Duchess of Aquitaine by Margaret Ball: Book Review
This review is full of spoilers if you don’t know anything about Eleanor of Aquitaine. This is (obviously) the story of Eleanor of Aquitaine, from the time of her father’s death to her divorce from whichever King Louis of France (that was never made clear). She plots to become Queen, goes on Crusade, and then […]
The Haunting of Andrew Sharpai by Jerome Peterson: Book Review
Andrew Sharpai has his heart broken when he’s engaged to be married to a Vegas showgirl. He moves away from the bright lights and goes to Pocatello, Idaho. There, he meets Iris Winkle and her daughter, Lily. Rumor around town has it that Iris is a witch. With her horribly scarred face and her pentagram […]
Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay: Book Review
Shen Tai’s father, the great Kitan general Shen Gao, died haunted by an epic battle he led against the neighboring country of Tagura. He won the battle but in his old age he came to realize that the cost was too high. 40,000 casualties lie unburied in the beautiful meadow at Kuala Nor. Tai decides […]
Dear Jane Austen by Patrice Hannon: Book Review
Imagine, if you will, that Jane Austen can somehow receive letters from her modern-day readers, asking for her sage advice in love and marriage. That’s the premise for this charming little book. Part “autobiography”, part self-help book, and part critical analysis, Dear Jane Austen is full of practical advice for all women, no matter what […]
The Vision of Emma Blau by Ursula Hegi: Book Review
Stefan Blau runs away from his home in Germany when he is a young man. He’s always dreamed of living in America. He eventually finds himself in New Hampshire, building a beautiful apartment building, running a restaurant, and doing his best to provide for his family. Honestly, this book might have suffered from too many […]
Daughter of My People by James Kilgo: Book Review
Hart Bonner is the son of a formerly prosperous plantation owner. Jennie Grant is his cousin’s biracial cook. In South Carolina in the early 1900s, she is considered a “Negro” and it is a felony for a white man to have “relations” with her. She and Hart carry on a secret affair for years though. […]
Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe: Book Review
I decided to read this because Thomas Wolfe was from my area and I only had to read one short story of his for an English class. I wanted to see what he was all about. This is basically the slightly fictionalized story of his childhood and young adult years growing up in the mountains […]
Thumbing Through Thoreau, compiled by Kenny Luck: Book Review
Synopsis from the book’s website. On July 4, 1845, when Henry David Thoreau moved into his cabin on the shores of Walden Pond, he was probably unaware that his abode in the woods, and the impact and influence of that endeavor, would forever echo through time. Thoreau was an uncompromising idealist; an ardent maverick who […]
The Dark Divine by Bree Despain: Book Review
Grace Divine, the local pastor’s daughter, walks into art class one day to find Daniel Kalbi checking out her latest project. Not too remarkable, right? Well, Daniel disappeared from her life several years earlier on a violent night that her family never talks about, and she’s had no idea what happened to him. He seems […]
The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafón: Book Review
When Max’s family moves to the beach to avoid being caught in the city during a war, they don’t realize that worse trouble is going to find them. First of all, I think the name Roland should be retired from fiction forever. It is impossible for me to read it without seeing The Gunslinger. When […]
Claude & Camille by Stephanie Cowell: Book Review
This is the story of Claude Monet; his great love, Camille Doncieux; and their life as they struggle together in the years before his fame. I started reading this not knowing anything about Monet except that I used to have a print of one of his works hanging in my bedroom. I also don’t know […]