Books Read In December 07/ January 08

Object of Virtue by Nicholas B.A.Nicholson 9/10 (Reviewed here)

The Red Princess by Sofka Zinovieff 9/10 (Reviewed here)

Desiree by Annemarie Selinko 8/10

This was a very enjoyable, romantic novel about Napoleon's first love who became Queen of Sweden. Selinko did an excellent job of transforming an innocent, enthusiastic teenager into a mature woman. She also wrote very clearly about the historical background which is fascinating.

Catherine the Great: Love, Sex and Power 8/10

This was not too academic and very readable. It provided an intimate look at Catherine, who became almost an endearing character with her love for her dogs and her grandchildren, even though she was very formidable!

The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club 7/10
by Dorothy L.Sayers


Dorothy L. really cannot be beaten as far as mysteries are concerned, but I prefer the books with Harriet Vane.

In the Frame: A Life in Words and Pictures by Helen Mirren 9/10

Helen Mirren is an excellent actress and seems to be surprisingly likeable. (I thought that she might be intimidating - she may well be in real life!) I liked her tales of Bohemian life and found her story of her Russian ancestry very sad and interesting.

Angel Face by Sheila Connelly Danziger 7/10

This was a rather harrowing rags-to-riches tale of an extremely poor young girl in Ireland with a drunken father and many siblings who became a model in America.

The Little Man of Archangel by Georges Simenon 7/10

SPOILER

The atmosphere of a provincial French town was wonderfully evoked here, but the story was very disappointing because it went nowhere.

Comments are welcome! Have you read any of these books? Do you agree or disagree? WHAT DID YOU THINK?

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