Dreamland by Nicholas Sparks

 

Title:  Dreamland

Author:  Nicholas Sparks

Narrated by:  Ella Turenne

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Length: Approximately 9 hours and 4 minutes

Source: Checked out with Libby through the Kewaunee Public Library.  Thank-you!

 

Do you like books with songs in them?  The first books I enjoyed with songs in them were the Little House on the Prairie series where Pa would play his fiddle and sing various folk songs.  I have enjoyed songs in books since then.

Dreamland by Nicholas Sparks was an October pick for the Page-turners Book Club at the Kewaunee Public Library, and it prompted good discussion.  The story is split in two.  One story is about a woman named Beverly fleeing her abusive husband with her young son, Tommie.  The other story is about musician Colby Mills.  He is playing a gig at St. Pete Beach Florida, and meets the beautiful singer, Morgan Lee.  They fall in love, but Colby feels his real life pulling him back home.

Dreamland was a good look at mental illness and the sacrifices people make to care for family members.  I enjoyed the characters in this book and the innovative way that Sparks wrote this novel.  I did not know how the two stories related at all and he masterfully revealed how they were related towards the end of the novel.  This story had romance and suspense and was a riveting book.

Dreamland was an enjoyable audiobook to listen to. I really liked the guitar music that accompanied the Colby chapters and when the songs were sung.

One Christmas Morning by Rachel Greenlaw

 

Do you like to get up right away on Christmas morning or sleep in?  I was excited that this year, now that the kids are teenagers, we were allowed to sleep in until 9 AM.  When they were younger, we used to have a rule that they couldn’t wake us up before 7 AM as we were usually up half the night wrapping presents.

Eva is not excited for Christmas.  Three years ago, her beloved grandmother passed away at Christmas, and she lost her baby.  Since then, she and her husband James have been living in their own worlds.  Eva has buried herself in her work, ignoring her husband and her friends.   Her best friend Hallie has chosen an estate that her Grandmother always stayed at for the holidays, Penhallow in Cornwall, for a Christmas house party.  James thinks they should accept the invitation, but Eva is worried about being away while her new business needs to be launched.  She also has sad memories associated with this place and her grandmother’s death.  Will Eva be able to reconnect with her husband and friends at Christmas?  Will she be able to break out of her grief and empathize with people again?

Eva wake up on Christmas morning and she is no longer herself, but her assistant Diana.  She lives the day as Diana, not only seeing the mistakes that Eva has made, but also realizing that Diana has a lot going on in her own life that Eva has not seen at all.   Eva relives the day repeatedly in the lives of various house guests.  She learns new things about her friends and loved ones, and new things about herself every day.  Will she be able to use these lessons to put her life back on track?

I loved the concept of this book.  It was like Groundhog’s Day, but on Christmas day and if Bill Murrey lived the lives of different characters.  It also had shades of A Christmas Carol when Scrooge can see himself and past decisions and how they may shape the future.  Wouldn’t we all like the ability to see how we are viewed by others and how we can change our lives for the better?  Or would you not like that?  I really enjoyed Eva’s redemptive arc and the ending of this novel.  I also enjoyed that it was her Grandmother’s spirit that was her guide through this journey.

This book is heavier than a typical Christmas book.  Christmas is being celebrated in the background of the novel, but the real theme of the novel was grief and how people deal with it.  Eva came off as a very unlikeable character at first, but it gave her a lot of room for growth and understanding as the story unfolded.

I enjoyed this debut novel and I’m looking forward to seeing what author Rachel Greenlaw writes next.

Book Source:  Review copy from Avon Books from a Book Club Girls giveaway. Thank-you!  Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Four Weddings and a Christmas by Phillipa Ashley

 

Do you have “go to” authors that you read when you are looking for a certain type of story?  Phillipa Ashley is one of my “go to” authors that I go to for Christmas and summer reads that I know will both be a good story and have great characters.

Freya has a history of being a runaway bride.  In grade school she ran away from a pretend wedding to young Travis, and as an eighteen-year-old, she also ran away from an engagement to the same Travis.  Now years later, Freya has a successful business preparing vacation homes for people in England’s Lake District.  She recently ended an engagement with a dependable boyfriend and has started to believe that she may never find love.  Travis returns to town this Christmas season.  He is now a famous wildlife photographer, and he has returned to start his own store and photography business in town.  He also wants to spend more time with his family.  The last thing he expects is to run back into Freya and immediately have the same old feelings for her again.  Freya does not want to get into a relationship again as she seems to have no luck with them.  Will Freya and Travis be able to figure out their future?

I loved Freya and Travis, but also all the other characters in this novel.  Phillipa Ashley writes wonderful characters.  I also liked how Freya and Travis both had troubling aspects of their childhood that have carried over into their adult relationships.  Being able to understand the past helps them both to move on into the future.  Their family situations were important and solving some of those problems added a greater depth to the story.  Freya and Travis also had great chemistry.  They had a friends-to-lovers and a second chance romance story, both tropes that I enjoy.

I also loved the Lake District.  It sounded beautiful and I loved the small-town feel.  Everyone knew each other and helped each other out.  The Christmas spirit was in the story.  I loved this story from start to finish and it was the perfect story to be reading at Christmas.  It was one of my favorite books this Christmas season.

Book Source:  Review copy from NetGalley. Thank-you!  Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Santa & Company by Fern Michaels

 

Thank you, Partner @bibliolifestyle @kensingtonbooks for the review copy of Santa & Company by Fern Michaels.  I posted a feature of this book back in October and enjoyed reading it in December.

Do you have a favorite type of Christmas ornament?  I love all types of Christmas ornaments, but I do really like Christmas ornaments with bling and sparkle.

Amy, Frankie, Rachael, and Nina are longtime friends that are getting together for an adventure at a ski lodge in Tahoe.  They have fun reuniting until one of them has an accident while snowshoeing alone.  There is romance and a slight mystery.

This is the second book in a series, after Santa Cruise.  I really need to read Santa Cruise.  I felt like I was missing a lot while reading Santa & Company as I didn’t know the history of these characters.  The story line moved slowly in this novel.  There is not much Christmas in the story as it primarily takes place after Christmas leading up to New Year’s Eve.

Santa & Company was a cozy, clean read.  It is a nice winter story that would be better to read after reading the first book, Santa Cruise.

The Ladies Rewrite the Rules by Suzanne Allain (Austenprose PR Book Tour)

 

What is your favorite romantic comedy book or movie?

One of my recent favorite romantic comedy movies is Mr. Malcolm’s List based on the novel by Suzanne Allain.  I love romantic comedies based in the Regency time period, especially books by Georgette Heyer.

Diana Boyle is a wealthy, young widow who was married to a much older man. She is happy as a widow living quietly until one day when two men mysteriously show up at her door seemingly wanting to court her.  Luckily her butler helps to investigate by giving the gentleman a lot of port to drink and determines that Diana’s name has been published in the “Bachelor’s Directory.”  The Bachelor’s Directory is an alphabetical list of young, unmarried wealthy women.  Diana is outraged and confronts the author of the Bachelor’s Directory, Maxwell Dean.  Maxwell is sure he has performed a great service allowing poor younger brothers of good families to know which women they should pursue, as marriage with a poor woman would not work for them.

Diana invites the lady from the directory to a meeting and lets them all know about the directory.  The women decide this may be the perfect opportunity to change the rules and embrace their power for the first time.   “That’s the beauty of it:  we can choose to trifle with their affections as much as we like, the same way they do with ours.  We have the power.”  How will the women use this power, and will they find true love?

The Ladies Rewrite the Rules was a highly entertaining novel.    I loved the characters in this novel, especially the two main ladies, Diana Boyle, and her new friend Lady Regina.  They both have sad reasons that they are single, but they have embraced being single and aren’t sure if they want to move on with any romantic relationship.  I loved both of their love stories which were enemies-to-lovers and a second chance romance.  Both are my favorite romantic tropes.  Their romantic partners, Maxwell and Jerome, are fun characters are well.  They are several great secondary characters that I also enjoyed as well, such as widow Lady Gordon.

I loved the overall premise.  Money, who had it, and who didn’t played a large role in Regency society.  Young women without money did look for men who had at least a good living to be able to support themselves.  I think it was interesting in this novel to point out that men did the exact same thing.  If they didn’t have money, they looked for wealthy women to marry that would be able to support them.

I also loved how the ladies rewrote the rules in this book. Besides having a great story of female friendship, it shows a group of women who turn negative experiences into positive ones. They don’t follow the rules of society, but they find what works best for them in life.

There was an interesting mystery in the novel too when a mysterious nephew of Diana’s late husband shows up.  Why has she never heard of this relation before and why is he pursuing her? 

Author Suzanne Allain has a great author’s note at the end that explains that the Bachelor’s Directory is based on a real list of single wealthy ladies.  I think that is hilarious!

I love the cover of this book.  What do you think?

This novel is a clean read.

Favorite Quotes:

“Mildred was the one thing Diana’s wealthy husband had left to her upon his death that she could have happily done without.”   - This was on page one and made me laugh out loud.  Mildred is Diana’s sister-in-law. I knew from page one that this novel would entertain me.

“But having been trapped in a gilded cage, even a short flight was better than never once being allowed to spread one’s wings.”

Overall, The Ladies Rewrite the Rules by Suzanne Allain is a delightfully fun Regency romance novel that I hope will be made into an equally delightful movie.  Even better, I can pass this one on to my thirteen-year-old daughter who also enjoys these types of novels and movies.

Book Source:  Review copy from Berkley as part of the Austenprose PR Book Tour. Thank-you!  Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

QUICK FACTS

·       Title: The Ladies Rewrite the Rules: A Novel

·       Author: Suzanne Allain

·       Genre: Historical Romance, Regency Romance

·       Publisher: Berkley Romance (January 9, 2024)

·       Length: (272) pages

·       Format: Trade Paperback, eBook, & Audiobook 

·       ISBN: ‎978-0593549643

·       Book Tour Dates: January 8 – 22, 2024

 

BOOK DESCRIPTION

From the author of Mr. Malcolm's List comes a delightful romantic comedy set in Regency England about a widow who takes high society by storm.

Diana Boyle, a wealthy young widow, has no desire to ever marry again. Particularly not to someone who merely wants her for her fortune. 

So, when she discovers that she’s listed in a directory of rich, single women she is furious, and rightly so. She confronts Maxwell Dean, the man who published the Bachelor’s Directory, and is horrified to find he is far more attractive than his actions have led her to expect. However, Diana is unmoved by Max’s explanation that he authored the list to assist younger sons like himself who cannot afford to marry unless it’s to a woman of means. 

She gathers the ladies in the directory together to inform them of its existence, so they may circumvent fortune hunters’ efforts to trick them into marriage. Though outraged, the women decide to embrace their unique position of power and reverse the usual gender roles by making the men dance to their tune. And together…the ladies rewrite the rules.

 

PRAISE FOR THE LADIES REWRITE THE RULES

• “Innovative…The novel’s true strength lies in the friendship between the bold heroines”— Publisher’s Weekly
• “A fun, light-hearted Regency romp about changing society from the inside.”— Kirkus Reviews  
• “Joyful, warm and witty, this is a delight of a book.”— All About Romance

 

PURCHASE LINKS

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | PUBLISHER | BOOKSHOP | BOOKBUB |    GOODREADS

AUTHOR BIO

I was born in India and sent to boarding school in England, but my father lost his fortune . . . Oh, wait, that’s the plot of "The Little Princess". I actually grew up in Tallahassee, Florida, a world away from romantic locales like India or Edwardian England. But I could escape to those places in the pages of a book, and I frequently did. When I wasn’t reading, I was inventing witty repartee for my Barbie and Ken dolls while smashing their faces together and making smooching noises.

I also loved period movies and musicals. I memorized the lyrics to every song from MY FAIR LADY and would sneak into my parents’ room at night and sing: “Just you wait, ’enry ’iggins, just you wait!” They would toss pillows at me, but I knew they were totally into it. My writing is influenced by those classic, romantic films as well as the novels of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer. My goal is to make readers of my books smile and, even better, laugh.

The feature film MR. MALCOLM'S LIST, based on my novel of the same name, was released in 2022 and stars Freida Pinto, Theo James, Ṣọpẹ Dìrísù, Zawe Ashton and Oliver Jackson-Cohen. It is available to stream on any video-on-demand site.

 

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Death Under a Little Sky by Stig Abell (Bibliolifestyle Book Tour)

 

Thank you, Partner @bibliolifestyle @harperperennial for the review copy of Death Under a Little Sky by Stig Abell.

What is the weather like where you live?  The winter in Northeast Wisconsin has been unseasonably mild, but this past week it took a full turn into winter with a blizzard on Friday into Saturday.  Even living in town, it makes you have a sense of isolation when the cold winds are screaming around your house.

Death Under a Little Sky is a story with a sense of isolation.  Jake Jackson has heard from his eccentric uncle on and off through the years.  He finds out that his uncle has died and has left him an isolated property in the country with enough money to keep it up and to keep him fed.  He has had a private detective follow Jake and he knows that Jake’s marriage is in shambles after many miscarriages.  Jake is a 38-year-old detective in London who specializes in cold cases.  He decides to take the life that his uncle has offered him.  He quits his job, separates from his wife, and moves to his uncle’s property, Little Sky.

Jake enjoys living off the grid with no phone or way to contact him.  He swims in his own little lake and enjoys the library that his uncle has left him.  One day on his rambles, he meets a vet named Livia.  They bond over their mutual love of the James Harriot books, All Creatures Great and Small, and start to get to know each other.  Livia is a single mother with a small daughter named Diana.  Jake meets more of his neighbors and participates in a the rural tradition of a hunt for St. Aethelmere’s bones.  They find the bones only to discover they actually are real human bones and not the sticks they started out with.  Whose bones have they discovered, why were they placed there, and how did this person die?

Jake is soon helping the local police officer, Watson, with solving this mystery.  As he gets closer to finding the answers, he also comes closer to losing his life and those he has begun to hold dear.

I really enjoyed this slow burn crime thriller.  It was one of those books that I just couldn’t put down.  I really liked the sense of isolation and the man living alone, becoming part of the land like Thoreau.  I enjoyed slowly meeting the neighbors as Jake did and starting to put the puzzle pieces together.  This book was all about the atmosphere and description of the setting.  I loved the details of Jake walking everywhere, bathing in the lake, and washing his clothes outside.  He also builds himself a sauna.  The characters were also wonderful and natural.  In particular I really loved Jake and Livia.  I did not solve this mystery myself and was really thinking it was one of the red herrings.

I also enjoyed the literary references including Agatha Christie, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Dorothy Sayer, Shakespeare, etc.

This was Stig Abell’s first novel, and I am looking forward to reading what he writes next.

Murder at Midnight by Katharine Schellman

 

Title:  Murder at Midnight

Author:  Katharine Schellman

Narrated by:  Henrietta Meire

Publisher: Dreamscape Media

Length: Approximately 10 hours and 49 minutes

Source: Review Copy from NetGalley

 

Do you like mysteries that are set around holidays?  I love cozy mysteries for all holidays including Christmas, Halloween, Valentine’s Day, etc.  I love holiday books and it’s fun to mix up the genres.

Lily Adler is a widow in the Regency time period and is planning on spending her holiday with her late husband’s family in the country.  At a ball, Lily meets new people with new secrets.  A snowstorm forces the guests to stay for the night.  A dead body is found in the courtyard the next morning.  Will Lily be able to determine who is the murderer among them?

This is book number four of the Lily Adler series.  I have not read the previous books and I feel like I would have known the characters better if I had.  That being said, I did enjoy the story and it worked as a standalone.  I loved the intrigue, mystery, and the interesting characters.  It also made me wonder what is next for Lily Adler and for her friend, Captain Jack.  I always love a locked room mystery, especially when it is at Christmas time and caused by snow.

Henrietta Meire was a good narrator, and I will be checking out more of the Lily Adler historical mystery series.

A Jane Austen Christmas: Regency Christmas Traditions by Maria Grace

 

Title:  A Jane Austen Christmas:  Regency Christmas Traditions

Author:  Maria Grace

Narrated by:  Barry Shannon

Publisher: Maria Grace

Length: Approximately 2 hours and 19 minutes

Source: Purchased from Amazon.com

Do you like to learn about holiday traditions?  I have loved to read about the traditions of all holidays since I was a child.  I really like seeing how our celebrations of holidays have changed through the years.  I was delighted to see this audiobook that focused on regency Christmas traditions, which is one of my favorite time periods to read about.

This book is not about Jane Austen, but it is about how Christmas was celebrated during her time period.  I thought it was interesting that there were no Christmas trees in the Regency period, but that houses were decorated with greenery on Christmas Eve.  Christmas was celebrated during the traditional twelve days of Christmas from Christmas Day through the Epiphany (January 6^th).  The book also explained traditional dishes that would have been eaten during the celebrations.  A lot of the celebrations seemed to revolve around card playing and getting together with family and friends.

I thought the book was well researched and informative.  Barry Shannon was a fine narrator.

Lady Osbaldestone’s Plum Puddings by Stephanie Laurens

 Title:  Lady Osbaldestone’s Plum Puddings 

Author:  Stephanie Laurens

Narrated by:  Helen Lloyd

Publisher: Stephanie Laurens

Length: Approximately 7 hours and 53 minutes 

Source: Purchased from Amazon.com

Do you have any specific subgenres that are a favorite?  I LOVE regency romance Christmas novels.  This seems like a very specific subgenre, but I love it.  I realized in December that I was lacking Christmas regency romance novels, so I decided it was time to return to the world of Lady Osbaldestone.  Lady Osbaldestone’s Plum Puddings is the third book in this series.

Therese, Lady Osbaldestone, is happy to welcome her grandchildren for a visit during the Christmas season to her estate in the village of Little Moseley.  The children gather donations for plum puddings to be made for the entire village when they discover that some of the coins they collected are ancient Roman coins.  Where did these coins come from and is there more Roman artifacts to be found?  

I love this series and I loved this book.  It’s a sweet and gentle story full of regency Christmas traditions.  The characters are fun, and I enjoyed the star-crossed romance in this book. I feel like I am visiting the village of Little Mosely each Christmas when I read one of these books.  I sadly only have one left in this series.  

I also enjoyed the cozy mystery in this book, and I was intrigued by the ancient Roman find myself.  It was a fun treasure hunt.

Helen Lloyd was a great narrator and I enjoyed listening to this audiobook.

The Seamstress of Acadie by Laura Frantz (Austenprose PR Book Tour)

 

What period of history would you like to learn more about?  I love all periods of history.

The Seamstress of Acadie is set during a fascinating part of history, during the French and Indian War in Nova Scotia in the 1750’s.  Sylvie is a happy young woman that loves her family.  They are French speaking Acadians and have a large farm, while Sylvie is a seamstress.  As she starts to be courted by an older local doctor, she starts to evaluate what she wants from life and love.  She realizes he does not inspire love in her like she wants a spouse to do.  When she meets the handsome William Blackburn, she feels a passion she has not felt before.  She mistakenly thinks he is a Frenchman in search of her brother, Bleu, but later discovers he is a British Army Ranger.  The British have brought war to Novia Scotia and decide that all Acadians must leave no matter if they fought them or not.  Sylvie and her family, find their farm and all of their belongings confiscated by the British and they are forced onto boats that carry them to the American colonies.  Blackburn resigns from the British military in protest over the forced expulsion of the Acadians.  In Virginia, Sylvie once again meets William Blackburn.  Will Sylvie be able to put her life back together, face prejudice, and will she find love?

I had never heard of the forced expulsion of the Acadians, and I was both fascinated and devastated by this story.  Frantz has a great author’s note at the end of the novel where she describes her research and her real-life inspirations.  For example, William Blackburn is based on the real-life Major Robert Rogers, the founder of Roger’s Rangers which eventually became the US Army Rangers of today. Like the author, I somehow missed the epic poem, Evangeline:  A Tale of Acadie by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, but I will definitely be looking this poem up. 

Frantz beautifully crafted this story.  Once I started reading it, I felt immersed in Sylvie’s plight and had a hard time putting the book down. This is one of those books I was reading too late into the night.  I enjoyed all the characters, but especially Sylvie, William, and Bleu.  William at times seemed like Hawkeye from Last of the Mohicans.  I also loved at the beginning the details of Sylvie’s sewing and beautiful dresses.

I also loved the question in the novel, where is God in such horrifying situations?

I loved this quote that was used in this novel:

“The mind grows narrow in proportion as the soul grows corrupt.” Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Overall, The Seamstress of Acadie is an engaging, beautifully written novel full of romance and adventure that is a must read for historical fiction fans.

Book Source:  Review copy from NetGalley as part of the Austenprose PR Book Tour. Thank-you!  Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

QUICK FACTS

·       Title: The Seamstress of Acadie

·       Author: Laura Frantz

·       Genre: Historical Fiction, Inspirational Fiction

·       Publisher: Revell (January 9, 2024)

·       Length: (416) pages

·       Format: Hardcover, Trade Paperback, eBook, & Audiobook 

·       ISBN: 978-0800740689‎

·       Book Tour Dates: January 8 – 22, 2024

 

BOOK DESCRIPTION

As 1754 is drawing to a close, tensions between the French and the British on Canada's Acadian shore are reaching a fever pitch. Seamstress Sylvie Galant and her family--French-speaking Acadians wishing to remain neutral--are caught in the middle, their land positioned between two forts flying rival flags. Amid preparations for the celebration of Noël, the talk is of unrest, coming war, and William Blackburn, the British Army Ranger raising havoc across North America's borderlands.

As summer takes hold in 1755 and British ships appear on the horizon, Sylvie encounters Blackburn, who warns her of the coming invasion. Rather than participate in the forced removal of the Acadians from their land, he resigns his commission. But that cannot save Sylvie or her kin. Relocated on a ramshackle ship to Virginia, Sylvie struggles to pick up the pieces of her life. When her path crosses once more with William's, they must work through the complex tangle of their shared, shattered past to navigate the present and forge an enduring future.

 

PRAISE FOR THE SEAMSTRESS OF ACADIE

• “Frantz’s atmospheric writing is easy to sink into, from the grimness of the disease-riddled voyage to the ethereal Acadian landscape. While William and Sylvie’s romance is a slow burn, there’s a rewarding payoff to this tale of second chances born from tragedy. Frantz’s fans won’t be disappointed.”— Publisher’s Weekly
• “This book is undoubtably one of the best books I've ever read. I loved the faith thread, I loved the light in the darkness theme, I loved the characters, I loved the hope brimming from almost every page. I loved the growth (through every struggle and triumph), and I loved the history embedded into each detail.”— Tasha, The Clean Read Book Club
• “Fantastic story! The beautiful writing engages the reader from the beginning... Laura Frantz's books are exceptional because they evoke an abundance of emotions beyond the typical novel. I highly recommend this book to all historical fiction readers.”— Milena Bookish, Goodreads

 

PURCHASE LINKS

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | PUBLISHER | BOOKSHOP | BOOKBUB |    GOODREADS

AUTHOR BIO

Bestselling, award-winning author, Laura Frantz, has been writing stories since age seven. She is passionate about all things historical, particularly the 18th-century and her novels often incorporate Scottish themes that reflect her family heritage. She is a direct descendant of George Hume, Wedderburn Castle, Berwickshire, Scotland, who was exiled to the American colonies for his role in the Jacobite Rebellion of 1715, settled in Virginia, and is credited with teaching George Washington surveying in the years 1748-1750. Proud of her heritage, she is also a Daughter of the American Revolution. Though she will always consider Kentucky home, she and her husband live in Washington State.

According to Publishers Weekly, "Frantz has done her historical homework." With her signature attention to historical detail and emotional depth, she is represented by Janet Kobobel Grant, Literary Agent & Founder, Books & Such Literary Agency of Santa Rosa, California. Foreign language editions include French, Dutch, Spanish, Slovakian, German & Polish.

 

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