REVIEW: The Lass Wore Black by Karen Ranney
The Lass Wore Black by Karen Ranney
Publisher: Avon Books
Release Date: January 29, 2013
Source: Publisher
Rating: 3 out of 5
Catriona Cameron is a flirty young woman who highly values her beauty – she is in the midst of setting her cap at a suitor when tragedy strikes. Catriona is in a carriage accident that complete disfigures her face and body. Now that she has lost her beauty, who is she really? Catriona puts herself in a self-imposed exile and her aunt hires the gorgeous doctor Mark to help her. He disguises himself as a footman to earn her trust, but will he end up wanting more?
Overall, I really enjoyed this romance. Ranney has an easy-to-read writing style that will let you pick up the book at any moment and read without having to go back and figure out where you had last left off. The character of Mark adds not only handsomeness, but also a humor that will make you laugh out loud. Catriona is the traditional troubled soul who must go through tragedy to understand her true self, but she is also highly intelligent if sometimes foolish.
I did have a few problems with this book – the biggest one being the cover. I understand that they wanted to go with the traditional romance cover with the woman swooning into the man’s arms, but the whole focus of the book is Catriona’s disfigurement – the woman on the cover is completely unscathed. Why can’t a woman be beautiful even without her good looks? While Ranney explores this topic, the publisher/cover artist obviously didn’t read the book!
Secondly, there is the story arc that goes into Catriona’s past and how someone is trying to kill her. This particular character was just not believable for me – I know that the author was trying for a real villain to add to the conflict, but he sort of came out of nowhere without real motive.
I do recommend this book for a fun romance with a hunky and charming leading man. Ranney writes her two main characters beautifully and explores what real beauty is. I will definitely be reading more of her books.
Thanks to TLC book tours for giving me the opportunity to host this book. For more information click here.
Why Elizabeth Peters Was One Of the Greatest Authors to Ever Happen to Me
Mertz. Peters. Michaels. Over the last 12 years, those names have come to mean so much to me, and I would say that they have even changed my life. Barbara Mertz is a wonderful woman who was one of the first women to graduate from the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago with a degree in archaeology. She’s written two nonfiction books on Egyptology. Her alter-egos, Elizabeth Peters and Barbara Michaels, have published mysteries and gothic dramas across the last five decades.
When I was a sixth grader at a small, private school, I was depressed and miserable. I was having a difficult time socially and emotionally and all I ever wanted to do was read. I was obsessed with Ancient Egypt from a very young age, so when my mom saw a paragraph in The Washington Post about a book called The Mummy Case, she took me straight to Borders to pick it up hoping that this outing might brighten my day. Boy, she didn’t know what she was starting!
I read every book available in the Amelia Peabody series within a few months. THEN I discovered that Elizabeth Peters also wrote under different names and I HAD to get those in order to survive. Her mysteries are witty, engaging, heart-breaking, suspenseful, historical, and absolutely brilliant. Not only will you fall in love with her characters, but you will want them to be your best friends.
As Barbara Michaels, she’s written modern gothic tales worthy of Ann Radcliffe. The Dancing Floor haunted me, yet left me with a smile. Most of these books are stand-alone, and they can be read in any order, so you don’t have to worry about committing to a series.
I’ve spent the last few years collecting every book she has ever had in print. Some of them I have in multiple editions just because I love them so much. When I have a bad day, I go back to these books like they are old friends waiting for me to visit. She was the first author who taught me that women can be whatever they want in life as long as they are willing to pave their own way. I got my bachelors degree in Anthropology for many reasons, but a big one was because she showed me that it didn’t have to be a male-dominated field. As a women, as an author, as an archaeologist, Barbara Mertz is an inspiration to me.
Thanks to Bookshelves of Doom for hosting with Elizabeth Peters appreciation week! She has tons of awesome posts about the author and her books up own her site, so check it out!
REVIEW: Stardust: The Gift Edition by Neil Gaiman
Stardust: The Gift Edition by Neil Gaiman
Publisher: William Morrow
Release Date: October 30, 2012
Source: Publisher
Rating: 5 out of 5
As many of you may know, Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite authors of all time. His creativity knows no bounds, and he is never afraid to take that leap into the unknown. Stardust just happens to be the first book of his that I read back when I was a sophomore in high school. I was working in a children’s bookstore, so I had many books to choose from, but this one caught my eye.
What would one man do for love? Would he fetch a star from the heavens to give to the most beautiful woman in the land? But what happens when he must leave his known world to complete his quest…
Gaiman is always able to make me laugh even in the most serious of moments without taking away the gravity of the situation. This book is a fairy tale wrapped up in a romance wrapped up in a drama. You will question your deepest philosophies while squirting milk out of your nose. For those of you who have already read the book, this Gift Edition has the most gorgeous new frontispiece, new artwork, a revised introduction, and a new postscript by Gaiman. I definitely recommend this book to all current lovers of Gaiman’s work as well as a gift to those you may want to convert 
REVIEW: Children of Liberty by Paullina Simons
Children of Liberty by Paullina Simons
Publisher: William Morrow
Release Date: February 26, 2013
Source: Publisher
Rating: 4 out of 5
These days, I am pretty skeptical when it comes to legitimate historical fiction combing with romance. It seems that most authors have difficulty blending the two into a coherent story that doesn’t rely too heavily on one genre or another. Yet, with Simons’ new book, she demonstrates how such a novel can be so wonderfully executed above all expectations.
Gina and her family cross the Atlantic Ocean in 1899 coming to America after their father wanted them to leave Italy so badly. Unfortunately, Gina’s father passes before they can make the passage, but Gina, her mother and brother arrive in Boston with the desire to start a new life. As soon as they arrive, two you men, Harry and Ben, hail them at the dock wondering if they need assistance with a place to stay. That one fateful meeting will change the lives of these characters forever.
I fell in love with Gina from her first lines of dialog. She is the young and free spirited girl we all see in our own pasts, and wish we could relive that sense of adventure. She reminded me so much of Marianne from Sense and Sensibility, especially when I think of Colonel Brandon warning Elinor about not trying to contain her spirit so that it doesn’t break. Gina’s mother and brother are constantly trying to maintain propriety that they lose sight of what Gina really needs.
It is difficult to talk about the plot without ruining it, but there is a love story between Gina and Harry as well as political and historical intrigue. I want to say so much more about these characters and there troubles, but I also want you to read this book and enjoy it as much as I did! Simons creates a world that is accurate, but still with originality and feeling.
Thank you to TLC Book Tours for letting me read and review this book! For more information, click here.
REVIEW: Austensibly Ordinary by Alyssa Goodnight
Austensibly Ordinary by Alyssa Goodnight
Publisher: Kensington Books
Release Date: January 29, 2013
Source: Publisher
Rating: 5 out of 5
In the companion book to Austentatious, Cate Kendall appears to be your average young and quirky English teacher. She loves her job because she gets to make her students read Emma, and she works with her best friend, Ethan. Yet, Cate is finding that she wants to add some adventure to her life. When a friend invites her to a Hitchcock themed Halloween party, she decides to invent an alter ego in order to have some anonymous fun with no consequences. In the middle of all of this, she finds a mysterious journal which is obviously antique, but blank. When she starts writing about her life in it, and the journal starts writing back, Cate finds that she is in more of an adventure than she could ever imagine.
Although this book is a companion piece to Austentatious, you Don’t need to have read it in order to fall in love with Austensibly Ordinary. I sat down with this book and fell in love. Cate has such a fun and unique personality. She isn’t your ordinary female protagonist looking for love – she has a real voice that I found myself identifying with immediately. Not only does she play Scrabble every weekend with Ethan, she loves Hitchcock, and she acknowledges her faults and tries to address them.
This book has everything you could ever want for a light and entertaining read: a little bit of magic, some fun mystery, literary and pop culture references galore, and a great voice. I loved reading the first book in this series, but I fell even more in love with Goodnight’t writing with this novel. Cate’s observations on life and the world around her are refreshing and uplifting without ever being shallow. This book is great for adults and older teens. You definitely need to go out and get this book.
REVIEW: A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash
A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Release Date: January 22, 2013
Source: Publisher
Rating: 5 out of 5
It is a rare occasion when a book blurb can accurately summarize a book in so few words. The Richmond Times-Dispatch said: “Reads as if Cormac McCarthy decided to rewrite Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird.” Whoa. That is truly high praise to live up to, and this book totally does.
Told from three different points of view, the book follows the death of a mute boy and the controversy around it. His brother, Jess, describes their life as a family in the South. Their mother is a member of an extremist church, and her involvement influences the rest of the story. Adelaide Lynde is the midwife of the town who leaves the church, but takes care of the children while their parents attend services. She attempts to be the voice of reason in a world ruled by fundamentalism. Clem Barefield is the Sherrie of the small town and must battle his own demons, while keeping order around him. It is so difficult to write a summary of the book that does it justice.
I was hooked from the first page of the book and couldn’t put it down. Cash skillfully creates a southern town that could belong to almost any era. The characters are beautifully crafted, but the town itself is it’s own character. There is some mystery involved, but the story is truly about the darkness inherent within human nature and how there are some people who try to negate it. Cash’s descriptions are so vivid you might just forget you are in a freezing house in the middle of winter and be transported to a creek in summertime turning over rocks to find salamanders to catch.
There was one scene in particular where Jess has just met his paternal grandfather for the first time and has to go for a ride in his old truck. I was sitting there in the passenger’s seat looking at the rust on the dashboard listening to grandpa’s voice riding down the dark road not knowing what to say. I was so in that moment that I left the world around me and became Jess mourning his brother. Not only is this book moving, powerful, and wonderful, but it will make you ponder your own life and how we can never really escape our own natures. This is Cash’s first book, and I sincerely hope he will continue to write and publish for years to come.
Thank you to TLC Book Tours for giving me the chance to read and review this book.
REVIEW: The Art Forger by B.A. Shapiro
The Art Forger by B.A. Shapiro
Publisher: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Release Date: October 23, 2012
Source: Publisher
Rating: 5 out of 5
I honestly cannot describe this book as well as the publisher does as it is so intricate:
“On March 18, 1990, thirteen works of art today worth over $500 million were stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. It remains the largest unsolved art heist in history, and Claire Roth, a struggling young artist, is about to discover that there’s more to this crime than meets the eye.
Making a living reproducing famous artworks for a popular online retailer and desperate to improve her situation, Claire is lured into a Faustian bargain with Aiden Markel, a powerful gallery owner. She agrees to forge a painting—a Degas masterpiece stolen from the Gardner Museum—in exchange for a one-woman show in his renowned gallery. But when that very same long-missing Degas painting is delivered to Claire’s studio, she begins to suspect that it may itself be a forgery.
Her desperate search for the truth leads Claire into a labyrinth of deceit where secrets hidden since the late nineteenth century may be the only evidence that can now save her life.”
This book blew me away. I thought at first that it would just be your regular literary mystery, but I was so wrong. Shapiro weaves an intricate web between fiction and reality to the point where you start to believe that Claire and her experiences are real. The pace moves quickly, but the prose is still elegant and at some points breathtaking. From the gritty setting of a juvenile detention hall to the layers of paint on a master’s canvas, Shapiro creates descriptions that will take you to another place.
The mystery will intrigue you, the history will enthrall you, and the relationships will touch you. It took me only half a day to read through this book, and I could not put ti down for a second. Once again, Algonquin books has published a novel that blows so many others away with its quality as well as entertainment value.
Thank you to SheReads for letting me participate in the book club once again!
REVIEW: Raylan by Elmore Leonard
Raylan by Elmore Leonard
Publisher: William Morrow
Release Date: 2012
Source: Publisher
Rating: 3 out of 5
Raylan Givens is a U.S. Marshall who wears a Stetson and has no problem shooting first and asking questions later. When Raylan finds a man with stitches in his sides made from staples, he realizes there’s something going on. Dickie and Coover Crowe are no longer just in the pot business – they’ve branched out into body parts. Not only must Raylan find out who is performing these make-shift surgeries, but also who is really behind them. Will he be ale to stop these criminals before he ends of losing his own kidneys?
Raylan is not only the main character of Leonard’s books, he is also the main character of the tv show Justified. I am not really a fan of westerns in general. I like protagonists who think and then shoot, but Raylan has this way about him that makes you love and hate him at the same time. Leonard creates such awesome characters that the shoot-em-up mentality gets left at the wayside and a great mystery takes root. I have never read any of these books before, and I have not seen the tv show, but you need no background to jump right into this book.
Leonard creates a great adventure and mystery that makes for a quick and enjoyable read. A fun book to read in bits before you go to bed at night.
Thanks to TLC Book Tours for giving me the opportunity to read this book! For more info click the image below.
REVIEW: The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty
The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty
Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks
Release Date: June 5, 2012
Source: Publisher
Rating: 5 out of 5
When a sales representative from the publisher told me that I had to listen to this audiobook, I was quite intrigued. She had never commanded that I listen to an audiobook before As a huge fan of Downton Abbey, I was also excited to learn that Elizabeth McGovern (who plays Cora Grantham on the show) was the narrator!
Cora’s twin sons are grown and her husband isn’t very attentive. She lives in 1920s Wichita, Kansas – so there isn’t much to do other than listen to the ladies of society complain about alcohol and the horrible state of the young people of today. When she gets the chance to chaperone Louise Brooks to New York City for her summer dance classes, Cora jumps at the opportunity. But Cora isn’t going to New York to get away – she was actually a child in an orphanage there, and she wants to trace down her biological family. Louise is a difficult teenager to deal with, but Cora tries her best to keep the child under control so that she will remain respectable. Yet when Cora talks with Louise and examines her own life, her views of the world begin to change rapidly.
Honestly, this book blew me away. The character of Cora is so compelling and relatable that I wish she were real and that I could talk to her in real life. She found so much of herself later in life without even setting out to in the first place. She sees the world from such innocent and ignorant eyes that when she is put into these social situations, you can see how she realizes that there is no one right way to view life and people. We see glimpses at the young film-star Louise Brooks (who in real life went to Los Angeles and not New York for her dance company), and how her young life caused her to face the harsh realities of adulthood at such a young age. We follow Cora through the past, present, and future – we get to see her entire life play out, and how one person can make such an impact on those around her.
McGovern’s narration is absolutely brilliant. She can voice Cora’s almost-Southern accent, Louise’s nasally complaints, and an Austrian handyman’s grunts without break or hesitation. Her pacing was perfect, her emotion brilliant, and I can’t really say anything else about her performance without getting all fangirl-y!
Read this book, listen to it, adore it, gift it!
REVIEW: The Walnut Tree by Charles Todd
The Walnut Tree: A Holiday Tale by Charles Todd
Publisher: William Morrow
Release Date: October 30, 2012
Source: Publisher
Rating: 5 out of 5
I am pretty much in love with everything written by the mother/son writing team Charles Todd. So, when I got the chance to read their newest, I was beyond excited.
Lady Elspeth Douglas is in France in 1914 visiting a friend just as Germany starts to invade Belgium. Elspeth has just agreed to marry her friend’s brother, Alain, before he sets of to join his company in the French Army. Elspeth must return to England as soon as she can so that she is not stranded on the wrong side of the English Channel as war breaks out. Yet, when she gets to Calais, she realizes that she may not be able to get to England for weeks. Staying in a hotel nearby, the battle comes closer and closer, so instead of waiting in her room all day, she decides to help by bringing water to the battle front. Chaos ensues, and she is rescued by the gallant Peter Gilchrist, the man who might just steal her heart.
This book is a novella, so it is short, sweet, and to the point. Fans of the Bess Crawford series will love this companion book, as it follows the journey of Elspeth, one of Bess’ housemates in London. While this book isn’t exactly a mystery, it is the story of a young women trying to survive during the World War I while being useful at the same time. Not only does she become a brilliant nurse, she may just find the love of her life. Todd constantly brings up the question of one’s duty. Must we keep our word no matter what? Or should we follow our hearts wherever they may lead us?
The Walnut Tree is more of a war story than a holiday tale – there are only a few scenes set at Christmastime. It will only take you a few hours to read, but this touching tale is so completely worth it. Fans of Charles Todd will enjoy the atmospheric war story, and new readers will love Todd’s writing about a young women who decides to make her own fate.
If you have never read Todd before, this book is an inexpensive and noncommittal introduction to the beautiful writing style I have come to cherish. It is also a great holiday gift for fans of Downton Abbey!
