To the Lions by Holly Watt

 

To The Lions. The premise of this story grabbed my attention but once I started reading it I found myself distracted.   Casey Benedict is a reporter.  She overhears a conversation in a London nightclub that leads her to the story of a lifetime.

 In the beginning setup we meet  Casey's boss and man oh man, he drops the F bomb more times than I could count.  A few times gives you the flavor of the man and his personality but after a while, what a turn off. As the big story unfolds I found it very disturbing.  I don't want to give spoilers but let me say, if you are bothered by what's happening to immigrants in the USA, this plot won't be appealing. At all.

 This book is under the mystery and thriller category, my favorite genre however this is too disturbing for me with our current political situation.  I don't bring politics into my blog and what happens in the book is NOT a scenario that is happening here but.....I didn't like this at all. Holly Watt is an author and journalist.  I will say a talented writer as she had me emotions stirred, this book just wasn't for me.

 Publication date is September 3, 2019.  Much thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book.  I was not compensated for a review, opinions are mine.

The Clockmaker's Daughter by Kate Morton

"My real name, no one remembers. The truth about that summer, no one else knows." -  from our narrator.

This book spans over 150 years, each time period, as it switches back and forth, are pieces of  a puzzle. Present day: We start with Elodie Winslow, a young woman with an old soul.  She's a London archivist, engaged to be married to someone who doesn't truly suit her.

 Looking through an old satchel she discovers a sketchbook which belonged to artist Edward Radcliffe as well as a framed photograph of a striking young woman.  Edward's story is on the book jacket.  He buys the impressive Birchwood Manor and invites a group of friends, fellow artists and their models, to spend a month of creativity and enjoyment.

 "But by the time their stay is over, one woman has been shot dead while another has disappeared; a priceless heirloom is missing; and Edward Radcliffe’s life is in ruins."

 That was 150 years ago.  We switch to Edward's time period and learn some of what went on, fractured relationships, love and mystery.  Now and then the narrator has her chapters, explaining what she thinks, what she observes.  She is the clockmaker's daughter.

 A quote I liked:

 “Human beings are curators. Each polishes his or her own favored memories, arranging them in order to create a narrative that pleases. Some events are repaired and polished for display; others are deemed unworthy and cast aside, shelved below ground in the overflowing storeroom of the mind. There, with any luck, they are promptly forgotten. The process is not dishonest: it is the only way that people can live with themselves and the weight of their experiences.” 

Besides present day and Edward's time period, we have characters from the 1940's right after the war.  They all play an intricate part in the story and how it all weaves together in the end.  One character is in this time frame is a little boy named Tip.  His part here and in the present day are linked as he is Elodie's great uncle. He has a small part but it's important.

 It's eluded that the narrator isn't named, that we never know her name as early on her father refers to her as Birdie. He says she was named for her grandfather. Well, I won't tell you here even though it doesn't raise a spoiler, but it's something revealed on pages 460 - 462 so you won't want to miss it.  By then you are almost finished and I will say, what a story - historically rich with the lines of all eras woven together in a satisfying ending.

Kate Morton never disappoints me.  Great story as always.

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton

 Kate Morton is one of my favorites. She writes big fat books with well developed characters.  The setting is usually in Australia, England or both.  She deftly weaves a story leaving you satisfied with ending.  Well....most of the time.  She wraps up the mysteries so you have definite conclusions.  Perhaps you don't like how some characters end up but nothing is ever left hanging.

In 1992, letters written in 1941 were found stowed away in an attic.  The post man placed the bag of letters and bills in his home and they weren't discovered until his death in 1992.   Imagine a letter delivered 50 years later, the recipient having no ability to respond, lives possibly changed because those communications were adrift.  Meredith Burchill is one of the recipients of a letter written 50 years prior by glamorous Juniper Blythe.  Merdith's daughter Edie watches her mother open the letter then break into tears, obviously distraught.

Edie Burchill, a character whom I  instantly liked.  This is yet another book where one of our characters is a book editor ( an aspiration I had when I was in my teens). Edie ends up moving back home when her lease is up in her Notting Hill flat.

 

Edie's mother Meredith is a fussy old thing but she has a very interesting back story. She was an evacuee from London during the war, living in Mildhurst Castle far in the north of England, with the Blythe sisters, three elegant and classy ladies.   The three sisters were very different from another. Persephone and Seraphina are twins but they didn’t have the same passions or goals.  The head of the household is Raymond Blythe.  He is a famous author of The Secrets of the Mudman.  When you find the evil inspiration for his story....well, I found it disturbing. Juniper Blythe is the golden haired youngest who picks Meredith as "her evacuee" during the war.  They become friends during the billeting, this changing the lives of both.

I made this sound boring but it's hard to include all the relationship quirks and why they are important.  The seduction of this novel, for me, is the old castle and mystery of the origins of the Mudman story. The setting in northern England in WW II, the food mentions are scant but there is of course tea, rock cakes and roasted meat dinners. This was the only one of Morton's books I hadn't read so now.....waiting for a few years for her next tome.

This wasn't my favorite, I loved The Forgotten Garden and The Secret Keeper the most of the six books published. Overall a good story with a few surprises at the end.

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

First off - why have I not been reading Lisa Jewell's novels before this?!  I couldn't put this book down.

Libby Jones knows she was adopted and also knows there was some controversy about her past and her birth parents. At the age of 25 she knows all will be revealed as she receives she long awaited letter and "inheritance."  Here is a blurb from the book description so you have the setup: Twenty-five years ago, police were called to 16 Cheyne Walk with reports of a baby crying. When they arrived, they found a healthy ten-month-old happily cooing in her crib in the bedroom. Downstairs in the kitchen lay three dead bodies, all dressed in black, next to a hastily scrawled note. And the four other children reported to live at Cheyne Walk were gone.

 What a setup.  I was intrigued from the beginning and found myself surprised by revelations in the book. The main setting is London but you have scenes in France as well. The story is told from different perspectives.  Libby's brother Henry narrates the past story line and we get an inside view of the crazy scenarios in his childhood home.  In the Libby chapters you'll read about her search for the older siblings, Henry and Lucy, as well as researching information on her socialite mother and well-to-do father, Martina and Henry Lamb.  At the end of each chapter I would want to continue with Libby's search, yet when young Henry narrated I didn't want that to end.

This book is categorized under adult fiction, mystery and thrillers. A+

 Lisa Jewell is a British author of popular fiction. Her books include Ralph's Party, Thirtynothing, After The Party, a sequel to Ralph's Party, and most recently The House We Grew Up In, The Girls in the Garden, and Then She Was Gone.

 Publication date is November 5, 2019.  Much thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book.  I was not compensated for a review, opinions are mine.

The Au Pair by Emma Rous

 

There were so many things I liked about this book.  We have an old English country estate called Summerbourne, a seemingly neurotic young woman named Seraphine Mayes who is obsessed with finding out about her early life, a mystery about Ruth (Seraphine and her twin brother Danny’s mother), Ruth’s suicide and an ending that will blow you away. The Au Pair is Laura Silverira, hired to take care of young Edwin Mayes. The other players are Edwin’s parents, Ruth and Dominic Mayes, their friend Alex and Ruth’s mother Vera. In Laura’s chapters we see the interactions between these people. Ruth appears to vacillate between depression and paranoia 80% of the time. Her mother Vera is domineering and controlling, but perhaps she is trying to take care of Ruth. The time period is 1992, the year Seraphine and Danny were born.

 Seraphine’s chapters are in present day. Her father Dominic recently died in an accident. As Seraphine goes through her father’s belongings she finds a photo of her parents and Edwin, her mother holding a newborn. Her mother is smiling yet hours later she throws herself off a cliff. Why is there only one baby in the photo when Ruth had twins and – which baby is it? Is it Seraphine or Danny? This is the catalyst setting Seraphine off in search of the au pair Laura, hoping to find out what happened all those years ago.

 Her brothers urge her to leave it alone and of course she doesn’t. The consequences of her secret investigation into their past will have devastating consequences. As you get to know the characters you’ll wonder if Seraphine isn’t a fragile sort of person, perhaps suffering from mild depression or anxiety. Are some of her assumptions and theories valid or is she over the edge? This is all revealed as you read on and to mention some outcomes would certainly spoil your reading experience.

This story is like a fireworks display. It starts as a slow simmer, builds up steam and then blows up around the 85% mark with dynamic revelations. I am awaiting this author’s next book and hope it’s as engaging and mysterious as this book.

Food makes an appearance here and there: “Edwin and I unpack the grocery bags together on Saturday morning. As ever, the effect the fresh ingredients have on him is powerful: he smiles as he rubs his thumbs over the onions, flexes the celery, sniffs at the Parmesan and inspects the prawns. He’s in his element, relaxed and happy.”

  Chocolate tiffin, cinnamon pastries, slices of carrot cake with thick lemon frosting, an apple plum crumble, pots of homemade applesauce, flapjacks, chocolate sponge cake, speared pineapple and chunks of cheese. “Dominic was pressing sprigs of rosemary into a joint of lamb, a mound of unwashed potatoes sat by the sink.” Roasted turkey and potatoes and chipolatas. I didn't have the chipolatas but I do have turkey and roasted potatoes :-) Much thanks to NetGalley for this advanced copy. Opinions are mine and I was not compensated for the review. Publication date is January 8, 2019.

The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian

 

 I have been a fan of this author for quite a while. While this ended up being a pretty good book, I will say, in my opinion, it wasn’t my favorite of his books.

 The flight attendant in question, Cassandra Bowden, just wasn’t a very likable person. I understand about addiction and it shapes the way a person behaves, but you really couldn’t have very much sympathy for this woman.

 Cassie Bowden wakes up in a Dubai hotel room next to a dead man.  He's the man she met on the flight, a passenger whom she flirted with, had dinner and sex and too much to drink. What is your first instinct here?  Mine would be to call the police but Cassie decides to flee the hotel room, after wiping the room of her fingerprints.  Did she kill him?  She doesn't know.

 It kept my interest yet seemed to drag a bit.  I was hoping it would pick up and refrain from the detail about how Cassie liked to drink and have sex with strangers and her blackouts and self-loathing.    Around the 50% mark it really started picking up so I was invested by then. Russian operatives, secrets, police investigations and more lying.

 I thought the end wrapped it up but not as strongly, or believably as I had hoped.  Would I read more by Bohjalian?  Absolutely.  This just wasn't my favorite book by the author.

The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey

The reviews for this book are all over the place.  Some think it’s a pale, boring retelling of Jane Eyre while other readers loved it.   The comparison isn’t only about Gemma and Jane Eyre, our author was also without a mother at age nine and grew up lonely in Scotland, as Gemma did,  reading Jane Eyre from her own father’s library.  Obviously her experiences were quite different.

 The old adage imitation is the sincerest form of flattery holds true for me, at least with this book.  Wuthering Heights is retold in a contemporary setting in Solsbury Hill by Susan Wyler (very popular modernized version with all the heartache you’d expect) and what about Jane Smiley’s A Thousand Acres, a modern version of King Lear?  Anyway, I very much enjoyed this story.   I thought Gemma was an intelligent headstrong girl. Obviously well-educated thanks to her uncle and without formal schooling, she showed remarkable maturity and resilience.

 Gemma’s life is filled with tragedy.  We are introduced to Gemma when she is 10 years old, living in her aunt’s home in Scotland.  Although she previously lived in Iceland she was born in Scotland, her mother being Scottish and her father an Icelander.  When she is young her mother dies after falling and hitting her head on a rock.  A few years later her fisherman father drowns.  She is taken in by her Uncle Charles and becomes part of the Hardy household in Scotland. She was only 3 years of age when she moved in with the Hardy family.  Then Uncle Charles died and Gemma’s place in the household changed.  This is the start of the book, how she went from family member to the status of hired help.  She was relegated to the kitchen, removed from the family dinner table, wore old, old clothes and was treated shabbily.

 When the chance came to send her away to a school her aunt jumped on it.  For a smart young lady you would think this would be the ideal escape for Gemma but alas, that was jumping from the pan into the fire.  The “working girls” who did not pay tuition were basically slaves.  Cleaning, cooking, gardening and their studies came last.  It was a horrible situation.

 It just seemed to be one thing after another for Gemma but she never lost her determination.  Rather than rehash this entire book I’ll say that I enjoyed reading how she overcame many obstacles and fretted for her when something overwhelming cropped up.   Oh, another thing I liked about Gemma was her quest for knowledge and her love of birds.  There was a large book in her beloved uncle’s study called Birds of the World.  She loved looking at the photos and learning where they lived in the world.  Her only friend at school noted this love of birds and gifted Gemma with a book about Scottish birds.  There are references as she points out curlews, lapwings, grebes, blackbird, curlew, jackdaw and puffins when she is working as an au pair and later as a nanny.

 There were a couple of things I didn't like in the book and rather than have spoilers here, I put those thoughts on Goodreads as there is a format for hiding them.

 The setting is mostly in Glasgow,  a rural setting of Aberfeldy and the Orkney Islands.  As I note foodie items in most books I read I can say there are many mentions of food here yet it’s not a foodie book by any means. This is an author I will most certainly seek out, Margot Livesey can paint a vivid picture.

Wunderland

 

The time period for most of this book is WW II, the viewpoint and setting is Germany. Usually I gravitate toward England and occasionally France for novels set in the WW II era. This was, at times, difficult to read.

The first chapter starts in 1989, the setting New York. Ava Fischer sits on her bed crying after learning about her mother's death and past life. Ava had banished her mother, Ilse von Fischer, from her life ten years prior. You'll learn why as you read on.  She receives a box from Ilse's attorney with her mother's ashes and a cache of letters addressed to Renate Bauer.  Bauer isn't a name Ava has ever heard and doesn't know who the woman.  Why would her mother be writing to Bauer?

Ava discovers unsettling things about her mother's involvement with the Ilse BDM (Bund Deutscher madel) in Nazi Germany.  The chapters go back and forth mainly between Ilse and Renate in the early 1930's. Ava's chapters are interspersed.

Ilse and Renate were very good friends. They shared secrets, books, loved one another without question. There was one scene where they defied the German soldiers and went into a Jewish bakery together. The boycott of Jewish businesses didn't bother these two young ladies as they strode past the soldiers in search of sweets. Such boycotts were ridiculous for these headstrong teenagers.

But as you read on there is a sadness that such a wonderful friendship could be severely strained and eventually fractured over one being Jewish. Perhaps it’s the political climate in America today but this book had my mind drifting to the hate crimes and gang mentality I currently see in the news. While it was well written it was at times hard to read.

Reading how Ilse and Renate's friendship was tested because Renate was Jewish was uncomfortable. Reading how relationships could change in a snap because of one's heritage was sad.

Foodie book - no way. There were delectable bakery items and a traditional German meal mentioned.
Buttery poppyseed cakes, stolen, fruit pies, apple cakes, doughnuts, Schweinebraten in a crackling glaze of paprika, mustard and caraway seeds.

Publication date for this historical fiction novel is April 23, 2019. Check it out at your local bookstore or online book store.

Thank you very much  Netgalley for this digital copy of the book. I received this complimentary copy and was not compensated for my opinion/review.

See You in the Piazza by Frances Mayes

If you are an armchair traveler as I am and you love reading about Italy, get this book immediately! I certainly loved Under the Tuscan Sun as well as Mayes' next book Bella Tuscany. This one won't disappoint if you are fans of Frances Mayes and like a foodie/cultural narrative.

  See You in the Piazza isn't a novel. I'd describe it as a cross between a memoir and a travel guide, yet it isn't specifically either one. It's the sort of Ex-Pat lit that I can sink my teeth into, traveling vicariously through descriptive writing.

 Our author has traveled extensively throughout Italy enjoying the foods, culture and atmosphere, eventually purchasing a second home in Tuscany.  Yet Ms. Mayes says she feels the same excitement as she did her first few years of living in Italy. "To know Italy would take ten lifetimes."

 It's a foodie book for sure - Olive trees, Negroni, homemade pasta, seafood, fresh fruits and vegetables, recipes and more.  The book is set up geographically from north to south.  It doesn't have to be read cover to cover, rather you may choose the county of interest.  This will stay on my Kindle as a reference guide in case I'm ever able to visit Italy.

 Read this and you will want to pack up and move, enjoy a different culture and pace.  This book was published March 12, 2019 so hustle to your favorite bookstore or online retailer and immerse yourself with Frances Mayes' Italian travels.

Thank you very much  Netgalley for this digital copy of the book. It's one I will refer to often, especially if I am fortunate enough to travel to Italy. I received this complimentary copy and am not compensated for my opinion/review.

We Must be Brave by Frances Liardet

I kept hearing about this book on Goodreads so I put in my request at the library.  The majority of the book is set in the WW II era, one of my preferred  time periods, and it's set in and around Upton England .

We start with a busload of people evacuating Southhampton, heading to the rural town of Upton during WW II.  Ellen Parr notices a small girl sleeping on the bus after everyone departs.  Whose child is this?  Where is her mother? Ellen gathers the little girl in her arms and makes inquiries of the women but no one claims her.  The girl, Pamela, was separated from her mother during an air raid.


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 There are some scenes that are so heartbreaking that it put me in mind of The Light Between the Oceans.  I could actually quote the beginning of that book's review for this one and it would be appropriate. " This book is filled with sadness and loss. There are happy moments but even those are shadowed by secrets and wrong doing..."

 This novel spans decades but the majority focuses on the early 1940's time period.  Ellen and her husband Selwyn take in the evacuees, some children stay longer than the adults.  When no one claims Pamela it's Ellen's hope that she and Selwyn may keep her.  The circumstances are well explained in this book but I wouldn't want to reveal spoilers.

 Ellen's back story is revealed after a hundred pages and believe me, you may want the tissues handy.  Actually, you just feel so bad for Ellen yet admire her inner strength. This is a fat book of 450 or so pages and I read it in 3 days time. The characters are well developed, you'd feel as if you known them. The deprivation is keenly described.

 Three quarters into the book it slows down a bit but I was never tempted to abandon this story.  I would read more by this author. There are references to food but not often.  Lots of tea, bread, Rock Cakes, a meat pie, baked onions, potato pie, rissoles and a treacle tart. One the dessert side of things I decided to make a peach cobbler. After so much deprivation I wanted excess.  We even had Blanton's bourbon with it.  Now that's decadent. :-)

The Huntress by Kate Quinn

 

Once again, Kate Quinn has written a story with compelling characters.  Quinn’s previous novel, The Alice Network, was hard to put down and she’s done it again with The Huntress.  We have several unique points of view telling their stories about WW II.

Ian Graham was a war correspondent but he’s burnt out after witnessing so much horror.  Currently Ian and his partner Tony are Nazi hunters.  The big score would be the elusive Die Jägerin – a female killer (the Huntress) who mercilessly killed anyone in her path, including women and children. Ian Graham has a personal interest in her as she is evidently responsible for his young soldier brother’s death.

Nina is a Russian aviator with quite an interesting back story. She is a Siberian “night witch” who flies with her all female comrades in WW II.  I really felt for Nina, all she endured, yet she’s the toughest of the bunch. Dangerous, skillful, sexy and extremely driven.  Our author did her homework about the Russian female aviators.  There really was a “night witch” group who served their country.

Last and certainly not least is Jordan McBride.  She's a young woman living with her widowed father in Boston.  She has a passion for photography, her dream job would be a photographic journalist, traveling the world.   In the 1950's a career is not encouraged, as much as sh'd love to attend college her father doesn't approve.  When dad meets a young German widow his life changes, as does Jordan's life.  Her story dovetails with the other three mentioned above.does Jordan’s life. 

I enjoyed every story line, every perspective and can recommend this to anyone who enjoyed The Alice Network.  Once again Kate Quinn hits it out of the park.

Foodie references weren’t abundant but Nina could tuck into a hamburger with such gusto that Ian enjoyed watching her enthusiasm. She had a style of putting jam in tea (I’m not trying that) and there were mentions of borscht, a Thanksgiving dinner and 1950/60’s comfort food from the McBride’s kitchen.

Thanks to LibraryThing for the advanced readers copy of this book.