A Kennedy Debutante in London before WWII

The Kennedys are a fascinating family. Before WWII they were treated almost as royalty. This comes through clearly when Kick, the oldest Kennedy daughter, embraces pre-war London. Her father, Joe Kennedy, was named ambassador to the Court Of St. James. This opens the highest society doors to Kick, who takes full advantage of it.

The descriptions of pre-WWII parties at great country houses and jazz clubs in London is worth the price of the book. I loved the atmosphere. Kick makes friends easily and becomes a leader in the younger set. Several young men are interested in courting her, but she loses her heart to Billy Hartington, the future Duke of Devonshire.

The path for the lovers is not easy. Rose, her mother, is adamant that she marry a Catholic. Billy is Anglican. Joe gets crosswise with the regime in Washington over his support of Hitler. As WWII begins, the Kennedys return to the US and Billy goes off to war. The question is whether the lovers will be able to overcome the obstacles and reunite.

This is a poignant story of romance, family duty, and religion. The author had the details but she did an excellent job of bringing the conflict and heartache of the young people to life. I so wanted the lovers to get together that I had a hard time resisting reading the end of the book first.

I highly recommend this book if your interest is the Kennedys, pre-war London, or a gripping romance.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

Romance on the Wilderness Road in the Late 1700s

Kate Gruener and her family are waiting for a group of settlers to travel west across Kentucky where her father wants to settle on the new rich land. Traveling in groups was necessary because of the ever present danger of a Shawnee uprising in addition to accidents and the natural dangers along the trail.

The first time Kate sees Thomas Bledsoe he is a rider carrying post west. When the family is finally ready to move on with a group of settlers, she’s surprised and pleased to see that Thomas has been hired as their guide. She is fascinated by him, and as they travel west tries to learn his story. Accidents and danger bring them close, but a confrontation with the Shawnee calls for all the faith and skill they can muster to survive.

If you enjoy tales of settlers heading west with a good dollop of romance, you will enjoy this book. The history is accurate and the description of the Kentucky wilderness is well done. Kate is a courageous heroine. You can’t help but like her and sympathize with her desire to learn more about Thomas. He is the prototypical frontier man. He enjoys being alone in the wilderness and fears that any woman who loved him would end up in tears.

This is the fifth book in the Daughters of the Mayflower series. Each book illustrates a time period in US history with heroes and heroines appropriate for the time. This book can be read as a standalone. There is no essential background contained in the previous books.

I recommend this book. It’s a captivating look at settlers moving west in the late 1700s.

I received this book from Barbour Publishing for this review.

How Far Would You Go to Save Your Unborn Child?

Carly Sears is in training to be a physical therapist. Hunter Poole is a patient with a broken ankle that no one else can reach. He has no family, no friends and no background, but Carly becomes his friend. They both love rock and roll. It’s a bond that leads Carly to introduce him to her sister, Patti. It’s love at first sight.

At first things go well. Patti marries Hunter and Carly marries Joe, a second lieutenant who is scheduled to go to Vietnam. Patti and Hunter have a baby, but Joe is killed leaving a distraught Carly pregnant. The news gets worse for Carly. The baby has a heart defect and will die after it’s born. Carly can hardly stand the idea of losing her link to Joe, but Hunter has an idea.

Although it seems hardly believable, Hunter proposes sending Carly forward in time to 2001 where surgery could be preformed on her unborn baby. It sounds dangerous, but Carly wants the baby. What will she be able to do to save her unborn daughter?

This book requires some suspension of disbelief. The characters, particularly Carly, are realistic, but time travel is a bit of a stretch. This is not a scientifically accurate discussion of time travel. Rather it presents a difficult path that a mother must take to save her child. I thought the author did a good job of showing how hard it was for Carly and how brave she was to take it on.

I recommend this book. It’s a beautiful story of love, family and sacrifice.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

Terrorists and Thieves Haunt a Small Town

Ellie Blackmore is becoming well known for her house renovations. She and her partner, Jason, have just purchased a house she covets when her sister Mackenzie is apparently attacked on her tall ship and disappears. Ellie fears she’s dead, but the body hasn’t been recovered.

Coast Guard Intelligence Officer, Grayson Bradshaw, has been sent to Lavender Tides because a recovered cocaine shipment has been stolen from the coast guard warehouse and it appears that Mackenzie is involved.

Ellie doesn’t want to cooperate with Garyson. He’s trying to prove that Mackenzie is involved in a serious crime, and she can’t believe that of her sister. However, as they work together a strong attraction develops. The danger increases when the terrorist who wounded Grayson is apparently in Lavender Tides and getting ready for a major strike.

The plot is ingenious. The tie to a stolen cocaine shipment and terrorists is a good set up. However, it seemed odd that the only law enforcement in the area was the local sheriff and the coast guard intelligence officer. One would expect the FBI to be involved.

I found Ellie’s character to be not quite believable. She can’t accept anything Grayson says about her sister and makes excuses for her behavior that don’t make a great deal of sense. I liked Grayson. I though he was incredibly patient with Ellie even if it was affecting his investigation.

This isn’t my favorite Colleen Coble book. I though the writing was rushed and scenes were padded with meals to extend the length. The ending picks up the pace, but Ellie’s actions are on the thin edge of believable.

I received this book from Booklook Bloggers for this review.

Escape from a WWI Prisoner of War Camp

The light fighter planes flown many times by inexperienced pilots during WWI often crashed in enemy territory. The pilots then found themselves in prisoner of war camps. The prisoner of war camps in Germany were horrible. The prisoners were often starved, freezing, and ill. In spite of the hardships, many tried to escape and more than once.

Prisoners who were prone to escape were sent to Holzminden, one of the worst camps. The commandant vowed that no prisoners would escape from his camp, but in fact one of the most daring and successful escapes occurred under his nose. The prisoners tunneled out and several of them survived the 150 mile journey to Holland. This is the story of the men and their escape.

This is a well-researched book. If you’re a fan of WWI stories, you shouldn’t miss this one. The early part of the book goes into detail about the prisoners and the escape attempts. This can be a bit hard to follow because so many characters are involved. However, once the story focuses on the escape from Holzminden, the pace picks up.

The men accomplished an amazing engineering feat building a tunnel under the prison, but also building false walls to hide what they were doing and getting forged documents. This is a suspenseful tale that reads more like a novel than a history book. I highly recommend it.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

A French Chateau, Family Secrets and Romance

Cady Drake, a photographer, never had a family and doesn’t know how families behave. The only person she trusted, Maxine, is dead and Cady doesn’t know how to go on. Maxine taught Cady how to restore antiques. Now Maxine’s store is all Cady has left. In an angry outburst, Cady kicks her antique carousel figure, a rabbit she’s named Gus. Gus breaks, and inside Cady finds a photograph and a mysterious note.

Through the help of her friend Olivia, she gets an assignment to photograph carousels in France. Although undecided at first, she goes and starts the adventure of her life, tracking down the mysterious carousel located at a crumbling chateau in Provence.

For me, the most interesting part of the book was learning about carousels and the fantastic animals carved by Gustave Bayol, a master carver, who had a studio where many of the carousel animals were carved. I also enjoyed the descriptions of France, particularly Provence.

The book has an interesting theme about how difficult it was for a woman to be accepted in the 1900s by a studio like Bayol’s. One of the main characters wants desperately to be a carver, but it’s a difficult road for a woman to succeed.

The book is broken up into relatively short chapters. Some take place in the 1900s, others follow Cady in the present day. Although I often find books written with two time lines difficult to get into, I enjoyed this one. Both stories were equally interesting.

If you enjoy stories with family secrets, you may like this book.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

Murder and Kidnapping in Victorian London

William Monk, Commander of the Thames River Police, is approached by Harry Exeter to assist him in paying the ransom for his kidnapped wife, Kate. Monk feels a strong attachment to Exeter’s distress because of his wife Hester’s kidnapping.

Exeter has raised a huge sum of money to pay off the kidnappers who are holding Kate in a dangerous slum on the river, Jacob’s Island. Monk selects his best men to accompany them to the drop spot. From the time they land at Jacob’s Island everything goes wrong. Monk and his men are attacked, the kidnappers take the money, but all is in vain because Kate is dead.

One of the main themes of the book is the distress among Monk and his men that one of them betrayed the exercise. A great deal is made of the necessity for trust among a group of men who work together in dangerous circumstances. Another less obvious theme is the lack of respect for women’s intellectual gifts. Monk has great respect for Harriet, but the other men distrust the word of a woman, and it hampers the investigation.

This is not my favorite Monk novel. The descriptions of Victorian London are excellent, but the detective work is not up to par. Perry excuses this because Monk empathizes with Exeter so completely. I became bored with the constant worry about who had betrayed Monk’s men when the clues they should have been following seemed so obvious.

If you’re a Monk fan, you may enjoy this book, but I can’t recommend it for your first Monk adventure.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

A Chance to Understand the Past

Sabrina isn’t into psychological games the way her college roommate, Jessica, is, but at Jessica’s urging she makes a dinner list of the five people living or dead she’d most like to have dinner with. Now it’s her thirtieth birthday and the list has become a reality. Sabrina and Jessica are joined at her birthday dinner by five people who are important to her: her father, Robert, who she hasn’t seen since she was a toddler; her college Philosophy professor, who was something of a father figure; her ex-boyfriend, Tobias; and Audrey Hepburn.

At first, I couldn’t figure out why Audrey Hepburn was there, but when it becomes clear that Sabrina was named after a character in one of her movies, her presence becomes clear. Each of the other characters has had a significant impact on Sabrina’s life and this is a chance to understand their motivations.

This story is based on the premise that having conversations with important people from the past in a group setting can help you understand your life. The book started slowly. There is plenty of dinner chitchat and introducing the characters, but as each character begins to tell his or her story, the book becomes more interesting.

For me, it was the romance that held the book together. In some ways, it’s quite magical, but since neither Sabrina nor Tobias is a perfect person, the tensions lead inevitably to problems. The book can make you think about your own life. You may find yourself wondering which five people you’d invite to dinner.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

The Lies Married People Tell Each Other Can Lead to Murder

Joe Lynch is happy with his life. He’s an English teacher so his hours allow him to spend more time with his son, William, than his wife, Mel, who has a high pressure job. Then one afternoon Joe’s life swirls out of control

He’s stopped at a stoplight when William spots Mel’s car turning into a hotel. Spurred by William who wants to see his Mommy, Joe follows her into the parking garage of the hotel. There he witnesses his wife in a tense conversation with his friend, Ben. Ben is wealthier, handsomer, and smarter than Joe, who immediately leaps to the conclusion that Mel and Ben are having an affair. He confronts Ben and in the scuffle knocks him out. Angry with himself for losing his temper, he leaves Ben on the floor of the garage.

Realizing that Ben may be badly hurt, he goes back to the garage, but Ben has vanished, and now Joe is enmeshed in a murder investigation.

If you enjoy psychological thrillers, this is a good one The setup in the opening draws you in. You can’t help wanting Joe to be cleared. Although at times he appears clueless, he’s a sympathetic character. Mel is hard and seems quite selfish, but William is a great character. He provides some lightness in this dark story.

The writing is good, but after the opening, I felt the book dragged a bit as someone tries to set Joe up for murder. The ending is a surprising twist. It’s not hard to guess, but it does make a satisfying ending.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

A Feminist Fable of the End Times

A group of six women are caught up in the destruction of the world. A yellow fog is moving across America sowing chaos across the country. People are being turned into animals. The women band together to confront the apocalypse beast and save the world.

Although the book has political overtones, it can be read and enjoyed as a fable. The line drawings add a nice addition to the text. In many ways, the book is whimsical recalling Watership Down, Animal House, and other fantasy tales.

The characters are interesting. Each woman has a distinct personality which isn’t easy with so many characters. The book moves at a good pace and the writing is clear. If you enjoy fantasy novels with a political bent, you may enjoy this book.

I received this book from PR bu the Book for this review.

What Makes a Home?

A small boy lives in a very small apartment in a very big city. He wonders if there are other places to live. With his parents blessing, he sets off to find out. His journey takes him from a big house to a trailer park, and from an igloo to a farm. When her arrives home, he sees his parents and realizes that family is what makes a home.

This is a beautifully illustrated picture book with a good message. The pictures are soft pastels giving the impression that the boy is thinking or dreaming. The pages are heavy paper so the child can look at the book by himself without fear of ruining it.

I recommend this book for reading aloud with your children. It would add a lot to the story to discuss all the types of homes and what’s good about them.

I received this book from PR by the Book for this review.

Personalize for Successful Learning

Everyone is unique, and we prefer to learn in different ways. Some people are visual learners; others are auditory learners; and some, sensory or tactile learners. Capitalizing on each student’s strength leads to a successful learning experience.

In Let Them Thrive, Novak presents a framework, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to facilitate using variety to reach all students. Parents are encouraged to be part of the process. Each experience at home whether baking cookies or traveling can be a learning experience designed to engage the child.

There are several major drawbacks to this good idea. Schools are structured along traditional lines with many schools providing specific lesson plans. They strive for homogeneous classrooms to make this approach work. UDL suggests that teachers need more freedom to present concepts to their class in a way that benefits those learners. Teachers are supposed to be professionals. They should be treated that way.

Another drawback is busy parents. With both parents working high pressure jobs, there’s little time to interact with the children. This is something parents have more or less control over. It may not be easy, but there’s always a way to find time to spend with your children.

I enjoyed the book and hope some of these ideas find their way into the classroom. Certainly, interested parents should get started. They may also be helpful in getting schools to adopt and more flexible approach to learning.

I received this book from PR by the Book for this review.

A Frightening Political Novel

When she was fourteen, Doggie Rogers won a trip to China sponsored by then Senate candidate, Bruce Jansen. She loved the exotic trip and the other contest winners, T. Perkins, a small-town sheriff, and Rosalie Lee, a single mother. On the trip she also meets John Bugatti, a news reporter, and Wesley Barefoot, son of Jansen’s secretary. The trip is wonderful until Jansen’s wife is killed by a crazed assassin.

Years later, Jansen is running for president. Doggie and Wesley are members of the campaign team. When Jansen wins, they’re thrilled. It even means a chance for Doggie to reconcile with her father, who offers one of his five star hotels for the election night bash. It all turns sour when Jansen’s pregnant wife is shot in the hotel.

Jansen is devastated, but assumes power anyway. He’s focused on gun control, and if other rights have to be trampled so be it. His cabinet is fearful, but as more violence occurs, they reluctantly support the program.

The premise of this political thriller is good. It reveals how easy it can be to turn a country into a police state. However, it’s not particularly realistic. I thought the opening was well done. I liked the characters, but the pace slowed and the scenes were repetitive when Jansen began his purge. I think it would have been a better book if it were shorter and with fewer important characters.

If you enjoy political thrillers, this one has an interesting plot, but I can’t recommend it very highly.

I received this book from Dutton for this review.

If You Love Horses, This Devotional is for You

We have lived around horses for twenty years. They are not only gorgeous and loving, but they can teach you a lot about life and faith, if you’re willing to learn. Obviously Cara feels the same way.

There are many stories in the book that a horse lover can relate to. One of my favorites is Water Crossings. Some horses will go right into a stream, but others, as Cara describes, hesitate and dance around. They want to know it’s safe, and they have to trust their rider. As she points out, this is where many of us are in faith. We have to learn to trust God. It will make water crossings and other challenges easier.

The photographs in this book are special. Some are taken at the farm others at events. I can relate to all the pictures. They bring back memories of my own horses. This book is hard cover with good sized print. It would make a wonderful gift for anyone who loves horses or lives around them.

I received this book from Booklook Bloggers for this review.

Murder at a Whiskey Competition

Abi Logan has been co-owner of a whiskey distillery for a year. She’s beginning to feel at home in the male dominated industry and loves the town of Balfour. The major temptation is her co-owner Grant MacEwan. Abi is trying to keep her distance. Not only does she have a history of disastrous relationships, but she wants the Whiskey Boys, other distillery owners, to take her seriously. Still it’s hard to stay away from Grant.

One of the major events of the year is the whiskey competition. This year it’s being held at a five star resort. Abi is looking forward to the chance to get away. However, things start to get tense almost immediately. The Scotland distillers are not happy about the international distillers, especially when they see the quality of their entries. It gets even worse when two of the judges are murdered with nicotine poisoning. Inspector Michaelson is short handed, so Abi finds herself pressed into service, not that she minds helping to solve a mystery.

The book has fascinating details about the whiskey industry. I particularly enjoyed the setup for the competition and the differences between various entries. The description of the setting was great. I wanted to got to Scotland to see this lovely area.

I was disappointed that we didn’t see more of Grant. Abi seemed more nervous in this book than previously. She was trying so hard to join the club. Liam, her dog, was a delight, as usual, and stole the show at the competition. If you enjoy mysteries in interesting settings, this is a good one.

I received this book from Alibi for this review.