Musings and Lessons from Historical Romance
The lazy days of summer are coming to an end. I worked on a few projects during the last two months, but I have also spent a lot of time reading and contemplating about life. Although I have read books from different genres, I have read several historical romance books. I am not a history buff, and I didn’t like history in high school, but I have learned a lot about history through the people I have profiled on this blog. I am warming up to historical romance and have learned to enjoy them. Historical romance genre is an outgrowth of gothic literature.
Recommended Reading: The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole, Review
His Fair Assassin Series
I read His Fair Assassin Series (Grave Mercy
, Dark Triumph
and Mortal Heart
), a trilogy by Robin LaFevers. Although I really enjoyed the three books in the series, I didn’t review them, and have since given them to my niece who lives in New York. I like the characters in the book because they are very well formed and there are many lessons that we can learn from the book. What I like most about the books, are the strong young female characters and the inventiveness of the author. The story is set in the late fifteenth century.
The three main characters are Ismae, Sybella and Annith, and each book focuses on one of the three. Along with others, the girls live at the Convent of St. Mortain, and all of the girls who live there are daughters of the god of Death Himself. Each daughter of Death is blessed with a special skill, what one would call a deadly gift, and if they choose to stay at the convent, they are trained as assassins, and serve Death. The three books have a very strong story line and I admire the three girls because they learn to think for themselves and do not follow all the orders to assassinate specific targets. The reader sees the abuse of power and what happens when people do not harness it for the good of others. These three books are worth the read.
Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries
There are three volumes so far in the Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries, which are set in 1818 in England. At that time, when women married, they became the property of their husbands and he controlled all their wealth. I am living in a different era, but I was incensed by the way women were treated. I read seven of the nine books in the three volumes. Once again, there are some strong female characters who do not conform to society’s gender roles. I love Gabriel Lacey, who is doggedly determined to solve crimes, and he has a soft spot for those who society looks down on. He also treats women with respect and he doesn’t stick to the status quo, he marries for love and not for convenience. I also felt sorry for him because his first wife disappeared with their two year old daughter.
If you want to hone your problem solving skills, read these books, and try to figure out who committed the crimes as the story evolves. I must admit that I didn’t solve the mystery in all of the seven books that I read. I got the first book in the series for free, from one of the websites that I visit daily. I enjoyed it so much that I looked for other books in the series and discovered that they are grouped into volumes. I purchased Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries Volume Two
and Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries Volume Three
and forgot about the other two books in Volume One.
Apart from honing your problem solving skills, you will learn about human nature and that life is not black and white, but have several shades of gray. You will also think about what you are willing to give up to get the things you want in life.
Defy Trilogy
I have read Defy
and Ignite
in the Defy Trilogy and Endure will be out in December 2015. This is a series for young adults and it has a strong female character. Twin Marcel and Alexa lose their parents in an attack. To save his sister from having to go to a house where soldiers impregnate young girls to build the king’s army, he cuts off his sister’s hair to make her look like a man, and they change her name to Alex so they can both fight in the army, which is their only hope for survival. Both Marcel and Alexa trained by their father, but Alexa is the better fighter. Three years later, Marcel is killed in an attack and Alex’s heart is broken because of the loss of her sibling.
The book is historical and also fantasy filled with sorcerers and intense fighting. What struck me about this book is that Alexa has skills that she did not know she possessed, which is true for many, and that’s why it is important to try new things. Once again, there is abuse of power and the lengths some people will go to maintain power. I am looking forward to reading the third book, Endure
.
These are a few of the books that I read over the past two months. I have been negligent in recording the names of all the books I have read this summer, but I am sure that I have topped 20. It may sound like a lot of books, but I have been binge reading while I am healing.
Get Started Here – I want to help you get started on your learning journey. Read The Invisible Mentor 2015 Reading Challenge, then Join the Facebook Group for the Reading Challenge today, connecting the ideas from the books you read!
In the meantime, THANK YOU for your time… Thank you for sharing this post, and thank you for connecting with me on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest! What was your biggest takeaway from today?
Brought to you by Avil Beckford – dedicated to helping you grow and blossom professionally. You’re never alone!
Book links are affiliate links.
