Monday, August 7, 2017

Guest post: Darcy in Wonderland by Alexa Adams

Darcy in Wonderland
by Alexa Adams
-Mashup, Jane Austen theme
Just released: July 15, 2017
Amazon | Goodreads | Blog tour

Twinkle, twinkle, amber cross!
For a chain, it’s at a loss.
Heavy links or simple loop,
Do not dunk it in your soup.

The worlds of beloved authors collide as Fitzwilliam Darcy, Jane Austen’s immortal hero, finds himself thrust into the topsy-turvy world of Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland.

Many years have passed since Elizabeth Bennet became mistress of Pemberley, and the Darcys’ six children stand testament to their enduring love. As the eldest prepare to enter the world, Alice, the youngest and most intrepid of the brood, ensures that life at Pemberley never grows dull. Her curious mind and penchant for mischief often prove trying, but never more so than when her father follows her down a mysterious rabbit hole, disrupting his orderly world in ways never before imagined. A treat for the young and the old, Darcy in Wonderland is both an adventure and homage to two of literature’s greatest minds.


Excerpt:


“Oh, Papa!” shouted Alice frantically, backing into a corner that was quickly filling with her father’s mass. “Where should I go?”

“Just a moment,” he replied, working an arm out the window and one foot up the chimney. “There. I think I can do no more.”

Luckily the little magic bottle had now had its full effect, and he grew no larger. Still, it was a terrible predicament Darcy found himself in, and he wondered quite sincerely how he would ever get out of the room again.

Alice, seeing his height stabilized, climbed onto her father’s enormous chest and sat down upon it, looking terribly unhappy. “It was much pleasanter at home,” she lamented, “where one is not always growing larger and smaller!”

“Or being ordered about by mice and rabbits,” Darcy added with perfect empathy.

“I almost wish we had never gone down that rabbit hole!” she continued.

“Almost! Good Lord, Alice! This entire episode has been an unmitigated disaster.”

“Well, it is rather curious, you know, living this sort of life.”

“Curious indeed!” he snorted, causing a strong enough gust to raise Alice’s hair.


Original illustrations by K. Wiedemann featured in the book (see more here).

CHECK OUT more goodies from this book. It is currently on tour (here).

Sunday, August 6, 2017

The Brass Compass by Ellen Butler

The Brass Compass
by Ellen Butler

Find out more about this book and author:
Amazon
Goodreads
Guest post about book
Website | Facebook
Twitter
YouTube

Just released: March 20, 2017
Publisher: Power to the Pen
Genre: Action, Historical, WWII
Paperback: 356
Rating: 4

First sentence(s):
Unbeknownst to me, my training started as a child, long before the Nazis came to power, before the war, and before my stay at the prestigious Swiss finishing school, Château Mont-Choisi in the idyllic town on Lausanne. Had my mother realized the path her machinations put me on, I doubt she would have ever let me out of her sight.

A beautiful American spy flees into the night. On her own, she must live by her wits to evade capture and make it to the safety of the Allied forces. Lily Saint James grew up traveling the European continent, learning languages as she went. In 1938, her mother’s abrupt death brings her back home to Washington, D.C., and after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Lily comes to the attention of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Her knowledge of German, French, and Italian makes her the perfect OSS Agent, and her quick thinking places her as a nanny in the household of an important German Army Colonel, where she is able to gather intelligence for the Allies. After her marketplace contact goes missing, she makes a late-night trip to her secondary contact only to find him under interrogation by the SS. When he commits suicide, she flees into the frigid winter night carrying false identification papers that are now dangerous and a mini film cartridge with vital strategic information. In order to survive, Lily must make it out of Germany, into the hands of Allied-controlled France, through a path fraught with peril.

PeekAbook:



My two-bits:

Lots of spy related action set during WWII with a dash of romance.

The heroine was pulled through various scrapes and sticky situations with panache. She was likable and had me rooting for her the whole way.

Got to learn a bit about the OSS and their efforts.

~*~

* review copy courtesy of author



Thursday, August 3, 2017

The Girl Before by JP Delaney

The Girl Before
by J.P. Delaney
narrated by
Emilia Fox
Finty Williams
Lise Aagaard Knudsen

Find out more about this book and author:
Amazon
Goodreads
BookExcerpt

Published: January 24, 2017
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Genre: Thriller
Hardback: 352
Rating: 5

First sentence(s):
It's a lovely little flat, the agent says with what could almost pass for genuine enthusiasm.

Please make a list of every possession you consider essential to your life.

The request seems odd, even intrusive—and for the two women who answer, the consequences are devastating.

EMMA
Reeling from a traumatic break-in, Emma wants a new place to live. But none of the apartments she sees are affordable or feel safe. Until One Folgate Street. The house is an architectural masterpiece: a minimalist design of pale stone, plate glass, and soaring ceilings. But there are rules. The enigmatic architect who designed the house retains full control: no books, no throw pillows, no photos or clutter or personal effects of any kind. The space is intended to transform its occupant—and it does.

JANE
After a personal tragedy, Jane needs a fresh start. When she finds One Folgate Street she is instantly drawn to the space—and to its aloof but seductive creator. Moving in, Jane soon learns about the untimely death of the home’s previous tenant, a woman similar to Jane in age and appearance. As Jane tries to untangle truth from lies, she unwittingly follows the same patterns, makes the same choices, crosses paths with the same people, and experiences the same terror, as the girl before.


My two-bits:

This one had me spinning. Just when I thought the story was going one way it turned and then turned again.

Despite the characters being an unlikable bunch, the mysteries about them and their past really holds the attention and interest.

The house is its own character and got me thinking of how where and what you live in affects your life and well-being.

The epigraphs were questions from the required "questionnaire" required as part of the application process for the house. They were an interesting morality related selection to ponder over.

~*~

* announced: film version is to be directed by Ron Howard - definitely have this on my to-watch list if it gets made

* part of Cloak & Dagger Challenge (here)

* Listened to audiobook version.

Wednesday, August 2, 2017

Man Booker Prize Reading Challenge 2017

Man Booker Prize
Reading Challenge

official site

~*~

The long list was announced on July 27 and it got me excited to give this batch of books a read. The list is below and I plan to give some of these a go.

The short list will be announced on September 13.

The winner will be announced on October 17.

WINNER: Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders

~*~

Books on the long list:

4 3 2 1
by Paul Auster
(US) (Faber & Faber)
-Literary, Family saga
Amazon | Goodreads
* short list

Days Without End
by Sebastian Barry
(Ireland) (Faber & Faber)
-Literary, Historical, Military
Amazon | Goodreads | my review | rating: 5

History of Wolves
by Emily Fridlund
(US) (Weidenfeld & Nicolson)
-Literary, Coming of Age
Amazon | Goodreads | DNF
* short list

Exit West
by Mohsin Hamid
(Pakistan-UK) (Hamish Hamilton)
-Literary,
Amazon | Goodreads | my review | rating: 4
* short list

Solar Bones
by Mike McCormack (Ireland) (Canongate)
-Literary, Ireland
Amazon | Goodreads | my review: DNF

Reservoir 13
by Jon McGregor (UK) (4th Estate)
-Literary, Mystery
Amazon | Goodreads | my review: tba

Elmet
Elmet by Fiona Mozley (UK) (JM Originals)
-Literary
Amazon | Goodreads
* short list

The Ministry Of Utmost Happiness
by Arundhati Roy (India) (Hamish Hamilton)
-Literary, India
Amazon | Goodreads

Lincoln in the Bardo
by George Saunders (US) (Bloomsbury Publishing)
-Literary, Historical
Amazon | Goodreads | my review | rating: 4
* short list

Home Fire
by Kamila Shamsie (UK-Pakistan) (Bloomsbury Circus)
-Literary
Amazon | Goodreads | my review | rating: 4

Autumn
by Ali Smith (UK) (Hamish Hamilton)
-Literary
Amazon | Goodreads
* short list

Swing Time
by Zadie Smith (UK) (Hamish Hamilton)
-Literary
Amazon | Goodreads | my review | rating: 4

The Underground Railroad
by Colson Whitehead (US) (Fleet)
-Literary, Historical
Amazon | Goodreads



:-)

Tuesday, August 1, 2017

Happy release: The Little Queen by Meia Geddes

The Little Queen
by Meia Geddes
-Fairy Tale, Coming of Age
ebook
Release date: August 1, 2017
Amazon | Goodreads

When her mother and father pass away, the little queen must figure out how to be a little queen. And so she begins her adventures, journeying away from her palace and into the world to determine how she should go about going on. The little queen soon encounters numerous folks who teach her a thing or two: the book sniffer, the dream writer, and the architect of silence are just a few. Along the way, the little queen finds friendship, love, and meaning in being a leader in her world. THE LITTLE QUEEN is a magical exploration of self-discovery, vocation, community, and home.

Excerpt:


View more (here)


 
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