Tag: historical fiction

Book Review – Fortune’s Wheel by Carolyn Hughes

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FortunesWheelAbout the Book

June 1349. In a Hampshire village, the worst plague in England’s history has wiped out half its population, including Alice atte Wode’s husband and eldest son. The plague arrived only days after Alice’s daughter Agnes mysteriously disappeared, and it prevented the search for her. Now the plague is over, the village is trying to return to normal life, but it’s hard, with so much to do and so few left to do it. Conflict is growing between the manor and its tenants, as the workers realise their very scarceness means they’re more valuable than before: they can demand higher wages, take on spare land, and have a better life. This is the chance they’ve all been waiting for. Although she understands their demands, Alice is disheartened that the search for Agnes is once more put on hold. When one of the rebels is killed, and then the lord’s son is found murdered, it seems the two deaths may be connected, both to each other and to Agnes’s disappearance

Format: eBook (319 pp.), paperback (270 pp.) Publisher: SilverWood Books
Published: 7th November 2016                            Genre: Historical Fiction

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My Review

Carolyn Hughes has chosen to set Fortune’s Wheel, the first in her Meonbridge Chronicles series, in the aftermath of The Black Death (referred to by the villagers as the ‘mortality’). This is a time of terrible bereavement – husbands have lost wives, wives have lost husbands, couples have lost children, children have been orphaned and, in some tragic cases, whole families have perished. Fields lie untended, cottages lie empty and the surviving villagers face straitened times and an uncertain future. Not least because if the ‘mortality’ was indeed sent by God to punish sinners, as their priests tell them, what’s to say it might not return? But, if it was sent by God, why were some known to be sinners spared and others – innocent babes, godly men and pious women – taken?

I really felt I became part of the village of Meonbridge and totally immersed in the lives of the villagers. There are a lot of characters to get to know initially so I appreciated the helpful list at the beginning of the book. However, it would be an unusual and rather uninteresting village if it didn’t have a varied population and, since the story has three main protagonists, I never felt overwhelmed. The three protagonists are all female and I really enjoyed the independence of spirit they shared, given the constraints of society’s expectations at that time. There is Alice, sadly widowed by the ‘mortality’ but determined not to remarry and to retain her independence. There is Eleanor, a freewoman thrust into the role of managing her own lands by the death of her parents and resolved to remain unmarried until she is ready for matrimony. And there is Lady Margaret, wife of the Lord of the Manor, who subtly seeks to mitigate the stern justice meted out by her husband on the tenants and workers of the manor.

As the inhabitants of Meonbridge struggle to overcome the ravages of the ‘mortality’ and rebuild their lives, Alice and her son, John, continue to be troubled by the disappearance of Alice’s daughter, Agnes, shortly before the ‘mortality’ struck. They’re both convinced that others know more about Agnes’ disappearance than they are saying. Is she dead, or alive and, if she still lives, why did she run away?

The ‘mortality’ is bringing other changes to the village, with some using the economic realities of a reduced population to challenge the feudal system that has ruled their lives for so long. However, there are those whose position would be threatened by any change in the balance of power.  Who knows to what lengths they will go to protect the status they currently enjoy?

One of the many interesting things I learned from Fortune’s Wheel was that there was a hierarchy amongst the peasantry as well as between the peasants and the landowners. The book contains fascinating detail about the feudal system: the obligations demanded with limited rights offered in return, the restrictions with few freedoms given in exchange and the many payments that could be demanded with refusal risking loss of home, property or livelihood.  The book also really brought home to me how little the ordinary villagers knew of life outside the confines of the village, often living and dying without ever travelling more than a few miles from their birthplace.

I loved all the detail of village life which gave the story such an authentic feel. Clearly, the author has done an incredible amount of research, introducing me to new terms – merchet, legerwite, heriot – and the many different roles necessary to village life – bailiff, steward, reeve and (my favourite) ale-taster. A glossary would be a fantastic addition to the book and I’d also love to have a map of the village.  There are many fascinating articles on Carolyn’s blog, including this one about life after The Black Death.

As you can probably tell, I really enjoyed Fortune’s Wheel and thought it was an accomplished, fascinating historical fiction novel – and an impressive debut. I was thrilled to learn the author is working on a second book in the series, A Woman’s Lot, and that this is due for publication in 2018. I’ll certainly look forward to reading more about the lives of the people of Meonbridge.

I received a copy of Fortune’s Wheel in a giveaway organised by Brook Cottage Books. I’d like to thank Carolyn for providing the book as a prize and for signing my copy.

In three words: Well-researched, engaging, mystery

Try something similar: The Last Hours by Minette Walters (read my book review of The Last Hours)

Carolyn HughesAbout the Author

Carolyn Hughes was born in London, but has lived most of her life in Hampshire. After a first degree in Classics and English, she started her working life as a computer programmer, in those days a very new profession. It was fun for a few years, but she left to become a school careers officer in Dorset. But it was when she discovered technical authoring that she knew she had found her vocation. She spent the next few decades writing and editing all sorts of material, some fascinating, some dull, for a wide variety of clients, including an international hotel group, medical instrument manufacturers and the Government.

She has written creatively for most of her adult life, but it was not until her children grew up and flew the nest, several years ago, that creative writing and, especially, writing historical fiction, took centre stage in her life. She has a Masters in Creative Writing from Portsmouth University, and a PhD from the University of Southampton.

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Blog Tour/Q&A: The Tide Between Us by Olive Collins

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The Tide Between Us Blog Tour Banner

I’m delighted to be taking part in the blog tour for The Tide Between Us by Olive Collins and to welcome Olive to What Cathy Read Next.   Below you can find a fascinating interview in which Olive talks about the inspiration for The Tide Between Us, the historical background to the events in the book and her view that we must examine the past in order to fully understand the present.

Be sure to check out the other bloggers taking part in the tour.

I’d like to thank Olive for providing me with a review copy of The Tide Between Us. I can’t wait for it to reach the top of my review pile. If you’re less patient than me, follow the purchase links below.

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The Tide Between UsAbout the Book

1821: After the landlord of Lugdale Estate in Kerry is assassinated, young Art O’Neill’s innocent father is hanged and Art is deported to the cane fields of Jamaica as an indentured servant. He gradually acclimatises to the exotic country and unfamiliar customs of the African slaves and achieves a kind of contentment. Then the new heirs to the plantation arrive. His new owner is Colonel Stratford-Rice from Lugdale Estate, the man who hanged his father. Art must overcome his hatred to survive the harsh life of a slave and live to see the eventual emancipation of his coloured children. Eventually he is promised seven gold coins when he finishes his service.

One hundred years later in Ireland, a skeleton is discovered beneath a fallen tree on the grounds of Lugdale Estate. By its side is a gold coin minted in 1870. Yseult, the owner of the estate, watches as events unfold, fearful of the long-buried truths that may emerge about her family’s past and its links to the slave trade. As the body gives up its secrets, Yseult realises she too can no longer hide.

Format: eBook, Paperback (400 pp.) Publisher: Poolbeg Press
Published: 7th September 2017           Genre: Historical Fiction

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

 

Find The Tide Between Us on Goodreads

Interview with Olive Collins, author of The Tide Between Us

Without giving too much away, can you tell me a bit about The Tide Between Us?

My novel is based between Jamaica and Ireland (1821 – 1991). It follows the story of Art O’Neill, an Irish boy deported to Jamaica at 10 years of age. He takes us through the decades of his life and the coarseness of Jamaica, a country that eventually allows him to progress from servant to overseer, to landowner. We see him become a father and watch as slave emancipation unfolds liberating his coloured children. His greatest battle is fought quietly as he struggles with his abhorrence at his Anglo-Jamaica oppressors, a mutual loathing that passes from father to son. Eventually Art is promised seven gold coins when he finishes his service, although he doubts the plantation owner will part with the coins. Part 1 ends in 1891 with Art going to the Big House to claim his gratuity.

Part 2 is based in Ireland (1921 – 1991). It opens with the discovery of a skeleton beneath a tree on the grounds of Lugdale Estate with a gold coin minted in 1870. Yseult, the owner of Ludgale Estate, watches events unfold fearful of the rumours that abound about her father’s beginnings in Jamaica, a county with 25% of the population claiming Irish descent.

What was the inspiration for the book?

In the 1990’s I met a man at a St. Patrick’s Day party in Israel. He was from Jamaica yet identified his heritage as Irish. He told me that vast numbers of Jamaicans were of Irish descent. At the time I didn’t believe him and only when Google became available did I research his story. I found so many accounts of exiled Irish to Jamaica, I was enthralled. One particular story about 2,000 exiled children tugged at me. My inspiration is those who survived and passed their stories onto the following generations; those who survived adversity to find their own sense of freedom.

How did you approach the research for the book? Do you enjoy the process of research?

I knew very little about the Caribbean so I had to start from scratch. Unlike a lot of colonies, there was little that survived on Jamaica. I used academic papers, memoirs, history books and some diaries from the southern American states to establish the role of an overseer and the attitudes of the time towards slavery. There was one valuable diary from Thomas Thistlewood, an English overseer and planter in Jamaica.

Only when my main character, Art O’Neill, began his journey did I begin to enjoy the research. Reading about the unnecessary cruelty and what the slaves and indentured servants endured was difficult yet it helped me establish how the slaves and servants were viewed. I became very involved in the characters. Writing about slave emancipation was wonderful; the great strides the ex-slaves made to ensure their days of whippings were finally over.

The Tide Between Us tells the story of a young Irish man deported to Jamaica as an indentured servant. Do you feel this is an aspect of Irish history that has been overlooked?

Yes, I think it’s overlooked. Most people who’ve read my novel never knew about the exiled Irish or how the masses of Irish left as indentured servants during the 18th century and until the mid-19th century. When I looked at the map of Jamaica and saw the amount of Irish place-names I was even more surprised that so many are not aware of our exiled history.

What was the most surprising fact you uncovered during your research?

The amount of Irish who emigrated to Jamaica. Initially I thought the number was much smaller. We don’t have accurate numbers; suffice to say, 25% of Jamaican’s claim Irish ancestry. I was equally surprised to see that some Irish owned slaves and could be as cruel as any other slave-owner.

Your previous novel, The Memory of Music, is partly set in Ireland during the Easter Rising of 1916. What is it you enjoy about writing historical fiction?

I write historical fiction because I’m curious about the unknown. The present is familiar to me whereas the atmosphere of times long gone is mysterious. Sometimes I simply want to explore how people survived. The novels and location interest me; if nothing else, it sates my curiosity. When I read certain histories, so much is explained about a nation’s outlook. To understand the present, we need to examine the past.

Both The Memory of Music and The Tide Between Us have dual time narratives. What is it that attracts you to this structure for your novels?

It’s the continuation that interests me. I like to explore how the following generation is impacted by the previous generation. Naturally as time passes we become more civilised and tolerant, yet each of us inhabit our own smaller histories, the little nuggets we pass onto the following generations. I’m interested in how families and we as individuals evolve and how much of the deep, dark past we pull into the present and pass on again and again.

Do you have a special place to write or any writing rituals?

I don’t have a special place, although I like to write at night. Most of the time I sit by a window with a lamp and the flickering lights from houses and cars in the distance. Writing at night removes layers and brings me closer to those I want to reach. There is a sense that it’s only me and them (my beloved characters) and the time they inhabit.

Which other writers do you admire?

I like Elizabeth Strout for her solid characters, Isabelle Allende for her sweeping sagas, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie for her prose bubbling on each page.

What are you working on next?

I’m researching the American Wild West and the pioneers who ventured into the prairies. A few years ago I visited Oregon. At one point I went for a drive into the desert and saw the remains of the Oregon Trail. Although it had been 130 years since the last pioneers used the same trail, the route they travelled was still evident in the desert. I remember looking across the arid landscape and further to the distant mountains. I’ve often thought of the trail I saw and thought about the men and women who packed up everything and chased a dream.

Thank you, Olive, for the fascinating answers. I’m sure we all hope those nights spent connecting with the characters of your next book will prove fruitful.

Olive CollinsAbout the Author

Olive Collins grew up in Thurles, Tipperary, and now lives in Kildare. For the last fifteen years, she has worked in advertising in print media and radio. She has always loved the diversity of books and people. She has travelled extensively and still enjoys exploring other cultures and countries. Her inspiration is the ordinary everyday people who feed her little snippets of their lives. It’s the unsaid and gaps in conversation that she finds most valuable.

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