“At over 700 pages in length, it’s fair to say that ‘Outlandish Knight’ isn’t a biography aimed at the casual non-fiction reader as Runciman’s contradictions can make him a difficult subject to engage with and I think it would appeal more to readers with an existing interest in Runciman’s life and work. However, the biography itself is undoubtedly an impressive achievement, eruditely written and thoroughly researched.” Clare Rowland, A Little Blog of Books
“Upon opening the front cover I discovered that the rather magnificent end-papers are covered with Major Arcana cards from a classic tarot pack – this theme is echoed in the chapter titles, 22 out of 26 are titled for these cards and Dinshaw cleverly picks the right card to match the major themes within. Apparently, Runciman was fascinated by the tarot, but this doesn’t really feature in the text past a couple of mentions – but my interest was piqued.” Annabel Gaskell, Annabookbel
“It’s genuinely very well done. I just can’t really think who it would appeal to. I feel as though Dinshaw wrote this because it was a personal passion project rather than for any mainstream recognition. And you know what? There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.” Dane Cobain, Social Bookshelves
“Dinshaw draws a fine distinction between his subject’s professional and private selves. When talking about the published historian and thinker, he uses “Runciman”; when talking about the closeted homosexual and his relationships with family and friends, it’s “Steven”. This confused me to start with, but quickly became second nature. Occasionally these public and private personas are contrasted directly: “Runciman was a great romantic historian; but in his personal affairs Steven had come to be more admiring of that epithet ‘realistic’ than of any height of romance.” ” Rebecca Foster, Bookish Beck
“Dinshaw’s work is, to put it mildly, comprehensive. He has obviously been through every scrap of the relevant primary sources, including Runciman’s own unpublished memoirs, and his regard for his subject shines through every sentence. ” Eleanor Franzen, Elle Thinks
