Wulf's Book Reviews

The Burning Land by Bernard Cornwell My rating: 5 of 5 stars “ The Burning Land ” is exactly what I wanted from the fifth book in Bernard Cornwell's Saxon series : another fierce, fast-moving Uhtred adventure that keeps all the strengths of its predecessors while avoiding the weaknesses that occasionally slowed them down. I liked it very much indeed. More importantly, I enjoyed the entire journey. Every page gave me something: a battle, a sharp exchange, a political manoeuvre, a religious hypocrisy, or one of Uhtred’s wonderfully blunt observations. The setup is familiar but still effective. Alfred is ageing and ill, his heir remains untested, and the Danes see an opportunity to press their advantage. Uhtred’s position between Saxon and Dane, loyalty and independence, remains the engine of the story. Cornwell understands that Uhtred is most interesting when nobody can quite claim him, least of all Uhtred himself. His decisions feel personal, practical, and gloriously dangerous wi...

To Sir Phillip, With Love by Julia Quinn My rating: 1 of 5 stars When the “Happily Ever After” Feels Like a Moral Hangover This one was supposed to clear the air. Well, it succeeded in making it smell worse. Every single character, and every major aspect of this novel, left me with an uneasy feeling. Eloise Bridgerton is confused, snobby, garrulous, and somehow deeply ambiguous. She runs away from what exactly? Nobody forces her into marriage but herself. After a year of merely exchanging letters, she decides to marry a stranger and be a good, obedient wife. And yet, she also strains toward what might, at the time, have passed for an “independent spinster”. Phillip, meanwhile, basks in his self-sacrificing suffering-husband and widower roles while being emotionally estranged from his two eight-year-old children. The children are neglected, abused, and basically thoroughly traumatised, which Eloise unconvincingly tries to “love away”. Their mother, Phillip’s late wife, looms over the ...

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett My rating: 2 of 5 stars “ But nothing ever happens ” - “Lemon Tree” (Fool’s Garden) I’m going to spoil this rather thoroughly, so proceed with mild caution. Maeve and Danny are the children of Cyril and Elna Conroy. Cyril built a property empire from scratch, taking Danny along to collect rent in cash. Maeve, Danny’s older sister, is mostly sidelined and left in the care of “Fluffy”, the nanny, and the household staff, Sandy and Jocelyn. » “Money,” our father said, nodding. It wasn’t a complicated idea. « Elna is largely out of the picture after leaving, first periodically, soon permanently. While Danny is mostly unaffected due to not even remembering his mother, Maeve is desperate to see her again. A few years after Elna leaves, Cyril marries his second wife, Andrea, who becomes Maeve’s and Danny’s evil stepmother. When Cyril unexpectedly dies, Andrea basically evicts everyone but her own two children, Norma and Bright, from the eponymous “Dutch Hous...

Sherlock Holmes and the Missing Shakespeare by J.R. Rain My rating: 1 of 5 stars I learned to read by secretly snatching my mother’s early 20th-century editions of Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes. Since then, the fascination with anything Holmes has never left me. Many have tried to spin further tales of Holmes and Watson; some did well, others failed miserably. This one, sadly, falls into the latter category. The story is rather convoluted, albeit light in detail. Watson is reduced to a mere admiring fan, trapped in a constant " reverie and renewed admiration for Mr. Holmes ", while Holmes himself is more of a generic action hero than a detective. In one particularly jarring scene, " Holmes delivered a punishing uppercut to the man’s jaw " so hard his feet left the ground, before the detective " delivered an unforgiving heel kick to his jaw to finish him off ". This isn't the Holmes of Baker Street; it's a Victorian John Wick. The writing is medio...

The Sign of the Devil by Óscar de Muriel My rating: 5 of 5 stars Redemption Through Fire: A Triumphant Farewell I’m currently reading books from the depths of my Kobo - things that haven’t been on my radar for a long time or which I was afraid to read. “ The Sign of the Devil ” by Óscar de Muriel was one from the latter category. The previous two instalments simply stank: bland stories, bad writing, character regressions instead of development — it was Murphy’s Law materialised as a book. And yet, I needed closure — “all will be revealed”, de Muriel promised for this final novel in his Frey and McGray series. To my immense surprise, not only did he keep his promise, but he actually wrote a fast-paced, interesting, suspenseful, yes, even thrilling swan song for both his eponymous protagonists and even some side characters. First among the latter is, of course, Ms. Amy “Pansy” McGray (nothing will be revealed here , though!). Like the phoenix from the ashes, de Muriel ri...

The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer My rating: 4 of 5 stars “ The Grand Sophy ” by Georgette Heyer delivered exactly what I expected: a sparkling, if somewhat dated, Regency romance. At times, it felt stuffy and blustery, especially in the dialogue, where I found myself struggling with the verbosity of certain characters. » Really, Horace, I must say that I think that most unjust of you, for how could he help it? It is so mortifying for him! And, what is more, excessively unfortunate, because I don’t doubt that had he been able to attach Cecilia… But no one can deny that nothing could be more ill-timed than Charlbury’s mumps! « This type of rambling speech made the beginning of the book feel quite slow for me. The social dynamics and constant talk of marriages seemed quaint and twee—typical of early 20th-century historical fiction, yet it grated on me initially. However, as the story progressed and Sophy’s vivacious nature took centre stage, the novel became utterly irresi...