kuzumel reviewed on + 112 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
to start off, I am a big Kearsley fan from the 1990's when I first discovered her books in New Zealand and Canada book stores. I think this book is the weakest of nearly all that I have managed to get my hands on. But I still enjoyed nearly all of the two storylines.
I think the less abundant presence of mystery is the key to my reaction. There is suspense as Mary and her companions try to evade the British spies and agents. You don't really understand why one of these travellers is so shifty until Kearsley's Athor's Notes at the end. Her other novels usually has a sense that there is something hidden beneath what was said or done. Maybe Mary's story is about exiled Jacobites who are more desperate than 20-years earlier, before two failed attempts to regain King James his throne. The Russia and Scotland installments were part of the intriques to these invasions. This storyline is about a court in retreat.
That said, I rooted for both Mary and Sara. and really appreciated the careful research on both normal life in rural and urban France and the function of fairy tales in that time. The snippets of Mary's fairy tale we heard complemented another book on the history of fairy tales I was reading in parallel, by coincidence.
So I guess my reaction can be summarized by this parody: Read it. Enjoyed it. Pass it on. (or return it to the library, in my case.)
--
Kuzu
PS. Any typos are strictly the iPad's fault!
I think the less abundant presence of mystery is the key to my reaction. There is suspense as Mary and her companions try to evade the British spies and agents. You don't really understand why one of these travellers is so shifty until Kearsley's Athor's Notes at the end. Her other novels usually has a sense that there is something hidden beneath what was said or done. Maybe Mary's story is about exiled Jacobites who are more desperate than 20-years earlier, before two failed attempts to regain King James his throne. The Russia and Scotland installments were part of the intriques to these invasions. This storyline is about a court in retreat.
That said, I rooted for both Mary and Sara. and really appreciated the careful research on both normal life in rural and urban France and the function of fairy tales in that time. The snippets of Mary's fairy tale we heard complemented another book on the history of fairy tales I was reading in parallel, by coincidence.
So I guess my reaction can be summarized by this parody: Read it. Enjoyed it. Pass it on. (or return it to the library, in my case.)
--
Kuzu
PS. Any typos are strictly the iPad's fault!
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