Completed: April 25, 2025
Recommendation: Not Recommended
Recommended By: Nobody
Words for which I sought help:
abattoir -- a slaughterhouse
abos -- An Aboriginal person
adumbrate -- indicate faintly
afflatus -- a divine creative impulse or inspiration
aleatory -- depending on the throw of a dice or on chance; random
anfractuous -- sinuous or circuitous
ashlar -- masonry made of large square-cut stones, used as a facing on walls of brick or stone rubble.
atelier -- a workshop or studio, especially one used by an artist or designer
barquentine -- a sailing ship similar to a barque but with only the foremast square-rigged and the remaining masts rigged fore and aft
brocade -- a rich fabric woven with a raised pattern, typically with gold or silver thread
caducity -- the infirmity of old age; senility
callipygious -- having a shapely or beautifully formed buttocks
caryatid -- a stone carving of a draped female figure, used as a pillar to support the entablature of a Greek or Greek-style building
castellan -- the governor of a castle
cicatrix -- the scar of a healed wound
coarct -- compress or constrict; press together
cocklebur -- a herbaceous plant in the daisy family with broad leaves and burred fruits, native to tropical America
coronach -- (in Scotland or Ireland) a funeral song
coruscating -- flashing; sparkling
crepuscular -- resembling or relating to twilight
decussate -- (of two or more things) cross or intersect each other to form an X
dramaturge -- a dramatist
dromond -- a large medieval ship of a kind used for war or commerce, chiefly in the Mediterranean
empennage -- an arrangement of stabilizing surfaces at the tail of an aircraft
enchiridion -- a book containing essential information on a subject
faience -- glazed ceramic ware, in particular decorated tin-glazed earthenware of the type which includes delftware and maiolica
foolscap -- a size of paper, about 330 x 200 (or 400) mm
foramen -- an opening, hole, or passage, especially in a bone
gallimaufry -- A confused jumble or medley of things
gamine -- (of a young woman) attractively boyish
histological -- studying microscopic biology or tissue under a microscope
imprecation -- a spoken curse
ineffable -- too great or extreme to be expressed or described into words
ingenuous -- (of a person or action) innocent and unsuspecting
integument -- a tough outer protective layer, especially that of an animal or plant
jocose -- playful or humorous
knacker -- tire (someone) out
lacuna -- an unfilled space; a gap
lambent -- (of light or fire) glowing, gleaming, or flickering with a soft radiance
liminal -- occupying a position at, or on both sides of, a boundary or threshold
masculate -- mark with a spot or spots; stain
mickle -- a large amount
milfoil -- the common Eurasian yarrow
Minnesinger -- a German lyric poet and singer of the 12th-14th centuries, who performed songs of courtly love
opprobrious -- (of language) expressing scorn or criticism
opprobrium -- harsh criticism or censure
oriel -- a large upper-story bay with a window, supported by brackets or on corbels
palimpsest -- a manuscript or piece of writing material on which later writing has been superimposed on effaced earlier writing
particolored -- having or consisting of two or more different colors
pentatonic -- relating to, or based on, or denoting a scale of five notes, especially one without semitones equivalent to an ordinary major scale with the fourth and seventh omitted
Percheron -- a powerful draught horse of a grey or black breed, originally from France
perfidy -- the state of being deceitful and untrustworthy
perfuse -- permeate or suffuse with a liquid, color, or quality
petrichor -- a pleasant smell that frequently accompanies the first rain after a long period of warm, dry weather
pibroch -- a form of music for the Scottish bagpipes involving elaborate variations on a theme, typically of martial or funerary character
pissant -- an insignificant or contemptible person or thing
prurient -- having or encouraging an excessive interest in sexual matters, especially the sexual activity of others
ramify -- spread or branch out; grow and develop in complexity or range
retroussé -- (of a person's nose) turned up at the tip in an attractive way
salver -- a tray, typically one made of silver and used in formal circumstances
scapular -- a short monastic cloak covering the shoulders
sintered -- produced by or subjected to sintering (the process of coalescing a powdered material into a solid or porous mass by means of heating without liquefaction)
snug -- a small, comfortable public room in a pub or inn
soporific -- tending to induce drowsiness or sleep
spall -- break (rock, ore, or stone) into smaller pieces, especially in preparation for sorting
spirochaete -- a flexible spirally twisted bacterium, especially one that causes syphilis
tantivy -- a rapid gallop or ride
tatterdemalion -- tattered or dilapidated
thermogenic -- relating to or involving the production of heat, especially in a human or animal body
trencherman -- a person who eats in a specified manner, typically heartily
vituperative -- bitter and abusive
Weltanschauung -- a particular philosophy or view of life
whilom -- formerly; in the past
Review:
I started this book as a loan from the library, but it was a very slow start and the constant need to look up words had me on the Kobo. The story plods along and I found it very hard to engage until near the end. The sub-stories interlocked, but it took so long for each piece to find the other that it felt like I was reading several books at once within this one book. The frequency of words that were obscure or unusual in their use made the book feel unapproachable.
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