I’ve done a number of things this week:
I wrote reviews of:
The Mistress of Mellyn, by Victoria Holt
Queen Isabella, by Alison Weir
All This, and Heaven Too, by Rachel Field
This week I changed a few things around on my blog; most noticeably, of course, the design. I simply got bored of the old one. I also moved my inventory of books to the side and removed the archive. Not sure if I like the sidebar stuff over on the left-hand side in this format, but I’m sure I’ll get used to it. Let me know what you think of the new layout!
I’m currently reading The Eight, by Katherine Neville. I received an ARC of the sequel a while ago, but I wanted to read The Eight first. It’s set in split-time, in both the 1970s and 1790s France, and the plot revolves around a hidden chess set once given by Charlemagne to the owner of Montglane Abbey. When the Revolution starts, and the abbey is in jeopardy, the pieces of the chess et are scattered. In 1972, a young woman named Cat Velis is given the task of collecting the chess pieces. I’m only about 100 pages into it so far, but I like it a lot.
In totally un-bookish (but still historical) topics, lately I’ve been watching a BBC miniseries called Lillie (seriously, I don’t know what I did before Netflix!). It’s a thirteen-part series based on the life of Lillie Langtry, the “It” girl of the late 19th century. Born on the island of Jersey, she married at age 20, eventually becoming an actress and the mistress of several men, including the future Edward VII. She was close friends with numerous literary and artistic figures of the late Victorian era, including Oscar Wilde and the artists Frank Miles (who created one of the first postcard sketches of Lillie), Millais, Whistler, and Sir Edward Poynter. And, after dressing in mourning out of respect to her dead brother, the simple black dress became Lillie Langtry's signature outfit. In the 1976 miniseries, Francesca Annis played the role of Lillie, and her story has been completely absorbing (not to mention dramatic!) in the four episodes I've watched so far.
I wrote reviews of:
The Mistress of Mellyn, by Victoria Holt
Queen Isabella, by Alison Weir
All This, and Heaven Too, by Rachel Field
This week I changed a few things around on my blog; most noticeably, of course, the design. I simply got bored of the old one. I also moved my inventory of books to the side and removed the archive. Not sure if I like the sidebar stuff over on the left-hand side in this format, but I’m sure I’ll get used to it. Let me know what you think of the new layout!
I’m currently reading The Eight, by Katherine Neville. I received an ARC of the sequel a while ago, but I wanted to read The Eight first. It’s set in split-time, in both the 1970s and 1790s France, and the plot revolves around a hidden chess set once given by Charlemagne to the owner of Montglane Abbey. When the Revolution starts, and the abbey is in jeopardy, the pieces of the chess et are scattered. In 1972, a young woman named Cat Velis is given the task of collecting the chess pieces. I’m only about 100 pages into it so far, but I like it a lot.
In totally un-bookish (but still historical) topics, lately I’ve been watching a BBC miniseries called Lillie (seriously, I don’t know what I did before Netflix!). It’s a thirteen-part series based on the life of Lillie Langtry, the “It” girl of the late 19th century. Born on the island of Jersey, she married at age 20, eventually becoming an actress and the mistress of several men, including the future Edward VII. She was close friends with numerous literary and artistic figures of the late Victorian era, including Oscar Wilde and the artists Frank Miles (who created one of the first postcard sketches of Lillie), Millais, Whistler, and Sir Edward Poynter. And, after dressing in mourning out of respect to her dead brother, the simple black dress became Lillie Langtry's signature outfit. In the 1976 miniseries, Francesca Annis played the role of Lillie, and her story has been completely absorbing (not to mention dramatic!) in the four episodes I've watched so far.
Comments
The Eight sounds really interesting. I am glad to hear you are enjoying it.
I don't know what I did with Netflix before either. It's been a great little service.
Have a great week, Katherine! Happy reading.
That's how lots of readers got early copies of my book LOTTERY-
They get sold there by reviewers...