Best Historical Fiction

 I will be taking a summer break. The next post will come on August 28th, 2019 with review of Call Upon the Water by Stella Tillyard – release date Sept 17th, 2019. Set during the fall and rise of King Charles II of England, this story does not bring court intrigues, what it offers instead is an intense depiction of lives of common people and those with education who used their knowledge to make a mark in history by draining and developing wetlands for human use. And a deeply moving portrayal of a man exploring the power of nature and the power of love.

 Charlotte Mew (1869-1928) was an English poet. Author’s note: “I believe Mew’s poetry remains underappreciated today. I hope this novel helps pay a much-deserved tribute to Mew.” London, 1894: Two sisters, Anne and Charlotte Mew, both in their early twenties make a pact to never marry in order to avoid possibility of passing insanity to their children, which runs in their family. They will have each other, Anne her paintings and Charlotte her writing. Both sisters live with their mother in a house where they have tenants to help their dire financial situation. Their Aunt Mary Kendall, who passed away a few months earlier, leaves Charlotte and Anne two investment properties in Brighton. Anne rents a studio in hope of furthering her career, which later leads her only to a menial job. Mrs. Dawson Scott, hostess of the salon, encourages “Charlotte to read her poems to a small gathering of women at her home in Southall.” Through Mrs. Scott, Charlotte meets May Sinclair, a...