Monthly Group Reads: APRIL 2014 (Group Read 2): Raiders from the North by Alex Rutherford

[Margaret, Sherlockian Sheila]

Yaaayyyy. Glad it arrived safely. :D

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

me too. :D


Didn't start last night. Too sleepy to read.

[Shelley]

Dawn wrote: "I am tired of the.....hold on I need to find the right term......exposition. There seems to be a whole lot of Babur explaining things to himself instead of actual storyline. Too much info dump and not enough incorporation into the story for me. "

I agree entirely with Dawn, here, and with lots of other folks who've commented on this thread. I'm very interested in India's history ( though my favorite period, the time of the Buddha, is so mixed up with mythology and legend it's a real challenge for historians, but that's a topic for a different thread) and was looking forward to learning more about the Mughal period.

In fairness, I am learning a lot about Babur from this volume, and I do give the authors of "Raiders" full credit for that, but I find myself wishing I was just reading Babur's actual autobiography. The point of historical fiction for me is to be totally immersed in an historical period by characters of that time and place who come alive in the book. So far no one has really captured my emotions, and though there's a lot of detail, Babur's world hasn't become real to me.

Not sure I will take up the rest of the series.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

I haven't read anymore of the book since I read 10 pages a week ago. :(
Lost my reading mojo. Hoping to rekindle it today. Going to make myself pick the book up again this afternoon.

[Dawn]

I didn't have a very good reading day myself, I hope yours is better! :)

[Michal]

I liked the book until they got to India - I live in tropics now and reading about the horrible climate while experiencing it is just too much. To me it read like Genghis: Birth of an Empire, which on one hand seems quite appropriate since they are related, but on the other hand it seems quite inconsistent since many of you mentioned that Babur was quite sophisticated. I gave it 3.7 stars in the end, but I am a sucker of the landscape the book is set in.

[Carolien]

I agree that the character development could have been done better, but it's quite a life to be crammed in just over 400 pages. However, I haven't been able to find any other books (other than serious scholarly tomes) that cover this empire in a fair amount of detail. Having been to Agra and Delhi and seen some of the monuments that remain of the Moghul empire, I'd like to follow the story of the 6 emperors. This would seem to be my best option for the moment, so I would read the remaining books over time.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

Dawn wrote: "I didn't have a very good reading day myself, I hope yours is better! :)"


It was a fail. :(
Trying again today.

[Jesse]

Just got mine in the mail yesterday. About 46 pages in and I'm quite enojying myself. Extremely refreshing after attempting to suffer through a massive Follett earlier this month.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

I am actually finding the writing quite good. I wasn't expecting that.

[Jesse]

Terri wrote: "I am actually finding the writing quite good. I wasn't expecting that."

I agree. I had not read any Rutherford before and did not know what to expect but for how little hype this book has been given...it is a pretty good one. Details are not skipped over so you can get an authentic feel for the time while still having decently-written action scenes. I'd recommend it to my HF friends.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

I haven't really been getting into the book. I think it is due to my lack of interest in this era of history.
I am the same with Roman stuff. I usually have to be into the history and if I am not, I feel I am forcing myself to read something I don't want to read.

I am not sure how I would rate this one. or how I will even review it...I am thinking two stars. I am sure it would be three stars if i were interested in the history.

[Lia]

Finished and gave it 4 stars.

(view spoiler)[Why was it that when Babur fought in close combat, he tripped and slipped? (hide spoiler)]

[Sceadugenga]

Terri wrote: "I haven't really been getting into the book. I think it is due to my lack of interest in this era of history.
I am the same with Roman stuff. I usually have to be into the history and if I am not, ..."

That is more or less the same feeling I had while I was reading it. I was also really interested in starting something else set in another period and couldn't wait to finish.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

Sceadugenga wrote: "I was also really interested in starting something else set in another period and couldn't wait to finish. ."

I suffered from this. Couldn't wait to finish it so I could get my head out of this era and into a different one.

Not a bad book. I don't think it was bad at all. Just not my cup of tea from a history perspective.

[Dawn]

And here I thought it was a crap book but it definitely fueled an interest in the era for me! :)

[Carolien]

I completed it and quite enjoyed it. I visited Agra in 2012 and saw the Red Fort. As you arrive in Agra there is a mosque and what I think is Humayun's tomb on the outskirts. Interesting buildings by themselves, but completely ignored by the tourist guides who are focused on the Fort and Taj. Having read the book, I can now kick myself for not insisting that we go and look at them.

I found a non-fiction book from India in my shelves that cover the period. The author devotes 34 pages to Babur, but it fills in some gaps.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

Carolien wrote: "I completed it and quite enjoyed it. I visited Agra in 2012 and saw the Red Fort. As you arrive in Agra there is a mosque and what I think is Humayun's tomb on the outskirts. Interesting buildings ..."

Thanks for those visuals Carolien. I always enjoy when people share these kinds of visuals in the group reads.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

This is my sort-of-a review. ;)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Dawn]

You sound so apologetic in that review. :)

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

I felt it. I hate myself when I don't give a book due care...if I feel it deserved it:(

[Carolien]

I've just finished the second book in the series about Humayun's reign, Brothers At War which I found an easier read than the first one. Humayun is a less complex character than his father and his life was quite well documented by his half sister and one of his aides.

I also used Madhulika Liddle's blog at http://madhulikaliddle.com/ which has quite a bit of information on the tombs of the emperor and some other related parties in Delhi.

[Terri, Wyrd bið ful aræd]

That's great, Carolien. Thanks so much for updating members on book two and for adding that link.

I don't think I liked the first one enough to try the second one, but I know some members who didn't mind the first one and might be tempted to try the next after reading your feedback.