Some Pink Reading

For this PINK SATURDAY I thought I'd mix it up a little and tell everyone about a PINK book or two that I really enjoyed.The Secret History of the Pink Carnation was the first book published by Lauren Willig in 2005. It is the first in a series of five books about English spies during the Napoleonic Wars between England and France. This is the time period several years after the Reign of Terror in France. I love historical fiction books, and this entire series has been great. Not only are the novels very well written as far as use of language,with interesting, descriptive similes, they are well researched. If that sounds a little dry for you, let me say that they are also funny and each has a little romance, actually two! This is what Booklist had to say about The Secret History of the Pink Carnation:
Willig's imaginative debut is the story of Eloise Kelly, who is trying to uncover the identity of the Pink Carnation, a British spy a la the Scarlet Pimpernel who infiltrated Napoleonic France, for her Ph.D. dissertation. But it is also the story of Amy Balcourt, a young woman of French descent raised in England, whom Eloise learns about when she gains access to the papers kept by Arabella Selwick-Alderly, the descendant of another dashing spy, the Purple Gentian. Amy sets off to join her brother, Edouard, in France, with the hope of joining the league of the Purple Gentian. On her journey over she meets Lord Richard Selwick, the Purple Gentian himself, and though sparks fly between the two, he feels he can't reveal his secret identity to her. Eloise is engrossed in Amy's story, even as Arabella's infuriating but handsome nephew, Colin Selwick, tries to bar her access to the papers. Readers should expect more of the swashbuckling past than the scholarly present, but Willig's story is a decidedly delightful romp.

Two other books from the series have some pink on their covers.Doesn't Mary, the main character, have lovely soft pink cheeks?And Lady Charlotte, the Night Jasmine is wearing a nice pink necklace around her soft pink neck. From the titles and illustrations you can see that the operatives in these stories are sometimes women, and most of the spies are named after flowers. A young woman, author Lauren Willig is a lawyer and history scholar, which is evident in these well-written, witty, and sweepingly romantic books. If you like romance and history, check out this series, you won't be disappointed!
You also won't be disappointed when you visit Beverly @ How Sweet the Sound, and the other PINK SATURDAY participants! See you next week.