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Providence: A Novel
8.7
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(via Goodreads.com) A propulsive new thriller about the obsessive nature of love when an...
Brotherhood
8.0
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This nail-biting new thriller series will have you on the edge of your seat! Perfect for fans of Lee...
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated The Familiars in Books
Apr 30, 2023
51 of 230
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The Familiars
By Stacey Halls
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
In 1612 Lancaster, England, the hunt for witches has reached a fever pitch . . .
But in a time of suspicion and accusation, to be a woman may be the greatest risk of all.
Fleetwood Shuttleworth, the mistress of Pendle Hill’s Gawthorpe Hall, is with child. Anxious to produce an heir, she is distraught to find a letter from her physician that warns her husband she will not survive this pregnancy.
Devastated, Fleetwood wanders the estate grounds, where she catches a young woman poaching. Alice Gray claims she is a local midwife and promises to help Fleetwood deliver a healthy baby. But a witch-obsessed frenzy sweeps the countryside. Even woodland creatures or “familiars” are thought to be dark companions of the unholy. And Alice soon stands accused of witchcraft.
Time is running out. The witch trials are about to begin. With both their lives at stake, Fleetwood must prove Alice’s innocence. Only they know the truth.
Set against the real Pendle witch trials, this compelling novel draws its characters from historical figures as it explores the lives of seventeenth-century women. Ultimately it raises the question: Was witch hunting really just women hunting?
I absolutely loved it! Completely devoured it in 1 day! I’ve always loved the stories that are based on the Pendall witch trials and this was so so good!
The characters and story kept me glued to they book.
Book
The Familiars
By Stacey Halls
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
In 1612 Lancaster, England, the hunt for witches has reached a fever pitch . . .
But in a time of suspicion and accusation, to be a woman may be the greatest risk of all.
Fleetwood Shuttleworth, the mistress of Pendle Hill’s Gawthorpe Hall, is with child. Anxious to produce an heir, she is distraught to find a letter from her physician that warns her husband she will not survive this pregnancy.
Devastated, Fleetwood wanders the estate grounds, where she catches a young woman poaching. Alice Gray claims she is a local midwife and promises to help Fleetwood deliver a healthy baby. But a witch-obsessed frenzy sweeps the countryside. Even woodland creatures or “familiars” are thought to be dark companions of the unholy. And Alice soon stands accused of witchcraft.
Time is running out. The witch trials are about to begin. With both their lives at stake, Fleetwood must prove Alice’s innocence. Only they know the truth.
Set against the real Pendle witch trials, this compelling novel draws its characters from historical figures as it explores the lives of seventeenth-century women. Ultimately it raises the question: Was witch hunting really just women hunting?
I absolutely loved it! Completely devoured it in 1 day! I’ve always loved the stories that are based on the Pendall witch trials and this was so so good!
The characters and story kept me glued to they book.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2464 KP) rated Murder at Morrington Hall in Books
Nov 20, 2021 (Updated Nov 20, 2021)
Life Upheaval and Murder
American Stella Kendrick is thrilled to join her father on a trip to England in 1905 until she learns that he has arranged for her marriage to Viscount “Lyndy” Lyndhurst. Before she can fully process this news, Stella and Lyndy find the body of the vicar who was supposed to marry them. What does this mean for their future? Can they figure out what is going on?
I might have passed by this series had I not won the first three in a contest earlier this year. I’m glad I did. The romance is a stronger part of the story than I would normally like, but I’m torn on that here since I really found it easy to root for Stella and Lyndy. The story is told from multiple points of view, and early on, it is the scenes from the local inspector’s point of view that really advanced the mystery. Ironically, I found myself wanting to get back to Stella and Lyndy when we got those scenes. There is a solid mystery here, and I appreciate how the clues were scattered throughout the story. While I loved Stella and Lyndy and some of the others, some of the characters fell into the love to hate category, which was actually fun. I definitely want to find out what is next for the lead characters, so I’ll be picking up the next book soon.
I might have passed by this series had I not won the first three in a contest earlier this year. I’m glad I did. The romance is a stronger part of the story than I would normally like, but I’m torn on that here since I really found it easy to root for Stella and Lyndy. The story is told from multiple points of view, and early on, it is the scenes from the local inspector’s point of view that really advanced the mystery. Ironically, I found myself wanting to get back to Stella and Lyndy when we got those scenes. There is a solid mystery here, and I appreciate how the clues were scattered throughout the story. While I loved Stella and Lyndy and some of the others, some of the characters fell into the love to hate category, which was actually fun. I definitely want to find out what is next for the lead characters, so I’ll be picking up the next book soon.
ClareR (6054 KP) rated Think of Me in Books
May 8, 2022
I got very excited when I saw that this book was coming up. I’d read and loved We Must Be Brave, and I knew that I’d enjoy this too - I wasn’t disappointed.
It’s the story of James Acton and Yvette Haddad who meet during WW2 in Alexandria where Yvette lives. James is the best man for Yvette’s sisters husband-to-be, and they both fly Hurricanes in North Africa.
James is captured by the Germans when he is shot down, and spends the latter part of the war in a prison camp, and keeps in touch with Yvette throughout. After the war they marry, return to England, and James returns to his ministry as an Anglican priest.
They have a wonderful marriage, it seems to me, whilst James struggles with his memories of war, they both experience a personal loss - and their marriage changes.
This has a dual timeline, set during the war in Alexandria and in 1974. James lives as a widower whilst their son goes to University. It’s a big change for James, and so he decides to go one step further as he puts in for a transfer of parish. But this transfer brings a lot of memories back.
Frances Liardet writes a slow burning novel really well. She makes the ordinary extraordinary, and has written a novel that I became totally immersed in. I really didn’t want to put it down.
It’s the story of James Acton and Yvette Haddad who meet during WW2 in Alexandria where Yvette lives. James is the best man for Yvette’s sisters husband-to-be, and they both fly Hurricanes in North Africa.
James is captured by the Germans when he is shot down, and spends the latter part of the war in a prison camp, and keeps in touch with Yvette throughout. After the war they marry, return to England, and James returns to his ministry as an Anglican priest.
They have a wonderful marriage, it seems to me, whilst James struggles with his memories of war, they both experience a personal loss - and their marriage changes.
This has a dual timeline, set during the war in Alexandria and in 1974. James lives as a widower whilst their son goes to University. It’s a big change for James, and so he decides to go one step further as he puts in for a transfer of parish. But this transfer brings a lot of memories back.
Frances Liardet writes a slow burning novel really well. She makes the ordinary extraordinary, and has written a novel that I became totally immersed in. I really didn’t want to put it down.
The Shadow of Memory
10.0
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In Connie Berry’s fourth Kate Hamilton mystery, American antiques dealer Kate Hamilton uncovers a...
Maureen Fry and the Angel of the North
10.0
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Ten years ago, Harold Fry set off on his epic journey on foot to save a friend. But the story...
The Tudor Queens’ Midwife (The Tudor Queens’ Midwife #1)
Book
In the glamorous, glittering and dangerous court of king Henry VIII and his queen Katherine of...
Historical Fiction The Tudors English Kings and Queens
Darren (1599 KP) rated 6 Days (2017) in Movies
Jun 20, 2019 (Updated Jun 20, 2019)
Contains spoilers, click to show
Story: 6 Days starts on the 30th April 1980 when Iranian terrorists storm the Iranian Embassy in Princes Gate taking hostages and demanding the release of 91 prisoners back in Iran. We follow the negotiator Max Vernon (Strong), reporter Kate Adie (Cornish) and the specialist SAS unit with rookie Rusty Firmin (Bell) planning their ideas of for entering the embassy.
England faces the idea of negotiating with terrorists or being strong and taking them down from the within showing the strength to deal with terrorist situations. As the tensions rise, Max tries to find a peaceful solution to everything while Rusty and his team are preparing for any chance of taking the embassy by force.
Thoughts on 6 Days
Characters – Rusty Firmin is the lead on a SAS team that are called to try and solve the hostage situation, they have only ever done training never being able to get their hands-on experience before. Rusty is desperate to show they are ready to protect their country. Max Vernon is the negotiator that keeps the terrorists calm, trying to make their demands happen, he stays calm through the whole situation even when the pressure to make something happen is getting to him. Kate Adie gives updates from outside for the watching television public to see how everything unfolds, in all honesty, we don’t need to be following this character.
Performances – When you look at the performances you can’t fault them because they are give good performances, Mark Strong shines like he always does, Jamie Bell is good too, the limited scenes Abbie Cornish is in she does well to. The problem is the characters are not the most interesting.
Story – The story is based on the real Iranian terrorist hostage situation in 1980 which last the 6 Days. It shows how England didn’t want a copy of what happened in Munich, didn’t want to give into terrorism and wanted to remain strong in the eyes of the world. It also shows how while being trained to deal with the situation, the SAS had never had to tackle things in reality. This should be an interesting watch but in the end, we don’t focus on enough of the negotiation process or the tactical side leaving us feeling like we haven’t learnt enough by the end.
Action/History – The get tactical action, the most part is training ideas before one main shot, but it doesn’t feel like it was shot the best way. We learn moments from the historical events, but most comes from the reading over the storytelling.
Settings – The film is set instantly around the Embassy, which puts us into the action from the start which is all we want to see.
Scene of the Movie – The practise sieges
That Moment That Annoyed Me – I feel we should have followed one side more instead of trying to cover three angles.
Final Thoughts – This is a solid enough history lesson, we learn what we need to, but not enough from the action unfolding before us.
Overall: Disappointing historical drama.
https://moviesreview101.com/2017/11/26/6-days-2017/
England faces the idea of negotiating with terrorists or being strong and taking them down from the within showing the strength to deal with terrorist situations. As the tensions rise, Max tries to find a peaceful solution to everything while Rusty and his team are preparing for any chance of taking the embassy by force.
Thoughts on 6 Days
Characters – Rusty Firmin is the lead on a SAS team that are called to try and solve the hostage situation, they have only ever done training never being able to get their hands-on experience before. Rusty is desperate to show they are ready to protect their country. Max Vernon is the negotiator that keeps the terrorists calm, trying to make their demands happen, he stays calm through the whole situation even when the pressure to make something happen is getting to him. Kate Adie gives updates from outside for the watching television public to see how everything unfolds, in all honesty, we don’t need to be following this character.
Performances – When you look at the performances you can’t fault them because they are give good performances, Mark Strong shines like he always does, Jamie Bell is good too, the limited scenes Abbie Cornish is in she does well to. The problem is the characters are not the most interesting.
Story – The story is based on the real Iranian terrorist hostage situation in 1980 which last the 6 Days. It shows how England didn’t want a copy of what happened in Munich, didn’t want to give into terrorism and wanted to remain strong in the eyes of the world. It also shows how while being trained to deal with the situation, the SAS had never had to tackle things in reality. This should be an interesting watch but in the end, we don’t focus on enough of the negotiation process or the tactical side leaving us feeling like we haven’t learnt enough by the end.
Action/History – The get tactical action, the most part is training ideas before one main shot, but it doesn’t feel like it was shot the best way. We learn moments from the historical events, but most comes from the reading over the storytelling.
Settings – The film is set instantly around the Embassy, which puts us into the action from the start which is all we want to see.
Scene of the Movie – The practise sieges
That Moment That Annoyed Me – I feel we should have followed one side more instead of trying to cover three angles.
Final Thoughts – This is a solid enough history lesson, we learn what we need to, but not enough from the action unfolding before us.
Overall: Disappointing historical drama.
https://moviesreview101.com/2017/11/26/6-days-2017/