Book Review

I have just finished reading The Honourable Thief by Meaghan Wilson Anastasios. It took me four months to finish it, not because it wasn’t interesting, more due to decluttering the house, getting it painted and ready for sale, selling and then moving. In between all that, going to work, keeping up with family commitments, trying to keep up with my writing (failed so far this year), and having a life. It has been a big year so far.

Here’s the blurb:

Istanbul, Turkey 1955

Benedict Hitchens, once a world-renowned archaeologist, is now a discredited – but still rather charming – shell of his former self.

Once full of optimism and adventure, his determination to prove that Achilles was a real historical figure led him to his greatest love, Karina, on the island of Crete and to his greatest downfall, following the disappearance of an enigmatic stranger, Eris.

He has one last chance to restore his reputation, solve the mystery of Eris and prove his Achilles theory. But it is full of risk, and possibly fatal consequences…

The story is about protagonist, Ben Hitchens, a fallen archaeologist, his rise to fame and his dramatic downfall. The author moves through different time periods, World War 2 and into 1955, of Ben’s life and how he later became a conduit for selling illegal and fake artefacts. His reputation was marred by the chance meeting with Eris, who claimed to have a treasure trove of relics dating back to the Trojan War. Ben, an advocate of the Homer’s Iliad, and intrigued by Eris’ story, goes to her home to assess the objects. After a number of days studying, drawing and making notes of the historical and precious pieces, Eris disappeared along with the artefacts, leaving Ben to believe she had disturbed the thieves and they had taken her and the items.

It is easy to read and the author highlights the dark side of archaeology, the looting and illegal selling of antiquities. Wilson Anastasios does a good job of including the invasion of the Nazis, the treatment of the Cretan people during the occupation and how they fought alongside the Allies. This is told from the protagonist’s POV, Ben who had married a Cretan woman and lived amongst the locals. This is a book for readers who enjoy a light read and 20^th Century history.

Thank you for your continued support and as always, I look forward to your comments and will respond.

Historical fiction novelist and a secondary teacher, Luciana Cavallaro, burnt out but not done… yet.

Click right here… go on, you may get a gift.

 

 

 

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