Review: Yorkist Pretenders to the Tudor Throne by Kieran Molloy

Synopsis: For more than a decade after the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, Henry VII's fledgling dynasty was threatened by two Yorkist claimants. Lambert Simnel's rebellion, though short-lived, ended at the Battle of Stoke in 1487, a far bloodier affair than Bosworth two years earlier. The second rebellion, centred on Perkin Warbeck, ended in ignominious surrender but was the fulcrum of a power struggle involving the major European powers for most of the 1490s.

Who were these two men? Were they the imposters claimed by the King and generally accepted as such by most historians, or were they the nobles they claimed to be - Edward, Earl of Warwick and Richard, second son of Edward IV? What became of the other “Prince in the Tower”, Edward V? Were Edward IV's two sons really murdered by their uncle, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, or were both alive and involved in the two rebellions? Was there any link between the rebellions, or were they the last desperate and uncoordinated rolls of the dice by remnants of the House of York unwilling to accept the new Tudor regime? Do we really know what became of Simnel and Warbeck after their rebellions failed other than what Henry VII told us?

Part I of this book examines the evidence for the identity of Lambert Simnel while Part II recreates a courtroom trial for Perkin Warbeck allowing you, the reader, to act as jury.

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The two stars are for the first part only - this was the study of Lambert Simnel, and whilst I was expecting something a bit more scholarly, this section was dealt with in an even-handed manner, providing a case for and against the various claimants.

HOWEVER, part two was a poorly executed shambles and had me asking WTF?. This smacks of laziness in an effort to reach a publication deadline and treats the reader with contempt.

Had this investigation into the Perkin Warbeck case continued in the same vein as part one, then this would be a three possibly four stars rated book.

This needs some serious re-thinking and re-editing before publication or your audience is lost.

Review: The Lady of the Mine by Sergei Lebedev

Synopsis: The mystical laundress at the center of this novel is obsessed with purity. Her task is formidable as she stands guard over a sealed shaft at a Ukrainian coalmine that hides terrible truths. The bodies of dead Jews lying in its depths seem to attract still more present-day crimes.

Acclaimed Russian author Sergei Lebedev portrays a ghostly realm riven by lust and fear just as the Kremlin invades the same part of Ukraine occupied by the Wehrmacht in World War Two.

Then corpses rain from the sky when a jetliner is shot down overhead, scattering luxury goods along with the mortal remains. Eerie coincidences and gruesome discoveries fill this riveting exploration of an uncanny place where the geography exudes violence, and where the sins of the past are never all that in the past.

Lebedev, who has won international praise for his soul-searching prose and unflinching examination of history’s evils, shines light on the fault line where Nazism met Soviet communism, evolving into the new fascism of today’s Russia.

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Hauntingly brilliant.

This is my third tome from Lebedev, It is set across five days in July 2014, in Ukraine, as Russian troops invade. The story is narrated by four characters: Zhanna, daughter of the mystical laundress; Valet, a former neighbour now in the police special regiment, who is fired by jealousy and vengeance; The General (Korol), who is fascinated by the shaft and its secrets; and The Engineer, the ghostly first victim to be buried there.

It does take a little bit to get into the rhythm of the prose but persevere and you will find a gripping story with elements of the supernatural.

Review: Delilah by Eleanor de Jong

Synopsis: Maligned as the courtesan who revealed the mighty Samson's secret for money, Delilah has become synonymous with treachery. But behind the myth is a tale far more tragic?

From the moment they met, there was a fire in their relationship, with Samson pitted against Delilah's family. But Samson soon develops an overwhelming passion for Delilah; entranced by her beauty and passionate nature. Meanwhile the Israelites and the Philistines are in a state of constant conflict, with Samson a seemingly unbeatable warrior. The Philistines are desperate to learn the secret behind Samson's power and enrol Delilah as a pawn to bring him down. Driven by misplaced anger, Delilah agrees to use her wiles to discover the secret of his strength. But Delilah finds that Samson is far from the ogre that she had assumed.

But a sequence of events have been set in motion which both of them are powerless to stop. The consequences of her mistake have gone down in history and this wonderful novel is as alluring and beguiling as Delilah herself.

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A decent re-telling of the Biblical story of Samson and Delilah with a focus on the redemption of Delilah. This narrative adds context to Delilah's actions and represents her in a more humanly persona. The reader will find themselves captivated by the story of these two well-known Biblical figures.

For more on the story of Delilah, visit:

• Jewish Women's Archive
• Wikipedia - Delilah

Review: The Mirror of Simple Souls by Aline Kiner

Synopsis: A captivating story of love, jealousy and faith, set amid a community of independent women in medieval Paris — the perfect summer read for fans of historical fiction.

This thrilling, sensual evocation of medieval Paris sold over 100,000 copies in France and offers a fascinating insight into the world of the beguines — communities of women who lived independently of men and successfully managed their own affairs all the way back in the Middle Ages.

A heretical text, a vengeful husband, a forbidden love...

It's 1310 and Paris is alive with talk of the trial of the Templars. Religious repression is on the rise, and the smoke of execution pyres blackens the sky above the city. But sheltered behind the walls of Paris's great beguinage, a community of women are still free to work, study and live their lives away from the domination of men.

When a wild, red-haired child clothed in rags arrives at the beguinage gate one morning, with a sinister Franciscan monk on her tail, she sets in motion a chain of events that will shatter the peace of this little world-plunging it into grave danger...

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Historical fiction set in the Beguinage of Paris 1310 - 1317.

The Beguines were usually women who lived in semi-monastic communities but did not take formal religious vows, were allowed to leave at any time, though they did promise not to marry whilst within the community. Beguines were part of a larger spiritual revival movement of the 13th century, that soon attracted the attention of secular and clerical authorities, and came under criticism as a result of their ambiguous social and legal status. The decline of the Beguines in Paris commenced around 1312 - after the death of Margaret Porete.

Paris 1300s

The story opens with the trial of the doomed mystic Marguerite Porete (who was burned at the stake in Paris on charges of heresy in 1310) and of a fleeing young woman, Mahaut, who is rescued and protected by the Beguine, Ysabel.

And after that the story pretty much falls flat. I'm really not sure what was trying to be achieved - a history of the Beguines, historical fiction, a linkage around the title of Margaret Porete's book .... maybe a sense of lost in translation as I certainly felt no connection to the plot or characters.  A case of what might have been ..

Review: The Launch Party by Lauren A Forry

Synopsis: THE TRIP OF A LIFETIME. YOU'D DIE TO BE THERE.

Ten lucky people have won a place at the most exclusive launch event of the the grand opening of the Hotel Artemis, the first hotel on the moon. It's an invitation to die for. As their transport departs for its return to Earth and the doors seal shut behind them, the guests take the next leap for mankind.

However, they soon discover that all is not as it seems. The champagne may be flowing, but there is no one to pour it. Room service is available, but there is no one to deliver it. Besides the ten of them, they are completely alone.

When one of the guests is found murdered, fear spreads through the group. But that death is only the beginning. Being three days' journey from home and with no way to contact the outside, can any of the guests survive their stay?

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"... we are all just strangers floating in a metal tube ..."

Ten people win a trip to a luxury hotel on the moon - alone on the journey, one is found dead. The guests are on their own - the staff and ship have mysteriously left. The guests assume they are in a reality TV show.

This is a cosy sci-fi mystery all about revenge for past actions and more than one guest is linked to the events.

That's pretty much it. I breezed through this as there was very little to tax the brain, despite the premise of a locked-room mystery, which could have been set in an abandoned and isolated hotel ... anywhere. Further exploration of the setting would have been useful as would character development. Read it for what it is ... light fluff entertainment. Agatha Christie or Lucy Foley this is not.

Review: The Meji Guillotine Murders by Futaro Yamada

Synopsis: Japan, 1869. A time of reform and rebellion.A classic Japanese mystery – a pair of sleuths investigate a series of bloody murders in 19th century Tokyo.

Detectives Kazuki and Kawaji are assigned to investigate a series of seemingly impossible murders. Together with the help of a mysterious shrine maiden, can they solve each gruesome death and piece together the dark connection between them?

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This tale is told over a series of small stories, each with it's own mystery and solution, but all converge and are joined in the final chapter, where the over-arching narrative is revealed and mystery solved.

There are two main investigating characters from the Imperial Prosecuting Office: Kazuki (based on a real historical figure) and his partner, the fictional, Kawagi. As an additional character, we are introduced to the fay-life Esmeralda, who accompanies the object in the title - the guillotine - to Japan, and remains as a sort of spiritualist who divines clues from speaking with the victims. Can't say I was a fan of Esmeralda and at times wonder why she was included at all.

There are many themes in this narrative - corruption, reform, colonialisation, tradition, politics, religion, rivalry, jealousy - for mid to late 19th century Japan was undergoing much change with the introduction of Western ideas and the end of Japan's isolationist policies.

A slow moving pace may detract some readers, but it is worth persevering to the end when the mysteries of the shorter stories and finally understood.

Review: The Noh Mask Murder by Akimitsu Takagi

Synopsis: A bewildering locked-room murder occurs as an amateur crime writer investigates strange events in the Chizurui mansion in this prizewinning classic Japanese mystery.

This ingenously constructed masterpiece, written by one of Japan’s most celebrated crime writers and translated into English for the first time, is perfect for locked-room mystery fans who can’t resist a breathtaking conclusion.

In the Chizurui family mansion, a haunting presence casts a shadow over its residents. By night, an eerie figure, clad in a sinister Hannya mask is seen roaming around the house. An amateur murder mystery writer, Akimitsu Takagi, is sent to investigate — but his investigation takes a harrowing turn as tragedy strikes the Chizurui family.

Within the confines of a locked study, the head of the family is found dead, with only an ominous Hannya mask lying on the floor by his side and the lingering scent of jasmine in the air as clues to his mysterious murder.

As Takagi delves deeper into the perplexing case, he discovers a tangled web of secrets and grudges. Can he discover the link between the family and the curse of the Hannya mask? Who was the person who called the undertaker and asked for three coffins on the night of the murder? And do those three coffins mean the curse of the Hannya mask is about to strike again?

The Noh Mask Murder’s legendary ending offers locked-room mystery fans the perfect coda to an ingenously constructed mystery.

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Japanese crime fiction is not a simple genre - it is complex, tedious, ingenious, complicated, enthralling, gruesome. There is a narrative that can be as long and winding as a mountain path - it is never direct and never clear-cut. It is an onion - each layer revealing something new, something deadly, something confusing, something linked, something delicious. 

Japanese crime fiction of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s - or deductive reasoning fiction - is a genre that explores human driven motives that, as Seichō Matsumoto says "... originates from the psychology when people is left in the extreme situation..". 

An article from The Guardian discusses the art of "Honkaku" which refers "... to the crafting of fiendishly clever and complex puzzle scenarios".  In this same article, writer Haruta Yoshitame is said to have defined or described "Honkaku" as "... a detective story that mainly focuses on the process of a criminal investigation and values the entertainment derived from pure logical reasoning”."

The Noh Mask Murder is no different - the author narrates his own murder mystery, when he is called in to investigate by one Koichi Yangi, whose journals also form part of the narration.

As Takagi notes: "... unnatural facades have a habit of concealing sinister motives .." and as more family secrets are being revealed or unraveled as the case progresses, the corpses pile up. Prosecutor Ishikari observed that "... the Chizurui mansion was not a place where normal notions of justice held much sway ...". In fact, as the author notes, "... once the curtains had opened on the tragedy, the Chizurui family was plunged into catastrophe after catastrophe - and at a terrifying speed ...".

It is deliciously gripping narrative that slowly draws the reader into the spider web deftly woven around the key themes of family, suspicion, fear, hatred and death. No one is innocent but who is truly guilty ..? You must read on till the very end!

Review: Every Spy A Traitor by Alex Gerlis

Synopsis: Trust no one. Suspect everyone.

It’s 1937. Fear and suspicion stalk the Continent. A million have died in Stalin’s Great Purge and the Nazi terror grips Germany. But British intelligence is still trying to work out who the enemy is.

As Europe heads towards war, treason is in the air. British spymasters know there is one Soviet agent in their ranks, codenamed Agent ‘Archie’, and there’s a frantic search to find them. What they don’t know is that he is not the only traitor.

The life of Charles Cooper, a young British writer travelling Europe to research his novel, is about to change for ever…

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As much as I truly love a spy / espionage novel, this one just did not gel with me and I found the character of Charles Cooper aka "Bertie" rather .... grating.  

I just did not like him from the start and as such found the narrative rather forced to get the reader to believe that this person would make / be a suitable agent. Many pre-Cold War agents were drawn from the upper echelons of British society or were "approached" at university; and yet this character just did not sit right with me - especially as an agent sent into Stalinist Russia!. As such, I failed to become invested in the narrative and could not wait for tome to end. I will not be pursuing any further books in the series.

Review: The Scent of Murder by Felicity Young

Synopsis: 'If a black dog appears along the old corpse way, the route a funeral procession takes to the churchyard, it is thought to be escorting the dead soul to the afterlife. A black dog sighting without a funeral procession, however, is supposed to foreshadow death.'

For Doctor Dody McCleland, the unearthing of an ancient skeleton in a dry riverbed is a welcome break from the monotony of chaperoning her younger sister at a country house near the isolated hamlet of Piltdown. But when she begins her analysis of the bones, Britain's first female autopsy surgeon discovers they are much more recent - and they are the result of murder.

With Chief Inspector Matthew Pike's help Dody begins to investigate. Soon she finds herself pitted against ugly traditionalism, exploitation, spectral dogs, a ghostly hunt and a series of events that not only threaten her belief in scientific rationalism, but threaten her life itself.

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Tackling another of the social issues of the day, author Felicity Young takes us back to Edwardian England in this third instalment of the Dody McCleland series. Teaming up with Chief Inspector Matthew Pike and sister Florence, Dody is again, faced with another mystery and one that puts her own life very much at risk. Young gives the read more than one mystery to solve!