Category: Historical fiction

Recent Reads: Those who are loved by Victoria Hislop

Posted on by Pam

My review: ????

Those who are loved by Victoria Hislop has settings throughout Themis’s life, who is in her 90s in the modern day Greece.

It’s a family saga, as we see Themis growing up with siblings with very different political views.  Themis and her brother Panos support communism, and Margaretha and Thanassis support the right wing, which includes fascists.

The beginning has us meeting Themis telling her story to two of her grandchildren, and the majority of the rest of the book is going through her life, and the life of Greece as it roils under the Nazi’s, fascism and civil war.

This was such an education in what happened in Greece in the 20th century.  It put historical events into context, and as we could see both political sides, we could see more of the suffering, and the celebration.

Victoria Hislop also wrote The Island, about a family’s link to a leper colony, which I read in 2009 (hurrah for GoodReads!), and enjoyed!  

Those who are loved is published on 30th May 2019,  and is available to buy on Amazon  and on Waterstones.  I’ve found a link to where you can search for local bookshops, including independent!


I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Headline Review (the publishers) for this book.


Check out my GoodReads profile to see more reviews!

Recent Reads: Becoming Mrs Lewis; The Improbable Love Story of Joy Davidman and C. S. Lewis by Patti Callahan

Posted on by Pam

My review: ????

Becoming Mrs Lewis by Patti Callahan appealed to me because of C.S. Lewis.  The only things I knew about him before reading this book was that he wrote the Narnia books, which I loved, and that he was Christian, with Aslan actually being God.

Whilst C.S. Lewis (or Jack, as his friends called him) is an important character in this book, the main character is Joy Davidman, a Jewish New Yorker, who first writes to Jack (much easier to type than C.S. Lewis, and so I will steal it for this.) whilst she is married, and has two small sons.  

Joy has a hard life. She and her husband are both writers (he was William Lindsay Gresham), but he wants her to be a ‘proper’ wife, which during the 1940s onwards means looking after the house, the children, and your husband.  Joy is made to feel selfish in her desire to write.  Her husband is an alcoholic, who helps Joy to find God when he is out boozing yet again, and she has a spiritual epiphany whilst worrying.  Finding God is why Joy writes to Jack, who also found God later in life, and wrote about it.

This book is peppered through with quotes from letters and poems, which adds to hearing their voices.  Whilst the poems are real, I don’t know if the letters are, as we are told that Jack destroys all correspondence once he has replied.

Whilst it looks at Joy and Jack’s beliefs, I didn’t feel like it was trying to convert me, it was just exploring what they believed, and how that impacted their lives.

If you enjoy historical fiction, and looking at famous lives, or getting a glimpse more of the Inklings (the writing group that C.S. Lewis was part of, with J.R.R. Tolkien, and others!), then you’ll enjoy this!  Though, do be warned that Joy’s time with William is abusive, which some may find upsetting.

Patti Callahan also writes under Patti Callahan Henry, and is a New York Times bestselling author of quite a few books!

Becoming Mrs Lewis was published on 16th May 2019,  and is available to buy on Amazon  and on Waterstones.  I’ve found a link to where you can search for local bookshops, including independent!


I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to HarperCollins and Harper Inspire (the publishers) for this book.

Check out my GoodReads profile to see more reviews!


Recent Reads: Cape May by Chip Cheek

Posted on by Pam

My review: ?????

Cape May by Chip Cheek is set in New England in 1957, with Henry and Effie on their honeymoon to her childhood summer vacation spot, but they’re visiting it in the off season, and so it’s much emptier than she remembers.

Pretty soon, Effie’s bored of the place, and wants to go home.  It’s not like she remembers, and whilst Henry feels hurt, he’s willing to leave.  And then they meet one of the neighbours, someone that Effie knew a long time ago.

This is a tale of an innocent couple, meeting bored, rich people, who open their eyes to a different life.

Can Henry and Effie’s marriage survive the ride?  You’ll have to read to find out more!

This is Chip Creek’s debut novel, and it’s a stonker!  It’s so evocative, with the scene being set so well that you can believe yourself in a grey seaside town, the drizzle of rain, and the few people who would be there.

Cape May was published on 30th April 2019,  and is available on Amazon  to buy on Kindle and on Waterstones.  I’ve found a link to where you can search for local bookshops, including independent!


I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Orion Publishing Group (the publishers) for this book.

Check out my GoodReads profile to see more reviews!

Recent Reads: A Well-Behaved Woman by Therese Anne Fowler

Posted on by Pam

My review: ?????

A Well-Behaved Woman is a fictionalised version of the events of Alva Vanderbilt’s life, from her humble beginnings, her marriage to William Vanderbilt, to her support of Suffragettes.

It was amazing how many houses I wanted to look at when reading this, as Therese Anne Fowler describes the buildings so well, and I kept wanting to see what they looked like today!  Sadly, the ones in New York don’t survive, but still lovely to look at online!

I did also look up characters on Wikipedia, and was interested in how Alva’s daughter Consuelo wrote about her mother in her autobiography, The Glitter and the Gold, and yes, I want to read that now!  

All in all, this was a really enjoyable read, and made me interested in American history!

This was written by the same person who wrote Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald, which Amazon then made into a series called Z: The Beginning of Everything, starring Christina Ricci, and having read A Well-Behaved Woman, I now want to read Z!

A Well-Behaved Woman was published on 24th January this year, and is available on Amazon, and everywhere else you can find books!

I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to John Murray Press (the publishers) for this book.
Check out my GoodReads profile to see more reviews!

Recent Reads: The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins

Posted on by Pam

My review: ????

The Confessions of Frannie Langton is set in 1826, with Frannie Langton, a servant, is standing trial, charged with murdering her employers.  This book is her writing to her barrister, telling him her life story, with occasional cross examinations of witnesses during the trial thrown in.

She tells us her story; born a slave in Jamaica, she is Mr Langton’s property, and so when he decides to take her to Britain with him, she has no choice but to follow.  We see her starting a new life in Britain, and the relationships she has with her master, her mistress, and fellow servants.  And we see her in love with her mistress, how that love is returned, and how she can’t remember what happened that fateful night, when she was found sleeping next to the dead body of her mistress.

With settings like the sugar plantation in Jamaica, to a gentleman’s home in Britain, this is all rife with discussions of slavery, racism, and opium, which you see all through the eyes of Frannie.

I thought this was a compelling story, with Frannie as a fascinating character.  I wanted to know what had happened, and wasn’t disappointed.  I would recommend this if you enjoy crime novels, and historical fiction!


The Confessions of Frannie Langton is out on 4th April 2019, and will be available on Amazon, and everywhere else you can find books!

I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Book UK (the publishers) for this book.

Check out my GoodReads profile to see more reviews!

Recent Reads: The Wolf and the Watchman by Niklas Natt och Dag

Posted on by Pam

My review: ????

Nordic noir is a genre that I think of as being present day, but Niklas Natt och Dag has shaken that for me with The Wolf and the Watchman.  

Set mostly in 1793 in Stockholm, this is the investigation into a hideous discovery of a mutilated body in the water that sets watchman Mickel Cardell reluctantly off on an investigation with Cecile Winge, a lawyer and now a consultant for the police, dying of consumption.

We get flashes of the French revolution, and of Cardell’s career in battle, when he lost his hand and his friends.  We are shown the seedy underside of Stockholm, and of the people who prey off of each other.

This is quite a graphic book, and looks at how Cardell deals with his life after battle through alcohol and violence.  It shows Winge’s choices about how he is going to die, not in his home with his wife, but in a boarding house.  It also looks at what lengths people can go to for revenge, and the joy of hurting others.

Definitely not a cosy crime novel, but, yes, nordic noir with a horror edge.  It is a book that will make you keep turning the pages, and you’ll be taken for a great ride!

The Wolf and the Watchman was published on 7th February this year, and is available on Amazon, and everywhere else you can find books!

I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to John Murray Press (the publishers) for this book.

Check out my GoodReads profile to see more reviews!

Recent Reads Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield

Posted on by Pam

My review: ?????

Once Upon a River is set on the River Thames, and starts with a stormy winter solstice night, and a young girl being rescued from the river, and thought to be drowned, except she wakes up.

Three different people claim her to be their own, but she doesn’t say anything, or act as though she recognises anyone.  A couple whose daughter was kidnapped two years ago, a grandfather who hasn’t ever seen his granddaughter, and a woman in her forties who recognises the girl as her sister.  But who is she?

All of this, and the stories of Quietly, the ferryman who rescues people, whilst never stopping for rest himself.

This was such a thematic read, with the river ever present, that you could practically feel the dampness everyone spoke about in the book.  I thought the characters were well filled, and the stories being told in the book were very good.

This has a bit of a fantastical, and that works in this setting.  

It’s a lovely read, and will sweep you along with it.


Once Upon a River is out on 17th January 2019, and will be available on Amazon, and everywhere else you can find books!

I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK (the publishers) for this book.

Check out my GoodReads profile to see more reviews!

Recent Reads: Blackberry and Wild Rose by Sonia Velton

Posted on by Pam

My review: ?????

Blackberry and Wild Rose is set in Spitalfields, in London, with 2 women changing each others life.  The year is 1768, Esther is married to a Huguenot silk weave master, and Sara is a whore in a tavern, and being set on by her madam when Esther tries to help her.

We are taken back to the 18th century in the way food is made, the clothing people wear, and how they treat each other, and it is a fascinating step into history, with enough detail about silk weaving to let you imagine it, without making it boring.

But, all isn’t jolly, there’s unhappiness from the silk weavers who feel they aren’t being paid enough, and there’s cheaper materials coming in, unhappiness from the masters as the silk is getting more expensive, unhappiness from an ignored wife, and from the jostling of servants for their mistresses approval and good graces.  Revenge, boredom, arrogance and spitefulness all play a part in this story, along with hope, love and desire.

I really enjoyed this book, with evocative characters, a rich background and sumptuous silks.

Blackberry and Wild Rose is out on 10th January 2019, and will be available on Amazon, and everywhere else you can find books!

I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and Quercus (the publishers) for this book.

Check out my GoodReads profile to see more reviews!