Three short reviews. Three different genres.

An unusual beginning but a complicated one. A woman with amnesia on a road in Barcelona. She is of French origin and the artist must try to complete her past if he himself is to find some kind of happiness with her. He has fallen in love and wants to know what her past is like.

The past unravels to enfold Daniel into a nightmare. Is he willing to go the extra mile into a very dark place for the sake of his love for Marianne. A quite simple love story overshadowed by dark mysteries,

Sent to me by Netgalley for an honest review, courtesy of Pushkin Press.





1924 the war is over and life seems full of promise for little Alexa. Much loved but sadness is to follow. Her mother dies unexpectedly and her father finds a step mother very quickly. Life changes for Alexa in many ways and she knows she must get away to establish a life of her own.

The vagaries of life and the challenges Alexa faces whilst away from her beloved home and father are many. She does come to grips with her life in the end but it is a struggle throughout.

The overall tone of sadness was prevalent throughout the book and though described as a historical fiction with romance it was too sad to be of much happiness to the reader.
I found it difficult to read especially because of the sadness.

Sent to me by Netgalley, courtesy of Bonnier Zaffre.





In comparison with the other two books, this one was a very "readable" tale.

Set in WW2 in a small village we have a well knit community and family. The usual heartache of war will come upon them all. Lovers will be separated, families split, some may never return and then there are the London evacuees. Some of them never seen a cow before, most unused to country life, some willing to fit in and chip in, others not.

So descriptive of how the Great War affected ordinary English people. In their daily lives, how they had to adapt, how they changed even the way they cooked to handle rationing, the stiff upper lip prevalent throughout and the feeling of comradeship, love and support extended to all by all during the Blitz and aerial bombing was very descriptive, took you to the place and made you feel as you were one of the family.

The entire story kept one on the go from the beginning to the end and was a lovely read.

Sent to me by Netgalley,  for an unbiased review courtesy of Aria.

Away with the Fairies by Kerry Greenwood (A Phyrne Fisher series book)

A Phyrne Fisher mystery does not have to have an extra ordinary myster/murder to make it an enjoyable read. It is the whole package put together - Miss. Fisher herself, her very out of the ordinary lifestyle (in laid back Melbourne especially), her blaise attitude and her above average intelligence and flair for finding out what went wrong where and with whom in record time.
The timing is always important because she is way ahead of the Plod - depicted by very nice Policemen and Detectives who abound, who are good friends and who respectfully recognise that they are dealing with a pro.

I am only sorry that I came to the series so late that I have been able to get to only two of her books. I am hoping that the publisher's will be kind enough to allow access to the others but I doubt it will
happen (regulations and all that!!!)

For those who like a mystery with ambiance, style, flair and detective work par excellence thrown in, this series is for you.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of Poisoned Pen Press. 

The Mapmaker's Daughter by Katherine Nouri Hughes

Set in the 16th century, the story of Cecilia taken captive at a very young age from her island home into the keeping of Suleyman the Magnificient was no accident. It was a planned maneuvre because they did know the value of this very young girl.

Taking the name of Nurbanu, she rises to the most important position within the Empire as wife of the son of Suleyman who eventually becomes Sultan. She was also the mother of the future Sultan and her position of authority and power was assured. She was however the chosen one of Suleyman who felt that her character had the strength and the willpower to undertake a chore that very very few human beings could do. To put to death all brothers of the future Emperor when the moment came. He knew that this was not something that any person could do. He was assured that even though he would be dead by the time the need arose, that she would unflinchingly carry out his orders and this she did.

The story of Nurbanu was a fascinating one. Escaping the harem and being just a concubine she was chosen for her brilliance and her character as one befitting being the wife of a weak but good Sultan who could support, guide and advice him as necessary and be protective of the future Sultan as well. That she was manipulative and calculating was to the benefit of the Sultanate. Her intelligence in establishing an observatory and being proficient in the sciences was a bonus.

The story told in the form of a memoir and a confession details in descriptive detail the wars, the extent of the Sultan's empire, the workings of the court and the position of women at the time of the Sultan. The background information and setting was very detailed and gave the life of those involved with the Sultan a lot of meaning.  For those who like history in any form, this was a very good read.

The book was sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of 

One Day In December by Shari Low

The story is told in segments of time in a particular day in December. We have several characters all very different and like a pack of cards Caro's search is going to bring all of them down. Heartbreak, deceit in spades, indifference of a parent (hurtful to the extreme) and friendship and love all in one package.

Caro is seeking her father. After many years she has discovered he is alive, well and living a full life with a wife and a daughter (of the same age as her). Her mother is dying and Caro seeks closure of a life of hurt and bewilderment how a parent could abandon both a wife who was ill and a daughter without any remorse. She also comes up again Lila her stepsister, a woman with a will of her own and only looking out for herself. Her love affair with Ken a cardiac surgeon she thinks is going to lead to a life of riches, respectability and security. His wife the mousy one discovers that she also has a will of her own after decades of verbal abuse and being submissive.

The story shows the highs and lows of several lives all packed into one day and was a book you had to finish naturally in a day.

Settings were lovely, characterizations were spot on.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of Aria.

Too Many Women in the Room by Joanne Guidoccio

Quite a few women, two murders. All the women have motives for murdering the first victim, the second victim was a bit hazy as to why.

The story started with the murder (almost) and then proceeded from there, unraveling the past, unraveling secrets that were best left hidden and causing damage in a lot of people's lives. One of the women was guilty but fine tuning it was a matter of deduction because the motives were fairly strong in a lot of the cases here.

Gilda launches her own investigation into the crimes as she has done before and this does not bode well for all. Her investigation finds more clues than the conventional one and this helps eventually to close the case. The element of romance was by the way, not contributing so very much to the overall story.

I like the bunch of women as they were all different and with strongly different characters. This certainly added a depth to the story. The storyline naturally involving several women was complicated and convoluted!

This was not a heavy read in the normal mystery murder genre. A very pleasant read.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of The Wild Rose Press Inc.

Living Spectres by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

I cannot understand how I had this book for ages on my Kindle and never got to it sooner.
This was an enchanting read.

The storyline was straightforward. Poppy is a journalist at a time when women did not do "such things". Teaching and nursing were the accepted occupations for women who had to work. For upper crust women like Poppy who came from a privileged background, there was no necessity to work and many people had no qualms about pointing this out to her.  Investigative journalism is her forte, not just the social and women's pages and this created a rumpus amongst even her male colleagues. Not all of them but she certainly ruffled a lot of feathers.

That is the story of Poppy. What she investigates and how she does it is immaterial to the fascination of this story. What is unique is that she has a ghost of a spy master who is a friend, a colleague and one who befriends, protects and advices her on all aspects of her career - in a professional and personal way as well. The fact that he is dead, is all part of the story and the world he occupies is one of ghosts and spirits not frightening ones but a separate world of their own. The fact that just a handful of people can actually talk to Holte is the fascinating bit. It includes Maestro - Poppy's cat who snarls and sniffles when Holte is around.

The story here is a convoluted one but it does cover the fields of women in journalism at the time, the ethics and rules governing the behaviour of women in society (horrible!) and the social setting of the time which was very interesting.

The interest in this story lay in the spirits of this story.

Very unusual book which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of Smoke and Shadow Books. 

PROOF by C E Tobisman

I hadn't read the first book but this one was very good as a stand alone. A lawyer with a highly qualified techie background was an unusual combination to begin with. Someone who stood first in her graduation, was offered a plum job coveted by all and left it within a month leaves a lot of questions behind. Starting her own firm in a very small way, carving out a niche for herself is going to be tough.

Caroline is tough - separated from all family she feels the loss keenly. A mother who is disinterested, and a father who has made another life for himself with a wife who does not want to have his daughter in their life the only person whom she loves dearly is her grandmother. Her grandmother is old, lives in a facility and Caroline knows that her time has come. However, when she does pass on Caroline is left with a lot of questions and ones which niggle at her conscience.

Unraveling these turns out into a full time investigation which is going to leave Caroline stunned by the extent of the corruption, the machinations behind the facade of old time retirement homes and a mafia of people who will leave no stone uncovered, including murder to cover up their traces.

The story was excellent, plausible and very very readable. I enjoyed this one thoroughly.

Sent to me by Netgalley