Books
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Review: India Black (Madam of Espionage #1) by Carol K Carr
This book has randomly surfaced on my Goodreads recommendations page and Twitter feed for the last few years now. I personally love the cover and thought it sounded like an intriguing read. Well recently I saw someone else on Twitter reading it and I suddenly felt like it was time to check it out. When Sir Archibald Latham of the War Office dies from a heart attack while visiting her brothel, Madam India Black is unexpectedly thrust into a deadly game between Russian and British agents who are seeking the military secrets Latham carried. Blackmailed into recovering the missing documents by the British spy known as French, India finds herself…
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Special Feature: The Competition by Donna Russo Morin
The Competition by Donna Russo Morin Publication Date: April 25, 2017 Diversion Publishing eBook & Paperback; 268 Pages Series: Da Vinci’s Disciples, Book Two Genre: Historical/Mystery Donna Russo Morin returns with a follow-up to Portrait of a Conspiracy, called “a page-turner unlike any historical novel, weaving passion, adventure, artistic rebirth, and consequences of ambition,” by C.W. Gortner. In a studiolo behind a church, six women gather to perform an act that is, at once, restorative, powerful, and illegal. They paint. Under the tutelage of Leonardo da Vinci, these six show talent and drive equal to that of any man, but in Renaissance Florence they must hide their skills,…
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Review: Wives of War by Soraya M Lane
It’s been a long time since I have sought out an author to do a review. Most of the time, books come my way and if it sounds like something I might like or in the mood for, then I review it. However with Wives of War, I saw the book on my Twitter feed and it totally grabbed my attention and for one reason….I loved the cover. In my never fending Twitter feed, I see tons of books go by. But with this one, the cover caught my eye which promoted me to read the description. It sounded like something totally up my alley so I asked if I…
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Spotlight Feature: THE LIGHT IN SUMMER (Butternut Lake #5) by Mary McNear
William Morrow is delighted to publish THE LIGHT IN SUMMER, the newest novel by New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Mary McNear (William Morrow Paperback Original, On Sale: June 20, 2017). Year after year, Mary McNear brings readers to the one place they want to spend their days: Butternut Lake, a town based on Mary’s lifetime of summers spent in a small town on a lake in the Northern Midwest. In THE LIGHT IN SUMMER, it is summertime on Butternut Lake, where the heat of noon is soothed by the cool breezes of evening, the pace grows slower, and sometimes, just sometimes, the summer light makes everything clearer……
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Review: Love & Death in Burgundy by Susan C. Shea
How many amateur detective novels have you read that are set in a quaint English village? Tons, am I right? Now don’t get me wrong, I love my English village mysteries but sometimes it’s nice to have a change of scenery. The French country side is the perfect setting for this mystery. When I think of France all I think of is Paris, but there is a whole other beautiful countryside that often gets overshadowed by the lights of Paris. I loved how this story brought life to the French countryside. I am ready to buy a little chateau in the country and drink wine…..now if only there was a…
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Review: War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
War and Peace or more commonly known as “the book most people have lied about reading” is the definition of epic. This book is big and intimidating but it’s often the crown jewel for readers, why? Because it’s arguably the greatest novel ever written, so naturally if you’ve read it you must be part of the ‘in crowd’ or elite readers of the literary world. So, why haven’t I read this book up until now? I mean, I’ve read massive books before, I mean the A Song of Ice and Fire books are just as long as this book so I’ve clearly read long books. Let’s not forget Les Miserables,…
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Book Blast: THE FORTUNE TELLER by Gwendolyn Womack
The Fortune Teller by Gwendolyn Womack Paperback Publication Date: June 6, 2017 Picador Paperback; 368 Pages ISBN: 9781250099778 Genre: Fiction/Historical/Mystery FROM THE AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR OF THE MEMORY PAINTER COMES A SWEEPING AND SUSPENSEFUL TALE OF ROMANCE, FATE, AND FORTUNE. Semele Cavnow appraises antiquities for an exclusive Manhattan auction house, deciphering ancient texts—and when she discovers a manuscript written in the time of Cleopatra, she knows it will be the find of her career. Its author tells the story of a priceless tarot deck, now lost to history, but as Semele delves further, she realizes the manuscript is more than it seems. Both a memoir and a prophecy, it appears to…
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Review: Angels and Demons (Robert Langdon #1) by Dan Brown
Is Dan Brown’s writing terrible? Yes. Are his stories far fetched and unbelievable? Yes. Are the books poorly researched? Yes. Did that stop me from reading this book in a frenzy? Absolutely not! I will fully admit, I loved The Da Vinci Code. I didn’t care how unbelievable or bad the writing, the story itself was so good that I was reading well into the night, every night. I simply had to know what happened next. That was at least 10 years ago that I read that book, so I felt like I was long overdue for a Robert Langdon mystery. For some reason, the mood just struck me and…
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Review: The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower #1) by Stephen King
Well it was bound to happen at some point in my literary review career…..the dreaded DNF (did not finish) tag. But little did I know that this would happen to one book that I was convinced I would love. When I finished the A Song of Ice and Fire AKA Game of Thrones series, I was longing for something similar and just as epic. I can’t tell you how many times The Dark Tower series was recommended…..countless times. I have it in paperback and on my iPad, that’s how much I wanted to read it. I even waited until the mood was perfect and I was ready to get into…
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Review: A Twist in Time (Kendra Donovan #2) by Julie McElwain
Long time readers of my blog know that I love time travel novels. I personally feel like I was born in the wrong era so I compensate by reading books on time travel and hope that I stumble upon my own vortex and end up in the castle of an insanely handsome duke to be, who just happens to be single and makes me a duchess and showers me with glittering jewels, titles, lands, oh and love of course! Wow, I digress…I got wrapped up in that daydream a little too much I think haha! In the spirit of my daydreaming, I picked up the latest Kendra Donovan novel which…