tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91693530303302279232024-03-28T06:41:58.433-07:00MysticaBlog on review of books I readMysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.comBlogger2520125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-42553483835069044492024-03-27T22:09:00.000-07:002024-03-27T22:09:00.129-07:00The Highgate Cemetery Murder by Irina Shapiro<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi3awpX-UDy4E_5cnZGuoidEOVBJXF7Jv4xHrZS6FZymK5pR5AdIQ00r1Nce-awu1uTAh-k7LILmOP9ZIIUuo4gYIOM0tlOYWHhUSCvQXzEn-IikvUDqigkJvduhSzXrhNZT5nYLpIHtVsr1M5JO7Ny9tjeVhoOhEUfXfrSN2_lCrmxFbpx4j60qODowuo" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="387" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi3awpX-UDy4E_5cnZGuoidEOVBJXF7Jv4xHrZS6FZymK5pR5AdIQ00r1Nce-awu1uTAh-k7LILmOP9ZIIUuo4gYIOM0tlOYWHhUSCvQXzEn-IikvUDqigkJvduhSzXrhNZT5nYLpIHtVsr1M5JO7Ny9tjeVhoOhEUfXfrSN2_lCrmxFbpx4j60qODowuo" width="158" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Victor was a journalist. A quiet man but with attention to detail. When he was found dead, pushed under a cart and had died, his sister Nurse Gemma knew her cautious brother could not have been so careless. His notebook had a cryptic sentence. “Milky Way and red streaks” Gemma knew her intuition would be met with skepticism until she met Inspector Sebastian who did not brush her feelings aside.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The setting of the 1850s, the number of aristocrats and rich involved in this murder and then you get the middle class like Gemma, Victor and Sebastian trying to find justice and being coerced and ridiculed by society and worse by their peers who side with the rich covering up all their sins of both omission and commission.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This has been a recurring feature in books set in this era. How even questioning an earl or a son of a viscount was considered out of bounds and they got away with murder, rape, abuse of women. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The setting was gothic almost and very descriptive.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Detective work was not easy and bringing the culprits to book was going to be either the saving of the Detective or his end.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Storm Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-32411982904883659452024-03-25T18:53:00.000-07:002024-03-25T18:53:00.134-07:00A Deadly Endeavour by Jenny Adams<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg1-Wfyqx_dJdh1bLEvIT0O92v7r9dZwW1uwDRlG-JZiFueaXMstkFJad1g5k5FQyy-nYBdTlzS0Iq2dn0R8m-w3rtH6d16BkJD4m_EFYSGBa77iV0A0S8qSOpVmS80jW_LsyfqrBgaSHHxQvAGs3b6x9l0w7H--8hWtfKVzbCk2toCmGqFwO3txiJhSXE" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg1-Wfyqx_dJdh1bLEvIT0O92v7r9dZwW1uwDRlG-JZiFueaXMstkFJad1g5k5FQyy-nYBdTlzS0Iq2dn0R8m-w3rtH6d16BkJD4m_EFYSGBa77iV0A0S8qSOpVmS80jW_LsyfqrBgaSHHxQvAGs3b6x9l0w7H--8hWtfKVzbCk2toCmGqFwO3txiJhSXE" width="180" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">1921 Philadelphia Edie returns home after a stint in California to find that nothing has changed in her absence. A fun loving, very rich, very entitled being the same scenario exists. Except that the love of her life Theo has changed alliances and is now engaged to her twin sister.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The dynamics amongst their inner circle has changed and Edie has begun to develop a social conscience due to one or two of her friends changed perspectives. She now realises that the people who serve their families are individuals in their own right with dreams and aspirations of their own. Sadly they are in a tiny minority and things are not going to change much.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When one friend is murdered in the most vicious way possible, followed by a maid, another close friend and another maid all interlinked to Edie, the signs point to someone mentally unbalanced and someone within their household. When Edie’s maid goes missing, her brother Dr Gilbert gets involved trying to unravel the mystery of his sisters disappearance and to connect the dots of the murders.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Macabre in the extreme as to the murders, descriptive as to the lifestyle of all in the 1920s and keen detective skills overall.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Crooked Lane Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I have been very lucky to get hold of a series of books to read, from different genres and all really good reading.</div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-39805496470429768602024-03-24T06:01:00.000-07:002024-03-24T06:01:00.134-07:00Eliza Mace by Sarah Burton & Jem Poster<p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi_SZG9G8y0Q2FIJOn1HVkm-6NhG7ar2KJiA2Qr4TKSBxSS5qWIez9zs_HIpV_0tuQ5659zSB0BTZHRNfL61-wOvcyLSd5NbcF5c9b5M3-Sj2yZicgLEWwtq9yKzYtCWzqKPEklR9vNfX1THRV39C2ieKyeU4uF4NIULVlYq9DKwLrS0Xwkwu4zKMYhz1M" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="410" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi_SZG9G8y0Q2FIJOn1HVkm-6NhG7ar2KJiA2Qr4TKSBxSS5qWIez9zs_HIpV_0tuQ5659zSB0BTZHRNfL61-wOvcyLSd5NbcF5c9b5M3-Sj2yZicgLEWwtq9yKzYtCWzqKPEklR9vNfX1THRV39C2ieKyeU4uF4NIULVlYq9DKwLrS0Xwkwu4zKMYhz1M" width="149" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /> The 1870s a village on the border of Wales. A family who had money, lands but a wastrel father who has run through every bit of money available. The family is in debt to every tradesman around and even to their employees. <p></p><p>On one of his finding his fortune sprees, Eliza’s father goes missing and since he is a man who is disliked by many for his temperament which was vile, on top of the debts no one is particularly interested in his going missing. Eliza his daughter, is the only one, who pushes the local detective Daffyd to pursue many leads, which she discovers on her own.</p><p>Eliza is a force, and goes against all conventional norms of the time, meeting up with people on the estate, visiting the police station on her own and unraveling clues which lead to many being taken into custody. Both the Detective and Eliza realise that they may hang the wrong man if they don’t uncover the actual truth.</p><p>The suspect was more sinned against than being the sinner but he did pay the price. He killed Eliza’s father and the jury only looked at that, not the circumstances. Justice was different in those times.</p><p>The difficulties a woman faced by being different, unconventional are portrayed very well in this story.</p><p>Sent by Duckworth Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley </p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-49435564152740647692024-03-20T05:12:00.000-07:002024-03-20T05:12:00.134-07:00The Other Gwyn Girl by Nicola Cornick<p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi3xrE95QHNTzwJ-YkADExDo1Ma4wguiKYjjlP18UqR5-fhkqDqhZnN82XZvz5fXJtbOhtrUH_i793nNYNQ2Z5p7qSKatGEs_eJJ0jUJ4wRfyNoML_fQoWw5H7tWtYv4_TVOrnWpnJuTw6IX3EV5PzPxwuAkfv0hd_H7PWTkKyOUvZdYg6zqDSBCgTVAw8" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="391" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi3xrE95QHNTzwJ-YkADExDo1Ma4wguiKYjjlP18UqR5-fhkqDqhZnN82XZvz5fXJtbOhtrUH_i793nNYNQ2Z5p7qSKatGEs_eJJ0jUJ4wRfyNoML_fQoWw5H7tWtYv4_TVOrnWpnJuTw6IX3EV5PzPxwuAkfv0hd_H7PWTkKyOUvZdYg6zqDSBCgTVAw8" width="157" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>A bleak crumbling castle being used by a celebrated influencer in present times being used as a project. Jess is trying to get over being scammed by her boyfriend, who wiped not just her out of everything she had but wiped out many others as well. Tavy her very selfish sister whilst offering her a bolt hole, wants an unpaid housekeeper to occupy the house when she is away, in order to comply with insurance policies.<p></p><p>We then go back to 1671 when the castle came into the hands of Nell Gwyn the courtesan of the King. Rose was the “wild” sister, living on her wits, a thief, married to a highwayman and in prison. When her husband is found dead and Rose herself is pregnant, she appeals to Nell who organises her release.</p><p>But Nell like Tavy centuries later has ulterior motives. She knows that Rose’s husband and another notorious criminal Thomas Blood attempted to steal the Crown Jewels and that since they were not found, Rose may be the key to finding the jewels. Additionally Nell is being blackmailed because the locket given by the King to her is with Blood and he holds this as a bargaining tool. Nell’s position with the king has turned precarious. There is a wife and a French mistress to contend with.</p><p>Fast forward and Jess discovers a pile of old books which her sister wants to dispose of as quickly as possible. Jess discovers the link to both Gwyn girls and researches the history of the time giving an account of the lives of these two women.</p><p>Nell was the smart one but I was rooting for Rose the overlooked one. In a similar vein Tavy was beautiful, fabulously rich and self serving. Jess was the reserved one. It seemed like though so apart the women had similar characteristics, brought together at this Becote Castle.</p><p>The contrasts in characters, in lifestyles, plus the history all added interest to the story.</p><p>Sent by Boldwood Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-78916339031225777192024-03-17T04:58:00.000-07:002024-03-17T04:58:00.250-07:00Don’t Foget Me by Rea Frey<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhhOx3yhkk-YAf6ZQWSGbNSqZ64hIKtAKPGJ-LKX85Bl10tFomqXcCjwJqMtzAGeqvfFMfU-3OwwdrAWKkVYQaqydcOfFLvtOkKcOQa-y0pQ69kBWvKDo6CmQ00F0ejVHywd2nlJhj-C1fig-raso4BR5YikVvgFF5YSZDmwn7Uixo1-NvPThNuVFfZJ7Q" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhhOx3yhkk-YAf6ZQWSGbNSqZ64hIKtAKPGJ-LKX85Bl10tFomqXcCjwJqMtzAGeqvfFMfU-3OwwdrAWKkVYQaqydcOfFLvtOkKcOQa-y0pQ69kBWvKDo6CmQ00F0ejVHywd2nlJhj-C1fig-raso4BR5YikVvgFF5YSZDmwn7Uixo1-NvPThNuVFfZJ7Q" width="155" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Ruby and Tom and daughter lily moved to a newly built community by a lake. Ruby just went along with Tom on location, design and everything else. Her only focus was to protect and nurture Lily, who besides being a clever student had frailties of her own, which Tom refused to acknowledge.<p></p><p>Fast forward and Lily goes missing. Followed by Tom going missing. When Tom’s body is found floating on the lake, suspicion focuses on Ruby. She doesn’t identify the body as Tom, but all her neighbours do.</p><p>Is Ruby in a fugue state not able to acknowledge what is in front of her. When one and then another neighbour is found murdered, the focus switches solely on Ruby. Even at that moment three quarter into the story, one would go with the theory that Ruby kills these people while in some state, which blocks her remembering what she has done.</p><p>The final denouement is shocking and frightening and a surprise. The dual timelines, the uncertainty of Ruby, the changing face of the immediate characters all created a puzzle.</p><p>Sent by Thomas & Mercer for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-62768193258021980022024-03-14T01:04:00.000-07:002024-03-14T01:04:00.119-07:00Murder by Lamplight by Patrice Mcdonough<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhr2McYZ2j8Hplztq0lk8CpZ0kN8NEgfaNCaWo3n1WlpAHimkgE_ghkUO9B9kz8amUf5shFzCKtsnmvA0Sgi7ds0G8S5YGQ2T95sY2UQcPUSC7UztdDfaO0tOotlxj8P8t-tUeZVWXFfhxwLp-asRLoVpSxaac4cSfe2Uhkr7wpP6QNJAQVz33MOkZ7OKE" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="384" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhr2McYZ2j8Hplztq0lk8CpZ0kN8NEgfaNCaWo3n1WlpAHimkgE_ghkUO9B9kz8amUf5shFzCKtsnmvA0Sgi7ds0G8S5YGQ2T95sY2UQcPUSC7UztdDfaO0tOotlxj8P8t-tUeZVWXFfhxwLp-asRLoVpSxaac4cSfe2Uhkr7wpP6QNJAQVz33MOkZ7OKE" width="159" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I enjoy a story with a female lead. Especially one who has to work the odds to get the recognition she deserves. Very often in the past centuries such women have been relegated to the dimmer parts of history and not acknowledged for the trail blazers they were.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Dr Julia Lewis a qualified doctor is one such woman. Grand daughter of a doctor she qualified in America because women were not allowed to study medicine in 1866 England. Now called upon to assist in a gory crime scene, she has to face derision not just from the coppers, but also from Detective Tennant who thinks she is incapable of handling the case.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When murder after murder occurs and clues point to numerous people first those connected to the theatre and especially the drag clubs of the day, the Doctor starts her own investigation of trying to follow sequence and logic. When the suspicions fall on the workhouse, it finds many people linked to the murder, all who are perfectly good suspects.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">How it all pans out is ingenious. Not just solving the crime, but the social commentary on the times was very, very good. It gives a setting to the story which enhances the read.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Kensington Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg1aKUci16HjOCbxKIpy1acZRIswPBopBGnt0E0nyc-2_CcRdJ8W8jQMa40-AZU_PkpWhh-e5mc-n-QMu-ex5FU80g5xwV3kgKlSTUVGY5K1YZIieo0LGZVYliZgp0GWw_X7mc-UjTIRuqb_7maazBxjlrIRx8jkz8pEJFTSPzBMRJYfuW9nYkjYN9fHco" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg1aKUci16HjOCbxKIpy1acZRIswPBopBGnt0E0nyc-2_CcRdJ8W8jQMa40-AZU_PkpWhh-e5mc-n-QMu-ex5FU80g5xwV3kgKlSTUVGY5K1YZIieo0LGZVYliZgp0GWw_X7mc-UjTIRuqb_7maazBxjlrIRx8jkz8pEJFTSPzBMRJYfuW9nYkjYN9fHco" width="180" /></a></div><br />The Nallur temple in the very North of Sri Lanka, revered by many.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-68611639925706240462024-03-11T00:55:00.000-07:002024-03-11T00:55:00.129-07:00The Hidden Storyteller by Mandy Robotgam<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi7OXvF7VNiME6fbsD1g8Qb5BUdS9gsmkYoitHgt-5EVttPdwdBTG_sYZMTY9ss7y3VhMekfKwywMutXBv6e7WzEHzOooEfxaP7aMNdlgpnlgru_D7vrh38_2x3VK1-4Rge99aatXqGcgL4SDm27z_z0mzhtPFVqsQe6GFPHc3PgePiBE3xqTTpWvEKfBM" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="391" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi7OXvF7VNiME6fbsD1g8Qb5BUdS9gsmkYoitHgt-5EVttPdwdBTG_sYZMTY9ss7y3VhMekfKwywMutXBv6e7WzEHzOooEfxaP7aMNdlgpnlgru_D7vrh38_2x3VK1-4Rge99aatXqGcgL4SDm27z_z0mzhtPFVqsQe6GFPHc3PgePiBE3xqTTpWvEKfBM" width="157" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This is all about WWII but still so very different.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The year 1946 Hamburg, Germany broken, in pieces. The people so overwhelmed by their own history, desperate, dying now of TB and malnutrition instead of at the hands of the Nazis.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We have Georgie Young, intrepid war reporter who has a tough reputation of laying the facts as she sees them. Coming from London at a time of personal crisis, she herself is at an uncertain stage but is determined to do the assignment. See Germany at its worst, give in her report. She didn’t expect to get mugged twice on her first day. She also did not expect to get involved on a personal basis with the people she came into contact with. From Meta the waif with a core of steel, to Zophie on a personal quest and Inspector Harri battling crime with no resources, no help. Getting involved in a serial murder investigation was not part of Georgie’s instructions, but she was not very good at following instructions.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The story covers post war Germany, the over riding British presence, the ignorance and condescension shown by many British officers which exacerbated a bad situation, corruption at every level on both sides, and the almost apocalyptic situation Germans faced every day just trying to survive one more day.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The story is very violent, very emotional and factual. It is unputdownable!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Avon Books UK for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-46864713104209272902024-03-09T00:22:00.000-08:002024-03-09T00:22:00.138-08:00<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEixb2zoUg8-lY8B29W1cJxiOQAMWLKZ64Zlz11DjLwm3oEC3kWYKkJvNDF6iKawAf8yXCvQ-jJRTnkM8nKO3W4Af40_fc2tTaCd7Ynz6spzk5KCwXLiLkLYl9jCEl6N0MlTbRa1_s33blVJGvnkicbJl4bDQw6ihuD4c7Go7VE9Tej4lKoe6v0F-F25Ovs" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEixb2zoUg8-lY8B29W1cJxiOQAMWLKZ64Zlz11DjLwm3oEC3kWYKkJvNDF6iKawAf8yXCvQ-jJRTnkM8nKO3W4Af40_fc2tTaCd7Ynz6spzk5KCwXLiLkLYl9jCEl6N0MlTbRa1_s33blVJGvnkicbJl4bDQw6ihuD4c7Go7VE9Tej4lKoe6v0F-F25Ovs" width="160" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Much has been written about the Titanic, especially about survivors. This one is similar but it a spectacularly good read. We follow the Fortune family from Winnipeg- the father a self made millionaire, having the grand tour with his family. Two daughters affianced, so this could be their last trip together. Another younger daughter and a teenage son. Very united, close knit family.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We follow their journey minutely, even the foretelling of a disaster, a watery one, by an Egyptian soothsayer. The girls who are engaged have now doubts about their future, particularly the eldest who is fighting her feelings for the dashing Mr Kinsey. The second is in the throes of a flirtation only but is restless at the cloistered future that awaits on her return, and the youngest is facing a losing battle against her wishes and dreams of a university education and fighting the suffragist cause.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Titanic’s epic death is detailed and descriptive. From the accounts of the girls the effort that everyone put in to survive, the salvation of so many souls who may have otherwise been lost, the crassness of some rich women even whilst being rescued, and mainly the utter futility of the many lives lost for so many reasons. Over confidence, the braggadocio displayed by builders and owners, the insufficient number of lifeboats all contributed to its demise.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This was a feet curling, edge of the seat read.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Kensington Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiCoUFZyr3VcJewtSUh_6-BFe6DaRa6cEvHBKqVEnNhmigDdymAiqyC3jv1YrfqtnGTjF_nfp3HGObwzYuUhk8Xf1c8b4IHrMGEErdl9LfY9JoM9ukry4XAi_HfESDSrxiGY1QiRS16tYFE1-Smus8zxdsuJh60Jsb7MsOg7TleRyK1JsbFOFNGOF7xFto" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="2448" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiCoUFZyr3VcJewtSUh_6-BFe6DaRa6cEvHBKqVEnNhmigDdymAiqyC3jv1YrfqtnGTjF_nfp3HGObwzYuUhk8Xf1c8b4IHrMGEErdl9LfY9JoM9ukry4XAi_HfESDSrxiGY1QiRS16tYFE1-Smus8zxdsuJh60Jsb7MsOg7TleRyK1JsbFOFNGOF7xFto" width="240" /></a></div><br />Nuwara Eliya’s finest garden. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-58562440864982017812024-03-05T05:31:00.000-08:002024-03-05T05:31:00.133-08:00The Murder Club by Alexandra Ivy<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh2JtyVxilbwyY94fDDTwuGKWGBnrpjnkCxC1MKmSQcEzAmBZW2qyrgtFvKki43h-VswfQ7AhR3Gce17g0le7Vz75eIiw9g5l6TQfZZ-tNPwJZyZb620FReASkpSHa3ch3n3QZBLHcjmV99q50vb_BCRV9bGWdWiDulwtNRn7XBcKPFxaM-OBDjUT6NNxc" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="376" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh2JtyVxilbwyY94fDDTwuGKWGBnrpjnkCxC1MKmSQcEzAmBZW2qyrgtFvKki43h-VswfQ7AhR3Gce17g0le7Vz75eIiw9g5l6TQfZZ-tNPwJZyZb620FReASkpSHa3ch3n3QZBLHcjmV99q50vb_BCRV9bGWdWiDulwtNRn7XBcKPFxaM-OBDjUT6NNxc" width="163" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">An online murder club. It seems very simple - investigating cold cases trying to unravel clues detectives may have missed. Bailey works a humdrum job, but she likes the residents of her nursing home and finds the murder club gives her the thrill of doing something different</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When the messages become slightly threatening and when a resident dies leaving a sizeable inheritance to Bailey, things get very ugly. Nellie’s grandson becomes violent and accuses Bailey of improper behaviour. Bailey is suspended from work. When more people connected to Bailey start getting murdered and the messages become more threatening, Bailey and Dom (who is the new entrant in Baileys life) realise they have to step up their detection to catch this very cold blooded killer.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Set in a small town of Pike which has a notorious reputation for murder was interesting. The characters were both complicated with lots of secrets to hide.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Fast paced. The romance was an added genre.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Kensington Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-25961769409857485192024-03-01T18:51:00.000-08:002024-03-01T18:51:00.241-08:00The Last Day in Paris by Suzanne Kerman (Book 1)<p> </p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj63kKH9d-PI1cI-dIMJvrKMPnIioMB-5QcQkHyJLqd0rGMzUe1Duv_1kAltMnKxOcW6tvlq5ToA44LhLFa8RuraCQbf3mK6MI1R3TvgQUUlEviws68hGUk05mnb1pVRl0aKT0ws7lSt0EbHwLiWW85-syJD9t1FGwE9Xbd5DFv8wAvFa12X7CjKGwiM48" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj63kKH9d-PI1cI-dIMJvrKMPnIioMB-5QcQkHyJLqd0rGMzUe1Duv_1kAltMnKxOcW6tvlq5ToA44LhLFa8RuraCQbf3mK6MI1R3TvgQUUlEviws68hGUk05mnb1pVRl0aKT0ws7lSt0EbHwLiWW85-syJD9t1FGwE9Xbd5DFv8wAvFa12X7CjKGwiM48" width="155" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I enjoyed the book very much, so I do hope I get the sequel.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>1940 Paris was not a good time for anyone and for Jews it was ominous. Isabella heeded the signs and when her husband was brutally gunned down, she decided there was no option but to send her daughter away. Doing the work she loved in an art gallery, she realized the plunder that was going on with the huge amount of robbed art going to Germany, apart from the horrendous destruction of modern art which Goering disliked.<p></p><p>Working with the Resistance, Isabella had an ulterior reason for working in the gallery. She wanted to track and save her husbands masterpiece and this she did in the most devious and wonderful way. Fast forward several decades later to a dreary London suburb, and an even more frustrating life, we have Esther Isabella’s great grand daughter, the inheritor of the painting, and the events following which will change her life.</p><p>Involving hate against humanity, murder, scheming but also survival, romance and love the story is a remarkable one.</p><p>Sent by Bookouture for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgKbvNw4oGylpt5rtTVb9PtZ7AuZ4V4MG3I5FIfMAMceb1phmk4_vcRiGQiRV1rYIneJdVv8DbTHSZi0Ytt-0t2usJUM60Ng92kjg06Uu1s3eqMWu_Ey9ZqSbXZIZpd6q5HyVcFB4VQhx7uEa78QXwCfn4_zRBm0Uvng8OeXmxEJEUC-3FzLCaSLnmlKEY" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgKbvNw4oGylpt5rtTVb9PtZ7AuZ4V4MG3I5FIfMAMceb1phmk4_vcRiGQiRV1rYIneJdVv8DbTHSZi0Ytt-0t2usJUM60Ng92kjg06Uu1s3eqMWu_Ey9ZqSbXZIZpd6q5HyVcFB4VQhx7uEa78QXwCfn4_zRBm0Uvng8OeXmxEJEUC-3FzLCaSLnmlKEY" width="180" /></a></div><br />A waterfall called Devon Falls very close to my home in Rozella. The English names are all the remnants of our colonial history.<p></p><p><br /></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-69502366227977621312024-02-27T21:56:00.000-08:002024-02-27T21:56:00.137-08:00The Hurtwood Village Murders by Benedict Brown<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiaq2a3nCVwrPh9Fw0Qgd0Ub5Ng56UKwF9KKsHIMrjT2n6vnHzrkpxCcKYDYa2tnacTimcDJU4ae_LHYKUqFarVHphdfHwBoI8dv0tJe15yqjwVjx4gQqRxGFmYjaLd33F1YlhNDKm5DR4Rno4oe_H4A6iP08jsWaZORHsVnvND19B2QtVucV8geoxyIAM" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiaq2a3nCVwrPh9Fw0Qgd0Ub5Ng56UKwF9KKsHIMrjT2n6vnHzrkpxCcKYDYa2tnacTimcDJU4ae_LHYKUqFarVHphdfHwBoI8dv0tJe15yqjwVjx4gQqRxGFmYjaLd33F1YlhNDKm5DR4Rno4oe_H4A6iP08jsWaZORHsVnvND19B2QtVucV8geoxyIAM" width="155" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Second book I’m reading by this author. Set in I presume a quintessentially English village, complete with the characters including the eccentric. Here we have unusually the Heaton family detested universally, and although the main culprits are dead and gone, the animosity remains hidden but very much below the surface.</p><p>Marius our prize winning author and his sort of girlfriend the lovely Lady Isabella gets dragged into an investigation of threatening poison pen letters to three of the Heaton remaining clan. Death promised in no uncertain terms assured. Police are called in but the first murder of James happens anyway and then the second of Tilly. Scotland Yard gets roped in and no proper suspect is in place because there are a lot of red herrings. </p><p>The detection is slow, but charming. Characterisation was varied, also charming. </p><p>A sequel has to follow because I want to know where the romance is going. It’s not quite fair to leave the reader dangling!</p><p>Sent by Storm Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhX8dKeaQ4Rt4wIE2wyrSmHPyMvZhSxT0E1dQcIC4HmXoZk4j958zpXDnaTbBk9vmqyqFDmnXJdNDoKppBxB9p5GkNkj-H8Z2IWb82bXUUdX-LHQnB7MpfBWWWqQaW5Fbz9yxciioLycJf7SpcTqzJ8b_PHDh-dYYaKGv52oFg0t0K5xQZjoyBm6glOeKs" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhX8dKeaQ4Rt4wIE2wyrSmHPyMvZhSxT0E1dQcIC4HmXoZk4j958zpXDnaTbBk9vmqyqFDmnXJdNDoKppBxB9p5GkNkj-H8Z2IWb82bXUUdX-LHQnB7MpfBWWWqQaW5Fbz9yxciioLycJf7SpcTqzJ8b_PHDh-dYYaKGv52oFg0t0K5xQZjoyBm6glOeKs" width="180" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Where I’ve spent the last week. It’s a cooler part of this tropical island called Rozella. Turnips and beans growing in this greenhouse.</div><br /><br /><p></p><p><br /></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-52225811828179910182024-02-23T21:33:00.000-08:002024-02-23T21:33:00.135-08:00Unsinkable by Jenni L. Walsh <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The word Unsinkable immediately conjures the Titanic but I realised to my surprise that there were many ships, huge ocean vessels which suffered the same fate.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Violet Jessop’s life was hard, but never humdrum. From being a ship survivor not once, not twice but thrice, you’d wonder why she went back to the same job. Stewarding on ships brought in plenty of money and she was the breadwinner for a family of five siblings and her mother when her father died. Family first was her motto from the beginning to the end and she sacrificed her dreams of a medical career and a love, till everyone was taken care of.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Parallel to this story is the one of Daphne Katherine. A girl who did not know her place in society, who never knew a family warmth, and who joined the French Resistance first as a way to get recognition from her father and then later on toget revenge from the Nazis and their treatment of Jews.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The stories of both linked by birth unknown to each other, told in alternating chapters was an emotional one. WWI Nazis and Hitler are stories that will not get old or stale, as each one is different. Violets story of endurance, hardship and getting on with life against immense odds is also one worth reading about</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Harper Muse for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" class="placeholder" height="240" id="6838b67324a16" src="https://www.blogger.com/img/transparent.gif" style="background-color: #d8d8d8; background-image: url('https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/i/materialiconsextended/insert_photo/v6/grey600-24dp/1x/baseline_insert_photo_grey600_24dp.png'); background-position: center; background-repeat: no-repeat; opacity: 0.6;" width="320" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><br /></div>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-15202017208174112752024-02-21T17:59:00.000-08:002024-02-21T17:59:20.127-08:00The Artist’s Apprentice by Clare Flynn Book 1<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjb1Q7mfNHU7UF_M6ePNeNdlwWsu9k80ChNaz6XwOw5I3naq9eLEqqXikroWepPz8DbSgt0dSWLxphgYP-toS7BLzJAY5HfTU8YYh-7E5WskWnE4nzaLYguibGlSXISF32-PYh4c0F3KGgMrqJiFuEkQc8sPiU92CNWKNjIBLd2DTCpLUVVW0KukBpnxFY" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="387" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjb1Q7mfNHU7UF_M6ePNeNdlwWsu9k80ChNaz6XwOw5I3naq9eLEqqXikroWepPz8DbSgt0dSWLxphgYP-toS7BLzJAY5HfTU8YYh-7E5WskWnE4nzaLYguibGlSXISF32-PYh4c0F3KGgMrqJiFuEkQc8sPiU92CNWKNjIBLd2DTCpLUVVW0KukBpnxFY" width="158" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I read the two books almost one after the other because they were good.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>1908 and rich English-girls are still expected to do the right thing. Follow their parents instructions, I wouldn’t call it guidance here, and marry into the correct family. Alice seems pliant but she rebelled. The story continues with Edmund the spurred suitor marrying someone else, Edmund’s father taking on a protege, and cutting Edmund off. At the same time Alice finds employment in. Stained glass business with the spurned Edmund of all people.<p></p><p>Working and living with a married man is beyond the understanding or acceptance of most people at the time, and Alice seems to be isolated not just from her family but also from friends. Alice and Edmund have also got to face the prospect of a looming war.</p><p>History especially the social mores of the time, along with a typical rich family saga where what everyone thinks and says is very important, this was indeed a good illustration of the times.</p><p>Sent by Storm Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-75394901650835401912024-02-21T07:15:00.000-08:002024-02-21T07:15:00.138-08:00The Artist’s Wife by Clare Flynn<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEincjzCmSV1QQTHi29JmxTd8oTKIYLCwZULNG084W7nDdUypnJ63eUECZOVzBO0ofU5XagG00FJF2f4S50WdMkumtyS2RB6h4QA3nSv_ZiZH8xJ3LKz4o07q0mP81QBJcdS6xza2aO8d_cyObBydqU0DtrXe0L6K0TeS3_lUf8wsCz5h1gcsC2GstIRSeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="387" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEincjzCmSV1QQTHi29JmxTd8oTKIYLCwZULNG084W7nDdUypnJ63eUECZOVzBO0ofU5XagG00FJF2f4S50WdMkumtyS2RB6h4QA3nSv_ZiZH8xJ3LKz4o07q0mP81QBJcdS6xza2aO8d_cyObBydqU0DtrXe0L6K0TeS3_lUf8wsCz5h1gcsC2GstIRSeg" width="158" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Alice Dalton and Edmund Culter are a partnership both professionally and personally. It has come at grave cost though. The year 1914 brings upheaval in England with the onset of war and Edmunds father Herbert has taken his hatred of his son further by promoting a marriage of Edmunds wife Dora with Alice brother who is now Herbert’s protégée in business and his heir.<p></p><p>The story although mainly of Alice and Edmund their deep love for each other, despite many obstacles is only a part of the story. Herbert Cutler is Machiavellian in his dealings - he wants to cut Edmund from his inheritance, then to get his grand daughter adopted legally by Victor Dalton and then get a seat in Parliament.</p><p>He never took into account the vagaries of the heart because he did not have an iota of empathy for people. Herbert got thwarted at every turn. He never dreamt that being the industrialist he was that he will not get nominated to any constituency. He never thought Victor will throw away a massive inheritance and enlist, and he did not realise that his son was not bothered by money or inheritance. He did not take into account personalities and feelings of the heart.</p><p>His downfall, leading to stability for Alice and Edmund and the beginning of a new life for all involved after many tragic events is this story. </p><p>The setting, the period in which the story is set and the classes in English society, so rigid at the time very descriptively detailed. There are details of the suffragette struggles, the beginning of the white feather movement adding further dimensions to the story.</p><p>Sent by Storm Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-91736196904289460742024-02-19T07:01:00.000-08:002024-02-19T07:01:00.138-08:00The Girl on the Boat by Kate Hewitt<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiwbmqCfqh3M8AnGaos8VkoI5YzQF6J3dyuLlNJtFAlnOXRJg02IRwnqnsAQg97ZQWmyEY-Clj9lh8WtqJ-3i5gay9xCkrptNI7AGZEgSTybseIasWX8KygnICBWV37kY1mGS0eZLnalN6sGOKYM1awv4VHWwRUdxLZHEGAUftHFlDQLtEoZOn7K0bX2IQ" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="389" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiwbmqCfqh3M8AnGaos8VkoI5YzQF6J3dyuLlNJtFAlnOXRJg02IRwnqnsAQg97ZQWmyEY-Clj9lh8WtqJ-3i5gay9xCkrptNI7AGZEgSTybseIasWX8KygnICBWV37kY1mGS0eZLnalN6sGOKYM1awv4VHWwRUdxLZHEGAUftHFlDQLtEoZOn7K0bX2IQ" width="157" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The persecution of the Jews in Germany was bad enough but even on the boat taking them away from Germany, Sophie and her friends faced taunts. Hoping to reach the safe haven of Cuba, with visas in hand, their hopes were dashed. It was only Sophie who managed to escape with a group of six and go to Washington and make a life for herself there.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The other three girls got dispersed through Belgium, France and England in their search for a permanent home. The promise they made to each other to meet on a particular day was one they all intended to keep, despite whatever was thrown at them.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In this story (I presume sequels will follow) we see Sophie’s life from the time she landed at the Tyler’s mansion to her unceremoniously being kicked out, to the life she found for herself, her love and then the tragic loss followed by a surprising change in career.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Like all WWII stories, each story is unique, heart breaking and precious. This was no exception.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Bookouture for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-57711762774931198172024-02-16T23:02:00.000-08:002024-02-16T23:02:00.246-08:00Death at St Jude’s by Mary Grand<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjk5uL2x5c1SeEJlhZXN-oiiupxOY4UyoavEBabYyXTrRozbezQL7sndiz40q-xQ1cq2Kj_GaTQChBsou4JvBMiTgsADX333aoBa53ITpmo6t1NHmXvH59ZwgVuwV7YOBcFwccTxswT8nH2RSnkJ2QffIBAdSYOktjjcHIz57aCT1kDX5G1r80FNfcxQok" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="392" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjk5uL2x5c1SeEJlhZXN-oiiupxOY4UyoavEBabYyXTrRozbezQL7sndiz40q-xQ1cq2Kj_GaTQChBsou4JvBMiTgsADX333aoBa53ITpmo6t1NHmXvH59ZwgVuwV7YOBcFwccTxswT8nH2RSnkJ2QffIBAdSYOktjjcHIz57aCT1kDX5G1r80FNfcxQok" width="156" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Set on the Isle of Wight the setting alone is atmospheric. It wasn’t remote or inaccessible but it had its charm. Susan has just moved there. After a divorce and three years down the line, she is trying very hard to get back to a single life. With her two dogs by her side, good neighbours and interacting with local church activities draws her into a good social circle.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When Lawrence is found dead, fallen from a tower suspicions mount especially as it followed an acrimonious committee meeting in the church. So much does not seem right to Susan, but the local police and the village want to go with the accidental death verdict. Susan follows her own detection, she knows she is ruffling feathers when her house is egged and then had graffiti written on it. Those who were her friends are annoyed that she is investigating, when the Police have stopped.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The entire cast of characters had stuff to hide and not wanting it to be aired in public, and they’d go to extreme measures to keep them secret. One by one from the Deputy Head of the school, to the vicar and his wife, junior teachers and the music director have secrets unveiled. The final outcome was a surprise though.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Good, classic detection skills.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Boldwood Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-2327523669362087422024-02-13T21:52:00.000-08:002024-02-13T21:52:00.155-08:00Where Butterflies Wander by Suzanne Redfearn<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgmFCv_A0Mf-jV9n5m_OzPg8uTUQbhv8J8RxrEzyc2pPZPIp-EElrGYliPqNW9Uc8QbZLir2tntW1WQtwfAycHECVOGp8prefAOlHJs8-y1X76Bf7ldNfCSO42q5lKcfWShLxHRJEKpxXw_0kgriYO_MFhyytxoPW79gDxC9-np2RHPcBMgng4FV6treo8" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgmFCv_A0Mf-jV9n5m_OzPg8uTUQbhv8J8RxrEzyc2pPZPIp-EElrGYliPqNW9Uc8QbZLir2tntW1WQtwfAycHECVOGp8prefAOlHJs8-y1X76Bf7ldNfCSO42q5lKcfWShLxHRJEKpxXw_0kgriYO_MFhyytxoPW79gDxC9-np2RHPcBMgng4FV6treo8" width="160" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This was excellent reading but a difficult book to review.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It had the human elements of sorrow, joy, anger, love and grief all represented throughout the story. There was remorse in plenty, forgiveness too and it ended neatly.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Starting with a child’s tragic death, a family without cleaving together seems to drift apart in their own little worlds of sorrows and what ifs. Coming in summer to a vast property they owned should have been good to rest and recuperate. It turned into a maelstrom of division. A resident Davina living on the edge of the property, a herbalist and a healer was the catalyst for Mum Marie and son Brendon. For the father and the two girls she spelt peace and understanding of their sorrows. Father Leo was actually torn between several worlds - his wife, very importantly his son whom he did not understand or respect and his daughters whom he adored.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The story of this torn family, the way the wife and son witch hunted Davina the herbalist and their remorse at the end, the reconciliation of the whole family and the beginning of their healing after Bee’s death was the crux of the story.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Very down to earth writing, emotional and heart wrenching in turn.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Lake Union Publishing for an unbiased review. Courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-36408091325276055942024-02-13T04:10:00.000-08:002024-02-13T04:10:00.152-08:00The Body on the Beach by Laura Martin<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj2UkoswKj3lqe8RP3rknxm6LFyAyybklNAzqu1S1SSe-QJfeNBgvVa75TDeV5t1_m5Zsy7uF0wUZirfahWEN3OVDOsNaUEp-rwE95BQW8gZ1iBGyW3aNa8vomq-slbcR0tFcoDtdqfWMOLX5yJu-R8j-8My8FImNH04IwAcM6hxD4yQbyJ4nbBrAhkghY" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj2UkoswKj3lqe8RP3rknxm6LFyAyybklNAzqu1S1SSe-QJfeNBgvVa75TDeV5t1_m5Zsy7uF0wUZirfahWEN3OVDOsNaUEp-rwE95BQW8gZ1iBGyW3aNa8vomq-slbcR0tFcoDtdqfWMOLX5yJu-R8j-8My8FImNH04IwAcM6hxD4yQbyJ4nbBrAhkghY" width="160" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This was a mystery murder which portrayed Jane Austen and her sister Cassandra as the sleuths in this beautiful setting of Lyme Regis. The Austens are on holiday and Jane discovers the body of a young woman on the beach. The girl has been strangled and the signs including bruising are very apparent. What becomes surprising is that the coroner and magistrate almost immediately give a verdict of accidental death and send the body home in a sealed coffin.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Jane is furious at this careless attitude and realises that they are covering up. It especially becomes important because over the last two years two other young girls have been discovered dead under shady circumstances. Further enquiry going back years uncovers another two unaccounted deaths.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Trying as outsiders and as women to uncover the truth is no easy task. They are blocked at every turn especially as the enquiry turns on the local aristocrats. However, the final outcome is very surprising and added to the tension in the story.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Despite it being a murder mystery the entire tone of writing was soothing. Talk about being contradictory.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Sapere books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley </div><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-10306115005704217972024-02-11T01:42:00.000-08:002024-02-11T01:42:00.131-08:00Lady at the Lodge by Graham Ley<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" class="placeholder" height="240" id="b9aa38f1f689a" src="https://www.blogger.com/img/transparent.gif" style="background-color: #d8d8d8; background-image: url('https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/i/materialiconsextended/insert_photo/v6/grey600-24dp/1x/baseline_insert_photo_grey600_24dp.png'); background-position: center; background-repeat: no-repeat; opacity: 0.6;" width="320" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Set during the time of the French Revolution with the threat of the French invading Britain, the story on the British side set in a regency era shows the struggles of the abolitionist movement on the one side, and the personal danger two young women put themselves into unwittingly.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">With all the unrest, the Wentworth family get on with their lives . Like everyone else life goes on. Sempronie part of an aristocratic Breton English family tries to settle past wrongs. She cannot envisage how the family can react. Having to face many challenges all the characters in this story try to move forward, despite outside events forcing them out of their comfort zones. Whilst Amelia is getting involved with the abolitionist movement and is supportive, we have Arabella abducted and being put in a perilous and compromising situation.</div></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Sapere Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I found the story a bit complicated to follow, with complicated beginnings and ends.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p><p><br /></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-70296360458905857942024-02-08T22:26:00.000-08:002024-02-08T22:26:00.131-08:00The Castle Abductions by David Field<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj_x4EwaFbpg8l2gltOhXipk4qcCxb5jiI4_3RFY5e3sG96tdQKnMLmfqiq_BbNGgxY6tchA1KtJe8VtSQV_8uvAzWw13HkDJpNIm4qa_Egajqwfj6-lj4yYqOLcI39HWyjN4Jz4vk0SoOI0uSwBWyfNk_GngNiVbADntRRNzGqUN_T41c0TbR7Xp1ovjw" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="333" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj_x4EwaFbpg8l2gltOhXipk4qcCxb5jiI4_3RFY5e3sG96tdQKnMLmfqiq_BbNGgxY6tchA1KtJe8VtSQV_8uvAzWw13HkDJpNIm4qa_Egajqwfj6-lj4yYqOLcI39HWyjN4Jz4vk0SoOI0uSwBWyfNk_GngNiVbADntRRNzGqUN_T41c0TbR7Xp1ovjw" width="160" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Set in Tudor times, the story set in an English rural town has far reaching consequences, even reaching the ears of Queen Elizabeth, through a series of adventures and misadventures, omissions and commissions of both justice and injustice.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Bailiff Mountsorrel and his friend also a bailiff are sent on a wild goose chase trying to catch a poacher of deer from the local manor. Furious at being made to look a fool in the eyes of the local gentry, he is determined to get to the bottom of the story, but finds out that political aspiring of the locals is more important than catching criminals. Many things are overlooked and he is cautioned against any action.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When a local girl goes missing, followed by five other girls and his informant Ellie found with a slashed throat, he pursues his elusive scoundrel realising he is accusing the son of one of the most powerful men in the land. An encounter with Lord Essex who has the ear of the Queen, puts our Bailiff in a much stronger position than before.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">All ends well, the abducted girls are returned, the Queen actually visits Nottinghamshire and Edward’s wins the heart and hand of his love.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Giving an accurate account of how politics ruled that era this is a good story for historical fiction readers.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Sapere Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-16338512694280668902024-02-06T00:34:00.000-08:002024-02-06T00:34:00.135-08:00Heir to Murder by Tony Bassett<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEig55pQj3E_iSxrsq9p3oKaM_JOQeigGe1qtnliRyUANKPpsezD8O_PXcKILfalY5S946Y-jEtGSfQfj1-q7lauw-H7hDsh37EBjfIAFZ0vnaKyQ4mfv6Hik0-OO7r45xdbJf255lx5B81A8WDhprRdq9r6ulGf6irAG6nRfSHyn1U8FKTXTzXMB5cRuH0" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="313" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEig55pQj3E_iSxrsq9p3oKaM_JOQeigGe1qtnliRyUANKPpsezD8O_PXcKILfalY5S946Y-jEtGSfQfj1-q7lauw-H7hDsh37EBjfIAFZ0vnaKyQ4mfv6Hik0-OO7r45xdbJf255lx5B81A8WDhprRdq9r6ulGf6irAG6nRfSHyn1U8FKTXTzXMB5cRuH0" width="150" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A story that if you like meticulous police procedures, painstaking detection work will keep you enthralled and entertained.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>We have an aristocratic family living in a Hall complete with the requisite Lord, but dogged by tragedy. The elder son went missing in Spain years ago and now the youngest son, estranged from the family, living almost incognito as a sound technician, is found brutally murdered. The suspects are obvious to many, except to D S Sunita Roy who doesn’t take the easiest path and likes to dig deeper, not always supported by her colleagues or superiors.<p></p><p>Many suspects later, an overseas enquiry concluded with a surprising outcome the murder enquiry was concluded and the correct people were behind bars. </p><p>Lots to keep the reader locked in, this was a really good read. I’ll be looking out for the other books by this author. I also liked how at the end of some chapters the writer had an interesting tidbit of information, totally unexpected.</p><p>Sent by The Book Folks for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley </p><p><br /></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-73260933943816295382024-02-02T18:49:00.000-08:002024-02-02T18:49:00.145-08:00Last Night by Luanne Rice<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEif9tMe3bRpRL1z3ah4YKDPmXgazy3MkHi9mhHzfvJhljblbbf4oIsKMwPzSXaf5Th2gEXDEM7r4MYGHxvGz9-0bHogxvnnvjYagYhEPs3Vq7kGYI9VQzxp7XIJBr_-Li58MyGXGWQd8UxsZdJ47NvcW5GrCWOxrc3O-ROtgpvHVfeNhQvFuJsUf3Mv-Po" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEif9tMe3bRpRL1z3ah4YKDPmXgazy3MkHi9mhHzfvJhljblbbf4oIsKMwPzSXaf5Th2gEXDEM7r4MYGHxvGz9-0bHogxvnnvjYagYhEPs3Vq7kGYI9VQzxp7XIJBr_-Li58MyGXGWQd8UxsZdJ47NvcW5GrCWOxrc3O-ROtgpvHVfeNhQvFuJsUf3Mv-Po" width="155" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Maddie is an artist who has made a name for herself. Very rich but in the middle of an acrimonious divorce, battling with a husband who is obsessed and consumed by jealousy over her professional success and even by family ties. Meeting her sister Hadley over the Christmas holidays was supposed to be a joyous reunion but it turned out horribly wrong when Maddie’s body was found with point blank gun shot injuries and more crucial Cee Cee her little daughter missing.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">What follows is a story of a teenage boy being set up by his father, to prove his family loyalty by murdering a woman, the deep rooted envy that immense wealth brings and how society gets divided when its greed and jealousy combines. How money sometimes brings so much sadness to some. A complicated story with many suspects which clouded the direction of the investigation till it was sorted out.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Good story.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Thomas and Mercer for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-54179772149713716532024-01-31T04:31:00.000-08:002024-01-31T04:31:42.291-08:00The Keeper of the Irish Secret(magnolia Manor Book 1) by Suzanne O’Leary<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjCJXyhN434GWEIv7sOvYOntjsOn4Ui---JdaKvlV5Kza_6wqO2Ft9Ew51lU552b1b6tzU_cFUlDCNF9QaLGmbgfNhUlI4Ec0UH6OfrdBms-FwiVBaT3LdLGjsRWJeIBTar159u6DHO6UU8gqL1i8Aw59TToyj91pmGnxfHOuYnrxyx77S6Y_2UDUVk0Po" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="388" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjCJXyhN434GWEIv7sOvYOntjsOn4Ui---JdaKvlV5Kza_6wqO2Ft9Ew51lU552b1b6tzU_cFUlDCNF9QaLGmbgfNhUlI4Ec0UH6OfrdBms-FwiVBaT3LdLGjsRWJeIBTar159u6DHO6UU8gqL1i8Aw59TToyj91pmGnxfHOuYnrxyx77S6Y_2UDUVk0Po" width="158" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />The setting was idyllic. A crumbling, grand old house, a resident caretaker who inherited the house and three grand daughters.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">One grand daughter turns up unexpectedly and does not get the usual, warm welcome. Her grandmother emphasises several times that the visit is temporary, also forbidding her access to some parts of the house and disappearing mysteriously on errands. Her behaviour is unusual and worrying and the girls try and finally discover the reason why she is upset.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The story winds on with a hunt on for clues and evidence that will help all of them to secure their inheritance.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A nice light read.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Bookouture for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-19133254424481810562024-01-30T17:53:00.000-08:002024-01-30T17:53:00.130-08:00The Alady of a Lyon by Linda Rae Sande<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj3iQmx1ppLzFmIBETIv9pFB-9R92G8XPzE4O1T3zD9DL9VD-QAGW2QmtQRlX1w9T6Vc0hztTEqSwT9xWCZMnYLlWi-ZPLQqplzh10HFtC_Na3BzILBBUN-efxbwr3A00dmc--vFUyY7A30KlSeFxyWwkTvkT4-toj4lWy2YkKPUZ45Zrne4qaAMbo4zkQ" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="333" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj3iQmx1ppLzFmIBETIv9pFB-9R92G8XPzE4O1T3zD9DL9VD-QAGW2QmtQRlX1w9T6Vc0hztTEqSwT9xWCZMnYLlWi-ZPLQqplzh10HFtC_Na3BzILBBUN-efxbwr3A00dmc--vFUyY7A30KlSeFxyWwkTvkT4-toj4lWy2YkKPUZ45Zrne4qaAMbo4zkQ" width="160" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A light hearted read set in Regency times. Annabelle recently widowed with an adorable four year old boy is now looking for a partner. She has a chequered past having worked in a brothel before being rescued by her Lord. She wants protection and a guide and father for her son and is directed to a match maker. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">At the same time we have an impoverished Lord also looking for a rich wife and very coincidentally, this is the former army colonel now elevated to being a Lord, who was Annabelle's lover years before.</div>Add to the story Annabelle’s mother missing from Annabelle’s life for years, also a courtesan and mistress of a Lord for decades, many people from the gentry all unusual, and we have a rollicking, fun filled, slightly unrealistic novel.<p></p><p>Sent by Dragonblade Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.</p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9169353030330227923.post-20531552310273432002024-01-28T17:38:00.000-08:002024-01-28T17:38:00.246-08:00The Murderous Misses of Concord by Elizabeth Dunne<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiO9WcqnERomnutFQnZMtTjlQsrx_3NDg5Cgox7N79qCeudMmQYMPvKAlX02jfp-m9Pb1mqejY4vWLypPJIommLxAB05EUxtnK7lqlrF3Fq16WpC5N7oVz0GFF0FbeIPS5XNVt1rA_YQSaWJoCqwjkxKjTv0rT3apKfqBDkqw413QcxV6_InUdHwxCmzHc" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="255" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiO9WcqnERomnutFQnZMtTjlQsrx_3NDg5Cgox7N79qCeudMmQYMPvKAlX02jfp-m9Pb1mqejY4vWLypPJIommLxAB05EUxtnK7lqlrF3Fq16WpC5N7oVz0GFF0FbeIPS5XNVt1rA_YQSaWJoCqwjkxKjTv0rT3apKfqBDkqw413QcxV6_InUdHwxCmzHc" width="160" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Louisa May Alcott is farming pigs with enthusiasm after her novels success in Concord. Observing people around her and being respected in her community helps her in her detective endeavours.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Miss Collier, not popular dies on her forty second birthday by poisoning. The entire community is ruffled and many of them could be included as suspects. The plot is convoluted, the characters very many. All of them with secrets to hide, practically all of them with back stories connected to the victim.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Not easy to follow but the setting of the story - a small village in a rural area was in itself interesting.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A second victim follows the first and the detective pace hots up. The author kept the suspect well hidden till the end.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sent by Level Best Books for an unbiased review courtesy of Netgalley.</div><br /><p></p>Mysticahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.com4