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professor_dinosaur's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I’m very torn about this book. The characterization is excellent. It meandered a little, there were segments (the scene with the kingmother, nearly anything that happens when they actually get to France ) I would have cut entirely. Thomas’ segments were infuriatingly long. I understand the point is he’s overeducated, but these segments often dropped the energy built by the much more interesting stories of Will and Bern. I thought the sex scenes were generally tasteful, if overabundant. This is a good read if you like the characterization of fantasy with the stakes unique to historical fiction.
zoer03's review against another edition
1.0
I could not finish this pretentious, plodding, awful book. It should be interesting and entertaining but it really makes my head ache and I also didn’t give a flying f about any of the characters it’s just awful. The writing is atrocious and the quote at the front from Hilary Mantel is just plain rude and insulting. Sorry but this author is trying to big himself up by saying that if we stick to the olde English as close as possible no one will see how crap my story is. It’s boring and dull and I am really disappointed by it.
belladoyle's review against another edition
The language is interesting but the characters are not.
rechalky's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
rojulian's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
jackc5755's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
kleonard's review against another edition
5.0
An astonishing and brilliant book intended to--and effective at--capturing the world and language of late 14th-century England. A former priest, an archer, and a noblewoman on the run find themselves traveling together to Calais in a time of plague, war, and uncertainty. Exploring social mores, religious belief, gender, sexuality, politics, and more, Meek creates a wondrous tale of resistance and persistence.
bioarla's review against another edition
3.0
In To Calais, in Ordinary Time we have a mixed group of people travelling to Calais in 1348 England: a group of bowmen with questionable reputation, a young herdsman joining the archers to fight the French and gain the status of free man, a young noblewoman fleeing from an undesired marriage and a failed proctor. We are in the year of the Black Death, when plague spreads throughout Europe and our characters are also chased by the disease during their journey and encounters on the path towards Calais.
What is truly remarkable and extraordinary about the novel is the use of three different variants of Middle Age English by the characters: the archers speak a English dialect with strong Saxon influence; the noblewoman's English has a vocabulary enriched with French-derived words, whereas latin influence is noticeable when the proctor is the narrator. To me, this feature is what really stands out for this book, but at the same time it accounts for the resulting slow pace in reading. The plot, though interesting, is not particularly innovative and sometimes I had the impression it was just an excuse for justifying the linguistic stylistic choices (like an exercise in style), rather than the focus of the book.
What is truly remarkable and extraordinary about the novel is the use of three different variants of Middle Age English by the characters: the archers speak a English dialect with strong Saxon influence; the noblewoman's English has a vocabulary enriched with French-derived words, whereas latin influence is noticeable when the proctor is the narrator. To me, this feature is what really stands out for this book, but at the same time it accounts for the resulting slow pace in reading. The plot, though interesting, is not particularly innovative and sometimes I had the impression it was just an excuse for justifying the linguistic stylistic choices (like an exercise in style), rather than the focus of the book.
jameskeates's review against another edition
3.0
A historical novel written in three historical voices - peasant, noble and clerical - which takes some getting used to. It is internally consistent (I've read a lot worse "olde englishe") , so you can follow with time and focus. However, I didn't really connect with the story or characters to make it feel worth the effort. The horror of the plague in particular didn't come through - we saw empty towns but although they kept dropping like flies none of the main characters ever seemed that scared!
krobart's review against another edition
3.0
See my review here:
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2021/09/21/review-1726-to-calais-in-ordinary-time/
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2021/09/21/review-1726-to-calais-in-ordinary-time/