Goodreads Review: Final thoughts: King Arthur was kind of a dick, but I still cried when he … well he didn’t die, but you know what I mean. They may not be the deepest of thoughts but they are mine. Excellent book, five out of five stars ⭐️
Goodreads Blurb: England in the 1520s is a heartbeat from disaster. If the king dies without a male heir, the country could be destroyed by civil war. Henry VIII wants to annul his marriage of twenty years and marry Anne Boleyn. The pope and most of Europe opposes him. Into this impasse steps Thomas Cromwell: a wholly original man, a charmer and a bully, both idealist and opportunist, astute in reading people, and implacable in his ambition. But Henry is volatile: one day tender, one day murderous. Cromwell helps him break the opposition, but what will be the price of his triumph?
Goodreads Review: I’d enjoyed the BBC version when it came out a while back, and I was pleased to find that the book not only meets it in quality but surpasses it.
The First Fossil Hunters: Paleontology in Greek and Roman Times by Adrienne Mayor
Goodreads Blurb: Griffins, Centaurs, Cyclopes, and Giants–these fabulous creatures of classical mythology continue to live in the modern imagination through the vivid accounts that have come down to us from the ancient Greeks and Romans. But what if these beings were more than merely fictions? What if monstrous creatures once roamed the earth in the very places where their legends first arose? This is the arresting and original thesis that Adrienne Mayor explores in The First Fossil Hunters. Through careful research and meticulous documentation, she convincingly shows that many of the giants and monsters of myth did have a basis in fact–in the enormous bones of long-extinct species that were once abundant in the lands of the Greeks and Romans.
Greek Mythology Explained: A Deeper Look at Classical Greek Lore and Myth by Marios Christou and David Ramenah
Goodreads Blurb: A fascinating take on classical Greek stories: Discover six classic Greek myths in this exciting retelling that paints both famous and lesser well known characters in a whole new light. Follow the likes of Odysseus, Lamia, Bellerophon, Icarus, Medusa and Artemis as their fates are revealed through bloody trials, gut-wrenching betrayals, sinister motives and broken hearts. With an accessible writing style that delves into the thoughts, feelings, desires, and motivations of every character, these mythical figures and their compelling stories will resonate with readers as they are guided through perilous and tragic adventures.
Goodreads Review: A cool new take on several Greek myths, I think my favourite was Artemis & Orion, but that’s just me. I’ve always loved a bit of doomed romance.
Goodreads Blurb: Lady of the Tudor Court, servant of queens, courtier, wife, spy… and constant heart. This is the story of Jane Boleyn, Lady Rochford. In death she would become infamous, yet in life passed often unseen. Jane Parker, daughter of the scholar Lord Morley, leaves her home at a tender age, embarking on a career in the dangerous Tudor Court. From the halls of her father’s house to the palaces of London, from England to Calais and the Field of the Cloth of Gold Jane will travel, seeing much of this world, and others. Promised in marriage to George Boleyn, Jane is drawn into the future of his family and their advancement… and as Anne Boleyn catches the eye of the King, Jane becomes part of the tempest about to be unleashed upon England.
Goodreads Review: This book grips you right from the start and doesn’t let go until its end – where upon it lets you fly forward and slam your head against the wall. Struggling up you moan ‘no, no, that can’t be it, there has to be more. What happens next, woman, what happens next?’ And then you realise, there’s a sequel and your mind is eased … for now.
Goodreads Blurb: Regarded as yet another threat to the volatile King Henry VII’s claim to the throne, Margaret Pole, cousin to Elizabeth of York (known as the White Princess) and daughter of George, Duke of Clarence, is married off to a steady and kind Lancaster supporter—Sir Richard Pole. For his loyalty, Sir Richard is entrusted with the governorship of Wales, but Margaret’s contented daily life is changed forever with the arrival of Arthur, the young Prince of Wales, and his beautiful bride, Katherine of Aragon. Margaret soon becomes a trusted advisor and friend to the honeymooning couple, hiding her own royal connections in service to the Tudors.
Goodreads Blurb: As sisters they share an everlasting bond; As queens they can break each other’s hearts.
“There is only one bond that I trust: between a woman and her sisters. We never take our eyes off each other. In love and in rivalry, we always think of each other.”
When Katherine of Aragón is brought to the Tudor court as a young bride, the oldest princess, Margaret, takes her measure. With one look, each knows the other for a rival, an ally, a pawn, destined—with Margaret’s younger sister Mary—to a sisterhood unique in all the world. The three sisters will become the queens of England, Scotland, and France.
Goodreads Review: Or as it should also be known – Damn it Maggie, not again! : Falling upwards the Tudor Story. A fascinating look into the mind of one of the lesser known siblings of Henry VIII, and her various trials as first wife and later mother to a Scottish king. Along with her rivalry and relationships with her ‘sisters’ Mary Brandon and Catherine of Aragon. My God is Catherine a bitch in this book.
Ancient Skies: Constellation Mythology of the Greeks by David Weston Marshall
Goodreads Blurb: Look to the sky and see the stories in the stars The stars and constellations are among the few remaining objects that appear to us just as they appeared to our distant ancestors. From anywhere on Earth, a person may view the celestial panorama simply by stepping outside at night and gazing upward. This non- fiction narrative presents the tales of the forty- eight classical constellations, compiled from literature spanning a thousand years from Homer (c. 800 BC) to Claudius Ptolemy (c. 150 AD).
Goodreads Review: A fascinating delve into the skies of Ancient Greece, and stories and philosophies that abounded down from them. My favourite is the stories of the Big and Little Bear – which are slightly different than the myths I’d heard about them before 😁⭐️
Goodreads Blurb: Omega Gray Tomlinson is positive he’ll remain unmated for the rest of his life. By his mid-thirties, he remains unclaimed and without prospects, and lives confined to the Omega Quadrant, where he’s sure he’ll end up dying alone.
When his older brother, Silver, and Silver’s alpha die in a tragic accident, Gray’s nephews come to live in his little sequestered world. Without an alpha, he knows he has little means to help support the boys. The only choice he can stomach is to offer his services as a surrogate.
Alexander does rather like the word ‘melt’ and uses it to describe anyone, including himself, who he considers to be being cowardly.
Excerpt: I know I’m being a coward, a monumentally massive melt in fact, by doing it this way, hiding away instead of facing everyone. But, it’s all I can do. I couldn’t make my legs carry me out of this room just now even if I wanted to, even if my ankle was fine.
Alexander: Dancing with Fire
When Alexander turns eighteen, he learns that he has inherited a castle, the one that houses the dance school he attends, to be exact. He’s always wanted a do-over, a chance to fix the broken parts of himself and his life. Could this be it?
Instead of allowing the school to continue on as normal, Alexander throws the students and teachers out and claims the castle as his own.
At first he’s lonely. At first he’s hesitant. Will he have any friends left after this? The events of his uncle’s televised wedding at the castle prove that, while Alexander definitely still has friends, his broken ankle is actually the least damaged part of him.
Within the ancient castle walls, a world of dark family secrets is revealed. Join Alexander as he dances on the edge of sanity and survival, navigating through the flames of his turbulent past to forge a new future.
The Wee Writing Lassie 