Category: Reviews

Miss Buncle’s Book by D.E. Stevenson

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When Barbara Buncle finds herself short of money she dismisses the idea of keeping hens and decides to write a book instead. Not having much imagination she finds she can only write about people and places that she knows. Drawing her inspiration from her friends and neighbours in the village of Silverstream, she writes her first novel and has it published under the pseudonym of John Smith. When Disturber of the Peace turns out to be much more successful than Miss Buncle could ever have dreamed, it’s inevitable that the residents of Silverstream will eventually read it and recognise themselves within its pages. But how will they feel about the way they are represented in the book and what will happen if they discover who John Smith really is?

Delightful, charming, warm, cosy – those are the type of words I would use to describe Miss Buncle’s Book. Written in the 1930s, D.E. Stevenson captures perfectly the atmosphere of life in a small English village at that time – a place where everybody knows everybody else, where freshly baked breakfast rolls are delivered to the villagers every morning, where people meet for tea parties or musical evenings and gossip with the neighbours over the garden fence. The book is filled with a variety of interesting characters, all with their own quirks and eccentricities. Some of the most memorable include the formidable Mrs Featherstone Hogg, who is enraged by the unflattering way she is depicted in Miss Buncle’s book and leads the campaign against John Smith; Mr Hathaway the vicar and the scheming Vivian Greensleeves who has her eyes on his money; and the retired and lonely Colonel Weatherhead who faces a yearly battle with the Bishop.

Most of the inhabitants of Silverstream make an appearance in Disturber of the Peace and although Barbara Buncle takes the precaution of changing their names (Weatherhead becomes Waterfoot, for example, Miss King and Miss Pretty are renamed Miss Earle and Miss Darling, and Mr Fortnum becomes Mr Mason), she describes their personalities so accurately it’s not surprising that they were able to work out who the book was about! It was fun to see how they each reacted to discovering themselves in Miss Buncle’s story and having all their flaws exposed to the world.

I sent a copy of Miss Buncle’s Book to another blogger as a Secret Santa gift a couple of years ago because I thought it sounded wonderful, and when I saw that it was available through Netgalley I couldn’t wait to finally read it for myself. But although I did like it, I didn’t love it as much as I had hoped I would and as much as most other readers seem to have done. It was an enjoyable, relaxing read with lots of gentle humour and old-fashioned charm, but it lacked that special spark that would have lifted it from being a very good book to a great one. For me, this is a book that sounded better than it actually was, though I would still recommend it as a great way to escape from the stress of life for a while!

I received a review copy from Sourcebooks via Netgalley

The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy

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“The Scarlet Pimpernel, Mademoiselle,” he said at last, “is the name of a humble English wayside flower; but it is also the name chosen to hide the identity of the best and bravest man in all the world, so that he may better succeed in accomplishing the noble task he has set himself to do.”

The Scarlet Pimpernel is set in 1792 during the French Revolution, when every day more and more of the French nobility are being sent to their deaths. A secret society of Englishmen led by the mysterious Scarlet Pimpernel are rescuing the aristocrats from the guillotine and smuggling them to safety in England. Who is the Scarlet Pimpernel? The French agent Chauvelin is determined to find out, but with his variety of clever disguises and daring schemes the Pimpernel continues to elude him at every turn. Will Chauvelin ever discover his true identity?

Since I started blogging I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve started a review by wondering why I’ve waited so long to read a book and regretting the fact that I never thought about reading it years ago. This is yet another one! I finally read it last week when I was choosing what to read next for the Classics Club – and for anyone else who has this on their Classics Club list or tbr pile, I recommend reading it sooner rather than later. Compared to many classics it’s a quick read and lots of fun too: a combination of swashbuckling adventure story, historical fiction and romance. It’s one of those novels where you sit down planning to just read one or two chapters and before you know it you’re halfway through the book!

Whenever I write about a book I always try to be very careful not to say too much and spoil the story for any future readers, so I won’t tell you any more about the plot and I won’t reveal who the Scarlet Pimpernel really is. You’ll probably be able to guess after a few chapters but if you don’t then part of the fun will be in finding out. This book was published in 1905 and it’s obvious that it’s been the inspiration for so many other books that have been written since then and that the character of the Scarlet Pimpernel has been a model for countless heroes with hidden identities. I also remember reading somewhere that Baroness Orczy was one of Dorothy Dunnett’s influences and I can definitely see how The Game of Kings in particular might have been inspired by The Scarlet Pimpernel. I was reminded of Georgette Heyer’s novels too, especially with the slang the characters used.

I found Baroness Orczy’s writing style very easy to read and the historical background was not too detailed or difficult to follow. The author’s sympathies are obviously with the aristocracy, whereas most novels I’ve read about the French Revolution are told from the opposite perspective so it was interesting to see the other side of the story. This is not really a book you would choose to read for the historical accuracy though, and it does require you to suspend your disbelief at times! I know I would have loved this book when I was a teenager but I’m still glad I got round to reading it at last and am definitely interested in reading more of the Scarlet Pimpernel series now.

Lion of Alnwick by Carol Wensby-Scott

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Set in the 14th century during the reigns of Edward III and Richard II, Lion of Alnwick tells the story of Henry (Hal) Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland. The novel begins in the year 1357 and ends in 1409, covering all the major events of Hal’s adult life including his marriage to Margaret Neville, sister of his bitter enemy and rival Northern lord, his conflict with John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster, and his relationship with his son Harry “Hotspur” Percy.

Before I say any more about this great historical fiction novel, I should point out that this book has now sadly gone out of print, but for anyone who loves fiction set in medieval England it is definitely worth reading if you can manage to find a copy. Please don’t let the cover (pictured above) put you off – it has to be one of the worst covers I’ve ever seen and is really not representative of the quality of the story!

I can’t remember how this book first came to my attention, but the reason it appealed to me is because I only live an hour away from Alnwick and have been there several times (usually to visit the castle, the gardens or Barter Books) so I was attracted by the mention of Alnwick in the title. There are so few books that focus on the north east of England that whenever I do come across one I always feel I should read it (though of course, with this novel being so epic in scale, the action is not just confined to Northumberland but also sweeps down to York and Westminster and across to Wales).

The story concentrates on Hal, his son Harry, and their respective wives, Margaret Neville and Elizabeth Mortimer, but we also meet lots of other fascinating characters, most of them real historical figures of the period. One of the most intriguing characters, I thought, was Hal’s enemy from over the border in Scotland, Archibald Douglas, known as The Black Douglas. His rivalry with Hal is a recurring theme throughout the novel and I looked forward to all of their encounters. I also thought the characterisation of Richard II as a young and incompetent king unable to command the respect of his men while bestowing gifts and titles on his favourites, was very well done.

The author does seem to assume that the reader already has a good knowledge of the period; the history becomes very complex and detailed, so this is the type of historical fiction novel I would recommend only to readers who really do love history! It’s such a shame this book is out of print; it was very well-written and well-researched, maybe not as much fun to read as a Sharon Penman or Elizabeth Chadwick novel, but almost as good. If you’re interested in reading this book I would suggest trying to get a copy of this one and the other two in the trilogy (Lion Dormant and Lion Invincible) as soon as you can, before they become impossible to find!

Emma by Jane Austen (re-read)

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Having read all of Jane Austen’s novels, I decided that for the Austen in August event hosted by Adam of Roof Beam Reader, I would re-read the only one I didn’t really like the first time – Emma. I didn’t hate it on my first reading, but I definitely enjoyed it less than the others, and the problem I had with the book, unfortunately, was the character of Emma Woodhouse herself. I was curious to see whether, on returning to this book after a gap of a few years, my opinion of her would have changed.

Emma is the youngest daughter of Mr Woodhouse of Hartfield and is “handsome, clever and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition”. The story begins just after the marriage of Emma’s governess, Miss Taylor, to a widowed neighbour, Mr Weston. Although Emma is sorry Miss Taylor is leaving Hartfield, she is pleased that they have married because she was responsible for introducing them to each other. She decides to continue matchmaking by finding a husband for her new friend, Harriet Smith, but it seems that the man she chooses, Mr Elton, has other ideas. As Emma continues to meddle in other people’s lives, she slowly becomes aware of who she herself is in love with.

Jane Austen herself once said that in Emma she had created a heroine nobody apart from herself would like. This is obviously not true, as I’ve seen so many people name Emma as their favourite Austen novel and talk about how much they love Emma despite her flaws. But the first time I read this book I found it difficult to see past her treatment of Harriet Smith near the beginning of the story and I remember having such a negative reaction to Emma’s character that it spoiled the rest of the book for me.

As several years have now passed since that first read I wanted to give Emma another chance. And guess what? This time I found myself really liking Emma! Her snobbish attitude and superiority still irritated me but I was able to be more tolerant of her faults and to admire the way she learned from her mistakes and grew as a person as the story progressed. Yes, she can be insensitive at times and yes, she causes a lot of trouble by interfering in her friends’ lives, but she does eventually accept that she was wrong.

Although it has been a while since I read this book, I was surprised to find how many little details of the plot I remembered: Harriet’s book of riddles, for example, and the mystery of Jane Fairfax’s piano. Yet this is a very character-driven story, even more so than Jane Austen’s other novels. Nothing very dramatic or exciting happens, but the story is never boring and this is due to the wonderful collection of characters. Mr Knightley is one of my favourite Austen heroes, and who could forget Emma’s hypochondriac father and his obsession with his own health and everyone else’s, the obnoxious Mrs Elton and Miss Bates, who never stops talking. The last three characters I mentioned make this one of Austen’s funniest novels, at least in my opinion! As well as the humour, Emma is filled with clever, sparkling dialogue and insightful observations. I posted some of my favourite quotes last week for the Classics Challenge I’m participating in so won’t repeat them here.

Finally, I liked the way Austen took the time to tie up all the loose ends in this novel. I was happy with the way Emma’s story ended and with Harriet’s – I think everyone probably ended up with the right partner!

Have you read Emma? What is your opinion of Emma Woodhouse?

In a Treacherous Court by Michelle Diener

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There are already so many historical fiction novels set in the Tudor court that for a book to stand out from the others the author really needs to find a new way to approach the subject. Michelle Diener’s In A Treacherous Court is refreshingly different because it features two interesting but little-known historical figures – John Parker and Susanna Horenbout – both of whom really existed, yet aren’t characters that you would usually find in Tudor novels. Despite having read a lot of books set during this period, I had never come across either of these people until now.

Susanna Horenbout is a Flemish artist who travels to the court of Henry VIII in 1525 to become the king’s illuminator. During the journey to England, a man dies on board the ship and Susanna is at his side as he whispers his dying words, a secret message that he wants her to deliver to the King. It seems that someone is afraid of what Susanna may have learned, because as soon as she arrives in England an attempt is made on her life. One of the King’s most trusted courtiers, John Parker, Yeoman of the Crossbows, has been sent to meet the ship and after discovering how much danger Susanna is in, he vows to protect her while at the same time trying to unravel a plot that could threaten Henry’s throne.

In a Treacherous Court is the first in a series and after reading this one, I think both Susanna Horenbout and John Parker have a lot of potential as characters. As historians know so little about their lives, it gives the author some freedom to create exciting adventures for them without being too restricted by what really happened (the story does stick to the historical facts where possible though, and there is an author’s note at the end of the book that explains which parts of the novel are based on truth and which are purely fictional). I did find the romance between Susanna and Parker a bit hard to believe as it all seemed to happen so quickly, but who can say whether or not their relationship might really have developed the way it did in the novel?

The plot is very fast-paced with lots of action in every chapter which makes the story fun to read, although I thought the constant murder attempts and attacks on Susanna did become a bit repetitive. This book is definitely at the lighter end of the historical fiction spectrum, but it’s certainly an entertaining read with some original ideas that give it a different feel from most of the other Tudor court novels I’ve read.

I received a review copy of In a Treacherous Court from Simon & Schuster

In Her Shadow by Louise Douglas

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After reading The Secrets Between Us last year as part of the Transworld Book Group, I’ve been looking forward to reading another book by Louise Douglas and I was pleased to find that her new novel, In Her Shadow, has the same combination of suspense, mystery and psychological drama that I loved in The Secrets Between Us.

The story is narrated by Hannah Brown who works at the Brunel Memorial Museum in Bristol. When Hannah glimpses her best friend Ellen Brecht in the museum one day, she is left feeling shocked and frightened…because Ellen died almost twenty years ago. Is Hannah imagining things or has her friend really come back from the dead?

In alternating chapters, Hannah tells her present day story and also shares with us her memories of growing up in the 1980s with both Ellen and another friend, a boy called Jago who was adopted by Hannah’s family. She remembers the day Ellen moved to their quiet Cornish village with her glamorous parents – her handsome, charismatic German father Pieter and her mother Anne, a former pianist. At first Hannah is captivated by the Brecht family but as time goes by she learns that things might not be quite as they seem. And so Hannah’s happy, nostalgic childhood memories are mixed with other, more disturbing ones that she would rather forget.

I really like the way Louise Douglas writes and the way she creates atmosphere. There are some lovely pieces of descriptive writing in this book, especially when she is writing about the area of Cornwall where Hannah, Jago and Ellen lived, but despite the beautiful, idyllic setting, there’s also a mood of darkness and foreboding that hangs over the story. We know from very early in the novel that something had happened between Hannah and Ellen that damaged their friendship and left Hannah with feelings of guilt, but we aren’t told what it was. We don’t know the circumstances surrounding Ellen’s death, what Jago’s involvement was, or why Hannah is still affected by it all so many years later. And we are kept wondering whether or not Ellen is really dead or whether her appearances are just a figment of Hannah’s imagination. As the novel progresses, the truth is gradually revealed and we can eventually start to piece the story together.

I didn’t find any of the three main characters – Hannah, Ellen and Jago – very easy to like, yet I could still have sympathy for all three of them and could care about what happened to them. They make mistakes, do the wrong things, make poor decisions and act on impulses, but their flawed, unpredictable behaviour only makes them feel more believable and human.

The construction of the novel, with the chapters alternating between Hannah’s current story and her childhood story, means that we learn a little bit more in every chapter, but some of the biggest surprises remain hidden until the very end of the book. Sometimes this type of structure can feel disjointed and confusing, but in this case I thought it worked perfectly and it helped maintain the right levels of tension and suspense throughout the book. I enjoyed In Her Shadow as much as I enjoyed The Secrets Between Us and I’ll be looking out for any future books by Louise Douglas!

I received a review copy of In Her Shadow from Transworld

Classics Challenge August Prompt: Quotes from Jane Austen’s Emma

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This year I am taking part in a Classics Challenge hosted by Katherine of November’s Autumn. The goal is to read at least seven classics in 2012 and every month Katherine is posting a prompt to help us discuss the books we are reading. This month we are asked to share some quotes from our current read.

The classic I just finished reading yesterday was Emma by Jane Austen. This was a re-read for me and I’ll be posting my thoughts on the book next week. For now, here are some quotes from Emma. Katherine’s prompt recommended choosing some that were not so well-known. I’m not sure it’s possible to find any quotes from a Jane Austen novel that are not well-known, so I’ve just posted a selection of my favourites. Some might be more obscure than others.

“That is the case with us all, papa. One half of the world cannot understand the pleasures of the other.”

***

“I have none of the usual inducements of women to marry. Were I to fall in love, indeed, it would be a different thing! But I never have been in love; it is not my way, or my nature; and I do not think I ever shall. And, without love, I am sure I should be a fool to change such a situation as mine.”

***

“A sanguine temper, though for ever expecting more good than occurs, does not always pay for its hopes by any proportionate depression. It soon flies over the present failure, and begins to hope again.”

***

“To be sure – our discordancies must always arise from my being in the wrong.”

“Yes,” said he, smiling, “and reason good. I was sixteen years old when you were born.”

“A material difference, then,” she replied; “and no doubt you were much my superior in judgement at that period of our lives; but does not the lapse of one-and-twenty years bring our understandings a good deal nearer?”

“Yes, a good deal nearer.”

“But still, not near enough to give me a chance of being right, if we think differently.”

***

Was it new for any thing in this world to be unequal, inconsistent, incongruous — or for chance and circumstance (as second causes) to direct the human fate?

***

“I cannot make speeches, Emma,” he soon resumed; and in a tone of such sincere, decided, intelligible tenderness as was tolerably convincing. “If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more. But you know what I am. You hear nothing but truth from me.”

***

Seldom, very seldom, does complete truth belong to any human disclosure; seldom can it happen that something is not a little disguised or a little mistaken.