The Rebel Angels
"The Rebel Angels" kept my interest but I was a bit disappointed when comparing it with the Deptford Trilogy, which I absolutely loved when I read it last year. I didn’t find either of the narrators very sympathetic, although Darcourt was more so than Maria, while the intrigues and petty squabbles of the academics of Spook College weren't all that interesting to read about.

What's Bred in the Bone
A great improvement on the first book in the trilogy. I liked the conceit of having the recording angel and a daimon watching a tape of Francis Cornish's life and discussing how the daimon had manipulated events to shape Cornish's life. Although I enjoyed reading about him growing up in Blairlogie surrounded by family secrets, it was just after he had won the school classics prize that the book really grabbed me. Loved it!

The Lyre of Orpheus
Unfortunately this was by far my least favourite of the trilogy, as it was back to the annoying academics from the first book with their irritating in-jokes about Snarks, Boojums and Kater Murr, now running the charitable Cornish Foundation. Since they aim to fund difficult artwork that other philanthropists would shy away from, they decide to fund a music student to finish Hoffmann's Arthurian opera, and then stage it, giving themselves a tight schedule of one year.

RELEASE NOTES:

At today's meet-up.

Picked up at the May 2007 Hudson's meet to be added to Mount TBR

The Rebel Angels revolves around the execution of a difficult will. In this case, the estate is of one Francis Cornish, a fantastically rich patron and collector of Canadian art and a noted antiquarian bibliophile. A lost Rabelais manuscript is rumoured to be among his possessions, and his executors include the deliciously revolting Renaissance scholar Urquhart McVarish; Professor Clement Hollier, a classically middle-aged inhabitant of the ivory tower; and the Reverend Simon Darcourt, Davies's obligatory humanist clergyman. A heroine is provided in the form of Maria Theotoky, a beautiful Ph.D. student of Professor Hollier's. A rich, funny, and slightly ribald campus novel results, one that revels in the fustian of the now-vanished pre-postmodern university.

I found this book an interesting read - and really liked the way the inter relationships of the main characters was described. Parlablane is a key character in the novel who is not involved in the will, the interactions each of the key characters have with him, though, reveals a lot about him.

I found the move between the two voices that tell the story added to the experience, although for some reason assumed the first voice was male at first - which makes some of the early story very different if read with a male storyteller in mind rather than a female one! I leave you to read the book to see what I mean.

The second book in the trilogy goes back to tell the story of Francis Cornish was always good at keeping secrets and whose will was the link for the characters in the first novel. From the well-hidden family secret of his childhood to his mysterious encounters with a small -town embalmer, an expert art restorer, a Bavarian countess, and various masters of espionage, the events in Francis's life were not always what they seemed.
it is an ingenious portrait of an art expert and collector of international renown, who has a range of interesting relationships, but seems to fall into things often rather than actively work towards the activities he ends up with.
He seems quite a sad and naive character in some ways - but fascinating never the less.

In the Lyre of Orpheus the Cornish Foundation is going well and decides to support an music student in finishing an opera started by Hoffman - called Arthur of Britain - meanwhile Maria becomes pregnant after her husband has mumps and Darcourt finally finds out more information about Arthur's uncle Francis Cornish which we found out about in the middle book in the trilogy. Some interesting interfaces between the characters and a fitting end to the series.

In the Lyre of Orpheus the Cornish Foundation is going well and decides to support an music student in finishing an opera started by Hoffman - called Arthur of Britain - meanwhile Maria becomes pregnant after her husband has mumps and Darcourt finally finds out more information about Arthur's uncle Francis Cornish which we found out about in the middle book in the trilogy. Some interesting interfaces between the characters and a fitting end to the series.

Taking to the 2011 Nottingham Unconvention

This is one of the many, probably far too many, books that I brought home from the amazing Book Buffet at the fantastic BookCrossing Unconvention in Nottingham over the weekend. With all the books I already have hanging around the house waiting to be read, I really should have been more restrained - but I wasn't! It's a case of the more, the merrier, I think. Goodness knows when I'll get round to reading them all but I'll report back with my comments when I do!

Some books have your name on them and are destined to be read whatever you do!! I love Canadian Literature, particularly their Classic Literature, and have been strongly recommended to read this Trilogy by BookCrossing friends whose judgement I trust. I even aquired a copy of the middle book, What's Bred in the Bone, but released it unread during a shelf-culling exercise. However, when I saw the complete set among the books on offer this weekend, thank you Katweeble, I realised its time had come .... :-)

I've read The Rebel Angels:
- absolutely loved it, although I'd be hard pressed to explain how or why! I love RD's writing style, look forward to enjoying the others in the trilogy and will look out for other novels he's written. I was fascinated by all the characters, good, bad and indifferent, and thoroughly enjoyed the plot, including all the philosophy and history and religion and gypsy culture and ... not to mention the satisfying conclusion ...
This is my sort of novel!

What's Bred in the Bone
I loved this one too! What a superb trilogy!
Quite different from the first, well linked to it at the beginning and end with some familiar characters, but quite whole in itself as the life story of Francis Cornish.
I was initially disappointed that Cornish was a surname, such a promising title for a trilogy, and delighted to visit my beloved Cornwall this time around!
Book 3 will be next month ...

The Lyre of Orpheus
How not to complete and stage an unfinished, barely started in the case of the words, opera from the early 19th century - Arthur of Britain or The Magnaminous Cuckold - and try for a Music Doctorate in the process ....
Loved it! Wonderful!

To my non-BookCrossing friend (JR) who was suitably impressed with What's Bred in the Bone when she read it!