"Triggered by the unlikely encounter of a golden labrador, a Van der Graaf generator and an anti-gravity machine..."

I've been meaning to read the Linda Buckley-Archer books for some time now.

From the Guardian:

The books are inevitably packed full of historical detail, from Thomas Paine's reception in France to the arrival of kangaroos at the court of Queen Charlotte. But Buckley-Archer does not allow the research to swamp the narrative and they are also fast-paced reads, switching between multiple storylines, characters, and even whole centuries from chapter to chapter and each ending on a cliffhanger. With a description at the head of each chapter ("In which the Tar Man shows what he is made of and Kate and Mr Shock break the law in Middle Harpenden") it's a technique reminiscent of the serial writing of Dickens. It is born partly, says Buckley-Archer, of her background in screenwriting - "you go in late, you leave early and you end on some tension" - but also because as she wrote the manuscript she read it in stages to her family after Sunday dinner each week: "I always knew if I was being boring by the expression on my children's faces," she admits.

I really need to get on that. 

Looks like the series haven't picked up in the States yet -- they changed the title of the first book for the paperback release and gave it a totally new look, which has carried over to the sequel (also re-titled).  I prefer the new covers, actually.

Comments

[Gail]

I loved the original cover of the first book, but it really didn't have anything to do with the story. The title was misleading, too, because Gideon the Cutpurse is an adult secondary character who isn't as charismatic as he ought to be to pull off having a book named for him.

I did like the book, though. The historical aspects are excellent, the strongest part of the book, much stronger than the time travel element.

[jessmonster]

Rubs hands together and puts on hold...I see the 2nd one has several holds on it at my library. I remember being intrigued by the original cover, but I never got around to reading it.

[Dawn]

I've read the first book in it's original American art. I prefer the original art because it makes the book feel like it came from the Victorian era. The new artwork is more exciting, but feels more current. I really enjoyed the book, and I was disappointed to see that they had to repackage it like that and worried that it meant the series wouldn't take off. I'd have to say that I like Gideon. I think he'll play a larger role in the future installments.

[Dawn]

Please forgive my typo. I know that its is not a contraction how I used it. I'm low on sleep. Wish I could use time travel to turn the clock back SEVERAL hours each night in order to get more sleep.

[Leila]

No worries. It has happened to all of us. Go take a snooze, if you can fit one in!