eyes.2c Reviews

The Bear and the Nightingale (Winternight trilogy #1) by  Katherine Arden                              I could not put this down. I read into the night, transfixed by this medieval fantasy set in the wintery northern Russian cold. I was transfixed by the young girl Vasilisa, daughter of a local Lord, a magic bearer who is persecuted by the new,y come priest for witchly behavior as she tries to marry the old protective hearth and home ways with the teachings of the church. The honoring of the spirits and demons is a colorful background to this story of love and heart. The  story of a startling young woman, and of Morozko, the frost-demon and winter-king  and of his brother Bear. Reading Auden's author notes gives a fascinating insight into what she was trying to achieve with Russian names, history, and folklore. I'm still wondering why it took me so long to read this absolute gem. I was g...

Forsaking All Other by Catherine Meyrick                                      A harrowing tale of love, duty and fear in the Elizabethan times of the 1580's. A time when fear of the Spanish and papists was rife in England, when wars were being fought to "protect both England and [the] Protestant faith." More than that though this is the story of the widowed Bess Staunton fighting for the right to decide her own future, and not that of her father's devising. As a widow without a sinecure Bess is once more a slave to her father's wishes. For the time she has escaped him, serving as a waiting woman to Lady Allingbourne. When Bess becomes a friend to Edmund Wyard, whose mother is a vile cold hearted wretch with very decided plans for her son's future, the telling of the tale becomes even more involved. Bess is drawn into a web of deceit and fear. I was enthralled by Bess's story and race...

Missed Murder, A: A Tudor Mystery (A Bloody Mary Mystery #3)   by Michael Jecks      Let's face it, Jack Blackjack is a survivor! An ex cut purse who's risen up in the world (somewhat), always with an eye to the main chance. Luck seems to land him on his feet but the path is nearly always painful and confusing. Jack's attitudes to women leave a lot to be desired. The only saving grace is that he's frequently out smarted by some of them. Perhaps if he lifted his head from lavishing his gaze at their chests he'd have more of an inkling as to what's happening around him. Yes, Jack is your ultimate anti-hero!  Still his bumblings seem to land him on his feet, although more often than not, with a body bruised, broken and damaged. (Think a tad Blaxkadder). Jecks has us wandering through the London of Bloody Mary at the time of her marriage to King Phillip of Spain. Admittedly we visit the less salubrious parts of London--along the Thames, in very suspect aleho...

More or Less a Countess (The Somerset Sisters #2) by Anna Bradley   I was charmed ...                                ...by this rather wonderful story of the proverbial bad boy, driven to action because he never measured up, and the wayward Bluestocking who despite all odds worms her way into a small corner of his heart. Nicholas Balfour, the Earl of Dare, had never met anyone like Hyacinth Somerset, but then he didn't meet Hyacinth he met her sister Violet who is certainly one of a kind. And Violet determined to teach this rake a lesson doesn't dispel Nick's understanding that he's meeting with Hyacinth. After 'all a lady didn’t marry a gentleman who mistook her for her sister.' Violet is the middle of a grand effort, producing a book about London entitled 'A Treatise on London for Bluestockings and Adventuresses,' and the Earl of Dare has arrived just in time to become a model for the chapt...

Scandal Above Stairs (Kat Holloway #2) by Jennifer Ashley                             An engaging read following the exploits of seemingly mild mannered, intelligent cook for a well-to-do household, Kat Holloway and her mysterious friend Daniel McAdam. Valuables and priceless artifacts are being stolen from wealthy neighboring homes, and it seems even the British Museum is not immune. Kat and Daniel find themselves once more at the crossroads of doings above and below the stairs of the mansions of Mayfair. I still have not built a mental image of Kat, although my emotional image is that of a strong, determined woman. We find out a bit more about the enigmatic Daniel, but he's still shrouded in a veil of secrecy. The where's, why fore's, and who's are definitely up for grabs. And what is the relationship between Kat and Daniel? Another captivating murder mystery showcasing the upstairs downstairs relat...

Choices (Tales of Valdemar #12) by Mercedes Lackey                                 I always love stepping into the world of Valdemar! This collection of tales from such a magical place, always full of adventure is the equivalent of a chocolate lover's guilty pleasure. Here be stories that encompass the known lands that are part of the Valdemar experience. Written by a league of talented authors who love this universe Mercedes has created, 'Choices' brings those of us who have a long time relationship with Valdemar fresh new voices to enjoy. If however you're dabbling for the first time this is a portal into a startlingly different world. A NetGalley ARC *****

The Good, the Bad, and the Duke (The Cavensham Heiresses #4)   by Janna MacGregor                                    Lady Daphne Hallworth finds herself left behind when her mother and brother depart for different locations before joining forces for the upcoming Christmas celebrations. Each thinks that Daphne has gone with the other. Her brother's ex best friend, now worst enemy, Paul Barstowe, Duke of Southart, along with the family's delightful under butler, come to her rescue. (Both in different ways.) I adored both these leading characters, along with some delightful and some dastardly supporting personalities. These are two people who find themselves encouraged by each other. Barstowe is the proverbial bad boy with the damaged heart, Daphne is a hellion who has learned to effectively efface herself so as not to make trouble. Now, at Christmas time their world becomes larger and...

I'll Always Love You (The Worthingtons #5.5) by Ella Quinn                               A most enjoyable novella that focuses on Gerald, Earl Elliott. We've met him as the secondary character in previous Worthington novels. Lady Lucinda Hughlot, sister to Lord Elliott's friend the Duke of Rothwell, is to have a season, not that her mother agrees or wants her to for various reasons. Elliott falls in with Rothwell's request to keep an eye on Lucinda and watch out for any suitors not up to snuff. Of course you don't have to be a soothsayer to guess what happens. The getting to the happening though is rather fun. Lucinda is quite a talented woman and Elliott finds himself in an unexpected position. What no-one knows is that Lucinda's mother has already made plans for whom Lucinda should marry, the Marquis of Quorndon, a friend's son. I rather like Quorndon, even more so when Lucinda lends him a hand towards...

Heyer Society - Essays on the Literary Genius of Georgette Heyer  by Rachel Hyland (Editor)      Kudos to Rachel Hyland for putting together these fabulous essays that really stretch our thinking and engage our reminiscences with all things Heyer! I spent my whole time going Yes! That's so right! And underlining copious amounts of texts. Hyland has brought together proven modern Regency romance writers, leading personalities of the Austen society, fans, and those who have made serious doctoral contributions regarding Heyer's influence. Many of my favorite Heyer books are mentioned and discussed from various angles: Kissing cousins, Favorite fathers, The Grand Sophy: Matchmaker or Master Manipulator, Bath in Heyer's Books, and in various guises one of my faves, Cotillion. Hyland gives Venetia such a wrap I must go and re read it--again! Then when you have Cheryl Bolen, Anna Bradley, and Kathleen Baldwin amongst the luminaries who have contributed, well, 'th...

Someone to Trust (Wescotts #5) by Mary Balogh                                 Decidedly a romance with a difference!  Widowed Elizabeth, Lady Overfield's story is a breath of fresh air in the regency romance genre. Elizabeth is nine years older than the man she becomes involved with in a plot that engenders several twists and where love blooms unexpectedly. This is a romance that could / should never be. (Yet, if the sexes were reversed and the age differences even greater, no one would even raise an eyebrow! I love the irony!) The subject of Elizabeth's reluctant feelings is Colin Handrich, Lord Hodges, recently come into his title. Colin has no trouble with their age difference. Elizabeth however is undone by her feelings, her problems with trust, and her and Colin's age difference! What can I say? Love in the afternoon comes calling. The action started off slowly in a pleasurable white Chris...

Dragon's Code: Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern (Pern: The dragon riders of Pern #25)  by Gigi McCaffrey                                   Seamless was the word that occurred to me. An avid reader of McCaffrey from when Dragonflight burst onto the scene I was so surprised and delighted by another Pern story told from the  perspective of the once singer Piemur. His readjustment to life with the changes to his voice, his disappointments and quest to find a different place within the dragon halls form the background from which the action springs. The time is in the now but the challenges face date back to the oldtimers living on the Southern continent. A situation is set in motion that could have dragon fighting dragon. Plots are hatched that arise from old situations. We meet old friends and come more into step with the most recent characters and their doings on Pern. Masterha...

Daughter of a Daughter of a Queen  by Sarah Bird                             Cathy Williams' story is an inspiring example of rising beyond one's circumstances, of taking risks and making choices that take courage and determination without any guarantees. Her journey from slavery to serving with the Buffalo Soldiers disguised as a man is the stuff of legends. Unfortunately I found the telling of her story not as engaging as it deserves to be. I loved the cover! That took my 2.5 stars to 3! A NetGalley ARC ***

The Highlander Who Protected Me (Clan Kendrick #1) by Vanessa Kelly                                         Lady Ainsley Matthews flees her abusive fiancé to the wilds of Scotland. Pregnant and alone she turns to Royal Kendrick for assistance. Royal agrees to raise the baby as his own whilst Ainsley returns to her former life as a leader of the ton. Ainsley however finds herself unable to forget her child. She returns to Scotland despite the risk that her former fiancé might take her child from her. There is only one answer, marriage to Royal. I was absolutely charmed by this story. I smiled at the lively, often sardonic banter between Ainsley and Royal. The understated strength of both lead characters, the tenacity of Ainsley, a suitable despicable villainous member of the ton, some lively characters including the old rascally Angus, Royal's grandfather, made this novel an ...

First Earl I See Tonight  (Debutante Diaries #1) by Anna Bennett          The jilted Earl of Ravenport, David Gray doesn't want a wife, he wants to renovate his deteriorating country home for his beloved grandmother. Heiress Miss Fiona Hartley doesn't want to marry but it's the only way she can think of to pay off a blackmailer who threatens to expose information about her sister Lily. When Fiona approaches Gray with a proposition to meet both their needs he's taken aback and decides a house party at his crumbling estate will send Fiona running in the opposite direction. Fiona's monetary conditions do rather make Gray blink. He didn't count on her desperation, nor her artist's eye to see his home differently. Neither did he count on the rising attraction between them to play a part. I loved the courage and tenacity of Fiona. Gray as the tragic disillusioned Earl was fine but his Grandmother was just gorgeous. The plot resolution was well done alth...

Those Who Go By Night by Andrew  Gaddes Set in the times of Edward II, a village comes under the scrutiny of an Inquisitor, Dominican Friar Justus. An unholy murder has been committed and witchcraft is being touted as the cause. Hoping to keep the Inquisition away from his flock the Bishop of Lincoln sends Thomas Lester, son of a Templar Knight who had been tortured by the Inquisition during the iniquitous purge of that organization, to investigate . Thomas finds himself threading a precarious path through a maze of goings on, including more untimely deaths. His musings on the situation shows the complexities, "Far from having reached any useful conclusions, things only seemed to be getting more and more complicated: a brutal murderer on the loose; a mad Dominican friar set on finding and expunging heresy, whether it was there or not; a convicted witch hiding out in the woods ... Secrets were strung all over the manor and village like the gossamer strands of some great ...

In the Galway Silence (Jack Taylor #14)  by Ken Bruen    Even when things are looking up it seems like Jack Taylor's only way is down. When he rescues a suicide from drowning his life moves in a different direction, including a competitive killer who plays one-up-manship with Jack. A bleak Irish detective novel complete with whiskey and fatalism served in large doses. Staccato presentation leads from one scenario to another, with Jack giving the reader a sotto voice, often self deprecating commentary. Take his reflection on what to wear when meeting his previous wife's new person of interest. "Right. How do you dress to meet your ex-wife’s new man? Carefully. I put on the obligatory black jacket, white shirt, tie, loosely (to suggest mellow or couldn’t give [care less ... polite euphemism, you can guess] ), black jeans, Docs. ... Checked in the mirror, saw a battered undertaker’s assistant, the guy you keep in the background." Wonderful tone, and fatalistic n...

A Holiday by Gaslight: A Victorian Christmas Novella   by Mimi Matthews     A disarming romantic novella set in Victorian times exploring the trials of a young woman, Miss Sophie Appersett, daughter of a baronet, who has the role of the family 'sacrificial lamb.' As Sophie and her mother practice economies, her father outfits their ancestral home, Appersett House, with the latest rage 'gaslights'' with untrammeled visions of plumbing throughout. There goes Sophie's dowry! Sophie is the one who has her clothes resown and turned whilst her beautiful (and selfish) younger sister Emily is given anything she wants. Emily is touted as the one who will save the family's fortune and allow her father to continue to develop Appersett House. When a successful, wealthy businessman, Edward Sharpe, sues for Sophie's hand, all her spendthrift  father can see is more house improvements. As Sophie comes to see it, Ned and she don't have much going for them if...

Simply Bento: Delicious Box Lunch Ideas for Healthy Portions to Go   by Yuko Yagi, Noriko Yura                               I really liked the simple explanation of what Bento is and the historical back ground in the introduction. It struck a nerve! "What motivates us to make bento is that it enable us to make safe and healthy lunches for our families." There are other reasons of course but when my 'fussy eating' kids were in school we had the 'anglo' equivalent. The plastic sectioned container that they had to pack themselves (fussy comes with a price tag--and no they didn't have allergies, they had preferences), with the cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, capsicum strips, fruits (blueberries, strawberries etc.) As they became older it was salads and other goodies that could sit in their lockers safely without becoming bacteria's playground. Now if we'd have had this fabulous book then, their culin...

The Lady Travelers Guide to Deception with an Unlikely Earl (The Lady Travelers Guide #3)   by Victoria Alexander                                          With a throwaway hint to Sherlock Holmes, Miss Sidney Honeywell and Harry Armstrong (who unknown to Sidney is her protagonist, the Earl of Brenton) begin their challenge. “Then the game is afoot, Mrs. Gordon." What game is that? To prove that Sidney is author Mrs Gordon, a well travelled Egyptologist from her side of the fence, and from Harry's, to prove that Mrs Gordon has never at foot in Egypt, let alone done the amazing things her writings proclaim. When Sidney says yes to the gauntlet thrown down by the Earl (aka Harry) she little knows just what she's let herself in for. But she has the three elderly' delightfully wicked and savvy ladies, founders of the Lady Travelers group to help her. Any complications they ...

Captivating the Earl (Lords and Ladies in Love #5)   by Callie Hutton                                    The daughter of a traitor has reinvented herself as a governess. Having fled from her place in high society to the country, away from from prying, critical eyes Lady Elixabeth thought she was safe. When her employer's friend the arresting Lord Hawkins comes to visit, Lady Elizabeth finds not only her secrets exposed but her heart. When Hawk realizes who Elizabeth is, he has orders from the Home Office to bring her in. He searches for a way to keep her safe. His answer is not necessarily what Elizabeth wants. Somehow the two must chart a course that keeps Elizabeth safe, but what of her heart that has been already taken by Hawk? ... and Hawk's feelings? An enjoyable continuation of tonnish matters of the heart with a twist! A NetGalley ARC ****

A Christmas Revelation:A Novel (Christmas Stories #16) by Anne Perry                                   A Christmas tale with Dicksonian overtones. Squeaky Robinson (the Monk series), the accountant for the Portpool Lane Clinic, a man with a chequered past, is cast not as the curmudgeon he often is, but rather as a man who strives to assist a young street boy without wounding his dreams. The spirit of Christmas is surely lingering! Worm sees a young woman (to him a vision of goodness), "... a lady who smiles, with the sun in her hair," being mishandled by two men and is determined to save her. Squeaky finds himself embroiled in not only looking at helping Worm's heroic stance come true but in facilitating a Christmas dinner for all at the refuge. The spirit of Christmas truly comes alive via this old reprobate and a young street urchin. Worm and Squeaky's discussion about Christmas is a thing of...

Cooking with Scraps: Turn Your Peels, Cores, Rinds, and Stems into Delicious Meals  by Lindsay-Jean Hard                        Ok so this is  a Who's Who (or rather a What's What) of leftover scraps alphabetically arranged. If you're like me there's always leftovers. Particularly as I'm now mainly cooking for two as all others have well and truly flown the nest (except for the grandies). I hate waste! Also my answer to everything is making soup. Hard gives some interesting alternatives. Unfortunately I'd have to add ingredients to my stores that I don't keep, and that is wasteful for me. I must say though that colors and layout for this cookbook are capital 'V'  Vibrant! This will make a very relevant and timely addition to any cookbook collection for those who really want to follow through to the nth degree of conserving all foodstuffs. A NetGalley ARC ***

Kiss Me at Christmas (Playful Brides #10)  by Valerie Bowman                                           I had a smile on my face all the way through Lady Regina and Daffin Oakleave's story. A fascinatingly intelligent romance with the added spice of murder and the plight of two seemingly star crossed lovers. Well at least two people mad for each other with one from the wrong side of the tracks and fighting the attraction every inch of the way. Bow Street Runner Daffin takes his mind off Christmas' a painful time for him, by agreeing to be the bodyguard for Lady Regina. Regina is definitely approaching "on-the-shelf" age and has decided that to go into spinsterhood without the experience of untrammelled passion would be a crime. Daffin has always interested her ... So what would be the harm? apart from finding someone who engages her just by his very being. Could she...

Seduced by a Scot by (Highland Grooms #6)  by Julia London        A well to do Scottish family has a problem. Their ward has attracted the eye of their daughter's fiancé. Of course Maura Darby is to blame! Not! I fairly burned at the treatment this young woman had handed out to her by the Garbett family who was supposed to protect her. As for the weak willed groom who threw himself at Maura and was not man enough to own that it was he who made advances! Words fail me! The family turns to Nichol Bain, a fixer of dilemmas the aristocracy finds themselves in. His answer is very neat.  He aims to kill two birds with one stone as it were by marrying Maura off to an older bachelor Nichol had been asked to find a wife for. Only Nichol had not counted on Maura and her will! I found this to be somewhat of a roller coaster read. I felt for Maura and her treatment by the family. I was appalled by their actions of taking her heirloom necklace, the only thing s...

A Murdered Peace (Kate Clifford #3) by Candace Robb      Kate Clifford, a successful York merchant, is confused by the disappearance of her friend and cook Berend. It's 1400 and what with the disastrous Epiphany Uprising, an attempt to return King Richard to his rightful place, the times are challenging and dangerous. What could have prompted his abrupt departure? In a measure Kate feels betrayed that her confidante might not have been as open as she had thought. When a wounded Berend resurfaces, in hiding from the King's men, Kate is worried that he has been involved in the uprising. Then theres a further problem. A friend, Lady Margery, arrives distraught and alone except for one retainer, on Kate's doorstep. Kate has no choice but to take her in and hide her. An action that puts Kate's family in danger. Meanwhile a spice seller has been murdered and all fingers are pointing towards Berend. A further death invokes more questions. The Earl of Westmoreland'...

The Darkness: A Thriller (Hidden Iceland #1) by Ragnar Jonasson        Ok, I don't quite know what to do with this story. It left things puzzling unfinished, and me hanging in midair. (Hanging on every word and action by the way) Unfinished from the point of view of about to retire Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir of the Reykjavík police and her enquiry into the assumed suicide of a young Russian woman found washed up on a deserted shoreline two years before. The more we learn about Hulda, the more we sympathize with her perceptions about her work colleagues, and her inner drive that seems to ignore anything but the goal she's fixated on. As little by little Hulda's life history is revealed, some of her actions become more understandable, if not sometimes slightly bizarre. Hulda's enforced retirement notice begs the questions of the last chapter's happenings and her colleagues opinions of her. Where does the truth lie? Hulda chooses one last case to...

The Bartered Brides (Elemental Masters #13) by Mercedes Lackey                                    Lackey's Sherlock Holmes trope with a touch of horror is vastly engaging. Sherlock and Moriaty have perished over Ravensbruck Falls. Elemental masters John and Mary Watson, occultists Nan Killian and Sarah Lyon-White find themselves enmeshed in a struggle with a necromancer who just might have had links to Moriaty's network. Headless bodies are beginning to turn up, dressed in white garments. Brides!  But for what purpose? Disturbing developments see the Watson's targeted by the unknown adversary. All must be vigilant as danger looms on all sides. The introduction of the spirit Caro, is an interesting addition to the mix. Sarah and Nan along with their feathered companions, Neville the raven and Grey the African parrot, fierce protectors of the girls in the occult adventures. I initiall...

Angel in the Glass, The: (Gabriel Taverner Mystery #2) by Alys Clare                                      A vagrant's body is found in an isolated hut near the small village of Tavy St Luke. Physician Gabriel Taverner and coroner Theophilus Davey rule death from natural causes. Gabriel is puzzled by various lumps on the vagrant's body but it seems leprosy is not the cause. Still, Gabriel is troubled. The more he investigates, the more troubled he becomes. The story weaves together a group of dispirit occasions and people to make a whole. The local doctor, Gabriel and his sister, the midwife, the minister, the Coroner, a dead man with part of an astounding drawing of what seems to be an angel, a household where all is not as it seems, and what was reported as a wolf being seen in the region. Meanwhile local boys think they have found a cache of jewels.  It's 1604 early in the rei...

Shadow of the Fox (Shadow of the Fox #1) by Julie Kagawa     Kagawa has come through again with a winner! I was wrapped around with Japanese folklore characters, demons and samurais, on an epic quest...and it was heavenly! A startling new fantastical world to roam in, led on by a master storyteller. Half human / half Kitsune ("Wild kitsune, the foxes that roamed the hidden places of Iwagoto, were masters of illusion magic and shapeshifting. Kitsune were yokai, creatures of the supernatural"), Yumeko has spent her life in a secluded temple being brought up by monks. The most challenging things she faces are self inflicted, brought about by her fun loving, trickster Kitsune nature.  One very ordinary night all that changes! One moment  everything is normal and within the space of a heartbeat the monastry is under attack by creatures from nightmares--demons and their entourage. Yumeko escapes with the Silent Winds temple leader, Master Isao's blessing, taking ...

Dark Queen Rising (A Margaret Beaufort Mystery #1)   by Paul Doherty       It's official! I am enslaved to Paul Doherty's historical novels. Now a brand new writing that encompass's the time of Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond, and the sweeping tale of the woman who would put her son on the throne of England.  The balancing acts, the fragile knitting together of fact and fiction displayed by the lead characters particularly Christopher Urswicke, Margaret Beaufort’s personal clerk, reflect the masterful unfolding of the penmanship of Doherty as he weaves a saga based on his avid research, the truths he has to work with, the findings of others and his not inconsiderable storytelling talent. I was aghast as I trudged knee deep in blood and gore with the antagonists, and witnessed the sacrifices carried out towards the goal of wearing the crown of England, from the inexplorably command for foes to be cut down 'no quarter' given, to the dank back paths...

The Monastery Murders (A Stanton and Barling Mystery #2)   by E.M. Powell   Fascinating medieval murder mystery featuring Aelred Barling and Hugo Stanton. It's 1177, Barling, a senior clerk of King Henry's court and his assistant Stanton will find themselves trekking through the wilds of North Yorkshire to a puritanical Cistercian community at Fairmore Abbey, rather than spending the new year ensconced in the celebrations of London (much to Hugo's dismay!) A White Monk has been found foully murdered. The community has no idea of how such a thing could happen. Barling, as the King's man  has been requested by Ranaulf de Glanville, the King's Justice, to investigate the murder at the instigation of Abbot Nicholas from the great Cistercian house of Linwood Abbey. Abbot Philip of Fairmore Abbey had mentioned a preference for Barling as an astute investigator. He had been struck by Barling's fine handling of a previous incident. What Barling and Stanton find ...

Treacherous Is the Night (Verity Kent #2) by Anna Lee Huber                                       Verity and Sidney Kent may be united but four years of thinking your husband dead means you led a different life. No longer the woman who had a husband to consider, rather a woman grieving and determined to live life, take chances and trying to bury the sorrow.  So it's no wonder Verity and Sidney are experiencing alienation, confusion with seemingly no way of going forward. Add to this Verity being  dragged to a seance where the medium exposes facts that are not to be revealed under the Secrets Act and it seems something more sinister might be looming.  This leads to Verity searching for a traitor, a spy. Verity and Sidney follow a convoluted trail to Belgium with mistrust and murder dogging their steps. Their journey ranges over sites between Germany and France that Veri...

Phoenix Unbound (Fallen Empire #1) by Grace Draven   It's been some time since I've read a fantasy novel with some of my favourite ingredients: #Azarion, son of a clan leader from the steppes of the land of Sky Below, the nomadic clan Savatar, sold by his cousin Karstas into slavery in order to steal his birthright. Now the prime gladiator in the Empire's capital, plotting to regain the freedom and position he'd had so cruelly riven from him #Gilene, a fire witch whose gift of walking through fire means her village offers her up once a year in the place of other village maidens to be sacrificed as the Flowers of the Spring by the empire to deities.  (The conundrum being that Gilene could save herself but that would mean the death of those the village  and tradition deems she must protect. The physical personal cost to her is agonizing. “It isn’t fire that burns me; it’s the magic I use to summon it. It comes with a price.” The emotional cost is also enormous and ...

The Two-Pencil Method: The Revolutionary Approach to Drawing It All by Mark Crilley.                              Firstly Wow! How creative is this artist! Apart from his drawings, I really enjoyed Crilley's presentation and helpful ideas demonstrated throughout this rather interesting guide to drawing. I loved his no nonsense approach to finding the right pencil. The feng shui aesthetic if you will! "And when you find that pencil, whether it’s the crème de la crème of the art store or a simple writing pencil sold in packs of twenty, stick with it. That’s your pencil. That’s the one that works for you." The practical no nonsense advice is well worth following, particularly if just using as few as tools as possible to draw with interests you. I know that when traveling I only take a few pencils and a small drawing pad. Now I'll reduce those accoutrements even further! Just two will do! A NetGalley ARC ...

Lord of Vice (Rogues to Riches #6) by Erica Ridley                                        Hoyden high society Miss and accounting genius meets unrepentant arrogant gambling den owner. Of course the sparks will fly! When Maxwell Gideon ("tall, dark, and sinfully handsome") sought funds to start his exclusive club (aka gambling den) he little knew he was being financed by Miss Bryony Grenville, daughter of the ton who much preferred to don her brother's castoffs and reckon financial and economic matters, than attend soirées and Almanacks. Now is the time for Maxwell to buy out his silent partner, but that process was meeting dead ends. All Maxwell had to do was find out his partner's name. That was proving harder than he thought. To top it all off he finds a young woman, disguised as a boy in his club after hours. That's when things became decidedly strange, at least for Maxwell. Br...

Conrad Monk and the Great Heathen Army by Edoardo Albert                            The travails of an opportunistic monk with a chequered past who rises in the church through lies, misdeeds and an eye for personal advantage. Conrad is a despicable rogue. A knave, whose rapid rise to importance is owed to his incredible self seeking antenna geared towards his own survival, his silver tongue and ability to turn dross into gold, metaphorically speaking. When the marauding Danes come to call, Conrad looks firstly towards his own survival (most often at the expense of others), and then to lining his own pockets with a share of the loot. His Machiavellian machinations made my head swim, let alone those he was shafting. He's accompanied by Brother Odo, a gentle foil to Conrad, without artifice who seems to survive all by the grace of God. I am never sure if Conrad's success is ultimately owed to some cosmic joke be...