Tag: blogtour

#BookReview The Bird in the Bamboo Cage by Hazel Gaynor @HarperFiction @RandomTTours

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Bird in Bamboo Cage BT PosterWelcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for The Bird in the Bamboo Cage by Hazel Gaynor. My thanks to Anne at Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part and to HarperCollins for my digital review copy via NetGalley. Do check out the post by my tour buddy for today, Jane at Jane Hunt Writer.

9780008393632About the Book

When war imprisons them, only kindness will free them…

China, 1941. With Japan’s declaration of war on the Allies, Elspeth Kent’s future changes forever. When soldiers take control of the missionary school where she teaches, comfortable security is replaced by rationing, uncertainty and fear.

Ten-year-old Nancy Plummer has always felt safe at Chefoo School. Now the enemy, separated indefinitely from anxious parents, the children must turn to their teachers – to Miss Kent and her new Girl Guide patrol especially – for help. But worse is to come when the pupils and teachers are sent to a distant internment camp. Unimaginable hardship, impossible choices and danger lie ahead.

Inspired by true events, this is the unforgettable story of the life-changing bonds formed between a young girl and her teacher, in a remote corner of a terrible war.

Format: Hardcover (400 pages)         Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication date: 20th August 2020 Genre: Historical fiction

Find The Bird in the Bamboo Cage on Goodreads

Pre-order/Purchase links*
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*links provided for convenience not as part of an affiliate programme

My Review

The story alternates between two first person narrators – Nancy Plummer and Elspeth Kent – providing the reader with different perspectives on the unfolding events. After all, the thoughts and feelings of a ten-year old girl are likely to be very different to that of an experienced teacher. What unites them is the value of friendship. I liked the way the friendship between Elspeth and fellow teacher, Minnie, grows, allowing them to share the past disappointments and tragedies in their lives. Similarly, Nancy’s friendship with Dorothy (‘Sprout’) and Joan (‘Mouse’) helps to ease the pain of separation from her parents.

When the teachers and children are forced to leave their beloved Chefoo School, Elspeth receives two parting gifts from their Chinese servants that will come to be a source of comfort in the years ahead. The first will help her to distance herself mentally from the traumatic experiences she will witness and endure. (It’s a theme picked up later in the book when a character observes, “Thinking is the real war, isn’t it? It’s our minds that will ultimately determine whether we win or lose; whether we survive.”) The second gift becomes not only a symbol of hope and resilience but a way to honour the memory of those who will not live to see freedom.

The reality of what in loco parentis really entails becomes clear as Elspeth, Minnie and the other teachers find themselves thrust into a role far beyond that of merely educators. As Elspeth muses, “I was here to step into the shoes of all the absent parents. I was here to watch over these temporary orphans of war.” Often, Elspeth underestimates just how important she is to the children’s mental and emotional strength. In a way, the need to look after and protect the children provides a distraction from the challenges each day brings – the unsanitary conditions, shortage of food, risk of disease and cruelty of the guards. As Elspeth remarks, “For the children I kept going.”

Routine and upholding the principles of the Girl Guides – loyalty, courage, hard work, and so on – are the strategies Elspeth and Minnie use to hold things together, distracting the children from the hardships of the internment camp. However, they cannot protect them from everything and none of the children will emerge from the experience unchanged.

As an admirer of John Buchan, I’m sure you can imagine my delight when one of his books turns up in the camp library set up by the redoubtable Mrs Trevellyan. (There’s also a mention of one of Buchan’s favourite books, The Pilgrim’s Progress, which, incidentally, is used to pass clandestine messages in his novel, Mr Standfast.) And I could only nod in agreement at Mrs T’s observation about the value of books: “This is our escape. Right here, in all these glorious words. Between these pages, we can be as free as the birds. We can go anywhere we please!”

The Bird in the Bamboo Cage brings to life the story of the children of Chefoo School in a way that immerses the reader in their experiences. I felt I was living every moment with them. Although there are things that are difficult to read about there are uplifting moments as well, including small acts of defiance and of unexpected kindness. I can only echo the words of the author when she notes in the Afterword, “No matter the time or distance from an historical event, the universal themes of love, grief, friendship, regret and resilience are what connect us all across the decades.”

In three words: Emotional, authentic, inspiring

Try something similar: The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng

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Hazel GaynorAbout the Author

Hazel Gaynor is an award-winning New York Times, USA Today, Irish Times, and international bestselling author of historical fiction, including her debut The Girl Who Came Home for which she received the 2015 RNA Historical Novel of the Year award. The Lighthouse Keeper’s Daughter was shortlisted for the 2019 HWA Gold Crown Award. She is published in thirteen languages and nineteen countries. Hazel is co-founder of creative writing events, The Inspiration Project, and currently lives in Ireland with
her family, though originally from Yorkshire.

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#BookReview Fortress of Fury by Matthew Harffy @AriesFiction

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Aries Blog Tour BannerI’m thrilled to be taking part in the blog tour to celebrate the launch of Aries, the brand new imprint of Head of Zeus dedicated to international thrillers, speculative fiction and tales of adventure. Today’s stop is all about Fortress of Fury by Matthew Harffy, the seventh book in The Bernicia Chronicles series. Already available as an ebook, the hardback edition is due to be published in October and is available to pre-order now.

My thanks to Vicky and Jade at Head of Zeus for inviting me to take part in the tour and for my digital review copy of Fortress of Fury via NetGalley.

9781786696366About the Book

Beobrand is besieged in the action-packed instalment in the Bernicia Chronicles set in AD 647 Anglo-Saxon Britain.

War hangs heavy in the hot summer air as Penda of Mercia and his allies march into the north. Caught unawares, the Bernician forces are besieged within the great fortress of Bebbanburg. It falls to Beobrand to mount the defence of the stronghold, but even while the battle rages, old and powerful enemies have mobilised against him, seeking vengeance for past events.

As the Mercian forces tighten their grip and unknown killers close in, Beobrand finds himself in a struggle with conflicting oaths and the dreadful pull of a forbidden love that threatens to destroy everything he holds dear.

With the future of Northumbria in jeopardy, will Beobrand be able to withstand the powers that beset him and find a path to victory against all the odds?

Format: ebook (374 pages)               Publisher: Aries
Publication date: 6th August 2020 Genre: Historical fiction, action

Find Fortress of Fury (The Bernicia Chronicles, #7) on Goodreads

Pre-order/Purchase links*
Amazon UK | Hive (supporting UK bookshops)
*links provided for convenience not as part of an affiliate programme

My Review

I promise that, at some point, I will read this series from the beginning. So far I’ve only read the previous book in the series, Storm of Steel, which I loved. I also very much enjoyed Wolf of Wessex, Matthew’s standalone historical mystery published in November 2019. Links from the titles will take you to my reviews. You can also read my Q&As with Matthew about two earlier books in the series – Warrior of Woden and Killer of Kings.

Although Fortress of Fury is the seventh book in the series it can definitely be enjoyed as a standalone. The book has brief references to events and characters in previous books but this is done in a such a way that it certainly won’t stop me going back and reading earlier books.

As fans of the series have come to expect, there are thrilling battle scenes with vivid descriptions of blood-splattered, bone-crunching encounters between Beobrand’s loyal Black Shields and their enemies, in this case the marauding Mercians. Beobrand himself is a fearsome warrior. “He was born to this… Now there was nothing but the night, cold steel and the hot blood of his enemies. This was the dance of death, and Beobrand knew every step.” For Beobrand though, each victory comes at a price, as the faces of the men he has killed often haunt his nightmares.

Without in any way intruding on the story or the pace of events, the book has a mass of fascinating detail about domestic life in a noble house of the period, weaponry and the political landscape of 7th century Anglo-Saxon Britain, with its different tribes and factions. I loved the scenes set within the beseiged fortress of Bebbanburg as its inhabitants and those who have sought refuge behind its supposedly impregnable walls prepare to withstand the enemy onslaught. I really felt I was there manning the barricades alongside them.

As well as his prowess with a sword and seax, Beobrand possesses numerous other qualities. I confess the references to the broadness of his chest, his powerful arms and the shape of his muscled legs made me think it might not be such a burden to be stuck in a besieged castle alongside him. However, since I’d have a much more well-connected and alluring rival it would definitely make it a fortress of fury!

I liked how the author explored the responsibilities that come with leadership. As Beobrand confides, “a man’s promise to his lord is both a treasure and a burden“. His gesithas are not just men sworn to serve him, they are his ‘shield-brothers’ whom he has a duty to protect. “He was their leader and must be stronger than any of them. That was his wyrd, the destiny of a lord.”

From time to time, the reader gets to see events from the point of view of Cynan, one of Beobrand’s loyal gesithas. Despite proving himself on an important mission and earning the trust of a group of men, Cynan underestimates his own leadership ability. “He knew they were not truly his men, they were but ceorls who had turned to a warrior with a horse, helm and sword in a moment of need.” The inclusion of this different point of view also provides another perspective on Beobrand’s character and the way his brooding silences and sudden changes of mood affect his men.

In the tense final chapters, Beobrand finds himself “trapped between two oaths“. He is faced with a terrible choice: to carry out the command of the king he has sworn to obey which will involve betraying his own code of honour; or to break his oath of allegiance with all the consequences that will follow both for him and those who stand with him. Which course will he choose? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

As the prospect of war looms, Beobrand and the people of Bernicia are entitled to wonder how events will play out “on the great tafl board of kings“. Beobrand has a reputation for being lucky but, as the author confides in his historical note, “The future looks uncertain, with intrigues and danger lurking over every hill and in every shadow”. That seems a pretty enticing prospect to me.

In three words: Action-packed, immersive, thrilling

Try something similar: The Smile of the Wolf by Tim Leach

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Harffy_MatthewAbout the Author

Matthew Harffy grew up in Northumberland where the rugged terrain, ruined castles and rocky coastline had a huge impact on him.

He now lives in Wiltshire, England, with his wife and their two daughters.

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