Bettie's Books

The Linnet Bird by Linda Holeman 9780755322916 (this isbn is not available here on Goodreads) 376 pages Headline Book Publishing, a division of Hodder HeadlineWithdrawn from Calderdale LibrariesDedication: For Holly Kennedy, who had faith in this story.Opening Quote:A linnet in a gilded cage,A linnet on a bough,In frosty winter one might doubtWhich bird is luckier now.But let the trees burst out in leaf,And nests be on the bough,Which linnet is the luckier bird,Oh who could doubt it now? Christina Rossetti 1872Opening:Calcutta 1839Smoking opium is an art. I look at my tray and its contents - the pipe covered in finely worked silver, the small spirit lamp, the long blunt needle, the container of chandu, and my row of pea-sized balls of the dark brown paste.What was it called again - that victoriana erotica doorstep made into a TV series?The Cake and the Floorbrush?The Banana and the Chimneysweep?The Pincushion and the Melon?Well, this is like that, and I prefer this. At the end: so very nearly a 4*