Historical Fictionistas discussion

I finished "Violets Are Blue by James Patterson and starting "\I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You by Ally Carter

Aussie Author Michael Sala has written about his (now) hometown of Newcastle, NSW, in The Restorer, where short-fused Roy is trying to restore a house and his family.
3.5★ Link to my review

My most recent HF read - All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.

I keep coming again and again to WW2 books- I can't get enough of the different perspectives and all the ways books like "All the Light We Cannot See" give insight to what makes us human and binds us together, even in (or especially in) the midst of dark times.

Along those same lines, I just finished The Distance Between Us by Reyna Grande, which is a wonderfully written autobiography of a girl left behind in Mexico as her parents ran to "the other side" (of the border), looking for opportunity. I think anyone could both gain new perspective, and find things in common with her story.

In another category, I'm reading Through the Language Glass: Why the World Looks Different in Other Languages by Guy Deutscher. In a different way from HF, I think cultural studies like these give us insight into what the world has looked like in different times and places around the world.

Thanks to everyone who posted before me! This is a great place to find new reads :)

Kaydee wrote: "My most recent HF read - All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.

I keep coming again and again to WW2 books- I can't get enough of the different perspectives a..."

Oh, that language book looks interesting. I started studying Swedish about six months ago, and it does make you think about things differently.

If you like WWII historical fiction, have you read ? It's about Hungarian Jews, so it really does offer a different perspective.

K.M. wrote: "I'm currently reading Oracle Glass by Judith Merkle Riley (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...). The subject matter drew me in but I'm finding the POV hoppi..."

I ADORE "The Oracle Glass." She does hop POV, but there's nobody better for crafting deep hist-fic that is also so funny!

Finished Three Men in a Boat, a real gem. Then read H is for Hawk (lovely), And Then There Were None (which I would have sworn I'd read before but apparently not). Currently working on Darconville’s Cat and The Summer Before the Dark.

Just started Front Lines for the current challenge. I am now officially on "read-cation" - no work for a full week. I see some serious readin' in my future!

Cheryl A wrote: "Just started Front Lines for the current challenge. I am now officially on "read-cation" - no work for a full week. I see some serious readin' in my future!"

So jealous! Have a great time.

Ooh, enjoy!

I’m reading Assignment Bletchley a WW2 story of Naval intelligence, Spies and Intrigue by Peter J Azzole

A great little picture book about a boy with autism who'd like help. Jillian Ma's gorgeous In My World
5★ from me. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Terra Nullius, by Indigenous Aussie author Claire G. Coleman, is a unique take on colonisation, incorporating history, philosophy and religion, oh yes, and fantasy and sci-fi!
3.5★ rounded up to 4. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Finished Return to Dragon Mountain: Memories of a Late Ming Man. 4 stars. I loved that I learned a lot about the times Zhang Dai lived in (he was an eccentric literary talent and historian who lived through peace, decadence and then war and poverty in the final decades of the Ming dynasty).

Finished Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker which I enjoyed with a couple of reservations. My review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I'm working on The Never-Open Desert Diner. I'm trying to not read it too fast as I want to savor the character development.

The News from Paraguay

Finished , Running with the Demon. Started book two , A Knight of the Word. Fun fantasy.

Currently reading The Stolen Marriage by Diane Chamberlain . This book begins in 1944 and shortly afterwards the polio epidemic began.

Finished The Ninth Hour

My Review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/2131801695

I am reading . Set in present day and 1920s. Good so far

I'm reading The lost Illusions, by Balzac. As I know I know quite a few things (English?) about Balzac's life, I recognize in the hero Lucien Chardon or Lucien de Rubempré, the young Honoré de Balzac when he was poor and alone in Paris trying to write the perfect book and to be famous. It's delicious!

Gabrielle wrote: "I'm reading The lost Illusions, by Balzac. As I know I know quite a few things (English?) about Balzac's life, I recognize in the hero Lucien Chardon or Lucien de Rubempré, the young Honoré de Balz..."

Gabrielle, I enjoyed Balzac's Eugénie Grandet and Père Goriot, and have on my to-read list Cousin Bette and A Harlot High and Low. Would love to hear your thoughts on Lost Illusions :)

I am currently reading The Orphan of Florence by Jeanne Kalogridis and enjoying it.

Cousin Bette is terrific. The movie version with Elisabeth Shue is also excellent (trailer).

I just started Broken Harbor by Tana French in paperback. Not historical fiction.

I'm also about to start listening to Birds of a Feather, the second Maisie Dobbs historical mystery.

And I'm trying to finish Traitor's Knot on my Kindle. It's not my cup of tea, but I'm too far to quit. (However, if you enjoy all-out historical romance, you'd probably love this one.)

I’m
Reading Blood moon by Ruth Hull Chatlien

Margaret wrote: "I’m
Reading Blood moon by Ruth Hull Chatlien"

Thank you. I hope you enjoy it.

It is a gripping read

Just started The Girl and the Sunbird: A beautiful, epic story of love, loss and hope. I loved her first book - .

Finished reading I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You and starting Dragonflight

Not fiction but it often feels like it. I'm re-reading The Gunpowder Plot by Antonia Fraser. I've read and researched lots of books about the Gunpowder Plot but this is best analysis of the history I've read. Unlike some factual history books, it is very readable and clear.

Ruth wrote: "Kaydee wrote: "My most recent HF read - All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.

I keep coming again and again to WW2 books- I can't get enough of the different..."

It really does, doesn't it? I lived in Guatemala for the winter last year, immersed in Spanish, and I now often think about the differences in how we express ourselves and such.

No, I haven't read The Invisible Bridge, but I'll add it to my list now! Thanks Ruth!

Alice wrote: "Gabrielle wrote: "I'm reading The lost Illusions, by Balzac. As I know I know quite a few things (English?) about Balzac's life, I recognize in the hero Lucien Chardon or Lucien de Rubempré, the yo..."

With pleasure, as soon as I'm finished!
What I like most when I read him is that I can see him living and writing.
As you seem to enjoy Balzac's books, would you like to know how he wrote, unless you already know it? :)

Michele wrote: "Cousin Bette is terrific. The movie version with Elisabeth Shue is also excellent (trailer)."

Cousine Bette is a bit different than other novels by Balzac. In the 19th century, novels appear first in the newspaper, one chapter each week. Authors were paid each week by the newspaper, like a journalist would be for each paper. Then booksellers who were also publishers and sometimes also printed the books, bought the novel to the author and could publish it as long and as many books he could sale. That's why French novels from the 19th have a lot of chapters and each chapter has a suspense at the end, so readers would buy the newspaper the next week.
The first novel that Balzac gave to a newspaper was a failure. His description were to long, people who read newspaper were not all good readers, and they got bored. lot of them even have unsubscribed from the newspaper! The director of the newspaper was angry about Balzac and fired him!
Balzac said he would never write for the newspapers again. But he did it for Cousine Bette and wrote in a format of chapters and suspense and he succeed.

PS: No time to reread this comment, so please try to understand my poor English! Please?

Gabrielle wrote: "Michele wrote: "Cousin Bette is terrific. The movie version with Elisabeth Shue is also excellent (trailer)."

Cousine Bette is a bit different than other novels by Balzac. In the 19th..."

Pere Goriot Père Goriotis a great novel; one of my favorites. Balzac knew the Parisian underworld quite well, just like his English contemporaries, Dickens and Thackeray, knew the London underworld. In Balzac's case, he learned a great deal from his acquaintance with the famous criminal turned detective, Francois Eugene Vidocq. Memoirs of Vidocq: Principal Agent of the French Police; Written by HimselfVautrin, a recurring character in La Comedie Humaine, was inspired by Vidocq.

I quoted Balzac in one of my novels: “Laws are spider webs through which the big flies pass and the little ones get caught.”
― Honoré de Balzac

Gabrielle wrote: "Michele wrote: "Cousin Bette is terrific. The movie version with Elisabeth Shue is also excellent (trailer)."

Cousine Bette is a bit different than other novels by Balzac. In the 19th..."

Thanks for sharing that information, Gabrielle! I do like Balzac a lot, but I'm a fan of Emile Zola's :)

Alice wrote: "Gabrielle wrote: "Michele wrote: "Cousin Bette is terrific. The movie version with Elisabeth Shue is also excellent (trailer)."

Cousine Bette is a bit different than other novels by B..."

I read a lot of Zola when I was a teenager, but now I feel more Romantic than Naturalist.
This reminds me that, having learned one day that, in a newspaper’s review, Emile Zola had very badly criticized him, Victor Hugo, the romantic poet, he had wished to read Zola's review, but also some novel of the naturalist writer. The following week, Victor Hugo told his friends:
"Well, gentlemen, Madame Drouet has kindly read me the writing of this young man Zola. Do you know that, for an Italian, it’s not bad, even through the translation, yes, yes, yes, maybe just a little heavy writing."
And all evening, because of Zola’s italian name and personal style, Victor Hugo persisted archly in the mistake of taking Zola for "an Italian writer betrayed by a… Swiss translator!... Swiss, oui, oui, oui..!"
Hugo amused himself with his particular laughter, under, so to speak, his flowered beard, punctuating it with his irresistible: "oui, oui, oui!"

Gary wrote: "Gabrielle wrote: "Michele wrote: "Cousin Bette is terrific. The movie version with Elisabeth Shue is also excellent (trailer)."

Cousine Bette is a bit different than other novels by B..."

I assume, Gary, that your motto, as a lawyer, was not Balzac's quotation? :)

Gabrielle wrote: "Gary wrote: "Gabrielle wrote: "Michele wrote: "Cousin Bette is terrific. The movie version with Elisabeth Shue is also excellent (trailer)."

Cousine Bette is a bit different than othe..."

No, Gabrielle, Balzac's quote wasn't my motto back when I practiced law, but it seemed appropriate for The Hanged Man, a murder mystery/thriller set it late 19th century Paris. :)

Alice wrote: "Gabrielle wrote: "I'm reading The lost Illusions, by Balzac. As I know I know quite a few things (English?) about Balzac's life, I recognize in the hero Lucien Chardon or Lucien de Rubempré, the yo..."

Hi Alice, I reviewed Balzac's Lost Illusions !
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Kathleen wrote: "I am currently reading The Orphan of Florence by Jeanne Kalogridis and enjoying it."

This looks intriguing and doesn't have a long wait list at the library. I'm gonna dive in

Gabrielle wrote: "Alice wrote: "Gabrielle wrote: "I'm reading The lost Illusions, by Balzac. As I know I know quite a few things (English?) about Balzac's life, I recognize in the hero Lucien Chardon or Lucien de Ru..."

Very good review, Grabrielle! Thanks! This novel reminds me of Zola's The Masterpiece - it also tells of the hardships that artists face; and it gives lively descriptions of the Parisien streetscape. Here's my review of it if you're interested: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Alice wrote: "Gabrielle wrote: "Alice wrote: "Gabrielle wrote: "I'm reading The lost Illusions, by Balzac. As I know I know quite a few things (English?) about Balzac's life, I recognize in the hero Lucien Chard..."

I just read your review. Very good. I just don't agree when you write that Zola "paints the Paris art scene with equal doses of realism and romanticism". He wasn't a Romantic. He described what he saw and nothing else and he really didn't like the Romantics from the 1820-1840 years, like Victor Hugo or Théophile Gautier. Well, I hope you don't think I'm rude, I didn't want to be. Where would be the pleasure of discussion if we agreed about everything?
But, I bear a grudge a bit in Zola to have been too much read and believed. I explain myself:
His realist vision and the one of all the French authors who followed him on this way, made us see the 19th century as awful and dark. But it wasn't only that. Even nowadays, everyone is not happy on earth.
In France, Zola made us look only at the bad side of life and since two centuries, French people only look down and complain. All they remember is that Lantier died because he was misunderstood. I don't agree: some people are stronger than some others, that's life, that's nature. French people should better look up, to Beauty. Yes, there's misery, we can try to help, but moaning about what's wrong doesn't make things go better.
Zola wanted to be the witness of unfortunate people and he was a very good one! But he left in the French memory a sad image of my dear 19th century, him who was living in a beautiful house, filled with antiques, and who was sleeping in a big LouisXIII bed!
But you like Zola and, I must admit, when, for exemple, he discribes the different fabrics in Au Bonheur des Dames, this passage stayed in my memory.
No time to reread, I hope you've undersrood what I tried to explain in my poor English and keep on fighting for the authors you like, Alice!

Gabrielle, you've explained very well your views. I do agree that Zola always tended to paint life in a dark and pessimistic way. Maybe the reason I like him is that I myself am a born pessimist, haha! Mind you, I didn't find his first novel Thérèse Raquin to my taste (far too dark and bleak a story about human selfishness).

I was digging up my notes to try to recall what it was that I found to have a romantic element. I guess I was referring to the initial enthusiasm and bright spirits and naive ambition that imbued the young artists starting out. But sadly all that camaraderie among the friends would change due to their differing luck and life experiences (hence the realism).

I love this chatting about books, Gabrielle! And thanks for expressing your own take. It is making me understand better why I lean towards certain type of books :)

Not HF, but once in a while, especially when I have a cold, I settle down and reread an old favorite. Right now it’s Terry Pratchett ‘s Tiffany Aching series - satirical fantasy at its very best.

I am currently reading The Orphans Tale by Pam Jenoff.

I just started reading "The plum tree" by Ellen Marie wiseman. I just finished her book "coal river" and "what she left behind" fabulous author. Takes me a few pages to get into the books then I'm hooked and can't put them down.

Alice wrote: "Gabrielle, you've explained very well your views. I do agree that Zola always tended to paint life in a dark and pessimistic way. Maybe the reason I like him is that I myself am a born pessimist, h..."

I can't affrod to be pessimist, my husband is pessimist for the both of us and even more! :)
à bientôt!

Just finished Blood Moon by Ruth Chatlien a brilliant 5 Stars. Now I’m back to [book:

Now reading Before we were Yours by Lisa Wingate which was an author giveaway. Looks to be very good.