Rebels and Traitors: An Epic Novel of the English Civil War

[Correus]

Have any of you read this book by Lindsey Davis?

Is it worth reading as a work of fiction?

[Chesh]

I have read about 1/4 of the book so far, it is quite long its good so far but I have other books to that I want to read that have jumped the cue.

Lot of history in it.

[mikeland]

Not read it. It is on ibooks for £6.50 so might dabble.... have usually been disappointed withECW fiction (I think I know the history too well).

[Invisible officer]

Not read it. It is on ibooks for £6.50 so might dabble.... have usually been disappointed withECW fiction (I think I know the history too well).

The obvious problem with novels written by peoples that think it's enough to put modern people in old costumes, add some specific dates and you have a genuine historic setting.
A friend gave me one of the ancient novels by Lindsey Davis. No book I would read a second time. So I will not give the Rebels and traitors a try.

[smolders]

The obvious problem with novels written by peoples that think it's enough to put modern people in old costumes, add some specific dates and you have a genuine historic setting.

SOrry friend, but I don't see what the obvious problem is....please explain.

[paulsmodellingworkshop]

I think Invisible is saying (well I am that allthough the costumes/settings/plot etc are period based the authors give the characters/protagonists too much in the way of a modern thinking brain - and therefore they are just too caricurtured (sic).
...and that's what puts me off a lot of 'historical fiction' - modern ways of thinking in an older world setting.

It's just an opinion and I share it but I respect your right to think differently.

[Cubster]

There obviously needs to be a balance between attracting a 21st century reader with language and maybe even values that they can identify with and putting your characters in an authentic historical setting. Of course it's a subjective choice from consumer to consumer and no-one's preferences will match exactly with anyone else's.

I don't like the Simon Scarrow books, for example, because they seem over-simplified for my taste. The Patrick O'Brien books, in contrast, I find superb and I think they have an authentic contemporary flavour. But I do understand that some people find them hard to get into because the language, the motivation, the terminology is all geared towards life at the beginning of the 19th century aboard a British naval warship. That's not an easy genre to break into cold!

Plus of course our literary tastes will change over time as well. There was a time when I thought Wilbur Smith and Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe books were the last word in realism and historical accuracy!

[paulsmodellingworkshop]

Great comment Cubster! yeah that's what I was trying to say......

Bizarrely enough though, I really like the scarrow novels as pure entertainment, I just leave the historians brain at the door.
Used to love WS as well but got bored with the genre.

[Cubster]

Bizarrely enough though, I really like the scarrow novels as pure entertainment, I just leave the historians brain at the door.

Well there we go, perfect example. I bought the first half dozen books, read them with a fair measure of contentment but never really managed to latch onto them. I accept that they are very popular books and I'm in the minority. That's cool, having different tastes is what maintains such a broad choice from which to choose our reading material.

[paulsmodellingworkshop]

I am not worthy!