And we're back!
Another month, another book, another great Book Club meeting with my ladies!
The first in a trilogy, The Lost Queen by Signe Pike tells the tale of a lost Scottish queen, who's twin brother is the inspiration for the legend of Merlin. Langoureth must navigate the social, political and religious labyrinth of the Kingdom of Strathclyde in order to find a way to influence and preserve the way of life of her people. War from the Angles threatens the borders and Christian worshipers begin to take hold throughout the land. Langoureth is at the center of it all and she must choose to forge her own path or accept the fate that was predestined for her.
(Ooo, I should write dust jacket descriptions. Ha.)
I finally had time to develop the club rating system in time for this meeting, so we started with it again and had a good giggle. Starting with rating the book has become like a start of meeting ritual that I hope we continue. (If you want to learn more about the rating system I will be posting about it on my Instagram @hobbiesbygreek in the coming weeks.) Lost Queen came in around the middle of the ratings. I was the odd woman out and gave it an 8/10. I really quite liked it and am looking forward to the rest of the trilogy now.
The book is set out in four different parts. In each, Langoureth is of a different age as the story follows her through the first big milestones in her life. We all agreed that the first part was the hardest to get through because she was 10 years old. Janean noted it was so difficult because the writing did not suit the perspective of someone so young. Good time to note that the book is written in first person. An aspect I didn't mind because I didn't find it as annoying as other first person novels I've read, such as The Hunger Games. Regardless, part one was the most painful.
As it was Carmen's book choice, she led us through a series of questions. My favourite was when we each talked about what we liked the most, the least and what surprised us the most in the story. I really enjoyed how much nature was present throughout the novel. The descriptions and characters used the specific names for birds, trees and flowers. It wasn't just 'they came to a group of trees', it was more like "I was used to my towering stands of oak, pine, ash and elm, but this was a forest of birch, their papery trunks bright in the dim" (pg. 171). It was consistently like that throughout the book and it made it feel homey and earthy. I disliked the antagonistic Christian monk story lines the most. I didn't know that Mungo is an actual historical figure and the Patron Saint of Glasgow! Despite how angry his character made me and what was happening to the culture of Strathclyde, I am interested to see how or if they incorporate him and his followers into the other two books.
Some of the things that surprised me the most, I cannot really write about because they're a bit SPOILERY, so I will leave them out. I will leave it with an out of context quote from Janean about the thing she disliked the most: "Bitch is a snitch!" If you read the book, this comment will make you laugh when you get to that part.
Another thing we all agreed on was that it got better by the time you got to Part IV. This is the section that got the other girls more intrigued (I was hooked on Part II) and possibly interested in reading the rest of the trilogy. I know I definitely will, just waiting for them to come out is the hardest part. Thank goodness I have lots of other reading to keep me occupied.
Finally: The Notes from the Author section at the back of the book. Admittedly, this is one of the first things we talked about, but I wanted to leave it for the end of the blog, to keep in some order of the book as well. We all thought this was the best part of the book! Haha! It was informative, engaging and it was neat to learn about all the research she put into the actual history behind the book. There are a few fantasy elements dappled throughout, but it is mainly a historical fiction series - like Outlander. A review on the front cover even reads: "Outlander meets Camelot. . . A sweeping, magical tale." So, if you're into that kind of thing, pick this book up.
