K. C. Simm

Continued Excellence., 23 July 2013

I am really glad I found these. So often we are told that a successor to Ellis Peters has been found. So often are we given a new hyped author of historical fiction to play with our tastes. And yet only rarely do we find one of this calibre.
The stories are clever, well researched, (which in my view is an essential component of such stories; I admit to being an historical pedant) and plotted well. They keep our interest throughout. Well they keep my interest but even so that could be seen as a fair yardstick.
We are sympathetic with the main protagonists and feel enough interest in the puzzles that are presented. Nowhere in these books did I feel, (as I do so often) that was a bit… Read more

Overcomplex, 21 July 2013

Customer review from the Amazon Vine Programme (What's this?)

This should have been a remarkable book. This could have been an excellent read. The elements were all there. A fascinating period. Obvious and painstaking research, (perhaps a little too obvious). A good story, on the face of it, but not well told.
It was a struggle. An uphill struggle to get through all the hand written inserts that were there, one presumes to add aunthenticity. A struggle to understand the language used. A struggle to get used to the chopping and changing around of location over relatively short time periods.
Many reviews say this is a chance lost but in this case it really was.
I would have loved to love this book. It sounded just up my street. I couldn't… Read more

Catching the Fashion., 23 Mar 2013

Customer review from the Amazon Vine Programme (What's this?)

There are others who will tell you the outline of this story but I wish to concentrate on the comparisons that are bound to be made between this and the seeming plethora of young readers books of this type that seem to abound at the moment.
Yes, this is a very readable book although the ending does seem somewhat diluted. There are empathic chracters and villans. There is a more than adequate story line and the first premise behind the secret book is an excellent idea. In fact apart from the apalling authors name there is nothing wrong with this book at all. Perversely that is just the problem. It shines but just not enough. It is well written, for the age group but does not have that… Read more