Category: Literary Criticism

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Night of a Thousand Stars by Deanna Raybourn

by The Lit Bitch5 Comments on Review: Night of a Thousand Stars by Deanna Raybourn

Deanna Raybourn has been an author long on my radar. I hear wonderful things about her Lady Jane series from a number of people.

So when the opportunity to review her latest standalone book, I was eager to try her books out!

Poppy Hammond, is all set to marry into an aristocratic family but she has other plans which include making a run for it.

She is assisted by the dashing curate Sebastian Cantrip who helps her escape to her family’s house where she can have some time to think and sort out her life.

Before she can thank Sebastian for his assistance, he disappears and she sets her mind to finding him. She soon realizes Sebastian has lied to her about who he is. She discovers that he has fled to Damascus. What in the world took him there?! She is determined to figure out what exactly is going on here.

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Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Duplicitous Debutante (Cotillion Ball #6) by Becky Lower

by The Lit Bitch2 Comments on Review: The Duplicitous Debutante (Cotillion Ball #6) by Becky Lower

New York society in the 1850’s, expects women to find a good husband, set up a functional home, and of course….have children.

But Rosemary Fitzpatrick has other plans, the last thing she is interested in is entering society and beginning the great husband hunt!

Rosemary has other ambitions which include writing the popular Harry Hawk dime novels. But it’s an age that frowns upon female writers and thus Rosemary writes as the gender generic, F.P. Elliott.

Well the head of the publishing company sends his son, Henry Cooper, to meet this F.P. Elliott along with the other authors of the publishing company. Rosemary is totally captivated by his good looks and charm, and Henry likewise is intrigued by Rosemary who he thinks is the secretary for Mr. F.P. Elliott.

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Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Murder on the Île Sordou (Verlaque and Bonnet #4) by M.L. Longworth

by The Lit Bitch2 Comments on Review: Murder on the Île Sordou (Verlaque and Bonnet #4) by M.L. Longworth

Judge Verlaque and his girlfriend, law professor Dr Marine Bonnet are taking a much needed vacation on a secluded island off the coast of France, Sordou.

The island was once a haven for the rich and famous in the 1960’s but was long forgotten but the elite in favor of other island destinations in the south of France.

However the Le Bon family, Cat-Cat and Max, just bought the hotel and hope to restore it to its former glory.

With the opening weekend on their life’s savings on the line, they need everything to go perfect….the last thing they need is a murder.

This novel totally reminded me of Clue, set in France. It was full of a number of eccentric characters each seemingly with no motive.

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Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Inglorious Royal Marriages: A Demi-Millennium of Unholy Mismatrimony by Leslie Carroll

by The Lit Bitch1 Comment on Review: Inglorious Royal Marriages: A Demi-Millennium of Unholy Mismatrimony by Leslie Carroll

Don’t we all wish we could be a fly on the wall of a royal marriage. There is something about royalty, romance, and marriage that lures us in and doesn’t let go.

With Leslie Carroll’s new book we get all the juice from some of history’s most notorious marriages!

Let’s just put it this way…..everything that could go wrong in these marriages, often did! And how could they not when marriages were often arranged for political gain and purpose, rather than love and affection.

I won’t go into too much detail as far as background info on the book based on the way it is structured. It’s pretty straight forward and a collections of short stories.

Carroll’s novel spans some 500 years covering stories that some readers will know well and introducing us to others we might not otherwise have known.

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Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Inceptio (Roma Nova #1) by Alison Morton

by The Lit Bitch2 Comments on Review: Inceptio (Roma Nova #1) by Alison Morton

This is my first experience reading an alternative history novel. Inceptio is not just an alternative history novel though…it’s part political thriller, part romance, and part fantasy.

Karen Brown leads an unassuming life. She grew up in rural Nebraska and moved to New York where she continues living a quiet life.

She works in a cubicle with no major responsibilities. She isn’t seeing anyone special, and like most young women on their own, she’s barely making ends meet.

But all that is about to change, in a big way.

When she starts working on a new account for a Roma Nova organization, she has no idea they are actually there surveying her. She soon learns that her mother, a fellow Roma Novan, made arrangements for her to be rather well off.

But as the saying goes, more money, more problems….someone wants her to disappear.

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