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Anyone here interested in 1790s France and England?

M.M. Bennetts

Post by M.M. Bennetts » Mon September 13th, 2010, 5:52 pm

[quote=""SGM""]
M.M. Bennetts;69452 wrote:
Thank you very much for all your help and advice. It is much appreciated. I always have to go for the obscure, it seems to be in my nature.
No worries. Always a pleasure.

And the obscure stuff is often the most interesting...

Minnie

Post by Minnie » Tue September 14th, 2010, 9:42 am

Love the Dickens (and Baroness Orczy - ?sp); but do try Hilary Mantel's 'A Place of Greater Safety'. Wonderfully vivid and well-written, it evokes all the horrors and glories of the French Revolution - as well as depicting clearly how the downfall is inevitable, ending the book with the judicial murders of Danton, Desmoulins and co. Terrific character studies: I've felt ever since as if I actually knew Camille Desmoulins ...!

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Miss Moppet
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Post by Miss Moppet » Tue September 14th, 2010, 11:13 am

[quote=""SGM""]
However, thanks for the info about Saturdays not being busy. Unfortunately, I can't make weekday evenings as at the moment I travel and long way and don't get back into London until late. But if Saturdays are not heaving with people, I may just jump in and do it.
[/quote]

Best of luck! Don't know which reading room you will want to use but I have found Rare Books to be the quietest, both on weekdays and at the weekend.

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Diiarts
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Post by Diiarts » Tue September 14th, 2010, 10:37 pm

[quote=""SGM""]I must admit I have been looking into using the BL for many years and it keeps changing. I think I got the latest from their website but can't remember.

I do remember at one point, being told by them on the phone that they were a library of last resort and that I had to provide a list of books which I had been unable to source elsewhere and at another time they wanted a 500-word description of my research subject. I very much got the impression that they really didn't want the library freely used. Things may very well have changed now.

However, thanks for the info about Saturdays not being busy. Unfortunately, I can't make weekday evenings as at the moment I travel and long way and don't get back into London until late. But if Saturdays are not heaving with people, I may just jump in and do it.

I just wished I had got the ticket when I did my Masters because I could have got a lifetime ticket.[/quote]

I also recently (within the last month) got a reader's card in a personal capacity, with no hassle at all. It's valid for three years and there were no questions asked about the purpose. I applied online, and once I'd done so I was able to reserve items immediately, even before I'd gone in and got the card. So I ordered my items for the day I was due to collect my card, which made it ridiculously easy on the day. I can't speak for anyone else's experience but I found some pretty knowledgeable and helpful staff when I got there (which was a Saturday - not exactly deserted, but not overcrowded either).

The one caveat is that you MUST take in the forms of ID they specify.
www.diiarts.com - books for people who love books

lvcabbie
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Post by lvcabbie » Tue December 28th, 2010, 3:38 pm

I've done a lot of research on this era from the Spanish/English viewpoint. It's interesting as how inter-mixed things were even with a lack of "24hr news" we have today.

For instance, I had no idea that the Spanish in the New World got involved with our American Revolution and one of the viceroys was the general commanding some forces that fought the British.

I also did a lot of research on England of the 1760-90's, although secondary to my main effort. It certainly taught me many things I never learned in school! :cool:

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oldhousejunkie
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Post by oldhousejunkie » Thu June 30th, 2011, 8:35 pm

[quote=""annis""]It's going off the C18th theme, but talking about historical thrillers, I loved Patricia Finney's Gloriana trilogy, set in Elizabethan England and featuring spies David Becket and Simon Ames
1. Firedrake's Eye
2. Unicorn's Blood
3. Gloriana's Torch

On the Georgian England and Revolutionary France theme, I'd like to put in a word for Diana Norman's trilogy
1) A Catch of Consequences
2) Taking Liberties
3) The Sparks Fly Upward"
Plenty of adventure, dry humor, and period atmosphere. They also focus on women's role in C18th society.[/quote]

I loved "A Catch of Consequence" but I have never read "Taking Liberties" or "The Sparks Fly Upward." I need to add them to my TBR pile.

I loved "Mistress of the Revolution" as well. Excellent read!

I am working on a novel set during the Irish Rebellion of 1798...but I've got loads of research to do yet.
I blog about all things writing and historical at Caroline Wilson Writes!

I'm also on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads!

Now Available: "Rebel Heart," a romantic historical fiction set in Civil War America and Victorian England.

Available at Amazon

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Nickie
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Post by Nickie » Fri July 1st, 2011, 5:49 am

As I just love history, the French revolution and the Napoleontic era are within my interest.
As a matter of fact, I plan part three of my Medici Diamonds trilogy in that timeframe. The first part start early in the 18th century, while part two (which I'm about to start) sits around the middle of that century (and Bonnie Prince Charlies features in it).
I just need to do a bit more of research, but the story lines are already in my head.
Oh, and by the way, my writing is a bit like The Scarlet Pimpernel or The Three Musketeers.
Always welcome to my site: http://www.nickiefleming.com

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