Smuggler's Kiss by Marie-Louise Jensen - Revision history

Sue at 08:38, 6 September 2020

2020-09-06T08:38:07Z

Jill at 14:18, 22 April 2018

2018-04-22T14:18:14Z

Sue at 14:30, 1 February 2015

2015-02-01T14:30:17Z

Sue at 11:15, 13 February 2014

2014-02-13T11:15:33Z

Sue at 16:04, 22 February 2013

2013-02-22T16:04:11Z

Sue at 07:41, 5 February 2013

2013-02-05T07:41:38Z

Sue: Created page with "{{infobox |title=Smuggler's Kiss |sort=Smuggler's Kiss |author=Marie-Louise Jensen |reviewer=Robert James |genre=Teens |rating=4.5 |buy=Yes |borrow=Yes |isbn=978-0192792808 |p..."

2013-02-05T07:38:55Z

Created page with "{{infobox |title=Smuggler's Kiss |sort=Smuggler's Kiss |author=Marie-Louise Jensen |reviewer=Robert James |genre=Teens |rating=4.5 |buy=Yes |borrow=Yes |isbn=978-0192792808 |p..."

New review

{{infobox
|title=Smuggler's Kiss
|sort=Smuggler's Kiss
|author=Marie-Louise Jensen
|reviewer=Robert James
|genre=Teens
|rating=4.5
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=978-0192792808
|pages=320
|publisher=OUP Oxford
|date=March 2013
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0192792806</amazonuk>
|amazonus=<amazonus>0192792806</amazonus>
|website=http://www.marie-louisejensen.com
|video=
|summary=Excellent historical adventure with a feisty, resourceful narrator and a wonderful supporting cast. Highly recommended.
}}
Fifteen-year-old Isabelle has given up on life. Walking into the sea, she is ready to drown herself - until she changes her mind, too late. But instead of drowning, she's pulled from the waves by smugglers. While the crew aren't all happy that a couple of their men have jeopardized them by rescuing her, she quickly becomes useful to them and starts to get a thrill from helping to evade the Preventives. Can she be happy in her new life, or will her dark secret catch up with her?

This is a hugely enjoyable historical adventure with a brilliant narrator, a fantastic love interest and a really strong setting. Jensen captures the time period of the early eighteenth century very well and it's a thrilling read with lots of action-packed sequences. In addition, there's great character development, particularly as Isabelle matures and learns more about the world away from her privileged background, even starting to question what she's always been taught is the natural order of things and to feel sympathetic towards the poor people she meets. Speaking of the poor people, Rudyard Kipling's ''A Smuggler's Song'' at the start of the book sets the scene perfectly for the relationship between the Gentlemen, the people of the communities they deal with, and the Preventives, and Jensen's portrayal of all of her characters is compelling.

It's not perfect - I thought Isabelle's background was revealed a little too slowly, perhaps. It's also one of the very few books I've read recently which I thought was a tiny bit short, if anything - I'm far more likely to complain that a book feels padded out, but I wished this one was longer.

Despite those slight criticisms, this is really easy to recommend - the last few years have seen a huge amount of excellent historical fiction for teens and children and this ranks highly amongst them. Jensen is an author who I've always meant to read but never quite got round to before this book - I'll definitely be seeking out some of her earlier works!

As I said, it's been a fantastic few years for historical fiction! My very favourites have been [[Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein]] and the Kat Stephenson trilogy, starting with [[A Most Unladylike Magick by Stephanie Burgis]]. Maddie and Verity from the former, and Kat herself from the latter, are excellent heroines and if you like Isabelle I think you'd really enjoy reading about them as well.

{{amazontext|amazon=0192792806}} {{waterstonestext|waterstones=9259309}}
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@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 |cover=0192792806
 |website=http://www.marie-louisejensen.com
 |summary=Excellent historical adventure with a feisty, resourceful narrator and a wonderful supporting cast. Highly recommended. Marie-Louise Jensen popped into Bookbag Towers to [[The Interview: Bookbag Talks To Marie-Louise Jensen|chat to us]].
 }}
@@ Line 29: / Line 28: @@
 Despite those slight criticisms, this is really easy to recommend - the last few years have seen a huge amount of excellent historical fiction for teens and children and this ranks highly amongst them. Jensen is an author who I've always meant to read but never quite got round to before this book - I'll definitely be seeking out some of her earlier works!
-As I said, it's been a fantastic few years for historical fiction! My very favourites have been [[Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein]] and the Kat Stephenson trilogy, starting with [[A Most Improper Magick by Stephanie Burgis]]. Maddie and Verity from the former, and Kat herself from the latter, are excellent heroines and if you like Isabelle I think you'd really enjoy reading about them as well.
+As I said, it's been a fantastic few years for historical fiction! My very favourites have been [[Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein]] and the Kat Stephenson trilogy, starting with [[A Most Improper Magick by Stephanie Burgis]]. Maddie and Verity from the former, and Kat herself from the latter, are excellent heroines and if you like Isabelle I think you'd really enjoy reading about them as well.  [[Last Chance Angel by Alex Gutteridge]] was also shortlisted for Romantic Novelist Association Young Adult Romantic Novel 2014.
 {{interviewtext|author=Marie-Louise Jensen}}

@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 |summary=Excellent historical adventure with a feisty, resourceful narrator and a wonderful supporting cast. Highly recommended. Marie-Louise Jensen popped into Bookbag Towers to [[The Interview: Bookbag Talks To Marie-Louise Jensen|chat to us]].
 }}
 Fifteen-year-old Isabelle has given up on life. Walking into the sea, she is ready to drown herself - until she changes her mind, too late. But instead of drowning, she's pulled from the waves by smugglers. While the crew aren't all happy that a couple of their men have jeopardized them by rescuing her, she quickly becomes useful to them and starts to get a thrill from helping to evade the Preventives. Can she be happy in her new life, or will her dark secret catch up with her?

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{infobox
+{{infobox2
 |title=Smuggler's Kiss
 |author=Marie-Louise Jensen
@@ Line 11: / Line 11: @@
 |publisher=OUP Oxford
 |date=March 2013
-|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0192792806</amazonuk>
+|aznuk=0192792806
-|amazonus=<amazonus>0192792806</amazonus>
+|aznus=0192792806
 |website=http://www.marie-louisejensen.com
 |video=

@@ Line 26: / Line 26: @@
 Despite those slight criticisms, this is really easy to recommend - the last few years have seen a huge amount of excellent historical fiction for teens and children and this ranks highly amongst them. Jensen is an author who I've always meant to read but never quite got round to before this book - I'll definitely be seeking out some of her earlier works!
-As I said, it's been a fantastic few years for historical fiction! My very favourites have been [[Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein]] and the Kat Stephenson trilogy, starting with [[A Most Unladylike Magick by Stephanie Burgis]]. Maddie and Verity from the former, and Kat herself from the latter, are excellent heroines and if you like Isabelle I think you'd really enjoy reading about them as well.
+As I said, it's been a fantastic few years for historical fiction! My very favourites have been [[Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein]] and the Kat Stephenson trilogy, starting with [[A Most Improper Magick by Stephanie Burgis]]. Maddie and Verity from the former, and Kat herself from the latter, are excellent heroines and if you like Isabelle I think you'd really enjoy reading about them as well.
 {{amazontext|amazon=0192792806}} {{waterstonestext|waterstones=9259309}}
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