May 24, 2022 The Palace Papers by Tina Brown Review by Elaine Simpson-Long I recently reviewed a biography of the Queen by Robert Hardman (reviewed here) which I described as an “admirable book”…
April 21, 2022 Queen of Our Times: The Life of Elizabeth II, by Robert Hardman Review by Elaine Simpson-Long There have been so many books written about ‘Her Maj’ and, I daresay, there will be more in the future,…
April 12, 2022 Henry ‘Chips’ Channon: The Diaries 1938-1943 – Volume 2, edited by Simon Heffer Review by Elaine Simpson-Long The second volume of these diaries was delivered by my postman, who was visibly having difficulty handing it over as…
January 18, 2022 The Invisible Host by Gwen Bristow & Bruce Manning Review by Elaine Simpson-Long When this book arrived and I saw the names of the two authors, Gwen Bristow and Bruce Manning, my first…
November 4, 2021 George V: Never a Dull Moment, by Jane Ridley Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long A few years ago I read Jane Ridley’s biography of Edward VII, which I found a fascinating, fully rounded portrayal…
August 31, 2021 Traitor King: The scandalous exile of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, by Andrew Lownie Review by Elaine Simpson-Long When I was about eleven years old I remember reading an article about the Abdication in the Sunday Express, which…
August 19, 2021 Faber & Faber: The Untold Story by Toby Faber Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long In 2019 I attended a lecture given by Toby Faber and found him to be as stylish and witty as…
March 9, 2021 Cary Grant, the Making of a Hollywood Legend by Mark Glancy Review by Elaine Simpson-Long There is a scene in Charade, a 1964 film which Cary Grant made with Audrey Hepburn, in which the following…
December 15, 2020 Miss Mole by E H Young Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long I seem to have spent most of my life rummaging around in second hand bookshops and in so doing have…
December 1, 2020 Poirot: The Greatest Detective in the world by Mark Aldridge Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long When I was younger and read every Agatha Christie book I could lay my hands on, she always produced a…
October 29, 2020 The Unbearable Bassington by Saki Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long Francesca Bassington sat in the drawing room of her house in Blue Street regaling herself and her estimable brother Henry…
September 15, 2020 The Lies you Told by Harriet Tyce Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long Last year I read Blood Orange, which was Harriet Tyce’s debut novel. One of the reasons I read it was…
September 12, 2019 The House Opposite by Barbara Noble Review by Elaine Simpson-Long It sounds odd to begin a book review with the statement that I do not like contemporary literature. I never…
April 30, 2019 The Strange Case of Harriet Hall by Moray Dalton Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long More and more unknown or unfamiliar writers of the Golden Age of detective fiction are being unearthed and reprinted and…
February 7, 2019 The Real Enid Blyton by Nadia Cohen Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long When I was a little girl I used to receive the latest Famous Five book by Enid Blyton every Christmas….
July 19, 2017 The Watsons – Two Endings Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long I have recently read two finished versions of Austen’s The Watsons, a novel fragment which, they say, she abandoned after her father’s death…
August 17, 2016 The Sinking Admiral by Members of the Detection Club, ed. Simon Brett Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long In 1932 Agatha Christie and Dorothy L Sayers collaborated with other writers, including G K Chesterton and Ronald Knox, Freeman…
August 16, 2016 How to Find Love in a Bookshop by Veronica Henry Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long We have had a few weeks of scorching weather as I write this, though it is now raining, and, of…
December 4, 2015 Caroline, and Narcissa by Richmal Crompton By Elaine Simpson-Long As a long time fan of the adult novels of Richmal Crompton, I was delighted to hear that Bello, the digital…
April 10, 2015 The Youngest Lady in Waiting by Mara Kay Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long In Mara Kay’s first book, Masha, we followed the adventures of Masha Fredericks as she travelled to St Petersburg from her…
April 9, 2015 A War of Flowers by Jane Thynne Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long This is the third in a series of books featuring Clara Vine, a film actress in pre-war Berlin. If you…
October 31, 2014 The Lost Prince by Frances Hodgson Burnett Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long The Lost Prince is not one of Burnett’s well known titles. The Little Princess and The Secret Garden are those that spring to mind when…
October 29, 2014 The Fortune Hunter by Daisy Goodwin Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long Having enjoyed Daisy Goodwin’s first novel, The Last Duchess and enjoyed it greatly I was looking forward to her second, The Fortune Hunter,…
October 9, 2014 A Lady of Quality by Frances Hodgson Burnett Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long Over the last ten years or so I have tracked down and read all of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s adult writing….
July 31, 2014 Angelica’s Smile by Andrea Camilleri Translated by Stephen Sartarelli Reviewed by Elaine Simpson-Long I discovered the Inspector Montalbano books by Camilleri some six or seven years ago and at…
