The Romans: An Introduction, by Antony Kamm

Cracking little book on the Romans, expertly condensing over 2000 years of history into 200 pages covering the major people & events as well as their daily lives, mythology, architecture, literature & army - quite a feat especially when considering how readable it is.
4/5

My Library

Any Human Heart, by William Boyd

The fictional journals of Logan Gonzago Mountstuart cover almost the whole of the 20th Century & tell the story of his life in his own words, from Uruguay to Norfolk, Oxford, Switzerland, New York & France; his life's ups & down are revealed in complete candour.

It's difficult to sum up a book that contains a whole life (albeit a made-up one) in just a few lines, but I thoroughly enjoyed following Logan's adventures which also highlighted my own ignorance about art & the art world.

At a couple of points I did feel as though the author's interests were over-powering his character's voice, however, especially in the later chapters, the book shows an author at the top of his game, weaving a fascinating, moving & hilarious story from his character's fully-lived life.
4/5

The Power That Preserves (The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Volume 3), by Stephen Donaldson

The first trilogy draws to a close with the main leper character finally coming good. Trouble is, it takes almost three quarters of the book to get to that point & up to then there are so many dire & tortuous setbacks that Lord Foul's main weapon of inspiring despair in his victims was inspired in me as well, which made for a heavy, & somewhat dull, read. After eventually getting to the final showdown I wasn't overly impressed with it either & felt in some places it was even slightly absurd.

In this genre I also look for some romantic heroism & inspirational courage but the main character in this trilogy purposefully embodies the opposite; it's often mentioned that he has a cynical unbelief & distrust of the world he has found himself in, which all worked to leave me feeling somewhat cynical too. Consequently I won't be reading the other two trilogies in the Thomas Convenant series (Second & Final).

I also wonder if nostalgia plays a part in how well regarded these books are (some even say they are better than Tolkien's) because, judging by other reviews, many people seem to have read these as teens in the 80s when they were first published.
3/5