HISTORICAL
FICTION
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The Radical's Arms
by Satirical
cartoon lampooning the excesses of the Revolution as seen from England
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François
Rabelais
(c. 1494 – 1553): Major French Renaissance writer, doctor and
Renaissance humanist. He has historically been regarded as a writer of
fantasy, satire, the grotesque, and both bawdy jokes and songs.
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Alexander Pope
(1688 –1744) regarded as the greatest English poet of the eighteenth
century. Painting: Jean-Baptiste van Loo |
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BOOK
ILLUMINATIONS
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The Counterfeit Guest
by Rose Melikan
Wonderful sequel
Now a year later in 1796, Mary Finch
has inherited the estate of White Ladies. A school teacher before
this change in her fortune, Mary now turns her attention from her own
predicament to her friend Susannah and her marriage to Colonel
Crosby-Nash. Is she truly happy in her new marriage?
Adventure seems to find Mary Finch wherever she goes, and her trip to
the Crosby-Nash estate is no exception. With the revelation from
spymaster Cuthbert Shy that her friend's husband is a traitor, Mary
sets out to discover the truth. Danger mounts as her contact to
Shy is suddenly disrupted and she draws suspicion to herself.
Meanwhile, Captain Robert Holland seeks to uncover a mutinous plot that
might endanger the realm. Troubled by Mary's change in financial
position, Captain Holland breaks off contact with her. As danger
mounts on all sides, each longing for the other, will adventure and
espionage bring the two together? Will they be able to stop the
plans that threaten friend and realm?
Following the previous novel THE
BLACKSTONE KEY chronologically, THE
COUNTERFEIT GUEST revisits the delightful world of Mary Finch
and
Captain Robert Holland. Like her previous novel, Rose Melikan's THE
COUNTERFEIT GUEST
has a delightful combination of period dialogue, manners and mores as
well as suspenseful action that hinges on an intriguing historical
detail. Rose Melikan does an excellent job at detailing the
political and social atmosphere in England as the French Revolution
haunts the imagination beyond France. The details of the mystery
bring to light a lesser known but fascinating aspect of English
history. Best of all, history itself is at the center of the plot
denouement. Mary Finch's character is true to the times and yet,
her spirited, daring nature reaches beyond the typical position of
women, thus making her a delightful character for today's historical
fiction lover. Intelligent, practical, gutsy, and above all
filled with an imagination, Mary is also an adventuress. Her
character leads the story, and yet in this, the second novel, Rose
Melikan integrates Captain Holland more fully into the focus as she
shifts scenes between the two. Seeing him through his own
internal thoughts is a wonderful development in this series.
Fans of the series will find a delightful continuation and development
in the series in this the second book. Whereas THE BLACKSTONE KEY focuses
more on Mary Finch and her thoughts, creating the setting through
characterization and historical detail, THE COUNTERFEIT GUEST is
rightfully more action and plot focused. Readers familiar with
the series will feel right at home and appreciate being able to jump
right into the world without slow, cumbersome rehashings of the first
striking, memorable novel. The first book is still so memorable a
year later that fans simply do not need a long refreshment of
details. Although THE
COUNTERFEIT GUEST can be
read as a stand-alone, this reader recommends reading both and reading
the series in order. The author builds such a delightful portrait
of Mary Finch in the first book that missing this introduction to her
would be a shame. THE COUNTERFEIT
GUEST flows so naturally from
the first, not only in terms of plot but also in terms of writing
style. Rose Melikan brings the period to life in her language,
characters and fascinating historical detail. THE
COUNTERFEIT GUEST is a very fine
example of the best of historical fiction. This reader anxiously
awaits the third book in the series, with the hope that Mary Finch and
her adventures will continue long after the next installment.
Publisher: Touchstone (August 2009)
Author
website
Reviewed by Merrimon,
Merrimon Book Reviews
Review
Courtesy of Amazon
Vine
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