Empress Orchid

This is a book that was passed to me by my sister. I read it over the half term break. It is the story of Orchid, a daughter of a Bannerman, and a member of the Manchu ruling class. The book follows her story; how she becomes a concubine and fourth wife of the Chinese emperor, and the mother of the future emperor. The book gives some insights into the inside of the Forbidden City and looks at how Orchid challenged the status quo and role of women in court. A good read, but wouldn't read it again, so it has been consigned to the charity shop pile, but only after I read the next one...

Maltese Falcon

A good o' fashioned detective story. I loved this, just because it is what I needed. It didn't take too much brain power but was gripping enough to make me want to know what was going to happen next. It's been a busy time both in work and in family life...

The book follows the detective Sam Spade, as he gets embroiled in a mystery revolving around a falcon statue of immense value.

The Buried Giant

 

This is the long awaited novel by Kazuo Ishiguro. As usual, it is a break with every other genre that Ishiguro has tackled previously. The Buried Giant is the story of Axl and 'Princess' Beatrice, an old couple, who go on a journey to rediscover their lost shared memories. The story is set in Saxon Britain, and is interlinked with the story of Britain post King Arthur. A mist of forgetfulness has descended on the nation and people struggle to retain long term memories as well as the odd short term memory. It has elements of fantasy and magic, and, if I'm honest, takes a little while to get into. I wasn't sure if I was enjoying it when I was reading it.  But then I got to the final chapter, and was cross when my husband interrupted me. He came in to the room when I was on the very last page, and witnessed big, fat, hot tears rolling down my face (and continuing on and off throughout the day). Clearly the story had affected me more than I had realised.