Sheila Deeth's Blog, page 2

A something of something and something

 There's a cool resonance to that kind of title isn't there? I read a Court of Thorns and Roses some time ago, and finally got hold of the second two in the series. And loved them. Then there's a House of Salt and Sorrows, with a name that matches these, and a theme - fairytale all grown up - that matches too. Interesting...

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas

I think I’m hooked (blame my daughter-in-law). I love thisseries, and this second book was no disappointment. I love how the author...

Dissolution and the Rights of Magicians

History - straight, or laced with fantasy and magic - sounds fun to me. I love to know more about history (which I didn't study seriously enough in school). But mostly I love the what-ifs, which the addition of magic, or mystery, adds so intriguingly.

A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians by H.G. Parry

Set around the time of the French Revolution, there’senlightenment in the air, and maybe a promise of freedom for magicians. Freedomfor slaves is debated in English Parliament. Magic powers a...

Before we were yours by Lisa Wingate

 A friend recommended this book to me and I felt sure I would love it. Instead I just "liked" it. It's a slow read, but it brings to life a different world in vivid detail. And its depiction of the struggles of a broken family to stay together is truly haunting.

Before we were yours by Lisa Wingate

In 1930s Memphis, a family living in comfortable poverty aresplit up by do-gooders, their children sent to a Tennessee Children’s homewhere they are prepared to be “sold” to eager (rich) adoptive pa...

The Child Finder and the Butterfly Girl by Rene Denfeld

 A friend who lives in the Pacific Northwest recommended this author to me, saying these books might offer the best depiction of the area. So I had to read them. Now, at last, I'm catching up on writing book reviews.

The Child Finder by Rene Denfeld

Set in a vividly depicted Pacific Northwest, Rene Denfeld’sdark novel follows a PI nicknamed the Child Finder as she researches a cold case – the mysteryof a child who disappeared three years previously.

Child Finder Naomiis herself a “lost” chil...

Time Travel by Connie Willis

 I got these two books for my birthday last year but found them hard to hold with a broken wrist. They stared at me from the not-read bookshelf, enticingly. And eventually I got them down, reading both in the space of three or four day. Long books, but great reads, especially if you like time travel contradictions, or just like London.

Blackout by Connie Willis

Historians in 2060 Oxford, England, are researching thepast. It’s a kind of hands-on research whereby they travel into the past, withs...

Sgt. Ford's Widow by Paul A Barra

 It's been a crazy year, and it's been almost a year since I broke my wrist and stopped being able to write or type. I could still read, of course, but holding a book in my hand and turning pages was... a pain. So... a crazy year.

Anyway, somewhat earlier this year I received an intriguing book through the post. The title, Sgt. Ford's Widow, and the cover image, dark clouds, a man on a horse, and almost a face looking out, certainly caught my interest. And the story, once I started reading, kept ...

Days of Darkness Book Review

Billed as a Hellscapes novel, Stephen Zimmer’s Days of Darkness portrays the gradual descent of a slightly futuristic earth-scape into something of growing horror. First comes the darkness, and a protagonist busy trying to keep things going as normal because, well, what else would you do? The protagonist is relatively wealthy, successful, and not the sort of character to care too much about those he deems beneath him. Yet the author makes the reader care, desperately, about him and about everyon...

Why Write about the Dark?

I love the light - anyone who knows me will know that. But I love to read about "the dark", so when I invited celebrated author Stephen Zimmer to my blog, there was one burning question I had to ask: Why do we Read and Write about the Dark. Here's his answer, and welcome to the blog tour for his new Hellscapes novel, Days of Darkness. (Watch this space for my review, coming soon!)

Why Write and ReadAbout the Dark?
By Stephen Zimmer

 

The question of whether or not to write and read about theDark b...

Science and Faith in Harmony?

 

A while ago I read and reviewed Sy Garte's The Works of His Hands: https://www.amazon.com/Works-His-Hands-Scientists-Journey/dp/0825446074/ I loved it.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3155866467

Faith and science are both a big deal to me of course. Growing up Catholic in England, I was barely aware of any suggestion that they might not be in perfect harmony with each other. After all, weren't the first Western scientists Christians, believing the world consistent enough to be worth investi...

I won a book!

 I won a book!

If you play with Goodreads often enough, you'll find the place where authors offer books to readers. And if you look at the number of copies of each title offered, and the number of people "requesting" it, you'll know you're never likely to win. Hence the exclamation mark. 

I won a book!

Of course, I was out of the country visiting family in the UK when I got the email. So I knew I wouldn't be around to receive the book. But, thank to the US postal service and the fact that we'd plac...