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What Are You Reading? July 2013

For discussions of historical fiction. Threads that do not relate to historical fiction should be started in the Chat forum or elsewhere on the forum, depending on the topic.
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Vanessa
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 4378
Joined: August 2008
Currently reading: The Farm at the Edge of the World by Sarah Vaughan
Interest in HF: The first historical novel I read was Katherine by Anya Seton and this sparked off my interest in this genre.
Favourite HF book: Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell!
Preferred HF: Any
Location: North Yorkshire, UK

Post by Vanessa » Fri July 19th, 2013, 4:48 pm

I was wondering why there were two spellings! Just the official spelling of the word 'genie' isn't it?

Yes, it's published on 15 August in the UK.
currently reading: My Books on Goodreads

Books are mirrors, you only see in them what you already have inside you ~ The Shadow of the Wind

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Nefret
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 2994
Joined: February 2009
Favourite HF book: Welsh Princes trilogy
Preferred HF: The Middle Ages (England), New Kingdom Egypt, Medieval France
Location: Temple of Isis

Post by Nefret » Fri July 19th, 2013, 5:36 pm

What is this book about? And I like the spelling 'djinn' better, as 'genie' sounds too Western.
Into battle we ride with Gods by our side
We are strong and not afraid to die
We have an urge to kill and our lust for blood has to be fulfilled
WE´LL FIGHT TILL THE END! And send our enemies straight to Hell!
- "Into Battle"
{Ensiferum}

User avatar
Vanessa
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 4378
Joined: August 2008
Currently reading: The Farm at the Edge of the World by Sarah Vaughan
Interest in HF: The first historical novel I read was Katherine by Anya Seton and this sparked off my interest in this genre.
Favourite HF book: Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell!
Preferred HF: Any
Location: North Yorkshire, UK

Post by Vanessa » Fri July 19th, 2013, 6:26 pm

Here's the blurb:
Chava is a golem, a creature made of clay, brought to life by a disgraced rabbi who dabbles in dark Kabbalistic magic. When her master, the husband who commissioned her, dies at sea on the voyage from Poland, she is unmoored and adrift as the ship arrives in New York in 1899.

Ahmad is a djinni, a being of fire, born in the ancient Syrian desert. Trapped in an old copper flask by a Bedouin wizard centuries ago, he is released accidentally by a tinsmith in a Lower Manhattan shop. Though he is no longer imprisoned, Ahmad is not entirely free - an unbreakable band of iron binds him to the physical world.

The Golem & The Djinni is their magical, unforgettable story; unlikely friends whose tenuous attachment challenges their opposing natures - until the night a terrifying incident drives them back into their separate worlds. But a powerful threat will soon bring Chava and Ahmad together again, challenging their existence and forcing them to make a fateful choice.
currently reading: My Books on Goodreads

Books are mirrors, you only see in them what you already have inside you ~ The Shadow of the Wind

annis
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 4585
Joined: August 2008

Post by annis » Fri July 19th, 2013, 7:38 pm

David Kirk's Child of Vengeance, a novel set in the world of the Japanese samurai and inspired by the life of famous 17th century swordsman, Miyamoto Musashi, author of the Book of Five Rings.

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EC2
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 3661
Joined: August 2008
Location: Nottingham UK
Contact:

Post by EC2 » Sat July 20th, 2013, 12:20 pm

[quote=""Vanessa""]I'm just about to start The Golem and the Djinni by Helene Wecker, a book which I've received to review. It hasn't been published yet.[/quote]

I picked it up on Amazon Vine - really enjoyed it. Definitely 5 stars from me. I'm currently reading and thoroughly engrossed in Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier. I think it can be read on more than one level. People who just like a good family saga without any deeper meaning will really enjoy this (my mum for example) but there are layers to be explored if you want to go deeper.
Les proz e les vassals
Souvent entre piez de chevals
Kar ja li coard n’I chasront

'The Brave and the valiant
Are always to be found between the hooves of horses
For never will cowards fall down there.'

Histoire de Guillaume le Mareschal

www.elizabethchadwick.com

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Madeleine
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 5860
Joined: August 2008
Currently reading: "Mania" by L J Ross
Preferred HF: Plantagenets, Victorian, crime, dual time-frame
Location: Essex/London

Post by Madeleine » Sat July 20th, 2013, 1:08 pm

Inspired by my recent trip to Dorset, I'm about to re-read Hardy's "The Return of the Native", and also "The Lost Years" by Mary Higgins Clark.
Last edited by Madeleine on Sun July 21st, 2013, 7:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Currently reading "Mania" by L J Ross

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emr
Compulsive Reader
Posts: 840
Joined: January 2009
Location: Castilla

Post by emr » Sun July 21st, 2013, 6:43 am

Read in a row the three Douglas Brodie books by Gordon Ferris set in Glasgow 1946. He tends to solve everything in an OK Corral manner but it's well written imo. Love the characters.

Now reading The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith. Lets see what the fuss is about...
And listening to Imperium by Robert Harris.
"So many books, so little time."
— Frank Zappa

annis
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 4585
Joined: August 2008

Post by annis » Sun July 21st, 2013, 7:38 am

I see that we were unfairly cynical in thinking one of JK's publicists might have let the cat out of the bag in order to increase sales of Cuckoo's Calling. Turned out to be be a gabby lawyer instead. Apparently Rowling is not amused...

Currently reading The Crypt Thief, second of Mark Pryor's Hugo Marston mysteries set in modern Paris. Quite good series - interesting mix of characters and Paris is always a winner :)

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emr
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Posts: 840
Joined: January 2009
Location: Castilla

Post by emr » Sun July 21st, 2013, 3:18 pm

[quote=""annis""]I see that we were unfairly cynical in thinking one of JK's publicists might have let the cat out of the bag in order to increase sales of Cuckoo's Calling. Turned out to be be a gabby lawyer instead. Apparently Rowling is not amused...[/quote]

Last year people said it was her name selling The Casual Vacancy, not the book itself. I guess she wanted to prove something.

[quote=""annis""]Currently reading The Crypt Thief, second of Mark Pryor's Hugo Marston mysteries set in modern Paris. Quite good series - interesting mix of characters and Paris is always a winner :) [/quote]

It sounds interesting. What's one or two more for the wishlist? :D
"So many books, so little time."
— Frank Zappa

annis
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 4585
Joined: August 2008

Post by annis » Sun July 21st, 2013, 5:42 pm

Posted by emr
Last year people said it was her name selling The Casual Vacancy, not the book itself. I guess she wanted to prove something.
She did - she proved that without a "name" behind it, even a well written debut book is more thsn likely to end up in the remaindered bin!

And I have to say Cuckoo's Calling is quite a bit better than Casual Vacancy, imo.

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