I'm glad to be finally finished. That book felt like it took forever to read. If it hadn't been a More Historical Than Fiction read I probably would have dropped it. Maybe I should have dropped it. Oh well.

It's not that it's a bad book or anything; I just couldn't get into it. I'm not sure why I struggled so much with it, but the dialogue seemed stilted and I was kind of bored by it. I know I wasn't supposed to be bored but I just couldn't seem to care about any of it. I also had trouble picturing the climax scene with Herrick. It just didn't make sense, physically, to me.

I feel that based on the subject matter, this should have been a nail-biting, riveting read, and it wasn't.

Previous updates:

313 of 384 pages

76 of 384 pages

You don't sew a tapestry, do you? I thought a tapestry had to be woven. 

What do you call a large embroidered piece of cloth? 

Well, I'm a month behind but I've finally started July's More Historical Than Fiction read.

It's not bad, but I'm not really getting sucked in. I can't quite put my finger on it, but something just isn't quite working for me. There was also some info dumping of past history that didn't seem entirely necessary to the story. John Shakespeare mentions a past case in such a way as to make it feel like this wasn't the first book published...but somehow it feels like filler.

Maybe it'll pick up?

First of all, let's just take a moment to appreciate that I finally finished a monthly read for More Historical Than Fiction. Yay, me! I know, I know. That's not really applause worthy, but I'm taking my successes where I can get them.  ;-)

This book was a quick, enjoyable read for me. As a fast-paced mystery with a likable protagonist and a skilled creation of the Tudor world, it captivated and held my attention. I liked the fact that even though Queen Elizabeth never appears in a scene, the reader is given a strong impression of her character and heavy hand on events.

"Those who caught her eye lived a life between heaven and hell depending on her moods, which were as changeable as the weather: one moment sunshine and balm, the next thunder and rage."

Digging a little bit deeper, this book has a few flaws. John Shakespeare makes a great first impression, but I began to wonder what it was that he really believed and stood for as the book carried on. He is willing to risk his life to do his job, but why? The religious battle that grips the country seems to matter little to him, and he has no problem arresting one Catholic and sleeping with another.

Yet it wasn't until the odd Mother Davis bit that I took this book out of 5-star contention. I'm not even sure what to say about that strange episode.

The conclusion of the book felt a bit rushed after all the suspense of getting there, but the appearance of Will Shakespeare was a fun way to wrap things up. This is a series that will go on my TBR.

SWEDISH REVIEW

Den före detta elitsoldaten Ben Hope har dragit sig tillbaka från sitt våldsamma förflutna och äntligen funnit lugnet, vid ett medeltida kloster i franska alperna. Men det dröjer inte länge förrän problemen hinner ikapp honom. När Ben, efter att ha varit borta från klostret i ett dygn, återkommer till ett blodbad – någon har attackerat klostret och avrättat munkarna – väcks hans stridslystnad åter till liv. Han ska finna mördarna och hämnas. Ben ger sig av på en livsfarlig jakt och dras allt längre in i en härva av stulna skatter, bedrägerier, mord och en sjuhundra år gammal förbannelse.

Vad vill egentligen ”De förbereddas armé”, den hänsynslösa grupp som angrep klostret, uppnå? I takt med att Ben hittar fler ledtrådar uppdagas en fasansfull plan som hotar att ödelägga hela världen. Den slutgiltiga katastrofen måste förhindras – och det finns bara en man som kan göra det.

Martyrens förbannelse är den andra boken jag har läst i Ben Hope serien och jag tycker storyn i denna bok är snäppet bättre än i den förra bokne jag läste (Dolda). Men så finner jag begravda hemligheter väldigt fascinerande. Sedan är det så att man kan ju inget annat än tycka synd om Ben Hope som äntligen har funnit den frid han har sökt så länge ska tvingas ta itu med onda människor igen. Denna gång en man som är ute efter något som kan innebära världens undergång. För Ben Hope är detta uppdrag personligt, han är ute efter hämnd. Munkarna som dog var hans vänner och han stoppar inte för något eller något förrän de har fått upprättelse.

Martyrens förbannelse är en snabbläst thriller, perfekt för en mörk vinterdag när man vill tillbringa dagen i soffan under en filt. Jag gillar Ben Hope, han är inte en opersonlig mördarmaskin utan en man som har fått utstå mycket men som nu verkar ha funnit ro. Men så krossas det och än en gång måste han stoppa en galning. Jag fann att handlingen i första halvan av boken tilltalade mig mest, när man ännu inte hade svar på alla frågor. Slutstriden kändes en aning förutsägbar men boken är helt klart underhållande.