‘Call of the Merry Isle: 1 (The Larus Series)’ by Kathy Sharp

This is a gentle, mystical, tale about a young clergyman – the Reverend Patience Pontius – who does not really know his own mind. He should marry the girl who has been picked out for him and settle into a small living in the country. But something keeps calling to him. He should facilitate communications

‘The Spirit Child’ (Seven Realms of Ar’rothi, Book 1) by Alison Naomi Holt

This book is fantasy-ish, in that it is a couple of worlds we know pretty well melded together. The setting is somewhere between mediaeval, and American West circa 1880. The book seemed to have a bit of trouble sorting out what it wanted to be and where it was going in the early stages. The

‘The Last Tudor’ by Philippa Gregory

I like Philippa Gregory’s historical fiction a lot. I couldn’t put The White Queen down. Most of what I know about Tudor history I have learned from Philippa Gregory’s meticulously researched books about said Tudors. Meaty books, they are, full of action and intrigue. Gregory has a gift for supposing how the vital (and numerous)

‘Flight of the Falcon’ by Daphne du Maurier

I forget how I came across this, but it was until recently unknown to me. I have always enjoyed Du Maurier’s books – the usual suspects, that is: Jamaica Inn, Rebecca, My Cousin Rachel, Frenchman’s Creek, ‘The Birds’ and other of her short stories. Checking now I see there are many, many more to choose

‘The Dagger of Trust’ by Chris Willrich

This substantial novel is one of many ‘Pathfinder Tales’, a series of novels which support the eponymous gaming system. I love me some Chris Willrich. That man does not write novels half quick enough for my liking. He is much more visible in the fantasy magazine world. He has been a regular in ‘Beneath Ceaseless