Tag: HF Reading Challenge

Book Review – Swan Song by Kelleigh Greenberg-Jephcott

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About the Book

To the outside world, they were the icons of high society — the most glamorous and influential women of their age. To Truman Capote they were his Swans: the ideal heroines, as vulnerable as they were powerful. They trusted him with their most guarded, martini-soaked secrets, each believing she was more special and loved than the next…

Until he betrayed them.

Format: Paperback (496 pages) Publisher: Windmill
Publication date: 14th June 2018 Genre: Historical Fiction

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My Review

Capote believed his (never-finished) novel, Answered Prayers, would be his crowning achievement as an author, a work comparable (in his own mind) to that of Marcel Proust. Crippled with writer’s block he decided to allow the first few chapters of the novel to be published in Esquire magazine. They depicted the thinly disguised lives and scandals of his closest female confidantes, the six women he referred to as his ‘swans’ – C.Z. Guest, Babe Paley, Marella Agnelli, Slim Keith, Lee Radziwill, and Gloria Guiness  They never forgave him.

Pretty soon after I began reading Swan Song I wondered if I really wanted to spend time amongst a group of privileged women whose most pressing decisions seemed to be what to wear, where to lunch and with whom. Or with a man, Truman Capote, who was prepared to reveal their most intimate secrets – shared with him, so they believed, in confidence – in order to perpetuate his reputation as an author. In addition, a man with the most affected speech and mannerisms, who created cringeworthy nicknames for his ‘swans’ and possessed an insatiable appetite for gossip, the more scurrilous the better.

Slowly though I began to become more interested in these women, particularly those who had taken charge of their own destinies, working their way up from nothing. I started to see the women beneath the glitzy lifestyle of endless parties, vacations in glamorous locations, visits to the beauty parlour and costumiers. I got an insight into their frustrations, disappointments and failed relationships and began to see them as individuals not as some homogenous group. I found myself particularly drawn to Barbara “Babe” Paley’s story and moved by events later in her life.

The author’s bold choice to have the women act like a Chorus in a Greek tragedy, recounting their stories but also, omnisciently, Capote’s story did work for me. Often astute, sometimes wry and acerbic, they tempered their disappointment at Capote’s betrayal with a degree of compassion. After all he was excellent company, an entertaining conversationalist and a generous host for whom no extravagance seemed too over the top. Many of them looked upon him as a friend, a confidante with whom to share problems and someone to cheer them up when they felt down.

I’m not sure I ever got over my dislike of Truman Capote although the author made a great effort to detail his troubled childhood, abandoned for long periods by a mother he nevertheless adored. He came across as needy, self-absorbed and at times rather cruel. I had little sympathy for his ostracization by the women whose confidence he betrayed. Having said that I couldn’t help being moved as we witness his gradual decline, the result of alcohol and drug abuse.

The book moves back and forth in time so does demand a degree of concentration from the reader. However, Swan Song is a fascinating glimpse into the lives of the rich and famous in 1960s and 1970s New York with walk-on parts for celebrated film stars, authors and politicians. Above all, it’s a story of hubris. I’m glad I (finally) made time to read it.

I listened to the audiobook read by Debora Weston. Overall I think she did a great job but I found Truman Capote’s high-pitched, rather child-like voice (although no doubt a fairly accurate representation) grated on me over the 17 hours it took to listen to the book.

In three words: Fascinating, incisive, authentic

About the Author

Kelleigh Greenberg-Jephcott was born and raised in Houston, Texas, before coming to call Los Angeles and London her adopted homes. She is a graduate of UEA’s Creative Writing MA course and was the winner of the Bridport Prize Peggy Chapman-Andrews Award. Swan Song, her first novel, was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2019.

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Book Review – A Pretender’s Murder by Christopher Huang @inkshares

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About the Book

The year is 1925. Few have given more for the Empire than Colonel Hadrian Russell. Robbed of his four sons by the Great War, he now holds court as the acting president of the Britannia, a prestigious soldiers-only club in London. But when the Colonel is shot and thrown out the club’s front window, it seems the shadows of the Great War may extend further than previously thought.

Lieutenant Eric Peterkin, newly installed secretary at the Britannia, finds himself thrust into the role of detective after Scotland Yard points fingers at friends he knows are innocent. But is the true murderer an unknown spy? Or a recently resurfaced friend of the Colonel’s dead sons? Or is it one of the Colonel’s four widowed daughters-in-law, who by all appearances paid him complete devotion?

Accusations from personal betrayal to wartime espionage mount among the suspects as Eric’s investigation draws him back to scenes and sites of a war he’s sought to leave behind. From the greening fields of Flanders and the springtime streets of Paris to the sterile wards of a Swiss sanatorium, and back to the Britannia itself, Eric finds that even myths leave behind bones.

Format: ebook (396 pages) Publisher: Inkshares
Publication date: 24th February 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction, Crime

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My Review

A Pretender’s Murder is the second book in the author’s historical crime series featuring amateur sleuth Eric Peterkin, the follow-up to A Gentleman’s Murder.

As a result of events in the previous book and his role in them, Eric is now Secretary of the Britannia Club. He’s the latest in a long line of Peterkins to be members of the Club. Only the male members of the family, of course. But no sooner has he begun to find his feet in his new role than he finds himself once again drawn into the investigation of a murder. This time it’s the violent killing of the Britannia Club’s acting President, Colonel Hadrian Russell, and on the premises no less. There’s an obvious suspect, at least that’s what Inspector Crane of Scotland Yard believes, but Eric’s not so sure. For example, who could have gained access to the Club premises when every door was locked and only a few trusted people had keys? Who was the person glimpsed leaving the building on the night of the murder? What was the motive?

As in the previous book, the investigation leads back to events in the Great War, in particular the death of Andrew, one of the fours sons of Colonel Russell killed during the conflict. His death was not on active service like his brothers, but was assumed to be an assassination carried out by German spies on account of his espionage activity. Most of the culprits were rounded up and executed but one slipped through the net.

There are many things I enjoyed about the book, not least of which is the cunningly constructed plot that will keep you guessing up until the final pages. If you worked out who did it, how and why before the solution is revealed, well done you because I didn’t.

Eric is the son of a Chinese mother and English father and this allows the author to explore the theme of identity. Judging by the reaction of others, Eric’s appearance marks him down as someone of Chinese heritage. (Eric’s sister Penny, is lighter skinned and able to ‘pass’ as white, seen as useful for her marriage prospects.) But Eric speaks no Chinese much to the puzzlement of Inspector Crane, recently returned from a long posting in Hong Kong, who has enthusiastically embraced Chinese culture such as breakfasting on congee. On the other hand, as we learn in a welcome insight into his childhood, Eric’s mother took pains to cultivate an English accent and embrace all things British.

Another thing the author does well is to weave into the story the lasting impact of the war, including on those who survived it or those who experienced loss. Colonel Russell’s four widowed daughter-in-laws have each responded in different ways to their bereavement. Lady Alice takes comfort from a perpetual show of mourning, dressed always in black, whilst her sister-in-law Flora seeks to live life to the full. Eric himself is haunted by memories of what he witnessed in the trenches, enduring periodic flashbacks. Other elements introduced into the story include the emergence of ‘alienists’ (a now obsolete term for psychiatrists), the rise of suburban housing estates and the activities of charlatans seeking to take advantage of the bereaved by professing to be able to communicate with the dead.

Eric’s hunt for clues necessitates a visit to post-war Europe where he finds evidence that turns everything on its head. As he discovers, not everyone is who they profess to be and it’s possible to be both a war hero and an utter cad.

A Pretender’s Murder is another clever historical mystery that incorporates all the elements of ‘Golden Age’ crime fiction but with moments of darkness. By the way, I heartily recommend reading the Historical Notes at the end of the book which contain a wealth of fascinating information about the factual basis for many of the events, people and locations in the book, but also clearly demonstrate the depth of the author’s research.

I received a digital review copy courtesy of Inkshares.

In three words: Intriguing, intricate, atmospheric
Try something similar: The House at Devil’s Neck by Tom Mead

About the Author

Christopher Huang grew up in Singapore, an only child in a family tree that expands dramatically sideways at his parents’ generation. He moved to Canada after his National Service, studied architecture at McGill, and settled down in Montreal, apparently for good. His first novel, A Gentleman’s Murder, was named a 2018 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year and is in development for television. He is also the author of the standalone mystery Unnatural Ends. A Pretender’s Murder is his third novel. (Photo: Author website)

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