I just finished Frances Hardinge's book "
Fly by Night". I already pimped this book (she's a friend of mine, from a distance) but really, the book is good! If you want a fresh (children's?) book with lots of nice twists and weird characters (and difficult words -to me- as she's very keen to show her knowledge of the Dickens' age) check it out!
Currently reading "
Temeraire" from Naomi Novik. Think "Hornblower" but with Dragons.
Indeed. The Napoleonic wars in which both sides have access to huge dragons, used for bombing raids and reconnaissance. Fun to read.
Also reading the first book in the Masters of Rome series: "
The first Man in Rome" by Colleen McCullough's. She wrote The Thornbirds which did not gave me much enthusiasm to start reading this series. But wow, what a treasure chest of historical details. The first book deals with the war against Jughurta (around 100 BC) and all the intrigue around it. It's a novel, not a history book. But she casually adds details about the daily life in Rome and in the country. For instance, the kind of wine they drank. Or the fact that women (patriciers) could be executed when caught drinking wine. The allmighty pater familias. People selling themselves as slaves to make a fortune. How they all signed up to a "burial guild" to make sure that they got a decent burial... etc. I've been checking some of these interesting details and so far they all seem to be perfectly valid which makes it all the more fun to read.
