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One Corpse Too Many
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Lee wrote: "I'm here!!!! I've started the book, I was very, very distracted but my big project/event is now over and I plan on enjoying lots of summer reading! Sorry guys. I'm enjoying what I've read so fa..."Ellis Peters never hits you over the head with history and/or historical explanations, they always seem very organic and never tacked on or textbook like. If you enjoy this book, you should go on with the series, but you can most definitely skip the first book of the series.
Was the book that you got bogged down with, The Pillars of the Earth? I could not get into this book, nor could I get into When Christ and His Saints Slept (I don't know, but I have never really gotten much from Sharon Kay Penman).
Laura wrote: "I'm so glad you're enjoying it, Lee! I'm finishing up the last chapter of this one now, but I definitely liked this much better than the first in the series (A Morbid Taste for Bones), and I do ..."
The first book of the series leaves very much to be desired, in my opinion. Glad you are continuing with the series :-)
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Lee wrote: "It was When Christ and His Saints Slept. I started it and read about 100 pages and thought there must be something wrong with me because everyone else raves about her. Maybe it was the wrong book..."I have tried about three or four books by Sharon Kay Penman and was not able to finish any of them. She and I just don't mesh (and maybe it's the same for you).
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Gundula wrote: "Lee wrote: "I'm here!!!! I've started the book, I was very, very distracted but my big project/event is now over and I plan on enjoying lots of summer reading! Sorry guys. I'm enjoying what I'v..."Definitely, the history here has been very easy to absorb (even for me). I've been impressed, and it really wasn't "work" at all, as I thought it would be.
Gundula wrote: "Laura wrote: "I'm so glad you're enjoying it, Lee! I'm finishing up the last chapter of this one now, but I definitely liked this much better than the first in the series (A Morbid Taste for Bon..."
Me too! Thanks, Gundula. Your encouragement has been key, and Chrissie's also.
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Lee wrote: "It was When Christ and His Saints Slept. I started it and read about 100 pages and thought there must be something wrong with me because everyone else raves about her. Maybe it was the wrong book..."Interesting that you two mention When Christ and His Saints Slept, because I was going to ask if anyone in this thread would recommend other books about this time period.
I was actually thinking about non-fiction specifically, but I'm not into dry facts. I think I'd really enjoy learning more about Stephen & Maude as people. But I'm open to good fiction also!
I've tried The Pillars of the Earth, and found his writing dry as dust. I just couldn't do that for 900+ or whatever the page count was.
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Lee wrote: "I hope to finish this weekend. It's nice to think there's a whole series, with a great protagonist, that gets better as it goes along."It really is nice to know that, I agree. It makes me wish I could slip back in time and be a little Godric. ;)
Lee wrote: "Laura, I'll have to defer to Gundula and others. I haven't read anything else set in this period (I think) and my one attempt was a dismal failure!"haha, mine too, it was Pillars instead, but we came to the same end lol.
I liked neither The Pillars of the Earth nor did I enjoy When Christ and His Saints Slept (but as I mentioned previously, I don''t generally like Sharon Kay Penman).
Gundula, are there any books about the period that you can recommend?
Laura wrote: "Gundula, are there any books about the period that you can recommend?"None that come to mind particularly, although for a good and solid overview of the lives of the queens and kings of England, I have always liked Antonia Fraser's Kings and Queens of England.
Laura wrote: "Ok, thanks."I think that Antonia Fraser is or at least was considered the authority on British royalty.
And I have heard good things about She Wolves: The Notorious Queens of Medieval England, but I have not read the book.
I've definitely heard good things about her stuff in the past. Thanks.
Comfort Reads
Books mentioned in this topic
She Wolves: The Notorious Queens of Medieval England (other topics)Kings and Queens of England (other topics)
When Christ and His Saints Slept (other topics)
The Pillars of the Earth (other topics)
When Christ and His Saints Slept (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Sharon Kay Penman (other topics)Alexander McCall Smith (other topics)
I'm finishing up the last chapter of this one now, but I definitely liked this much better than the first in the series (A Morbid Taste for Bones), and I do plan to continue with the third one: Monk's Hood.