tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post8975754992359091451..comments2024-03-22T15:53:38.589-07:00Comments on Kate of Mind: Dorothy Dunnett's CHECKMATEKate Sherrodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08706419613939420574noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-85080351038479833452014-12-08T13:56:19.928-08:002014-12-08T13:56:19.928-08:00I'm kinda with you on this. Things really get ...I'm kinda with you on this. Things really get ridiculous. Marthe as DD stands out (hello? The most intelligent man in the universe doesn't recognise Marthe in a wig?) , as does "blinding headaches cured by a knock on the head". Angst, of course, is the currency of romance. In this, I feel, is the ultimate challenge of the author. Dunnett has held up to us the mirror of our own foolishness in believing romantic fiction. She has tested our credulity - Lymond, after all, is a fictional character that we crave with the same strength that his fictional followers crave. And yet the question remains: does this question our strength in the belief of love? kristihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09182355159414046447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-65797313272157831972013-12-02T06:20:30.539-08:002013-12-02T06:20:30.539-08:00This book is so incredibly romantic and heart-brea...This book is so incredibly romantic and heart-breaking. It is such an incredible conclusion to the series, which really should be read all six in a row because each one builds on the last in such an intricate and also organic way. When I read these books, I feel like I am living and breathing them.view valor websitehttp://www.valorjanitorial.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-40794523444981002732013-11-25T12:09:25.561-08:002013-11-25T12:09:25.561-08:00Three men in a tub. Who clearly need a good astro...Three men in a tub. Who clearly need a good astrologer.Z. Mullshttp://zmulls.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-78959554046050933732013-11-25T10:41:16.750-08:002013-11-25T10:41:16.750-08:00Hee. I started Niccolo Rising last night 8)Hee. I started Niccolo Rising last night 8)Kate Sherrodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08706419613939420574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-40619863426858968012013-11-25T10:04:38.101-08:002013-11-25T10:04:38.101-08:00But rereading CHECKMATE means I'd have to sit ...But rereading CHECKMATE means I'd have to sit through pages of Austin Grey again. And by CHECKMATE, Jerrott is tiresome with or without Marthe. I enjoy Lymond when he's handling situations, meetings, people; and have less patience for the prophesies, lineage questions, mystical experiences and love songs of J. Alfred Blyth. There is, of course, much to love in CHECKMATE (thank goodness for the Strozzi clan), but it's my least reread book.<br /><br />I am currently rereading KNIGHTS and PAWN and I'm struck at how few "real" characters there are in these books. I've been over with Niccolo for a while and DD puts a staggering number of fully-realized historical personages, great and small, into the pages. I didn't notice how cautious she was about the "real people" characters in Lymond.<br /><br />And the historical set pieces in Niccolo are truly awesome; all the more because I was not aware of their significance prior to reading the books, and so I just experienced them from within, without hindsight. I had no idea what was significant about Trebizond, had never heard of the siege of Famagusta, and was ill-read about the Duchy of Burgundy. Got a serious education reading those books...<br /><br />I am looking forward to re-experiencing my first Niccolo read by peeking in on this blog.Z. Mullshttp://zmulls.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-24071974011026081442013-11-24T13:48:15.171-08:002013-11-24T13:48:15.171-08:00Really, really, really - you need to have mega spo...Really, really, really - you need to have mega spoiler alerts in this review! Thirty years ago I may have felt the way you do (it's hard for me to remember) but having re-read Checkmate every year since then I understand so much more than I did on my first reading. But even on first reading it's obvious that Lymond understood Nostradamus' words (paraphrasing) "there are two things you desire - one you shall have, the other you shall never have nor would it be right that you should ..." to mean Philippa was not for him. He also doubted the staying power of love, given the mess Sybilla had seemingly made of the family, and given that while he knew who his father was, he didn't know the full and real account until the final pages. He has to be given credit for trying to spare Philippa the net; and Philippa - who knew only too well how highly-strung her spouse was - was motivated by a 'whatever it takes to stop him taking his life' mission. Checkmate is my favourite. However, the ending did feel a bit rushed, especially given our beloved DD's penchant for over-writing.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00435688912088244132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-61412528180178317862013-11-24T11:17:51.737-08:002013-11-24T11:17:51.737-08:00I'm with you 100% on this. I was so looking fo...I'm with you 100% on this. I was so looking forward to Checkmate, which seems to be everyone's favorite, but the ANGST was too much for me. And it made it worst that I had trouble believing in the reasons behind that angst (both for Lymod and Philippa). I'd choose Pawn or Disorderly over Checkmate any day but as you also said, even a not-so-perfect Dunnett is still a great Dunnett!Alex (The Sleepless Reader)https://www.blogger.com/profile/03083761152675156469noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-53122582220425055062013-11-23T21:44:08.737-08:002013-11-23T21:44:08.737-08:001. I loathe "star" ratings but when I...1. I loathe "star" ratings but when I'm forced to employ them, and I'm dealing with a series, I rate books in a series against each other. All the Lymond Books are 5 stars except for Checkmate because it's so much weaker than its fellows. SO MUCH WEAKER.<br /><br />2. I've decided to read Niccolo first, then and only then allow myself the luxury of re-reading Lymond.Kate Sherrodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08706419613939420574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-52820643089981290292013-11-23T20:24:56.651-08:002013-11-23T20:24:56.651-08:00It's partially your fault that I'm halfway...It's partially your fault that I'm halfway through re-re-re-re-(??)-reading PAWN IN FRANKINCENSE, and finding new depths and rediscovering Phillippa. Who learns to wriggle up from the foot of the bed. It's amazing to me tha the geomalers were a real thing.<br /><br />Just so you know, both CHECKMATE and GEMINI are among the weakest in the series (which is still 99.99999% better than most). So much expectation and weight on those final books, they can't possibly satisfy. (I've been reading reviews of Stephen Donaldson's THE LAST DARK and they've also been along the lines of "overwritten, bloated, too long, but I would rather have my nails pulled out with pliers than be denied the chance to read it").<br /><br />Lymond is fun to hang out with, even when he's being emo. But all the lineage subplot is a drag both in Lymond and in Niccolo. Truthfully the journey is all.<br /><br />You can reread these books right now and you will find many things you missed, but I can assure you that you will reread them many times in the coming years.<br /><br />(the only book I have not reread is KING HEREAFTER. I keep telling myself that one day I will rent a cottage on the Orkney Islands and reread it there)Z. Mullshttp://zmulls.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3738174603029644797.post-7286555232654073102013-11-23T06:52:10.876-08:002013-11-23T06:52:10.876-08:00Way, way better than 99.999999% of the books that ...Way, way better than 99.999999% of the books that have yet been, or ever will be written, but only 3 stars out of 5 in your goodreads.com review? What does it take to get 4 or 5?!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com