Every now and again, odd books turn up in the post for us to read and review in advance of publication - lucky us. And every now and again one of them turns out to be a real treat, and we get very excited and press it on customers, until they buy it just to keep us quiet. This is one of those - it's published in September, order your copy now! Liz writes...
White Truffles in Winter brings to life one of the culinary world’s most fascinating characters: the celebrated chef August Escoffier.
The story of Escoffier’s food is the story of Europe between the wars. N.M. Kelby’s narrative cleverly weaves details of the stark reality of the elderly Escoffier’s final days with his reminiscences of a colourful life at the very centre of European history.
Escoffier created a dazzling array of dishes to flatter and celebrate royalty and the famous, including the Prince of Wales, Kaiser Wilhelm II, Dame Nelly Melba and, most famously, the actress Sarah Bernhardt. He won his wife in pool game, narrowly avoided sailing on the Titanic, invented the ranking system for chefs that is still used today and won and lost his fortune several times over.
I devoured every word of this delicious story from the startlingly erotic way he coats a naked Bernhardt in truffle oil to the tender relationship he shares with his dying wife at the end of both their lives. The novel was as rich and satisfying as a Perigord truffle and is an absolute must read for anyone who loves good food and good writing.
Monday, 13 August 2012
Wednesday, 20 June 2012
Daughter of Smoke and Bone (and hello, again...)
Hello. We're back. Did you miss us?
The trouble with writing a blog based around work (in our case selecting, reading, enthusing over (or not), and ultimately pressing on to the reading public with slightly alarming swivel-eyed enthusiasm) is that the doing of said work leaves little time for writing about it. And naturally, we'd want our blog to be interesting and stimulating, so we've adopted a policy of not saying anything unless it's really worth saying (and see paragraph 2, below).
BUT every now and again, we find a moment to cobble together some thoughts about something we've read and really want to share. So Liz, our resident fantasy/sci-fi and general fiction buyer/reader/enthusiast, wants to tell us all about her latest find. Read on....
And remember, if you have read something you want to tell the world about, let us know. We'll post your comments, stock the title in question and do our utmost to swell the sales.
The pile of books marked ‘to be read’ has recently reached an alarming height and threatens at any moment to topple and crush me. I will only be discovered several days later, with nothing but my feet poking out, like the witch in The Wizard of Oz. So, I have rolled up my sleeves and tried to knuckle down to some serious reading.
I attempt to treat the pile with respect. I fully intend to read only the books on the top and to give equal weight to all the publishers. It is at this point that something shiny near the bottom will almost always cry out to be read, forcing me to take my life into my hands. A bit of judicious jiggling, along with a quick prayer to the gods of bookselling, and finally my prize is free. The cover is eyecatching, the concept is exciting and I cannot wait to dive in, so I run a bath and lock the door. Unfortunately at this point The Husband has become accustomed to the sound of a book violently ricocheting off of the bathroom door as I fling it away in disgust! I have read so many promising sounding novels recently (naming no names because if you can’t say anything good about a book it is best to say nothing at all) that have turned out to be totally unreadable, and frankly there isn’t much that I find more disappointing.
Daughter of Smoke and Bone is a rose among thorns. I wont give away any of the story because I found it so original and was constantly kept guessing and I don’t want to spoil it for you, but it was absolutely brilliant. Good writing should be invisible. It should allow you to totally immerse yourself in the story, like sinking into a warm bath, and not be a distraction. This is especially true with Science Fiction and Fantasy writing as the author is asking you to suspend all disbelief and enter a world that is in some way alien. The writing here is excellent.
Laini Taylor has taken the concept of Angels and Demons and woven it into a fascinating and magical story, full of romance, violence and ultimately hope. My only criticism is that it is the first in a series and ends on a cliff hanger and that I cannot possibly wait until November to find out what happens next!
Other books to stand out from the crowd recently have been: The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi, Embassytown by China Mieville, Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin and The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.
The trouble with writing a blog based around work (in our case selecting, reading, enthusing over (or not), and ultimately pressing on to the reading public with slightly alarming swivel-eyed enthusiasm) is that the doing of said work leaves little time for writing about it. And naturally, we'd want our blog to be interesting and stimulating, so we've adopted a policy of not saying anything unless it's really worth saying (and see paragraph 2, below).
BUT every now and again, we find a moment to cobble together some thoughts about something we've read and really want to share. So Liz, our resident fantasy/sci-fi and general fiction buyer/reader/enthusiast, wants to tell us all about her latest find. Read on....
And remember, if you have read something you want to tell the world about, let us know. We'll post your comments, stock the title in question and do our utmost to swell the sales.
The pile of books marked ‘to be read’ has recently reached an alarming height and threatens at any moment to topple and crush me. I will only be discovered several days later, with nothing but my feet poking out, like the witch in The Wizard of Oz. So, I have rolled up my sleeves and tried to knuckle down to some serious reading.
I attempt to treat the pile with respect. I fully intend to read only the books on the top and to give equal weight to all the publishers. It is at this point that something shiny near the bottom will almost always cry out to be read, forcing me to take my life into my hands. A bit of judicious jiggling, along with a quick prayer to the gods of bookselling, and finally my prize is free. The cover is eyecatching, the concept is exciting and I cannot wait to dive in, so I run a bath and lock the door. Unfortunately at this point The Husband has become accustomed to the sound of a book violently ricocheting off of the bathroom door as I fling it away in disgust! I have read so many promising sounding novels recently (naming no names because if you can’t say anything good about a book it is best to say nothing at all) that have turned out to be totally unreadable, and frankly there isn’t much that I find more disappointing.
Daughter of Smoke and Bone is a rose among thorns. I wont give away any of the story because I found it so original and was constantly kept guessing and I don’t want to spoil it for you, but it was absolutely brilliant. Good writing should be invisible. It should allow you to totally immerse yourself in the story, like sinking into a warm bath, and not be a distraction. This is especially true with Science Fiction and Fantasy writing as the author is asking you to suspend all disbelief and enter a world that is in some way alien. The writing here is excellent.
Laini Taylor has taken the concept of Angels and Demons and woven it into a fascinating and magical story, full of romance, violence and ultimately hope. My only criticism is that it is the first in a series and ends on a cliff hanger and that I cannot possibly wait until November to find out what happens next!
Other books to stand out from the crowd recently have been: The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi, Embassytown by China Mieville, Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin and The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.
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