Historical Fiction

Quick Review: “The Midwife’s Revolt” by Jodi Daynard

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“The Midwife’s Revolt” was a Net Galley find for me. It tells the story of Lizzie Boylston, a young woman left widowed at the start of the Revolutionary War, as she struggles to get by, to deal with the war and her farm, and to basically survive in 1770’s Massachusetts. Lizzie is friends with Abigail Adams and holds their relationship quite dear. In time she is pulled into intrigue and acts as a spy (dressed as a boy). Lizzie is a strong character, and this book follows her daily life (she is a midwife), her trials and tribulations, her relationships with her family and friends, and even has a little romance, intrigue and mystery added in. I felt while reading it that I was reading a fictionalized account of a person’s diary for that time period. Daynard has done her research here in accurately depicting a detailed picture of everyday life in the 1770’s in New England. At 440 pages it took a bit to get through, but I felt I was travelling along with Lizzie through the war, and read a bit each day.

A great historical novel for those who like this period and genre!

Thanks, Net Galley and Opossum Press for my copy.


Review: GARDEN OF STONES by Sophie Littlefield (releasing at the end of Feb., 2013)

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Another recent Net Galley find for me was “Garden of Stones” by Sophie Littlefield. This story starts with a murder in modern-day Los Angeles with an unlikely suspect (an elderly and humble Japanese American women) and then travels to the past.

Fourteen-year-old Lucy Takeda is taken with her mother to the Manzanar internment camp at the outbreak of WWII. Lucy has recently lost her father and has the huge adjustment of going from being a confident and pampered child of privilege to a camp resident. Lucy’s beautiful mother, whose emotions and moods are both vulnerable and unstable, suffers from the harshness of camp life and the unwanted attentions of the male camp guards. Lucy is determined to adapt and make the best of their situation and to continue her studies. She befriends Jesse, another young internee, and finds her feelings growing for him. Then tragedy strikes and Lucy must learn to cope and to survive in the ever-changing and harsh world.

I enjoyed reading this novel, though there were several story lines in it (which all eventually come together). The present day focus is on the murder and the suspicion of Lucy as the murderer. Her daughter Patty is determined to prove her mother’s innocence, but first she must come to learn about and discover her mother’s true self and her past. Then we have the camp storyline, with Jesse’s story and Lucy’s mother’s story and a murder woven in. Next there is the “after camp” storyline of Lucy making a way for herself as a chambermaid in a motel. Eventually all the storylines converge in the present and all the questions are answered.

I’ve read several stories of internment camps, most of them as first person memoirs and often written for YA readers. Ms. Littlefield has done her research here as many of the harsh aspects of the camps are included. To me, the story would have stood by itself with just the storyline of the camp, and Lucy’s journey from being a protected child, to a camp refugee, to remaking herself after the war. I really didn’t need the murders or mysteries included, though I’m sure many readers will enjoy them. It was enough for me to read of the resiliency of the people who lived through these times.

Due to themes of abuse I wouldn’t say this is one for the kids, but I think adults will enjoy it. I just have to say, too – I love, love, love the cover!

Thanks to Net Galley and Harlequin for my copy .

Quick Review: “Mr. Churchill’s Secretary” by Susan Elia MacNeal

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A few months ago I read “Princess Elizabeth’s Spy” by Susan Elia MacNeal (see my review here: https://drbethnolan.wordpress.com/2012/11/23/quick-review-princess-elizabeths-spy-by-susan-elia-mcneal/ . I really enjoyed this period cozy mystery about Maggie Hope, a code breaker and typist to Churchill during WWII. I decided to go back and read the first book in this series: “Mr. Churchill’s Secretary”. I purchased the book from Amazon for my enjoyment (technically my husband purchased it for me because I ordered through his account while he was in Europe on business – lol).

This book introduces Maggie Hope, a British-born but American-raised twenty-something, living in London and working as a typist during WWII. Maggie has a host of friends, both male and female, all with their own subplots/developments. Her parents are deceased for many years and she has been raised by her aunt in Boston. Maggie is a math whiz, and she yearns to be a code breaker. Instead she is a typist. The more Maggie works, though, the more she uncovers. Is there a spy amongst them? What really happened to her father? And is there a coded German message right in front of their faces?

I really enjoyed this first story of the series! MacNeal is a strong writer and I enjoyed how much I learned from reading this novel. This is a cozy mystery in that it is not overly violent or graphic; however, there is a wealth of (what I presume is well-researched!) information about London during WWII, espionage, and life in the 1940’s.

I look forward to more Maggie Hope mysteries from Ms. MacNeal.


Review: THE AVIATOR’S WIFE by Melanie Benjamin

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Every now and then I go through a phase where I read all I can on a certain subject. Back in the 1990’s I went through a “female aviator” phase. I read about Amelia Earhart. Then it was Beryl Markham. Then Anne Morrow Lindbergh. I became fascinated with Anne Lindbergh. I read all her diaries. I read biographies. I read her book “A Gift from the Sea”. I read her book of her journey to the “Orient” with Charles. I read her daughter’s Reeve’s memoir of life in the Lindbergh household. I found Anne Morrow Lindbergh incredibly inspiring. She was so smart yet so vulnerable. She was so brave yet lacked confidence. She was so totally human. I felt like we would have been friends. I wanted to write to her and tell her how much she inspired me to be a better person in my own life, but I figured Anne had spent a huge part of her life trying to escape all those adoring fans, she didn’t need another one bothering her in her twilight years. And then I read one day that she had passed away.

Imagine my delight when I saw that Melanie Benjamin had written a fictionalized account based on Anne Morrow Lindbergh’s adult life. I felt incredibly lucky to get a copy through Net Galley – and I LOVED reading this book (NOTE: THE FOLLOWING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS). Here was the Anne I had read about – shy and sensitive, brilliant and loving – along with her larger than life famous aviator husband Charles. I revisited their first meeting, their courtship, their marriage, their flights, and the birth of their children. I cried once again over the lost Lindbergh baby Charlie. I delighted in Anne’s ever-increasing brood of children. I became indignant at Charles for his unbending practicality, his emotional aloofness, his exacting need to always be correct. And I learned a few new things — Anne had taken a lover in later life. Charles had seven children out of wedlock. The family moved even more times than I realized. Both Anne and Charles were criticized for their ties to the Nazi party.

Melanie Benjamin has done a fabulous job in making Anne Morrow Lindbergh come to life. It is clear she has done her homework. I picture modern-day book groups criticizing Anne for her willingness to be number two to her husband, her choice to stand by him. I would say don’t judge Anne by today’s culture and standards. In the 1920’s and 30’s our society was very different. Anne was also raised as an ambassador’s daughter. A lot of choices were not her own. I did enjoy reading how Anne comes more into her own post WWII.

This book is destined to be one of my Best Reads for 2013! Thank you Ms. Benjamin for writing this story.

thanks Net Galley for my copy!

2012 is not over yet! Review of “The Secret Keeper” by Kate Morton

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Several weeks ago I was ordering everyone books from Amazon for Christmas and I saw this title under recommendations. It looked so intriguing that I bought it for myself for Christmas! “The Secret Keeper” starts with British teenager Laurel hiding from her younger sisters in her treehouse, when a stranger comes to their home and she witnesses her mother stab the man to death. The police rule that the homicide was self-defense, and the man is thought to be a local criminal, and so Laurel moves on and seems to forget that day.

Fifty years later, Laurel’s mother, Dorothy, is turning eighty, and close to death. She begins to tell Laurel that she has some regrets and that all is not as it seems. However, Dorothy is losing her faculties as well, and Laurel can’t get the whole story from her, so she seeks to solve the mystery herself. Just who was the man her mother killed that day, and why did he seem to know her mother? Added to these questions are some items Laurel finds hidden away: a book with an inscription, a thank you note, a picture of her mother and her friend Vivien, a small doll and an old fur coat. Will she figure out the past before Dorothy passes on?

This story is told in various voices: Laurel as a teen, Laurel in the present, Dorothy as a young girl, Dorothy as a young adult, Vivien as a child, Vivien as a young adult, etc. We move from the present to the fifties in England, to London during the Blitz, to Australia pre-WWII. I loved this style and the way the story unfolded slowly and step by step. I did not guess the ending, but once it was revealed I saw that all the clues were right before me the whole time. I really enjoyed Morton’s writing style and will look for other books by her.

Recommended for those lovers of historical fiction – WWII era – with a dash of mystery and romance thrown in. Definitely one of my fave reads of the year!

Review: “Mistress to the Crown” by Isolde Martyn

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Another Net Galley find — “Mistress to the Crown” is the story of King Edward the IV’s mistress, Elizabeth Lambard, in the 1400’s.

Elizabeth starts off as the lonely and very young wife of an impotent shop owner in London. She works to procure her divorce from him and falls in love with Lord Hastings. Hastings, though, relinquishes her to King Edward and Elizabeth enjoys several years (until his death) as his beloved mistress. She’s a smart girl, though, and works to build a business of silk women, saves money, and purchases property. When Edward dies, Elizabeth (known as “Mistress Jane Shore”) runs the risk of being imprisoned and blamed for his death.

I always love reading about old England and the intricacies and shenanigans of court life. How anyone lived a long life in those days, while being at court and part of a king or queen’s retinue, and kept their heads – well, it’s beyond me. Elizabeth is a likable and intelligent character and is a strong role model in terms of her striving for independence. The “adult situations” in this book were peppered throughout (she was the king’s mistress after all!), but not overly explicit. I’d recommend this book to those who like historical fiction of the royal genre. I enjoyed Martyn’s writing and will look for her other works.

Not sure if this book will be available in the US or only in Australia in 2013 — ? If another reader knows, please post in comments. Thanks for my copy, Net Galley and Harlequin MIRA!

Quick Review: “Masked Ball at Broxley Manor” by Rhys Bowen

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Lady Georgiana is at it again, in this prequel to one of my favorite historical cozy mystery series! Georgie is invited to a masked Halloween ball at a posh manor house and discovers it is planned for her to meet an intended suitor that her family has selected. Instead she meets the elusive and charming Darcy O’Mara, Georgie’s love interest in future books, and gets involved in adventure.

This book – more of a novella – is short — about 50 pages! It reads quickly and will give you an idea if you want to read more of the series. If you are like me and have read the series, it provides more back story and character development.
I got mine via kindle for $2.99.

Quick Review: “Princess Elizabeth’s Spy” by Susan Elia MacNeal

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I grabbed this novel from Net Galley as it seemed like the type of historical cozy mystery I would like: it’s the early 1940’s, and Maggie Hope, young British spy and former secretary to Mr. Churchill, takes on a mission as math tutor to Princess Elizabeth (today’s QEII) in order to keep an eye on things at Windsor Castle. Maggie has no shortage of folks that seem suspicious, and she starts to have feelings for a few of the men she comes to know. There is plenty of back story here as this is the second novel in a series. Maggie struggles in her spy training. She is looked down on for being a woman. She has a fiance who is missing in action. She has a complicated relationship with her father (whom she always thought was dead). She questions her mother’s death in an accident. There’s even more going on in these books that I won’t go into — but I really enjoyed the period, the details, the plotline, and the fast-paced writing. It kept me reading until the end (which I had figured out in advance, but oh well!). They reminded me of Rhys Bowen’s “Her Royal Spyness” series.

Thanks, Net Galley and Bantam Press for my copy!

Review: “Fever” by Mary Beth Keane

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Through Net Galley I received an ARC of “Fever”, the biography of “Typhoid Mary” by Mary Beth Keane. I had heard of Typhoid Mary, but didn’t know her true story. This novel, appropriate for YA or adults, gave an interesting and sensitive account of Mary Mallon’s life and experience as a healthy carrier of typhoid in New York in the early 1900’s.

Mary Mallon came to America from Ireland and worked her way from being a laundress to being a cook. She loved cooking and had a talent for it. At times she cooked for wealthy and prestigious families in New York and New England, but death followed Mary and she was accused of being a healthy carrier of typhoid fever. “Fever” follows Mary’s journey from New York to her confinement on North Brother Island in New York. Mary fights for her life back and her job and reputation. A large part of the story is Mary’s relationship with her significant other, Alfred, with whom she had lived for over twenty years before she was taken away.

I really enjoyed reading this historical biography. Turn of the century New York comes alive as Keane creates a compelling and sympathetic protagonist  in Mary Mallon.

Review: “Cascade” by Maryanne O’Hara

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I heard great things about this novel, so I knew I needed to read it. Then I saw that the author will be speaking at the Concord Bookstore next week, so I knew I had to buy it since the wait list at the library was soooo long. I read it last week and just loved this compelling and thought-provoking novel!

“Cascade” is the story of Desdemona Hart Spaulding, an artist in the 1930’s, who has married for comfort, not love, and who feels too confined in her hometown of Cascade, Massachusetts. Dez’ father has owned and ran the town’s Shakespearean theater, but he passes away at the start of the novel, leaving the theater to Dez’ husband, Asa, the town’s well-respected pharmacist. As the story starts, Dez has befriended a local travelling salesman, the Jewish artist Jacob Solomon. Dez dreams of leaving Massachusetts with Jacob and going to New York to draw and be free. Her husband, of course, has other ideas. Behind this storyline is the back story of the town itself: Cascade is being considered for demolition so that the state can create a water reservoir for the people of Boston. The townspeople, led in part by Asa, are trying to save their town, and Dez uses her art as a way to help the cause. Will the town be spared? Will Dez’s feelings for Jacob lead to actions she may regret? Will she stay forever at home with Asa or become the artist she feels she is capable of being?

I just loved reading this book. It is beautifully written with a well-paced, well-plotted story. The symbolism of the river and the damming of the river tying in to emotions and the release of emotions and feelings really spoke to me. While I loved this story, I didn’t love Dez. I thought she was extremely self-centered and self-serving. However, Dez’s actions, as well as Jacob’s, seemed fairly true to life to me. Sometimes the people you hold most dear disappoint you.

I loved, loved, loved it —

I also loved the cover!!

And this is a great You Tube book trailer: