The Absolutist by John Boyne

“In that direction only pain lies.” 

I think this quote pretty much sums up the book. I can't actually remember in which part of the book this quote is from, but it can be interpreted as the physical pain that war brings, the emotional pain because of the many losses it causes, or pain because of a heartbreak.

Just in case you are unaware, an absolutist is someone that completely opposes the war- they refuse to fight in it, or help out in any other way. Nowadays, I think the majority of people are against war, but during WWI, they were considered cowards or 'feather men'. There were also conscientious objectors, who were those who refused to fight in the War, but helped out in other ways, e.g. by being a stretcher bearer. I actually learnt many things by reading this book. It's not very educational, but I was just ignorant about WWI before.

The Girl in the Steel Corset (#1 The Steampunk Chronicles) by Kady Cross

"No person was entirely good or entirely evil- one side could not exist without the other." Chapter 7

The Girl in the Steel Corset is about a 16 year old girl, Finley Jayne, with a mysterious side to her. Set in 1897, being different wasn't generally accepted in society. Finley has a 'thing' inside of her, something that gives her strength and aggression when she is in danger. Soon, she finds other people each with their own power. Together they try to find 'The Machinist' - the mastermind behind several crimes. All of his crimes seem to be random and  unconnected to each other, but there's one similarity- all of the crimes are done by automatons. And they aren't as random as they seem... all the small crimes are leading into something huge and catastrophic. 

When I first saw the cover book, I already thought it was the style of book I'd enjoy. I know... you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but my assumptions of the book were mostly correct. At first glance, I predicted it would be both historical and romantic. After flipping to the first page, I saw that my first guess was right- it was set in the past. 

Bloody Tower - The Diary of Tilly Middleton, London 1553-1559 by Valerie Wilding

Bloody Tower; The Diary of Tilly Middleton by Valerie Winding is about the short lived reigns of Lady Jane Grey and Queen Mary as well as how Queen Elizabeth I came to the throne. The story is told through the eyes of the young Tilly Middleton who lives in the castle as her father is the physician.

This novel is part of the My Story series and like I said in my last blog, I really like that series. There are many things that are found in all of the books in the series that I really like and find useful, such as the timeline and historical background notes at the end. (More on that can be found on my last blog on the ' Anne Boleyn and Me.') I was lucky that by chance I read this one straight after the story of Anne Boleyn and Me, because it gave the story more flow and I had a bit of background reading going into this book. 

Now, about this specific book; I found that it was good but it wasn't the best of the series. The book's plot left a bit to wish

Anne Boleyn and Me - The Diary of Elinor Valjean, London 1525-1536 by Alison Prince

Anne Boleyn and Me by Alison Prince is part of the My Story series. The story is about eleven year old, Elinor Valjean. Elinor lives as a member of the royal court under the reign of King Henry VIII. Her mother is Queen Catherine's friend and favourite lady in waiting while her father is court jester. The story is set in London through 1525 to 1536 when Henry VIII wanted to divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn. The story follows the conflicts and the rise and fall of Catherine and Anne Boleyn through the eyes of a young servant girl.

The My Story series is one of my favourite historical fiction series and this book was one of the best of the series. It provided a very insightful look into that time period and I learnt so much. The book even made me empathise with characters that I probably wouldn't have if I was researching about Henry VII and his divorces through the internet or through a history textbook. 

 

Apart from the story itself there are a few points I would like to make.