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The Irish Princess by Karen Harper
These past couple of weeks have been unusual for me in terms of book choices. While I love the sci-fi fantasy genre a great deal, I will venture out of it in search of something inspirational, something funny, something new, something different! In the same way that taking a trip to somewhere far away brings you new and wonderful experiences, as well as giving you a fresh perspective on home - reading outside my normal genre challenges me, lets me discover new things, and allows me to read fantasy with a new perspective, perception.
I've made sporadic forays into historical fiction. When it comes to fiction set around the Tudor era, especially those focused on female characters, I've found the stories infuriating and depressing in turn. (*cough*Philippa Gregory*cough*) Admittedly the fact is that the women's real lives probably were incredibly tragic and depressing. But the characters too often were so easy to hate.
The Irish Princess is NOT one of those depressing books. Infuriating at times, yes, but throughout the story I found myself marveling at the ever-growing emotional and mental strength of the main character. Though the story is told at least half within the workings of the Tudor court, the sex and scandals don't take over the story - they aren't ignored, just mentioned and moved on from. Though there is a romance, clearly deeply felt by the main character, it isn't the motivation and goal of the story either. If you enjoy strong female characters - and if you're interested in history and Ireland, I strongly recommend that you pick up this book!
The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen
I've read a number of books by Sarah Addison Allen now - including The Sugar Queen and Garden Spells. She has a gift for injecting magic sweetly and above all inobstrusively into her books, making it feel like a natural and easily unnoticed part of the world that we live in. But the true magic of her writing is her ability to create characters with whom I've empathized, believed, understood - and felt like I might actually meet walking down the street someday.
The Peach Keeper tells a kind of dual story, that of a pair of modern women living in a small town - and the story of their grandmothers. While the younger women are the main characters and the focal point for the story, it was the slow revelation of the shared history of their families that was the best part of the book for me. I highly recommend this read - it may move slowly, but persevere to the end of the book and it'll leave behind a surprisingly emotional payout, at least it did for me.
These past couple of weeks have been unusual for me in terms of book choices. While I love the sci-fi fantasy genre a great deal, I will venture out of it in search of something inspirational, something funny, something new, something different! In the same way that taking a trip to somewhere far away brings you new and wonderful experiences, as well as giving you a fresh perspective on home - reading outside my normal genre challenges me, lets me discover new things, and allows me to read fantasy with a new perspective, perception.I've made sporadic forays into historical fiction. When it comes to fiction set around the Tudor era, especially those focused on female characters, I've found the stories infuriating and depressing in turn. (*cough*Philippa Gregory*cough*) Admittedly the fact is that the women's real lives probably were incredibly tragic and depressing. But the characters too often were so easy to hate.
The Irish Princess is NOT one of those depressing books. Infuriating at times, yes, but throughout the story I found myself marveling at the ever-growing emotional and mental strength of the main character. Though the story is told at least half within the workings of the Tudor court, the sex and scandals don't take over the story - they aren't ignored, just mentioned and moved on from. Though there is a romance, clearly deeply felt by the main character, it isn't the motivation and goal of the story either. If you enjoy strong female characters - and if you're interested in history and Ireland, I strongly recommend that you pick up this book!
The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen
The Peach Keeper tells a kind of dual story, that of a pair of modern women living in a small town - and the story of their grandmothers. While the younger women are the main characters and the focal point for the story, it was the slow revelation of the shared history of their families that was the best part of the book for me. I highly recommend this read - it may move slowly, but persevere to the end of the book and it'll leave behind a surprisingly emotional payout, at least it did for me.
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