Fawkes by Nadine Brandes | Review

Title: Fawkes
Author: Nadine Brandes
Pages: 448
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Goodreads Rating: 4.03 stars
Published: July 10th, 2018
Source: Hardcover/bought

Description:

Thomas Fawkes is turning to stone, and the only cure to the Stone Plague is to join his father’s plot to assassinate the king of England.

Silent wars leave the most carnage. The wars that are never declared, but are carried out in dark alleys with masks and hidden knives. Wars where color power alters the natural rhythm of 17th century London. And when the king calls for peace, no one listens until he finally calls for death.

But what if death finds him first?

Keepers think the Igniters caused the plague. Igniters think the Keepers did. But all Thomas knows is that the Stone Plague infecting his eye is spreading. And if he doesn’t do something soon, he’ll be a lifeless statue. So when his Keeper father, Guy Fawkes, invites him to join the Gunpowder Plot—claiming it will put an end to the plague—Thomas is in.

The plan: use 36 barrels of gunpowder to blow up the Igniter King.

The problem: Doing so will destroy the family of the girl Thomas loves. But backing out of the plot will send his father and the other plotters to the gallows. To save one, Thomas will lose the other.

No matter Thomas’s choice, one thing is clear: once the decision is made and the color masks have been put on, there’s no turning back. 


My Thoughts: 

Historical fiction is my first love.  And historical fiction with some fantastical, magical elements is quite possibly my first love, returned and looking like something I could have never imagined.  You know when you see a character in a movie reminiscing about their first love from childhood, and suddenly that person shows up and its like WHOA, this person is more than they could have even dreamed of!

Nadine Brandes is a word wizard, and her novel Fawkes is a spell she's cast over all of us lucky enough to read it.  I love how she takes things from history, twists them up so tightly and perfectly with her fictional world, and presents them in the bindings of this book.  While I have her Out Of Time trilogy, this is actually the first book of hers I've read.  I plan on rectifying that soon.

Thomas Fawkes is such a complex character with so many things going against him... but one thing that ends up being the best thing for him {don't worry, no spoilers as to what that is!}.  Thomas does all he can think to do to help rid himself of the Stone Plague and get his color power.  He befriends an Igniter, and slowly starts to question everything he's known was true and right.

I love the Lutheran twist this story takes with the color powers.  I don't want to give too much away, but its fun to read through and know some of the history that Nadine ties in with her magical fantasy.

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken | Review

Title: Passenger
Author: Alexandra Bracken
Pages: 486
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Goodreads rating: 3.88 Stars
Published:  January 5, 2016
Source: Audiobook/Library, as well as Hardcover/bought

Description

Passage, n.
i. A brief section of music composed of a series of notes and flourishes.
ii. A journey by water; a voyage.
iii. The transition from one place to another, across space and time.

In one devastating night, violin prodigy Etta Spencer loses everything she knows and loves. Thrust into an unfamiliar world by a stranger with a dangerous agenda, Etta is certain of only one thing: she has traveled not just miles but years from home. And she’s inherited a legacy she knows nothing about from a family whose existence she’s never heard of. Until now.

Nicholas Carter is content with his life at sea, free from the Ironwoods—a powerful family in the colonies—and the servitude he’s known at their hands. But with the arrival of an unusual passenger on his ship comes the insistent pull of the past that he can’t escape and the family that won’t let him go so easily. Now the Ironwoods are searching for a stolen object of untold value, one they believe only Etta, Nicholas’ passenger, can find. In order to protect her, he must ensure she brings it back to them—whether she wants to or not.

Together, Etta and Nicholas embark on a perilous journey across centuries and continents, piecing together clues left behind by the traveler who will do anything to keep the object out of the Ironwoods’ grasp. But as they get closer to the truth of their search, and the deadly game the Ironwoods are playing, treacherous forces threaten to separate Etta not only from Nicholas but from her path home... forever.

My Thoughts

I mostly listened to the audiobook for this one, just reading the few times I curled up in bed with it.  So I had a difficult time getting into it because of the narrator's voice {very gravely/rough, and I was picturing something much different for a young girl, especially one musically inclined}.

Etta is very interesting.  She comes across a little naive and at the same time very stubborn.  She is comstantly saying how she can take care of herself, but then turns to Nicholas.  While I'm all for the damsel in distress or the heroine who can hold her own, Etta as a character seemed a little confused as to which one she wanted to be.  Or maybe she just thought she wanted to be the latter and kept finding herself in situations that made her more of the former {being tossed out of one's time period and landing in the middle of an ocean centeries apart could do that to anyone}.  Thankfully, Nicholas is there for her in both situations {usually}, so she can be either one she chooses.

Nicholas himself is used to time travel and moving between passages of time much more than Etta {she just discovered it when she walked through one with another girl}.  While Etta was completely ignorant of her ability to travel through various portals and passages to different times and places, Nicholas had been trained to do so.  He's there to navigate and show Etta how it's done while they're on a quest looking for a missing item the master of the time travelers wants.

The book took a couple unexpected turns, and the ending had me literally exclaiming "what? No!" very loudly in bed {thankfully my husband wasn't asleep yet}.  I have really enjoyed Alexandra Bracken's writing, and I get sucked into the worlds she creates each time {despite narrators with gravely voices}. I would definitely suggest picking this one up and giving it a go... or maybe just wait until next year, so you're not torturing yourself in anticipation for the next book like I am now!

Whip Smart: Lola Montez Conquers the Spaniards by Kit Brennan | Review

Title: Whip Smart: Lola Montez Conquers the Spaniards
Author: Kit Brennan
Pages: 274
Publisher: Astor + Blue Editions LLC
Goodreads rating: 3.18 stars
Published: January 1, 2013
Source: eBook/From publisher for review

Description:

A wild and sexy romp through history based on the real-life adventures of the audacious Lola Montez. It is 1842, London, and the gorgeous, ever-capricious 22-year-old Eliza Gilbert, (aka Lola Montez) is in deep trouble and seeks escape from a divorce trial. Desperate to be free, Lola accepts an alluring offer of a paid trip to Spain, if she will only fulfill a few tasks for Juan de Grimaldi—a Spanish theatre impresario who is also a government agent and spy for the exiled Spanish queen, Maria Cristina. Lola soon finds herself in Madrid, undercover as a performer in a musical play. But when she falls dangerously in love with the target, General Diego de Léon, Lola becomes a double agent and the two hatch a plot of their own. Disaster strikes when the plot is exposed, Diego is captured, and Lola is forced to flee on horseback to France, with a dangerous group of Loyalists in hot pursuit.


First off, the cover had me believing this was going to just be some little "bodice ripper", but it wasn't, and that actually made it better.  While this isn't quite what I was expecting, and pretty far from what I'm used to reading {definitely not YA or paranormal, ha ha!}, it was a very interesting read!  Well written with enough to keep me guessing until the very end, this is definitely a book I would recommend to others who enjoy this genre {historical fiction lace with intrigue, politics, romance, "sexy bits" and a touch of humor}.

Lola Montez {who is actually referred to by her given name, Eliza Rosana Gilbert, through most the book} was actually a honest-to-goodness real historical person.  I didn't realize this until I was looking up the image for this review {did that prior to reading the book}!  There was some "lost time" in her life, where no one really knows what happened to her or what she did.  And this tale is what could have happened to Eliza, AKA Lola.

Like quite a few good books, this begins in the end.  We find Eliza as Lola, being questioned by the police.  Is it because of her divorce?  Did something happen to her ex-husband?  Or one of her past lovers, who'd supported her financially while she was their "kept woman"?  It wasn't until getting a little further into the book that I realized it was more than I thought.

While I'm generally not a fan of politically inclined fiction, I'll let that slide with this story.  It was a bit heavy on the politics, but it was so well woven into the story that it didn't really bother me at all.  I mean, the whole story revolved around politics, but it didn't really feel that way.  I would almost liken it to a Phillipa Gregory novel {only I tend to like the medieval times a wee bit better than the mid-19th century}.

All in all, an enjoyable read!

 

Cavendon Hall by Barbara Taylor Bradford | Review

Title: Cavendon Hall
Author: Barbara Taylor Bradford
Pages: 416
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Goodreads rating: 3.42 stars
Published: April 1, 2014
Source: Hardcover/Goodreads giveaway

Description:

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author comes an epic saga of intrigue and mystique set in Edwardian England. Cavendon Hall is home to two families, the aristocratic Inghams and the Swanns who serve them. Charles Ingham, the sixth Earl of Mowbray, lives there with his wife Felicity and their six children. Walter Swann, the premier male of the Swann family, is valet to the earl. His wife Alice, a clever seamstress who is in charge of the countess's wardrobe, also makes clothes for the four daughters. For centuries, these two families have lived side-by-side, beneath the backdrop of the imposing Yorkshire manor. Lady Daphne, the most beautiful of the Earl’s daughters, is about to be presented at court when a devastating event changes her life and threatens the Ingham name. With World War I looming, both families will find themselves tested in ways they never thought possible. Loyalties will be challenged and betrayals will be set into motion. In this time of uncertainty, one thing is sure: these two families will never be the same again. Cavendon Hall is Barbara Taylor Bradford at her very best, and its sweeping story of secrets, love, honor, and betrayal will have readers riveted up to the very last page.


Cavendon Hall was kind of surprising.  Some elements of the story I was expecting, but others were quite a shock.  I have to admit, at first this was a little hard for me to get into, but, thankfully, that only lasted for the first 40 pages, although it was a little scattered towards the end and hastily concluded {Miles... Cecily... Delacy... ugh...}.  But I really did enjoy the middle of the book!

While the description says it follows the families and makes it sound like the book is about all of them, it more closely follows Daphne Ingham and the "life changes" she faces towards the beginning of the book.  Those changes effect not just her and her family, but the Swanns as well {who are basically like lower class extended family members - even the daughter of Walter and Alice Swann, Cecily, regularly has tea with the Inghams}, and this book shows how they all handle it and the repercussions that come along like ripples in a lake. 

The characters were loveable and written well, but they just seemed to be... lacking.  Then I figured out what it was - the author writes a LOT of over-explanations and reiterations.  It was a little annoying when they were repeating each other or explaining exactly what they were thinking or referring to, especially when it was about very obvious or trifling things.  Since I've studied WWI several times, I knew quite a bit about it, so having it all not only stated, but repeated sometimes directly after from another character, is a bit frustrating {which would be good for someone reading who doesn't know the history of WWI or that time period, but, again, they would not need all the reiterations}.

Some of the subjects in this were more adult, and all of it was written in a direct way.  It was actually a little awkward reading some of it, because I felt like such a voyeur, spying on these peoples' lives.  Which is weird, because I honestly can't recall a time I felt like that when reading a book.

Overall, I finished this with mixed feelings.  Like I said, it was a little hard to get into, plus the repetition and the hasty conclusion... even that being said, I still enjoyed a good portion of the book.  It was a fun read.

My first giveaway!

Yes, it's true!  I'm doing my very first giveaway on this blog!  I will be having a couple more in a few weeks as well, and those will be slightly more YA than this one.  I definitely wouldn't consider the Outlander series YA, but I also don't think its too freakishly adult themed {so far}... at least not in the way a lot of Adult books {or even some New Adult books} are.  What could you win, you'd like to know?  Why, the first two lovely books in the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon!  And, at the moment, its pretty darn hard to find the first Outlander book in used bookstores {I generally shop used books since they're cheaper and I'm a stay-at-home-mom}.  I digress... to the giveaway!

 

One lucky reader will be winning these two beauties.  Guys, they're ah-maz-ing!  I put off reading these for a while because I was a little nervous about reading an almost 900 page book, plus I usually read YA paranormal or fantasy {although I do have a soft spot for historical fiction}... so Outlander seemed like something I generally wouldn't get hooked on, but I was so incredibly wrong!

So what do you need to know about this giveaway?  Well, here are the rules:

• One person will win the first two Outlander books.  And possibly some swag {Pocket Jamie, anyone?}
• I will be checking all the entries.  If you say you commented, and I don't see a blog comment, your entry will be invalid.  Ditto with Twitter posts and following via twitter.  If I can't verify it, that entry is invalid.
• This is open to US readers only.  Sorry, guys, not international, because I really don't have the money to do that!
• The winner will be contacted via email and will have 24 hours to respond. If I don't hear back within that time frame, a new winner will be chosen.
• Must be 18 or older to enter {these are technically adult books, so I think it would be good if you were an adult, eh?}
• By entering this giveaway, you're agreeing to the terms/rules listed above.

Now, all you have to do is use the Rafflecopter form below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck everyone! I can't wait to see who I get to share these with!

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon | Review & Giveaway!

Title: Outlander
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Pages: 870
Publisher: Dell
Goodreads rating: 4.13 stars
Published: January 1, 1991
Source:Paperback/Bought, Audiobook/Borrowed

Description:

The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon--when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach--an "outlander"--in a Scotland torn by war and raiding Highland clans in the year of Our Lord...1743.

Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into intrigues and dangers that may threaten her life...and shatter her heart. For here she meets James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire...and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.


Before I get started on the review, I just want to that YES, this is a giveaway on my blog!! The very first! I'll be doing a separate post for the giveaway, but it will be posted right after posting this review!

I think I may have been avoiding all the good books the last few years.  This is my year of awesome book discoveries.  Diana Gabaldon is a fantastic writer, and my only regret with this book is that I didn't pick it up sooner!

Outlander follows the story of Claire Beauchamp Randall, a 27-year-old English woman, at the end of World War II.  It starts with her firmly 1945, with her husband Frank Randall, finally being able to spend time together after being separated most their marriage due to the War.  We get a good description of Claire and Frank's relationship {getting to know each other again after so much time apart}.  Not too long into the story, Claire finds herself suddenly transported to 1743 Scotland after touching one of the standing stones in Craigh na Dun {a fairy ring}.  One of the very first people she runs into is her husband's direct ancestor, Jack Randall, and what the run in!  From there on out, the story really builds.  Diana Gabaldon's writing is so descriptive you will get transported by Claire's side, fall in love with {and be terrified of} 18th century Scotland and her countrymen.

I know a lot of people have issues with Claire being married when she's still technically married to Frank.  Because her husband isn't even alive in 1743 and she marries to save herself from a fate worse than death {seriously}, it seems to be a bit of a gray area to me.  Yes, she begins to fall in love with Jamie, but put yourself in her shoes!  She was offered to marry someone when she had nothing to her name, and with that offer of marriage came the protection against those who sought her to do her harm.  She has no way to get back home, as she's watched like a hawk from all the Scottish clansmen of her new husband.

If I say much else, I'll be giving away the story, so I'll stop there.  But, you guys, you really should read this!  And, if you don't want to go out and find your own copy, you can enter my giveaway for a chance to win the first two books!

Have you read the Outlander series?  What did you think of the first book?

Endless by Amanda Gray | Review

Title: Endless
Author: Amanda Gray
Pages: 384
Publisher: Month9Books, LLC
Goodreads rating: 3.58 stars
Published: September 10, 2013
Source: eBook/NetGalley for review

Description:

Jenny Kramer knows she isn't normal. After all, not everybody can see the past lives of people around them.

When she befriends Ben Daulton, resident new boy, the pair stumble on an old music box with instructions for “mesmerization” and discover they may have more in common than they thought. Like a past life.

Using the instructions in the music box, Ben and Jenny share a dream that transports them to Romanov Russia and leads them to believe they have been there together before. But they weren't alone. Nikolai, the mysterious young man Jenny has been seeing in her own dreams was there, too. When Nikolai appears next door, Jenny is forced to acknowledge that he has travelled through time and space to find her. Doing so means he has defied the laws of time, and the Order, an ominous organization tasked with keeping people in the correct time, is determined to send him back.

While Ben, Jenny and Nikolai race against the clock - and the Order - Jenny and Nikolai discover a link that joins them in life - and beyond death


I am a sucker for most anything Romanov, especially fiction revolving around the last royal family of Imperial Russia.  That combined with the paranormal had me wanting to read this!  {Plus, did you take a good look at that cover?  So pretty!}  I feel awful that its taken me so long to read this!  It was a little difficult to get into, and I'll admit the whole Ouija board thing in the beginning kind of freaked me out.  There are certain paranormal things that give me chills up and down my spine, and that is one of them.

The characters were interesting, but I feel like the author was trying to convince me as a reader too much in the genuineness of the main character Jenny's interest in/and timeless love for a man who is essentially a complete stranger whom she's had visions about for a couple weeks. Also, I think she tried to do a love triangle... but I can't be certain. It seemed like the makings were there, but it just fizzled out before anything came of it. 

Quite a few things in this book kind if just fizzled out before being made into something. Or they were presented in a way that the reader just had to accept {the whole soul mates thing and Jenny being madly, deeply in love with Nikolai after just meeting him and having a couple dreams with him in them}. It just did not seem genuine - it felt very forced upon the reader. 

The other thing that bugged me about this book was Jenny's fickle attitude. This is one of those YA books that are definitely written for young adults. As an adult reading a YA book, her attitude was seriously annoying. How she blamed her mother's friend for lying and hiding information about her mother, when that information was clearly something she didn't need to know as a child, or possibly ever. But, again, I know that's the adult in me seeing that and getting frustrated.

The world building was okay, but kinda lacking. There was quite a bit of dialogue, especially towards the end. Most of the story {especially the last half of the book} was just Jenny talking to various secondary characters, with a little descriptive narration. 

Altogether, I think this would be a decent read for someone who actually is a young adult. While I wasn't the biggest fan of this book, I think someone younger might be.

I'm a Giver!

That's right, I'll be participating in World Book Night 2014 on April 23!  I'm so excited and have wanted to join in the giving fun for the last couple years.  I discovered it too late in 2012, so I wasn't able to get my application in before the deadline.  And if you read my blog at all in the last year, year and a half, you would know I had a little bundle arrive in February 2013, so I didn't even apply that year knowing I would be busy learning the ropes of being a new mom.

But this year... This year is the year I get to join in the fun and spread the love of reading to my community!  I selected Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein as the book I want to hand out {it's so good}, and am super excited to be giving this to 20 lucky people.

I've received a lot of good tips from previous WBN Givers via Twitter, but am always looking for more.  So far I've got: 1) Smile! Lots!; 2) Wear your Giver sticker/button to identify yourself as a non-creeper; 3) Be ready to talk about the book I chose; 4) HAVE FUN!  I think that pretty much encompasses the whole thing, LOL.  I am a little nervous about talking to strangers about a book I love {I'm very much an introvert, but there is no time like the present to try to get past that, now is there?}!

Here's a BIG question that I have in regards to this: I want to give those reading this book a little more of a push towards finishing and getting in touch with me again.  I've gotten the go-ahead from my hubs to spend some money on this, and I wanted to offer the readers a chance to be put in a drawing for the follow up {not quite a sequel, but kind of, or so I'm told} to my book of choice - Rose Under Fire.  Obviously, if I'm going to do this I need to read the book and take some notes on it as well, but what do you guys think?  Is this something that is allowed as a WBN Giver?  Thoughts please!

Are you participating in World Book Night 2014?  If so, is it your first time {like me} or are you a veteran Giver?  What book are you giving {or, if you're not giving this year, what book would you give from the list of books supplied by WBN?}?

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein | Review

Title: Code Name Verity
Author: Elizabeth Wein
Pages: 447
Publisher: Egmont Press
My Rating: *my rating will be at the bottom of my reviews from now on*
Goodreads rating: 4.17 stars
Published: January 1, 2012
Source: Audiobook/Borrowed

Description:

I have two weeks. You’ll shoot me at the end no matter what I do.

That’s what you do to enemy agents. It’s what we do to enemy agents. But I look at all the dark and twisted roads ahead and cooperation is the easy way out. Possibly the only way out for a girl caught red-handed doing dirty work like mine — and I will do anything, anything, to avoid SS-Hauptsturmführer von Linden interrogating me again.

He has said that I can have as much paper as I need. All I have to do is cough up everything I can remember about the British War Effort. And I’m going to. But the story of how I came to be here starts with my friend Maddie. She is the pilot who flew me into France — an Allied Invasion of Two.

We are a sensational team.


I figured since I'm going to be sharing this copy with 20 lucky people for World Book Night 2014 this April 23rd, I should reread it and review it on my blog.  Good idea, right?  I thought so, too.  And I'm looking back at my notes {because, if you're going to be handing out a book for WBN, you should really know it, right?}, and, my word... all I can think is oh my gosh, no wonder I never wrote a review... everything I say will be *spoilers*!  That being said, let me try to write up a decent review without just saying "READ IT!" over and over again.

The title character "Verity" is a wireless operator who end up basically getting shot down over Nazi occupied France during WWII.  And the book is the story of her and her pilot friend {best friend} Maddy.  Guys, this one is an amazing book.  Verity is a "cooperator", telling the Nazis her story, and peppering it with the information they need.  Its heartbreaking to read, and halfway through the book your heart starts to mend, only to be shattered again.  Its probably one of the most beautifully heartbreaking stories I've ever read.

I had a difficult time reading about Maddy and Verity and not picturing two 17-year-old girls!  I can't remember, but I believe they're both 19-21 {I didn't actually write down their ages, and I can't remember if the author mentioned it or just said they're out of school... I'm pretty sure Verity went to college or finishing school...}... still young, but not quite as young as I read them to be.  Throughout the book, you get glimpses of Verity as a woman and not a girl {in some of her stories and in some of her documentation of the happenings during her captivity}, but not a lot with Maddy.  Maddy I kept seeing as this very young woman who just happened to be a wiz with mechanics and flying.

This book totally ripped apart my heart.  It was so heart-wrenching, but beautiful at the same time.  I honestly avoided reading it for a little while {borrowed it from the library and returned it twice before finally sitting down and reading it}... I read that its about a young woman, who betrays her country for a couple extra weeks to live.  It was so much more than that.  The only thing I regret about reading this book was not reading it sooner!

The Commodore's Daughter by Jamie Brazil

Title: The Commodore's Daughter
Author: Jamie Brazil
Pages: 171 pages {guesstimate}
Publisher:Windtree Press
My rating: 3.5 stars
Goodreads rating: 3.29 stars
Published: June 23, 2013
Source: eBook/NetGalley

Description:

Fifteen-year-old Jennifer Perry dreams of traveling the world, a dream that will never happen now that she's promised to a man twice her age. But what can she do? Run away. To Japan, where her survival is uncertain. Learning the ways of her new world, and the code of the Samurai, she uncovers a plot to ambush the American sailors. Now she must risk her own life in order to save her Commodore father.


This was an interesting read, and not quite what I was expecting.  It was very well written, and I absolutely love historical fiction, so when I saw this on NetGalley I knew I needed to see if I could read a copy.  The description doesn't really go into it a lot, and I feel like it might sell the story short a bit.  That being said, here's what I thought of it.

Jennifer {Jen-ni, as her Japanese friends end up calling her} is raised in a well-to-do family in the eastern Americas and is friends with a somewhat younger {but as well-known as ever} Susan B Anthony.  The book starts out with Jenny at home with her family, but the adventure begins when she flees a farewell ball and the man her father has promised her to.  Her friend Susan helps her escape, and Jenny stows away on her father's ship for the night, planning on meeting one of Susan's friends to help her escape north and start on her own.  She sleeps through a lot, and ends up already out to see by the time she wakes up in a highly unused closet in her father's cabins on his ship.

A decent portion of the book describes life for Jenny in the ship's closet, which was hard and nearly had her starving to death.  She survived and made it to Japan only to have to jump ship and swim to shore in a place where foreigners are executed on sight.  A well-to-do Japanese family finds her and captures her, only to have something happen {I won't say what... because that's a spoiler}, and both Jenny and the daughter of said Japanese family {Keiko} on the run from ninja.

Jenny and Keiko, along with a sensei, end up disguising Jenny enough that she blends in {using things to die her skin and hair}, and they all travel to a mountain village, where Jenny and Keiko end up assimilating.  From there, they must find a way to reunite Jenny with her father and save all of Japan.


I did enjoy this book, although, honestly, it took me quite a while to read for a book that has only about 170 pages.  It felt somewhat juvenile, and I was getting a little frustrated with the author not interpreting the things Keiko was saying in Japanese {although, it did help me get into Jenny's character a bit, because I was frustrated right alongside her}.  *side note: when Jenny did end up learning some Japanese, the author either just had it written in English in the book or would have a translation right after the statement.*  The book was very well written and would probably be more enjoyable for someone younger {13 or 14 year old me would have loved this}.


*I was given a copy of this from the publisher for an honest review.  I was not paid or compensated for said review.*

Top Ten Tuesday

This is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.  Every week there is a different top ten topic.  You can find the list of topics here, both past and upcoming.  This week is:

Top Ten Historical Fiction

1. Lyddie by Katherine Paterson.  I read this years ago, in either grade school or middle school, for a book report.  I haven't read it in over a decade, but I distinctly remember really liking it, to the point that I reread it quite often.  Its a great book for young people.

2. The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory.  This was the first book of Gregory's that I read, so it would make sense that it was my favorite of hers.  I also love that she takes a person that most other authors make into a horrible wench and shows her as a victim of time and circumstance.

3. Magnus by Sigmund Brouwer.  My brother had the first book in a youth series almost two decades ago, and I was browsing the shelves at our local library when I stumbled across the series compiled into a novel.  And its wonderful.

4. Jamestown by Angela Elwell Hunt.  Honestly, pretty much everything by her is something I love.  Too bad most are out of print now, if not all.

5. As Sure as the Dawn by Francine Rivers.  Again, pretty much any book by this author is something I love.  I would put Redeeming Love here, but I already have that on one list, so I though I would change it up a bit.

6. A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray.  The whole series is actually rather magnificent, but I'm kind of wondering if it should be under supernatural and not historical?  Oh, well.  My list.

7. The Knight and the Dove by Lori Wick.  When I was reading strictly Christian fiction, Lori Wick was one of my favorite authors.  That being said, I honestly probably only read half of her books, but this series was my favorite {probably because this one was medieval}.

8, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.  I actually quite enjoyed this book.  There were some overly graphic parts I would have probably taken out, but otherwise it was really good.

9. Rivers of Gold by Tracie Peterson.  This is the last in a trilogy, but my favorite.  I love the character Grace!

10. Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw.  Again, one I read ages ago.  Great book, though.  And, I just found out today that it was actually written in the 1950s.  Go pick it up, its pretty good.


Well, that's my list.  The funny thing is I wanted to add all these books from eons ago, but they were all actually written during the timing that they take place, so they're not actually historical fiction.  They just seem that way to me since it was anywhere from decades ago to maybe a couple hundred years ago or more.

The Tudor Throne by Brandy Purdy

Title: The Tudor Throne
Author: Brandy Purdy
Pages: 376
Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corp.
My rating: 4 stars
Goodreads rating: 3.49 stars
Published: June 3, 2011
{Won in a Goodreads giveaway}

Description:

In the wake of King Henry VIII's death, England's throne is left in a precarious state—as is the peculiar relationship between his two daughters. Mary, the elder, once treasured, had been declared a bastard in favor of her flame-haired half-sister, Elizabeth, born of the doomed Anne Boleyn. Yet the bond between the sisters was palpable from the start. Now reinstated, Mary eventually assumes her place as queen. But as Mary's religious zeal evolves into a reign of terror, young Elizabeth gains the people's favor. Gripped by a tormenting paranoia, Mary is soon convinced that her beloved Elizabeth is in fact her worst enemy. And the virginal Elizabeth, whose true love is her country, must defy her tyrannical sister to make way for a new era. . .

A brilliant portrait of the rule of "Bloody Mary" and her intricate relationship with Elizabeth I, the adored "Virgin Queen," here is a riveting tale of one family's sordid and extraordinary chapter in the pages of history.

Henry VIII is dead. His own children sat in his chamber and watched him die. Now, his young son, Edward, is promptly named king, though he has little to do with any ruling. Mary and Elizabeth are both put aside, though Mary begins to fear for her life as she is still a practicing Catholic during her brother's Protestant reign. Edward's health is decent at its best, and he begins to have problems shortly after ascending the throne. At his death, Mary becomes queen and begins her quest to save her sister from scandal and her Protestant ways.

Mary and Elizabeth seem to switch roles towards the end of this book. Elizabeth is seen as a reckless child, a youth who does what she will regardless of the consequences. Mary is devoted to her God and her religion above all else, even when the threat of death hangs over her when her brother declares no other religion should be practiced but his father's Protestantism. After a barely concealed scandal between a young 13-year-old Elizabeth and a thirty-something Thomas Seymour, Elizabeth swears off love of anything other than her country. Mary, a few years later, after being shown a portrait of a man, swears off love of anything other than him and God {although, I must say, I think she would swear off God for him}.

I got this book in a Goodreads giveaway and I really enjoyed it, although sometimes it was a tad difficult to follow. It went back and forth between Mary and Elizabeth, every other chapter taking the point of view of the other woman. Sometimes I honestly got confused why Mary would be talking about her lover, and then realized it was the next chapter and was in fact Elizabeth. Although, honestly that was only a little hindering in the reading. The love scenes between young Elizabeth and Thomas Seymour were more on the disturbing side, although it was honestly difficult to remember he wasn't a young man following his lust instead of reason {he is written much like an idiot, actually}.  Those scenes definitely make this book an adult book - I would not recommend this to anyone under 17!

The author did a good job capturing my attention and holding it. While it did take me a while to read it {I have a lot on my "to-read" list}, I really enjoyed it. If you like any of Phillipa Gregory's Tudor books, you would probably like this one. Its a bit of an easier read than hers, and just as captivating.

The Queen's Fool

Description:

It is winter, 1553. Pursued by the Inquisition, Hannah Green, a fourteen-year-old Jewish girl, is forced to flee Spain with her father. But Hannah is no ordinary refugee. Her gift of "Sight," the ability to foresee the future, is priceless in the troubled times of the Tudor court. Hannah is adopted by the glamorous Robert Dudley, the charismatic son of King Edward's protector, who brings her to court as a "holy fool" for Queen Mary and, ultimately, Queen Elizabeth. Hired as a fool but working as a spy; promised in wedlock but in love with her master; endangered by the laws against heresy, treason, and witchcraft, Hannah must choose between the safe life of a commoner and the dangerous intrigues of the royal family that are inextricably bound up in her own yearnings and desires.

The above synopsis does a great job at breaking down this book into one paragraph.  However, to truly get a feeling for characters, you must delve much deaper.

Hannah was "begged for a fool" when she was but a lad... yes, you read that right.  No, she didn't have some kind of barbaric, medieval, sex change operation.  Her and her Jewish father were on the run from the Spanish Inquisition when they arrived in England.  Hannah and her father knew it would be best and travel would be safer if everyone thought she was a boy.  So she continued that charade, first in her father's printing shop as his young helper, then as the fool for the young dying king.  When the king was still alive, Robert Dudley sent young Hannah to be the Princess Mary's holy fool, as she had the gift of Sight {they believed the angels spoke to her and revealed the future}.

Having the gift of Sight, Hannah walks a fine line throughout this story.  With the future so unclear, especially to those in line for the throne, having a holy fool who can see the future is almost a necessity.  However, being the holy fool who is innocently {and sometimes blindly} honest can be a frightening thing.  Hannah watched her mother burn for heresy in Spain, just for being Jewish.  Then she goes to England, and young Jewish girl, who can see the future, good or bad.  She predicts sickly King Edward's death, down to the day, along with Jane's forced rise to the throne.  She predicts Mary's being queen, her two "pregnancies" that end with no child at all, as well as the heartbreak she will have if she marries {King Philip leaves her for her sister}.  Much of what she sees she could be tried {and condemned} for treason against the royal family.

All the while young Hannah is at court, her thoughts are taken captive by Lord Robert Dudley, whom she loves, but does not know why.  At the same time, she is betrothed to a young Jewish man.  Amisdt the treachery, pardons, executions, plotting and all else that is court life, Hannah discovers what she loves most about court is not the court at all, but the people.  Her allegiance to the Queen holds her there for years, but her heart is won out by her betrothed in the end.

New Books

And upcoming reviews!

I went to the Tacoma Book Center a couple days ago with Jenn and Stacy, and we all picked up some books {none of which are pictured here}.  I've found that Philippa Gregory's books are kind of hit-or-miss, but she seems to do the Tudors alright {minus a couple graphic sex scenes, which are skipped over}.  I realized that I never reviewed The Constant Princess or The Other Boleyn Girl, both of which I really like {especially The Constant Princess}.  Those reviews will probably come after I finish The Queen's Fool, which I'm currently in the process of reading between craft projects.