Tag: reading

Book Review and Blog Tour: The Grace Kelly Dress, by Brenda Janowitz

Title: The Grace Kelly Dress
Author: Brenda Janowitz
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 5 out of 5

Two years after Grace Kelly’s royal wedding, her iconic dress is still all the rage in Paris—and one replica, and the secrets it carries, will inspire three generations of women to forge their own paths in life and in love.

Paris, 1958: Rose, a seamstress at a fashionable atelier, has been entrusted with sewing a Grace Kelly—look-alike gown for a wealthy bride-to-be. But when, against better judgment, she finds herself falling in love with the bride’s handsome brother, Rose must make an impossible choice, one that could put all she’s worked for at risk: love, security and of course, the dress.

Sixty years later, tech CEO Rachel, who goes by the childhood nickname “Rocky,” has inherited the dress for her upcoming wedding in New York City. But there’s just one problem: Rocky doesn’t want to wear it. A family heirloom dating back to the 1950s, the dress just isn’t her. Rocky knows this admission will break her mother Joan’s heart. But what she doesn’t know is why Joan insists on the dress—or the heartbreaking secret that changed her mother’s life decades before, as she herself prepared to wear it.

As the lives of these three women come together in surprising ways, the revelation of the dress’s history collides with long-buried family heartaches. And in the lead-up to Rocky’s wedding, they’ll have to confront the past before they can embrace the beautiful possibilities of the future.

I enjoyed every page of this novel! Usually, when reading a book with alternating points-of-view like this, I have a favorite viewpoint character, but not this time. Rose’s story was absolutely fascinating, and I loved her strength and determination to do the right thing, no matter how painful. Joan’s story was also interesting, set amidst the contrasting worlds of doing what everyone expects you to do and doing what you want to do. And Rocky was an awesome character! She’s so sure of herself and who she is—until faced with planning a wedding and the dress. I loved how these three women grew in the course of the novel, and their stories laced together to form the history of the dress and their family.

Brenda Janowitz is an author and the Books Correspondent for PopSugar. The Grace Kelly Dress is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/Graydon House in exchange for an honest review.)

The Best Books I Read in February (2020)

I read 22 books in February, bringing my total for the year to 42.

The three best of these were:

the robe

The Robe, by Lloyd C. Douglas. I first read this so long ago that I remembered nothing about it, but it’s the story of Marcellus, a Roman soldier who wins Christ’s robe at Golgotha, and then sets out to find out the truth about the Nazarene carpenter. I enjoyed so much seeing Biblical figures come to life!

isaiah's legacy

Isaiah’s Legacy, by Mesu Andrews. The story of Manasseh, a biblical king who did great evil, and how he comes to know Yahweh. I love Mesu Andrews’ way of bringing biblical tales to life, and this was a wonderful read.

the grace kelly dress

The Grace Kelly Dress, by Brenda Janowitz. Three women. Three weddings. One dress. The story of three generations of women and the dress they all wore at their wedding. I loved this!

Book Review: The Girl with the Louding Voice, by Abi Daré

Title: The Girl with the Louding Voice
Author: Abi Daré
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4.2 out of 5

Adunni is a fourteen-year-old Nigerian girl who dreams of finishing her education and becoming a teacher. Before her mother died, she made her father promise Adunni wouldn’t be forced to marry, but her father now disregards that promise and gives her to be the third wife to a local man who demands that she gives him sons—and his first wife terrorizes her.

So Adunni runs away—and finds herself as the house slave to a wealthy couple in the city. The wife forces Adunni to scrub the house with a toothbrush and beats her whenever the whim strikes. The husband is a threat of a different kind, and Adunni realizes if she is ever to have “a louding voice”—the ability to speak and stand up for herself—she will have to act despite her fear. For herself. For the ones who came before her. And for those who will come after.

Sometimes it’s easy to forget how blessed I am, but this book paints it in stark relief in comparison to Adunni’s life. The strength and determination it would take to stand up to centuries of tradition and cultural habits is amazing. Adunni has suffered unspeakable things at the hands of those around her—yet she’s still upbeat and determined to seize her dreams in both hands. An excellent read—but not light and fluffy.

Abi Daré grew up in Nigeria and now lives in the UK. The Girl with the Louding Voice is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Penguin Group/Dutton in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Children of the Stars, by Mario Escobar

Title: Children of the Stars
Author: Mario Escobar
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Paris, 1942.

Jacob and Moses Stein are staying with their aunt amidst the Nazi occupation, while their parents search for a safe place for the family to be reunited. Before they can, the French gendarmes round up the Jews and detain them in the massive Vélodrome d’Hiver. Jacob and Moses are determined to escape and find their parents, but all they have is a handful of letters to lead them across the Nazi-filled countryside. Along the way they cross paths with many people who are determined to help them find their parents—no matter the cost.

Children of the Stars was a good historical read, but it was a little too…nice to be believable for me. Despite the harrowing time period, I never felt the boys were truly in danger, and I always knew they would find their parents in the end. Don’t get me wrong, I like happy endings, but this tone felt wrong for the story. These boys are alone in the midst of atrocities and horror, but those stakes never seemed to touch them, making this much less believable for me, although I enjoyed the characters themselves. This felt like a book aimed at a younger audience, with its characters who were never truly in danger.

Mario Escobar loves history. Children of the Stars is his new novel.

(Galley courtesy of Thomas Nelson in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review and Blog Tour: Tucker (Eternity Springs: The McBrides of Texas #2), by Emily March

Title: Tucker (Eternity Springs: The McBrides of Texas #2)
Author: Emily March
Genre: Romance
Rating: 4 out of 5

Gillian Thacker owns the bridal salon in Redemption, Texas. She lives for weddings—and her own is coming up soon, so she should be blissfully happy, right? But she and her fiancé can’t seem to see eye-to-eye, and a chance encounter with a handsome stranger only highlights those differences…differences Gillian intends to put firmly out of her mind, along with the stranger.

Tucker McBride just left the military and was on his way to family in Redemption when he encountered damsel in distress Gillian. Now the fiery bridal salon owner is all he can think about, but she’s happily engaged, so he keeps a respectful distance. Until Gillian finds herself single and hurting—then it’s every man for himself as Tucker steps in to try to convince Gillian to take a leap of faith—for just once in her life—with him.

I do enjoy a good series romance set in a small town, and I’m enjoying these books set in Redemption, Texas. (I’m Texas-born and raised, so I loved all the culturally accurate references and setting-details…I miss Dublin Dr. Pepper, too!) Gillian has two sides to her personality: the independent, take-charge wedding guru, and the indecisive, unsure jilted woman, so I found myself wishing she’d just make up her mind already…but that indecision felt spot-on for her. And Tucker…well, don’t we all wish we had a Tucker?

Emily March is an award-winning author. Tucker (Eternity Springs: The McBrides of Texas #2) is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: A Highlander in a Pickup, by Laura Trentham

Title: A Highlander in a Pickup
Author: Laura Trentham
Genre: Romance
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Anna Maitland is ready to show everyone in Highland, Georgia what she’s capable of. Her best friend, Izzy, can’t run the Highland Games in their hometown this summer, so Anna is happy to do it. If she succeeds, her bid for mayor will be sure to succeed, so she’s not letting a single thing out of her control—except the animals. She’ll need help with that, because a dance instructor in a tutu knows nothing about sheep and cows. Fortunately, there’s a man in a kilt who can handle the animals.

Ian Connor is used to being the strong, capable man everyone turns to when they need something physical done—and then abandoned when they don’t. He grew up at lonely Cairndow Castle, where he’s expected to take over as groundkeeper from his father. But now he finds himself in Georgia, to help plan the Highland Games—if a certain controlling dance teacher will ever admit she needs help.

I love that Ian isn’t the typical handsome, suave romantic lead. He’s awkward but nice and goes out of his way to help people. Anna was a little harder for me to like, as she was prickly and a bit too bossy, but the interactions between the two were fun to read, as was the further development of Highland, Georgia. This was a quick, enjoyable read.

Laura Trentham is an award-winning author. A Highlander in a Pickup is the newest novel in her Highland, Georgia series.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Master of Sorrows, by Justin Call

Title: Master of Sorrows
Author: Justin Call
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4 out of 5

Annev de Breth isn’t like the other students in his class. Seventeen years ago, in the village of Chaenbalu, he was believed to executed for the taint he was born with—proven by his partially-missing arm—and raised by those who killed his parents. Now he’s struggling to become one of the Academy’s warrior-thieves, along with all the other boys who were stolen from their families years ago.

And Annev doesn’t know his own history.

Raised by his priestly mentor, who doesn’t believe magic is bad—unlike those surrounding him, who believe it evil—and with his missing arm disguised, Annev struggles with remaining true to himself and his friends—or stepping into his future as a master at the Academy. Will he do as the masters ask, betraying his friends and murdering a man to prove his abilities, or will he finally learn the truth of who he is?

While Master of Sorrows had some cliched elements—a young orphan raised by a wise mentor who has secret magical abilities—it’s actually a unique take on this trope. Annev is a conflicted character, and he struggles with this conflict between his childhood dreams of becoming one of the Academy’s masters and what his mentor teaches him throughout the book. The friendships are real and believable, and the action just worked for me, making this a book I finished in one sitting.

Justin Call has been making up stories since he was five. Master of Sorrows is his debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Blackstone Publishing in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Ten Days Gone, by Beverly Long

Title: Ten Days Gone
Author: Beverly Long
Genre: Suspense
Rating: 4 out of 5

Detectives A.L. McKittridge and Rena Morgan have their fourth dead body in forty days: four women, each killed ten days apart, with no sign of a struggle, and nothing connecting them. The clock is already ticking down to the next victim’s death, and they have nothing to go on. When a hail-Mary interview leads them to a list with all the victims’ names on it—exactly 10 spaces apart—they know they’ve found the connection. But they still don’t have any idea who the killer is.

Trying to track down the next name on the list—Tess Lyons—is almost as difficult as finding the killer. Still recovering from tragedy, she’s withdrawn from everyone and everything to nurse her wounds in silence. But when the detectives track her down, she agrees to help them find the killer—even if it puts her own life at stake.

Ten Days Gone is the start of a new series for Beverly Long. I don’t think I’ve read any of her work before, but I enjoyed this suspense tale. The dynamics between the two detectives were entertaining and realistic, without falling into clichés or tropes. Tess was the most enjoyable character, though. Wounded and recovering from something horrifying and unexpected, she’s shut out the entire world to nurse her grief and bitterness, but the connections she makes open the door to getting her life back.

Beverly Long grew up in Illinois and co-authored her first book in the fourth grade. Ten Days Gone is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/MIRA in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Isaiah’s Legacy, by Mesu Andrews

Title: Isaiah’s Legacy
Author: Mesu Andrews
Genre: Biblical fiction, historical
Rating: 5 out of 5

Eight-year-old Shulle only knows a simple life in her small village, caring for her father, who’s different from everyone else. He may be different, but Shulle loves him deeply, and does her best to help him every day. Then her uncle, Shebna, arrives, and asks her to return to Jerusalem to help him teach young Prince Manasseh, who shares many of her father’s oddities, and Shulle agrees to help the prince.

Once in Jerusalem, she befriends Manasseh, who soon grows dependent on her. But Shebna teaches her about the starry hosts, whose power she admires and yearns for, while her father reveres Yahweh, the god of the Hebrews. Shulle tempts Manasseh with powers of the starry hosts, turning the prince away from the god of his fathers.

When Manasseh becomes king at a young age, he insists on marrying Shulle and whisking her away on an extended trip. Assyria’s crown prince turns Manasseh to cruelty—and far from Yahweh’s love. When Manasseh’s cruelty grows, Shulle must turn to the god she never knew as the only one who can comfort her—and save her family.

I loved this story! Mesu Andrew’s writing brings this biblical story to life in heartrending detail and entranced me from the very beginning. She’s a wonderful writer, and I love how she brings biblical stories off the pages and makes the characters living, breathing people. This story is sad in places, horrifying in others, but every word feels truthful.

Mesu Andrews lives in the Appalachian Mountains. Isaiah’s Legacy is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of WaterBrook in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Southern Double Cross, by Caroline Fardig

Title: Southern Double Cross
Author: Caroline Fardig
Genre: Mystery
Rating: 4 out of 5

Quinn Bellandini is minding her own business, living life and wishing she were back at the B & B she runs with her sister, Delilah, and her grandfather, instead of trying to pull off a fundraising gala—and keep the high society guests from sniping at each other and causing a ruckus. Then Quinn gets a call from her friend Pepper, working for the event’s caterer. Pepper tells her the hostess—and owner of the mansion hosting the gala—has been found dead.

Soon enough, Pepper’s brother has been charged with murder and Pepper insists the Bellandini sisters clear his name. Quinn’s questions only lead to more questions. The victim had more frenemies than you can shake a stick at. The catering company’s employees are shady at best. And then there are the rumors about the victim and her ex-husband’s rekindled relationship. Quinn isn’t sure where to start, but with her boyfriend Tucker’s help and the irrepressible Delilah on the case, she gives it her best shot.

I enjoyed this entry into the Southern B & B Mystery series (it looks to be the last, too). The writing is solid. Savannah, Georgia comes to life—as does the high society crowd that populates the pages. I’ve enjoyed watching Quinn and Tucker’s relationship grow, and the sisters are fun to read as well.

Caroline Fardig is a bestselling author. Southern Double Cross is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Random House/Alibi in exchange for an honest review.)

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