Literary Criticism
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Review: The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus by L. Frank Baum
Every year I plan on reading at least one sort of holiday book for the season. Some years are better than others, I would like to read more but it’s always hard to work them into my review schedule but this year, it worked out for me to read a couple of holiday books! The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus was written by the same guy who wrote The Wizard of Oz! I had no idea that he wrote other works let alone holiday books so this was a real treat for me to read this holiday season. This short, quick read is perfect for children and adults alike.Baum chronicles…
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Review: The Borden Murders: Lizzie Borden and the Trial of the Century by Sarah Miller
On August 4, 1892, Andrew and Abby Borden were murdered in their home in Fall River, Massachusetts in a most gruesome way…..someone took a hatchet to their skulls. And the prime suspect, their daughter Lizzie Borden. The story quickly became the ‘story of the century’. There was no concrete evidence, but rather a lot of circumstantial evidence against Lizzie…..but enough that she was arrested for the crimes. The trial that took place was front page news and was labeled ‘sensational’ by the press. But what was even more sensational was that Lizzie was found not guilty. This book follows the murder, trial, and aftermath of one of histories most shocking…
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Review: Médicis Daughter: A Novel of Marguerite de Valois by Sophie Perinot
Catherine de Medicis is one of my most favorite queens in history. I’ve read a lot of books on her…..I mean how could you not admire her in some ways? She was about as cutthroat and unapologetic as they come which I kind of admire in some of history’s most famous queens. Her name is notorious so when this book came across my nightstand for review, I jumped on it. While it is not about Catherine herself necessarily, it’s about the Medicis so that was enough for me! Plus I don’t know much about her children, just about her, so I was really interested in reading this one. Princess Margot…
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Review: The Conqueror’s Wife: A Novel of Alexander the Great by Stephanie Thornton
This book was among my most anticipated novels of 2015. I adore Thornton’s novels because they are so unique. One of the things I love best about Thornton is she writes about both famous and obscure women in antiquity….women that you may or may not have heard of but who have powerful stories. I love that she has discovered an untapped market in historical fiction. There are shelves of books on the Tudors but not many on Alexander the Great’s Wife, Empress Theodora, or the Queens of Genghis Kahn! So needless to say, having read so many of Thornton’s books, then I saw this one I was eager to start it! The…
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Review: The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials #1) by Philip Pullman
After reading Up To This Pointe earlier this month, I was dying to read something else set in the ‘north’ or in the ‘cold’. The Golden Compass has been on my TBR shelf forever and now seemed like the perfect time to read it since it features the Northern Lights and the north pole as well as a host of other things! Lyra Belacqua has been raised at Oxford’s, Jordan College, most of her young life. It is here that two very important people come to visit. the first is her uncle, Lord Asriel, who is an explorer and who has just returned from the north with some dangerous findings. Lord Asriel…
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Review: The Wrath and the Dawn (The Wrath and the Dawn #1) by Renee Ahdieh
Sixteen year old Shahrzad volunteers to marry a monster but she does some with one purpose in mind…..to kill the monster. Khalid, Caliph of Khorasan, takes a new bride every night and in the morning promptly murders them. One of the latest victims of the Caliph is Shahrzad’s best friend….and that is the reason she volunteers to marry him next…..she plans on getting vengeance on the boy king who murders innocent young women. None of the brides has survived to see more than a single sunset, but Shahrzad had a plan…..and that plan involves telling the king stories each night in and waiting for the perfect opportunity to learn his weaknesses which she will…
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Review: Christmas at the Vicarage by Rebecca Boxall
With the holiday season in full swing I was looking for a book that would help me get into the Christmas ‘spirit’ this year. I’ve been kind of hit and miss with my holiday reading over the years but each year I try to find a holiday book that gets me in the Christmas mood. This year I saw this book all over Goodreads so I was eager to pick it up. I don’t read a ton of modern romances, let alone modern holiday romances so I was anxious to try something new. Rosamunde hasn’t been to Potter’s Cove or seen her family in fifteen years. After a heart break…
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Review: Up To This Pointe by Jennifer Longo
Antarctica, ballet, and science….all together in one story. What in the world? That’s exactly what was going through my mind when this book came across my nightstand for review. I almost passed on it because it just sounded so weird, but it’s because of the weirdness that I decided to review it. I knew one of two things was going to happen…..either it would totally work or it totally wouldn’t and I would know immediately which it was! I was impressed by how quickly this story sucked me in. Harper has been a dancer her entire life. It’s all she’s ever wanted to be. It’s her only dream….she’s put YEARS…
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Review: The Fox and The Star by Coralie Bickford Smith
Coralie Bickford Smith is responsible for a number of Penguin classics updated cover designs…..and be warned I’m about to fan girl out….I’m in love with her cover designs! Sure I may own six copies of Jane Eyre (yes I am serious) but I NEEDED the Coralie Bickford Smith cloth bound copy because it’s stunning! Her book covers are absolutely beautiful as are her illustrations….every time I see one of her editions I’m in love. But I had no idea that she was also an author in her own right…..it wasn’t until THE FOX AND THE STAR came across my nightstand for review that I discovered that she was an author of children’s books…
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Review: Along the Infinite Sea by Beatriz Williams
Pepper Schuyler has got some problems and about nine months to figure out how to solve them. With a baby on the way, she needs money…bad and in 1966 she has few options to earn money. As luck would have it, she finds a rare vintage Mercedes in an old family garage and starts restoring the car. When a woman comes forward and pays an extravagant amount of money for the car, Pepper is relieved. But then the woman wants to meet her. Annabelle Dommerich claims to have been the original owner of that car and willingly paid $300K for it. After meeting Pepper, Annabelle wants to help her. Somehow Annabelle…