Cover Image: The Lion House

The Lion House

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I am not entirely sure how to review this book. There was a review that I saw somewhere else that planted this descriptor I can't quite let go off of this being kind of a fan fiction about the historical characters, I admit I was hoping for a non fiction feel and while in some places it read like that, in others it definitely read like novelized history. There was a lot of of the character and emotions traits the book talked about which simply wouldn't be in a regular history book. You can't know feelings if you are telling history, So ok, it reminded me of docu dramas like Rise of the Ottomans some of the bigger networks have been producing lately. So if you are into those,, you'll enjoy his book, but if you are a serious historian, maybe skip and move on, I land somewhere in the middle.

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Unfortunately the poor quality of the ARC made it sometimes almost impossible to keep reading. Too many typos and repeats.

I just ordered the book on Amazon so I'll be able to give a better review soon.

Many thanks anyway for the ARC

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This was “novelized” history, but it wasn’t novelized enough. No dialog, action, characters to follow or plot, it read like a Wikipedia entry. I gave up at the 60% point. Maybe I just wasn’t interested enough in this period of history to struggle through. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

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I read a lot of history and I enjoyed this but it didn’t feel a terribly original. Having said that it’s well written and interesting. I would recommend it as being a lighter historical read.

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I d0n't know if this non fiction, historical fiction, or whatever. I know I loved this book and was enthralled by what I was reading.
Istanbul is one of my favorite places in the world and Süleymaniye Mosque is one of my favorite places in Istanbul.
It's the story of an age full of fascinating and strong characters, an age of importante changes like the Reform and Renaissance, an age where two different culture clashes and live side by side at the same time.
It's an important part of the European culture if you are born next to the Mediterranean and I learned a lot more about this time even if it's not the first book about these age I read.
The storytelling is hypnotic and I was enthralled and couldn't stop turning pages.
It's an excellent book but you will appreciate it if you know about XVI century European history or are ready to learn: in in this I strongly recommend it.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

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Set in the sixteenth century, this is a surprisingly dense book full of detailed accounts of the battles and intrigues that begins to set Suleyman the Great, the longest reigning Ottoman sultan, apart from his adversaries. From battles in Hungary to the Mediterranean region and on to northern Africa, we are brought into the story as insiders, experiencing firsthand the inner workings of his court, the political jockeying and ruthlessness, and power brokering that is the essence of any political environment. We also get to see the other side of Suleyman - his love for Hurrem and his strong ties to Ibrahim, which do not hold him back from tough choices though. I found the political agility of the Gritti father-son duo incredibly interesting and intriguing - they were crafty indeed. Although this book is classified as nonfiction, it’s difficult not to consider it fiction given the details, descriptions, etc. My head was spinning by the end of the book! Despite being meticulously researched, I would imagine assumptions had to be made and blanks filled it to create this solid and enjoyable book. Definitely not taking anything away from the author for this comment. I listened to an interesting episode on Suleyman not long ago on the BBC’s The Forum, which would go well with this book - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct38t1 Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

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I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a DNF for me, and that's too bad because it had nothing to do with the quality of the story. There were just so many typos and grammar issues that I was getting distracted every few sentences by a pretty glaring mistake. Even for an ARC this really needed further copyediting, and I just couldn't push through the narrative.

I probably will pick up a version of the finished copy to give the story a fair shake without all the distractions.

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This was one of my most anticipated books this year, and it did not disappoint at all. I find the Ottoman Empire fascinating, and this is the first volume of a proposed trilogy of historical fiction on Suleyman the Magnificent, under whose reign the Ottoman Empire expanded like never before. Bellaigue's descriptions make you feel like you're witnessing the pomp and circumstance of the coronations, and intriguing with the diplomats and spies. The narrative perspectives Bellaigue has chosen are of outsiders to the court, who are wheeling and dealing their way into its heart. What I find fascinating is that Bellaigue makes the realpolitik of the time very clear-there really wasn't a conflict among Islamicate Empires and Christian Empires, what there was, was a conflict among ambitious rulers, all of whom wanted more and more territory, and more people paying taxes, and most importantly, the control of trade routes. To achieve this, there were no permanent allies and no permanent enemies-several European powers relied on Suleyman the Magnificent to keep the Hapsburgs in check! The Venetian Republic had to maintain close relations with both the West and the East, and their balancing act is described very well. The book is peopled by fascinating characters-Ibrahim, who started as the Emperor's slave and rose to become his Wazir, Alvise Gritti, the Venetian middleman who procured everything for the EMperor, from jewelled headdresses to diplomatic treaties, Hurrem, the Ukrainian consort of the Sultan who schemed her way to ensure her son's succession claims, Mimar Sinan the fabled architect, Hayreddin who the Western world knows better as Barbarossa. A book that traced the life of just one of these historical figures would be spectacular. Their lives, the intersections with history and the effects those have to this day make for compelling reading. I didn't know, for instance, that Barbarossa was more than a pirate-he was a skilled naval commander and for all practical purposes, the lynchpin of the Ottoman Navy, whose naval campaigns extended the EMpire. Countries and borders hadn't solidified yet into their present shapes, and it's clear that several present-day conflicts can trace their roots back centuries to historical injustices. THe Ottoman EMpire, and IStanbul in particular, was a lot more diverse than I thought it was-though that makes sense given IStanbul's central location for trade routes. It's so well-written that I felt deeply invested in the characters' lives-would they succeed? Was their ambition getting to their head? I would have liked more description about the ways in which such a large and far-flung empire was ruled-Bellaigue merely writes that it was administered along the lines of ancient Persia, but since I don't know how that was administered, that's not very informative. It's a testament to the writer though, that he brings the period so alive that you want to know every little detail about it. I've borrowed many of the books he mentions in the bibliography to read next, and I can't wait for the next volume of the trilogy.

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History told through the lens of historical fiction is notoriously hard to pull off, and the author just manages it. There are some flaws though, namely a larger focus on the sons vs. the 'main character', resulting in some confusing sections where more fiction is added to make up for a lack of historical evidence/context. Overall, a 'good' book, and I'm interested to see if the author hones his writing style in further books.

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I thoroughly enjoyed this account of the Ottoman Empire during Suleyman’s reign. The book gave a good sense of his court and it’s working along with a sense of what the world around the Sultan’s realm looked like. This book was definitely a good addition to the existing works on the Ottomans.

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'Historical non-fiction written like a novel' should probably have been my first warning but I pushed past that and requested The Lion House anyway, as its focus on Suleyman the Magnificent and his rise to power was something that I wanted to read more about.

This is a weird book and, to be honest, probably one I wouldn't have finished reading if I weren't reviewing it. While it tells the story of Suleyman, the focus is really more on the rise and fall of his right hand man and the relationship between Venice and the Ottoman Empire, as I think as much space is given to the Gritti (the older one the Doge, the younger his illegitimate son) as the emperor himself. This meant that I felt as though I came away from this book knowing much more about the personality of those three than I did about Suleyman.

The other downside of this book is in the choice of a narrative way of telling - sometimes a couple of sentences are blatantly untrue, refuted immediately, while it also leads you down dead ends on occasion. The ending is very abrupt, with not even an epilogue to talk about the fate of those still left alive by that point. So a bit disappointing, as it didn't really deliver on what was promised and I'll need to get some actual information somewhere else.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher, via Netgalley. This is my honest opinion of the book in question.

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The Lion House by Christopher de Bellaigue is a unique book about the European powers vs. Suleiman the Magnificent. It covers a wide swath of material, from how Venetian politics worked, to how Suleiman rose to power, to the infamous pirate Barbarossa.
I found this book very interesting. It is written as a drama novel, completely in present tense and with turn-of-phrases. To the point where it is hard to remember that is all history. It also covers so much. Rather than focusing on one character or country, it covers several and in detail. The actual information is cool too, it really paints a picture. It even counts jewels and fabrics, and how much they were worth.
At times it was boring though. Covering so much means that a lot more is left out. I feel like I did not get to hear everything about a character, such as their childhood. Perhaps a smaller scope would have been better? I would have also loved to learn more about the common people and soldiers.
I would recommend this book to people who want a fresh and new way of learning, or to people who find reading nonfiction dry and boring. If you want a more in depth view, especially about a specific part of this, I would not recommend.

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It is hard to tell whether this book is fiction or nonfiction based on reading it. This book is also hard to follow given the narrative structure.

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