What are you reading?

I finished The Chalice by Nancy Bilyeau.  She paints an interesting picture of the conflict between the Roman Catholic Church and the Crown.  Many of the characters in the Tudor period came to life in this book such as the Princess Mary and Stephen Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester.  I liked the detailed information about the period such as the introduction of the translation of The Bible by Tyndale so that all those who were literate could read it; a shocking thing at the time.  I liked the main character, Joanna Stafford ,with all her vulnerabilities.  I, however, preferred the writer's first book, The Crown. I moved on to The Third Gate by Lincoln Child and to my surprise, that was about another crown; the hunt for the double crown of Pharoah Narmer. Narmer was the God-King who united Egypt into one kingdom.  This story delved into the paranormal, archaeology, the use of propofol (the Michael Jackson drug) to induce hypnosis, and introduced me to the term "Enigmalogist". In this book, the enigmalogist was an interpreter of strange happenings, a ghostbuster type.  I enjoyed the story; couldn't put the book down but found the ending not so satisfying.

The Chalice by Nancy Bilyeau

I have moved on to Bilyeau's second book, The Chalice. One theme in this book is destiny. A key sentence on page 308 is, 'There is a destiny one creates. And there is a destiny ordained.'

The first book, The Crown, introduced us to Joanna Stafford, of noble birth, former lady in waiting to Queen Katherine, who has answered the call to be a novice nun. The setting is 16th century England and King Henry Vlll is on the throne.  This is a period when the people of England are caught between the Crown and the Papists. Catholic Churches, monasteries and nunneries have been dissolved. Sister Joanna and her sister nuns have been displaced from the nunnery in Dartford.  Her plan is to make a living for herself and her cousin's son, Arthur, by continuing the weaving business that the nuns had engaged in prior to the Dissolution. We got a hint of romance in the first book which continues in this book in that Sister Joanna seems to be attracted to two men, Brother Edward, a friar, and Geoffrey, now a constable assigned to Dartford.  It was common for the displaced nuns and monks to marry as they tried to fit into civilian life.  I am on page 308 and I do not know yet which young man Joanna will choose. I would like Geoffrey to win her over.

There are many subplots in this story. One  plot in the story has to do with prophecy and Joanna's reluctance to listen to the prophecies ordained for her.  So far she has heard two prophecies and she does not fully understand the meaning and is puzzled about her role in the prophecies.  She is supposed to hear a third prophesy.  All she knows is that her role in the prophesy is linked to the future of England possibly the future of the Catholic Church.

I do not know at this point how the title of the book fits into the story.  There are some slow parts in the story.  While I am enjoying the subplots in the story, it is not as captivating as The Crown.  At this point I would give it 4 stars out of 5.

Beggar King - Historical Fiction

I am on page 362 of The Beggar King, The Hangman's Daughter series by Oliver Potzsch, almost at the end, and I am still not sure I understand who the bad guys are in this story.  The setting is the 17th century Bavarian town of Regensberg. There is conspiracy after conspiracy, treachery after treachery in this story.  All the minor characters seem not to be who they say they are.  So far, they all seem very shady: the Beggar King, the Venice Ambassador; The Raftmaster; the patricians of the city; the dead bath house owners, Kuisl's sister and brother-in-law; and even Kuisl's wife seems to have some secret past. 

Hangman Jakob Kuisl has been targeted, tricked into leaving Schongau for Regensberg so that he could be accused of  murder in that town.  The leaders in the city seem to have conspired together to accuse him.  Kuisl got a taste of the brutal punishment that he himself has imposed on others in his role as Hangman.  His chief tormentor who wants the punishment to be more and more severe is a voice from his past, which he can not remember fully, and a leader in the city.  The feisty hangman's daughter, Magdalena, and her paramour, Simon, just happened to have run off to Regensberg to start a new life together when they find themselves having to find evidence that Kuisl is innocent.  Then they have to go into hiding after being accused of arson. In the meantime some prostitutes are disappearing and turning up dead. How their deaths connect with Kuisl, I do not know at this point.

I am not as excited about this story as I was with the other two in the series. Too many things are going on in this story.  Who committed the murders and why?  How do the politics and church issues relate to the murders? What is up with this great war in the past?  Who is killing the prostitutes and how does that connect to the main story? What was the mystery powder found at the scene of the murder? So many aspects to this one story.  I was the one who recommended the first book in the series to my book club and we loved it.

Immaculee Ilibagiza's Story

Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Holocaust by Immaculee Ilibagiza is our book club pick for April. I have never wanted to watch Hotel Rwanda or read anything about the genocide in Rwanda.  I thought this was just going to be a depressing story about evil. It was a depressing story about evil but there was so much more.  This is a story of how Immaculee's Roman Catholic faith guided her, made her bold, kept her safe, and freed her from hate. This book was worth reading.  Imagine, she was locked up in a small bathroom with a group of women for their safety and during the ordeal she kept her faith and obeyed what she discerned to be God's direction.  She even tried to teach herself English in anticipation of her vision to work at the United Nations.  Some of the characters mentioned in the book were interesting. One is the pastor who tried to hide the women yet seemed to regret getting involved with their rescue when the weeks turned into months.  The other is her university friend who had a plan involving electrocution if the Hutus turned on them and there was no escape. Her plan reminded me of the story about the zealots of Masada in Israel as told in the Dovekeepers.

This is not a long story and very easy to read.  There was one typing error in the book towards the end; it mentioned her Aunts and nieces when it should have been Aunts and cousins.

Pics For Fans of The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman

Sharing pics of the ruins in Masada, ancient mountaintop fortress in Israel, which is part of the setting for Dovekeepers  It was rebuilt and redecorated by King Herod the great.  Top picture is supposed to be the dovecot where the doves were kept.  I am also including a picture of the Rabbi of Masada who is writing the Torah by hand in the ancient synagogue.

Jodie Picoult's Storyteller

I was still on my Israel "high" this morning when by chance I found out about a new book by one of my favorite authors. Jodie Picoult, who was raised Jewish, has a new book out titled, The Storyteller. According to the article I read, this book is about the Holocaust, making moral choices, and forgiveness.   This book is going to be on my list of "Must Read" books. One reason I love Picoult's books is that she always has an unexpected ending and this book promises a surprise twist to the end. 

Israeli Authors in the Spotlight

Book lovers, I have to introduce you to this article on Israeli Authors by Ellis Shuman. I just returned from Israel last Wednesday so I am still a little 'high' on Israel and reading everything I can.  I forgot my camera in Israel and waiting for the hotel security to mail it to me.  Big oops! When I get it, I will display some of my beautiful food and landscape pics for you my readers.  By the way, the book Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman really helped me to appreciate the fortress of Masada when I visited it last week on February 15th.  We were shown the area where the doves were kept.

On My Way to Masada

I am on my way to Israel next week and I am reading The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman. I am liking this story set in the fortress called Masada in the Judean Desert overlooking the Dead Sea; a base from which the Israelis fought back against the Romans in 70 AD.   This story is filled with stories about magic, dreams, survival, and animal and bird symbols such as doves, ravens, goats, scorpions, and lions. I liked the irony of the doves, symbols of peace, in the midst of this story about war and death.  In the story we learn about the zealots that fled to Masada and how the Romans, using slave labor, built a wall encircling them.  It is told from the point of view of  these four fascinating Dovekeepers; red haired Yael, who is hated by a father who is known by his reputation as the Assassin; Revka, who lost her husband and children and has to care for her mute grandsons; Aziza, a fighter who secretly takes her brother's place among the warriors; and her Mom, Shirah, known as the witch and healer. One minor character that fascinated me was the slave from the North and he in turn was fascinated by Yael.  I am on page 444 and will complete this book before I visit Masada next week.

Matthew Shardlake series

I have started Heartstone by bestselling author C. J. Sansom. It is the fifth  of the Matthew Shardlake mystery series. The setting is 16th century England. King Henry VIII has now married wife number six, Catherine Parr, and is preparing England for war with France.

As usual Matthew Shardlake, the narrator, has several mysteries to solve.  The main one has to do with an assignment from the caring Queen Catherine who has Matthew representing the legal interests of the son of her retired maid.  Michael Calfill, the son of the retired maid died, presumably at his own hands, just before laying a Bill of Information before the Court of Wards in which he alleged some monstrous injustice against a former student, Hugh Curteys by his caregiver.  I am anxious to find out what the "monstrous injustice" really is.  I can guess that Michael's death was no suicide because he would not have killed himself just before the hearing.  The second mystery has to do with Ellen Fettiplace who suffers from agoraphobia and has been living for years in Bedlam, a place for the mentally ill.   Who exactly has been paying her bills at the Bedlam for nineteen years and where is her family?  Ellen was a character in the fourth book, Revelation.   The third and minor mystery has to do with Matthew's steward, Coldiron.  He is a new character in the series. Is Josephine his daughter?  Why is she really afraid of Coldiron?  Will Matthew be able to dismiss him and keep Josephine as an employee.  Finally, will Jack Barak, Matthew's law clerk and a recurring character from the previous series, really be conscripted in the military?  I am only on page 90 and I am loving all these mysteries. 

Cool Links

I have come across two really cool links this morning.  One is the link to podcastomatic which can instantly turn your blog into a podcast. The other has to do with a world outreach project.  I just gave $10:00 to the Archimedes Alliance organized by this caring Oregon teenager named Julien Leitner, who wants to change the world $2.00 at a time. "It's time to move the earth."

Free Ebook of Quotes

While it's available, get your free ebook with twitter-ready quotes compiled by the Lyttle sisters, Alicia and Lorette on amazon.  It is titled A Tweet A Day. I am loving #22:   "People are not lazy. They simply have impotent goals - that is, goals that do not inspire them." Anthony Robbins.  Quote #30 by President Abraham Lincoln, who we are now so very interested in these days, is inspirational for the new year: "Determine that the thing can and shall be done, and then we shall find the way."