Review: Love and Other Consolation Prizes

Love and Other Consolation Prizes by Jamie Ford
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

They say "don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened", but that is very hard. I was sucked into the book and could NOT let go. Ernest is a character you fall in love with the second he appears. You want to hug him in the first chapter. Then when he goes to America you want to hug him again. The World's Fair will make your mouth drop because of the things Ernest experiences there and how a simple fair will change the course of his life forever. He will meet Fahn and Maisie in this new life and form bonds that will take him to the "present" day portion of the novel which is the early 60's. He will never break the bond form with these 2 little girls.

What I took away....Jamie can take dark places in the world and explain how it was and show that there can be good in unpleasant things. What Jamie does with his pen is explore good and ugly and takes the reader right with him. I have a couple of reasons why he is my favorite present day author.
1. He introduces me to parts of America (Seattle past) I didn't know existed, but I should have.
2. He makes me care about his characters and ache when they hurt and rejoice when they prosper.

Today begins the day that I start longing for his next book. Thank you Jamie.

View all my reviews

Review: The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women

The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women by Kate Moore
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I had to get this book a second time. It has haunted me a bit to know what happened to these girls and that USRC discovered what the effects of Radium could do and they covered it up. They lied in court and to medical professionals, all the while, the girl's bodies were falling apart or riddled with disease. The painful deaths the girls encountered were hard to read about because you knew it was true. The devotion of Tom Donohue is astounding ...what a wonderful husband, of course, his wife, Katherine is one of the bravest women I have ever read about. If you have not read this book, you should. It moved me like Henrietta Lacks. A must read.

I came back in 2018 because this book was still haunting me. I had to read it again. I still think it is one of the best books of 2017.

View all my reviews

Review: Tiny Little Thing

Tiny Little Thing by Beatriz Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So far this is my favorite Beatriz books. I love Tiny and Pepper. I loved how they fixed up a car together and how Tiny realizes that she doesn't have a perfect life. She is living just for status, with a man who prefers the company of others which could ruin his career in the day and age the story takes place. Cap (Caspian) is incredible. I love every part about him. He is just the dude you want to come into stories like this.

View all my reviews

Review: Pop-Up Truck and Peril

Pop-Up Truck and Peril by Harper Lin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love Harper Lin's books...they are fast, engaging and funny. In Pop up Truck and Peril, Amelia's best friend Christine asks her to move the truck to her work for a few days because a co worker has been murdered and the police do have a suspect....only Christine can't believe the suspect would do it. Amelia is on the job selling her treats and solving crime and getting herself into trouble...with the police and the real murderer.

In Amelia's personal life, her ex is getting married and causing drama with their kids. Amelia has to learn how to handle this without making her ex look bad to his kids and keep her sanity.

This is a perfect series to download and take on vacation with you. I don't think you have to read the previous 5 to get the story, but why would you do that? They are all so fun.

I received a free copy in exchange for my honest review.

View all my reviews

Review: The Secret Wife

The Secret Wife by Gill Paul
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I discovered Gill Paul last year and I like her style a lot. She has done quite a few Titanic books and I am trying hard to read them all. I discovered this book because I was trying to get a hold of Another Woman's Husband (also by Gill). I thought I would give it a whirl. This one tells a story we are familiar with Tsar Nicholas and Tsarina Alexandria of Russia. We all know they were murdered, along with their children, during the Bolsheviks revolution of Russia in 1917. We have heard that Anatasia might have lived. Well, this story chooses to let another daughter live. Her body is discovered in modern-day after the love of her life dies of old age. It is believed she was murdered and hidden in a shallow grave but upon further inspection, she died of natural causes. What they don't know is that she escaped the murder and lived with her lover as man and wife until her natural life was over. She had changed her name as had her husband. It is a sweet story and does make you long to believe that those children could have lived.

View all my reviews

Review: Camino Island

Camino Island by John Grisham
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have been on hold for this book forever. I didn't read what it was about, I just know I read every Grisham book. This one blew me away from the start. F Scott Fitzgerald! I love him! His manuscripts in the hands of crooks! I was sucked in and blown away. I had NO idea where this novel was going to end up, every time I thought I did something else happened to make me say "what".

I enjoy almost every Grisham book, but I do believe this one ranks up there near "The Firm" for me. EXCELLENT!

View all my reviews

Review: The German Girl

The German Girl by Armando Lucas Correa
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

My friend made me read this and I am so glad that she did! This book travels from 2014 with Anna to 1939 with Hannah and follows the lives of the Rosenthal's/Rosen's. The story traveled to Havana, which I loved. Having just gotten back from Havana and visited many of the places from the book....everything was so visible in my mind. The story was sad, so sad, but such an important tale to tell. I had never heard about the ship St. Louis and had no idea what happened to those people. It's another story from (pre) WWII that people should know. Thank you sir for telling this history along with adding some characters that we would want to know more about and enjoy spending time with (we would also be sad right alongside them).

A wonderful book.

View all my reviews

Review: Along the Infinite Sea

Along the Infinite Sea by Beatriz Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

In the past, Annable marries a man she doesn't love just because she is pregnant. In the future, she buys a car from Pepper. Pepper the outcast who finds herself pregnant by some Washington big deal in politics. Pepper and Annable go on an adventure that will connect the past of Annable with the future of Pepper, strangers who become friends.

Beatriz can tell a story like no other, and I think you can read her books as a stand-alone, but if you pay attention you will see that most of them have a connection of either a character or a location or even a family.

View all my reviews

Review: A Fall of Marigolds

A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I do believe this is the greatest book I have ever read. I have read it a few of times and every time I love it more. A scarf falls at Ellis Island in 1911 and then ends up at the World Trade Center on 9/11/01. The connection of the past with the present captivated me on a long 9-hour flight, then I re-read it while traveling through the bush in Alaska and fell deeper in love with how the scarf connects the past and the present. Reading fiction about 9/11 seems so real, maybe because we lived through it and we all have a story. This was another story that left me thinking "that really could have happened". I know I heard of folks that died that never knew they were going to be parents. I know someone who had circumstances have changed that day would have been right there in the center of it all. I remember sitting by the TV wondering if someone would come after the nuclear plant where I live. This book brought up the fear, but also the happiness, the American renewal, the partnership we all had to band together as one. It tells of how folks completely changed because of the events of one morning. I love this entire story.

View all my reviews

Review: Goodnight From London

Goodnight From London by Jennifer Robson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

WOW!! I have been waiting to read this because I needed the ebook since I didn't want to mess up my autographed copy. It was well worth the wait. Once I opened the ebook I devoured the text. It was a wonderful journey. We met Ruby who seems like an incredible girl that has some deep secrets. Her secrets will be revealed and she will fall for a man that also has deep secrets. Ms. Robson writes the most perfect books for me, there is some romance, but not trashy and the books are FULL of history from the early 20th century wars. This one will focus on WWII, you will actually be right in the middle of the blitz in London.

I simply adore this book.

View all my reviews

Review: A Sound Among the Trees

A Sound Among the Trees by Susan Meissner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This one left me with questions. Ghosts in an old house I get, but the dead wife, mental illness and the Civil War left me wondering (or wanting) another book.



View all my reviews

Review: The Return of the Gypsy

The Return of the Gypsy by Philippa Carr
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Jessica's dad will save the man she thinks that she loves. The man was a gypsy who paid her a little attention during a "show" on her father's land. The man is sent away and Jessica marries a man she loves but one that doesn't excite her as Jake did. But Jake is gone she keeps telling herself. That is he is gone until he isn't. This one is twisty.

View all my reviews

Review: Knave of Hearts

Knave of Hearts by Philippa Carr
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Lottie is now an adult living in France during the French Revolution. She meets her French half-sister and finds love in France. She always thought she would marry her cousin Dickon there in England, so she didn't expect to find love and other trouble there in France. I am not a huge fan of Lottie, but I like the plot.

View all my reviews

Review: The Adulteress

The Adulteress by Philippa Carr
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The was the first book that I read in the series in the 80's and fell instantly in love with the writing, the stories, and the author. I immediately started seeking out all of the books to own. It took about 20 years to find all of the books because many were out of print. They are back now in paperback and ebooks so you should have no issues. No excuses.

The one features Zipporah a beautiful woman. Folks say she looks a bit like her grandmother Carlotta (see Song of the Siren). She acts nothing like her, however. She marries a man who is kind to her and devoted 100%. She meets a Frenchman and everything changes. EVERYTHING. Until this point she and her husband had failed to conceive a child; so she and her husband both know how they are now having a child. Once Lottie is born she is just perfect. She is giving her to her mom and a caretaker for her father. She falls in love with her cousin. Her mother hates the cousin and plots to keep him away from her child. Then Zipporah's husband dies. You need to read how he dies. You need to read what Dickon does. You need to read how Lottie grows up. This is what Carr does well....intrigue.

View all my reviews

Review: Will You Love Me in September

Will You Love Me in September by Philippa Carr
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Carlotta's daughter is just as beautiful but she is so good. She is unlucky in love to some extent. She falls for a dashing officer because he was the second choice. The first choice was shipped to Virginia and she assumes she will never see him again so she moves on. Lance is handsome and charismatic. He just likes to gamble and possibly have affairs and plot his wife's death. The future brings Clarissa and her cousin Sabrina living together and taking care of one another, a man will enter their lives and change everything once again.

This book is full of intrigue and almost as good as the last one.

View all my reviews

Review: The Song of the Siren

The Song of the Siren by Philippa Carr
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

My favorite of the whole series. Carlotta is charming and captivating. I was in love with her the second she graced the series in the last book. She will spellbind you into loving and hating her. She will use Harriet to get what she wants. She will fall in love with someone who is pure evil and hurt a good man in the process. The thing is, what does around comes around. The beautiful siren's flame is flickering in the wind of her wake.

I have probably read this book 20 times.

View all my reviews

Review: Lament for a Lost Lover

Lament for a Lost Lover by Philippa Carr
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book follows Arabella Eversleigh, but what I love is the entrance of Harriet Main. She is in the next few books and I adore her!!!

This is the start of my favorite books in the whole series. Arabella meets Edwin in sort of an arrangement from the families that they fall in love and marry. It does happen. Edwin is a pleasing husband, who indulges Arabella and is very present...until he is not. What we don't know for now is that yes he is involved in bringing the King back to England but he is also spending time with Harriet. We will grow to hate and love Harriet over the next few books. She is someone who will not leave our hearts easily.

View all my reviews

Review: The Love Child

The Love Child by Philippa Carr
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A fabulous book about the lovely Priscilla Eversleigh. Daughter of Arabella and Carlton Eversleigh. Her father wanted a son and paid little attention to her. She sought men out early in life and when a young man comes along that is wanted by the government she and her brother hide him so they can get him to safety with her cousins mother. Once the young man is safe at Harriet's (the cousins mom) Harriet invites Priscilla to her home to visit the young man. They are deep in love and plan their marriage, forestalling their wedding vows. The young man is taken the next day and killed for being a traitor to the crown. Priscilla finds herself pregnant and begs Harriet for help. They run off to Italy where the baby is born under the pretense that Harriet is pregnant. Harriet takes the baby Carlotta to her home (because she is known as HER child) while Priscilla is still hung up in intrigue. A handsome man man Beau Granville entered her life while in Europe. He tried to abduct Priscilla and she was saved by her cousin Leigh. Leigh had beat Beau up scarring his beautiful face and Beau wanted revenge. When Priscilla's dad gets involved in a plot to overthrow the King, Beau offers to save her dads life in exchange for a night with her. Reluctantly, she does but tells no one. Her dads life is saved but as the years go on Beau enters her life again. This time he wants to marry Carlotta. Priscilla has to tell everyone Carlotta is her daughter and about sleeping with Beau to save her dads life. Carlotta and Beau try to run away to get married, but they are stopped. Then all of the sudden Beau is DEAD!! Who did it? It was Priscilla's half sister.


Yes, tons of characters, but each one has endearing qualities. I even admire Beau in some ways, he is the perfect villain. Carlotta is my favorite character in this book series. She is about to cause a mess of trouble in the next book "Song of the Siren"

View all my reviews

Review: The Witch from the Sea

The Witch from the Sea by Philippa Carr
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

As the series progresses things get more dangerous. This one will have a story with twists and turns and an investigation of how a murder could happen right under everyone's noses. After the murder, this one lacks a bit for me which is probably why we don't hear much of Linett's daughter after this book. It is still a worthy read to see how Linett died.

View all my reviews

Review: The Lion Triumphant

The Lion Triumphant by Philippa Carr
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love this book. I love this series! Every year I read the Philippa Carr series (I have each one of the books). This one is full of things that happen. There is never a dull moment. Set back in Mary I (barely) and Elizabeth I reigns.

I will add to this one. This is a typical swashbuckling story of the ages. A pirate comes to town and changes everything. Sometimes I want to smack our heroine but then others I adore her!!!

This is the series that made me fall in love with reading.

View all my reviews