New exciting releases – historical fiction
Filed under: book review, Fiction, historical fiction, naval fiction
Sea of Poppies, by Amitay Ghosh
A historical novel about the British opium trade. The British wanted to buy Chinese tea, silk and porcelain but China wasn’t interested in buying anything from the British. They refused to trade unless the British paid in silver. The British regarded this as a block on free trade. Since opium could grow well in British India, the British hit on the idea that the Chinese should buy Indian opium, paid for with trade in Chinese goods. The fact that opium is addictive made this arrangement all the more brilliant.
The Other Queen, Philippa Gregory
Philippa Gregory presents a new and unique view of one of history’s most intriguing, romantic, and maddening heroines. Biographers often neglect the captive years of Mary, Queen of Scots, who trusted Queen Elizabeth’s promise of sanctuary when she fled from rebels in Scotland and then found herself imprisoned as the “guest” of George Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, and his indomitable wife, Bess of Hardwick.
The Whiskey Rebels, by David Liss
Liss is a wonderfully literate writer, even more so than Iain Pears, and he effortlessly transports you in time and space to the period he wishes to evoke. In this case the year is 1792 and Liss crafts a tale which alternately follows two protagonists until their stories merge near the end of the novel. The first is Captain Ethan Saunders, a spy for the Americans during the revolutionary war, friend of Washington, Hamilton, and other worthies, who found himself disgraced and cashiered at the end of the war when accused of being a double agent.
This book has it all. Lively action, intrigues within intrigues, daring adventure, taut writing, sparkling dialogue, incredible plotting, depth of characterization, a sense of humor, and a sure hand at the literary tiller. It is so deeply atmospheric that you feel like you are in 1792 Philadelphia.
Stieg Larsson wins 2008 Boeke prize in South Africa
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Scandinavian author, Stieg Larsson, took home the prize as the winner of the 2008 Exclusive Books Boeke competition on 7 October 2008.
Larsson’s debut novel is an epic tale of serial murder and corporate trickery spanning several continents and taking in complicated international financial fraud and the buried evil past of a wealthy Swedish industrial family.
It won Sweden’s Glass Key Award in 2005 for best crime novel of the year. … Larsson’s award marks the 10th time in the 14-year history of the Boeke Prize that a debut novel has scooped the award.
The Boeke Prize promotes the enjoyment of discovering books that compel, that are fresh, original and captivating good reads. The judges’ panel comprised 40 book critics across South Africa.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is, as the other two books in the series, a wonderful book. I think Stieg Larsson will be getting many more prizes for it!
A Matter of Honour, by Jeffrey Archer
Filed under: book review, International bestseller, Jeffrey Archer, Thriller
In A Matter of Honour, Jeffrey Archer tells a strange tale. In 1966 a disgraced British colonel
His father’s letter to him instructed him that the letter was only to be opened if a matter of family honour came up. The item in question is worth a lot, and has far more than just monetary value.
However, when the colonel, Adam Scott, opens the yellowing envelope, he unknowingly sets in motion a very deadly chain of events that threatens to shake the foundations of the free world. Within days he is running for his life throughout Europe, pursued not only by the KGB, but by the CIA and his own countrymen as well.
A Matter of Honour is another page turner! As always, Jeffrey Archer’s plot is rich, big, stunning and surprising, but not necessarily totally believable. And the writing is dynamic and engaging. Not the best Archer, in my opinion, but still good and worthwhile. And, of course, as always with Jeffrey Archer, very, very entertaining. Well suited for a rainy fall weekend!
Order A Matter of Honour
Flight of the Intruder, by Stephen Coonts
Filed under: Fiction, historical fiction, military fiction, Steven Coonts
I am currently reading a book by Stephen Coonts, The Assassin. However, to some extent the reason why I am reading the book is more interesting than the book itself. Not that The Assassin isn’t a good book.
But really, I am reading it because once upon the time, long ago, I read another book by the same author which I really thought was one of the most stunning military fiction novels I had ever encountered. That book was Flight of the Intruder. This was Stephen Coonts’ first book, published in 1986. The setting is the Vietnam War. The year is 1972, a time when the war was still raging but negotiations were under way and it was becoming increasingly obvious that the USA was going to pull out sooner or later.
Flight of the Intruder tells the story of fighter pilot Jake Grafton. 
He is a young naval aviator, very respected by his peers, but still slowly coming apart under the pressures of flying an endless series of extremely hazardous yet useless missions over hostile territory in Vietnam in his A-6 Intruder, a carrier-based attack bomber. This, of course, is exactly what Stephen Coonts himself was doing at that time. So Coonts knows what he is writing about from the inside, and this makes the story and the descriptions sound and feel totally authentic.
Flight of the Intruder is a stunningly honest book. Stephen Coonts really puts the reader inside the very hearts and minds of the pilots drive these powerful, hi-tech machines. To me, he revealed a whole world totally unknown unknown to me about the naval aviators’ fraternity. The book really goes deep beneath the glamorous surface and examines the psychological tolls of war. We meet memorable characters like the young Jake Grafton and his buddies Tiger Cole, The Boxman, Sammy Lundeen, and New Guy. We get a lot of technical information about the A-6 as well as the thinking of pilots in combat situations. We are in the cockpit.
Flight of the Intruder is a story of heroes, with a great plot and lots of drive. A wonderful book which later also became a great movie. And also, I think, a better book in many ways than The Assassin.
You can read reviews of the books in Stephen Coonts’ Tommy Carmellini-series at Leserglede.com.
, Final Flight
, or The Assassin: A Novel
. Amazon also carries the movie from 1991 with Willem Dafoe and Danny Glover: Flight of the Intruder
.
Or, if you prefer, from amazon UK: Flight of the Intruder
Benoni and Rosa, by Knut Hamsun
Filed under: book review, Nobel Prize Winner, Norwegian writer
Knut Hamsun is one of the most well known Norwegian writers internationally. He is also a Nobel prize winner in literature. His writing style is poetic, playful, ironic and beautiful. You can read more about Knut Hamsun at leserglede.com or at the Danish Knut Hamsun site.
Benoni and Rosa by Knut Hamsun is a double novel, the first is Benoni, and Rosa the second and continuation. The books tell the story of Benoni Hartvigsen, a local mail man, who becomes rich more or less over 
night. The local big-shot, Ferdinand Mack, makes him a partner in his business, and helps him court the daughter of the local priest, the very lovely and attractive Rosa.
Benoni and Rosa are two of the “lighter” stories written by Knut Hamsun. They are concerned with the changes in the character of Benoni, as well as in the people knowing him, that result from the radical change in circumstances that Benoni Hartvigsen experiences. To a large extent the description of this character and how he changes, resembles a book by another Norwegian author, Johan Falkberget, entitled “Bør Børson”. 
In both cases sweet innocent men who suddenly become rich, change into what may best be described as megalomaniacs. Rapid changes in circumstance is a theme that has attracted much attention both in classical and more modern literature, and Hamsun’s take on this theme is among the more interesting ones. The twists and turns in the odd relationship between Benoni and Rosa along with the “rags to riches” motif provide the dynamics of the story.
Thus this is a rich tale of personal change, rivalry in love and business, social and personal change, as well as love, courtship and passion. It is a story about the basic ingridients of life itself, told by a master storyteller and keen observer. Both as a love story and as a study of changing circumstances, Benoni and Rosa are excellent.
Benoni and Rosa tell an entertaining story, with lots of humor and irony. The language is outstanding; clear and concise, and a treat in itself. Benoni and Rosa definitely are among Hamsun’s best!
You can order these books by Knut Hamsun at amazon US: Benoni
Or, if you prefer, you can order Hamsun’s books from amazon UK: Benoni.
Good historical fiction – suggestions?
Filed under: Alan Lewrie, Dewey Lambdin, historical fiction, naval fiction, recommendation
I love reading historical fiction. To me, that’s a great way to relax and perhaps waste some time. I especially like novels about naval warfare, preferably involving sail ships.
I have read all the books in Patrick O’Brian’s Master & Commander-series. As well, I have finished C.S. Forester’s series about Horatio Horblower, all the way from midshipman to admiral. And I’ve done the Dewey Lambdin-series (see review) about Alan Lewrie. And, today, sadly, I finished Alexander Kent’s series of books about the illustrious Richard Bolitho.
So now I am out of good ideas. So therefore I need advise. Are there any other great historical fiction books (preferably series) I should read? Help me!! I need recommendations!
Stieg Larsson’s The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo on NYT’s bestseller list!
The fantastic The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (see review), written by the deceased Swedish crime writer Stieg Larsson has now, finally, entered the New York Times bestseller list. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo has been one of the best selling books ever in Sweden, and in the other Nordic countries as well.
Hardcover Fiction
| This Week | Last Week | Weeks on List | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | THE STORY OF EDGAR SAWTELLE, by David Wroblewski. A mute takes refuge with three dogs in the Wisconsin woods after his father’s death. | 1 | 16 |
| 2 | HEAT LIGHTNING, by John Sandford. Virgil Flowers investigates murder cases linked by a lemon in the mouth of each victim. | 1 | |
| 3 | THE GIVEN DAY, by Dennis Lehane. A policman, a fugitive and their families persevere in the turbulence of Boston at the end of World War I. | 1 | |
| 4 | HOT MAHOGANY, by Stuart Woods. A Stone Barrington mystery set amid the intrigues of the world of antiques and old and new money in New England. | 1 | |
| 5 | ONE FIFTH AVENUE, by Candace Bushnell. The worlds of gossip, theater and hedge funds have one address in common. | 1 | |
| 6 | THE OTHER QUEEN, by Philippa Gregory. The story of Mary, Queen of Scots, in captivity under Queen Elizabeth. | 2 | 2 |
| 7 | THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, by Stieg Larsson. A hacker and a journalist investigate the disappearance of an octogenarian’s niece 40 years ago. | 4 | 2 |
| 8 | TSAR, by Ted Bell. The Kremlin has a brutal killer working for it in America. | 1 | |
| 9 | THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY, by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. A journalist meets the island’s old Nazi resisters. | 5 | 9 |
| 10 | THE HOST, by Stephenie Meyer. Aliens have taken control of the minds and bodies of most humans, but one woman won’t surrender. | 7 | 21 |
| 11 | THE BOOK OF LIES, by Brad Meltzer. The murder of the father of Superman’s creator, Jerry Siegel, is linked to the biblical story of Cain and Abel. | 6 | 4 |
| 12 | AMERICAN WIFE, by Curtis Sittenfeld.A pretty librarian marries the alcoholic son of a wealthy political family who somehow becomes president. | 9 | 4 |
| 13 | FAEFEVER, by Karen Marie Moning. MacKayla is caught in the middle as the faes battle in Dublin. | 3 | 2 |
| 14 | INDIGNATION, by Philip Roth. A Newark, N.J., college student in the Korean War era breaks with his parents and goes to a school in the Midwest. | 10 | 2 |
| 15 | ANATHEM, by Neal Stephenson.An order of cloistered mathematicians and scientists must save their Earth-like planet when catastrophe threatens. | 8 | 3 |
| 16 | THE COMFORTS OF A MUDDY SATURDAY, by Alexander McCall Smith. Isabel Dalhousie investigates drug fraud charges. | 1 |
It is a wonderful crime novel. In my opinion, perhaps one of the best written after year 2000. I will be surprised if The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo does not end up on the top of the bestseller lists in the US!
You can read my review of Stieg Larsson’s high powered book The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo at ScandinavianBooks.com!
Grace, by Linn Ullmann
Filed under: book review, Fiction, Johan Sletten, Linn Ullman, Norwegian writer
The Norwegian author Linn Karin Beate Ullmann (born 1966) is the daughter of Norwegian actress Liv Ullmann and Swedish movie director Ingmar Bergman. She is a graduate of New York University, where she studied English literature and also began work on her Ph.D. She returned to Norway in 1990 to pursue a career in journalism. She is married to Niels Fredrik Dahl, an award-winning Norwegian poet, novelist and playwright
Her third novel Grace was published in 2002 and won the prominent literary award “The reader’s prize” in Norway, and was named one of the ten best novels of that year by the prestigious newspaper “Weekendavisen” in Denmark.
In 2007, Grace was long listed for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize in the UK.
Grace tells the story of Johan Sletten, a man whose life has not been the 
greatest success story: an unhappy first marriage, an estranged son, and an undistinguished career as a journalist. An ordinary life, like most lives. However, his second wife, Mai, has graced his life with love.
When told that he is terminally ill, with possibly only a few months left to him, Johan makes Mai promise to help him die “when the time comes”. But is this the true measure of love – to give the gift of death? And who decides when the time is right? Johan himself or his wife Mai? Death may come as a release, but to whom?
Linn Ullmann’s novel Grace portrays a passionate love affair and asks difficult questions about life, love and death. With cool precision, deep insight, and dark wit, it illustrates how the most ordinary of lifes can, in the end, be touched by grace.
Praise for Linn Ullmann’s Grace:
“Linn Ullmann masterfully manages to fill even the spaces between the lines. With only a small number of flashbacks and events making the text a convincing story, she succeeds in creating an incredibly dense and intense atmosphere. Tension builds, leaving the reader almost breathless, even though nothing really happens. Yet something does take place. The reader feels the spark.You are drawn in by the tension between the two spouses: their anxiety, their insecurity and their hopes. The stirring and dramatic ending of Linn Ullmann’s empathetic novel Grace is surprising.”
NDR (Germany)
See also author page on Linn Ullmann at leserglede.com.
Order books by Linn Ullmann from amazon US: Grace: A Novel
Order from amazon UK: Grace
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