Sharon Kay Penman

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ , She's a mod, yeah, yeah, yeah!]

We were in the obituary thread & going waaaayyyyyyy off topic. (my fault)

I have closed the obituary thread while I transfer the book discussion stuff over. Please, bear with me. :)

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ , She's a mod, yeah, yeah, yeah!]

This thread started in the obituary thread. Then we went off track

Abigail; I keep meaning to read The Sunne in Splendour.

Carol SsN; Believe it or not, Sunne in Splendour is one of the two I own.

Susan in NC; (talking about how she hadn't read Penman before); Same here - the Cadfael series got me curious about the Stephen/Matilda civil war, and I picked up a few of her books at a local used book store. I’ve been assured by a GR friend who’s opinion I respect (Hi, Barb!👋🏻) that they are long but definitely worthwhile reading. So many books...

Abigail; I feel a buddy read coming on . . .

Carol SsN; It is just after our time period (1982) so we can ask the other moderators if they are ok with that. & my reading dance card is full to March, if that is ok.

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ , She's a mod, yeah, yeah, yeah!]

Peggy; As a Ricardian, I’ve had The Sunne in Splendour on my TBR list for ages. I’ll definitely have to move it up now.

Abigail; (Probably thinking I thought Kiwis weren't pushy! 😁) It was just an idle thought! But if the thought materializes, I’d be delighted to read it whenever.

Carol SsN; OK just let me know. I would like to read it if you & Peggy are keen & we can agree on a month. :)

Abigail; Maybe Susan in NC as well? Perhaps April?

Carol SsN: Sounds good. I'll ask my fellow mods if we can set up threads in this group.

Susan in NC; Count me in!

Susan in NC;Works for me! Let us know, Carol, there may be others interested - Barb in Maryland was the one who told me about Penman being worth a read, may be other fans of her work! ;)

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ , She's a mod, yeah, yeah, yeah!]

Barb in Maryland; Hi, since my name has been mentioned as a fan of this author's books , here's some info y'all should have before you plan a buddy read:
If you are talking about doing The Sunne in Splendour, be aware that it is approx 950 pages long.
When Christ and His Saints Slept, which overlaps with Ellis Peters' Cadfael mysteries, is almost 800 pages.
However, The Queen's Man, the first of her mysteries featuring Eleanor of Aquitaine, is a mere 300 pages. AbeBooks has a number of very reasonably priced copies of this one.

Susan in NC; Thanks, Barb! Yes, I dragged you into this discussion...🤣

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ , She's a mod, yeah, yeah, yeah!]

I'll just leave the Obituary thread closed for a bit so the GR system has a chance to keep up with my changes.

1 I have just a couple of issues with the Queen's Man. I don't own a copy & to buy from overseas would be expensive for me - although our $ is worth a little more than usual (US$0.72)

2 Also it wasn't published till 1996 - well after our time period.

3 We have Coronavirus back in the community. So it is possible we will back in Lockdown soon. (Hope not!)

The other book I have is The Reckoning which is third in a series & not published till 1991. Our library system only has two of her 21st century books - & i would be wary of offering to lead a read of a library book ATM till we find out if we do have a Corona breakout.

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ , She's a mod, yeah, yeah, yeah!]

With the Sunne in Splendour I was envisaging a 6 week read & assuming that shorter reads would be happening at the same time.

Thoughts?

[Barb in Maryland]

Carol
I totally understand your concerns. I was just trying to alert everyone that The Sunne in Splendour, if decided upon, was a major undertaking in time and patience.
I am personally very interested in re-reading SiS, as my copy is staring me in the face from its place on my 're-read soonest' shelf.

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ , She's a mod, yeah, yeah, yeah!]

Barb in Maryland wrote: "Carol
I totally understand your concerns. I was just trying to alert everyone that The Sunne in Splendour, if decided upon, was a major undertaking in time and patience.
I am personal..."

No worries! I'm not normally a chunkster reader but this one does look intriguing. & with buddy reads in this group, it is always understood that there may only be a couple of us doing the read. :)

[Susan in NC]

Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ wrote: "We were in the obituary thread & going waaaayyyyyyy off topic. (my fault)

I have closed the obituary thread while I transfer the book discussion stuff over. Please, bear with me. :)"

My fault, too, sorry! And if you and Lesley and Jacinda are typical kiwis, then you are absolutely delightful and put up with a lot from us rowdy Americans, and we thank you for your patience and grace and humor! Sorry we messed up your threads, whatever you and our lovely mods decide is good with us! ;)

Please stay safe and well with Covid rearing it’s ugly head again! 🦠