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Engish Civil War

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Misfit
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Post by Misfit » Wed October 20th, 2010, 9:22 pm

[quote=""SGM""]My only problem with the Motley one was that Will reminded me vaguely of Rhett Butler (not that I have a problem with Rhett in his own context) and I could see Will sitting, smoking a cigar and swilling whisky (as Rhett did in jail) which didn't quite fit for me with the English setting. I don't know why he did that to me - he just did and for some reason I am not keen on novels which sprawl over too much time. I know that the Black Madonna sprawled from just before the Short Parliament to the destruction of Basing House but somehow I felt that it hung together well despite that.

However, I don't have that problem with the timeframe of the Lymond chronicles because each novel has a reasonably tight timeframe (or have so far) and I have no problem with Philippa being ten in the first one and twenty or twenty one (or thereabouts) in the last one -- which I have yet to get to -- almost there but not quite.[/quote]

Well, you know us yanks and Brits have different life/cultural eperiences and that can affect how one reacts to a book/character.

I loved the changes in Philippa in the Lymond books and you are most definitely not done yet.
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be

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Michy
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Post by Michy » Wed October 20th, 2010, 9:39 pm

[quote=""SGM""]My only problem with the Motley one was that Will reminded me vaguely of Rhett Butler (not that I have a problem with Rhett in his own context) and I could see Will sitting, smoking a cigar and swilling whisky (as Rhett did in jail) which didn't quite fit for me with the English setting. [/quote]

Hmmmm well my interest is now TOTALLY piqued! :) I'll have to look into getting this book!

Funnily enough, the main male character (Oliver Erskine) in the book I'm reading now (Zemindar) reminds me somewhat of Rhett. Although, Oliver's just barely made an appearance, so my feelings may change as I read further. But his attitude towards the behavior of proper Victorian English ladies in India reminds me of Rhett's attitude towards proper Southern misses (Melanie excepted, of course). And the fact that Oliver isn't quite accepted in polite British Raj society, just as Rhett wasn't quite accepted in polite Southern society. But the main female character in Zemindar doesn't remind me at all of Scarlett. For one thing, she's a bit of a bluestocking, which no one could accuse Scarlett of being! :D So this could get quite interesting..... Rhett Butler meets Jane Eyre, perhaps?
Last edited by Michy on Wed October 20th, 2010, 9:44 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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Misfit
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Post by Misfit » Wed October 20th, 2010, 9:44 pm

[quote=""Michy""]Hmmmm well my interest is now TOTALLY piqued! :) I'll have to look into getting this book!

Funnily enough, the main male character (Oliver Erskine) in the book I'm reading now (Zemindar) reminds me somewhat of Rhett. Although, Oliver's just barely made an appearance, so my feelings may change as I read further. But his attitude towards the behavior of proper Victorian English ladies in India reminds me of Rhett's attitude towards proper Southern misses (Melanie excepted, of course).[/quote]

I was going four stars on the Motley book until the ending. I loved it, and loved the family and the kids.

Ooooh, Oliver is something. Last 100 or so pages, kick the husband and kids out, unplug the phone and enjoy.
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be

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Michy
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Post by Michy » Wed October 20th, 2010, 10:09 pm

Oh, goodie, I'm looking forward to it! No husband, no kids, no pets, and I'm VERY good at ignoring the phone. ;)

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Michy
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Post by Michy » Thu October 21st, 2010, 4:39 am

[quote=""Misfit""]
I really liked Annette Motley's Quickberry Tree and Michy you should be able to get that via ILL. My county has a copy.[/quote]

My library has it! Is it a stand-alone book, or part of a series?

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Misfit
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Post by Misfit » Thu October 21st, 2010, 11:57 am

[quote=""Michy""]My library has it! Is it a stand-alone book, or part of a series?[/quote]

A stand alone.
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be

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Michy
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Post by Michy » Thu October 21st, 2010, 5:24 pm

Read another scene in Zemindar last night that reminded me of GWTW -- the one where Laura goes to Oliver to beg for money.

So far the book reminds me of a cross between GWTW and Jane Eyre, set in British India. I'm really enjoying it so far, I like the author's style. First person POV seems an usual choice to me for a saga like this, but she pulls it off well.

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Misfit
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Post by Misfit » Thu October 21st, 2010, 6:01 pm

[quote=""Michy""]Read another scene in Zemindar last night that reminded me of GWTW -- the one where Laura goes to Oliver to beg for money.

So far the book reminds me of a cross between GWTW and Jane Eyre, set in British India. I'm really enjoying it so far, I like the author's style. First person POV seems an usual choice to me for a saga like this, but she pulls it off well.[/quote]

I agree about the Jane Eyre similarities - even down to her being rather plain and Oliver not quite so perfectly handsome. I loved the prose/writing style a great deal.
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be

SGM
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Post by SGM » Thu October 21st, 2010, 6:20 pm

[quote=""Misfit""]I loved the changes in Philippa in the Lymond books and you are most definitely not done yet.[/quote]

You have to love Philippa, it keeps you from wanting to wring Crawford's neck.

I am seriously missing Jerott Blyth (am 1/4 through the Ringed Castle).
Currently reading - Emergence of a Nation State by Alan Smith

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Misfit
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Post by Misfit » Thu October 21st, 2010, 6:36 pm

[quote=""SGM""]You have to love Philippa, it keeps you from wanting to wring Crawford's neck.

I am seriously missing Jerott Blyth (am 1/4 through the Ringed Castle).[/quote]

Lol, but I did love him in the end. And boy that ending is a doozy. She scarely the HELL out of me...
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be

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