hist-novels-msg - 7/3/05 Reviews of various historical novels. Recommendations. NOTE: See also the files: movies-msg, Gram-Letter1-art, intro-books-msg, SCA-authors-msg, SCA-romance-msg, child-books-msg, border-stories-msg. ************************************************************************ NOTICE - This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday. This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with separate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were removed to save space and remove clutter. The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the individual authors. Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this time. If information is published from these messages, please give credit to the originator(s). Thank you, Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous Stefan at florilegium.org ************************************************************************ Subject: [Ansteorra] Period novels [was Newcomer Question] Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2001 11:53:57 -0600 From: "C. Weed" To: Lady Medb Liath wrote: Well, not really. Most historical novels are not good sources. Most of them are poorly researched, comparatively speaking. There are some out there, and they are worth the time to read them, just be choosy and use good judgement. ***************** I think one of the best and most readable historical novels is "Tirant Lo Blanc" by Joanot Martorell. To me it's pretty much the period version of S. Morgansterns "Princess Bride". Written in the 1400s, it's still racy and rompus enough to have warranted a bodice-ripper marketing in the late 1970s here in the States complete with Fabio and D-cups. Great read... and you can't really beat it for a period source. Required reading for my squires in the sca. Fighting, romance, villains, daring-do, sex, damsels in distress, and plotting. I'm surprised it hasn't made it to the big screen, actually. This will get you to amazons least expensive Tirant page (although they list about 15 different versions ranging up to $60): http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0446325848/qid=1005587215/sr=1-1/ref= sr_1_8_1/107-1585001-8206900 Sir Dieterich P.S. Warning: if you read this book you *might* just have to alter your view of what a tournament is all about... *wink and nod* Subject: RE: [Ansteorra] Period novels [was Newcomer Question] Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2001 12:14:04 -0600 From: Jane Sitton To: And I'd recommend Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's vampire series (begun, I believe, before Anne Rice's) that spans Egyptian times through modern day. The best one in the series, in my estimation, is the one set in Nero's Rome: "Blood Games". Ms. Yarbro is quite a scholar, but manages to make history come alive. Her books are very readable, and have kept me up into the wee hours of the morning, turning pages as quickly as I could. Ly Madelina de Lyndesaye Subject: RE: [Ansteorra] Period novels [was Newcomer Question] Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2001 16:00:35 -0500 From: "Connie Carroll" To: > And I'd recommend Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's vampire series (begun, I believe, > before Anne Rice's) that spans Egyptian times through modern day. Chelsea Quinn Yarbro is a scholar who throughtly researches everything for her novels. Just take a look at her acknowledgement lists. Her research is one of the reasons I strongly recommend her books. While I also loved Blood Games, Blood Roses during the time of the Medicis is marvalous! Mistress Bunny Subject: RE: [Ansteorra] Period novels Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2001 05:10:23 -0800 (PST) From: roger walker To: Another very good (in my opinion) period writer is Thomas B. Constain. I have read several of his novels. My favorite being "Below the Salt". It takes place around the time of King John and the signing of the Magna Carta. It is VERY full of detail. OTAR Subject: [Ansteorra] Costain Books Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2001 17:12:24 EST From: To: Greetings. Thomas B. Costain is an amazing author. He has several books that bring different ages to life.... A four book series: The Conquering Family The Three Edwards The Magnificent Century The Last Plantegenets He also wrote: Below the Salt - about the time surrounding the signing of the Magna Carta The Black Rose - (can't remember the story line off hand) but a great book The Silver Chalice -- about the time right after the death of Christ The Darkness and the Dawn -- about Attila the Hun. All great reads from a wonderful author! Honor Subject: Re: [Ansteorra] Costain Books Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2001 10:03:41 -0600 From: "Shana Hardy" To: >Greetings. Thomas B. Costain is an amazing author. He has several books >that bring different ages to life.... Honor, I have to agree with you. I've read everyone of these more than once and always enjoyed them. Tangwystl From: "rosine" To: Subject: [Sca-cooks] Meideval Physician (was: Two pleasant announcements) Date: Wed, 28 May 2003 02:24:59 -0400 As an aside, if you enjoy reading books set "in period" and done well, I strongly suggest the "Isaac of Girona" series by Caroline Roe - he's a 12th (?) century Jewish physician in Spain, learned, smart, blind - who has found himself in the position of being the physician for the local Bishop. Very well researched, very well written. The stories are murder mysteries, but it's hardly noticiable, so well described is the life of a mid-sized town, it's relationship with it's Jewish quarter and the denizens, and the inner workings of a Bishop's household. Rosine Edited by Mark S. Harris hist-novels-msg 4 of 4