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The Crown Spire by Cathrin Curzon & Willow Winsham

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Rowan
Bibliophile
Posts: 1462
Joined: August 2008
Interest in HF: I love history, but it's boring in school. Historical fiction brings it alive for me.
Preferred HF: Iron-Age Britain, Roman Britain, Medieval Britain
Location: New Orleans
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The Crown Spire by Cathrin Curzon & Willow Winsham

Post by Rowan » Tue December 20th, 2016, 8:56 pm

I must begin this review with the statement that I do not normally read romance novels. I gave up on them ages ago as unrealistic and not anything to fawn over as so many do. So then your next question, and rightfully so, must be: so why did you read this book? Well, I did so because Catherine is a friend of mine and I like to support my friends when I can.

I have to say that I wasn't disappointed in the tale spun by these two women. The action starts within the first few pages and the reader is instantly whisked away on an exciting journey with the two main characters - Alice Ingram and her niece Elizabeth - that turns their lives upside down. The women are traveling to Edinburgh, fleeing problems. Their coach is beset by highwaymen and just when they fear all being lost, they are each rescued by two mysterious men whose purpose seems to be the rescuing of ladies in peril.

As each of their changed lives unfolds, so unfolds the two romances. For someone who is typically put off by romances, the two stories unfold realistically, I think, without all the over the top drama that typically bogs down romances and has turned me off from them. It is easy to like most of the characters involved in the story and to feel disgust towards the villain of the tale. The pace of the two love stories are steady without skipping over essential parts. Both Catherine and Willow have created a concise narrative that brings closure to all without being verbose.

Having said that, I would have liked to see more interaction between Alice and Beth throughout the story rather than just at the beginning and end. I got the impression in the beginning that they were close, but once they reached Edinburgh, their stories rather drifted apart.

If there's anything negative to say about this book, it's that a lot of the time missing dialogue tags made it difficult to know who was talking and I had to reread several passages to sort out who was speaking. This happened quite often when the speaker changed within the same paragraph. Perhaps it was the editor's choice to make it so. I know that dialogue tags seem to be the first thing to go when editing, but they shouldn't be pared down so much that they leave the reader confused.

I would highly recommend the book to any fan of romance or of historical fiction set in 18th Century Edinburgh.

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MLE (Emily Cotton)
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Posts: 3566
Joined: August 2008
Interest in HF: started in childhood with the classics, which, IMHO are HF even if they were contemporary when written.
Favourite HF book: Prince of Foxes, by Samuel Shellabarger
Preferred HF: Currently prefer 1600 and earlier, but I'll read anything that keeps me turning the page.
Location: California Bay Area

Re: The Crown Spire by Cathrin Curzon & Willow Winsham

Post by MLE (Emily Cotton) » Thu December 22nd, 2016, 1:57 am

Thanks for the review. I've enjoyed Madam Gilflurt's articles for years, I think I'll try out Catherine's novel. :)

User avatar
Rowan
Bibliophile
Posts: 1462
Joined: August 2008
Interest in HF: I love history, but it's boring in school. Historical fiction brings it alive for me.
Preferred HF: Iron-Age Britain, Roman Britain, Medieval Britain
Location: New Orleans
Contact:

Re: The Crown Spire by Cathrin Curzon & Willow Winsham

Post by Rowan » Thu December 22nd, 2016, 2:22 pm

I think you will like it MLE.

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