Cindy Vallar's Blog, page 17

Review of The Testament of Leofric the Black, volume 2

For two years, Leofric has lived a quiet life, illuminating manuscripts at a priory. That serenity is forever destroyed with shouts and fighting. On this day, unknown assailants slaughter the monks. Leofric once again takes up the helmet, sword, and shield to become Leofric the Black, Killer of Death. Most might assume the attackers come to pillage the priory, but he believes they seek the young visitor staying with the monks – Prince Edgar, the eight-year-old ætheling, heir apparent and son of King Edward the Exile.

The one safe place Leofric thinks to take the prince is his own estate, but someone else is entrenched within his walls, forcing Leofric to find a way to reclaim his lands. The king can grant that boon, but saving the prince’s life isn’t enough and not everyone with power is keen to help Leofric. Earl Tostig Godwinson distrusts Leofric, but has the ear of the king. His brother, Harold Godwinson, trusts Leofric to speak the truth regardless of how it reflects back on himself. To further complicate matters, the sorceress intrudes into his life, warning Leofric that he must keep one of his friends safe. Otherwise, dire happenings will occur because the lives of herself and his friend are intricately tangled with Leofric’s.

Unrest with neighboring Wales and Scotland bring invaders to Englaland and Leofric, in command of Tostig’s swift and highly-trained cavalry, becomes entrenched in the affairs of the Godwinsons and their defense of the realm. Then a mission to Normandy to bring back long-held hostages related to the Godwinsons stirs up trouble from within and without. One of the captives is an old nemesis of Leofric’s and the Duke of Normandy believes himself to be the anointed heir to Englaland’s throne.

The second installment in the Testament series paints a realistic portrait of a time when intrigue, betrayal, warfare, and machinations for power are the norm and it’s not always easy to distinguish allies from enemies. The majority of the story takes place between 1059 and 1066, culminating with the immediate aftermath of the Battle of Hastings. Interspersed throughout are interludes that take place in 1072, when Leofric is on the run, accused of treachery that allows the Normans to gain the upper hand against the Saxons and the Duke to usurp the throne of Englaland.

Beard adeptly recounts this labyrinthine period in history in a way that makes it easy for readers to understand who’s who and why events unfolded as they do. The characters come to life and each twist of the tale plunges readers deeper into a world that seems to spring to life from the dust of the past. Although readers need not be familiar with volume one to appreciate volume two, reading the first book may provide a more complete understanding of how the past affects the present. To further enhance the reading experience, Beard provides a list of characters, glossary, modern-day place names, and historical observations. He subtly spins a tale that pulls no punches, recreating the brutality and sorcery as if painting a picture. By story’s end, we yearn to know what is to come and yet we are thankful that Leofric’s world exists only in our imaginations.

Explorers and Their Quest for North America by Philip J. Potter: A Review

Explorers and Their Quest for North America by Philip J. Potter

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The fastest means of traveling from point A to point B is a straight line. In this case, point A is Europe and point B, the Middle East, India, and China. The overland route is arduous, long, and relatively straight. The only other option is to sail south along the west coast of Africa, around the Cape of Good Hope, and across the Indian Ocean to points east. Or so the majority of Europeans believe. After all, sailing west across the Atlantic Ocean means eventually the ship will fall off the world. What if that belief is false? What if the world is round and, by sailing west, the ship reaches Asia faster than the known routes?

In the latter half of the fifteenth century, this idea is relatively untried and quite a risk. (The Norse sagas claim that Bjarni Herolfsson did it in 985 and, far in the future, evidence will show that Leif Eriksson reached Newfoundland less than two decades later.) One intrepid seaman is convinced that this novel idea is doable and, after convincing the monarchs of Spain to fund the attempt, Christopher Columbus sails west and discovers the New World – although he believes he has reached the edge of Asia. Thus begins the Age of Discovery (also known as the Age of Exploration), which will span over three centuries.

Within the pages of this book, Potter introduces readers to fourteen explorers, beginning with Christopher Columbus and ending with Meriwether Lewis, who with his friend William Clark, will travel overland to explore and map the United States’ recent purchase of the Louisiana Territory in 1804. In between, readers meet the following men, many of whom are well-known and a few who are lesser known, to learn why they are remembered today:

John Cabot – First European to Reach and Explore the North American Mainland
Hernan Cortes – Conqueror of Mexico
Jacques Cartier – Founder of New France
Hernando de Soto – Explorer of American South-east and Discoverer of the Mississippi River
Francisco Coronado – Laid the Foundation for the Spanish Colonization of the American South-west
Samuel de Champlain – Father of French Canada
Captain John Smith – Mercenary Soldier, Governor of Jamestown Colony and Explorer of the American Coastline
Henry Hudson – Explorer of the Hudson River Valley and Canadian Arctic
Robert Cavelier de La Salle – Explorer of the Great Lakes and Mississippi Valley
Vitus Bering – Discoverer and Explorer of the Coastline of Alaska
Daniel Boone – Frontiersman and Pioneer of the Ohio Valley
Sir Alexander Mackenzie – Pathfinder of Western Canada

This book includes maps and illustrations, while each chapter lists the author and title of selected books about each man. There is a bibliography, but it is just one compilation of all the recommended sources. There are no notes or an index, which means there is no way to interconnect individuals or accomplishments without reading specific chapters. While the narrative mentions some of the books that individual explorers wrote, these are not included in either the selected sources or the bibliography even though some of them are still available today.

Explorers and Their Quest for North America is by no means an inclusive list of explorers. While each makes a significant contribution to the subject this book explores, Potter doesn’t explain why he chose these particular men or left out others. What this book does best is serve as an engaging refresher for readers about people they first met in history classes as youngsters. In so doing, Potter presents each man with warts and all, making it clear that each was a product of his time and that not all of his accomplishments fall under the “good” category.




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The 50 Greatest Shipwrecks by Richard M. Jones: A Review

The 50 Greatest Shipwrecks by Richard M Jones

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


According to the author, history has seen more than 3,000,000 shipwrecks through the years. There is no way to narrow down that number to the fifty greatest. Any such list is subjective, especially if the parameters of the criteria used to select them isn’t stated. The author concurs with this assessment: “It would be impossible to truthfully dictate what the fifty most interesting wreck stories would be,” although he goes on to make such a list. “[I]n my opinion, those in these pages come as close as you can get to a list that is as diverse and varied as possible: a mixture of the world’s worst number of deaths – both wartime and peacetime – and wrecks that register no deaths at all.” (x)

A handful of the ships mentioned will be known by the majority of readers. Titanic struck an iceberg in April 1912, and more than 1,500 of those aboard died, while Carpathia – a ship that sank six years later – rescued 705 survivors. A similar ratio of victims to survivors happened after a German U-boat torpedoed the Lusitania in 1915. It is the many unanswered questions surrounding her loss, however, that make for compelling reading. Two others are the USS Arizona and the Edmund Fitzgerald. Those within maritime circles will recognize the names of other vessels, such as the Mary Rose and the Vasa – two warships that heeled over and sank because water poured in through the gunports – or the Endurance, the vessel that carried Ernest Shackleton and his crew to Antarctica in 1915. She was crushed by ice and sank; they survived. Many other vessels will be unfamiliar to the many readers. For example, the Waratah that disappeared off South Africa in 1909; the Mendi which was struck by another ship that kept on going rather than stopping to render aid in 1917; or the Musashi that sank in 1944 after being hit by nineteen torpedoes and seventeen bombs.

Each of the entries in this book averages three to six pages. A summary of the ship’s history prior to her sinking is provided, as are details of her demise and what happened to her afterwards. Some, like Vasa and Mary Rose, are now museums. The latter is the earliest ship mentioned, having sunk in 1542. The most recent two sinkings pertain to Costa Concordia in 2012 and an unknown vessel carrying migrants in 2015. In addition to warships and passenger liners, Jones’s list includes oil tankers, submarines, cargo ships, and ferries. There are also plates of black-and-white photographs.

While Jones includes a wide variety of vessels, it’s interesting to note that steamboats are missing. For example, neither Sultana (1865) nor General Slocum (1904) make the list. Only four vessels are included from the many shipwrecks before 1800, but there are none from the nineteenth century. There is no index, but the table of contents provides a chronological list of the shipwrecks and the year each sank. Also absent is a bibliography, which is surprising given that the author’s intention is to arouse readers’ interest sufficiently that they go on to learn more about the shipwrecks.

The author specializes in researching lost ships and maritime disasters. In the epilogue he writes, “Each one has its own story, each has real people affected by the loss of the vessel, cargo, and crew. No disaster should be forgotten and it has always been my intention to get as many on record as possible.” (157) In this regard, he is correct and this book contains compelling accounts of fifty shipwrecks, although some readers may argue that HMS Scylla may technically fall under the definition of shipwreck, but doesn’t truly qualify as one since she was sunk on purpose to serve as an artificial reef. For readers who seek an introduction to maritime disasters, The 50 Greatest Shipwrecks is a decent starting point.




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Favourite of Fortune: A Review

Favourite of Fortune: Captain John Quilliam Trafalgar Hero by Andrew D. Lambert

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


A native son of the Isle of Man, John Quilliam is feted in artwork and museums there. Elsewhere, few know his name or what he achieved during his lifetime. Favourite of Fortune changes this.

Quilliam, the eldest of seven children, was baptized in 1771; it is the only historical record of his existence until he left the island in 1785. Once he joined the Royal Navy, he rose from able seaman through the ranks to become a post-captain. Early in his career, he served aboard the ship that carried Britain’s first ambassador to China. He took part in the fleet actions at Camperdown, Copenhagen, and Trafalgar. As the fourth most important figure aboard Victory during the last battle, he would be included in Benjamin West’s painting depicting Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson’s death.

During two plus decades of service, he came to the notice of influential men and numbered Nelson, James de Saumarez, and Richard Keats among his friends. He also acquired the necessary skills, experience, judgment, and perseverance that made him a good officer. He possessed an uncanny knack for refitting and repairing vessels, while his varied experiences included convoy and blockade duty, shipwreck, smugglers, privateers, Spanish gold, and prize money. He served on a court martial and was later brought up on charges even though he was obeying secret orders. Even after his retirement, he maintained an interest in the navy and in technology, especially if the innovation might help save sailors’ lives.

From historical records, the authors provide an almost complete timeline of his naval career and strip away the inaccuracies and myths surrounding him. They incorporate maps, illustrations, and end notes, as well as a bibliography, glossary, and index. Each author has a connection to this man, be it a familial relationship or through research. They combine their knowledge of the Royal Navy, the Isle of Man, and this “man who steered the Victory at Trafalgar” to craft an authoritative, yet highly readable biography. (vii)




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Daughters of the Storm by Joan Druett: A Review

Daughters of the Storm by Joan Druett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


When Helen Pederson enters the room at her estranged husband’s California estate, she expects to learn what hostess duties he needs her to perform this time. Instead, she is confronted by six individuals who together stir up a two-decades-old nightmare. Two she knows well. Her husband, Harold Pederson, runs the wealthy family empire that his grandfather founded. Once he makes a decision, it’s impossible to change his mind. The second is their daughter, Jewel, who suffers from a congenital mental illness that manifests itself in angry tantrums that have become more violent as she ages.

The other four people are Skye Hamilton, Maggie Bacchante, Jack Giacomo, and Kate Giacomo. Skye is the business manager of Bacchante Wines. Maggie, whose family owns the winery, is an up-and-coming fashion designer. Although they are not related, she and Kate look amazingly like twins and they grew up together. Kate is a bestselling author. Her adopted father, Jack, is a well-known fireman who specializes in fighting oil well fires.

Twenty years ago, in the midst of a hurricane, three babies were born: Jewel, Kate, and Maggie. Three little girls. Three identical cribs. Amid the chaos, no labels identified who was who or which baby belonged to which mother. Now, Harold wants to know which is truly his daughter. He has a plan to learn the truth – sail to the Pacific island where the hurricane hit – and he has the money to insure that no one refuses to accompany him on the cruise.

Druett steps away from her traditional historical fiction to craft a modern-day mystery. Her characters are well-developed and unique from each other, in spite of the similarities between Kate and Maggie. A shady sailing boat, a kidnapping, unexpected deaths, odd financial manipulations, a peculiar assistant, Jewel’s tantrums, and a brewing hurricane add further spice to the suspense. Stirring up the past is never a good idea and doing so often results in unintended consequences as Daughters of the Storm clearly demonstrates in a fashion similar to Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap. Readers who enjoy this first offering in the Bacchante series will eagerly await the next book, Storm Swept.




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Mutiny on the Rising Sun by Jared Ross Hardesty -- A Review

Mutiny On The Rising Sun: A Tragic Tale of Slavery, Smuggling, and Chocolate by Jared Ross Hardesty

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The Rising Sun peacefully navigated Caribbean waters in June 1743. “Murder! Murder!” The sudden cries rent the air as three mutineers carried out their bloody work. At least seven people died that night. Two survived because of the knowledge they possessed. And chained in the hold, bearing witness to the bloody deeds, were thirteen children and two young men, all enslaved and bound for the slave market in Barbados.

This is far more than a simple trade venture gone awry. As Hardesty recounts the events of that gruesome night – providing insight into what is known and can be hypothesized about the mutineers, the victims, and the witnesses – he reveals details of the smuggling cartel behind the voyage, the miseries of human trafficking, and an insatiable craving for wealth, power, and chocolate. How the mutineers were caught and what happened afterward brings the story to a conclusion.

Newark Jackson, a respected sea captain in Boston, had no idea this would be his final voyage aboard the schooner. Many knew that he owned a store that sold chocolate and that he owned slaves who turned the cacao beans into the popular commodity that people enjoyed; what was less known was that he also smuggled contraband into seaports.

Ferdinand da Costa, Joseph Pereira, and Thomas Lucas carried out the foul deeds. Ship’s mate William Blake and bosun John Shaw survived because of their training and experience, both of which aided them in thwarting the mutineers and bringing them to justice – a justice that was as brutal and horrific as the mutiny itself.

Two appendices cover circumstantial evidence, newspaper reports, and witness testimonies. Maps, advertisements, artwork, ship drawings, and photographs are also included. End notes and an index round out the book.

In his introduction, Hardesty describes this book as a “human history of smuggling.” (4) He deftly shows how and why illicit trade played a role in the lives of all those involved, either firsthand or peripherally. What happened aboard the Rising Sun allows him to show us what drove these colonists to participate in the buying and selling of contraband, and how smuggling could result in the consequences that occurred. The Mutiny of the Rising Sun is an eye-opening examination of capitalism, exploitation, and racism during colonial times that still has repercussions for us today.




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The Buccaneer Coast by James L. Nelson -- A Review

The Buccaneer Coast by James L. Nelson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


As far as Spain is concerned, the New World belongs to it, not interlopers from France, the Dutch Republic, or England. To take back what is theirs, a Spanish force attacks the islands of Saint Christopher and Nevis and lanceros hunt boucaniers on the northwest coast of Hispaniola. LeBoeuf and his partner are stalking wild pigs when lanceros pursue them. Le Rongeur, a thief and abhorrent man whose only good qualities are his swiftness and his aim, flees. LeBoeuf expects this to be his last day, yet still he stands his ground and lashes out against his attackers.

A fleet of Spanish galleons and warships near their destination, Santo Domingo. Among their passengers is the new lieutenant governor of Hispaniola, Don Alonso Menéndez de Aviles, and his wife. Her father has the money and power, but Don Alonso knows this will not be for long. Traveling among the other vessels is a French ship laden with a surreptitious cargo and secret papers that will allow him to acquire the wealth and influence that he so desperately craves.

Benjamin Graves is either lucky or unlucky. It has always been so and now seems to be a mix of the two. He has lost the cargo that he stole from his employer, Señor Corregidor, because the Spanish attack Nevis, but being aboard his appropriated vessel, he has eluded the invaders. However, he fails to elude Maja, Corregidor’s henchman, and is now on his way back to Santo Domingo to await a fate worse than death . . . unless he can change his luck, which often happens if given the time to talk his way out of a hopeless situation. Two such opportunities present themselves – Spanish ships in pursuit and, later, pirates – and Benjamin has a plan, if he can get Maja to listen.

Maja is a brute of mixed blood, who keeps his own counsel and follows orders. Like capturing Graves and returning him, the ship, and its cargo to Santo Domingo. The problem is he has two of the three and Señor Corregidor will not be happy. But Maja is also savvy and waits for opportunities to present themselves. Like Graves’s risky schemes to elude their Spanish pursuers and to trick the pirates into making a fatal mistake. He knows that sooner or later he will no longer be just property. He will be free and more powerful than the man who owns him.

The Caribbean is a dangerous place, not only because of the various factions claiming ownership, but also because Mother Nature is an unpredictable force that unleashes her fury when it suits her. A hurricane obliterates LeBoeuf’s way of life, yet leaves behind hope for a new life. The same tempest wreaks havoc on Don Alonso’s plans, almost as much as those who are far more experienced in the ways of the New World do. The storm is the catalyst that propels these four men onto pathways that will eventually collide in wrathful ways that promise to be just as life-altering as the devastating effects of the hurricano.

This is the first book in a new series that brings to life the men who hunted wild pigs, but were forced to become the bane of Spain’s colonial empire. Nelson precisely sets the stage for the titles that follow and he does so in a way that makes the reader antsy for their next rendezvous with the characters. He provides maps and a glossary to assist those unfamiliar with Hispaniola and nautical terms. Adept readers may notice some sentences with missing and wrong words, as well as a few misspellings, but the action and character depth easily overcome these. There are a few words, like prithee, that may catch the reader by surprise, but they help recreate the time period. The constant use of Don Alonso’s full name, or even those of a few other Spaniards, may become tiresome to some readers, but they help establish the necessary pompousness of a character, as well as the strict formality of Spanish society.

The Buccaneer Coast is a tale of hope, betrayal, and the brutal reality of life where the best lessons learned may involve unlikely allies and the best way to survive is to trust no one. Nelson vividly depicts life as boucaniers and skillfully demonstrates a plausible way in which these men became buccaneers. A masterful storyteller, he takes simple scenes and crafts them into spellbinding events that transport readers from the present back to the seventeenth century where they experience individual lives as if they stand side by side with the characters.




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Tides of Mutiny by Rebecca Rode -- A Review

Tides of Mutiny by Rebecca Rode

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Laney “Lane” Garrow has a dream. She wants to be captain, like her father, of the Majesty and command her crew. An achievable possibility . . . unless you live in the realms of the Four Kingdoms. In any life obstacles exist to thwart one’s dreams, and Lane’s is a doozy. Any female who sets foot on a ship’s deck is deemed a pirate and hanged. That’s why, for eleven years, Lane has lived her life disguised as a lad who serves as a cabin boy. But as she’s grown older, her father has become more paranoid, restricting her to the confines of the ship whenever they are in port.

While in Hughen, a rumor surfaces that makes Lane question its truth. She must know whether her father was once a pirate. There is only one way to find out – she must go ashore even if it means defying her father. But actions have consequences and her single act of defiance launches a cascade of events that affect not only her but everyone around her.

One of those consequences is that a young man knows Lane’s secret. Aden has his own secrets, but he must reach a certain destination before it’s too late. If he fails, many will suffer and the only way to accomplish his mission is to blackmail Lane into getting him aboard Majesty. That, in turn, leads her honorable father to be deemed an outlaw.

Nor is Aden the only one who’s blackmailing Lane. One among the crew trades in secrets. He keeps them for a price. At least until revealing the secret will garner what he wants most – command of the Majesty. He hatches a plan to achieve that goal. Neither Lane nor Aden want him to succeed, but stopping him means revealing secrets neither wants anyone else to know.

Set in a fantasy world, Tides of Mutiny takes place over three weeks. It is a riveting tale of rebellion, trafficking, kidnapping, usurping a throne, betrayal, love, guilt, and destiny. Rode skillfully demonstrates that good and bad are never as clear-cut as we might imagine. Although written for young adults, adults will enjoy this serpentine adventure of courageous determination and unconventional thinking that has a twist you may not see coming.




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1805 by Richard Woodman -- A Review

1805 by Richard Woodman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Captain Nathaniel Drinkwater and his crew sail in search of the Channel Fleet. They are to help with blockading the French, preventing the enemy from leaving their home ports. It is a tedious duty, but essential. It prevents Napoleon from invading England. There are interludes where Drinkwater’s participation in the blockade is interrupted, episodes that make his life more interesting and dangerous. One involves conveying a high-ranking French duke into enemy territory. Another requires him to rescue a British agent who may be behind a plot to assassinate Napoleon.

A third instance involves a meeting with the prime minister and Lord Dungarth, who heads the Admiralty’s intelligence network. They seek Drinkwater’s thoughts on a French invasion, something that has been occupying his thoughts of late. Evidence shows that the French are embarking troops, and should the French fleet join with Spain’s, he is certain they will attack. But the invasion won’t be a direct one. He believes they will come through a backdoor, which will provide them with a slim chance of success.

Gales provide the French with the perfect opportunity to elude the British blockade. Although Drinkwater cannot stop their emergence into open waters, he is determined to keep sight of them. But that is easier said than done, especially when he must battle enemy ships at sea during a snow storm. When word arrives that France and Spain have combined forces as he feared, Drinkwater must warn his superiors.

This sixth book in the Nathaniel Drinkwater series is divided into three parts: Blockade, Break-out, and Battle. It opens in 1804, when a midshipman rouses Captain Drinkwater from the depths of sleep just as HMS Antigone is about to wreck on a dangerous shoal near St. Michael’s Mount, and ends with the Battle of Trafalgar. Maps are provided to orient readers. Sea battles are riveting, while scenes aboard Drinkwater’s vessel provide vivid snapshots of life at sea. What makes this tale different from others that depict this victorious, but tragic affair, is that Drinkwater is not aboard a British ship at the time of the battle. Instead, he is a prisoner aboard a French ship of the line and the battle is poignantly experienced through senses other than sight.




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Review of Jame Bschert's A Congress of Kings

A Congress of Kings by James Boschert

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Having lost Jerusalem to Salah ad-Din, the Christians now besiege Acre. The Muslims within the city’s walls defend this vital link with as much determination as the invaders mount their attacks. Salah ad-Din can only mount intermittent, but effective, raids because the vast majority of his army has dispersed. Time is on his side, unless the French and English kings arrive with fresh troops.

The conflict allows the Master, Rashid Ed Din, to focus on a far more important mission – the slaying of two former students who escaped his clutches and spirited away his sister. All three must pay for their betrayal. The trio of boys whom he has selected have been specially trained in the art of killing. No sacrifice is too great for the Master, and each is willing to live or die as he commands.

Meanwhile, at Kantara Castle on the island of Cyprus, Lord Talon de Gilles and Reza have recovered from the wounds sustained four years ago during Salah ad-Din’s march to Jerusalem. All is quiet and peaceful, but the two friends sense that all is not right. No one has heard from Theodora since she left to find her brother in Constantinople three months ago. Rumors that the kings of France and England plan to launch a new crusade are particularly troubling, especially since the two monarchs despise one another.

Their uneasiness seems warranted. First, goat herders find a hidden boat and Talon’s men capture an intruder. Then shipwrecked men are slaughtered or taken captive and enslaved by the island’s self-proclaimed emperor. Talon intervenes, but it comes at a cost and pulls him back into the conflict between Christians and Muslims, as well as the one between King Richard of England and King Philip of France. While Reza goes in search of Theodora, Talon is compelled to participate in the siege of Acre.

A Congress of Kings, the ninth book in the Talon series, is a story of betrayal, pettiness, good versus evil, and jealousy. The story takes place during 1191 and cunningly demonstrates that nothing is ever black or white. Separate events are intricately interwoven and there are always consequences that must be paid. One longtime character is missing from this story, and readers will miss him as much as Talon does. Boschert takes readers back in time to a world that involves all the senses. Seething undercurrents ripple throughout the book and he ably demonstrates their effects, both physically and emotionally, on Talon, an honorable man.




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