Gobshites and Eejits

A Season to Remember

2012-01-01T20:47:00.000-03:30

By Sheila O'Flanagan
Published by Headline Review
an imprint of Headline Publishing Group
First published in paperback in 2011

Claire and Neil Archer own the Sugar Loaf Lodge, a luxury hotel with an award-winning restaurant and a breathtaking spa - an oasis of peace and serenity withing striking distance of Dublin. With the economic downturn in Ireland, the Archers wonder if the hotel will be filled for Christmas this year and how they will get by if it is not.

Nestled in what is known as the Garden of Ireland, the Lodge provides the perfect backdrop to a gorgeous handful of integrated short stories centering around Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. On Christmas Eve the Lodge begins to receive its guests. Mostly families arrive - some want a break from the cooking and overkill that is Christmas Day, some want to repair the damage the year has brought them, some want to be alone, some want to reunite. Mix well with a few singletons and, believe it or not, a visit from a ghost, and you have the recipe for some lovely Christmas stories.

O'Flanagan always gets to the heart of family life, be it good or bad, and she gets it just right when writing about families at Christmas. Although a joyous and family-filled time of year for some, it can oftentimes be the opposite for families and both views are reflected in this book.

Although O'Flanagan has written a novel, the stories can be read as separate entities. Characters from one story appear in other stories to keep it cohesive.

A Season to Remember is a lovely novel to read at any time, but it was certainly nice to read it over Christmas. There's still a few days left to the season - fit it in if you can.

To Catch a Leaf

2011-11-13T17:59:00.008-03:30

By Kate Collins

First published by Obsidian, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

First printing, November 2011

ARC courtesy of Kate Collins

Abby Knight and Marco Salvare (and their mothers) are planning their wedding showers - one for each family, of course. They need to book venues, pick out shower invitations, and try to keep their mothers from interfering too much. What could possibly interrupt their plans? A dead dowager, that's what.

And not just a dead dowager, a dead dowager whose body was discovered by none other than Grace Bingham, Abby's dear friend and co-worker. To heighten the mystery, Grace has been left with some rather odd bequests from her dead friend which only serves to make Grace the number one suspect in her death. As usual, Abby and Marco are on the case.

The usual cast of characters are at play here - Abby's mom, her cousin, her roommate, her roomate's cat, and her co-workers at the flower shop. Added to the fun on a regular basis is Francesca, Marco's mom. Hopefully, we'll see more of her in future installments.

While solving the murder, Abby and Marco spend a considerable amount of time interviewing the deceased's family, and what a dysfunctional crew they are! Collins writes the characters in this family with a cracking wit and yet with a believability that only she could bring to such a wealthy, art-infested, lover-sharing, self-centered family.

Installment twelve of the Flower Shop Mysteries has a bit of everything - money, art, cats, ghosts, flowers, and murder. How could you resist?

The Lady of the Rivers

2011-08-22T09:52:00.017-02:30

By Philippa Gregory
Published by Touchstone
A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Available 11 October 2011
ARC courtesy of Simon & Schuster Canada

This novel begins in France with a young Jacquetta of Luxembourg befriending an "odd trophy of war", Joan of Arc. Joan is being imprisoned at the castle of Jacquetta's great-uncle, Lord John of Luxembourg. We learn of Jacquetta's talents when she reads Joan's cards and realises she can see into the future.

This ability leads the widowed Duke of Bedford to wed a seventeen-year-old Jacquetta. The duke believes he can find a way to turn iron into gold and he wants Jacquetta to work with his alchemists and astrologers, to scry, and to look into the future. Their marriage is loveless and childless.

When the duke dies, Jacquetta marries Richard Woodville, the duke's squire. They are madly in love, marry without the king's blessing and, according to some historians, go on to produce sixteen children. Their eldest daughter, Elizabeth, eventually becomes queen consort of Edward IV of England.

The novel centres around Jacquetta's presence in the court of King Henry VI and Queen Margaret. Jacquetta and Queen Margaret have a very close relationship and Jacquetta and her husband are faithful to the House of Lancaster. Although Jacquetta has vowed not to read cards or perform any sort of witchcraft, she is naturally born to it and cannot help the visions she sees. While she tries to help the queen and guide her during the War of the Roses, Margaret usually pays little attention and reads into the visions what she herself wants to see.

This fictitious account of Jacquetta of Luxembourg and her presence in the court of England is compelling reading. As always, Gregory hits all the right notes with her combination of history and story-telling, bringing another little known female historical figure to light.

If you would like to hear Philippa Gregory talk about this book, click here.

Triangles

2011-08-08T19:01:00.006-02:30

By Ellen Hopkins
Published by Atria Books
A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
October 2011
ARC courtesy of Simon & Schuster Canada

"If I'm in the middle of my life, is this really all I've got to show for it?"

Triangles is a novel of three women facing mid-life and wondering if they've made the right choices. Holly has just lost 60 pounds and taken up running and extramarital sex after years of being at home and raising her three kids. Andrea is a single mom who can't seem to keep a love interest. Marissa is still married, barely, and has fallen into emotional despair.

Ellen Hopkins explores the lives of each of these women in an unusual way - through poetic verse. I have to admit I was not looking forward to reading this book once I discovered it was all poetry. However, poetic verse turned out to be a brilliant device to delve into the complexities of middle age. In many ways, one poem told more than several regular chapters would have been able to tell.

Childhood, parenthood, adoption, drugs, terminal illness, extramarital affairs, weight loss, friendship, teen pregnancy, and ordinary day-to-day activities are all covered in this novel (and covered well). The book is well written and a flick through the pages shows the different poetic styles Hopkins incorporated throughout.

The poetry is thoughtful, insightful, and heartbreaking, as well as funny, beautiful, and sexy. I raced through this book hoping each story would end the way I wanted (didn't happen) and I just wanted more, more, more when it was over.

Don't let the thought of reading poetry put you off this book. Empty your head of all such thoughts and throw yourself into the emotions and stories of Triangles,

The Curse of the Holy Pail

2011-08-05T18:51:00.006-02:30

By Sue Ann Jaffarian
Published by Midnight Ink
2007
Kindle Edition

In the second Odelia Grey mystery the plot revolves around a vintage lunchbox. The lunchbox is the only one in existence and was made for The Chappy Wheeler Show, a popular 1940s cowboy TV show. Chappy Wheeler was murdered and every owner of the lunchbox since has died. The lunchbox is now worth a hundred thousand dollars and collectors are on its trail (thus earning it the title The Holy Pail).

Odelia, a paralegal for a successful law firm, becomes involved in the hunt for the pail when a client requires her services. Sterling Price has a vast collection of lunchboxes - Odelia is particularly drawn to the Zorro pail - and shows Odelia his prized possession: The Holy Pail. Sterling turns up dead, the pail goes missing, and Odelia finds herself trying to track it down.

Jaffarian has written quite a vibrant character; Odelia Grey is an overweight, forty-something woman who, like a lot of overweight, forty-something women, has food issues, work issues, love issues, and the various other stressors that come with being middle-aged. Odelia is smart, funny, and sexy, with a love for her off-the-wall cat, Seamus, and her boyfriend, Greg. Jaffarian makes sure to include Odelia's family, friends, and co-workers to round out her main character.

There are six books in the Odelia Grey series - time for me to catch up!

The Scent of Jade

2011-06-03T21:13:00.011-02:30

By Dee DeTarsio
Published by Just Publishing
05 October 2010
Kindle edition courtesy of Dee DeTarsio

In a rut in San Diego, Julie Fraser decides to surprise her husband, Colin, by joining him in Costa Rica where he is on a business trip. Julie expects her vacation to be one of lounging by the pool and ordering room service. She couldn't be more wrong.

A string of mishaps is awaiting Julie on this vacation: she accidentally steals a jade idol believed to be directly related to global warming, finds herself lost in the rainforest, gets stoned, befriends a monkey, is rescued by a gorgeous local, discovers a love potion, and gets arrested, all the while trying to ensure the idol doesn't fall into the wrong hands.

Julie's time lost in the rainforest isn't just a series of escapades, however. The reader also gets to know Julie in non-humourous moments as she reflects on her marriage and her life in San Diego.

DeTarsio has given us a bit of mystery, a bit of suspense, a bit of romance, and a lot of humour all rolled into one book. It's a quick read, due not only to DeTarsio's nicely paced writing but because you just can't leave at the end of a chapter. Wondering what was going to happen to Julie kept me going page after page after page.

This book is a step away from conventional chick-lit or women's fiction or however you want to phrase it. There is no shoe shopping, manicures, or pedicures; just a dirty stinky woman lost in the jungle (who would probably much rather be shoe shopping and having manicures and pedicures).

This is a fun book. And even though Julie was dirty and smelly through most of the book, she was a breath of fresh air to me.

Royal Flush

2011-06-01T19:04:00.008-02:30

By Rhys Bowen
Published by the Penguin Group
Berkley Prime Crime mass market edition / September 2010

In installment III of the Royal Spyness Mysteries, Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie, daughter of the later Duke of Glen Garry and Rannoch, granddaughter of the least attractive of Queen Victoria's daughters, half-sister to Hamish (present Duke of Glen Garry and Rannoch), thirty-fourth in line to the throne, is forced to leave London for Scotland's Castle Rannoch after a failed attempt at a new business venture - escort services.

In previous installments of this series, the Queen has asked Georgie to keep on eye on the Prince of Wales and Wallis Simpson. Georgie arrives at Castle Rannoch only to find Mrs. Simpson and a group of Americans have taken over her home which is in close proximity to Balmoral where the Prince of Wales is summering. With her brother, Binky, laid up in bed and her sister-in-law, Fig, going out of her mind with the unexpected guests, Georgie finds herself investigating a series of mishaps that have her wondering if one of the houseguests is trying to kill members of the royal family.

As usual, Bowen does a delightful job with the dialogue in her books - the jibes at Mrs. Simpson and the Americans are an absolute hoot. Bowen portrays British society in the 1930s perfectly, particularly that of the royal set.

There's plenty of historical fiction in this book, but mostly there's a mystery to solve and my "favourite penniless heiress" does her best to solve it.

Skipping a Beat

2011-05-30T16:47:00.010-02:30

By Sarah Pekkanen
Published by Washington Square Press
A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Copy courtesy of Simon & Schuster Canada

"What would you do if your husband suddenly wanted to rewrite the rules of your relationship?"

Michael Dunhill lives an exceptionally wealthy life. He runs his own company, has a massive home, owns a basketball team, and shares every material thing he has with his high school sweetheart, his wife Julia. Julia also runs her own company, making sure she has some money of her own should her marriage to Michael ever fall apart. Not that she envisions her marriage ending but, given her family background, it's better to be safe than sorry.

Unfortunately for Julia, Michael dies...for four minutes and eight seconds, before a portable defibrillator jump-starts him back to life.

But with a new chance at life comes a new Michael. The old Michael had little time to spend with Julia and a lot of time to spend with his business. Julia settled for this arrangement; after all, she had a lifestyle that would be the envy of any woman and a good single female friend to share her evenings with. The new Michael has decided to give away all his money and material possessions and spend his time loving his wife the way he did when they were young. Julia's not so sure she wants to give up her lifestyle for the promises made by this new Michael, but she goes along with his plan to give him three weeks before she makes her decision.

Pekkanen takes the reader from the past (where Mike and Julie met and fell in love) to the present (where Michael and Julia find fame and fortune - and adjust their names to reflect their new social status). Mike and Julie are likeable characters, the kind of characters you root for - you want good things to happen to them. Michael and Julia are not as likeable. Both are caught up in the lifestyle wealth has afforded them and they have drifted apart as a couple.

Pekkanen is trying to make us think about what we would do if our spouse decided to give away everything we have worked for to live on love (or at least live a more modest lifestyle). As we see Julia struggle with her decision, there are moments the reader hates her but also moments where the reader can identify with her struggle. Michael's character doesn't get off lightly, either. There are moments when you despise him, as well. Kudos to Pekkanen for showing all sides of the emotional conflicts that come with this situation.

Overall, I found this to be quite an enjoyable book. I wanted to know what Julia's decision was and I wanted to know what influenced her decision. This is the first novel I have read by Pekkanen and she's won me over with her easy to read style. I look forward to reading more by this author.

Night of the Living Dandelion

2011-03-18T16:58:00.003-02:30

By Kate Collins
First published by Obsidian, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First printing, April 2011
ARC courtesy of Kate Collins

In book eleven of the Flower Shop Mysteries, we find Abby and Marco drawn into investigating a murder when the body of a local nursing director, Lori Willis, is found in the garbage bin behind Marco's bar.

Townspeople have already been suspecting Marco's friend, Vlad, of being involved in Lori's disappearance because some of her belongings and her car were found behind his apartment building. There have been a lot of rumours concerning Vlad since he arrived in New Chapel; rumours that he is a vampire. He prefers to wear black, has pale skin and dark hair, is from Romania, and has prominent canines. When it is discovered that Lori has died from exsanguination, Vlad becomes the number one suspect.

A hilarious sub-plot to the crime investigation is when Abby's cousin, Jillian, has concluded she has been bitten by a vampire. This compels her to roam the streets dressed in a dark cape and to consume raw meat. If you've read previous editions of the series, you know how funny it would be to see Jillian in such a state, and Collins writes it well and humourously.

Another plotline - although not so funny - is the fact that Marco has been called back to the Special Ops division of the US military, which is devastating news to both him and Abby. They know they are living on borrowed time and must make the most of what they have at the moment. Marco wants to make sure Vlad's name is cleared, so he keeps giving Abby tips on how to become a better private investigator. While Abby appreciates the help, she would rather have Marco with her than off on a secret mission in an undisclosed part of the world.

If you haven't read any Flower Shop Mysteries you can still enjoy this book on its own. If you're already a fan, you'll love this addition to the series. Kate Collins has written another clever, interesting mystery and has further developed Abby and Marco's love story which, let's face it, is one of the main reasons we keep coming back!

Mr. Shakespeare's Bastard

2011-02-06T17:42:00.008-03:30

By Richard B. Wright
Published by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
2010

Is it possible for England's most famous playwright to have an illegitimate daughter? According to an elderly housekeeper at Easton House in Oxfordshire, it is. Aerlene Ward, now old and feeble, tells her story to Charlotte Easton who has promised to record every word. But will Charlotte believe Aerlene's tale - as told to Aerlene by her own mother, Elizabeth - or mock her for making up such a story? As Aerlene dictates the story of her life to Charlotte, Charlotte raises an interesting point when she asks if the stories being related really happened.

Aerlene's reply:

"...In relating anything we only approach the truth; we are never exactly there. Moreover, does not another truth besides the factual lurk in any account of events? A truth far more important?...Is the reader not entitled to a little more, even if it is not exactly what happened? And is it not also possible that out of that imagined conversation, a truth beyond the factual might emerge?..."

Excellent piece of writing by Wright, indicative not only of the truth of the matter at hand in this book, but of any book written.

Mr. Shakespeare's Bastard is a little confusing as it is told by both Aerlene and Elizabeth, so some time-shifting is involved. To add to the confusion, Aerlene is nicknamed Linny and Elizabeth is nicknamed Lizzy, and their stories are quite similar. However, trying to figure out if Shakespeare really did have an affair with Elizabeth is more than enough to keep the reader interested.

Wright interestingly inserts characters who give their opinion of Shakespeare's plays to Aerlene who, being a woman, cannot see the plays performed. Also of interest is the fact Aerlene can read (as most women of the day could not) and has managed to obtain copies of Shakespeare's plays, thus elevating him to hero status in her mind.

Wright has written a beautiful novel that provided fodder for much discussion at my book club meeting. While we all enjoyed the book, we had different views on whether we thought Shakespeare was actually Aerlene's father. I wasn't convinced, but most others were. We thought Wright wrote in a convincing female voice; however, many thought the language wasn't "period" enough. We agreed that the male characters in Wright's book were more sympathetic than the female characters, with much discussion centering around Aerlene's Uncle Jack and Aunt Sarah.

Richard B. Wright has written a wonderful piece of historical fiction. It's an interesting, well-written piece about a topic many have discussed before and many will again: Did Will Shakespeare leave behind a bastard?

A Question of Love

2011-01-21T18:09:00.011-03:30

By Isabel Wolff
Published by HarperCollinsPublishers
2005

Laura Quick is host of Britain's popular new quiz show, Whadda Ya Know?!! She has spent several years trying to get her life back on track after losing her husband, Nick, and the show is a welcome distraction. Laura's intelligence and hosting skills are a hit with the fans and the critics love her. Apparently, so does an old flame who sees her hosting the show and becomes a contestant with the sole purpose of rekindling the romance. Of course, old flames have new lives and this one comes complete with a six-year-old daughter and a mental ex-wife.

While the romance portion of the book is interesting and well constructed, it's the general knowledge game show parts that kept me tearing through the pages. Some interesting facts I discovered while reading this book: the traditional Muslim colour for mourning is white; gnu is the alternative word for wildebeest; there are seventy-eight Tarot cards to a deck; hippopotamus milk is pink. It's not too often one comes away so knowledgeable after reading "female literature"!

Overall, A Question of Love is an enjoyable novel with some plot surprises along the way. Although it isn't a new release, if you can get your hands on it, buy it, read it, and fill your head with a good story and some general knowledge.

Stand By Me

2010-12-05T08:35:00.006-03:30

By Sheila O'Flanagan
Published by Headline Review
an imprint of Headline Publishing Group
First published in 2010

Dominique Brady, named after St. Dominic and pronounced the same way, was brought up in an ultra-religious Catholic home in Ireland. Her brother, Gabriel, is being groomed for the priesthood and his parents couldn't be prouder. Dominique, however, has no time to waste on religion and gets on with being a teenager in the 1980s, eventually getting a job in a diner where she meets her future husband.

Dominique's life changes over the years and she becomes a wealthy socialite, raising money for charities, and throwing the best parties. But life is never an easy path and Domino, as she is now known, has serious choices to make along the way. Of course, that's where the title of the book comes into play: if you're married, do you always stand by each other? If you're a family, do you always stick up for each other? When is it necessary to stand by your friends?

O'Flanagan always writes an interesting story, often with complex layers and digging deep into marital and family life. As well, O'Flanagan's supporting characters are well written and some become as important as the main characters in how the reader feels about them and how their lives will turn out.

Stand By Me is a bit of a saga, covering Domino's life from her late teen years into her forties. It dissects love, depression, betrayal, and religion, yet doesn't become boring or preachy. O'Flanagan has turned out yet another book that provides the reader with a good storyline, some thought-provoking moments, and an overall enjoyable read.

Mini Shopaholic

2010-11-26T18:26:00.006-03:30

By Sophie Kinsella
Published by Transworld Publishers,
a Random House Group Company
First published in Great Britain in 2010

Becky Brandon (nee Bloomwood) has a spoilt daughter. Everyone says so, including Becky's husband, Becky's mom, Becky's mom's best friend, and the new nanny. Minnie has been barred from various shops and she's only two. Grabbing the items she wants from store shelves and yelling "miiiiiiiiiine" has become Minnie's catchphrase. What's a shopaholic mommy to do? How can Becky continue to buy baby Dior and baby Dolce & Gabbana and other designer toddler outfits if Minnie doesn't behave in the shops?

When a banking crisis hits Britain, Becky, Luke, and Minnie - still living with Becky's parents - have to Cut Back (it amuses me that Kinsella writes it with the importance of capital letters). Luke has made Becky swear she will not buy any new clothes until she wears everything in her closet three times. But Becky is planning a surprise birthday party for Luke and shopping at the Pound Shop is just not going to cut it.

Sophie Kinsella has written another Shopaholic book (this is number six) that had me in fits of giggles from beginning to end. Between spoilt little Minnie, the problems Becky encounters whilst trying to buy a house, and the whole cast of characters trying to ensure Luke's surprise birthday party remains a surprise, this installment is one of the best in the series.

For lighthearted fun and pages of giggles, this book is a must-read for all Shopaholic fans.

Minding Frankie

2010-11-04T19:48:00.007-02:30

By Maeve Binchy
Published by Orion Books
an imprint of the Orion Publishing Group Ltd
2010

As soon as I heard Maeve Binchy had written a new novel I was excited. After all, who can tell a story like Maeve Binchy? Even the book's cover announces:

"The new novel from the world's favourite storyteller"

Maeve (I feel I can be on a first-name basis with my long-time reading buddy) has thrown a few curveballs with this novel. I didn't particularly like all of these curveballs, but I went with it and ended up rethinking my position on a few topics.

Biggest curveball - She has managed to create a character I actually despised. Really, truly despised. Moira Tierney, the novel's social worker, is the biggest pain in the arse character Maeve has ever produced. Mind you, she's meant to be completely unlikeable. Moira's character was so well written, I hated every word out of her mouth and every idea in her head. At one point, I had my fill of her and walked away from the book for a while. It takes talent to create that character.

Minding Frankie is a story that proves that families come in all shapes and sizes and that the birth of a baby can change people's lives. Frankie is the baby. Before she is born, her mother seeks out Frankie's father, Noel, to tell him he is the father. The catch is that, even though Noel doesn't remember Stella or the one-night-stand he had with her, Stella is now dying of cancer and she wants Noel to raise Frankie.

The best part of this book was catching up with character's from Binchy's past novels; a technique of Binchy's that is useful in drawing you quite quickly into the story. There are new characters as well and, as usual, all the stories are nicely weaved together, which is amazing given the number of people in this book.

This is a novel that touches on extended families, adopted families, broken families, alcoholism, paternity, celebrity, and death. It spends a great deal of time with the hated Moira Tierney but, through that character, Binchy gives us an in depth look at the life of a social worker.

Written in that strong Maeve Binchy style, with an insight into community life and family living that only Maeve Binchy seems to have, this is another winner from "the world's favourite storyteller".

Dust City

2010-10-11T19:34:00.005-02:30

By Robert Paul Weston
Published by the Penguin Group
October 2010
ARC courtesy of Penguin Group (Canada)

Henry Whelp is a teen wolf doing time at St. Remus Home for Wayward Youth. Generally, he is a nice kid, liked by other kids and adults alike. But Henry believes he may possibly be bad like his father (the Big Bad Wolf), who is presently doing hard time for killing a little girl (Little Red Riding Hood) and her grandmother. His mother died when he was young - hit and killed by a truck transporting fairy dust - and his subsequent confusion about her death and his father's incarceration not only led to a wayward crime, but to a psychiatrist's office, as well. When Henry discovers the psychiatrist has kept secrets from him, he ponders the answers to long-asked questions: Are there still fairies? If not, what happened to them? Is his father really responsible for a double murder?

Weston leads the reader from there into Henry's trek into the dark, gritty, grimy world of dust, fairies, goblins, dwarves, and humans, known as Dust City. Dust is the drug of choice in Dust City; fairy dust, that is. But it's dust that has been tampered with by Nimbus Thaumaturgical, is inhaled and absorbed by the body, and brings some of the book's characters on some pretty wild head trips.

Characters in Dust City include, Snow White, Cinderella, Jack of Jack and the Beanstalk fame, Rumpelstiltskin, and more. I liked this touch; it made the story less grim, yet more Grimm, if you get my drift. The story itself was slow getting into but it picked up once there was less reform school and more details of life in the city. Weston has a talent for relating to YA readers without dumbing-down his vocabulary and his writing style is fast-paced - once the story got going, there was no holding back.

While this book is marketed as a YA novel for twelve years and up, I wouldn't recommend it for anyone younger than fifteen. It tackles some pretty heady themes, including drug abuse, drug runners, murderers, racism, and genocide. It also contains graphic accounts of violence and drug-induced hallucinations. Overall, however, I certainly recommend this novel for fans of YA fantasy fiction.

Edith's War

2010-09-30T18:34:00.008-02:30

By Andrew Smith
Published by Axiom Publishing Inc.
2010
Copy courtesy of Andrew Smith

Edith Maquire got married because Joe Maguire was off to war and he wanted somebody to come home to. It all sounded terribly romantic to young Edith, so she agreed. Now, Joe is at war and pregnant Edith is living in Shrimpley with Joe's mother and younger brother.

It's 1940. The Maquires' war is okay for them so far; they have chickens in the yard and food in the kitchen. Liam Maquire, full of youth and propaganda, starts trouble with his Italian neighbours. But the Maquires and Baccanellos will have none of it; long-time friends and neighbours - and far out of the reach of the cities - they believe they will remain friends and neighbours for some time to come.

However, within hours of Mussolini's declaration of war against Britain, Winston Churchill issues an internment order against Italians living in Britain, and the Baccanello males are scooped up and taken away for the duration of the war.

It's 2002. Will and Shamus Maquire, children of Edith Maguire, are strolling the streets of Venice awaiting the arrival of their eighty-three-year-old mother. It's to be a reunion of sorts, at Edith's behest.

The book goes back and forth between Edith's life during WW II and her sons wondering why their mother wants to see them. Smith does a credible job of putting the internment of Britain's Italians under the microscope covering everything from the torpedoing of the Arandora Star on its way to Canada to internment camps in Liverpool, helping to shed light on a little-discussed topic.

The lives of those left to live out the war is also examined, and we discover that the definitions of proper and acceptable behaviour change the longer the war goes on.

Andrew Smith has written a totally believable novel, creating wonderful characters in a beautifully written narrative. Recommended for both those who like history and those who like good fiction.

The Mistress of Nothing

2010-09-19T21:28:00.006-02:30

By Kate Pullinger
First published in 2009 by Serpent's Tail,
an imprint of Profile Books Ltd
Winner of 2009 Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction

Who was Lady Duff Gordon? Was she the beautiful and intelligent woman who entertained politicians, writers, and great thinkers of the day? Was she a tragic figure who had to leave her family in England to move to the dry air of Egypt due to her tuberculosis? Was she a generous woman, willing to help anyone who asked? Or was she a mean-spirited woman who turned on her long-time maid in the most spiteful manner?

According to Kate Pullinger, Lady Duff Gordon was all of these.

While this book has Lady Duff Gordon at its centre, Sally Naldrett is the core. Sally is Lady Duff Gordon's lady's maid and the narrator of the story. She moves to Egypt to care for her Lady and falls in love with the people and its customs. Being an English maid without any English customs to adhere to gives Sally and her Lady a set of freedoms they never before experienced; freedoms which can change your life's expectations.

This was a selection for the Bool Club. Although we all liked the book well enough, three of us thought it took more than half the book before it became compelling reading. There was a divide in the discussion on whether or not Lady Duff Gordon had made Sally feel she was more a companion than a maid, thus leading Sally to believe they were on friendly terms, or whether Sally should have known there would always be a line drawn between a British Lady and her maid no matter where in the world they should live.

Although this book was terribly slow to get going, it turned out to be quite interesting and, eventually, I was unable to put it down. This is an easy read and a good book for anyone interested in historical fiction.

Second Fiddle

2010-09-06T09:53:00.002-02:30

By Mary Wesley
Published by Black Swan
Originally published in Great Britain by
Macmillan London Limited, 1988

Claud Bannister, 23, meets Laura Thornby, 45, at a concert. Claud is there with his mother. Laura is there because the conductor is her current lover. Martin is there because the British government has him following Clug, the conductor, who is from Roumania and may or may not be a spy. Claud instantly falls for Laura, as does Martin, who finds that tailing Clug is not that much of a hardship as long as Laura is around.

Laura doesn't fall in love; she prefers to love 'em and lose 'em. But Laura is quite intrigued with Claud and guides him from boyhood to manhood, filling his head with ideas for his novel, and helping him open a market stall. She manipulates him to the point where he thinks her ideas are his own and he has fallen madly in love with her.

Laura's personal life is a deep pit of mystery. She prefers to be alone in her orderly, non-cluttered life, not getting attached to people or things. She is mostly cut off from her family, which consists of her mother and her uncle. Speculation is that her uncle is also her father - it's never quite made clear. Wesley has the habit of introducing darker themes in her novels and then leaving them to the reader to decide; after all, a good book doesn't have to spell everything out for you.

Second Fiddle is full of village life, where everyone knows everyone else's business and the Thornby family are accepted, although talked about as the oddities they are. Wesley covers incest, alcoholism, and suicide in her usual style - deal with it and move on. Don't let the darker themes of this novel put you off - this is an interesting novel full of simmering back-stories that will entertain and intrigue you to the very end.

When Blood Calls

2010-08-24T20:20:00.006-02:30

By JK Beck
Published by Bantam Books, an imprint of
The Random House Publishing Group
Available 31 August 2010
ARC courtesy of JK Beck

"Truth is often elusive, and some debts are best paid outside the bounds of the law."

Sara Constantine, an attorney with the LA District Attorney's Office, has been offered a new position. It's a little bit different from what she's used to; instead of prosecuting for the DA's office, she'll be prosecuting for PEC - the Preternatural Enforcement Coalition. Generally left to regulate itself, PEC operates not under human law but under a series of laws known as the Covenant.

Sara's first case is to prosecute a vampire for the murder of a judge. Lucius Dragos is known in PEC circles as a vicious killer and they've tried to take him down before, but to no avail. Now Sara must take this information and reconcile it with what she knows of Lucius Dragos - the man she met as Luke only days before and with whom she had shared a bed. And now that Sara and Luke have that bond, can she detach herself from her feelings for him and prosecute the case?

As urban fantasies goes, this novel is - dare I say it - quite realistic. Beck draws her reader into a world of werewolves, goblins, hellhounds, shape-shifters, and vampires as easily as if she were writing about cotton candy and sunny skies. Beck's paranormal world has a legal system and a code of honour to live by and the book becomes a legal thriller that keeps you in suspense and in the dark as to what will happen next. As part one of the Shadow Keepers series, it certainly hits the mark in making you anticipate the next installment.

While the book is not scary, it's not for the faint-hearted - it's full of graphic violence and explicit sex. But it works. And it's damn good.

Undead and Unpopular

2010-08-19T15:54:00.005-02:30

By MaryJanice Davidson
Published by The Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
June 2006

Betsy Taylor, queen of the vampires, is annoyed, irritable, pissed. Why? She has decided to give up blood. And without blood a vampire is cranky. To add to her crankiness, a delegation of European vampires has come to town to check out their queen for themselves. They may accept her, they may decide to overthrow her; who knows?

Eric annoys her, Jessica annoys her, Marc annoys her, Tina annoys her, the zombie in the attic annoys her. Plus, her thirty-first birthday is looming and the fact Betsy can't see any party preparations going on around her annoys her, even though she insisted she didn't want a party.

Installment five of the Undead series has Betsy facing up to some moral dilemmas such as should a vampire be punished for killing someone hundreds of years ago and, if so, what exactly should that punishment be?

Whether planning a party, a wedding, or a punishment, Betsy is sure to win you over with her always funny sarcasm and her ever-increasing cast of sidekicks.

Undead and Unreturnable

2010-08-17T19:16:00.008-02:30

By MaryJanice Davidson
Published by The Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
November 2005

Queen of the Vampires, Betsy Taylor, is getting ready for Christmas, much to the dismay of those vampires who live with her. She may be dead but Betsy and best friend, human being Jessica, still like to enjoy the festive season. And, I suppose, Christmas shopping is way more fun when you take your little sister along; that would be your super-religious daughter-of-the-devil little sister, of course.

Installment four of this series has Betsy looking for a serial killer with her newest ghost companion, Cathie; the queen also meets the oldest vampire going who invites her to write a newspaper column about what its like to be vampire queen; and Betsy and Laura get to meet their new sibling. All this, plus a special guest appearance by the devil.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Undead and Unappreciated

2010-08-16T17:19:00.003-02:30

By Mary Janice Davidson
Published by The Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
July 2005

Elizabeth Taylor (Betsy, to her friends) is the undead queen of the vampires. She has a very sexy on again/off again relationship with her consort, Eric Sinclair. Her friends and family know she is undead and mostly, they are okay with it. She lives in a mansion owned by her best friend Jessica.

That brings us up to speed. Undead and Unappreciated is installment three of the Undead and... series. This time around, Betsy meets her half-sister, Laura, who is quite literally the spawn of the devil and destined to rule the world. Also, the employees of Scratch - the vampire nightclub Betsy inherited when she killed Monique the evil vampire in a previous novel - have decided to go on strike.

I quite like this series because (a) even though there are lots of killings and feedings the stories are not scary (b) Betsy's sarcasm for everything cracks me up (c) the chick-lit/romance aspects of the story are a nice mix with the vampire lifestyle.

If you're looking for vampires that are snarky and sexy (as opposed to sparkly and sulky) this series is for you.

Girl in a Blue Dress

2010-08-11T18:13:00.005-02:30

By Gaynor Arnold
Emblem edition published in Canada in 2010
Emblem is an imprint of McClelland & Stewart Ltd.

"A Novel Inspired by the Life and Marriage of Charles Dickens"

The One and Only, the Great Original, Alfred Gibson is dead. His wife, Dorothea, is not at his funeral; she is not welcome. Alfred's mistress, however, is in attendance, as is most of England, all mourning the death of the great author, actor, and playwright. To his Public, Alfred Gibson is a genius, a benefactor to those who need help, and a family man through and through. To Dorothea, Alfred is a man who can rewrite his life with the stroke of a pen, forcing her to leave her home and family after twenty years of marriage.

Gaynor Arnold's first novel is a heartbreaking story of what may or may not have happened between Charles and Catherine Dickens, transformed into this work of fiction as Alfred and Dorothea Gibson. What started as a true romance shifts into a desperation on Alfred's part to rid his family of Dorothea so he may pursue his life as he wishes.

Told from Dorothea's point of view, we are swept away on her every emotion from her first meeting with Alfred to the night she leaves the family without saying goodbye to her children in person:

"...So I had to creep round the bedrooms after you were all asleep and say good-bye to each of you in the silence of my heart."

Alfred's funeral is the starting point of the novel and Dorothea takes us on a trip through the present and the past to give us a full picture of Alfred the husband and Alfred the public figure. The Public forgives Alfred everything he does because he is a larger-than-life character; Dorothea may not forgive so easily.

This is a sad story, but well told and very hard to put down. To me, saddest of all is this quote from the Author's Note:

"Above all, in Dorothea Gibson I have tried to give voice to the largely voiceless Catherine Dickens, who once requested that her letters from her husband be preserved so that 'the world may know he loved me once'."

A Royal Pain

2010-08-06T21:51:00.006-02:30

By Rhys Bowen
Published by the Penguin Group
Berkley Prime Crime mass-market edition / July 2009

In Book II of the Royal Spyness Mysteries, we find Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie, daughter of the late Duke of Glen Garry and Rannoch, granddaughter of the least attractive of Queen Victoria's daughters, half-sister to Hamish (present Duke of Glen Garry and Rannoch), thirty-fourth in line to the throne, still in London, still holding her own in the workforce, and still spying on the Prince of Wales. That pesky Wallis Simpson is everywhere and the Queen is worried the Prince is spending too much time with Mrs. Simpson and not enough time on his royal duties.

Much to my delight, Georgie and Mrs. Simpson often find themselves in the same social circles and their repartee often leaves me in fits of giggles.

Royal snooping aside, Georgie plays host to a Bavarian princess, finds herself involved with the local communist party, and discovers that bad things come in threes: that would be three deaths in one week.

Bowen writes exceptionally well about British society in the 1930s, from the lowly street beggar to royalty itself, and I find myself feeling as if I'm a character watching from the sidelines instead of merely sitting on my chesterfield reading a novel.

With its good humour, good plot, and blockbuster ending, you won't want to miss installment II of this series.

The Perfect Man

2010-08-05T20:28:00.005-02:30

By Sheila O'Flanagan
First published in paperback in 2010 by Headline Review
An imprint of Headline Publishing Group

Britt McDonagh, hard-nosed divorce lawyer, has written a romance novel entitled "The Perfect Man" and it has hit all the best seller lists. She agrees to talk about her novel and offer some writing tips on board a cruise ship during a two-week Valentine Cruise and takes her single-mom sister, Mia, with her to act as her PA.

Britt has a hard time reconciling her hard-hearted lawyer self with her softer, romantic self, so she writes the novel under the name Brigitte Martin and presents herself to the world as a glamorous woman, which is quite unlike the heartbroken divorced woman she actually is.

Mia's past includes a passionate affair in Guatemala which produced a daughter. The relationship never sustained itself, but four years on Mia still loves Alejo and can't move on.

"The Perfect Man" is, of course, a romance novel; what else could it be when a Valentine Cruise is so conducive to love? As usual O'Flanagan has hit the nail on the head in the romance department.

Also as usual, O'Flanagan delves deep into family relationships. The unfolding story of Britt and Mia - who had never been exceptionally close but were now roomies for the duration of the cruise - show us exactly how siblings can be.

O'Flanagan also takes us inside the life of a best-selling novelist; the doubts of a writer, how to take an idea and make it into a book, and what happens when the writing takes over. Perhaps O'Flanagan was referring to herself when she wrote this paragraph after Britt questions herself on what to do with her book's characters:

"They're not real people, she reminded herself sharply. I can do whatever I like with them. But she knew she couldn't. She knew that they were the only ones who were calling the shots. She just hoped they knew what they were doing."

I knew what I was doing when I purchased this book - Sheila O'Flanagan never, ever disappoints.

Fly Away Home

2010-08-02T09:27:00.007-02:30

By Jennifer Weiner
Published by Atria Books
A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
July 2010

Jennifer Weiner has always written good books; I've read them all. But with last year's "Best Friends Forever" and now her latest novel, "Fly Away Home", Weiner seems to have taken on a new maturity and complexity in her writing. While previous novels seemed to centre around one main character, "Fly Away Home" is about a family, each character given an equal story, each story drawing the reader into the family.

US politicians cheating on their wives makes for a good story in real life and it makes for an excellent story here. What does a fifty-something wife do with this kind of news after she has spent her entire married life devoted to her husband, furthering his political ambitions? What do you do when your duties as a wife outweighed your duties as a mother - your every waking hour being consumed by life as a senator's spouse - and now you've been replaced by a younger version of you?

When Richard Woodruff's family finds out about his "transgression" each member embarks on a life-changing journey of their own. Wife Sylvie retreats to her childhood summer home in Connecticut; married daughter Diana, an ER physician, has to come to grips with her own affair with a med student; and single daughter Lizzie, having just come out of rehab, has to adjust to life without drugs or alcohol.

While each character's story is compelling, the minor players in the book bring out Weiner's comedic side - Gary, mouth-breathing husband of Diana; acerbic-tongued retired judge Selma, Sylvie's mother; and Sylvie's best friend, Ceil, round out the characters and make the book a little less serious.

This book has intrigued me more than any other Weiner has written. It's serious and funny, heart-breaking and loving. It's based on what we hear in the news, but brings us where the news never goes, which is into the heart of a family on the verge of splitting apart. "Fly Away Home" is Weiner's best novel yet.

Dirty Rotten Tendrils

2010-07-29T22:52:00.005-02:30

By Kate Collins
First published by Obsidian, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First printing, October 2010
ARC courtesy of Kate Collins

Reality TV has come to New Chapel. Or, at least the winner of America's Next Hit Single has. Cody Verse has returned to sue his former writing partner; however, court proceedings are halted when Verse's lawyer is found dead. The suspects are rounded up, including Cody Verse, his former writing partner, his partner's grandparents, his celebrity girlfriend, and Attorney Dave Hammond. Hammond hires private detective Marco Salvare and flower shop owner Abby Knight to clear his name and off we go into adventure number ten of the Flower Shop Mysteries.

Collins had me giggling a fair bit whilst I read this book - her use of puns and wordplay is always spot on but she outdid herself here (writing partners Chapper and Verse got me going). And any time Abby's extended family makes an appearance, I'm all for it. After all, these are the characters we've grown to love and their position in the story can either help or hinder Abby's investigation.

It's all here: a mystery to solve, a romance to enjoy, and some jaw-dropping plot developments. Dirty Rotten Tendrils is not available until October, so mark your calendars!

The Return Journey

2010-07-28T10:00:00.007-02:30

By Maeve Binchy
Publishing history:
Delacorte Press hardcover edition published March 1998
Dell mass market edition published June 1999
Dell Trade paperback edition / June 2007

The good thing about short stories is that if you don't like them, they are finished quickly. The bad thing about short stories is that if you do like them, they are finished quickly. The short stories in this book are perfect; they end in a satisfactory place, but you always want to know just a tiny bit more about the characters.

"The Home Sitter" tells of a couple who hire Allie to house-sit for a few months while they are away. The husband is besotted with Allie, which brings out feelings of insecurity in the wife who immediately concludes the two will have an affair. To make matters worse, they return many months later to find Allie has befriended every neighbour, something the couple has never done.

In "Package Tour" friends Shane and Moya spend many months planning a trip together. A romance slowly simmers but, as the departure date nears, Shane and Moya discover that the choice of luggage and how one packs can make or break a relationship.

"Cross Lines" is a story of travellers who judge each other by how they are dressed, but change their initial impressions after being seated together on the plane.

Binchy writes her characters as real human beings with believable story lines. As always, her stories are a treat to read and easy to recommend.

Garden Spells

2010-07-21T21:14:00.005-02:30

By Sarah Addison Allen
Published by Bantam Dell
Bantam Discovery trade paperback edition / May 2008

Claire Waverley lives by herself in the old family home where she runs a successful catering business, the success of which comes from the magical herbs and flowers grown in her garden. Claire was brought to this house when she was six by her mother who later abandoned her and her sister, Sydney, to be brought up by their grandmother.

Sydney left town when her high school sweetheart broke up with her. Ten years later, with a child of her own, Sydney is drawn back to the life she swore she would never have again.

Now, Claire and Sydney have to come to grips with their past and decide how to deal with the Waverley legacy.

Sarah Addison Allen takes you into a magical world where eating apples can tell your future, where you glow with colour when you're in love, where unexpected presents will always have a future use, and where the world is perfect when multi-coloured sparkles rain down on your face.

Simply put, this novel is enchanting.

Sleeping with Anemone

2010-07-19T20:54:00.008-02:30

By Kate Collins
Published by New American Library
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First printing, February 2010

Episode nine of the life and times of Abby Knight, owner of Bloomers Flower Shop and part-time sleuth, is yet another clever mystery by Kate Collins.

Abby's flower shop is trashed, three attempts are made to kidnap her, her mother's art keeps getting stolen from Bloomers, the flower shop receives a burning brick tossed through a window, Abby receives threatening mail, and Marco decides Abby needs twenty-four-hour protection. Plus, the Knights and Salvares are putting pressure on Abby and Marco to get engaged. Plus, plus, Abby is protesting against Uniworld's use of hormones in cows. Plus, plus, plus, there's a murder.

As usual, Collins has written a terrific story involving mystery, suspense, friends, family, and love of the Marco and Abby variety, which means you can't put it down until it's done and then wonder what you'll read while you're waiting for the next installment.

Tell It To The Skies

2010-07-16T21:02:00.005-02:30

By Erica James
Published in Great Britain in 2007 by Orion Books,
an imprint of the Orion Publishing Group Ltd.

Lydia has a secret past. She lives in Venice now and nobody there knows anything about her. But, as always, the past has a way of catching up with you when you least expect it. For Lydia, the past becomes the present twenty-eight years after leaving England. It all starts with a glimpse of a face Lydia thought she would never see again.

Raised partly by her parents, partly by her grandparents, but mostly by herself, Lydia does what she can to make life bearable for her and her sister, Valerie. Not able to trust easily, Lydia has few friends and those friends she has suspect Lydia's life is not quite what she's letting on.

Known for her beautiful romance novels, Erica James has taken a chance with this book and has written a cruel and heart-breaking account of a childhood nobody should have to endure and of a life spent trying to make it better. As always, though, James has written a book you can't put down until you reach a happy ending.

Evil in Carnations

2010-07-11T22:15:00.002-02:30

By Kate Collins
First published by Obsidian, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin group (USA) Inc.
First printing, February 2009

Abby Knight, owner of Bloomers Flower Shop, convinces her roommate, Nikki, to attend a speed dating event. Nikki picks the smarmiest guy in the room and then kills him. Well, that's what the police think. So, Marco and Abby band together to try to get Nikki off the hook.

What I like most about this novel is that both Abby's and Marco's families play a role, which always brings a fun and interesting flavour to Collins' books. I like the interaction of the main characters with their families and what that brings to the investigation, as well as the part the families play in the love lives of Abby and Marco. Pure fun.

But, back to the mystery at hand. Did Nikki really kill her date? Or do Abby and Marco find the killer after investigating a wide array of suspects? Once again, Collins has filled her novel with lots of juicy characters, a good plot, and a fun Abby and Marco storyline.

Shoots to Kill

2010-07-11T21:34:00.009-02:30

By Kate Collins
First published by Obsidian, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First printing, August 2008

Let me just say upfront that this is by far my favourite Flower Shop Mystery (#7 in the series).

Abby Knight, owner of Bloomers Flower Shop, has her identity stolen and is a suspect in a murder investigation. This was a brilliant plot by Collins and it had me intrigued from the first page because it was actually more than Abby's identity that was stolen, it was her life, her looks, and possibly her boyfriend, Marco Salvare.

Besides the regular cast of characters - Lottie, Grace, Marco, Nikki, and Abby's parents - this book has two of the most interesting characters Collins has ever written: siblings Elizabeth and Oliver Blume. These characters are so well written they bring out a parade of emotions in the reader; you enjoy them, are irritated by them, feel sorry for them, wish something more for them.

While I wanted the mystery solved, I was sorry to come to the end of this book. I was so caught up in the characters and what makes them tick that I could have read more. If you only read one book in this series, read this one. But, really, just read them all.

A Rose From the Dead

2010-07-11T12:24:00.009-02:30

By Kate Collins
First published by Obsidian, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First printing, December 2007

Abby Knight is the owner of Bloomers Flower Shop. She shares an apartment with her best friend, Nikki, and she dates PI hottie Marco Salvare. How does a florist get involved in a criminal investigation? In this episode of the Flower Shop Mysteries (#6 of the series), Bloomers has a booth at a funeral directors' convention. A murder occurs and the police suspect Abby's friend, Delilah Dove.

Throwing herself full tilt into the investigation to clear her friend's name, Abby gets herself mixed up with twin pranksters, an eco-warrior who believes in "green" burials, and a harpist who likes to record the sound of departing souls. Of course, Marco is there every step of the way.

I like the way Collins always plays Abby and Marco off each other - the banter is realistic and you can see their love lives progress throughout the series.

While Abby's escapades usually take place around the court house square, this book takes place mostly at the funeral directors' convention. Collins manages to make a convention about death an interesting place to be and some well placed jokes and puns about the funeral industry in general brought a smile to my face.

A good plot with some interesting twists, lots of fun along the way, and another murder solved by Abby Knight (or was it Marco?).

A Vintage Affair

2010-07-01T09:13:00.004-02:30

By Isabel Wolff
Published by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
First Canadian Edition 2009

After working in the textiles department at Sotheby's for a number of years, thirty-three-year-old Phoebe Swift decides to take her clothing expertise and open a vintage clothing shop. Running the shop consumes all of Phoebe's time, which is fine by her as her personal life is a shambles - she's single again, her parents have divorced, and now Phoebe has a baby brother. And she carries a huge, painful secret with her always.

In the course of viewing and purchasing vintage clothing for the shop, Phoebe meets Therese Bell, a woman in her eighties who carries her own huge, painful secret.

This book is so much more than meets the eye. The cover has a romantic feel, the tag line is full of romance, so you're fully prepared to read a lovely romance novel. But the secrets these women hold, how their friendship develops, and how their secrets are finally revealed will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Wolff's descriptions of the clothing in the book are exquisite; you can see every detail, every stitch, come to life. But the personal stories of two women are what keep you turning the pages. Well done, Ms. Wolff!

Vanishing Acts

2010-06-29T11:14:00.007-02:30

By Jodi Picoult
Published by Simon and Schuster, Inc.
Washington Square Press trade paperback edition November 2005

Vanishing Acts is a book of memory. Is what we remember really what happened? Are childhood memories really remembered or are they a mix of partial memory and stories we've been told? If you were traumatised, would you remember? Would you want to?

As usual, Jodi Picoult doesn't just engage our reading mind, she engages our questioning mind. You simply cannot read one of her novels without bringing away a hundred questions and wondering what people you know would do if placed in the same situation as Picoult's characters.

This novel centres around Delia Hopkins, who works with her bloodhound to find missing persons. The other characters revolve around Delia: Eric, her fiance; Sophie, her 5-year-old daughter; Fitz, her lifelong friend; and Andrew, her father.

Delia has memories she can never quite place, but she is forced to come face to face with them the day the police arrive at her door to make an arrest.

We are taken from New Hampshire to Arizona via the court system never knowing which characters to trust or believe. What you can believe is this is another Jodi Picoult page-turner from beginning to end.

It Must Be Love

2010-06-25T10:35:00.007-02:30

By Sharon Owens
Published by Poolbeg Press Ltd.
2008

Sarah Quinn is about to have a beautiful Christmas wedding at a Scottish manor owned by her fiance, Mackenzie Campbell. All her friends envy her for snagging the gorgeous, older Mackenzie. On the eve of the wedding, Sarah overhears Mackenzie talking to his best friend. What she hears in this conversation prompts her to leave the manor in the middle of the night, eventually ending up at the Irish seaside.

This is where the book really picks up speed. After all, small town life is invariably more interesting than city life; everybody knows everybody's business and the quirks of townspeople stand out far more than in a big city.

Owens' storytelling style is straightforward; no time-shifting, no extraneous information to divert from the story, and in an easy-to-read manner. While this novel is billed as a romance (and there's lots of it), there are also other stories to draw you in - drugs, crime, a bit of a mystery and, believe it or not, even a fetish thrown in for good measure.

Perhaps my favourite characters in this book are Sarah's parents, Agatha and Richard. Owens gives them the best comedic lines and I had more than a few chuckles whilst enjoying sentences such as this description of Agatha's disapproval of a matter:

"Mrs Quinn pursed her lips until she could have fitted them through the eye of a needle."

Owens pulls a lot of characters into this book, but she gives each one a good storyline, one story weaving into the next, with satisfactory resolutions to all stories at the end.

World Without End

2010-06-23T16:56:00.009-02:30

By Ken Follett
Published by Penguin Group (USA) Group
First printing, October 2007

There is nothing like a good saga to keep a reader riveted to the story to the very end. At just over a thousand pages the ending to this novel was a long time coming, but every word brings you further and further absorbed into the world of the four main characters - Caris, Merthin, Gwenda, and Ralph.

The book jacket sets up the story rather nicely:

"On the day after Halloween, in the year 1327, four children slip away from the cathedral city of Kingsbridge. They are a thief, a bully, a boy genius, and a girl who wants to be a doctor. In the forest they see two men killed."

World Without End does not pick up where Pillars of the Earth finished. It is now two hundred years later and, while the central characters have changed, the setting is still fictional Kingsbridge, England, where nuns and monks and townspeople vie for control of the city and all that happens in it.

As in Pillars, Follett spends a great deal of time explaining medieval architecture, from bridges, to churches, to hospitals. It's extremely interesting and the story wouldn't be complete without it; it is an insight into how various guilds came into being and to how the style of architecture changed over time and from one country to the next.

The real story, however, lies with the characters - Caris, who has always wanted to be a doctor; brothers Merthin and Ralph, one who wants to become a knight and one who actually becomes one; poor Gwenda who can never seem to fight her way out of poverty; and the nuns and monks of Kingsbridge. There are wars, plagues, greed, revenge, and religious in-fighting, and through it all a city grows, lovers meet and part, lives begin and end.

As I said, this novel is a saga. Be prepared to spend some time reading it, then be prepared to miss it when it's done.

Theodore Boone, Kid Lawyer

2010-06-15T16:58:00.005-02:30

By John Grisham
Published by Dutton Children's Books
a division of Penguin Young Readers Group
May 2010
ARC courtesy of Penguin Group (Canada)

Theodore Boone is going to be the new hero for every young reader out there. He's smart, funny, studies hard, and dispenses legal advice to his schoolmates. Theo has picked up most of his legal knowledge from his parents (both of whom are lawyers) and from spending his free time hanging out at the courthouse chatting about legal cases with judges, lawyers, secretaries, and bailiffs.

Grisham has taken his legal expertise and given it all to this character - and it works. Theo doesn't come off as a 13-year-old know-it-all, but as someone who has a real interest in law and who genuinely likes to help his schoolmates. His legal limits are tested, however, when he is drawn into a murder trial after acquiring knowledge about the accused from a witness who is reluctant to come forward.

Using a clear and concise style to explain somewhat complicated American legal terminology to young readers, Grisham has hit the mark with a good mixture of drama, intrigue, and suspense.

This is the perfect book for young teens. Even the well-past-it teens will enjoy it. I happily await Theo's next case.

My Fair Lazy

2010-06-11T11:38:00.004-02:30

By Jen Lancaster
Published by New American Library
a division of Penguin Group
First Printing May 2010
ARC courtesy of Penguin Group (Canada)

Full title of this book: My Fair Lazy, A Memoir, One Reality Television Addict's Attempt to Discover If Not Being a Dumb Ass is the New Black, or a Culture-Up Manifesto.

There is no substance to this book; it's snarky instead of humourous. The constant use of footnotes is annoying as they only serve to add a sarcastic remark to an already sarcastic sentence. This style of writing is good for short pieces (i.e. a blog post or a short story) but is grating when faced with an entire novel.

Possibly Lancaster is fun in real-life, but she comes across as a real pain in this memoir and I couldn't take any more of her life past page 155.

Does Lancaster succeed in her quest to experience new cultural horizons and improve her interactions with human beings? I don't know, because I don't care.

California Demon

2010-06-05T22:16:00.005-02:30

By Julie Kenner
Published by the Penguin Group
June 2006

"My name is Kate Connor, and I'm a Demon Hunter."

Thus begins our love affair with Kate, her family, her friends, husband number one (who is dead), demons, and the damned. Yes, Kate hunts demons; she manages to fit it in between volunteering at the old-age home, raising two kids, and helping her husband with his political campaign. She works for Forza Scura, which is a secret arm of the Vatican (and which is probably more thoroughly explained in the first book of the demon-hunting soccer mom series, "Carpe Demon"). Although this is the second book in the series, it was quite easy to pick up the story.

In this episode, Kate discovers a mysterious demon book with blank pages, fights off demons who want their book returned, tries to control her boy-crazy daughter, and gets strange vibes off the new teacher at the high school. The fight scenes are exciting (who knew the damage you could do with a knife and some holy water?) and show the depths of Kenner's research into various methods of self-defence.

I picked up this book based on Kenner's Codebreaker Trilogy which I couldn't put down and foisted upon everyone I knew who could read, so I was pretty sure this was going to be a series I would like. If you like ass-kicking, demon-hunting, family-loving soccer moms, this is a series for you.

Promises to Keep

2010-06-04T12:58:00.009-02:30

By Jane Green
Published by the Penguin Group
Available 05 June 2010
ARC courtesy of Penguin Group (Canada)

Jane Green's new novel is different from her other novels for two reasons. One, it is infused with recipes and, two, it made me cry.

The recipes tie in nicely with Steffi's storyline; she is a vegan chef who, at thirty-three, has yet to find a permanent job (or a permanent lifestyle, for that matter). Food also plays a fitting role in the book as a nice backdrop to the moods of the characters.

Steffi's sister, Callie, is a forty-three-year-old photographer, mother of two, with a husband and lifestyle most of us would envy.

While the book centres around Steffi and Callie, Green - as always - makes the lives of the minor characters just as interesting, introducing them and then deftly weaving their stories with Steffi's and Callie's until we see the whole picture. I was completely smitten with Callie's best friend, Lila. Lila is one of the best characters Green has ever written; she is humourous, self-aware, and straightforward, and Green has used all those traits to perfection.

I like the UK title for this book - The Love Verb - much better because this book is all about love. Whether it be parental love, married love, best friend love, sisterly love, or a love that is taken, Green brings to light what it takes to give and receive love in the most difficult of circumstances.

Only Jane Green can keep me up at night, laughing, crying, and enjoying the kind of book only she can write. Run out and buy this book, and then say goodbye to those you know for a few days because you won't want to be interrupted while you read!

Her Royal Spyness

2010-06-01T15:41:00.010-02:30

By Rhys Bowen
Published by the Penguin Group
Berkley Prime Crime mass-market edition / July 2008

If I were twenty-one in 1932, who would I want for a best friend? Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie, daughter of the late Duke of Glen Garry and Rannoch, granddaughter of the least attractive of Queen Victoria's daughters, half-sister to Hamish (present Duke of Glen Garry and Rannoch), thirty-fourth in line to the throne - known to her friends as Georgie.

Times are tough in 1932 and Georgie's brother Hamish (called Binky) has cut off Georgie's allowance. Living in a Scottish castle with Binky and Fig (Binky's snooty spouse), Georgie decides to move to the family house in London and see what she can do to support herself. She's really not prepared for much in the way of employment:

"I, meanwhile, had been shipped off to finishing school in Switzerland, where I was having a spiffing time mixing with the naughty daughters of the rich and famous. We learned passably good French and precious little else except how to give dinner parties, play the piano, and walk with good posture."

Once in London, Georgie soon gets herself reacquainted with some old friends from the finishing school, and they don't always lead her down the respectable path expected of a Lady. Throw in Georgie's various jobs, an attempt at blackmail, a dead body in the bathtub, a much-married mother, and a rather roguish (though handsome) Irish peer, and you've got a delightful novel. And - I almost forgot - the Queen would like Georgie to spy on the married lover of the Prince of Wales.

Overall, Georgie is a smart, witty, enjoyable character in a smart, witty, enjoyable book. I'm looking forward to reading more of this series.

The Bishop's Man

2010-05-30T21:59:00.006-02:30

By Linden MacIntyre

Published by Random House Canada

2009

The Bishop's Man is a novel both engrossing and frustrating. The story is told through Father Duncan MacAskill and centres around his life as the priest who other priests hate to see coming; the priest sent by the bishop to make priests who are caught up in any kind of scandal - sexual or otherwise - disappear. That's the engrossing bit. The frustrating bit is the constant time-shifting MacIntyre employs in order to tell MacAskill's story. It's summer, it's winter, he's old, he's young, he's in Honduras, he's in Toronto, he's in Cape Breton. Enough already.

The book gets off to a slow start and if I hadn't been reading this for a book club, I probably would have stopped a few chapters in. But perseverance pays off. MacAskill's decline into alcoholism and mental despair was exceptionally well-written. In fact, MacIntyre's tone throughout made you feel the isolation of the parish, the sadness of those touched by sexual abuse, and the loneliness of a man who dreams of experiencing life outside the priesthood. MacIntyre stepped away from writing graphic scenes of sexual abuse, and he didn't need to - you hated the perpetrators and felt the pain of the victims anyway.

MacAskill performed his priestly duties for the bishop, but not without questioning the actions of the church and, eventually, himself. There are moments when you despise him, moments when you tolerate him, and moments when you wish he would stop being tormented and find peace.

I liked this book although it left me feeling quite hollow. Whether that was the intention of the author or not was one of the topics covered by the Bool Club (that's not a typo...long story).

Out of the four females involved in today's discussion, I was the only person who liked the book. Booler CB liked it well enough, but I don't think it topped her list of books to recommend to friends; Booler NS didn't like the book; and Booler PC couldn't find it in her heart to even finish it. So, there were some diverse opinions floating around. All agreed, however, on the overall bleakness of the story - setting a novel about sexual abuse, suicide, and religion against a backdrop of dead-of-winter Cape Breton was downright depressing.

The Bishop's Man won the 2009 Giller Prize. While the majority of the Bool Club wouldn't recommend this novel, I do.

Comfort Food

2010-05-27T10:07:00.004-02:30

By Kate Jacobs
Published by the Penguin Group
Berkley Trade Paperback Edition /April 2009

Cooking show host Gus Simpson has two daughters, two cats, a best friend, and a nineteen-room manor house. Sounds dull. What if I said fifty-year-old cooking show host Gus Simpson is on the verge of losing her long-running TV series unless she teams up with Spanish hottie (former beauty queen and aspiring TV host) Carmen Vega? What if those two daughters are still dealing with unexplored feelings from their father's death more than ten years earlier? What if Gus' next-door neighbour and BFF spent her days hiding from her past? Sounds way more intriguing, doesn't it?

Jacobs builds a lovely story about family, friends, love, and career, all centered around a cooking channel show, with a behind-the-scenes insight into how these shows are filmed, and how food - as always - brings everyone together.

It's not a complicated story, but I read it swiftly and missed it when I wasn't reading it. This novel was exactly what it said it was - Comfort Food.

A Dubious Legacy

2010-05-24T09:52:00.005-02:30

By Mary Wesley
Published by Black Swan
Originally published in Great Britain by Bantam Press, 1992

The synopsis on the back of this novel is what intrigued me:

"Henry brought his new bride, Margaret, to Cotteshaw in 1944. On the threshold she gave him a black eye and went straight to bed where she remained, apart from the occasional malevolent outburst, for the rest of her life."

With a wife in bed, what does Henry do for entertainment? He invites friends for dinner, sleeps around, hangs out with the gay couple down the road, brings his dogs everywhere, never gets over his first love. It all sounds like a bit of a comedy, yet it's not.

Two of the books main characters - Antonia and Barbara - are introduced early on and Wesley makes it easy for the reader to get caught up in their lives as they evolve from the greenest of girls to married middle-aged women, their lives constantly intersecting with Henry's and Margaret's.

I like Wesley's style, particularly the fact that she doesn't dumb down any of her books - if you don't understand it, she's not explaining it to you. She uses a vocabulary now considered old-fashioned or too cumbersome, but these words are what give her characters their depth and what sets Wesley apart from many other writers.

Mary Wesley once commented that her "chief claim to fame is arrested development, getting my first novel published at the age of seventy". From all accounts, Wesley led a fascinating life, which left her with lots to draw on for writing her novels (see this Wikipedia article for more http://bit.ly/18w4bw ).

A Dubious Legacy is sophisticated, sexy, and funny. Another fine book from the Mary Wesley library.

Rumors

2010-05-19T19:46:00.004-02:30

By Anna Godbersen
Published by HarperCollins Publishers
First paperback edition, 2009

Rumors is a Luxe novel; which is to say it is part of a series of books that centres around Manhattan society at the turn of the twentieth century. While I'm sure I am well out of the age range meant to be targeted by these books, I am totally caught up in them and look forward to reading the next book in the series.

Rumors picks up where the first book in the series - The Luxe - left off. I won't tell you where that is because if you haven't read the first book, I don't want to be the one to spoil it for you. However, the book continues with the same flare for gossipy girls, snooty heiresses, ill-mannered boys, and interfering servants, all of which make for some interesting and unforeseen plot twists.

I'm sure part of the fun of writing about socialites during this time period is what this era allows you to do; suspense can be drawn on the strength of a note passed from one grand house to another (via servants, of course) - no texting, no phoning, no emailing - and the tension in awaiting a reply can be unbearable. And, of course, a lady has a strict code of conduct to live by, which means everything forbidden is that much more exciting.

These books are well written with a good main storyline to draw you in. Many thanks to my niece who generously loaned me the first two books in the series. Be warned, sweet niece, I'm on my way over for more!!

You Better Not Cry

2010-05-15T23:15:00.006-02:30

By Augusten Burroughs
Published by St. Martin's Press
November 2009

If you've read anything by Augusten Burroughs, you know he's led a fantastical, demented life. I don't always believe everything he writes, but I certainly enjoy his writing style.

In this book of short stories for Christmas, Burroughs made me laugh out loud, shake my head in disbelief, and catch my breath at the beauty of his writing. How much love do you carry for one single person in your life that will make you write:

"Because he will grip you by the shoulders and wrench you around and he will bring his bristly mouth to yours and blow stars down your throat until you are so full of light."

Beautiful.

On the other hand, the first story - which details Burrough's childhood confusion of Jesus and Santa had me roaring with laughter.

With respect to the messed-up messages of watching Christmas shows on television:

"...Jesus brings presents to all the poor, foreign, and crippled children and Santa brings presents to the regular children, like me."

And explaining his confusion to his grandmother:

"But then I heard this song called, 'Here Comes Santa Claus' and it goes, 'Hang your stockings and say your prayers, 'cause Santa Claus comes tonight,' and I realized, 'say your prayers' means they are the same person. It's just that, most of the year, Jesus is naked except for his little rag and his thorn hat and then on Christmas, he puts on his good red suit."

To put it in text-messaging parlance - LOL!!

Write more books, Augusten Burroughs (and send them all directly to me)!

My Name Is Memory

2010-05-14T20:00:00.005-02:30

By Ann Brashares
Published by the Penguin Group
June 2010
ARC courtesy of Penguin Group (Canada)

I was really looking forward to reading this book. I read and thoroughly enjoyed the Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants series and I couldn't wait to throw myself into this new book billed as "The story of a love that lasts more than a lifetime".

Daniel and Sophia have met and fallen in love at various points throughout history. The book begins in 2004 when Daniel and Sophia are in high school. Daniel recognises Sophia (now Lucy), but Sophia only begins to have memories of Daniel at the Senior Ball, the last event of their high school days.

After that, I pretty much stopped reading.

The portions of Daniel describing his past lives and "memory' are tedious and I started to skip over them around page 68. Time shifting is not something I like at the best of times, but this was poorly done and rather preachy in tone. I gave up any hope of finishing this book at page 111.

The first two pages were skilfully written and set the book up rather nicely for what could have been an interesting and fascinating story. It's hard to fall in love with a love story when your attention is diverted by badly written time warps. We already know Daniel realises he has been born many times over. The stronger part of the story was Lucy getting in touch with her past lives, but there was so much going on in the book, I stopped caring.

A disappointment.

Scottish Girls About Town

2010-05-02T13:50:00.008-02:30

By Jenny Colgan, Isla Dewar, Muriel Gray, and sixteen other Scottish women authors
Published by Downtown Press
Originally published in Great Britain and Ireland in 2003 by Pocket Books

As with the other "About Town" books (Irish Girls About Town, American Girls About Town, and Irish Girls are Back in Town), Scottish Girls About Town is a compilation of short stories by many authors, with the proceeds of each book going to various UK charities. A splendid idea, and an excellent way to introduce readers to new authors.

Personally, I bought this book because I am a huge fan of Isla Dewar and this was a way to get my hands on something else she's written. In the Garden of Mrs. Pink is a wonderful short story set in 1972 Edinburgh. Abby is ten years old and her summer days are spent with ailing Grandpa Mac, who lives with Abby and her mother. Abby's mom is a widow who works her fingers to the bone trying to keep a roof over their heads and, in Abby's view, has ignored Abby. So, off Abby goes to find neighbourhood adventures and finds herself quite often chatting with a garden gnome in the garden of Mrs. Pink. Beautifully written, Dewar leads us through Abby's eye-opening summer where she meets Mrs. Pink and begins to understand her mother's life.

Other stories of note: FriendsRevisited.Com by Carmen Reid, Crossroads by Manda Scott, A True Romance by Shari Low, A Mixed Blessing by Aline Templeton, and Private Habits of Highly Effective Women by Abigail Bosanko. The other stories ranged from so-so to so poorly written that I didn't even finish reading them.

As mentioned, this book is a great way to check out authors you have never read, and I did find a few whose novels I'll be purchasing. All in all, this is a good book for those who like short stories.

The Lollipop Shoes

2010-05-01T20:15:00.006-02:30

By Joanne Harris
Published by Black Swan
First published in 2007 by Doubleday

The Lollipop Shoes is a sequel to Chocolat, one of Joanne Harris' yummiest books. Generally, I find sequels to be a huge disappointment. For the most part, I think sequels are written only as a way for the author to make a few more dollars off a wildly popular book and they can never measure up to the original. I was pretty sure Harris would only write a sequel because of her love for her characters and I think I was right. Past characters were instantly brought back to life and I felt as though I had finished reading Chocolat only yesterday, which is pretty good seeing as I read it back in 2002.

The story resumes in Montmartre, where Vianne Rocher and her family are now living above - where else? - a chocolaterie. Vianne has changed since we last met. In an effort to be ordinary, she has given up her cantrips and potions and convinces herself and Anouk that portions of their past lives didn't occur and that there is no such thing as magic.

Zozie de l'Alba is introduced on page one of this novel and by page two we know she is bad news. Zozie's life intersects with Vianne's in a page-turner filled with witchcraft, suspense, heartbreak and, of course, chocolate. The ending, as usual, turns on the changing wind.

Another exceptional book from Joanne Harris.

Nice Recovery

2010-04-13T17:01:00.007-02:30

By Susan Juby
Published by Penguin Group (Canada)
First published March 2010

"Nice Recovery" is Susan Juby's memoir of her addictions. Beginning at age fourteen, Juby embarks on a young-adult journey into alcoholism, shoplifting, fist-fighting, drugs, and smoking (as opposed to her previous life of reading, dressage, and being a typical pre-teen misfit). She tells her story with what appears to me to be a lot of truth and without a lot of holding back; when she was bad, she was bad. I enjoy her writing style and knew I would like her when I read these lines in the preface:

"If telling these stories about addiction and recovery helps one person, it will have been worth it. Just please don't sic the accuracy police on me. I've done the best I can with the tattered remnants of my abused memory. I remember enough."

Juby writes of very bad times indeed - drunken blackouts, being beaten, waking up in strange places, being kicked out of college. But she tempers the seriousness of her life with a finely-placed sense of humour, letting us laugh without losing sight of how crap her life actually was.

Where she did lose me, though, was at Part III. This is where Juby stops sharing her life (the memoir) and starts writing an entirely different book on how treatment centres work and how AA and NA meetings are run. All good information, I'm sure, but I didn't want to read it - I wanted to read more of Juby's life and recovery.

All in all, however, a well-written, revealing memoir.

The Last Great Dance On Earth

2010-04-09T17:17:00.008-02:30

By Sandra Gulland
Published by Headline Book Publishing
First published 2001

"The Last Great Dance On Earth is a work of fiction based on (and inspired by) the extraordinary life of Josephine Bonaparte."

This, the last book in the Josephine trilogy, had me sobbing throughout. What a life! What a power! What a woman! I'm almost at a loss for words. I've always enjoyed historical fiction, but what made this book so spectacular for me was the fact that I was unaware of a huge portion of the history that surrounded the Bonaparte family. The wars are written about in great detail; not just the physical, geographical wars, but the warring within the Bonaparte family. How Napoleon and Josephine managed to stay together as long as they did with the likes of Napoleon's family plotting against them at every turn is astonishing.

Gulland writes these books using Josephine's voice and does such an outstanding job that you feel Josephine's every pain, every worry, and every moment of happiness.

This is such a well-written book that, even though you know how it ends, you read it with a lump in your throat and an eagerness to find out what happens next.

Well done, Sandra Gulland!

Beautiful People

2010-03-30T14:39:00.014-02:30

By Wendy Holden
Published by Headline Review
First published in 2009

This is the tenth book written by Wendy Holden. This is the ninth book I have read by Wendy Holden (I can't seem to get hold of "Gossip Hound"). Holden's style of chick-lit is mixed with social commentary, an exaggeration of the British upper class, and character names that crack me up (Champagne D'Vyne, Totty Ponsonby-Pratt, Hugh Faugh, Venetia Bothamley-Tartt). She is snarky, hilarious, and able to put together a good story from a cast of thousands.

"Beautiful People" is a mixture of Hollywood agents, actors, directors, British MPs, nannies, and adorable children. No wonder the book is 695 pages!

In Hollywood, the biggest movie of all time, "Galaxia", is about to be made. Actors need to be hired which, of course, involves more than just acting ability. Who is hot right now, who is thin right now, are things to be considered. In Britain, nannies need to be hired to take care of children for the upper classes. This requires not so much a degree in child care as it does a connection to the Lords of the Realm; the more prestigious your nanny, the better.

As all the beautiful people intermingle, an interesting story unfolds of how people are treated differently based on their looks, their weight, and their accents.

Told with all the sarcasm and snide remarks she can muster, Holden takes us from Hollywood, to the UK, to Italy, all the while making us wonder why the beautiful people of the world really are treated differently from the rest of us.

The One-Week Job Project

2010-03-10T20:23:00.006-03:30

By Sean Aiken
Published by the Penguin Group
April 2010

So, what do you do for a job when you don't know what to do for a job? If you're Sean Aiken you decide to try fifty-two jobs in one year. Like the book says one man, one year, fifty-two jobs. This is how Aiken believes he will discover his passion.

For the most part, the book is fun - Aiken outlines each of the fifty-two jobs and where he travelled to get them. Among other jobs, he was the mascot for the Washington Capitals, a yoga instructor, a film producer, a firefighter, a radio deejay. Some stats: during the fifty-two weeks he travelled 46,685 miles, hitchhiked 17 times, received 204 job offers, and had 24 plane trips.

Aiken takes a friendly approach with the reader; like he's sitting in your living room telling you about his travels. What makes Aiken and the book even more likeable is his willingness to tell you about his personal life along the way. To me, this was possibly the more interesting part of the book. Sure, I wanted to know about the types of jobs he took on, but I also wanted to know how he felt about each job, the friends he made along the way, and how this quest impacted him personally.

Did Aiken find his passion? What's he doing now? How did his personal life turn out? I make it a practice not to run a spoiler site. You'll have to buy the book yourself and check it out.

Love Nest

2010-03-09T12:43:00.007-03:30

By Julia Llewellyn
Published by the Penguin Group
April 2010

Let's start at the same place the book does - the prelude. I thought this was the set-up for the book; however, it only set up one story and that story turned out to be the least interesting of the book. Grace is at her mother's funeral and learns she has to sell the family home. But wait, Grace is lonely (because she is fat); she had a poisonous relationship with her mother (because she is fat); she has low self-esteem (because she is fat); everyone looks down on her (because she is fat). Cliched, to say the least.

But, that particular storyline aside, Llewellyn has written a good book of buying and selling real estate and the stories of the families involved in the transactions. Grace doesn't want to sell her childhood home in the country, Chadlicote Manor, but Karen's husband, Phil, is desperate for it after battling with cancer and wanting to make a fresh start. Gemma and Alex want Karen and Phil's home because they want to start a family and feel a home just outside London would be better than Phil's bachelor flat. Up and coming rock star, Nick, wants the bachelor flat and plans to buy it without telling his long-time girlfriend so he can dump her as soon as the sale goes through. Lucinda is the real estate agent who wants to work at her wealthy father's business but has to prove to her father she has the business skills to do so.

All in all, in the great realm of chick-lit, this is a good book. The stories are interesting, one story flows seamlessly into another, and the balance of love and hate the reader feels toward the characters is in good proportion.

Recommended for all those who are looking for something a little bit different in the field of women's literature.

Blind Faith

2010-02-28T17:35:00.010-03:30

By Ben Elton
Published by Transworld Publishers
Black Swan edition published 2008

What if everyone in the world behaved as if they were on a reality TV show? Would we have an egocentric culture? What if religious intolerance were thrown in? What if everyone was forced to think as a group and not have an ounce of independent thought?

I hate, hate, HATE this world Ben Elton has created. I suspect that's why he created it - to show us how easy it is to slip into a world where religious fervor is right and non-believers are wrong; where group thought is good and independent thought is bad; where every move is recorded and watched by your neighbours, your co-workers, strangers. There are parts of this book that made my stomach churn, and parts that made me angry, and parts that made me indignant, and parts that made me want to smack some heads together. This book brought on a lot of emotion, but it's a book that made me think, as well. How far are we from actually inhabiting this type of world?

Trafford Sewell is a thinking man in a non-thinking world. Set in the future, the world as we know it has experienced a flood (caused by either global warming or sent by God to rid the world of "Humanists"). Trafford doesn't accept the conditions he is forced to live in - a sweating, half-naked mass of humanity trapped in an over-populated, flooded London, where child mortality is high due to cholera, mumps, and measles (and the fact the Temple dictates that childhood vaccinations are an attempt to undercut God's will). In his attempt to find reason in an unreasonable place, Trafford discovers an existence beyond his expectations, but it's a secret, illegal existence that must be kept from the all-knowing eyes and ears of the Temple.

Elton has produced a story that seems a ridiculous concept, but you find yourself wondering how close we really are to this type of reality. How many of us would take a stand for something we believe in? Would it be easier to just go with the flow? Like I said, Elton makes you question yourself and your beliefs with this novel. I'll be a while yet trying to find the answers.

The Seven Secrets of Happiness

2010-02-27T19:31:00.003-03:30

By Sharon Owens
Published by the Penguin Group
First published 2010

Sometimes you just need to read a good old-fashioned romance novel. Thank you, Sharon Owens, for writing some of the best.

Although there's plenty of love in this book - looking for it, finding it, losing it - there's also plenty of heartbreak. Having a spouse die young should be a devastating experience, and Owens deals with the topic in a thoughtful, quiet manner, deftly guiding her readers through the pain of the experience while still infusing humour and touching moments throughout the book. And, of course, what's a romance novel without romance?

The book primarily centres around Ruby O'Neill, a lovely character trying to forge ahead with her life with the help of her best friend. Ruby's parents have their own little side story happening which is entertaining in itself and helps the reader to better understand Ruby's character. Enter Tom Lavery, Mark Crawford, and a host of bit players, and you have a thoroughly enjoyable novel.

Don't you love it when you're rooting for the characters to make a go of it in the romance department? Owens has once again hit the mark.

The Heights

2010-02-21T17:51:00.006-03:30

By Peter Hedges
Published by Dutton, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First Printing, March 2010

I was so wrong about this book. First, I thought it was a book for young adult readers. Then, I thought it quite possibly could be a weird sort of read because it was by the same author as "What's Eating Gilbert Grape", and the movie starred Johnny Depp, and Johnny Depp is known for being in bizarre movies, and the list goes on. Suffice to say, I apologise to Peter Hedges for my preconceived thinking, for here is a most interesting book about trust, betrayal, gossip, infatuation, love, and lust.

What I like best about this book is Hedges' ability to tell the story from the viewpoint of many different characters: Tim, the school teacher husband; Kate, the housewife turned breadwinner; Bea Myerly, the student who knows too much. There is a smoothness to the way Hedges writes and, although he is writing about everyday happenings, you want to read more and you want to read more now.

Hedges will bring you into the world of Brooklyn Heights with all its money and privileges, and then make you both yearn to be a part of this elite society and happy that you are not. Is love the same if you're rich? Is it easy to throw away what you have for an illusion? And what happens to the betrayed? This book reminds you that everyday life can lead to some of the most soul-crushing decisions we will ever make.

I feel like standing in the nearest bookstore and guiding people directly to this book so they don't miss it. If you weren't a Peter Hedges fan before, you will become one.

The Book of Fires

2010-02-14T20:28:00.009-03:30

By Jane Borodale
Published by Pamela Dorman Books/Viking
First published January 2010

The advance copy of this book has a most beautiful and striking cover - it's an illustration of fireworks exploding over London in the time period in which this book was set (1752). I was saddened to see the cover has changed to the one pictured here. I'm convinced that once you start putting beautiful girls on the covers of books - particularly if that book is written by a female - the only audience you're setting yourself up for is those who are expecting chick-lit. And this book is not chick-lit.

When seventeen-year-old Agnes Trussel discovers she is pregnant, she devises a plan to leave her village and make her way to London. Although her plan causes her to be deceitful, Agnes believes if she leaves the village she will not shame her family or be forced to marry the father of her child.

Upon arriving in London and swiftly losing her way, Agnes ends up at the home of John Blacklock who has advertised for the position of housekeeper. Agnes is hired, but instead of keeping house she becomes the apprentice to Blacklock, who makes fireworks.

Borodale seems to have channelled Tracy Chevalier with her beautiful descriptions of making the fireworks and how each chemical causes a different sort of explosion. The London world as seen through the eyes of apprentice Agnes is a scary yet wondrous place and, thanks to the amount of detail in this novel, you can imagine it perfectly.

Beautiful details, interesting characters, and unforeseen plot twists, make this an excellent first novel for Jane Borodale.

Someone Special

2010-01-18T22:01:00.007-03:30

By Sheila O'Flanagan
Published by Headline Review, 2008

Anyone who reads Sheila O'Flanagan's novels already knows this is not the romance novel the marketing department would have you believe. O'Flanagan's female leads have interesting jobs, full lives, and the romance is often incidental. I'm not complaining; I wouldn't have been able to read her fourteen previous novels, otherwise.

Romy Kilkenny is a forensic archaeologist living in Australia. Her sister, Kathryn, is a forensic accountant living in New York. Darragh, the older brother, runs the family manufacturing firm in Ireland. A reunion of sorts occurs when the matriarch, Veronica, needs back surgery and the Dolan/Kilkenny clan ends up back in Ireland.

O'Flanagan has a keen eye for family dynamics and the child placement theory gets a run for its money in this story - older brother as family head, middle girl having to prove herself and Romy, the baby of the family, feeling left behind.

Romy's romantic life is a thread throughout the story, but the family is the story here. Now, who can I speak to about stopping the girlie cover art for O'Flanagan's books?

Matchless: A Christmas Story

2009-12-28T19:41:00.004-03:30

By Gregory Maguire
Published by HarperCollins, 2009
Illustrated by Gregory Maguire

"An Illumination of Hans Christian Andersen's Classic The Little Match Girl"

I can't resist a book written by Gregory Maguire. So, even though this book is tiny - and seems to have just as many pictures as words - I had to have it. It is interesting to me how Maguire can take a classic fairy tale and retell it so that his version is the one you remember and prefer.

This retelling is not so much about a little match girl as it is about Frederik and his mother who live:

"On an island so far north that it snowed from September to April...".

Surprisingly, the island was not Newfoundland.

The match girl's story appears in Part Two and, according to Maguire's notes, doesn't stray too much from Andersen's original. Maguire does manage quite nicely to intertwine her story with Frederik's story.

Matchless is a tale of a dying child's hallucinations, a working mother's lack of time for her child, a child's wish for a better future, and a connection to the afterlife. This story was written for National Public Radio in the US and my only complaint would be that it wasn't written as a full-length novel.

The Tavern on Maple Street

2009-12-11T11:57:00.009-03:30

By Sharon Owens

Published by the Penguin Group

First published by Poolbeg Press, Ireland, February 2006

What separates Sharon Owens from the other Irish authors I also adore is the fact that she writes from the Belfast perspective; no posh Dublin life for her.

This story takes place in - you guessed it - a tavern on Maple Street. Jack and Lily, the extremely likeable owners of Beaumont's Tavern, are stunned when a developer from Dublin plans to buy and demolish the entire block and erect a shopping mall in its place. Realising the end is near, Lily decides to go out of business in a big way and, in an effort to bring new customers to Beaumont's, she hires extra staff and begins to host events in the tavern. The staff, of course, are all young, pretty girls who bring their own troubles into Lily's life.

Filled with realistic characters and situations, Owens takes you away to a cozy place where you root for the main characters, enjoy the pub regulars, and wish you could sit in the booth next to the fire with a drink and a good book.

Another lovely read from Sharon Owens.

Remarkable Creatures

2009-12-08T18:21:00.012-03:30

By Tracy Chevalier
Published by Penguin Group
First printing, January 2010

I'm quite often amazed by Tracy Chevalier. It's a talent (and, I'm sure, an awful lot of hard work) to write in as much detail as she does. But it's the details that make her books so glorious to read.

I have to admit, I wasn't out of my mind with glee when I learned Chevalier's new book was about Mary Anning (1799-1847), the British fossil hunter and paleontologist. I was interested, but prepared for boredom. But boredom never came.

Mary Anning and her older friend and fellow fossil hunter, Elizabeth Philpot, were treated with disdain throughout most of their lives. Mary for being poor; Elizabeth for being a spinster; and both for being women daring to seek out the truth behind the fossils. To be women interested in fossil hunting and reconstruction was considered odd. But to question God, the Bible, and men, and to introduce the concept of extinction in a Bible-driven world was radical. Scientists of the day never credited Mary Anning with the work she had done yet sought her out when looking for particular specimens. Recognition of a woman as anything other than a "spare part" was hard to come by in the nineteenth century.

Aside from the scientific aspect of this book, Chevalier has written a story of friendship between two women of different generations and different social classes with a common interest in fossil hunting. Like all friendships, theirs included mutual respect and admiration as well as envy and jealousy. I'm actually hard-pressed to say which of the two women I found more interesting. And I would venture to say they are actually the Remarkable Creatures, more so than the fossils uncovered in this book.

Another brilliant book by Tracy Chevalier. The only downside is that you have to wait until January to buy it.

The Big Over Easy

2009-12-02T12:14:00.012-03:30

By Jasper Fforde

Published by Hodder and Stoughton

First published in Great Britain in 2005

The Nursery Crime Division of the Reading Police Department doesn't have it easy. It has the lowest conviction/investigation ratio of any department:

"Sheep rustling from Miss Bo-Peep - two arrests, no charges. Failure to properly take care of livestock by 'Boy' Blue. One arrest, no charges. Cruelly putting a cat in a well. Johnny Flynn arrested, no charges brought. Kidnapping of Hansel and Gretel with intent to commit cannibalism. One arrest, no charges...".

You get the picture. And now Humperdinck Jehoshaphat Aloysius Stuyvesant van Dumpty has been murdered by a person or persons unknown as he sat upon a wall.

Can Detective Inspector Jack Spratt and Detective Sergeant Mary Mary solve the crime (particularly before DCI Friedland Chymes gets his hands on the case)?

The nursery characters make it fun, but only Jasper Fforde could take this bizarre cast of characters and write a crime novel. Throw in Rapunzel, Wee Willie Winkie, the Three Little Pigs, and Prometheus, and you've got one page-turner of a whodunnit going on.

Fans of Jasper Fforde will love this book. If you haven't read anything by him, this is an excellent novel to start your Fforde addiction.

The Brightest Star in the Sky

2009-12-01T18:16:00.006-03:30

By Marian Keyes
Published by the Penguin Group
First published 2009

Marian Keyes tackles some pretty big topics in her latest novel: rape, dementia, death. It's a long way from "Last Chance Saloon", the book that made me a Marian Keyes junkie. Perhaps it's because I am such a junkie that I'm so very critical of this new venture of hers.

The storylines respecting the above-mentioned topics are interesting - but only near the end of the book. It took ages to get into this book and there were far too many gimmicks employed to make the book enjoyable: the foreshadowing/commentary by the narrating star/lifeform was irritating; knowing what the dog was thinking was a very un-Marian-like attempt at humour; the obsession with ending words in "sk" was totally overused; and the novel was peopled with too many, well, people. Too much back-story about the characters only added to the annoyance of reading the first half of this book.

But I persevered, because Marian Keyes is a good writer, dammit, and I knew I would find her somewhere in there. And, near the end, there she was in all her writing glory. She was funny, she was serious, she was writing. No messing about, she stuck to the topics and dug right in putting some people together while tearing others apart and every page was turned with high anticipation of what would happen next.

This book doesn't come close to "This Charming Man", which has become my favourite Marian Keyes novel. Lola Daly was the best female character she has ever written - hilarious, acerbic, vulnerable. No such memorable characters exist in "The Brightest Star in the Sky" but there are some strong, interesting characters and, based on that alone, this book is probably worth your time.