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Tuesday, June 22, 2021

The Binding Tempest by Steven Rudy and The Satapur Moonstone by Suhata Massey

 

Another fantasy.  Interesting the way fantasy reflects all of the empires, wars, corruption, and colonialism from ancient history to contemporary problems.

from description:  "...three aging veterans and a band of young rogues, are all that can protect the failing republic from the return of an evil empire. Together, their only hope lies buried with the mysteries of the past and an ancient relic called the Tempest Stone."

I liked the characters and the individual problems that each faced as they eventually united to work against the return of an ancient evil.  The import and significance of the three older characters was a great deal of the charm of this book.

Wasn't as crazy about the steampunk elements inserted.  The novel is derivative in many ways (except for the steampunk elements), but it is difficult to avoid using the fantasy tropes that have been so well established over the years.

The Binding Tempest:  The Luminescence Saga Book One.   
NetGalley/MysticHawk Press
Fantasy.  June 1, 2021.


The Satapur Moonstone (Perveen Mistry #2) was just as good as The Widows of Malabar Hill, and just as good as everyone said it was!

I listened to the audio book narrated by Sneha Mathon and was so engrossed I finished it more quickly than intended.  You know how you feel when someone interrupts you when you are in the middle of a good book?  It was all I good do to smile at my husband when he came home--and he brought dinner!  

Historically, the width and breadth of British control over so much of Indian society was surprising.  That the British influenced royal marriages and under certain circumstances took over guardianship of royal children was something I was unaware of.  

I was surprised that Cyrus presented a problem in this book, as I thought that was dealt with in the last one.  Other than that, I was completely engaged with the plot.  I'm going to try to resist moving on the The Bombay Prince for a while.  That is already  proving difficult, as wondering  what challenges  Perveen meets next is testing my will power.

Audiobook.  Narrated by Sneha Mahon.  



A little Romance.


16 comments:

  1. I don't think I could resist grabbing The Bombay Prince if I were you!

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    1. I'm weakening, but then I will have to wait for the next one! I hope Massey has book 4 coming soon!

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  2. I'm so glad to hear The Satapur Moonstone was just as good as the first one in the series. :)

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    1. I love learning about colonial India while enjoying Perveen's mysteries!

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  3. I am really loving this series - the one with Perveen. I heard an author discussion with Sujata Massey and Nev March (who wrote Murder In Old Bombay) - oh, and Barbara Peters, owner of the Poisoned Pen bookstore. So interesting and made me want to read The Bombay Prince right away.

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    1. I'll look into Nev March, as well! Thanks, Kay!

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  4. The Satapur Moonstone must really be something if you were bothered by someone bringing you dinner. LOL That is a very high complement, for sure.

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    1. I know! That's a sad state of affairs when anything interferes with my appetite. I did put on a gracious smile and thanked him for being such a good guy, but internally, I was thinking about Perveen and maharanis and the children!

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  5. The Satapur Moonstone sounds so interesting with the plot and everything. Will have to check out this series.

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    1. It is a fascinating series with great characters, plots, and historical and cultural detail!

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  6. Lol! Love that cartoon! Thanks for the laugh.

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    1. It made me laugh, too! There would be wild gyrations included if I had a spider invading my clothing. :)

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  7. I really enjoyed the first Perveen book and do have the second one on my Kindle. I need to hurry up with my current reads. I love all the historical detail! And, that cartoon is a hoot!

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    1. :) I have so many books I want to get to right now, but I have thoroughly enjoyed the first two Perveen Mistry books! As soon as I whittle down my list a little, I'm going to get The Bombay Prince. :)

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  8. I just read about The Widows of Malabar Hill and Suhata Massey a couple of weeks ago in a magazine. Your review is more proof that I need to read her series. From the article I read about her, she takes great care to make sure her historical mysteries are accurate for India of that time and place and that is so important to me in historical fiction.

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    1. One of my favorite things about reading is learning while being entertained. I found The Widows was a perfect blend of both. History and culture are so well presented in Massey's books. :)

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