Jane Litte's Blog, page 103

REVIEW: The Maid of Honour by Dinah Dean

“Have you found that ideal man yet?”

There was only one man at the court of King Charles II that Miss Mary Hook could contemplate marrying — Prince Rupert was undoubtedly the most interesting, most intelligent, most honorable, chivalrous and handsome man at Court. If only she could find a man like him — but attainable, and country-loving, with no desire to spend his life at Whitehall. Perhaps she had — and thrown away her chance when she had refused to marry Francis Hartwell. He had saved her ...

REVIEW: Walk on the Wilder Side by Serena Bell

Dear Serena Bell,

I’ve enjoyed your books before so when I saw Walk on the Wilder Side at NetGalley I took a closer look. I want to say that the book is light-hearted – and for the most part I certainly experienced it that way – but there are some heavier topics canvassed, namely cheating and job loss and Brody’s arc includes finding his place as a non-screw-up adult within his family, within himself. Perhaps it’s more that there are plenty of lighter moments and that Rachel and Brody’s relations...

REVIEW: Auspicious Animals by Jun’ichi Uchiyama

The world of mythical creatures born from human imagination.

Many imaginary animals believed to be auspicious symbols of good fortune originated in ancient China. The most famous ones are the “Big Four”: the Winged Dragon, the Chinese Phoenix, Qilin (a hooved chimeric creature) and the Spirit Turtle. There are many more, not only from China, but also from Japan and other regions around the world. This book showcases illustrated artworks, along with sculptures and applied arts, featuring these ...

REVIEW: Luisa Roldan by Catherine Hall-van den Elsen

This initial book in the groundbreaking new series Illuminating Women Artists is the first English-language monograph on the extraordinary Spanish Baroque sculptor Luisa Roldán.

Luisa Roldán (1652–1706), also known as La Roldana, was an accomplished Spanish Baroque artist, much admired during her lifetime for her exquisitely crafted and painted wood and terracotta sculptures. Roldán trained under her father and worked in Seville, Cádiz, and Madrid. She even served as sculptor to the royal cham...

REVIEW: For My Lady’s Heart by Laura Kinsale

This is the penultimate book in my Laura Kinsale rereadapalooza – number 11 of 12. I have put off rereading For My Lady’s Heart for sort of complicated reasons. When I read it back in the day, I really did love it – I loved all of the Kinsale books that I first read in the 1990s. But at the same time, I felt like I didn’t love it enough. It seemed like legitimate Kinsale fans had For My Lady’s Heart in their top two or three. It wasn’t there for me, and I always felt a little embarrassed for th...

Review: A Case for Christmas (The Lords of Bucknall Club #2) by J.A. Rock and Lisa Henry

He loves no-one and never will.

Lord Christmas Gale is a genius and a misanthrope, and, quite to his disgust, adored by all of Society for his capacity to solve mysteries. When a man approaches him seeking help in locating a lost dog, Gale rebuffs him. But what begins with a missing dog ends in murder and intrigue–two of Gale’s favourite things, if it weren’t for the orphan that comes attached to them. Oh, and Benjamin Chant.

He has sworn to never love again.

The Honourable Mr. Benjamin Chant i...

REVIEW: Danny Chung Sums It Up by Maisie Chan, illustrated by Natelle Quek

A touching and funny middle-grade story about a boy whose life is turned upside down when his Chinese grandmother moves in

Eleven-year-old Danny’s life is turned upside down when his Chinese grandmother comes to live with his family in England. Things get worse when Danny finds out he’ll have to share his room with her, and she took the top bunk! At first, Danny is frustrated that he can’t communicate with her because she doesn’t speak English—and because he’s on the verge of failing math and ...

REVIEW: The Whole World Inside Nan’s Soup by Hunter Liguore, illustrated by Vikki Zhang

There’s something special bubbling in Nanni’s big metal pot. And it smells delicious! What ingredients might be inside? When Nanni lifts the lid on her soup, she reveals the whole world inside: from the seeds that grew into vegetables, to the gardeners who lovingly tended to the plants, to the sun, moon, and stars that shone its light above them. And, of course, no meal is complete without a recipe passed down generations of family, topped and finished with a Nanni’s love.

In this tender tale ...

REVIEW: Ancient Egypt by Peter Mavrikis

From the Neolithic cave paintings in Wadi Sura – created long before it was a desert when the region was savannah grassland – to the Valley of the Kings to the rock-cut temples at Abu Simbel, and from the vast temple complexes at Karnak and Luxor to the funerary mask of Tutankhamun and, of course, to the pyramids and the Sphinx, Ancient Egypt is a hugely colourful guide to the surviving wonders of Egyptian antiquity. Today the exceptional beauty and scale of the antiquities is legendary, drawi...

REVIEW: Daughter of Sekhmet by Sally Watson

A paraquel to “The Next Pharaoh.”

General Horemheb is confident of becoming Pharaoh when Ay dies childless. Over-confident? He understands men. But not, alas, women, who are as unpredictable and disobedient as cats. The gods, possibly offended, challenge him with plots, pretenders, disappearances, assassins, magic, and willful women–not to mention an imperious kitten who rides his shoulder and whose goddess he had better not offend! Becoming the Next Pharaoh turns out more complicated than he ...