Wednesday 16 November 2011

Victoriana: An Englishman's home is his.....

A fine day out walking with an old friend, I stumbled across this fine Des res, another Water company's Victorian building, no doubt full of machinery.
But the thought that popped in to my head was, what a nice private home for a bachelor!
As they say “ An Englishman's home is his Castle”
Just needs a trap door in the middle of the bridge to keep the Chavs out!
Oh dear I forgot about the waterline being so low, oh well.

Tuesday 15 November 2011

Victoriana review: STONE'S FALL

STONE'S FALL by Iain Pears
Publisher: Vintage (2010)
ISBN-10: 0099516179
ISBN-13: 978-0099516170
First Edition;Publisher: Jonathan Cape; (2009) Hardback

On the cover of the book you can see the words Love, Murder, Espionage these are a poor approximation of the themes within this unravelling historical enigma.
Firstly set in 1909's London of the Edwardian era, then the second part in Paris in 1890, and the final part in Venice in 1876

As your knowledge of the main characters traverses forward in much in the same way as a viewer's interpretation of the film 'Rashomon', as the journalist Braddock is privately engaged to investigate the death of the capitalist weapons manufacturer John W. Stone and the mystery of his wealth, we are then moved on to intelligence officers discovering a plot to attack England and the Empire by a most modern notion. Interwoven into this tale is the mysterious Countess! What follows is an English inventor's meeting a businessman and that the World needs battleships and torpedoes.

This newly written Victoriana was such an intelligent read it has inspired me to reread 'The Difference Engine'.