It was probably not a good idea for me to struggle through a historical fiction and then pick up another historical fiction after that, but that was exactly what I did. I was reading this one for my 'J' in the A-Z challenge. I have to say though that this one was surprisingly good. It started a bit slow but gradually got better. The difference between this one and the one before is the fact that there was a story to be told in this one.
In this story we have our main character Dora Damage in the midst of the 19th century when women's worth meant nothing and slavery was slowly being abolished yet not recognized by many. Her husband owned a bindery company. He had an arthritic problem and soon could no longer do the binding of books and they became pretty poor. Dora took over the business after having to prove to her loathsome husband that she may be a woman but she was still capable of doing the work along side his apprentice. She was approached by Sir Jocelyn Knightly to bind manuscripts for him. Dora agrees and soon discovers that she is binding pornographic material. We read about Dora and her struggles with life.
While reading this book I decided that I could never have survived the 19th century. I think the era was depicted very well by our Author in this story. Women were treated horribly as though they were worth a scrap of paper. It was appalling the way these women's husbands treated them as well. I know I would have never wanted to marry. Being an old maid would have been fine for me. Women were not really allowed any sexual urges, if they did they were considered whores by their own husbands and the rest of society as well. It was certainly a rough time to live. A lot of Self righteousness lived in the homes of the rich. There was no separation of Church and State in England at this time. So crimes of the sexual nature were prosecuted, often by hanging. Interracial anything was of course look down upon as well.
The characters I find were very well created but sadly I could only connect with one and that being Dora. I have a lot of respect for her and what she stood for. I loved the way she fought for what was right and did not just go with the flow of things. How she fought for the survival of both her and her daughter Lucinda. However there were times when she would just go along with the way her husband treated her. She cared for him and did whatever he needed of her to only receive degrading remarks from him. That was really annoying to me. I also liked Din's character as well. He, just released from slavery, was also a very strong character who would fight for what he believed in. He was a huge help to Dora throughout the book. There were also several horrific villains as well whose roles were wrote out perfectly. The perfect villains, that as readers, we all love to hate.
I recommend this book to anyone who likes Historical fiction and maybe even to those who don't particularly like that genre. There were some descriptive 'erotica' parts that Dora read within the books that were being bound but it was not too over the top. Overall enjoyed this book a lot and give it 3.5 stars.
Saturday, September 27, 2014
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova - DNF
Wow this book held so much promise when I started it. I really liked the poetic way the author wrote, there was even a creepy scene in the book, but then it just kinda went south for me. It lost that flare and it's edge and then just seemed to be all over the place and really just turned into a complicated, monotonous read for me, therefore I did not finish it.
This is a story of a 16 year old girl, told by her older self. I am guessing the girl in the story is the actual author, since I don't even recall her having a name in the story. She throws herself into the history of her family in pursuit of the truth about Vlad the Impaler or otherwise known as Dracula.
With the synopsis I expected so much more from this book. I had high expectations that I would get a large dose of Dracula mixed in with a little history and it really was not the case. It was more like a lot of history with hints of Dracula, at least in the 300 pages that I read. Also I found the book rather confusing because it was hard to tell sometimes what time period I was reading about because it jumped around so much and I did not find that it was clearly marked letting me know. So I found myself going back several times and rereading portions of the book.
A large portion of the book was told by way of letters that the father wrote to his daughter and then letters wrote to the father, whatever his name was, from Bartholomew Rossi. I had a hard time deciphering what was letters and what was actually happening at the time. The history in this story was mostly research type history which is fine, but I would like to have a little bit of excitement mixed in. And I did not find that with this book. It started to read like an actual history lesson.
I did not really connect to any of the characters or really even like any of them. I found them a little dry and boring. And with all the jumping around from one 'set' of characters to the next, it was hard to keep them all straight at times. I don't know, they were kind of just there, nothing really memorable.
I have read historical novels that have been very good I think largely because there was much more than just history involved. I can't really recommend this to anyone unless you like very large doses of history and less adventure or excitement.
This is a story of a 16 year old girl, told by her older self. I am guessing the girl in the story is the actual author, since I don't even recall her having a name in the story. She throws herself into the history of her family in pursuit of the truth about Vlad the Impaler or otherwise known as Dracula.
With the synopsis I expected so much more from this book. I had high expectations that I would get a large dose of Dracula mixed in with a little history and it really was not the case. It was more like a lot of history with hints of Dracula, at least in the 300 pages that I read. Also I found the book rather confusing because it was hard to tell sometimes what time period I was reading about because it jumped around so much and I did not find that it was clearly marked letting me know. So I found myself going back several times and rereading portions of the book.
A large portion of the book was told by way of letters that the father wrote to his daughter and then letters wrote to the father, whatever his name was, from Bartholomew Rossi. I had a hard time deciphering what was letters and what was actually happening at the time. The history in this story was mostly research type history which is fine, but I would like to have a little bit of excitement mixed in. And I did not find that with this book. It started to read like an actual history lesson.
I did not really connect to any of the characters or really even like any of them. I found them a little dry and boring. And with all the jumping around from one 'set' of characters to the next, it was hard to keep them all straight at times. I don't know, they were kind of just there, nothing really memorable.
I have read historical novels that have been very good I think largely because there was much more than just history involved. I can't really recommend this to anyone unless you like very large doses of history and less adventure or excitement.
Friday, September 19, 2014
Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn - 3.5 stars
I have had this book for months but wanted to wait till all the hype died down before plunging into it's pages. I had heard some incredible things about the story and why people loved or hated the story so I decided that it was time to judge for myself. All I can say right now is that this book is really messed up.
So the story goes, as most probably already know, there is Nick and Amy happily married and in love. That is until Amy disappears, and who do you think the police want to point their fingers at? You got it....Nick. The story goes on with the police trying to piece the case together, and it does not appear to be very hard for them to do.
Ok so the premise of the story can get a little cliché because we all know when a wife disappears the husband gets blamed, and that is the way the story starts out, of course! But everything is not as it seems. And as I got further into the book I saw the genius of the story and I ended up loving how the plot was wrote. There are some great twists to this story, and then also some predictable ones as well.
So as far as the characters go. I have been told by many, and I have heard from many that they did not like any of the characters. I do believe that was the authors intent. she wanted us to feel poisoned by the characters. I do have to say though that I hated Amy the most. I don't want to mention here in this review as to why I hated them because that would be giving too much away and they may not even be reasons as expected. So we will lave it at I have to agree with most people, I hated the main characters....A LOT! I did like Margo though or better known as Go, and she is the only one in the whole book that I liked. The only one who made any inkling of sense.
I have been stumbling on what I should rate this book, because really, I hated the ending. It is almost left wide open for another book. Is that done on purpose? I don't have a clue. So I decided on a 3.5 star rating because the ending to me is just unjust to say the least. So pick it up and read it, and you decide.
So the story goes, as most probably already know, there is Nick and Amy happily married and in love. That is until Amy disappears, and who do you think the police want to point their fingers at? You got it....Nick. The story goes on with the police trying to piece the case together, and it does not appear to be very hard for them to do.
Ok so the premise of the story can get a little cliché because we all know when a wife disappears the husband gets blamed, and that is the way the story starts out, of course! But everything is not as it seems. And as I got further into the book I saw the genius of the story and I ended up loving how the plot was wrote. There are some great twists to this story, and then also some predictable ones as well.
So as far as the characters go. I have been told by many, and I have heard from many that they did not like any of the characters. I do believe that was the authors intent. she wanted us to feel poisoned by the characters. I do have to say though that I hated Amy the most. I don't want to mention here in this review as to why I hated them because that would be giving too much away and they may not even be reasons as expected. So we will lave it at I have to agree with most people, I hated the main characters....A LOT! I did like Margo though or better known as Go, and she is the only one in the whole book that I liked. The only one who made any inkling of sense.
I have been stumbling on what I should rate this book, because really, I hated the ending. It is almost left wide open for another book. Is that done on purpose? I don't have a clue. So I decided on a 3.5 star rating because the ending to me is just unjust to say the least. So pick it up and read it, and you decide.
Monday, September 15, 2014
Sundays at Tiffany's - James Patterson - 4 stars
This is the third contemporary I have read by James Patterson. This was co written with Gabrielle Charbonnet. I was pretty sure that I would enjoy this book since I have enjoyed so many books by Patterson. I gotta say, I was not disappointed in the least. The author based this story on something his son Jack told him as a child. "Love means you can never be apart." James Patterson based this story on that. I love that thought.
In this story we have a lonely 8 year old girl name Jane, soon to be 9. She has an imaginary friend named Michael who helps Jane through life with divorced parents. Her father is a little distant to her and her mother, overbearing. She rarely sees her Father and her Mother takes one day a week to spend with her. Michael helps her cope with most of it. When Jane turns 9 it is time for Michael to leave her, it is a rule that imaginary friends must follow. In her thirties, Jane struggles in her life until she meets a man, who to her, is perfect. His name is Michael.
I really enjoyed this story so very much. I found it to be very engaging, fluid and easy to read. The premise of the story, to me, is very unique, with the qualities of a fairy tale and it is very well thought out I think. I have not read a story with this kind of plot before which is why I think I was so drawn to it, and enjoyed it so much.
I also enjoyed the characters as well. I enjoyed Jane and Michael the most. I feel like they were easy to connect to, even when Jane was a young child. I loved getting the back story of Jane in the beginning. It made me understand her so much better throughout the story. I would really have liked to know more about Michael though. How he came about and what exactly he is. The author was a little vague on that information. Vivienne, Jane's mother, was a real tool along with Hugh who I wanted to punch in the face most of the time. I think all of them were created beautifully.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes contemporary romance with a twist. I think anyone who likes romance or maybe doesn't like it could enjoy this book.
In this story we have a lonely 8 year old girl name Jane, soon to be 9. She has an imaginary friend named Michael who helps Jane through life with divorced parents. Her father is a little distant to her and her mother, overbearing. She rarely sees her Father and her Mother takes one day a week to spend with her. Michael helps her cope with most of it. When Jane turns 9 it is time for Michael to leave her, it is a rule that imaginary friends must follow. In her thirties, Jane struggles in her life until she meets a man, who to her, is perfect. His name is Michael.
I really enjoyed this story so very much. I found it to be very engaging, fluid and easy to read. The premise of the story, to me, is very unique, with the qualities of a fairy tale and it is very well thought out I think. I have not read a story with this kind of plot before which is why I think I was so drawn to it, and enjoyed it so much.
I also enjoyed the characters as well. I enjoyed Jane and Michael the most. I feel like they were easy to connect to, even when Jane was a young child. I loved getting the back story of Jane in the beginning. It made me understand her so much better throughout the story. I would really have liked to know more about Michael though. How he came about and what exactly he is. The author was a little vague on that information. Vivienne, Jane's mother, was a real tool along with Hugh who I wanted to punch in the face most of the time. I think all of them were created beautifully.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes contemporary romance with a twist. I think anyone who likes romance or maybe doesn't like it could enjoy this book.
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Born to Die - Lisa Jackson - 5 Stars
I was anxious to get to this installment of Lisa Jackson's 'to die' series. I knew that I was going to really enjoy this book, because the author has a great talent for imagery and character developement. Again the prologue drew me into the story easily. Such great imagery, great plot and well developed characters.
In this installment Alvarez and Pescoli have to chase down another serial killer. This time the killer is targeting women who seem to resemble one another. We meet two new characters as well Dr. Acacia Lambert and Trace O'Halleran who dangerously gets involved with the case.
Even though this installment did not take over from the last mystery it was still amazing. I just absolutely love the imagery that the author gives her readers. Always so vivid and well constructed. So much so that it allows me to get totally immersed in the story. I am always able to visualize the scene so perfectly. The premise to this story was well executed and very engaging. It has great action the keeps the story exciting. One of the things I like the best is that the mystery builds slowly, it's not just *BAM*, and then it's over. The author has a great talent for leading her readers along making them really get into the story and try to figure things out. I also found myself on the edge of my seat literally. I was sad to see the story end yet excited to start the next one in the series.
The characters are developed beautifully. I love the detectives, Alvarez and Pescoli because they are quite opposite from one another, yet they work so well together. Alvarez is more subdued and quiet where Pescoli is more edgy and in your face. They both have flaws that make them so realistic and believable that they are easy to relate to. Our side characters, Lacey and Trace are beautifully written into the story and are so relatable in many ways.
I recommend not only this series, but just about anything by Lisa Jackson, to all mystery lovers out there. This is an author that needs to be read and if you love mystery as I do, you won't be disappointed.
In this installment Alvarez and Pescoli have to chase down another serial killer. This time the killer is targeting women who seem to resemble one another. We meet two new characters as well Dr. Acacia Lambert and Trace O'Halleran who dangerously gets involved with the case.
Even though this installment did not take over from the last mystery it was still amazing. I just absolutely love the imagery that the author gives her readers. Always so vivid and well constructed. So much so that it allows me to get totally immersed in the story. I am always able to visualize the scene so perfectly. The premise to this story was well executed and very engaging. It has great action the keeps the story exciting. One of the things I like the best is that the mystery builds slowly, it's not just *BAM*, and then it's over. The author has a great talent for leading her readers along making them really get into the story and try to figure things out. I also found myself on the edge of my seat literally. I was sad to see the story end yet excited to start the next one in the series.
The characters are developed beautifully. I love the detectives, Alvarez and Pescoli because they are quite opposite from one another, yet they work so well together. Alvarez is more subdued and quiet where Pescoli is more edgy and in your face. They both have flaws that make them so realistic and believable that they are easy to relate to. Our side characters, Lacey and Trace are beautifully written into the story and are so relatable in many ways.
I recommend not only this series, but just about anything by Lisa Jackson, to all mystery lovers out there. This is an author that needs to be read and if you love mystery as I do, you won't be disappointed.
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Fyre - Angie Sage - 4 stars
Well the story now comes to end. It is rather bittersweet for me. I have invested a lot of time with these characters and this world. On the other hand I really liked how it ended, everyone and everything in its place. Lots of adventure and excitement for the Heap family and friends. I have to say that I really enjoyed the this adventure with Jenna, Septimus and Beetle. Such an engaging story. And all good things must come to an end.
In this installment Jenna becomes Queen and Beetle is now our Chief hermetic Scribe and the crew must stop 2 darke wizards from running amuck and causing problems for all. Many obstacles get in the way and it comes right down to the wire.
The world that Angie Sage creates in this series is simply amazing. From ice tunnels to dragon boats it is all so colorful, vivid and magical. It is created with so much depth that you feel as though you could plunge right into the middle of this world while you are reading. It is definitely a place where I could imagine living.
Our characters are all beautifully created, and I love to see them grow in their trades. Jenna fashions herself into a Queens life while Septimus learns both Alchemy and magic. Beetle strives to be recognized for those things he is quite capable of doing to be a chief hermetic scribe. I also like seeing our adult characters grow as people too. Marcia learns to be more accepting of others, Marcellus learns to trust and Silas and Sarah celebrate their time together with their family. So many wonderful characters to laugh with cry with and celebrate with.
I recommend this to anyone that likes the Harry Potter series. Although this one does not really grow on a yearly basis like Harry Potter, and it stays more middle grade, it is still very enjoyable and very engaging.
In this installment Jenna becomes Queen and Beetle is now our Chief hermetic Scribe and the crew must stop 2 darke wizards from running amuck and causing problems for all. Many obstacles get in the way and it comes right down to the wire.
The world that Angie Sage creates in this series is simply amazing. From ice tunnels to dragon boats it is all so colorful, vivid and magical. It is created with so much depth that you feel as though you could plunge right into the middle of this world while you are reading. It is definitely a place where I could imagine living.
Our characters are all beautifully created, and I love to see them grow in their trades. Jenna fashions herself into a Queens life while Septimus learns both Alchemy and magic. Beetle strives to be recognized for those things he is quite capable of doing to be a chief hermetic scribe. I also like seeing our adult characters grow as people too. Marcia learns to be more accepting of others, Marcellus learns to trust and Silas and Sarah celebrate their time together with their family. So many wonderful characters to laugh with cry with and celebrate with.
I recommend this to anyone that likes the Harry Potter series. Although this one does not really grow on a yearly basis like Harry Potter, and it stays more middle grade, it is still very enjoyable and very engaging.
Saturday, September 6, 2014
A Stranger North Henry J. Olsen - 3.5 stars
I got this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. I did not know what to expect but saw that is was kind of a post apocalyptic, futuristic type of story. I have to say that I really did quite enjoy this book. I feel like it flowed very well and was easy to understand and follow.
This story is about John Osborne, 9 years after the desolation of the earth. He is traveling across the country that has a minimal amount of people who have survived. Ekimo, a teenage girl who has only her brother, discovers John unconscious and alerts her small community that she found a man alive and asks for their assistance. While John slowly recovers, Ekimo disappears and John then helps her brother Nathan pull off a rescue.
I liked the imagery to this story, the world was pretty well constructed. I could not imagine living in a world so desolate and lost. The author painted the scene well, but I would like to see just a bit more depth. The world created here makes me think of an old western. I also found the many things that are different in this future quite intriguing I also liked that they were not over the top and the characters often made references to the old world.
I also enjoyed the characters, but I wish that there would be a bit more back story, especially on John and his life before all of this. I am hoping there will be more information on that soon and on life before desolation. This is obviously not a complete story so I look forward to more of this story. I am rating this a 3.5 stars and recommend this to anyone who likes post apocalyptic/futuristic stories.
This story is about John Osborne, 9 years after the desolation of the earth. He is traveling across the country that has a minimal amount of people who have survived. Ekimo, a teenage girl who has only her brother, discovers John unconscious and alerts her small community that she found a man alive and asks for their assistance. While John slowly recovers, Ekimo disappears and John then helps her brother Nathan pull off a rescue.
I liked the imagery to this story, the world was pretty well constructed. I could not imagine living in a world so desolate and lost. The author painted the scene well, but I would like to see just a bit more depth. The world created here makes me think of an old western. I also found the many things that are different in this future quite intriguing I also liked that they were not over the top and the characters often made references to the old world.
I also enjoyed the characters, but I wish that there would be a bit more back story, especially on John and his life before all of this. I am hoping there will be more information on that soon and on life before desolation. This is obviously not a complete story so I look forward to more of this story. I am rating this a 3.5 stars and recommend this to anyone who likes post apocalyptic/futuristic stories.
Friday, September 5, 2014
A Bride in Store - Melissa Jagears - 4 stars
I received this book in exchange for an honest review from Bethany House Publishers. I was not too sure about this one since it is a Historical Romance. I don't do well with either of those genres. And it was book 2 in a series of books called Unexpected Brides. I have not read the first one. With this one I was pleasantly surprised. I really quite enjoyed it. It was very refreshing and also fluid and easy to read.
In this story We have Will who convinced his long time friend Axel, to order a mail order bride. Apparently this was common on the 1800's. Eliza, the 'mail order bride' decided to show up early to marry her new fiancé with hopes of helping to run his store and be part owner, a lifetime dream of hers. Only problem is the train she was on was robbed and she was hurt which led her to Will so he could patch her up. In the meantime, penniless and scarred, she discovers that Axel is away on business. During his absence she decides to help Will out with the store after discovering that he was part owner of the store. Both Will and Eliza begin to have feelings from one another and the story goes on from there.
I think the story was constructed beautifully. I really liked the great imagery, and found I could really immerse myself into the story, visualize it and get a real feel for this era. I loved the frontier/western feel. It also has great premise and has an amazing cast of characters that I found easy to connect with. The story flowed very well I think and at no point was confusing or hard to follow.
I really loved Will the most I think, he was a great character with a lot of personality. I loved watching him grow into a different person as the story went along. He never felt like he was worth much and even though people would tell him he was, he rarely believed it until he met Eliza. Eliza was a different kind of woman for that time. She great aspirations to be someone big in business and own her own store, but she also was kind of hard on herself. She to learn that life was not always about making the money but also about learning to care and understand unconditionally.
Overall, it was a fun, quick read and I would definitely pick up other books by this author and others in this series. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of history and romance without all the 'sexy times' in it.
In this story We have Will who convinced his long time friend Axel, to order a mail order bride. Apparently this was common on the 1800's. Eliza, the 'mail order bride' decided to show up early to marry her new fiancé with hopes of helping to run his store and be part owner, a lifetime dream of hers. Only problem is the train she was on was robbed and she was hurt which led her to Will so he could patch her up. In the meantime, penniless and scarred, she discovers that Axel is away on business. During his absence she decides to help Will out with the store after discovering that he was part owner of the store. Both Will and Eliza begin to have feelings from one another and the story goes on from there.
I think the story was constructed beautifully. I really liked the great imagery, and found I could really immerse myself into the story, visualize it and get a real feel for this era. I loved the frontier/western feel. It also has great premise and has an amazing cast of characters that I found easy to connect with. The story flowed very well I think and at no point was confusing or hard to follow.
I really loved Will the most I think, he was a great character with a lot of personality. I loved watching him grow into a different person as the story went along. He never felt like he was worth much and even though people would tell him he was, he rarely believed it until he met Eliza. Eliza was a different kind of woman for that time. She great aspirations to be someone big in business and own her own store, but she also was kind of hard on herself. She to learn that life was not always about making the money but also about learning to care and understand unconditionally.
Overall, it was a fun, quick read and I would definitely pick up other books by this author and others in this series. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of history and romance without all the 'sexy times' in it.
Wednesday, September 3, 2014
Obstacles - Christopher Reardon - 2.5 stars
I received this book from the Author in exchange for an honest review. This book was just ok for me and was a bit of a struggle at times to get through it. I found the story felt a bit unrealistic and not very believable. I also found it to be somewhat predictable at times as well.
In this story Alcott is a live in doctor with Autuna and Gari. Gari is a 9 year old boy who is dying. Alcott gets an opportunity to save this little boy by acquiring an ancient text called "Altering Fate" and then going through several daunting obstacles. He must pass 3 obstacles along with 4 others in order for Gari to live, but he must give up one of his most precious gifts, his own life.
I do feel like it has a great premise but was just not executed well enough. I must say though, it does send along a pretty powerful message of strength and courage and what others are capable of doing to save another. I did enjoy the world that is created here I just feel like it needed a bit more depth to it. I had trouble connecting with the characters. I feel like they did not have enough of a backstory and were underdeveloped and I think they could have been so much more.
Overall the story felt a little rushed to me. I have to say though that I did enjoy the ending obstacle of the story. It felt like the Author took a bit more time with this part and it was quite enjoyable. The ending of the story did come together pretty well and pushed this to a 2.5 rating. I think this Author has a lot of potential and I would read something else by him.
In this story Alcott is a live in doctor with Autuna and Gari. Gari is a 9 year old boy who is dying. Alcott gets an opportunity to save this little boy by acquiring an ancient text called "Altering Fate" and then going through several daunting obstacles. He must pass 3 obstacles along with 4 others in order for Gari to live, but he must give up one of his most precious gifts, his own life.
I do feel like it has a great premise but was just not executed well enough. I must say though, it does send along a pretty powerful message of strength and courage and what others are capable of doing to save another. I did enjoy the world that is created here I just feel like it needed a bit more depth to it. I had trouble connecting with the characters. I feel like they did not have enough of a backstory and were underdeveloped and I think they could have been so much more.
Overall the story felt a little rushed to me. I have to say though that I did enjoy the ending obstacle of the story. It felt like the Author took a bit more time with this part and it was quite enjoyable. The ending of the story did come together pretty well and pushed this to a 2.5 rating. I think this Author has a lot of potential and I would read something else by him.
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