Review: And They Called It Camelot by Stephanie Marie Thornton

Release Date: March 10, 2020 (still playing catch up on my ARCs, sorry)

This fictional account of Jackie Kennedy's life, as told through her own eyes, was pulling me in all different directions emotionally. On one hand, I could really see why she fell so hard for Jack, and even why she stayed with him through all his infidelity. On the other hand, her choice of men in general had me smacking my forehead. 

I didn't know much about Jackie before reading this. Obviously, I knew about the eventually tragic fates of her family members, and that she remarried at some point. This book really highlights how tragic her life was, and how she never really recovered from losing the love of her life, but also shows how strong she was to endure everything she did, and eventually find her own way in the world, in spite of the crappy way the men in her life treated her. Absolutely heartbreaking but also uplifting.

Advanced review copy from publisher via NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

Review: The Land Beyond the Sea by Sharon Kay Penman

Release Date: March 3, 2020

This is a biographical novel of the sadly short and painful life of Baldwin IV, King of Jerusalem, also known as the Leper King, but as ever with Penman's novels, it's a multidimensional story told from the points of view of many fascinating characters. It perfectly balances the personal and intimate stories of the characters with the political and historical events.

So much was thrust onto poor Baldwin's shoulders from such a young age, yet he not only weathered it with more maturity than someone twice his age, he proved to be an exceptional leader, in spite of, or perhaps because of his ailment.

Agnes, Baldwin's mother, is portrayed somewhat as an antagonist, but as with all of Penman's novels, it's never that black and white. All the characters are multifaceted, with fleshed out backgrounds that make them so human and relatable.

I did feel like the plot dragged a little in the middle, but that could just be because I'm struggling with what's going on in the world and haven't been in the mood to read, plus I was sick for 4 weeks. I'd really planned to have this done before the release date.

Advanced review copy from publisher via Edelweiss. My opinions are my own.

Review: The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict

Release Date: January 15, 2019

A great novel on an incredible woman. Honestly, if it wasn’t true, I’d hardly believe it. A Hollywood actress who escaped an abusive marriage and the Holocaust just before it came to her Austrian homeland, and became a self taught scientist and inventor, partnering with a musician to develop an unappreciated radio guidance system for torpedoes, which wasn't adopted by the US Navy until the 1960s, and later became the basis for Bluetooth and wi-fi. I know it almost sounds like I just strung a random selection of words together, but it's true and it rightfully makes a great story. My only criticism is that I felt like the ending was a bit of a let down, being somewhat anticlimactic, which I thought might be inevitable given Hedy's life story.

Hedy is a flawed but enormously strong and highly intelligent woman. She uses her beauty to the best of her advantage without compromising her integrity, yet she's not vain, and in some ways, her beauty is what holds her back, as so many people can't see beyond it. She is driven by her empathy and survivors guilt to aid the US military against Hilter. Fulfilling her acting obligations at the same time, she invents a radio guidance system that solves the problem of signal jamming, something no expert with formal education in the industry could do. Sadly, the government rejected her invention until the 1960s for a number reasons, none of them justified.

I feel a little bit like Hedy must have been something of an inspiration for Legally Blonde's Elle Woods: "Did she just wake up one morning and decide 'I think I'll go to law school'?" Did Hedy just wake up one morning and decide, 'I think I'll solve radio signal jamming today'? Of course, it wasn't that simple in reality, but it parallels the movie of an underestimated beautiful woman proving the world wrong and showing everyone just how smart and capable she really is, even if it took some time before they realized it.

Advanced review copy from publisher via NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

Review: Side by Side by Jenni L. Walsh

Release Date: June 5, 2018

Intensely eventful, this sequel to Bonnie Parker's life details her crime spree with Clyde Barrow. Although the action never seems to stop, it also feels a little repetitive at times, like the entire book is just Bonnie and Clyde, and sometimes a few others, going around in circles, both literally and not. That's not a criticism, just a description of how crazy their crime spree was.

Popular view tends to paint the picture of Bonnie and Clyde on some kind of fun loving joyride as they commit their crimes, probably partly fueled by the famous photos of them showing off their guns and posing, horsing around, smiling, etc. But this book portrays things much more darkly, with their crimes being more like acts of desperation while they cling onto some fantasy that some day they'll achieve their dreams of living quietly in some remote corner of rural America, as though they are not haunted by the consequences of their choices.

At the same time, the historical view seems to describe the "Barrow Gang" as an organized criminal group, but this novel suggests it was anything but organized and more "fly by the seat of our pants" and "pick up whatever help we can from who we can whenever we can". We get to meet the members of Bonnie and Clyde's so-called gang, but many of them are involved at different time periods, typically not associated with each one another. It definitely felt too erratic to be called "organized", and it wasn't until near the end when it briefly becomes a large group.

Again, none of this is criticism, and it actually appears to be entirely accurate, but it was a little surprising, which made it all the more intriguing.

Advanced review copy from publisher via NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

Review: Between Earth and Sky by Amanda Skenandore

Release Date: April 24, 2018

A slow paced but poignant exploration of the treatment of Native Americans in history from the point of view of a young, coming of age girl. Alma, the main character, is a young white girl in a unique position of growing up among Native American children at her father's boarding school for "civilizing" them. Naturally, she befriends them, and like them, she is caught between two worlds, but does she truly understand them and their situation? As an adult, she has to the face the ghosts of this past.

I really enjoyed the way this story was told, set in two time periods but told in parallel to each other. I know lots of book have used this method before, but few do it quite so well as this one. It's slow paced, but never boring. The chapters set in 1906 hint and foreshadow at something significant that happened in the past, while the chapters set in the past slowly evolve to show you what happened. Eventually, the past catches up and it all comes to a head.

Beautifully written with realistic, three dimensional, sympathetic characters, and complex relationships, this is easily the best novel on this subject matter I've read so far. I definitely look forward to what this debut author has to offer in the future.

Advanced review copy from publisher via NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

Review: Death Below Stairs (Kat Holloway #1) by Jennifer Ashley

The first full length novel in this new Victorian mystery series with cook Kat Holloway was everything I'd hoped it'd be after reading the teaser of a prequel novella. We learn a little bit more about the mysterious Daniel McAdams, and lot more about Kat herself, and they do not disappoint. The character development was every bit as good as the prequel novella promised, including the new characters. The plot takes us around London and into the countryside, keeping you hooked till the end, as things escalate to royal proportions.

I loved the delicious descriptions of food throughout the story too - they made me hungry. It was interesting to see the author's note mention Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management as a main source of her food descriptions. This book is available for free from several venues, if anyone is curious.

I do think Jennifer Ashley has set herself quite the challenge in making the main character a cook. By Kat's own accounts, she rarely has time for anything other than cooking. She is pretty much constantly cooking or buying food for the next meal she has to prepare. She managed to take a break from it to stay in the midst of the action this time, but going forward, whenever will she have the time for amateur sleuthing? I can't wait to find out.

I recommend reading the prequel novella first. Although I'm sure this could be read on it's own, the prequel is a better introduction to Kat and Daniel's relationship.

Advanced review copy from publisher via NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

Review: Mistress of Rome (Empress of Rome #1) by Kate Quinn

A Jewish slave and a troubled gladiator fight for their lives and happiness against all the odds and more than one enemy who would bring them down.

I felt like this had a little bit of a slow start - not that it was boring, I just thought it took a little while for the plot to really kick in. But once it did... wow, did it kick in! Kate Quinn is one of those authors who can master both compelling characterization and thrilling plots.

There's so much going on, the plot takes a couple turns I wasn't really expecting, and there's so many interesting characters that you'll either love to love, or love to hate.

I definitely can't wait to read the rest of this series. I don't know why I waited so long to pick this one up (oh, yes, I do - it's because there's too many books in the world, not enough time!).

Review: Elfrida: The First Crowned Queen of England by Elizabeth Norton

In 10th century England, the wife of the king was not necessarily crowned and anointed. This is a much deserved biography on the first queen of England to be crowned, Elfrida (aka Ælfthryth, Alfrida, or Elfthryth) who is better remembered for the accusations against her of murdering her step-son to put her own son on the throne. The third wife of Edgar the Peaceful, she was a key figure in the strengthening of the Church in England, and as regent for her young son.

Due to a lack of primary sources, biographies on women of early English history often wind up being more about the people and events around them then about the women themselves, but that did not feel like the case here. Never dull or dry, it gave a thorough view on who Elfrida was and why she not only deserves her own biography, but deserves to be given the benefit of the doubt when it comes to the accusations of murder against her. It really illuminates this period of history too, giving you a complete picture of the politics of the time.

This biography proves that Elfrida's much overlooked story is ripe for a historical drama.

Review: Becoming Bonnie by Jenni L. Walsh

Release Date: May 9, 2017

This novel about Bonnie Parker, of the infamous Bonnie and Clyde, is so well written I didn't even notice at first that it's written in present tense, which I normally don't like.

The characterization was very well done too, with the best part being the evolution of Bonnie becoming the figure we picture her as (it's certainly an appropriately titled novel). Although this is a novel about how Bonnie met and fell in love with Clyde, I wouldn't call it a romance. It's more about a young woman finding herself in a chaotic world and learning what she really wants from it and from the people in her life. Blanche's character was compelling too and I almost wish for a sequel done in Blanche's voice. Knowing in real life, Blanche is the only survivor out of their group, her voice would make a good narrative for a sequel, but I don't know if the author has plans for a sequel at all.

Additionally, although Bonnie is a teenager throughout the book and there is nothing inappropriate in it for teens to read, I wouldn't call it a young adult novel (nor is it marketed as such, though I see some people on Goodreads have tagged it). Bonnie is very young, but she's very much living her life as an adult, and it deals with adult themes, so it doesn't have a young adult feel to it.

There are a few deviations from the factual timeline in the beginning but it does come together. At first, it seemed like Clyde was being introduced way too early, but then it became clear that he and Bonnie don't really formally meet until much later and so he was more of this shadowy, mysterious, background figure. It wound up working really well and made an excellent, believable story line. Keep in mind, this is not a tale of Bonnie and Clyde's life together, it's really about Bonnie's life before Clyde and everything that led them together. They don't really meet till near the end and the novel ends well before their crime spree. You might think that would make it boring, but it really doesn't. I read the entire second half of it in one day, I felt so compelled to finish it.

Advanced review copy from publisher via NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

Review: A Mystery at Carlton House (Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries Book 12) by Ashley Gardner

The Prince Regent, later known as George IV, asks for Captain Lacey's help in solving the theft of valuable items from his home at Carlton House, against the wishes of James Denis.

Finally! Captain Lacey meets royalty. Surely, it was bound to happen given that he is best friends with London society's most popular man, and married to one of the most popular women. You'd think London society would run in some of the same circles as the royal court every now and then. Granted, I can appreciate wanting to keep the characters fictional but this just added an extra touch of reality by involving a historical figure.

There's so much more going on in this novel too, but I don't want to spoil it. I'll just say that Donata suffers a difficult birth, Grenville and Marianne's relationship takes a turn as she goes missing, Spendlove is still out to get Lacey, and Brewster questions where his loyalties really lie. That's just what happens in the very beginning, imagine where the rest of the novel goes.

And can I take this moment to ask the author: please, please, pretty please, can we have a spin-off novel of Grenville and Marianne? Carlton House sort of set up an introduction to one rather perfectly...

Review: Girl in Disguise by Greer Macallister

Release Date: March 21, 2017

This book caught my attention because I loved the idea of a novel about Kate Warne, the first female Pinkerton agent, and I just hoped the writing, plot, and characters would be as good as the premise. I knew from the first few pages they would be.

Excellently written with great characters, fictional and historic alike, the plot takes the reader into the spy world of the Civil War. I did feel as though the romance was a little superficial, but otherwise, I felt the character development was very good, especially Kate's. Told in first person, we really get to see and feel Kate's thoughts and emotions, how she deals with the moral questions of lying, deceiving, and hurting people for the greater good, and how she deals with knowing she'll never have a normal, family life.

The plot is what really drives this though, and I frequently found it hard to put down, always wanting to know what would happen next. Lot's of action and adventure.

I'm interested in the author's first novel now. Though it wasn't a premise I was previously interested in, knowing how much I enjoyed this one, I have to give it a try.

Advanced review copy from the publisher via NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

Review: India Black (Madam of Espionage Mysteries #1) by Carol K. Carr

India Black, madam of a brothel, gets caught up in international espionage after a government official dies in her, er, establishment. She is recruited by the Prime Minister's office to help recover the important papers stolen after the death before they fall into the hands of either two factions who want to use them against Britain/the Prime Minister.

The Stephanie Plum of the 19th century, India Black is headstrong and clever but not always very graceful and it lands her in a number of dangerous yet amusing situations that she handles with dry wit and sarcasm. Hell, she even has her own black sidekick at one point. Then there's the handsome Mr. French, a spy who works for the Prime Minister's office, but he only resembles Ranger with his mysterious background. India has her own secrets though, and I can't wait to read the rest of the series to find out what they are.

I did think the way Vincent, the young street urchin, kept sneaking into the most unlikely places was a little unrealistic, but it didn't play too big of a role in the plot so I was able to overlook it.

I saw a few reviewers saying the "strange" vocabulary like "bint", "cove", and "rogering" used throughout the novel wasn't very historically accurate, but actually, they are. "Bint" is a derogatory British term that dates from the mid 19th century for a woman or girl, like "tart". "Cove" is an informal British term that dates from before the 19th century for a person, especially male. "Rogering" is British slang for having sex and dates from the early 18th century. The authentic language was precisely one of the things I loved about this novel, the author made a good effort to use real slang from the time period. Maybe some readers haven't seen these words used before because most historical novels they read aren't about whores who would use language like that? Or perhaps most historical novelists don't make as great an effort to incorporate authentic language because they don't want to alienate readers so some people aren't used to it (though that's not to say most historical novelists use anachronistic language).

The whole time I was reading the book, I was thinking it would make a great movie. Lot's of adventure and humor, and even the hint of a potential romance in the future. There's not a huge amount of depth, but it is a lot of fun, and sometimes that's just what I'm looking for.

Review: What Gold Buys: A Silver Rush Mystery #5 by Ann Parker

I feel like I've been waiting forever for this book! I really enjoyed the first four books in this series, and I was worried that the author had abandoned it since it has been 5 years since the last book, and never before did she wait so long in between the books in this series. I was so excited to see this new one was out, and I snatched it up immediately.

Coincidentally, I read this first four books in this series while living in England, but since then have wound up living in Colorado, not far from Leadville and right in the heart of where the four book had taken place. So I was doubly excited to read this fifth book now that the location setting is much closer to my heart.

This one introduced readers to the seances which were popular in the late 19th century when a gypsy medium is murdered, leaving a tough but vulnerable daughter behind, while also dealing with Inez's divorce going on in the background. The plot was just as intriguing as the previous books, and I couldn't wait to find out what would happen with Inez's marriage. Hopefully I won't have to wait another 5 years for the next book!

Review: A Song of War: A Novel of Troy by the H Team (Christian Cameron, Libbie Hawker, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, Stephanie Thornton, SJA Turney, and Russell Whitfield Foreward by Glyn Iliffe)

Publication Date: October 18, 2016
Knight Media, LLC
eBook & Paperback; 483 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction/Ancient History/Anthology

 

Troy: city of gold, gatekeeper of the east, haven of the god-born and the lucky, a city destined to last a thousand years. But the Fates have other plans—the Fates, and a woman named Helen. In the shadow of Troy's gates, all must be reborn in the greatest war of the ancient world: slaves and queens, heroes and cowards, seers and kings . . . and these are their stories.

 A young princess and an embittered prince join forces to prevent a fatal elopement.

A tormented seeress challenges the gods themselves to save her city from the impending disaster.

A tragedy-haunted king battles private demons and envious rivals as the siege grinds on.

A captured slave girl seizes the reins of her future as two mighty heroes meet in an epic duel.

A grizzled archer and a desperate Amazon risk their lives to avenge their dead.

A trickster conceives the greatest trick of all.

A goddess' son battles to save the spirit of Troy even as the walls are breached in fire and blood. 

Seven authors bring to life the epic tale of the Trojan War: its heroes, its villains, its survivors, its dead. Who will lie forgotten in the embers, and who will rise to shape the bloody dawn of a new age?

Amazon | Amazon UK | Kobo

Review

This is probably the most realistic portrayal of Paris and Helen I've seen yet. The trouble I always had with the Trojan War epic is the idea that two protagonists would make such a spectacularly selfish and reckless decision which they likely knew would result in war. It's normally portrayed as this utterly romantic idea, that they were just so in love, they had no choice. But I've always thought it was selfish and irresponsible, and that's finally how the H Team decided to portray it too. Paris is doing the bidding of his war mongering father by deliberately sparking war, while Helen is seeking the freedom and influence that Trojans would give her, both without regard to the innocent lives it will take. So I really appreciated the more realistic approach in moving away from Paris and Helen as the romantic protagonists and instead focusing on other, more likable characters.

I felt like this novel, in comparison to the previous ones by the H Team, was more at the heart of the major players in the event. The previous stories were frequently told from the points of view of a lot of nameless fictional characters, while this one was told from the points of view of characters like Helenus, Cassandra, Andromache, Agamemnon, etc. That is not a criticism of either this novel or the previous ones, just an observation. Like the previous novels though, this one also tells both side of the story, and we get to see protagonists and antagonists on both sides of the war.

Although the authors involved in the H Team projects vary by the book, the quality of writing never does. This is once again a very well written and well put together story of an epic tragedy in history/legend.

About the Authors

CHRISTIAN CAMERON was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1962. He grew up in Rockport, Massachusetts, Iowa City, Iowa,Christian Cameron and Rochester, New York, where he attended McQuaid Jesuit High School and later graduated from the University of Rochester with a degree in history.

After the longest undergraduate degree on record (1980-87), he joined the United States Navy, where he served as an intelligence officer and as a backseater in S-3 Vikings in the First Gulf War, in Somalia, and elsewhere. After a dozen years of service, he became a full time writer in 2000. He lives in Toronto (that’s Ontario, in Canada) with his wife Sarah and their daughter Beatrice, currently age four. And a half.

LIBBIE HAWKER was born in Rexburg, Idaho and divided her childhood between Eastern Idaho's rural environs and the greater Seattle area. She presently lives in Seattle, but has also been a resident of Salt Lake City, Utah; Bellingham, Washington; and Tacoma, Washington. She loves to write about character and place, and is inspired by the bleak natural beauty of the Rocky Mountain region and by the fascinating history of the Puget Sound.

After three years of trying to break into the publishing industry with her various books under two different pen names, Libbie finally turned her back on the mainstream publishing industry and embraced independent publishing. She now writes her self-published fiction full-time, and enjoys the fact that the writing career she always dreamed of having is fully under her own control.

KATE QUINN is a native of southern California. She attended Boston University, where she earned a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Classical Voice. A lifelong history buff, she has written four novels in the Empress of Rome Saga, and two books in the Italian Renaissance detailing the early years of the infamous Borgia clan. All have been translated into multiple languages.

Kate has succumbed to the blogging bug, and keeps a blog filled with trivia, pet peeves, and interesting facts about historical fiction. She and her husband now live in Maryland with two black dogs named Caesar and Calpurnia, and her interests include opera, action movies, cooking, and the Boston Red Sox.

VICKY ALVEAR SHECTER is the author of the young adult novel, Cleopatra's Moon (Arthur A. Levine Books/Scholastic, 2011), based on the life of Cleopatra's only daughter. She is also the author of two award-winning biographies for kids on Alexander the Great and Cleopatra. She is a docent at the Michael C. Carlos Museum of Antiquities at Emory University in Atlanta. The LA Times calls Cleopatra's Moon, "magical" and "impressive." Publisher's Weekly said it was "fascinating" and "highly memorable." The Wall Street Journal called it "absorbing."

STEPHANIE THORNTON is a writer and history teacher who has been obsessed with infamous women from ancient history since she was twelve. She lives with her husband and daughter in Alaska, where she is at work on her next novel.

Her novels, The Secret History: A Novel of Empress Theodora, Daughter of the Gods: A Novel of Ancient Egypt, The Tiger Queens: The Women of Genghis Khan, and The Conqueror's Wife: A Novel of Alexander the Great, tell the stories of history's forgotten women.

SJA TURNEY lives with his wife, son and daughter, and two (close approximations of) dogs in rural North Yorkshire.

Marius' Mules was his first full length novel. Being a fan of Roman history, SJA decided to combine his love of writing and love of the classical world. Marius' Mules was followed two years later by Interregnum - an attempt to create a new fantasy story still with a heavy flavour of Rome.

These have been followed by numerous sequels, with three books in the fantasy 'Tales of the Empire' series and five in the bestselling 'Marius' Mules' one. 2013 has seen the first book in a 15th century trilogy - 'The Thief's Tale' - and will also witness several side projects seeing the light of day.

RUSSELL WHITFIELD was born in Shepherds Bush in 1971. An only child, he was raised in Hounslow, West London, but has since escaped to Ham in Surrey.

Gladiatrix was Russ's first novel, published in 2008 by Myrmidon Books. The sequel, Roma Victrix, continues the adventures Lysandra, the Spartan gladiatrix, and a third book, Imperatrix, sees Lysandra stepping out of the arena and onto the field of battle.

Blog Tour Schedule

Saturday, October 15
Review at Just One More Chapter
Review at Flashlight Commentary

Sunday, October 16
Review at Ageless Pages Reviews

Monday, October 17
Review at Leeanna.me

Tuesday, October 18
Review at A Book Drunkard

Wednesday, October 19
Excerpt at A Literary Vacation

Thursday, October 20
Review at Peeking Between the Pages

Friday, October 21
Review & Excerpt at The Silver Dagger Scriptorium

Saturday, October 22
Review at 100 Pages a Day

Monday, October 24
Review at Unabridged Chick

Tuesday, October 25
Interview at Unabridged Chick

Wednesday, October 26
Review at The Maiden's Court

Friday, October 28
Review at History From a Woman's Perspective

Monday, October 31
Review & Excerpt at Book Lovers Paradise

Tuesday, November 1
Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!

Wednesday, November 2
Interview at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!

Thursday, November 3
Review at Jorie Loves a Story

Monday, November 7
Review at A Bookish Affair

Tuesday, November 8
Interview at Let Them Read Books

Wednesday, November 9
Review at Historical Readings & Reviews

Friday, November 11
Review at Broken Teepee
Spotlight at The Book Tree

Saturday, November 12
Excerpt at The Reading Queen
Review at The True Book Addict

Giveaway

To win a paperback copy of A Song of War: A Novel of Troy by the H Team, please enter via the Gleam form below.

Rules
– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on November 12th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
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– All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion.
– Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen. A Song of War

Review: America's First Daughter by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie

When I first started this novel, I wondered how the life of the daughter of one of our founding fathers, and not the man himself, could possibly fill such a long book (over 600 pages). Sometimes authors like to take a lesser known relation of a historical figure and give them a voice but it just doesn't work out well because their life just isn't as interesting. I figured it would be all about Thomas Jefferson himself and his affair with his slave, Sally Hemmings, and when things like that are told from a third party perspective, it tends to be lacking. But while that was one of the sub plot lines, Martha Jefferson's own story was not lacking and no less fascinating than any novel on Thomas Jefferson himself could be. It's actually amazing how much the authors managed to fit into only 600-some pages.

The beginning was a little bit of a slow start, but the writing was excellent, and the character development is what really makes this book great. I did often wonder why Martha was so dedicated to a father who frankly could be rather selfish sometimes. I understand it had to do with losing her mother, but I couldn't help feeling like at some point enough should just be enough. That's not necessarily criticism though, I appreciated that Martha was a flawed character, it made her human. And not just Martha, but all the characters were so well formed, so complex, so believable, and so sympathetic. Combined with a surprisingly eventful plot, I just couldn't wait to see what would happen next and how the characters would handle it. So much had already happened in just first half of the book, and I knew there was so much more to come, it truly felt like something of an epic saga.

Review: A Soupçon of Poison by Ashley Gardner

A novella kick-starter of a new series from Ashley Gardner (aka Jennifer Ashley) about a talented cook, Kat Holloway, in 1880 London who is accused of murdering her wealthy employer.

I absolutely love Gardner's other historical mystery series about Captain Lacey, but this new series with fresh characters is very promising. I don't even love novellas all that much, nor am I a big fan of when protagonists are set up and falsely accused of murder, but this really wet my appetite for more and I can't wait for the first full length novel in the series coming out sometime this year. As ever, Gardner's excellent characterization and clever plots peppered with history are what make this short tale shine. I'm dying to know more about Daniel McAdam! I predict this is going to quickly be added to my list of favorite series.

Review: HFVBT Blog Tour for A Year of Ravens: a novel of Boudica's Rebellion by the H Team

A Year of Ravens: A Novel of Boudica's Rebellion

by Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray, E. Knight, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, S.J.A. Turney, and Russell Whitfield

Publication Date: November 13, 2015

Knight Media LLC

eBook & Paperback; 440 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction

Britannia: land of mist and magic clinging to the western edge of the Roman Empire. A red-haired queen named Boudica led her people in a desperate rebellion against the might of Rome, an epic struggle destined to consume heroes and cowards, young and old, Roman and Celt . . . and these are their stories.

A calculating queen sees the sparks of revolt in a king’s death.

A neglected slave girl seizes her own courage as Boudica calls for war.

An idealistic tribune finds manhood in a brutal baptism of blood and slaughter.

A conflicted warrior hovers between loyalty to tribe and loyalty to Rome.

A death-haunted Druid challenges the gods themselves to ensure victory for his people.

An old champion struggles for everlasting glory in the final battle against the legions.

A fiery princess fights to salvage the pieces of her mother’s dream as the ravens circle.

A novel in seven parts, overlapping stories of warriors and peacemakers, queens and slaves, Romans and Celts who cross paths during Boudica’s epic rebellion. But who will survive to see the dawn of a new Britannia, and who will fall to feed the ravens?

REVIEW

The dream team are back! Okay, it's not exactly the same team of authors that produced A Day of Fire: a novel of Pompeii, but some of the same authors are involved and it's the same concept. They are calling themselves The H Team on Facebook.

Just like A Day of Fire, each author tells an individual story with different yet overlapping characters which are woven together to tell a greater story, that of a monumentally tragic event in history. In this case, A Year of Ravens is about the Celtic rebellion against the Romans, lead by Queen of the Iceni, Boudica.

Told from all different view points on both the Celtic and Roman sides, it gives the reader a rounded perspective of the series of events and the people involved in, from the lowliest of slaves to the highest of leaders. The characters are so well fleshed out despite there being so many of them, and despite each chapter focusing on new points of view.

I have to say though, if you're looking for a book about Boudica herself, this is not it. As the title suggests, it is really about the rebellion, and not necessarily Boudica herself. She is featured in several chapters to varying degrees, but in others, she is barely even mentioned. It is an excellent novel, regardless, and will pull you in from the very beginning.

Stephanie Dray and Ruth Downie's chapters were my favorite. I think that Russell Whitfield's chapter was the weakest of the bunch, because I felt it took too long to get going and show just how it would move the story forward (this is the chapter were Boudica is hardly even mentioned), but once it did it was clear how it fit into the novel.

I don't know how so many established authors are able to work together to form such a cohesive novel for a second time, in addition to their individual work, but I hope they continue to do so.

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | ITUNES

A Year of Ravens Authors

Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray, E. Knight, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, S.J.A. Turney, & Russell Whitfield

Blog Tour Schedule

Friday, November 13
Kick Off at Passages to the Past

Saturday, November 14
Guest Post at A Bookish Affair
Spotlight at Historical Fiction Connection

Sunday, November 15
Review at Book Babe

Monday, November 16
Review at Flashlight Commentary

Tuesday, November 17
Review at Unabridged Chick

Wednesday, November 18
Guest Post at Let Them Read Books
Interview at Unabridged Chick

Thursday, November 19
Review at Kinx's Book Nook
Review at A Bookish Affair

Friday, November 20
Review at Leeanna.me

Monday, November 23
Review at Bibliophilia, Please

Tuesday, November 24
Review at The Maiden's Court

Wednesday, November 25
Review at A Book Drunkard

Friday, November 27
Review & Excerpt at With Her Nose Stuck in a Book

Monday, November 30
Review at Ageless Pages Reviews

Tuesday, December 1
Review at Griperang's Bookmarks

Wednesday, December 2
Interview at Griperang's Bookmarks

Thursday, December 3
Review at Book Nerd

Friday, December 4
Spotlight at The Never-Ending Book

Saturday, December 5
Review at Bookramblings

Monday, December 7
Review at Just One More Chapter

Tuesday, December 8
Review at Book Lovers Paradise

Wednesday, December 9
Review at I'm Shelfish

Thursday, December 10
Review at Boom Baby Reviews

Friday, December 11
Review at Historical Readings & Reviews

Monday, December 14
Review at History From a Woman's Perspective

Tuesday, December 15
Review at CelticLady's Reviews

Wednesday, December 16
Review at A Literary Vacation
Guest Post at One Book Shy of a Full Shelf

Thursday, December 17
Review at The True Book Addict
Review at One Book Shy of a Full Shelf

Friday, December 18
Review at Broken Teepee
Review, Excerpt, & Interview at Unshelfish

Giveaway

During the Blog Tour we will be giving away a Celtic inspired set of silver tone metal and red Swarovski crystal beads, including a necklace, bracelet, and earrings inspired by the setting of A Year of Ravens! Please enter the giveaway via the GLEAM form below.

Rules

– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on December 18th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
– Giveaway is open to residents in the US and UK.
– Only one entry per household.
– All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion
– Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen.

A Year of Ravens