Th1rt3en (Eddie Flynn)

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Jane Eyre is the first title to creep into the book, and once having found its place, never left. Only when the girl in the mist comes to be, is the connection between Miss Winter's story and that of Jane's- the outsider in the family. Among the party was a young man called Jerry Lorimer who was engaged to Sylvia, to the opposition of Sir Ambrose; but, after a year of the engagement, Sir Ambrose had given in. Also there was Maud Wye, supposedly a friend of Jerry, but Mrs Bantry had seen Jerry kissing her one evening. Six months after Sylvia's death, the two were married. Dr Lloyd is puzzled as a fatal poisoning by the use of foxglove leaves – if it was an accident – is difficult to achieve; the alkaloid has to be extracted with great care and Sir Henry latches onto the main problem of the case, namely: how do you ensure that only your victim dies if you poison everyone, including yourself (assuming the murderer to be one of the house party)?

While there were many fun parts of the book (the song of the unsung hero, visiting the four corners, and all the adventures along the way), and many clever editions (the mention of the garden contents in the end), I struggled when it came to stories involving the current King. While I completely understand the importance of his part in the story it just didn't do it for me. In fact, I wasn't able to get into the book at all until the two stories merged. The day-dreaming boy served the purpose of bringing the reader into and out of the story in the same way the little boy did in "The Princess Bride," which I also struggled with.Now Margaret Lea is investigating Angelfield’s past – and the mystery of the March family starts to unravel. What has Angelfield been hiding? What is its connection with the enigmatic writer Vida Winter? And what is the secret that strikes at the heart of Margaret’s own, troubled life? Did I find it to be “a love letter to books” as has been so oft claimed? Eh, I guess, but only a certain kind of books. Jane Eyre-kind of books. The Times Literary Supplement (8 September 1932) stated, "It is easy to invent an improbable detective, like this elderly spinster who has spent all her life in one village, but by no means so easy to make her detections plausible. Sometimes Miss Marple comes dangerously near those detectives with a remarkable and almost superhuman intuition who solve every mystery as if they knew the answer beforehand, but this is not often and Mrs. Christie shows great skill in adapting her problems so that she can find analogies in Miss Marple's surroundings." The review concluded that "in general these are all problems to try the intellect rather than the nerves of the reader." [6]

Also, the main character has a personal torment that feels a little bit exaggerated. However, I am not in her place so I wouldn't know how I would react. Logan is an orphan who grew up in a small town at an orphanage where he met his best friend Aurora. At 18 Logan is sent to become an Imperial Soldier. He soon finds himself training as an Imperial Ranger to be sent on a quest for the secret to eternal life. Margaret Lea: a bookstore owner's daughter, whom Vida Winter asks to write her biography. The primary narrator of the book.Unfortunately, I think the voice I was hearing in my head was actually Diane Setterfield's cajoling, coercive, whinging, and not my own. Emphasis on coercive--my main gripe about this mess of a novel is that while reading I couldn't shake the feeling that the author is constantly trying to impress upon the reader--HOODWINK INTO BELIEVING, more like it--that this piece of moribund trash is actually a work of serious literature. Blood to blood and soul to soul, together this was done, and only together it can be undone. Be the bridge, be the light. When iron melts, when flowers spring from fields of blood—let the land be witness, and return home. The beginning of this novel was really fun and I really enjoy the humor. Logan is just an average kid with average abilities who finds himself in an interesting position. After saving the life of a wizard he's thrown into the life of the Rangers. When training completes they have to set sail on a ship bound for the four corners of the earth on a search for eternal life; the king wants to live forever. The adventures that Logan and Aurora have were so much fun and humorous. Even when things seemed bleak, there was always some humor to be had. I really loved that about this story. It was so different from the novels that I'm used to reading and it was a nice break from the norm for me. I enjoyed the writing a lot. It could use some polish here and there, but overall it has a nice quality that makes it easily readable and enjoyable.

The way the author weaves this tale is so haunting and it reels you right into the book. I can not fathom how children can be brought up this way! The story unfolds in a beautiful, well, what should be, a beautiful mansion in the countryside of London. They call the place Angelfield. Out of the blue, she writes to an amateur biographer named Margaret Lea, telling her that she has chosen her to be her official biographer. That she is finally ready to tell the truth. The characters feel like friends thanks to the colloquial language, but it could get slightly lengthy at times. Excellent structure & flow, love how the "secret to immortality" turns out. The Thirteenth Tale, by Diane Setterfield is a gothic suspense novel, the author's first published book in (2006).Marple Facsimile edition (Facsimile of 1932 UK first edition), 12 September 2005; Hardcover, ISBN 0-00-720843-X Because I absolutely loved Vida's narration. She's not just an author, she's a storyteller, and I fell right under her spell. It was this that kept me reading after I properly realised The Thirteenth Tale wasn't the book I expected. I just loved her voice, and was completely gripped. Her story is strange and weird, and I would often be thinking, "What the hell?!" at how messed up the story was at times. The book is a slow burner, and I did at times wonder where this story was going - yes, it's kind of weird, and the two twins, Adeline and Emmeline, run amok with very little discipline, but what was the point of the story? This sounds like I was annoyed or frustrated, but I was merely curious, because I was absolutely gripped by Vida's voice. But after a while, the mystery made itself more fully known, and I became engrossed in the story itself. Things at Angelfield go from bad to worse, and slowly but surely the questions ramp up. Is Vida actually telling the truth? What did actually happen? And who did what?