This month’s theme is that of a tortured hero/ heroine, and The Russian Concubine by new-to-me author, Kate Furnivall fits right into that category.
Set against the backdrop of a war-torn China in the grips of a burgeoning revolution, this sweeping novel with a pair of star-crossed lovers carrying forth the momentum of the melodrama that unfolds in the International Settlement of Junchow in 1928.
In this den of iniquities, where danger lurks not just in the form of opium, prostitution and death, where suspicions of liaison with the Communists could land one in a situation worse than hell itself, 16-year-old daughter, Lydia Ivanova, who, with mother Valentine, live in poverty as exiled White Russian refugees, surviving on whatever largess her pianist mum can coax from gentlemen admirers and the profits Lydia turns from pawning stolen goods.
Her shining fiery hair making her a distinct target for pimps and slavers, Lydia must often depend on her wits to escape being caught but, when she attracted the unwelcome attentions of a criminal gang, the Black Snakes, Chang An Lo, an English-speaking Communist and kung fu master came to her rescue, forging a bond that would grow stronger than mere friendship.
Read more…
Posted on June 19th, 2009 by ag
Filed under: Books, Romance, Authors A to M, TBR Challenge, Historical | No Comments »
Yes, yours truly has finally succumbed and become Twitter-pated. It’s the best solution under the circumstances and breathless pace of life. So …. follow me if you would care.
Posted on June 19th, 2009 by ag
Filed under: All else | No Comments »
It’s been my longest hiatus so far, but with my recent bout of ill health over, hectic real life settling down a bit, not to mention work travel slowing dow, I reckon it’s time to catch up on review posts and updates with fellow reader bloggers.
The last two months were spent finishing up Seth Godin’s Purple Cow, new-to-me authors Kate Furnivall’s The Russian Concubine
, Eva Ibbotson’s A Countess Below Stairs
and James Patterson’s Sundays at Tiffany’s
as well as the long awaited 4th instalment of Noami Novik’s Temeraire series Empire of Ivory
, and Madeline Hunter’s The Sins of Lord Easterbrook
.
Also caught up on some movies onboard flights on business trips: He’s Not That Into You, Sex and the Big City, Confessions of a Shopaholic and on video – Rachel Getting Married, Inkheart and Night at the Museum, which I won’t review.
Will attempt to share photos from my travels, but first let’s get the backlog of book reviews up. More later …
Posted on June 7th, 2009 by ag
Filed under: All else | No Comments »
I am 2 days late for this month’s TBR Challenge theme - SFR, fantasy, urban fantasy or paranormal – which is right up my alley, as I’ve been able to finish reading a couple of fantasy series that I’ve been following.
The first of these was The Princess of the Sword by Lynn Kurland, the last book on the Nine Kingdoms series which I’ve been following. And what a satisfactory finale it was, peppered with Ms Kurland’s typical light humour and chaste approach to the romance angle. For the uninitiated, here’s a summary of this instalment:
Morgan of Melksham, an avowed magic hater, can no longer deny the magic within her veins when she learns of her true heritage. Morgan’s father unleashed a well of evil, and it’s up to her to cap it. Archmage Prince Miach is looking for the spells to complete their task, but retrieving them poses its own set of dangers. Capping the well is only the first problem, for the evil mage Lothar has plans for total domination.
As you can imagine, there were a few mini challenges to overcome before the two protagonists meet with the arch villain, and what a confrontation it was. This book is an adventure all on its own, though not as taxing to comprehend as other books on wizardry and mages. Great, light hearted romantic Fantasy reading.
IMB rating: 5.0
Read more…
Posted on April 18th, 2009 by ag
Filed under: Books, Romance, Fantasy, Authors A to M, TBR Challenge | No Comments »
Last week, Comscore released its first public report on online usage in Singapore, revealing that locals spend Half of Online Time on Social and Entertainment Sites. The report bore out what I’ve observed amongst family and friends, and even peers in the industry.
Take my own nucleus family for instance. Our media consumption habit is a mirror of that survey, but I would have differentiated between the younger generation (below 18) and the working adults. The younger generation is readily exposed to such media and sites from a far younger age than previous generations.
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Posted on April 4th, 2009 by ag
Filed under: webwatching | No Comments »
There I was, catching up on my blog hopping this week, when what should catch my eyes but Angie having some fun creating a superhero image good enough for her biz card.
Of course I couldn’t resist checking out this superhero factory even though I’m supposed to be a year older today, and thus wiser, and less indulgent when it comes to games and chill stuff like this. For the fun of it, here’s my superhero image….
Like Angie, I couldn’t resist the whip lash 
Go have some fun too, here.
Posted on April 1st, 2009 by ag
Filed under: Just for Fun | No Comments »
For the month of March, we are to read a “Historical romance or fiction or mystery” and my choice is the sequel to Empress Orchid by Anchee Min, which I read for another TBR challenge some three years ago.
My fascination with history doesn’t jut stop at wars, knights, and myths. A large part of the curiosity has to do with the roles women play in those olden days. Take the rare few female monarchs for example, Queen Elizabeth, Wu Ze Tian, Cleopatra, and the controversial Empress Cixi (Tzu Hsi), the kind of power play, politics and sacrifices they were inevitably drawn into sure make them intriguing figures to study.
The Last Empress, written in first person, traces the trials and heartaches the young widowed Empress Cixi experienced in trying to raise her young son, the heir to a doomed kingdom which has barely recovered from a damaging Opium War with several power hungry European nations. Now, in our part of the world, Cixi has always been portrayed, in drama, movies and TV serials, as a stern, insecure matriarch who refused to cede authority and government of the country over to her sons, first Emperor Tung Chih, and then Guang Hsu.
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Posted on March 15th, 2009 by ag
Filed under: Books, Authors A to M, TBR Challenge, Historical, Classics | No Comments »
It has been an interesting month of reading with some historical romances by an acclaimed writer and contemporary works by new authors, thrown into my diet of fantasy romances that form the staple reading material on my bookshelf.
First, the historical romances. I’ve long enjoyed the woks of Eloisa James, who is well-known for weaving Shakespeare verses, and poetry into her novels, most of which are acclaimed best-sellers for the highly entertaining plots and engaging characters Ms James has created. I’ve not looked back since I first picked up Potent Pleasures, so it should be no surprise that my eyes lit when I saw her latest books, Desperate Duchesses and When the Duke Returns.
This latest Desperate Duchesses series, which James revealed in is her take of “Desperate Housewives set in Georgian England”, has all the drama, intriguing affairs, delicious suspense, and relationship issues that happened in the television series, but with lots of romance and comical moments caused by the wilful and colossal misunderstandings perpetrated by the main characters involved. Stringing all these plot fillers together is the friendship amongst the four intelligent titled women, and the heartbreaks and emotional battles they go through before finding true happiness.
Read more…
Posted on March 2nd, 2009 by ag
Filed under: Books, Romance, Chick Lit, Authors A to M, Historical | 1 Comment »
