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The Locksmith's Daughter
The Locksmith's Daughter
Karen Brooks | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
An Elizabethan novel without royals as the main characters.
Recently, I haven't wanted to read any historical fiction novels. I feel like recently, a lot of them are either focused on royals, or on WWII. Harper Collins sent one of their promo emails at the beginning of this month, and after reading the description, I had to have it.
I really liked the main character, Mallory, made some dumb decisions, like everyone, but it was nice to see that she legitimately learned from her mistakes.
After Mallory ruined her reputation, her father seeks out the Spymaster of Elizabethan England, Sir Francis Walsingham, to give her a job. She becomes a spy, seeking out Catholics. Again, I was thankful that the Queen only appeared in person once.

Harper Collins totally got me on this one, and I was glad to read it.
  
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Allison Knapp (118 KP) Jan 21, 2019

Sounds interesting. I will have to read it.

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Emma Watson recommended The Handmaid's Tale in Books (curated)

 
The Handmaid's Tale
The Handmaid's Tale
Margaret Atwood | 1998 | Essays
8.3 (112 Ratings)
Book Favorite

"Margaret Atwood wrote The Handmaid’s Tale over thirty years ago now, but it is a book that has never stopped fascinating readers because it articulates so vividly what it feels like for a woman to lose power over her own body. Like George Orwell’s 1984 (a novel that Atwood was inspired by) its title alone summons up a whole set of ideas, even for those who haven’t read it…Atwood has called it ‘speculative fiction’, but also says that all the practises described in the novel are ‘drawn from the historical record’ – i.e. are things that have actually taken place in the past. Could any of Atwood’s speculations take place again, or are some of them taking place already? Are the women in the book powerless in their oppression or could they be doing more to fight it?"

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The City of Tears (The Burning Chambers #2)
The City of Tears (The Burning Chambers #2)
Kate Mosse | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry, History & Politics
9
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A must read!
What a book! An amazing sequel to The Burning Chambers. The detail in the description is exactly what I have come to expect from Kate Mosse’s books and she did not disappoint with this one. I loved seeing Piet and Minou’s family grow. There was the same amount of suspense about whether and how things would work out for them all, and that suspense carried on right until the last chapter and even the last sentences. I cannot wait for the third instalment of this series and to find out more about what happens to they Reydon family and whether they can in fact live their lives in peace or whether trouble will always find them! A must read for anyone who is interested in historical fiction as it touches on some major events in history.
  
The Four Symbols (The Black Sun Trilogy)
The Four Symbols (The Black Sun Trilogy)
Eric Giacometti & Jacques Ravenne | 2020 | History & Politics, Mystery, Paranormal
5
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I must admit that I really, really struggled with this book because although the story was good and the way the author weaved historical fact with fiction was well done and it was clearly well researched, it was just too slow for me and there was too much jumping from scene to scene making it hard for me to keep track as it didn't flow particularly well and I didn't get the excitement or tension that I was hoping for.

I accept that this is my view and this book will certainly appeal to a lot of people ... you just have to see how many 4 and 5 star reviews this has got to prove that but it just wasn't for me.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest and unbiased review.