Category Archives: historical fiction

Diana Gabaldon, “Outlander”

Posted on November 18, 2014 by carolwallace

Careful, now. The electronic version of Outlander doesn’t bear a warning label, but it should. It would say something like, “Reading this book may cause complete absorption in an imaginary world. Side effects could include missing deadlines, neglecting children, skipping … Continue reading →

Posted in best seller, historical fiction | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Anthony Doerr, “All the Light We Cannot See”

Posted on July 11, 2014 by carolwallace

You know how I just said The Silkworm was terrific summer reading? Well, it is. But actually, the one book you want to drag around in your canvas tote bag and get sunscreen all over is this one, All the … Continue reading →

Posted in best seller, historical fiction | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Sarah Dunant, “Blood and Beauty”

Posted on March 8, 2014 by carolwallace

Actually the full title is Blood and Beauty: The Borgias; A Novel. And there’s so much punctuation in that title that I didn’t dare continue the sentence lest we all be terminally confused. Granted, the titles are not the strongest … Continue reading →

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Robert Harris, “An Officer and a Spy”

Posted on February 10, 2014 by carolwallace

You know those historical events you should understand but don’t? The ones you try to read about but abandon when your mind kind of slides away from the confusing facts (too many names, too many shifting stories, too long a … Continue reading →

Posted in French, historical fiction, thriller | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Benjamin Black, “Holy Orders”

Posted on January 28, 2014 by carolwallace

I’m a little suspicious about Benjamin Black/John Banville’s rate of production here. Holy Orders is his most recent Quirke mystery, apparently released in August, a year after Vengeance. Yet in March we’ll see The Black-Eyed Blonde, in which Black follows in … Continue reading →

Posted in historical fiction, mystery | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Jo Baker, “Longbourn”

Posted on October 22, 2013 by carolwallace

So how do you feel about all of these Jane Austen knockoffs? I was underwhelmed by Death Comes to Pemberley and won’t have anything to do with mashups and vampires. I  have been anticipating Joanna Trollope’s update on Sense and Sensibility with … Continue reading →

Posted in anglophilia, historical fiction | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Phillip Rock, “The Passing Bells”

Posted on October 11, 2013 by carolwallace

Here’s a book I’ve had on my shelves for thirty years. It’s survived purge after purge because I remembered enjoying it so much the first time I read it. But it wasn’t until I saw that Phillip Rock’s The Passing … Continue reading →

Posted in anglophilia, best seller, historical fiction | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Bernard Cornwell, “Sharpe’s Tiger”

Posted on August 21, 2013 by carolwallace

Sean Bean is the link here, folks. He played Eddard Stark in S1 of Game of Thrones. He also played Richard Sharpe in the British TV series Sharpe. Patrick O’Brian is the other link. Sometimes people who see the O’Brians lined … Continue reading →

Posted in anglophilia, historical fiction | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Helen MacInnes, “Assignment in Brittany”

Posted on February 16, 2013 by carolwallace

Oh, so retro! These Helen MacInnes thrillers were everywhere when I was a teenager — she might even be comparable to the Lee Child of the era, which says a lot about cultural changes in the last 50 years. I … Continue reading →

Posted in historical fiction, thriller | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Andrew Miller, “Pure”

Posted on December 29, 2012 by carolwallace

If I describe Andrew Miller’s Pure as a novel about excavating a cemetery in 18th century Paris, you’re not going to want to read it. And maybe if you’re really, really squeamish the subject matter is going to be problematic. On … Continue reading →

Posted in contemporary fiction, French, historical fiction | Tagged , | 5 Comments