All Things New - Lynn Austin

Title: All Things New
Author:: Lynn Austin
File size (Pages): 1367 KB (416)
Published: 2012
Genre: Christian fiction, Historical fiction
Challenges: Support Your Library, Historical Fiction
Edition: E-book
Source: Library

Description: In the aftermath of the Civil War, Josephine Weatherly and her mother, Eugenia, struggle to pick up the pieces of their lives when they return to their Virginia plantation. But the bitter realities of life after the war cannot be denied: their home and land are but shells of their previous grandeur; death has claimed her father and brother; and her remaining brother, Daniel, has returned home bitter and broken. The privileged childhood Josephine enjoyed now seems like a long-ago dream. And the God who failed to answer any of her prayers during the war is lost to her as well.

Josephine soon realizes that life is now a matter of daily survival--and recognizes that Lizzie, as one of the few remaining servants, is the one she must rely on to teach her all she needs to know. Josephine's mother, too, vows to rebuild White Oak... but a bitter hatred fuels her. (via Goodreads)

Thoughts: I thought that the book was okay.  It wasn't great, but it wasn't bad either; it felt like it was middle of the road and much like a number of Lynn Austin's current books and felt that it could have been better.  I felt irritated with the relationship between Josephine and her mother evolve a little differently and felt that their relationship was sort of made "nice" in relative short order and that Daniel really didn't face any real consequences for his actions in the book; it felt too unrealistic in that Daniel basically got away with his actions and I am sure that if that had really happened during the reconstruction period, that he would have been arrested and put up on trial for his actions.  I wish that Christian writers wouldn't put things in nice and tidy bows and assume that people got away with things of that sort of seriousness.

Bottom line: Overall, I quite enjoyed the book and look forward to more of Ms. Austin's writing.

Rating: 3/5

Pages for 2012: 19841

Home - Toni Morrison

Title: Home
Author: Toni Morrison
Pages: 160
Published: 2012
Genre: Literary fiction, Historical fiction, African-American literature
Challenges: 2012 Support Your Library, 2012 Historical Fiction
Edition: Hardcover
Source: Library

Description: An angry and self-loathing veteran of the Korean War, Frank Money finds himself back in racist America after enduring trauma on the front lines that left him with more than just physical scars. His home--and himself in it--may no longer be as he remembers it, but Frank is shocked out of his crippling apathy by the need to rescue his medically abused younger sister and take her back to the small Georgia town they come from, which he's hated all his life. As Frank revisits the memories from childhood and the war that leave him questioning his sense of self, he discovers a profound courage he thought he could never possess again. A deeply moving novel about an apparently defeated man finding himself--and his home. (via Goodreads)

Thoughts: This was my first Toni Morrison book and I am glad I started out with a shorter novel instead of reading something that I may have given up on.  I had heard good things about the book and thought I would give a chance.  Overall, I quite enjoyed the book and while I was reading the book, I was able to get lost in that world to the point that I know that I glazed over some parts of the book (I also had to get the book back to the library, otherwise I  would have gone back and re-read some parts).  I like how Morrison enveloped me into the story and made me like I was actually there, like I was with Frank on his journey.

The only complaint I have about the book is that it was almost too short.  It felt like it was something could have been a little longer than it actually was and like something that should be re-read to effectively understand the book.

Bottom line: I would recommend this book to those that have enjoyed Morrison's books in the past or for those that are wanting to read something of her's and unsure of whether to venture into her work.

Rating: 3.375/5

Pages for 2012: 19425

Wuthering Heights - Emily Brontë

Title: Wuthering Heights
Author: Emily Brontë
Pages: 384
Published: 1985 (Originally published 1847; my actual copy is different then one pictured; am just using this photo because I have it in my album)
Genre: Classic, Historical fiction, Gothic
Challenges: The Classics Club, readalong through Unputdownables, Historical Challenge
Edition: Paperback
Source: Purchased

Description: It's the story of Heathcliff, an orphan who falls in love with a girl above his class, loses her, and devotes the rest of his life to wreaking revenge on her family. (via Goodreads.com)

Thoughts: I first read this book when I was about 14 years old and at the time, I couldn't make sense of it and by the end of the book, I was wanting to throw the book across the room and probably because of the fact that I was unable to get myself to read the book again.  Of course I was able to understand it more after watching the BBC miniseries that came out a few years ago, I was able to make more sense of the story and the readalong that I participated through Unputdownables really helped me understand the story that much more.  And based on this last reading of the book, I was able to give the book a full appreciation of really how good the book was and it makes me wonder that if Emily had been able to live for a long time, how good her work could have become.  Maybe she would have become a one-hit wonder, or maybe she would have been a prolific writer, like her sister Charlotte, who wrote a number of well-known books through out her lifetime.

One thing that I liked about the book was that the book was basically told like a story that is being related to another individual.  I realize that this is stating the obvious, but understanding this fact, helps with the reading of the book, because you don't see Mr. Lockwood that much and hear mostly Nelly's retelling of the story between the two families that clearly dominate the area.  Another thing that I like about the book is that its a very complex novel, despite the fact that it really is a pretty simple story line. And that Emily Bronte is able to bring out complex emotions in not only her characters that are so vivid for a number of reasons, but also complex emotions in those that read the book.  Its almost a love-hate relationship with the book; there are characters that I absolutely adore and want more of (Cathy Linton [not her mom, who is also named Catherine]) and there are characters that I really do come to loathe (Heathcliff and Isabelle Linton-Heathcliff and possibly Edgar Linton).  

There also something extremely dark that kept me wanting to find out what it was and it felt like you got absorbed into that world, just like Cathy [the daughter] did after coming to Wuthering Heights. I think what Bronte does effectively is create a world that is both foreboding, but also inviting, almost like she is seducing the reader to continue on with the book, as though there is something forbidden behind the front doors of Wuthering Heights.

Bottom line: If you enjoy books that have a gothic feel to them, you will enjoy this.  I would say that if you are new to the classics, you may want to hold off on the book for a bit, as it is a bit complex and maybe something lighter would be easier to digest.

Rating:  4/5

Pages for 2012: 19265

A Farewell to Arms - Ernest Hemingway

Title: A Farewell to Arms
Author: Ernest Hemingway
File Size (Pages): 568 KB (332)
Published: 2012 (First published 1929)
Genre: Classics, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction
Challenges: The Classics Club
Edition: E-book
Source: Purchased

Description: Set in the waning days of the First World War, A Farewell to Arms (1929) is the epic love story of American ambulance driver Frederic Henry and British V.A. D. Catherine Barkley, drawn together yet torn apart by the tides of war. (via Goodreads.com)

Thoughts: It was okay.  While I liked the overall story of the book, I just felt that Hemingway's use of voice wasn't my style and felt that the interaction between Frederic and Catherine was basically surface level type of conversation and that they really had no depth to their relationship.  And if it weren't for my book club group reading the book, I probably wouldn't have read it.  Its not that its a bad book, its just that I felt that there wasn't really anything deep between them and felt that Frederic's relationship with the men that he interacted with on a regular basis was more realistic than what he had with Catherine.  Then again, Hemingway is hard to understand and that it was my first venture into anything he had written and hopefully I will read another book of his.

Bottom line: I would recommend this book to those that are fans of writers of the 1920s and 1930s, basically if you are a fan of Hemingway's contemporaries.

Rating: 3/5

Pages for 2012: 18062

A Race to Splendor - Ciji Ware

Title: A Race to Splendor
Author: Ciji Ware
Pages: 526
Published: 2011
Genre: Historical Fiction
Challenge(s): Support Your Library, Historical Fiction
Edition: Trade Paperback
Source: Library

Description:  "Blindly, she inched along a floor pitching as violently as the deck of a boat in a midwinter storm. Her hands touched the threshold opening onto the ninth floor foyer at the instant the glass transom over her head exploded into a thousand pieces. Reflexively, Amelia cast her right arm in front of her face, but not before blood spurted from her scalp and ran down her checks. She crumpled beneath the doorframe, curling into a ball. Amelia screamed again as a twenty-five-foot expanse of wood paneling and masonry pitched outward and plunged nine stories to Montgomery Street below. She knew that no structure on landfill, no matter how well built, could withstand much more shaking without collapsing.

Then, just as suddenly, the convulsions subsided."

Early in 1906, the ground in San Francisco shook buildings and lives from their comfortable foundations.

Amidst rubble, corruption, and deceit, two women-young architects in a city and field ruled by men-find themselves racing the clock and each other during the rebuilding of competing hotels in the City by the Bay.

Based on meticulous research, A Race to Splendor tells the story of the audacious people of one of the world's great cities rebuilding and reinventing themselves after immense human tragedy. Filled with courage, passion, and conflict, Amelia Bradshaw's spirit will capture your imagination as she strives to redraft her life amidst the ruins with both help and hindrance from a wayward son of privilege who pulls her into worlds she'd never have known. (from Goodreads.com)

Thoughts: For the most part the book was pretty good and was easy to get into and I enjoyed it, but thing I didn't like about the book is that the author turned the book into a romance.  Sure I don't mind it when a book has a bit of romance in it to move the story along, but when the romance becomes the overwhelming driving force of the book, it can turn me off.  And this book did turn me off slightly with that sort of mindset.  I would have liked to see more of Amelia's struggle as a female architect rather than her falling in love with somebody who comes across as her boss.  It was also a story that should have taken me a few days rather than three months to read.

Bottom line:  I would recommend the book for those readers that like having a bit of romance mixed in with their historical fiction.  Despite its length, one should get through it in a few days, if you fully concentrated on it.

Rating: 3.5/5

Pages for 2012: 17730

The Crown - Nancy Bilyeau

Title: The Crown
Author: Nancy Bilyeau
Pages: 409
Published: 2012
Genre: Historical  Fiction
Challenge(s): Historical Fiction, Support Your Library
Edition: Hardcover
Source: Library

Description: Joanna Stafford, a Dominican nun, learns that her favorite cousin has been condemned by Henry VIII to be burned at the stake. Defying the sacred rule of enclosure, Joanna leaves the priory to stand at her cousin’s side. Arrested for interfering with the king’s justice, Joanna, along with her father, is sent to the Tower of London.

The ruthless Stephen Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester, takes terrifying steps to force Joanna to agree to spy for him: to save her father’s life she must find an ancient relic—a crown so powerful, it may hold the ability to end the Reformation. Accompanied by two monks, Joanna returns home to Dartford Priory and searches in secret for this long-lost piece of history worn by the Saxon King Athelstan in 937 during the historic battle that first united Britain.

But Dartford Priory has become a dangerous place, and when more than one dead body is uncovered, Joanna departs with a sensitive young monk, Brother Edmund, to search elsewhere for the legendary crown. From royal castles with tapestry-filled rooms to Stonehenge to Malmesbury Abbey, the final resting place of King Athelstan, Joanna and Brother Edmund must hurry to find the crown if they want to keep Joanna’s father alive. At Malmesbury, secrets of the crown are revealed that bring to light the fates of the Black Prince, Richard the Lionhearted, and Katherine of Aragon’s first husband, Arthur. The crown’s intensity and strength are beyond the earthly realm and it must not fall into the wrong hands.

With Cromwell’s troops threatening to shutter her priory, bright and bold Joanna must now decide who she can trust with the secret of the crown so that she may save herself, her family, and her sacred way of life. This provocative story melds heart-stopping suspense with historical detail and brings to life the poignant dramas of women and men at a fascinating and critical moment in England’s past. (via Goodreads.com)

Thoughts: I actually quite enjoyed the book and being a fan of English history, especially the history of the period around the time of Henry VIII.  Partly it has to do with the fact that the political climate in the country changed so much in such a short time and also because so much has been written about that particular time period. I suppose the TV series The Tudors had something to do with that fascination as well.  But what I like about the book is that the action is quick throughout the book and it doesn't lack for any sort of slow down, a thing that sometimes makes me less engaged in a book.  Another aspect of the book that I enjoyed about the book is the development of Joanna.  While I sometimes got the impression that she was this sort of superwoman type, you also the humanity in her actions.

Bottom line: Overall its a pretty good book and would recommend the book to those that have an interest in English history, particularly around the time of Henry VIII.  While it is a 400 page book, it is a fairly quick book and keeps the reader engaged.  Recommended.

Rating: 4/5

Pages for 2012: 17204

Lady of Milkweed - Julie Klassen

Title: Lady of Milkweed Manor
Author: Julie Klassen
File Size (Pages): 5678 KB (411)
Published: 2010 (first published 2008)
Genre: Christian Fiction, Historical Fiction
Challenges: Support Your Library, Historical Fiction
Edition: E-book
Source: Library

Description: Even a proper vicar's daughter can make a mistake—and now Charlotte Lamb must pay a high price for her fall. To avoid the prying eyes of all who know her, she hides herself away in London's forbidding "Milkweed Manor", a place of mystery and lore, of old secrets and new birth.

But once there, she comes face to face with a suitor from her past—a man who now hides secrets of his own. Both are determined, with God's help, to protect those they love. But neither can imagine the depth of sacrifice that will be required. (via British Columbia Libraries)

Thoughts: It was a quick and easy read for me.  While it took me only three days to finish the book, I probably could have easily the book in about a day's read.  If it had been a book that I had purchased, it would have been a book that I would have put in those free libraries that have been sprouting up in various places around the world.  It was nothing memorable and basically it was fluff.

Bottom line:  If it hadn't been for the fact that I had borrowed one of Ms. Klassen's later books from the library, I probably wouldn't have picked up this book.  Its a great book for the beach as its basically a ball of fluff and there wasn't much substance to the book.  Recommended for the beach or a plane trip.

Rating: 1.5/5

Pages for 2012: 16334

The Rebel Wife - Taylor M. Polites

Title: The Rebel Wife
Author: Taylor M. Polites
Pages: 304
Published: 2012
Genre: Historical Fiction, Gothic Fiction
Challenges: Historical Fiction, Support Your Library
Edition: Hardcover
Source: Library

Description: Augusta Branson was born into antebellum Southern nobility during a time of wealth and prosperity, but now all that is gone, and she is left standing in the ashes of a broken civilization. When her scalawag husband dies suddenly of a mysterious blood plague, she must fend for herself and her young son. Slowly she begins to wake to the reality of her new life: her social standing is stained by her marriage; she is alone and unprotected in a community that is being destroyed by racial prejudice and violence; the fortune she thought she would inherit does not exist; and the deadly blood fever is spreading fast. Nothing is as she believed, everyone she knows is hiding something, and Augusta needs someone to trust. Somehow she must find the truth amid her own illusions about the past and the courage to cross the boundaries of hate, so strong, dangerous, and very close to home. (via Goodreads.com)

Thoughts: Overall, it was a decent book and a fairly quick read.  I was able to get my way through the book quite quickly and able to read large chunks of the book at one time.  But what bothered me is that the book sort of just went over me and I felt that I had to re-read the book, even though I was close to the end.  It just felt that I missed too many details in the book to make any sort of true analysis and also its been almost a month since I finished the book.

Bottom line: Its a pretty good book and would recommend the book to those that like historical fiction or fiction surrounding the era of reconstruction in the Southern United States after the American Civil War.

Rating: 3/5

Pages for 2012: 15287

The Turning of Anne Merrick - Christine Blevins

Title: The Turning of Anne Merrick
Author: Christine Blevins
Pages: 448 pages
Published: 2012
Genre: Historical Fiction
Challenges: Historical Fiction, Support Your Library
Edition: Paperback
Source: Library

Description:  It's 1777, and a fledgling country wages an almost hopeless struggle against the might of the British Empire. Brought together by a fateful kiss, Anne Merrick and Jack Hampton are devoted to each other and to their Patriot cause. As part of Washington's daring network of spies, they are ready and willing to pay even the ultimate price for freedom.

From battlefields raging along the Hudson, to the desperate winter encampment at Valley Forge and through the dangerous intrigue of British-occupied Philadelphia, Anne and Jack brave the trials of separation, the ravages of war and an unyielding enemy growing ever more ruthless.
For love and for country, all is put at risk-and together the pair must call upon their every ounce of courage and cunning in order to survive. (via Goodread.com)

Thoughts:  Book was ok.  I felt that it was a book that really picked up in the final third of the book and dragged for most of the book.  The story flowed nicely and while I wished I was able read the book before this, the story was adequate enough that one didn't really need to read The Tory Wife, as there was enough information given throughout the book that you at least understood the basics of Anne's backstory.

Bottom line: I would recommend the book for those that enjoy historical fiction and have read any of the other two books by Christine Blevin.

Rating: 3.5/5

Pages for 2012: 14983

The Sister Queens - Sophie Perinot

Title: The Sister Queens : a novel
Author: Sophie Perinot
Pages: 503
Published: 2012
Genre: Historical fiction
Challenges: Chunkster, Support Your Library, Historical Fiction
Edition: Paperback
Source: Library

Description: Patient, perfect, and used to being first, Marguerite becomes Queen of France. But Louis IX is a religious zealot who denies himself the love and companionship his wife craves. Can she borrow enough of her sister's boldness to grasp her chance for happiness in a forbidden love?
Passionate, strong-willed, and stubborn, Eleanor becomes Queen of England. Henry III is a good man, but not a good king. Can Eleanor stop competing with her sister and value what she has, or will she let it slip away? (via Goodreads.com)

Thoughts: I read this book after hearing a description from one of the blogs that I follow, I was intrigued and so I requested a copy of the book and I wasn't disappointed and in fact I really, really liked it to the point that it renewed my interest in historical fiction.  I have always been a fan of historical fiction, but I have always found historical fiction to be rather cliched in that you had fictional characters involved with well-known historical figures and events instead of being historical figures themselves.

While I won't spoil the book for people who follow this blog, I will say that I did appreciate the author taking the time and effort to write an expanded author's note to explain why she wrote the book and also to let people know of dates that she changed to help out with the narrative (I didn't even notice the change), in case they were picky.  Nonetheless, I appreciate the effort that Sophie took to write the few pages of Author's Notes, that I usually note.

Back to the book, I like how the author introduces each chapter basically through a letter that either Eleanor or Marguerite write.  I don't know how accurate the letters are, but I found it to be a great jumping off point for the chapter and also how one also knew what time of year and what year it was when the particular events were taking place.  You could tell that the author had done her research before she had written the book, or at least a large majority of the research (I always found that when writing my papers sometimes that I would find more information about a particular topic as I was going through my notes, but that was rare).

Bottom Line: A very enjoyable book and very readable and if you enjoy historical fiction, I would highly recommend this book.

Rating: 5/5

Pages for 2012: 14064

I Am Forbidden - Anouk Markovits

Title: I Am Forbidden : a novel
Author: Anouk Markovits
Pages: 320
Published: 2012
Genre: Literary fiction, Historical fiction
Challenges: Support Your Library, Historical Fiction
Edition: Hardcover
Source: Library

Description: The extraordinary story of a sister who believes and a sister who rebels, set inside the most insular Hasidic sect, the Satmar. (via Goodreads.com)


Thoughts:  First heard about this book through one of the many of the book blogs that I follow and was intrigued about the concept of the book.  I think what interested me in the book was the fact that it spanned many decades and the consequences of that rebellion.  What kept me reading this book was the fact that I was intrigued as to how the story ended up and what exactly was forbidden.  I was also intrigued as to how the cover played into the story, which it does by the way and you'll have to read it in order to find out how it does.

It is also interesting into seeing how the two sister's paths diverge and what the consequences of that decision was.

Bottom line:  Considering that the book is a little over 300 pages, it feels short, as the action seems to by quickly.  You do have to pay attention as events in the beginning of the book are important to the book. I would recommend this book to those that enjoy reading a wide range of fiction and to those that need something for a vacation, as the book is light enough, but also does require at least a little bit of thought and reflection on the part of the reader.

Rating: 3.5/5

Pages for 2012: 13128

A Dream to Call My Own - Tracie Peterson

Title: A Dream to Call My Own
Author: Tracie Peterson
Pages: 365
Published: 2009
Genre: Christian fiction, Historical Ficiton
Challenges: Support Your Library, Historical Fiction
Edition: Paperback
Source: Library

Description: Lacy Gallatin, the youngest of the Gallatin sisters, is a woman with a mission: to find her father's killer.  Haunted by the belief that she's failed her pa, Lacy also battles a desire to have something more than just revenge, something she can't quite figure out.

Enter Dave Shepard, deputy sheriff for Gallatin Crossing, Montana.  Dave is close to figuring out who killed George Gallatin, but he always feels inadequate when it comes to the beautiful Lacy. When they are together, the tension crackles between them--both when they argue and when they kiss.  Lacy finds him frustratingly irresistible...but is it truly love? (via back cover of book)

Thoughts: Overall I thought the book to be pretty good, considering the genre, which I find to be a bit cookie cutter at times and a bit predictable at times.  There were the usual cliches when it comes to Christian fiction, in that the main female character falls in love and questions that love for the male character that she loves and wonders if she deserves that love and the fact that the main character(s) is put in some sort of mortal/mental struggle that gave it that cliched feel to the book.  But there was the fact that Lacy was questioning her own abilities of a potential wife that made her more real as a character.

Bottom line:  For its genre, its a pretty good read and if you have read any of Tracie Peterson's books, you will probably will enjoy this series and was a book that didn't require a lot of thought to get through and was quite easy to read.  While there was nothing special or thought provoking, it was pretty decent, especially if you a fan of Christian fiction.  And I would recommend the book to those that read Christian fiction.

Rating: 3/5

Pages for 2012: 12808

The Concubine Saga - Lloyd Lofthouse

Title: The Concubine Saga
Author: Lloyd Lofthouse
Pages: 550
Published: 2012
Genre: Historical Fiction
Challenges: Historical Fiction challenge, Chunkster
Edition: Paperback
Source: Publisher

Description: The deeply intimate story of Robert Hart's loyalty and love for his adoptive land and the woman who captured his heart. (via Goodreads.com)


Thoughts: I had a tough time with this book.  I felt that it was more of an obligation more than anything and didn't really enjoy it, except maybe for a few moments.  I thought that the story was a little long at times, particularly in the waning moments of the book and I suppose it didn't help that I had scanned the book on Sunday and knew the ending of the book, which I won't spoil for you.  I personally would have liked a map of China at least for reference in where particular cities in China were, but then I could have just looked online as to where these places were.  I know for some readers that this isn't an issue, but for me it can be.  While I enjoyed the book, I felt that at times, particularly towards the end, that things were a little too detailed.

Bottom line: I thought that it was ok, but it is definitely is something that was a little too dense for me.

Rating: 2.5/5

Pages for 2012: 12443

The Winter Palace - Eva Strachniak

Title: The Winter Palace
Author: Eva Stachniak
File size (pages): 2649 KB (444 pages)
Published: 2012
Challenges: 2012 Support Your Library, 2012 Historical Fiction
Genre: Historical fiction
Edition: E-book
Source: Library

Description: Tells the epic story of Catherine the Great’s improbable rise to power—as seen through the ever-watchful eyes of an all-but-invisible servant close to the throne.

Her name is Barbara—in Russian, Varvara. Nimble-witted and attentive, she’s allowed into the employ of the Empress Elizabeth, amid the glitter and cruelty of the world’s most eminent court. Under the tutelage of Count Bestuzhev, Chancellor and spymaster, Varvara will be educated in skills from lock picking to lovemaking, learning above all else to listen—and to wait for opportunity. That opportunity arrives in a slender young princess from Zerbst named Sophie, a playful teenager destined to become the indomitable Catherine the Great. Sophie’s destiny at court is to marry the Empress’s nephew, but she has other, loftier, more dangerous ambitions, and she proves to be more guileful than she first appears.

What Sophie needs is an insider at court, a loyal pair of eyes and ears who knows the traps, the conspiracies, and the treacheries that surround her. Varvara will become Sophie’s confidante—and together the two young women will rise to the pinnacle of absolute power. (via Goodreads.com)


Thoughts: The premise of the story seemed intriguing, especially since I had just finished reading the most recent Catherine the Great biography, and I was hooked.  It also seemed to be getting a lot of press in the blogging world in regards to this book.  I can recall that I saw this book on a lot of blogs in January and February and thought I would give this a try.  And even though I was disappointed with the plot, I was glad that I had read something that I wasn't exactly enamored with by the end.  Yes, I am generally a person that likes to finish books that I start, even if I don't like them.  I know that some people will say that one shouldn't continue reading a book you don't like, but if you read only books that you only liked would your tastes expand or not?  My guess is that if that were the case you probably wouldn't go much beyond what you generally read and expand what you do read.


Back to the book.  I thought that while the book started strong, the book seemed to lose steam rather quickly, making the book rather average (well, below average).  Its not that I don't think one should read books that are just average, but I also think that one should read books that make you think about what you read and why you read them.


Bottom line: It was a pretty average book, something to avoid boredom, although this book seemed to induce boredom on my part. Its probably something that is good for a road trip when the scenery isn't that great or you are traveling at night.


Rating: 2.375/5


Pages for 2012: 8881

Death Comes to Pemberley - P.D. James

Title: Death Comes to Pemberley
Author: P.D. James
File Size (Pages): 2100 KB (219)
Published: 2011
Challenges: 2012 Support Your Library, 2012 Historical Fiction
Genre: Mystery, Historical Fiction
Edtion: E-book
Source: Library download

Description: The year is 1803, and Darcy and Elizabeth have been married for six years. There are now two handsome and healthy sons in the nursery, Elizabeth's beloved sister Jane and her husband Bingley live nearby and the orderly world of Pemberley seems unassailable. But all this is threatened when, on the eve of the annual autumn ball, the guests are preparing to retire for the night when a chaise appears, rocking down the path from Pemberley's wild woodland. As it pulls up, Lydia Wickham - Elizabeth's younger, unreliable sister - stumbles out screaming that her husband has been murdered. (via Goodreads.com)


Thoughts: As much as I really liked the premise of the book, there was just something about the book that made it something lesser than I had anticipated.  The description of the book intrigued me when I heard about it during the fall run of books that were coming out and because I have really enjoyed the Jane Austen books, I thought I might enjoy this book as well.  While the premise of the book is intriguing and interesting, I would say that the book falls flat.  It has the essence of Jane Austen in the book,  but that is about the only thing that is good about the book.


I really honestly thought it was a book that was really hyped up despite what it offered and didn't really enjoy it and when I was able to sit down and read it, I found it fairly easy to read and found the storyline to be predictable, at least by the end.  I found that the book was dull and there wasn't really any of the action that inhabits Pride & Prejudice nor any of the humour that Austen injects into P&P; this just felt flat throughout the book.  I can understand what Ms. James was trying to do with the book, but honestly it just felt a little too contrived and therefore just seemed it was taking up space that I didn't need taken up.


Bottom line:  Unless you really feel like you are bored or just need a fix of the characters from Pride & Prejudice, I would probably wait with this one and read it on vacation.  And even then I didn't really felt it was worthy to be published.


Rating: 2/5


Pages for 2012: 7920

If you have read this book, what did you think about it?

Sarah's Key - Tatiana de Rosnay

Title: Sarah's Key
Author: Tatiana de Rosnay
Pages: 293
Published: 2008 (first published 2007)
Challenges: 2012 TBR Pile, 2012 Historical Fiction
Genre: Fiction, Historical Fiction
Edition: Paperback
Source: Purchase

Description: Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a ten year-old girl, is brutally arrested with her family by the French police in the Vel’ d’Hiv’ roundup, but not before she locks her younger brother in a cupboard in the family's apartment, thinking that she will be back within a few hours.
 
Paris, May 2002: On Vel’ d’Hiv’s 60th anniversary, journalist Julia Jarmond is asked to write an article about this black day in France's past. Through her contemporary investigation, she stumbles onto a trail of long-hidden family secrets that connect her to Sarah. Julia finds herself compelled to retrace the girl's ordeal, from that terrible term in the Vel d'Hiv', to the camps, and beyond. As she probes into Sarah's past, she begins to question her own place in France, and to reevaluate her marriage and her life. (via Goodreads.com)


Thoughts: Really enjoyed this read as it introduced something that I hadn't even heard about until I sat down and read this book.  Overall the book was good, but it wasn't really something that took me by storm in that when I finished, I felt that the plot was a little contrived, at least towards the end of the book. Its not that it was a bad book; its just that it seemed a little too formulaic by the end.  Basically to say that for the first 3/4 of the book, it was quite an intriguing read and made me want to read more on the Vel' d'Hiv' roundup, of which I could basically find nothing on the subject between the two public libraries that I frequent.  While it wasn't a formulaic romance book, it kinda felt it was a bit formulaic in terms of what woman's fiction has become, in that the main character's life seems to fall apart as she starts to research Sarah and her family.


The writing was clear and the author's tone seemed to carry throughout seamlessly throughout and was consistent, even though it seemed to be a bit cliched, especially towards the end. The characters were well-developed and I started to care about them as the story moved on and felt like they were a part of me and wanted to believe that they were real people, even though I knew that weren't.  Another thing that I liked about the book is that it made me think and, like I said earlier, made me think about an event I hadn't even heard about previous to reading this book and also made me want to visit the various monuments that commemorate this "event" in the Paris.   Despite the fact that it was extremely readable, it wasn't something that was too hard to put down.  Maybe it was the subject matter of the book that made it a book that made it something that not that hard to put down and let the book just simmer.  And when I picked the book back up (about a week and a half later...), it wasn't too hard to get back into the book and its story.  In otherwords, it was something that didn't exactly require that much energy to read the book.


Bottom line: Overall, the book was very well developed, especially in regards to the 1942 storyline, which was the most intriguing of the two storylines in the book and quite honestly, I wished that the author would have continued the 1942 storyline for at least a little longer, but I suppose that with the story continuing on through the present day, it makes better sense.   I would recommend this book to those that enjoy reading fiction about World War II and also historical fiction and also somebody who would like a little something meatier to read while on a vacation.  I would also recommend this book to book clubs.


Rating: 3.5/5


Pages for 2012: 7429


If you have read this book, what did you think about this book?  Anything about this book that piqued your interest about the event discussed in this book?

I based this review and its subsequent rating on the book rubric provided by Mandy at Adventures in Borkdom

Madame Tussaud - Michelle Moran

Title: Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution
Author: Michelle Moran
File Size (Pages): 3205 KB (446 pages)
Published: 2011
Challenges: 2012 Support Your Library, 2012 Historical Fiction Challenge
Genre: Historical Fiction
Edition: E-book
Source: Library

Description: Smart and ambitious, Marie Tussaud has learned the secrets of wax sculpting by working alongside her uncle in their celebrated wax museum, the Salon de Cire. From her popular model of the American ambassador, Thomas Jefferson, to her tableau of the royal family at dinner, Marie's museum provides Parisians with the very latest news on fashion, gossip, and even politics. Her customers hail from every walk of life, yet her greatest dream is to attract the attention of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI; their stamp of approval on her work could catapult her and her museum to the fame and riches she desires. After months of anticipation, Marie learns that the royal family is willing to come and see their likenesses. When they finally arrive, the king's sister is so impressed that she requests Marie's presence at Versailles as a royal tutor in wax sculpting. It is a request Marie knows she cannot refuse--even if it means time away
from her beloved Salon and her increasingly dear friend, Henri Charles. 

As Marie gets to know her pupil, Princesse elisabeth, she also becomes acquainted with the king and queen, who introduce her to the glamorous life at court. From lavish parties with more delicacies than she's ever seen to rooms filled with candles lit only once before being discarded, Mariesteps into a world entirely different from her home on the Boulevard du Temple, where people are selling their teeth in order to put food on the table. 

Meanwhile, many resent the vastseparation between rich and poor. In salons and cafes across Paris, people like Camille Desmoulins, Jean-Paul Marat, and Maximilien Robespierre are lashing out against the monarchy. Soon, there's whispered talk of revolution. . . . Will Marie be able to hold on to both the love of her life and her friendship with the royal family as France approaches civil war? And more important, will she be able to fulfill thedemands of powerful revolutionaries who ask that she make the death masks of beheaded aristocrats, some of whom she knows? 

Spanning five years, from the budding revolution to the Reign ofTerror, "Madame Tussaud" brings us into the world of an incredible heroine whose talent for wax modeling saved her life and preserved the faces of a vanished kingdom. (via Goodreads.com)

Thoughts: First off, I should mention that the book starts off before Madame Tussaud gets married and therefore throughout most of the book she is known as Marie Grosholtz and I suppose for sales, the publisher or whoever was in charge of making this decision, the book was named Madame Tussaud.  

I really enjoyed this book and the only reason that it took me longer than it should have was because it was on my e-reader, which some of you know isn't the greatest in sunshine and therefore took me longer to read it.   But despite that, I really did become engrossed with Marie's life and that of her family and judging by the afterword, which mentions a number of the historical figures in the book, was pretty accurate.  I am sure that Ms. Moran took some liberties with the novel, but what historical novel hasn't taken some liberties and because I had just finished Catherine the Great within the last two weeks, I had some of the historical knowledge of the French Revolution still with me. Sure I knew the basics of the French Revolution, but this book definitely humanized not only the French public, but also humanized the French Royal family and made them somewhat sympathetic.

This is my first book that I have read by Michelle Moran, so I am not really aware of her style and therefore this review has been somewhat clouded by that fact.  Overall, I enjoyed the book and thought it was very enjoyable and really liked the historical details that Moran put in the book, like the death of the journalist Jean-Paul Marat, which was symbolized by the painting by Jacques-Louis David, called The Death of Marat (which most people have probably seen while taking an art history survey course).

Bottom line: Overall, it was a pretty good book and a fairly quick read, despite the length of the book (in my version, some of the chapters were only about 3 or 4 pages long).  I would recommend this book for those that enjoy reading historical fiction or for those that are interested in learning either a bit more about Madame Tussaud before she became Madame Tussaud or about the French Revolution.

Rating: 4/5

Pages for 2012: 6941

11/22/63 - Stephen King

Title: 11/22/63
Author: Stephen King
Pages: 864
Published: 2011
Challenges: 2012 Support Your Library, 2012 Chunkster Challenge, 2012 Historical Fiction Challenge
Genre: Historical fiction
Edition: Hardcover
Source: Library

Description: Jake Epping is a thirty-five-year-old high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine, who makes extra money teaching adults in the GED program. He receives an essay from one of the students—a gruesome, harrowing first person story about the night 50 years ago when Harry Dunning’s father came home and killed his mother, his sister, and his brother with a hammer. Harry escaped with a smashed leg, as evidenced by his crooked walk.

Not much later, Jake’s friend Al, who runs the local diner, divulges a secret: his storeroom is a portal to 1958. He enlists Jake on an insane—and insanely possible—mission to try to prevent the Kennedy assassination. So begins Jake’s new life as George Amberson and his new world of Elvis and JFK, of big American cars and sock hops, of a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald and a beautiful high school librarian named Sadie Dunhill, who becomes the love of Jake’s life—a life that transgresses all the normal rules of time.  (via Goodreads.ca)

Thoughts: For the most part I really enjoyed the book, but I felt that the end of book, basically the last 50 pages, kinda fell flat.  I understand why King had to do what he had to do at the end, but it kinda seemed like a bit of a cop out, especially since he had spent so much of the book building towards the day of the shooting.

Enough of that.  What I loved about the book was the fact was that clearly King had done his research not only on Oswald, but he clearly had done his research on all the major players involved and also on the area surrounding Dallas at the time.  The fact that the details were paid attention to made the book that much more special, especially in regards to the era.  It made the time period that much more vivid, especially since he waited until the present day to write the book and allow the book to have the contrast between Jake's life in 2011 and the one he leads in 1963 makes it that much stark and how far we have come, at least in terms of technology.  


It was such an engrossing book that I almost felt like I was there with Jake as he moved from 1958 to 1963 and almost wanted to go back myself to a time when you didn't have to rely on technology so much and live in such a place.  Of course I could do without the busybodies, who seemed to poke in Jake's business all the time or it seemed that way.


Bottom line: I really enjoyed this book and I really think that most people would really like this book and even if they haven't read anything else by Stephen King, I would recommend it, especially if you enjoy books dealing with time-travel.  Its an interesting look at a time and era that really changed the United States.  Highly recommended.


Rating: 4.5/5


Pages for 2012: 5077


If you have read the book, I am curious as to what you thought of the book.

The Cat's Table - Michael Ondaatje

Title: The Cat's Table: a novel
Author: Michael Ondaatje
Pages: 269
Published: 2011
Challenges: 2012 Library Challenge, 2012 Historical Fiction Challenge
Genre: Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction
Edition: Hardcover
Source: Library
Rating: 4/5

Description: In the early 1950s, an eleven-year-old boy boards a huge liner bound for England. At mealtimes, he is placed at the lowly "Cat's Table" with an eccentric and unforgettable group of grownups and two other boys. As the ship makes its way across the Indian Ocean, through the Suez Canal, into the Mediterranean, the boys find themselves immersed in the worlds and stories of the adults around them. At night they spy on a shackled prisoner -- his crime and fate a galvanizing mystery that will haunt them forever.

Looking back from deep within adulthood, and gradually moving back and forth from the decks and holds of the ship to the years that follow the narrator unfolds a spellbinding and layered tale about the magical, often forbidden discoveries of childhood and the burdens of earned understanding, about a life-long journey that began unexpectedly with a sea voyage. (via Goodreads)


Thoughts: I really expected more out of this, but it seems that my expectations were probably a little higher, especially since my last read of his was The English Patient about 15 years ago and even then I wasn't impressed with the book because I was so lost as to what was going on that I didn't really enjoy the way that I probably should have and intended and now that I understand how he wrote the book, I probably would enjoy it more now, but this review isn't about The English Patient.


The one thing about the book that I did like is the language that Ondaatje uses in the book; while reading the book on the bus home, I got lost in the world of the ship as it traveled from Sri Lanka to England and sometimes I would forget about the whizzing scenery outside my window that I think I almost forgot my bus stop on my way to work one day!  I would even sort of skip over the scenes and get lost to the point that I would wonder what had just happened and not really caring I would move on with the book.  I felt that book allowed me to be encased in a world that I can only imagine and that no longer exists, especially since most people take planes when one goes from one place to the next and ship travel is only used for leisure rather than for a permanent move.  


One thing I didn't like about the book was the flash forwards that occurred in the book and found them to be a bit bothersome and that they chopped up the story a little more than I wanted.  Sure it may the story a little more interesting, but I felt that it detracted from the main story to the point that I became a bit annoyed with the flash-forwards, even though there were a couple that served the main story well and acted as a diversion and added to it.

And personally, despite what he says at the end of the book, I think there are some autobiographical elements that he has included in the book.


Bottom line: Overall, it is an excellent book and really quite enjoyed being transported to a time when moving involved more time than just going on a plane and in a day or two you are in a completely new environment.     If you have read anything else by Ondaatje or enjoy really good literary fiction, I recommend the book, especially since the story is fairly linear and doesn't jump around a lot.


Pages for 2012: 2711

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