Cleopatra’s daughter by Michelle Moran

When Octavian’s forces defeat Mark Antony in the battle of Actium, and both Antony and Cleopatra commit suicide afterwards, Selene, her twin brother Alexander and their younger brother Ptolemy lose both their parents. Their older half-brothers Caesarion and Antyllus are also killed by the man who now calls himself ‘Caesar’. Selene and Alexander eventually end up in Rome in the household of Octavian’s sister Octavia, their father’s ex-wife. They both hope to return to Egypt one day, but Octavian rules Rome and his family with an iron fist.

Cleopatra’s daughter brings a mix between ancient Egypt and Augustus’ Rome. I had never read about Selene or her brother before, and the fate of Cleopatra’s children is often just a footnote in history. The novel contains many characters I already knew (but if you’re new to the history, it might all be a bit confusing): Julia, Marcellus, Tiberius, Livia, Octavia, Agrippa…. and of course Augustus who really emerges as a cruel monster. Livia is also a bitch and her son Tiberius a bully. Marcellus, the only son of Octavia, is a golden boy this time. Funny, because in the Domina series about Livia, it’s just the other way around. What perspective can do :).

So, is this the best book about ancient Rome? No, it’s all a bit too light and the storyline about The Red Eagle too obvious and has a very 21st century feel. But it reads incredibly smoothly and I empathised a lot with Selene – however, I think she’s a bit too forgiving. I also thought the opening scenes with Cleopatra were really well done which is not easy as Cleopatra as a character is quite overdone.

Now that I have finished reading her trilogy about Egypt (of which Nefertiti is my favourite), it’s time to pick up one of her Moran’s other books.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

The good death by S.D. Sykes

Oswald de Lacy’s mother is dying. However, she recently found an old letter from Oswald and this forces him to make a confession on her deathbed. A confession about a time when he was still in the convent and found a girl in the forest who subsequently drowned in a river. When he takes her body back to Stonebrook, he learns that several women have disappeared from the village and Oswald sets out to investigate the case together with his mentor Peter.

The good death is the most recent book in the Somershill Manor mystery series and functions as a kind of prequel to the first book ‘Plague land‘ as it takes us back to Oswald’s time before he became lord of Somershill when his father and two older brothers succumbed to the plague.

As a young lad then, he was determined to find the killer of some young poor women from Stonebrook who disappeared one for one from Stonebrook and were never seen since. At the same time, there’s a second perspective of Oswald today at his mother’s deathbed. This part of the story didn’t contribute much in my opinion but was needed to make a link with the previous books.

The mystery is well developed with many different red herrings. And it again reads super smoothly. Oswald remains a naive main character who always gets back on track. However, it isn’t the strongest part of the series and the last one published so far. I wonder if there’ll be a next book, I hope so because this is an entertaining series.

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Have you read this series? Do you have any historical mystery books to recommend?

We were the lucky ones by Georgia Hunter

When the Germans invade Poland, the Polish Jewish family Kurc is broken up. Brothers Genek and Jakob travel to Lviv to fight in the Polish army, but that city is taken by the Russians not much later. Mila and her daughter Felicia move back in with her parents in Radom, where her younger sister Halina also lives, whose fiancé Adam joins the resistance. The third brother Addy learns of the war while living in Paris and, as a Jew, he’s forbidden to return to Poland.

I might start with stating that this book is based on true facts. The author is a granddaughter of Addy Kurc. So no matter how unbelievable the story feels (because it does at times), it did happen.

Poland was one of the most hard-hit countries during WOII, and of all the resident Jews, few survived. They were put to work, evicted from their homes, sent to Siberian camps by the Russians, murdered in a ghetto by the Nazis, buried under the debris of bombs or ended up in a concentration camp. All these horrors are covered in ‘We were the lucky ones‘. And yet of the Kurc family – as the title suggests – almost all of them will survive.

The book tells the story of many lives: Sol and Nechuma, their five children and each of them also has a fiancé/partner. And then you have Felicia, Mila’s daughter who’s a baby when the war breaks out. So it takes some effort to distinguish all the perspectives, and you never build one close bond with any character.

A lot of horrors are covered. But still I missed something. Addy is in Paris when war breaks out and when the French take part in the war, he decides to flee to Brazil. His story of the difficult flight and his not knowing of what’s happening in Europe is also intensely covered in the book and often provides a light-hearted distress. But it also took the pace out of the story a bit at times.

I’m glad Georgia Hunter wrote down her family story. It says a lot about what happened. How many different horrors there were for Polish Jews and how much willpower the survivors must have had.

This book has just been adapted into a series for Disney+ and I hope to watch it.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Have you read anything good about WOII recently?

The queen’s lady by Joanna Hickson

Joan Vaux, Lady Guildford, is a close servant and friend to Queen Elizabeth Of York. But when the heir to the throne Arthur suddenly dies soon after his marriage to the Spanish princess Catherine Of Aragon, Elizabeth is determined to give the king another son. When she dies in childbirth, king Henry VII is so devastated and becomes another man. Joan’s husband Richard Guildford loses the king’s confidence and is imprisoned. Can Joan find a way to free him?

The queen’s lady is the second book about Joan Vaux so it’s recommended that you read ‘Lady of the ravens‘ first. The story covers the last years of Henry VII’s reign. A period when he becomes ‘the winter king’. Joan herself is not a lady-in-waiting, but she does raise Elizabeth’s children: Margaret, Mary and also the new Crown Prince Henry. Joan’s only son Hal is an intimate friend of Henry.

I feel this story lacks some focus. A lot of important events from the Tudor era are covered. Joan gets to know Catherine Of Aragon, but doesn’t quite become a close friend or lady-in-waiting (as the title of the novel suggests). She travels with Princess Margaret to Scotland for a while, she goes with Princess Mary to France, she is at Margaret Beaufort’s deathbed. She still has something with ravens – but doesn’t live in The Tower anymore. She takes a second – much younger – husband. She’s everywhere and nowhere.

And yet it gives a good picture of the instability of The Tudors, even years after the Wars of the Roses. Sometimes you’re in favour, at other times you’re not. For those at the outskirts of the court it proves a difficult life.

I wonder who Hickson will write about next time. I really enjoy reading her work, but these two books about Joan are not my favourites. I still liked to read them, so if you want some Tudor fiction that doesn’t only covers the big names, this is a great choice!

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Seven stones to stand or fall by Diana Gabaldon

Seven Stones to stand or fall collects seven short novellas from the Outlander universe. So this will be a short review as I can’t give a summary, neither can I tell a lot about all these stories as they might contain spoilers for the big books.

There are three short stories about Lord John Grey, that add to the John Grey series and of which ‘Lord John and the zombies’ is my favourite, especially as he meets Mrs. Abernaty in it.

‘Virgins’ is a story about a young Jamie Fraser that I’ve read before and then the other three novels are about side characters from the series (Hal and Minnie, Roger and Joan Mckimmie’s parents and Michael Murray).

My favourite was definitely the Hal and Minnie story (‘A fugitive green’). I love Hal and Minnie in the John Grey series and Hal in the 8th book. Seven stones is published after that one, ‘Written in my own heart’s blood‘, so I recommend reading it after you’ve finished this one.

This book is like a magic box that contains some fun stuff for the fans of this series.

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Medea by Rosie Hewlett

Medea was born a princess of Colchis with a gift from the goddess Hecate: magic – just like her aunt Circe. But her father abhors magic, until he begins to see that it’s also a powerful weapon. When Colchis obtains the Golden Fleece that makes its owner invincible, all heroes of Greece and beyond flock to Colchis to earn it. Among them are Jason and his argonauts. An encounter that will change Medea’s life forever.

I must honestly admit that when I started this book I feared it might not be for me. I love Greek myths, but the story of Jason has never really been quite my thing. But, as it turns out, I just have to read it from Medea’s perspective. Medea was a great Greek retelling that I enjoyed a lot!

Throughout the story you get to know Medea with all her faults. You learn how she is treated badly by the people around her (mainly men), you feel her fears, her anger, her injustice and her helplessness at times. This book really reminded me of Madeline Miller’s ‘Circe‘. And not just because Circe is an important side character. But because you follow Medea throughout her own struggles, along with all these other mythological characters she meets and you begin to understand her. She becomes more than that witch of the well-known myth.

Jason is, as always, an asshole. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look at him in any other way. The book did make me look at the Argonauts differently. In this book, Atalanta was also part of the crew and I found her personality more strongly expressed than in Jennifer Saint’s Atalanta book.

The book is smoothly written with a great pace – even though it’s not a thin book. I’m definitely looking forward to reading more from Hewlett, her book on Medusa is going on my TBR-list.

Medea comes highly recommended for fans of Circe, or of Jennifer Saint’s books. Or for anyone who wants to learn about Medea’s story.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Have you read anything about Medea?

Medea is a Greek myth retelling, I’ve listed all retellings that I’ve read here.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The stone rose by Carol McGrath

Isabella of France is betrothed to the English heir to the throne – the later Edward II. As queen, she soon notices that Edward is under the influence of his favourite Piers Gaveston. It’s even whispered that the two are intimate. Isabella doesn’t believe any of this and also finds it exaggerated when her uncle Thomas Van Lancaster wants to banish Piers from England. But years later, when Hugh Despenser becomes Edward’s new favourite and tries to undermine Isabella, she begins to doubt her husband.

The stone rose is the third book about a she wolf queen by Carol McGrath (after The silken rose and The damask rose). Isabella of France was seen as a she wolf even more than her predecessors because with the help of her brother, the King of France, and Roger Mortimer, she starts a rebellion against her husband to get her son – also Edward – on the English throne.

In this story, we get to know a young naive Isabella and it takes her a very long time to realise that Edward’s favourites could be dangerous. There’s a big focus on all the political power games at court and as a result I found the book a bit muddling along at times.

At the same time, we also follow Agnes, a female stonemason whose father died of the plague. She is thrown out of her bed by Gregory who serves Isabella. Isabella – now at the end of her life – would like that Agnes makes her headstone. This story is only very sparsely developed and not directly proportional to the Queen’s perspectieve as in the previous two books. For me Agnes wasn’t very relevant to read about as Isabella’s story is just told to her. I don’t really understand Mcgrath’s choice to include her like this.

Once Isabella starts her rebellion the story picks up more and you get sympathy for her and Mortimer. We’ll never know what really happened to Edward II, but McGrath proposes here what some other historians might subscribe, so it’s a fine suggestion.

I just didn’t like this book as much as the previous two. Maybe also because I already knew a lot about Isabella and the day-to-day politics didn’t interest me as much? This book lacked a really fleshed-out second perspective that could add something. And Agnes did not provide that. I think my favourite book in the series is ‘The silken rose‘.

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Have you read anything about Isabella Of France or Edward II?

The other Gwyn girl by Nicola Cornick

In the 17th century, Rose Gwyn ends up in jail when she tried to steal the crown jewels with her husband. She has to plead with her sister Nell, the king’s famous mistress, for her freedom. In the 21st century, Jess moves to Fortune Hall where her famous sister Tavy is running a TV show, after a break-up with her fraudulent boyfriend. There is a rumour that once Nell Gwyn would have walked in these corridors.

Nicola Cornick has already written several stories with so-called dual timelines. In ‘The other Gwyn girl’, she chooses Rose Gwyn, the unknown sister of Nell Gwyn as a main character. And I quite liked that choice because it introduced me to a historical character who was new to me. Rose is brave and headstrong and tries to be independent but she lives in the shadow of her more famous sister. A feeling modern-day Jess experiences also.

As always, the contemporary story worked less for me. The parallels between Rose and Jess are rather cliché and the whole story around Tavy and her influencer status seems off the mark. We also see some previous characters from Cornick’s other books – I haven’t read them all so I didn’t always knew the characters. A few of them have paranormal powers and I found that too much at times. There is also Francesca who pop ups with certain predictions, but her gift is never explained.

And yet Cornick’s books read like a train. There are entertaining reads. And I definitely want to read some more about Nell Gwyn and perhaps her sister Rose.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

The ghost ship by Kate Mosse

Louise Reydon-Joubert travels to Paris with her grandparents Minou and Piet to collect her father’s inheritance who died together with Louise’s mother Martha. But when the king is assassinated, it’s no longer safe for Huguenots in the city. Louise does now have enough money to support her own household in La Rochelle, a protestant stronghold, and she also buys her own ship. When she saves young Gilles from his mother and her abusive husband, the two form a deep bond. One that will lead them to the Barbary Coast and a life of piracy and danger. And the stakes are high, as both Louise and Gilles carry a secret with them.

The ghost ship is the third book in this series and for the first time, the focus is not entirely on the Huguenot Wars. The book begins by wrapping up the story of Piet, Minou and, to some extent, Martha. Her daughter Louise has her own ambitions, but being a female on a ship is no easy road in the 17th century.

This story is very different from the previous ones, but I still really liked it, even though the ending is abrupt and I can only hope that a next book will provide me with some answers.

Female pirates are barely written about, however, in this novel piracy isn’t the main plot. But the story does offer an insight on the harsh life on sea during an age of slavery and piracy.

I didn’t necessarily like Gilles’ story the most, but his relationship with Louise is nicely developed. This novel offers as well some insight on the murder of Henry IV, the Inquisition on the Spanish islands, and the life of Huguenot refugees in Amsterdam and La Rochelle.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Have you read this series? Can you recommend some other novels about (female) pirates?

Stormbird by Conn Iggulden

William De La Pole and Derry Brewer seek a way to obtain peace in the Hundred-Years War between England and France – at the request of king Henry VI who is nothing like his warlike father Henry V. A marriage between Henry and the French princess Margaret Of Anjou is thus in the making. But returning Maine and Anjou to the French is a thorn in the side of the English people living there and of Richard Of York, commander of Calais who sees himself as heir to the throne.

I am a huge fan of Iggulden’s series about Caesar, even if not all of it was historically accurate, and I also enjoyed his series on ancient Athens. Stormbird is the first volume of four about the English Wars of the Roses, so this couldn’t go wrong right?

The problem here lies in the many fictional perspectives that Iggulden brings to life. Derry Brewer never existed, neither did Thomas Woodchurch. Jack Cade did exist – at least we think so, but actually we know nothing about him. Their stories serve to illustrate the impact of war on the common man and soldier. 60% of the story is about them and is written in such a way that I did not get an emotional connection with those characters. If you want to read about the common people during the Wars Of The Roses, I recommend Toby Clemens’ Kingmaker series.

The perspectives of the fictional characters are interspersed with those of Margaret Of Anjou, William De La Pole, Richard of York and Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick (the Kingmaker). These are real historical figures and I enjoyed reading about them. This book seems to treat all sides neutrally. But this is a pro Lancaster book. York is a big self-centred idiot who won’t get anywhere without his Neville supporters. Which is close to reality in my opinion – I’m not the biggest Richard Of York fan :). Most books are always pro York so this was refreshing to read.

But the many perspectives make for a book with a strange pace, one that goes in all directions. And Stormbird takes considerable license from history here and there. Because of all this, I don’t think this makes me want to read the next part right away. I might pick up Iggulden’s Athenian series again first.

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Have you read anything by Iggulden?