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  • Category: Reviews 2017

    • Book Review: “The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street” by Karina Yan Glaser

      Posted at 6:35 am by Laura, on January 9, 2018

      The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser

      Publisher: HMH BFYR
      Published: October 2017
      Genre: middle grade, contemporary
      ISBN: 9780544876392
      Rating: 
      ★★★.5

      The Vanderbeekers have always lived in the brownstone on 141st Street. It’s practically another member of the family. So when their reclusive, curmudgeonly landlord decides not to renew their lease, the five siblings have eleven days to do whatever it takes to stay in their beloved home and convince the dreaded Beiderman just how wonderful they are. And all is fair in love and war when it comes to keeping their home.

      The five Vanderbeeker siblings adore their home in Harlem. It’s close to their parents’ work, it’s close to school, their best friends live nearby, all the coolest people (the mailman, the baker, their elderly neighbors next door) greet them each day — what’s not to love? Well, The Beiderman — Mr. Beiderman, as Dad keeps reminding them — is not too great. He’s not letting the Vanderbeekers renew their lease, and he’s kicking them out of the building before Christmas!

      This book is, in many ways, a love letter to Harlem, to neighborhood camaraderie, to homes that are more than a space to live in with a roof over your head. It’s a great story about family and perseverance, silly antics, imaginative and creative children, friendship, and neighborly love. Even though it’s set during the Christmas season, it’s perfect for any time of year.

      The siblings believe The Beiderman is a crochety old man because he has never known joy in his life. So what he needs this Christmas is some good ol’ cheering up — and that’ll make him renew their parents’ lease. They come up with all sorts of clever, funny, and silly ideas, from bringing up tea to delivering scheming notes a la noir crime, to delivering a kitten in a box to playing a violin with such passion and determination it makes the man cry.

      The Beiderman’s history comes about in pieces, fitting together like a puzzle till the very end with the violin music, and — like most Grinch/Scrooge tales — a change of heart and understanding of character. It’s a good, heartwarming story, bound to be a favorite for middle grade readers. There’s a character for everyone in here!

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017 | 0 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: contemporary, genre: holiday, genre: middle grade, review, rock my TBR
    • Book Review: “The City Baker’s Guide to Country Living” by Louise Miller

      Posted at 6:45 am by Laura, on December 11, 2017

      28110139The City Baker’s Guide to Country Living by Louise Miller

      Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books
      Published: August 2016
      Genre: contemporary, women’s fiction
      ISBN: 9781101981207
      Rating: 
      ★★★★

      When Olivia Rawlings—baker extraordinaire for an exclusive Boston dinner club—sets not just her flambéed dessert but the entire building alight, she takes a much-needed weekend break in the idyllic leafy town of Guthrie, Vermont. A weekend soon turns into something more permanent when Margaret Hurley, the cantankerous, sweater-set-wearing owner of the Sugar Maple Inn, needs to recruit a new baker who can help her reclaim the inn’s blue ribbon status at the annual county fair apple pie contest. On paper, at least, Livvy seems to be just who she was looking for.

      Along with Salty, her gigantic, uberenthusuastic dog with almost too much personality, Livvy, as the Sugar Maple’s new baker, brings her mouthwatering desserts to the residents of Guthrie and her best friend, Hannah. And when Olivia meets Martin McCracken, the Guthrie native who has returned from New York to nurse his ailing father, Livvy comes to understand that she may not be as alone in this world as she once thought. With the joys of a warm, fragrant kitchen, the sound of banjos and fiddles being tuned in a barn, and the crisp scent of the orchard just outside the front door, Olivia Rawlings may finally find that the life you want may not be the one you expected—it could be even better.

      Livvy is an excellent pastry chef. Her whole life is about her work as a baker. But when she sends her Boston dinner club (and, in many ways, her affair) alight, she flees to Vermont to get a breather and be with her best friend Hannah. Word gets out a baker is in town, and soon enough she’s hired as the new baker for Sugar Maple Inn. She not only needs to do the daily tasks of creating masterful baked goods solo, she also is perfecting her apple pie recipe so Sugar Maple can get the blue ribbons once more. Livvy begins to settle into the small town, participating in a contradance band and spending time with the McCracken family. After all this time in the big city, is Guthrie her true home?

      I could feel Livvy’s tension in Boston subside and fade away when she settled into Guthrie. She began to loosen up and settle in, enjoying the small town life she used to make fun of. The soothing routine baking needs for the inn — rolls, pastries, bread, cakes and cookies — followed by the high adrenaline of weddings and festivals really created a warm, homey atmosphere. I especially enjoyed the holiday family gathering scenes with the McCrackens, and the times when Livvy participated in the band for contradances. She slowed down, breathed more easily, and took a break. Her true colors came out.

      Comfort reading at its best! It’s a slow, relaxing read — just what I needed. It served as a reminder that we are here to enjoy life, not drown in the chaos and stress. The City Baker’s Guide to Country Living is the perfect book to read over the winter holidays, curled up under a blanket, hot beverage in hand, and a pastry (or two…) on a plate nearby.

      (Plus, look at the awesome paperback cover. That’s what caught my attention!)

      This qualifies as book 15 of 5 library books in 2017.

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017 | 4 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: adult fiction, genre: contemporary, review
    • Mini Reviews

      Posted at 5:25 am by Laura, on December 6, 2017

      Life has been crazy hectic, leaving very little time for me to sit down and write full reviews for the books I’ve read lately. I didn’t want to not review them, though, so here are my two cents on a variety of books!

      ~

      Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

      Publisher: Penguin
      Published: 2001
      Genre: gothic, historical fiction
      Rating:
       ★★★★.5
      Summary: Barcelona, 1945. Daniel’s widowed father, an antiquarian book dealer, initiates 11-year-old Daniel into the secret of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a library tended by Barcelona’s guild of rare-book dealers as a repository for books forgotten by the world, waiting for someone who will care about them again. Daniel’s father coaxes him to choose a volume from the spiraling labyrinth of shelves, one that, it is said, will have a special meaning for him. And Daniel so loves the novel he selects, The Shadow of the Wind by Julian Carax, that he sets out to find the rest of Carax’s work. To his shock, he discovers that someone has been systematically destroying every copy of every book this author has written. In fact, he may have the last one in existence. Before Daniel knows it his seemingly innocent quest has opened a door into one of Barcelona’s darkest secrets, an epic story of murder, magic, madness and doomed love. And before long he realizes that if he doesn’t find out the truth about Julian Carax, he and those closest to him will suffer horribly.

      Mini Review: What a thrilling, engrossing, captivating book. This is gothic fiction. Mystery, romance, suspense, murder, literary passions, mistaken identity, ghosts (real or otherwise), haunted homes, ancient cities, a web of secrecy. I savored every word. There were moments of greatness here, with scenes that captivated me, I could not tear away. There were other moments that could’ve had more to it — more character development or more depth — to make it absolutely perfect. But perhaps that’s what happens when a work is translated: not all of the brilliance of the original shines through. I know this is brilliant. This translator did an excellent job conveying Zafón’s story. If you haven’t read this book yet, drop everything and do so now.

      London Belongs to Us by Sarra Manning

      Publisher: Hot Key Books
      Published: June 2016
      Genre: young adult, contemporary
      Rating:
       ★★★
      Summary: Sunny’s always been a little bit of a pushover. But when she’s sent a picture of her boyfriend kissing another girl, she knows she’s got to act. What follows is a mad, twelve-hour dash around London – starting at 8pm in Crystal Palace (so far away from civilisation you can’t even get the Tube there) then sweeping through Camden, Shoreditch, Soho, Kensington, Notting Hill . . . and ending up at 8am in Alexandra Palace. Along the way Sunny meets a whole host of characters she never dreamed she’d have anything in common with. But as this love-letter to London shows, a city is only a sum of its parts, and really it’s the people living there who make up its life and soul. 

      Mini Review: The city of my heart! It was a fun romp of a story, racing all over the city over 12 hours. Sunny is sweet and naive, and she has her share of boyfriend troubles (in my opinion, she should’ve been angrier earlier, but that would ruin the fun of this ode to London), but I loved the way others worked with her, strangers and friends alike, to help her find the boy who wronged her. So many great neighborhoods and snippets of history, fantastic locations with interesting trivia, and all the colorful people. I laughed out loud at many points in this book, even took pictures of quotes and passages I found hilarious, poignant, and so very true to life. If you’re looking for a good, quick, light contemporary YA, this is the book for you!

       

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      Blue Heron Series: The Best Man & The Perfect Match by Kristan Higgins

      Publisher: Harlequin HQN
      Published: February 2013, October 2013
      Genre: contemporary, romance
      Rating:
       ★★★.75 and ★★★
      Summary: (1) Faith Holland left her hometown after being jilted at the altar. Now a little older and wiser, she’s ready to return to the Blue Heron Winery, her family’s vineyard, to confront the ghosts of her past, and maybe enjoy a glass of red. After all, there’s some great scenery there….Like Levi Cooper, the local police chief – and best friend of her former fiancé. There’s a lot about Levi that Faith never noticed, and it’s not just those deep green eyes. The only catch is she’s having a hard time forgetting that he helped ruin her wedding all those years ago. If she can find a minute amidst all her family drama to stop and smell the rosé, she just might find a reason to stay at Blue Heron, and finish that walk down the aisle.

      (2) Honor Holland has just been unceremoniously rejected by her lifelong crush. And now—a mere three weeks later—Mr. Perfect is engaged to her best friend. But resilient, reliable Honor is going to pick herself up, dust herself off and get back out there… or she would if dating in Manningsport, New York, population 715, wasn’t easier said than done. Charming, handsome British professor Tom Barlow just wants to do right by his unofficial stepson, Charlie, but his visa is about to expire. Now Tom must either get a green card or leave the States—and leave Charlie behind. In a moment of impulsiveness, Honor agrees to help Tom with a marriage of convenience. But juggling a fiancé, hiding out from her former best friend and managing her job at the family vineyard isn’t easy. And as sparks start to fly between Honor and Tom, they might discover that their pretend relationship is far too perfect to be anything but true love….

      Mini Review for The Best Man: The characters felt authentic, even in the cheesy and comical bits, and there was a surprising amount of depth in the development and plot. The small town feel was so cute and quirky, and the novel was a great balance of comedy and romance. There was only one scene in particular that rubbed me the wrong way (you’ll know it when you read it), but overall this was an enjoyable read. Romance isn’t normally my go-to, but I wanted something good and light to read during the chaos. Higgins delivered, and I promise you: even though there were some romance cliches and tropes, I was still left guessing to the end how the pieces would come together.

      Mini Review for The Perfect Match: Honor and Tom are two desperate souls (heavy emphasis on desperate, because that described Honor and her talking eggs (I kid you not) to a T) for two very different reasons, but they matched each other well. It was nice to be back in this small town atmosphere, even closer to the winery than the first book. I wasn’t a huge fan of Tom as a love interest, and Honor sometimes made me want to throttle her, but when the two were together they complimented one another. Together, I could root for them. I fully plan to continue the Blue Heron series!

      ~

      Hopefully writing up another full review soon before the holidays hit! Keep reading, friends!

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      This qualifies as books 13 and 14 of 5 library books in 2017.

      This qualifies as book 14 of 12 in the Rock My TBR challenge.

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017, Rock My TBR | 7 Comments | Tagged books, genre: contemporary, genre: gothic, genre: historical fiction, genre: romance, mini review, review
    • Book Review: “The Unlikely Story of a Pig in the City” by Jodi Kendall

      Posted at 6:25 am by Laura, on November 15, 2017

      The Unlikely Story of a Pig in the City by Jodi Kendall

      Publisher: HarperCollins Childrens
      Published: October 2017
      Genre: middle grade, contemporary
      ISBN: 9780062484536
      Rating: 
      ★★★★

      Josie Shilling’s family is too big, their cramped city house is too small, and she feels like no one’s ever on her side. Then, on Thanksgiving Day, her older brother, Tom, brings home a pink, squirmy bundle wrapped in an old football jersey—a piglet he rescued from a nearby farm. Her name is Hamlet.

      The minute Josie holds Hamlet, she feels an instant connection. But there’s no room for Hamlet in the crowded Shilling household. And whoever heard of keeping a pig in the city? So it’s up to Josie to find her a forever home.

      Josie’s brother brings home a runt piglet at Thanksgiving. This would’ve been okay if her family wasn’t so large, cramped in a fairly small townhouse in a big city with very little yard space and money to stretch. Josie doesn’t want her family to send the piglet back to the farm, and promises to find a home for little Hamlet before New Year’s Day. She wants to keep Hamlet, and does her very best to juggle all her usual responsibilities with chores, homework, and gymnastics practice. But as New Year’s Day draws near, and Hamlet grows larger, and the family faces big changes, Josie begins to wonder if she’ll ever find a nice home for Hamlet.

      This modern-day homage to Charlotte’s Web is absolutely perfect. It can stand completely on it’s own, or be read alongside the classic. The heart of the story is about love, family, sacrifice, and friendship. It rings true to any reader — a middle grade reader juggling school and extracurricular activities, the middle child who just wants to be noticed and appreciated, the teenager who wants to do right for all parties involved, and the adult continuing to experience all these things and recalling the big responsibilities, wishes, and dreams from childhood. It’s great for the whole family, especially during the holiday season.

      Kendall portrayed the big family lifestyle in a cramped home in the city so well. At times it felt claustrophobic, and others it felt warm and cozy. The family has their ups and downs, bickers and mishaps mixed with support and love. Nothing is picture perfect, but it takes little moments for Josie to realize her family does see her and her accomplishments, that she’s not lost in the noise. She has her insecurities and dreams, and it’s so neat seeing how they grow and change during her gymnastics season and taking care of little Hamlet.

      A heartwarming middle grade perfect for the whole family this holiday season.

      Thank you, HC Children’s editorial, for providing this ARC.

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017 | 1 Comment | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: contemporary, genre: middle grade, review
    • Book Review: “The Paris Architect” by Charles Belfoure

      Posted at 6:20 am by Laura, on November 6, 2017

      The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure

      Publisher: Sourcebooks
      Published: October 2013
      Genre: historical fiction
      ISBN: 9781402294150
      Rating: 
      ★★★★

      In 1942 Paris, gifted architect Lucien Bernard accepts a commission that will bring him a great deal of money and maybe get him killed. But if he’s clever enough, he’ll avoid any trouble. All he has to do is design a secret hiding place for a wealthy Jewish man, a space so invisible that even the most determined German officer won’t find it. He sorely needs the money, and outwitting the Nazis who have occupied his beloved city is a challenge he can’t resist.

      But when one of his hiding spaces fails horribly, and the problem of where to hide a Jew becomes terribly personal, Lucien can no longer ignore what’s at stake. The Paris Architect asks us to consider what we owe each other, and just how far we’ll go to make things right.

      Architect Lucien Bernard is trying to make ends meet and stay under the radar when he receives a huge commission to design a small, clever hiding space for a Jewish man. Not wanting anything to do with the Resistance but desperately needing the money, Lucien’s ego sweeps him up and he agrees to play the game against the Nazis. But the Nazis know of his architectural talent and pay for him to design manufacturing buildings for ammunition. As the number of clever hiding spaces grow, the factories built, and hiding spaces discovered, Lucien is torn between collaboration and resistance, between prestige and humanity.

      What a morally conflicting and ambiguous, unique, and haunting novel. This was unlike any other WWII novel I’ve read.

      Though the writing was distanced, it was the concept that floored me. We see WWII and the Nazi/Jewish conflict at a distance. Of course what the Nazis did was wrong and the most awful thing ever. Ever. I’m not arguing that. But Belfoure places us in the time: the French population (perhaps most of Europe?) genuinely did not like Jewish people — nothing like the Nazis felt, but it’s true nonetheless. Paris was easy for the Nazis to occupy because the French wanted nothing to do with the Nazis but they also wanted nothing to do with the Jews. Behave, stay low, neither resist nor collaborate, and perhaps one would survive. That was the mentality. Lucien’s character shows that in spades — but he’s still young and he wants his name to be known for his designs. All the income was helpful too. It’s not until the French see him as a collaborator, and the Nazis see him as a member of the Resistance, that it hits him completely: he cannot play both sides. He either saves human lives, or he destroys his country. Humanity wins, but at a cost — and his solution is very clever.

      I was impressed with the architectural designs, too. These aren’t hidden rooms behind library doors, another hidey-hole in the basement, or another wall in an attic. Lucien’s designs blend in so well with the architecture of the existing building and room that it takes really unique circumstances for the Nazis to discover them one by one. Oh, how my heart pound. The anxious intensity, the drawn out scenes when the Nazis were on the other side of the Jews’ hiding spot…I couldn’t breathe.

      If you’re looking for a new author to try or a unique WWII historical novel, definitely pick up Charles Belfoure’s The Paris Architect. It’ll haunt you for weeks after finishing.

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017 | 0 Comments | Tagged book review, genre: adult fiction, genre: historical fiction, review
    • Book Review: “The Dire King” by William Ritter

      Posted at 5:45 am by Laura, on September 21, 2017

      The Dire King by William Ritter

      Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers
      Published: August 2017
      Genre: young adult, fantasy, historical fiction, gothic
      ISBN: 9781616206703
      Rating: 
      ★★★★.5

      The fate of the world is in the hands of detective of the supernatural R. F. Jackaby and his intrepid assistant, Abigail Rook. An evil king is turning ancient tensions into modern strife, using a blend of magic and technology to push Earth and the Otherworld into a mortal competition. Jackaby and Abigail are caught in the middle as they continue to solve the daily mysteries of New Fiddleham, New England — like who’s created the rend between the worlds, how to close it, and why zombies are appearing around. At the same time, the romance between Abigail and the shape-shifting police detective Charlie Cane deepens, and Jackaby’s resistance to his feelings for 926 Augur Lane’s ghostly lady, Jenny, begins to give way. Before the four can think about their own futures, they will have to defeat an evil that wants to destroy the future altogether.

      A king in another realm is blending ancient magic with modern electricity, tearing down the veil between Earth and the Otherworld, wrecking havoc in its wake. Jackaby and Abigail are caught in the middle, barely recovering from the recent attack in their home on Augur Lane. But if they don’t act soon, and listen the last words of warning from New Fiddleham’s parish priest, the world as they know it may collapse into chaos.

      Please read reviews (and the books, of course) for the previous titles before continuing, as this may contain spoilers: Jackaby, Beastly Bones, Ghostly Echoes

      My initial thoughts when finishing this book were “OMGGGGG THAT WAS AWESOME AND UNEXPECTED BUT TOTALLY FITTING AND AHHHH.” Let’s shoot for some coherency now.

      What started off as ridiculous good fun in Jackaby developed into something so much more — more than mystery and mayhem and mythology and cultural lore — what it also means to find love and hope in the midst of chaos and destruction. Abigail and Jackaby make one heck of a duo when it comes to solving crimes in New Fiddleham, with the assistance of ghost Jenny and cop/werewolf Charlie. But by this book, it’s more than a couple petty supernatural crimes — it’s a full-blown war with the Moriarty character, mending the veil between the mortal world and the world these creatures come from.

      This series is full of mystery and adventure, a proper blend of Doctor Who and Sherlock, with wacky scenarios, intense circumstances, and heart-pounding plot. The romantic plots made me smile — they’re so sweet and seemingly innocent, oh-so-perfectly restrained because, you know, saving the world and all — and the ending was both surprising and fitting. In many ways it leaves the series open for a spin-off, but I would be happy ending the adventures of 926 Augur Lane right here!

      If you haven’t already, I highly suggest reading Ritter’s Jackaby series. It’s humorous, genre-bending, adventurous, and remarkable!

      (Oh, and never look at the frog. And don’t trust anything in Chapter Thirteen.)

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017 | 0 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: fantasy, genre: gothic, genre: historical fiction, genre: young adult, review
    • Mini Reviews

      Posted at 3:30 am by Laura, on September 18, 2017

      The Case of the Counterfeit Criminals by Jordan Stratford

      Publisher: Knopf BFYR
      Published: January 2017
      Genre: middle grade, mystery, historical fiction
      Rating: 
      ★★★.5
      Summary: The Wollestonecraft Girls embark on their most important case yet–the famed dinosaur fossil hunter Mary Anning is being blackmailed. Her precious dog has been snatched and the kidnappers are demanding that Miss Anning authenticate some fake dinosaur bones up for auction at the British Museum in order to get him back. Ada and Mary have just three days to track down the fossil fakers, find the dog, and save the integrity of science! The game is truly afoot in this quirky caper involving blood-sucking leeches, an asthmatic pug, smoke bombs, secret elevators, diabolical disguises, and wicked word-play.

      Mini Review: I love middle grade detective fiction, and the Wollstonecraft Detective Agency series is no exception! Featuring Mary Shelley and Ada Byron as little girls (anachronistically), with partner in crime Charles Dickens, they solve what appear to be little instances of crime (stolen dog) but are actually major connections to criminal rings (there’s a clever Moriarty character cropping up!). The books were originally inspired by the novels of Charles Dickens’s protege, Wilkie Collins. Now they are taking on a life of their own and it’s so thrilling to watch! I highly recommend this series for little history nerds, fierce feminists, readers with quick wit and sense of humor, and little detectives in the making. See reviews for The Case of the Missing Moonstone and The Case of the Girl in Grey.

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      This qualifies as book 12 of 12 in the Rock My TBR challenge.

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      A Cold Legacy by Megan Shepherd

      Publisher: Balzer + Bray
      Published: January 2015
      Genre: young adult, gothic, science fiction
      Rating:
       ★★★
      Summary: After killing the men who tried to steal her father’s research, Juliet—along with Montgomery, Lucy, Balthazar, and a deathly ill Edward—has escaped to a remote estate on the Scottish moors. Owned by the enigmatic Elizabeth von Stein, the mansion is full of mysteries and unexplained oddities: dead bodies in the basement, secret passages, and fortune-tellers who seem to know Juliet’s secrets. Though it appears to be a safe haven, Juliet fears new dangers may be present within the manor’s own walls. Then Juliet uncovers the truth about the manor’s long history of scientific experimentation—and her own intended role in it—forcing her to determine where the line falls between right and wrong, life and death, magic and science, and promises and secrets. And she must decide if she’ll follow her father’s dark footsteps or her mother’s tragic ones, or whether she’ll make her own.

      Mini Review: This book gave me graduate thesis flashbacks. I spent a whole year immersed in gothic literature (classic and YA) with a fine tooth comb, loving every second of my nightmares that followed. A COLD LEGACY continues the “twist on classic gothic novels” trend Shepherd began with The Madman’s Daughter by following the Frankenstein narrative. The other two books worked as parallels to the inspired classics, but this time the characters meet Dr Frankenstein’s descendants and friends, who want to continue the “cold legacy” of his experimentation. Scottish moors, creepy children, reanimated corpses, oh my! I appreciated the parallels to the original narrative, and found all the high drama twists and turns appropriate to gothic fiction. Juliet’s internal battle and her devotion to two boys continued (and I was so over it in Her Dark Curiosity), but the final chapters left the reader with a solid ending and hope for the remaining characters.

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      This qualifies as book 13 of 12 in the Rock My TBR challenge.

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017, Rock My TBR | 1 Comment | Tagged books, genre: gothic, genre: historical fiction, genre: middle grade, genre: mystery, genre: sci-fi, genre: young adult, mini review, review, rock my TBR
    • Book Review: “The Royal Nanny” by Karen Harper

      Posted at 6:20 am by Laura, on September 6, 2017

      The Royal Nanny by Karen Harper

      Publisher: William Morrow
      Published: June 2016
      Genre: adult fiction, historical fiction
      ISBN: 9780062420633
      Rating: 
      ★★★★

      April, 1897: A young nanny arrives at Sandringham, ancestral estate of the Duke and Duchess of York. She is excited, exhausted—and about to meet royalty….

      So begins the unforgettable story of Charlotte Bill, who would care for a generation of royals as their parents never could. Neither Charlotte—LaLa, as her charges dub her—nor anyone else can predict that eldest sons David and Bertie will each one day be king. LaLa knows only that these children, and the four who swiftly follow, need her steadfast loyalty and unconditional affection.

      But the greatest impact on Charlotte’s life is made by a mere bud on the family tree: a misunderstood soul who will one day be known as the Lost Prince. Young Prince John needs all of Lala’s love—the kind of love his parents won’t…or can’t…show him.

      Charlotte “Lala” Bill arrives at Sandringham eager to begin as an assistant to the royals’ head nurse. But when she witnesses the young boys’ abuse at the hands of this nurse, she takes matters into her own hands, and forever shapes the landscape of royal nurses and nannies. As she raises each of the children, wondering what she’ll do when the youngest will age out of the nursery and enter the schoolroom, one last royal is born: Prince Johnny, a misunderstood soul and young boy with epilepsy. He’s hidden from view of the public, and the family rarely witnesses his epileptic attacks, but it’s Lala’s steadfast love and determined devotion that unites the family during a tumultuous time in history.

      This novel really pulled at my heartstrings. Watching David and Bertie grow up and experience the reign of three different monarchs (great-grandmother Queen Victoria, grandfather Edward VII, father George V) as well as the other children’s interactions with their royal cousins (specifically the Romanovs), witnessing all the changes in history at the turn of the century (electricity, cars, planes, WWI), was fascinating in and of itself.

      Some of the dialogue felt a little forced, but it was to give the reader a sense of the passage of time with regard to meaningful events. And, admittedly, I was more curious about David and Bertie, the two kings pre-WWII and all the drama surrounding abdicating the throne. However, Harper wrote a very engaging narrative that made me care more than I ever thought I would about little John, the lost prince. His story is the epitome of the sad, bleak reality of royal children prior to his birth. Royals were presented to their parents for a few minutes each day! Lala changed that. Lala gave these children the love and attention they deserved, especially since their parents could not or would not. And she made a taboo illness a discussable topic, embracing and facing adversity head on instead of brushing it under the rug.

      The writing is intimate, revealing the hidden history behind the events of WWI and the deep family connections within. Toss in the upstairs-downstairs point of view of the royal nanny who shaped the kind of nannies royalty seek today, and you’re in for a treat. Fans of King’s Speech and Downton Abbey, royal history buffs, and anyone who loves reading books with family dynamic focus would thoroughly enjoy this novel.

      This qualifies as book 12 of 5 library books in 2017.

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017 | 1 Comment | Tagged book review, books, genre: adult fiction, genre: historical fiction, review
    • Book Review: “The Scribe of Siena” by Melodie Winawer

      Posted at 5:35 am by Laura, on August 31, 2017

      The Scribe of Siena by Melodie Winawer

      Publisher: Touchstone
      Published: May 2017
      Genre: adult, historical fiction
      ISBN: 9781501152252
      Rating: 
      ★★★

      Accomplished neurosurgeon Beatrice Trovato knows that her deep empathy for her patients is starting to impede her work. So when her beloved brother passes away, she welcomes the unexpected trip to the Tuscan city of Siena to resolve his estate, even as she wrestles with grief. But as she delves deeper into her brother’s affairs, she discovers intrigue she never imagined—a 700-year-old conspiracy to decimate the city.

      After uncovering the journal and paintings of Gabriele Accorsi, the fourteenth-century artist at the heart of the plot, Beatrice finds a startling image of her own face and is suddenly transported to the year 1347. She awakens in a Siena unfamiliar to her, one that will soon be hit by the Plague.

      Yet when Beatrice meets Accorsi, something unexpected happens: she falls in love—not only with Gabriele, but also with the beauty and cadence of medieval life. As the Plague and the ruthless hands behind its trajectory threaten not only her survival but also Siena’s very existence, Beatrice must decide in which century she belongs.

      A neurosurgeon finishing her brother’s research is transported back to a handful of months just before the Plague hits medieval Siena, Italy. While there, research and life collide when Beatrice is sheltered by and works alongside artist Gabriele Accorsi, a painter whose journal was in her possession while finishing her brother’s manuscript. Why was the Plague so devastating to Siena compared to the rest of Italy (and Europe as a whole)? What can Beatrice discover while there that her brother couldn’t find in documents today? Furthermore, is she now accidentally at the center of the plot that decimated Siena?

      Color me intrigued.

      This book contains a lot of art history, and the level of detail in the setting was exquisite. I felt like I was there in medieval Siena. There’s a romance with an artist, but I wasn’t feeling it. Some romances make you swoon right along with the protagonist, some romances you fall in love with the couple and how they handle their relationship and life’s events, and then there are some romances that seem to be there just to further the plot. That was this one. It wasn’t terrible — just didn’t seem necessary to move it from platonic to romantic.

      You can’t have a fictional account of historic Italy without the Medici family wrecking havoc. They, like England’s Tudors, shaped Italian history, so of course there’s no avoiding it, but a part of me was a little bit bummed that the family played such a huge role in the plot of the book. I wanted more from Beatrice rather than the other perspectives. Because Beatrice was so funny. She’s a strong, sarcastic, steady and stable sort of character, and her quips, observations, and one-liners throughout the story really kept the pace moving. Sometimes all you can do when thrown into ridiculous situations is try to find the humor in it!

      If you’re looking for something to sink into and bask in the beauty, without thinking too deeply about the plot (and all the timey-whimey open-ended questions), this would be the book to try! Truly, it is a breathtaking read simply for the art and history. Setting was certainly a character of this novel all on its own.

      This qualifies as book 11 of 5 library books in 2017.

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017 | 1 Comment | Tagged book review, books, genre: adult fiction, genre: historical fiction, review
    • Mini Reviews

      Posted at 7:05 am by Laura, on August 17, 2017

      32078787Once and For All by Sarah Dessen

      Publisher: Viking
      Published: June 2017
      Genre: young adult, contemporary
      Rating: 
      ★★★
      Summary: 
      Louna, daughter of famed wedding planner Natalie Barrett, has seen every sort of wedding: on the beach, at historic mansions, in fancy hotels and clubs. Perhaps that’s why she’s cynical about happily-ever-after endings, especially since her own first love ended tragically. When Louna meets charming, happy-go-lucky serial dater Ambrose, she holds him at arm’s length. But Ambrose isn’t about to be discouraged, now that he’s met the one girl he really wants. 

      Mini Review: I enjoyed Dessen’s latest, but it also left something to be desired. The characters were good (well-rounded, depth, teen voice), the story was good (growth, development, plot), I enjoyed the Easter eggs (classic Dessen!), and it somewhat reminded me of my favorite Dessen novel (The Truth About Forever)…which may be why it was only good. It felt a little recycled, and the stakes, especially the romance, seemed more like afterthoughts. This landed right in the middle of my Dessen rankings: plain ol’ good. She’s a staple in contemporary YA literature, a modern classic, but I do think this could’ve been better.

      This qualifies as book 9 of 5 library books in 2017.

      32333055Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali

      Publisher: Salaam Reads
      Published: June 2017
      Genre:
      young adult, contemporary
      Rating: 
      ★★★
      Summary: 
      There are three kinds of people in my world:
      1. Saints, those special people moving the world forward. Sometimes you glaze over them. Or, at least, I do. They’re in your face so much, you can’t see them, like how you can’t see your nose.
      2. Misfits, people who don’t belong. Like me—the way I don’t fit into Dad’s brand-new family or in the leftover one composed of Mom and my older brother, Mama’s-Boy-Muhammad. Also, there’s Jeremy and me. Misfits. Because although, alliteratively speaking, Janna and Jeremy sound good together, we don’t go together. Same planet, different worlds. But sometimes worlds collide and beautiful things happen, right?
      3. Monsters. Well, monsters wearing saint masks, like in Flannery O’Connor’s stories. Like the monster at my mosque. People think he’s holy, untouchable, but nobody has seen under the mask. Except me.

      Mini Review: Janna is angry and hurt, and wants everyone to know that the scumbag who assaulted her is their beloved star boy at the mosque. This is a great exploration of the mind of an assaulted woman, how many of us respond when violated in some way, especially those of us who have difficulty expressing what happened, convincing others of what happened, or trying to move on from what happened but can’t. The novel is character-driven to the core (the plot is entirely about exposing the truth), showing all sorts of dynamics within a family, a community, and among friends. Be forewarned, this may contain some triggers. Root for Janna; be on the side of justice.

      This qualifies as book 10 of 5 library books in 2017.

      Posted in books, Reviews 2017 | 0 Comments | Tagged books, genre: contemporary, genre: young adult, mini review, review
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    • Hello, I’m Laura!

      I'm a bookish bookworm and book hoarder. By day I'm a literary agent, and by night I'm forever rearranging my bookshelves. I could talk your ear off about Gothic literature, and in my past life people thought I'd become a professional musician. I have a fluffy black cat named Rossetti, I love to knit, tea is my drink of choice, British TV is the best, and I'm obsessed with popcorn. Welcome to Scribbles & Wanderlust! Grab your favorite hot beverage and let's chat books!
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