Tania's Book Circus
I adore reading and have very wide and varied taste. Some of my favorite genre's include historical fiction, memoirs, fantasy and non-fiction. Some of my best-loved titles are Sandcastle girls, Poisonwood bible, Daughter of the forest, Knife of never letting go, The snow child, The glass castle and Wolf Hall. I love Juliet Marillier, Jodi Picoult, Philippa Gregory, Deon Myer and Bill Bryson. I read approximately 120 books a year, and I try to keep my reviews short and to the point, so you can spend less time reading them and more time reading the books you'll enjoy. Happy reading!
An intriguing idea..
There is no problem, however intractable, that cannot be resolved by the steady application of logic and observation
I love Netgalley, it allows me to choose books I would never otherwise have read. After requesting this title, I really thought I made a mistake. Whodunit's is not really my genre, I new nothing about the romantic poets, and I belatedly noticed that this was the second book in a series. Despite all of this I really enjoyed it.
I was interested in learning more about Percy Bysshe Shelley, Mary Shelley and Claire Clairmont and their contemporaries. I never realized that free love was already a concept in the Victorian age. I was glad that the author explains in detail what is fact and what is fiction in her notes, as it's always difficult reading about a new spin on historical figures if you are not familiar with the basic facts.
I love how vividly she painted London in the 1800's. I thought the writing also reflected the time period very well. It was my first time reading a novel told from a 3rd person omniscient point of view. It was a bit jarring in the beginning, but by the end of the book I quite liked it.
The suspense in A Fatal Likeness was amazing. There was twists on top of twists and layers on layers. Every time you thought that all answers were now revealed, there was yet another revelation waiting in the wings. Charles Maddox (who reminds me quite a bit of Sherlock Holmes) sees the case, and possible answers, from all the suspects point of view.
Thanks mrs. Shepherd, because of your book I've now discovered a new favorite genre - Historical Crime.
The story: When his great-uncle, the master detective who schooled him in the science of "thief taking," is mysteriously stricken, Charles Maddox fears that the old man's breakdown may be directly related to the latest case he's been asked to undertake. Summoned to the home of a stuffy nobleman and his imperious wife, Charles finds his investigative services have been engaged by no less than the son of celebrated poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and his famed widow, Mary, author of the gothic classic "Frankenstein."
