pennsylvania frontier in 1763. At times the realism is overly gritty, especially the extensive details of torture techniques of the Wyandot tribe. While I appreciated the author's dedication to historical realism, I wish she had written more believable characters and toned down the gory aspects ofNicholas's past.

Teresa Basinski Eckford

FALLEN ANGELS

Bernard Cornwell and Susannah Kells (Judy Cornwell), HarperCollins, 2005 (first published 1983), £6.99, pb, 482pp, 0007176422

This macabre story, set during the French revolution when sadism and murder rule in France, is hon·ibly played out in the English estate of Lazen Castle. Toby Lazender, heir to the family fo11une, is in France searching for the killer of his fiancee. His sister, Campion is left to run the estate and becomes the central figure in a trap devised by the most powerful and dangerous men in Europe who plot to bring revolution to England. To succeed they need money and the Lazender fortune will provide it. They plan to kill Toby and for one of their number to marry Campion and then arrange her violent death. Her only saviour may be Gitan, a gypsy and horse- master whose loyalties are questionable. Campion can trust no-one, not even members of her own family who are involved in the horrific intrigues.

Fallen Angels is the successor to A Crowning Mercy, the first chronicle of the Lazender family. The story moves along at a good pace and is difficult to put down, but is not for the squeamish.

Jane Hill

MY STORY BEING THIS

Pamala-Suzette Deane, Univ. Press of New England, 2004, $25.95, hb, 262pp, 1584653108

The 1770s Rhode Island setting and conununity of free people of colour is wonderfully evoked in this "writing book" of a woman whose literacy enables her to set down 20

thoughts and actJv1t1es and to chronicle the tragic past slave histories of her neighbours. As Miss Mary Williams Magahee tends her invalid father, a preacher's daughter runs off with a scoundrel, a handyman begins a life journey of testimony and gentle courtship, and birth and deaths are witnessed and recorded. Through her eyes we see the approaching American Revolution as well as private revolutions of hearts and minds. She questions talk of fonning racially separate regiments in the American cause ("Will not the swaddling clouts be stain'd blood red for all men?") , and the promises of the English to reward soldiers on their side with liberty. She suspects a plot, based on her knowledge of life on English sugar plantations. Soon into reading, the anachronistic spelling, grammar and punctuation add flavor and verisimilitude, the narrator's primness becomes endearing, and the accumulation of details compelling. Although his own history is the first she records, the presence of the man she lives with, her father, is the only one that remains elusive. That quibble aside, a first novel of great promise.

Eileen Charbonneau

DAUGHTER OF LIBERTY

J.M. Hochstetler, Zondervan, 2004, $12.99 / C$19.99 / £8.99, pb, 368pp, 03 I 0252563

Elizabeth Howard is the respectable daughter of a Tory-leaning family in 1775 Boston by day, but by night she transforn1s into the wily courier Oriole, gathering information for the Colonials. British officer Jonathan Carleton is billeted on her family , and, despite their opposing politics , Elizabeth feels a tug of attraction for him. Then Carleton is assigned to capture Oriole. How can Elizabeth serve the Patriot cause without compromising herself by falling further in love with Jonathan? The action brackets the battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill, and is the first volume of the American Patriot Series.

The author's web site mentions that a video version of The Scarlet Pimpernel inspired her to begin this series, and the swashbuckling influence is evident. Hochstetler's historical detail is admirable, with two exceptions. I'm skeptical about a reference to a 1775 house's "driveway ," a century before the word was recorded, and a Lassie-likr horse that remains hidden and quiet until the hero whistles it out of hiding in time to come to his rescue. Christian romance fans might find too many military details for their liking, but the story is enjoyable even if one skips those passages. Some excellent maps aid the reader.

B.J. Sedlock

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

PAINTED VEIL

Beverie Graves Myers, Poisoned Pen Press, 2005, $24.95, hb, 305pp, 1590581407 lt's May 1734 in Venice. In honor of the wedding of the doge's daughter, an extravagant opera has been commissioned. Castrato singer Tito Amato gets double billing when the set decorator is murdered, adding investigation to his musical duties. The setting is vivid and helps get through a long lento beginning. The presentation of the theater's backstage and its denizens is fascinating but at some cost to the flow of the story. Luckily, the rhythm picks up and a brisk allegro settles in until the denouement. By then, the story also moves to the world outside, and we are privy to glimpses of the daily lives of the Venetians, including the considerable influence of the Church in the midst of the Inquisition, the social reality of the first Jewish ghetto, and the clash between the two faiths. The characters are well-defined if somewhat superficial. The plot lacks complexity but ends with some fireworks, which is befitting since, to quote Tito, "Any singer can sing, a castrato must astonish." All in all, this is a pleasant outing in the world or music and an interesting look at the castrato fad, which has happily since ended.

Nicole Leclerc

THE REMEDY

Michelle Lovric, Virago 2005, £ I 0.99, pb, 440pp, 1844081354

In 18 th century Venice, an aristocratic nun is seduced by an English rake and, disgraced, is forced to spy for Venice. She becomes the actress Mimosina and goes to London, where she has an affair with the Macheathlike Valentine Greatrakes, who has made a fortune selling quack remedies to credulous Londoners. Both have much to hide and clangers lurk everywhere, not least from Mimosina's ruthless minder. Valentine and Mimosina are gradually forced to admit truths about themselves they would rather had remained hidden.

The language is opulent and sensuous and the setting intriguing - I enjoyed the glimpses into the murky world of I 8 th century quackery. Unfortunately, the author fell into the common trap for 'literary' writers, that of avoiding dealing with raw emotion. When the heroine was in the grip of Venice's secret police, for example, underneath the beau ti fully written cadences there was little genuine terror, pain, anguish, all those emotions which fuel a book and make you want to read on. There was too much 'saying' rather than 'showing', and I found it difficult to get involved with characters who talked about feelings, but rarely got down there in the dirt and actually felt.

Elizabeth Hawksley

19 th CENTURY

SPRING OF MY LOVE

Ginny Aiken, Revell, 2005, $12 .99 , pb, 266p~0800758765

Spring of My Love is Book Three in Aiken's Christian fiction Silver Hills Trilogy. It is 1894 in Hartville, Colorado, and the town is under a severe drought. The ranchers in Hartville turn their attention (and it is not welcome) to eighteen-year-old Angel Rogers, sole resident of her family's sheep farm and possessor of the only creek in town. Rancher Jeremy Johnstone is the first to approach her with an offer to buy her ranch, but she is offended and indignant. They strike up a waty friendship when he assists in the bi11h of her lambs, and he is stricken with guilt after finding her and her dog attacked and her lambs slaughtered. Angel finds comfort in God and her friends while the bitter ranchers hold secret meetings to conspire how to wrest her land from her. Events come to a head when she is accused of killing another rancher's cattle, and Jeremy must come to her rescue.

Aiken ably evokes the Wild West where hanging is considered frontier justice and Angel is pigeonholed as an unnatural woman because she wears pants and not dresses. This book could have been half its length if Angel and Jeremy had not prolonged their will-they -or-won 't-they dance of mistrust, then attraction, then misunderstandings leading back to mistrust. This dance becomes wearying. Angel is plucky and Jeremy is gruff but tenderhearted, and their relationship is as cliched as it sounds.

Ellen Keith

TURKISH GAMBIT

Boris Akunin, Weidenfeld&Nicolson, 2005, £ I 2.99, hb, 230pp, 029764551. Pub in US by Random House, $22.95hb, 1400060508

The date is 1877 and Russian forces engaged in the Russo-Turkish war have crossed the Danube and breached the borders of the Ottoman state. Erast Fandorin, a 19 th century James Bond, heart-broken and disillusioned, sets off for the front line. He is captured by the Turks and in a Bulgarian tavern wins his freedom in a game of backgammon and rescues Varvara Suvorova who had been robbed of all her belongings. Looking for adventure, Varvara had set off from St. Petersburg to join her fiance, Pyotr Yablokov who worked as a cryptographer at Tsarevitsy on the headquarters staff of the commanderin-chief.

After a terrifying skirmish with the Bashi-Bashouks Fandorin and Varvara reach the comparative safety of the headquarters. Within days of their arrival the Russian forces suffer setbacks and it becomes obvious that there is a traitor

within the camp. Pyotr is accused of treason and a Turkish victory seems likely.

Whilst Varvara enjoys li fe behind the lines a nd is courted by all ranks from Major- General Sobolev downwards Erast Fandorin is calmly bringing his powers of detection to unmask the real traitor and ensure a Russian victory.

This is a colourful and fast moving sto1y. However I found the text disjointed by the translation from the original Russian and the constantly changing Russian names.

Jane Hill

A LIGHT TO MY PATH

Lynn Austin, Bethany House, 2004, $12.99, pb,432pp, 1556614446

This is the final story in Lynn Austin's Christian series about the Civil War. She does a fine job with this latest tale, in which she cleverly juxtaposes the lives of two slaves between the years 1849 and 1864. Her two main characters, Kitty and Grady, have similar backgrounds: both are tom from their parents at an early age, yet they proceed through life with different attitudes. Kitty notices the colors of life and looks for the positive aspects around her, while Grady sees the world in black and white and is extremely angry and hateful, especially with the white. After their lives overlap, Kitty will come to recognize some of the mistreatment she has endured, while Grady will begin to appreciate some of his good fo11unes.

Austin enlightens the reader to the differences in slave treatment by different owners, some more caring and humane than others. In addition, s he highli ghts how their positions affect their treatment; main house slaves were treated much better than their field counterparts. The author blends religious components, faith, love , and loyalty throughout this compelling story.

Carol Anne Gennain

OPHELIA'S FAN

Christine Balint, W.W. Norton, 2004, $24.95/C$37.50, hb, 351 pp, 0393059251

Ophelia's Fan is an enjoyable novelization of the life of Harriet Smithson ( 1800-1854), the Irish-born actress who rose to fame playing Shakespeare in France and inspired Hector Berlioz to write his Symphonie Fantastique before she man-ied him. Harriet is born to poor, traveling actors who foster her out to a priest; she rarely sees them until she goes to live with them at fourteen. Her early life on stage in Ireland and England is not easy, and she does not rise to fame quickly before she achieves international celebrity.

The novel is broken into many different narratives and time periods: Han-iet's letters to her son Louis, later in li fe, which hint at some of the troubles of her marriage; her first-person recollections; third-person narrations; and monologue like "autobiographies" of characters that Harriet played whose situations are relevant to

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

Harriet's own. In many cases (particularly the character autobiographies and the first half of the novel), the mix of styles is effective and entertaining, but it wears thin as the end nears.

Ba lint's aflerword states that Smithson's "influence over French Romanticism has largely been overlooked," because of her relationship with Berlioz, and that the novel attempts "to recreate her life and work in its own right"; her goal is only partially successful. Harriet's childhood, family, relationships, and early work are fascinating and engaging; it makes me look forward to Balint's previous novel and future titles, and creates a cherished, complete character. Unfortunately, the sections following Smithson's arrival in France arc often hazy, uneven, and unenlightening. It may be appropriate to Balint's purpose that Berlioz is sparingly captured, but after so much rich detail and feeling during Smithson's Irish and English days, it seems odd that her French stage work and influence should be so numb and elusive. Balint creates an interesting life and persona for Harriet Smithson, but I am less convinced that she has finally secured her a proper place among French Romantics. Andrea Bell

SIMPLY UNFORGETTABLE

Mary Balogh, Delacorte, 2005, $22.00/ C$29.00, hb, 343pp, 0385338228

Frances Allard has a comfortable life teaching at a girls' school near Bath. She has good friends and a meaningful occupation , a circumstance for which, given her past, she is more than grateful. After a restful Christmas holiday in the country with her two elderly great aunts, her return to Miss Martin's Academy is disrupted by an ill-timed snowstom1 and a frustrating encounter with Lucius Marshall, Viscount Sinclair. The slippery conditions and coming darkness necessitate withdrawal to a nearby, deserted, inn. As the snow mounts, so does the sexual tension between this unlikely pair. However, social and personal obstacles make it seem doubtful that these two can ever have more than fleeting romance.

This is another well written Regencyera romance by acclaimed author Mary Balogh. As in her other novels, the characters arc lovable, witty and multifaceted. The setting is thoroughly described to the last detail. The action is meticulously plotted and paced. Balogh has perfected the art of writing what is essentially the same plot repeatedly, but with fresh twists and turns designed to appeal not only to her loyal fans, but to new readers as well. Some might read that as a backhanded compliment, but it is certainly not my intention to criticize. I have recommended her novels to many of my friends with much success.

Alice Logsdon

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

THE WEDDING CAKE WAR

Lynna Banning, Harlequin Historicals, 2004, $5.50/ C$6.50, pb, 299pp, 0373293305

Lolly Mayfield steps off the train in Maple Falls, Oregon, believing that she's about to become the bride of Kellen Macready. It's 1879, and she wants nothing more than to get married to the former colonel before her thirtieth birthday. The advertisement for a mail order bride, however, said nothing about having to compete for the hand of the groom. It seems that the Maple Falls Ladies Helpful Society left out that little detail when they decided to raise money for a new school. The prospective brides must do battle with each other on the field, in the kitchen, and in the am1s of devilishly handsome Kellen Macready.

This humorous romance is so light it almost floats off the page. Each of the potential brides has something to lose if they don't win the competition, but they all gain something important through their trials. The only flaw in this romance is the abrupt conflict between Lolly and Kellen, who suddenly appear out of character in what had been a slowly simmering love story. Despite this one flaw, I enjoyed the sweetness of this novel and would recommend it.

Debra Rodensky

FIXING

SHADOWS

Susan Barrett, Review, 2005, £18.99, hb, 376pp,0755321758

A dark night, a mansion, two women giving birth. To the widowed duchess a dead son means disaster: the loss of home and fortune, to the unmaiTied governess a live son means disgrace: the loss of home and income. The perfect solution presents itself and the babies are swapped in an instant. From this point on the Duchess of Fainhope and Miss Maria Mantilla are tied together by a secret that could destroy them both.

George is now heir to a great estate, but human love evades him. There is a coldness inside of him that makes him long to break free, to have the comfort of a family and a real home. Only the housemaid Lucy has shown him kindness and she is gone to London to bear her own illegitimate son, who goes missing but will eventually be George's salvation.

The intricate plot paints the Victorian era with a broad brush, taking in every level of society, from the complacent aristocracy, to the dregs of the London underclasses Villains and paragons rub shoulders, as do the rich and the poor, and every action of every character creates a ripple that affects every other character.

From the classic swapped-baby opening, through to the history-repeating-itself ending, Fixing Shadows is a brilliant modem update of the classic Victorian novel. Plot coincidences, supernatural elements, overblown characters and even an 22

omniscient narrator are included to achieve the overall effect. Pastiche it might be, but this is pastiche with style. Bravo to Susan Barrett on a bold debut.

Sara Wilson

SUSPENSE AND SENSIBILITY: A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery

Carrie Bebris, Forge, 2005, $22.95, hb, 301pp,0765305097

It is a truth universally acknowledged that imitation is the sincerest fon11 of flattery. Clearly a sincere tribute by a devoted Janeite to the great Austen, this mystery series uses characters from the original novels in newly imagined stories of Regency England, this one set in 1813.

Suspense and Sensibility takes the newly-wed Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy to London with their sisters for the social season. Tea parties, balls, and the intrigues of the marriage market occupy them, and they soon become involved with the Dashwood family (borrowed from Sense and Sensibility). Young He111y Dash wood and Elizabeth's sister Kitty seem destined for each other, until Henry undergoes a drastic personality change. A whiff of supernatural evil emanates from an antique mirror Henry has inherited from his devilishly libertine ancestor. (The ancestor, Sir Francis Dashwood, is loosely based on a real leader of the eighteenth-century Hell Fire Club.) What could explain these bewildering events? The Darcys must investigate. If this tale is more sensibility than suspense, with a slow pace that may cause classic mystery fans to be impatient, other readers will find it a pleasant, light entertainment. Second in series.

Nina de Angeli

THE STONE THAT THE BUILDER REFUSED

Madison Smartt Bell, Pantheon, 2004, $29.95/C$42.00, hb, 70 I pp, 03 7542282X

This tome answers the question of how a former slave defeated Napoleon. The title is from scripture, "The stone that the builder refused shall be the cornerstone." In this third volume of his fictionalized biography of Toussaint Louverture, the liberator of Haiti, Madison Smartt Bell achieves a masterpiece. Its scope and research details the history of Haiti's revolution against imperial France: "a rebellion of African slaves against their white masters in the French colony of Saint Domingue."

In October, I 802, suffering from the cold in Fort de Joux prison in France, Toussaint pens a final plea to Napoleon to meet with him. Then we flash back to the outbreak of war. We pick up the story with Doctor Hebert in Cap Fran,;:ois, nursing a yellow fever patient. At a reception, be meets Governor-General Toussaint. A ship approaches carrying Placide and Isaac Louverture. Placide has forebodings that ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

Napoleon's fleet sails not to help his father, but to capture him. The French assume Toussaint is in rebellion. Moored off the coast, the ship receives a cannonball near the bow. The fleet bombards the fort, and the French execute its black commander. Riau takes over as first person narrator, carrying Toussaint's message to Dcssalincs, which confirms that their welcome to the French will be "scorched earth."

What defines an epic is not only its sweep, but detail like the scene where Isabelle defies the black army trying to bum her house. She takes a pail of water from a horse trough. A soldier nips it away with his bayonet.

Battle scenes arc detailed minute by minute. Toussaint is the strategist, and Dessalines is the enforcer who massacres scores of white prisoners. The black cross of Baron Cimetiere hangs over Toussaint. "We are masters of a graveyard," Toussaint tells his son." o one wins at war."

Marcia K. Matthews

A DISTANT DRUM

Marguerite Bell, Authors On Line 2005, pb, I 69pp 075520 I 604, price not shown

This is a delightful story from the pen of one of the founder members of the Romantic Novelists' Association, who has more than a hundred published novels to her name. In this one she is on top form, telling the story of Fanny Templeton, a virgin widow and companion to Lady Mablethorpe. Fanny crosses swords with Colonel the Marquis of Ordley, importuning him on behalf of her stepdaughter, the marquis' sister-in-law. Further meetings are inevitable in their small social circle and they come to care for one another, although both are reticent about making their feelings plain.

With Napoleon safely incarcerated on Elba, Lady Mablethorpe feels a trip to the South of France would benefit her health. Alarmed by rumours of Napoleon's escape, they nee to Brussels where Fanny and Ordley renew their acquaintance. At the Duchess of Richmond's ball, Ordley gives Fanny a ring. Lady Mablcthorpe leaves for Antwerp to avoid the approaching battle, but Fanny stays to help nurse the wounded. Badly wounded, Ordley sends for Fanny and marries her on what would seem to be his deathbed. But she nurses him back to health and it is only on their return to England that their troubles really begin.

This is an absorbing read with all the flavour of a traditional Regency novel. Thoroughly recommended.

Pamela Cleaver

BEAUTY FOR ASHES

Win Blevins, Forge, 2004, $25.95, hb, 380pp,0765305747

This second book in the Rendezvous series by Spur Award-winning author Win Blevins

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

(Stone Song and So Wild a Dream) continues the story of Sam Morgan, a young man fighting other people's expectations to embrace the lure of the American West of the 1820s. Now a full fledged mountain man, Sam's curiosity about people has helped him forge friendships in the Rocky Mountains. Embracing the culture of a Crow woman named Meadowlark, he and three friends enter her village ready to display his honor. Tragedy strikes in the aftem,ath of a deadly raid, leaving Sam destitute and trapped. He must learn to tap into the deepest wells of courage to free and find himself.

Win Blevins taps into the Western in new, stunning and lyrical ways. He turns stereotypes on their heads as he finds new heroes. By following his adventurers in the fur trade, he rediscovers the American myth in ways more complex, fully human and gloriously fresh. Highly recommended.

Eileen Charbonneau

BLUE HORIZO S

Irene Bennett Brown, Five Star, 2004, Sl3.95,pb,310pp, 1410401804 Pioneers of the west had a truly difficult time surviving brutal weather, cultivating tough lands, maintaining good health, and keeping their properties from greedy, powerful ranchers, all the while trying to maintain good spirits. Blue Hori:::ons is a heartwarming story that provides insight into the lives of several women and how they survived these troubles in Paragon Springs, Kansas.

One of these women, Meg Brennon, went to Kansas to find relief from an abusive marriage she had in St. Louis. Since a woman living in the mid-19th century was considered her husband's property, her only salvation from domestic violence was to run away. In Paragon Springs, through the hardships and friendships, Meg develops confidence, self-respect, and a whole new life. However, she must return to St. Louis to bring closure to her old life by obtaining a divorce from her husband. Her community in Paragon Springs rallies her through this ordeal. In the process, she finds love, a man who believes in her, and a life in Paragon Springs.

Blue Hori:::011s is the second good read in the Women of Paragon Springs series; I'm anxious for the third installment!

Carol

Anne Gem1ain

MARCH

Geraldine Brooks, Fourth Estate, 2005, £ I 2.99, hb, 280pp, 0007165862. Pub in US by Viking Adult, $24.99, hb, 0670033359

This love story is mainly set on the front lines during the American Civil War. It tells the sto1y of John March, known to many readers as the fictional Chaplin father of Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy in Louisa May Alcott's Little Women. Although described 23

as 'a love story' it is three love stories; John March's love of Marmee, Grace and his philanthropist principals.

The novel opens in 1861 with John March as an idealistic abolitionist Chaplin who as part of a bloody campaign returns to the plantation of Mr Clement, which he visited twenty years before when he had been trying to make his fortune as a Connecticut peddler. His love for Grace a highly literate slave is rekindled. It is from this point onwards until John March returns to Concord that Geraldine Brooks skilfully unwraps the hidden layers of his life up until the time of the American Civil War.

Historically, the story has been cleverly crafted, blending real people with fictional characters and by drawing inspiration and factual detail from the journals of Bronson Alcott, Louisa Alcott's father who was an abolitionist. It also provides an interesting insight into the cruelty and racism on both the Confederate and Unionist sides during the conflict.

Of the three main characters John March was for me the least compelling. Marn,ee who was a conductor on the Underground Railroad assisting escaped slaves and says what she thinks I found very appealing, and not just because her behaviour is echoed by her daughter Jo in Little Women.

Myfanwy Cook

LADY IN WA ITING

Kathryn Caskie, Warner Forever, 2005, $6.50/C$9.50, pb, 368 pp, 0446614246 Jenny Penny is the lady In Waiting, as madcap a heroine as ever graced the pages of a Regency romance. By day a lady's maid, by night Jenny is Lady Eros, creator of a beauty cream that stimulates the skin with a tingle that produces a natural blush. Somehow the Ton discovers that Jenny's cream also produces a stimulating tingle in another part of the body, and it becomes a runaway best seller. As if leading a double life is not complicated enough, Jenny's employers, the feather-headed Featherton sisters, in a matchmaking effort, order her to impersonate a young lady of quality, Lady Genevieve, in her off hours. The man they have targeted as a suitor for her is a stalwart, larger-than-life Scots laird. This takeoff on the Cinderella theme has no evil stepsisters, but with two fairy godmothers like her well-intentioned employers, Jenny has enough to contend with.

Kathryn Caskie has created an endearing heroine and a knock-your-socksoff hero. The main plot theme is a romp. However, there are at least four too many subplots, which, at times, can leave the reader in a spin.

Audrey Braver

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

TERRITORIAL ROUGH RIDER

Tim Champlin, Five Star, 2004, $25.95, hb, 237pp, 1594140103

The cover art and subtitle will lead browsers to think that this book is a Western. Although the action begins in Arizona, it's really a Spanish American War novel. ln 1898, too much sherry leads Peter Onnond to get back at his emotionally abusive father by stealing his prize gold coin collection. Before he can reconsider and return the coins, most of them are stolen. ln the meantime, his father sends his black servant, Millard Johnson, to find Peter and retrieve the lost treasure. Both men are reluctant to face Ormond Senior without the coins, and sign up to work a horse drive to cam money. When fleeing an ambush by thieves, they jump a train, which is full of recruits for Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders. They decide that soldiering is also preferable to returning home, and join the recruits for their fateful journey that will lead them up San Juan Hi IL Champlin does an excellent job depicting the life ofan anny recruit, and the battle scenes are vivid. But memorable characters are lacking, and the plot has too many coincidences for its own good. l can't recall a more ludicrous deus ex machina ending outside of a satire.

B.J. Sedlock

THE SUGAR CAMP QUJLT

Jennifer Chiaverini, Simon & Schuster, 2005,$22.00,hb,320p~0743260171

Dorothea Granger lives in antebellum Pennsylvania. Her parents are poor relations of her Uncle Jacob and work on his farn1, which they hope to inherit. Dorothea's family had belonged to a utopian community of transcendental Christians before Elm Creek flooded and scattered them. They expressed abolitionist sympathies and allowed children to run free. In contrast, Jacob is strict and humorless. He orders Dorothea to make him a quilt of a specific pattern and she obeys, mystified. After his death, she decodes the symbols at the maple sugaring camp, and sets out on an adventure.

The author gives Dorothea a personal stake in the slavery issue, through the danger posed by slave-catchers. The plot races along, with summaries interspersed between fullbodied scenes. Dorothea has admirable morals but a sharp tongue; she speaks her mind. Chiaverini throws in a dash of description here and there, but most often tells her story in spare prose using dialogue.

Each character is true to life and complex, doing the unexpected. The novel has a strong narrative drive and vivid scenes of those involved with the Underground Railroad in conflict with local bigots. lt fills a void, showing both how the Underground operated and the courage of ordinary people.

Marcia K. Matthews

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

THE GREAT STINK

Clare Clark, Viking 2005, £12.99, hb, 355pp, Set in the 1850s, this novel's main subject is the project to build a completely refurbished and comprehensive sewer system under London. An engineering feat, the extent of which had never been attempted before. On the face of it, not a wonderfully promising premise for a novel but the author tells an absorbing story with a good narrative technique, well-crafted plot and a fine historical background.

The two main characters are, William May, an engineer severely traumatised by his experiences in the Crimean War who finds a macabre consolation in hiding himself in a labyrinthine network of existing tunnels while cutting his own flesh to achieve an emotional release. And Long Arni Tom, an old man who ekes out a living by collecting sewer rats for dog fights. Both have an intimate knowledge of the disgusting underworld. Their paths cross when a murder is committed in the tunnels.

Clare Clark pulls no punches in describing the sewers in this richly olfactory and often scatological novel. It delights and wallows in the ripe odours of the Metropolis as it was mid nineteenth century. The historical context is essential to the story and maintained admirably throughout the tale. Occasionally some parts are overwritten, a common fault with first novels, but the sheer excellence of th e storytelling and emotional involvement of the reader with both main characters makes this a very good novel indeed.

Doug Kemp

BREA TH AND BONES

Susann Cokal, Unbridled Books, 2005, $23 95, 406pp, hb, I 93296 I 062

This second novel by Ms. Cokal, following Mirabilis in 2002, has similarities to the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters in that the 19'" century United States is crossed, time is spent with the early Monnons in Utah, the trail ends in California, and both contain a pack of characters that are encountered and reencountered throughout the narrative. McPheeters is about twenty years earlier than Breath and Bones; Jaimie crosses by covered wagon, Famke by the trains. While McPheeters maintains an upbeat quality throughout its harrowing events, Breath and Bones is just sad and sadder-even when it's funny. Famke starts out as a Danish orphan, already tubercular, with a real knack for arousing obsession in men she meets. She accepts this and most everything placidly throughout the book, moving from one disastrous situation to the next without question, but her liaison with an artist in Copenhagen appears to kindle a like obsession in her: she follows him to America and beyond to the West. When 24

finally she finds him again, however, it becomes apparent that her obsession is narcissistic, for no sooner is she reunited with him than she's bored with his sexual demands and tries to boost his creativity with an electric device used on her to cure her illness, which ends badly. There is plenty of lurid detail here to pique the interest-arsenic eating, creative uses for the blood she coughs up-and the style is one that many readers really relish, a flat, noir kind of view. For me, I just kept hoping she would do better, and it never happened. Mary K. Bird-Guilliams

TOMBSTONE TRA YESTY: Allie Earp Remembers

Jane Candia Coleman, Five Star, 2004, $25.95, hb, 248pp, I 594140111

Coleman demonstrates again why she's one of my favorite western writers. Allie Earp was the petite, feisty, and loving wife of Virgil Earp, brother of Morgan and Wyatt, whose showdown against the Clantons and McLowerys at the O.K. Corral in I 881 is one of legend. Coleman based her novel on the real Allie's own memoirs, written in reaction to a writer's questionable story about the Earps. From the viewpoint of old age (she died in 1947, aged 98), Allie narrates an action-filled tale of adventure, local politics, family loyalty, and betrayal. Orphaned at her mother's death, her siblings farmed out to neighbors, Allie spends her childhood in boardinghouses and whorehouses. At her sister's lowa home, she meets Virgil "Virge" Earp for the first time. Declaring themselves married, they travel west, never staying anywhere for long, until they hear about a great opportunity down in Tombstone. "I hope it ain't ours," Allie remarks, feeling a chill. Virge and Wyatt, charged with keeping the peace, must deal not only with a corrupt sheriff but also with other nasty outlaws and scumbags. Coleman paints intriguing portraits of Mattie, Wyatt's clinging, weakwilled common-law wife, and Kate Elder, the subject of her earlier Doc Holliday 's Woman. Through good times and bad, Allie's and Virge's love for one another remains the one constant in her life. The real travesty, in Allie's mind, is how the surviving Earps and Doc Holliday were treated after Tombstone: talked up as crooks by a no-good reporter who got their story wrong. Tombstone Travesty makes a convincing argument in their defense.

Sarah Johnson

THE GLASS VIRGIN

Catherine Cookson, Simon & Schuster, 2004, $25/C$36.00, hb, 356 pp, 0743261267

Young Annabella Lagrange, the only child of wealthy parents, lives a secluded life of privilege on a north England estate shielded from life's harsher realities of strikes, starvation and the shady doings of the ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

"lower classes." Annabella's mother nurtures her daughter's desire to marry her cousin Stephen so that her daughter will not know the pain of a wicked spouse. Unwittingly, Annabella discovers her father's libertine ways after creeping unseen into his quarters and catching him bathing a perfumed young woman who was definitely not her " mama ." She faints and calls it a bad dream. Years later her father punishes her for refusing to be married off to his largest local debtor by blurting out her real heritage - his mistress is her real mother! Then she learns that Stephen is engaged to another and, unable to bear her now-tainted life , she runs away to make a new life in London. Quickly, she discovers that her education and social upbringing are as much a liability with the working classes as her illegitimate heritage in Upper Society. Refusing to surrender to either stratum, Annabella endures suffering and degradation but stirs up her passion to fight back against clas s prejudice and social hypocrisy in her search for happiness. In this tense story of nineteenth-century English life , Cookson writes a suspenseful novel of conviction and, ultimately, triumph.

Tess Allegra

THE DRIFTER

Lori Copeland, Tyndal e House , 2005, $IJ.99,296pp,pb,0842386890

Charity Burke followed her husband from the comfort of her Virginia plantation to the unsettled territory of Kansa s to stake out a homestead. Soon after, he was killed in the Civil War , and Charity was left to protect the homestead alone. Although she was able to overcome many of the o bstacles to claiming her terr itory without help, there were some she could not seem to conquer. Why , th e n , did the Lord bring a half-dead man and a newborn baby to her doorstep? Now she had more work than s he could handle; and the neighbors were beginning to gossip

This is Lori Copeland's second story in th e Men in the Saddle series. In it , she tends to gloss over mo st of th e hards hips and tragedies the main characters endure in o rd er to keep the story li ght and humorous. If the re ade r can overlook that, they will find this book to be a comfo rtable and enjoyably lighthearted novel in the Old West tradition.

Nan Curnutt

TENOR OF LOVE

Mary di Michele , Touch sto ne, 2005, $ I 3.00/C$ I 9.00, pb, 329pp, 0743266927

In her second novel , award-winning poet

Mary di Michele tell s the story of the great tenor Enrico Caruso throu gh the eyes of the women who loved him. When the young

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

singer comes to Livorno in the summer of 1897 to share the stage with the prima donna Ada Giachetti , both she and her younger sister Rina, an aspiring soprano herself, fall in love with him. Although he promises to marry Rina, Caruso decides to live with the already-married Ada, who becomes the mother of his two sons. After Rina's career takes off, she begins an affair with Caruso, which comes to an abrupt end when Ada catches them together. Not lon g afterwards , Ada leaves Caruso for his chauffeur, causing a huge scandal. Later, while singing at the Metropolitan Opera in New York , Caruso meets a young American woman, Dorothy Benjamin , who eventually wins his heart and becomes his wife

The first pa11 of the novel is narrated by Rina , and the second by Dorothy. In Rina's section of the book, Caruso is a young tenor just beginning his career, and forced to choose between the two rival sisters. By the time he meets Dorothy, he is a lr eady the world-famous star of the Metropolitan Opera. The two naiTatives give the reader contrasting v iews of the great tenor, and he seems much more likable in the book's second half.

My only criticism is that the author focuses too much on Caruso's love life, and does not give us enough of a sense of what made hi s voice so great. But that could be my own bias, since I am a long-time opera fan. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves opera, and I think that even people who do not will find the love sto1y compelling.

Vicki Kondelik

THE CHOICE

Joanna Erle, Robert Hal e, 2005, £18.99, hb , 224pp ,0709077580

In thi s d e lightful Regency romance the hero and heroine ha ve more reasons than usual not to get together. Lord Verrell has spent 12 years abroad hiding from a false murder charge brought by Lucy Daunton's father. VeITell returns to England and buys Lucy's beloved home which is for sale as her father has died bankrupt. Lucy has to live with relati ves at the Parso nage - a comedown for a girl from the big house who once had everything. Luc y and Verrell's first meeting - reminiscent of the dance in Pride and Prejudice - is disa s trous , and things don't get better. They continually rub each other up the wrong way, and each encounter seems to add to their troubles. But gradually as the book progresses, they learn lessons and even do one another good turns. Finally when Lucy has through no fault of her own been compromised no less than three time s, the situation is reso lved.

Pamela Cleaver

ALMOST A BRIDE

Jane Feather, Bantam, 2005 , $6.99/$ I 0 .99, pb , 448pp,0553587552

Almost a Bride is not just another "bride" book It 's a romance between the unlikeliest pair. Jack Fortescu sets out to ruin Frederick Lacey. Only they know that the reason stems from a betrayal by Frederick in France during the Reign of TeITor. After losing everything, Frederick cowardly kills himself. Jack has to break the news to Frederick ' s sister. Arabella is an intelligent spinster who after one un successful Season retired to her family's seat to raise orchids. An immaculate Jack finds a scrubby Arabella in the hothouse , hands buried in potting soil. MaITiage to Frederick 's sister is part of Jack 's revenge, but Arabella rejects him, prefeITing to throw herself on the charity of distant relations. After careful consideration, she accepts him as an alternative to genteel poverty. In evitably, we learn the tragic reason behind Jack's actions.

This is better than vintage Jane Feather. The plot is believable, and the characters are great. It is easy to see Jack as an unscrupulous monster, but his obvious pain calls for compassion. Arabella is a unique , intelligent woman, a good match for him You will love her.

Audrey Braver

NAPOLEON: Emperor of Kings

Max Gallo, Macmillan 2004, £10 .99, pb , 421 pp, 0333907965. (trans. William Hobson) First published in 1997 as Napoleon:l 'empereur des rois by Editions Robert Laffont, Paris

Part three of Max Gallo's quartet of novel s sees Napoleon rejoicing over his victory at Austerlitz Not prepared to rest on his laurels , the still young soldier embarks on a series of further battles until ha lf of Europe is under his control. These are perhaps the mo s t thrilling years of Napoleon's reign when his all-consuming desire for power drives him into an escalating campaign of action. In his private life, divorce from Josephine leaves the way open to remaITiage to the young Austrian aristocrat, Marie Louise, and the joy of fatherhood.

Just when everything is looking good Napoleon 's luck changes. Countries ally against the despot and England continues to oppose him. As more and more live s are lost to his overweening ambition, Napoleon decides to make a typically dramatic gesture and sends his army of 500,000 men into Russia.

Th e Emperor of Kings continues the dramatisation of Napoleon's li fe with the same sparkle and emotion that characterised the earlier novels in the series. It is a fascinating story told with commitment and passion, underpinned with thorough research.

A word of praise for William Hobson who seamlessly translates the French into

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

English without losing pace, lyricism or clarity. A magnificent achievement.

Sara Wilson

THE GLASS HOUSE

Ashley Gardner, Berkley Prime Crime, 2004, $5.99/C$8.99, pb, 249pp, 0425199436

This is the third of Captain Lacey's adventures in solving crime: this time, it is the murder of a young woman who is pulled from the Thames. Lacey is called to view her body, since the Bow Street Runner who is involved (previously Lacey's sergeant in the Peninsular War) thinks it might be the young actress who lives one floor above Lacey. It isn't, but Lacey is angered by her death, and vows to work with the agents of the law in investigating who murdered her. This one death leads to another, and another. Lacey's friendship with Lucius Grenville, fashion-arbiter yet a very intelligent and curious man, allows him entree in high society, which becomes critical in his investigations. Characters from the first two books make appearances, including Lacey's forn,er commanding officer and his wife, with whom he has rather tangled relationships.

Gardner's writing is a pleasure to read: her dcscri ptions are evocative and ring true. While readers could start with this book, I would recommend" beginning with The 1/anover Square Affair and then continuing to A Regimental Murder to best understand the characters and their backgrounds. I wish this series a very long life!

Trudi E. Jacobson

BATH TANGLE

Georgette Heyer, Arrow Books 2005, pb, 314pp, £6.99, 0099468093 (pub. in US by Harlequin June 2004, $6.50, pb, 0373836112)

Bath Tangle is a classic Heyer. Filled with sharp wit, romance and a tapestry of complex characters set against the vivid detail of the Regency period that one would expect from this greatly respected author.

When the Earl of Spenborough, the father of .Lady Serena, dies, she is devastated, not only by her loss but also by the terms of his will. The fiery young heroine finds herself answerable to the mar. she had previously jilted, the Marquis of Rotherham. He holds her inheritance within his control until she marries. To her dismay and extreme annoyance she even has to have his agreement upon a matrimonial match.

Serena moves to Bath with Fanny, her young and sympathetic stepmother, but she cannot run away from the situation she has been placed in. However, both she and Rotherham are passionate people, destined to be a match for each other in temperament and love, once they both realize the fighting has to stop.

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

Th e author used her original style and humour to match a hero and heroine who both possess strong characteristics, with somewhat unappealing traits. The period detail and swift dialogue are unmistakable Georgette Heyer 's. Serena and Rotherham may not appeal to everyone; however, the reader is drawn into their world and the battles that ensue. We are left in no doubt that they are meant for each other, and that somehow they will be united by the end of the book. The Bath Tangle does untangle satisfactorily in the end.

Valerie Holmes

WINDFALL

Cindy Holby, Leisure, 2004, $6.99/C$8.99, pb,354pp,0843953063

In 1864 West Virginia, Jacob Anderson, a Confederate soldier, wakes from a coma with amnesia. He quickly learns that a battered angel named Shannon Mahoney has cared for him for over three months, struggling to keep him alive after he fell in battle. The two wounded souls slowly find solace in each other's company. As Jake heals, however, he realizes that he must seek out the mysterious woman who wrote him the letter found in his pocket, a woman who could be his wife.

At the same time, Jake's adopted family, led by Jenny Duncan, fight their own battle to keep their Wyoming ranch from falling into the hands of an unscrupulous land baron. Their fight brings them face to face with Cole Larrimore's first wife, whose sudden appearance threatens his happiness with his fiancee, Grace. The Duncan-Lynch family band together one last time to fight off the evil that would dare try to tear them apart.

This novel is the fourth story in a multigenerational saga. The characters, all strong-willed and feisty, find love, laughter, and tears right on cue. The historical references add some dimension to a story that lacks depth as it tries to wrap up all the loose ends from the previous three books. It's a pleasant read, and I would recommend it to fans of historical romances that have already read the previous three novels.

Debra Rodensky

SONJA'S RUN

Richard Hoyt, Forge, 2005, $24.95/ C$34.95,h~352p~0765306I58

Sonja's Run begins at a Christmas party given by Tsar Nicholas I in 1852, where Sonja Sankova, a beautiful half-Russian, half-Chinese poet, punches Colonel Peter Koslov-the notorious "Colonel Cut" who boasts that his necklace is made of ears taken from serfs.

Sonja escapes from St. Petersburg with her dying father, also a poet, who wishes to be buried in his birthplace in the Urals. At the same time, American Jack Sandt, a pioneering photographer, comes to Russia 26

to take daguerreotype images of the people there. Soon Jack learns of Sonja's flight and pursuit by Koslov and his band of fierce soldiers known as the Wolfpack. He and Sonja join forces, fall in love, and marry. After Sonja's father dies, she and Jack travel farther east, always keeping one step ahead of Koslov and his Wolfpack. They are separated once again when Sonja is captured by a cruel Kyrgyz warrior named Ali, who uses her as bait to trap Koslov, who had murdered his cousin. Jack organizes a rescue, only to see her captured again, this time by the Wolfpack. Everything leads to a confrontation on a mountain where Koslov has gone to gather rubies for a new throne for the tsar.

Sonja's Run is very much in the tradition of old-fashioned adventure stories suc h as King Solomon's Mines, but with more sex, blood, and gore It makes for some very exciting and suspenseful reading, and Hoyt's descriptions of the mountains, rivers, lakes, and forests of Russia east of the Urals are beautiful. I would recommend the book to anyone who likes a good adventure, and especially to people who like to read about Russia.

Vicki Kondelik

THREEPENNY DREAMS

Anna Jacobs, Hodder & Stoughton, 2004, £5.99, pb, 502pp, 034082140X Hannah, recently widowed, is dependent on her son and his wife Patty, who treats her as a servant. She is still young, and her husband was much older. A threepenny dream is a really important one. In the midVictorian age when unemployment in the cotton mills is spasmodic, many people are tramping the roads looking for work. Eventually Hannah escapes, on the tramp but pursued by the vindictive Patty. She meets Nathaniel, who is being persecuted by his landlord's vicious son, Walter. Nathaniel's niece, Walter's younger brother, and the daughter of another landowner are also suffering various persecutions, and are thrown together. But without money or influence, can they fight the forces ranged against them?

This novel races along from one crisis to the next, with as many twists and turns as the trackways over the Lancashire moors. There's a varied cast of both attractive and evil characters, and the final showdown is tense and satisfying.

Marina Oliver

TO PLEASURE A PRINCE

Sabrina Jeffries, Pocket, 2005, $6.99, pb, 384pp,07434777l5

In this second installment of the Royal Brotherhood series, the socially adept Lady Regina Tremaine encounters Viscount Draker, the Prince Regent's (fictional) illegitimate son. Her brother Simon, Duke of Foxmoor, is coutiing Draker's sister, whose sire might be but probably isn't

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

"Prinny," England's future King. Even though "the Dragon Viscount" reportedly forces himself on females in his dungeon, Regina and her chaperone cousin blithely set forth from London to convince him that the duke is a suitor worthy of his sister. Draker bargains with Regina: if she lets him pretend to court her for one month, then her brother may court his sister. Draker, unkempt and unshaven, subsequently appears in London where Regina, who has turned down eleven marriage proposals, is known as La Belle Dame Sans Merci. When her association with a cleaned-up Draker becomes compromising, the couple find themselves at the altar.

Post-marital conflict takes the form of minor deceptions and predictable misunderstandings. Jeffries provides Regina with an interesting and unusual disability but fails to mine its potential. After numerous scenes of interrupted foreplay comes a consummation devoid of emotional revelation or connection The author's style is lively and her pacing never flags, but the novel reveals a limited sense of period and shallow characterization

Margaret Barr

LONGING

J.D. Landis, Snowbooks 2005, £7.99, pb, 508pp, I 905005059. First published 200 I by Ballantyne.

Robert Schumann met Clara Weick when he was a pupil of her father. She was just eight years old and he twenty. From the outset a bond was formed that grew into an overwhelming passion.

Frederick Wiek's obsession was that his daughter would become the greatest pianist, one to rival Chopin. He would not allow his daughter to waste her talent by marrying the half-crazy Robert Schumann but marry they do in 1840 when Clara is twenty. After fourteen years of marriage and eight children, Schumann throws his wedding ring into the Rhine and himself after it. He is admitted as a voluntary patient to the asylum in Endenich never to see his children again. He is reunited with Clara just two days before his death from selfstarvation in July 1856.

This is a fictionalised account of a tempestuous relationship. The historical background is vividly portrayed but, the over long account is so burdened by over long footnotes that it is not always clear as to whether this is a novel or a biography. The author has researched the subject via letters and memoirs, where possible, using the actual words of the characters. 'The rest is fiction masquerading as fact and the reverse.'

Ann Oughton

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

THE HEART OF THORNTON CREEK

Bonnie Leon, Revell, 2005, $12.99, pb, 344pp,080075896x

Suddenly orphaned and destitute young women have few options in 1871 Boston. Rebecca Williams decides her best choice is to accept a marriage of convenience with Daniel Thornton, an Australian client of her father's law firm. But once she arrives at the Thorntons' isolated cattle station, the culture shock is severe. Her father-in-law Bertram rules the town wi~h an autocratic hand and disapproves of their impulsive marriage. Daniel has never been able to defy his father and won't take Rebecca's side against him during disagreements. Yet their neighbors all praise Bertram as a fine man, so how can he be all bad? Rebecca must draw heavily on her Christian faith to try to adjust from being a pampered, city-bred American to a bush-dwelling Australian.

This volume one of the Queensland Chronicles is a cut above most genre novels in character development. No less than three of the major characters change and grow by the end of the book. Non-Christian readers should be advised of the heavier-than-usual but well-handled religious content. An historical error: characters listen to the "1812 Ove11ure" at a Boston concert nine years before it was written. Otherwise, a well-done character study from the inspirational genre.

B.J. Sedlock

A LOVING SCOUNDREL

Johanna Lindsey, Corgi 2004, £5.99, pb, 400pp,0552151319

This is a romantic Regency novel about a rags to riches heroine brought up in the London slums as one of the Faginesque gang of child thieves. In attempting to rob him she meets the 'loving scoundrel' of the title, a typical Regency buck. He is captivated by her and employs her as a maid in his grand house. After many unexpected twists of fortune, notwithstanding his original plans for her, the novel ends with their fashionable society wedding.

I found little sense of period in the novel. The speech of the characters is full of present-day slang and expletives and even occasional Americanisms There is no sense of the eno1mous gulf that separated social classes at that time. A maid would not be dusting a room while the gentleman of the house entertained guests, even joining in the conversation. Similarly incredible is that the fonner leader of the gang of child thieves gives the bride away at the concluding smart wedding.

Johanna Lindsey is creating a fantasy world in which class distinctions do not exist and elegant gentlemen marry urchins who then fit smoothly into high society. This author has had six previous novels

published so there is obviously a market for her work.

Ruth Nash

KILLIGREW AND THE SEA DEVIL

Jonathan Lunn, Headline, 2005, £ 18.99, hb, 402pp,0755320697

At the time of the Crimean War - albeit in the Baltic - Secret Agent Killigrew, in search of a Russian Secret Weapon, is pursued on skis, garrotted, shot at, beaten up -and framed for murder. He survives, of course, being a crack shot, something of a gymnast, and speaking fluent Swedish and Russian. He performs ballet well enough to partner a prima ballerina of the Mariinsky, one of the many women attracted to him. Regrettably, some are prone to die unexpectedly and violent ly. He is assisted by Molineaux, a black petty officer, whose life Killigrew has saved ma'ny times.

The atmosphere of the 1850s is disappointing. Killigrew, arrested in the street, resorts to bribery to produce freedom, the touching of the truncheon to the peak of the cap, and the advice 'Mind how you go, sir.' Dixonski of Dock Green, perhaps And after saving Killigrew, the French - female, lovely, athletic - secret agent tells him, 'I decided I owed you one'.

Readers looking for an action-packed Bond-type escapade under a veneer of the Victorian era will enjoy this book, although those looking for a more tangible 'feel' to the era may not.

Roger Harris

AN ACT OF COURAGE

Allan Mallinson, Bantam Press 2005, £16.99, hb,366pp,0593053400

Allan Mallinson brings the cavahy in the Peninsula to life with detail that flows from the plot and the characte rs - the attitudes to man and horse, the domestic economy, regimental pride and military deployment. All are natural and inevitable parts of the story, not slabs of information to demonstrate the depth of the author's research. Notionally, the tale is about Major Matthew Hervey of the 6th Light Dragoons and his incarceration in Badajoz. He was attached to an Intervention Force sent to Portugal in 1826 that soon withdrew without firing a shot and is now littl e known.

The story quickly moves to 1809, whilst brooding on escape Matthew Hervey reflects on his earlier life as a Comet at the battle of Talavera. His employment there as a galloper, in contact with senior officers is a believable device. It gives a wider view of that huge and bloody conflict than one at regimental level although Hervey also records the routine patrols and occasional skinnishes.

Three years later, in 1812, he was pa11 of the bloody assault on Badajoz that later was to become his prison. The fury of the

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

attacking infantry seemingly oblivious to the prospect of death is almost tangible. The appalling rape and pillage that followed is therefore more understandable - even though just as shameful. Hervey himself is a living person who loves his profession, does not lust after glory but perfonns whatever duty he is given and hopes , but does not expect, just reward or promotion. His Christian upbringing has given him a love of the Prayer Book and Psalms and his source of comfort.

This commendable book describes battles that are bloody, frightening and real. The characters live and die in a wholly believable world.

Roger Harris

THE EXCURSION TRAIN

Edward Marston, Alison & Busby 2005, £ I 8:99, hb , 270 pages, 0749083921 (pub. in US by Allison & Busby June 2005, $25.95, hb,0749083921)

It was no ordinary train waiting on Paddington station to receive more than a thousand passengers. It was an Excursion Train. Trne , it had a few first and second class compartments but most of the passengers were the rough, unwashed multitudes of Victoria's England of 1852 , bound for an illegal bare knuckle boxing match between Isaac Rosen and Bill Hignett, the gigantic Negro bargeman, known as "Mad Isaac" and " The Bargeman". Black versus white, Jew versus Christian - the crowd were already well liquered up and howling for blood, Londoners for Hignett and the rest for Rosen.

Altogether they were as unsavory a mob as Tod Galway, the guard, hoped would never have set foot on a train. "All I see is danger", he confided to Sam Horlock , one of the railway policemen. And how right he proved to be, for by the end of the journey one of the passengers is found strangled with a noose.

DI Robert Colbeck and Sergeant Victor Leeming are assigned to the case. The victim, turns out to be a Mr Guttridge, a part time hangman who changed his identity to escape vengeance, and DI Colbeck, who was once a barrister, now has a motive. The story moves on with great gusto, as more murders follow. This is a very exciting story and holds you to the last page. Edward Marston is a prolific and varied writer, skil ful at conveying atmosphere and keeping the tension mounting, with an effective, unadorned style, very effective for this type of thriller

Mary McKerracher

JAMAICA INN

Daphne du Maurier, Virago Press 2005, £7.99, pb, 302pp, 1844080390 (adapted version pub. in US by Oberon Books 2005, pb, $16.95, 1840024097)

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

This well-known and well-loved romance was first published in 1936, set on Dartmoor at a time of smugglers and wreckers, highly atmospheric and with memorable characters. Having read it at least a dozen times over the years, I decided it would be interesting to see what the newest generation of readers make of it, and gave it to a street-wise 14 year old Londoner, on condition that she wrote the review herself. Val Whitmarsh

Jamaica Inn stands beside a desolate highway in the middle of Dartmoor, with nothing around it but moorland. It is the early 1800s and newly orphaned Mary Yellan is on her way to live there with the inn's owners, her aunt and uncle. Mary remembers little about her dead mother's sister, Aunt Patience, except that she had 'a curled fringe and large blue eyes, lau ghing and chatting, with a heart as large as life'. Maybe it will not be a bad thing to do, although things might, of course, have changed.

After a warning from the coachman who drops her off and the shock of her first sight of Aunt Patience , her impressions of Jamaica Inn are certainly not as she imagined. Things become increasingly suspicious, with disturbances from carts arriving in the night, the locked room at the end of the passage, and the inn not used except by its owners. Mary's imagination runs wild. With her uncle Joss's temper deteriorating and her own feelings for a man she dare not trnst, Mary seems to be in a bit of a bother, especially when she does put her trust in someone she should not. There is a shocking, unpredictable ending, and you will have to read it all to find out the trnth of these weird and mysterious happenings. Isabelle Stokes

MARY ANNE

Daphne du Maurier , Virago Press 2004 (first published 1954), £6.99, pb , 385pp, I 844080889.

Born into a poor household during the latter years of the I 8 th century, Mary Anne is determined to marry a rich man and secure her future Instead she marries a drunk and faces poverty. Escape beckons when her beauty and brains attract the attentions of an illustrious lover - the Duke of York. When he tires of her, she embarks upon a campaign of revenge , creating a scandal that rocks the establishment out of its complacency.

As a heroine, Mary Anne is decidedly unappealing. She is brutally ambitious woman, grasping, hard-headed and shallow. Her greatest strength is that she is always prepared to take on men in a man's world. Not for her the swooning antics of the genteel lady, but always the obstinate refusal to kow-tow to the rich and powerful. She lives life on her own tenns - if she

decides to sell herself, then she will choose when, to whom and for how much.

Although not strictly a biography, Mary Anne is a dramatized portrait of Daphne du Maurier's own ancestor. The opening chapters read like a classic rags-to -r iches tale owe much of their strength to the main character's strong personality and vivacity. The second half of the novel is less successful, its combination of court reports and letters make it drier and distances the reader from the action. That aside, Mary Anne is still a good read and well worth this new reprint.

Sara Wilson

THE JOURNEYS OF SOCRATES

Dan Millman, HarperSanFrancisco , 2005, $23.95/C$33.95, hb , 322pp, 0060750235 Millman draws on some of his ancestors' experiences to create this novel giving the backstory of Socrates, the sage he introduced in Way of th e Peacefit! Warrior. In late 19 th century Russia , orphaned Sergei Ivanov is brought up in a military academy run by his uncle. Fond memories of his Jewish grandfather cause Sergei to be horrified when the academy cadets are ordered to participate in a pogrom. He resolves to run away, but is confronted by a bully. They fight, and Sergei leaves Zakolyev for dead before fleeing to the wilderness.

After hiding several years, Sergei decides it is safe to re-enter civilization, and follows his grandfather's instructions to find a buried legacy. This leads him to St. Petersburg, where he meets and marries a childhood friend. Their happiness is all too brief when Sergei takes the very pregnant Anya on a picnic and they are attacked by armed bandits, one of whom is Zakolyev. The tragedy sends Sergei on a quest to learn martial arts and gain spiritual training from a succession of teachers. He takes on the name Socrates, and is at last ready to avenge his family. But will a start lin g revelation learned in the bandits' camp prevent the Peaceful Warrior from retaliating?

The book can stand alone as an adventure story, but fans of Millman 's works who want to know more about Socrates will probably enjoy it most. Those who appreciate films of the Matrix genre will also like it. I found the plot rather coincidence-heavy, without strong character development. The novel had one error: while in hiding , Millman has Sergei make a spear out of bamboo growing along a river. Bamboo is not native to western Russia, according to the biology sources I consulted.

B.J. Sedlock

EVERY WHISPERED WORD

Karyn Monk, Bantam, 2005, $6.99/CSI0.99, pb, 4l6pp, 0553584421

Karyn Monk has written another delightful historical romance, with a twist: half of the ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

book is set en route to and in South Africa. Lady Camelia Marshall, like her father, is an archaeologist. After her father dies, she vows to continue his work searching for the Tomb of Kings, but, amongst other problems, the site is being flooded. She travels to London to find additional funding for the project, and to entreat the inventor Simon Kent to build a better pump. She (although perhaps not the reader!) is surprised to find that he is not the elderly man she imagined. Camelia is in London with an entourage: Zareb, her father's friend and her protector, Oscar the monkey (who would have been lonely if left behind), Harriet the bird, and Rupe1t the snake (who curled up in Camelia's trunk so he could come along). These characters, along with several of Simon 's old family retainers, as well as a purported curse on the archaeological site, create a delicious tale While neither Camelia nor Simon care much for the conventions of society (the novel is set in 1885), Camelia's suitor, Lord Elliott Wickham, does. It is primarily through his role that we get a sense of the historical period. While waiting for the author's next book, I will go back and read several that I missed.

Trudi E. Jacobson

NEPTUNE'S HONOR

Pamela Bauer Mueller , Piiiata Publishing , 2005, $10.95, pb, 192pp, 0968509754

This is an unusual fictional account of the real-life story of two men. Raised side by side as family in coastal Georgia, Henry Lord King and Neptune Small are called "bro thers" and even "twins" by members of both their families. But one is a slave and the other his master. They fish, hunt, and enjoy good and financially imperiled times in the plantations owned by "Lordy's" large progressive family, who not only allow house servants to read , but insist on it. Lardy goes up to New York for his law degree, but years of separation from his trusted servant do not break their bond. Finally, as young men, they go off to war on the Confederate side as officer and manservant. Neptune makes good on his childhood promise to always bring his master home once Captain King is killed in battle at the end of 1862.

This story's overriding theme centers on loyalty and duty to a person who is good to you, even if his family holds you in bondage. The writing is respectful of the true-life characters, but it uses religious veneer instead of a true exploration of the choices these men made in their lives together. Ms. Mueller docs not honour the result of the bloody conflict to write that Neptune Small was "awarded" his freedom when the war was over.

Eileen Charbonneau

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

FOXFIRE BRIDE

Maggie Osborne, Ballantine, 2004, $6.99/C$ I 0.99, pb, 392pp, 08041 I 9929

This romance, set in the Rocky Mountains shortly before the Civil War, has a feisty heroine by the name of Fox, her companion/father figure, seventy-year-old Peaches, and their tall, handsome employer, Matthew Tanner. Tanner hires Fox and Peaches to guide him from Carson City, Nevada, to Denver, Colorado, through the mountains , in the middle of winter, in order to pay kidnappers a cash ransom for his father. He is somewhat taken aback by Fox, not expecting a young woman barely out of her teens to be capable of such an endeavor. As the story unfolds , their trust grows and an unconventional romance blossoms. But even as they grow closer, secrets from their pasts make a future together seem impossible.

The main characters in this novel are lively and likable. The pace is fast and, overall, the writing is engaging. While historical facts are incorporated, such as the looming outbreak of war between the North and South, they don't play a major role in the plot. However, the abduction of Tanner's father is not thoroughly explained. Motive and method are glossed over, but as the action hinges on that event, those points should have been fleshed out. Further, as a reader, I quibble with Fox's constant use of one curse word, "fricking," which I consider to be very 21st century and out of place in this setting. I would recommend this with reservations. Alice Logsdon

SWEET VIOLET

Catherine Palmer, Heart Quest, 2005, $10.99,pb,350pp, 1414303719

Violet Rosse , daughter of a widowed East India Company businessman, dresses, acts, and thinks more like a native Bengali than a Christian Englishwoman. When Edmund Sherbou:11e, a British missionary , is charged with the task of escorting Violet home to an arranged marriage in England, the mayhem that follows brings danger, confusion and, ultimately , love. But before their romance can blossom, Violet and Edmund must both shed their cultural preconceptions, and open their heaits to God.

This third book in Palmer's English Ivy Victorian romance series introduces readers to exotic Ind ia. While the tastes and textures of the bazaar offer a stark contrast to the midwinter chill of the English moor, the joy of faith in a living God offers an equal contrast to the hopelessness of belief in karma. Unlike Palmer's previous novels, the opening chapters of S1veet Violet are slowed by backstory and historical detail. Just when Edmund despairs of fulfilling God's purpose for his life, and the reader despairs of finding an exciting plot, the headstrong Violet Rosse is caught up in a heart-racing adventure

worthy of any Victorian Recommended with reservations.

Nancy J. Attwell

REBELS OF BABYLON heroine.

Owen Parry, William Morrow , 2005, $24.95/C$34.95, hb, 320pp, 0060513926

Major Jones has arrived in New Orleans during the height of the Civil War to solve a murder of a young woman. Unfortunately, he may soon have to consider who will solve his own murder. When he chases a young woman through the city streets only to become the one being chased, he is convinced that his desire to retire is a sound one.

Delectably , the story weaves voodoo with politics and personality with mystery. New Orleans has always been a city linked with lascivious behavior, a place where anything goes, and Parry's spicy tale serves only to emphasize the city's colorful past. Parry provides rich descriptions of numerous facets of New Orleans life in 1863, including amazing voodoo rituals and fascinating political intricacies.

I do not know if the greatest part of the book is the edge-of-your-seat action or the detailed description of the era. Hand-inhand these two facets keep the reader enthralled. It is positively impossible to put the book down. Written in clear prose, the complexity of characters and plot succeed in making a wonderful tale. It is important to note that Parry, writing in the vernacu lar of the times, does not pull any punches and does not shrink from vivid descriptions of terrifying action. Anyone who loves the period, the place or just a romping great mystery has to read this book.

Alycia

Harris

CASTLE DOR

Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch & Daphne du Maurier, Virago Press 2004 (first pub. I 962), £7.99, 274pp, 1844080676

In 1860s Cornwall, Breton Amyot and newly-wed Linnet meet , and their story follows the ancient tragic path of Tristan and [seult. Throughout the book, parallels are drawn between the I 9 th century lovers and the legendary pair. From the moment Linnet hears Amyot's name, not spoken but just shimmering through the air, the enchantment is set. Sometimes Amyot and Linnet seem to recognize a place or sensation, but without knowing why, as they unconsciously enact the timeless events.

This book was begun by writer and critic Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch, and when he died, Daphne du Maurier asked to finish the tale by his daughter. The book is wonderfully tied to Cornwall, with a pervasive feeling of authenticity and luminous descriptions of the landscap e, particularly in the early chapter.

S Garside-Neville

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

THE RETREAT

Patrick Rambaud, Atlantic Monthly, 2005, $23.00,hb,323pp,0871338778

Pub. in the UK by Picador, 2004, £16.99, hb,320pp,0330489003

The Grande Armee that swept into Russia in summer 1812 was a diverse and powerful force of some 600,000 soldiers. They came from France and from the states controlled or allied with Napoleon. It invaded believing the campaign would end in a spectacular Russian defeat and in the inevitability of the continued rise of the Emperor. It ended in a disaster that saw a few thousand starving and ragged survivors reach safety after a harrowing death march through the savagery of a terrible Russian winter. The French military would never recover and, despite a brilliant defense against his many enemies emboldened by 1812, Napoleon would be sent into his first exile as a result of the astounding losses in Russia.

Rambaud peoples his novel with a number of historical and fictional characters, but the most captivating are Captain D'Herbigny and Sebastian Roque. One is a veteran of countless battles and has seen the world at its worst; the other is a young clerk uprooted from a safe job at a Paris desk to be part of the Imperial Headquarters. They each are witnesses to an army disintegrating into mob violence as a result of hunger, cold, and fear of the dreaded Cossacks. The reader views war not in the brilliance of an arn1ed force bathed in the sunlight of victory but as a mass of frightened animals desiring only to return alive from the frozen hell their egomaniacal leader has drawn them to.

Rambaud's earlier The Bal/le displayed his imaginative recreation of a Napoloeonic battlefield. The Retreat allows us to view human beings at their most desperate.

John R. Vallely

WITH VIOLETS

Elizabeth Robards, Five Star, 2005, $26.95 / £ I 7.99, hb, 3 l 7pp, 14 I 0402223 Berthe Morisot was a successful painter, the only woman who exhibited at the first Impressionist exhibition in I 874, yet she had to battle against her mother's (and society ' s) expectation that it was marriage that would ensure her happiness. Morisot values painting more than matrimony, and it is through her artistic efforts that she meets the more famous Edouard Manet. Robards imagines a love affair between Morisot and Manet, whose marriage to the lumpen Suzanne defies conventional understanding. In her historical note, the author mentions an intense friendship between them, and some romantic elements in her surviving letters to him. Manet also painted Morisot more than he painted anyone else. In this telling, their relationship is a rocky one, with first one, then the other, pulling back

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

from a growing intimacy. They realize society will blacken their names and those of their families should their affair become known.

Robards writes evocatively. She drew me into Morisot's world effortlessly: Degas and Puvis de Chavannes, the Salon and the fledgling Societe Anonyme des Artistes. It was only when describing the Siege of Paris and the Commune that the book fell rather flat. Momentous events are recounted, but the characters seem oddly detached. They exclaim that times are ten·ible, but there is no immediacy or vividness to the events. However, this is a small concern when measured against the pleasures of the rest of the novel.

Trudi E. Jacobson

DARK TORMENT

Karen Robards, Warner (cl985), $6.99/ C$9.99, 0446306185

Vision, 2005 pb, 389pp,

Sarah Markham lives a satisfying though routine life near Melbourne, an Australian penal colony in 1838. Her father raises sheep, hires convicts to work his ranch, and has hopes that Sarah will marry Percival, his ranch manager. However, Sarah feels nothing but disgust for Percival despite the family consensus that her plain looks leave him as her only option. Sarah would rather be alone than settle until she rescues a convict, Dominic Gallagher, from a nearfatal whipping and finds herself uncharacteristically attracted to him to the point of an episode of complete submission.

Violence dominates the action, with a constant suppressed rage and abusive language masking the growing love between Sarah and Dominic. Both have their moments of shame and degradation, but out of their misery based upon the impropriety of a relationship between Sarah and a convict, they find compatibility and passion once they determine that society should not determine their fate.

This reissue of a classic I 980s-style romance is not particularly heartwarn1ing. However, it does have the requisite happilyever-after ending and intimate moments that some readers may find titillating.

Suzanne J.

Sprague

THE REFORMER'S APPRENTICE: A Novel of Old San Francisco

Harriet Rochlin, Fithian Press, 2005 (cl996),$11.95,pb,222pp, 1564742377 THE FIRST LADY OF DOS CACAHUATES

Harriet Rochlin, Fithian Press, 2005 (cl998), $12.95, pb, 229pp, 0974134910 ON HER WAY HOME

Harriet Rochlin, Fithian Press, 2005 (c200I), $12.95, pb, 270pp, 0974134902

Rochlin's Desert Dwellers Trilogy begins with The Reformer's Apprentice. Seventeenyear-old Frieda Levie has lived a channed 30

life north of Market Street. She dreams of attending Girl's High and enthusiastically supports the Sisters of Service, a woman's rightist group lead by the indomitable Miss O'Hara. All her dreams, however, crash along with the Bank of California in 1875. Forced to move with her family south of Market Street, Frieda now slaves eighteen hours a day to support her family's kosher boarding house, while outwitting the less then desirable residents. She finds joy only in the occasional meetings with the Sisters of Service and the solace offered by Miss O'Hara. Like Cinderella before her, Frieda does find love unexpectedly in the fonn of Benny Goldson, a free-wheeling, red-haired pioneer from the Arizona Te,,-itory (and Jewish to boot!). Together they dream of making the world a better place.

In The First Lady of Dos Cacahuates, Frieda Goldson arrives at the ArizonaSonora border town of Dos Cacahuates (Two Peanuts) with her new husband. She and Benny dream of developing a gateway to the west, but the oppressive heat, strange food, natural disasters, and eccentric neighbors, leave Frieda feeling lonely for San Francisco. She adapts as best she can , substituting tortillas for matzoh during a Passover seder, starting her own restaurant named "The First Lady," and once again finding herself working day and night while Benny travels the Territory in search of business , prospects. Over time Frieda adjusts, makes friends, and finds strength where she once thought there was none.

In On Her Way Home, six years have passed since Frieda first moved to the Arizona-Sonora border. Now the mother of three, Frieda finds herself confronted by a new nightmare. Fourteen-year-old Ida Levie, Frieda's darling youngest sister, has disappeared along with murderer Jed Pearson. Her relationship with Benny already strained, Frieda leaves her family and follows Ida's trail, first to the Mexican border, then to Prescott, where Ida will stand trial for collaboration with her kidnapper. Frontier justice has little mercy for the defenceless , but frontier justice has never encountered the iron will of Frieda Goldson.

Best known for her social history Pioneer Jews: A New Life in the Far West, Harriet Rochlin has incorporated her meticulous research into this wonderful series of novels. Torn between family and freedom, tradition and individualism, Frieda Levie Goldson draws us into her tumultuous world. The lively characters that inhabit Frieda's world keep us guessing as to what trouble they will tumble into next. Painted against the backdrop of old San Francisco and sun-bleached Dos Cacahuates with such precise detail, a reader could easily feel caught up in the history that built the American West.

Debra Rodensky

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

SIREN

Cheryl Sawyer, Signet Eclipse, 2005, $6.99/C$9.99, pb, 528pp, 04512 I 3777

Leonore Roncival has been the maitre of San Stefan, a small Caribbean fortress of privateers, since her father's recent death. Intent on supporting the island's inhabitants, she continues the family tradition of piracy, content never to marry until Jean Laffite attempts to raid her island and steals her chaste resolve instead. Laffite is a notorious pirate who controls a fleet of privateers stationed in Lake Barataria near New Orleans. At each encounter, the sexual tension rises until Leonore and Jean finally indulge their desires. The turbulent political atmosphere and Leonore's double life in society as the respectable Mademoiselle de Rochambeau provide almost insurmountable obstacles as both must tend to their own constituents before they can permanently unite.

Sawyer bases her tale upon the legend of Jean Laffite and the events taking place from 1804 to I 815, weaving the romance among the political intrigue that the lovers must navigate This provides ample opportunity for misunderstandings and reconciliations. The historical details sometimes appear to impede the compelling love story, but all seemingly unnecessary facts are neatly explained as the novel concludes after the Battle of New Orleans.

Readers who seek an equal amount of romance and history will find the insight on the state of the world in the early 1800s enjoyable.

Suzanne J. Sprague

FLOWERS STAINED WITH MOONLIGHT

Catherine Shaw, Allison & Busby 2005, £ I 8.99, hb, 3 I I pp, 0749083085 (Pub. in US by Allison & Busby, June 2005, $25.95, hb,0744083085)

1890s. School teacher and amateur detective Vanessa Duncan embarks on her second case. The wealthy George Granger has been found shot and police suspect his wife, the vulnerable Sylvia. Sylvia's mother, Mrs Bryce-Fortesque, enlists Vanessa's help. Granger was a tyrannical bully and Vanessa discovers a number of people might have welcomed his death: he'd once been Mrs Bryce-Fortesque's own admirer; the sacked housemaid Ellen had good reason to hate him; there are rumours that Sylvia was having an affair; and what were Sylvia and her friend Camilla doing in Paris shortly before Granger's death?

The book consists entirely of Vanessa's letters to her sister, which gives it a period feel, and the author is good at depicting the country-house and village settings. The downside is the restricted emotional range. I suspect the author is American: 'gotten' abounds, together with irritating social solecisms. For example, Vanessa 1s

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

immediately on first-name terms with Sylvia and Camilla, not to mention various males, in a most un-Victorian way; and Mrs Bryce-Fortesque would never call her butler Mr Huxtable. That said, I found it a pleasant and undemanding read.

Elizabeth Hawksley

THE KEENERS

Maura D. Shaw, Medallion Press, 2004, $25.95,hb,278pp,2004022667

Part I of the novel opens in 1846. The protagonist and narrator, Margaret Meehan, begins her tale in Kilvarna, County Clare, Ireland. For sixteen-year-old Margaret, everything about her life is promising: a fine-looking fiance, Tom Riordan; her family's fann prospering; a loving friend and confidant, Kitty Dooley; and an apprenticeship to the master keener, Nuala Lynch. Then disaster strikes with the return of the potato blight.

With their livelihood gone, Margaret's family and neighbors are also decimated. Some leave for cities while others become wandering beggars. Some survive by toiling for the public release works under the supervision of the sadist Edward Speke, and some, like Torn Riordan, become rebels. Everyone close to Margaret is caught in the spiraling tragedy. Their future is bleak, so Margaret and Tom wed and flee to America, settling in Troy, New York. There they begin a family and a new life. She works in the garment indusl!y and Tom works in the steel mills. Over the next half-century, with hard work, they prosper.

Rich in historical detail, Maura Shaw's novel vividly contrasts the hardship and oppression of Ireland with the abundant but challenging opportunities in nineteenthcentury America. This is an exceptionally rewarding historical novel.

Gerald T. Burke

THE KILLING OF GREYBIRD

Eric Swedin, Council Press, 2004, $14.95, pb, 225pp, 1555177670

The Killing of Greybird contains Western, mystery, and Mormon inspirational elements. David Halliday, newly mustered out of the Union Army in 1865, returns to Utah to find that his adopted Native American brother, Greybird, has recently been murdered. The townspeople blame a hostile tribe, but David thinks another Mormon is responsible, and sets out to avenge his brother.

The mystery isn't too hard to figure out-I guessed the murderer I 00 pages from the end. The best part of the book was learning about pioneer life in Utah in the first decades of white settlement. Readers unacquainted with Mormon beliefs of the era will learn about practices such as using a "peep stone" for divination, and the Church encouraging the adoption of orphaned Native American children. I liked the 31

realistic touch Swedin gives to a shootout scene, where the hero fires his rifle numerous times before hitting . anyone. Although the author presents the Native American side of the Black Hawk War, the Morn10n viewpoint predominates: "David knew that the Saints offered a better way of life The nomadic Indians had nothing to show for a lifetime of work: no buildings, no towns, no permanent mark on the land."

B.J. Sedlock

THE MIDWILLOW MARTYRS

Janet Mary Tomson, Robert Hale, 2004, £ 18.99, hb, 222pp 0709077017

Although this book is based on the true story of the Tolpuddle Martyrs , it is far more than a fictionalised version of a historical event. The story is set in 1830. Martha Cavanagh is the daughter of the vicar of Midwillow, a dour and reactionary disciplinarian. Most of his parishioners are attempting to survive on agricultural wages which keep them well below the poverty line but the vicar will do nothing to help them, saying that any increase will be spent on liquor and fornication. He believes in keeping the lower orders in their place. Martha disagrees but is in no position to speak out. She longs for her 21st birthday when she will inherit a handsome sum from her grandmother but the vicar intends to keep Martha and her inheritance under his own control. When the land ed gentry cut their workers' wages, the men form a friendly society to support each other but their oath of allegiance is regarded as treachery and they ringleaders are imprisoned. Only Martha and her young lawyer, Jonathan Gordon, have any sympathy for the imprisoned men.

One of the most impressive features of this book is the way the characters grow and develop. They are rash and make mistakes; they suffer extremes of elation and despair. They learn from this experience of life and it changes them. This is an impressive book, both thoughtful and well crafted. It is clear that the author has undertaken a vast amount of research, but this doesn't intrude upon the gripping nature of her tale.

Margaret Crosland

THE ROAD TO KANDAHAR

John Wilcox, Headline 2005, £18.99, hb, 306pp,0755309847

This is wonderful Boys' Own stuff, a thrilling tale of courage and fortitude in 19th-century India and Afghanistan.

Captain Simon Fonthill, disillusioned after his experiences in the Zulu War , wishes to resign his commission, but is persuaded to become involved in the 'the Great Game'. He, and his trusty friend, Private Jenkins (known as 352), venture into hostile territory to gather information for the British. Along the way, Fonthill is

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

captured, tortured and falls in love, but lives to tell the talc.

The Road to Kandahar is a great read; the only wrong note for me was the 'love interest' supplied by a feisty female journalist, who causes more trouble than she is worth. She has an irritating habit of disrupting the story and getting in the way! Apart from this quibble, I can highly recommend this book, and look forward to the next in the series.

Ruth Ginarlis

TIIE UNDERGROUND RIVER

Jeanne Williams, Five Star, 2004, $25.95, hb, 224pp, 1594140030

TIIE

HIDDEN VALLEY

Jeanne Williams, Five Star, 2004, S25.95, hb, 214pp, 1594140162

TIIE

TRAMPLED FIELDS

Jeanne Williams, Five Star, 2005, $25.95, hb, 219pp, 1594141215

These novels, the first to appear from Spuraward winning author Jeanne Williams in six years, form the Beneath the Burning Ground trilogy: an epic saga of several families' struggles to survive the Civil War years along the Kansas/ Missouri border.

In The Underground River, Christy Ware is a tomboy adolescent in the late 1850s , helping her family and neighbors build the Wares' first home. With Dan O'Brien, an Irish teenager, Christy discovers an underground cave that later serves as a hiding place along that larger secret conduit, the Underground Railroad. The Wares stand fervently against slavery, though their wealthy Missouri neighbors, the Jardines, are longtime slaveowners. When one of the Jardines' slaves escapes, the Wares risk their lives to shelter him in the cave John Brown makes an appearance, and although the Wares hate his drastic methods , they admire his abolitionist beliefs.

The Hidden Valley begins just before war breaks out. Sixteen-year-old Christy is in love with Dan, and he with her, though he refuses to marry her and possibly leave her with child while he's at war. Christy's brother Charlie, in disbelief that Mr. Jardine would let him marry his daughter, reluctantly sides with the Confederacy for their sake. In war, Dan encounters a greater evil than he ever faced before, not even in Ireland during the famine. At home, the Wares and Jardincs lose their belongings, livestock, and several loved ones to the war and Quantrill's Raiders, and turn scared eyes to the future

In The Trampled Fields, the darkest book, the remaining Wares and friends take shelter in an underground cave, and the hidden valley to which it leads, for their own protection. They are surprised to find the cave already inhabited by an Osage wisewoman and several others. Christy, who leaves on occasion to fam1 her family's

TIIE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

land, encounters pure evil in the fom1 of a Confederate guerilla who enjoys tormenting her, while Dan and Charlie face their own demons in battle.

The beginning sections of the first book proved difficult, since they introduced too many new characters at once, and some conversations seemed designed to feed the reader historical detail. Despite these slow bits, this is an engrossing trilogy about the physical and emotional damage wrought by war, and how war forces people to make decisions they don't fully agree with. The author describes the Civil War experience from all possible angles: Union and Confederate; black, white, and Indian; rich and poor; in battle and on the home front. Williams' Arizona Saga remains my favorite among her work, but these novels should prove worthwhile reads for family saga and Civil War fans.

Sarah Johnson

19TH/20TH CENTURY

ALL FOR LOVE

Dan Jacobson, I famish Hamilton 2005, £16.99,hb,260pp,0241142733

Dan Jacobson's book is by way of a docudrama about the love affair between Louise, daughter of King Leopold II of the Belgian's and Second Lieutenant Geze Mattachich, a Croat.

Louise had married into the Hapsburg dynasty, as had her sister, but her marriage to Prince Philipp Saxe-Coburg (Fatso), is loveless and when she sees the dashing officer Mattachich on horseback their fates are sealed. They conduct a clandestine affair and then run away together to the fashionable haunts of Europe. They indulge not only their passion but also a non-stop spending habit. The amounts involved would probably put celebrities of today in the shade. The fantasy ended when Louise's estranged husband refused to pay the bills. The lovers then endure poverty, imprisonment and rescue under very unusual circumstances.

I really could not put this down. It is obvious that Louise and Geze's story will end in tears but it is riveting to see how they get there. A wonderful read.

Ruth Ginarlis

20 th CENTURY

HIS COLDEST WINTER

Derek Beaven, Fourth Estate, 2005, hb, £15.99, 265pp, 0007148100

When is a novel a historical novel? Set in the icy winter of 1962-63, this is the story of Alan Rae, who at seventeen, is at the cusp of manhood with all that it entails. His father, a research scientist, seems to have 32

disappeared and his mother is snowed up with relatives. Left alone, he falls in love with Cynthia, a beautiful but enigmatic girl who works in the same place as his father. She also captures the attention of Geoffrey, an unhappily married man who works alongside Alan's father.

But is it a true historical novel? It perfectly captures the period; the cold war; the early days of microchip technology; the teddy boys; the motorbikes. This is England only just shaking off the effects of the Second World War. On the margins hover the Beatles and whilst not overtly stated, the 'swinging sixties' are about to explode. Who, though, is the enemy? Is it the Russians or the Americans? Underneath the personal lives of these people lurk menace and death.

This is a both a beautifully written and highly readable novel. The period details are perfect. I believe the author is too young to have experienced it himself but his research is impeccable. I do remember and yet it reminded me of what I had forgotten; water-mains frozen solid; the ground too hard to lift vegetables; snow that didn't melt for months; the jukeboxes, transport caffs and 'ton-up' races on the bypasses.

Some may not consider this a true historical but to me it ticks all the right boxes. Highly recommended.

Sally Zigmond

HA AH COULTER

Wendell Berry, Shoemaker & Hoard. 2004, $25.00,hb, l90pp,2004013121

The novel begins in 1940 in the small fictional town of Port William, Kentucky. Through Hannah's memories, a story unfolds of a rural family's experiences and challenges over the next sixty years. Hannah's early years are spent in nearby Hargrave. When she graduates from high school, her beloved "grandmam" takes her to meet an old friend in Port William. Ora Findley arranges housing and finds her work. Hannah becomes acquainted with Ora's family, the Feltners, including their son Virgil. Hannah and Virgil fall in love and marry. Shortly after, he is drafted and, two years later, reported missing after the Battle of the Bulge. With Virgil's death , Hannah, a single mother, begins a new chapter in her life. Nathan Coulter returns from the war to settle into farming. They marry, and the rest of the story follows their life together in Port William. Berry's simple but intricate prose is as enlaced as the families and individuals who populate the fictional town. The novel captures the subtle nuances of a life slowly but inexorably fading into history.

Gerald T. Burke

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

THE HOUSE OF FLOWERS

Charlotte Bingham, Bantam 2004, £6.99, pb,464pp,0553814001

1941 and Britain fights grimly for survival, forced to use her breeding stock of young teenagers. The desperation must be kept from the public under a veil of heroism.

Eden Park, the country estate that is home to Poppy, Lily, Marjorie and her adopted brother Billy, is taken over by the government. The estate is turned over to intensive farming whilst the house is taken over by MIS

Poppy, the plain girl, has made a disastrous marriage to a handsome, cruel man. He is shot as a spy at the beginning of the book and Poppy later falls in lo ve with Scott. Looking for a place to live they find a folly in the garden, The House of Flowers.

Lily volunteers for the life of an agent and is trained by the bizarre Cissie Lavington. She dresses as a flapper, wears an eye patch and has a cynical approach to her work. ' No point in being anything but practical as you hand a young girl a cyanide pill and tell her how and when to use it.'

Back in Eden Court, Poppy has found her vocation in flying. Billy, a precocious child, has a genius for code breaking. Kate's Eugens is sent to Sicily to sabotage the planes that are bombing Malta.

Bingham is a prolific writer of the saga with a difference. Her characters are either aristocrats or landed gentry. The historical content is accurate except for anything that dealt with decoding was totally isolated as were the people involved. I do not think that the family would have been allowed to wander about the grounds at will. This book is better than most WW[! novels. Mairead McKerracher

KA TY A: A Novel of the Russian Revolution

Sandra Birdsell, Milkweed Editions, 2004, $24.00, hb,373pp, 1571310436

In Katya, Birdsell paints a meticulous portrait of a young girl, Katya Vogt, whose character is shaped as much by the wild landscape in which she li ves as by the "circumference of her privileged world" as the second-born daughter of the overseer of a Mennonite estate. As she comes of age on the steppes of the Ukraine, the peaceful, pastoral li ves of her family and her tightly knit, pacifist community are threatened first by the outbreak of World War I, then by the various fighting factions of the Bolshevik Revolution.

Katya's beginning chapter is an avalanche of unfamiliar names, which makes the going slow at first. But once all the exposition is out of the way, the story completely absorbs you into Katya's world. It 's easy to see why Katya, a bestseller in Canada as The Russ/cinder, was a finalist for the Giller Prize, and selected as Book of the Year by the Saskatchewan Book A wards and the City of Regina. Birdsell's poetic

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

prose and her strong sense of place elevate Katya's experiences from the story of a closed society to that of a microcosm of the refugee experience.

Lessa J. Scherrer

LITTLE WHITE LIES

Emma Blair, Time Warner 2005, £18.99, hb,390pp,03!6727008

After a sheltered life in the Highlands, 16 year-old Lizzie McDougal's world is turned upside down following her father's dismissal from his job, after insulting the laird's wife on the estate where he worked. The whole family is forced to move to Glasgow where her father finds work in the steelworks.

Lizzie finds a job in a factory as a seamstress where she meets new friends as well; especially the spirited Pearl who introduces her to her handsome and fancyfree cousin Jack. Lizzie faces temptation in the big city as does her father, Dougie, who has an affair with the buxom Daisy. He moved for the sake of his family's future but now it seems that he's throwing at all away. Ethne, Lizzie's mother, has to hold the family together in more ways than one. After one passionate night with Jack, Lizzie need s her mother's help more than ever.

Lit/le White Lies is light, entertaining, romantic fiction and appears to be set in the early 20 th century, although the author makes no specific reference to a specific time. Despite being somewhat predictable and lacking any gripping quality, I found this novel a comfortable read and would recommend it as a good book at bedtime Vivienne Bass

IN LIKE FLYNN

Rhys Bowen, St. Martin's Minotaur, 2005, $23.95 / C$33.95, hb, 336pp, 0312328 ISX

This fourth book in the Molly Murphy series is just as delightful as earlier entries. After Molly accuses a member of the Hudson Dusters gang of being a pickpocket, Captain Daniel Sullivan of the New York Police sends her up the Hudson River to the estate of Senator Flynn, and, he thinks, to safety. Posing as a cousin of Senator Flynn's from Ireland, she is to investigate a pair of spiritualists who are suspected of being frauds. The spiritualists are there to make contact with the kidnapped and murdered young son of the family. Molly takes on a second investigation to see if she can clear the child's nanny, who was never charged, but has not been able to get another position in the years since.

Bowen's deft use of historical details, from the bloomers Molly tries (and likes!) so she can learn to ride a bicycle, to the typhoid epidemic in New York City, situate the reader firmly in the early 20 th century. Characters from previous books are back, albeit briefly, since Molly is out of the city during most of this story. Her relationship

with Daniel Sullivan remains rocky. I do hope the next episode will find him ditching his irksome fiancee!

Trudi E. Jacobson

GOD OF CHAOS

Tom Bradby, Bantam Press 2005, £12.99, hb ,449 pp,0593052676

This is the latest in Tom Bradby's series of thrillers set in world wide locations , they are full of action packed excitement and interesting, believable characters. Other books have portrayed events in Shanghai, China and St Petersburg. This time we are in Cairo in 1942, a city sweltering under a relentless summer and in panic at the advance of the Desert Fox, Erwin Rommel.

The main protagonist is former New York cop, Joe Quinn , now with the Royal Military Police and the narrative is propelled by the discovery of the body of a senior British Officer apparently horrifically murdered and on whose chest is carved the figure of Seth , God of Chaos. An Egyptian icon and symbol of the Underworld.

Quinn's investigation leads him on a journey through the underbelly of an exotic, violent and often seedy city to the very heart of Cairo's high command and the possibility that a top-level spy is feeding the allies most sensitive secrets to Rommel. As with all Bradby's heroes Quinn is haunted by events in his past life, this time, the tragic death of his son. His main characters are always flawed , not idealistic, one dimensional automatons who have all the answers. During the course of the action there is a number of other murders until the rath.er startling denouement is reached which certainly took this reader by surprise. Recommended.

Ray Taylor

BONNIE AND CLYDE: A LOVE STORY

Bill Brooks , Forge, 2004, $22.95, hb , 208 pp,0765307995

Infamous American gangster couple Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow rob their way around the Great Plains during the depths of the Depression. They symbolize either a dangerous threat to social norms and institutions or a romantic, Robin Hood-esque rebellion against those nonns and institutions responsible for hard times in the first place.

Several of the images are arresting, and the rotating point of view is an effective device to give the reader insight into the protagonists' minds as well as those of several secondary and "momentary" characters. The prose itself, however , is awkward and repetitious and suffers from poor copy-editing in places. The aimless drifting of the outlaws is reflected in a story that doesn't seem to be heading anywhere in particular, except to its inevitable conclusion. Some of the conflict and motivation is ambiguous; for example, Brooks appears to

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

attribute Clyde's homosexual tendencies to his prison rape, which seems questionable. Bonnie's character has more depth, but remains the familiar, none-too-bright sex kitten popularized by film, television and other fiction.

This novel is well-researched and evocative of the time and place; but the rotating cast of characters who join, leave and pursue the outlaws becomes a bit confusing. Brooks has taken some small liberties with history in the name of telling a good story (such as the timing of Bonnie's famous request to her mother, "Don't let them take me to a funeral parlor"), so it's not clear why the facts are so scrupulously adhered to in other places. Brooks does not continue the novel beyond the moment of the protagonists' deaths on the last page; it would have been more fulfilling to have closure on one or two of the detailed subplots he has created. Despite the subtitle, there's no real love story developed here, just a lot of dust and driving, bologna sandwiches, and bullets.

Val Perry

MOUNTAIN SHADOWS

Patricia Reiss Brooks, Pinto Press, 2004, $14.95,pb,333pp,0975567705

Alice journeys to the Adirondack Mountains in 1925 to take the famous cure for tuberculosis. She sits on a porch in a "cure cottage" with her fellow patients and prays for her health to return as the snow piles up around them. Meanwhile, her husband Joe must find a way to pay for her treatment, the costs of which quickly exceed his mechanic's salaiy. Inevitably, he turns to rum-running , making cove1t deliveries of alcohol from Canada to Lake Placid in defiance of Prohibition to cover the costs. lvfountain Shado\\'S is marketed as a love story, but the real dramatic tension comes from the race against time. The cure can take years, and Joe is certain to get caught. Can he keep going long enough for Alice to get better?

Patricia Reiss Brooks has a real zeal for her subject matter. The book is rich in period detail concerning the Adirondack region in general, and the industry that grew up around tuberculosis cures in particular. The writing is a little clumsy, and the love story a little mawkish, but readers will root for the plucky couple and the characters they meet along the way.

Colleen Quinn

SICK OF SHADOWS

Marion Chesney, St Martin's Minotaur, 2005, $22.95/CS32.95, hb, 224pp, 0312329644

Chesney continues the adventures of Lady Rose Summer and her fiance of convenience, private investigator Captain Harry Cathcart, in the third installment of this Edwardian mystery series. At the end of their last adventure, Hasty Death, Lady

THE HLSTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

Rose and Harry became engaged to keep her parents at bay and allow her a measure of freedom from the marriage market. However, as Sick of Shadows opens, Rose is smarting from the pitying glances and whispers when Harry can't accompany her to society functions. She befriends beautiful but poor Dolly Tremaine who has been put into society to find a rich husband. One morning when they are supposed to meet, Rose finds Dolly dead. The tabloids have insinuated that Rose knows more than she is saying, and attempts are made on her life.

A rich cast of suppo1ting characters assists Rose and Harry in finding Dolly's killer, including Daisy, a fon11er chorus girl turned companion to Rose , and Miss Bridge, Harry's secretary, fond of her gin but loyal to her employer. There were one too many red herrings for my liking, but the strength is in the evocation of the era, which Chesney masterfully brings to life with such details as a letter from Harry never received by Rose, as her father reserves the right to read her mail. It remains to be seen how much longer the two can continue to deny the love they feel for each other as even their servants recognize it. I hope the next instalment finds them married amateur sleuths.

Ellen Keith

UNION BELLE

Deborah Challinor, HarperCollins 2005, NZ$31.99, pb, 300pp, I 86950559X

This love story is set in 1951 during the waterfront workers' strike and tells of Ellen McCabe, a coal miner's wife, in a small Waikato town. Although I am old enough to remember the strike, I was not aware until reading this book how far reaching it became or that the miners came out in sympathy.

The author captures life in 1950s New Zealand accurately, a time when young couples took their offspring along with them to Saturday night dances, and afternoon tea parties held by local housewives were sometimes an excuse to open a bottle of sweet sherry.

She handles union matters well and her portrayal of the scenes in Queen Street when strikers and some of their womenfolk clashed with police, is sad and poignant. Her description of a terrible mishap in the local mine is convincing and shows the tension and terror of such an event, and the trauma suffered by a survivor.

The inhabitants of the small community of Pukemiro work hard and play hard and have regard for one another's well being. They pull together in misfortune but are not averse to spreading rumours and gossip when the opportunity arises.

Challinor maintains the tension right to the end of the novel so, like all good love stories, the reader has to wait for the final page to find out whether or not the heroine lives happily ever after.

Kath O'Sullivan

GREY SOULS

Philippe Claude! (trans. Adriana Hunter), Weidenfeld&Nicolson, 2005, £9.99, hb, I 89pp, 0 297 84779 I

Set in France during the Great War, this novel focuses on Public Prosecutor, PierreAnge Destinat, an aloof and inscrutable man. When the body of a young girl is found by the river in 1917, two army deserters are accused of her murder but not everyone is sure of their guilt.

The novel is part detective novel , part forensic psychology with a dash of philosophy. It is beautifully written (and well-translated for the most part) and its imagery is an intriguing blend of lushness and restraint. The little scene where the judge eats a breakfast of boiled eggs by a dead body in the early , icy morning is superbly constructed and described. Even if you are not a fan of detective novels , try this book. Its prize-winning success is well-deserved and the prose is refreshingly different. The story isn't bad either. Highly recommended.

Geraldine Perriam

THE CRUELLEST TEST

Roy Close, The Book Guild, 2005, £16.95, hb, 300pp, 1857768795

As a young man, the author served in the SAS with the Resistance in Occupied France and this novel is no doubt based on personal experience. The story is set in the 1960s and concerns the former members of a wartime SAS team who find themselves the target of a series of break-ins and murders which prove to have their roots in events in France in 1944. There are thus two stories in parallel, one told largely in flashback. The result is a fast moving tale of crime, adventure and romance.

Unfortunately , the early chapters are cluttered with pages of 'info-dumping', background information on the SAS, the Resistance and WW2 in general. The author knows too much and fears we know too little. This is an especial problem with historical novels and it is instructive to see how more experienced writers handle this. However, I feel the fatal flaw, from the publisher's view , is that the story is set in the Sixties, the dead space between History and The Present. It might have been better to have set the story in the Noughties with a new generation unravelling the secrets of their fathers or grandfathers. Ancient mysteries are always more fun.

Edward James

THE VANISHING MOON

Joseph Coulson, Harcourt, 2004, $ I 4.00, pb,35lpp,0156030187

The endless possibilities for employment and prosperity after World War I slowly begin to crumble in the Great Depression. Indeed, symbolically and potently, Joseph Coulson describes the summer of 193 I as ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

the "seaso n of dying trees." Stephen and Phil Tollman heroically but ineffectively attempt to prevent the disintegration of their family in the midst of economic ruin, physical illness, tragedy and increasing despair. Vanishing Moon is the lyrical account of the Tollman family's demise, but it is so beautifully crafted that one keeps turning the pages rapidly; that is, when one isn't stopping to ponder its poignantly poetic phrases and se ntences depicting the scenery and dynamic characters. Stephen possesses the most vivid narrative voice as he tells the tale of love and hate toward a father who loses the family's money, and who cannot prevent a mother's pending blindness nor a rebel brother's increasing and unresolved fury at " a life that demanded commitment but offered no guarantees because we are bound to promises that living will not let us keep." One also learns of the progressive history of the American railroad industry within these pages, the patriotic American response to World War II , and the rise of the unconventional feminine personality that refuses to conform to the expected social values of the time. A waxing and waning thread persists in comparing the two brothers whose sensitivity or lack thereof determines the resolution of so much pain prevalent throughout the entire story. Indeed , one must acknowledge it symbolic of what all of America was experiencing at that time.

Viviane Crystal

DEATH OF A CHANCELLOR

David Dickinson, Constable 2005, £ I 6.99, hb, 3 l 3pp, 1841197785

Set in 190 I , the aristocratic sleuth, Lord Francis Powerscourt is asked to investigate the strange circumstances of the death of the wealthy Chancellor of Compton Cathedral. His sister suspects foul play, particularly because only the doctor and undertaker are allowed to view the body. To add to the confusion three different wills are produced giving the various beneficiaries scope for disputing them. Before Powerscourt can come to any conclusions other strange deaths occur. As the Cathedral prepares for the celebration of a thousand years of Christian worship Powerscourt begins to suspect an astonishing secret.

The author incorporates much detail of ecclesiastical life of a century ago but never to the detriment of the story that is intriguing and satisfying. He writes with Oair and intelligence. A satisfying book.

Marina Oliver

DOW A ROAD NO REBELS RU

Mogue Doyle, Bantam Press 2005, hb, £12.99,252pp,0593052161

In Irish history the Black and Tans were a feared enemy, conducting a campaign of

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attempted suppression by violent assault on the civilian population as well as the freedom fighters. Doyle depicts fervent rebel activity in the county of Wexford in 1920 whereby the freedom fighters hope to gain independence from English rule. The captain of this company of volunteers, Jim Rowe, is an inexperienced young man whose big plan for an ambush on the Black and Tans is scuppered by insider inforn1ation. The punishment given to civilians thought to harbour the rebels is gruesome and Jim bears witness to the outcome.

He tells this history some years after the events have taken place, at his daughter's request. Jim appears to be nattered by the interest she displays, little knowing her ulterior motive to understand the history of the people involved as well as their actions.

Doyle draws the past and present together with much descriptive prose bringing many of the key elements of relationships to the fore in addition to political idealism.

Cathy Kemp

THE FROZEN LAKE

Elizabeth Edmondson, HarperCollins , £6.99,pb,487pp,0007184867

It is 1936 and the question on everyone's lips is whether there'll be a war. However, some people are asking themselves about much a far more exciting matter: will the lake dominated by the two great country houses, Grindley Hall and Wyncrag freeze over as it did sixteen years previously. So, one by one, the scattered family members of both houses and others too converge on this part of the Lake District to enjoy the skating and tobogganing such a harsh winter will provide. The guest-houses are full to bursting and it looks like Christmas will be a truly uplifting occasion What none suspect is that they will reveal some very dark secrets that certain people would rather remain hidden.

Rather like the film Gosford Park, this novel is both a mystery and a sharp expose of the manners and morals of the upper classes where butlers are inscrutable, breakfasts always include kidneys on silver dishes and afternoon tea is an extravaganza of toast , jam, crumpets and lashings of hot butter. We even have the detective who assembles everyone together in the drawing-room to draw the threads together, not to mention a mysterious American actress who is not all she seems. There is also a fairy-tale element in which love triumphs and a purple-clad fairy-godmother allows the deserving few their just rewards.

The tense atmosphere of the pre-war period, the rise of fascism and the innux of Jewish refugees is well-conveyed. Unfortunately, there are so many characters to introduce - each with a raft of psychological problems - that the first half is very slow indeed. Then everything that

follows is so rushed that any attempt at reality quickly goes out of the window and the novel descends into a morass of cliche, clunky characterisation and the most unlikely co-incidences. I'm afraid I laughed at the most inappropriate places. To be an army deserter is bad enough, but to also be a fascist, a psychopath and serial killer to boot is too much to swallow. This was such a pity because it had so much promise

Sally Zigmond

THE EDUCATION OF ARNOLD HITLER

Marc Estrin , Unbridled Books, 2004, $14.95,pb,45lpp, 1932961038

In his second novel, Estrin takes the reader on a wildly entertaining, half-magical ride through the history and cultural changes facing America in the latter half of the twentieth century. Young Arnold Hitler , a nice kid from Texas with an unfortunate moniker, searches for meaning, God, and true love amid the chaos of desegregation protests in the Fifties, the tumult of Harvard student life in the Sixties , and the hard reality of life in the Bowery in the Seventies. Aided by occasional advice from Grandpa Jacobo-who speaks to him through Arno ld 's left knee-our hero encounters real-life mentors and antagonists such as Noam Chomsky, Leonard Bernstein and Louis Feiser (inventor of napalm), is hunted and harassed by a descendant of Cotton Mather, and finds that few girls are willing to date a guy named Hitler. Estrin writes in the same literary tradition as Jonathan Franzen, Thomas Pynchon and Tom Robbins , with a more generous dose of redemption and hope Arnold manages to preserve his innocence without becoming jaded, or more importantly, annoying. Estrin, a forn1er Unitarian Universalist minister, develops the themes of identity and exile without hammering them home, injecting just enough magic realism at just the right moments to prevent the novel from veering either into romp or despair. Despite a third act that drags just a bit, Arnold Hitler 's education-from Saussure to anti-Semitism, My Lai to the bunker-has plenty to enlighten the reader as well. Definitely not a light read , but definitely recommended Val Perry

ADIOS HEMI GWAY

Leonardo Padura Fuentes, trans. John King , Canongate, 2005, £7.99, pb, 229pp, 1841955418

Dashiell Hammett prize-winning author Leonardo Padura Fuentes brings his favourite cop, Inspector Mario Conde, out of retirement and back to the Cuban crime scene when a storm uproots an old mango tree in the grounds of the Havana estate of Ernest Hemingway, revealing the skeleton of a man murdered 40 years earlier. The ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

discovery of a FBI badge nearby compels the local police to start an investigation.

Conde accepts the offer to lead the inquiry, a process that becomes 'a settling of scores between Conde and his oldest and most remote literary hero-worship' of Papa Hemingway, and a nostalgic journey into the Cuba of Conde's youth. As he pieces together the events of the night of 2-3 October 1958, Conde is forced to come to tenns with the darker sides of his hero's character. Two cleverly constructed parallel narratives, in 1958 and 1998, interweave these two men: the fictional Conde and Hemingway himself, one of the twentieth centu1y's most powerfi.il and enigmatic writers.

Fuentes incorporates a wealth of factual detail into this fictional account, and this heady blend demonstrates the ability of superbly written historical fiction to paint a truer picture of character than many biographies. Hemingway is portrayed on the verge of his final illness, fully conscious of his physical decay but still arrogant, powerfully masculine, a figure who commands respect in the poor fishing community of Cojfmar. Fuentes' latest addition to the Conde series is 'an unpredictable journey into the past', hazy with alcohol and the heal, and a thriller that delves deep into the human psyche, ageing and death.

Lucinda Byatt

BAKER TOWERS

Jennifer Haigh, William Morrow, 2005, $24. 95 / C$34.95, hb, 352pp, 0060509414

The m111111g town of Bakerton, Pennsylvania, is as much a character in this story as the Novaks, the family around which it is centered. Baker Towers spans the years from World War II through the Vietnam War and documents the changing fortunes of the town from when coal was big business, to striking miners, to a terrifying cave-in. The Novaks survive the untimely death of the husband and father of the family as the story opens and from then on, the men of the family retreat, leaving Bakerton and its familial responsibilities to the women. Older sister Dorothy works in Washington DC for a time before suffering a breakdown and returning to find a kind of peace as the secret girlfriend of a divorced Italian Catholic miner. Joyce, the brains of the family, joins the Air Force as a way of escape but finds it is no escape at all. She returns to take over matriarchal duties from overweight, diabetic mother Rose and to mother youngest sister Lucy. Mostly absent brothers George and Sandy are mere footnotes compare compared to the Novak women, but a third generation male finds his way back to Bakerton.

Haigh is an expert storyteller. Whether chronicling Dorothy's constrained wartime life in DC or revealing Joyce's vulnerabilities beneath her brisk, no-

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nonsense fa9ade, she displays an unerring grasp of characters, time, and place. The insular world of a mining town, where every family and small business rely on that one big business, is brought to life with a poignancy that is matter-of-fact and not maudlin. Although the time span would qualify it as a saga, it moves quickly along, so quick that 1 was sorTy to see it end.

Ellen Keith

A FARTHfNG WILL DO

Lilian Harry, Orion, Jan 2005, £9.99 ($18.88), hb, 3 l 4pp, 0752851292

Lilian Harry again achieves a well-crafted and uplifting regional saga with a fine sense of time and place. A social record of working-class counlly life, despite the privations, this heart-wam1ing story of relationships shows servicemen returning from the Second World War to find a changed world. Throughout, the book promises the survival of hope.

At home, life is unsettling. Women are now in charge; tied to the kitchen sink no longer. This book is an education in female liberation and deep-rooted male attitudes of the mid-twentieth centu1y. It is a history lesson set in rural Hampshire.

How many of us can name the dates of VE and VJ days? How many can cook basic English country fare with seasonal produce? In this novel we enjoy steak and kidney pudding, rabbit pie and a Christmas goose. Evenings spent in front of the kitchen range listening to ITMA on the wireless and cocoa before bed are the highlights of the working day. The simple pleasures of dappled sunlight through the tracery of winter branches or the sweeping carpet of virgin snow, across the downs and through the woods of southern England, delight young and lovers alike. After touching scenes of soldiers returning and loves renewed, it is good to see children, so natural and well drawn, enjoying the VE and VJ day street parties.

The characters are well portrayed. Will Ruth marry her motherless evacuee's father? Temptation leads to trouble as illicit sex threatens marriage. Could Lizzie's lapse of love with the American airman wreck hers when her husband, Alec, returns from POW camp a broken man? Will I-leather succeed in winning her brave husband's love back from the blond Land Girl? Even the parrot, Silver, who speaks Ruth's dead husband's phrases, learns to get more attention for rudery. Will Dan, in a reserved occupation, adjust to country life after urban life in Pompey's April Grove?

Sub-plots roam with tender and sometimes anguished emotion. To balance the love and tenderness there are fights and screams, doubts and debates but everyv,here is humanity at its best. The victim of the piece is the war. There is no other evil in the book.

This is a beautiful, simple book of love and tenderness, which ends with Ruth and 36

Dan's wedding when the supreme human qualities of forgiveness and reconciliation rise to save two other man·iages. I-low right! How good! How truly deserved.

Geoffrey Harfield

ANGEL OF HARLEM

Kuwana Haulsey, One World (Ballantine), $19.95/C$27.95, hb, 340pp, 0375508708

In Angel of Harlem, Kuwana Haulsey recounts the remarkable Ii fe of Harlem's first woman doctor, Dr. May Chinn. Told in a mixture of first and third person, this fictional biography is at its most absorbing once the author settles in to telling May's tale, beginning with her childhood. The first few chapters jumped from May's firstperson recollections of her father to his escape from slavery during the American Civil War.

May hersel r is an engaging character, by tum vulnerable, intelligent and tough. Drawing strength from her remarkable mother, May perseveres through illness, heartbreak and resistance to her ambitions from both her father and society. Far from a cardboard character, she comes across as a passionate and dedicated musician and doctor as well as a fun-loving, sometimes rebellious young woman and loyal friend.

The late 19 th and early 20 th centuries came alive through the author's setting, which was detailed yet not overwhelming. Similarly, the racial prejudice that existed, while not glossed over, doesn't dominate either. Though May and her parents were prominent, all of the characters appealed and were true to their time. The story moves along well, following May from her childhood through to her life's end. Aside from the slightly disjointed beginning, I found the final chapter a bit of an anticlimax. It appeared almost as an afterthought, included to wrap up the story when the same information would have been just as effectively included in the Author's Note. That said, this minor quibble by no means should discourage readers from picking up this inspiring novel about a woman who dedicated her life to helping others, despite the many obstacles thrown in her path. I finished the book in two nights, not wanting to put it down. One for my keeper shelf; highly recommended.

Teresa Basinski Eckford

A TIME GONE BY

William Heffernan, Akashic, 2005, $14.95, pb, 284pp, 1888451742

From a writer's point of view, this is very much a tour-de-force. Switching the time frame of a murder mystery back and forth between 1945 and 1975, and making it seem the easiest thing in the world, is a challenge not many authors are up to.

When a crooked judge is murdered in his home in 1945, Jake Dowling, only a rookie cop, quickly discovered that the ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

political fix was in. Thirty years later, Jake finally has the clout to close the case. There is a definite noir-i s h feel to the scenes taking place in 1945. Of course, there is a woman involved , and even though Jake is married, he falls deeply in lust (if not love) with the judge's new widow, a hat-check girl who'd made good.

Back in 1975, Jake has known all along that the wrong man, even though a killer, went to the electric chair, initiating the tantalizing interplay between past and present. The transitions take place smoothly, meshing into place in near perfection , but the naive Jake of 1945 is better developed than -the later Jake. Even as an NYPD chief of detectives, he still seems too callow for the job. But as for the mystery itself, well, you couldn't have a detective story like this without having a switch or two, and/o r a substantia l surprise or three, before it's done, could you?

I daren't say more. If you're fond of 1940s noir with an appreciable touch of sexual infidelity, do read this one.

Steve Lewis

A WOMAN OF THE WORLD

Genie Chipps Henderson, Berkley, 2004, $6.99 / C $9.99, pb, 372pp, 0425199134

In her fiction debut, Genie Chipps Henderson has created a strong and vulnerable heroine, based on famed photographer Margaret Bourke-White and her experiences. The year is 1942 , and Kate Goodfellow is determined to be the first female war co1Tespondent allowed into battle to share her stories and photos with readers back in America. Her chance comes in the form of a troopship headed for North Africa. But the ship is torpedoed, and Kate and her fellow passengers are left adrift at sea on a lifeboat. As they await a rescue that may never happen, Kate thinks back on the men she left behind, and how she came to be a famous photographer.

At first, I worried that this character would bore me to tears with her striking beauty and the fact that every man appears to fall in love with her. As it happens, I was not bothered by this in the least because the heady love affairs aren't the main focus of Kate's life. This novel is much more than a catalogue of a woman making her way up the career ladder: it relates Kate's constant struggles to overcome being a woman in a man's world (in the field of photojournalism, and in the 1920s and 30s in general), and how her ambitions shaped every relationship she had. Her memories of growing up with only her father are particularly deftly told. Kate's story is in turn gripping, hilarious, poignant, and ultimately touching. Highly recommended. L. K. Mason

WAR TRASH

Ha Jin, Pantheon, 2004, $25.00/C$35.00, hb,350pp,0375422765

At the onset of the Korean War, all that Yu Yuan wants to do is to take care of his elderly mother and marry Julan , his fiancee. But as a recent graduate of the Huangpu Military Academy, he gets assigned to the People's Liberation Army, and is sent to fight in the conflict. Though not a party member, Yuan is happy with the order the three-year-old Communist government has brought to China. His superiors say American soldiers are "soft" and poorly trained. A week after crossing into North Korea, however, food supplies run out. Yuan and his fellow soldiers fight on desperately and are captured. From then on, the novel presents his struggle to survive, to "stay away from the herd," and go back home Speaking English fluently, Yuan becomes a commodity in the POW camp divided between the Communists, who want to return to China, and the Nationalists, suppo1ied by Chiang Kai-Shek and the American government, trying to draw them away to Taiwan.

Poet, novelist, and National Book Award winner (Waiting) Ha Jin sets Yuan's tenacious battle against a backdrop of cruelty, fanaticism, isolation, and loneliness. Drawing from factual prisoner accounts, the novel is written as a memoir, elegiac and spare in tone , with evocative descriptions of small Korean villages, and powerful imagery ("So much blood flowed on a hill slope that the next morning hundreds of rooks flew around with blood-stained wings"). The tale is full of humanity and pathos, and Yuan's voice remains convincing and humane , echoing soldierpoet Wilfrid Owen's words on young men "who died as cattle," and alluding to the common sentiments of all soldiers when quoting their longings and sadness in an ancient Chinese poem. War Trash grabs the reader and doesn't let go. (War Trash recently won the 2005 PEN/Faulkner Award. -ed.)

Adelaida Lower

THE MAZE

Panos Kamezis, Vintage 2005, £6.99, pb, 362pp, 0099449951 (pub. in US by Picador 2005,$14.00,pb,0312423837)

Anatolia, 1922. In the wake of the Turkish victory in the War of Independence, a remnant of the Greek Expeditionary Force is retreating, lost, towards the Mediterranean coast. The unit is commanded by elderly, morphine-addicted Brigadier Nestor, whose likens their adventures to the Odyssey. A more contemporary allusion is Catch-22, with shades of Louis de Bernieres in the tragiccomic characters lost in the new order emerging after WW I , especially when the unit a1Tives at a town hitherto unaffected by

the war. Shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel of the Year in 2004, The Maze is a fable infused with colourful detail and darkness, a fresh yet timeless slant on the human condition.

Janet Hancock

HITLER'S PEACE

Philip Kerr, G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2005, $26.95/C$39.00, hb, 448pp, 0399152695

World War II in Europe would have come to a far different conclusion if Hitler had been able to conclude peace talks with any of his three major adversaries. Peace initiatives were tentatively broached with both the Soviets and the Americans following Germany's crushing defeat at Stalingrad. Philip Kerr uses this as his starting point to present a thriller based on Hitler's presence at secret peace talks with FDR and Stalin at the real life Allied conference at Teheran in 1943

Kerr's protagonist, Willard Mayer, is a former Soviet agent and Harvard philosopher working for the OSS as a German translator. Recruited by President Roosevelt to investigate the Soviet killing of Polish officers in the Katyn Forrest, Mayer is shortly taken into FDR's inner circle for the ocean voyage to the Middle East. On board the USS Iowa, Mayer becomes convinced foreign agents are conspiring to assassinate at least one member of the Big Three. The action goes from the American battleship to British-occupied Egypt where our intrepid philosopher is framed for murder. His relentless pursuit of the conspiracy eventually results in his being present in Teheran where he, and the reader, are shocked to see the tale take unexpected twists.

The novel takes us from the inner chambers of Heinrich Himmler's domain to the scandal-ridden U.S. State Department to the homicidal world of Beria , Stalin's most v1c1ous killer. Although some readers may wish for a more straightforward plot, the story does have its fair share of excitement. Minor historical errors ( e.g., the highest decoration in World War I awarded to "Wild Bill" Donovan was the Medal of Honor, not the Distinguished Service Cross; the main gun for the Panther tank was a 75mm, not the famous 88mm) do not detract from an otherwise well constructed novel.

John R. Vallely

CARRY ME HOME

Sandra Kring, Delta , 2005, $ I 3/C$ l 8, pb, 260pp,0385338139

Set in small-town Wisconsin in the years prior to, during, and after World War II , Carry Me Home is seen through the eyes of Earl "Earwig" Gundennan. Teenage Earwig has been "simple" since a childhood bout of

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ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

scarlet fever, and Kring handle s hi s unique nanative with skill.

His older brother Jimm y and Jimmy's friends, all of whom treat him with rough affection, go off to war, and Earwig goes through his own growth in their absence, leaving his job at his mother's store to work at the bowling alley and befriending an abused young wife and her sister-in-law, the town slut. The war takes its toll on the home front when rationing on gas and tires forces Earwig's father to leave his gas station and take a factory job out of town to earn more money. Jimmy and his friend Floyd finally come home, both beaten down in body and mind after serving as POWs in the Pacific, and in the hierarchy of war service, they are not accorded the same respect that those who fought the Gennans are. Despite these hardships and the pain felt by Earwig that his beloved older brother is not the same, his story ultimately ends on a note of hope.

The author has lovingly recreated small town life with all its insularities and made it especially affecting with the price that the war has exacted upon it. At times Earwig's nanation is shrewder than seems possible with his deficiency, but in the end that pales beside the power of this heartfelt tale.

Ellen Keith

THE OBIT MAN

Fred Langan, Mosaic Press, 2004, $15.00/ C$21.00, pb, 242pp, 0889628297

In 1944, sixty French-speaking Canadians were sent to Occupied France as part of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) Their tasks included training resistance fighters, sabotaging German transport trains, and assassinating Nazi Officers. Of the sixty who parachuted into occupied France, only fifteen survived. The story alternates between the POV of the Obit man Uoumalist-writer of obituaries) and his heroic World War II subject, the recently deceased Captain Henry Foix. The author writes about what he (as the modem narrator) knows, for Mr. Langan is a print and television journalist, and an anchor for CBC business news. The Obit Man gives us an interesting inside look at the world of the journalist of the late 1980s. The chapters dealing with the war and the shadow world of the SOE are stronger, the stuff of film noir. The Obit Man poses a question as topical now as it was fifty years ago. What action, during the horror of war and foreign occupation , constitutes "atrocity"?

Juliet Waldron

THE

SEPTEMBER GIRLS

Maureen Lee, Orion 2005, £ 12 99 (18 88), hb,410pp,075284752X

It was September when Brenna and Colm Caffrey arrived in Liverpool from Ireland. Colm's brother Paddy had promised them a fine house to live in but tragedy strikes and Brenna gives birth in a stranger's house.

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Upstairs, the mistress of the house is giving birth to her own daughter.

The first part of this book deals with the quirks of fate that lead the two women to become friends. However, it really comes to life at the start of World War II when their daughters both join the army to do their bit for the war. This is an absorbing story, tragic at times, which goes at it own pace. Lee's fans will welcome it and it is an enjoyab le book, although I did find it a bit heavy-going at times. However, it is still a worthwhi le read.

Linda Sole

1972: A NOVEL OF IRELAND 'S UNFINISHED REVOLUTION

Morgan Llywelyn, Forge, 2005, $24.95 / C$34.95, hb, 384pp, 0312878575

At first glance, Barry Halloran, the protagonist of /972-the fourth in a series of dated novels concerning Ireland in the twentieth century-would appear to be the usual caricature of an overzealous young man joining the IRA for the thrill. But after Barry's first taste of violence, he vows he'll never kill again-not out of cowardice, but out of revulsion at the seductive nature of the act itself, and the hot-blooded joy he took in it. Sany remains on active service for many years, and, indeed, retains contacts with the lRA all his life, but he also moves on: He attends university and becomes a photojournalist. Once ensconced in a respectable Ii fe-mortgage, fiancee, dependents-Sany risks a trip into troubled Deny to take photos of Father Aloysius' peaceful demonstration. There, as an eyewitness to the sectarian brutality of Bloody Sunday, Barry is forced to choose between his comfortable life, the republican ideals he cherishes, and his passionate vow to never unleash the devil within.

Ms. Llywelyn writes like a clear partisan to the republican cause, yet she shows both sides of the conflict. Although not much happens in Ireland between 1950 and 1972 that is of overwhelming dramatic effect (compared to the Easter Rising in I 9 I 6 and the Civil War in 1921), the author's depiction of an intelligent, self-critical man rn crisis 1s thorough and gripp in g.

Lisa Ann Verge

A HIGH AND HIDDEN PLACE

Michele Claire Lucas, HarperSanFrancisco, 2005,$22.95,hb, 288pp,0060740566

On June 11, 1945, a child clutches an iron pot in the ruins of her home in provincial France. She's reared in a convent, under the watchful and loving guidance of her "angel" nun, who keeps secrets and replaces her true history w ith a more palatable one-that her parents died in an influenza epidemic. The truth is that all of the girl's relatives have perished in the worst Nazi atrocity in France; that she is Christine ofOradour.

38

Focusing on the years 1944, 1963, and 1976, Christine's story is told as she recovers some of her memories and searches out who she was. The story switches from her first person explorations to a harrowing third-person account of the last day in the life of her community. Even those who died most grievously arc given dignity in death by this gifted author. As Christine discovers the truth, her caretakers advise her to "live to the full the life that was spared." The crucial question for this young woman becomes: how? Unforgettable characters like Jewish sisters haunted by their own past, the caretaker of Oradour, and Christine's courtly Irish American suitor help her towards her obligation.

Lyrically told, A High and Hidde n Place is a story haunted by death , but full of grace. Highly recommended.

Eileen Charbonneau

THE BALK.AN TRILOGY

Olivia Manning, A1Tow 2004 , £15.00, pb, l033pp,0099427486

This was a book I had heard of without knowing anything about it. First published just after WW2 , it deals with ex-patriots living first in Rumania and Greece while the conflict grows ever closer. It isn't often that I choose to undertake a novel of over I 000 pages and I was prepared to flounder halfway through - but I didn't.

The story is told mainly from the viewpoint of Harriet , a 23-year-old who has married an English lecturer and returned to live with him in Rumania. Her hu s band , Guy, is popular, loved by his students, a man who is there for everyone. which makes the maniage overcrowded. Variou s lame ducks are brought to live in the house , denying the couple privacy. Guy' s determination to do his bit for the war prompts him to put on English plays that involve hours of rehearsal, each event eroding the central relationship. The author skilfully unfolds Harriet's bemusement , her disappointments and her ultimate coming to terms with her situation.

Many of the characters are English , from the school of classic education and with the right connections to keep them afloat in this fragile world. One can sec their gray flannels and floppy fringe s , hear their voices as they find a route through the tangled undergrowth of the approaching war. Others are less lucky, like Sa s ha, a young Jew forced to flee when his father is arrested, and Yakimov, an emigre Russian prince , down on his luck and making a career of sponging off his acquaintances. Superbly, with studied understatement, they are observed and brought to life Inevitably there are moments of danger and drama but even in the quiet times I was enthralled by this skilled depiction of ordinary people, none-the-less likeable for ISSUE 32 , MAY 2005

their failings. At the end of the book it was hard to say goodbye.

Janet Mary Tomson

THE FLIGHT OF THE FALCON

Daphne du Maurier, Virago Press 2005, £7.99, pb, 304pp, 1884408706

Virago are, over the next three years, republishing all Daphne du Maurier's books, and Tire Flight <~f th!! Falcon has started the series in fine style.

It is set in post-war Italy, and Fabbio, a tour guide, returns to Ruffano, the place of his birth, on a \\him. He is shocked to discover that his brother Aldo, a war hero, presumed dead, is in fact alive and a prominent citizen. Aldo is obsessed by the I 5 th century Duke of Ruffano, and each year at the local festival, reinacts a scene from the Duke's life. This time Fabbio is afraid that Aldo means to cause a massacre by inciting rival gangs of university students, and carry his fanta y to the limit.

Although dated, the book is a gripping story of two brothers, each searching for an identity, one unable to come to terms with the past, and the other the present. Suffice to say, the novel holds the reader's attention until the last page.

Highly recommended.

Ruth Ginarlis

LAST VOYAGE OF THE VALENTINA

Santa Montefiore, Hodder & Stoughton, 2005,£14.99,hb,39lpp,0340830875

In 1971, Alba Arbuckle is a promiscuous, self-centred rich girl living on a converted motor torpedo boat belonging to her father. The boat is named Tire Valentina after Alba's dead Italian mother. Alba's father has since remarried and lives the life of a country squire \\ ith his wife and Alba's half-sisters but Alba loathes their lifestyle. Haunted by thoughts of her mother whom they won't discuss, she feels excluded and behaves atrociously whenever she visits them. When Alba discovers a sketch of her mother clone by her father during the war, it increases her need to know more about the elusive Valentina. Abandoning her hedonistic lifestyle in London, Alba travels to the village of Incantellaria in search of her maternal roots. The journey takes her on a voyage of self-discovery because finding her mother is one thing, finding out about her mother's secret past is another, and Alba is unprepared for the shocking story her probing reveals.

This is ultimately an enjoyable novel although the quality is uneven and at times almost scuppered by wooden dialogue and adjective-riddled, overblown language. 'The tops of her breasts, revealed in the low deco/le/age of her dress, rose like milk chocolate souffle ' I also blinked at the notion of anyone making love all night on a pebbly beach! Fortunately the novel is salvaged by Alba's voyage of discovery

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

and the atmosphere of lncantellaria itself which is so evocative the reader can almost inh ale the hot lemon-scented air. The plot twists are unexpected and even if you are irritated at times you will probably keep reading to the end.

Susan Hicks

MISS PURDY'S CLASS

Annie Murray, Macmillan 2005, £18.99, hb, 1405047 895

Gwen Purdy is what was called in the 1930s, 'a nice girl'. She comes from a respectable background and is a schoolteacher in her pleasant home-town. She is engaged to a likeable young curate but feels that she should see something of another way of life before she marries. She takes a short-term post in a Birmingham inner city school.

The horrendous poverty of the slums comes as an almost physical shock to her. She meets a young Communist activist and, partly because she is strongly attracted to him and partly because of her genuine revulsion at what she sees around her, she joins the Communist Party. Her fom1er life seems increasingly irrelevant, her family ties grow weaker and her engagement is broken. Gradually she comes to realise that Daniel's total commitment to the Party leaves no room for anything else in his life. By the time Daniel leaves to join the Republican cause in the Spanish Civil War Gwen has accepted that their relationship is over. There is no glib romantic ending on the lines of a return to her previous life and her good-hearted fiance.

This book has much so to offer. Apart from the vivid impression of the dreadful poverty of the 1930s it gives substantial insight into the growth of the Communist Party in Birmingham. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it as an honest, thought provoking read.

Ruth Nash

THE BEAR BOY

Cynthia Ozick, Weidenfeld 2005, £12.99, hb, 31099, (American title, HEIR GLIMMERING WORLD, & Nicolson, 0297848089 TO THE Reviewed in Issue 30, November 2004

WHATEVER IT TAKES

Lynda Page, Headline, 2005, £ I 8.99, hb, 312pp,0755308808

World War 11 is over and husbands are coming home. However, our heroine soon comes to feel let down by her reunion. Her man brings home an unwelcome friend who saved his life in the Far East, and this uncouth stranger intrudes mercilessly on their marriage. What is going on? Does he still love her? If so, why is he acting so unnaturally? And what really happened in the War?

I am not being derogatory when I say this slim tale is very much a woman's story. The emphasis is on the characters and their emotions, and extremely convincing they are too. The period feel is pretty good, although this could cause problems. The accurate social attitudes displayed could make it hard for modern liberated women to identify with the heroine. The plot has whiskers, and the resolution is frankly unbelievable but the superb characterisation really does carry all before it.

Martin Bourne

NOBODY COMES BACK: A Novel of the Battle of the Bulge

Donn Pearce, Forge, 2005, $23.95/C$33.95, hb,255pp,07653l0848

The German offensive into the Ardennes on December 16, 1944, caught the Allied command completely by surprise. Three Gennan armies combined to destroy four illprepared American divisions and threatened to drive on to capture the vital supply base of Antwerp. While initially slow to develop, the American counterattack featured some of the most savage combat for U.S. forces since Normandy and resulted in the virtual total destruction of Germany's tank and motorized divisions. The battle occupies a central place in American memory of World War II in Europe and is looked upon as one of the greatest accomplishments 111 American military history.

Donn Pearce, an Academy A wardnominated screenwriter for Cool Hand Luke, tells the story of the Bulge through the eyes of young Toby Parker. Parker stands in as a kind of "everyman" as he goes from green GI to combat-wise veteran. Parker is thrown into the fighting at an early stage and is quickly captured. A series of circumstances lead him to assume command of a ragtag group of American soldiers intent upon returning to U.S. lines. Parker faces the challenges and stress of the battlefield in a manner that transforms the young and na"ive recruit into a soldier who has seen too much too fast. This "everyman" is finally placed in a rear area hospital, where he sees Army bureaucracy at its most idiotic. Parker has seen quite a war in a very brief time, and the reader is reminded once again of war's cruelty and ultimate insanity.

John R. Vallely

THE POINT I THE MARKET

Michael Pearce, Poisoned Pen Press, 2005, $24.95, hb, 2l2pp, 1590581377

This 15th in a series of adventures of Captain Owen, the Mamur Zapt, the British head of the Sultan's Secret Police in preWorld War I Egypt, is the first for me, and that's my error. Your error, too, if you've missed them as well, and you have a fondness for historical mysteries with a flair for the foreign and exotic.

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

Until the war activities began, the British control was veiled, under the pretense of being advisors to the government. Now that an attack from Turkey seems imminent, the veil is off. Owen's case centers around the body found in the Camel Market, soon learned to be that of an Egyptian who was an agent for Owen.

He has other problems. Some Egyptians are beginning to chafe under the more overt British rule. Owen's new wife, Egyptian, has begun to find herself cut off from both worlds. Not only that, he finds he must deal with a phenomenon totally new to Egypt, a burgeoning feminist movement for which the male population of the country is totally unprepared.

Pearce's quiet humour and insight go a long way in disguising the fact that there's no solid centre to the story. But the sights and sounds of a country seemingly on the verge of greatness again are vividly depicted, malcing this book a delight to read, along with the people in it. The world they live in is changing, and they are often perplexed by it. Amusing to us, perhaps, but of the utmost significance to them.

Steve Lewis

HOMEWARD MY HEART

Judith Pella, Bethany House, 2004, $ I 3.99, pb,460pp,0764224247

World War II is over, but Stalin's increasingly paranoid behavior has fashioned Russian society into a consistently fearful and dangerous place. The Hayes women, previously depicted in the first three novels of the "Daughters of Fortune" series, attempt to refashion no1mal lives in America and Germany. Memories of the war, however, cannot be extinguished. Cameron's husband is imprisoned, first figuratively and later literally, in Russia. Blair longs for a child she can never birth because of her torture endured as a Japanese POW but is expected to respond lovingly to her Japanese niece, Emi. Jacqueline reveals to her father the secret everyone else is hiding. And suddenly, in a rather contrived manner, all three wind up travelling to Russia and attempting to free Alex, Cameron's husband. Acknowledging that it must be difficult to maintain a sustainable and exhilarating plot, Pella succeeds in bringing the family saga to a faith-filled, inspiring end.

Viviane Crystal

DELICIOUS

Nicky Pellegrino, Orion, 2005, £9.99, pb, 298pp, 0752867873. Pub in Us by orion in hb ,$3 4.01, 0752861298

This is a charn1ing first novel. Set in San Giulio, a small town on the dusty plains of Campania, the author paints an evocative, but realistic picture of Italian life in 1964.

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

Sixteen-year-old Maria Domenica Carozza is desperate to discover whether there is more to life than the four walls of her parent's kitchen, where she helps her mother bake bread every morning, and her greedy, idle sister Rosaria. The offer of a job at the Caffe Angeli provides Maria Domenica with her first chance of escape and also the loyal friendship of the bar owner and his son. An unplanned pregnancy leads to a disastrous forced marriage, after which Maria Domenica leaves San Giulio and is drawn north on a wild search for the father of her child - an English student from Liverpool whom she met on a visit to Rome. In Liverpool she bravely embarks on a new life with her young daughter Chiara. The second half of the book jumps to the year 2000 and the focus switches to Chiara, now a successful food writer. Chiara finds herself drawn to Italy where she decides to look for her mother's family, but the domestic intrigues of the Carozza family and the gastronomic charm of her grandmother's kitchen are more complex than they seem. Although I felt that the characters occasionally struggled to escape their stereotypes, this is a warm-hearted, enjoyable saga that explores the themes of love and betrayal, emigration and the strength of family ties stretching across generations, cultures and continents.

Lucinda Byatt

BLOOD MOON OVER BENGAL

Morag McKendrick Pippin, Leisure, 2004, $5.99/C$7 .99 /£5.99/ AUS 14.95, pb, 339pp, 0843954523

The old fighter plane piloted by Elizabeth Mainwan·ing comes limping in to the parade ground in Calcutta, barely avoiding a crash landing. Elizabeth, accompanied by a childhood friend, has a1Tived to visit her estranged father, Colonel Mainwarring. But Elizabeth and Fiona find themselves in the midst of a terrifying situation-someone has been raping and brutally murdering Indian, and now British, women. Elizabeth finds herself strongly attracted to Major Covington-Singh, son of the Bengal Maharajah and an Englishwoman. Major Covington-Singh is in charge of the investigation into the women's murders, but faces severe discrimination because of his Indian blood, even though he is a prince. The details of the English community-their lives, language, and social views-are well woven into the story and plunge the reader into this turbulent part of the Empire in 1932. While the romantic elements didn't ring quite true early in the book, this is easily overlooked in the pleasures attached to the strong sense of place and the suspense of discovering who is behind the grisly murders. I shall be looking forward to Ms. Pippin's next novel.

Trudi E. Jacobson

BRANDENBURG

Henry Porter, Orion, June 2005, £ I 0 , hb , 448pp,0752856936

This is a long and complex spy story leading to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany. The ending is no secret. It is a human, desperate , fearful, eager and dangerous record. And a story that had to be told.

Like another recent thriller, Brendenburg has as protagonist an art expert, this time at the Zwinger Palace's Gemaldegalerie m Dresden. Dr Rudi Rosenharte is a double-agent intent on rescuing his twin brother, imprisoned for dissidence, though this motive is concealed from the reader for many pages. The complexity of the plot involving so many background characters left me baffled. It is surprising the book is not written in first person. The mere fact that Rosenharte is always on stage leads one to believe the story originally was.

It is a big book in all senses, opening in 1989 in Trieste , the Austro-Hungarian Empire's major Adriatic port. As the slowly developing thriller advances, the West drip-feeds East Germany with military technical data.

The story involves the hated East German Stasi , British M 16, the Russian KGB, NATO and the West German BND. An Arab terrorist/double agent is involved too. Detailed research seems very credible. The author even claims the Stasi used long tweezers to remove dissident leaflets already delivered to letterboxes. The atmosphere of slab-sided buildings, bored, ill-clad and stubborn agents gives a remarkable picture of the prohibitive Sta s i who needed 81,000 intelligence officers to police a state of only 17 million people! One could even get three months in jail for canying Gorbachev's photo!

After a slow start, the momentous historical events begin to unfold two-thirds through the book in Berlin , Dresden and Leipzig. Pictures of the freedom services in the Nicholaikirche, Leipzig and of a family fleeing over the border to Czechoslovakia, make a strong case for democracy and for non-violent, peaceful demonstration.

There is great emotion at the reunification of the two Germanys with cheering crowds, celebration flowers and strangers embracing in the street with joy and relief. Some bring their dogs, babies in pushchairs and elderly rel atives to share the welling tears of delight. It makes an uplifting ending.

I enjoyed Brandenburg, but it was, like Rosenharte's struggle, hard work Geoffrey Harfield

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

ROSA

Jonathan Rabb, Crown, 2005, $24.95 / C$34.95, hb , 405pp, 1400049210

Set in early post-WWI Berlin, this detective story starts like so many others: with a corpse. And like many others , this one involves a madman butchering women and evading the police. Then a woman who has cultivated a few too many political enemies turns up as yet another apparent victim of the madman. But was she really? Nikolai Hoffner, Detective Inspector with the city's Kriminalpolizei, doesn't think so. And despite intense pressure from his superiors to steer away from the political aspects of the case, he persists. And his persistence costs him dearly.

I found Part One of this story a bit formulaic and even familiar. But just as I thought I had it all figured out, Part Two turned the story on its head and brought life to the tale. From that point on , I was hooked and there was no putting the book down. Suddenly there were hitherto unseen sides to the characters and an even deeper and more disturbing overtone to the plot. The rise of a darker evil was almost palpable. The scene which ties all the loose ends together could have used a bit more suspense, but the ride to that point was well worth the fare.

Mark F. Johnson

THE DEVIL'S WIND

Richard Rayner, HarperCollins , 2005, $24.95 / C$34.95 , hb, 324pp, 0066212928

The author who wrote The Devil's Wind was born in England , but he now lives in Los Angeles, and as in the case of a certain other author (named Chandler), it may take someone from the other side of the Atlantic to tell us in this country what we're really like.

Or what we were in the past. Back in 1956, the time of HUAC; the Nevada bomb tests and the concomitant growth of Las Vegas; Jimmy Hoffa; racism; and jazz. All essential ingredients of this top-notch noirish thriller based on identities: hidden identities , newly created identities; and revenge: subtle and not-so-subtle, and bullets to match.

And the woman. Mallory Walker is a rich man's daughter and a would-be architect, a field which in the 1950s had no easy openings for women. Her target: Maurice Valentine, well-known architect and would-be Senator for Nevada. Valentine is married, but he is eminently capable of being seduced, and he finds himself captivated.

There is also the hot wind that blows across the Nevada desert. The natural wind. There is also the unnatural wind that arises after the flash and colossal boom of the mushroom clouds viewable from the top floor of Las Vegas hotels, the wind that causes disasters in more ways than one.

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

About halfway through, one of the notes I wrote myself reads, "I have absolutely no idea where this book is going " ls that adequate as a one-line review? I'd like to think so. I do think so. It's quite a ride.

Steve Lewis

RIVER OF THE BROKENHEARTED

David Adams Richards, Arcade, $25.00, hb, 38 I pp, I 559707127

Pub. in the UK by Jonathan Cape, 2004, £16.99, hb, 400pp, 0224072609

Set in New Brunswick's Miramichi River valley between the 1920s and the 1990s, River of the Brokenhearted follows three generations of the King family , whose matriarch, Janey Mcleary, founds a movie theater business with her sickly husband George King. Following George ' s death, Janey struggles against those who conspire against her, but success casts public opinion against her and those loyal to her. The fact of the matter is that the Mcleary and Druken families are sworn against each other, that no one knows exactly who began the feud is beside the point. The tension between these families sets decades of repercussions into motion

Narrated for the most part by Wendell King, the novel focuses on his father, Miles, Janey's son , and events that occur during his lifetime. Miles is surrounded by strong women, but he is out of step with the world around him. Loss, or the threat of it, is never far away, and the deaths of Miles' sister and grandfather both occur under inexplicable and suspicious circumstances.

This novel is beautifully written, though the narrative is sometimes confusing when the adult son, who hasn't personally witnessed many of the events he reports, discusses the childhood actions of his father. The characters and their meanderings are convincingly real. River of the Brokenhearted is an extraordinary treat.

Janette King

LIBERA TJON ROAD

David L. Robbins, Bantam, 2005, $25.00 / C$35.00, hb, 445pp, 0553801759

Shortly after the first Allied troops stormed across the beaches of Normandy, they required supplies. Ammo , food, fuel, medical supplies, uniforms, and hundreds of other essentials poured off supply ships onto the beaches. Before the age of the helicopter, the only way to keep the troops supplied was by truck. Thousands of them were needed as the ground pounders broke out of the hedgerows and raced across France. The vast majority of these trucks were driven by minorities, still segregated from the front line units. These drivers and their trucks became known as the Red Ball Express.

As he always does, Robbins tells the tale of a vast battle through the eyes of a few soldiers. This time they include a Red Ball Express driver and an infantry veteran 41

of WWI who has returned to front-line duty as an Army chaplain. The driver is an educated black enlisted man who chafes at the racial taunts directed at him by the men he risks his life to supply. The chaplain is a rabbi who's searching for his son, a bomber pilot shot down over France and listed as missing in action.

This is Robbins doing what he does better than almost anyone else: bringing the reader right down into the mud and blood and horror of war. But there's a deeper moral lesson at work in this story as well. The men who risked their lives to deliver the lifeblood of an arn,y to the frontline troops received bigotry and hatred for their efforts. They were assigned to drive trucks because of racial ignorance. They were denied their rightful glory because of racial ignorance. And their story has been rarely told because of racial ignorance. One hopes this book opens some long- closed eyes to the heroism and sacrifice of those drivers.

Mark F. Johnson

THE LAST MASQUERADE

Antonio Orlando Rodriguez, trans. from the Spanish by Ernesto Mestre-Reed, Rayo/ HarperCollins, 2005, $24.95 / C$34.95, hb,480pp,006058632X

Excited about the prospect of watching Eleanora Duse perform on stage, Lucho Belalcazar and Wenceslao (Wen) Hoyos decide to travel from their native Bogota to Cuba. Maybe, they think, they will be able to interview the great actress. On their journey, Lucho and Wen happily and carelessly explore a sweltering world , populated by strident characters: an elegant bearded lady, hern,aphrodite nuns, people who collect "castanets and dead ladies' hands," a gorgeous Communist agitator, and even some depressed ghosts.

Structurally, The Last Masquerade sputters between chapters detailing Lucho and Wen's pursuit of the actress (with some erotic detours) and Eleanora's lackluster soliloquies on her life and thought. The action moves between the past, the present (the I 920s), and the hereafter. The writing is colorful, breathless at times. There are some neat twists. Regrettably, I quickly grew annoyed with the protagonists' attitude: "we are young, we are beautiful and we are elegant." The dramatics, the exaggeration, along with too many "sinewy arms," "milky skins," and "thick eyelashes ," made me feel I was on an erratic carnival ride. I couldn't wait to get off.

Adelaida Lower

MUSIC OF THE MILL

Luis J. Rodriguez, HarperCollins, 2005, $24.95 / C$34.95, hb, 308pp , 0060560762

Procopio Salcido is an eighteen-year-old residing with his parents in Sonora, Mexico This is Yaqui country, where yield of the desert farms was drastically cut with the ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

completion of the Angostura Dam in 1941. It has been three lean years without the floodwaters necessary for plant life. Today's stroll becomes a mission to find a living across the border, where he settles in southern Arizona and looks for work. This life leads to the copper mines of Bisbee, Morencia, and Douglas, where active union involvement results in a price on Procopio's head. Persuading Eladia, a sixteen-year-old, to leave an abusive family and meet him at the train station the next morning, he travels to the steel mills of Los Angeles. Locating a justice of the peace, these two refugees marry.

Johnny, his older son, tells of Procopio 's final days and death on a rainy day with family near. Saddened, but eventually able to reflect, Procopio's mind wanders. I le can't fathom a technology and market capable of destroying the mills. Yet all is not dead. Like his ancestors who thought in layers, he envisions the inevitable clash of man with nature. Even Johnny knows that changes will flourish.

This book is recommended as an epic talc of three generations at a time when life centered on the decaying steel industry. Readers encounter an elaborate mix of workers brought from the farms of several southern states , members of numerous Indian tribes, and Mexicans. In this social history, they will get a glimpse of the melting pot that is the United States.

Jetta Culpepper

Tl-IE

SHADOW OF THE WIND

Carolos Ruiz Zafon, Phoenix, 2005, £9.99, tpb, 403pp, 0753819317. Pub in US by Penguin, pb, 01303490 I

This novel has raced up the best-sellers' charts throughout Europe and it's not hard to see why. It is a gothic thriller par excellence with a convoluted plot and more twists and turns than a corkscrew. Set in Barcelona in 1945 where the scars of the civil war, both physical and mental still haunt the streets, this is the story of Daniel. When he is ten, his father takes him to an obscure library called the Cemetery of Forgotten Books and tells him to choose one book to keep. Here, the boy randomly picks 'The Shadow of the Wind' by Julian Carax and immediately becomes obsessed with the story it tells and its enigmatic author. From now on his life is overtaken by the dark forces of evil, passion and pain.

The pages turned quickly and I was soon wrapped up in the frantic hunt to discover the truth. It began well. The atmosphere of post-war Barcelona is well conveyed and strangely compelling. I lowcver, the events and emotions were so highly wrought that it soon began to tip over into melodrama and I was constantly reminded of Lloyd-Webber's Phantom of tire Opera. Superficially enjoyable, I don't think it will become a classic.

Sally Zigmond

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

THE MAG IC IAN'S STUDY

Tobias Seamon, Turtle Point Press, 2004, SI 6.95, pb, I 82pp, 1885586981

Tobias Seamon creates a crippled and volatile Houdini-like character in Robert "The Great" Rouncival, whose tumultuous life is recounted through the lively tales of a docent guiding tourists through the magician's tricked-up and exotically adorned home.

A circus poster serves as a touch point for the magician's early years working with carnies and con men. Bloodied letters from the front bear witness to the tragedy of a brother killed in the Great War. The Bowery stage from Rouncival's first backalley show is reconstructed in its entirety, a shrine both to simpler times and to the Jazz Age actress whose charms spurred him to greater skill. A smaller room, limned with green flames and hung with human skulls, gives witness to the darker years of the magician's short life. The narrator exudes ingenuous wonder at Rouncival's many tricks-whether levitating salt shakers or making entire houses disappear-so much so that the revelation of his identity comes as no surprise. It is through those starry eyes that we relive the boozy, opium-filled days of this physically and emotionally wounded man, and share in the relief that at the end of his life, the crusty wizard found a measure of peace.

A swift-moving and unexpectedly charn1ing story, Tire Magician's Stuc~i• is a worthy debut for this Pushcart-prize nominated poet and essayist.

Lisa Ann Verge

I FATTY

Jerry Stahl, Allison & Busby 2005, £ I 0.99, pb, 0749083824 (pub. in the US by Bloomsbury USA July 2004, hb, $23.95, 1582342474)

Roscoe Arbuckle was a big baby ( 16\bs) who became a huge man - not just in weight (365lbs) but also in celebrity.

This sad, funny and very black book is his story and the history of film and demise of vaudeville. Despite his weight, he was light on his feet; he had great charm; he wrote and directed films as well as acting in them; he was an unhappy giant, but a kindly and in many ways a simple soul. Born into dirt-poor poverty in Kansas, he was brutally abused by his drunken father and abandoned, literally in the street, at the age of I 0. Because he had seldom attended school and spent his time sneaking into vaudeville theatres and singing in local shows, he was able to support himself and arrived in Hollywood just at the point the new silent film industry was coming of age. He was the first Hollywood star to earn a million dollars a year, and at the height of his fame was more popular than Charlie Chaplin. He married three times. He drank too much, and became 42

addicted to drugs following a botched operation. He died young. His story has been brilliantly reassessed as a novel, and is told in the first person. As everyone who has ever heard of Fatty Arbuckle knows, he was tried three times in 1921 for the rape and murder of a bit-part actress with an unsavoury reputation, but the power of film was beginning to concern puritanical City Fathers, already concerned that women who had worked in factories during the First World War did not intend to return tamely to their kitchens. This was also the period of Prohibition. A campaign of hate whipped up against him over-rode the fac.t that he was not only finally acquitted but the jury issued a personal apology to him. II is was the first public destruction of a star, dragged down and destroyed by the media. A not-to-be-put-downable book.

Val Whitmarsh

MANSFIELD, A NOVEL

C.K. Stead, Vintage 2004, NZ$26.95, pb, 250pp,0099468654

So much has already been written about New Zealand icon, Katherine Manfield, I wondered if it would be possible to write anything fresh and new. Mansfield. A Nm el proves that, in the right hands, there is. Stead's simple, elegant prose brings to life Katherine's personal, often poignant, struggles during the First World War. She is portrayed as, not only a highly imaginative writer, attempting to perfect her craft, but also an often selfish and egotistical romantic. Her desire to write and her appetite for love shine through.

Starting with her indiscreet and hopeless love affair with a French soldier, Francis Carco, Katherine is haunted by a series of romantic and sexual entanglements and by the tragedies of war, including the death of her brother, Leslie. Travelling between England and France she also explores her long-tenn relationship with Jack Murray, her need to be included in the popular writers' circle and her desire to find the perfect love.

Stead exploits the fictional possibilities of this period of Katherine's life within the documented 'truth' of history with a dcxtrous touch. I was fascinated by this biographical fiction and bewitched by Stead's effonless style and sly humour. llighly recommended to all those who enjoy an engrossing and intelligent read.

Megan Parish

HURRICANE

Janice A. Thompson, RiverOak, 2004, $12.99,pb,286pp, 1589190203

Six years after leaving Galveston, Brent Murphy finds himself on a train bound for the Texas island. He doesn ' t understand what draws him home, but he knows he cannot avoid a confrontation with his father, ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

who considers his son a failure. While Brent delays this meeting, the hurricane of the century strikes Galveston on 8 September 1900, killing 6000 people and destroying most of the island. In the ensuing struggle to survive, Brent faces his past, and in so doing, finds his life inextricably linked with the island and its people.

llurricane is also a story of courage and the \Y ill to survive in spite of overwhelming death and devastation. Intertwined with Brent's story are those of Sister Henrietta Mullins and the orphans in her care, Everett Maxwell and his yearning for a story that will sell newspapers, and Emma Sanders on her first day as a hospital nurse.

On my first visit to Galveston in 2003, I saw a film entitled The Creal S1or111. The pictures of the devastation wrought were awesome and haunting, made even more so when interspersed with personal remembrances and historical details. Janice Thompson has taken the facts and recollections and woven them into a powerful inspirational novel. This montage of glimpses into characters' lives and thoughts, unveiled in a sequential timeline from four days before the hurricane to one year later, refuses to let the reader sit on the sidelines. Hurricane evokes tears, prayers, sorrow, and rejoicing as the reader endures the storm just as the islanders did more than a century ago.

Cindy Vallar

THE ROCK ORCHARD

Paula Wall, Atria, 2005, $24.00/ C$35.00, hb,244pp,0743496205

Rollicking, touching, laugh-out-loud fur.ny, and extremely sensual, this book set in Leaper's Fork, Tennessee, around the time of WWII is a delight. The opening sentences ("Just because a woman is good at something doesn't necessarily mean it's what she should do in life. If that were the case, most of the women in the Belle family would be hookers.") grabbed hold of me, and the story never let me go. The Belle women started with the Cajun French Musette, who was endowed with special powers and whose grave is marked by a startlingly real, very naked, marble likeness. Musette's granddaughter Charlotte, Charlotte's niece Angela, and Angela's daughter Dixie (whose nickname came from Dixie cups) fill this novel with their unique personalities. They have a tangled relationship with newcomer Dr. Adam Montgomery and his ever-so-proper Bostonian wife, Lydia. Adam meets Angela when he finds her having a baby in his flower bed. Adam took up medicine because a profession was expected of him, but he had no real calling for it, until Angela inspires him as she inspires other men to serve others. Despite himself, he manages to deliver the baby, while falling under Angela's spell.

THE IIISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

Leaper's Fork serves as a fruitful setting for the growth of characters and a wide range of relationships. Even chilly Lydia proves to have some startling aspects to her personality. This first novel is a stunning achievement. I shall eagerly seek out any other novels Paula Wall writes. Trudi E. Jacobson

LUCKY STRIKE

Nancy Zafris, Unbridled Books, 2005, $23.95, hb, 352pp, 1932961046 In this rambling tale, Zafris follows a cast of characters as they interact with one another in 1950s Utah. Lucl,.y S!rike follows a single mother and her two children who travel out west to attempt to strike it rich in the uranium rush of the 1950s. One might have more feeling for the people populating the story were it not for the fact that they are more caricatures than characters. Interaction between characters of depth and appeal could have made up for the slow plotline. The stream-of-consciousness style prose is ponderous, and the dialogue has all the existential drama of Sartre on a bad day. The novel does contain some amusing witticisms, and one of the truly skillfully executed elements of Lucl,.y Strike is its backdrop. From the blinding sun to the parched, cracked earth, Zafris has captured the setting with admirable aplomb. Though not without merit, Lucky Slrike is a flawed and rather tedious novel. Not recommended. Bethany Skaggs

MULTI-PERIOD

THE SINNER'S TALE (UK title: THE PERFECT SINNER)

Will Davenport, Bantam, 2005, S 13.00, pb, 336pp,0553802178

Pub. in the UK by HarperCollins, 2005, £6.99, pb, 0007165021

A medieval knight with a sin he fears will condemn him to eternal purgatory; a modem-day woman whose anti-terrorist rhetoric conceals a desperate emptiness; and a secret link that transcends eras form the basis for Will Davenport's The Sinner's Tale. Beth Battock is an ambitious political player when a scandal forces her to flee to the childhood hamlet she's avoided for years. There, she comes face-to-face with the father she resents, an ornery grandmother who knows her better than she thinks, a gentle stone-cutter she once dallied with, and an ancient inscription with a tantalizing familial connection to the exploits of a 14 th century knight, Sir Guy de Bryan.

Sir Guy suffers from venal sin; he also suffers from a prescient understanding of war's futility. Though a veteran of bloody battles, Guy is a man of peace in a time of brutality who believes he must atone for the

wrongs he perpetuates. In his quest for redemption, Guy plants the seeds for a ceremonial immortality that will echo through the ages into Beth Battock's hollow life.

Vivid scenes of warfare and the harshness of medieval life intersect with Beth's struggle to overcome her conservative stance on terrorism in the 21 st century. The descriptions of Sir Guy's journey from hopeful youth to weathered witness are imbued with the authenticity of the period. The novel encounters its main difficulty in the modem world. The characters lack the compelling personalities of their medieval counterparts, and Beth proves a challenge to rally around, even as her narrow-mindedness starts to crumble around her. Until family upheaval confronts her, she remains steadfast to her way of thinking-an analogy of our own inability to learn from the past. Beth does learn, eventually; still, it is the knight's passionate quest we care most about.

C.W.

Gortner

THE HISTORIAN

Elizabeth Kostova, Little Brown 2005, £14 99,hb,656pp,0316730319

No sooner has Dan Brown assured us the descendants of Jesus and Mary Magdalene are causing havoc in the Renaissance collection at the Louvre than along comes Elizabeth Kostova to persuade us that American academia is awash with scions of the house of Dracula. That, however, is where the similarities between these two authors end. Elizabeth Kostova is an accomplished debutante who has produced an intriguing and carefully crafted novel which weaves together three timescales, a huge cast of characters and settings as various as an Ivy League university and the crypt of a mediaeval French monastery.

Her novel is an engrossing tale, part travelogue, part fairytale, part thriller, which takes the reader on a tour of Europe and the Near East during the 1950s and 1970s, with sporadic forays into the high Middle Ages to glimpse the career of Vlad Ill , Prince of Wallachia, scourge of the Ottoman, aka Dracula. It begins with a girl finding a mysterious book and a cache of yellowing letters hidden in her father's library. Her subsequent adventures lead not only to the discovery of her father's secret but of the truth of her own identity.

Although there are some powerful and beautiful passages, notably the love letters left for our heroine by the mother she never knew, there are also longueurs which could have benefited from more rigorous editing Descriptions of landscapes and libraries abound, slowing the pace and diluting the impact of the story. The complex plot, however, is fascinating and handled with assurance.

Sarah Bower

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

THE DESERTER: MURDER AT GETTYSBURG

Jane Langton, St. Martin's Press, 2003, $23. 95 / C$33.95, hb, 322pp, 031230 I 863

Like Josephine Tey's classic The Daughter of Time, Jane Langton's latest mystery is an intellectual adventure in historical sleuthing. Highly readable, well-paced and not at all stuffy as one might expect where the "detectives," Homer and Mary Kelly, are Harvard professors.

Ms. Langton takes us from Concord, Massachusetts, to the battlefields of Maryland, the field hospitals of Washington and the demimonde of 19th century theatre as Ida Morgan searches for her husband, who disappeared from the battleground of Gettysburg. Lieutenant Seth Morgan is thought to have deserted, something no one who knew him could or would believe. Mary Kelly is a direct descendant of Seth and Ida Morgan. She and Homer will use the historian's tools to uncover the true story of Mary's disgraced ancestor. The story shifts easily between 1863 and 2003 as the Kellys reconstruct the events surrounding Seth's disappearance. It is a thoroughly enjoyable read.

In the e~d, the mystery is solved, but the book does not end. The author adds four short, unusual chapters through which, I believe, she intends to provoke thought about human nature - about the irreparable loss to a nation's future when its best and bravest are cut down before their time. Shiloh, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Wilderness, Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor was it necessary? Was it the only way?

Lucille Cormier

THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE PINK CARNATION

Lauren Willig, Dutton, 2005, $19 95 / C$29.00, hb, 388pp, 0525948600

American graduate student Eloise Kelly is in England to research her dissertation on "aristocratic espionage." When a descendant of the famed spy called the Purple Gentian gives Eloise access to family papers , she is thrilled to find a letters recounting his adventures. Maybe through him she'll learn the identity of the elusive Pink Carnation . From there the story moves into the past, where twenty-year-old Amy de Balcourt returns to France from exile, determined to join the League of the Purple Gentian, led by its eponymous figure of romance and daring. Though half-French, Arny blames the Revolution for her parents' deaths and wants to bring Napoleon down.

Arny meets and falls in love with the Purple Gentian, aka Richard Selwick. The latter is dashing and intelligent, so his attraction to the oft childish Arny had me que s tioning the romantic element of the story. The secondary characters fared far better, notably Richard's mother, Arny's

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

cousin Jane and their chaperone, Miss Gwen. Occasionally we glimpse Eloise's own growing romance with her benefactress's grandson.

A doctoral candidate in history, Ms. Willig has crafted an amusing and intriguing tale that brings the early nineteenth century to vibrant life. There can be little doubt she has done her research. However, 1 found the point of view control less than stellar, and there was some rather awkward prose, while the device of the letters didn't really work. The story came across more as a journal than correspondence.

Ms. Willig's aim was to write a historically accurate romance novel, and she succeeded, though a couple of minor continuity errors jumped out at me. Despite these niggles, I truly enjoyed this debut novel, a cham1ing romp into the fictional past-and so, I believe, will fans of both chick lit and historical romance.

Teresa Basinski Eckford

TIMESLIP

FATAL MEMORIES

Vladimir Lange, Red Square Press, 2005, $23.95, hb,432pp, 0976039818

The MEG, an experimental MRI-like device, was designed to treat the mentally ill by targeting and erasing traumatic memories. While working to prove to the FDA that the device works, Dr. Anne Powell, the MEG's creator, finds that her incidental exposure to the MEG's magnetic fields is triggering dreams--or are they rnemories?-of a 15 th century Russian peasant girl named Anytchka and her tragic life. Anytchka's past begins to replay itself in Anne's present as Anne attempts to discover whether we carry the memory of past lives in our genes.

Dr. Lange's first novel is a medical thriller in the style of Tess Gerritsen or Michael Crichton. As an educated layperson, his theory that memories can be stored 111 DNA and transmitted to subsequent generations seems plausible, given current medical practice and scientific thought. This is not a historical novel, however. He writes with authority about modem-day Boston and Moscow as well as 15 th century Novgorod. But much more attention is paid to the present-day characters and storyline and, in the flashbacks, he describes but never quite manages to evoke the earlier period. Fans of fast-paced medical thrillers will enjoy Fatal Memories. Readers looking for details of Russian peasant life may prefer to look somewhere else.

Lessa J. Scherrer

THE HOUSE ON THE STRAND

Daphne du Maurier, Virago reprint 2004, £6.99,pb,329pp, 1844080420

Tempted by his mentor, the brilliant and enigmatic Magnus, troubled middle-aged Dick Young makes his drug-induced entry into a world that fascinates and eventually obsesses him.

From a 1960s Comish summer, back 600 hundred years to a background of rebellion as England's lesser nobility struggle for power and property. Dick is witness to fragments from the life of the golden-haired lsolda, her callous husband , her reckless lover, and the man who truly loves her: Roger Kylmerth, steward to her greatest enemy So far, so conventional : what lifts this timeslip novel above precursors and imitators are Dick's ten·i fying experiences of being jolted from a wild and dangerous estuary where his insubstantial presence cannot be perceived , to a changed and equally dangerous landscape ruled by motor vehicles and railway. Following the dreadful end of Magnus, Dick strives to maintain his own life and marriage (a sympathetically conveyed American wife and stepsons) knowing he will risk degrading, increasingly persistent after-effects by yielding to the drug and following his alter ego, Roger Kylmerth, to life's end. A deeply thought out, psychologically convincing novel.

Nancy Henshaw

HISTORICAL FANTASY

THE SECRETS OF JIN-SHEi

Alma Alexander, HarperSanFrancisco , 2004,$24.95,hb,512pp,0060563419 Pub. in the UK by HarperCollins , 2004 , £6.99,p~0007163746

"Mine was the time of love and fire, of pain, of loss, of joy, of grief, of greed and arrogance and dreams and betrayals of the bond of jin-shei, the sisterhood of woman which shaped the world I was born into." So speaks Kito-Tai in the year 28 of the Star Emperor in a mythical Chinese kingdom. These familiar themes are no less satisfying because of the fascinating way Alexander weaves them through the lives of eight dynamic characters. Females rule this empire according to prescribed rules and rituals. However, the secret bond uniting those who ask "jin-shei" of another special person means a mystical , life-changing future for eight previously ordinary women So we meet Tai, noticed by the future Empress; Antian, but bound by a dying vow to take care of one who will succeed the throne; Liudan, who in tum desperately needs love and immortality to preserve what was previously denied. A Chinese healer, Yuet, and Liudan use jin-shei to protect the positions they would have lost but for their ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

ingenious conspiracy. Khailin has one dream, to pursue the world of alchemy and associated knowledge, and Nhia possesses the mystical wisdom and access to the written material to fulfil Khailin's aspirations. However, neither realizes how deeply they will need each other once that fulfilment begins and is put into practice. A warrior, Qiaan, and orphan, Xaforn, bond to protect family secrets and future plans. When their best laid plans go awry, it is the integrity of j in-shei that saves each of them from looming disaster. Although historically disconnected from any particular period of Chinese history, elements of this story reveal the protective , secretive world of royalty and common folk that one might imagine in any century of ancient China. The Secrets of Jin-Shei is an intriguing and fascinating read.

Viviane Crystal

THE CROWN ROSE

Fiona Avery, Pyr, 2005, $25.00, hb , 460pp, 1591023122

The "crown rose" is Isabelle of France, sister of King Louis IX. The year is 1240 AD. Although knighthood is still revered, chivalry is in its decline. The church dominates every facet of human life and is as influential as it has ever been or will ever be. Even so, there are dark forces stalking Europe, paiticularly the French monarchy. Since the death of Louis Vlll, Queen Blanche has relied on the protection of the Order of the Rose, three sisters who act as guardian angels. In this story, a strange man named Jean appears. He also protects the royal family, saving the princess from a rabid dog, healing Prince Robert's injuries from a hunting accident, protecting King Louis on the battlefield , and revealing the mystery of love to young Prince Charles. He appears and disappears almost without warning. Isabelle loves him, despite the fact that she has taken the veil. The reader may guess the truth of the mystery surrounding Jean and the Order of the Rose before it is revealed, but that will in no way detract from the story.

Fiona Avery has written a suspenseful novel that is part historical , part fantasy. Her style is clean and full of vivid images. Ms. Avery writes for the screen and television as well as the comics. The Crown Rose is a delightful and exciting page-turner.

Audrey Braver

THE DARK QUEEN

Susan Carroll, Ballantine, 2005, $13.95/C$2 l .00, pb, 544pp, 0345437969

Ariane Cheney is a Daughter of the Earth, one of a group of women revered for their wisdom, knowledge of the healing arts, and white magic. She inherited her mother's title as Lady of Faire Isle, which is somewhere in Brittany. Together with her younger sisters, Gabrielle and Miribelle, she mourns THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

the passing of their mother and the disappearance of their father on a voyage to South America. Ariane is not interested in marriage , but Justice Deauville, the Comte de Renard, has given her a ring and made a bargain with her. If she puts the ring on her finger and calls for his help three times, then she will agree to marry him.

These are dangerous times, especially for healers like Ariane, with witch hunters abroad. Although Faire Isle is a peaceful haven, trouble is coming their way. Catherine de Medici, the dark queen of the title, was the nemesis of Ariane's mother. Now she realizes that Ariane has something she wants, and Catherine will stop at nothing to get it. The author combines imagination , a little fact and legend to po1iray Catherine and the events that led up to the massacre of the French Huguenots in Paris on St. Bartholomew's Eve in August of 1572.

Susan Carroll has written many historical and Regency romances under several different names, but she has recently moved into the realm of the paranom1al. I would characterize this book as light on history but long on atmosphere and romance. The three sisters, indeed all of the characters, are well drawn and interesting. Ms. Carroll sets the stage well for intrigue and magic spells and draws the reader into her web. The first of a planned trilogy.

Lorraine Gclly

GHOSTS OF EDEN

T. M. Gray, Five Star, 2005, $25.95, 264pp, hb, 1594143048

This book starts out as a classic '40s era house horror story, a la the Haunting of Hill House, and morphs gradually into a science fiction monster tale with biblical elements. While none of these are unheard of in genre fiction, the combination is unusual. Saxon, who is returning home after incarceration in the insane asylum to face and settle her past, narrates most of the book. Other voices join in, and about halfway through the book you start to realize that the title speaks of ghosts plural in a very precise sense. There are a large number of primary characters, most of them dead, and it can be a little difficult to keep them straight although the villain, the "Serpent," chants some of them for you often enough, The Heartbroken, The Hunter, the Hanged , The Embalmed, The Necrophiliac, The Deranged , The Impure. Each of these tells their story at some point in the book. Additionally, there is a dimwitted but spiritually gifted neighbor and an aged orphan who is tied into the past doings at the Roquefort Manor. The events include a factual devastating fire that took place in Bar Harbor in 1948 and still ends happily, sort of. The lovers are reunited. All of them. The ending has a twist, and all the plot threads are brought together deftly by the end. The book may confuse some

readers who expect one kind of story and get another, but it has a lot of action going for it and moves quickly.

Mary K Bird-Guilliams

THE MOON RUNNERS

Mary Lennox, Five Star, 2004, $25.95, hb, 392pp, 159414107X

In ancient Greece, Atalante, the Princess of Thessaly, and Melanion, the Prince of Macedonia, unite to prevent war between their two lands. Their two families harbour no love for each other, and the young couple must overcome not only their own fears but the animosity between their kingdoms as well. The Moon Runners is loosely based on the Greek myth of Atalante, a famed huntress. Lennox has used this myth as a starting point to create a story of love, human error, and divine intervention. There is an element of the fantastical in The Moon Runners (this was a time of gods and goddesses, after all). Although the romance between the couple is never 111 doubt, the stories of their companions overcoming mistrust are welldeveloped. In pa1iicular, the relationships between Melanion and his father, and Atalante and her mother, have a beautiful and unexpected poignancy.

L. K. Mason

DARK OF THE SUN

Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Tor, 2004, $27.95/C$38.95, hb, 460pp, 076531 I 02X Around 535 AD, the volcano Krakatoa erupted violently, splitting apart Ja va and Sumatra and causing havoc around the world for many years. At this time, the merchant vampire Saint-Germain begins a trek that will take him from China to Transylvania. From the very beginning , the reader is yanked out of his world and transported to China. Yarbro tracks the travellers' progress westward in believable fashion by masterfully choosing historically factual references to everyday life: clothes, language, objects, currencies.

The vampire's name evolves from ZangiRagosh to Racogzy Franciscus and his ghoulish companion from Ro-Shei to Rojeh. This name transfom1ation, and the maps, helps us maintain our bearings through the constant changes and transfonnations of the voyage. The letter added in each chapter also makes us more aware of the dire post-eruption effects: famine, cannibalism, violence, social instabilities and the growing influences and conflicts between the churches. The vampirism aspect, although present, is never sensationalized or overwhelming, making this more a travel than horror tale The serene, solid main characters and storytelling provide an effective contrast to the atrocities and devastation depicted and keep the reader entranced and happily captive.

Nicole Leclerc

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

MY LIFE AS EMPEROR

Su Tong, Faber & Faber 2005, (trans. Howard Goldblatt), £ I 0.99, pb, 290pp, 0571220789. Pub. in US by Hyperion 2005, $24.95, hb, 352pp, 140 l 36666X

The author states that he hopes his readers do not approach this book with the idea that it is historical fiction. It is set in no particular time but satisfies his fascination with classical themes: of Emperors, eunuchs, concubines and court intrigues - a dream world.

With no reference point in time and no parentheses to speech the reader has to delve into Su Tong's vision of nightmarish circumstances.

The Emperor of the title is named Duanbai, an unendearing character without charm or grace, who, as a boy ascends the throne of the imaginary Xie Empire. One day he escapes the con fines of court protocol and, with his devoted slave, the eunuch Swallow, he watches some circus entertainers performing acrobatics. A chance remark encourages him to believe he could become a tightrope walker.

In this extraordinary and chilling tale that explores the darker side of human nature with all its complexities you are left unanchored in a floating sphere conjured from the twilight side of thought, journeying through the inner workings of the author's kaleidoscopic imagination of Chinese history. A novel that is a world in and or itself.

Gwen Sly

NON-FICTION

FORGOTTEN VOICES OF THE GREAT WAR

Max Arthur, Lyons Press , 2004, $24.95/C$36.95, hb , 326pp, 1592285708 Pub. in the UK by Ebury Press, 2003, £7.99, pb,336pp,009l888875

FORGOTTEN VOICES OF WORLD WAR II

Max Arthur, Lyons Press, 2004, $24.95/C$36.95, hb, 486pp, 1592285864 Pub. in the UK by Ebury Press, 2003, £7.99, pb ,496pp,009 1897351

Published in association with the Imperial War Museum, Max Arthur's two volumes are collections of personal narratives by officers and other ranks who were part of the British war efforts in the two world wars of the 20 th century. The author has grouped the accounts by year and by topic. This allows the reader to pick and choose the times and events that interest them. Modem histories of war depend upon the memoirs of survivors to draw a more complete picture of the conflict; these are denied us for wars from the days before most people had the ability Lo read and write. The accounts were written with an eye towards an honest description of the horrors of the

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

trenches, the special fear that accompanied a gas attack, the sensations of flying obsolescent bombers in the face of a detem1ined Luftwaffe , and the awesome spectacle of landing on Sword beach while surrounded by a sea full of Allied warships. Some of the writing is so matter-of fact that it surprises 2 I st century minds that are used to individuals heaping praise upon themselves for doing far less than their ancestors did. An example would be Major Pat Porteus of the Royal Artillery: "I never discovered why I was awarded the VC [Victoria Cross]. The citation said that I 'd been wounded in my hand , and had then led this bayonet charge against the guns, got wounded again, and carried on. But I felt it was rather like being in a rugger scrumyou got kicked about a bit and the object was to get over the line." This hero of the Dieppe raid was certainly a master of understatement! Both volumes enable the reader of historical fiction to realize , once again, that truth is, in many disarming ways, far more fascinating than fiction.

John R. Vallely

1917 RUSSLA'S YEAR OF REVOLUTION

Roy Bainton, Robinson 2005, £8.99, 283pp, 1841199508

Drawing on many sources, both written and verbal, Roy Bainton chronicles the events in St Petersburg during this fateful year. He quotes from some very moving accounts of the few survivors, many of them very young during this year of revolution.

I felt that unless readers knew considerable detail of the background they might flounder during the first few chapters. More brief introductions concerning both people and events would have made this clearer. Summaries of the aftermath were included after all.

This series has so far dealt mainly with topics that can be more easily isolated and I am still doubtful of the wisdom of concentrating on a single year but it was a brave attempt.

There is a very useful appendix of actual dates, another with brief desc,iptions and explanations of the many people and groups involved plus a good comprehensive index.

Marina Oliver

WEDDING OF THE WATERS: The Erie Canal and the Making of a Great Nation

Peter L. Bernstein, Norton, 2004, $24.95/C$36.00, hb, 448pp, 039332639x Bernstein's epic work masterfully portrays not only the actual construction of the 363mile Erie Canal, but introduces us to the political and economic milieu of the young United States, and the men (most notably De Witt Clinton) who played key roles. The potential import of the Erie Canal was seen by only a very few, and the battle to tum vision into reality was protracted. Just one

46

of the wonders of the canal was that it, along with its phenomenal aqueducts and 83 locks, was built without benefit of civil engineers: at the time of its construction, there were none in the United States. The author lucidly proves his claim that " the Erie Canal cut a waterway through the mountains to bind the nation into one and to make possible a new economic system in America that would meld forest, farm, and industry into a combination of extraordinary power."

Trudi E. Jacobson

THE DIARIES OF MILES FRANKLIN

edited by Paul Brunton, Allen & Unwin 2004 , NZ$49.95 , hb, 304pp, 1741142962

Best known as the author of My Brilliant Career, which was published in 190 I and went into six editions, Franklin nevertheless made little money from her writing. In 1906 she settled in Chicago, where she continued to write, but with limited success. In a letter she wrote that the writing disease was 'worse than TB , for TB can be cured. ' Moving to London in 1915, she worked as a cook and a secretary before returning to Australia in 1932 at the age of 53. In I 936, All That Swagger, won a literary prize, making her finally fashionable. She died in 1954

These diaries were embargoed for nearly fifty years because of Franklin's oRen scathing candour about her contemporaries. Of the novelist and playwright, Yance Palmer, she wrote, 'Palmer is so careful that his work is lifeless. It does not remain to haunt the reader. a blemish can be found in each IOOO words. But beneath the acerbic surface a picture emerges of a woman suffering from an acute sense of failure.

Paul Brunton provides an erudite and informative introduction. There are many photos and the book is fully annotated.

Frank Nerney

BRINGING THE PAST TO LIFE

Compiled by Alasdair Campbell and Deborah Gibbons, LISE. In two parts. Pait one 2002, Part two 2004. Each part costs£ I 0.50 Non fiction. Two guides to historical stories for children produced by LISE Librarians of Institutes and Schools of Education. Part One is from pre-history to 1750 and Part Two is from 1750 to 1980.

There are notes on the value of historical novels, historical novels in children's literature, the categories of historical novel and recent developments. The principles of selection are set out clearly. The compilers fee l that adults need a simple way of tracing the best historical novels - those which are well researched and readable at various age levels. It is felt that the best guidance on such novels come from the prize winners and those short listed for the various annual awards for excellence in children's literature, the best known being the Carnegie Medal. ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

All the authors in these guides - with the exception of Geoffrey Trease - have been at least short listed and all have been published since 1950. Each guide contains one hundred and twelve titles.

These guides are certainly very useful for parents, teachers and librarians and indeed anyone interested in children's historical fiction. The notes on the books do actually give a good idea of what the story is about. But there one warning for parents and teachers Award winning novels are sometimes controversial. Also opinions vary as to what is appropriate for children and more attention could have been given to this. To choose just one example from a book which l have read about Katherine of Aragon - it gives details of Katherine conceiving and giving birth and then at the foot says it is for the age range 9 - 12. The details are such that many parents and teachers would consider the book inappropriate for that age range

But despite this warning the book is certainly interesting and useful. There is also the fact that many of the books are now out of print but there are always internet out-of-print book s hops.

Mary Moffat

MAY AND AMY (UK title: A PROFOUND SECRET)

Josceline Dimbleby, Harn1ony, 2005, $25/C$25,352pp, hb,0609609998

Pub. in the UK by Black Swan , 2005, £7.99 , pb,0552999814

The subtitle of this fascinating book goes far towards explaining its topic: "A True Story of Family, Forbidden Love, and the Secret Lives of May Gaskell, Her Daughter Amy, and Sir Edward Burne-Jones." For years, Josceline Dimbleby had passed by the drawing of a young woman that hung in the stairway of her father's home; one day, she was told the artist was the famous PreRaphaelite painter Sir Edward Burne-Jones and the beautiful woman was her greatgrandmother, May Gaskell. Thus began a long period of research into photo albums, diaries, letters, and archives to reveal a deep but probably platonic relationship between Dimbleby's great-grandmother and BurneJones. Along the way, she discovered much about May's adored oldest daughter, Amy, an ethereal beauty who had died young, supposedly of a broken heart. Amy's interest in travel , mysticism, and spirituality drove her to live apart from her family and her husband. Readers will be easily drawn in to Dimbleby's family saga, which is welldocumented with excerpts from letters and diaries as well as Amy's photographs from England and the Far East, and BurneJones's artwork. The late Victorian and Edwardian periods are splendidly evoked and may well inspire readers to investigate their own family stories.

Helene Williams

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

NELSON'S PURSE

Martyn Downer, Bantam Press 2004, £20.00, hb, 384pp, 059305 l 807. Pub in US by Smithsonian Books 2004, $32.50, hb, 336pp, 1588341844

Martyn Downer was the man who sold at an international auction on Trafalgar Day 2002 the very purse that Nelson had worn on that fateful day in l 805. It was part of a collection of memorabilia that Alexander Davison, successful businessman, 'peculator and fraudster' and confidant of Nelson collected. For two hundred years these items lay unrecognised.

This book charts the personal and public lives of both men, their families, Emma Hamilton and the momentous events leading up to and beyond that fateful day. Downer's style is meticulous, the photography delightful and the story he tells is more absorbing than many historical novels. Tom Pocock, Nelson expert, says that the book opens a new window onto Nelson's world. The book almost breathes the period. A Nelson enthusiast expects that every man should do his duty and buy this book.

Paul F. Brunyee

RUSSIA, WAR, PEACE AND DrPLOMACY

Eds. Ljubica Erikson and Mark Erikson, Weidenfeld&Nicolson, 2004, £25, hb, 265pp 029784913 l

This book is a collection of essays dedicated to the memory of Russian expert John Erikson. The subjects are many and varied, ranging from "Cock of the East - Patrick Gordon of Auchleuchries (1635-99)", whose life as a soldier and adventurer in Russia could not have been invented , to the intriguing "The Ideologies and Realities of Soviet Women Tractor Drivers in the l930's". The essay by Christopher Bellamy "Catastrophes to Come" is especially chilling, as is Sergei Kudryashov's "Ordinary Collaborators" dealing with the Travniki Guards recruited by the SS.

This book, however , is not for the general reader , and is aimed at those with a serious academic interest in Russia, and a specialist knowledge of the science of war. It will find itself on the university rather than domestic shelf. An erudite, rewarding work for the student of modern history.

Ruth Ginarlis

IL GIGANTE: M ichelangelo, F lorence, and the David

Anton Gill, Thomas Dunne/ St. Martin's Griffin , 2004, $14.95, pb , 338pp, 0312314434

Pub. in the UK by Review, 2003, £7.99, pb, 0747235953

Books written about Michelangelo and the David are numerous, and with this offering, Gill doesn't cover any new ground. He has, however , crafted a readable history that will

appeal to those who wish to avoid the more scholarly (and usually tediously dry) works on the subject. The subtitle sums up the book's coverage well; Gill spends as much time on Florence, the Medici, and political events as he does on Michelangelo and his famous sculpture. Gill's main accomplishment here is in providing the temporal and political framework within which Michelangelo worked, and illustrating how this backdrop influenced the artist and his art. This accomplishment, however, goes hand in hand with one of the book's shortcomings. In portraying the turbulent times, Gill often loses focus; as the book jumps from event to event it sometimes lacks cohesion. Gill populates Michelangelo's world with famous contemporaries, including Lorenzo de Medici, Cesare Borgia, and Leonardo da Vinci. All of these historic figures are well-drawn , which makes another of the book's flaws even less understandable. The book would have benefited from more description of Michelangelo himself, as well as his technique. Though not without defects, overall fl Gigante is an interesting and readable popular history.

Bethany Skaggs

MARY WOLLSTONECRAFT: A New Genus

Lyndall Gordon, Little, Brown 2005, £25.00, hb , 425pp, 0316728667 fn her extensively researched biography of Mary Wollstonecraft, self-indulgent champion of education and women's values, daring traveller and mother of Mary Shelley , Lyndall Gordon states that "works such as these are ceasing to make death more final than it is", and that reverberations of such far-reaching lives cannot be disassociated from those who are influenced over subsequent centuries

The narrative is written in an easy flowing style with psychological insight, and the reader is introduced to almost everyone who played some part in Wollstonecraft's shmt life This makes the book less a single biography than a work of mid- I 8th century literary and social history whose themes remain alive and universal today.

Gwen Sly

PERDrT A: Royal Mistress, Writer, Romantic

Sarah Gristwood, Bantam Press 2005, £20.00,hb,395pp,0593052080

Born in the late 1750s, Mary Robinson married at fifteen and after a spell in a debtor's prison found success on the stage under the auspices of Garrick and Sheridan. After the Prince of Wales saw her in The Winter's Tale he fell madly in love and she gained notoriety as one of the most successful courtesan's of her day. When she was stricken by a paralysing illness before her thirtieth birthday she turned to writing and became a best selling novelist.

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

This is a detailed account of a remarkable woman who refused to be vanquished by adversity.

Ann Oughton

THE QUEEN'S SLAVE TRADER

Nick Hazelwood, William Morrow, 2004, $26.95/C$37.95, hb, 4 l 6pp, 0066210895 Pub. in the UK by HarperCollins, 2005, £10.99,pb,430pp,0060787260

This non-fiction account of the life and times of John Hawkyns illuminates the AngloSpanish rivalry on the open seas and at which cost Queen Elizabeth and her favorite would go for go ld and power. Born into the merchant life as his father engaged in a triangle trade, I lawkyn s continues the family tradition with a vengeance, leading three voyages to West Africa in the 1560s to ransack African villages and attack Po11uguese s lave ships. He shipped hundreds of captive Africans across the Atlantic, and sold them, sometimes by force, to Spanish colonists. ln 1568 , hi s ships were smashed by the Spanish off the coast of Mexico and his career ended in disaster for himself and his men. But the seeds of an empire based in slavery had taken root.

Encyclopedic in scope and solidly researched, this account of Hawkyns and his royal protector brings to life the brutal underbelly of an age that birthed England's African slave trade and its lasting consequences.

Eileen Charbonneau

MISTRESS PEACIIUM'S PLEASURE

Lisa Hilton, Weidenfeld&Nicolson 2005 £ 18.99, hb, 204pp, 0297847686 ' ' There seems to be a burgeoning sub-genre in historical biography - that of larger-than1i fe 18 th century actresses who married into the aristocracy. Lavinia Fenton was no exception. She grew up in a London coffeehouse and after escaping her mother's plan to sell her virginity for £200, she became an actress. Although as yet unknown, she was chosen for the plum role of Polly Peachum in Gay's Beggar's Opera. And so a star was born. Having caught the eye of the Duke of Bolton, she retired from society for twenty years, bringing up his three sons. When he died, she reverted to type and took up with a younger man on whom she squandered her family's fortunes.

This is a lively, highly readable biography which captures the tone of the times. It is, however, so very simi lar to so many others already published that it begs the question of how many more we need. Sally Zigmond

ON HITLER 'S MOU TAIN: Overcoming the Legacy of a Nazi Childhood

lm1 gard A. Hunt , William Morrow, 2005, $25.95/C$36.95, hb, 288pp, 0060532173

Irmgard Albine Hunt, nee Paul, was born and li ved her formative years in Berchtcsgaden, Germany, the site of Nazi THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

headquarters during World War II. On Hitler's Mountain is a memoir of her family's life from the pre-war through the post-war years. The author reconstructs her childhood from her mother's journal, interviews with relatives and friends, and from personal memories.

Some of Ms. Hunt's story will not be new to readers familiar with the state of Germany's economy and its crushed national spirit after World War I. The author's account of personal experiences like sitting on Hitler's knee for a photo op, being part of the Hitler Youth, and especially of life in the village at the end of the war are interesting and poignant. Though many of the childhood feelings she recounts are typical of any young girl, her greatest heartaches belong only to children whose fathers leave for war. The legacy of a Nazi childhood must indeed be overcome on many levels.

This is a quiet , well-written book, recommended to readers who are willing to take a hard look at civilian life in wartime. It is also recommended to those who, like the author, "resolve that what took place under Hitler could not be allowed ever to happen again."

Lucille Cormier

THE LAST DAYS OF HE RY VIII

Robert Hutchinson, Weidenfeld&Nicolson, 2005, £20 ($37.81), hb, 367, 0297846116

This book concentrates, as it says, on the period in Henry 's kingship when he was old, ill and increasingly despotic. As well as placing this phase of his kingship firmly in its historical context, the author also sheds some very interesting light on what illnesses Henry may have suffered. Was it Cushing's syndrome, then unknown and incurable that slowly turned the bright young scholar, cham,ing and witty, into such a monster? By painstakingly researching eye-witness accounts of his behaviour, the author has added a new insight into Henry's decisions which had such a devastating effect on future generations.

You may think that the Tudor period has been pored over to the point of oversaturation. Not true. This book is aimed at the general reader and by the end I grew to understand what made Henry what he was and how much the physical and mental state of one man created the country England is today.

Sally Zigmond

NEW ZEALANDERS AT WAR

Michael King, Penguin 2004, NZS39.95, pb,272pp,0l43018655

An update of the 1981 classic to include New Zealnd's role in various peace keeping missions

This book covers over 200 years of New Zealand warfare, from fighting between pre-European Polyneisan peoples 48

(the book includes a classic photo of the 'smoked' head of one unfortunate victim) through the wars of the 1800s , the South African War and both world wars. A chapter is devoted to conflicts in Asia, with Korea and Vietnam both given prominence. The author's stated intent is to examine why New Zealanders have so often taken up arms in far off lands , whether to keep potential.aggressors at arms' length, to build national pride and cohesion or to alleviate the fear of being overlooked by the rest of the world.

This is a fine addition to the history section of your home library, written in a free-flowing, lucid style. The tragic death of the author in a car crash is an enormous loss, but his contribution to biography and history in New Zealand will not be forgotten.

Neil Franklyn

THE NATIONAL ARMY MUSEUM BOOK OF THE CRIMEAN WAR

Alastair Massie, Pan Books 2005 , £8.99, pb, 280pp,033049174I

A readable account of the Crimean War as seen through the letters of British soldiers. Appalling living conditions and the officers who believed that the men thrived on flogging. Martinets like Sir George Brown who worked his men every hour of the day and expected them to have well-polished boots as well. The British had not fouoht in Europe since 1815 and lacked a Welli;gton. Supplies did not materialise, chaos reigned. Even the peace did not please the British, they had a grand scheme to go on and conquer Russia and Asia.

The book is well illustrated with contemporary photographs and maps which I found most useful. It is a good background book.

Mary McKerrachcr

AND IF I PERISH: Frontline U.S. Army Nurses in World War JI

Evelyn M. Monahan and Rosemary NeidclGreenlee, Anchor, 2004, $15.95 / CS22.95, pb,5l4pp, 140003l29x

Monahan and Ncidel-Grecnlee are the authors of All This Hell, a dramatic account of U.S. Arn1y nurses caught in the Philippines and imprisoned by the Japanese. Their latest history discusses American nurses in the Mediterranean and Northwest European campaigns of World War II. These authors are part of a growing number of writers and historians who remind us that war and combat are not , and have never been, the exclusive domain of men. The successors to Florence Nightingale and Clara Barton that they write of were as close to frontline fire as their duties and missions would allow. Charged with caring for the wounded, these intrepid women were challenged in ways they never thought possible in their pre-war careers. Each of ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

the 59,283 women who served had a unique story to tell of her experiences, and the authors have selected a representative sample that provides us with a window into their wards and first aid stations. Their stories also pern,it the reader to experience their fears and heartbreak as they went through a daily routine coping with the soldiers and aim,en who were part of the charnel houses of ground and air combat.

John R. Vallely

THE POPE'S DAUGHTER

Caroline P. Murphy, Faber & Faber 2005, £16.99, hb,310pp, 0571221076

Felice della Rovere, the illegitimatedaughter of Pope Julius II, was a Renaissance woman. Brought vividly to life in this brilliantly researched biography.

Ann Oughton

THE REAL HISTORY BEHIND THE DA VINCI CODE

Sharan Newman, Berkley, 2005 , $ I 5.00/ C$22.00, pb, 337pp, 0425200124 Sharan Newman brings her extensive knowledge of the Middle Ages, as well as her propensity for research , to this very readable companion to the topics introduced in Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code While it would be very useful to have this volume at hand while reading the novel, I found it st imulating on its own. Newman includes entries for people, events, places, and mo veme nts , which are arranged alphabetically. They range in length from less than a page to about ten pages. Scholarly apparatus is not neglected (there are footnotes and lists of recommended reading), but Newman's writing is anything but stiff or formal. Recommended for those who are intrigued by topics from the novel, for fans of Newman's novels, or for those who'd like a refresher course in some key topics of medieval history in the form of brief but enjoyable essays.

Trudi E. Jacobson

LEONARDO DA VINCI: A Penguin Life

Sherwin B. Nuland, Penguin , 2005, $13.00, pb, I 70pp, 0143035 I 0

Pub. in the UK by Phoenix , 2001, £6.99, pb , 075381269X

In a few short pages, Sherwin Nuland skillfully outlines the life of Leonardo da Vinci, who is often described as elusive. Nuland utilizes primary records (e.g., tax roll infom,ation) , Freud's analysis of the artist, and a variety of other works by Leonardo scholars to piece together a picture of his life. The book is organized chronologically and highlights Leonardo's political settings, patrons, and his continuous string of unfinished works. Yet he also credits this passionate man's successes. Nuland, a medical history and bioethics authority (Yale), does not overlook Leonardo 's other talents, including

THE HISTORJCAL NOVELS REVIEW

his engineering, military, and mathematical accomplishments, and paints him as a true Renaissance man! The author's eloquent use of the English language thoroughly enhances this monograph.

Carol Anne Germain

WATERLOO: June 18, 1815: The Battle for Modern Europe (UK title: WATERLOO: Napoleon's Last Gamble) Andrew Roberts, HarperCollins, 2005, $21.95,hb, 139pp,0060088664

Pub. in the UK by HarperCollins, 2005 , £12.99, hb, 0007190751

The story of Waterloo has been the subject of scholarly and popular history books since the smoke cleared from the battlefield on the evening of June 18, 18 I 5. Waterloo is significant not just because it marked the end of the Napoleonic Wars and of Napoleon's bid to control Europe , but also because it ushered in a period of European peace that would last , with some interruptions, until the late summer of 1914. British historians are also drawn to Waterloo since it was the only time the two great giants of the period, the Emperor and the Duke of Wellington, met on the field of battle.

The campaign and the battle that ended it include a number of controversies and debates that continue to rage over Napoleon's handling of the battle , Ney's conspicuously dreadful battle management , the actions of the Prince of Orange, the role of the Prussian Army in the campaign, and Wellington's relations with his Prussian allies Andrew Roberts, the author of Napoleon and Wellington, is well versed in the study of Napoleonic warfare and in the nature of generalship in 18 I 5. His Waterloo is a brief, yet authoritative, examination of the maneuvers leading up to the battle and the description of the day itself. From the opening cannon shot to the desperate combat for Hougoumont to the brilliant defense of La Haye Sainte to the thrilling cavalry assaults, to the Prussian advance to the final moment when the Imperial Guard disintegrates, Robe1is brings the battle to life.

John R. Vallely

WHILE YOU'RE AWAY: New Zealand Nurses at War 1899-1948

Anna Rogers , Auckland University Press, NZ$39.99, 352pp, 1869403010

Much has been written about the male experience of war, but here Anna Rogers takes us on tour with the nurses and female volunteers. Dirt, disease, danger and loneliness were not the only enemies for these women involved in the South African War, the Spanish Civil War and both world wars. They also faced male prejudice and, although they didn't call themselves feminists, they fought hard for recognition.

This is a fantastic book and should be read by anyone with an interest in the her story of early twentieth century conflicts. Lauren Roche

WONDERFUL ADVENTURES OF MRS SEACOLE IN MANY LANDS

Mary Seacole 1857, Sara Salih , (ed), Penguin Classics 2005, £9.99, pb, 224pp, 0140439021

MARY SEACOLE, The Charismatic Black Nurse Who Became a Heroine of the Crimea.

Jane Robinson, Constable 2005, £12.99, pb, 200pp, I 84 1 196770. Pub. in US by Carroll & Graf 2004, $26.00, hb, 288pp, 07867l41X

Born in Kingston, Jamaica in 1805 as Mary Jane Grant to a Creole mother and Scottish father, Mary Seacole always described herself as a Creole with 'good Scotch blood coursing in my veins.' From her mother she learned the art of Creole medicine and began her career as a 'nurse doc tress'.

When she was refused a place with Florence Nightingale's nurses bound for the Crimea she packed her bags with medicines and her own preserves and made her own way to Balaclava.

Throughout the narrative Mary hints at the horrors of war and cholera and typhoid epidemics but there is an overwhelming sense that she only tells what she wants the reader to know. In an attempt to add depth to Mary's sto1y Jane Robinson has to rely mainly on Mary's Wonde,jii/ Adventures (Mary never kept a journal), and various newspaper accounts and memoirs of those who knew her.

Comparisons between Mary and Florence seem inevitable: two more disparate characters it is impossible to imagine The Times called Ma1y a heroine, to Florence Nightingale she was a brothel keeping quack. Whilst Florence ensconced herself at Scutari Mary was more often than not at the battle front ministering to the sick and wounded as she dodged cannon fire After the fall of Sevastopol Mary was the first woman to ride into the stricken city.

Voted the ' Greatest Black Briton in History ' in a recent poll, Mary Seacole is returned to her rightful place, centre stage. Ann Oughton

TUSCAN COUNTESS

Michele K. Spike, Vendome Press, 2004, $24.95/C$37.50, hb, 311 pp, 0865652422 Matilda ofCanossa lived from 1046 to 1115 and was one of the most remarkable women not merely of her own times but of any time in histo1y. She was, after all, the first woman to be buried in St. Peter's in Rome As the Countess of Tuscany, Matilda became involved, not merely politically, but many believe, romantically, with Hildebrandt, who later became Pope Gregory VII.

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

Matilda gained fame as a warrior queen. She walked out of a marriage and became the new Pope's confidante. When Gregory's papacy was threatened by King Henry IV of Germany, Matilda raised an army to defend him. Today, many of Gregory's rcfonns are considered to be the linchpins of Renaissance thought.

Spike takes palpable joy not merely in explaining Matilda's impact on Tuscan culture and history-which, indeed, reverberated throughout Europe- but revels in seeing the places that Matilda saw through her own eyes. Spike breathes life into Matilda, gone for almost a millennium, and makes her into a force of nature.

A fascinating biography by a terrific biographer.

Ilysa Magnus

CASSELL'S CHRONOLOGY OF WORLD IIISTORY

I lywel Williams, Weidenfeld&Nicolson, 2005,hb,£35,767pp,0304357308

Beginning in the midst of time and coming bang up-to-date with 2004, this reference book chronicles both the major and minor world events of each successive year. It ranges through politics, the arts and humanities, science, medicine, economics and society. I would recommend this to any historical novelist for as well as chronicling events succinctly - it has a large index - it also helps put historical events into context and creates some fascinating juxtapositions. To take one random example: In 1837 Victoria succeeded to the British throne, there was widespread famine in Japan, Tiffany&Co opened in ew York, Chopin met Georges Sand and the world's first kindergarten opened in Germany.

If I have a criticism is that it dwells heavily on the western world with very little about events in Asia or Africa.

Sally Zigmond

TIIE MAPMAKER'S WIFE: A True Talc of Love, Murder, and Survival in the Amazon

Robert Whitaker, Basic Books, 2004, $13.00,pb,368pp,0385337205

Pub. in the UK by Bantam, 2005, £7.99, pb, 0553815393

One would be hard-pressed to find a more disingenuous title for a book, as Jean Godin was more gofer than mapmaker, the majority of the book has little to do with his wife, and "love, murder, and survival" are given remarkably short shrift. Godin, a minor member of a French scientific expedition to South America, met and married Isabel Grameson, daughter of a prominent colonial Spanish family. Isabel later endures unspeakable jungle horrors to reunite with her husband and end their twenty-year separation.

Whitaker's forte seems to be the ability to arrive at his point tangentially, but

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

whether this is his genius or his curse all depends on the mindset of the reader. For instance, Whitaker feels the need to recount the entire history of the Iberian Peninsula from the Middle Ages onward in order to finally reach the conclusion that Moorish ideas about women influenced the way Isabel was raised. The majority of the book is made up of these digressions, and those expecting a real-life thriller will probably give up long before the halfway point. This reader found the digressions interesting, however, and Isabel 's story (once Whitaker finally gets around to it) is both amazing and riveting.

Bethany Skaggs

THE U CROW ED KINGS OF ENGLAND, The Black Legend of the Dudleys

Derek Wilson, Constable 2005, £20.00, hb, 373pp, 1841 19902 8

This is the first full account of one of the most ambitious families in the history of court politics. From Edmund Dudley to Sir Robert Dudley the family were key players during successive Tudor reigns. It is an intelligent, finely written, riveting read; impossible to put down.

Ann Oughton

CHILDREN'S & YOUNG ADULTS'

THE CHARIOTEER'S SON

Stephanie Baudet, 2004, Anglia Young Books, 64 pp, ISBN 1871 I 73965

Set in Bath - or Aquae Sulis - in the middle of the fourth century AD.

Julius is the son of a charioteer. When his father was killed in the Arena Julius, his mother and his young brother were bought from the Emperor by a retired army general and taken to Britain. Julius helps to train the horses as well as helping his new master generally. Then Olivia, the young daughter of the general, is kidnapped and Julius has an opportunity to rescue her and win freedom for himself and his family

Although short this little book contains much information about Britain in Roman times. And this information is woven into the very fabric of the story. Julius is attending his master in the baths when he overhears part of the plot to kidnap Olivia. As well as providing the start of the story this also gives an opportunity for a description of the baths. Then the genera l' s son insists that Julius should join him in a hunt for the kidnapper. This hunt leads them to the arena and also to a fam1 outside Aquae Sulis. Quite apart from the story of Olivia, Julius' young brother falls ill. Julius prays to the goddess Sulis Minerva to save him - irrespective of the fact that he was 50

now supposed to be a Christian. The old ways die hard.

A good story which is quite exciting and which imparts much historical knowledge painlessly. Comes with a historical note and a glossary. Illustrated in black and white throughout.

7-11

Mary Moffat

CODE TALKER: A Novel about the Navajo Marines of World War Two Joseph Bruchac, Dial, 2005, $ I 6.99 /S25.00, hb,240pp,08037292l9

Joseph Bruchac has created a wise, bighearted character in Ned Begay, the Navajo narrator of this riveting WWII novel. Though thrust at a tender age into an American school, where he was beaten if he spoke his native language, and told repeatedly that his beliefs and customs were wrong, Ned Begay holds tight to his own culture, without bitterness. When the U.S. government arrives, seeking those very language skills that the school tried to beat out of him, Ned signs up with pride, but not swagger. He joins the Marines and becomes part of a secret group of radio operators who develop a code based on the avajo language. Soon he is shipped off to the Pacific, and here the narrative intensifiesin Guam, l wo Jima, Okinawa-where Ned and his friends (white and Navajo) fight, bleed, and look into the eye of death. Ned survives but discovers upon returning home that the war and his sacrifice has not eradicated bigotry. This does not defeat him: Ned is a sure and balanced man, big enough to ignore petty insults. He sets his mind on improving the living conditions of his own people, and later in life receives the honors he'd always deserved. Code Talker is an intense, well-researched, and clearly written novel of courage and convictions, for adults both young and otherwise. (Ages 12+)

Lisa Ann Verge

THE DIARY OF A YOU G ROMAN GIRL

Moira Butterfield, Franklin Watts, 2003, £4.99, $8.65, pb, 95pp, ISBN 0-7496-5 I 60-X In Rome, AD 74, 12-year-old Popillia decides to keep a diary. She's worried that it will be boring, so she enlists the help of her brother's tutor. He suggests that she writes as if she is explaining things to somebody who li ves at th e edge of the Roman Empire. This neat device enables Popillia to explain Roman life and customs in a lively and interesting way.

Her sister, Cecilia, is betrothed to Mel us - it is a good match, and Popillia' s father is pleased - Cecilia's step up to senatorial rank should benefit the whole family.

Unfortunately, Popillia's brother, Longus, is threatening to cause a scandal by marrying a rope-dancer. He has quarrelled with his ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

father, stormed out of the house and disappeared. If rumours of th is reach Melus's father, Cecilia's marriage will be cancelled. Popinia is desperate to find Longus.

Well-brought-up Roman girls were expected to stay at home, out of the public eye, so how can she help Cecilia and Melus without causing a scandal herself] Then she meets Livia, a young widow who is not averse to bending the rules a little. Popillia soon finds herself in some unexpected situations and learns to judge people by what they are, not by their scandalous reputations

I enjoyed this. Moira Butterfield weaves Roman customs, attitudes to women, festivals etc. seamlessly into the story and Brian Duggan's illustrations helped a lot - I particularly liked the bird's-eye view of Popillia's house, with the rooms clearly labelled. Popillia is a real Roman girl, who lives by the mores of her time , and not just a modern character in Roman dress. The book succeeds in doing that difficult thing: getting the reader into the mind-set of a different culture. Aimed at girls. Reading age 8-10. Elizabeth Hawksley

THE DRAGON THRONE

Michael Cadnum, Viking , 2005, $16.99 / $25.00, 224 pp, tpb, ISBN 0-67003631-5

The first book in this trilogy-a bout two crusading squires in the twelfth centurywas a National Book Award finalist , and Michael Cadnum has continued his stellar work in this intense, fast-moving, and richly medieval finale. Back from Rome only to be imprisoned by a distrustful King John , young Edmund attains his release through his best friend, Hubert, who acts for him in one-on-one combat. Prince John promptly makes both squires knights: a longed-for accomplishment made bittersweet by the prince's request for fealty, a request the squires refuse because of their loyalty to his long-crusading brother, King Richard. Escaping England only through the intercession of Queen Eleanor, they guide one of the queen's ladies to Rome to fulfill her vow of pilgrimage. En route they battle King John's assassins and a band of alpine bandits, only to arrive in a Rome under siege, the battleground of powerful warring families There, they save Hubert 's true love, but are imprisoned again This time, it is Edmund's sword that will win their freedom, and with it, a chance to return to England victorious and reunited-they hope-with the long-delayed King Richard. Bravo to Michael Cadnum for penning a muscular medieval novel perfect for the GameBoy generation. (Ages 12+)

Lisa Ann Verge

THE HISTORJCAL NOVELS REVIEW

BLAST TO THE PAST #1: LINCOLN'S LEGACY

Stacia Deutsch and Rhody Cohon, Aladdin Paperbacks, 2005, $3 99, pb, 107pp, 0689870248

This book introduces a new time-travel series for children. My six-year-old son, nine-year-old daughter, and l all say "hooray!" The premise is uncomplicated and lends itself well to serialization. Thirdgrader Abigail's favorite teacher a1Tives late and disheveled every Monday morning and begins class with a "What-if?" history question. Usually the students are in for a lively discussion and a fun learning experience. But this Monday, there is something more. Mr. Caruthers poses the question: What if Abraham Lincoln quit and never signed the Emancipation Proclamation? When Abigail cannot come up with an answer, she (along with a few friends) is invited to the teacher's office after school. She's not in trouble-at least, no more than the rest of the country. It seems the question was not hypothetical. Mr. Caruthers quickly explains he needs their help convincing President Lincoln not to quit-for real! He provides them with a hand-held time-travel computer and two hours to accomplish the task.

The children are likable if a bit stereotyped. The teaching points are ageappropriate even if the presentation of some of the facts was a bit dry. My kids pronounced the book a winner and are looking forward to the next book in the series. (Ages 9-12)

Sue Asher

ANNIE BETWEEN THE STATES

L.M. Elliott, Katherine Tegen Books , 2004, $15.99/C$23.99, hb , 488 pp , 0060012110

Set in Virginia during the American Civil War, Annie Between the Stat es tells of a young girl's coming of age. While helping her mother treat the wounded from Manassas, Annie Sinclair meets a Yankee soldier who both intrigues and challenges her. Throughout the course of the war he periodically reappears , growing more important to her with each visit. At the same time , Annie copes with the increasingly difficult conditions on her family's farn1, her mother's illness, her younger brother's rebellion, and, most frightening of all, continued raids by Yankees. When faced with the loss of a close friend, Annie takes action that results in her arrest.

Though a good story lies at the heart of this historically accurate second novel from L.M. Elliott, it is lost amidst an overstuffed narrative and a good number of stereotypical secondary characters. The dialogue was especially problematic, with many of the characters uttering impossibly long and often unrealistic speeches. I fear that in this day and age, when teens expect instant gratification, many will set the book down quickly.

On the pos1t1ve side, the setting is beautifully rendered, and I genuinely cared about Annie, even if she did strike me as a little silly at times. And the story itself, when given its chance to shine in the final third of the book, is very appealing and timeless. [ just wish the author had been able to curb her seeming desire to insert all her research, thus slowing the pace. That said, I intend to keep this book for my nieces because it illustrates how horribly devastating war can be, and the human spirit's ability to rise above it. No small feat. (Ages 12+)

Teresa Basinski Eckford

BETRAYAL : THE LADY GRACE MYSTERIES

Patricia Finney (writing as Grace Cavendish), Doubleday, 2004, £6.99, hb, l98pp,038560645l

Delacorte, $6.26, ISBN 0385731523

This is captivating tale of a young Maid of Honour at the Court of Queen Elizabeth I in 1569. From the first paragraph to the last , the novel is written beautifully. The main character, named after the author's pen name Grace Cavendish, is an amiable teenager. Having got into Queen Elizabeth l's good books , she is allowed to roam around the court. However, her curiosity soon leads her into a breathtaking adventure, so great that it seems almost improbable for a maid of Honour! To be trapped in a boat, dressed as a boy, made to climb the mast, steer the ship, get through fights and Iive on scraps of food is not the type of situation that girls would like to be in either now or in 1569! However, Grace manages to survive and learns that being a detective 1s not as easy as she thought.

Other characters such as Masou, the Asian juggler, and Lady Sarah, the capricious flirter, add considerable amounts of puzzlement and excitement to the novel.

Apart from the fictional plot, the novel does also include very interesting historical facts. I learnt about the way the Queen's household was run and how even affairs of state touched upon the life of a poor maid. At the end of the novel Grace Cavendish provides the reader with a few pages of the Royal family's history which does a great job at summing up the whole novel. I thank the author for having produced such a great novel and I cannot wait to read the rest in the series!

So if you are looking for a good book to read, read Betrayal as it certainly won't betray you!

Emily Granozio. 14

LIZZIE'S WISH

Adele Geras, Usbome, 2004, £4.99, pb, 142pp. ISBN 0-7460-60300

This is the first book in a trilogy about a London house and the people who lived there. It is 1857 and 12-year-old Lizzie Frazer comes to London to stay with her

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

wealthy aunt and uncle. She has to cope with her spoilt cousin Lucy, superior Hugh, who ridicules her love of plants, and 16year-old Clara, who longs to emulate Florence Nightingale and become a nurse. Uncle Percy and Aunt Victoria are welcoming, if distant, but Uncle William, who lost an eye fighting in the Crimean War, is irascible and frightening.

There is no strong narrative drive, no hook, just a series of somewhat random events. According to the blurb , Lizzie wants to become a gardener, but, apart from growing a walnut from seed, nothing much happens in this area.

In reality, botany was a respectable hobby for a Victorian lady; this was the period of fem collecting, Wardian cases, and many superb female flower-painters, such as Marianne North ( 1830-1890). Nothing of this appears in the book.

Nursing would not become a respectable career until much later in the century .A 'lady' lost caste if she earned money, let alone exposing herself to public view and having bodily contact with the lower orders, particularly men. Clara risked finding herself a social outcast. However, ladies were expected to visit those less fortunate than themselves and Esther Summerson's visits to the brick-makers' hovels in Bleak House show that ladies could, and did, cope with death and disease without flinching I'm surprised that Aunt Victoria didn't lead Clara in this direction.

The book gave me the impression that, whilst the author had read the appropriate secondary sou rces, she had not read much primary source material which would have given her the assumptions of the time.

For girls aged 8-10.

Elizabeth Hawksley

TIME BOMB

Nigel Hinton , Puffin , 2005, £4.99, $8.63, 278pp, ISBN 0141318333

'Time Bomb' is set in the summer of 1949 in London, England. For the beginning and end of the story the protagonist, Andy reflects back on a significant event during his childhood. The story is about four young boys during their summer holidays after finishing their I I+ at primary school. The Second World War had recently ended and the rations and aftennath of the war are still affecting Britain. The four main characters are Andy, Eddie, Manny and Bob. They find a (live?) Nazi bomb on the site of a house that had been bombed to ruins during the Blitz. The story follows their arguments, falling outs and change in the boys. There is some racial abuse during part of the story, where one of the boys, Manny, who is Jewish is taunted about the events of the Holocaust.

The book is an extremely powerful tale of revenge and loss of naivete between our young boys. It gives an insight into the

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

change and social upset at a time when Britain was on the brink of a new beginning. I feel that this book is an excellent read and is in many ways similar to 'Lord of the Flies' by William Golding Annemarie Simmons age 15

BLOOD SECRET

Kathryn Lasky, HarperCollins, 2004, $ l 5.99/ CS23.99, hb, 236pp, 006000066X Fourteen-year-old Jerry Luna has been selectively mute ever since her mother abandoned her. After years in Catholic charity homes , Jerry's Aunt Constanza, her great-grandmother's sister, brings her home to New Mexico. In Constanza's cellar, Jerry discovers a trunk containing old family relics, including a piece of bloodstained old lace, and begins reliving her ancestors' memories.

The scene shifts to Seville, Spain, in I 39 I. Ten-year-old Miriam lives with her sister and mother, a lacemaker, in the Jewish Quarter just as anti-Jewish sentiment is rising. It culminates in a horrible massacre in which the Jewish Quarter is destroyed, most of its residents killed, and the rest forced to convert to Catholicism. Miriam is renamed Maria , and her family relocates to the more tolerant city of Toledo, yet the Inquisition follows them even there. Over centuries, as the trunk journeys from Europe to the Yucatan to New Mexico , we witness Spanish Jews' struggle to keep their religion secret until their conscious memories of it have finally been erased. Yet small traces remain Constanza, a good Catholic, keeps her family's tradition of lighting Sabbath candles, never realizing its origins lie in Judaism. As Jerry listens to the long-silenced voices of her ancestors, she regains her own.

Lasky chose to relate this novel as a series of historical episodes to demonstrate the Inquisition's crushing effects on an entire people over a 500-year period. Some transitions from present to past feel a bit awkward, and some historical facts seem questionable (bobbin lace in 14•h century Spain), but the novel's emotional impact renders them minor. I highly recommend Blood Secret for all ages; it is haunting and unforgettable. (Ages 12+)

Sarah Johnson

BROKEN SONG

Kathryn Lasky, Viking, 2005, $ I 5.99, pb, 158pp,0670059345

In The Night Journey, a National Jewish Book Award winner, Lasky told the story of how Reuven Bloom helped Sashie, his future wife, escape to America from the persecution of Jewish people living in the Pale during late nineteenth-century Tsarist Russia. Now, in this companion piece, Lasky carries readers back even further to

52

the early days of Reuven Bloom and his transformation from an innocent, young violin prodigy to dangerous revolutionary. After witnessing the savage murder of his family during a pogrom which also wipes out his entire shtetl, Reuven packs away his beloved violin and turns himself into an instrument for a socialist protest movement whose only notes play a "broken song" of revenge, intrigue, and violent plots against blood thirsty Kossaks and the Tsarist Military.

Inspired by her own Jewish heritage, Lasky paints a vivid picture of the brutality and anti-Semitism that prevailed during the reigns of Tsars Alexander Ill (1881-1894) and Nicholas II ( I 894- 19 I 7). In the end, Reuven realizes that his true soul is not that of a firebrand but one filled with music and the ability to hear notes of joy even amidst the worst periods of suffering and attacks on humanity. No matter what tribulations we suffer in this world, Lasky conveys the point that the spirit and hope of music transcends all and is the one aspect of our humanness that can never be stripped away. No political movement and no amount of inhumanity or suffering can stifle our ability to celebrate life and our expression of joy through music and art. Broken Song is a beautifully written young adult novel that reminds us that our best instruments against violence and persecution are not those that destroy but those that create notes of love, forgiveness, and compassion. (Ages 12+) Laurie Charnigo

SH IELD OF FIRE

Alice Leader, Puffin, 2004, £4.99, pb, 234 pp, ISBN 0141315288

This interesting story is set in Greece almost 500 years before the Christian Era. The main charactor is Nyrcsa, an orphaned girl of 12 who lives with her grandmother, head priestess of the goddess Artemis on the island ofThira.

Everyone living in the Greek archipelago knows that the Persian army is getting ever closer, intent on conquering and enslaving the whole world known at the time and that so far, no one has been able to stop them.

Nyresa's grandmother decides that, as High Priestess, she must go on a pilgrimage to intercede with the goddess to save the Greeks from being conquered and enslaved by the Persian soldiers. She takes Nyresa over to Athens where she will be cared for by an uncle and aunt. While the grandmother is away Nyresa is company for her crippled cousin and she also gets to know many new people. Gradually she becomes involved in a plot to thwart the invading army and in a really exciting finish to the book she becomes a spectator to the famous battle of Mara thon. Then, in the final pages of the tale is a truly happy

ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

ending and a delightful love story. A very satisfying, meaty book, suitable for any good reader who wants to learn what life was like in the first democracy. Of course, some of the ancient names do not make for really easy reading but that is inevitable and becomes easier with practice.

Jan Shaw

I, DRED SCOTT

Shelia P. Moses , Margaret K. McElderry, 2005,$16.95,hb,97pp,0689859759

An easy-read young people's version of the mid-nineteenth century Dred Scott case-in which the Supreme Court shamed itself by declaring that no one of African ancestry could be a citizen of the United States-is somethi ng history classrooms across the U.S. must greet with open arms. A foreword by John A. Madison, Jr. , greatgrandson of the misused slave, helps ground it in reality, as does the use of black English. The first-person narrative somewhat alleviates the lack of dialogue and concrete scenes, but mostly the devotion to history overwhelms fiction. Our narrating hero even loses his accent-as well as much of hi s urgency-when he bogs the reader down in "what Massa called" technical legal te1111s and the list of lawyers' names without characterization. Maybe Mr. Scott hardly understood what was happening to him, but this doesn't help the novice reader to understand. To explain further would have made the book of less use as a fifth grade reading assignment, I suppose, and drawn it out considerably.

(Ages 9-12)

Ann Chamberlin

REDWULF'S CURSE

Chris Priestley, Doubleday, 2005, £ I 0.99, $11.55, hb, 176 pp , 0385606958

17 I 6. This is the third Tom Marlowe adventure, but it stands on its own. Tom and his friend and mentor, Dr Barker, visit Dr Barker's friend Abraham Gibbs in Norfolk. Mr Gibbs has been excavating the barrowtomb of the Anglo-Saxon warrior, Redwulf, on his land. The superstitious villagers believe that this has incurred the wrath of the ghostly Sentinel, who will avenge any desecration of the grave.

Things are undoubtedly going wrong, for Mrs Gibbs' maid Margaret is murdered in mysterious circumstances and the contents of the Redwulf tomb go missing. Th en there is a fu1iher murder and soon Tom and Dr Barker are desperately trying to separate fact from legend before a third murder takes place. The fens are treacherous places and unwary people can easily be sucked under in the bogs. Furthe1more, quite apart from the lure of Redwulfs treasure , the area is rife with smugglers who have excellent reasons to keep the legend of the Sentinel alive. It isn't long before Tom's own life is at risk.

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

I enjoyed this. Not only was it exciting, but it also caught the less-than-scrupulous 18th- century attitude towards justice, and the antiquarian interests of Gibbs and the sinister Lord Jckneld (shades of the Hellfire Club) were absolutely in period. Tom behaves as an 18th century character would, and is shocked by Lord Jckneld's unashamed paganism, and ready to believe in the wickedness of the mute giant Matthew. He must learn not to judge by surface appearances; people are not always what they appear

Aimed at readers of both sexes of 9-11, I think this would be a popular choice for libraries and should stimulate interest in this exciting period. I certainly couldn't put it down.

Elizabeth Hawksley

' Redwulfs Curse' opened with a lot of dialogue and narrative , but not very much action and the result was it rambled. I think that if the legends about the Sentinel and Redwulfs Curse had been pruned, it would have made the beginning less dull and boring.

Fortunately, the plot picked up in the middle when Tom and Dr Barker went out to search for clues. This was followed by a surprisingly good ending with lots of twists. The characters, too , were unpredictable and helped to get you involved. I particularly liked the sinister Lord lckneld. However, I preferred the first book in this series, 'Death and the Arrow' because it was more realistic and exciting. Lucy Beggs , aged 13.

PIRATES

Celia Rees , Bloomsbury 2003, £5.99, pb, 379pp,0747564698

Bloomsbury, USA, Children's Books, 2003, $11.53 ISBN 1582348162

This is a phenomenal novel about a girl named Nancy Kington who wishes to become a pirate because she is disillusioned with her life and family. The novel is set in the early 1700s when pirates were common and often caught and hung.

Nancy's father, a rich merchant in Bristol, receives news of a large storm that has sunk all of his vessels. Nancy is sent to live in Jamaica, leaving her true love , William, behind. She is horrified to discover the harsh reality behind her father's sugar importing trade. Nancy finds herself in charge of a sugar plantation full of black slaves who are treated worse than animals. She ends up best friends with her slave-girl, Minerva Sharpe, with whom she has much in common. Knowing that their friendship is impo ss ible in this situation, they run away to join the pirates! However, the evil character in the novel, Bartholome, hunts Nancy down as she had been promised to him on her sixteenth birthday. This novel is

one the best adventure stories that I have read for a long time Celia Rees was inspired to write this novel because of her own childhood dreams. Join Nancy and Minerva's search for their true loves , live through murder, deceit, greed and fighting, and escape the evil Bartholome! The novel finishes with an unexpected twist that cleanly wraps the story up This sparkling novel creates a plot and an adventure that any pirate would be happy to claim as booty!

Emily Granozio (Age 14)

BROOKLYN ROSE

Ann Rinaldi, Harcourt, 2005 , $17 .00, hb , 222pp,0l5205117I

It is December 16, 1899, when Rose Frampton pens the opening entry in her birthday present, a gilt-edged journal. As she reflects upon describing her life in Beaufo1i County, South Carolina, where her plantation home is located , it seems uneventful. Not even her wildest dreams could conjure up events equal to those that will bring marriage to a wealthy northerner and the subsequent necessity of leaving her friends and family. Life's destiny is only a few weeks away.

Rose's sister Heppi weds Josh Denning on Valentine's Day. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Dumarest , a visiting businessman who has come for that wedding, asks permission to wed fifteen-year-old Rose. Rose is excited to be getting married, but fears her forthcoming responsibilities as mistress on a large Victorian estate in Brooklyn. When she arrives at the mansion on Dorchester Road , she discovers a mystery surrounding the housekeeper, which sets the stage for quickly hiring staff.

Rose's accounts of growing up while she is married places readers beside her through the flurry of events in a happy life of children and love. The story, written for readers aged ten and older, skillfully steps into history. Easy to read and well written, the story is a pleasant escape back to when recovery from the Civil War was reality for older family members. Social changes were forcefully creating new lifestyles. Junior high school and older girls will read this highly recommended work more than once. (Ages 10+)

Jetta Culpepper

NINE DAYS A QUEEN

Ann Rinaldi, HarperCollins, $15.99, pb, ]83pp ,0060549238

This novel perfectly and uncomplicatedly reveals the compelling story of Lady Jane Grey. Her story, which is told in a first person narrative, begins at the age of nine when she is sent to the Court of Henry VIII by her manipulative and ambitious parents. Here she meets her future guardians, Katherine Parr (the sixth of Henry's wives) and Thomas Seymour; she also reconnects ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

with her cousins, the future King Edward VI, Princess Mary (later Queen Mary I) and the Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth I). Her happiness at escaping the harsh, unpleasant world of her parents is charmingly evident though almost neeting when one considers her short life. Soon enough upon Katherine's death, Jane returns home, as her parents continue to scheme to make the most advantage marriage and future for her. Maneuvered into accepting the crown after Edward's death in a ploy filled with both religious and political overtones, Jane is abandoned and left to falter by those who should be closest to her.

This is a lovely and lovingly researched historical novel which I am confident will lead its readership to further delve into the lives of its main and secondary characters. It is obvious Rinaldi knows her readers, and she enthusiastically writes for them with intelligence and respect. (Ages 12+)

Wendy Zollo

WARSONG

James Riordan, Oxford University Press, 200 I, £4.99, $8.63, pb, 170 pp, ISBN 0192751921

It is the middle of World War I in Britain. Florence and Dorothy Loveless have just left school, and decided to 'do their bit'. With their brother and father away at war, and money becoming increasingly scarce, it 1s up to them to earn the money. Both girls enrol in munitions work, but Floss soon quits to become a nurse. After a shaky start, she soon adjusts to the stressful and dcmanding job of nursing injured soldiers. \Vhcn Floss goes to Aldershot I lospital to continue her nursing training, she finds her father there Hc has shell shock and refuses to talk to anyone. However one night he goes missing, and is found lying on the rail tracks, run over by a train.

Even though she is seven years too young, Floss is detennined to nurse on the battlefields - she even dreams of one day being reunited with her brother Jack. After a German bombing on the Red Cross building, Floss and her friend Bea are sent to try to find new medical supplies. When their van tyres are punctured by a rusty old piece of barbed wire, Gennan officials who force them to nurse their injured German soldiers capture them. Floss eventually gets her wish and is eventually reunited with her brother; however he is a Prisoner of War and has a mangled foot. Floss helps Jack to escape back to the Allied trenches where he will receive better medical treatment than the Gennans would give him. Floss goes back to the temporary nursing station (a church), knowing that she will be shot by the firing squad for treason. She saves Bea. whom the Military Tribunal finds not guilty. When Floss stands up in front of the Tribunal she knows that her fate is scaled. I lowever she is inspired by the story of

TIIE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

Edith Cavel!, a nurse who committed the same crime as her. Cavell was shot - Floss is detern1ined not to be. As her defence she tells the story of Nurse Cavell, who did what she thought was right for her patients Somehow the German governor hears about Floss' case, and he decides to save her from death.

This is the sequel to 'When the Guns Fall Silent'. 'War Song' is a moving story that is compelling reading. There is a melancholy feeling to the book, because of all the death and destruction of World War I. There are poems at the start of each chapter, which give a brief idea as to what that chapter will be about. Altogether this is an excellent book, and I would recommend it to 13-16 year olds who have an interest in World War I.

Charlotte Kemp age 14

I HAD SEE CASTLES

Cynthia Rylant, Harcourt, 200-1, S5.95, pb, 97pp,0l52053l23

Newbery medalist Cynthia Rylant has crafted a book that speaks as easily to this generation as any generation that experiences war. 1 Had Seen Casi/es. originally published in 1995, tells the story of John Dante, who grew up playing with toy soldiers and faced difficult decisions as America entered into World War II. Now as an adult, Dante looks back at his time with his girlfriend, Ginny: the days before he was shipped out, and before he actually knew what war was. We are drawn to Dante's idealism and innocence as a seventeen-yearold. We see him enlist to avoid being categorized as a traitor, which goes against Ginny's anti-war beliefs. Rylant eloquently portrays the patriotic fever that permeates Dante's Pittsburgh community. Although brief, this novel is rich in imagery and emotion. We are forever moved when we learn that Dante"s experiences in the War lead him to live a life outside of America and alone. Dante's words, "I could not stay in America because America had not suffered," linger long after the book is read. The paperback includes a reader discussion page and an author interview, which makes this book ideal for book club or classroom discussion. (Ages 12+)

Nancy Castaldo

MONTMORENCY O THE ROCKS

Eleanor Updale, Scholastic, 2004, £12 99, $16.51, hb, 273 pp. ISBN 0-439-97841-6 This is the second Montmorency Victorian adventure written by the author, but reads well as an independent story in its own right. Five years have passed since Montmorency reformed from his criminal life as 'Scarper' who escaped his various crime scenes by using the network of sewerage tunnels that exist underneath London. His alter ego has not completely left him however, as he carves out a career

as a government agent along with his friend, Lord George Fox-Selwyn. The 'Turkish drug' to which Montmorency is addicted gives Scarper a new hold on him, threatening his life, his secret work and his friendship with Fox-Selwyn. The dangerous reality of drug addiction and its debilitating affects arc described as Montmorency is helped through this time by his friend. Fox-Selwyn has enlisted the help of the prominent Dr Robert Farcett, a prison doctor who has crossed Scarper's path before.

This book works on many levels. It is a fascinating adventure as Montmorency and Fox-Selwyn try to uncover the myste11 of who is behind a London bombing and yet another mystery presents itself on a far off Scottish island.

The characters show the many facets of human nature, highlighting its strengths and weaknesses. Nothing is as it seems which is what makes this story so intriguing. The detail is skilfully woven into the action, accurately depicting life at the time. The stark contrast is highlighted between two very different worlds of poverty and wealth.

I think this is an excellent book. It shows imperfect heroes and explores the motives as well as the people behind the crimes.

Val Loh

SO UND

Plenty of new titles available this Spring and some of them look very tempting. Space does not pcnnit details on each of the books but a brochure is available from Isis or, for the visually impaired and the blind, there are large print versions as well as Word versions for those with screen readers. See below for details.

CALL T H E DYING

Andrew Taylor, read by Michael Tudor Barnes, Soundings, 13 hours playing time, £19.99, 10 cassettes; £27.99, 11 CDs, ISBN I 84283 933 0

The next novel of the 1950s Lydmouth series sees journalist, Jill Francis, back in town and her former lover, DCI Thornhill, contemplating his \\ ife 's desire for a divorce and a television. Meanwhile, there are small town intrigues afoot , with "The Pisser" who delights in peeing through letter boxes, fire at The Ga::elle and the death of a local GP. As I have commented before, Andrew Taylor's Lydmouth is no nostalgic haven of cricket on the Green and everyone knowing "their place". The period 1s ISSUE 32, MAY 2005

handled far more stylishly by Taylor with reserve, post-war austerity and curtain twitching much more in evidence. Aside from the intrigue there are marvellous vignettes, such as the wonderful PC Porter, fallible, slightly bovine and heroic in his own way. The narrative is let down in places by a slightly plodding reading from Michael Tudor Barnes, which tends to dull the edges of the fine, wry brush work that characterises Taylor's writing.

FOXES' OVEN

Michael de Larrabeiti, read by Sheila Mitchell, Soundings, IO hours , 30 minutes playing time, £19.99, 10 cassettes, ISBN I 84283 935 7

One senses the impending doom in this novel but even so, it comes as a surprise. Becky Taylor is evacuated to deepest rural Sussex during World War II , away from London, her feckless mother and almost non-existent father. Her life with the Clemmers gradually eases her sense of insecurity and soon Becky feels she belongs and is valued by her foster family. Becky's fragile and new-found happiness is soon shattered by the inevitable consequences of the war and its effect on everyone at Foxes ' Oven. This is an interesting tale and the portrayal of the landscape is astonishingly vivid. Sheila Mitchell gives a competent, if at times overemphatic, reading of the narrative.

Next issue: David Dickinson, Death & the Jubilee ; Pat McIntosh, The Harper's Quine.

LATEST RELEASES

Boris Akunin

Lyn Andrews

Anne Baker

Antony Beevor

Martin Booth

Anita Burgh

Irene Carr

Barbara Cleverly

David Dickinson

Margaret Drabble

Katie Flynn

Murder on the Leviathan A Mother 's Love Keep the Home Fires Burning The Mystery of Olga Chekova Gwcllo: Memories of a Hong Kong Childhood (non-fiction) The Broken Gate Emily The Damascened Blade Death & the Jubilee The Red Queen A Long and Lonely Road

Jess Foley Wait for the Dawn

Sara Fraser The Trooper's Wife

Alexander Fullerton Stark Realities

Alan Furst Dark Voyage

Paula Gosling Tears of the Dragon

Iri s Gower Halfpenny Field

Lilian Harry A Farthing Will Do

Linda Holeman The Linnet Bird

Richard Howard Bonaparte's Horsemen

Meg Hutchinson Ties of Love

Anna Jacobs Threepenny Dreams

THE HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW

Kathleen Jones

Nora Kay Gillian Kaye

Seeking Catherine Cookson's "Da" (nonfiction)

Cuckoo in the Nest

An Outrageous Masquerade

Barbara & Stephanie Keating To My Daughter in France

Andrew Martin The Blackpool High0yer

Beryl Matthews A Change of Fortune

Philip McCutchan Ogilvie at War

Pat McIntosh The Harper's Quine

James Nelson All the Brave Fellows

Diana Norman Taking Liberties

Patrick O'Brian Men of Warffhe Final

Unfinished Voyage of Jack Aubrey

Pamela Oldfield Turning Leaves

Geraldine O'Neill Tara's Fortune

James Pattinson The Liberators

Claire Rayner Piccadilly

Candace Robb The Cross-Legged Knight

Wendy Robertson Honesty's Daughter

Allan Sillitoe A Man of his Time

Edwin Thomas The Blighted Cliffs

Richard Woodman Ebb Tide

Janet Woods Beyond the Plough

Sally Worboyes Time Will Tell

It is always worth visiting the Isis website for special offers. Check the website: \1ww.isis-publishing.co.uk for details

New Titles released January to March 2004:

If you would like to receive the regular Update brochure from Isis with the full list of new titles , please call (01865) 250 333. This is also available in Large Print.

To contact Isi s/So undings, or to obtain a full catalogue contact the publishers at:

Isis Publishing Limited

7 Centremead

Osney Mead

Oxford

OX2 0ES

Tel: 0 I 865 250 333; E-mail: audiobooks@isis-publishing.co.uk Website: www.isis-nuhlishing.co.uk

Geraldine Perriam

AND VISION

THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES

(Diarios de Motocicleta) Certificate IS Director: Walter Salles, starring Gael Garcia Bernal and Rodrigo De La Serna 55

Che Guevara was born in Argentina. His birth certificate says June 1928, yet this may have been falsified later in order to protect his family. In 1967 he was killed by the CIA and Bolivian forces while attempting to bring about the same kind of socialist revolution he had helped to succeed in Cuba in 1959. The facts of his later life leave us with the picture of a restless, fearless man, so convinced by his principles that almost any means to achieve them was justified. It is the making of the man, not his legacy, which is the subject of The Motorcycle Diaries. Based on their journals , the film follows the young Ernesto Guevara, then a medical student from a middle-class background, and his close friend, Alberto Granado, on their journey of discovery around South America in 1952.

Watching the first half an hour or so of the film you may wonder if it's sliding off track into nostalgic sentimentality: the gorgeous shots of the South American landscape; the old beaten tracks that stretch for miles; the powerful Argentinean stallions that outrun Alberto's not so trusty motorcycle, The Mighty One This is all pleasant enough but seems a little idealised, like scenes from a gap year student's photo album.

However , as Ernesto and Alberto travel further and meet more people they begin to lose their naivete and see how injustice lies in every gorgeous setting. Their different reaction to each encounter is beautifully acted. Every serious point is balanced by something comic, every bleak scene softened by something more hopeful. The film is never too heavy, nor too light. Ernesto's inability to compromise on what he believes to be right and Alberto's constant fuming, wishing his friend could just step off the moral high ground for once, transcends the language barrier, the faces of the two actors saying it all. Yet the divide that gradually widens between the two friends is never forced While sitting among the ruins of the Lost City of the Incas, Alberto draws up his well-intentioned plan for a peaceful revolution to unify South America. Ernesto turns to him and says, "A revolution without any guns. It would never work". No more is needed.

For some, the ending may be a little too neat and may spoil the powerful scenes at the leper colony. But over all this is an excellent film, full of as many beautiful and hopeful moments as it is bleak and, as long as a little cynicism can be held back, is a film well worth watching.

(In Spanish with subtitles) Also available on DVD Guy Charles

HNS BOOK ORDERING SERVICE

UK Members

The HNS Book Ordering Service can supply any book reviewed in Hi storica l Novels Reviews, including books published abroad. Please contact Sarah Cuthbertson at sarah 76cuthbert!(l!aol.eom or OI 293 884898 with the title(s) you want and s he wi ll give you a quote from the cheapest Internet source, to include postage and packing. Customers can benefit from discounts on many titles, and will usually pay on ly UK postage on overseas books. Books will be delivered directly to the customer wheneve r possible. Please note, this service is o nl y available to members who do n ot h ave internet access.

Alternatively, the US Reviews Editors will buy books for you in the US to trade for UK titles : please contact Sarah Johnson (frsln(a:eiu.edu), Trudi J aco bso n rcadbks(wlocalnet.com or Il ysa Magnus (goodl::iw2@'ao1.com) Sarah Cuthbertson can contact them on your behalf if you don't have email.

Overseas Members

The following UK members a re interested in trading books with overseas members, including wishlists and secondhand books: Rachel A. Hyde, 2 Meadow Close, Budleigh Salterton, Devon EX9 6JN, Tel: +44 1395 446238, Email: rachclahvdc@ntlworld.corn (Rac h el w ill also trade Fantasy & SF). Sarah Cuthbertson (contact details above). Please let Sarah know if you would lik e to join this list.

OUT OF PRINT BOOKS

The following deal in out of print historical fiction:

Boris Books, Market Place, Sturminster Newton , Dorset DTl0 !AS, UK \vv.1w.borisbooks.co.uk

Diaskari Books, 7 Southmoor Road , Oxford OX2 6RF , UK chris.tyzack@btinternet.com

Forget-Me-Not Books, 11 Tamarisk Rise , Wokingham, Berks RG40 I WG, UK

Judith ridley (w,hot mail.c om

Rachel Hyde , 2 Meadow Close, Budleigh Salterton, Devon EX9 6JN rachelahvde@ntlworld.com

Karen Miller, Church Farm Cottage, Church Lane , Kirklington , Nr. Newark, Notts. NG22 8NA, UK

Karen(a).Millerl 964freeserve.co.uk

Rosanda Books, 11 Whiteoaks Road , Oadby, Leicester LE2 5YL , UK dbaldwin(mthemutual.nct

David Spenceley Books , 75 Harley Drive, Leeds LSl3 4QY davidspenceley@ernail.com