I was a bit hesitant in reading Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout, a sequel to Olive Kitteridge, not knowing if it would work to read the sequel without reading the first book beforehand.
Our research showed that it would be okay but you never know for sure.
I was very excited to read The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton for our monthly read. I haven’t read any of her books before and was keen to discover a new author to love.
From the book jacket’s description it seemed like a read I would totally love- one with ghosts, murder and mystery.
But did it meet my expectations? Sad to say, but it did not wow me. I enjoyed the book but it was all over the place.
“Paris In The Rain Is Still Paris”-Catherine Remini McReynolds, November 18, 1923.
The Light Of Paris will give the readers of this wonderful novel a real glimpse of Paris, the streets, the shops, the clubs, the people, the history, the charm, the love and yes, “The Light of Paris.”
Through the eyes and hearts of the two main characters, Margie, the grandmother when she was young and in Paris as sort of companion/chaperone for a friend and Madeline, her granddaughter, who never really knew her grandmother until she visits her mother’s house and discovers her grandmother’s journals she wrote when she was in Paris as a young woman.
I was excited to read The Last Time I Saw You by Liv Constantine because I had read The Last Mrs. Parrish and loved it for its fast pace psychological thriller.
I was hoping that this follow up book was going to be just as good.
Did it meet my expectations? Unfortunately it didnot meet my expectations. I was highly disappointed with the book. To give it to you straight- it was horrible!
I really enjoyed reading this book and I would recommend it for any woman to read.
I felt it was spot on in creating a story line and characters that it represented the time period of the early sixties and beyond when women’s lib (as it was called then) took off and there was no looking back. The Women’s Movement was established.
From the title, The Seven Or Eight Deaths Of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames I was thinking a murder mystery but it was not what I had expected. I had read The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton last year and thought it would be something similar, like a who dunnit murder mystery. I was pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be an Italian family saga novel.
This was a debut novel for Juliet Grames and what a great start! I loved this book!
This book is definitely worth reading, and here’s why:
I always look forward to reading a book written by Pulitzer prize winner. Jennifer Egan won the prize for fiction in 2011 with A Visit From The Goon Squad.
Manhattan Beach, Egan’s latest novel, was named one of the best books of the year by NPR, The Guardian, Esquire, The Washington Post, Time, USA TODAY, and Vogue.
A squandering emperor. A handsome stranger. A reluctant heroine. And the ancient magic that will capsize a kingdom.
Seventeen-year-old Meadow Sircha watched her mother die from the wilting sickness. Tormented by the knowledge that the emperor failed to import the medicine that would have saved her, she speaks out at a gathering of villagers, inciting them to boycott his prized gladiator tournament.
But doing so comes at a steep cost.
Arrested as punishment for her impulsive tongue, Meadow finds herself caught up in the kind of danger she’s always tried to avoid. After a chance meeting with an enigmatic boy, she’s propelled on a perilous trek across the outer lands. But she soon unearths a staggering secret: one that will shift her world—and the kingdom—forever.
Goodreads summary: ebook, 450 pages, expected publication date May 28th, 2019.