Self-imposed isolation, day 33

Yesterday’s post was short, and once again, I seem to have nothing to say. That’s natural, I suppose – when you’re in isolation, nothing much happens. Which isn’t always a bad thing.

However, I did realise that (a long, long time ago) I’ve posted about some of my Lego minifigures (here and here) but I haven’t shown you my latest creations:

When you love certain books so much you want to portray some of the characters as Lego figures. 😄 From Manda Scott's Boudica series Breaca, Caradoc and, of course, Valerius.

 

And above is a portrait of some of my favourite fictional heroes: Aragorn (both Strider and King – no introduction necessary, I believe), Valerius (also in the first picture), Eirik Väkevä (Eirik the Strong from Kaari Utrio’s Vaskilintu) and last but not least, Josef Svärd from Kuninkaan rakuunat (King’s Dragoons series).

This was a bigger project for the entire family – a mayhem at an inn, a fight between the King’s Musketeers, the Cardinal’s men and the King’s Dragoons.

Happy Friday!

Self-imposed isolation, day 16

So there’s this story I’m not supposed to be writing 😄 and I’ve been struggling with a question: when should it take place? Back when it was just a budding idea, it was clear to me that it had to be the 19th century, but when exactly? Last night, just as I was about to go to bed, I suddenly knew it. I want there to be a performance of a certain opera! (It echoes a central plot element and it might just give me a setting I need.) So today I’ve been reading about that opera – when it was written, when it was performed and where, just what happens in it (I have seen it but are my memories correct?). Could my characters have attended a performance? Can I make it work?

What complicates things is that there are other occurences that need to be happening within the same time frame, or at least should have taken place in the not so distant past. Now I’m trying to figure out if it all fits! This is just an example of how something that is, in the end, a small detail turns out to require a lot of reading (and I haven't really even started!) – and might end up discarded altogether if it doesn’t fit.

 

 

Writing news (edited 21/3/21)

Things have been very quiet here for quite some time now. The reason is simple: my debut novel, co-authored with my husband, just came out! This historical adventure is set in the Thirty Years' War and called "Kuninkaan rakuunat - Upseerin miekka" ("King's Dragoons - Officer's Sword"). It was published by Otava.

Edit: there are now two more books in the series: Kuninkaan rakuunat - Kuriirin viitta and Kuninkaan rakuunat - Salamurhaajan merkki.

And the whole series (so far):

 

Lately, we have been busy with writing, editing, research and other such things, and even decided to establish a new author page for these new writing endeavours. Only a Finnish version is available at the moment, but there are plenty of pictures and even a few videos in the new blog. I won't be updating this blog very frequently from now on, but you're very welcome to follow the new site!

In other news, one of my short stories, titled "Daughters of the Frost World" was published by Fantastic Books Publishing in their latest anthology, "The Dummies' Guide To Serial Killing: And Other Fantastic Female Fables". Paperback and ebook versions are both available.

Review: Lady Macbeth by Susan Fraser King

I’d had my eye on this book for quite some time, and now I finally purchased it. I was going to save it for later (seemed ideal for those lovely, dark, stormy autumn nights) but then I just could not resist.

Not that the Finnish summer so far much differs from those cold autumn nights, with the temperatures at "+7 degrees C, feels like +3" and hail storms several times a day. I wore my winter boots and winter coat when I ventured out of the house, yet somehow managed to pick up a cold somewhere. 😔(And now it's nice and warm outside. Of course.)

But now, back to the book! I couldn't wait to start it, because, well, it’s Macbeth… even better; it’s Lady Macbeth! It’s Scotland. It’s the 11^th century. (There are Vikings, too.) I have previously read another novel about Lady Macbeth, titled “Lady Macbeth’s Tale”. You can read my review here.

I must point out that the castle on the cover of the novel looks a lot like Eilean Donan castle near Inverness, a castle I visited on a holiday with my husband over ten years ago now. I really want to go back to Scotland!

But that doesn't seem likely, so I'll take the next best thing: books.

Macbeth is famous thanks to the tragedy by Shakespeare, but what the bard did was he used the actual events for inspiration without bothering much with historical accuracy. It does make a great story, but in it, Lady Macbeth appears as an ambitious, ruthless woman who drives her husband to commit regicide in order to seize the crown.

Was she really like that? Unfortunately, we will never know, but Susan Fraser King has put together an account of Lady Macbeth’s life from what precious little is known about her and her (in)famous husband. Recent research has revealed some new information (again, I very much enjoyed the Author’s Note at the end of the book, always interesting), yet much remains unknown. But that is historical fiction: taking some few facts, using fiction to bridge the gaps and weave a plausible and – at its best – spellbinding story.

Lady Gruadh is of royal blood, which makes her a coveted prize among men vying for the throne of Scotland. Though she is kidnapped as a child, later married off against her wishes; though her husband is slain and his ambitious killer promptly marries her to strengthen his claim to the throne, she maintains her own will, at least as far as possible in her circumstances.

Thanks to the old Celtic tradition of women wielding weapons, Gruadh is allowed to train with a sword and even fight battles. She is not the ambitious schemer Shakespeare portrays but a much more complicated character with conflicting motives. Her strength is not only in her will and ability to protect those she loves, her people and her land and its ancient customs; it is in how she endures and survives the hardships and tragedy that life has in store for her.

The story spans decades and blends historical fact with a bit of Celtic myths and magic. The feel of the period is real, the details meticulous. The book took me to the mist-shrouded highlands and the halls of ancient kings, and I thoroughly enjoyed the journey. The language was beautiful, although it seemed to weaken a little after a stunning start.

My only complaint is that I did not really feel connected to the characters; they remained a little distant - Macbeth, who could have been a truly intriguing character, especially so.

All in all, this was a fascinating read which made me want to know more about Macbeth, Lady Gruadh and their time.

Review: A Song of War: A Novel of Troy

I recently reviewed “A Day of Fire: A Novel of Pompeii” and some time before that “A Year of Ravens: A Novel of Boudica’s Rebellion”. Both are similar to “A Song of War: A Novel of Troy” by Kate Quinn, Christian Cameron, Libbie Hawker, Vicky Alvear Shecter, Russell Whitfield, Stephanie Thornton and S.J.A. Turney in that all are novels written by several authors.

Each author writes their story from one or two point of views, which means that these change in the course of the book. But it works very well, here perhaps even more seamlessly than in the other two previous novels, or maybe it’s just that I’ve gotten used to this method.

We see the Trojan war and the events that led to it through the eyes of several characters, both Trojan and Achaean; kings, princesses, slaves, warriors… The situation lends itself to delicious drama and conflict. There are battles, there is betrayal, there is love; some seek honour, some vengeance, some victory... One of the central themes is honour and hubris, and the utter senselessness of war. The characters sacrifice so much, or even everything, but what do they win?

It would be hard to choose a favourite among these stories, so I’ll just say a few words about each.

Kate Quinn: The Apple. The story that begins the novel is told by Hellenus, half-brother of Hector and Paris, and Andromache, Hector’s young wife. Both suffer from feelings of not quite fitting in, which makes them endearing characters. Their tale of the wedding of Odysseus and Penelope introduces us to many of the key characters. The beginning may not be as dramatic as the later parts, but Quinn is an experienced author and that shows; the story gripped me right from the start. I loved the humour and I really cared about Andromache and Hellenus.

Stephanie Thornton: The Prophesy. This part is told by Priam’s daughter, Cassandra. As she is often known as a mad prophet, it was clear that this part must have been a challenge to write. On one hand, it is a truly fascinating perspective, dark and intense, but on the other hand, you don’t want the character to appear so insane as to alienate readers. Stephanie Thornton handles this with enviable skill: you don’t only understand Cassandra, but her descent to madness is so real and relatable it’s almost scary.

Russell Whitfield: The Sacrifice. This part is told from the perspective of Agamemnon, a king weary of the war and the world, tormented by his guilt and his grief. It is gritty and tragic, and if, by the end, I did not quite like or admire Agamemnon, I certainly pitied him.

Christian Cameron: The Duel. Once a queen, now a slave, Briseis finds herself becoming the lover of the legendary Achilles – and taking the place of his chariot driver. I couldn’t quite get into this story at first, but when I did… what a ride! The story gains momentum as it hurtles towards its poignant, tragic end.

Libbie Hawker: The Bow. This part has two narrators: Penthesilea, a fierce amazon, determined to seek honour and death, and Philoctetes, an old, crippled warrior, hopelessly in love with Achilles. I fell in love with both. Add to that the lovely language, the haunting and beautiful imagery… I wanted more! I have actually read one novel by Libbie Hawker before, but this story definitely convinced me to check out her other work.

Vicky Alvear Shecter: The Horse. This part has one of the most well-known narrators in the collection: Odysseus. There’s quite a lot of humour in this account of the wily trickster, but underneath it runs desperation. The war is dragging on. Someone should do something. Which is more valiant, fighting on (and on and on) or using any means to end the conflict?

S.J.A. Turney: The Fall. The end is seen through the eyes of Aeneas, which is fitting in many ways. Even when Troy falls, all the threads of the narrative are woven together. There is tragedy and so much sorrow, yet there is also hope of a new beginning.

All in all, I enjoyed “A Song of War” immensely. The story is literally legendary and very familiar – from other books, movies, TV shows… but even though I knew what would eventually happen, I never really wanted to put the book down.

Review: The Silvered Heart by Katherine Clements

When I first heard about “The Silvered Heart”, I thought it sounded exactly like my kind of book: set in the 17^th century with a highwaywoman as a protagonist – a historical adventure with a bit of romance is just my thing!

The novel is a fictional account of the life of Lady Katherine Ferrers, who lived in Hertfordshire in the 17^th century and who is the most popular candidate for the role of the “Wicked Lady”, a mysterious highwaywoman said to have terrorised the area. Unfortunately, little is known about Katherine and even less about the Wicked Lady – did she ever even exist or is her legend mere folklore? Seeing that, Clemens does a wonderful job in combining fact and fiction and weaving together the lives of a high-born lady and a highwaywoman.

Forced into a marriage of convenience, Katherine finds herself neglected by her husband. The civil war has ravaged the country, and she must struggle to make ends meet and manage the impoverished estate. Hunger and misery – and the determination to gain back what she thinks is rightfully hers; the lifestyle of the privileged – drive her to desperate deeds: she turns to highway robbery. This brings her together with Ralph Chaplin, a notorious highwayman. Wielding a pistol and halting carriages in order to deprive their passengers of their valuables, Katherine risks her life… but finds love.

The life of a highwaywoman never features in the story quite as much as I expected. Katherine’s motivation for her actions is nicely fleshed out, yet I could have hoped for a bit more action and adventure. Historical details seem accurate and rich in terms of the everyday life (which is the kind of detail that primarily interests me), but as Katherine mostly stays in one place/area and learns about the affairs of the world - politics, war; the struggle between the King’s men and the parliament - through her husband and his friends, the bigger picture remains a little vague. On the other hand, this aspect is an accurate portrayal of a woman’s role at the time (something Katherine occasionally laments) which was to bear children and run the household.

This may not have been quite the swashbuckling adventure I expected, but there is plenty of drama, intrigue and passion. The characters are well developed, they have their strengths and their weaknesses, they have hidden depths. The language is beautiful and flows well; I especially enjoyed the vivid description of nature and the countryside. Of my “three novels set in the 17th century” this was the one I finished first.

Review: A Day of Fire: A Novel of Pompeii

Some time ago, I reviewed “A Year of Ravens: A Novel of Boudica’s Rebellion”, an anthology by several historical fiction authors. “A Day of Fire: A Novel of Pompeii” by Stephanie Dray, Ben Kane, E. Knight, Sophie Perinot, Kate Quinn and Vicky Alvear Shecter is similar to that: each of the six authors wrote a story, and together these stories form a single narrative.

The authors have each been given/picked characters from whose perspective they tell the story. This actually works very well: each story is long enough to draw you in and make you care about the characters. The setting is the same (obviously), which aids the immersion, and since all authors have previously written stories set in the same era, or close enough, the feel of the period is about as good as it can be. The only drawback is that I got attached to the POV characters in each story and wanted to follow them to the end. Only seeing them appear in – more or less – supporting roles in someone else’s story was, at times, a little disappointing. On the other hand, familiar characters (re)appearing now and again was part of the pleasure of reading this book. It was like seeing old friends!

The story of the final days of Pompeii is told from various perspectives: slaves, senators, soldiers… people from all walks of life. The narrative is centred around an epic disaster, which lends it plenty of tension, yet it is always the human drama and stories of individuals that take the centre stage. What do we do when our life is in danger? What is our duty or our obligation towards others? What matters the most to each of us: our earthly possessions, our own skin or the lives of those we love? How far will we go to save ourselves – or others?

Vicky Alvear Shecter’s “The Son” is a coming-of-age story where a young man learns that being a man has little to do with bedding tavern whores; it is about virtue and duty and integrity.

“The Heiress” by Sophie Perinot is another coming-of-age type story where a wealthy young woman rebels against an arranged marriage to an older, seemingly boring man.

Ben Kane’s “The Soldier” is a gritty story of an ex-legionary, loyalty – and it brings out the gladiators!

In Kate Quinn’s “The Senator” an elderly, embittered senator meets a fiercely independent, chariot-racing woman. She’s a survivor, he’s suicidal – and they’re thrown together into this end-of-days situation. What ensues is some genuine, warm humour, yet this piece isn’t just a comedy but also has a more serious tone, especially towards the end – which makes it all the more poignant, because I grew very fond of this odd pair. While reading each story, I rooted for the main characters of that story to survive, but was even more desperate to see Marcus and Diana make it. The characters seemed just so vivid, and it took me a while to realise that this was probably because they appear in Quinn’s previous novels, which I read quite some time ago! Now I want to go and reread those…

E. Knight’s “The Mother” is a story about family, love and a terrible choice faced by a young mother-to-be.

Stephanie Dray’s “The Whore” is a powerful, heart-breaking story narrated by two sisters, who are very different from one another and thus offer us two contrasting perspectives. I also have to mention “The Whore”, because it’s the last story in the book, and the ending was the one thing that had me worried. I mean, we know what happened in Pompeii. Would I ever really actually want to finish this book? The end can’t possibly be happy. Yes, you can write an unhappy ending. You can even write an unhappy ending that is still a good ending and even a satisfying ending. That takes some skill, though... and Stephanie Dray pulls it off beautifully. There is grief, but there is hope. There is loss, but there is love. It is the end, but it is a new beginning.

I'd recommend “A Day of Fire” to fans of historical fiction and those who are interested in the ancient world. It is also a great opportunity to sample the work of various authors!

Currently reading

I am currently reading three different novels. Their settings:

- France, 17th century
- England, 17th century
- Germany, 17th century

I don't know how that happened. So I'll just add a picture of a 17th century painting by Abraham Bosse ("Five senses: Touch"). This one always makes me smile (talk about awkward family photos!).

Review: Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

It’s the 1930s, and Jacob Jankowski doesn’t quite run away to join a circus – he jumps a freight train and finds himself travelling with one. Flying Squadron of the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth is struggling with financial problems, but since the nearly-vet Jacob has lost everything, he accepts a position as the troupe’s veterinarian. He falls in love with Marlena, a beautiful equestrian performer, whose charming but jealous husband August, superintendent of animals, becomes Jacob’s boss. When the circus acquires an elephant August doesn’t get along with, his cruel, sadistic side emerges and puts everyone in jeopardy.

Yes, I did love circus as a child. I don’t remember actually going but once (or twice?) but I enjoyed watching it on TV. I especially loved the trapeze artists, and among the animals, elephants were my very favourite.

Does that explain why I found “Water for Elephants” so captivating? Maybe; or maybe it was partly that I read it during the holidays when feeling particularly lazy. Reading was all I really wanted to do.

I found the setting fascinating – the 1930’s, a circus, the vagabond life. Creating the dazzling beauty and magic of a short circus act is a lot of sweat and pain and hard work, and the everyday life of performers and workers could be quite harsh.

As for characters, I especially liked the fact that there is a marked contrast and yet certain similarities between the tender-hearted but naïve young Jacob who joins the circus and the old, grumpy Jacob who looks back on his life while in a nursing home. It is Jacob the elder who provides a certain gravity, wisdom and even some heart-break to the story – and some of its funniest moments. Rosie, the elephant, is a lovable character (some of her antics are based on true stories), and I also really liked Walter. Unfortunately, some characters remain a little flat, and I could have hoped for a bit more chemistry between Jacob and Marlena.

The writing is solid, if not extraordinary, and the story... there is love, there is excitement, there is murder and mayhem. I wanted to know what happens next! Not every plot twist and turn seemed entirely realistic (but hey, this is fiction!), and the ending especially could be called a little far-fetched. Yet I would say it was the right ending for this story.

Maybe sometimes we don’t need to know exactly what it is that draws us into a book. I just know I didn’t want to put this one down... and that is always a wonderful feeling.

Best Books in 2016

It’s early 2017 and time to look back on last year’s best reads, which is something I’ve done before (for 2015 and 2014).

Goodreads says I read 63 books in 2016. Seeing that I didn’t enter all books in there, the total number would be a little higher, perhaps by 10 or so. Anyway, it is more than in 2015, when I listed 43 books in Goodreads. Why? I have no idea! I don’t think I’ve spent that much more time reading, but perhaps I have. Oh, and in early 2016, I seem to have made a New Year’s resolution to read more books! I had actually forgotten all about that... but it means I actually managed to find a resolution I could stick to. ;)

In terms of ratings, only a handful of books received 5 stars. However, there was quite a big bunch of four star books, many three star books, and only a few two star books. So, overall, I read pretty good books last year. My average rating was 3.4 (but it must be said that there were many books I didn’t rate at all). Let’s take a look at some of the highlights.

One of the few five-star ratings went, as expected, to “Children of Earth and Sky” by Guy Gavriel Kay. I’ll try to write a review at some point; right now I feel too close to the book still (it was one of my holiday reads this year, after all) to be able to say much except that I loved it.

Another one of the top books was “Haukka, minun rakkaani” by Kaari Utrio. The novel is set in Medieval Finland; while not Utrio’s best, there’s still plenty of historical detail, humour and adventure. A newly built Raseborg Castle is threatened by enemies. In the midst of battles and power struggles, Lady Blanka is pursued by a gorgeous knight... and a battle-axe-wielding, huge and hairy pagan. Do I need to say more? 😋 Yes, this sort of thing does work for me, but it must be done right. Utrio knows how.

Another five-star rating went to “The Paris Wife” by Paula McLain about Ernest Hemingway and his first wife – you can read my review here.

This was actually one of my trends in 2016: I seem to have been into books about authors and/or writing. In addition to ”The Paris Wife”, there was “Possession” by A. S. Byatt about fictional 19^th century poets and literary analysis (my thoughts here), “Mistress Shakespeare” by Karen Harper about Shakespeare and the love of his life (which I enjoyed a great deal but never managed to review) and “Mrs. Poe” by Lynn Cullen about Edgar Allan Poe and Frances Osgood, who was also a writer, and their affair. “The Shakespeare Secret” would also go into this category... and perhaps ”The Hours” by Michael Cunningham which I was also going to review but didn’t. ”The Hours”, however, made me want to read something by Virginia Woolf – and I picked ”Orlando”, which, of course, also deals with writing! Then there was “Reader, I Married him”, a collection of short stories inspired by “Jane Eyre” (I might write a review later).

Just to mention a few others... Cyrano de Bergerac – I’ve seen film adaptations, but finally got around to reading the ”real thing” - funny, sweet but so tragic!

Phil Rickman’s “The Man in the Moss” and “The Chalice” were both very enjoyable. Again, a good combination of history, myth and mystery – and great writing; I wish I could set the mood the way Rickman does.

I must also mention the anthology “Dangerous Women” (I even wrote a review).

I feel like I should say something smart in conclusion, but I can’t think of anything (this seems to happen to me with every post). I had not even set myself a reading challenge (nor will I) – but, looking at my year in books in Goodreads, it is obvious that I read a variety of very different kinds of books from different genres, eras, themes and topics. Therefore, I guess I can say that 2016 was another adventurous year – at least in terms of books!

Honorary award for "Musta Susi" - our werewolf story

Something soft and furry touched him. He screamed, smelled blood and sweat. Panting, clutching his dagger, he stumbled around in the small space. Where was the exit? Where?

An item stolen from the Royal Palace of Stockholm ends up in the hands of Caribbean pirates. [...] The adventure, set in the 17th century, has many plot twists and is rigorous in its historical detail.

Above is an excerpt and the judges’ description of the short story “Musta Susi” (“Black Wolf”) that my DH and I submitted to the competition organised by the Science Fiction Society of Tampere. The judges decided to give our pirate/werewolf adventure story an honorary award! Last night, we attended the awards ceremony in Tampere. The story, set in the 17^th century, will later be published in “Portti”, a science fiction and fantasy magazine. You can read more about the competition and our story over in Marko's blog.

(Photo by Varpu Susimetsä)

Now that my husband and I have been writing together for some time (our story "Entombed" was published in "666" horror anthology), people often ask us how that works. Writing is a creative process, after all, so how do two people collaborate on it? I mentioned some of the benefits earlier, but how it works in practice is something like this:

Usually, one of us has an initial idea. We develop it together and draft some kind of an outline, sometimes more, sometimes less detailed. Then we decide which chapters/scenes/parts each of us would like to write, or at least to start with, and do that. (Eventually someone does have to write the scenes neither of us was too keen on, so then there’s nothing for it; we have to do it.) Anyway, once we’ve written the first draft of a scene/chapter, we give it to the other one who then reads it and rewrites it.

To be able to do that, you have to trust the other person completely. You have to trust that they’ll see what you’ve been trying/wanting to do with the scene, to improve the parts that need improving and to enhance the parts that already work. We keep cycling the scenes/chapters back and forth, each of us making changes and rewriting in their turn – and often getting new ideas from what the other one has done with the scene.

This approach has worked well for us, probably because we have very similar ideas about what sort of stories we want to write, what – for us – makes a good story. Another thing that helps is that we have fairly different strengths: my DH is the logical one, he can see the story as a whole and this makes him a better plotter. I tend to focus more on feelings, both in terms of what the characters are going through, how to show that, and in terms of the feel of the writing (tension; how to express atmosphere etc.). Since we write historical fiction, we have to do research – and it helps when there are two of you. While there are things we both need to know, our interests also diverge a bit, so that Marko is more interested in, e.g., how muskets work, while I’m more interested in, say, what people wore and what they ate.

So, we keep working on individual chapters until we think we have all the scenes, which is when we put it all together. Then we take turns rereading and rewriting the whole story.

In addition to a similar idea of what we want to write, there seems to be one topic we’re both drawn to again and again: werewolves. Or werewolves, wolfmen, shape-shifting into wolves... My DH’s previous werewolf story “Susiveri” (“Wolf Blood”) received an honorary award in the same competition in 2014, while my shape-shifter story “Surunkantaja” (“Sorrow Bearer”) set in Viking Age Finland received a second prize in Nova short story competition in 2013 (more here), and another one I wrote about a werewolf theme got shortlisted in the same competition earlier this year. One of the competition organisers remarked yesterday that we might consider putting together an anthology one day... Well, who knows!

Review: The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

They say that the beginning of a book is crucially important; the very first sentences should be perfect, because that’s where you hook them. ”The Paris Wife” begins like this:

Though I often looked for one, I finally had to admit that there could be no cure for Paris. Part of it was the war. The world had ended once already and could again at any moment.

I was hooked. I could say I was... in love.

The rest of the book is almost as good: clear but beautiful language. I was not surprised to learn that the author also writes poetry.

”The Paris Wife” is a story about Ernest Hemingway and his first wife, Hadley Richardson, and the years they spent together. And those were some years! They met when they were young, Hemingway was an aspiring writer, scarred from the war but full of confidence. Despite opposition from friends and family, they married and moved to Paris, where they lived among the lost generation in the roaring twenties. Hadley stood by Ernest through the hardships and, eventually, the victories, of his early career. They socialised with anyone who was someone at the time: the Fitzgeralds, Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, etc. and consumed incredible amounts of whiskey and absinthe. They spent holidays in the Alps and the French Riviera, they watched bull fighting in Spain.

McLain portrays Hemingway as a sympathetic figure. It is easy to see how his enthusiasm and lust for life could be charming, but he could also be a selfish bastard, or, as it is said in the Epilogue: he was an “enigma – fine and strong and weak and cruel. An incomparable friend and a Sonofabitch”. Naturally, I was intrigued by the writing life, and there it was: the drive, the uncertainties (“Sometimes I think all I really need is one person telling me that I’m not knocking my fool head against the bricks. That I have a shot at it.”), the disappointments and the difficulty of finding a balance between creative spirit and family life. There is a painful incident where Hadley loses Hemingway's manuscripts (no, there are no copies) on a train, and that nearly made me physically ill. The thought of losing several years' worth of work… but then, he rallied, and once he got writing again (it did take a while), he was better than ever.

But more than with Hemingway, I sympathised with Hadley: she feels a little lost among all the artistic geniuses, but she isn’t entirely comfortable being just the artist’s wife, either. She seems to always feel a little out of place, being too straightforward and family-valued and romantic for the fashionable life of the rich and famous. She sees through the superficial glitter of their lifestyle:  

Everything could be snarled all to hell under the surface as long as you didn’t let it crack through and didn’t speak its name, particularly not at cocktail hour, when everyone was very jolly and working hard to be that way and to show how perfectly good life could be if your were lucky, as we were. Just have your drink, then, and another, and don’t spoil it.

With various temperamental artists thrown together, there is plenty of drama and, unfortunately, betrayal and inevitable disillusionment... but also hope and love. My only complaint is that some of the minor characters remained rather one-dimensional; I could not tell some of them apart. Then again, they were minor characters, so that did not matter much.

Also, I was really looking forward to the “Author’s Notes” at the end of the book – they’re always a real treat – but was somewhat disappointed to find this part rather short. I would have loved to learn more about how much was fiction and how much was based on research. However, the author mentions various sources, so if I really want to know, I can always find out more.

All in all, this was a book I didn’t want to put down. It is a fascinating, vivid account of a writer's life and the art world in the 1920s. And it is very well written. I’ll definitely check out other novels by McLain – and I suddenly find myself wanting to read something by Hemingway!

A perfect book

 
It seems to me that, these days, I rarely give a book a five star rating. This is beginning to worry me. What happened? Can’t I find good books any more? Have I become more critical/demanding/harder to please with age? What’s going on here?

I have no idea. However, this led me to wonder what, exactly, is a “perfect book” for me. What is it that I want? Let's see.

A good story. I don't think that one needs an explanation, but I'm very open about this one and like all sorts of plots. As long as something does happen. And that something is interesting.

Great characters. Relatable, real, with strengths and weaknesses, characters to root for, etc. etc. – you know how it goes. That’s what readers want; characters are who they connect with. And the best books... the best books make me fall in love with their characters! Mmm, nothing like a good literary crush! ;)

Feelings. This is simple. A book can be entertaining, but if it fails to make me feel, I can’t rate it among the best. Make me laugh, make me cry, make me grip the book in fear... The really good ones, of course, cause a wide variety of different feelings. The best ones have made me laugh and cry within a single paragraph. Some have made me put the book down and pace around in agony because it’s too much, I can’t take it any more!!!

Food for thought. It doesn’t have to be extremely profound or philosophical and deep, but I like it when a book gives me something to think about. Questions, ideas, a whole new perspective into things – it doesn’t really matter what; sometimes it's enough to find myself thinking about the book while, say, doing the laundry.

Beautiful writing. I know. It shouldn’t matter so much. But I can’t help it. It’s the word wrestler in me. It can’t resist evocative language, words that flow like music, phrases that are so beautiful or poignant that I have to read them again and again just to savour them. A skilful use of words alone doesn’t make a book great. However, even if everything else falls into place but the writing is flat, I can’t consider it a perfect book.

Genre? That's fairly irrelevant to me. "Fairly", because historical fiction gets extra points. ;)

How often do you see all these points come together in one book? Rarely? Hardly ever? Should I be less demanding? After all, it would take something close to superhuman skills to pull it off. Yet I’ve seen it done. Some books just are that good.

So... what do you want from a perfect book?

(The books in the picture aren't actually my favourite books - except maybe "The Shadow of the Wind", which is awesome; a book about books! - I just put them there because they look pretty. :) )

All for Love - Valentine's Day 2016

Last year, I surprised my DH by cooking a Valentine's Day dinner in Game of Thrones style. Previously, we've done Medieval Feasts, Ancient Romans etc., and I needed to come up with a new theme. Since we both love “The Three Musketeers” and since it just so happens that the 17^th century has featured very strongly in our interests lately, it seemed like a good choice.

Unfortunately, I could not find a blog or a website featuring food from Alexandre Dumas' novels... so I had no choice but to read the book and see what I could find. I used to love the musketeer novels as a child, so it was actually a very pleasant task. I bookmarked all references to food and from those notes started to construct the menu.

Similarly to last year, I had certain conditions. The dishes should be fairly easy and fast to prepare; something I could find the ingredients for in local grocery stores, and something we all might enjoy eating. Since the descriptions of the dishes left much room for imagination, I could have prepared the food pretty much the way I wanted to. However, I thought it would be more fun to use authentic 17^th century recipes as some sort of a reference.

On Friday evening (not the actual Valentine's Day, but more convenient than Sunday), my DH received this invitation:

This is how the menu turned out (I added quotes from the novel to show where the idea for each dish came from and also just because they were amusing):

Menu

Eggs à la Aramis

served with spinach and roquefort

Recipe adapted from The Closet Of the Eminently Learned Sir Kenelme Digby Kt., 1677

”We’ll dine soon, my dear friend; only you’ll remember that today is Friday, and on such a day I can neither see nor eat any meat. If you’ll content yourself with my dinner, it’s composed of cooked tetragons and fruit.”

”What do you mean by tetragons?” d’Artagnan asked uneasily.

”I mean spinach,” said Aramis. ”But for you I’ll add eggs, and that is a grave infraction of the rule, for eggs are meat, since they engender the chicken.”

Chicken Larded with Lemmons, on the French fashion

served with French bread

Recipe adapted from A New Booke of Cookerie, 1615

”Do you know what we’re eating here?” asked Athos, after ten minutes.

”Pardieu!” replied d’Artagnan, ”I’m eating veal larded with cardoons and marrow.”

”And I’m eating fillets of lamb”, said Porthos.

”And I’m eating breast of chicken,” said Aramis.

”You’re all mistaken, gentlemen,” replied Athos. ”You are eating horse.”

Huguenot Torte with honey, almonds and mock quinces

served with cheese

… Mme Coquenard got up and took from the buffet a piece of cheese, some quince preserves, and a cake she had made herself from almonds and honey.

For the appetizer, I simply fried some eggs, crumbled some blue cheese on them, let it melt and served everything on a bed of spinach. No recipe was needed, but since I wanted to refer to one, I found something appropriate in "The Closet Of the Eminently Learned Sir Kenelme Digby Kt., 1677". The eggs turned out to be delicious – my family requested I make these more often!

The main course was chicken, and I found “Capon Larded with Lemmons on the French fashion” in the vast, truly amazing collection of Gode Cookery's historical recipes, and it seemed perfect. The recipe was a little complicated, but I simplified it by leaving out some ingredients I couldn't find and substituting for some, e.g. there are no preserved lemons available around here, so I sliced some fresh ones and used them. Cranberries doubled for barberries (I gathered these are some sort of bitter berries) and used lemon juice in lieu of verjuice (a substitution suggested in various places). I had no idea how this would turn out - it seemed like such a weird bunch of so many ingredients - but it was very tasty! The flavours actually worked very well together. There were no leftovers!

Dessert was a little tricky: it was difficult to find a good 17^th century cake recipe – it seems that cakes were more like pies and tortes at the time, not like modern cakes. I had almost given up and settled on a modern recipe but wasn't quite happy with that. Then I came across Huguenot Torte, and it immediately appealed to me (it was the words “gooey” and “sticky” that did it). I am aware that Huguenot Torte does not actually date back to the 17^th century, but Wikipedia tells me that it is a variant of Ozark pudding, whose predecessor, gateau aux noisettes (cake with hazelnuts), was brought to the New World by French Huguenots. I decided that if I used organic honey instead of sugar, almonds instead of pecans and “quinces” (can't get quinces here, but apparently pears are close enough) instead of apples, it would at least have the right ingredients. This probably works better with apples and pecans, but it was nonetheless pretty good, especially when served with mascarpone. The recipe I used was this one.

While researching the recipes I learned a little something about food in the 17th century, and I was thrilled to discover that some 17th century cook books can be found in the Project Guthenberg collection (such as "The Accomplisht Cook or, The art & mystery of cookery"... the art and mystery of cookery! Wow!).

Anyway, it was a lovely evening - my DH seemed delighted, my daughter insisted on wearing my Musketeer hat the entire evening and watching "Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds" between courses; the food was good and we had a great time.

Review: Into the Fire by Manda Scott

As I mentioned in my review of 2015, reading-wise, I did finally manage to find a five-star book!

The book was ”Into the Fire” by Manda Scott. I’ll admit right away (actually, I’ve mentioned it before) that I’m a huge fan of Scott’s Boudica series and have immensely enjoyed her Rome series as well. ”Into the Fire” came out earlier last year, but although I bought it soon after the release date, I saved it, hoping it would prove to be a good holiday read. It definitely did.

The novel is a dual timeline novel, with one part taking place in the modern day Orléans and the other in the 15th century France. I was a little worried about this at first; while one part is historical fiction – my favourite genre – the other seemed more like a thriller/crime sort of thing, which doesn’t usually interest me. However, reading is one area of life where I’m actually eager to venture outside my comfort zone, and the one thriller I have read from Scott was very good indeed (note to self: must read the other ones as well).

I’ll also admit that I've been a little disappointed with some dual timeline novels, but I needn’t have worried. Scott handles the two timelines admirably: just when things get edge-of-your-set-biting-your-nails exciting in one, she switches to the other! Of course, as a reader, you want to scream in frustration... but you’re immediately pulled into the other story and find yourself dying to find out what happens there. This makes reading “Into the Fire” an intense experience, the kind that can make you shake and shiver because it’s just... so... tense. I enjoyed that immensely.

Now, in the present day, we have Inès Picaut, a police inspector and her team of eccentric but lovable specialists who work to solve the case of fires ravaging the city of Orléans. They find a badly burnt memory chip that might contain a clue... but the arsonists’ attacks start claiming victims and the clock is ticking.

In the history part, we have Tomas Rustbeard, a man of many faces – a double agent, a man of war, a priest; French, English... whose task it is to destroy (note that there’s a difference between simply killing and utterly destroying) Joan of Arc, the Maid of Orléans, before she, already a living legend, can bring France victory against the English. The task, though dangerous, seems simple enough, right? Wrong. So, so wrong!

The central theme, or the heart of the story, is the enigmatic figure of Joan of Arc. Who was she really? Scott suggests that she cannot have been a peasant girl who saw religious visions – how could she have been able to ride a warhorse and fight like a knight? Scott presents us with a theory that I cannot reveal (because that would be a major spoiler!) but that is not only fascinating but also makes a lot of sense.

Another theme is history and how it is written and can be rewritten and twisted to serve all sorts of purposes; how facts can be ignored and downright concealed. This is a fascinating topic, and what I found particularly interesting was that Scott’s work seems to reflect this very theme: the author’s thanks at the end of the book mention that there were scholars who contributed to her research but did not want their names mentioned in a connection of a novel that defies the “accepted truth”. Fair enough, yet I was under the naïve illusion that academic discourse (not to mention the world of fiction which the novel represents) ought to question things, be open to new ideas, entertain seemingly impossible possibilities... how else are we to ever gain any new knowledge?

As always, Scott has written fantastic strong female characters. All the characters, in fact, come with their quirks or their baggage or their personal traumas which gives them depth and dimension. If I had to add some criticism, however, I’d say that I did not feel as close to the Maid as I wished (alas, I didn’t fall in love with any of the characters... but my other holiday read delivered on that point, so it’s all good). But then, she was – and still is – an enigma, and although the mystery of who she is/was slowly unravels in the course of the story, and although she is definitely a flesh-and-blood heroine, she is always seen through the eyes of another.

Both stories are fast-paced and gripping, the battle scenes are gritty and brutal, there is mystery (so much mystery!) that will keep you turning the pages. Even the political power play doesn’t get boring. Add to this Scott’s fearless, vivid language (I am a big fan of her style) and I did not want to put the book down.