Tagged: historical fiction
Book Blast: 1066: What Fates Impose by G. K. Holloway
Please join G.K. Holloway on he tours the blogosphere for 1066: What Fates Impose, from April 14 – May 2.
Publication Date: March 4, 2013
Matador Publishing
King William then utters the following words to the room: ‘I appoint no one as my heir to the Crown of England, but leave it to the disposal of the Eternal Creator, whose I am and who orders all things. For I did not attain that high honour by hereditary right, but wrested it from the perjured King Harold in a desperate bloody battle.’
England is in crisis. King Edward has no heir and promises never to produce one. There are no obvious successors available to replace him, but quite a few claimants are eager to take the crown. While power struggles break out between the various factions at court, enemies abroad plot to make England their own. There are raids across the borders with Wales and Scotland.
Harold Godwinson, Earl of Wessex, is seen by many as the one man who can bring stability to the kingdom. He has powerful friends and two women who love him, but he has enemies will stop at nothing to gain power. As1066 begins, England heads for an uncertain future. It seems even the heavens are against Harold.
Intelligent and courageous, can Harold forge his own destiny – or does he have to bow to what fates impose?
Book Blast: Inscription by H. H. Miller
H.H. Miller’s Book Blast for Inscription will be featured around the blogopshere from March 31-April 13.
Publication: January 9, 2014
H.H Miller
Paperback; 278p
ISBN-10: 0615944418
eBook; 700kb
ASIN: B00HSBNW5Y
The year is 1851 and the Grand Guard is ravaging Mainland. Arrests. Floggings. Swift executions. Twenty-year-old Caris McKay, the beautiful heiress of Oakside Manor, is sent to live with distant relations until the danger has passed. It’s no refuge, however, as Lady Granville and her scheming son plot to get their hands on Caris’s inheritance with treachery and deceit.
Soon, alarming news arrives that the ruthless Captain James Maldoro has seized Oakside and imprisoned Caris’s beloved uncle. And now he’s after her.
Caris escapes with the help of Tom Granville, the enigmatic silver-eyed heir of Thornbridge. But when a cryptic note about a hidden fortune launches them on a perilous journey across Mainland, Caris and Tom must rely on wits, courage, and their growing love for each other if they hope to survive.
Filled with adventure, intrigue, and romance, Inscription will transport you to a historically fictional world you’ll never want to leave. Continue reading
Look What Just Arrived! (#15)
As I mentioned my local independent bookstore is closing, so I’ve been stocking up on books. They’re having a big sale so I decided to go to the city yesterday and snap some books up while there’s still a bit of selection. Here’s what I bought:
- The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima
- The Serpent and the Pearl by Kate Quinn
- The Secret Eleanor by Cecelia Holland
- Red Riding Hood by Sarah Blakley-Cartwright
- Penelope’s Daughter by Laurel Corona
- Alchemy by Maureen Duffy
- The Crown by Nancy Bilyeau
- Mordred’s Curse by Ian McDowell
Out of all these awesome books I bought the other day, I think the one I’m most excited about is The Demon King. I’ve seen it and the other books in the Seven Realms series all around the blogosphere so I figured I’d pick it up. The premise is certainly intriguing and the excerpt I read sounded good, so why not?
Most of the other books I’m not very excited to read, but I’m looking forward to The Serpent and the Pearl as well as The Secret Eleanor. Both are historical fiction and although I’ve never read either author before the blurbs sounded good. I’ve read only one book about Eleanor of Aquitaine and that was a couple years ago, so it will be nice to get a little more detail about her life. And while I’ve read books about the Borgias, seeing their world through the eyes of an outsider will offer a little more perspective.
When I picked up Red Riding Hood I had no idea it was the companion novel to the movie. I’ve never even watched the movie, so we’ll see how things go. Mordred’s Curse sounds interesting because I’ve always felt there was a little more to Mordred’s story than we get in the traditional Arthurian legend. Penelope’s Daughter was a no-brainer for me because I do love Greek mythology and Xanthe is a character I’ve never really encountered before. Alchemy was more of an impulse buy because I thought it had the potential to be good and in all honesty I just bought The Crown because it featured a nun. That’s definitely not the traditional heroine of a story.
So, do you see anything you like? Have you read any of these books?
Discussion: Do Historical Inaccuracies in Fiction Bother You?
What I want to discuss here are not times when the author has deliberately manipulated history and provides justification for it (either within the story or as a note at the end). I do want to discuss when authors just plain get it wrong and if it bothers you.
The other day I was reading a novel that featured a little bit about ancient Egypt in it. It was going pretty well until I came across the place where the author started perpetuating the myth that the pyramids were places where pharaohs “would even bury servants alive in there” (Earthbound by Aprilynne Pike, Page 219). This is just totally wrong on two points. The first of which is that pharaohs were buried alongside their retainers. They were, but only until King Djet of the First Dynasty. (For a grand total of four kings.) Secondly, the first pyramid was built for King Netjerikhet (Djoser) and it was built in the Third Dynasty. Hundreds of years after the human sacrifice stopped!
After that I had a hard time getting back into the story. I can definitely understand manipulating the facts to get a better story. But what I can’t understand is stating something as fact and just getting it wrong. Not even a little bit wrong but totally, utterly and completely wrong. It bugs me because a) the author should have done even a little bit of research and b) her editor should have caught that mistake in the fact-checking process.
What I want to know now is this: Does it bug you when authors writing historical fiction just get something completely wrong? If so, does it colour your opinion of the rest of the novel?
Discussion: Your Favourite Historical Period
(This may seem a little non-book related, but I swear this is relevant.)
Personally I’d have to say my favourite period in history to study is ancient Egypt. Compared to Western culture their civilization was so alien so I suppose there’s the whole exotic factor. Yet at the same time I admire their determination as a culture to survive. How many other civilizations pretty much collapse twice and come back stronger than ever? That’s pretty admirable. And there were so many interesting people to study. Nefertiti, Nefertari, Ramses II, Kamose, etc.
At the same time, I absolutely love ancient Rome thanks to Mike Duncan’s awesome podcast The History of Rome. There are much more reliable written records for Roman history than there are for much of ancient Egyptian history and I feel like I know the historical figures on a much deeper level. Of course there’s the fact that I love studying ancient battle tactics and the Romans were always fighting someone.
As you guys have probably noticed, these periods in history are the ones I read about most frequently in historical fiction. Coincidence? Of course not.
So what I want to know is: What’s your favourite period in history? Why? Do you intentionally seek out historical fiction set in that period?