women’s fiction – Page 4

Goodbye, Paris by Anstey Harris

Title: Goodbye, Paris
Author: Anstey Harris
Pub. Date: 7-Aug-2018
Rating: 4 Stars

Goodbye, Paris by Anstey Harris is my Book of the Month (BOTM) pick for August. As part of my reading challenge for myself I am to read my BOTM each month. While I did read my pick this month, other months I have not been as successful. That aside…

What drew me to this book, from among the choices available, is the idea that this young women, Grace, is having an affair with a married man and waiting for him to leave his wife. I could just see all the possibilities in my head and I knew this was not going to turn out well. Therefore, before I even started reading I wanted to shake some sense into her. So needless to say, I hooked before I even opened the book to read the first page.

Well, I was right, things were not what they seemed in Grace’s world. When her lover, David, becomes the media darling for saving a pregnant women’s life in Paris, their years of careful secrecy are laid open for the world to see. The fallout of this event forces Grace to look at her life in a new light and she is shattered.

The man she thought she knew so well does not really exist. She has put him on a pedestal and now that pedestal has fallen over and left her only the broken truth. It is a fortunate thing for Grace that she has a couple of allies on her side. With their help she will have to remake her business, herself and her life.

This is a wonderful debut novel for the author. She obviously wrote this story with a lot of empathy. She made a character that you could not help but like even though there were times you want to shake her to make her see the truth of the situation she has created for herself. It is obvious to everyone, except Grace, that “DISASTER” is written all over this affair.

The plot moved along nicely and there were surprises along the way to keep me interested. The only negative for me was the ending. I think she recovered from the affair much faster than is possible. I do not want to give anything away here, but I will say that Grace needed longer to mourn her loses.

This would make a great beach read. I also recommend this as a book club choice. There are lots of topics that would make for great discussion.

The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton

Title: The Clockmaker’s Daughter
Author: Kate Morton
Pub. Date: 9-Oct-2018
Rating: 4 Stars

The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton is a historical fiction story that centers on a murder that occurred in the summer of 1862 at Birchwood Manor. There are multiple narrators, each has a connection to Birchwood and they all play their part in the history of Birchwood, thus making the house, as much as the murder, the focus of the story.

In 1862 Birchwood Manor, sitting on the banks of the Thames, is owned by Edward Radcliff, an artist with exceptional talent. He is the founding member of the Magenta Brotherhood a group of London artists who are eccentric and whose works are considered ground breaking. He invites the members of the Brotherhood to come stay at Birchwood that summer to create and be inspired. Unfortunately, before the summer is over Edward’s fiancée is murdered and his muse Lily Millington has disappeared along with the Radcliff Blue a unique and highly valuable diamond. The police discover that Lily was a thief from early childhood and it is believed she and the diamond made a swift exit to America. However, the diamond has never turned up again in over 100 years. Which leads one to ask, what really happened that summer? Continue reading “The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton”

Author Theasa Tuohy’s thoughts on writing her latest novel

Title: Flying Jenny
Pub. Date: 1-May-2018

Just like reading a book, writing one is an adventure for me. I don’t work from an outline, as many writers do, so I just go for the ride to find out what’s going to happen. Sometimes I speed along writing at a fast clip, other times I spend ages searching for the right word or diddling with a sentence or paragraph. Since my novels are historical, I also do a tremendous amount of research, which in some ways is as much fun as the writing. It’s all about finding out = what has happened or what’s going to happen. Continue reading “Author Theasa Tuohy’s thoughts on writing her latest novel”

The Paris Wedding by Charlotte Nash

Title: The Paris Wedding
Author: Charlotte Nash
Pub. Date: 12/Jun-2018
Rating: 4 Stars

After reading the blurb, I thought The Paris Wedding by Charlotte Nash would be about the main character, Rachael, putting her past behind her and finding love in Paris. In other words, a beach read that is heavy on the romance. Boy was I wrong. It is really about a young woman finding her place in the world.

Rachael West has been caring for her mother for the past ten years, ever since she was diagnosed with a rare form of MS. Rachael has sacrificed going to college, a career and her first love, all to care for and watch as her mother slowly succumbs to the disease. Just after her Mother has passed away, she receives a wedding invitation to Matthew’s, her high school sweetheart, wedding. He is marrying Bonnie Quinn, the daughter of a billionaire and the wedding is in Paris with all expenses paid. Continue reading “The Paris Wedding by Charlotte Nash”

My Name Is Venus Black by Heather Lloyd

Title: My Name Is Venus Black
Author: Heather Lloyd
Pub. Date: 27-Feb-2018
Rating: 4 Stars

My Name Is Venus Black by Heather Lloyd is a thought provoking story of how a young girl commits a horrible crime and yet in so many ways is innocent. The story is told from two points of view. First and foremost Venus and then secondary by Tessa. At the heart, the story is about family, love and forgiveness.

Venus Black is just thirteen when she is convicted of killing her stepfather. She escapes being tried as an adult – barely. She is sent to a juvenile correction facility to serve her six year sentence. Her brother Leo, a high functioning, autistic child, is kidnapped just days after the crime. He is never found. Once Venus serves her time and is released, she wants two things. First, to start over with a new identity. Second, to find her brother. Continue reading “My Name Is Venus Black by Heather Lloyd”

As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner

Title: As Bright as Heaven
Author: Susan Meissner
Pub. Date: 6-Feb-2018
Rating: 4 Stars

As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner is a poignant story about a young family who moves from a small town in Pennsylvania to Philadelphia to begin a new, and hopefully better, life after the death of their youngest child. The story is told from four points of view, Pauline Bright and her three daughters, Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa.

When Thomas Bright’s Uncle, a permanent bachelor, asks him to move to Philadelphia to learn and take over his funeral pallor business, Tom sees it as a chance to lift his family out of poverty. With much hope, the family relocates and starts their new life. As everyone settles in to their new home in Philadelphia, the Great War in Europe is raging and the United States enters the conflict and Tom is called to serve his country. Not long after, the Spanish Flu makes it way to North America and to the city the Bright’s now call home. Continue reading “As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner”

Keturah by Lisa Tawn Bergren

Title: Keturah
Author: Lisa Tawn Bergren
Pub. Date: 6-Feb-2018
Rating: 4 Stars

I am not big on sappy romance, but love historical romance when the history has an important presence in the story. This is exactly what I got with Keturah by Lisa Tawn Bergren, a beautifully written historical romance about women of strength in the 18^th century.

Lady Keturah Tomlinson, a recent widow, and the oldest of Lord Banning’s three girls, has just received word of her father’s passing, on the Caribbean island of Nevis, where he was overseeing the running of the sugar plantation, Table Top, which provides the wealth for his family. She soon learns that the plantation’s sugar crop has been declining in recent years and that her father has mortgaged the plantation, as well as her family home in England, on a gamble to revive it. If she wishes to save all she has ever known, and provide for her sisters, she must get to Nevis, hire an overseer, and get the next harvest is the ground as quickly as possible. It may sound simple, but for a woman in the 18^th century practically impossible. Continue reading “Keturah by Lisa Tawn Bergren”

The Girl in Times Square by Paullina Simons

Title: The Girl in Times Square
Author: Paullina Simons
Pub. Date: 30-Jun-2004
Rating: 4.7 Stars

I am so in love with Paullina Simons’s writing. She captured me with The Bronze Horseman, and I have been a fan ever since. The Girl in Times Square just solidifies my admiration of her work. It is one of the most heart wrenching stories I have read.

Lily Quinn is twenty-four and still in college since she lacks a few credits to graduate. Lily just can’t seem to get her life together. Her boyfriend has moved out of their tiny apartment she shares with her friend Amy and now she has to pay his portion of rent. She can barely afford her share. Feeling like she is drifting, she lets her grandmother talk her into visiting her mother in Hawaii. Continue reading “The Girl in Times Square by Paullina Simons”

The Resurrection of Joan Ashby by Cherise Wolas

Title: The Resurrection of Joan Ashby
Author: Cherise Wolas
Pub. Date: 29-Aug-2017
Rating: 3 Stars

After reading reviews of The Resurrection of Joan Ashby by Cherise Wolas, I was so excited to get an ARC. Once I started reading that excitement turned to disappointment. I found it verbose and agonizing slow. It actually took me three tries before I could finish.

Joan Ashby is a young and up-and-coming writer. Her first two books, collections of short stories, have already secured her a place in the literary world. She is working on her first novel and is excepting to become the next great American novelist. She has sworn off relationships, love and marriage as well as vowed to never have children in order to focus on her writing. That is until she meets Martin and falls in love. She discovers that marriage and writing do not have to be mutually exclusive. Continue reading “The Resurrection of Joan Ashby by Cherise Wolas”

The Art of Hiding by Amanda Prowse

Title: The Art of Hiding
Author: Amanda Prowse
Pub. Date: 18-Jul-2017
Rating: 4 Stars

The Art of Hiding by Amanda Prowse is the story of how one family dealt with the devastating double whammy of losing a loved one and financial security in one fail swoop; therefore, a reverse rages to riches tale. The story is intended to remind us that family is the most important thing in our lives and we can live, rich fulfilling lives, without the “stuff” that so many individuals focus their attention and hard earned money on acquiring.

Nina McCarrick has the perfect life. Two wonderful boys, a loving husband, big house, fancy car and all the trappings that go with the wealth that her husband’s successful business allows. Yet, behind the beautiful manured lawn lies secrets that will destroy all of this and reduce it to ash as sure as any conflagration. Continue reading “The Art of Hiding by Amanda Prowse”