Tag: books

• Book Review: “Deliverance” by C.J. Redwine (ARC)

  Posted at 7:15 am by Laura, on August 12, 2014

  Deliverance by CJ Redwine 

  Publisher: Balzer + Bray 
  Publishing Date: August 26
  Genre: young adult, dystopian, post-apocalyptic, fantasy
  ISBN: 9780062117236
  Goodreads: —
  Rating: ★★★★

  Fighting through her pain and embracing the warrior she’s become, Rachel will do whatever it takes to escape her enemies’ clutches and join Logan in his fight. But when she learns a secret that changes everything, she realizes that escaping Ian and his tracker friends is no longer an option if she wants to save the people she loves. Instead, she’ll have to destroy Rowansmark from the inside out—if she can survive the journey through the Wasteland.

  Logan needs allies if he wants to thwart Rowansmark’s power grab and rescue Rachel. But securing allies will mean betraying his beliefs and enlisting the help of the man he hates more than anyone: Commander Jason Chase. Driven by his fierce love for Rachel and his determination to make their world safe, Logan may be just the weapon the city-states need to defeat the Cursed One.

  Rachel’s captured by Ian and Rowansmark trackers, and Logan’s imprisoned in Lankenshire. Though the two had hopes of forging alliances with other city-states together, their goal increases tenfold once they’re separated. Fighting desperately to find each other once more while struggling to survive political unrest, brutality, and the Wasteland takes its toll on the two young leaders of the destroyed Baalboden. They will fight to find each other  and end the lives of abusive leaders, or die trying.

  If you haven’t read the previous two books of this trilogy, Defiance and Deception, do so now. It’s my favorite dystopian trilogy by far, and this final book truly had my heart pounding the entire time. If I thought Logan and/or Rachel were about to die in the other books, it’s nothing compared to this one! I lived in constant fear!

  This was a fantastic closer to the trilogy. The characters have grown and developed so much across the journey, and watching their realization of this fact — facing death and embracing grief and accepting love — was incredibly beautiful. Rachel was always a stubborn fighter, but her world is no longer black and white, right and wrong. She understands the value of life and death, what it means to be a leader and protector. Logan, likewise, was always a bright inventor and cautious individual. He learned to think on his feet, to observe others and utilize their strengths for good. 

  Plotting out the attack and the war felt authentic. Granted, I don’t know much about strategy, but the elements they crew used to attack Rowansmark surprised me — in a good way. Redwine has this uncanny ability to keep you on your feet, to make you guess and second guess where she’s heading next. I never knew what was going to happen, and that’s what I find so wonderful about this trilogy. It’s complex, compelling, and brilliantly written.

  Thank you, Edelweiss, for providing this book from Balzer + Bray for review!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 0 Comments | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: dystopian, genre: fantasy, genre: post apocalyptic, genre: romance, genre: young adult, review

• Book Review: “Lola and the Boy Next Door” by Stephanie Perkins

  Posted at 10:56 am by Laura, on August 10, 2014

  Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins 

  Publisher: Speak
  Published: July 2013
  Genre: young adult, romance
  ISBN: 9780142422014
  Goodreads: 4
  Rating: ★★★★

  Lola Nolan is a budding costume designer, and for her, the more outrageous, sparkly, and fun the outfit, the better. And everything is pretty perfect in her life (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the negihborhood. When Cricket, a gifted inventor, steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

  Lola doesn’t wear clothes — she wears costumes. Fashion is a form of artistic expression, and Lola takes it very seriously. And although she’s a quirky San Francisco individual, she’s quite mature for her age and tries to persuades her fathers that her older rockstar boyfriend Max is perfect for her. But her world is shaken when long-time crush Cricket returns next door with his twin Olympic figure skater sister Calliope. The twins and Lola go way back, and she struggles to reconcile with the past and envision a different future.

  With her outrageous outfits and fun personality, Lola was an easy character to like. Her fathers were endearing and strong, and their belief that Max is too old for her seeps through the pages of the book. And while it sometimes made me feel old (I’m older than Max!), I would’ve had to agree with them. 17 and 23 is different from 23 and 29 — there’s that huge period in one’s life in the early twenties one needs to experience first. But apart from the age, I was okay with Max. Soon enough his true colors show, and I wanted to throttle Lola to make her see sense. She’s the friend you love and adore and hope never wanders down the wrong path.

  That said, Cricket was almost too perfect. He’s a very good guy, extremely smart and passionate, and most certainly the Good Boy Next Door. I liked him well enough, but there was something about his relationship with Lola that seemed a little forced too. Honestly, this may come from the fact I’m still on an Anna-and-Étienne high (having related to Anna so much), and couldn’t connect with this particular couple. But I still thoroughly enjoyed this book for what it was: another romance, in another wonderful city.

  Also, Anna and Étienne were central characters in this story as well. Not mentioned in passing, not forced into situations, but genuine secondary characters. Anna is Lola’s manager at the movie theater, so of course her boyfriend is always around. It is convenient though that he and Cricket both attend Berkeley. Even still, it was beautiful to watch those two from a third party observer.

  Isla and the Happily Ever After is out this week!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 2 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: romance, genre: young adult, goodreads, review

• Packing Tips From a Nomadic Book Hoarder

  Posted at 10:38 am by Laura, on August 7, 2014

  There’s been a bit of a silence on this blog. Two reasons for that: 1) I’ve moved (again), and 2) I’ve read many ARCs and those reviews are in the queue for you. But today’s post will focus on the first reason: my experience moving (again).

  Knowing there are hundreds of books at home sitting on shelves unread does not stop the compulsion to buy a book (or two or three) when I wander into a bookstore. You’d think that, after moving several times in my short life, I’d learn how to part with books and embrace the digital age. It’s very hard to part with books, it’s difficult to pack them, and it’s a pain to move them – but they’re like little children you love and care for. Book babies.

  I’d blame my issues on parting with books on Toy Story, because it made my generation believe inanimate objects had feelings, but we’ll just move on with the notion that I’m a crazy bookworm and leave it at that. It’s why I had to create a resolution to Read 5 Buy 1, because my compulsion to buy books was becoming outrageous.

  This compulsion was most noticeable when I had to pack ~500 books and move them from my shoebox Philly studio to my parents’ Midwestern home, where I’m temporarily staying. The moving truck was mostly packed with boxes of books. I thought I’d share with you my packing tips — the way packing books really works — for all my fellow book hoarders out there.

  

  Stare at your shelves in despair. You used to stare at them in wonder and bliss. Look at all the stories! The worlds! The characters! The adventures! But now, with the impending move…look at all the weight.

  I really did stare at them in despair.

  Sigh dejectedly and contemplate packing options. Should you pack in alphabetical order? By collection? By the size and weight of the books? By Read and To-Read? Should you pack all of them at once and resort to reading off your ereader the next few days, or should you pack all but a few just in case? And how in the world do you choose those select few?

  I separated by Read and To-Read, and then alphabetized.
  My collections (Austen, Bronte, Potter and Taylor) were separated out as well. 

  Pack in a frenzy. Don’t think, just do! Build those boxes! Place the books inside! Tape it up! Lift the box to stack in a corner! Un-tape the box because it’s too heavy! Take books out! Re-tape the box! Stack! Realize you’re going to need another 10 boxes! Repeat!

  Rossetti thought I was crazy.

  Label them. Nothing’s worse than opening a heavy box and finding that the book you’ve been eagerly anticipating putting on the shelf first is not, in fact, in that box but in a box that won’t be opened for another hour.

  This happened when I couldn’t find a few children’s books and the massive Potter book about the films. Frenzy!

  Pack the remaining items in your home. And find yet more books stowed away in your sock drawer, sitting in the pantry, buried in a bag. Sigh, pack, label, repeat.

  Every box was literally marked with “a few more books.”

  Employ friends to help lift the boxes on (and when you’ve moved, off) the truck. Cause that’s what friends are for! Your bookish friends are the best ones – they totally understand.

  Thank you, Barnes & Noble coworkers and alma mater’s English major friends!

  Unpack and nest like crazy. Those books will feel so unloved if you don’t unpack them first! Not your clothes, not your cookware, the books. And it doesn’t matter if you’ll be at that place for two weeks, a few months, or years — the books will always be unpacked first. Remember to flatten and save those already-labeled boxes!

  ~

  Have you had issues packing and moving books? How do you handle this undertaking?

  Posted in books, Update Post | 8 Comments | Tagged books, bookshelves, moving, packing, personal, tips

• Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Authors I Own the Most Books Of

  Posted at 8:24 am by Laura, on July 29, 2014

  Top Ten Tuesday, a concept started by The Broke and the Bookish, is a themed post that connects bloggers to bloggers, bloggers to readers, and readers to readers. Every Tuesday has a special topic, and this Tuesday is Top Ten Authors I Own the Most Books Of.

  (Oof, that may be grammatically incorrect, but I’ll ignore that for now.)

  

  *claps hands* All right! Let’s get started! First off, the
  Authors I Collected On Purpose!

  1. JK Rowling — Specifically the Harry Potter books. I have three full collections (half paperback/half hardcover of the US originals, the 15th anniversary edition, and the UK Signature Collection edition), plus the UK children’s edition of Book 1, UK adult edition of Book 3, and UK adult edition of Book 7. Plus Tales of Beedle the Bard and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. I do not have Casual Vacancy or her Robert Galbraith books, but I fully intend on reading them…eventually.

  2. Jane Austen — 7 of Pride and Prejudice, 7 of Northanger Abbey, 4 of Persuasion, 3 of Sense and Sensibility, 2 of Emma, and 2 of Mansfield Park. I also have a copy of Two Histories of England, which is a duo book with Charles Dickens.

  3. Charlotte Brontë — All bazillion copies of Jane Eyre. I’m not alone on this one.

  4. Emily Brontë — Another million copies of Wuthering Heights.

  5. Laini Taylor — I’m so in love with her Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy that I own multiple editions. There’s the US hardcover, UK paperbacks, and UK hardcovers. Still need to get the UK hardcover for the final book and later the paperback.

  And now for the
  Authors I Follow Religiously!

  6. Jodi Picoult — I own all but 5 of her books. The short of it is I own all of her courtroom books. She takes up the most space on my shelves.

  7. Kate Morton — Her four published books plus an ARC! My favorite book is House at Riverton, which was the second I’d read. Her latest, The Secret Keeper, is stellar.

  8. Tana French — AHHHHH I cannot begin to explain how much I love her psychological murder mysteries. Thank goodness for The Likeness. It haunts me to this day, and my copy is so worn!

  9. Shakespeare — I love the Folger Shakespeare Library editions and actively collect them — but only the ones I know I actually want to read. The comedies, the love stories, but not so much the historical ones. I’m beginning to wonder if I should include the historical kings plays, simply because I love The Hollow Crown (Tom Hiddleston is too perfect to be real) and want to read the original work.

  10. Cassandra Clare — The first three of The Mortal Instruments series (which is the way it was meant to be, coughcough) as well as the Infernal Devices hardcovers. ID, in my opinion, is the better of the two. Her writing improved, the storyline killed me, the setting and plot is so very Dickens I died over and over. Seriously. There are tear stains in my copy of Clockwork Princess.

  Honorable mentions include Sarah Dessen (4), Charles Dickens (4), and Gayle Forman (4).

  Edit 10 minutes later: CS Lewis’s Narnia series! How in the world did I forget that?! I’ve got the original paperback collection, a hardcover edition collection, and an all-in-one collection edition. Jeez. This is what happens when your books are all packed away for a big move.

  Posted in books, Top Ten Tuesday | 10 Comments | Tagged authors, book hoarding, books, top ten tuesday

• Book Review: “Secrets of the Lighthouse” by Santa Montefiore (ARC)

  Posted at 7:17 am by Laura, on July 29, 2014

  Secrets of the Lighthouse by Santa Montefiore 

  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Publishing Date: August 5
  Genre: fiction
  ISBN: 9781476735375
  Goodreads: —
  Rating: ★★★★

  Ellen Trawton is running away from it all – quite literally. She is due to get married to a man she doesn’t love, her job is dragging her down and her interfering mother is getting on her nerves. So she escapes to the one place she know her mother won’t follow her – to her aunt’s house in rural Ireland. Once there, she uncovers a dark family secret – and a future she never knew she might have.Meanwhile, Caitlin Macausland is mourning the future she can never have. She died tragically in what the village thinks is suspicious circumstances, and now she is stuck in a limbo, unable to move on.

  And between the two of them is an old lighthouse – the scene of so much tragedy. Can each woman find the peace she so desperately longs for? And can they find the way to live again?

  Overwhelmed with her mother’s expectations and a life she does not want to continue living, Ellen flees to Ireland in search of an aunt her mother rarely spoke of and whom Ellen has never met. Upon arrival, Ellen discovers a whole new family: uncles and cousins she never knew she had, her mother’s surprising history, a rough musician with whom she finds a kindred spirit, and a man burdened by a family secret and town gossip pertaining to his long-dead wife Caitlin. As Ellen begins to piece together her new life and discover her true self, a Pandora’s box of family history and Irish roots unravel.

  Montefiore likes to take her time in this novel. I’ve never read her before, but I want to read her now. Her language is lush, the descriptions stunning, the dialogue authentic, and the characters so fully fleshed — including the secondary characters. I fell in love with the landscape, and then I fell in love with Ellen’s transformation and liberation, and then I fell in love with her and Conor’s love. Everything was so deep and purposeful, and I was filled with a sense of longing to be there at that moment while I was reading (so much so I had to turn on my Irish playlist to satisfy myself!).

  I’m not sure what I could compare this to. It has that ghosts-torturing-from-the-beyond feel to it, reminding me of Wuthering Heights, but Caitlin and Conor’s relationship was nothing like that. She had something wrong with her, an ability to charm and quick to jealousy, much like borderline personality disorder. It was a tumultuous past that inflected Conor with guilt. But watching this dark man change into something light and wonderful around Ellen felt modern and true, realistic and beautiful. I couldn’t put this book down, and whether it was for the landscape or the story, I’m not sure. It’s worth reading and savoring.

  Thank you, Simon & Schuster, for providing this book for review!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 0 Comments | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: adult fiction, goodreads, review

• Calling for Book Recommendations: Russia and Legends

  Posted at 8:33 am by Laura, on July 28, 2014

  Over the past few days at work, I’ve eyed a few books that somewhat cover my interest in Russian history (particularly pre-Bolshevik, WWII, and Cold War) and Arthurian legend. Two vastly different topics, each with fascinating elements of history and culture.

  

  

  

  

  I spotted Lara’s Gift by Annamarie O’Brien, which is about breeding borzoi dogs in 1914. It’s a Middle Grade novel, and I know if I were younger it would’ve sparked my interest in Russian culture immediately. The Secret Daughter of the Tsar by Jennifer Laam was one I had hope for, but my disinterest in Russian royalty (although the Anastasia story is intriguing!) paired with a contemporary storyline weaving in detracted from that Russian feel. I’ve also read The Bronze Horseman trilogy by Paullina Simons, set in WWII Leningrad following two lovers who eventually split to the front and NYC, reunite, and continue their lives up to the present day. Last fall, I read The Boy on the Bridge by Natalie Standiford, a YA set in the Cold War, featuring a Russian boy with ambiguous intentions when an American girl falls in love with him.

  Recommendations: I will read Middle Grade up to Adult Fiction, preferably by a contemporary author (Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky will wait till the long winter months, but if you have a favorite of their’s, let me know!), and preferably not about royalty. This can span from three eras: early 1900s, WWII, and Cold War. Do you have any recommendations?

  Also, come on. Snow. If you don’t know me by now, you should know I love winter. Just look at those covers.

  

  

  

  

  

  If you’ve been following me on Twitter, you’ll remember I went through a huge Robin Hood and Merlin phase, watching the BBC shows and looking up historical information on whether or not these people were real, and if not then which individuals could they be based off of, etc. A friend of mine has already recommended Stephen Lawhead’s King Raven trilogy for Robin Hood (knowing my Hood interests are mostly of Celtic/early Anglo-Saxon origin and less on the actual thief), as well as Lawhead’s Pendragon Cycle series.

  I haven’t read Lawhead yet, nor have I read T.A. Barron’s Merlin Middle Grade series, Mary Stewart’s Arthurian Saga, or even the classic Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley. I kid you not, though, when I say these books haunt me in the store. I want to read them, but something is holding me back. Maybe you can provide that little push? (Don’t worry, I already own Once and Future King.)

  Recommendations: I will read Middle Grade up to Adult fiction on anything pertaining to King Arthur and Merlin. The more Celtic/Anglo-Saxon history thrown in there, the better. In my head it makes everything more authentic! Do you have any suggestions?

  Have you read any of these books? What did you think? Share your thoughts and recommendations!

  Posted in books, Update Post | 8 Comments | Tagged books, genre: adult fiction, genre: fantasy, genre: historical fiction, genre: middle grade, genre: young adult, King Arthur, legends, Merlin, recommendations, Russia, Russian history

• Book Review: “Anna and the French Kiss” by Stephanie Perkins

  Posted at 7:51 pm by Laura, on July 24, 2014

  Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins 

  Publisher: Speak 
  Published: August 2011
  Genre: young adult, romance, travel
  ISBN: 9780142419403
  Goodreads: 4.16
  Rating: ★★★★★

  Anna is happy in Atlanta. She has a loyal best friend and a crush on her coworker at the movie theater, who is just starting to return her affection. So she’s less than thrilled when her father decides to send her to a boarding school in Paris for her senior year. But despite not speaking a word of French, Anna meets some cool new people, including the handsome Étienne St. Clair, who quickly becomes her best friend. Unfortunately, he’s taken —and Anna might be, too.

  It’s not that Anna’s unhappy to be in Paris. She’s upset her parents didn’t give her a choice to go to boarding school, to leave her best friend and work crush. Besides, she can’t even speak French. But as the days pass, Anna begins to make friends, and rather rapidly becomes close with Étienne St. Clair, resident Beautiful Guy. No matter how hard she tries, she can’t stop her growing affections, even though she knows he’s not available at all.

  

  This book is so stinkin’ cute. I couldn’t stop giggling, I struggled to repress any squeals of giddiness, and I simply struggled to put this down. It’s adorable. It’s honest. Truly, think back on high school relationships (heck, even adult ones are like this!) when you were confused but excited — he likes me…he likes me not — about your crush. Tack on the fact he’s unavailable, your determination to keep this great friendship intact despite your awkwardness and feelings of blatant attraction, and you’ve got this book. Yes, it’s about a girl who studies abroad, who learns French, who goes to the cinema to watch and critique films for her blog, who obsessively cleans and straightens her surroundings, and who comes to terms with her father’s growing collection of cliché cancer romance books. But all of this is background to the actual story: her crush on St. Clair.

  

  His character is wonderful. He’s American by birth, but his British accent and impeccable French confuse Anna at first. He’s not your usual tall-and-gorgeous male lead. St. Clair likens himself to Napoleon Bonaparte, because he too is rather short, with crooked teeth and unkempt hair. He’s friendly with everyone, charming, intelligent, and artistic. Whether he’s being a friend, an almost-boyfriend, or boyfriend, St. Clair is remarkably observant and immensely loyal. I loved the moments when his British slang slipped out, and experiencing those cultural differences all over again was so much fun.

  St. Clair and Anna quickly become best friends. They’re lab partners, they share stories, they go to the movies together, he helps her order food in French, he gives her tours of the city, she helps him deal with his mother’s illness, she aids in confronting his controlling father — and everything about their relationship is filled with tension and mixed signals. Does he like her? Does he know she likes him? Why did he do this, say that? And why is Ellie still in the picture when it’s so very clear to the both of them that they’re more than friends?

  Oh my gosh. Anna’s basically my brain. Any girl’s brain. From the overanalyzing minute details, to basking in the absolute thrill of being the object of a guy’s affections for the briefest space of time, Anna and the French Kiss is just…sweet, young romance perfection. Perkins truly captured the whole journey of falling in love.

  In short, I want to read this again. Right now.

  I think I will.

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 3 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: romance, genre: travel, genre: young adult, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “The Major’s Daughter” by J.P. Francis (ARC)

  Posted at 9:55 am by Laura, on July 22, 2014

  The Major’s Daughter by J.P. Francis 

  Publisher: Plume
  Publishing Date: July 29
  Genre: historical fiction
  ISBN: 9780452298699
  Goodreads: —
  Rating: ★★★.5

  April, 1944.  The quiet rural village of Stark, New Hampshire is irrevocably changed by the arrival of 150 German prisoners of war.  And one family, unexpectedly divided, must choose between love and country.

  Camp Stark is under the command of Major John Brennan, whose beautiful daughter, Collie, will serve as translator. Educated at Smith and devoted to her widowed father, Collie is immediately drawn to Private August Wahrlich, a peaceful poet jaded by war. As international conflict looms on the home front, their passion blinds them to the inevitable dangers ahead.

  Very little is known about the POW camp set up in Stark, New Hampshire, in 1944. But it was there, and one can only imagine what sort of fascinations and wonders it induced. Under Major John Brennan, the German prisoners of war are sent out to work for the logging community, treated humanely despite everyone’s mistrust. Major Brennan’s daughter, Collie, serves as his translator and assistant, which brings her close to another translator and POW, Austrian Private August Wahrlich. The attraction is instantaneous, and noticed by all at the camp, but both know that nothing could come from it, nothing could be built on unsteady ground of war. But as the months pass, as Collie watches her friends change and August’s hope for a return to his family diminishes, the lovers consider a future together despite all costs.

  This slow and quiet novel was quite beautiful. The reader follows all sorts of characters, not just Collie and August. We’re privy to Collie’s best friend Estelle’s mind and heart, the difficult decisions she makes regarding her future. We follow the rich brothers Amos and Henry, how vastly different they are from one another, with different dreams and ambitions. We track Major Brennan and his dedication to running a smooth, cooperative camp. Everyone’s story interweaves with another, ultimately colliding in the end’s momentous flight.

  Collie and August’s love is pure. He’s poetic, artistic, and very much a dreamer. He shows us that not all German soldiers are Nazis — there’s a different between fighting with the Germans (enlisted and drafted from Austria and other countries overtaken by Germany) and being a member of the political party. He is kind and open-hearted, a gentleman and a boy, with no ulterior motives. It’s sweet. Collie is an educated young woman, who fights hard to suppress her growing affection. She struggles to maintain that her feelings are simply a little crush, but when she gives in, her fall is great.

  Nothing about this book felt rushed. In fact, everything about it was smooth, enchanting, romantic, and quite authentic. For anyone in need of a deep, powerful historical romance that really does consider the weight of war, this is most certainly the book to read.

  Thank you, Penguin, for providing this book for review!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 3 Comments | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: adult fiction, genre: historical fiction, genre: romance, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “The Book of Life” by Deborah Harkness

  Posted at 7:42 pm by Laura, on July 19, 2014

  The Book of Life by Deborah Harkness 

  Publisher: Viking
  Published: July 15, 2014
  Genre: fiction, fantasy
  ISBN: 9780670025596
  Goodreads: 4.39
  Rating: ★★★★★

  Historian and witch Diana Bishop and vampire scientist Matthew Clairmont return to the present to face new crises and old enemies. At Matthew’s ancestral home at Sept-Tours, they reunite with the cast of characters from A Discovery of Witches—with one significant exception. But the real threat to their future has yet to be revealed, and when it is, the search for Ashmole 782 and its missing pages takes on even more urgency. In the trilogy’s final volume, Harkness deepens her themes of power and passion, family and caring, past deeds and their present consequences. In ancestral homes and university laboratories, using ancient knowledge and modern science, from the hills of the Auvergne to the palaces of Venice and beyond, the couple at last learn what the witches discovered so many centuries ago.

  One of three missing pages from Ashmole 782 is in Diana and Matthew’s possession. After the news of Diana’s pregnancy takes hold on the de Clermont family, the politics of the covenant and Congregation, the secrets inside the manuscript, Diana’s growing power and purpose, and Matthew’s blood rage and past guilts become more pressing than ever. From the laboratories at Yale to the many homes of Europe, from Diana’s childhood home to a deserted concentration camp in Poland, Diana and Matthew must face the world together and fight for the love, family, and future.

  

  Once again, I’m stunned by Harkness’s brilliance. She somehow managed to write a stunning, scholarly, thrilling ending to this trilogy — all while continuing to career as a professor and academic. Wow. I bow to her. I am Fernando to her Diana.

  Like A Discovery of Witches and Shadow of Night, The Book of Life is filled with academic jargon across all disciplines and fields, making this reviewer long once more to be locked in a library and researching just for the sake of researching (and the hot beverages and tweed and autumn leaves and cozy warmth…I digress). Everything from modern science and DNA coding to history and art helps piece together the giant puzzle that is the connection between vampires, witches, daemons, and humans. This book could also be described as one giant family reunion, one crisis after another around every page turn. Characters from the previous books crop up and play their role, some of them more crucial than before. My heart swelled for Gallowglass, to name just one character in many.

  What’s fantastic about these characters and their secrets are how all their stories are truly interwoven, without many of them realizing it. It makes the world feel more authentic. Even more so, it humanizes these creatures — many of whom (particularly one of Matthew’s disowned offspring who is the main villain of this book) remind us that the horrors we read in books do, in fact, happen to people every day.

  Book One focused on discoveries, particularly on an all-consuming love. Book Two focused on accepting one’s identity, and the growing love between Matthew and Diana, and how the boundaries changed in that relationship. This book particularly tested them — as partners, as lovers, as mates, as parents, as creatures — and while all was not rosy, it was never without love. So beautiful. I thoroughly enjoyed watching them grow together. I’m sad to see the trilogy end, as I’d love to know what happens (to every character), but that’s the joy of imagination: I can think of their futures in my head and believe it to be true.

  Intelligent and exciting, the All Souls trilogy is not one to be missed.

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 4 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: adult fiction, genre: fantasy, genre: fiction, genre: history, genre: romance, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “The Fortune Hunter” by Daisy Goodwin (ARC)

  Posted at 9:15 am by Laura, on July 15, 2014

  The Fortune Hunter by Daisy Goodwin 

  Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
  Publishing Date: July 29
  Genre: historical fiction
  ISBN: 9781250043894
  Goodreads: —
  Rating: ★★★★

  In 1875, Sisi, the Empress of Austria, is the woman that every man desires and every woman envies.

  Beautiful, athletic and intelligent, Sisi has everything – except happiness. Bored with the stultifying etiquette of the Hapsburg Court and her dutiful but unexciting husband, Franz Joseph, Sisi comes to England to hunt. She comes looking for excitement and she finds it in the dashing form of Captain Bay Middleton, the only man in Europe who can outride her. Ten years younger than her and engaged to the rich and devoted Charlotte, Bay has everything to lose by falling for a woman who can never be his. But Bay and the Empress are as reckless as each other, and their mutual attraction is a force that cannot be denied.

  Meet Charlotte Baird, a young heiress with a dislike of snobbery and a passion for photography. Enter Bay Middleton, a calvary captain who notices and flatters Charlotte and her family, while still stubbornly maintaining his “lower” position as a pilot during hunting season. Chaos ensues not when Charlotte hears of Bay’s past philandering ways, but when Sisi, the Empress of Austria, visits England to experience the English hunt. Rumored to be the most beautiful woman of Europe, Sisi captures every man’s attention and feeds the fire of gossip among the women. Charlotte is eager to take a photo of the Empress for her portfolio, but after one glance at the finished result, her trust in Bay begins to waver.

  Though the book comes across as a character study on Sisi, there’s an equal balance of attention given to Sisi, Bay, and Charlotte, whose lives were indeed intertwined in history. Charlotte is wealthy but leans toward the liberal, modern woman. She’s quirky and fun, focused on artistry rather than class distinctions and the upcoming season — to her future sister-in-law’s dismay. Bay is a womanizer, but there’s something about his character that switches and softens with Charlotte, leaving you wondering if he’s truly loyal to her up to the very end. Finally there’s Sisi, who truly was a beautiful woman with very strange habits in maintaining beauty. She led an interesting life, and much of what happened to her — or, in this case in the book, will happen to her — is reflected and hinted toward in Goodwin’s novel. Absolutely fascinating. If you ever get the chance to research her or the Hapsburg history, you’ll understand what I mean. She’s a poster girl for the future standard of female beauty and the media.

  Like all great historical fiction, this book took it’s time in unfolding the plot. The drama is slow and low — it’s intriguing, layered, and watching the story come to life is the most fascinating process. Not only are the characters interesting, but the history and social class politics and trinkets at the time, too! For example: photography. The time it takes for a photo to be shot and later developed, the ways in which photography was viewed by various people across the classes, the great things people could do to manipulate their photos. So exciting! And though I’m not much of a horse person, the hunting scenes were thrilling and wonderful — and the race at the end! Phew. Even English cultural norms for the time were compared to that in Vienna when Sisi’s chapters were showcased.

  Well done. A great read for hist-fic readers interested in a particular time in English and Hapsburg history.

  Thank you, Edelweiss, for providing this book from St. Martin’s Press for review!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 8 Comments | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: historical fiction, goodreads, 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 travel, tea is my drink of choice, British TV is the best, and I'm always down for chips-and-queso nights. Welcome to Scribbles & Wanderlust! Grab your favorite hot beverage and let's chat books!

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