Epitaph is the sequel to Doc and has all the strengths of that novel. It continues the story of John Henry ‘Doc’ Holiday and the Earp brothers and carries it through to the aftermath of the shootout at the O.K. Corral. The novel opens in 1880 in Tombstone with Josie Marcus, the daughter of Jewish … Continue reading One Minute Book Review – Epitaph by Mary Doria Russell
Historical fiction
One Minute Book Review- Fair Helen by Andrew Greig
In Fair Helen Andrew Greig takes the Border ballad 'Fair Helen of Kirkconnel Lea' and weaves a story of intrigue and doomed love in the Scottish border lands of the late 16th century. The not quite reliable narrator is Harry Langton cousin of Helen Irvine and best friend of Adam Fleming, the Scottish Romeo and … Continue reading One Minute Book Review- Fair Helen by Andrew Greig
Revision, revision, revision
I regard writing as in some ways like sculpting with clay. In sculpting the starting point is a design and an armature (the framework on which a clay sculpture is moulded), with writing most of us begin with a general idea of the story we want to tell and the arc it will follow even … Continue reading Revision, revision, revision
One Minute Book Review – Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
I have resisted reading this book for a very long time. Workmates have raved about it, swooning over Jamie Fraser, but those who know me best warned me away from it – ‘You won’t like it – too many things for you to criticize’. Although I do have a nose for historical inaccuracy, I don’t … Continue reading One Minute Book Review – Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
One Minute Book Review – Wild Island by Jennifer Livett
Wild Island by Jennifer Livett is set, for the greater part, in Van Diemen’s Land in the 1830s, a time when, although it was primarily penal settlement, some were beginning to envisage a different future for the colony. The story is told through dual narratives, in the third person concentrating on Charles Booth, the Commandant … Continue reading One Minute Book Review – Wild Island by Jennifer Livett
Language in Historical Fiction
I suppose I am getting ahead of myself blogging about the way I write historical fiction when I have nothing published yet, so these are as much the thoughts of a reader as a writer. While the details of place, and manners and customs play a large part in creating the historical world, the style … Continue reading Language in Historical Fiction
One Minute Book Review – Doc by Mary Doria Russell
I am generally not a reader of American fiction set in the Old West; however, this review of Doc piqued my interest. This is a thoroughly researched engaging novel where even the minor characters, most of whom are based on real people, are well drawn and multifaceted with small vignettes rounding out their characters. The … Continue reading One Minute Book Review – Doc by Mary Doria Russell
And Then Mine Enemy by Alison Stuart
This is the latest swashbuckling 17th century historical romance from the pen of Alison Stuart - the first book in a two book series (FEATHERS IN THE WIND) spanning the years of the English Civil War from 1642- 1645. AND THEN MINE ENEMY A family ripped apart in a country divided by war . . … Continue reading And Then Mine Enemy by Alison Stuart
One Minute Book Review – The Visitors by Rebecca Mascull
Set initially on a hop farm in Kent at the end of the 19th century, The Visitors is the story of Adeliza Golding, a girl born with limited sight who in early childhood contracts an illness which renders her both deaf and completely blind. Her only communication is with the Visitors, ghosts she speaks to … Continue reading One Minute Book Review – The Visitors by Rebecca Mascull
One Minute Book Review – A Woman So Bold by L. S. Young
This is an engaging first novel, categorized as historical romance, better described as historical fiction with a strong romance element. It is the story of Landra Andrews’ growth from childhood to womanhood and her struggle against both family and a narrow society to live and love on her own terms. Set in north Florida in … Continue reading One Minute Book Review – A Woman So Bold by L. S. Young
Catherine Meyrick 