Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

British Historical Fiction

Posted on April 29, 2020 by smellincoffee

This is an index post of historical fiction set in Britain that I originally published in November 2016. I’ve just updated to keep it current. The order of books is roughly chronological. Ancient and Legendary BritainStonehenge, Bernard CornwellThe Winter King: … Continue reading →

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Cruel as the Grave

Posted on April 28, 2020 by smellincoffee

Cruel as the Grave: A Medieval Mystery © 1998 Sharon Kay Penman 274 pages Justin de Quincy has a problem. Several problems, actually.   Chiefly, there’s the fact that his king is presumed captured overseas, and possibly dead, while the king’s … Continue reading →

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The Bright Blue Sky

Posted on April 27, 2020 by smellincoffee

© 1983 Max Hennessy 250 pages High above was a layer of stratus, ice-white so that the sky seemed full of light, and Dicken knew against it they were silhouetted perfectly, a wonderful target for the ground gunners. Dicken Quinney … Continue reading →

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The Weather Machine

Posted on April 25, 2020 by smellincoffee

The Weather Machine: How We See Into the Future ©  2019 Andrew Blum 224 pages How do we know what the forecast will be?  Well, we don’t — yesterday my chances of afternoon rain were supposedly minimal, and yet by … Continue reading →

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An English shield-maiden and England’s army

Posted on April 20, 2020 by smellincoffee

Time for two mini-reviews! First up, The Making of the British Army.   Retired brigadier Allan Mallinson  traces the history of Britain’s army to the creation of the New Model Army during the English civil war. Unlike armies of old, the … Continue reading →

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The White Horse King

Posted on April 8, 2020 by smellincoffee

© 2009 Benjamin Merkle 272 pages It reads like the best of high-stakes adventure stories: a young,  conscientious king watches as his neighbors fail to unite to the creeping threat of the Norsemen, and fall in their time, one by by … Continue reading →

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The Beast

Posted on April 7, 2020 by smellincoffee

The Beast: Riding the Rails and Dodging Narcos on the Migrant Trail © 2014 224 pages This is the third of three reviews I needed to publish before the English material can roll. And now, Rule Britannia! The news cycle … Continue reading →

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Bonaparte’s Sons

Posted on April 6, 2020 by smellincoffee

Bonaparte’s Sons © 1998 Richard Howard 400 pages This is the second (of three) posts published during Read of England which have nothing to do with England. I’m trying to get them out of the way before the English stuff … Continue reading →

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Drastic Measures

Posted on April 6, 2020 by smellincoffee

Star Trek Discovery: Drastic Measures © 2018 Dayton Ward 400 pages     The deliberate murder of four thousand people, half the colony’s population, began with an act of mercy.   Refugees were given a new home in the sparsely settled … Continue reading →

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Eyeball-eating cats, an OB-GYN’s diary, and plague

Posted on March 30, 2020 by smellincoffee

Last week I read several titles that  I want to share without necessarily writing full reviews for, since they’re on the shorter side.  They are… This is Going to Hurt: The Secret Diary of a  Junior Doctor, Adam Kay Will … Continue reading →

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