When you hear the word Scotland, what comes to mind?
Kilts, bagpipes, Braveheart, Robert the Bruce, William Wallace, or Bonnie Prince Charlie?
This month, we go deeper, featuring two novels with roots in Scotland:
My review of Turn of the Tide, an award-winning novel by Margaret Skea
A new novel, The Apostates, by V.E.H. Masters, third in the Seton trilogy
My Review:
Turn of the Tidefocuses on one of Scotland’s historic feuds, the violent conflicts in the Ayrshire region between the Cunninghame and Montgomerie clans. The author follows the journey of Munro, a minor estate-owner with ties to the Cunninghame clan, as he negotiates relationships between the two clans during the 16th century.
Although the vividly-portrayed setting stands as a major character, Munro’s maturing as a character plays the key role in the novel. Throughout the story, events draw him toward one clan and then the other. The stakes increase with each choice, and the suspense builds to a riveting climax.
Characters: (just a few of the many)
Munro – the protagonist, he’s torn between his ties to the Cunninghame clan, his wife’s judgments, and his own instincts
Kate – Munro’s wife, a woman with good instincts
Archie – Munro’s younger brother, he struggles to find his place in life
Sybilla Boyd – friend to Munro’s family
King James VI of Scotland – young king who tries to reconcile feuding clans and use them to his advantage
Earl of Glencairn – head of Cunninghame clan, he tries to raise his clan’s standing with the king
William, Master of Glencairn – his position as the Earl’s eldest son and heir allows him to get away with poor judgment and behavior
Hugh, Master of Braidstane – son of a Montgomerie estate-owner
Alexander Montgomerie – a poet and courtier to King James VI, he helps Hugh and the Montgomerie clan ascend in the king’s esteem
Strengths:
The author’s broad, descriptive sweep covers much territory: family backgrounds and conflicts, locations, festivities, and customs. Her detailed portrait immerses readers in this era. Strong, distinctive characters drive the surprise-filled plot.
Weaknesses:
Many characters people this story, some referred to by their titles or residences, creating possible difficulties for the reader in remembering who’s who. (A list of Main Characters before the story begins is helpful.) The Scottish vocabulary words can be challenging at times to understand from the context. A glossary is located at the end of the ebook, if readers are willing to interrupt their reading to find it.
Content review:
This novel doesn’t shy away from the rough side of life in this era, including violence (toward women, enemies, other clans)
I recommend Turn of the Tide to readers who aren’t bothered by violence and enjoy a compelling plot set in an unfamiliar time and place, filled with both action and introspection.
Announcing:
The Apostates, by V.E.H. Masters, 3rd volume in the Seton trilogy (1st volume, The Castilians, was reviewed here in February, 2022)
It’s 1550 and Bethia has fled Antwerp, with her infant son, before the jaws of the inquisition clamp down, for the family are accused of secret judaising. She believes they’ve evaded capture but her husband, Mainard, unbeknownst to her, is caught, imprisoned and alone. Reaching Geneva, Bethia hopes for respite from a dangerous journey, but it’s a Protestant city state which tolerates no dissent – and she’s a Catholic…
My Upcoming Novel:
Some of my readers have asked about its progress. I’ll pass along details as soon as I have them—soon, I hope!
Suppose you nurtured a passion for your future and studied for years to prepare for it, only to have your father veto your choice!
What would you do?
In 1865, Vita, the teen daughter of a Massachusetts physician, dreams of following in her father’s footsteps, but he adamantly opposes her plan because of her gender.
The Physician’s Daughter, by Martha Conway, skillfully navigates this drama and the creative ways Vita pursues her ambition in an era when women have limited control over their destinies.
After Vita learns of women who have succeeded in becoming physicians, she devotes herself to joining their ranks.
In addition to external challenges, she confronts self-doubt as she realizes her ability to memorize medical facts is only one element in the skillset of a successful physician.
Vita must also deal with her family’s expectations that she will marry and settle into a traditional lifestyle. Her plan to marry but still pursue a career in medicine runs into problems, and the story reveals how she deals with them.
Characters:
Vita, the protagonist – elicits my sympathy for her plight and her smarts, even if her emotional intelligence develops slowly.
Jacob – a damaged veteran of the Civil War, he’s an interesting blend of old-fashioned and modern ideas (for his era), which makes him a challenge for Vita to understand.
Mitty – Vita’s mother, wife of Dar – I sympathized with her position in life, but I found her lacking as a support for Vita’s aspirations
Dar/ Dr. Tenney – Vita’s father, an old-school physician, dubious of women’s capabilities, he’s deeply affected by his son’s death near the end of the Civil War. When Vita brings up her desire to attend medical school, he responds with, “You think you can replace your brother? You hope to profit from our loss, like a turkey vulture? No one can take the place of my son.”
Freddy – Vita’s beloved brother, he dies at the end of the Civil War
Amelia – Vita’s younger sister, she’s very traditional and doesn’t support Vita’s dreams.
Strengths:
The Physician’s Daughter is an engaging portrait of life and women’s struggles in the Civil War era.
Weakness:
The portrayal of Dr. Tenney, Vita’s father, showed no sympathy for Vita; even before his son’s death, he never showed humanity or love toward Vita.
Content review:
The Physician’s Daughter includes descriptions of war wounds and intimacy within marriage.
If you enjoy reading about the Civil War era and howwomen in bygone times have struggled to overcome discrimination, this novel will inspire and appeal to you.
Reader, what novels about women have inspired you?
When we need a break from the daily news, Jane Austen and her times provide a welcome respite. Her novels are well known by many, but Jane tried to keep her own life private. Miss Austen, a recent novel by Gill Hornby, provides insights into Jane’s life through that of her younger sister, Cassandra, and their family.
Cassandra (henceforth referred to as Cassy) is the main focus of this novel. Because she and Jane stayed close throughout their lives, their stories intertwine throughout this novel.
Readers familiar with the Austen family will dive effortlessly into this novel, while those of us less conversant must allow time to learn or refresh our memories about the family members and their personalities.
Long before I finished reading Miss Austen, the story attracted and held my interest. Because I didn’t know much about the Austen family, I found the plot twists suspenseful. The author reveals much about Jane’s and Cassy’s lives and emotions through Jane’s letters (imagined by the author). The constraints the female characters faced saddened me, but I enjoyed watching these women develop, interact, and change over time.
Major Characters:
Cassy – Jane’s younger sister; devoted (excessively?) to her family throughout her life; the author fills in details about Cassy’s life and feelings through Jane’s letters
Jane – the only sister and closest friend of Cassy; she was a novelist whose writing never received its proper recognition or reward during her short lifetime; the author skillfully portrays the sisters’ differences and how they complemented each other
Mrs. Cassandra Austen – mother of Jane and Cassy, an opinionated and domineering woman, perhaps an example of an antiquated perspective on life
Isabella – sister of Tom Fowle, Cassy’s fiancé; she was initially cool to Cassy; the development of their relationship was a highlight of the story
Mary Lloyd – the second wife of James Austen, a brother of Jane and Cassy; her dogmatic, non-empathetic personality made her Cassy’s nemesis
Strengths: In addition to an engaging plot, Miss Austen offers an in-depth look into the Austen family, the distinctive personality traits of each member, and their family dynamics.
Weakness: I’d appreciate more clarity about how many of the characters were historical and how accurately they were portrayed. Mrs. Cassandra Austen and Mary seemed almost caricatures, with few redeeming features shining through.
Content review: clean, with no violence; perhaps most interesting to readers of young adult age or older.
My take: I recommend Miss Austen to readers interested in learning more about Jane Austen through the eyes of her sister and interactions with her family members. If you also enjoy a story that slowly develops characters and their relationships, this is the novel for you.
Reader, what’s the most surprising thing you know about the Austen family?
Where does Ukraine find such courage and toughness to stand up for months against Russia’s invasion?
I’m no expert on Ukraine, but we can understand a nation’s current behavior better by learning about its past through the eyes (and words) of people who lived through that time.
The Memory Keeper of Kyiv, a recent novel by Erin Litteken, offers a compelling fictionalized story of a Ukrainian family, offering a window on the dealings of Stalin’s Soviet Union (Russia’s name then) with Ukraine in the 20th century (certainly an influence on the events of 2022).
This time-split novel begins in two times and places:
Wisconsin, 2004: Cassie, a Ukrainian-American, and her young daughter, Birdie, move in with Cassie’s Ukrainian grandmother, Bobby, after Cassie’s husband dies suddenly. Cassie struggles to understand her grandmother’s peculiarities, even as she grieves her husband’s death and faces the challenge of a possible new relationship.
Ukraine, 1929:Dictator Joseph Stalin begins to create collective farms and control agriculture in the Soviet Union by eliminating kulaks (prosperous peasants). Katya, her family and community try to maintain their lives and values as their situation grows worse by the day.
Characters:
They’re developed well, each with a unique perspective, strengths, and flaws.
Their interactions create anengaging story that kept me reading.
I especially related to Katya, one of the protagonists, who struggled between her desire for justice and her need to stay silent to survive.
Strengths:
The Memory Keeper of Kyiv, Erin Litteken’s debut novel, is a page-turner, providing a vivid portrayal of life in a fictional Ukrainian village around the time of Ukraine’s Holodomor (the Great Famine created by Stalin).
Weakness:
As the granddaughter of a Ukrainian refugee, the author understandably sympathizes with her Ukrainian characters. However, the novel would come across as more balanced if the Russian soldiers and collaborators showed more doubts about their actions, remorse, and perhaps a hint of compassion for their victims.
Content review:
This novel describes horrific cruelties inflicted by Stalin’s soldiers and local collaborators, so I suggest it to mature readers.
I recommend The Memory Keeper of Kyivto readers who wish to understand this period in Ukraine’s history, and who aren’t put off by descriptions of violence and cruelty.
Reader, can you suggest other books about Ukraine?
Have you heard of (or seen the movie about) the Monuments Men, the special force of Americans and Brits assembled after Germany’s World War II defeat?
They rushed to recover artwork stolen and hidden by the Nazis. It’s a suspenseful story that has found its way into numerous novels.
The Roses Underneath, set in Wiesbaden, Germany, in August, 1945, explores a less widely-known aspect of this story: the involvement of German civilians in the effort to return stolen art to its rightful owners.
This novel, the first in the Anna Klein trilogy by C.F. Yetmen, reveals the conflicts and complications faced by Germans as they interacted with the American military that defeated the Nazis.
During World War II, Germans had been treated as traitors if they opposed the Nazis.
Now, to gain the trust of Americans (and secure employment to rescue them from destitution), German civilians need to prove their loyalty to the mission of the Monuments Men.
Characters:
I appreciated this novel’s realistic portrayal of its characters, revealing both their virtues and faults. The difficult decisions they faced force readers to consider the choices they would make in such situations.
Anna Klein – the protagonist, she’s torn between love for her idealistic socialist husband and her fear of what will happen to her young daughter and herself as the Soviet Army advances
Amalia – Anna’s intelligent six-year-old daughter who would have preferred to stay with her father in Soviet-occupied Thuringia
Captain Cooper – an American architect working for the Monuments Men, he becomes Anna’s boss; his moral compass and gut feelings guide his actions, frequently causing problems in the military chain-of-command environment.
Emil Schilling – a disillusioned German soldier who lost his fingertips to frostbite in Leningrad, he returns to Germany and scrounges for employment
Frieda Schilling – Emil’s sister who provides daycare for Amalia
Oskar – orphaned German boy Anna discovers hanging around a villa; he resists Anna’s efforts to help him
Ludwig Schneider – German art dealer who tries to hide his thefts of art during the war so he can work for Monuments Men
Gerhard Heinrich (aka Schenk) – former gallery owner whose greed threatens Anna
Madeleine Wolf – best friend of Anna’s deceased mother ; she takes in Anna and Amalia after they walk to Wiesbaden
Strengths:
Exciting story set in an eventful era
Dives deeply into the period and the Monuments Men
Distinct characters with complex motivations and stories
Weakness:
Anna took chances that didn’t seem believable for a cautious woman who’d been living under Nazi rule for years.
Content review:
Contains some profanity and mention of sexual exploitation during and after World War II
Bottom Line:
This novel entertained me with its panoply of characters and plot twists, educated me about the plight of Germans after World War II, and challenged me to think about how I would respond in similar circumstances. I recommend it to readers who enjoy an exciting history-based story with depth of setting and characters.
In my own writing news:
If you’d like to be among the first to read my latest novel, I’m looking for fans of historical fiction to join my team of beta readers and early reviewers. Please contact me here!
Reader,can you recommend books where vanquished people become heroes?
If you could free someone from slavery only by lying and breaking the law, would you do it?
Many American Quakers (and others) faced this choice in the 1800s (until the Emancipation Proclamation outlawed slavery in 1863)—should they help enslaved people escape to freedom via the Underground Railroad?
Quakers valued every human.
So why would they have conflicting views about participating in the Underground Railroad’s efforts to smuggle escaped slaves to freedom?
The Last Runaway, by Tracy Chevalier, provides hints as it follows the journey of Honor, a young English Quaker who accompanies her fiancéed sister to the U.S. and settles near Oberlin, Ohio (an area of Quaker settlements, including Oberlin College).
This novel, set in the antebellum era, shows the surprising turns of Honor’s life as she confronts the realities of slavery, unexpected challenges, and wrenching decisions. The Last Runaway portrays Underground Railroad participants (and their opponents) as complex, fallible individuals facing danger and difficult choices (far from depictions as one-dimensional heroes).
Women immigrants’ fraught position in this era emerges clearly in this novel. When a foreign-born woman found herself alone in the U.S., even within an established community from her original culture, she was likely to face extremely limited choices:
In the best situation, she would marry a kind, compatible man
Frequently women had to marry whomever was locally available
If marriage wasn’t an option, she could survive only by becoming a servant or prostitute
Characters:
Honor Bright, the protagonist—I admired this young English Quaker who travels to America with her sister. She survives major shocks and increasingly takes agency of her life.
Donovan—the villain, a slave catcher who is romantically interested in Honor. Occasionally, he shows a spark of humanity, making readers wonder if his feelings for Honor will turn him into a hero.
Belle Mills—Donovan’s sister, an intelligent, free-spirited woman in many ways the opposite of her brother; she runs a millinery shop. In many ways, she’s the true heroine of the story because of the sacrifices she makes for others.
Judith Haymaker—Quaker matriarch; she appears cold and heartless, until readers learn her backstory.
Jack Haymaker—Judith’s young adult son; the story shows his maturing process, over time making his character more sympathetic.
Mrs. Reed—formerly enslaved woman who escaped, settled in Ohio and assisted Underground Railroad; her initial wariness and evolving relationship with Honor reveal the complexity of her character, as well as how Honor matures. Her strength and hard-earned wisdom eventually made her a sympathetic character.
Strengths:
The Last Runaway is a poignant story of how individuals dealt with the harsh realities of their times. The specific details bring to life the setting and era.
Weakness:
Given the extreme risks of participation in the Underground Railroad, the author’s portrayal of several of the Quaker characters in a negative light, relative to their sympathy for Honor or their position on helping slaves escape, seems a bit harsh.
Content review:
This is a story for adults, with sexual content woven into the story.
Recommendation:
The Last Runaway is a fascinating but emotionally difficult novel, forcing readers to consider how they would have navigated the few choices and stark consequences Honor found in the U.S. in the mid-1800s. I recommend this novel to readers who enjoy such a challenge.
Reader, two questions for you:
Would you have risked your future or even your life to help an enslaved person escape to freedom?
Have you read other novels about the Underground Railroad that you recommend?
