The End of 2010

I just finished reading Entertainment Weekly's Best and Worst of 2010 issue. It was an eye opener.
2010 Best Movies….haven't seen one of them.
2010 Best TV shows….don't watch any of those either.
2010 Best Music CD's…don’t own one of them and only recognized one artist name (Kanye West).
2010 Best non-fiction books…haven't read one although four were familiar titles.
2010 Best fiction books….haven't read ANY and only recognized ONE (!) title (Room).
2010 Best Stage shows….oh please, did I even need to type the heading? Zero, zip, nada.
2010 Best games….my best showing, I've played Angry Birds on the iPad.

I didn’t realize how completely unhip I am. I'm socially illiterate.

I may not have fared well compared to the general population but I was pretty happy with just myself for completing the bulk of the challenges I entered this year.

First off, and always a little bit tricky (darn that X!) is the A-Z Reading Challenge - this one I finished.

Next is Women Unbound, I never actually set a goal for this one but I would still call it a success, I think I met the minimum requirements with a few extra.

The Audiobook Challenge is a piece of cake other than my neglecting to add them to the list and link them up! This one is complete with about 25 audiobooks listened to this year.

The Year of the Historical challenge was a wash. The Historical fiction book club lost it's steam and so did I. I only read 4 of the 12.

I ended on an almost bang by completing the Holiday Reading Challenge - but I haven't written any of the posts so although complete it's not a resounding success.

I had in the back of my mind all year to sign up for the What's In a Name? challenge. Of course, it never happened but I still love this challenge and want to see if I could have done it...
1.A book with a food in the title: Yes, Dark Tort
2.A book with a body of water in the title: Yes! Green River Running Red
3.A book with a title (queen, president) in the title: Yes! The Queen's Mistake
4.A book with a plant in the title: Yes, again! The Bean Trees
5.A book with a place name (city, country) in the title: Yes, again! The New York, Regional Mormons ...
6.A book with a music term in the title: Nooooooo! So close! Next year, for sure.

World Without End by Ken Follett

From the Amazon product description: World Without End takes place in the same town of Kingsbridge, two centuries after the townspeople finished building the exquisite Gothic cathedral that was at the heart of The Pillars of the Earth. The cathedral and the priory are again at the center of a web of love and hate, greed and pride, ambition and revenge, but this sequel stands on its own. This time the men and women of an extraordinary cast of characters find themselves at a crossroad of new ideas--about medicine, commerce, architecture, and justice. In a world where proponents of the old ways fiercely battle those with progressive minds, the intrigue and tension quickly reach a boiling point against the devastating backdrop of the greatest natural disaster ever to strike the human race--the Black Death. Three years in the writing, and nearly eighteen years since its predecessor, World Without End breathes new life into the epic historical novel and once again shows that Ken Follett is a masterful author writing at the top of his craft.

This was a slow start for me but I ended up loving it! I haven't read Pillars of the Earth but I understand they are similar but not necessarily related - does that make sense? You can read and enjoy one without having read the other but they do overlap. I don't know that I would have managed this one in print - it is a chunkster! - so I am happy for audio! Follett weaves such a great soap opera with these characters. The bad guys are deliciously wicked - using their power for sex and manipulation. I do feel sorry for the women they have so few freedoms but a poor woman at this time in history was really in a tough spot - so dependant on the men around her.


This book counts toward the 2010 Audiobook Challenge hosted by the bloggers over at Royal Reviews. Click on the button to see my progress.



This book counts toward the Year of the Historical 2010 Reading Challenge hosted by lurv a la mode. Click on the button to see my progress.

The French Mistress by Susan Holloway Scott

From the author's website: 1668: The daughter of a poor nobleman, Louise leaves the French countryside for the glittering court of the legendary King Louis XIV. As a baby-faced maid of honor, the innocent Louise attracts little notice––until she catches the eye of the visiting English king, Charles II. Before long, she is sent by the scheming Louis to London as a royal “gift” for Charles. There she is expected not only to please the tastes of the jaded English king, but to serve as a spy for France.

Meh. It was alright. Take my opinion with a grain of salt because I do believe I am suffering from Historical Fiction exhaustion. I would say "Tudor exhaustion" but I am not sure of that is the correct term for this time period - I'm still fairly HF illiterate. This one was set in the court of Charles II and told the story of one of the important women in his life - you know, the important women in addition to the wife. There are two other "important women" and I saw in the back of the book that Susan Holloway Scott has written their stories as well. So she essentially tells the same tale from three different angles; I find that intriguing. Unfortunately, this viewpoint didn't enthrall me. Neither the romance nor the history were very memorable. I'll probably recollect the more sordid imagery from the first few chapters when she was still in the French court longer than I'd like and the rest not as long!

This book counts toward the Year of the Historical 2010 Reading Challenge hosted by lurv a la mode. Click on the button to see my progress.

This was the Facebook Historical Fiction book club selection for February. Next month we are reading Cleopatra's Daughter by Michelle Moran.




This book is my "F" book for the 2010 A-Z Reading Challenge. Click on the button to see my progress.

The Queen's Fool by Philippa Gregory

From the author's website: Into a Tudor court on the brink of treason comes Hannah, a young Jewish girl on the run from the Inquisition. Sworn into the service of a handsome Robert Dudley, he sends her as a Holy Fool to spy on Princess Mary Tudor, the forgotten heir to King Edward’s throne. Instead of the tyrant of popular legend, Hannah finds a woman waiting for her chance and only wanting the best for the kingdom – while her sister Elizabeth waits to take advantage of any mistakes, and longs for her death.

Everyone tells me that The Other Boleyn Girl is Philippa Gregory's best book but I seem to be reading all her others first - is it my being stubborn or maybe saving the best for last? I enjoyed The Queen's Fool. The romance went back and forth so many times - who would she pick, the arranged marriage or the rogue in the Tower? That kept it interesting. I liked all the shenanigans of the royals - life at court is fascinating. I would have liked to learn a little more about the experience of being Jewish at this time in history. So many of the books I have read focus on the Catholic versus Protestant conflict but this was the first I've read that had a Jewish family. All in all, a pleasant enough read - not a "couldn't put it down, stayed up all night to finish book" but enjoyable.


This book also counts toward the Year of the Historical 2010 Reading Challenge hosted by lurv a la mode. Click on the button to see my progress.

Year of the Historical 2010 Reading Challenge

I'm a little late to the party for this one, I see on the sign up post that most people signed up back in October and November. But I am on track as far as the actual reading. I've had a Tudor start to 2010 with The Queen's Mistake and The Queen's Fool so I'm ready to participate. The goal of this challenge is one Historical fiction book a month for a total of twelve for the year. If this challenge interests you, click on the button and you can read more about it and sign-up!

Here's my list thus far...
1. The Queen's Mistake by Diane Haeger
2. The Queen's Fool by Philippa Gregory
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

The Queen's Mistake by Diane Haeger

From the author's website: When young and beautiful Catherine Howard becomes the fifth wife of fifty year old king Henry VIII, she seems to be on top of the world. Yet her reign is destined to be brief and heartbreaking, as she is forced to do battle with enemies far more powerful and calculating than she could have ever anticipated in a court where one wrong move could mean her destruction. Wanting only love, Catherine is compelled to deny her heart's desire in favor of her family's ambition. But in so doing, she unwittingly gives those who seek to bring her down a most effective weapon, her own romantic past.

I wondered if I would like the book at first, the beginning chapters had more overt sexuality than I had anticipated. But as I went further, the story drew me in. I felt like it moved at a good pace; it never dragged for me and I kept wanting to know what would happen. Because I am new to historical fiction, I really didn't know how it would all turn out as opposed to more experienced historical fiction lovers who would probably know before beginning how it would end! I wanted to know how it turned out more out of curiosity about the events than because I particularly cared for any particular character. I found the characters and the life at court fascinating but not appealing; Catherine was interesting but I didn't like her, same with Henry. I wasn't rooting for any particular ending because I didn't connect with either of the major characters more than any other.

This book is my "Q" book for the 2010 A-Z Reading Challenge. Click on the button to see my progress.







This book also counts toward the Year of the Historical 2010 Reading Challenge hosted by lurv a la mode. Click on the button to see my progress.





And, it's the Facebook Historical Fiction Book Club selection. Oh my, I got a lot of mileage out of this one!