The Professor by Charlotte Bronte

 

Title:  The Professor

Author:  Charlotte Bronte

Narrated by:  Frederick Davidson

Publisher: Blackstone Publishing

Length: Approximately 9 hours and 24 minutes

Source: Checked out from the Kewaunee Public Library through Hoopla

What is your weirdest reading habit?  I used to love to read in trees when I was younger.

William Crimsworth is an orphan and becomes a clerk for a schoolmate’s brother.  He faces abuse at the job and decides to make a career change, moving to Brussels and becoming a professor.  Once a professor, he finds himself conflicted in love and caught in a bit of a love triangle.  Will he find love and a future in Brussels?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       The Professor was the May pick for the What the Dickens Book Club.  We have an interesting discussion on Facebook on it.

·       I hadn’t read this book since high school.  In high school, I did my senior research paper on Charlotte Bronte.  I read all her novels and watched all of the adaptations of her work that I could get my hands on.

·       The book is the person narrative of William Crimsworth.

·       Most of the book takes place in Brussels.  French is spoken and not translated at times in the book.

·       The main character is very anti-Catholic and seems to look down on the Belgian people that he is teaching.

·       It’s kind of creepy when he and another professor rate and talk about their female students looks. 

·       It’s crazy to think that in the 19^th century, one could beat your employee with a whip!

·       I would rank this as my fourth out of four of Charlotte Bronte’s novels.  It’s worth reading, but it lacks the polish and passion of Jane Eyre.  This was the first novel that Charlotte Bronte wrote in 1845-46 before Jane Eyre.    Bronte used a lot of her own experiences at a school in Brussels for inspiration for this novel.

·       The audiobook was a bit dry and boring to listen to, and strangely about halfway through it, I suddenly couldn’t listen to it anymore.  Hoopla said it was no longer available through my library.  I have never had this happen before, have you?  I had to purchase it on Audible to finish it up.

Overall, The Professor by Charlotte Bronte is worth reading, but it is a bit dry and lacks the passion of Jane Eyre.

The Page Turner by Viola Shipman

 

Title:  The Page Turner

Author:  Viola Shipman

Narrated by:  Katharine Chin

Publisher: Harlequin Audio

Length: Approximately 9 hours and 49 minutes

Source: Audiobook and ebook review Copy from NetGalley.  Thank-you!

 

Where is your favorite setting for a book?  The Page Turner by Viola Shipman is set in South Haven Michigan with action also taking place in the Hamptons and New York City.  I loved the South Haven, Michigan, setting as I grew up in southwest Michigan.  Our family loved to visit South Haven and swim at the beach.  My Great Uncle and Aunt lived in a beautiful historic home in South Haven.  It’s a beautiful community.  I now live in a Lake Michigan Community in Wisconsin.  The lake vibes in this novel were very relatable.

 

Emma Page has just graduated from the University of Michigan and is trying to figure out what to do with her life.  Her parents own The Mighty Pages publishing house, which prints literary fiction.  Emma has secretly written a romance novel and loves romance just as her grandmother did.  When Emma discovers a family secret, how will it affect them and the man who is trying to take their family down?

 

My thoughts on this novel:

·       Viola Shipman is the pen name of Wade Rouse in honor of his beloved Grandma.  He writes the best female characters that really speak to me.  His Grandma taught him well!

·       I read this novel in May as part of the Brenda Novak Book Group.  I loved Wade Rouse’s interview as part of the Brenda Novak Book Group.  He is delightful and his interview was so interesting.

·       GiGi, Emma’s Grandmother, was a wonderful character.  She is the type of loving and sassy Grandma everyone should have.  I was blessed to have one myself.  I loved how she loved to foster the love of reading in her kids and grandkids.

·       There were interesting literary discussions and allusions throughout the novel.  Who gets to decide what is the great American novel?  Why is romance always looked down upon as a genre?

·       The novel was a love letter to Michigan with blueberries, the state flag, roadside farms, lighthouses, Lake Michigan beaches, etc.

·       Jonathan Livingston Seagull is mentioned a lot.  I have never read it, but it has been on my TBR forever.  Have you read this novel?  If so, what do you think?

·       This novel also highlighted family dysfunction and pulling together to protect your family overall.

·       I am looking forward to his next book that will be set in Palm Springs.  It is called Thank-you for Being a Friend and seems to be Golden Girls inspired.

·       I enjoyed listening to this book on audiobook.  It was entertaining and captured my interest on long drives.

Overall, The Page Turner by Viola Shipman was a perfect summer read with great characters, a love of literature, beaches, and a sinister villain.

Home of the Happy: A Murder on the Cajun Prairie by Jordan LaHaye Fontenot

 

Title:  Home of the Happy:  A Murder on the Cajun Prairie

Author:  Jordan LaHaye Fontenot

Narrated by:  Christine Lakin

Publisher: HarperAudio

Length: Approximately 13 hours and 10 minutes

Source: Audiobook review Copy from NetGalley and physical book review copy from #MorrowPartner and Mariner Books.  Thank-you!

 

Do you have any family stories that you think would make good books?  I think my great grandparents had interesting lives and they would make good stories. 

 

In 1983, banker Aubrey LaHaye was found dead, floating in a bayou.   He had been kidnapped ten days before.  A man was arrested, tried, and convicted of his murder – but was he guilty?  Aubrey’s great granddaughter investigates his murder as a cold case.  Will she find clues that were overlooked in the original investigation?  What will she learn about her own family?

 

Thoughts about this book:

·       Home of the Happy is a perfect book for lovers of true crime and true crime podcasts.

·       This book was great on audiobook with an interesting narrator.

·       Besides being a true crime book, it was also a memoir of the author’s family and community.   It was a personal story.

·       I learned a lot about the Cajun culture.  The book gave the history of the Acadian Cajuns and included discussion of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem, Evangeline:  A Tale of Acadie. 

·       The book went through the impact of the murder on the entire LaHaye family through the years and how it changed them.

·       It also detailed the trial of John Brady Balfa.  Some people still think he is innocent.  It really made me ponder the justice system.  It’s up to the victim’s family to keep going to the parole hearings to keep someone in jail.  But what if they are innocent?  The author grapples with this and whether her family has kept an innocent man in jail.  Luckily, she has resolution by the end to feel like they did keep the right man in jail.

·       The physical copy of the book has a great insert of pictures related to the family and the crime.

Overall, Home of the Happy:  A Murder on the Cajun Prairie by Jordan LaHaye Fontenot was an interesting true crime book that was unique with the intersection of a memoir of a family, people, and place in time.

The History of Ancient Rome in Twelve Coins by Gareth Harney

 

Title:  The History of Ancient Rome in Twelve Coins

Author:  Gareth Harney

Narrated by:  Piers Hampton

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Length: Approximately 12 hours and 07 minutes

Source: Review Copy from Simon & Schuster Audio.  Thank-you!

Do you collect coins?  I have a few coins I’ve collected through the years, although they are packed up somewhere in my basement after my last move. 

The History of Ancient Rome in Twelve Coins by Gareth Harney was an overall view of Roman history through the years through the history of twelve different coins.  It was a fascinating way to tell history. I usually read books based on one event in Roman history and I liked this unique way to tell overall Roman history.  My thoughts on this book:

·       I listened to this audiobook on a road trip with my seventeen-year-old son Daniel as we visited colleges he is interested in.  We didn’t finish the book on our road trip, but we both finished it on our own.  Daniel greatly enjoyed this book as well as I did.  He loves history.

·       Daniel and I looked up the coins online to see what they looked like after hearing about them on the audiobook.  I am sure that you get great pictures with the physical book.

·       Author Gareth Harney was first handed a Roman coin by his father as a child, and it started his love for collecting coins and Roman history.  What can these coins tell us about history?  What actions do we do as parents that will prompt wonder and discovery in our children?

·       As an engineer, I liked the history of a huge bridge that was built across the Danube that stood for 1,000 years.  I just marvel at the engineering prowess.

·       I really enjoyed the story of Hannibal and the eventual destruction of Carthage.  How much knowledge, literature, history was lost when Rome destroyed Carthage?

·       This was a very readable book and very enjoyable.

·       I liked that besides discussing the emperors, regular people such as those that made the coins, fought the wars, etc. were also discussed.

·       The audiobook had a great narrator.

Overall, The History of Ancient Rome in Twelve Coins by Gareth Harney was an engaging nonfiction history of Rome told through the unique perspective of twelve coins that were used over the years of the empire.  It was a fun audiobook for both a teen and a middle-aged mother.

Auschwitz Lullaby by Mario Escobar (Bibliolifestyle Book Tour)

 

Thank you, Partner @bibliolifestyle @harpermusebooks for the review copy of Auschwitz Lullaby by Mario Escobar.

What would you do as a mother if your husband and children were taken away to a concentration camp?  Helen is a nurse of German heritage in Germany in 1943 when the Nazis come for her family. Her husband is a “gypsy” (now known as Romani) therefore her husband and children are taken away.  Helen goes with them to Auschwitz.  She fights to keep her children alive in the camp.  Will Helen and her family survive?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       This historical fiction novel showed an impossible choice that was made by a real woman during WWII.  This was a heart wrenching tale that will stay with me long after I turned the last page.

·       I had never thought about Auschwitz being divided into different “groups” such as gypsies (Romani), communists, Jews, and further into ethnicities such as German gypsies (Romani), Russian gypsies (Romani), etc.

·       To control disease, the doctor would kill entire barracks whether everyone was sick or not.  It’s hard to fathom the slaughter of so many people.

·       To me as I’m sure it is to many people, I automatically think about the Jewish people when I thin about the Holocaust, not the gypsies (Romani).  This group was also heavily persecuted by the Nazis.  Approximately 20,000 gypsies (Romani) were killed in Auschwitz.  I was intrigued to read that the gypsies (Romani) fought back when the Nazis showed up in May 1944 to exterminate them and were able to hold off their execution at that time.

·       It’s also strange to me that the Nazis would let Helen run a nursery school for the children of the camp.  They treated them humanely only to experiment on them or kill them.  The depth of depravity is horrifying.

·       Speaking of horrifying, the villain in this novel is Dr. Mengele, who was the real-life doctor in Auschwitz who famously experimented on twins.  He is a complicated and evil individual.  Helen and the reader never can understand what makes this man tick.

·       The novel is Helen’s story and at times is written as first person diary entries that she makes. 

·       The end of the novel has a “historical clarifications” section on the real history of the events in the novel.  There are also thought-provoking discussion questions.

·       This novel seemed so much more important to me knowing that it was the true story of people who were in the Holocaust.  Helen and her five children deserve to be remembered.  It made me ponder all of the other souls whose stories deserve to be told.

Favorite quotes:

“As long as I’ve got an ounce of humanity left in me, I’m going to risk my life for others.”

“I had to love even my enemies.  It was the only way to keep from becoming a monster myself.”

“My family is here.  I can’t leave without them.  I’m a mother, Herr Dokter.  You all wage your wars for grand ideals, you defend your fanatical beliefs about liberty, country, and race, but mothers only have one homeland, one ideal, one race:  our family.  I will go with my children wherever fate takes them.”

Overall, Auschwitz Lullaby by Mario Escobar is a heart wrenching WWII historical fiction novel that will stay with you long after you’ve read the last page.

What is your favorite WWII novel or nonfiction book?

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

 

What book adaptation are you looking forward to this summer?  I am looking forward to watching the adaption of this book, All Systems Red by Martha Wells, on Apple TV.

A group of scientists are working on a planet doing research.  They have a self-ware Sec Unit (android with human parts) that is the security for the mission.  The Sec Unit calls itself “Murderbot” in secret.  It has hacked its government module and is running his life the way, he wants to which includes watching reruns of his favorite soap opera.  When the scientists face peril, will Murderbot choose to help the scientist?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       This is the start of a series, and I can’t wait to read more.

·       Murderbot is very factual and has a dry sense of humor.  I loved it!

·       This was a novella and a very fast read.

·       The story was action packed.

Favorite Quote: “As a heartless killing machine, I was a horrible failure.”

Overall, All Systems Red by Martha Wells was a quick, fun read that left me wanting more.

 Book Source:  I bought this for my husband for a gift after reading about it on @readingbeagle on Instagram.  He greatly enjoyed it.

Of Silver and Secrets by Michelle Griep (Austenprose PR Tour)

 

Title:  Of Silver and Secrets

Author:  Michelle Griep

Narrated by:  Sarah Zimmerman

Publisher: Tantor Media

Length: Approximately 10 hours and 32 minutes

Source: Thank you, @michellegriep @bethanyhousefiction @austenprose for the physical book copy as part of the Austenprose PR Book Tour.  I purchased an audiobook version on Audible.

Have you visited any archeological digs?  I’ve been to a few museums that have digs going on and I find it fascinating.  I also love museum displays that show things that were found when they dug through areas like the outhouse.  I took an Intro to Archaeology class while in college and I loved it. 

Eva Inman is in a pickle.  After her father’s death, she discovers that their family finances are in dire straits.  Her father’s last wish was that she keep their family estate.  She also has the care of young, blind sisters, Penelope.  She decides to plow up and plant in the “cursed fields”  on her estate to make more money.  Her employees find a strange silver specimen that appears to be Roman.  She goes to Cambridge to have the piece evaluated and runs into her childhood crush, Bram Webb who is now a Cambridge professor.  Bram is looking for a lost Roman Settlement with his history professor uncle, is this it?  Will Eva be able to save her estate?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       I loved all the characters, but especially Eva and Bram.  They have both had hard times in their youth and are trying to move beyond it.  Bram is trying to make his way as a professor while also helping his uncle who is starting to suffer from dementia.  Eva suffers from guilt that she thinks she killed her parents and caused Penelope’s blindness.  Guilt and forgiveness are major themes in this novel.  Bram’s deep faith was wonderful to read about, and he shares this faith to Eva.

·       The romance was sweet, and this was a clean read.  There was second chance romance, slow burn, and forced proximity.

·       I loved that the sister’s name was Penelope Rose.  That’s my daughter’s name!  Penny was a spunky character who wanted to explore and learn all that she could about the world, despite her blindness.

·       The archaeology was very interesting, and I wanted to know more about the Romans in Great Britain.

·       I also loved the mystery that was threaded throughout the novel.

·       This is the second novel in the Time’s Lost Treasures series.  I loved the first book too, but this can be read as a standalone novel.

·       There is a great historical notes section at the end of the novel that gives background details of the historical elements of the story.  There were also great discussion questions for a book club to use.

·       I am super excited that Michelle Griep’s next book available in the fall of 2026 is a Christmas Victorian novella.  I love Christmas historical fiction and historical romance!

·       I read part of this as the physical book and finished it up on audiobook.  The audiobook was interesting to listen to as well and the narrator had a great voice to listen to.

Great first paragraph, “The end of Eva’s world started with a window she never should have left open.  A small neglect, yet twelve years later, one that had culminated in a leaky roof, a ledger that refused to balance, and a blind sister.”

Overall, Of Silver and Secrets by Michelle Griep is a riveting Victorian historical romance and mystery.

Where Secrets Lie by Colleen Coble and Rick Acker (Bibliolifestyle Book Tour)

 

Title:  Where Secrets Lie

Author:  Colleen Coble and Rick Acker

Narrated by:  Karen Peakes

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Length: Approximately 10 hours and 16 minutes

Source: Thank-you NetGalley for the Audiobook Review Copy and Thank you, Partner @bibliolifestyle @tnzfiction for the physical book copy as part of the Bibliolifestyle Book Tour.

What is your favorite book series?

Savannah Webster and her ex-husband Hez are trying to give their love a second chance.  They had previously been married, but their marriage broke when they lost their child and Hez turned to alcohol. Things look bright until Savannah finds an empty wine bottle in Hez’s garbage.  Has he turned back to alcohol?  Savannah takes on a new role as the president of her beloved Tupelo Grove University and Hez starts a new legal clinic.  Together they discover many problems with finances at the university including someone at the university using it as a front for a smuggling ring.  Will they be able to save the university?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       This is the second book in the Tupelo Grove series.  I enjoyed the settings, characters, and suspense in the first book and was excited to read more in the series.  I would definitely recommend reading both books in order in this series. 

·       There is a theme of forgiveness throughout the novel paired together with the desire for revenge.

·       This novel also showed that the path of love is not always simple and takes work. 

·       This was a great family drama that was action packed and showed the importance of family.

·       It was a clean read.

·       I really enjoyed the audiobook narration.  The narrator did different voices for each character and even had a British accent for Savannah’s nephew, Simon.

·       There were faith elements throughout the novel relative to forgiveness and a character’s death.

·       Colleen Coble and Rick Acker are a great writing team.  Colleen is an experienced writer and Rick knows the legal ins and outs.

·       The novel had a fantastic ending with a mic drop moment.  I can’t wait to see what happens next and look forward to the third book in the series.

·       I also like the authors note at the end which included interesting information about artifact smuggling.

Overall, Where Secrets Lie by Colleen Coble and Rick Acker is a great Southern romantic suspense novel.  I highly recommend this enjoyable series.

A Measure of Devotion by Nell Joslin (TLC Book Tour)

Susannah Shelburne lives in South Caroline in 1863.  She has a much older husband, Jacob, and one son, Francis.  Their family does not believe in slavery.  Francis left their family to join the Confederate army at the start of the war, much to his parents’ dismay.  As Jacob’s health fails, Susannah must leave him in the care of friends (employees that were former slaves that they freed), to travel to where Francis has been gravely wounded in battle.  Will Francis forgive her for the cruel words that she said before he left for the war?  Will this family survive the war?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       This is a very well written, fascinating Civil War story.

·       Things were very complicated when people had anti-slavery sentiment and lived in the South.  I had never thought about people being killed in the south for their beliefs.

·       This novel was told in the first person viewpoint of Susannah. It flipped at first between “current day” of going to help Francis, to back when her and Jacob got together, married, and had Francis. 

·       A mother’s love is everything.  Susannah has many, many trials trying to save Francis, especially after he is captured as a prisoner of war.  Francis never seems grateful, but Susannah never stopped loving him.

·       The story showed the cruelty of war through all manner of what could be thought of as small incidents.  For example, Francis tells his mother the story of how they killed a cow in front of a young mother and her two young children.  This poor family didn’t have enough food to survive.

Overall, A Measure of Devotion by Nell Joslin is a beautifully written compelling story of the Civil War.

Book Source:  A review copy from Regel House Publishing as a part of the TLC Book Tour. 

Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie

 

Title:  Cards on the Table

Author:  Agatha Christie

Narrated by:  Hugh Fraser

Publisher: HarperAudio

Length: Approximately 6 hours and 0 minutes

Source: Audiobook from Amazon Music monthly allotment.

What is your favorite card game?  Mine is Euchre although it’s been long time since I’ve played.

Mr. Shaitana has a gathering at his London home.  He has invited four detectives as well as four other people of whom he has secret information about.  The four non detectives play bridge all night, but by the end of the night, Mr. Shaitana is dead.  Who killed him and why?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       I am participating in the #ReadChristie2025 Challenge.  The challenge this year is exploring Agatha Christie’s works through her characters and their careers.  The theme for May was detectives.  This novel featured four detectives with Hercule Poirot, Colone Race, Superintendent Battle, and Ariadne Oliver all at the party and on the case. 

·       Wow!  This was one of my favorites Agatha Christie novels.  It was a great mystery with great characters and a great story.  The ending caught me totally off guard.

·       There was a lot about the game of Bridge in this story.  I have never played this game but have fond memories of my great grandparents hosting bridge parties.  Have you ever played bridge?

·       On the challenge website, it stated that Agatha Christie was not allowed to play cards on Sunday as a child so it it always felt slightly wicked when she did as an adult.

·       Hugh Fraser is a wonderful narrator of the Hercule Poirot novels, and I enjoyed listening to him again on this one.

Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie was a wonderful mystery with complicated characters and a great story.  I loved how many favorite past characters came together to solve the mystery.