Historical Fictionistas discussion

I am nearly finished One Night in Winter by Simon Sebag Montefiore. It is very good. Gripping and horrific all at the same time. I have a terrible feeling that something aweful will happen if I continue reading..but I just can't help it.

Had to relegate Under the Harrow by Flynn Berry to the status of "car book" - the book I keep in the car so I'll have something to read at the RR crossing or doctor's office - it just wasn't capturing my attention, but I want to see what the fuss is about...

Picked up Absolution by Murder by Peter Tremayne - much more engaging!

Just finished The Sleepwalkers by Chris Bohjalian. The next book I plan on reading is The Girl Befirea

@Nancy
How did you like it?

I am just starting Terrible Virtuewhich is a biographical novel of birth control advocate Margaret Sanger. I've read non-fiction about her so I already know a great deal about her life, but I'm interested in the author's approach and insights into her as a human being.

Jayme - I really enjoyed The Sleepwalker by Chris Bohjalian.mmi wrote a review which was posted to Goodreads and Amazon. I really mixed up the name of the book I am currently reading. The title is The Girl Before by J.P. Delaney

I loved the movie Lion. To me, Div Patel can do no wrong. I also recently downloaded this book and can't wait to read this title now.

Nancy from NJ wrote: "I loved the movie Lion. To me, Div Patel can do no wrong. I also recently downloaded this book and can't wait to read this title now."

Nancy, I loved A Long Way Home, the original title of Saroo Brierley's memoir. The original book cover shows him on the day he arrived in Tasmania. Lots of photos inside - hope you enjoy it!

The new version has your hero Dev on the cover, Nancy!
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Emily Fridlund's debut novel History of Wolves is an interesting read. Slow to start until we learn a little more.

Link to my review

Kathleen wrote: "Just finished A Perilous Undertaking by Deanna Raybourn - loved the main characters Veronica and Stoker they are so entertaining...now I am onto The Forgotten Room b..."

The Veronica series is so great! I also loved The Forgotten Room.

I just started The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict, it seems to have gotten mixed reviews, we will see how it goes...

Stacey wrote: "Kathleen wrote: "Just finished A Perilous Undertaking by Deanna Raybourn - loved the main characters Veronica and Stoker they are so entertaining...now I am onto [book:The Forgotten..."

I loved the Forgotten Room as well, I am looking forward to the 3 authors new book they are working on set to come out in 2018 about the Lusitania...

Shomeret wrote: "I am just starting Terrible Virtuewhich is a biographical novel of birth control advocate Margaret Sanger. I've read non-fiction about her so I already know a great deal about her l..."

You probably already know this, but I was entertained to discover recently that the creator of Wonder Woman was one of her descendants.

Christine wrote: "Shomeret wrote: "I am just starting Terrible Virtuewhich is a biographical novel of birth control advocate Margaret Sanger. I've read non-fiction about her so I already know a great..."

Not exactly. A woman who was very involved in the creation of Wonder Woman, but not actually her creator, was Margaret Sanger's niece and therefore a descendant of her sister, Ethel. See The Secret History of Wonder Woman by Jill Lepore.

I finished "Closer To The Chest" by Mercedes Lackey and going back to "A Study of Charlotte"

I'm reading The journey of Anders Sparrman by Per Wastberg. The novel is set in the 18th Century. Sparrman was Swedish and a protege of Linnaeus. He spent time in South Africa working as a tutor. He subsequently joined Cooke's ship from Cape Town as on
Board doctor and botanist. I know of South African plants and a fish named after him and that sparked my interest. I am enjoying this book.

Captain Cook's mission was to explore the Antarctic and his ship the 'Resolution'.

The Duchess, by Amanda Foreman. I love Georgiana! She's such an inspiration, even for contemporary women. It's a dense read, but extremely well-written.

I am reading the delightful Miss Jacobson's Journey, one of a very obscure historical fiction genre - Regency romance with a Jewish heroine. Of course she's spunky and determined not to marry the wimpy scholar her parents have chosen for her, so she runs off on an adventure to help her widowed uncle, a doctor, in his research. True to the genre, she meets up with two attractive young men, one Jewish and the other an impoverished Earl whose father's imprudent investments have forced him to work for a living. Love is in the air, but which suitor will she chose?

Am reading the delightfully fun yet with the hint of macabre humour Dorothy L Sayer's Lord Peter Whimsey; Whose Body? Quite enjoyable so far

I'm currently reading Three Sisters, Three Queens Philippa Gregory //www.goodreads.com/book/show/28251813-...

Finished A Thousand Splendid Suns .
My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/99507478

Dem wrote: "Finished A Thousand Splendid Suns. "

I loved both his books!

Maggie wrote: "I am reading the delightful Miss Jacobson's Journey, one of a very obscure historical fiction genre - Regency romance with a Jewish heroine. Of course she's spunky and determined not..."

I'm glad you're enjoying Miss Jacobson's Journey, Maggie.

reading IN the Hands of Providence about Joshua Chamberlain- Civil war hero

Unbelievably inexcusable! Compelling, sad, angry look at a country that still lets kids die from gun violence every day.

5★ for Another Day in the Death of America: A Chronicle of Ten Short Lives by black British writer Gary Younge, based in Chicago.

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

Exodus – Leon Uris – 3.5***
This is an epic novel covering the history of the Jewish people’s efforts to return to Palestine and form an independent state. I felt that Uris couldn’t make up his mind whether he was writing an epic romance, a war novel or a history of the formation of Israel. It certainly made me think. And I’m glad I finally read this novel.
LINK to my review

Right now I'm reading Captain Blood; I was in a swashbuckly pirate-y mood. You can tell it was written in 1922 (from the prose, let alone from the periodic references to "negroes"), but it's quite a tale.

I just began We Were The Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter. This is the author's debut book. This title focuses on a large Jewish living in Poland at the beginning of WWII and no matter what happens the will find each other some day.

I'm on holiday at the moment and would like to recommend four novels I've enjoyed so far: Janet Ellis, The Butcher's Hook. Kazuo Ishiguro, The Buried Giant. Andrew Taylor, Ashes of London and Francis Spufford, Golden Hill. The Butchers Hook is dark and weird but great fun, almost in the vein of Jacobean tragedy. The Buried Giant is beautiful and very moving. Costa award winning Golden Hill is unusual but entertaining and Ashes of London is a good holiday read, in the Shardlake mode.

Just finished reading The Painted Girls a darker side of Paris.

Jon wrote: "This year for historical fiction I plan to read The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell, The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, and [book:Foucau..."

All good books and worth reading

In honor of Black History Month, I"ve been trying to read primarily black authors. I finished Frederick Douglass' Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass An American Slave and Other Writings (the Fall Rive Press edition). Douglass gives us an unvarnished account of life under slavery, demolishing one by one contemporary excuses and apologies for slavery. This edition also included a number of essays and presentations that came out after the original publication of "Narrative." Highly recommended. My review:

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

Continuing with my Black History Month project, I finished Representative John Lewis' March: Book One. A remarkable achievement and recommended for adults and children alike. Lewis, a true American treasure and Civil Rights icon, wrote a couple of traditional memoirs based on his role in the Civil Rights struggles. This graphic novel project was inspired by an early "comic" about Dr. Martin Luther King that circulated during those turbulent times and inspired many young people to join the fight. The lead up to and march for voting rights in Selma, Alabama is laid out in touching detail. This volume dealt with Lewis' early years, his struggle (even against his parents) to get an education and his growing sense of injustice in the segregated south. It concludes with the successful integration of Nashville, Tennessee's downtown drug store counters. I particularly liked the framing story--the morning of President Obama's first inauguration--which gave the narrative poignancy. I'm looking forward to Book 2!

I am reading the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series. It is a historical mystery set around Britain's recovery from World War 1. I am enjoying it. There are 14 novels and 3 short stories to the series. I just read #12 Garment of Shadows.

I read the first one "The Beekeeper's Apprentice"

I'm reading We Were the Lucky Ones which takes place at the beginning of WWII.

On an American Civil War kick (again). Just finished The Underground Railroad and am now reading Lincoln in the Bardo. Both books contain elements of magical realism, which is not usually something I love, but it is used very effectively in both of these books.

Finished March: Book Two which continues the graphic illustration of the the Civil Rights movement. This one picks up where the March: Book One left off, including the framing story of President Obama's inauguration day. Lewis covers a couple of crucial years: the summer of the Freedom Riders (1961) and culminating with the March on Washington (1963). These years were filled with tremendous acts of pacifist courage in the face of virulent hatred and violence. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I can hardly wait for March Book Three to tell how the anti-Trump protests triumph. ;-)

I finished reading "A Study in Charlotte" and starting "The Boelyn King"

I'm reading The Lover by Marguerite Duras.

Kathryn wrote: "I can hardly wait for March Book Three to tell how the anti-Trump protests triumph. ;-)"

Lots of inspiration for today's activists!

Starting to reread The Lost Queen. Tried reading Snow Falling on Cedars but had a hard time getting into it maybe after I read this book I will give it a try again.

For something different I'm reading The Conquest of the Incas by John Hemming I've been fascinated by the Incas since visiting Peru

Jayme(the ghost reader) wrote: "I read the first one "The Beekeeper's Apprentice""Yes, it really is a very good book.

I'm reading 'Vladimir Navokob Lolita'.... I just have started it... amazing vocabulary used.... blasted my mind out!! :)

I am part way through The Inquisitor's Wife by Jeanne Kalogridis, so far it is an interesting read.

I am currently reading the house at Baker Street by Michelle birkby and wow is it fun and incredibly full of holmsian thrills love it

Am half way through In the Hands f Providence about Civil war Medal of Honor winner Joshua Chamberlain- is great story but mediocre writer- next up In the heart of the Sea