The Tudor Secret: The Elizabeth I Spymaster Chronicles
by C. W. Gortner
The Tudor Secret by C. W. Gortner (3/12/2011)
I love historical fiction and the Tudor period. This book is a worthy addition to that genre. Brendan Fraser is an foundling who ends up being raised in the Dudley household. He comes embroiled in the intrigue and conspiracies at court concerning King Edward's death and the Dudley's attempt to put Lady Jane Gray and the Dudley's youngest son on the throne, disinheriting Mary and Elizabeth. This book did a wonderful job relaying the atmosphere and characters of this time period, also adding a mystery concerning Prescott. Anyone who likes historical fiction, spy stories and intrigue will enjoy this novel.
The Janus Stone: A Ruth Galloway Mystery
by Elly Griffiths
The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths (3/6/2011)
Ruth Galloway is a forensic anthropologist, bone lady, and in this the 2nd mystery by Griffiths, Ruth is embroiled in a mystery when bones of a young child are found while tearing down a former children's home. These are character driven, very atmospheric mysteries taking place along England's salt marshes.
The storyline is actually secondary to the characters, but the characters are exceptionally portrayed, from Druid and Celtic practitioners to a rugged policeman. I highly recommend this series.
The Philosophical Breakfast Club: Four Remarkable Friends Who Transformed Science and Changed the World
by Laura J. Snyder
the Philosophical Breakfast Club (1/3/2011)
Absolutely fascinating book about the birth of modern day scientists. Four friends who changed and invented everything from standardized testing to prison reform. They touched on so many different subjects. I just wish I could have attended some of their meetings. Very readable book that even non scientific people such as myself could relate to. I especially like that their personal lives were covered as well as their professional, made these brilliant men more human.
The Discovery of Jeanne Baret: A Story of Science, the High Seas, and the First Woman to Circumnavigate the Globe
by Glynis Ridley
The Discovery of Jeanne Baret (12/26/2010)
I have to admit when I first started this book it reminded me of reading a college thesis, but the more I read the more interesting it became. I really enjoyed reading all the background material on Paris and the trivia on tea as well as the fascinating study of herbal medicine. Would like to have known more about Baret but the author explained that there is not a lot of her to be found in the reports send back by the others on the expedition. She was, however, by all accounts a remarkable woman and deserved more than she received by her mentor and lover Commerson. This book will appeal to those interested in botany, expeditions and strong woman historical figures.
Nemesis
by Philip Roth
Nemisis (12/21/2010)
I love Philip Roth and this book is one of my favorites. It was a time when children played outside, read books, played softball games in the schoolyard, and girls jumped rope to silly rhymes. Neighbors sat outside and gossiped after dinner because there was no air conditioning and this was the way they caught a breeze and stayed abreast of the happenings in their neighborhoods. Yet that summer, the war almost over, another war is being waged at home: An insidious killer comes calling taking seemingly healthy children one day and turning them into corpses virtually overnight. No one knows what causes it, where it come from or how to stop it and yet polio will change Bucky's life in way he never imagined. The threat of polio also changes the neighborhood, making people suspicious of the very things they once held dear. Virtually flawless depiction of an era that was both sentimental and yet heartbreaking. Highly recommend this book.
Three Seconds
by Anders Roslund & Borge Hellstrom
Three Seconds (12/2/2010)
Drugs, Drug mules, prison guards and the police force are at the core of this novel. I found the police officers Gren and Winters were intriguing characters and was surprised at the extent of the drug problems in the prisons. Found the going back and forth between characters and scenes a bit confusing but all in all it was a well written book. Did like very much the fact and fiction excerpt by the author at the end of the book. Also thought that the book was a bit too long.
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