Acquire Today The Last Hours: A Deadly Plague Is Spreading Across The Land... Authored By Minette Walters Published As Publication Copy
And wanting to turn the page in the wee small hours is a good indication that it's a good story.
But there were three things that made me frown, Firstly, I thought the characters good but their ability at introspection and analysing behaviour was quite astounding, It was as if they had a library of books on Freud's theories, This didn't seem to fit the medieval period, Secondly as other reviewers have mentioned I was stunned when I reached the 'to be continued' at the end.
I knew the story must be coming to a close since I was reaching, but I was dismayed that I had read a story that had a sequel and I'd have to buy another book to find out what happened.
I think it should be mentioned at the start that this is the first book of a series.
Finally, I found the price of the sequel prohibitive, Did it have to be twice the price of the first book It seemed that the Kindle edition was almost the same price as the paperback.
I would have liked to have found out what happened to Thaddeus and Lady Anne and especially her daughter Eleanor.
Even so I regard The Final Hours as an intriguing story and would recommend it, Perfecto todo I was really looking forward to reading this, So much so when I realised I had deleted the advance ARC, and realised the download period had expired, I purchased this book from Netgalley.
I found this book very difficult to read though, I love historical novels but I found the characters cliched and one dimensional, I found the setting, on an island cut of from the rest of the county, suffocating, In fact, after a while I thought I was reading an episode of the Walking Dead, or similar zombie apocalypse.
This is unfortunate as the time period, and the Black Death, are very well researched, The pace is slow and after a while he claustrophobia sets in, I abandoned it atand do not anticipate that I will return to it, The arrival of the black death, the casual and brutal life of the serfs that are endured in their day to day life which depended on the whim of their lord.
On visiting the Lord whose son is to marry Sir Richard's daughter to pay her diary results in them being exposed to a new and deadly sickness.
On returning to his home seriously ill, the only serf that remains well remains outside the Manor house to prevent illness destroying the community.
Lady Anne, orders that they isolate themselves and this is the beginning of their fight for survival, Well researched and a story that draws you into the lives and their struggle to survive, Thoroughly recommended. I have become fascinated by the period of the Black Death which wiped out half the population of England, transforming the countryside and the lives of survivors.
I have long since given up reading Walters whose reputation struck me as over inflated, but couldn't resist a story of this period.
The hero is Lady Anne, downtrodden wife of a minor Dorset landowner, Anne has been running her husband's estate for years and making it flourish but no one gives her any credit, putting it down instead to Sir Richard's piety and God's will.
Sir
Richard is a cartoon villain, his awfulness far over the top, but luckily he dies of the Death very quickly.
I was annoyed on reaching the end of the novel to find the words To Be Continued as the story stops abruptly.
It should be made much clearer if a novel is not stand alone, This is completely different from the other books Ive read by this author, Its really a very long history lesson, involving the life and times of people in the mids when the Black Death plague hit England in this instance, Dorsetshire.
As a look back to how people lived, survived or died, its interesting and theres few intrigues along the way.
As a sweeping, utterly gripping book well no its not, The storyline is a little slow and none of the characters are fully developed, Other reviewers have declared their disappointment because the ending is poor i, e. the writing just stops with a to be continued sentence, therefore, wasnt that bothered as forewarned is forearmed.
However, Walters left far too many unanswered questions and I suppose shes relying on readers buying the next instalment.
This is unacceptable after reading such a long story, A bit of a cheat, For a delve into present history fair, For a gripping plot rubbish,
A staggeringly talented writer, GuardianWonderful and sweeping, with a fabulous sense of place and history Kate Mosse on The Last HoursAn enthralling account of a calamitous time, and above all a wonderful testimony to the strength of the human spirit.
I was caught from the first page, Julian Fellowes on The Last HoursAtmosphere, imagination and narrative power of which few other writers are capable The TimesA vividly wrought and powerful story.
With The Last Hours, Minette Walters has brought her impressive skill as a writer of psychological crime to create a dark and gripping depiction of Medieval England in the jaws of the Black Death.
Elizabeth Fremantle on The Last Hoursas you'd expect from crime queen Minette Walters, blood will be spilled, A well plotted page turner, Sunday Express Published On:Walters's skill and subtlety in portraying the suffering and disarray of a feudal society in which disease rampages and God has seemingly gone mad is masterly.
And, as with her bestselling suspense novels, the psychological drama is gripping, Elizabeth Buchan Daily MailWalters's crime novels are admired for their claustrophobic atmosphere and precision engineered suspense, With The Last Hours, she has swapped that taut plotting for a expansive structure and ambitiously broad canvas.
GuardianGripping and original BBC History MagazineHistorical novels depend upon the writer's ability to create a credible past world and Walters manages this very well This is an ideal read for those who just want a good story well told.
Snuggle up in a chair on a cold winter night and enjoy, nudge book. com Published On: