My original reaction to this series was acerbic (see below). But now that I have watched all 4 seasons of The Tudors, I believe it’s worth sticking it out. It grows on you. The characters grow deeper and more complex. I actually learned a lot about the period, especially what turns out to be the very significant religious clashes of the time. The series does well in showing how each queen made her mark in history. So despite my original review, I’ve decided it’s worth some eye rolling to see the history of King Henry VII’s reign come alive.
Book Two of the Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy finds the cousins and their friends planning their next move against the evil Cabahn. This time the story focuses on Connor and his sister's best friend, Meara. Following a surprise kiss which awakens unacknowledged feelings the two have for each other, things get interesting as each tries to deny the feelings they have and Cabahn uses their emerging romance to try to come between them. Will love triumph over evil? Don't miss this installment of Shadow Spell. Also check out Book
This is the story of Paul Rosenberg, one of pre-World War II France’s most influential and knowledgeable art dealers, as told by his granddaughter, Anne Sinclair. Rosenberg was hailed as a pioneer in the world of modern art, exhibiting artists such as Picasso, Matisse, Braque and Leger at his Paris gallery. With the German occupation of France in 1942, Rosenberg, as a Jew, was forced to flee France, leaving his artwork behind to be confiscated by the Nazis.
I have read every book in Daniel Silva’s Gabriel Allon series. Every time I read one, I wonder about the events that led to Gabriel being recruited by the Israeli intelligence service—the murder of 11 Israeli athletes by a PLO faction called Black September at the 1972 Munich Olympics. My curiosity led me to the book One Day in September, the facts behind the fiction.
Confession #2: I checked this out because the audiobook was readily available...
Confession #3: And maybe because there was a lot of buzz about the movie.
And you know what? I liked it. A lot. So much that I immediately started listening to another book in the series because I couldn't compel myself to finish my weekend housework unless my mind was in the universe of Ender Wiggin.
Enchanting language, lush scenery, a romping, completely factual story and a rascally, joyful raccoon are the fixings for this adorable and happy memoir by Sterling North.
Second in The Walter Day series, The Black Country finds Scotland Yard’s Murder Squad called to a small mining town to investigate the disappearance of a child and his parents. Secrets, superstition, and massive amounts of snow are only a few of the challenges Day and his colleagues face once they arrive in The British Midlands. The town is in the grips of a plague, calling on Dr. Kingsley to not only treat the ill but also re-educate the town doctor as well.
Power, lust, fear, and destruction are all words that could describe the story of Serena by Ron Rash. The novel's namesake, Serena, is an eerily beautiful woman who is obsessed with money and the destruction of both nature and her enemies. She is married to George Pemberton, the owner of a timber company responsible for clearing a large portion of the North Carolina landscape in 1929. One side of the story describes Serena's push to rid the landscape of trees and beasts alike.
Private Detective, Cormoran Strike gets roped into taking a case by Leonora Quine to locate her missing husband, with a somewhat dubious promise of payment by Quine's editor. In pondering why he's taken on such a ridiculous case, Strike comes to realize that he did it out of sheer boredom. Coming off the fame of solving the headline grabbing murder of Lula Landry (see: Cuckoo's Calling), Strike has made a bit of a name for himself amongst the rich and want-to-be famous. Trouble is, the only investigative needs they have are following philandering spouses and girlfriends.
In 1963 Jim Crow segregation laws were in effect in Mississippi. Nine year old Starla Claudelle last saw her mama when she was three and her daddy works on an oil rig in the Gulf, leaving Starla to be raised by her strict grandmother. Sassy Starla spends a good deal of time grounded and when her grandmother threatens to send her to reform school, Starla takes off for Nashville to find her mama. She accepts a ride from a black woman named Eula traveling with a white baby.
