Martin Lake

As is title suggests, this is a spin off novel from Dickens's Oliver Twist, following the adventures of Jack Dawkins, the Artful Dodger, member of Fagin's gang, after he is transported to Australia for stealing a snuff box. It tells of his suffering at the hands of other criminals on the six month passage to New South Wales, and the alliances and rivalries he forms and breaks during a colourful convict life out there. While his adventures are entertaining and varied, by half way through the book I was beginning to think this could be a novel about any 19th century boy convict as there was no Dickensian connection. Then his kindly employer Dr Foster took him along with his household back to England, where he was able to renew some old connections, after finding out in shock about the execution of Fagin and the murder of Nancy. However, this part of the book did not end up being as interesting a follow up to Dickens's classic as I hoped. He falls in with some ex-members of Fagin's gang we didn't know about, and discovers an arch rival in Mr Justice Fang, the judge who heard the case where Oliver was accused of stealing the wallet of Mr Brownlow, his future benefactor. The plot and its resolution are a bit far fetched, particularly in that it leads to Dawkins being associated and friendly with Lord Palmerston the future Prime Minister, and hobnobbing with the likes of Gladstone (then a Tory) and Liberal leader Sir John Russell. While entertaining, I did not really take this too seriously. I felt the novel rambled rather was not particularly well written and I can't say I enjoyed it as much as I did the author's quartet of novels about Edgar Atheling.… (lisätietoja)

Protagonist Leif Ormson, and his brother, Sigurd, are captured by the Vikings. Leif becomes skald (the equivalent of a bard) to Viking chieftain Ivar the Boneless. He and his brother are assimilated into the Viking throng and participate in the invasion of Angle Land (England). As would be expected in a novel about Vikings, they wreak havoc wherever they go – killing, raping, and pillaging with abandon. This book mixes fictional characters with real people. For example, Ivar the Boneless, son of Danish king Ragnar Lothbrok, was a real leader of Vikings in the 9th century. The English rulers were also actual people of history.

The story is fast-paced and filled with adventures on land and sea. Leif is an atypical Viking – he is not a natural fighter and prefers negotiation to battle. He falls in love with the woman given to him as a slave. Descriptions of their family life serve to offset some of the violence of the battles. Though rape is often mentioned, those scenes are not described in detail. I would not call the ending a cliffhanger, but it is definitely set up to be the first book in a series, so do not expect closure. It will appeal to those that enjoy books with lots of action and can handle the many gruesome scenes.
… (lisätietoja)