Marianne and the Lords of the East

Tags

Aimée du Buc de Rivéry, constantinople, Lady Hester Stanhope, Odessa, ottoman empire

There comes a point in a series, especially one about which little is known, that putting too much of the plot into the review is bordering on spoiling the earlier books in the series. Because of that, this review is going to be a bit short (although I found some awesome covers to make up for it ;)).

Now safely landed in Constantinople, Marianne prepares to meet with Aimée du Buc de Rivéry, cousin of Josephine Bonaparte and Queen mother of the Ottoman Empire, to deliver a personal message from the Emperor Napoleon. Mission accomplished, high on her list of things to do are getting rid of something she very much doesn’t want to have, finding Jason Beaufort and sailing off into the sunset, but another surprise return from the dead puts a definite kibosh on that plan. And what a doozie that is – I suspected that person was a-coming back from the dead, but the big reveal sure surprised the heck out of me (loved it though).

Marianne and gang eventually high tail it to Odessa, where she picks up on some choice information that could have dire consequences on Napoleon’s Russian campaign and they’re on the road to Moscow. Like the other books, the action picks up at the start and never lets up. Benzoni really does a great job putting her story and characters in with real life ones – along with Aimée we get brief glimpses of Hester Stanhope, the Duc de Richelieu, The Black Pope along with a hint of a new mystery surrounding the main diamond from that diamond necklace (can’t wait to see what that’s all about). Only one more book until the grand ride is over.

The series in order,

1. Marianne (also found in two volumes as Bride of Selton Hall and The Eagle and the Nightingale) 
2. The Masked Prince 
3. The Privateer
4. The Rebels
5. The Lords of the East
6. The Crown of Fire

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Marianne and the Rebels by Juliette Benzoni

Tags

constantinople, corfu, greece, naxos island

 What a ride! Rebels picks up about four months after the end of Marianne and the Privateer, and finds our intrepid heroine in Florence attending the court of Napoleon’s sister. Marianne plans to skip the reckoning she’s due with her husband, the Prince Sant’Anna, and rendezvous instead with her American lover Jason Beaufort in Venice – but Napoleon has other plans for her and they don’t include Jason. Or do they? Despite the heavy guard the Emperor sets for her, they’re not good enough to save her from the demonic plot hatched by a madman, and our heroine is set for a harrowing experience. Mysteriously rescued (just who was that who ‘done in’ her captors anyway?), she finds her friends and prepares to head to Constantinople per Napoleon’s orders, but Jason is none too thrilled about this news. Now you know it’s not going to be smooth sailing on the way with complications aplenty, don’t you? And you think I’m going to tell you?

Not on your life, but I will say our heroine sees plenty of action, from mutiny at sea, near drowning on the high seas, Greek rebels fighting the hated Turkish rulers, capture by slave-traders, and just when the end of the road and freedom (and perhaps Jason?) are in sight….

To find oneself suddenly, halfway across the world, on board the same vessel as an old family friend who, besides being one’s accidental rescuer, has all unwittingly become a wartime enemy is an experience of singular awkwardness.

All I can say is that was one nasty cliff-hanger to stick a reader with and I now have a wait of several days for the next installment to land on my hold shelf. I am thoroughly enjoying this series, the action is non-stop from the get go and the author does a marvelous job blending her fictional characters with those in real life. I also loved the settings in this one as we got to travel to some very remote islands on the way to Constantinople.

Next up is Marianne and the Lords of the East and it appears we’re going to get an appearance from the French Sultana, relative of Josephine Bonaparte and our own Marianne. There’s a fascinating post about her here at Scandalous Women. The series in order,

1. Marianne (also found in two volumes as Bride of Selton Hall and The Eagle and the Nightingale)
2. The Masked Prince
3. The Privateer
4. The Rebels
5. The Lords of the East
6. The Crown of Fire

The Sheen on the Silk by Anne Perry

Tags

constantinople, historical fiction

Disappointing

In search of her brother Justinian, who was accused of murder and then banished, Anna Lascaris comes to Constantinople disguised as Anastasius, a eunuch and physician by trade. Like magic, Anastasius is getting clients in all the right circles and wheeling and dealing with the greatest in the land. Meanwhile, there are plots afoot in Rome to bring Constantinople and the Orthodox Church to heel or face the threat of destruction at the hands of another crusade.

Or it was something like that. I hate to say it but I finally gave up around page 200 or so when I finally realized I just didn’t care what happened. I didn’t warm up to Anna’s character, nor did I find the dress-up-like-a-man plot device terribly believable. The story was constantly bouncing from one character/plot line to another and I found it very hard to follow. The medical details were very tiring, all Anna seemed to do was hop from one patient to the next and not have much time to search for her brother. *Yawn*

The marketing that I’ve seen for this book is also a bit confusing. I understand the writer has previously written several mysteries – but if this book is supposed to be a mystery it certainly falls flat as a pancake in that regard. If this is supposed to be a straight historical novel than it didn’t work for me that way either. Not knowing much about Constantinople, the Orthodox religion, or Charles of Anjou I was very confused at first – either I missed something entirely or the author assumes the reader already knows all about it. Or was I supposed to go to Wik and read up on it and educate myself? I thought that was the author’s job. Not recommended.

*******
My copy courtesy Amazon Vine

Pawn in Frankincense (The Lymond Chronicles, #4) by Dorothy Dunnett

Tags

constantinople, dorothy dunnett, lymond chronicles, ottoman empire

Pawn in Frankincense opens up shortly after the end of The Disorderly Knights, as Jerrott and Philippa track down Lymond on his search to find Francis’ child, stolen by renegade Knight Graham Reed Malett and hidden somewhere in the heart of the Ottoman Empire. Francis uses his position as an emissary of France delivering gifts to Suleiman the Magnificent as an entrée into the mysterious world of the east as he and his companions continue their desperate search for Lymond’s son. However, the deliciously evil Graham’s schemes lead them on from one false lead to another, as the web is spun to bring Francis and troops further into Graham’s evil web. Nothing and no one is as they seem, and the author throws many red herrings and surprises into her tale and eventually we discover that there are two blond, blue eyed children being sought. One child is Francis’, who is father of the other?

Although separated, Lymond and his followers all end up in Constantinople, as Graham’s plots come to fruition and Lymond, Jerrott, Archie and the mysterious Marthe with the striking resemblance to Lymond begin the fight of their lives in a real life chess game with deadly consequences for any who are “captured”, and Francis battles to maintain his wits against the deadly addiction Graham’s schemes have unknowingly afflicted him with.

As with the first three books in the series, Francis Crawford is a fascinating hero, and is as suave, debonair, flawed and fascinating as only a 16th Century version of James Bond could be. This book is filled with non-stop action and suspense and ends with quite a big surprise of a cliffhanger which will send the reader reaching for the next book in the series, The Ringed Castle (Lymond Chronicles, 5). A solid five stars and my favorite so far in the series.