The Blurb (from Goodreads):
Sophie has the great misfortune of being the eldest of three daughters, destined to fail miserably should she ever leave home to seek her fate. But when she unwittingly attracts the ire of the Witch of the Waste, Sophie finds herself under a horrid spell that transforms her into an old lady. Her only chance at breaking it lies in the ever-moving castle in the hills: the Wizard Howl's castle. To untangle the enchantment, Sophie must handle the heartless Howl, strike a bargain with a fire demon, and meet the Witch of the Waste head-on. Along the way, she discovers that there's far more to Howl—and herself—than first meets the eye.
My Thoughts:
Diana Wynne Jones was one of my favourite authors growing up, but for some reason I never read Howl’s Moving Castle before – even though it’s one of her most famous and celebrated books. So I thought I’d address this omission in my reading, and snuggled down with a copy.
It’s an utterly charming children’s fantasy set in a magical world not unlike our own. The heroine Sophie thinks she’s utterly ordinary, and hasn’t much expectations of her future. One day, she is cursed by the wicked Witch of the Waste and finds herself turned into an old woman, with all the aches and pains one would expect. She doesn’t want anyone to know, and so runs away. Eventually she takes shelter in the Wizard Howl’s moving castle, even though he is rumoured to eat young girls’ hearts. Sophie figures he won’t want her heart, which is now old and faulty. Having always been timid and shy, Sophie also decides she might as well speak up for herself too, since old women are allowed to be ornery and outspoken. A series of funny misadventures follows, as Sophie gradually works out that she has powerful magic of her own, and sets out to defeat the Witch of the Waste. A quite delightful book from Diana Wynne Jones, as always.
You might also like to read my review of The Little Grey Girl by Celine Kiernan:
https://kateforsyth.com.au/what-katie-read/book-review-the-little-grey-girl-by-celine-kiernan
The Blurb (from Goodreads):
Feather bright and feather fine, None shall harm this child of mine...
Healer Blackthorn knows all too well the rules of her bond to the fey: seek no vengeance, help any who ask, do only good. But after the recent ordeal she and her companion, Grim, have suffered, she knows she cannot let go of her quest to bring justice to the man who ruined her life.
Despite her personal struggles, Blackthorn agrees to help the princess of Dalriada in taking care of a troubled young girl who has recently been brought to court, while Grim is sent to the girl’s home at Wolf Glen to aid her wealthy father with a strange task—repairing a broken-down house deep in the woods. It doesn’t take Grim long to realize that everything in Wolf Glen is not as it seems—the place is full of perilous secrets and deadly lies...
Back at Winterfalls, the evil touch of Blackthorn’s sworn enemy reopens old wounds and fuels her long-simmering passion for justice. With danger on two fronts, Blackthorn and Grim are faced with a heartbreaking choice—to stand once again by each other’s side or to fight their battles alone...
My Thoughts:
The final book in Juliet Marillier’s latest magical historical trilogy, Den of Wolves wraps up the story of Blackthorn and Grim beautifully. It draws together the familiar narrative strands of Blackthorn’s quest for justice and her fear of drawing too close to anyone with the situation of a young woman who does not seem to fit into her world. Blackthorn is a wise woman who has suffered terribly in the past, and Grim is her huge but gentle sidekick who worships the ground she walks on. Their story began with Dreamer’s Pool and Tower of Thorns, which you must read first, and, as always with Juliet Marillier, is a wonderful mix of history, romance, and fairy-tale-like enchantment. I’ve really loved this series, and am sad that there will not be any more stories about the damaged healer and her taciturn giant of a companion. I’m only comforted by the knowledge that Juliet Marillier is working on a new project. I can only hope we are not kept waiting too long!
You might also like to read my review of Harp of Kings by Juliet Marillier:
The Harp of Kings by Juliet Marillier
The Blurb (from Goodreads):
I have wished so many times that I had acted differently.
I wish that I had been more worthy of you...
Eventually the war will end, and then we will find each other.
Until then, remember me.
Budapest, 1938. In a city park, five young Jewish mathematicians gather to share ideas, trade proofs and whisper sedition.
Sydney, 2007. Illy has just buried her father, a violent, unpredictable man whose bitterness she never understood. And now Illy's mother has gifted her a curious notebook, its pages a mix of personal story and mathematical discovery, recounted by a woman full of hopes and regrets.
Inspired by a true story, Miriam Sved's beautifully crafted novel charts a course through both the light and dark of human relationships: a vivid recreation of 1930s Hungary, a decades-old mystery locked in the story of one enduring friendship, a tribute to the selfless power of the heart.
My Thoughts:
A friend gave me this book because she thought that I would love it, and she was right.
A Universe of Sufficient Size is a beautiful novel that centres on a group of five young Jewish mathematicians in Budapest, Hungary, at the outbreak of the Second World War. Interwoven with their tale of friendship, love, and struggle to survive is the story of one of the women’s daughter and grandson in contemporary Australia, as they deal with the shadows of her past. The title reflects the powerful use of mathematical philosophies throughout the narrative, but do not let this scare you off – I struggle with the simplest of numerical equations, but still found the mathematics in the book quite fascinating. Miriam Sved was inspired by the true story of her grandmother, mathematician Marta Wachsberger, and I found this historical basis of the story very poignant. It’s also beautifully written – clever, lyrical and heartfelt. Highly recommended.
You might also like to read my review of The Muse by Jessie Burton:
https://kateforsyth.com.au/what-katie-read/vintage-book-review-the-muse-by-jessie-burton
The Blurb (from Goodreads):
In a new Georgian–era mystery by Antonia Hodgson, the follow-up to The Devil in the Marshalsea, Tom Hawkins prays for a royal pardon as he relives the espionage, underground dealings, and murder accusations that sent him to the gallows.
London, 1728. Tom Hawkins is headed to the gallows, accused of murder. Gentlemen don't hang and Tom's damned if he'll be the first. He may not be much of a gentleman, but he is innocent. He just always finds his way into a spot of bad luck.
It's hard to say when Tom's troubles began. He was happily living in sin with his beloved, Kitty Sparks — though their neighbors were certainly less pleased about that. He probably shouldn't have told London's most cunning criminal mastermind that he was "bored and looking for adventure." Nor should he have offered to help the king's mistress in her desperate struggles with a brutal and vindictive husband. And he definitely shouldn't have trusted the calculating Queen Caroline. She's promised him a royal pardon if he holds his tongue, but then again, there is nothing more silent than a hanged man.
Now Tom must scramble to save his life and protect those he loves. But as the noose tightens, his time is running out
My Thoughts:
The Confession of Thomas Hawkins is the sequel to The Devil in the Marchelsea, which I read and loved last year. Thomas Hawkins is a brilliant creation – flawed and yet so likeable. The son of a parson, he spends his day drinking and gambling and falling into trouble, with the help of his sharp-tongued, strong-willed lover, Kitty Sparks, who refuses to marry him because women lose all power once the wedding ring is on their finger. Set in 1728, the book is rich in sensual historical detail and yet the pace is unflagging. Thomas is in a race against time to solve a gruesome murder and outwit a sadistic aristocrat before the hangman’s noose is put about his neck. A truly fabulous historical romp.
You might also like to read Beware This Boy by Maureen Jennings:
VINTAGE BOOK REVIEW: Beware This Boy by Maureen Jennings
The Blurb (from Goodreads):
We are never closer to life than when we brush up against the possibility of death.
I Am, I Am, I Am is Maggie O'Farrell's astonishing memoir of the near-death experiences that have punctuated and defined her life. The childhood illness that left her bedridden for a year, which she was not expected to survive. A teenage yearning to escape that nearly ended in disaster. An encounter with a disturbed man on a remote path. And, most terrifying of all, an ongoing, daily struggle to protect her daughter--for whom this book was written--from a condition that leaves her unimaginably vulnerable to life's myriad dangers.
Seventeen discrete encounters with Maggie at different ages, in different locations, reveal a whole life in a series of tense, visceral snapshots. In taut prose that vibrates with electricity and restrained emotion, O'Farrell captures the perils running just beneath the surface, and illuminates the preciousness, beauty, and mysteries of life itself.
My Thoughts:
Maggie O’Farrell is an Irish-born, British-raised novelist whose books I have often heard recommended, but have never read. A friend of mine raved about I Am, I Am, I Am on twitter and I bought the book straightaway – partly because I trust my friend’s judgement and partly because I’ve often thought about writing a memoir about my own encounters with death, but always concluded that the subject matter was too dark and too difficult, and no-one would want to read such a thing anyway.
I was obviously wrong, because I Am, I Am, I Am reached No 1 on the Sunday Times bestseller list, scored numerous rave reviews, and was shortlisted for quite a few awards. And although it is a dark subject, this book is utterly beautiful and life-affirming – Maggie O’Farrell writes with luminous grace, self-deprecating humour, and true poignancy about life and death and love and fear:
‘There is nothing unique or special in a near-death experience. They are not rare; everyone, I would venture, has had them, at one time or another, perhaps without even realising it. The brush of a van too close to your bicycle, the tired medic who realises that a dosage ought to be checked one final time, the driver who has drunk too much and is reluctantly persuaded to relinquish the car keys, the train missed after sleeping through an alarm, the aeroplane not caught, the virus never inhaled, the assailant never encountered, the path not taken. We are, all of us, wandering about in a state of oblivion, borrowing our time, seizing our days, escaping our fates, slipping through loopholes, unaware of when the axe may fall.’
The title comes from a quote from Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar: 'I took a deep breath and listened to the old brag of my heart. I am, I am, I am.' It’s the perfect quote for this extraordinarily beautiful book, and Maggie O’Farrell uses it with keen wit and flair. Must. Now. Read. More. Of. Maggie. O’Farrell.
You might also like to read my review of The Joy of High Places by Patti Miller:
https://kateforsyth.com.au/what-katie-read/book-review-the-joy-of-high-places-by-patti-miller
The Blurb (from Goodreads):
"Wolf winter,'" she said, her voice small. "I wanted to ask about it. You know, what it is."
He was silent for a long time. "It's the kind of winter that will remind us we are mortal," he said. "Mortal and alone."
Swedish Lapland, 1717. Maija, her husband Paavo and her daughters Frederika and Dorotea arrive from their native Finland, hoping to forget the traumas of their past and put down new roots in this harsh but beautiful land. Above them looms Blackåsen, a mountain whose foreboding presence looms over the valley and whose dark history seems to haunt the lives of those who live in its shadow.
While herding the family's goats on the mountain, Frederika happens upon the mutilated body of one of their neighbors, Eriksson. The death is dismissed as a wolf attack, but Maija feels certain that the wounds could only have been inflicted by another man. Compelled to investigate despite her neighbors' strange disinterest in the death and the fate of Eriksson's widow, Maija is drawn into the dark history of tragedies and betrayals that have taken place on Blackåsen. Young Frederika finds herself pulled towards the mountain as well, feeling something none of the adults around her seem to notice.
As the seasons change, and the "wolf winter," the harshest winter in memory, descends upon the settlers, Paavo travels to find work, and Maija finds herself struggling for her family's survival in this land of winter-long darkness. As the snow gathers, the settlers' secrets are increasingly laid bare. Scarce resources and the never-ending darkness force them to come together, but Maija, not knowing who to trust and who may betray her, is determined to find the answers for herself. Soon, Maija discovers the true cost of survival under the mountain, and what it will take to make it to spring.
My Thoughts:
Atmospheric, compelling and full of foreboding, Wolf Winter was one of my best discoveries this year. It is set in Swedish Lapland in 1717, and begins with the discovery of a dead man’s body in the mountains by two little girls. The girls’ mother, Maija, finds herself unable to let the murder rest. It must be someone she knows, she reasons, and yet … who?
Filled with superstitions and the fear of witchcraft, the local people all have secrets to hide. And so does Maija. The result is something so eerie, so chilling, so powerful, I could not put the book down. It reminded me of Hannah Kent’s Burial Rites and Eowyn Ivey’s The Snow Child, two of my favourite books, in the sheer desolation of the landscape and the sense of a dark threat that hangs over the characters. Brilliant.
You might also like to read my review of Tombland by C J Sansom here:
https://kateforsyth.com.au/what-katie-read/book-review-tombland-by-c-j-sansom
The Blurb (from Goodreads):
A young woman who is both a bard--and a warrior--seeks to repay her debts and settle scores in this thrilling historical fantasy series.
The young warrior and bard Liobhan has lost her brother to the Otherworld. Even more determined to gain a place as an elite fighter, she returns to Swan Island to continue her training. But Liobhan is devastated when her comrade Dau is injured and loses his sight in their final display bout. Blamed by Dau's family for the accident, she agrees to go to Dau's home as a bond servant for the span of one year.
There, she soon learns that Oakhill is a place of dark secrets. The vicious Crow Folk still threaten both worlds. And Dau, battling the demon of despair, is not an easy man to help.
My Thoughts:
A Dance with Fate is the second book in Juliet Marillier’s new historical fantasy series, ‘Warrior Bards’. As always with her books, it is a beguiling mix of action, romance and magic, set in an ancient Celtic world where the Otherworld presses up close to the ordinary human world. I love Juliet Marillier’s books – they are full of a lyrical fairy-tale quality and a quiet shining wisdom about the importance of justice, compassion, peace, and the care of the natural world. They are a wonderful antidote to anxiety, fear, and exhaustion – I often re-read them when I need a balm for my wounded soul.
At the heart of the Warrior Bards series is a young woman named Liobhan who is both a strong fighter and a skilled musician, and her journey to be accepted as a warrior of Swan Island. Other major characters are her beloved foster-brother Brocc, a talented harpist who has married a faery queen, and an enigmatic noble named Dau, who is the main rival to Liobhan’s dream of acceptance as a warrior. In this segment of the saga, Dau has been accidentally blinded by Liobhan. His brutal, manipulative brother demand she works off her debt to him as a bond servant for a year, a role which is little better than a slave. It is not long before Liobhan realises that she is caught in a web of violence, deceit and dark magic, and it will take all her strength and wits to escape.
A gorgeous romantic read! Can’t wait for the next one.
GET YOUR COPY OF A DANCE WITH FATE HEREYou might also like to read my review of The Harp Of Kings by Juliet Marillier here:
The Harp of Kings by Juliet Marillier
The Blurb (from Goodreads):
Why do we react so strongly to certain places? Why do layers of mythology build up around particular features in the landscape? When Philip Marsden moved to a remote creekside farmhouse in Cornwall, the intensity of his response took him aback. It led him to begin exploring these questions, prompting a journey westwards to Land's End through one of the most fascinating regions of Europe.
From the Neolithic ritual landscape of Bodmin Moor to the Arthurian traditions of Tintagel, from the mysterious china-clay country to the granite tors and tombs of the far south-west, Marsden assembles a chronology of our shifting attitudes to place. In archives, he uncovers the life and work of other 'topophiles' before him - medieval chroniclers and Tudor topographers, eighteenth-century eighteenth-century antiquarians, post-industrial poets and abstract painters. Drawing also on his own travels overseas, Marsden reveals that the shape of the land lies not just at the heart of our history but of man's perennial struggle to belong on this earth.
My Thoughts:
I love books which take a place or a time or a person or a natural phenomenon, and then uses that as a springboard into a wide-ranging meditation on art, history, science, poetry, or any manner of things. And I have always wanted to go to Cornwall.
So I was interested in Rising Ground as soon as I heard about it.
Philp Marsden has a degree in anthropology and has written a number of books about his travels in Ethiopia and Russia, as well as numerous essays for The Spectator. He was, however, raised in Cornwall and recently bought a farmhouse on a creek there with his wife and children. The book is not a memoir of the renovation of this old house, though some of his personal experiences are woven into the narrative. It is more about ‘topophilia’, a lovely word which means ‘love of place’, and examines some of the little-known but interesting people of the past who have loved Cornwall and studied it and written and painted about it.
It’s the sort of book that you can pick up and enjoy, then put down and not pick up again for a few weeks, as each chapter is an essay on a particular aspect of Cornwall. I was particularly interested in the chapters on the standing stones and barrows and graves and other ancient monuments, and on the blind-and-deaf Cornish poet Jack Clemo, who I had never heard of before.
A really interesting read.
You might also like to read my review of The Shepherd's Life:
VINTAGE BOOK REVIEW: The Shepherd’s Life by James Rebanks
The Blurb (from Goodreads):
Seventy years after her grandmother helped hide a Jewish family on a Greek island during World War II, a woman sets out to track down their descendants—and discovers a new way to understand tragedy, forgiveness, and the power of kindness.
Yvette Manessis Corporon grew up listening to her grandmother’s stories about how the people of the small Greek island Erikousa hid a Jewish family—a tailor named Savvas and his daughters—from the Nazis during World War II. Nearly 2,000 Jews from that area died in the concentration camps, but even though everyone on Erikousa knew Savvas and his family were hiding on the island, no one ever gave them up, and the family survived the war.
Years later, Yvette couldn’t get the story of the Jewish tailor out of her head. She decided to track down the man’s descendants—and eventually found them in Israel. Their tearful reunion was proof to her that evil doesn’t always win. But just days after she made the connection, her cousin’s child was gunned down in a parking lot in Kansas, a victim of a Neo-Nazi out to inflict as much harm as he could. Despite her best hopes, she was forced to confront the fact that seventy years after the Nazis were defeated, it was still happening today.
As Yvette and her family wrestled with the tragedy in their own lives, the lessons she learned from the survivors of the Holocaust helped her confront and make sense of the present.
In beautifully told interweaving storylines, the past and present come together in a nuanced, heartfelt story about the power of faith, the importance of kindness, and the courage to stand up for what’s right in the face of great evil.
My Thoughts:
I picked up this book because I’m currently working on a novel set in Greece during World War II, and am interested in reading more stories about that terrible time.
Yvette Manessis Corporon grew up listening to the story of how her grandparents helped save the lives of a Jewish family on their small Greek island of Erikousa, near Corfu. After the war, her grandparents moved to the US and lost contact with the family whom they saved. As she grows up, Yvette begins to wonder about what happened to them – they moved away too but no-one knows where. Her work as a journalist means Yvette is used to searching out stories. She begins to dig, and runs into many dead-ends, but becomes more and more determined to find out what happened to them. She hopes the family, who lost so much, has found peace and happiness, and given birth to new generations.
During her long search, a terrible tragedy in her own family makes it clear to her that hatred and prejudice and evil still exist in the world – her husband’s cousin loses both her father and her son in a neo-Nazi shooting attack. The shock and sorrow and disbelief at this senseless act of violence reverberates throughout her family and life, and makes the search for the descendants of the family her ancestors saved seem even more important.
The two stories interweave together, in a powerful and moving story of courage, kindness and faith, that had me in tears. A really surprising and heartfelt memoir that shows that the past lives in us still.
You might also like to read my review of Mermaids Singing here:
https://kateforsyth.com.au/what-katie-read/book-review-mermaid-singing-by-charmian-clift
