Author Deanna Raybourn was on the blog in February talking about City of Jasmine and her writing. Afterwards she kindly sent me a copy – very nicely inscribed I might add – and a few weeks ago when I finally had a chance for some pure pleasure reading, I began on it immediately.
Deanna enjoys writing about “periods that saw social upheaval and change but with a gloss of glamour to heighten the atmosphere. Usually, these are periods when women’s roles were changing.” Set not long after WWI when countries were rebuilding and women had had a taste of roles beyond hearth and home, City of Jasmine delivers a wonderful tale full of mystery and drama, engaging protagonists, well drawn minor characters and an exotic locale. I enjoyed it thoroughly!
Here are some of the notes I took as I read City of Jasmine:
- captures our interest immediately with the introduction of Evangeline’s dead husband who might not actually be dead
- weaves in interesting bits of history around WWI, Damascus, King Faisal, British interventions in the Middle East, the Bedouin role in WWI against the Turks
- desert setting and the Bedouin people are so well described
- Evangeline has a strong, unique voice – saucy, flippant, intense, challenging, passionate
- twists and turns right up to the very end
- emotional roller coaster
When I finished the novel I wrote “I’m left hoping that Evangeline will soon appear again.” In my books (no pun intended) that’s evidence of a very enjoyable read.
Well done, Deanna Raybourn.
CITY OF JASMINE: Set against the lush, exotic European colonial outposts of the 1920s, New York Times bestselling author Deanna Raybourn delivers the captivating tale of one woman who embarks upon a journey to see the world – and ends up finding intrigue, danger and a love beyond all reason.
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M.K. Tod writes historical fiction and blogs about all aspects of the genre at A Writer of History. Her latest novel, TIME AND REGRET will be published by Lake Union on August 16, 2016. Mary’s other novels, LIES TOLD IN SILENCE and UNRAVELLED are available from Amazon, Nook, Kobo, Google Play and iTunes. She can be contacted on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads or on her website www.mktod.com.
3 Responses
Sounds like a good one, Mary
the 1920’s between the wars was a very different place and my mother who was born in 1917 used to tell stories of her childhood and early teens and the excitement that seemed to follow the war to end all wars! Looks like a good read.