What are you reading? April 2011

SonjaMarie · Post by **SonjaMarie** » Tue April 5th, 2011, 5:35 pm

[quote=""Brenna""]Finished G.R Grove's Storyteller last night. It wasn't what I expected when I bought it, but it turned out ok. I will be starting Georgette Heyer's The Conqueror to keep in line with my Arthur-Elizabeth II challenge.[/quote]

Brenna: I thought your challenge was nonfiction, but it's fiction? I don't think there are any fiction books about Elizabeth II, but I could be wrong, LOL!

SM

emr · Post by **emr** » Tue April 5th, 2011, 7:04 pm

[quote=""SonjaMarie""]Brenna: I thought your challenge was nonfiction, but it's fiction? I don't think there are any fiction books about Elizabeth II, but I could be wrong, LOL!

SM[/quote]

Not exactly a novel but The Queen

fljustice · Post by **fljustice** » Tue April 5th, 2011, 7:39 pm

Finished She Captains: Heroines and Hellions of the Sea by Joan Druett and posted a review.

Started Coalescent by Stephen Baxter.

Brenna · Post by **Brenna** » Tue April 5th, 2011, 10:14 pm

[quote=""SonjaMarie""]Brenna: I thought your challenge was nonfiction, but it's fiction? I don't think there are any fiction books about Elizabeth II, but I could be wrong, LOL!

SM[/quote]

I am not particular in my choices, I obviously have to make due with what is out there. I would prefer historical fiction, but I am throwing some non-fiction in there as well. I was going to start a thread on my challenge so people could suggest books, etc.

You're right, I'm sure there are no novels about Queen Elizabeth II, but I know there is a novel coming out before the royal wedding based on a "what if" scenario: What if Princess Diana didn't die, but instead is living in a small town somewhere out of the public eye."

Brenna · Post by **Brenna** » Tue April 5th, 2011, 10:17 pm

[quote=""emr""]Not exactly a novel but The Queen[/quote]

I just rewatched that last night for like the 20th time. I think back on where I was in the days when I heard about her death and everything that occured afterwards. I've always wondered if she really was such a wonderful person personally or as "Prince Charles" in the Queen says "the person we knew and the person who the public knows are completely different people."

SonjaMarie · Post by **SonjaMarie** » Wed April 6th, 2011, 2:41 am

I've finished "The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York" by Deborah Blum (280pgs, 2010). Excellent book, very informative, I wish it had been longer! A lot of it dealt with the crap that was being put in alcohol during the Prohibition to keep people from drinking but that didn't stop them and many deaths happened because of it. Prohibition was a big failure.

SM

SonjaMarie · Post by **SonjaMarie** » Wed April 6th, 2011, 8:27 pm

I've finished "Cleopatra of Egypt: From History to Myth" edited by Susan Walker and Peter Higgs (371pgs, 2001)*. An interesting book, it has essays on various aspects of Cleoptra's and the Ptolemies lives. And also a catalog of an exhibit of various items. The items range from the ancient showing Cleopatra, Mark Antony, Octavian, Caesar, the Ptolemies and more and the more recent (mostly from a 100 or more years ago) mostly depict 3 more famous parts of Cleopatra's life, and mainly of her suicide.

SM

cw gortner · Post by **cw gortner** » Wed April 6th, 2011, 9:43 pm

I'll be taking Margaret George's Elizabeth I with me when I go out of town; it'll be my travel book, so I set it aside till then. I like to bring a tome with me when I go on a plane, as it precludes packing 17 other books I'll never get to but feel I must take anyway. So far what I have read of Margaret's new book is marvelous. We're meeting here in SF soon for dinner while she's on tour, so I'm getting every first edition I have of hers signed!

In the meantime, I polished off James McGee's Ratcatcher, which was a lot of fun and offers a creepy look at the underground world of late 17th century England; as well as Philippa Gregory's The Queen's Fool, which I didn't expect to love nearly as much as I did. It's now my favorite of hers, followed by The Boleyn Inheritance.

I'm currently reading, and thoroughly enjoying, Daughters of Rome by Kate Quinn.

I'm also writing pretty much non-stop, but that's another story.

Tanzanite · Post by **Tanzanite** » Thu April 7th, 2011, 12:08 am

[quote=""cw gortner""]I'm currently reading, and thoroughly enjoying, Daughters of Rome by Kate Quinn.

[/quote]

I'm going to start that one tomorrow.

SCW · Post by **SCW** » Thu April 7th, 2011, 4:40 am

My copy of Great Maria has just arrived (finally) So I'll be starting that when I finish Avalon