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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
funny
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book was highly recommended to me in the late eighties by a co-worker. She was a rabid Anglophile, with an emphasis on the monarchy. I was a rabid Anglophile, with an emphasis on British entertainers. Her most endearing trait was that any time anyone casually mentioned an author or title she had read, she would exclaim, “That's my favorite!” And she meant it every time, too.
After 5 years, I took another job and moved away from that city, without having read the book.
But a few weeks ago, when I found an audio version, I thought of her, and decided I was finally going to read it. Imagine my disappointment when it turned out to be a history lesson-- one with so many Dukes and Earls and wives and mistresses and princes that it made me dizzy, and no real mystery at all.
It is without question the most static novel I have ever read, given that it takes place entirely within the confines of the hospital room of a detective with a broken leg. It occurs to me that Hitchcock (being one of the entertainers I am Anglophilic about) made a movie with a similar setup, but the excellent Rear Window did not feel static in the least.
It's not that I'm biased against British history in particular-- I have never taken a history class that I truly enjoyed, and am convinced that history teachers as a rule must be among the most boring people on the planet, at least while standing in front of a class.
I have even seen Derek Jacobi (who is the narrator of the audio version I listened to) perform Richard III on a London stage, and enjoyed it very much. It's just that if I'd been interested in proving the maligned king innocent of all the atrocities attributed to him, I would have cracked open historical records, not a mystery novel. Jacobi does a generally good American accent here, but at times the character sounded like Mel Blanc doing a Looney Tunes voice.
I finished reading it only as a tribute to that long-ago co-worker, who now is either deceased, or very old indeed. The third star is in her honor, too.
I can't help but imagine the conversation if I'd read it all those years ago, and arrived at work to tell my co-worker:
“I finally read that book you recommended.”
“Which one?”
“Daughter of Time.”
“That's my favorite!”
After 5 years, I took another job and moved away from that city, without having read the book.
But a few weeks ago, when I found an audio version, I thought of her, and decided I was finally going to read it. Imagine my disappointment when it turned out to be a history lesson-- one with so many Dukes and Earls and wives and mistresses and princes that it made me dizzy, and no real mystery at all.
It is without question the most static novel I have ever read, given that it takes place entirely within the confines of the hospital room of a detective with a broken leg. It occurs to me that Hitchcock (being one of the entertainers I am Anglophilic about) made a movie with a similar setup, but the excellent Rear Window did not feel static in the least.
It's not that I'm biased against British history in particular-- I have never taken a history class that I truly enjoyed, and am convinced that history teachers as a rule must be among the most boring people on the planet, at least while standing in front of a class.
I have even seen Derek Jacobi (who is the narrator of the audio version I listened to) perform Richard III on a London stage, and enjoyed it very much. It's just that if I'd been interested in proving the maligned king innocent of all the atrocities attributed to him, I would have cracked open historical records, not a mystery novel. Jacobi does a generally good American accent here, but at times the character sounded like Mel Blanc doing a Looney Tunes voice.
I finished reading it only as a tribute to that long-ago co-worker, who now is either deceased, or very old indeed. The third star is in her honor, too.
I can't help but imagine the conversation if I'd read it all those years ago, and arrived at work to tell my co-worker:
“I finally read that book you recommended.”
“Which one?”
“Daughter of Time.”
“That's my favorite!”
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Unlikely as it seems, this book in which the main character does not even sit up in bed until 175 pages in and the plot takes place some 400 years in the past was completely fascinating. The mystery concerns Richard III (deposed by Henry VII, father of Henry VIII...who we DO know) and two nephews he is widely considered to have murdered. The main character is an early-1900s police officer recovering from a broken leg who begins considering the historical mystery as a way to overcome the "prickles of boredom". With the help of a young American researcher at the British Museum, they uncover various inconsistencies in the accepted history and come up with their own interpretation. It does sound dry, but it's not! I promise!
Un fantástico llamamiento al revisionismo histórico
adventurous
challenging
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Me ha encantado conocer a esta autora! Una de las “damas del misterio” de la literatura inglesa. Un libro publicado originalmente en el ‘51 y donde el estilo fresco y ágil de la autora, lo hace parecer más actual. Me encantan los libros de misterio y este se centra en resolver uno de los más grandes de la historia de la monarquía inglesa. Diez puntos para la construcción del personaje Alan Grant: un policía inteligente pero no pedante, ensimismado pero no insensible, habilidoso
pero humilde. Así, sí!
pero humilde. Así, sí!