Six Degrees of Separation: The Four Dutchmen to Case Histories

 Welcome to this month's edition of Six Degrees of Separation, which is a monthly meme hosted by Kate from Books Are My Favourite and Best. The idea is to start with a specific book and make a series of links from one book to the next using whatever link you can find and see where you end up after six links. I am also linking this post up with The Sunday Salon, hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz and A Good Book and a Cup of Tea hosted at Boondock Ramblings

This month is a wildcard to begin the year so we start with the book that we finished last month’s chain with, which means I am starting with The Four Dutchmen by W Somerset Maughan. My instant thought was to o with a Dutch connection but I actually did a whole Dutch chain a couple of months ago so had to give it some more thought.

I very nearly still went with a Dutch related book for my first link but instead I am going in a completely different route. My first choice this month is The Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. This is a book featuring dragons in a romantasy setting.

My next selection is also a book with dragons but this time the setting is real history, with a twist. Temeraire by Naomi Novik is set against the background of the Napoleonic Wars! This book was also published under the title His Majesty's Dragon. (my review)

From here, I had a decision to make. One choice would have taken me down the path of books published with different titles, but in the end I have chosen to focus on the word dragons, even though there was no sign of actual dragons in the book. My next selection is Here Be Dragons by Sharon Kay Penman which is one of a trilogy of books which tells the history of Welsh royalty

The book that I have read most recently that was set in Wales is Christmas at Hollybush Farm by Jo Thomas. (my review)

The most recent book that I read which was a Christmassy book was One December Morning by Emma Davies. (my review)

A book that was mentioned in that book was Case Histories by Kate Atkinson. (my review)

So there's my Six Degrees of Separation which has dragons and no dragons, a bit of time in Wales and some Christmas fun. 

Next month, the starting point is Flashlight by Helen Choi, a book that I am currently trying, and struggling, to read.

Will you be joining us?

Top Ten Tuesday: V is for...

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is Villains (favorite, best, worst, lovable, creepiest, most evil, etc.). 

I did start having a think about villains and a couple did spring to mind, but not ten, so in the end I decided to twist the topic a little bit. V is for villains but it can also be for many other words, so here are my ten V is for....books

V is for Venetia by Georgette Heyer - I couldn't not include this book seeing as I have listened to it at least 4 times. Narrated by Richard Armitage this is an ultimate comfort book to listen to. Aural bliss! (review)

V is for Vintage 1954 by Antoine Laurain - This was such a fun read. A group of strangers share a bottle of wine from 1954 and find themselves back in the past. (mini review)

V is for Voice of the Falconer by David Blixt - I loved, loved, lovedthe first book I read by David Blixt which was The Master of Verona. This was the sequel to that book and I thoroughly enjoyed that one too! (review)

V is for Virgin River by Robyn Carr - I mean, there are a whole heap of books in this series set in a town called Virgin River, and a few of them have the word virgin in the title. I couldn't not have at least one of them in the list! (post about the whole series)

V is for Vision in White by Nora Roberts - I loved this whole series of four books which features a group of wedding planners, coordinators, florists etc who work together and it's their turn to fall in love!

V is for Victory of Eagles by Naomi Novik - As soon as I saw this title I knew I would have to have a V for Victory included in the list. This book is the 5th book in the excellent Temeraire series by Naomi Novik which features dragons and Napoleonic history. So much fun! (reviews from earlier books in the series)

V is for The Vineyards of Champagne by Juliet Blackwell - This was an enjoyable dual timeline which tells the story of the Champagne region of France and the events that happened there during WWI

V is for The Visitors by Jane Harrison - This book tells the story of the arrival of the First Fleet in Sydney but from the perspective of the indigenous people who were already here.

V is for The Venice Hotel by Tess Woods - I would love to be in Venice. Sigh. 

V is for The Village Cafe in the Loire by Gillian Harvey - I would, however, be just as content to be sitting at a cafe in the Loire as well! (review)

There are plenty of other words that I could have used for this list, but there are ten books with titles begining with V.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Caught My Eye in Shakespeare and Company

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week is a freebie.

I am currently celebrating a whole month of posts about Paris as part of Paris in July, hosted by Emma at Words and Peace, so I am taking this freebie opportunity to post about the books that caught my eye on the day in January  that I visited Shakespeare and Company in Paris.

We stayed on Ile St Louis so we just had to walk across a bridge over the Seine to get anywhere. It was a lovely place to stay.  A lot of the time we walked over towards Notre Dame and then we were quite close to Shakespeare and Company. Everytime we went past and they were open there was a queue to get in, no matter what time of the day.

I was meeting up with my friend Beth who lives in southern France and she came up to spend the day with us, so she suggested that this would be a good place to meet. By the time we got there she was already in the queue. Luckily she was easy to spot even though we had never met in person before.

You can't take photos in the store, so I had to take notes as I wondered around. My husband actually bought me a notebook in store, but unfortunately the dog ate it (yes,really).

So, my Top Ten Tuesday this week are the books that caught my eye while I was in Shakespeare & Co. Some I've read. Some I'd like to. Others were just interesting!

A Ukrainian Christmas by Nadiya Gabish - The cover of this is gorgeous and it sounds like it has some interesting content too!

Circe by Madeline Miller - This is one I have read before but I still picked it up off the shelf to look at it.

The Circus Train by Amita Parikh - The cover on this is gorgeous and it sounds like an interesting read too!

The Little Match Girls Strike Back by Emma Carroll - Not sure why this one caught my attention but it did!

Roger the Liger in Paris by Oliver Gee  - This looks so cute.

The Writers Map edited by Huw Lewis Jones - How interesting does this look.

The Book of the Most Precious Substance by Sara Gran - The description on this one is interesting!

The Golden Enclave by Naomi Novik - I think this one caught my eye because I didn't realise it was out.

People Who Love to Eat are Always the Best People by Julia Child - I really need to get myself a Julia Child cookbook!

Paris: Biography of a City by Colin Jones - I wouldn't mind reading a biography of Paris, or some other big cities either!

When I was lining up to buy a book the two people serving at the counter were talking about Transcendent by Yaa Gyasi. And if you were wondering what book I actually bought it was Christmas Pudding by Nancy Mitford. 

Have you visited Shakespeare & Co?

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Covers That Feel Like Winter

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the topic is Book Covers That Feel Like Summer (Submitted by Ellie @ Curiosity Killed the Bookworm). Now we are right in the middle of winter so I thought I would choose wintery books instead.

However, I only recently did a Six Degrees of Separation with all winter titles so I am going to try to not use any of those books this time.

As I composed my list I did have a sudden realisation that most of my winter covers are very snowy, and yet that is not what winter looks like for us at all! There is snow a couple of hours away from us but it is very unusual for us to actually get snow at my house!

So, here are my winter, but not my winter, books.

The Christmas Party and Midnight in the Snow by Karen Swan - Karen Swan has been publishing one summer book and one winter book so I could possibly have just done a heap of her books but lets do some other authors as well.

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden - Russian fairy tales are intrinsically wintery to me!

The Tolstoy Estate by Steven Conte - Another Russian setting, this time during winter in WWII. Such a great book!

Burial Rites by Hannah Kent - Moving away from Russia, this book is set in Iceland. My memories of this book are that it is very wintery and bleak.

In Falling Snow by Mary-Rose MacColl - I loved this book when I read it a number of years ago.

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik - Another fairy tale retelling, this time Polish. This book is so wintery!

Letters from Skye by Jessica Brockmole - This cover is possibly closer to what our winter looks like...maybe.

The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys - Pretty sure the main river in Melbourne has never frozen so much that you could host ice fairs on it!

Caressed by Ice by Nalini Singh - This is a bit of a genre departure for me these days but back in the day I used to read quite a bit of paranormal romance.

So there are my wintery books, without using a single one with the word winter in the title!

Six Degrees of Separation: Fleishman is in Trouble to Spinning Silver

Welcome to this month's edition of Six Degrees of Separation, which is a monthly meme hosted by Kate from Books Are My Favourite and Best.  The idea is to start with a specific book and make a series of links from one book to the next using whatever link you can find and see where you end up after six links. This time, I have chosen to use all books that I have read, apart from the starting book

This month's starting point is Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodeser-Akner, a book I hadn't heard of until I saw it as being the starting point for this month. Other than reading the blurb, I have no idea what it is about but the name Fleishman reminded me of ....

Flashman and the Dragon by George McDonald Fraser - I only ever read one book of the Flashman series of books which I summarised as being very politically incorrect but fun at the time. I am a little surprised at myself because I have always been such a stickler for reading a series in order but this is the eight book published in the series, but it is much later in the series if you read it chronologically. Which leads me to

The eighth book in the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon, Written in my Own Hearts Blood, which features Jamie Alexander Malcolm McKenzie Fraser as the Scottish highlander who finds himself caught up in the Jacobite uprising. I hear that we will finally get to read the next book in the series this year to which I say hoorah!

The Jacobite story is one that author Susanna Kearsley explores in many of her books, but for the purpose of this chain I am choosing to use The Winter Sea, a book that is right up there with my favourite ever books.

The next one is perhaps a tenuous link, but I am choosing to jump to Sea Hearts by Margo Lanagan, a fairy tale retelling about selkies which in Scottish mythology are creatures that could change form from seals to humans by shedding their skins. I actually could almost have linked to the third Outlander book as there is mention of the selkie legend but instead I am linking to

Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth, who is a master of taking a fairy tale and retelling it in a historical fiction setting. Bitter Greens was the first book by Kate Forsyth that I read, and it is still my favourite. In this book, she gives us a retelling of the Rapunzel fairy tale set in Renaissance Venice mixed in with tales from the court of the Sun King, Louis XIV

For my final link in the chain, I am sticking with the fairy tale retelling theme. In this case, it is Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik which I listened to on audiobook early last year. This is a retelling of the Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale, with a good pinch of  Polish (I think) folklore.

From here, there are any number of directions the change could go, but that is my six for this month.

Next month's chain starts with Wolfe Island by Lucy Treloar. I think I know what my first link is, but who knows where it will take me!

Teaser Tuesday: Tongues of Serpents by Naomi Novik

I had been waiting for this book for ages, not only because I thoroughly enjoy the series generally and there had been a big gap between new books, but also because this book is set in Colonial Australia, with dragons! It has been out for a while now and I am finally getting around to reading it. I am not very far into the book, and the jury is out so far as to what I think of it so far at least.

My teaser comes from page 60-61:

He felt himself caught between shoals and a lee-shore, in an unfamiliar channel: MacArthur's machinations were no more noble than Bligh's in their ends, and likely less; even if in their forthrightness more appealing, and with the benefit of MacArthur's greater charm of person. And they were neither of them looking beyond the parochial boundaries of their quarrel, to the titanic struggle creeping ever more widely over the world. If either of them gave a thought to the war, Laurence could not discover it, and though they might gladly make him any promises which would make of him the useful ally they desired, they neither of them recognized in any real way the colossal folly of wasting Temeraire in this isolate part of the world.

The fascinating thing about these books is that the author takes actual history, and gives it enough of a tweak to include dragons. Both William Bligh (yes, of the mutiny on the Bounty fame) and MacArthur are famous names from Australian colonial history.

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading. Head on over to find out all about it, and how to join in!

What's going on?

I am contemplating not one, not two but three rereads! Now I know that there are a lot of people out there who do lots of rereads, but I am not one of them. So far this year I haven't reread any books, and in all of last year I only reread one book, and that was a book that I had originally read in high school.

So what's prompted this?

Well, the girls over a Book Binge started it! Their Hero of the Month for October is the delicious Cam Quinn from Sea Swept by Nora Roberts. This was the first book by Nora Roberts that I read, and I just absolutely loved it! I ended up reading all four books in the Chesapeake Bay series in the space of about two weeks. As much as I really liked the other Quinn boys, it was Cam who captured my heart! And despite the fact that I still have a gazillion other Nora books that I haven't read yet, I am thinking that it won't hurt to have a little visit with Cam! Anna is a very lucky girl!

The second book that I am contemplating rereading is Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Oprah has just chosen it as her next book club pick. I was originally introduced to Marquez through the Oprah book club when she chose One Hundred Years of Solitude a few years ago. Since then, every now and again, I read another book by this author. He is an author that I probably would never have chosen to read by myself, but I did love Love in the Time of Cholera. I am thinking about rereading this one, and maybe it's time to try a new Marquez.

The third book is His Majesty's Dragon(Temeraire) by Naomi Novik. One of the groups that I am a member of has this book scheduled as their book of the month for January. Discussion starts January 10, and I am thinking that, since I enjoyed it so much the first time, I might need to reacquaint myself with the book before discussion starts. Such a chore! In the meantime, I am hoping to receive Empire of Ivory sometime in the next couple of weeks!

By the way, have you been to visit Sybil's blog today? Her guest blogger is one of my fave historical romance authors...Lisa Kleypas. There's some really fun posts, and a couple of scrummy excerpts. I hope Mine Till Midnight gets here soon!

Black Powder War by Naomi Novik

History takes flight....Naomi Novik's deliciously addictive Black Powder War skilfully layers the history of the Napoleonic War with breathtaking imagination.

After their adventure in China, Capt. Will Laurence of His Majesty's Aerial Corps and his extraordinary flying dragon, Temeraire, gratefully anticipate their voyage home..

But before they set sail, they are waylaid by urgent new orders. The British Government, having purchased three valuable dragon eggs from the Ottoman Empire, now require Laurence and Temeraire to make a more perilous over-land journey instead, stopping off in Istanbul to collect and escort the precious cargo back to England - and time is of the essence if the eggs are to arrive before they hatch.

A cross-continent expedition is a daunting prospect, fraught with countless dangers. The small party must be prepared to navigate frigid mountain passes and cross sterile deserts to evade feral dragons and Napoleon's aggressive infantry. And they will also have to endure an unexpected menace, for a Machiavellian herald precedes them, spreading political poison in her wake.

Lien, the white celestial dragon, absconded from the Chinese Imperial Court shortly after the humiliating death of her beloved princely companion. Fervently believing Temeraire to be the architect of her anguish, she has vowed to ally herself with his greatest enemy in order to exact a full and painful revenge upon everything and everyone the black dragon holds dear.

This is the third book in the Temeraire series by Naomi Novik, following on from Throne of Jade and on the whole it is a pretty good read.

In some way it felt like a book of two parts as opposed to one whole book. The book follows on from the closing events in the previous book, with Laurence, Temeraire and the rest of the crew waiting for the opportunity to start the long journey home to England. After a disastrous fire on board their ship, Laurence receives orders to make his way to Istanbul to pick up two eggs and make their way to England. It will not however be an easy journey, making their way across China and through to Turkey. Along the way they face hardship and feral dragons amongst other things. Their arrival in Istanbul isn't quite as warm as they may would like, and there are several occasions where the clash of cultures is explored to a degree.

After taking desperate action, the journey towards home continues, but unfortunately this means going through Austria, a land where the Prussians are currently experiencing a fight for their very survival against the might of Napoleon. Laurence and Temeraire soon find themselves forced to take part in the Prussians defence, at great risk of danger and death to themselves and their crews.

With the first half of the book concentrating on the journey from China to Turkey, there was, in my opinion, a stark contrast to the events in the second half, which were very political and more strategically based than we have seen before. It was interesting that Novik took the known facts of the Napoleonic War's 1806 offensives and tweaked them just enough to fit the dragons in, whilst still staying true to the main historical points and outcomes.

If anything, I would say that there was a little less humour in this book, although the addition of a new dragon named Iskierka (a very feisty young lady indeed!), there were still plenty of humourous moments to be had in amongst the darker parts of this book. I was, however, relieved to see that there was less evidence of Laurence referring to Temeraire as "darling" in this book. Not that it didn't happen, but just not as regularly and annoyingly as I found this term of endearment in the previous books. Lien once again provides a looming dark presence within the story, and the alliance that she forms, and her subsequent actions were interesting of themselves.

I would say though, that it does appear as though Novik has backed away from some of the themes that she started to introduce regarding the rights of dragons. I will wait to see whether or not this is a theme that she picks up and follows through with in the next book or not.

The fourth book in the series is out in September, and is to be called Empire of Ivory. Can't wait to get to read it!

Rating: 4/5

Other Blogger's Thoughts:

Finding Wonderland

Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik

When Britain intercepted a French ship and its precious cargo - an unhatched dragon's egg - Capt. Will Laurence of HMS Reliant unexpectedly became master and commander of the noble dragon he named Temeraire. As new recruits in Britain's Aerial Corps, man and dragon soon proved their mettle in daring combat against Bonaparte's invading forces.

Now China has discovered that its rare gift, intended for Napoleon, has fallen into British hands - and an angry Chinese delegation vows to reclaim the remarkable beast. But Laurence refuses to cooperate. Facing the gallows for his defiance, Laurence has no choice but to accompany Temeraire back to the Far East - a long voyage fraught with peril, intrigue, and the untold terrors of the deep. Yet once the pair reaches the court of the Chinese emperor, even more shocking discoveries and darker dangers await.

The second book in the Temeraire series, following on from Temeraire (His Majesty's Dragon), this book opens with a delegation from the Chinese insisting that Temeraire should be returned to it's rightful owner. Laurence is insistent that he will not be separated from Temeraire, and vice versa, leading to a showdown with the government. Laurence is basically forced to accompany the Chinese delegation back to China - a trip that involves a voyage several months long.

Whilst sea faring adventures were part of the first book, it is certainly a much greater focus in this one, (much as I imagine Patrick O'Briens books would be) as the ship that Laurence and Temeraire are travelling on travels the route, calling in at slave ports in Africa, a newly captured port in South Africa amongst other places. Also dealt with is the differences between the members of the navy and the members of the Dragon corps, and the cultural differences between the Chinese and the English.

With Laurence and Temeraire facing danger from some of the more dangerous ship mates, creatures from the deep, illness and other challenges, when they finally arrive in China, it has to be a relief. And yet, they are not yet safe, for a variety of reasons. For both Laurence and Temeraire there is a surprise in store when they see how dragons are treated in China, particularly a dragon as rare and valuable as Temeraire. Finding themselves drawn into Chinese politics much more than they ever thought they would be, the time in China is also a time of education for the both of them.

Whilst the story itself is very entertaining, the only thing that I do wonder about, is that the author seems to approach topics that might be quite difficult to deal with, and then back away again. For example, when calling in at the slave trading port, Laurence explains slavery to Temeraire. It so happens that the captain of the ship comes from a pro slavery family, and Laurence is anti-slavery, so there is opportunity for conflict there. However, when Laurence is forced to think about the way that dragons are treated in England, in comparison with in China, there icorrelationllation between the slavery discussion, and it is kind of just glossed over. The other things that tend to be glossed over are some of the issues around relationships between the human characters of the books.

For all of that, the book is very entertaining, and if you like nautical themed books, this might be an interesting read of that nature, with a twist!!

Rating 4/5

P.S I am really behind on my reviews...coming up (when I get around to them) are posts on The Dirty Girls Social Club by Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez, Poison Study by Maria V Snyder, Seducing the Spy by Celeste Bradley and The Ersatz Elevator by Lemony Snicket).


Other Blogger's Thoughts:

Finding Wonderland

Temeraire (His Majesty's Dragon) by Naomi Novik

Published under the name His Majesty's Dragon in the US this is the first book in Naomi Novik's Temeraire series. The book is called Temeraire in the UK and also here in Australia.

Set amid the turmoil of the Napoleonic Wars, Temeraire is a thrilling tale of one of the most dramatic chapters of European History with a brilliant veneer of bold fantasy.

As Napoleon's Grande Armee tears Europe apart, his vast armada threatens Britain. But the battles are not fought upon land and sea alone, for both sides have an air force. And the fiery death they rain down upon their enemies has little to do with gunpowder - it comes from the very guts of the beasts they are flying: dragons.

Weeks out of port at Madeira, a British vessel - the Reliant, commanded by Captain William Laurence - captures a French frigate. Within its hold lies a greater prize than the ship herself: a dragon egg. And it is close to hatching.

Young dragons must be put to harness immediately or they go feral, and once harnessed, the beast will accept no other master. When the newborn ignores his chosen rider and approaches Laurence instead, his life is changed forever.

But even more astonishing than the young dragonet - named Temeraire by Laurence - is the revelation that the egg was meant for the Emperor Napoleon himself...

I don't read a lot of fantasy, but this book was attractive to me for a couple of reasons. One is that it has been getting a lot of positive reviews, and the second is that it could almost be classified as historical fantasy. Novik has taken the events of the Napoleonic wars, and just tweaked them, by giving the combatant countries an air force, not made up of planes or balloons, but rather of dragons. One of the reasons I don't read a lot of fantasy is that I don't really enjoy the world building that sort of has to happen to establish the rules for the society, hierachy, social rules etc. By only having to tweak the world as we know it a little, it means that the story can get going a whole lot quicker and for me that is a bonus.

When Captain William Laurence engages in battle with a French warship, he is kind of surprise that the crew fights so fiercely given that they are practically starving, and there doesn't seem to be any great treasure or anything on board, until they come across a dragon egg...very close to hatching.

The thing with dragon's eggs is that they must be harnessed and bonded with their rider pretty much immediately because otherwise they will go feral or will not accept another handler - a waste of a terribly precious resource, particularly in these troubling days. It is therefore agreed that the officers on board will all draw lots to see who the unlucky handler is going to be. It is considered unlucky because to be a dragon handler pretty much means leaving life as you know it behind, to live in the dragon coverts where they are trained and cared for. Gone are the chances to be courted in society - where naval officers are welcomed in society, dragon handlers are pretty much shunned. Also gone is pretty much any chance of marriage, family, and gaining advancement and material wealth.

So when the dragon shuns the chosen handler and instead attaches himself to Laurence, he is quite upset but realises that he has no choice as a man of great honour but to do his duty for his country. And yet, as he gets to know the dragon he has chosen to name Temeraire, he finds that he enjoys his new life- including their many conversations about life, reading books together, hunting, and eventually when they are bought back to England for training, getting ready for their coming life together during their manoeuvres. One of my favourite conversation between the two was when the normally unflappable Laurence had to explain to Temeraire why the men from the dragon corps visit the nearby town to visit the local prostitutes...very funny. I did find Laurence's habit of calling his dragon "My Dear" a little affected but I got over it eventually!!

The thing with Temeraire is no one really knows what kind of dragon he is, and so they don't know what his special skill is. They know he is a Chinese dragon but that is about as far as it goes. With his superior speed and intelligence he is still a very valuable asset and when his weapon is revealed it is very key in the battle against those fiendishly clever French men under the rule of Napoleon.

The other interesting dynamic in the book is the relationship between the other flyers and Laurence. It is very unusual for someone to swap from the Navy to the Flying corps (and vice versa), and Laurence brings with him very different ideas of how his crew should be run. It is interesting to watch both the other flyers and Laurence begin to get an understanding and working together. One of the more interesting relationships is between Laurence and a female officer by the name of Roland. There is a good build up in the relationship, but I can't help but feel that the author backed away from building the relationship up completely - but maybe that is just the romance reader in me talking!! I hope to see this relationship develop further in the next books in the series.

The other day I was in one of our department stores looking longingly at the second book in the series. I think I am going to have to ask the library to see whether they will order this one and the third one in the series in for me.

As an added bonus there is a short story on the author's website which fits between the first and second books, and there is also a web game that Harper Collins UK put up to coincide with the release of this book in the UK.

Overall, a very enjoyable read.

Rating 4.5/5

Other Blogger's Thoughts:

Finding Wonderland
Bookworm
Books and Other Thoughts