About the Book: Seventeen years ago, King Odysseus sailed to war with Troy, taking with him every man of fighting age from the isle of Ithaca. None of them has returned, and the women of Ithaca have been left behind to run the kingdom. Penelope was barely into womanhood when she wed Odysseus. While he … Continue reading Book Review: Ithaca by Claire North
Historical Fiction
Book Review: Horse by Geraldine Brooks
About the Book: A discarded painting in a roadside clean-up, forgotten bones in a research archive, and Lexington, the greatest racehorse in US history. From these strands of fact, Geraldine Brooks weaves a sweeping story of spirit, obsession and injustice across American history. Kentucky, 1850. An enslaved groom named Jarret and a bay foal forge a … Continue reading Book Review: Horse by Geraldine Brooks
Book Review: These Days by Lucy Caldwell
About the Book: April, 1941. Belfast has escaped the worst of the war - so far. Over the next two months, it's going to be destroyed from above, so that people will say, in horror, My God, Belfast is finished. Many won't make it through, and no one who does will remain unchanged. Following the … Continue reading Book Review: These Days by Lucy Caldwell
Book Review: The Three Lives of Alix St Pierre by Natasha Lester
About the Book: Lavish and compelling, this is the story of a young woman trying to forget her devastating part in the war. 1943. After spearheading several successful advertising campaigns in New York, PR wizard Alix St Pierre comes to the attention of the US government and finds herself recruited into a fledgling intelligence organisation. Enlisted as … Continue reading Book Review: The Three Lives of Alix St Pierre by Natasha Lester
2022 ARA HISTORICAL NOVEL PRIZE – ADULT CATEGORY LONGLIST
It's a been a long while since I posted on anything prize related but this particular prize is one I'm especially fond of. I've also read a few of them and have others on my shelf, so I thought I'd do a quick blast about it. Please excuse the screenshots, I'm time poor this week. … Continue reading 2022 ARA HISTORICAL NOVEL PRIZE – ADULT CATEGORY LONGLIST
Book Review: The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell
About the Book: Florence, the 1560s. Lucrezia, third daughter of Cosimo de' Medici, is free to wander the palazzo at will, wondering at its treasures and observing its clandestine workings. But when her older sister dies on the eve of marriage to Alfonso d'Este, ruler of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio, Lucrezia is thrust unwittingly into … Continue reading Book Review: The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell
Book Review: The Only Child by Kayte Nunn
About the Book: A decades-old crime threatens to tear apart three generations of women in this unputdownable mystery that will keep you gripped until its last heart-wrenching page. 1949 It is the coldest winter Orcades Island has ever known, when a pregnant sixteen-year-old arrives at Fairmile, a home for 'fallen women' run by the Catholic Church. … Continue reading Book Review: The Only Child by Kayte Nunn
Book Review: Haven by Emma Donoghue
About the Book: Three men vow to leave the world behind them. They set out in a small boat for an island their leader has seen in a dream, with only faith to guide them. What they find is the extraordinary island now known as Skellig Michael. Haven, Emma Donoghue's gripping and moving novel, has her … Continue reading Book Review: Haven by Emma Donoghue
Book Review: The Night Ship by Jess Kidd
About the Book: ONE SHIPWRECK. TWO MISFITS. THREE CENTURIES APART. 1629. Embarking on a journey in search of her father, a young girl called Mayken boards the Batavia, the most impressive sea vessel of the age. During the long voyage, this curious and resourceful child must find her place in the ship’s stratified world. She … Continue reading Book Review: The Night Ship by Jess Kidd
Book Review: Elektra by Jennifer Saint
About the Book: An exciting and equally lyrical new retelling from Jennifer Saint, the Sunday Times bestselling author of ARIADNE. Clytemnestra The sister of Helen, wife of Agamemnon - her hopes of averting the curse are dashed when her sister is taken to Troy by the feckless Paris. Her husband raises a great army against … Continue reading Book Review: Elektra by Jennifer Saint
Theresa Smith Writes 