Islands in the Clouds is one of the better travelogues to come out as part of the Lonely Planet Journeys series. Tree gives a good overview of the history, sociology and culture of the highlands of Papua New Guinea in an well-paced, beautifully written tale. Adding to the value of the book is its Tok Pisin glossary, which makes for a nice introduction to the pidgin/creole language of PNG.

I've been to Papua New Guinea, and I found this a very enjoyable read. Isabella Tree lets you get to know the people she meets, and her writing style really takes you along with her. This is just a short note to say "give this one a try."

Courtesy of The Best Reviews

Regan Southwork is in search of a secret land. It has long been the dream of her father to find the legendary Avalon. He spent his life in search of the mythical resting place of king Arthur and is getting close to solving the mystery. He has finally figured out where he thinks it is, but his failing health gets in the way. So Regan takes up where he can't and sneaks into the stone circle at Castle Druidhean, where she believes she will find her answers. However, in order to do so, she has to dig...and avoid the castle laird, Mad MacGregor.

Lachlen Macgregor has kept to himself for many years. His mother disappeared when he was just a child and he knows more than he should, or has revealed. The secrets are hidden in the stone circle; so when Lachlen finds Regan digging there, he knows he must out an end to her curiosity. He hires her to work at the keep, as a companion to his grandmother, where he can keep a close eye on her...and keep her distracted from digging for secrets.

Regan reluctantly agrees to the position at Lachlen's castle, though she is nervous about being in such close proximity to "Mad MacGregor" as he is called, due to a family curse that all MacGregor men go insane at a young age. Regan figures her living at the castle will give her easy access to the circle for searching for the clues she needs to prove her father's theory about Avalon. Never mind that Lachlen has forbidden her to enter the circle, claiming it is cursed and dangerous.

Once Regan arrives at the keep, she realizes that the MacGregor isn't as sinister as she had previously thought. She finds Lachlen charming and pleasant, though distant at times. He is fascinated by her as well, attracted to her and impressed wither intelligence. However, neither can reveal their true reasons for their obsession with the circle, convinced they must keep their secrets. The more they are together, the more they find themselves falling for each other. Though Lachlan refuses to acknowledge it, determined the family curse will end with him. When accidents start happening which endanger Regan's life, the two of them must work together, and decide whether or not to trust each other, if they are to put an end to the curse and threat...and rescue their love.

Ms. Hall has written a good story here, in the traditional Gothic style. It has all of the elements; the eerie house, dark brooding hero, family curses, mysterious happenings, and empowered heroine. The novel is for the most part very well done. The characters are vivid and varied, from the disturbing servants, to Regan's bubbly sister and Lachlen's mentally handicapped but cheerful brother. However, Lachlen's "Woe is me" attitude gets very old and overused, frustrating the reader and causing one to be annoyed with him many times. Also, the misunderstandings about the circle between Lachlen and Regan are dragged out a bit too much at times. But then, if they gave their secrets away, there wouldn't be much of a conflict to keep the story going.

The reader is kept guessing as to who is behind the threats to Regan's life...and why; as well as what really happened to Lachlen's mother, known as the "The Flame." This reviewer changed opinions many times about who the bad guy is, but pretty much had the mystery of The Flame figured out, but just didn't know why. This book will keep the reader spellbound and hoping to see a sequel, with a chance to revisit some beloved characters.

In 1810 Seamus Southworth hopes to complete his research on whether the fifth century Arthuis was King Arthur by finding the legendary Avalon, which he believes is near Castle Druidhean on the Isle of Skye. With Seamus ailing, his daughter Regan decides to prove her father's theory to the members of the Royal Society who scoffed at Seamus.

Searching near Druidhean, Regan meets Laird Lachlan "Mad" MacGregor in a very auspicious way. Lachlan knows Regan is not on his haunted estate at midnight for a social call. He decides to keep an eye on her in case she finds damaging information about his clan amidst the Druid ruins. So he hires her as a companion to his grandmother. Not long afterward he ponders whether his fear of the curse supersedes his growing love for Regan and can she reciprocate those feelings for a mad aristocrat while someone human or the curse tries to stop the intrepid Regan.

ISLE OF SKYE is an exciting Scottish Regency romance that reads like a gothic tale starring a brooding dark hero with deep secrets and a curse, living alone in an ancient castle and an intrepid innocent heroine bringing light and love to him. The story line is fast-paced as Constance Hall furnishes a mystery to provide depth to the enchanting tale, but insures that the subplot ties back to the prime theme through the actions of the cast. A sequel starring the siblings of the lead characters would enhance the audience feeling that we found a piece of Camelot in Ms. Hall's writings.

Harriet Klausner

This book is about Queen Victoria's unusual relationship with her highland servant, John Brown. Most are familiar with the story because of the well-received movie, "Mrs. Brown". While the story made a very interesting movie, for most recreational readers the topic doesn't merit a full book. Raymond Lamont-Brown has certainly done excellent research, and I do not doubt that his account of Mr. Brown and his relationship with the queen is as accurate as possible. Unfortunately, oneof Queen Victoria's daughters drastically edited the Queen's personal papers when it came to the topic of Mr. Brown, so much of the historical record is irretrievably lost. Nevertheless, it seems clear that it is unlikely that there was a scandalous relationship and that the Queen simply considered Mr. Brown to be a completely devoted servant . She consequently kept him in constant attendance and was tolerant of his brusque manner. No matter how hard Mr. Lamont-Brown tries to find some actual drama, most of the relationship (and therefore most of the book) revoloved around the mundane routine of the royal household - daily ponyrides, picnics in the Scottish countryside, below-stairs jealousies, etc. Any excitement in the book is the result of speculation, not historical fact. If you have a serious interest in Queen Victoria, you will find this book worthwhile. Otherwise, see the movie.

The release of the well-regarded film _Mrs. Brown_, about Queen Victoria and her gillie John Brown, indicated there was still interest in the story of the Queen and her devoted servant. The full story of their relationship will never be known, but in _John Brown: Queen Victoria's Highland Servant_ (Sutton Publishing), Raymond Lamont-Brown sifts through what can be known to give as good a picture as we are likely to get of the servant beloved by the Queen and detested by so many others. It is a small but successful study of the Queen as honest and loyal, with a love of the outdoors, and with a sense of humor (when will the opposite legend go away?) which Brown must have frequently tickled. They were a good match. He impressed both Albert and the Queen with his knowledge of game and hunting, and a strong friendship grew between the gillie and his Queen. He liked jokes and gossip, and the Queen liked to hear his stories. There are many illustrations here of their familiarity. When the royal family went out on jaunts, John Brown usually brewed the Queen's pot of tea. Early in his service, she remarked that this was "the best cup of tea I ever tasted." "Well, it should be, Ma'am," came Brown's reply. "I put a grand nip o' whisky in it."

There is little doubt that the Queen idealized Brown in a way no one else did, but especially after Albert's death, no one tended her as he did. A courtier wrote, "Others had tended her as their Queen and mistress. John Brown protected her as she was, a poor, broken-hearted bairn who wanted looking after and taking out of herself." Many around the Queen disapproved. Brown took his duties so seriously he would deny even her family access to her. His gruffness with others made few friends. Sent to convey the Queen's invitation to dinner to the Lords-in-Waiting, Brown pushed open the door of the billiard room, eyed the aristocrats, and bawled, "All what's here dines with the Queen." The Prince of Wales particularly disliked him, always referring to "that brute" rather than using his name. He obliterated all the busts and mementoes of Brown after the Queen's death, but he was never able to wipe out the rumors that Brown and the Queen were lovers, or that they had a morganatic marriage, or that Brown was her guide in spiritualism. Such evidence as there is shows that they were nothing but devoted friends as well and mistress and servant. This readable book well illustrates the relationship, with ample quotations from the Queen's diary and from remarks of those who knew both parties well.

The soap opera part of this story comes from such things as romantic triangles, secret affairs, sibling rivalries and jealousies, stabbing in the back, misunderstandings. These intrigues kept me reading to find out who was going to do what to whom next, but the main draw for me was the diversity of settings and characters. The story begins with wealthy American familes and a missionary family living in China in 1926, as China enters a revolutionary period. There are conflicts among these families as well as conflict between them and the Chinese factors of that time period. One of the characters, Jordan, an American woman, flees her family to join the revolution and journeys with Mao, while her former lover finds himself in the U.S. during the McCarthy era, wondering what happened to her. Several generations of these families weave in and out of each others' lives for 60 years. The plot kept moving along at a good pace, and was quite entertaining.

I must admit a little bias as my family's cottage is the setting for one of the chapters. This also qualifies me as being an informed reader. The history of this area just north of Muskoka is being lost and the author manages to capture the feeling of life in these lumbertowns - especially in the chapter of Christmas Eve In Trout Creek. I've been a visitor to this area all my life and I thought the most memorable story was my grandmother's dismemberment and drowning of a piano in Lake Restoule. After reading this book I realize this area is full of colourful people and stories.

This gives a brief history of the house and of the people who lived there from Victoria to the present royals. Clearly a much loved place.The book's strong point are the black and white photos, and many portraits of individuals who are known to history photographed there.The author gives the reader the sense that this was an important house historically and personally to the few favored to live and visit there.

"Book of Alfar" wasn't quite as good as I had expected, but it's still quite a good fantasy/historical read, with likable heroes and a fairly interesting hodgepodge of Revolutionary War history and a dash of mythology. It needs a bit of tightening in areas, but overall quite nice.

Sanders has just moved into a very old house with his father, sister and self-absorbed mother, and nobody except his mother is happy about it. Sanders deals with this by wandering off into the woiods by himself, where he meets an Algonquin girl, Mini, and a goat-boy named Billy. And he catches sight of a Hessian soldier racing by, the ghost of a young man who leaped to his death centuries before. But the ghost isn't the only supernatural thing lurking around. The pleasant, peaceful dwarf Alfar is being instructed in wickedness and mischief by his ruthless grandfather, Dwerg, Lord of the Dunderberg, who is trying to whip him into a suitable Black Dwarf.

But mere mischief (putting bees in Sanders's attic) escalates when Dwerg decides that Alfar should marry Mini, the descendant of the people who killed Alfar's parents. Neither Mini or Alfar like the idea, and after Sanders saves Alfar's life, they set out to oust Dwerg, even though Alfar's magic isn't up to the task. Along the way they will run into eternally-sailing pirates, a dwarf-created storm, and finally the Lord of the Dunderberg himself.

Hassinger does a good job with "Book of Alfar"; in some ways it's a fairly typical fantasy, but has some nice quirks like the usage of real mythology in the storyline. (I was a little distracted by the fact that "Dwerg" means dwarf, and "Alfar" means elves) The usage of things like American history, a dramatic backdrop, and the pirates who will sail forever are good touches.

Sanders is the best-fleshed-out character in the book, a likeable kid who rises to the challenges; Mini is like a less intriguing Lloyd Alexander heroine, and I'm not sure why Billy was in the book. I like him, but I didn't think he added much to the plot. Sanders's family is quite well done, and Dwerg just avoids being cartoonish. Oh yes, and his wight-cloak is quite entertaining.

There are a few flaws; the good guys all become pals almost instantly, rather than a getting-to-know-you period. Occasionally Alfar seems a bit too much like a human being. Hassinger's writing style is brisk, not very detailed, but quite a few parts of it become very intense and poetic, such as the "granddaughter" scene on the pirates' ship.

It's a pretty good fantasy story, with a few flaws but some unique usage of history and legend make it above average. Nice read.

The book has excellent color pictures and is very informational on aspects of the dog. I would rank this book five stars if it was more recent. Beautiful pictures of a very tough and protectful breed.

The book looks at the dilema of a wee lass, unable to attend the ceilidh[party] It shows her determination to be in on things. The illustrations clearly show that the artist knows about bagpipes and pipers. The drawings are very accurate. Also about kids and their feelings. The final illustration speaks to that great, childlike joy of being let in on the ceilidh, after she went thru the range of feelings as her Dad piped his heart out. Great for anyone wanting to introduce their wee ones to the pipes and the Maritimes approach to a good time.

A year ago I was on an off-campus studies program in Sri Lanka and happened to have this book with me as I was studying in Lankatilike, one of the places Gombrich describes. It was so interesting to be able to read about how things were 50 or so years before I was there. The shrines even looked basically the same! It is also a great introduction to Sinhalese Buddhism (the closest thing to a How-To Guide for Sudus I've found). However, it is an old book and a lot has happened in Lanka since it was written. Even so, I love it as a reference book and keep it by me at all times when I'm doing research on Lanka.