Historical Mystery Lovers discussion
2023 - Settings Challenge
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Maggie's Settings Challenge
My challenge is Level #2: Master of History - 10 to 15 books in at least 5 categories.
Book 1:
Category: Ancient Greece
Completed: January 12th
Thoughts: It was a fun way to experience ancient Greece but I am glad I did not live there. I liked the fact that many of the characters were actual people.
Book 2:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: January 13th
Thoughts: This is a new author to me. I like the combination of an American, still recovering from the War Between the States, living in England who befriends and helps an English police officer.
Book 3:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: January 15th
Thoughts: Second book in the Redmond and Haze Mysteries. Pretty good but sometimes I feel Redmond is represented as more modern than an American of that era would actually be.
Book 4:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: January 15th
Thoughts: I like how people from previous books show up, even only slightly.
Book 5:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: January 16th
Thoughts: Honestly, I didn't mean to read anymore in the Redmond and Haze series right now! But the author is tricky. At the end of each book she gives a three chapter sneak preview of the next book. By three chapters, I am hooked.
Book 6:
Category: Regency England
Completed: January 21th
Thoughts: Sheri Cobb South, the author of the John Pickett series is a new author to me. As I like to read series in order, I began with this volume. It was very enjoyable and I will be reading more of the series.
Book 7:
Category: Regency England
Completed: January 22
Thoughts: Just as fun as the first book in the John Pickett series
Book 8:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: January 24
Thoughts: A good look at human nature, from those interviewed to the murderer.
Book 9:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: January 31
Thoughts: Since I forgot to add this in a timely manner and have read 6 books since this one - no!
Maggie wrote: "Book 9: Category: Victorian England
Completed: January 31
Thoughts: Since I forgot to add this in a timely manner and have read 6 books since this one - no!"
Frightening how fast those thoughts are forgotten.
Book 10:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: February 16
Thoughts: This is a prequel to the Charles Lenox Mysteries, which is a new series to me. When I run onto a a series I always try to read them in chronological order. The prequel does a wonderful job of providing background on Charles Lenox. It provides an understanding of the time and people which I am sure will be helpful in future books of the series.
Book 11:
Category: Early 20th Century
Completed: February 13
Thoughts: I love the cover of this edition because it reminds me of artwork from the period. One interesting aspect of Poppy and the Midnight Murders is that it brings out the tenuous relationship between English villagers and newly arrived American military personnel in the summer of 1942.
Maggie; I've read both books in this entertaining series. Hope the author continues Poppy's adventures!
Book 12:
Category: Early 20th Century
Completed: February 20
Thoughts: This second book in the Poppy Redfern series is even better than the first! I hope the series continues. A mention of how Poppy acquired her dog led to me to research a British phenomenon -the destroying of pets (up to 750,000 in a week) at the beginning of the war. Amazing what one learns reading historical fiction based on fact.
Book 13:
Category: Medieval England
Completed: February 22
Thoughts: I love being back with Hugh de Singleton! This mystery took him quite a while to solve.
Book 14:
Category: Shogunate Japan
Completed: February 24
Thoughts: It has been years since I read anything in this time period, but I really enjoyed this book. It was interesting to see the interactions between the Father Mateo, the Portuguese Jesuit priest and Hiro, the Japanese samurai who is tasked to protect him. I'm looking forward to following them in more adventures as I also learn more about 16th century Japan.
Book 15:
Category: 16th-17th Century Europe
Completed: February 26
Thoughts: I wasn't sure what to expect with this one. It was not only a new author but a new setting for me. I enjoyed it and plan to read this next in the series. While I enjoyed Master Mercurius private contemplations, I enjoy Hugh de Singleton's more.
Book 16:
Category: 16th-17th Century Europe
Completed: March 1
Thoughts: Though this was good, I enjoyed the first book more. Perhaps it was the political plot that lessened my enjoyment.
Book 17:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: March 6
Thoughts: I enjoyed getting to know Charles Lenox a bit more. Not only is there a mystery but the characters and relationships are expanding. It was nicely balanced.
Book 18:
Category: American Civil War
Completed: March 16
Thoughts: There were a lot of fun characters in this mystery. As always, I appreciated the author took time to do historical research and let readers know which bits were added to create the story.
Book 19:
Category: American Civil War
Completed: March 18
Thoughts: The Civil War is always an interesting period of time to me. Having such enjoyable characters to share it with makes it all the better.
Book 20:
Category: American Civil War
Completed: March 22
Thoughts: It is a good mix of history and mystery. I hope the series is continued.
Book 21:
Category: American Civil War
Completed: March 24
Thoughts: There were some nice twists in the story. I appreciate the author tries to be accurate as far as the history. Though, this is not my favorite main character, I will probably pick up at least a few more of the series at some point.
Book 22:
Category: Victorian
Completed: March 27
Thoughts: Written as though a record of her own adventure, Myrtle Hardcastle was a fun book. Not only is the main character quirky but other characters are just as endearing.
Book 23:
Category: Shogunate Japan
Completed: March 29
Thoughts: This is the second in the Shinobi Mystery series. I am enjoying the series and am glad a certain fact about Hiro was confirmed in this book. Even though I will probably have to get them all through ILL, I plan to read more.
Book 24:
Category: Early Japan
Completed: April 2
Thoughts: I had high hopes for this book but really didn't care for it. A lot of that may be because I was not fond of any of the characters. It also bothered me that at times, the choice of words or comments seemed too modern
Book 25:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: April 4
Thoughts: I have really enjoyed the prequel trilogy to the Charles Lenox series. Though I will miss reading about his early years, I look forward to trying out the original series. Surely, it is just as good!
Book 26:
Category: Tudor/Stuart England
Completed: April 6
Thoughts: Wow! What an unusual way to leave the guilty party (murderer/s). Not that I blame the author for wrapping it up in that fashion. It does leave one to ponder how we would react in like circumstances.
Book 27:
Category: 16th-17th Century Europe
Completed: April 9
Thoughts: It was interesting seeing the interactions between the Dutch and English. Nowadays, we don't ever think of those two having fought wars against one another.
Book 28:
Category: Edwardian England
Completed: April 11
Thoughts: Mystery wise it was very weak. However, I enjoyed the story and characters. I will give the series another go.
Book 29:
Category: Edwardian England
Completed: April 13
Thoughts: This juvenile historical mystery featured Agatha Christie as a 12 year old and her new friend Hector, based on the character of Hercule Poirot. It was fun to imagine these two solving a mystery in their childhood. I am sure the author enjoyed that too. The story was good and I would not mind reading the next in the series.
Book 30:
Category: Edwardian England
Completed: April 17
Thoughts: Even though it was clear who the murderer was, I still enjoyed reading about Vita and the others. I liked seeing how their lives were developing.
Book 31:
Category: Edwardian England
Completed: April 19
Thoughts: Enjoyed Vita's adventures. I'll be continuing the series.
Maggie wrote: "Book 31: Category: Edwardian England
Completed: April 19
Thoughts: Enjoyed Vita's adventures. I'll be continuing the series."
I hope to start this series soon. Poison at Pemberton Hall is what I have chosen to read for Edwardian England.
Book 32:
Category: Edwardian England
Completed: April 20
Thoughts: It would be interesting to see if someone could paint such a detailed stamp and get away with it being postmarked in the mail.
Book 33:
Category: Edwardian England
Completed: April 22
Thoughts: This one was a bit different with some ghosts thrown in, not all of which were explained. But that just added to the spookiness of the castle.
Book 34:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: April 25
Thoughts: After reading the prequels, where Charles was much younger, it is hard to adjust to the Charles in the regular series.
Book 35:
Category: Roman Empire
Completed: May 1
Thoughts: At first I was not too into the story but as it went on, I became more into it. I love that the main character is a pavement maker. It is such a fitting job for a book set in the Roman empire!
Book 36:
Category: Gilded Age America
Completed: May 3
Thoughts: I am not enthralled by the opulence of the Gilded Age but I did like the main character, a poor relation to the Vanderbilt's, who showed independence and spunk. The murderer seemed apparent and it aggravated me, that person was so ignored as a suspect.
Book 37:
Category: 16th-17th century Europe
Completed: May 14th
Thoughts: This fourth book in the Master Mercurius series. He is an interesting character. Sometimes I get irritated with his big thing about being a secret Catholic priest in the guise of a Dutch Reformed pastor but I do understand the reasoning.
Book 38:
Category: Victorian England
Completed: May 19
Thoughts: There were a nice assortment of perplexing clues Charles had to sort through. I liked that sometimes his conclusions were wrong. That just made him more human.
Book 39:
Category: Pre-19th Century Asia
Completed: May 20
Thoughts: It took me a while to finish this one since I "read" it as an audiobook, listening only intermittently. It included some Asian stories told by a character who was a storyteller. While this did add to an understanding of that time and place, a couple of the stories were pretty long. Overall, I liked it pretty well.
Book 40:
Category: Early 20th Century
Completed: May 22
Thoughts: This was an enjoyable book about a family of safecrackers who end up recruited to help the British war effort by opening a safe to obtain some documents. It spirals out of control since it wasn't quite as simple a job as expected. This was the first book in what is expected to be a series, it seems. I look forward to seeing the characters later.
Book 41:
Category: British Empire (any century, countries other than England)
Completed: June 26
Thoughts: India in the 1920's. I didn't know what to expect but not only was it a good story but I learned a lot about India during this time. Hopefully, there will be more mysteries with Kaveri and Ramu.
Mod
Category: British Empire (any century, countries other than England)
Completed: June 26
Thoughts: India in the 1920's. I didn't know what..."
This looks really good and I need a book set in India for the SRC challenge. Two birds...
Book 42:
Category: Colonial America
Completed: August 21
Thoughts: Faith Clark, the main character, is an intriguing character. She is Quaker, but is no longer part of that group since marrying outside the faith. Her husband is dead so she is no only a single mother but a slave owner who is anti-slavery, who is trying to run a tavern in Williamsburg. All those elements provided a nice glimpse into the world of 1774.
Book 43:
Category: Antebellum America
Completed: August 30
Thoughts: The author did an excellent job of portraying life in Antebellum Pennsylvania. Not only was the book enjoyable but I enjoyed the author notes.
Book 44:
Category: Georgian England
Completed: September 3
Thoughts: This was a fun book, murder mystery though it was. The main characters were delightful.
Historical Mystery Lovers
Books mentioned in this topic
The Key to Deceit (other topics)The White City (other topics)
The Gilded Shroud (other topics)
A Stranger Here Below (other topics)
Cry of the Innocent (other topics)
More...
Duration: January 1, 2023 - December 31, 2023
LEVELS:
Level #1: Bachelor of History - 3 to 10 books in at least 3 categories
Level #2: Master of History - 10 to 15 books in at least 5 categories
Level #3: Doctor of History - 15 to 20 books in at least 10 categories
Level #4: History with Honors - 20+ books in all categories
CATEGORIES:
- Ancient Egypt
- Ancient Greece
- Roman Empire
- Early Japan
- Shogunate Japan
- Medieval England
- Medieval Europe
- Tudor / Stuart England
- 16th-17th Century Europe
- Georgian England
- Regency England
- Victorian England
- Edwardian England
- Colonial America
- Antebellum America
- American Civil War
- Gilded Age America
- British Empire (any century, countries other than England)
- Pre 19th Century Asia (excluding the British Empire)
- 19th Century Europe
- Early 20th Century