Books shelved under “Historical Fiction”

Maybe I'm just not cut out for Dan Simmons' particular brand of mysticism. I didn't like the supernatural bent of The Terror and didn't like the supernatural bent of this book. What appears to be a suspenseful Dickensian supernatural mystery is actually, beneath the surface, an incredibly long and dull tour of Victorian London and opium dreams.

The jacket copy of this edition misconstrues the book's nature, at least in my opinion. When I borrowed…

Although it contains a promising theme, The Forgery of Venus lacks a compelling story. Its characters are largely shallow and uninteresting; its plot is overly-complicated; the pacing suffers from an overabundance of exposition. While I'm sure Gruber had the best of intentions, his poor technical execution leaves much to be desired. Ultimately, I found The Forgery of Venus unsatisfactory.

For reasons that later become clear (unreliable narrator), Gruber chooses to wrap the story in a…

It's easy to review something you hate. Indeed, reviewing a bad book is enjoyable, because you feel free to tear it apart and vilify it as much as possible--your harshness is excused, justified by the poor quality of the book itself. Reviewing a good book is more difficult; you have to struggle to find something interesting to say or to come up with criticism. It is nearly impossible to review a great book with any…

A blend of semi-hard, semi-sweet science fiction with historical fiction, Eifelheim comes across as intelligent yet smug. Michael Flynn concocts a "perfect storm" of coincidences, particularly for the two present-day main characters, to carry his narrative. While every story will rely on coincidence in some fashion or another, Eifelheim's plot resembles a meticulously constructed house of cards built in the windiest location on Earth (a quick Google search turns up no consensus on this…

This is my first Pride and Prejudice sequel (indeed, I was unaware up until now of the cornucopia of books in this sub-genre!).

Any reviewer would be remiss if he or she failed to remark on Linda Berdoll's diction, so let's address that first: yes, the prose is a deep, deep shade of purple. What many other reviewers seem to have missed is that this is an intentional device that Berdoll employs to mock Jane…

The intriguingly titled Water for Elephants is everything a good book can be: an absolute page-turner; wonderful characters; and a well-researched, well-written plot.

The narrator Jacob Jankowski tells us the story of his time with a circus travelling the States during the Great Depression. Meanwhile, we also see him as a ninety- (or ninety-three-) year-old man in an "assisted living" home, mulling over his mortality. In both cases, I instantly felt sympathy for these Jacobs,…

In The Tristan Chord, Bettina von Kampen explores a very profound question: should one forget the great acts of a man because he has committed terrible ones?

The title may be misleading, because this book is not about music. It has a musical element and bandies about musical terms, sure, but music acts only as a plot device for telling this story. So if you aren't a musician, don't immediately shy away from this…

I greatly enjoy Anne Perry's Thomas and Charlotte Pitt mysteries. Historical mysteries are tricky, requiring one to not only be well versed in the period in which the story is set, but the judicial system and detection methods available at the time. While I can't attest to how accurate Perry is in her facts, she maintains a willing suspense of disbelief.

In Buckingham Palace Gardens, someone commits a murder at the eponymous royal palace.…

This is not a book for everyone, in the sense that you must be receptive in order to read it, or else you'll want to put it down after the first 100 pages (if that). It's a slow story, rich in details and dwelling on significant moments in the lives of its many characters. There's very little action and a lot of deliberation. It takes dedication and patience to see it through until the end.…

This is my first encounter with the work of Josef Skvorecky. As his Author's Note explains, this book ties together many of the characters and themes from his previous novels. If I had been more familiar with his work, I would have enjoyed this book more.

That being said, I still enjoyed it. Paul Wilson has done a fantastic job translating Ordinary Lives into English--if I didn't know it had been translated, I would have…

I just couldn't get into this, unfortunately. Aside from the plight of Caroline Berring, who desperately wants to marry into an acceptable station in English society, there's very little in ways of a compelling plot, and that just doesn't do it for me. If you're more interested in the intricacies of Victorian English society, you may have a better time with this.

Heavy on the suspense and light on the car chases, The Betrayal Game delivers on exactly what it promises, nothing more, nothing less.

Essentially what that means is if you're predisposed to liking David l. Robbins' books or thrillers about assassination plots, you're going to like this book. It fits the formula. The main character (who appears in another book by Robbins, apparently--this is my first Robbins book) is an intellectual, but instead of being…

First I read this book with curiosity and, I confess, not a little scepticism. Then I read this book with pleasure and even, perhaps, morbid anticipation. Finally, as I turned the last few pages and the book spoke to me of endings and new beginnings, I read this book with appreciation and wonder.

The Monsters of Templeton begins in a distracted, almost haphazard fashion, introducing the tangential plot of the lake monster's death even as…

What originally began as a three-star book quickly became a four-star book as Fiona Buckley plunged me into a wonderful, immersive mystery set in Elizabethan England. This is my first Ursula Blanchard mystery, but I definitely want to read more. It has everything one could demand from a mystery: high stakes, complex antagonists, potential for tragedy, and a daring last-minute attempt to set things aright. Likewise, it satisfies my desire for a good piece of…

Second review: April 2020

Honestly, I don't have much to add to my review from 12 years ago (!). This remains an excellent mystery wrapped in deep medievalist philosophy and thought. It once again took me a long time to read, but it was a nice distraction from what's going on right now.

First review: December 2008

It took me a long time to finish this book (perhaps the longest time it's ever taken me…

I like historical fiction, and I like mysteries, but above all I like historical mysteries. While more familiar with Paul Doherty's work set in ancient Egypt, I still enjoyed this mystery set in early 14th century England. Thanks to Doherty's enchanting descriptions and vivid characterization, Nightshade drew me into the year 1304.

I probably have read other Hugh Corbett novels, but I can't remember them. Going off this novel alone, it's hard to get a…

I couldn't get into this book, unfortunately. I had a hard time empathizing with the characters that Bennett sets in 15th century England. The protagonist, Isabel, never really seems to seize the day and attempt to carve out her own destiny.

Often I say, "Not my favourite book, but if you have the time, give it a read." There's nothing about Figures in Silk to recommend itself as one of those books, however. Its historical…

The first half of the book was a little erotic for my tastes, but it's fine if you like that sort of thing. It just seemed like a page didn't go by without mentioning sex or arousal or issuing some sort of innuendo. This calmed down toward the end of the book, by which time I actually found myself empathizing with Mary quite a bit

The book appealed to my dormant desire to learn more…

The subtitle says it all: "The Novel of Ancient Rome". Not "A novel", THE novel! The boast is not unfounded.

Stephen Saylor steps through almost a thousand years of Roman history in a series of vignettes. In each one, we experience a pivotal moment in the life of Rome through the perspective of a different person. Sometimes I empathized with the character; at other times, I felt he or she was in the wrong.

I'm…

I quickly fell in love with Gulland's lively depiction of seventeenth century France and Louise "Petite" de la Vallière. For the first half of the novel, I received a brilliant glimpse into the life of the daughter of an impoverished nobleman and her ascension in the court of Louis XIV. Aspects I enjoyed: Petite's love of reading, her struggles with her mother and manoeuvring through the intrigue of court, and her time spent in the…