Book Review: Daughter of Moloka’i by Alan Brennert
Daughter of Moloka’i is the sequel to Moloka’i by Alan Brennert. And, unlike the first book, very little of it takes place on Moloka’i. I can’t discuss the plot without revealing at least one spoiler from the first book. So if you haven’t read Moloka’i, I’d suggest...Book Review: Moloka’i by Alan Brennert
Moloka’i is both beautiful and bittersweet. Alan Brennert shows us the human side of institutional health care. In the late 19th century, Hawaii was still a sovereign country. But the haole (non-Hawaiians) were making their way there. And bringing their diseases, most...Book Review: The Other Queen by Philippa Gregory
The Other Queen is everything I want in a Philippa Gregory book. Massive amounts of political scheming, told from three viewpoints, and details, details, details. I loved it. Gregory tells the story of when Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned in Elizabethan England in...Book Review: Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
Mitchell wrote a genre busting book. It’s substantially historical fiction, plus buddy story and romance.
Book Review: Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys
Salt to the Sea is a story of refugees during World War II. It’s part of author Ruta Sepetys’ family history, and her research into real-life events is meticulous. And yet, this is a story of people, not just history. The history is the why and the how, but the people...Book Review: The Broken Girls by Simone St. James
The Broken Girls from Simone St. James is part mystery, part ghost story, with a little historical fiction thrown into the mix. It’s creepy but not terrifying. And it’s got enough twists to surprise you a time or three. Fiona Sheridan is a sympathetic main character,...Book Review: Warlight by Michael Ondaatje
Michael Ondaatje does it again with his new novel, Warlight. He creates an oddly uncomfortable and somewhat satisfying story in an ambivalent historical time. I need to explain that. Warlight was oddly uncomfortable because I loved the writing style but not the story...Book Review: The Thief Taker by C.S. Quinn
In the acknowledgements for The Thief Taker, C.S. Quinn tells how hard it was to convince agents and editors that women could write historical fiction thrillers. Imagine that. They wanted her to write more like historical fiction divas like Philippa Gregory. I’m glad...Book Review: A Quiet Genocide by Glenn Bryant
A Quiet Genocide from new author Glenn Bryant is a quiet book. Right up until it punches you in the gut. It’s historical fiction with a topic I’ve never seen broached. And I’ve read WW2 stories for decades now. It opens in post-WW2 Munich with the Diederichs. They’re...Book Review: His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet
His Bloody Project is historical fiction from author Graham Macrae Burnet that reads like true crime. But the crime was committed in 1869 in Culduie, Scotland. It’s a tiny burg between the poetically-named Toscaig and Camusterrach. Yes, I indulged my habit of checking...Book Review: The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
Way way backlist book The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett is an stirring historical fiction novel. It evokes a variety of emotion from the reader, as its characters go through many decades of life in Middle Ages England. But I’ll admit some of my emotions were...Book Review: I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon
Reading I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon is a bit like putting a jigsaw puzzle together. You start with the edges and work your way back towards the middle. Lawhon tells the first-person narrative of Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov, but mixes it in with a third-person...Book Review: Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts
Shantaram is the novelization of author Gregory David Roberts’ experiences in late 1980s Bombay, India. It was a city on the cusp of many things, including the official state-sponsored name change to Mumbai. Roberts’ character is Lin Ford, an Australian expatriate...Book Review: Carnegie’s Maid by Marie Benedict
As the great-granddaughter of Welsh immigrants to the Pittsburgh area, I enjoyed Carnegie’s Maid by Marie Benedict, about a young Irish immigrant working for a highly successful Pittsburgh family of Scottish immigrants. Benedict’s heroine, Clara Kelly, is a...Book Review: The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey
Just as my local weather became springlike, I dove back into winter with The Snow Child from Eowyn Ivey. Actually, the chilly images are so strong I felt transported. I’d highly recommend reading it during the hottest part of summer, just for the sense of cold and...Bookshop.Org Affiliate
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