3.5 Stars
I was actually quite disappointed by this book. After loving The Last Hours so much I was eager for the sequel and maybe I built it up in my mind far too much so was setting myself up for disappointment.
For me, rather than the sweeping story of the first book this was quite a tight little tale that really focused more on deception and artifice than actually rebuilding their fractured societies. There are some wonderful touches in the book but it really felt as though the action could have taken place at any time and not necessarily during the Plague of the 14th Century. There are some nice little historical facts dropped in here and there but the world building is somewhat lacking and if you haven't read the first book I fear it could become rather confusing and leave you floundering as to when we are supposed to be.
Surprisingly I also felt myself getting quite irate at the treatment of the Clergy in the book. To a man they are venal and corrupt. Now, I am aware that many were and that the self-serving and judgmental attitudes shown were fairly prevalent but surely not every cleric that Turkell's band come in to contact with are such. The change in character of Lady Anne's daughter was also quite problematic for me as it just did not ring true at all.
That the book is well written is not in doubt, I just don't think it was really necessary. The Last Hours is a long book but maybe extending that by another 100 pages and having it as a stand alone would have been better instead of spinning those hundred pages out in to a separate book. This would all suggest that I didn't enjoy the book at all, oddly, I did. It wasn't what I expected but it does tie things up whilst leaving the merest hint of a possibility of coming back to the Dorsetshire Demesnes to see how their rebuilding of society is going.
I RECEIVED A FREE COPY OF THIS BOOK FROM READERS FIRST IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW.
I was actually quite disappointed by this book. After loving The Last Hours so much I was eager for the sequel and maybe I built it up in my mind far too much so was setting myself up for disappointment.
For me, rather than the sweeping story of the first book this was quite a tight little tale that really focused more on deception and artifice than actually rebuilding their fractured societies. There are some wonderful touches in the book but it really felt as though the action could have taken place at any time and not necessarily during the Plague of the 14th Century. There are some nice little historical facts dropped in here and there but the world building is somewhat lacking and if you haven't read the first book I fear it could become rather confusing and leave you floundering as to when we are supposed to be.
Surprisingly I also felt myself getting quite irate at the treatment of the Clergy in the book. To a man they are venal and corrupt. Now, I am aware that many were and that the self-serving and judgmental attitudes shown were fairly prevalent but surely not every cleric that Turkell's band come in to contact with are such. The change in character of Lady Anne's daughter was also quite problematic for me as it just did not ring true at all.
That the book is well written is not in doubt, I just don't think it was really necessary. The Last Hours is a long book but maybe extending that by another 100 pages and having it as a stand alone would have been better instead of spinning those hundred pages out in to a separate book. This would all suggest that I didn't enjoy the book at all, oddly, I did. It wasn't what I expected but it does tie things up whilst leaving the merest hint of a possibility of coming back to the Dorsetshire Demesnes to see how their rebuilding of society is going.
I RECEIVED A FREE COPY OF THIS BOOK FROM READERS FIRST IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW.