The Master of Verona by David Blixt

A Fantastic Novel of pre-Renaissance Verona!

Summary:

A sweeping novel of Renaissance Italy, THE MASTER OF VERONA follows Pietro Alaghieri, eldest son of the poet Dante, as he's caught up by the charisma and genius of Verona's ruler, Cangrande della Scala. Pietro risks battles, duels, and murder to impress his new lord. At the heart of the story is an infernal plot against Cangrande's bastard heir, and the rivalry of two friends over the affections of a girl. That rivalry will sever a friendship, divide a city, and initiate a feud that will someday produce the star-crossed lovers. Based on the plays of William Shakespeare, the poetry of Dante, and the history of Italy, THE MASTER OF VERONA is a novel of brutal warfare, lost friendship, and dire conspiracy, combining to create a heart-stoppingly epic journey into the birth of the Renaissance that recalls the best of Bernard Cornwell and Dorothy Dunnett. 

Review:

In 14th century Italy, poet Dante Alighieri is banished from his beloved home town of Florence. With his two sons, Pietro and Jacopo, he is invited to travel to Verona and become part of Francesco ‘Cangrande’ della Scala, the Lord of Verona’s household. There, much intrigue unfolds as the war for Vicenza erupts with Padua and as repeated attempts are made against Cangrande’s illegitimate heir. Pietro is irretrievably drawn into the issues and battles facing Cangrande. To make matters worse, Pietro’s two friends, Mariotto and Antonio, are in contest with each other over a woman, which leads the readers into the tragic story of Romeo and Juliette, giving it roots and bringing it to life in greater detail. This novel takes place in the Veneto region of Italy – Vicenza, Padua, Venice, and Verona, and books about this region are indeed rare. So it was with great interest that I picked up this book. Especially since my own Italian roots are firmly planted in the Veneto region. 

With a blend of true historical characters such as Dante, Cangrande della Scala, the story of Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare, and real historical events with the wars between the neighboring cities, this is a breathtaking epic. As Pietro and his friends are drawn into Cangrande’s troubles, they face the horrors of battle and participate in the Palio, a brutal, life-threatening horse race through the streets of Verona still conducted today in Siena. The author writes with such wonderful detail, these scenes are gripping and so real, that I found myself totally immersed in the story. In addition for my great interest in the era and setting of this story, what I enjoyed most was the abounding suspense and strong historical details. It is evident that the author did a great amount of research and gained a strong understanding of the era and its most famous persons. The entire story, from start to finish was completely entertaining and engrossing. 

There is a huge cast of characters, and the author sometimes refers to them by nickname, first name, or last name which can be confusing and makes this book a bit of a challenging read. I recommend bookmarking the character list at the start and referring to the list often until the names and their derivatives become familiar. But don’t let that daunt you. This book is masterfully written, so rich with detail, and full of wonderful suspense, battle scenes, and romance that there is something for everyone. A true epic and a story well worth sinking your teeth into.

Days of Splendor, Days of Sorrow by Juliet Grey

An intimate peek into the life of the infamous Marie Antoinette, Dauphine and Queen of France! 

Book Description:

Paris, 1774. At the tender age of eighteen, Marie Antoinette ascends to the French throne alongside her husband, Louis XVI. But behind the extravagance of the young queen’s elaborate silk gowns and dizzyingly high coiffures, she harbors deeper fears for her future and that of the Bourbon dynasty.

From the early growing pains of marriage to the joy of conceiving a child, from her passion for Swedish military attaché Axel von Fersen to the devastating Affair of the Diamond Necklace, Marie Antoinette tries to rise above the gossip and rivalries that encircle her. But as revolution blossoms in America, a much larger threat looms beyond the gilded gates of Versailles—one that could sweep away the French monarchy forever.

Review:

Days of Splendor, Days of Sorrow by Juliet Grey is the second novel of a trilogy based on the life of Marie Antoinette. The first book in the series was entitled Becoming Marie Antoinette. This second book focuses on the early years of Marie Antoinette’s reign as Queen of France and spans fifteen years of her life. It explores the development and evolvement of the French people’s animosity towards their monarch in the years leading up to the French Revolution.

When it comes to Marie Antoinette, I continue to be fascinated by her story. There have been numerous novels written about the life of this fascinating woman. What makes this book different than the others is that it portrays Marie Antoinette in neither a good light nor bad. Juliet Grey has done a marvellous job of showing us her faults and errors, as well as her naïveté and inexperience in a non-judgmental way. And because her life story is presented in a trilogy format, readers are able to understand this heroine in a deeper, more meaningful way. An example of this is how the author dealt with Marie’s affair with Axel Ferson – she portrayed the passion, guilt, and shame intricately and in a way that truly makes the young, unhappy queen seem real and vulnerable. Her foolishness in relentlessly gambling away money was portrayed very well – the losses were truly astounding – and her lack of remorse or worry truly shows us many of her less desirable qualities. Her frivolous spending was depicted as well as some of the queen’s more generous acts of charity or kindness. The novel is told in first person narrative in Marie’s voice. This engaging voice, coupled with vibrant descriptions of clothing, palaces, masques, and dinners, really thrusts the reader into the story.

Although I did not have the opportunity to read the first book in the series, I was able to follow the story easily without having to struggle to remember characters and situations. Power and great wealth can truly corrupt, especially in the hands of a very young woman thrust into the role of queen. For those wishing an indepth interpretation of Marie Antoinette’s life, this trilogy is perfect. Exceptionally well done!

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From History and Women

Book Giveaway - The Reckoning by Alma Katsu

Win a copy of The Reckoning by Alma Katsu!

Alma Katsu has asked me to forward this on to my readers!  Enter to win a copy of her new release - The Reckoning.

"After receiving this box of finished copies of The Reckoning, I thought I'd have a quick contest in honor of the holiday weekend. I'm giving away one copy and will ship internationally. Folks can enter by emailing me at contest@almakatsu.com and I must receive entries by midnight PT, May 28.

The winner will receive the book BEFORE IT GOES ON SALE June 19th. Quick and easy peasy!

The Train of Small Mercies, by David Rowell

In June 1968, America society was surviving only by sheer will. Torn apart first by the Vietnam War and then by Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination, the country is once again rocked when Bobby Kennedy is shot hours after his victory in the California primary.

The public comes out in droves as Kennedy’s train travels the length of the East Coast to its final resting point in Arlington Cemetery. As the train meanders, so, too, do the lives of those living along the train’s pathway. In one home, a husband and wife struggle with boredom and the recognition of the spouse’s failings; in another, a Vietnam veteran must confront the loss of his leg and the horrors he saw in battle; in another city, a mother goes to extreme lengths to avoid her husband’s criticism and watch the train’s trip when a terrifying event derails her plans.

The Train of Small Mercies follows not only Kennedy’s casket, but also the events that coincided with the train’s passing that also forever changed lives. With exquisitely written dialogue, Rowell displays American life in all its tumult as it existed on June 8, 1968 – a day of both mourning and growth - for the country. The author’s first novel reflects East Coast life and cultural problems as they existed then, but also manages to connect them to present-day Washington DC. Lovers of American history and those fascinated by the Kennedy family should not miss this gem.

Jessamine by Eugenia O'Neal

Grace arrives to join her West Indian husband, Julian Hylton in his Caribbean island home on the island of St Crescens, where she is introduced to Jessamine, a beautiful, historical plantation house, owned in the previous century by the Island Administrator.

Loving her new home, Grace is surprised at the hostile welcome she receives from Julian’s grandmother and some of the locals. Both appear to disapprove of both Julian’s efforts for election to the government of the island, and the fact he married an American woman and not an islander, but Grace is made of strong stuff and tries to fit in as best she can. 

Julian’s campaign takes up most of his time, and left alone at Jessamine, Grace is plagued by strange headaches.  When the physical symptoms change to a voice of a woman asking for help, Grace refuses to ignore her and starts digging amongst church records and the town's archives to discover who this lost soul might be and what she wants.

Running parallel to Grace’s story is that of Arabella, a young orphaned white girl, who came to St Crescens in the 1880’s as governess employed by William Threlfall and his wife Olivia at Jessamine, where she looks after their three children, Victoria, Theodore and Jocelyn.

Arabella Adams has experienced little love in her life and the Threlfalls offer her none, leaving her isolated and susceptible to the attentions of a local man, Leando Joseph. Leando is an exceptional man for a West Indian in the 19th century, having made a good life for himself and is a respected landowner, but he also cares deeply for his fellow islanders and is determined to help create better lives for the native population who suffer at the hands of the plantation owners.

In their respective times, both Arabella and Grace are embroiled in the similar political wrangles of their men to alter the status quo, defeat corruption and bring a better life to the islanders; a fight neither Julian nor Leando intend to shrink from, and an element they have in common is the deep love they have for their women.

As Grace’s investigations into Arabela’s life take a dangerous turn, the riots of a former time threaten to re-visit the island. Will Grace discover the truth in time to help keep Julian safe from the same family who caused tragedy to Arabella and Leando so long ago? 

Miss O’Neal’s novel is a story of tragic love, greed and political rivalry fought on one island in two different centuries. The two women have very different voices and the author portrays the starkness of the 19th century as opposed to the more enlightened, but equally segregated 21st very well.  I found Arabella’s voice to be the strongest and her story the more touching and tragic, but maybe this is because it is clear from the beginning that she needs Grace’s help to gain closure to her life.

I did find the island dialect a little hard to get used to, but then I am a London girl so it was almost a different language, however the parallels of the two women’s lives are cleverly drawn and by the end I had come to admire Grace’s tenacity to unearth the truth and not be intimidated by her husband’s enemies, as much as I did Arabella’s courage to defy convention and cross the race divide.


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Blurb for Dido's Prize  - Dido, a slave on a Jamaican sugar plantation, runs away to join Henry Morgan's privateer fleet and find the treasure that will allow her to buy her family's freedom. What she doesn't bargain on is falling in love with El Negro, a pirate captain with no particular yen for a long-lasting relationship. As Morgan sails the Spanish Main, sacking first, El Puerto del Principe in Cuba, and then the great city of Porto Bello in Panama, Dido becomes a valued member of El Negro's crew. After the ships return to Jamaica, Dido thinks she will never see the pirate captain again, but he comes to her rescue when she is in peril. They flee deep into the Blue Mountains, but El Negro knows he will never be safe on the island. Together, Dido and her pirate, head back out to sea to find a place where they can live and love in freedom.



Eugenia's Blog:

The Bones of Avignon by Jefferson Bass

Medieval mystery meets modern-day murder, as Dr. Brockton and Miranda Lovelady  investigate the discovery of ancient bones found in the Palace of the Popes in Avignon, France.

Instead of a simple phone call asking for his assistance, Miranda inveigles her associate to tell Bill Brockton, the ‘bone specialist’ and Miranda’s lecturer and mentor, that she’s in hospital with acute appendicitis. This alerts us to the fact Brockton has suppressed feelings for Miranda and despite being twenty years her senior, he experiences teen-like fantasies and jealousy about her which constantly interferes with his scientific concentration. At the opening chapter, Brockton is working on a dead undercover DEA agent, and when things start getting sinister in France, he believes he has been followed by the drug dealers trying to remove him from the picture.

The first thing Bill reveals is that these bones are of a man in his sixties, not the 33 year old Christ everyone is expecting, though when they subject the skull to computer enhancement, the face revealed bears a close resemblance to that on the Shroud of Turin – another fake, or irrefutable proof?

If you harbour pre-conceived ideas about religious fanatics, dipsomaniac Irish priests and French policeman, this book will confirm everything you ever thought.  I loved Inspector DeCartes, who when asked if he is a relative of the man who said, ‘I think, therefore I am,’ quips back, ‘I think I am a relative, therefore I am.’  He also describes the ‘Lunatic Fringe’ as, ‘the fluffy edge of crazy’ - Love it!

The storyline concentrates largely on the processes of authenticating the bones, or not authenticating them, and the convoluted historical background of the alleged origins of the Shroud of Turin and a story of unrequited love between a cleric and a lady called Laura with some poetry by Yeats added to the mix.

The historical background of fourteenth century Avignon was fascinating, but it ran alongside a modern day murder/kidnap/ransom situation and I’m afraid the history slowed down the modern story to a crawl so I was tempted to skip it to get to the action.

Jefferson Bass is the writing team of Dr Bill Bass, founder of the University of Tennessee's Body Farm - the world's first laboratory dedicated to the study of human decomposition - and Jon Jefferson, which explains the detailed and fascinating science bit!

I did enjoy this book, but I would have liked to have appreciated Fourteenth Century Avignon for its own sake rather as architecture propping up a modern day narrative.

The Pirate's Daughter and a King's Ransom by K.L. Parry

K.L. Parry’s novel The Pirate’s Daughter and a King’s Ransom is a rousing, high seas adventure about 14-year-old Blue, her father, his nemesis, and Lady Rebbecca Wolf. After Blue and her mother are summoned to Lord Wolf’s manor to work as temporary lacemakers, Blue finds herself forging an unlikely friendship with Lord Wolf’s ill-tempered, tyrannical daughter Rebbecca. When Blue’s departure for home threatens to separate them, Rebbecca concocts a cruel scheme to keep them together forever. That’s where the adventure truly begins.

After Blue escapes Lord Wolf’s manor, unwillingly taking Rebbecca along, she sets out to find her father Perseus, who, unknown to Blue, is actually the famous pirate Dead Eye Pete. Capture by the mysterious, vindictive pirate William Thorn throws the two girls into a deadly game of cat and mouse. However, it is Thorn’s true identity and plans that are at the crux of Blue’s story. Just who is William Thorn? Why is he hell-bent on having revenge on Blue’s father? Will Blue and Rebbecca ever return home… or even survive?

Self-published in 2010, The Pirate’s Daughter and a King’s Ransom is filled with intriguing, admirably flawed characters whose lives connect in many thrilling ways. The settings are rich and believable, and the historical details are nicely weaved throughout the story. Despite grammatical errors, the book is a fast-paced, enjoyable read geared toward young adults.

Parry does a good job of keeping the reader guessing at what is coming next. More than once I found myself expecting one thing, and then I was pulled in another exciting direction. I look forward to K.L. Parry’s next novel.

Reviewed by Miranda Miller