2018 WHEN Are You Reading? @SamAnnElizabeth ‘s Challenge – Completed

Way back in January I decided to try this challenge run by Sam Ann Elizabeth 

The complete challenge was to include at least 12 books, one from each of the following eras:

• Pre 1500
• 1500-1599
• 1600-1699
• 1700-1799
• 1800-1899
• 1900-1919
• 1920-1939
• 1940-1959
• 1960-1979
• 1980-1999
• 2000-Present
• The Future

I wasn’t sure if I read widely enough across the timeline, but today my results surprised me. In sections where I’ve read a high volume of books, I’ve chosen a selection of books. Book titles have links to my reviews.

Pre 1500s

Athena’s Champion by David Hair and Cath Mayo – Greek mythology

Brethren by Robyn Young – Knights Templar

Smile Of The Wolf by Tim Leach – Set in Iceland

The Greenest Branch by J.K. Adams – Set in Germany and features Benedictine abbess Hildegard

The Heart Of The Conqueror by G. Lawrence – About William the Conqueror

Daughter Of War by S .J .A. Turney – Knights Templar

1500-1599

The Golden Lynx by C.P. Lesley – Set in Russia

1600-1699

Flood by Ann Swinfen – Set in England’s Fenlands

The Green Phoenix by Alice Poon – Set in China

1700-1799

The Earl And The Enchantress by Paulette Golden – Historical romance

Whales And Strange Stars by Kathy Sharp – Set in Kent

1800-1899

The Tides Between by Elizabeth Jane Corbett – YA tale of emigration

The Mysterious Lord Millcroft by Virginia Heath – Historical romance

From Governess To Countess by Marguerite Kaye – Historical romance

The Dressmaker’s Secret by Charlotte Betts – Features Princess Caroline Of Brunswick

Winds Of Time by Lilly Gayle – Historical romance set in Texas

My Antonia by Willa Cather – Classic American historical fiction set in Nebraska

1900-1999

The Wild Air by Rebecca Mascull – Featuring early women aviators

Call Of The Canyon by Zane Grey – Set in Arizona

The Captain And The Calvalry Trooper by Catherine Curzon – M/M romance set during WW1

1920-1939

Trusting The Currents by Lynnda Pollio – Set in small town America, with a spiritual theme.

The Madonna Of The Mountains by Elise Valmorbida (begins in 1923) Set in Italy

1940-1959

A Ration Book Christmas by Jean Fullerton – Family saga set in London during WW2

Never Say Goodbye by Hilary Green – A resistance-themed WW2 drama

1960-1979

Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen (begins in 1962) Set in southern Georgia

Mourning Dove by Claire Fullerton – Set in Memphis

1980-1999

Nightfall Berlin by Jack Grimwood – A cold war thriller

Dear Comrade Novak by Silvia Hildebrant – Set in Romania during the revolution

Lucky Star by Holly Curtis – Coming of age story

2000- present

Connectedness by Sandra Danby (begins in 2009) – Story featuring adoption

Lush by Gabrielle Fernie – A true story soaked in gin

The Woman At Number 24 by Juliet Ashton – Set in Notting Hill

Future

Amendments by Hannah Lynn – Set in futuristic Britain

The Afterlife Of Alice Watkins by Matilda Scotney – Mild scifi

If you’d like to join in with the challenge for 2019 check out Sam’s blog post here.

#Romance The Captain And The Cavalry Trooper by @MadameGilflurt And @e_harkstead

The Captain and the Cavalry Trooper by Catherine Curzon

4 stars

The Captain And The Cavalry Trooper is book #1 in the Captivating Captains series. It is a romance set in the latter years of World War 1.

Trooper Jack Woodvine is sent to Chateau de Desgravier where he will be Captain Thorne’s latest groom. Both the Captain and his horse Apollo share fierce reputations; several previous grooms have been kicked by the horse and yelled at by the Captain. But Jack grew up on a farm and with gypsy blood running through him; he has a talent for calming horses with just a whisper

The Chateau is home to an eclectic mix of soldiers, all awaiting orders from the front, with some praying they never see the fighting. Trooper ‘Queenie’ Charles prefers silk robes to his khaki attire and makes sure everyone knows how dangerous he can be. He’ll do anything to keep himself away from the warfare.

When Jack meets Captain Thorne, he’s instantly attracted to both the man and his steed. He believes he sees something behind the icy façade. With the threat of war all around, the chateau offers an enchanting place to escape the horrors of combat and to live, for a while, in just the moment. The men fall in love and begin a clandestine affair, but dangerous prying eyes miss nothing.

As the call to the frontline becomes imminent, Thorne attempts to keep Jack safe, but his plans backfire. They both find themselves on the battle line and the war is hungry for more soldiers to chew on and spit out.

This book is primarily an MM romance, but the unusual Chateau setting in wartime France worked well. I could easily picture the stables and yard features, while I understood the hopes and fears of the soldiers. The romance was daring in a time when the men would have been corporally punished if caught, but the author has blurred lines of social acceptance that might have been stricter elsewhere. An enjoyable story which fits the genre well.

View all my reviews on Goodreads

As the Great War tears Europe apart, two men from different worlds find sanctuary in each other’s arms.

Captain Robert Thorne is the fiercest officer in the regiment. Awaiting the command to go to the front, he has no time for simpering, comely lads. That’s until one summer day in 1917 when his dark, flashing eye falls upon the newest recruit at Chateau de Desgravier, a fresh-faced farmer’s boy with little experience of life and a wealth of poetry in his heart.

Trooper Jack Woodvine has a way with strong, difficult stallions, and whispers them to his gentle will. Yet even he has never tamed a creature like Captain Thorne.

With the shadow of the Great War and the scheming of enemies closer to home threatening their fleeting chance at happiness, can the Captain and the Cavalry Trooper make it home safely? More importantly, will they see peacetime together?

AmazonUK | AmazonUS | Twitter (Catherine Curzon) | Twitter (Eleanor Harstead)