Tag: historical fiction

Book Review: The Secret Life of Alfred Nightingale by Rebecca Stonehill

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The Secret Life of Alfred NightingaleAbout the Book

1967: Handsome but troubled, Jim is almost 18 and he lives and breathes girls, trad jazz, Eel Pie Island and his best friend, Charles. One night, he hears rumours of a community of young people living in caves in Matala, Crete. Determined to escape his odious, bully of a father and repressed mother, Jim hitch-hikes through Europe down to Matala.

At first, it’s the paradise he dreamt it would be. But as things start to go wrong and his very notion of self unravels, the last thing Jim expects is for this journey of hundreds of miles to set in motion a passage of healing which will lead him back to the person he hates most in the world: his father.

Format: eBook, paperback (299 pp.)           Publisher: Sunbird Press
Published: 11th November 2017                 Genre: Historical Fiction

Purchase Links*
Amazon.co.uk ǀ Amazon.com
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme

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My Review

Structured in three parts, the first section of the book, set in 1967, is told from the point of view of seventeen-year old Jim. He is troubled by his frequent clashes with his taciturn, seemingly remote and disciplinarian father who disapproves of Jim’s trips to Eel Pie Island to listen to bands, dance and drink the night away. When Jim learns about a group of young people living in ancient caves in a place called Matala in southern Crete, he defies his father and, with his best friend, Charles, hitch-hikes across Europe to the island.

Initially, Jim is spellbound by Matala and the free and easy lifestyle of the community of young travellers he and Charles find living there, even if living conditions are basic to say the least. He becomes captivated by one girl in particular, the beautiful and free-spirited Chenoa, but in his naivety fails to grasp the ‘rules of the game’ are different here. After an act of what Jim regards as betrayal, he becomes disillusioned with what he had previously regarded as an utopia. Returning home he learns the cost of his time away is not just his father’s wrath but something much more troubling and significant.

The author conjures up a believable picture of life in the 1960s, whether that’s Jim’s home life (Vesta beef curry, foil-wrapped teacakes), the atmosphere of Eel Pie Island or the freewheeling, hippy lifestyle in Matala.

In my interview with Rebecca (see link below), she revealed one of the things she finds interesting is ‘what we share with one another and what we decide to keep to ourselves’ and described her fascination with words left unspoken. She also observed that secrets and mysteries can be the force that propels readers through a story.

In the case of The Secret Life of Alfred Nightingale a significant part of the mystery for the reader is to do with when or how they are going to meet Alfred and discover the nature of his secret life. Without giving too much away, I’ll just say that the author keeps the reader waiting for quite a while to find out (although some readers may have an inkling earlier on). Ironically, for a long time, Jim is not even aware that secrets exist for him to discover. It’s only conversations with other cave dwellers in Crete that make him start to wonder why he knows so little about his father’s past. What Jim eventually finds out (in, for me, the most powerful parts of the book) utterly changes how he feels about his father. Perhaps they are not so very different after all? Although maybe, unlike his father, Jim has a chance to put some things right.

The Secret Life of Alfred Nightingale is both an insightful coming-of-age story and a powerful exploration of the horror, heartbreak and lasting impact of war. It’s also about the kindness of strangers and the possibility of second chances.

Thanks to Rebecca for my copy of her book and for her patience in waiting for my review. You can read my earlier interview with Rebecca about the book and her approach to writing here.

Rebecca StonehillAbout the Author

Rebecca Stonehill is from London but currently lives in Nairobi with her husband and three young children where she set up Magic Pencil, an initiative to give children greater access to creative writing and poetry. She has had numerous short stories published over the years, for example in Vintage Script, What the Dickens magazine, Ariadne’s Thread and Prole Books but The Poet’s Wife (Bookouture) was her first full-length novel, set in Granada during the Spanish Civil war and Franco’s dictatorship. Her second novel, The Girl and the Sunbird, was published by Bookouture in June 2016.

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Book Review: Hudson’s Kill (Justice Flanagan #2) by Paddy Hirsch

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hudson's killAbout the Book

New York, 1803. The expanding city is rife with tension, and violence simmers on every street as black and Irish gangs fight for control.  When a young girl is found brutally murdered, Marshal Justy Flanagan must find the killer before a mob takes the law into its own hands.

Kerry O’Toole, Justy’s friend and ally, decides to pursue her own inquiries into the girl’s murder.  When they each find their way to a shadowy community on the fringes of the city, Just and Kerry encounter a treacherous web of political conspiracy and criminal enterprise.  As events dangerously escalate, they must fight to save not only the city,  but also themselves…

Format: Hardcover, ebook (320pp.)    Publisher: Corvus Books
Published: 4th July 2019     Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Crime

Purchase Links*
Amazon.co.uk  ǀ  Amazon.com  ǀ Hive.co.uk (supporting UK bookshops)
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme

Find Hudson’s Kill (Justice Flanagan #2) on Goodreads

My Review

I loved The Devil’s Half-Mile, the first book in the series, and in Hudson’s Kill the author once again transports the reader to the powder keg that is New York in 1803, where gangs and other power brokers are seeking to stake their claims to areas of the rapidly expanding city.

The author brilliantly conjures up the sights, sounds and smells of early nineteenth century New York. Aptly described as ‘a dangerous place to live’, the city is overcrowded, many of its inhabitants are prey to gang warfare and disease, and the contrast between the slums and shanty towns of the poor and the lavish homes of the rich is stark.

The story’s told in the same colourful, lively prose as the previous book. Generous helpings of period slang (nimgimmer, dimber), imaginative curses (‘tossy-locked florence’) and memorable one-liners (‘Just because I’m togged in buntings and a snicket don’t mean you can treat me like some judy hick’) add to the sense of authenticity and atmosphere. You’ll definitely want to make use of the helpful glossary at the back of the book and it’s only right to give a shout out to the copy editing and proofreading team. And, if you’ve ever wondered about the hierarchy of prostitutes in early nineteenth century New York, well, Paddy Hirsch has done the research for you. As Kerry learns in preparation for an undercover role, it goes ‘bunters’, ‘buricks’, ‘curtezan’ and top of the tree, ‘gentry-mort’.

I was pleased to see many of the larger-than-life characters from the first book make return appearances: Justy’s uncle, Ignatius Flanagan, known as ‘The Bull’; Justy’s friend, Lars Hokkanssen, the tough red-bearded sailor; streetwise Kerry O’Toole; and Kerry’s cousin, Lew Owens. But there are also new characters to get to know, such as the memorably named Hardluck. And, of course, there’s the man himself, Justy Flanagan. His moral complexity makes him a fascinating and engaging leading character. He’s shrewd, observant, resourceful and pretty handy with a ‘chive’ or in a ‘clutch’. (Sorry, you need that glossary again.) But Justy, a word – Eliza is definitely not the woman for you. You need to listen to Lars.

The gruesome discovery in the opening chapter sees Justy and Kerry each embark on their own inquiries into the death of a young girl. Whilst for Justy it’s largely professional, it also speaks to his sense of justice and desire to see everyone – rich or poor, black or white – treated equally under the law. As he says, “We have to speak for her. We have to act for her. And that means finding her killer”. For Kerry, there’s a very personal reason why she’s equally determined to see justice done.

However, if you ask questions, especially questions that bring you to the attention of criminals and murderers, then you court danger, as both Justy and Kerry find out to their cost. Throw in a range war between competing gang leaders, corruption and conspiracy in high places and you have all the components for a conflagration – and not necessarily just metaphorical. Oh, and remember there are spies and informers everywhere so be very careful who you trust.

The plot takes advantage of the febrile state of New York at the beginning of the nineteenth century to create a page-turning crime mystery but also touches on issues of contemporary relevance, such as immigration, racial discrimination and segregation.

Paddy Hirsch certainly knows how ‘to spin a cakey dit’*.  Hudson’s Kill is as fast-moving and intricately plotted as its predecessor with the same fantastic period atmosphere and great cast of characters. I absolutely loved it. On behalf of historical crime fans, I fervently hope there are more adventures awaiting Justy Flanagan.

I received an advance review copy courtesy of Readers First and publishers, Corvus.

* to tell a good story (You see why you need that glossary?)

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In three words: Gripping, immersive, fast-paced

Try something similar…Blood & Sugar by Laura Shepherd-Robinson (read my review here)

Paddy HirschAbout the Author

Paddy Hirsch was educated in Dublin and Belfast, and the University of Warwick, where he founded the University’s Irish Society.  He started his journalism career in Hong Kong after a short stint in the military, and spent the next few years working in East and Southeast Asia, and Eastern Europe.  From there to America, where he covered various aspects of Wall Street for a variety of American and European news outlets.  He now lives in Los Angeles.  (Photo credit: Goodreads author page)

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