The Maiden by Kate Foster

                                                   

Hardback:  370 pages

Genre:  Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Crime, Scotland

Publisher: Mantle, Pan Macmillan, 2023

Source:  Tywyn Public Library

First Sentences: You are sentenced to beheading. God have mercy on your soul. Prepare yourself in prayer.

Review Quote:  'Riveting . . . the tension persists until the last page’ ― The Times

Favourite Quote: “Although I read avidly and wrote with flair, far exceeding the direction of the tutor who came to Roseburn, these assets were not considered to be as attractive as obedience or serenity or silence.”

My Opinion:  

'The Maiden' is Kate Foster's debut novel and is Historical Crime Fiction, which is not a first choice genre for me. I think this is probably the reason that it only recently caught my attention. I am glad it did and a sign of how much I enjoyed it is that her second novel, 'The Kings Witches' published earlier this month is already on my Wishlist to read.

Inspired by the true story of Christian Nimmo who was executed in Edinburgh in 1679 for the murder of her lover, who also happened to be her uncle! The author has taken the intriguing known facts of the case and woven a fascinating fictional story with a great cast of characters. none of these are confirmed in historical records apart from Christian herself and her uncle James Forrester but most definitely they are the sort of people that would have lived at the time in such a setting.

Just imagine this story in a modern day setting when thankfully women are treated differently, making this novel a great choice, in my opinion for Book Club discussions. Overall an extraordinary period tale of love and deceit that I recommend if you enjoy historical fiction based on fact.

Literary awards

Women's Prize for Fiction Nominee for Longlist (2024), Saltire Society Literary Award Nominee for Scottish First Book of the Year (2023)

Setting

Edinburgh, Scotland in 1679.

Characters

Lady Christian Nimmo, Violet Blyth, Lord James Forrester

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

Inspired by a real-life case and winner of the Bloody Scotland Pitch Perfect Award, Kate Foster's The Maiden is a remarkable story with a feminist revisionist twist, giving a voice to women otherwise silenced by history.

"In the end, it did not matter what I said at my trial. No one believed me."

Edinburgh, October 1679. Lady Christian Nimmo is arrested and charged with the murder of her lover, James Forrester. News of her imprisonment and subsequent trial is splashed across the broadsides, with headlines that leave little room for doubt: Adulteress. Whore. Murderess.

Only a year before, Christian was leading a life of privilege and respectability. So, what led her to risk everything for an affair? And does that make her guilty of murder? She wasn't the only woman in Forrester's life, and certainly not the only one who might have had cause to wish him dead . . .

Author Profile:         

Courtesy of Goodreads

Kate Foster has been a national newspaper journalist for over twenty years. Growing up in Edinburgh, she became fascinated by its history and often uses it as inspiration for her stories. The Maiden won the Bloody Scotland Pitch Perfect 2020 prize for new writers. She lives in Edinburgh with her two children. 

Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Kate Foster - Amazon Profile.   Goodreads Profile       Kate Foster on Twitter

The Figurine by Victoria Hislop

                                             

Hardback:  512 pages

Genre:  Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction

Publisher: Headline 2023

Source:  Tywyn Public Library

First Sentences: Helena stood at the top of the aircraft steps, blinking into the sunlight, a hot breeze blowing strands of hair across her face. Why was everything shimmering? So dazzlingly bright?

Review Quote:  Hislop's love for Greece shines and transports readers through space and time to a brilliantly drawn world ― The Independent

My Opinion:  

It is nearly twenty years, I believe, since Victoria Hislop published her first highly successful novel 'The Island'. I have been a fan of her writing ever since and always enjoy her novels.

'The Figurine' revolves around three generations of women, Helena Mary and Elena. A dark family secret finds the women confronting the past and their feelings about their Greek identity.  It is a well known fact that beautiful artwork has for centuries driven people to plunder cultural treasures. Such icons feature hugely in the protagonists lives and the story these women tell us.

There is nothing I like more than a hefty novel and 'The Figurine' was 500+ pages of sheer delight. Highly recommended and the good news is that if you are looking for a holiday read the paperback will be published on August 1st!

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

In her irresistible new novel, Sunday Times No 1 bestselling author Victoria Hislop shines a light on the questionable acquisition of cultural treasures and the price people - and countries - will pay to cling on to them.

Of all the ancient art that captures the imagination, none is more appealing than the Cycladic figurine. An air of mystery swirls around these statuettes from the Bronze Age and they are highly sought after by collectors - and looters - alike.

When Helena inherits her grandparents' apartment in Athens, she is overwhelmed with memories of the summers she spent there as a child, when Greece was under a brutal military dictatorship. Her remote, cruel grandfather was one of the regime's generals and as she sifts through the dusty rooms, Helena discovers an array of valuable objects and antiquities. How did her grandfather amass such a trove? What human price was paid for them?

Helena's desire to find answers about her heritage dovetails with a growing curiosity for archaeology, ignited by a summer spent with volunteers on a dig on an Aegean island. Their finds fuel her determination to protect the precious fragments recovered from the baked earth - and to understand the origins of her grandfather's collection.

Helena's attempt to make amends for some of her grandfather's actions sees her wrestle with the meaning of 'home', both in relation to looted objects of antiquity ... and herself.

Previous Reviews:

The Island   The Return   Cartes Postales   Those Who Are Loved   One August Night

Author Profile:         

Courtesy of Amazon

Inspired by a visit to Spinalonga, the abandoned Greek leprosy colony, Victoria Hislop wrote The Island in 2005. It became an international bestseller, has sold more than six million copies and was turned into a 26-part Greek TV series. She was named Newcomer of the Year at the British Book Awards and is now an ambassador for Lepra. Her affection for the Mediterranean then took her to Spain, and in the number one bestseller The Return she wrote about the painful secrets of its civil war. In The Thread, Victoria returned to Greece to tell the turbulent tale of Thessaloniki and its people across the twentieth century. Shortlisted for a British Book Award, it confirmed her reputation as an inspirational storyteller.

Her fourth novel, The Sunrise, about the Turkish invasion of Cyprus and the enduring ghost town of Famagusta, was a Sunday Times number one bestseller. Cartes Postales from Greece, fiction illustrated with photographs, followed and was one of the biggest selling books of 2016. The poignant and powerful Those Who Are Loved was a Sunday Times number one hardback bestseller in 2019 and explores a tempestuous period of modern Greek history through the eyes of a complex and compelling heroine. Victoria's most recent novel, One August Night, returns to Crete in the long-anticipated sequel to The Island. The novel spent twelve weeks in the Top 10 hardback fiction charts.

Her books have been translated into more than thirty-five languages.

Victoria divides her time between England and Greece and in 2020, Victoria was granted honorary citizenship by the President of Greece. She was recently appointed patron of Knossos 2025, which is raising funds for a new research centre at one of Greece's most significant archaeological sites. She is also on the British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles.

Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Victoria Hislop - Official Author Website  Goodreads Profile   Facebook Profile 

Twitter Profile

Amazon Profile

The Riviera House Swap by Gillian Harvey

                                                   

Ebook:  326 pages Kindle edition

Genre: Contemporary Romantic Fiction 

Publisher: June 11, 2024 by Boldwood Books

Source: My Kindle Library

First Sentences: Nina poured herself another cup of coffee from the expensive percolator and sighed as the rich aroma of her new favourite blend hit her nostrils.

Setting: France

Review Quote: ‘Wonderfully warm and enchanting… With empathy, insight, and humour… Will delight readers seeking their own escape.’ Natalie Jenner, author

My Opinion: 

Gillian Harvey is a prolific and popular author who writes escapist stories often set in France, where she lived for fourteen years. This is the first novel of hers that I have read and I doubt it will be the last.

The female heroine Nina recently divorced and forty has decided that her life is somewhat dull and predictable. She decides it is time for her to do something spontaneous, which for her is unknown. A decision to do a house swap in France for a month and see if she can reconnect with her first love, leads to a journey of self discovery.

Humour with a touch of romance that I found a quick dose of escapism. Recommended if that is what you are looking for at the moment.

With thanks to Netgalley, Boldwood Books and the author for the opportunity to read and review.

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

Would you swap houses with a stranger? Nina has always played it safe. But when her divorce papers come through on her fortieth birthday she decides enough is enough.

She’s always chosen the sensible route, staying in her stable job and marrying her rather boring ex. In fact – she realises – she’s chosen security over excitement for years. Ever since she refused to elope with her first beautiful, poetic, thoughtful Pierre, the man she met aged 17, on her French exchange. The only man who ever made her heart race.

Maybe it’s time to take a few risks?

Impulsively she goes online and finds another kind of French exchange… a house-swap. She can’t imagine what French businessman Jean-Luc wants with her terraced home in rural England, but she can’t wait to stay in his beautiful, spacious, bougainvillea-strewn villa on the French riviera.

She’s not just there for the house though. She’s decided to find the love she missed all those years ago. But will Pierre still be the man of her dreams after all this time?

As two lives collide, will love bloom on the French riviera? A gorgeously escapist story for fans of The Holiday, from the bestselling author of A Year at the French Farmhouse.

Author Profile:         

                                                                                    

                                Courtesy of  Author Website

Gillian Harvey is a British author and freelance writer, who writes contemporary, uplifting and emotive fiction, often set in France where she lived for many years with her husband and five children.

Photographs, Trailer and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Gillian Harvey - Author Website.    Goodreads Author Profile    Facebook Profile

Instagram Profile.   Twitter Profile

Life and Otter Miracles by Hazel Prior

 

                                             

Ebook:  400 pages

Genre: Contemporary Romantic Fiction 

Publisher: Penguin, September 2023

Source: My Kindle Library

First Sentences: Phoebe listened. It wasn't so much a song as a collection of voices weaving  around each other.

Setting: Devon, England

Review Quote: A joyous addition for bookshelves everywhere. Nature lovers and readers looking for a warm-hearted, touching read are sure to love it as much as I did. ― Phaedra Patrick, author of The Library of Lost and Found

My Opinion: 

I have read and enjoyed Hazel Priors three previous novels, just the sort of gentle books to loose yourself in as she has a charming style of writing about animals and humans.

Phoebe Featherstone and her father Al have recently moved to a small village in Devon, looking for a slower pace of life, a more suitable lifestyle for Phoebe's health struggles.  One day they come across an otter abandoned by its mother on the riverbank. Rescuing the otter and taking it to a local Otter Sanctuary opens up their life in Devon leading to friendships and unexpected discoveries.

A delightful read full of wildlife and entertaining characters. Although at times thought provoking this is an easy read and recommended if you are looking for something heart warming.

My Previous Reviews:   Call of the Penguins.   Away with the Penguins   Ellie and The Harpmaker

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

Nineteen-year-old Phoebe and her widower father Al have recently moved to Devon, to a small cottage with a river at the end of the garden.

Struggling with her own closely guarded issues, Phoebe doesn't go out much. Instead, she spends her time at home, watching detective dramas and playing detective herself - trying to deduce from Al's deliveries as a courier what kind of lives her neighbours lead.

But when they find an abandoned baby otter on the riverbank, it's just the push Phoebe needs to finally step into her new community. Taking the little one to the local otter sanctuary and witnessing the uncomplicated joy of its fellow creatures, she feels a burgeoning sense of happiness that she has not experienced in a very long time.

However, Phoebe soon starts to suspect that something is amiss at the sanctuary - and she will need to put all her sleuthing skills to good use if she wants to save the otters . . .

Author Profile:         

                                                  

                                                           Courtesy of Goodreads

Hazel Prior lives on Exmoor with her husband and a huge ginger cat. As well as writing, she works as a freelance harpist. Hazel is the author of four published novels. 

You can also read a lovely autobiography by Hazel Prior on her website

Photographs, Trailer and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Amazon - Hazel Prior Books.  Hazel Prior - Website.  Twitter Profile.  Instagram - Hazel Prior

Goodreads Profile