Pan’s Labyrinth bears an unusual relation to the 2006 film of the same name. It is a film-to-book adaptation rather than vice versa. Best-selling author, Cornelia Funke, has written a novel inspired by Guillermo del Toro’s film. A very dark fairy tale for adults, Pan’s Labyrinth follows the plight of young Ofelia after she and her mother […]
historical fiction
The French Photographer: female war journalists in World War II
Natasha Lester’s wonderful new novel, The French Photographer, follows the fictional life of Jessica May from 1942 through to the current day. Model turned war photojournalist, Jessica runs up against army men who consider it their job to keep women in their place – behind the front lines. They would prefer she report on food stamps […]
Review: Things in Jars, by Jess Kidd
Things is Jars is like a female Sherlock Holmes story. Except Watson is a half-naked ghost – or possibly a drug-induced hallucination – in boxing shorts who has very little to contribute to the investigation. London, 1863. Bridie Devine, the finest female detective of her age, is taking on her toughest case yet. Reeling from […]
Review: The Aunts’ House, by Elizabeth Stead
The Aunts’ House is a delightful coming of age story set in 1942 Sydney. Author Elizabeth Stead has conjured an ensemble of quirky, lovable characters that would make Charles Dickens envious. Angel Martin is an orphaned child foisted upon long-suffering boarding house mistress, Missus Potts. Enraged upon discovering Angel hasn’t brought the inheritance she’d counted on […]
Review: The Familiars, by Stacey Halls
The Familiars is an excellent example of writers filling the gaps in history with imagination. The historical record shows that, in 1612, ten witches were put to death in Pendle, England following a trial. Each of them had a ‘familiar’, a sort of demon animal (traditionally a black cat) which does the bidding of the […]
Review: The Last Days of the Romanov Dancers, by Kerri Turner
The Last Days of the Romanov Dancers, by Kerri Turner, is a wonderful and thoroughly enjoyable story to read. I’m a sucker for anything set in Russia. I devoured Paullina Simons’ The Bronze Horseman series, with Tatiana and Alexander and have read my way through plenty of Russian literature, including Anna Karenina and Crime and […]