society Archives - The Quick and the Read

Book Review: ‘A Power Unbound’ by Freya Marske

In this novel, we meet the mean and moody Jack Alston (Lord Hawthorne) who is living in the shadow of his sister’s loss and has renounced his magical skills. However, storm clouds are gathering for the magical society of Edwardian England; the pieces of the Last Contract need collecting and bringing together by those on the side of good – before those with evil intent can get there first. Along with the various characters from previous books, Jack gets caught up in the magical battle that plays out in the grounds of his family estate. Along the way, he has to fight his attraction to criminal and pornographer Alan Ross…

This is Book 3 of The Last Binding trilogy by Freya Marske – and it’s an absolute treat for those who’ve enjoyed the first two books. It might not be the place to start if you haven’t as Marske’s alternative Edwardian society with an undercurrent of magic takes some wrapping your head round, as does the Last Contract plot and the recurring characters across the trilogy.

Book Review: ‘Etta Lemon: The Woman Who Saved The Birds’ by Tessa Boase

I’ll admit that I came to this book for perhaps strange reasons – I’d heard that it was originally published as ‘Mrs Pankhurst’s Purple Feather: Fashion, Fury and Feminism’ and that sounded right up my street. I didn’t know who Etta Lemon was, but I settled in for a good read about suffragettes and their fancy outfits.

It was kind of half what I expected, but all fascinating!

Book Review: ‘The Tumbling Girl’ by Bridget Walsh

Brutal murder in a Victorian music hall? A feisty heroine? Humour and twists galore? Definitely count me in!

Thanks to Gallic Books for sending me a copy of this book for review – as always, opinions are my own.

Book Review: ‘The New Life’ by Tom Crewe

This book has been garnering fabulous advance reviews so I wanted to read it to see what the fuss was about! Thanks to NetGalley for granting me a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.,

The novel focuses on two unconventional marriages in late-Victorian England. The first couple, John and Catherine Addington, have older children who have flown the nest, something that gives John more freedom with which to pursue a relationship with Frank, a working-class painter. The second marriage, between Henry and Edith Ellis, is dealing with Edith’s love for the jealous and strong-willed Angelica. Both John and Henry think a ‘New Life’ is possible, with people able to lead their authentic lives – and it is this that brings them to co-author a controversial new science book on homosexuality. When Oscar Wilde’s trial takes centre stage in society, both men are forced to consider the costs and repercussions of living this ‘New Life’.

Blog Tour: ‘Class: A Graphic Guide’

Something different for the blog today – I was invited to review a graphic guide to class by Laura Harvey, Sarah Leaney and Danny Noble.

This is a gorgeously-illustrated book – thanks to Random Things Tours and Icon Books for my copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Book Review: ‘A Lady’s Guide to Fortune-Hunting’ by Sophie Irwin

I don’t usually read a lot of historical romance, but this one proved irresistible. The recommendations promised ‘witty’, ‘fun’ and ‘sassy’ which I’m absolutely here for, so I was pleased to be granted a copy by NetGalley for review. As always, opinions are entirely my own.

Blog Tour: ‘The Language of Food’ by Annabel Abbs

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘The Language of Food’ by Annabel Abbs, a fabulous historical novel out on 3rd February, 2022.

Thanks to Random Things Tours and Simon and Schuster for my place on the tour and my copy of the book for review. As always, opinions are entirely my own.

(Audio)Book Review: ‘Eligible’ by Curtis Sittenfeld

Modern retelling of ‘Pride and Prejudice’? Written by Curtis Sittenfeld, author of the brilliant ‘Prep’ (amongst many other fab books)? Sign me up!

I was definitely intrigued about this book and it has been vaguely on my radar for a few years (it was published in 2016). When it popped up as an audiobook suggestion on BorrowBox, I thought I needed to give it a try.

How on earth could ‘Pride and Prejudice’, with its Georgian mores and sensibilities, be dragged into modern-day America? I had to find out.

‘Just Like You’ by Nick Hornby

Released this week – a new book from Nick Hornby is always an event in my diary!

I feel like I should declare my love of Nick Hornby books at the start of this review – I usually love the dialogue and the insight into people and the humour of Hornby’s writing. Indeed, ‘High Fidelity’ is up there with my absolute favourite novels and I think I’ve read pretty much all his work.

This book had so much promise – essentially an age gap romance between a 42 year-old white woman (Lucy) and a 22 year-old black man (Joseph) set against the Brexit referendum. There’s loads of scope for exploration of people’s attitudes to race, class, age, 21st century British society…so far, so good!

And indeed, a lot of this is delivered upon very well by Hornby – he perfectly captures, for example, the rage caused by Brexit on both sides of the Leave/Remain debate. Lucy’s job as a teacher also struck a chord with me as reflecting my own life.

However, it’s not a perfect novel. While it’s enjoyable and interesting, it doesn’t quite hit the spot for a romance as it’s too messy and makes you wonder what the appeal is in the relationship, especially for Lucy who tolerates some pretty poor behaviour from Joseph. It felt a bit more like social commentary than a fully absorbing novel in places.

Overall, I would say this is an engaging and light read with some interesting points about British culture in the age of Brexit and Black Lives Matter. Whether it works as a romance is more up for debate – it didn’t for me. If you like Hornby’s writing (as I do) then you’ll probably like this, but for everyone else then I’d start with ‘High Fidelity’ or ‘About a Boy’ as Hornby’s real masterpieces.

I received a free copy of the novel from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

You can buy this book using the link below – I may earn commission on purchases at no extra cost to you.

Header photo with thanks to Jude Beck for sharing their work on Unsplash.

‘A Little London Scandal’ by Miranda Emmerson

Another book released on 20th August, this is a lovely piece of historical fiction with a mystery at its heart – right up my street!

I’d read (and loved) ‘Miss Treadway and the Field of Stars’ a while back, but picked ‘A Little London Scandal’ up without realising that it featured the same characters. It doesn’t matter too much if you haven’t read the first book, but you would be missing an absolute treat.

In this book, the sixties are swinging, but for Nik and the rent boys based around Piccadilly Circus all is not so bright. Police raids and violence threaten their livelihoods and the murder of one of them, Charlie, near an exclusive gentlemen’s club, causes them to come under some unwelcome scrutiny. When Nik is arrested for the murder, Anna Treadway, dresser at the Galaxy Theatre in Soho, steps in to prove his innocence. Her investigations take her into the heart of seedy London but also reveal corruption within high society.

This is another great read. The 1960s setting is lively and well-researched and Anna herself is an appealing protagonist (as we discovered in the first book). She is moral, motivated to help others and kind – but her softer character should absolutely not be interpreted as weakness and she is also flawed and human.

It is quite sad in places as the prejudice against gay men is depicted and the reader is shown that the 1960s were not all about free love and tolerance as they have been presented. The early pages are a little slow, but once the story really gets going then it is addictive! I raced through the majority of the book and will be keenly looking out for more titles in the series.

I would recommend this highly to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, especially connected to issues of gender and sexuality. I really would suggest you start with the first book though, otherwise you risk missing out on a charming novel that establishes this great protagonist.

I received a free copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If you would like to buy this book, the link is below – The Quick and the Read may earn commission on this at no extra cost to you.

Photo by Jeremy Dean Bourbeau from Burst