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Historical Fiction

Laura Paquet: "The Incomparable Cassandra" - Enjoyable Regency, in which not a whole lot "happens", but rather the greatest hurdles the hero & heroine have to overcome are their misapprehensions and misconceptions about each other - and themselves. Although, of course, there's the incident with the fortune hunter...
 
If you are a fan of Regencies, don't overlook author Georgette Heyer. My favorite after Jane Austin.

Peerless comedies of manners :) She's one of my favourite authors, though her Regency is truly as artificial as any fantasy novel, it's a brilliant place to visit.

One of my other favourites is Paul Doherty - I love medieval mysteries/murders and his just push all my buttons.
 
"A Regency Christmas IX" - A collection full of cosy cheer. Contains stories by Edith Layton, Barbara Metzger, Amanda McCabe, Sandra Heath & Carla Kelly.
 
The Second Duchess by Elizabeth Loupas, inspired by the poem "My Last Duchess" by Robert Browning. It's a historical murder-mystery-romance. The prose is so, so gorgeous. A beautiful book with a dark atmosphere.

I also enjoy historical romance, from authors like Courtney Milan and such.
 
I'm currently reading Ruta Sepetys' The Fountain of Silence. Salt to the Sea is also in my wishlist.
I also enjoy historical romance like Lisa Kleypas' or Julia Quinn's.
 
Joy Reed: "Mr Jeffries and the Jilt"

Traditional Regency. Cosy, light, pleasant.
 
If you are a fan of Regencies, don't overlook author Georgette Heyer. My favorite after Jane Austin.
The first Heyer romance I ever read, and still my favourite, is Friday's Child. Instead of her other books' older sophisticated heroes with spirited mid-20s heroines, the couple in Friday's Child are both very young, as are the hero's group of best friends, as they all try to help the teenage heroine out of her dilemma. A lot of delightful humour in that one. (Although I like her other books as well.)
 
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The first Heyer romance I ever read, and still my favourite, is Friday's Child. Instead of her other books' older sophisticated heroes with spirited mid-20s heroines, the couple in Friday's Child are both very young, as are the hero's group of best friends, as they all try to help the teenage heroine out of her dilemma. A lot of delightful humour in that one. (Although I like her other books as well.)

I think a great thing about Georgette Heyer is that she's written so many books, and they can have very different tones, and therefore everyone can have their own favourite - or enjoy different books at different times. Some are "just" good fun - some have a bit of a susprense element to them (which isn't odd considering she also wrote mysteries - I haven't read any of those yet, but I have started to acquire them. In fact, I have two on order "as we speak").

One of the advantages to me of the advent of the Internetz was actually in finding out how many people like Georgette Heyer - until then, it was something of a "guilty pleasure". But I've ceased feeliing guilty. :)
 
Terry Jones: "The Knight and the Squire"

I'd call this: Middle Grade Medieval Misadventure. This is the first book of three, but fortunately this can very well be read as a standalone (I don't have the other two myself, sadly). The main storylines in this book are brought to a satisfactory conclusion, though new adventures are about to begin.

There is something very cosy about the narration style - even when the events described are not cosy at all.

A few quick quotes as examples:

"It was dusk by the time Tom finally found Sir John and Alan. They were both standing on the quay, deep in conversation with a man with no nose. Actually 'conversation' is rather a bland description of whatever it was they were deep in. Sir John was gesticulating and alternatively shouting at the man with no nose and pleading with him."

&

"At this moment, the dingy door of the dingy inn flew open, and there stood seven men of robust build - not one of whom would you ever dream of asking to do the babysitting."

It's not all frivolous fun, however - there are also heartfelt moments and more serious themes.
 
Terry Jones: "The Knight and the Squire"

I'd call this: Middle Grade Medieval Misadventure. This is the first book of three, but fortunately this can very well be read as a standalone (I don't have the other two myself, sadly). The main storylines in this book are brought to a satisfactory conclusion, though new adventures are about to begin.

There is something very cosy about the narration style - even when the events described are not cosy at all.

A few quick quotes as examples:

"It was dusk by the time Tom finally found Sir John and Alan. They were both standing on the quay, deep in conversation with a man with no nose. Actually 'conversation' is rather a bland description of whatever it was they were deep in. Sir John was gesticulating and alternatively shouting at the man with no nose and pleading with him."

&

"At this moment, the dingy door of the dingy inn flew open, and there stood seven men of robust build - not one of whom would you ever dream of asking to do the babysitting."

It's not all frivolous fun, however - there are also heartfelt moments and more serious themes.
The second quote sounds like a sentence Mitch Herron or Stuart MacBride would write. I have new books by both favourite authors on the way to me, both arriving next week! :laugh3:At the moment, I'm reading Ian Rankin's newest Rebus novel, Midnight and Blue. 'Tis the season for new thrillers! :coffee:
 
Sorry, got off the topic of historical fiction in my previous post, being all excited about new books on their way :excited:! I just recently discovered in my storage locker a box of books that never got unpacked when we moved in to this condo. Margaret Frazer's Dame Frevisse mystery series with a medieval nun doing the detecting. Sort of a female Brother Cadfael. Since I don't remember the plots, I can start fresh to re-read them all.
 
Sorry, got off the topic of historical fiction in my previous post, being all excited about new books on their way :excited:! I just recently discovered in my storage locker a box of books that never got unpacked when we moved in to this condo. Margaret Frazer's Dame Frevisse mystery series with a medieval nun doing the detecting. Sort of a female Brother Cadfael. Since I don't remember the plots, I can start fresh to re-read them all.

I've got the first of the Margaret Frazer books on my Reading List - and the second is on my Wishlist.

Note: I've read a lot - but not all - of the Brother Cadfael books. I have a couple of those on my Reading List also, and one or two still left to buy.

And ditto to forgetting the plots of books - mysteries especially. I'd say, in fact, that there are only a few that I remember (even I would be hard pressed to forget whodunnit in "The Murder on the Orient Express" for example ;) ), most of them I forget and can read anew quite comfortably. :)
 
Sorry, got off the topic of historical fiction in my previous post, being all excited about new books on their way :excited:! I just recently discovered in my storage locker a box of books that never got unpacked when we moved in to this condo. Margaret Frazer's Dame Frevisse mystery series with a medieval nun doing the detecting. Sort of a female Brother Cadfael. Since I don't remember the plots, I can start fresh to re-read them all.
Oh I remember them! Short and uncomplicated but I really enjoyed them.
 
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