The Portrait by Ilaria Bernardini

 

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It's taken me a bit to finish this novel, but that's okay because it's not a novel to rush through. The Portrait a character driven story about two women, one man, and a lifetime of love. 

Valeria Costa is a famous writer who has had a decades-long affair with Martin Acla. Now Martin has had a stroke and is in a coma in his London home. His wife, Isla, is a famous portrait artist, and she, along with their three children, are at their home in London with Martin as his days wind down. 

Valeria is bereft and is desperate to see Martin again. She writes Isla, asking to have her portrait painted. This way, she can get into the house, and hopefully see Martin. Isla agrees, and Valeria temporarily moves to London to have her portrait painted. 

Valeria goes to a lot of trouble to see Martin! But he is her love, and their relationship goes back decades; they've been secret lovers almost as long as Martin and Isla have been married. Flying around the world, meeting each other for nights and weekends, Valeria and Martin had a deep connection and love for each other. Valeria knows everything about Isla's life with Martin. 

As Valeria visits the home, and sits for her portrait, she's drawn deeper into the lives of Isla and her children. Martin is only a few floors up, on a ventilator, being monitored by nurses; completely unaware his two lives have now come together. 

I kept looking at the cover; intrigued by the portrait. It's haunting, to be sure. Valeria is one complex character, as is Isla. The novel moves back and forth between the portrait sitting, Valeria's youth and her troubled relationship with her mother, to her times with Martin. She is constantly framing her life and observations into short stories (which she is famous for)-which, if you look closely, tell the tale of her love affair with Martin. 

Throughout the novel, I kept asking myself if Isla knew who Valeria was-did she know about the affair? You don't know for sure until the end, and oh my, that's a pretty good ending. It takes a bit to digest and understand how the story all comes together. You will spend time thinking about these two complex women.

A big thank you to Pegasus Books for a review copy. This is not my typical novel, but I'm so glad I had the chance to read something so character driven and complex. Author Ilaria Bernardini is a well-known Italian author, this is her first American debut. 

Rating: 4/6 for a character driven novel about grief, love, death, art, aging, life, and forgiveness. A slow build that grips you and doesn't let go. An ending that takes your breath away. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio.

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The Portrait by Ilaria Bernardini

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict

 

I first read about the real-life mystery of Agatha Christie's disappearance in 1926 a few years ago and was fascinated by it. What intrigued me the most is that no one, to this day, knows what exactly happened, and why she disappeared for eleven days in December, 1926. This lead to a wave of news media and police searching for her, fearing the worst. And yet after eleven days, she's found staying at a hotel near London, under an assumed name. 

Agatha Christie never explained her disappearance--never talked about it for the rest of her life. Instead, she went on to become the most popular author of all time, writing mysteries that defined the genre and made her so famous she still steadily sells books and has movies based on her works produced 100 years later. Amazing. 

Marie Benedict was also intrigued by this real-life mystery and decided to craft a novel around it, with a possible explanation as to the "why" of it. It's an interesting take on a mystery that will never be solved. 

This novel moves back and forth between the eleven days of Agatha's disappearance, and the years leading up to that December of 1926. The novel starts off in 1912, as Agatha meets Archie Christie at a dance. She's already engaged to another man, but Archie is boldly attracted to Agatha and pursues her. She, in turn, it captivated by this handsome man who clearly wants Agatha. He courts her, and she falls in love. They are married when Archie is fighting in World War I. Agatha helps out taking care of wounded soldiers, and this is where her knowledge of medicine and poisons comes from; her talent at writing is natural and something she has always done but never seriously. Archie starts to show his true colors-he's self-centered, demanding, and falls into depression pretty regularly. Taking her mother's terrible advice, Agatha does everything she can to be the perfect wife to Archie. 

As the years go by, Agatha loses more of herself in the process. She does all she can to keep Archie happy, and gets little in return. Even the birth of her daughter Rosalind is tempered by the knowledge that Archie must always come first. It causes permanent damage in her relationship with her daughter, who doesn't understand why her mother doesn't spend more time with her. Archie is one annoying man! 

Meanwhile, Agatha's stories are gaining in popularity. At first supportive of her writing, it's now just another thing that Agatha does that irritates Archie. She just can't win with her husband. 

And then Archie does the unforgivable, and it sets off a chain of events concluding with Agatha's reappearance, claiming amnesia. This story is just one author's imagining; it seems that Agatha left us with one mystery that we can't ever absolutely solve. 

It took me a bit to read this novel, mostly because i was a bit unsure where it was headed. I'll admit to being a touch disappointed at the final reveal as I read it. However, spending some time thinking about the ending afterwards, I will admit it is pretty clever. 

You may want to do some sleuthing of your own after reading this, and delve into the internet to read up on the real-life disappearance and reappearance of Agatha Christie in 1926. It's pretty interesting; you'll find yourself crafting your own explanation to a mystery that went to the grave with the Queen of Suspense.

Rating: 4/6 for a dive into the marriage and mystery of Agatha Christie. It's also a novel about a women finding her talent and her power to live life her way. Anyone who has read an Agatha Christie mystery or watched a movie based on her books will want to read this. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

 

I spent the New Year's weekend starting four different books and waiting for one (or more) to grab me and not let go. The Wife Upstairs was the winner! It's a quick read, and the plot loosely based on Jane Eyre gave me some idea of what to expect, although there was a twist ending to this thriller. 

I'll start out by saying I didn't like one person in this whole novel. Not one. Jane is new to Alabama, and all you really know about her is that she was in foster homes for most of her life, and now she's landed a job as a dog walker in the expensive gated community of Thornfield Estates. Jane steals bits and bobbles from the people she works for-after all, she's barely making a living, and they have so much they don't miss what she takes and pawns for extra money.

 One day, she meets Eddie, the enigmatic and handsome man who lives in Thornfield Estates and recently lost his wife in a boating incident. Bea and her friend Blanche were on a boat together one evening drinking, and the next morning, neither was anywhere to be found. Both presumed drowned in the lake. Neither body has been found. Bea owned Southern Manor, a wildly successful lifestyle business that made her a multi-millionaire many times over. Now Eddie has that business to run, as well as his own construction business. 

Jane sees an opportunity-Eddie could be the answer to her money problems. She just wants to not worry about money for once. The ladies of Thornfield Estates aren't impressed with Jane-after all, she was their dog walker. And she's only Eddie's girlfriend, not his wife. She doesn't count. 

Then things get weird. Bea makes an appearance, and holy heck she's not dead, but very much alive. I can't tell you where she is, or how she got there, but the novel moves from Jane's point of view to Bea's, too. Bits and pieces about Bea and Eddie's life together start to muddy the waters; Jane doesn't know who to believe-Eddie or Blanche's grieving husband, Tripp, who is under suspicion in the disappearance of Bea and Blanche. You'll be ping-ponging all over the place, trying to get a firm grasp on who to believe, what to believe. Caring a little bit about Jane and her safety, but also being wary of her-she's an opportunist, after all. 

I enjoyed this thriller. It definitely kept me reading, wondering how it would all play out, and what was really the truth. Kind of the perfect book to read at the beginning of 2021, right? Who knows how the year will go?

Rachel Hawkins writes young adult novels, and this is her first adult novel. I'd certainly read some of her previous works, and look forward to more thrillers from her in the future. Anyone who enjoys contemporary "marriage noir" novels will want to add this to their TBR list. 

Rating: 4/6 for a domestic thriller that is based on Jane Eyre. For all those who wonder, could there have been another ending for Jane? A twisty, turn-y novel that will have you trying to figure out who to believe with a cast of characters that all have motives and reasons to lie. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

Kingdomtide by Rye Curtis

I can't even begin to describe this novel. It was definitely not what I expected when I picked it up at the library last week. I thought it was about a woman's survival in the wild after a plane crash. Well, that's a big part of it, but there's a lot more, and most of that had me scratching my head. 

It's September, 1986 and  seventy-two year old Cloris Waldrip and her husband are flying to a small cabin in the Montana mountains for a weekend getaway. They've traveled from Texas and this is the first vacation they've really had in years. 

They never make it to the cabin. The small plane they are in crashes in the Bitterroot Range, a particularly brutal wilderness in Montana. Cloris is the only survivor. What follows is Cloris' struggle to find her way out of the wilderness and to safety. With minimal tools to help her survive, she is sure to die before help arrives. Yet somehow, Cloris finds help in the wilderness, and with her own will to survive, you know that Cloris is going to make it. Her tale, told twenty years later from ninety-two year old Cloris' apartment in a retirement home in Vermont, is astounding and shows the power of fighting to survive in the worst of circumstances. 

The other side of this story involves Ranger Debra Lewis, who lives and works in the Bitterroot Range. She's a mess--so much of a mess that I had a permanent wince on my face whenever the story turned to her. She's a divorced raging alcoholic. Lewis has bottles of merlot everywhere, and she spends her days drinking wine out of a thermos while working out of the ranger office and driving the mountain roads. It's a lonesome job, and she's got no one. She hears about the plane crash, and even though the pilot and Mr. Waldrip are found dead, Lewis is convinced Mrs. Waldrip has survived and is out in the wilderness somewhere. She decides to pull together a ragtag team of people to start a search for Mrs. Waldrip. It quickly becomes an obsession. 

I've got to say this wasn't at all the novel I expected it to be. I thought it would be a tale of one woman's survival--a woman vs. nature kind of tale. It was that, for sure, but the rest of it was just downright weird. Ranger Lewis and her motley rescue crew are all damaged people with no hope of rescue. And honestly, Lewis' consumption of merlot kind of made me queasy after awhile-and I love wine! So many lost souls. Mrs. Waldrip is one amazing lady, who looks back at her life and ponders decisions she made. She's got plenty of time to reflect, and her aloneness is so very different from Lewis and crew. 

I would love to discuss this novel and talk it out with someone else who has read it. It left me unsettled and uneasy; maybe because the theme of loneliness is overwhelming, and there isn't really a happy ending, or even a peaceful ending for any of the characters. 

Rating: 4/6 for a novel that is about human survival at the most basic level, and also survival when you are lost in the wilderness in your head. Very odd characters, but Mrs. Waldrip's epic adventure is amazing and keeps you reading. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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Kingdomtide by Rye Curtis

Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown

I zipped through this novel in a day--my first of 2020. It read very quickly, and I had a hard time putting it down. 

Why was it so compelling? I'm not sure. It's a dual storyline, between two women: Nellie in 1956, and Alice in 2018. Both are living in the same home, and married. Nellie is married to a man who swept her off her feet, and she quickly realizes he's not a nice man. Not nice at all. He wants a wife who is pretty, looks perfect all the time, cooks, cleans, and has babies. He's not afraid to use some physical force to keep her in line. 

Alice is a modern woman, who recently left her job in New York City under a cloud--although she's kept that bit of information from her husband Nate. He thinks she quit. Nate wants to move out of the city and start a family in a home set in the suburbs. Alice, very reluctantly, agrees. She's a big city lady, and used to working a lot. Nate makes enough money that she can stay home and write her novel. Alice and Nate buy the home Nellie had lived in 60 years before, and even though it needs a lot of work to modernize it, Nate loves it. Alice, not so much. While rummaging around in some boxes in the basement, she finds an old cookbook that belonged to Nellie. It's safe to say Nellie's spirit inhabits the home, and Alice slowly begins to immerse herself in the role of a housewife who gardens, cooks (out of Nellie's cookbook), and yes, even starts smoking again. She claims it's all for research on her novel, but wow, she starts to take on a lot of Nellie's personality. 

The novel moves back and forth between the two women. I liked Nellie quite a bit. She's trapped in an abusive marriage with very few options. Her friendship with the woman next door is really the only thing that keeps her sane. That and her gardening; she loves to garden and is very good at it. She thinks about her choices and regrets marrying Richard. Her life looks grand from the outside, but inside it's deeply troubling. 

Alice. Sheesh. At first I liked her, but as the story moves along, I found myself annoyed with her. She lies, and keeps lying and makes a heck of a lot of bad choices. She doesn't want to have a child right away, and can't tell Nate how she feels. Instead she's sneaky, and that leads to big issues. She has never come clean to Nate about her job, and why she was fired. She's taken up smoking, but hides it from Nate. She's so unhappy, but instead of communicating that to her husband, she just gets more resentful and keeps adding lies upon lies. 

Both women resent their roles as "housewives". Nellie really just wants to be alone with her garden. I'm not quite sure what Alice wants. I found Nellie's story to be much more interesting. While I wasn't surprised at what happened, it was fun to watch it unfold, along with Alice's dramas. I felt sorry for Nate. He seemed completely lost and clueless. He also made a really dumb mistake, but he was genuinely confused as to who Alice was becoming. My gut tells me that Nellie's spirit was influencing Alice, but it's never stated in the novel. 

I guess you could take this as a novel about women fighting to be themselves in a marriage, figuring out who they are, and working towards that happiness. Or, like me, you could just read the novel as a clever tale of one woman's revenge on an abusive husband. I was dissatisfied with the ending, because Alice and Nate are kind of left hanging. I would have liked to know more about Nellie after 1956. 

I think this would make a good book club selection. Plenty of themes to talk about, and I'm sure readers will either really like Alice, or really dislike Alice. 

Rating: 4/6 for a tale of two women, living decades apart in the same house, and the false lives they lead. Not a thriller, but an interesting look at what is expected of women as wives and mothers, and the stress it can cause a woman to try and fit into those molds. 

Available in hardcover and ebook.

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Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown

The Christmas Spirits on Tradd Street by Karen White

It's safe to say I'm a HUGE Karen White fan, and especially of her Tradd Street series. I eagerly await the next in the series, and dang it all-- I found out there's going to be just one more in the series. I'm glad, because this one ends with a bit of a cliffhanger that absolutely must be resolved. 

I don't want to give a lot away, since this is the sixth in the series. But the basics of the series I can certainly share: Melanie is a real estate agent in her hometown of Charleston. She sells a lot of old historic homes, and she loathes them, mostly because she can see and hear the dead. A town with the history of Charleston has spirits everywhere, and Melanie isn't a fan of her talent, inherited from her opera singing mother. 

Melanie's home on Tradd Street was inherited from an old man who enjoyed Melanie's company, and knew of her talents. He was convinced his home would be safe in her hands. And through this series, it is safe in her hands after she reluctantly takes ownership and begins restoration work. Of course, there are spirits, both helpful and malevolent hanging around, and Melanie has to solve the historical mysteries before someone gets hurt. Through it all is Jack Trenholm, a dashingly handsome author of historical novels, who is intrigued with Melanie's home and the possibility of writing a new novel based on the history of her home. Jack is, of course, interested in Melanie, too. The attraction between the two moves through all six of the books, and I guess I'm not giving anything away when you see that by this novel, they're happily married, with toddler twins. But the course of love and marriage doesn't run smooth, mostly because Melanie's upbringing left her with some trust issues. Those trust issues drive the plot toward an ending that had me anxious for Melanie, and completely irritated at her, too. 

This sixth novel finds Melanie again dealing with some really unhappy spirits who seem to have been stirred up by the excavation of an old cistern in her back yard. She sees a man with no eyes, a bloody shirt, and some pretty serious anger issues hanging around upstairs, and she just knows trouble is around the corner. Juggling her family, her job, her marriage, and her insecurities, along with the latest threat from Marc Longo, a total jerk who is out to take Melanie's home away from her...well, it's all a big pot that will boil over, with unexpected consequences. 

I rarely, if ever, finish a series. They tend to "jump the shark" about half-way through and I lose interest. This is one series I will read until the end. I absolutely love it. Melanie has come a long way, but she still has moments of annoyance that make me want to shake her! I love the full cast of characters--her parents, her sister, her friends, and yes, even her enemy Marc. Jack is pretty yummy, too. I love the blend of history and paranormal, and of course Charleston is on my list of places to visit. It all combines to make a series that will remain one of my favorites. I don't know how I'm going to wait for the final book in the series! 

And yes, I would recommend reading the series in order, because so much of what happens develops over time, and it will make more sense if you follow the books in order--especially to see the developing relationship between Melanie and Jack, and Melanie and her mother. 

Rating 5/6 for an interesting historical plot about a Revolutionary War spy ring, ghosts, clues, and a race to put it all together. A satisfying addition to the Tradd Street series. Loved it! 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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The Christmas Spirits on Tradd Street by Karen White

The Ingredients of Us by Jennifer Gold

Sometimes a book that you think is going to check off of all your boxes ends up being one that leaves you with a lingering feeling of disappointment and dissatisfaction.  The Ingredients of Us was one of those books. Maybe I went into the book thinking it was going to be a fun-filled novel about a baker, and recipes, and a bit lighthearted, with just enough drama to keep it from being sappy. 

Instead, I struggled to finish it, and it took me a few weeks. It's the story of Elle and Tom, married for 8 years, and Elle has recently discovered Tom has had an affair. A busy woman with a popular bakery, she's consumed by her love of baking--so much so that it usually takes priority in her life, even over Tom. Feeling neglected, he cheats. And this is the main plot of the novel--how they cope with his infidelity while deciding if saving their marriage is something they want to do. 

We see their relationship from the earliest stages up to the days and weeks following Elle's discovery of the affair. While it was important to understand where they came from as a couple, it was a bit too much bouncing back and forth, back and forth, between "7 years and 3 days before Elle finds out" to "Four weeks after Elle finds out". I'm never one to complain about plots zipping back and forth between the before and the after, but this seemed a bit overdone. The  looks back were a bit all over the place, so it was hard to settle in and see where in the relationship Elle and Tom were and what it had to do with what was going on in present time. One big issue was children--Tom wanted them, and Elle wasn't ready. Was she ever going to be ready? It's a pretty big deal, and I'm not really sure it was ever laid to rest as I turned the last page. 

So while I was looking for a lighthearted read, I didn't find it here. The recipes and baked goods sounded divine, but the writing of the recipes seemed completely at odds with the tone of the novel--they seemed a bit out of place. 

This wasn't the read I was expecting it to be, and maybe it's my fault for being disappointed in the result. If you want to read about a marriage and all the trials and troubles that add to it, and potentially destroy it, this is the novel for you. It just wasn't my jam. 

Rating: 2/6 for a novel about two people navigating the choppy waters of infidelity. Too much jumping around was jarring, and the bakery setting and foodie parts didn't seem to jive with the seriousness of the rest of the novel. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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The Ingredients of Us by Jennifer Gold

The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Well.  I told myself I wouldn't read anymore of the husband/wife/marriage/insanity/thriller genre that has become so dominant since Gone, Girl (which I haven't read, but I know the story).  I read a few last year that were pretty good, but I was satisfied with those few and decided that there wasn't much more that could be done that would surprise or even interest me.

Enter The Wife Between Us.  I seriously underestimated this novel.  While I did figure out one of the big twists early on, there were a few other twists that I didn't figure out, and when they were revealed, I looked like this: 

via GIPHY


The story is told through alternating voices:  Vanessa and Nellie.  Vanessa is a mess.  She's divorced from Richard, living with her Aunt Charlotte in New York City, and is an alcoholic.  She works as a personal shopper at Saks and struggles to get to work on time and actually be present while she's there.  Her life is an unending routine of depression, sneaky drinking, and popping sleeping pills to conquer her insomnia.  She's not very likable.  She also seems obsessed with the woman who is newly engaged to Richard, and will be marrying him soon.

Nellie is a young, newly engaged woman who works as a preschool teacher in New York City.  She's excited and a bit nervous about leaving her job and her apartment to begin a new married life with...Richard.  He's nine years older, suave, handsome, and a big muckity muck who makes some serious cash in the New York financial world.  He is kind but controlling.

Vanessa, I wasn't a big fan for a big chunk of the book. I always have anger issues with female characters who let life rattle their cages so much that they become incapable of getting out of bed. I just wanted to shout at her.  Until I figured things out. Nellie certainly seemed very likable, but I felt sorry for her struggle to be herself while learning how to operate in Richard's much more sophisticated world. The issues she'd had in college that made her afraid to be alone and pretty much uneasy at every little noise made me think she just needed a good "put your big girl panties on and deal with it" kick in the pants.  I was wrong. I'd like to insert a swear word here: _______ you, Richard. You'll see. Just read the book. 

There are some pretty good twists in this story.  I can't possibly even begin to reveal anything at all, because I want you to enjoy the moments of discovery.  There's so much going on; I was constantly mentally apologizing to Vanessa and Nellie for thinking badly about them.  Yes, I was apologizing to fictitious women.  I will say, the ending is satisfactory, sad, and creepy.  The epilogue is a cherry on top of the sundae.  There are a whole lot of power struggles, mental manipulations, and just plain scare tactics happening throughout the story.  I know I'm being vague, but just trust me.  Read the book.  You'll enjoy it.  You'll especially enjoy the changes in Vanessa.  She finally walked past her fear and took control.  Bravo.

This novel will be for sale in the United States on Tuesday, January 9th.  Available in hardcover and ebook.  

Rating:  5/6 for a very clever novel about marriage, relationships, and the damage we do to each other. Fantastic--read it!
Thank you to St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy.

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The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Don't Worry, Life is Easy by Agnes Martin-Lugand

I was thrilled to be able to read this sequel to Happy People Read and Drink Coffee (click on the link to read my review from 2016), because quite frankly the tale of Diane and Edward was so powerful I couldn't wait to find out what happens next.  If you haven't read Happy People, I'm going to probably spoil a few things for you, so beware.

Translated from French, this sequel picks up a year after Diane returns to Paris from Ireland.  Her bookstore is doing well after Diane renews her commitment to making it a success.  Her life has a routine; her grief has subsided.  Her feelings for Edward, however, are still pretty strong, and her time in Ireland and the people she met remain on her mind.  Felix, her best friend, is still a delightful character who can be counted on to keep things light.  

Diane has been going out on dates, and they're all pretty horrible.  Listening to the tales my dating friends tell me, it's amusing to read about similar experiences in Paris, the City of Love.  Bad dates happen everywhere!  But Diane does meet Olivier...a kind, quiet, handsome man who is very patient with Diane.  He's safe, and doesn't stir her wild emotions as Edward did in Ireland.  And who's to say safe is a bad thing, after the emotional devastation Diane has gone through?  

One night out, Diane and Olivier run into Edward, who's visiting Paris for a photography exhibition.  Diane is shaken, and her feelings for Edward are still strong.  She finds out his Aunt Abby is ill, and decides to travel back to Ireland to visit her.  

I'll stop there.  I won't give any more away.  I will tell you that this sequel is just as good as the first novel.  Agnes succeeded in reducing me to a sobbing mess more than once.  She writes so beautifully; simply said but so impactful.  Spare, but packs a punch.  You are wishing so much for Diane and Edward to find a way; can two people who live in different countries, are both emotionally damaged, and so wary find happiness together?  

It's a quick read, but one that will stay with you for quite some time after you've turned the last page.  It is one of my favorite reads for 2017. Both novels remind us that life can be so very painful, unfair, and dark.  But if we are brave enough, it can also be pretty wonderful, too.  

Thank you to Hachette Books for a chance to read this book ahead of publication.  Also a huge thank you to Roslan & Campion for giving me the opportunity to talk about this wonderful author once again.   

Don't Worry, Life is Easy will be available May 2nd in the U.S. in hardcover and ebook.  But you must read Happy People first!

Rating:  5/6 for a sequel that is just as good as the original novel about  finding the sunshine in life after devastating loss. 

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Don't Worry, Life is Easy by Agnes Martin-Lugand

At the Water's Edge by Sara Gruen

I've been missing my historical fiction, so I was glad to pull this off my bookshelf and dive into it.  Of course I read Water for Elephants years ago; if I remember correctly, I even read the hardcover on the way to Chicago to visit a museum exhibit with my sister Pam.  I did attempt to read this book when it first came out, but I admit I tried and just didn't get into it.  

Now, a year later, it's in paperback, and I forgot I'd tried to read it before and bought the paperback last month.  I think the cover is so striking you can't help but pick it up.  So glad the publisher kept the same cover from the hardcover version to the paperback.  What drew me to this book, besides the cover?  Well, the Loch Ness Monster, of course.  If it's a book that involves anything "mysterious", I'm ready to read.  

There were many comments I've read about this story in which people were disappointed and unimpressed.  I, however, am happy to say I found it a compelling read and had a hard time being patient when work and other tasks (sleep) kept me away from it.  No, there isn't a lot of action in this novel, but instead it is the growth of Maddie's spirit that moves the storyline.  

Maddie is a young woman married to Ellis Hyde, the son of a prosperous Philadelphia man and his socially conscious wife.  They can't stand Maddie, who's mother, while rich, was known as a beautiful flirt, and a crazy one at that.  Unhappily married to Maddie's father, she made Maddie's life hell, and poor Maddie grew up completely unloved by either parent.  She thought she'd found love with Ellis, but was vaguely dissatisfied with her young marriage, and terrified of her mother-in-law and her obvious disdain for Maddie.  Ellis and his best pal Hank are two men who have been kept out of World War 2 by color-blindness (Ellis) and flat feet (Hank).  They spend their days in Philadelphia sleeping away nights of drinking and partying, with no cares in the world.  Soon enough, Ellis makes a giant drunken mistake at a party, and his parents kick him and Maddie out of their home, leaving them with lots of luggage and little else.  In a desperate bid to redeem himself, Ellis decides they will travel to Scotland--in the middle of World War 2--and find the Loch Ness monster.  Ellis' father had years previously done the same thing, and had been humiliated after claiming proof of the monster's existence.

With nowhere to go, Maddie travels to Scotland with Ellis and Hank.  Their reception in a remote village on the banks of the loch is chilly and they aren't made very welcome.  Maddie, stuck at the inn while Ellis and Hank go off in attempts to spot the monster, slowly begins to form friendships with the women who help at the inn:  Anna and Meg.  And there is the mysterious Angus, who runs the inn.  How is he connected to the headstone in the local cemetery, which bears the sad dates of a baby and mother who died just a few months apart?  

The main point of this novel is the evolution of Maddie, who comes to Scotland a cowed and unsure young woman with no control over her life and at the mercy of other people.  Her relationship with her husband undergoes a dramatic turn, and as Maddie finds out, sometimes monsters are all around us.  World War 2 is a big part of this novel, but mostly in the food rations and night time air raids Maddie experiences.  And of course, there is the suspicion by all that Ellis and Hank are perfectly health for combat, and are actually cowards.  You'll have to read At the Water's Edge to get the whole story!

Rating: 7/10 for a solid story about one woman's search for herself set against the wilds of Scotland and World War 2.  The Loch Ness monster is a background character, but adds a few surprising twists to the story.  I would recommend this as a good book club read. 

Available in hardcover, paperback, e-book, and audio book. 

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At the Water's Edge by Sara Gruen

Hausfrau by Jill Alexander Essbaum

It's hard to read a book when the main character is unlikeable and unsympathetic.  Hausfrau is one of those books that sucks you in even as you wonder aloud "Why am I reading this book?!"  

Anna Benz is an American living in Switzerland with her Swiss husband Bruno and her three children:  Victor, Charlie, and baby Polly Jean.  She's lived there for 9 years, and still doesn't drive and struggles with the language.  

Anna also has lots of affairs with pretty much every man she meets, and is extremely unhappy in her life.  It's a head scratcher, to be sure.  She's got a husband who loves her, three great kids, and a pretty sweet life.  But she's not happy, and Anna really has never been happy her whole life.  A past affair looms large in her mind as her perfect love.  But was it, or is she projecting too much on a brief affair that ended years ago?  And what exactly is she so darn unhappy about?

I can tell you Anna is not someone you really care about.  She acts without thinking about the consequences, and wanders through her days in a fog.  She sees a therapist, who struggles with Anna to find a breakthrough.  And Anna plays her part, pasting a smile on her face, and going through her life unable to share any of her secrets with anyone around her.  Not even her therapist knows what Anna's been up to in her life.  

It's inevitable that Anna is on a collision course, but as the reader, you have no idea what or when.  You just know it's coming, and you can't put down the book until you find it.  And it's a doozy.  Maybe, at the end, you shut the book and think, "Well, I saw that coming from the beginning."  And maybe you won't.  I'll say the last half of the book is particularly sad as Anna deals with the inevitable crumbling of herself and her life.  I was surprised at how much the last part of Anna's story affected me emotionally.  It was, quite simply, painfully heartbreaking.  

Be prepared for an emotional roller coaster ride.  Love Anna, hate Anna, understand or not, Anna's journey as a hausfrau is one you will want to discuss with others.  It would make an excellent reading group pick.  

Rating:  8/10 for a main character that will force you to engage in her life whether you care for her or not.  Some graphic sexual language, but it fits into the scheme of this novel.  The end will haunt you.  

Available in hardcover and e-book.

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Hausfrau by Jill Alexander Essbaum

Sisters of Shiloh by Kathy & Becky Hepinstall

The Civil War has been popping up all over my bookshelves the past year and I'm happy to say I've managed to finish one of the many books waiting for me at home.  There is something about the Civil War that fascinates me and I can't remember a time when I didn't love to read about it. Perhaps I saw Gone with the Wind too many times as a child!  

Kathy and Becky Hepinstall have written a tale of two sisters fighting for the Confederates in the Civil War.  Sisters of Shiloh is a beautifully written novel that captures the horrors of a war where sacrifices for love were made every day, both at home and in battle.  

Josephine and Libby are two sisters; Libby is the beautiful younger sister; Josephine is the "plain one".  Libby marries Arden, who I'm convinced would have become a horrible abuser if he'd survived the Civil War.  Unfortunately, he signs up on the Confederate side, and during the Battle of Antietam, he's gravely injured.  Libby, convinced she must see him to make sure he's safe, pulls Josephine along and into the thick of the battle.  Josephine finds Arden in the woods, dying.  Before Libby can make it to his side, he's dead.  Only Josephine knows what really happened:  did she help him on his way, or did he die from his wounds?  Libby becomes obsessed with avenging Arden's death and decides she will join the Confederate army disguised as a boy, and kill 21 Yankees--one for every year Arden lived.  Josephine won't let Libby go alone, so both cut their hair, practice their deep voices, and join the Confederate army.  Will they survive?

There's much more to this story, of course.  I won't tell you everything, you've got to read it to discover what happens to Josephine and Libby.  Does Arden continue to haunt Libby in her quest for revenge?  Will Josephine ever reveal what happened that day in the woods?  I loved this book!  The Hepinstall sisters write so beautifully, it's hard to put down.  I found myself lingering over the pages.  The destruction of war is played out against the love of family, the love of country, and the love of sisters who may be at odds with each other, but will do whatever it takes to help each other survive.  

Rating:  8/10 for a powerful story of love and revenge set against the American Civil War.  

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio.

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Sisters of Shiloh by Kathy & Becky Hepinstall

Family Pictures by Jane Green

I read Jemima J years and years ago, and loved it.  It made me a Jane Green fan.  I haven't read all of her books, but quite a few.  I can say I'm a bit disappointed in Family Pictures.  There.  I said it.  

Family Pictures is about two women:  Sylvie and Maggie.  Sylvie lives in California with her teen daughter Eve, her husband Mark, and a lovely home.  Married eleven years, Sylvie is getting restless, knowing her daughter will be leaving for college soon.  An artistic and creative woman, Sylvie starts making homemade candles to give to her mother, a very narcissistic, demanding woman living in a nursing home.  Her marriage to Mark is good:  he travels to New York every week, and days will go by without Sylvie hearing from him--because he is so darn busy. She has no reason to suspect him of anything, because he is such a good guy.

Maggie lives in Connecticut, has three gorgeous kids, lives in a big house, and has been married to her husband Mark for 25 years.  She's worked hard to put her poor and abusive childhood behind her, and works day and night organizing charity functions, shopping, and looking good.  Her husband travels a lot to California.  Sometimes she can't get a hold of him for days.  But that's ok.  He's a wonderful man.  She's so lucky.

Husband.  Travels. A lot.  Is out of touch frequently.  Duh!!

So it's no surprise to find out Mark is married to the two women.  It all comes tumbling down when Eve visits a Facebook friend in New York, meets Grace (Mark and Maggie's daughter), and gets invited to her house.  And there Eve finds the horrible truth.  Doom, doom doom.

Ok.  There's a lot of stuff going on in this story, but I had a hard time not snorting over the unbelieveable ignorance of both women, and the fantasy lives they both lived.  Seriously! Do people live like this? I'll keep my tiny house, books, and small circle of good friends, thank you very much.  Mark's character just falls out of sight.  Once he's used to move the plot to its pivot point, he's out of the picture.  

I'm not telling you everything about this novel, because there is much more to discover.  I read it in a day, and must admit I had a hard time putting it down because it is such a fantasy world.  Too pat.  So read it for pure escapism and unfortunately, little else.  I will continue to read Jane Green, and hope this is just a one time not so hot novel.  

Rating:  4/10 for an completely unrealistic plot and characters who were just too good to be true.  

Available in paperback and ebook.
 

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Family Pictures by Jane Green

Some Girls, Some Hats, and Hitler by Trudi Kanter

I came across this book as I was wandering the biography section at work last week.  The cover immediately grabbed my attention, as did the title.  Once I began reading it, I couldn't put it down.  Trudi has such a wonderful voice.

 Trudi Kanter is  a vibrant, fun loving young woman who owned her own millinery business and was newly in love with Walter, a handsome Jewish man.  Life was good for Trudi.  Until Hitler invaded Austria in 1938.  

Trudi realized very quickly that her background (her father was Jewish) created a very dangerous situation for her and for Walter, who was well-known by many (and the grandson of a rabbi).  Walter is reluctant to leave, even as weekly commands regarding Jewish citizens slowly squeeze them of their livelihood, homes, and lives.  Trudi desperately works to get herself and Walter out of Austria and into England, where they hope they'll be safe.  Her parents are also on Trudi's mind, as she continues to look for ways to get them out of Austria, too.  

This book is about Trudi's tenaciousness, boldness, and unending determination to save Walter and her parents.  And even after leaving Austria, the story continues as they live in London during World War 2 and face discrimination and struggle to survive daily bombings and the suspicions of a nation.  

Trudi first wrote her memoir in the 1980's.  It was published, quickly forgotten and went out of print.  Trudi died in 1992, the last of her family.  And now her memoir is back in print, thanks to Ursula Doyle, an editor who discovered Trudi's memoir in a bookstore, read it, and carried it with her until she could finally republish it.  

I absolutely loved Trudi.  She's funny, fierce, bitchy, jealous, and so alive in these pages.  She loves Walter so deeply it makes you sigh.  And she shows that in spite of the beautiful hats and clothes, a woman's strength should never be underestimated.  She's an admirable character.  I wish I could have met her.

I read reviews about this book, and some people loved it and Trudi; others thought the writing was all over the place and Trudi was a petulant, bitchy woman.  I completely disagree!  I loved the writing--she wrote it as she remembered it, and the style reminds me of a journal.  It's a quick read, yet Trudi's writing puts you in her apartment, hiding with Walter, as riots fill the streets.  Her terror and fear at what is happening in Vienna are vivid and they will suck you into her life pretty quickly.  

Read Trudi's story.  It's a different take on the Jewish experience in Europe during World War 2.  Here's a picture of her book as it appeared in hardcover:

Rating:  8/10 for a vividly alive Trudi and her ability to convey the terror of being Jewish in Austria in 1938.  

Available in paperback and ebook.  

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Some Girls, Some Hats, and Hitler by Trudi Kanter

The Longest Date: Life as a Wife by Cindy Chupack

There are still people out there that think it's the finding someone and falling in love part that is hard.  Marriage is the easy part, right?

Cindy Chupack writes about marriage in her new book, The Longest Date: Life as a Wife.  Cindy finds herself meeting Ian in her late 30's and falling in love and marrying at the age of 40.  Ian sounds like a heck of a catch--funny, smart, romantic, and enough bad boy to make a woman want to run in the opposite direction.  But the two are a great match and soon Ian is moving to California and into Cindy's beach house.  Periods of adjustment are expected in a new marriage--especially when you get married a bit later in life.  Cindy writes about all of these things with a comic flair that I think anyone can relate to and understand completely.  Cindy's marriage undergoes a bit more stress and heartbreak as she and Ian struggle to have a child and go through all the endless tests and options open to people wanting to add to their family.  And especially moving is Ian's chapter on his feelings about a particularly stressful  time in their marriage that shows just how much he loves his wife and is affected by this bump in the road.  I don't want to give anything away, so you'll just have to read this to the end and find out if Ian and Cindy are successful in their quest to have a child.

In the meantime, if you're just getting married, or even thinking about it, this is a great book to read.  Cindy is funny--and yet she manages to bring across the mixed emotions that accompany such a huge change in life--that of marrying the person you love most, and then having to blend two lives. And pick up dirty clothes off the floor.  And rise to the challenge of keeping it all interesting through even the most mundane days.  And being okay with not having things just so anymore.  

Rating:  7/10 for a refreshing and honest look at marriage and all the joys and challenges that come with sharing life and home with your spouse.

Available in hardcover and e-book.
Thanks to Penguin Books for a preview copy!

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The Longest Date: Life as a Wife by Cindy Chupack