Variations on a Theme

Here are some more 70's book covers:

     Farewell the Tranquil Mind by R.F. Delderfield is a historical fiction novel set mostly in France during their revolution. David Treloar must leave his native England for France after his father is caught smuggling. While there, he is taken in by a the Rouzet family and he falls in love with their cousin Charlotte Lamotte. The novel follows the goings on of the Rouzet household, a family passionate about the revolution in it's most philosophic terms. As the Revolution reaches a fever pitch David and the Rouzet family must find a way to escape Paris before they are all imprisoned. 

     This novel took me by a pleasant surprise. I began it thinking I would be enjoying another light Gothic Romance. What I held instead was a well thought out captivating historical novel. I found myself delighted by the reality of the characters, they all embody traits that you would expect in people today. The plot was engaging, the novel takes place over the course of two years, the bloodiest in the history of the French Revolution. I would recommend this novel to someone who likes to read for the details of history, but if you want historical romance, this might not be for you.

Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart is a Gothic romance novel also set in France, this time post WWII. Young Linda Martin is hired by a wealthy French family, the Valmy's, to act as an English governess to their young nephew, Philippe. At first everything is very pleasant, but then strange accidents start happening around the chateau. A gun goes off and hits a tree where a moment before Philippe had been standing and a part of a balustrade on his balcony breaks off as he runs out in a thunderstorm. There are too many secrets and silent looks at the chateau, what could they all mean? And what part does the dashing Raoul, son of the intimidating Leon de Valmy, play in this drama?
     OK, this was much more along the lines of brain candy. Mary Stewart is effective in creating an atmosphere of suspense, there was one scene that left me unable to turn off the light, there is not much historical meat to the story. However, I would recommend this novel to someone looking to read on their commute, or some light reading on their lunch break.

The First 100 Pages of Rose Cottage by Mary Stewart.

Reading the first 100 pages of this novel makes me think that maybe I need to reevaluate the 100 page policy. Or maybe this book just takes a while to get started. That could prove problematic as it's only 264 pages long...

Rose Cottage is a suspense romance by Mary Stewart, who also wrote The Crystal Cave. It takes place in England shortly after WW II. We are introduced to Kathy Herrick, Née Welland. She comes from a small village in the English countryside, the illegitimate granddaughter of the gardner and cook of the local big house. She is returning to her childhood home, Todhall to retrieve some papers for her grandmother who is moving to Scotland.
On the day of her arrival she runs into an old friend, Davey Pasco, who agrees to assist her in opening her Grandmothers safe. Back at the house, she discovers that someone has been in the cottage and removed the contents of the safe. The next day she goes into the village and begins to ask questions about any goings on at Rose Cottage.

And that's the first 100 pages.

I don't know if I will finish this novel. It didn't really grasp my attention, and I don't really feel motivated to discover who would have gone into her grandmother's house to get the things out of her safe.

So, for now, I will set Rose Cottage down and move on to the next novel.

It takes 100 pages...

to become involved in a book.

That's what my librarian mother has always told me and I find it to be mostly true. In 100 pages I think the plot should be sufficiently built up so that you, the reader, know whether or not you will continue with the book.

I was thinking about this philosophy as I looked at my "unread" bookshelf. Yes, there is an entire bookshelf dedicated to books I own and have not read. I'm sure I have at least 120 books that I really do want to read, but haven't got 'round to it.

So I'd like to start a little series here called 100 pages. I will pick a book from my TBR bookshelf and read the first 100 pages. Once that is done I will give a brief summary here saying what the book is about and my findings in the first 100 pages, then move on to the next book. I hope that by doing this I'll be able to power through the books that I ultimately won't interest me, and the ones that do I'll know to get back to, or just continue on reading, whichever.

See you soon with my first First 100 page book!