Historical Tapestry: Deanna Raybourn

Showing posts with label Deanna Raybourn. Show all posts

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Night of a Thousand Stars Blog Tour: Review and Giveaway

Publication Date: October 1, 2014
Harlequin MIRA
Formats: eBook, Paperback

Genre: Historical Fiction

Synopsis

On the verge of a stilted life as an aristocrat’s wife, Poppy Hammond does the only sensible thing—she flees the chapel in her wedding gown. Assisted by the handsome curate who calls himself Sebastian Cantrip, she spirits away to her estranged father’s quiet country village, pursued by the family she left in uproar. But when the dust of her broken engagement settles and Sebastian disappears under mysterious circumstances, Poppy discovers there is more to her hero than it seems.

With only her feisty lady’s maid for company, Poppy secures employment and travels incognita—east across the seas, chasing a hunch and the whisper of clues. Danger abounds beneath the canopies of the silken city, and Poppy finds herself in the perilous sights of those who will stop at nothing to recover a fabled ancient treasure. Torn between allegiance to her kindly employer and a dashing, shadowy figure, Poppy will risk it all as she attempts to unravel a much larger plan—one that stretches to the very heart of the British government, and one that could endanger everything, and everyone, that she holds dear.

So What Did I Think About The Story?

While I have a few of Deanna Raybourn's novels on my shelves, Night of a Thousand Stars is the first of her books I have read. My first thought after finishing it is....what have I been waiting for?! Starting out with our heroine Poppy leaping out a window to escape a marriage she does not want, the action does not stop as Poppy follows her gut in search of Sebastian, a man she barely knows but who she believes must be in trouble, all the way from London to the Middle East. Hijinks of course ensue with Poppy diving head first into trouble and learning that no one she encounters is who they seem.

While the romance that develops between Poppy and Sebastian is somewhat predictable and typical (they are attracted to each other while simultaneously infuriating each other, neither want to give up ground and always want to be right, etc.) it was enjoyable watching them spar against each other until they have to work together to survive. The secrets Sebastian is hiding aren't overly hard to determine either but I was pleasantly surprised to see the more comic elements of the novel shot through with some more serious and graphic elements that drive home the serious danger Poppy comes to find herself in.

The ending of the novel came as a complete surprise to me, which I always find delightful! For those who have read Ms. Raybourn's Lady Julia series this might not be as big a surprise as apparently characters from that series make an appearance in Night of a Thousand Stars but for me I was excited to see the mysteries all wrap up nicely and to see it left open for Poppy to continue her adventures in future books now that she has found a purpose for her life in a field that we learn is apparently a family tradition of sorts. I am also now really excited to read the Lady Julia series to connect all the pieces I missed!

With well drawn characters, excitement and adventure abounding and just the right touch of romance thrown in for good measure, Night of a Thousand Stars is a thoroughly enjoyable way to while away the hours and draw yourself out of your own world into the world of 1920s London and the Middle East. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys historical fiction and a plucky, determined heroine.

So What Did I Think About The Cover?

It's very pretty! I love the colors and the fact that Poppy is standing out on a balcony with that spectacular view behind her (as happens a number of times in the novel). My only complaint is that I would have preferred either seeing Poppy looking out at the view or facing us looking up into the eyes of the reader with all the determination and spunkiness that her character exudes within the pages.

My Rating: 4.0/5.0

Thank you to Amy at Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours for providing me with a free copy of Night of a Thousand Stars in exchange for an honest review! Make sure to continue below for more information on the book, the tour and your chance to win a copy of your very own!

Buy the Book

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About the Author

A sixth-generation native Texan, Deanna Raybourn grew up in San Antonio, where she met her
college sweetheart. She married him on her graduation day and went on to teach high school English and history. During summer vacation at the age of twenty-three, she wrote her first novel. After three years as a teacher, Deanna left education to have a baby and pursue writing full-time.

Deanna Raybourn is the author of the bestselling and award-winning Lady Julia series, as well as, The Dead Travel Fast, A Spear of Summer Grass, and City of Jasmine.

For more information please visit Deanna Raybourn’s website and blog. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

Giveaway

For a chance to win a paperback copy of Night of a Thousand Stars leave a comment below telling me if you have read any of Deanna Raybourn's books and, if you have, which is your favorite (I'm trying to decide which one to start next!). Be sure to leave your email address in your comment (no email address, no entry!). For extra entries share this review/giveaway online and leave a separate comment with a link to where you shared. That's it! I'll pick a winner on November 6th and email the winner for their address. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my email before I pick a new winner. Good luck everyone!

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Cover Story: Lady Julia Grey series by Deanna Raybourn

Deanna Raybourn has just announced the cover for her next Lady Julia Grey book, Dark Road to Darjeeling, which is due out in October 2010. I am really looking forward to getting my hands on it and seeing what happens next with Julia and Brisbane, and I am excited at the prospect of at least some of the action taking place in India.

The cover is another new direction for this series. We had previously done a Cover Story post for this series a while ago, but this cover is so different again, I thought it would be a fun idea to have a look at the variety of different styles of cover that this series has had. Given that it is only the 4th book in the series, in a way it seems that they are still looking for a direction for the covers, and I hope they find one soon, because a set of matching covers looks so much better sitting on the bookshelf!

So here is the original cover that Silent in the Grave (Mira Books 2007 hardcover)

And then there were the cartoon covers (Mira UK 2008 paperback)

And the Australian cartoon covers (Harlequin trade paperback)

And the there were the half headed woman covers which seemed to have a more romancey feel to them (Mira Paperback 2009)

And now we have the cover for Road to Darjeeling:

I actually do really like this cover. I think it is eye-catching and different from most other historical fiction out there. I do wonder though if it is a nod to the Twilight style covers that it all the rage in other genres. Either way, I really hope that there is going to be a style that the publishers stick with at some point in time.

So, what do you think? Do you like the new cover? Prefer the older ones. Don't like any of them?

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Silent on the Moor by Deanna Raybourn

This is a wickedly witty Lady Julia Grey mystery. 'There are things that walk abroad on the moor that should not. But the dead do not always lie quietly, do they, lady?' It is England, 1888. Grimsgrave Manor is an unhappy house, isolated on the Yorkshire moors, silent and secretive. But secrets cannot be long kept in the face of Lady Julia Grey's incurable curiosity. In the teeth of protests from her conventional, stuffy brother, Lady Julia decides to pay a visit to the enigmatic detective, Nicholas Brisbane to bring a woman's touch to his new estate. Grimsgrave is haunted by the ghosts of its past, and its owner seems to be falling into ruin along with the house. Confronted with gypsy warnings and Brisbane's elusive behaviour, Lady Julia scents a mystery. It's not long before her desire for answers leads her into danger unlike any other that she has experienced - and from which, this time, there may be no escape.

Silent on The Moor, the third Julia Grey mystery is a gothic and, it seemed to me, an homage to Wuthering Heights and the Brontës (they are mentioned…). There’s a big house partly in ruins, family secrets and a villain working in shadows.

This third installment of the series starts with Lady Julia Grey determined to follow Brisbane and force him to acknowledge his feelings for her. To do so she decides to accompany her sister Portia when she leaves for Brisbane’s new estate in Yorkshire, after being invited to help him organize the house.

On arrival they discover that the former owner’s mother and sisters are also living in the house and that Brisbane seems more remote than ever. Julia does get him to acknowledge some feelings for her but on the next day he lives on business leaving them alone in the house with its inhabitants. There’s an oppressive atmosphere in the house – Grimsgrave – and Julia’s curious nature soon leads her to try to find out more about the former owners - the Allenbys. They seem an odd family, too proud of their once royal blood that they preserved by marrying within the family. The last Allenby men were totally careless of their duty to protect and provide for their tenants. As for women, Lady Allenby is very devout and full of dignity, her daughter Ailith is a beautiful mysterious woman who shows Julia around and Hilda, the youngest daughter, is a bit of a wild child who only gets along with Julia’s brother Valerius.

Then Brisbane returns and an attempt is made on his life. Who tried to murder him and why? Was it really the person who confesses to the poisoning? There are a lot of secrets to uncover before they find the true culprit…

I really liked the atmosphere of the story, suspenseful and intriguing and I also liked that we got to know a lot more of Brisbane’s past. He has seemed a bit illusive in the previous books and now we know where he is coming from and what happened to his mother. I also liked Julia, she was sensible (most of the time) and determined to have him and proceeded accordingly not even letting the occasional jabs of the Misses Allenby get in the way of what she wanted. What I didn’t like was that in the end it felt that the only reason Brisbane was staying away from Julia was the money. And that that problem was too easily solved. I wished for a different solution, maybe his acceptance of their different status and fortunes.

I won’t say I liked this one as much as book 2, which was a really engaging murder mystery with a very fast pace but, I also enjoyed reading it with all those secrets from the past that kept affecting and tormenting everyone involved…

I can say that I'm looking forward to the next book but by now it is as much because of Julia's siblings as it is because of her and Brisbane. I quite liked them!

Grade: 4/5

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Silent on the Moor by Deanna Raybourn

This is a wickedly witty Lady Julia Grey mystery. ‘There are things that walk abroad on the moor that should not. But the dead do not always lie quietly, do they, lady?’ It is England, 1888. Grimsgrave Manor is an unhappy house, isolated on the Yorkshire moors, silent and secretive. But secrets cannot be long kept in the face of Lady Julia Grey’s incurable curiosity. In the teeth of protests from her conventional, stuffy brother, Lady Julia decides to pay a visit to the enigmatic detective, Nicholas Brisbane to bring a woman’s touch to his new estate.
Grimsgrave is haunted by the ghosts of its past and its owner seems to be falling into ruin along with the house. Confronted with gypsy warnings and Brisbane’s elusive behavior, Lady Julia scents a mystery. It’s not long before her desire for answers leads her into danger unlike any other that she has experienced – and from which, this time, there may be no escape.

While I really enjoyed the first two books of the Lady Julia Grey mysteries, Silent on the Moor didn't give me the same satisfaction.

In the final pages of Silent in the Sanctuary, we learned that Lady Julia was going to visit Brisbane’s mystery house, Grimsgrave Manor, with her sister, Portia. The later was invited by the young man to help him set up a more pleasant household on his recently acquired house in Yorkshire. Of course, Brisbane isn’t aware of this sisterly plan and when he sees Julia at his doorstep, he is somehow surprised and reluctantly agrees to shelter both sisters.

Julia and Portia find themselves living in an old crumbling house with the almost constantly absent Brisbane and the former owners, the Allenbys: Lady Allenby and her two daughters, Ailith (the family beauty) and Hilda (the tomboy). If in the beginning they enjoy their visit, they quickly see that appearances can be very deceiving…

While I think Julia is coming out of her shell since book two and we see now how much easily she makes her own decisions and knows what she wants, I can’t stop wishing she would kick Brisbane times to times. The man is completely obnoxious! I do understand why he doesn’t want to have someone in his life, even if I find the reasons exaggerated, but after a while I stop believing he actually cares for Julia and he is, in fact, enjoying being hunted.

It’s easy to understand that while she wants to show him she cares for him, his unjustified absences and rejections would try the patience of a saint. I admired Julia to pursuit what she wanted and cheered her up when she decided it was enough.

I have to admit I was much more interested in Portia’s relationship with Jane. They are both very warm characters and this turn of events was quite a surprise since they always seemed in perfect harmony. Hopefully, Raybourn will give their relationship another go.

The atmosphere is very gloomy and sometimes made me think of Wuthering Heights which is always something I enjoy.

The mystery was very predictable and, at some point, I was asking myself how they could not see what was going on. You can feel since the beginning there are many skeletons in the closet of the Allenby family, their relationship is strained and at a breaking point… The comments and attitudes of the servants and even the family about the late Sir Redwall and then Lady Julia’s discovery of two small mummies among the family Egyptian antiquities lead to the obvious.

Also, after the Grey sisters arrive to Grimsgrave Manor everything seems to drag and slow down. The mystery part could have been solved quickly, just as the reason of Brisbane absences.

A pleasant read recommended to the fans of the series.

Grade: 3.5/5

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Cover Story: The Julia Grey Mystery series

Mira Books, Hardcover, 2007, US cover

Having just read the first two books of this series made me aware of the different covers out there. When I bought these books I completely fell in love with the covers but I had the problem that I couldn't find a matching set. Either I bought one Mass Market Paperback (or hardcover) and one Trade Paperback or I would have to resort to a cover that I liked less.

I ended up buying one MMP and one TP but now I can't find a matching cover for the third book as the publisher decided to change their style. I really don't think they changed it for the better. Instead of covers that stood out (imo) on the shelves, we now have covers that look like just any other romance novel out there.

With the third book in the series, Silent on the Moor, due to be released on 1 March it seemed like a good time to do a Cover Story post! Above and below I've posted the several covers that can be found for these books. Do you have any favourites? Are you collecting this series? If so which covers do you have?

Mira, Mass Market Paperback, 2009, US cover

Mira, paperbak, 2009, US cover

Harlequin Mills & Boon, Paperback, 2007

Mira, Paperback Editions, 2008, UK covers

Mira, Trade Paperback, 2008, US cover

Mira, Mass Market Paperback, 2007, US Cover

Harlequin Australia, Paperback, 2007

Harlequin Australia, Papaerback 2008

Harlequin Australia, Paperback, 2009

Friday, February 27, 2009

Silent In The Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn

Fresh from a six-month sojourn in Italy, Lady Julia returns home to Sussex to find her father's estate crowded with family and friends-- but dark deeds are afoot at the deconsecrated abbey, and a murderer roams the ancient cloisters.
Much to her surprise, the one man she had hoped to forget--the enigmatic and compelling Nicholas Brisbane--is among her father's houseguests… and he is not alone. Not to be outdone, Julia shows him that two can play at flirtation and promptly introduces him to her devoted, younger, titled Italian count. But the homecoming celebrations quickly take a ghastly turn when one of the guests is
found brutally murdered in the chapel, and a member of Lady Julia's own family
confesses to the crime. Certain of her cousin's innocence, Lady Julia resumes
her unlikely and deliciously intriguing partnership with Nicholas Brisbane,
setting out to unravel a tangle of deceit before the killer can strike again.
When a sudden snowstorm blankets the abbey like a shroud, it falls to Lady Julia
and Nicholas Brisbane to answer the shriek of murder most foul.

Since I already had this one in the TBR pile when I finished Silent in The Grave I decided to pick it up immediately after. I’m happy to report that I found this one much better.

Lady Julia Grey returns from Italy where spent some time with two of her brothers. Now one of the brothers has married without informing their father and having known that the father orders them all home. Besides a new sister in law Julia also takes home an Italian count that has been paying court to her. They arrive a few weeks before Christmas to find that Julia’s father has quite a few guests at home including Nicholas Brisbane, of whom Julia has heard nothing for the past months but that she has been unable to forget.Unfortunately Julia and Brisbane’s reunion isn’t a happy one, none of them is expecting to meet the other and Julia suddenly finds herself facing Brisbane’s fiancée, which is quite a surprise. Julia’s father seems to be behind this odd plan to reunite them but one is left thinking how devious is his mind to plot this when Brisbane is betrothed.

I was unable to determine whether Julia is consciously avoiding the truth or if she is just hopeful but it seems she immediately decides that the betrothal must be a scheme and decides to investigate what really is going on. Also in the house are Julia’s penniless cousins, Lucy and Emma, Lucy’s fiancée with his secretary and the Vicar and his Curate among others.

When one of the guests is found murdered and a family member is found to be the obvious suspect Julia and Brisbane decide to conduct a private investigation to discover what was behind the crime and who actually committed it. At the same time someone else disappears and Julia is still determined to find out about Brisbane’s betrothal at the same time that one of her brother’s shows a less than innocent interest in the fiancée.

It seemed to me that there were even more plot twists in this sequel than in the first book but this time they worked perfectly and I was kept interested and curious about what was going on. To tell the truth I couldn’t stop reading it to find out who had done what and when. There are a lot of characters mentioned but they all seemed to add something and contribute to the final climax. Unlike my reaction when I finished Silent in the Grave I now can’t wait to get my hands on Silent on The Moor.

Grade: 4.5/5

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Silent In The Grave by Deanna Raybourn

"Let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave."

These ominous words, slashed from the pages of a book of Psalms, are the last threat that the darling of London society, Sir Edward Grey, receives from his killer. Before he can show them to Nicholas Brisbane, the private inquiry agent he has retained for his protection, Sir Edward collapses and dies at his London home, in the presence of his wife, Julia, and a roomful of dinner guests.
Prepared to accept that Edward's death was due to a longstanding physical infirmity, Julia is outraged when Brisbane visits and suggests that Sir Edward has been murdered. It is a reaction she comes to regret when she discovers the damning paper for herself, and realizes the truth.
Determined to bring her husband's murderer to justice, Julia engages the enigmatic Brisbane to help her investigate Edward's demise. Dismissing his warnings that the investigation will be difficult, if not impossible, Julia presses forward, following a trail of clues that lead her to even more unpleasant truths, and ever closer to a killer who waits expectantly for her arrival.

Ana's thoughts:

I had high expectations for this book after reading very good reviews all over the internet and one of my friends recommending it , but the truth is that It didn’t quite live up to what I was expecting.

Lady Julia Grey and Nicholas Brisbane meet over the body of her almost dead husband. Although the doctor thinks he died of a heart condition common in his family Brisbane tells Julia that he thinks her husband was murdered. He had received some threatening letters and had hired Brisbane to discover who was behind it. Unfortunately Julia doesn’t believe him and only a year later does she find some evidence to corroborate his story and decides to start an investigation.

Julia has a very large and unconventional family and among the servants we also find some interesting characters that help creating a good background for the story. I did like the Victorian setting, in fact that’s what convinced me to pick it up, but the mystery in itself did not work all that well for me. I thought the action was to slow paced, it dragged a bit in the middle, and was left cold by Julia’s problems and worries. In fact I started to feel like there was too many plot twists and turns and the action would have worked better if that had been tidied up a bit.
I did guess the murderer earlier on but not the motive and definitely not the way the murder was committed. That was very surprising I must say.

In the end I felt Raybourn showed great promise but this story fell a bit short for me.

Grade: 3.5/5

Marg's thoughts:

Just recently I seem to have been reading a few historical mysteries set in Victorian times. The fact that they have all featured young women as the heroines, and that two of the three heroines were young widows is probably nothing more than a coincidence right? Fortunately, regardless of that very superficial similarity to Tasha Alexander's And Only to Deceive (which I haven't yet reviewed, but very much enjoyed), they are both very different books.

Silent in the Grave opens with the death of Lady Julia Grey's husband Edward. Edward and Julia had grown up together, and when he proposed Julia was happy to enter into a marriage with a man that she knew that she liked, even if there was no great love story between them. And she was basically happy. She knew that Edward suffered from what was considered a family affliction - a weak heart, so when Edward suffers a fatal attack in the midst of a dinner party, she is of course upset. However, when she is approached by Mr Nicholas Brisbane, an investigator her husband had hired to look into a matter for him, and Mr Brisbane suggests that Edward may have been murdered, Julia thinks that there could be nothing further from the truth and dismisses his claim.

A year later, Julia has been in full mourning for the whole period, and is looking forward to the day when she go into half mourning, even knowing that she will shock some of the more traditional members of her family who expect her to remain in mourning forever. When she goes into Edwards office, she is surprised to find something that confirms Nicholas' suspicions of the previous year and therefore approaches him to open an investigation into Edward's death. Nicholas does not want to get involved, knowing that the trail of the killer, if there is one, is well and truly cold, but eventually Julia convinces him to investigate, with her assistance of course.

What follows is the upheaval of everything that Julia thought to be true about her husband and her marriage, and indeed some of the people still living within her household.

The dynamic between Julia and Nicholas is intense to say the least.

She is determined to shake off her staid and obedient persona that she had during her marriage and before, and be more wilful and independent, much to her father's pleasure. She has long been the most boring member of his family, the rest of whom are known to be somewhat eccentric.

Nicholas is my kind of man. He is dark and secretive, tormented and honourable, whilst still managing to skirt around the edge of many of society's rule. He is not who he at first appears to be, and as we get to know more about him, his background gives a terrific scope for both character and plot development.

In a way, Deanna Raybourn seems to come from the school of writing where there is a hook at the end of every chapter to try and keep you reading the next chapter, and the next chapter and the next. Even the very last line of the book is a hook to get you to pick up the next book. What can I say other than she caught me! I can't wait to read the next book!

This was a terrific read, lots of twists and turns along the way to a very interesting conclusion. It features two very interesting characters, with a good array of secondary characters, my favourite of which was the butler who was a former circus performer, and a really strong story.

Highly recommended!

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn

"Let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave."
These ominous words, slashed from the pages of a book of Psalms, are the last threat that the darling of London society, Sir Edward Grey, receives from his killer. Before he can show them to Nicholas Brisbane, the private inquiry agent he has retained for his protection, Sir Edward collapses and dies at his London home, in the presence of his wife, Julia, and a roomful of dinner guests.
Prepared to accept that Edward's death was due to a longstanding physical infirmity, Julia is outraged when Brisbane visits and suggests that Sir Edward has been murdered. It is a reaction she comes to regret when she discovers the damning paper for herself, and realizes the truth.
Determined to bring her husband's murderer to justice, Julia engages the enigmatic Brisbane to help her investigate Edward's demise. Dismissing his warnings that the investigation will be difficult, if not impossible, Julia presses forward, following a trail of clues that lead her to even more unpleasant truths, and ever closer to a killer who waits expectantly for her arrival.

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Thursday, October 30, 2014

Night of a Thousand Stars Blog Tour: Review and Giveaway

Synopsis

So What Did I Think About The Story?

So What Did I Think About The Cover?

Buy the Book

About the Author

Giveaway

Night of a Thousand Stars Blog Tour Schedule

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Cover Story: Lady Julia Grey series by Deanna Raybourn

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Silent on the Moor by Deanna Raybourn

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Silent on the Moor by Deanna Raybourn

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Cover Story: The Julia Grey Mystery series

Friday, February 27, 2009

Silent In The Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Silent In The Grave by Deanna Raybourn

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn

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