duchessofreadin's reviews
1435 reviews
Britain in the Age of Arthur: A Military History by Ilkka Syvänne
adventurous
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
Thank you to NetGalley and Pen and Sword for a copy of this book. (NetGalley will not allow me to leave a review, so I am going to leave it here instead).
This was an interesting read. I have always viewed Arthur as a conglomerate of people - taking the best parts of each person and weaving them into the mythical person that we all know today. Ilkka Syvanne goes into great detail on their thoughts of Arthur, done through historical evidence, and lays out the case for one person being the Arthur that we still know today.
I enjoyed reading through this book, and want to sit down and read through it again, taking more detailed notes and going back to do some digging of my own. Once I get through a handful of "need to reads" I will sit down and pick this one up again for another round.
This was an interesting read. I have always viewed Arthur as a conglomerate of people - taking the best parts of each person and weaving them into the mythical person that we all know today. Ilkka Syvanne goes into great detail on their thoughts of Arthur, done through historical evidence, and lays out the case for one person being the Arthur that we still know today.
I enjoyed reading through this book, and want to sit down and read through it again, taking more detailed notes and going back to do some digging of my own. Once I get through a handful of "need to reads" I will sit down and pick this one up again for another round.
The Final Storm: A Novel of the War in the Pacific by Jeff Shaara
5.0
LOVED this book! I am a huge World War II buff anyway, and I found myself learning something new as I was reading through the book.The view from the soldiers perspective and those involved was riveting. I couldnt put the book down once I started reading! I am looking forward to reading this again, as well as recommending it to my students! His use of history and narrative is amazing! This puts the Okinawa thrust into an entirely different picture, and actually gives you the feeling as though you are right there with the troops!
Thank you to Jeff Shaara for sharing with Goodreads the advance copies, and for allowing me to be among the first to read it. I am very excited to be encouraging friends to get their own copy and read it as well.
Thank you to Jeff Shaara for sharing with Goodreads the advance copies, and for allowing me to be among the first to read it. I am very excited to be encouraging friends to get their own copy and read it as well.
My (Not So) Storybook Life: A Tale of Friendship and Faith by Elizabeth Owen
5.0
I loved this book!! I laughed and cried my way through its entirety. I had a very hard time putting it down! Elizabeth Owens takes readers through a sad tale of friends and loss, all the while adding the day to day that she and her husband are going through and the stress that seeing someone that you are close to and love fight cancer, and the feelings of helplessness and loss that go along with it as you stand by that person. This book was one that helped me to realize the good friends I had, and to rekindle some old friendships that I had let grow stale. Ms. Owens brings the day to day humdrum that we all dread back with a refreshing laugh as she tries to bake cookies and then ends up feeding them to dog next door, while pouring out her troubles to a eager listener. I would recommend this book to everyone! Its a must read!
The Queen of Last Hopes: The Story of Margaret of Anjou by Susan Higginbotham
4.0
Great Book!! Susan Higginbotham did a great job in reviving history through the eyes of Margaret of Anjou. Her struggles and hopes for peace, as well as the future of her son and husband are born out beautifully through this novel. Royal history is sometimes a hard thing to fathom as the names, people and genealogies are a hard grasp for many, but Higginbotham manages to smooth sail over many of these anomalies and bring the reader not only a sense of what is going on, as the queen moves to rebuild her lost kingdom, but in the lives of those around her. She is able to seamlessly guide the reader through a small portion of history that has had much debate over the years. Was this woman really just scheming to get her own hands on the throne, or was it as Higgenbotham recounted it; a woman moving to get her husband placed back on the throne and ensure her sons future as the future King of England. I would suggest reading this book before reading "The Traitors Wife" also by S. Higgenbotham. I read in a reverse order, but they really go hand in hand. A must read!
At the Mercy of the Queen: A Novel of Anne Boleyn by Anne Clinard Barnhill
5.0
Loved this book!! Instead of telling the story through the eyes of the Queen, Anne Boleyn, it instead follows her cousin, the lady Margaret Shelton. Madge finds herself in all sorts of situations as she helps the queen to regain her standing in the court and the love of her husband. It has all the ups and downs of life at court, and a little intrigue thrown in, as a very little used theory of the marriage of Anne and Henry is ut to use here.Madge herself finds love and although the ending left off in a little bit of a disappointment, the entire book was one that was hard to put down. I read it in two days, as I was hard pressed to stop to do anything else. As a history instructor, I thought it was well thought out and historically accurate in the majority of her details, although as a historical fiction, there is plenty of the artistic license thrown in, but not enough to dilute the hard facts that are there. This is a must read!
The Second Duchess by Elizabeth Loupas
5.0
Leave it to a woman to never be satisfied with the story of the first wife, she must figure out by herself if the story that is floating around is the true story, or if there is something else at play. Barbara, Duchess of Ferrara is bound and determined to do just that. She sets off after her wedding to find out whether her husband, the Duke, really murdered his first wife or if he was unfairly accused. What she uncovers at first angers her husband, but then they decide to work together to uncover the truth, and together they find out much more than they originally thought was possible. Nuns, priests, nobility, and lay-people all come together in this fascinating story as the Duke and Duchess slowly and quietly start to unravel the truth behind the first Duchesses demise. A great read! I could not put the book down. I read it in two days time, and just found myself lost in the story!
The Stolen Crown: The Secret Marriage That Forever Changed the Fate of England by Susan Higginbotham
5.0
The author did a great job of not only drawing out the characters, but by building upon the story line always leaving the reader wanting more. She draws out the female characters, which shows how they could have used the behind the scenes ways to get their wants across, but also showing the relationship between Harry and Kate, and the trials that they grow through as they chose whether to honor the king or overthrow him :)